Apple muncher's number crunching

apple_muncher

I have very nearly reached an extra £400 offthe mortgage this month - yippee!

So I then got out the calculator - no speadsheets here, I'm afraid! - and did some playing around.

I had a goal to pay x into savings and y off the mortgage this year. Both targets have been surpassed. So between now and 31 Dec, I shall not put any more into savings (we have enough for 3+ months in there) but shall shift it all off the mortgage instead.

There is a possibility that we can get into the £59s... Mega excited!

apple_muncher

Tomorrow shall entail:

- get dd a magazine
- do local 2 ch shops
- do local coffee shop
- do aldee shop
- cut out 4 bunnies plus any remaining bits needed for incomplete ones
- colours wash
- sweep floors
- do some baking
- spend 30 mins on emails
- phone up about dd's party
- knit 4 stripes of dd's jumper
- paint clay - if dry
- paint branches for fair

Enough! Off to nodland.

apple_muncher

apple_muncher wrote: »

Tomorrow shall entail:

- get dd a magazine :T
- do local 2 ch shops :T
- do local coffee shop :T
- do aldee shop :T
- cut out 4 bunnies plus any remaining bits needed for incomplete ones (:T - 3 done)
- colours wash
- sweep floors
- do some baking
- spend 30 mins on emails
- phone up about dd's party
- knit 4 stripes of dd's jumper (:T 3 done)
- paint clay - if dry
- paint branches for fair

Enough! Off to nodland.

A big aldee shop - used voucher - has put me well over this month's budget. Hmmm. 220 really should be enough! However, the cupboards are all full, as is the fridge. Freezer's 3/4 full of dd's bread, which obviously gets eaten, but then gets re-filled, so I am learning not to fill it in the 'bread is nearly all gone' phase! Next step is to mealplan :rotfl:.

Must do email stuff. Don't want to but postponing it makes it loom worse than it is. Best it's not bad at all, but it's work stuff. AND I AM ON HOLIDAY AND DO NOT REALLY WANT TO REPLY TO EMAILS!

Am also miffed that dd's dance teacher now wants her to do an extra exam practice session this saturday. Says she needs to do it. But last Sat, she gave no inkling that dd was 'sub-par'. And we have to pay £5. Only on here will people understand the miffed-ness this causes! Grrr.

apple_muncher

I have made choc chip muffins and vanilla shortbread biscuits and coleslaw (half mayo, half pl yog).

And been through some recipe books looking for ideas...

And looked at the receipt for the shopping...

Veg: mushroom, avocado, parsnip, 2x butternut squash, broccoli, (organic) carrot, sweet potatoes, 5k potatoes, mixed peppers.
Fruit: nanas, 2x coxes apples (LOVE them!), plums
Dairy: cottage cheese, milk, cheeses, butter, soft cheese, cream
Protein: 24 eggs, minced beef, bacon
Tins: beans, tomatoes

For dh: 2x wine, beer, biscuits, instant coffee

That leaves: spakling water for me, evoo, sugar, mini marshmallows, cinnamon x2, choc, roses for a neighbour and cookies for Cmas hamper.

Not bad, I guess. Now to plan to eat it all...

Butternut squash + salmon curry
B'nut squash soup
Curried parsnip soup
Coleslaw (still got a pointy head cabbage in the fridge)
Beetroot soup (gor a pack of them from aeons ago - may be too far gone...)
Broccoli + potato soup
mushroom soup
Hashbrowns with cabbage and sweet potato
Veggie curry
Colcannon (AGCJ) + sausage
Saag aloo (AGCJ)
Chicken Satay (AGCJ)

Rather heavy on the old soups! They will need beefing out for dh... And not with pulses as I'm keeping off them for 21 days...

So, as regards Nov, I am happy with my 2 breakfasts, have a plethora of lunches listed, have a goodly list of snacks, and now have many an idea for dinners. Easy peasy!!!


