Here we go again. LBM number a million

millionaire_in_training

I did indeed.......again :mad:

Just gone through my spending diary and so far this month I have spent £568.45 , £270.09 of that is on household shopping :eek:. In saying that it averages at £67.52 per week so for 3 adults it's not too bad. I need to get it down further though.

Next month should be a cheaper one as DS is off for the Easter holidays and also then off for study leave for his highers. He might be heading in some of the days over the holidays for extra study. I need to pin him down to what he will be doing.

My monthly allowance for the frugal challenge is £475. This includes £50 for Christmas ( now Murcia fund ) £50 for gifts, £100 petrol, £130-50 for DS school costs and balance for everything else. I have failed miserable this month :rotfl:. To be honest though if I get down to the £475 by end of the year I will be delighted. I'm just not managing to overpay a penny to anything. It's !!!!. I'm like the swan- calm on top and feet going like the clappers under the water.

I'll just keep swimming !!

Rollercoaster_Rach

Oh MIT I've overspent by £375 this month :eek: mostly due to unbudgeted for guttering £200.....

Will do better next month x

millionaire_in_training

Actually I have had another wee look and last month I overspent by £379 and so far this month by £143.45 so far so I have done a bit better. So this month I am going to try and get to under £100. It is DD's birthday this month and I have already spent £100 on her for half of her ticket to T in the park . I will get her a couple of bits and bobs for opening on the day but it will not be very much. She knows this though.

So I've not listed freezer contents yet but I'll do that later on when fridge is defrosted . Kitchen is rather damp just now as it was so bad. It' getting there though.

Once I do that I'll try and do a menu for next month right through and between ALDI and ASDA this week with my vouchers and my £25 free shopping I will see how far I can stretch it. I have quite a few pre-cooked dinners already in the freezer.

Making chicken and gravy, with mash and sprouts for dinner. I am starving as back on healthy eating today. Be back later xx

in_need_of_direction

Best of luck on pinning down a teenage boy with regard to his plans. I'd say tackling the debt will appear easy compared to that challenge!

millionaire_in_training

:rotfl:INOD you are so right

Well moneywise things may not be as black as I painted them. I forgot DD owed me loads this month so that has brought me back into the black. My friend owes me £50 as well for her flights balance. So I should be able to pay something to my CC. If I can pay £75 then I will hit my target. In fact I am just going to do that right now. So woohoo target met after all and a £75 overpayment. If only the CSA would come up trumps now then I would be laughing.

So a day of housework and studying today for me. I need to try and catch up. If I feel fine later then DS and I might head up and do our cleaning job and that means I have weekend free. So a busy wee day ahead.

Had typed there that I was going to try and not buy any shopping this weekend but I deleted it lol as that would not be possible for me.

So I've paid £120 to CC. That's money DD paid back that she used ( she's a 2nd cardholder) and £75. I am happy now

DS just called me and some skank has hacked into his bank account. So annoying but they would have got nothing as he is only 16 with a basic account that he rarely uses so ha ha thieving b's.

Ok am off to do housework xx

millionaire_in_training

Been cleaning since last post :eek:. Stopped for a plate of HM soup at 12.30 and then kept going. Lounge, kitchen, downstairs hall and staircase are now dust free, cobweb free, hoovered and mopped. I love it when the house gets all tidied. It makes me sunny

I am heading to pick DS up from his bus. He will get off between here and school ( about 6 miles away) and we will head up to work. I will no doubt be shattered but at least I will have the whole weekend free. I am so looking forward to it. I have a fair bit of study to catch up on so I can do that on Sunday.

So hopefully only spend I will have today will be window cleaners. Am going to order a fruit box, a salad box and a breakfast pack to be delivered tomorrow. That'll cost £32 but you get loads from it and a full lorne sausage which is about 15 slices. I only need a few things from ALDI but I will make sure I spend £40 so I can get my £5 off. I am going to stock up on hand wash with my £5 so I get it for free . I'm going to use most of the other vouchers as well as they are good buys. Other than that it's just basics as I have got our menu done for the week and I have most things in already. freezers will be empty after it mind you :eek:


Menu

Today- Shepherds Pie ( already cooked)
Saturday- Pork chow mein
Sunday- Sticky chicken and savoury rice
Monday- Gammon steaks, mash and veg
Tuesday- Chilli ( already cooked)
Wednesday- HM Burgers and chips
Thursday- Spag bol ( already cooked)
Friday- Shepherds pie ( already cooked)

B/fasts will be toast/ cereal/ eggs/ bacon etc
Lunches will be soups, salads, rice

So pretty much organised now and I feel much happier.

millionaire_in_training

Work done and I am done in!! Totally shattered and frozen. Shepherds pie and turnip has heated me up nicely and I am not moving again tonight xx

Ali-OK

Well done on the CC payment and a weekend freed up to enjoy - plus your studying.

I am waaay behind on house work - tip does indeed describe my house at the moment, but love it when it's all done.

Meal plan looks great, what is Sticky Chicken? I need to get mince out in a mo to defrost to make a batch chilli tomorrow - you've just reminded me to do that.

Hope you're feeling much better too

millionaire_in_training

I'm grand Ali. Just tired. My house was minging as been neglected for weeks. Still have upstairs to do but that won't take long as I do not enter the 2 teenage zones. I am brave but not that brave. I swear when DS moves out I will just take his room back to bare, bleach it and start again :rotfl:

Sticky chicken is just a wee cheat. I bought a maggi sauce thing and will make that.

I made a massive batch of soup last night. No batch cooking getting done this week. We are going to use up the previous batch cooked stuff this week and try and keep the grocery budget down down down.

Need to buy DS shoes tomorrow as he has an interview for college on Tuesday and his shoes are wrecked. Never mind. He likes wearing proper shoes ( weirdo lol) so he will get good use out of them. He's informed me tonight that his school bus is going up again by £1 per week. Another reason to hope he gets into college.

I'm sitting here laughing and crying at gogglebox. I love that programme

Ali-OK

Great to hear you're feeling better. Tiredness is horrible. I forced myself to do a recky mission (having got the mince out ) and alot of stuff is back in its rightful place.

I enter DS's bedroom at my peril - I can manage to dust the top of his tv, top of his lamp and alarm clock and to hoover the 3ft square of carpet where his door opens...beyond that, it's his pig-sty to live in :rotfl: He's behaving like a girl though...trying casual clothes on to go out in and leaving them in a pile :mad: I've just re-stocked his drawers with them - can't open his wardrobe door, too much carp infront of it :eek:

DS loves wearing proper shoes too, I think it looks smarter - unless with jog bottoms and then I insist on his trainers or won't be seen with him :rotfl:

Loving the sticky chicken 'recipe' - that's my kind of cooking

When I read your 'plate of soup' I thought that will be a small portion size, you must be focussing on your diet and grocery spending . I don't like soup - well out of a can anyway, not tried home-made. Is it less liquid and more bulk? I tend to be rather sick with alot of liquid (sorry TMI).