I have lost my OS ways, help!

joedenise

Caterina - When I count NSDs I only include days when I do shopping or spend cash. Bills and DDs have to be paid and you can't generally choose what day to pay them - if you could it would make it easier to just pay them on the days you go shopping!

So by my reckoning yesterday was a NSD for you!

Denise

Caterina

Good morning,

Joedenise thank you, will count it as a NSD as I do not count builders fees,which are already budgeted and accounted for. These will be outgoings for quite a while yet, unfortunately! But it is good that it is now an official NSD for me, will adjust signature.

I feel very lucky, I opened my email and found two opportunities for free entertainment this weekend, tickets for 2 on Saturday for an Eagles tribute band and tickets for 2 at our local theatre for Sunday for a comedy show. So the weekend is sorted.

I know I will have to spend something on either Sat. or Sun for fresh stuff top up, a couple of gifts I need to get (child birthday and thank you flowers and chocs for kind neighbours), will be using the last day of £10 off £40 w8rose voucher, hoping to get more durable stuff too and some nice stickered offers.

But today I am planning a NSD and this is the plan:

Porridge breakfast with DH, make him packed lunch. Incidentally, apparently everybody in his office loves his (supposedly stylish) stainless steel 3 tier tiffin, I find it so funny, all these architects and engineers looking at and admiring the design of the tiffin!

Then pick up car from garage, miraculously nothing wrong was found and there is no charge. Then bootcamp. It might be the last one in decent weather, so I will make the best of it.

Then meeting up with a friend coming down from Birmingham, she used to live here and we met regularly so I am really looking forward to a good catch up. We meet in the j lewis cafe so we can use the last of the freebie cake and drink vouchers.

Back home, lunch, need to help DS with job app, then counselling with DH then prepare dinner.

Possibly an early night as we will be having two nights out at the weekend, as we are little old people we need our rest LOL

Have a good OS day all.

Nargleblast

Caterina if you want a little extra motivation to collect NSDs (with a few laughs along the way) please join the NSD gang on the Oktoberfest thread which is on the Debt Free Wannabe Challenges sub board. We are a mix of all sorts, some OS, some not, but we encourage each other in the collection of NSDS. At the moment the gang has landed in Munich to celebrate Oktoberfest, with the usual mayhem you would expect, but there is always, amidst the madness, a serious campaign to cut spending and you will get lots of tips on there.

Caterina

Hello Nargleblast, thank you for the invite, I shall have a look.

I have to admit, I have lurked on the DFW thread but because I am technically not in debt I did not feel entitled to post. But will certainly have a peek now that you have kindly invited me.

moments_of_sanity

Caterina - what a busy day you had yesterday, I am tired just reading it!

Yesterday didn't end up being a NSD as DD wanted to pop to A$da to get some hot oils for her hair and seeing as I took her.......only spent £17 and that was on essentials, have to say though I was very impressed with the price of their pears (I get excited at odd things), they were 57p for 5 very large conference ones. I might go back in on Sunday and get some more as they were lovely.

I am picking eldest DD up from the train station this afternoon as she wants to come home for the weekend and I want to get her a couple of nice treats to take back with her and it won't cost me more than £5

Tomorrow is a trip to Birmingham so youngest DD can visit the Uni open day, a Uni visit has now been planned for the next 4 weekends :eek:

Silly cat has come in with a fat lip so can only assume he has been scrapping, going to bath it with salt water until tomorrow morning and if no better looks like we might have to pop him into the vets and get it checked, this is not his first offence in the scrapping and get your lip caught.

Dinner last night was a beef stew made in my thermal cook bag, so 10 mins on the gas and 5 hours free cooking thereafter. It was delicious as always.

Right, time I went and got DD out of bed....it's easier to remove chewing gum from her sheets than get her off of them, wish me luck! :rotfl:

greenbee

serena wrote: »

Greenbee send details of garden. Immediately.

Nearly quarter of an acre. Streams on two sides (currently in the process of doing the autumn clearing and getting mud on my from nose to wellies...). Have had 6? trees down so far, plus some shrubs and a leylandii hedge. More to come out next month so I can start planning what goes where!

I have enough logs to last me um... well... years...

Want to come and visit?

ginnyknit

Iris Violet tbh I got the electric usage down by Ds moving out again :rotfl: He came home for 6 months as the house he and his partner were renting turned into a leaky seive when it rained. The they re- rented their old apartment went on holiday to Vegas and came back married ! That was last year. Had a 'discussion' with supplier in March who wanted to put payments up by £25 but I refused and made an interim payment of £50 to shut them up then battened down the hatches and turned everything off as I finished using it. I have been cooking in a halogen oven for 12 months which helped and only put the economy 7 hot water on for an hour mostly to top it up - I do like very hot water but its not needed everyday. We use the shower more and I concentrate my efforts to do a lot on cheaper rate.

Had a good few Nsd's as Oh has had a sleepy few weeks but mainly I have been very very frugal and have £25 extra saved in September. I have carers allowance and small housekeeping allowance I give myself out of the communal pot so dont think I am doing too bad.

Treacle_Toes

Please may I join?

I came to the realisation last weekend after trying to sort out the garden, that although I like a nice, pretty garden, I HATE gardening! As a result I'm determined to get someone in next year to re-landscape it into something nice yet low maintenance. This won't come cheap so I've started to save now, and this means going OS to help.

Since last weekend I've done a freezer and cupboard stock take and meal planned for about 2 and half weeks. I want to get to half term with meal planning as we are away on our holidays (all budgeted for, if not cheap).

Yesterday I went shopping to Mr T and Mr Al di. Worked out before what to buy at each. Spent about £48 plus £20 on a £25 iTune card (ready for holiday, out of entertainment budget). Previously my grocery budget was £80 per week. I've set up a separate purse just for grocery money, and any I don't spend one week, means less to get out next week.

I'm hoping to save £10 out of both grocery and entertainment budgets each week, which means I could save over £1000 in a year!

This week I've also been turning off lights that everyone else leave on. Last night I programmed my washing machine to come on at 3am as we're on economy 7, but never make use of it. My dishwasher also has a timer, so I may try and do that too. I'm not sure what time the cheaper rate starts/finishes, so I assumed 3am would be good.

Today I went to the gym and showered there afterwards rather than showering at home. I won't use their awful shampoo though!

Tonight I'm out with the girls and I've already bought my bottle of Pinot, the only cost will be shared taxi, I've got money in my purse for that. Hope not to drink too much, or hit the nibbles, as I'm trying to lose weight by calorie counting using MyFitnessPal. So far I'm one stone one pound down, and no longer over-weight according to BMI graph!

Have a good day all.

TT x

joedenise

Treacle Toes - Phone your electricity supplier and ask what times your cheap rate is - they aren't necessarily consecutive hours! When I was on Economy 7 mine was from 11pm to 2am and then 3am - 7am. I had assumed it was a straight 7 hours but even though I was putting on washing machine overnight it didn't seem to be making much of a difference so I phoned them and that's when I found out it was anytime at night as I'd thought.

Denise

Minihauk

Hello Caterina and All,

Can I join too please? Have finally decided that I will be retiring from paid employment at the end of this year. This means I am giving up a well paid job to survive on a small pension.
I really need to remember that I don't actually need to spend much money, so will save hard for the next couple of months to supplement the pension pot.

No idea how I'm going to do it yet, but it will be done.
I've been reading the thread since the beginning (because I stalk Caterina and Ginny, little meeces).

Looking forward to joining in with you all.