Exercise-wise I've been mooching through Zuzka Light's website again - just looking at her 5 min workouts. Love them! And so easy to double up or triple up on time...

ps: looked at those emails and they aren't so bad. 1 is for info, t'other can be replied to next week. Sorted!

apple_muncher

Dd's party princess is booked! We will have ELSA coming to our house in about 75 days. Half the cost is already paid, but need to find £130 in cash for the day. I'll be resurrecting my '£1 in the pot' for NSD, sugar-free, 10k steps, workout ...

Dd and I have spent a happy morning painting the clay decs we made a few days ago. I also put a first coat on the twigs/branches for the fair...in 30 days...

2 loads of washing done. I've been following Lilt's tip, and giving it a second spin so that it dries more quickly inside.

apple_muncher

£3,554. That is the amount needed to get below 60k this year. Not including interest of approx £120. Will try hard ...

apple_muncher

Dh announced he has to go out tonight because it is Thursday! Then he expanded - it's band rehearsal and he needs to be there for the PA.

So I've cooked tea - AGCJ x2: chicken satay and colcannon (ish). Almost primal, except for the peanut butter and potatoes :rotfl:. But if I have some of my coleslaw too, then I'll get 6 veg from 1 meal. Not bad at all.

apple_muncher

I've signed up for NST November: battening down the hatches.

1 Set all budgets - these seem to remain very samey from month to month. Hmmm, not reducing them really...

2 Pay towards debt or savings first - £400 allocated for payday plus my 1% personal challenge of £200.

3 15 NSD - have allocated myself 18

4 £5 do ation to food bank

5 Choose TWO outings - tricky, as my current 'outings' are a nurse appointment, a collecting specs appointment (or two), a school trip with dd's class, my own school's prizegiving evening, my uncle's thanksgiving service, dd's school's Christmas fair where I have a stall. However, a friend has just split from her partner of several years, so I may save my outings for meeting up with her.

6 Lunch to work every day and be creative. And no fancy coffees as we'll get enough of them in Dec. Will do!

7 Increase movement levels - Primal meets Zuzka!!

8 Budget £10 less for food - and put it towards savings. I was going to INCREASE my food budget, as I was sooo far over in October (£80's worth of over). But being more careful is a much better way to go.

9 Set myself a personal challenge. Wow - a toughie!


Plenty of food for thought. SOA has set it on the ocean, so I'm feeling seasick already...!

apple_muncher

I have garnered myself a final NSD for the month, and made it to 16. Phew!

Went out to visit dd's little friend, and had a good natter with her mum, then off to a Kids Klub bonfire, which was great fun! Now, I'm officially all worn out!

November budgets are done in more detail, so clearer to use.

We start the month by having to set an alarm clock (:eek:) as we need to be out by 8.35am to get to ballet for 9. Then it's straight into town where dd has a plan, and I hope to get some fleecy throws from...primarni. Ikea's just been too far to get to, even though it would be better value all round. However, I shall limit it to 5: 2 for dd's room and 3 for the hallway doors (need 2 curtains, so will cut and stitch). Hope they still have some in stock!


Well, my total budget for the month leaves me with £107 slack and my personal 1% challenge is £200. Oops!

apple_muncher

So, a Saturday usually involves spending, and today has been no different!

£5 for dd's extra tap/ballet session. I know I moaned about this, but I hope it will help her have more confidence in the exam in 2 weeks time.

£5.05 on books fos dd- 1new and 3 ch shop ones.

£1.50 on slippers for dd - the next size up

£6.50ish in Pret. Nowt for me tho! Thought about having a coffee at 99p, but decided against it. Not a massive saving, but it made me feel smug!

£3.50 in Holl and Barr, for 400g cashews. They had a 2 for £5 on the cashews and aldee haven't had them in stock for a while. Then I remembered a voucher too. Go me! And... I now have a 'get anything half price' voucher which I shall use on coconut oil.

£22 in primarni. Oh dear. 2 big fleece throws for doors and 2 small ones for dd's curtains. (and a frozen t-shirt for dd's bday - shhh)

Total: £43.55. Gulp! Now to subtract from various allocations.and TT £2.49.


Hmmm Primal day 1 today. So far, so good!