The Naughty but Nice November NSD Challenge

MissE001

Hi lovely NSD gang:A
As you can see there is lots of activity on this challenge at the moment and it can be difficult sometimes to see how many NSDs you're all declaring on posts.
Could we ask you to highlight your number of NSDs in a colour and in bold so that we can see them easily when we whizz through the posts - red would be best but we don't really mind as long as we can see the numbers easily.


Some helpful suggestions and ideas to follow below from our sponsor and godmother, BigMummaF :A

NO SPEND CHALLENGE.

1. Have a good, long think about what YOU want to include in your Spend & Excluded categories.
Some of us count everything from Direct Debits & school expenses, while others do not include things like essential Bills or emergency medical costs. If you plan what is or is not a Spend for you now, it will help you decide on a realistic Target.
2. It is NOT a race!
We all have very different demands on our time & bank balance, so please do not think you have to buy everything on 1st January & make it last till 31st December! A few of us have been following this Challenge for a long...long...LONG time so have developed plans & ploys to help us along the way
3. Most important of all, WE..DO..NOT..FAIL!
Sometimes we can't quite reach our Target, but that is fine Everyone knows how Life will try to trip us up, & that is when you will find us here to help you back on to your feet.

OK, an idea of how some of us do things.
1. What you will or will not include as a 'Spend'.
Some people are doing other challenges too, & don't include the money spent on those for this one.
Some will try to shop for other bits on the days their direct debits etc go out of their bank accounts; they're the real hard core of the bunch & have been l-o-n-g time Nsders so don't panic
Some won't count those annoying last minute demands from school & collections as you can't plan for them in advance, likewise emergency prescriptions or visits to the vet
Personally speaking & providing I don't buy anything else, I don't count parking for hospital appointments.(..but then I usually do my shopping because I'm already out :whistle:)
General thoughts on €bay sales is the buyer has paid P&P so no cost to you
2. It takes Time to reach mega-numbers!
The First suggestion is the first, because a bit of planning will work wonders on your road to your Target. Have a look at thefirst posts each month for a hefty list of other threads that may be of help. For example, there's a few giving ideas for packed lunches so you can avoid standing in the queue at the bakers for 45mins of your lunch hour! A good incentive to tweak your healthy eating & the pounds you save will show in your bank balance AND your waistline
It helps to have various 'money pots' for the different costs that happen like Scouts, dinner money, yoga, window cleaner etc etc. The idea is you "spend" all that money in one hit by..:think:..let's say **putting the week's bus fares into the pretty coffee jar, Jo's tumble tots SIZE=2]Weds mornings[/SIZE in the cracked teapot & Ben's £1 coin for the gym locker SIZE=2]Friday lunch[/SIZE in the pocket of the changing bag, on Tuesdays every week when you've got some change from doing the food shop, so an already spendy day. At least four 'spending days' condensed into one (**mine's jam jars for windows, milkman & a bit towards the bills!)
3. Any day the money stays in your pocket is a bonus!
If you look at it as a day you beat the system, you can't help but :j so don't fret it--ENJOY! If nothing else in here, we do manage find something to make us smile

We have virtual outings to wonderful places that never cost us a bean :rotfl:New York, Edinburgh & Brighton have been a couple & Spoon usually pilots the Tardis but you can use your own transport; my personal favourite has been a sit-on lawn mower borrowed from the cricket club The only thing to be aware of is Hubert the donkey who is partial to anything remotely edible but is not yet house-trained

And Remember;
there are no silly questions, so don't be afraid to ask us anything!

beanielou

MissE~Sending you lots of positive vibes for tomorrow

strandedinaber

NSD #5 and 2 in a row for me! Hoping that I can make it through 'til the end of the week and grab my 5 in a row...

EverTheOptimist

Update 11th Nov

Evening everyone,

AnnieBox - great stuff grabbing NSD # 5 & 6. Well done. :j:j And drum roll.... WELL DONE ON ACHIEVING YOUR TARGET OF 6 NSD. :staradmin
Suziebabe -well done on achieving NSD # 4 :j:j. Great start to the month. Keep going.
beanie - well done on NSD # 7. :j:j
Fedup - NSD # 9. :j:j Well done. Bring on number 10 eh!!
MissE001 - well done on NSD # 3. :j:j wishing you lots of good luck for your interview. And thank you for updating the first pages.
Pinknfluffy - NSD # 6 for you. :j:j Excellent work.
Getting-there-slowly - well done on NSD 5. :j:j
Kayester - good work grabbing NSD # 8. :j:j.
Bottleofred - well done on NSD # 6 :j:j Hope you enjoyed circuits.
Beth2242 - congratulations on nabbing NSD # 5 & 6. :j:j Great start to the week. Here's to grabbing more before the weeks over.
AlexLK - well done for achieving NSD # 2. :j:jOn a roll now. Still plenty of time to grab more.
Charleybear - good news on NSD # 7 & 8. :j:j. sorry you're not feeling so well though. Hope you feel better soon.
L2B - fantastic achievement declaring NSD # 8 :j:j what a great start to the month.
Stripeyjumpergirl - well done on NSD # 4 & 5. :j:j
Cardi80 - well done to you too on NSD # 4 & 5. :j:j
Slowlyfading - a brilliant NSD # 7 declared. :j:j Well done you.
Butti - well done on NSD # 3. Keep it up. And stay away from the alcohol/ shops.
Strandedinaber - good news on NSD # 5 and 2-in-a-row. Stick with it, you're doing a great job.

And me
ETO - NSD # 6 for me. :j:j and although I don't set a target I have achieved 3-in-a-row. First time ever. :j:j

Hey to...

Sazzie - Thanks for the in-a-row update.
Kate_fixing_it - good luck with grabbing more NSD's his week. And well done for keeping within budget.

Hope everyone's well. Hope I haven't missed anyone out.

Sazzie23

Evening everyone,

Thanks MissE & ETO - brilliant teamwork.
Can't believe its the 11th and I have totally lost count again.

I know that today was definitely spendy as met friend for lunch & paid, even though it was with money from my £2 coins stash.
I will have to sit down with my diary as I'm sure I had some unexpected spends due to socialising.

Enjoy the rest of the week

joedenise

I managed another NSD yesterday so now up to #8/10. Looks like I'll be increasing my target again shortly. It's hard to believe I've managed 8 NSDs when it's only 12th of the month.

Denise

beanielou

Hoping for NSD no 8 today.

flubberyzing

It wasn't a NSD for me yesterday. I went into town on the bus and had lunch with my sister. It was my turn to pay. And then bought a few Christmas pressies. And heard my first xmas song in a shop. Darn you M&S!

pinknfluffy28

Looks as though my NSD's are going to be on hold this week. Have to re-post an order that never arrived (grrrrr!) and also plan on doing a little bit of Christmas shopping this week whilst dh is away. Am hoping to get back on track by the weekend though

Kate_fixing_it

Grrrrr I thought I'd planned ahead so I could have few NSDs starting today but need to pick up some bits I missed when grocery shopping. I could kick myself!

But after today I'm determined to not open the purse strings again until the weekend! I'm actually going to put aside the £1 coin for SW raffle tickets today so I'm all set for 2 or 3 in a row...children permitting

Still on track for 15 this month even though I have to spend today

Kate x