Thursday 9 October - What small DFW things will you do today?

ziggy2407

When we start out on the DFW trail we do loads of "big stuff" that makes quite a difference to our situation. These include having our lightbulb moment, cutting up the credit cards and cancelling Sky and the gym .

But once we have done the bigger stuff, we often feel that we are not making the same amount of progress, when in fact the small steps are helping us form good financial habits and helping us get closer everyday to staying in control and becoming debt free, or staying debt free.

Examples could be hanging washing out instead of using the tumble dryer or leaving your purse/wallet at home to avoid the risk of spending .

So be proud of those small steps, they really are important :money:

ziggy2407

Good Morning All

Hi to all of the regulars and a BIG welcome to all the newbies, this is a really FAB thread with so many lovely, caring, considerate and supportive people. Dont forget we also have a small things on Facebook, if anyone wishes to join

Rough night but am still going to sieze the day. Todays activities:

Relax -
Hairdresser @ home -
Lucozade Codes -
Craft (finish Christmas decorations) -
Re-list few bits for sale on FB -
Check Banks - Done
Check swapits - Done
Packed lunch for DH & DS - Done
Enter a few comps -
Sort emails (& unsubscribe where possible) -
Nectar Adpoints -
All meals from cupboards/fridge/freezer -
Read book (from stash) - In progress
Check www.freepostcodelottery.com -

Have a great day, love to you all

C x

Bobarella

Morning All
Hi Ziggy, thanks for starting the thread. Hope you have a nice relaxing hair do today to make up for your bad night.

Me today. I needed cat food, seems to be a week where the top ups are coming thick & fast, does anyone else find it goes like that? Mind you I did buy 4 loaves discounted to 22p each last night, so less than the cost of 1 full price. So anyway went for a walk, we have a Tesco near us & a huge sainsburys. So I went first into Tesco, saw how much cat food was, then went down to Sainsburys to see if I could better it. Sure enough 1kg cat food in Sains was only £1.50 instead of 825g in Tesco for £2. Hopefully the cat will like it, he can be fussy.

Just did some Nectar Adpoints. I am saving my nectar points to put towards a huge sack of mince in the frozen section that costs £7 but will probably do around 20 dinners.

Little man is super excited already about Halloween, & his costume from last year still fits so thats a small saving.

I will be having last nights chilli for lunch, then we'll have the sheppards pie I made yesterday for our dinner tonight. Whilst that is cooking I plan to make some scones to make use of the heat.
Out of interest, I have seen a few financial bloggers talking about the huge savings they have made when using a slow cooker instead of the stove, cooker for making dinner. I would estimate we only have our oven on for 30mins a day. Would using a slow cooker really make that much of a difference?

Had a call from the alarm company to say the alarm was going off at my business premises this morning, but havent heard a dickie bird from the neighbours there, so think its a fault but heading down there later to check it out.

Out of interest, I am doing my 2 £20 a week shops at Sainsburys at the moment. Does anyone think that using Lidl would save me that much? There is one in a walkable distance (at a push) but as I now buy all own branded Sains items which are cheap, I dont know that I'd see a huge uplift in savings. Input welcome.

Bye all.
Bob

carrielovesfanta

Hi all,


Ziggy - thanks for starting the thread and the invite for the FB group. I will think about it but I think I feel more comfortable in the relative anonymity of the forum (although I'm sure that anyone who knew me would recognise me).


Had to wait in for the gas man this morning which meant I got a bit of extra sleep


Non-mse but I have booked myself in for a manicure, pedicure and eyebrow tidy before my holiday. Decided it was time to treat myself. I know you can do home manicures etc, but it never feels like I'm relaxing. It feels like another job to do.


So today's little list...

• OH doing the housework :j
• B/L/D from stores. Using up some jam that was given to me by a friend
• Think about tomorrow's dinner (lots to use up before we go away!)
• Fire off - keep warm by snuggling under blanket
• Ordered myself some new slippers with my voucher
• Check online banking and reconcile with spreadsheet

That's me,


Have a good one all


clf x

DawnW

Hello :j

Thanks for starting the thread Ziggy

So far for me today:

Been to the market in the next town. Everything is so much cheaper than supermarkets! Didn't buy much (as we don't need much) but have made a mental note to try to go next time I do.

Treated myself to a new pair of ankle boots for the winter - not cheap, but much needed as my winter shoes have given up the ghost after several years wear. No more cold, wet feet like the ones I had this morning :mad:

Bought a few items for my sales unit, (business expenses)

Put a large white sheet on the line AGAIN hoping it stays there and dries this time.

Still to do:

Dog's flea treatment

Check and note on calendar date of next dental appointment so I don't miss it

Tidy house - one of OH's fussy relatives has decided to visit for the weekend, and although I wouldn't like other posters to think that our house is squalid, it wants its regular hoovering and dusting, is a bit untidy and the spiders have been about their handiwork in the corners

Get some stock items ready for my sales unit as several things have sold this week

Cold chicken, jackets and salad for supper tonight

Must 'do something' with remaining lurking tomatoes and runner beans, some of which look as though they may be growing fur :eek:

In fact I must check the fridge contents overall.

Right, better get on. Hope everyone has a good day

foxgloves

Greetings all,
Sunny start to the day here, so was out in the garden by 8.30. Just as well, as peeing down now.
Usual daily money saving things: Usual little energy saving measures, dinner as per meal plans......pasta using some chicken livers I got cheap from the butcher & lots of homegrown garlic, lunch will be soup I cooked yesterday, have made bread, will knit some more sock, will make tomorrow's packed lunch & do all my usual stuff (promise!) Oh, & I picked a free bunch of flowers from the garden too.
'Project Prepare for Winter Jobs':
*Improvised a nice shabby chic new chair cover in kitchen using duvet cover I was going to cut up for rags (but Ziggy told me not to!) Have also put a crocheted blanket over it & changed the cushions & it looks much warmer for winter & is a bit of a free new look.
*Moved tender plants into greenhouse before the frosts arrive & kill them.
*Did final cuts of sage & tarragon for this year & hung to dry from the kitchen ceiling.
*Sorted out the last of the pear glut into pears which will last to the weekend & ones which won't. Turned the 'won'ts' into pear & cinnamon compote to freeze.....will be nice on porridge over winter.
Will doubtless get more of this project done later. Going to stop for lunch now.
Oh....just before I go.....I am 99% sure I was phoned this morning by one of these fraudsters pretending there's something wrong with my computer. He was no way from a genuine company as rang at an ungodly early hour, did not give one of the two usual reponses when I informed him I'm registered with the Telephone Preference Service & was just generally dodgy. Did not ask for me by name, state his company or anything, just said he 'had to talk to me if I had a computer & used Windows'. Can't help thinking it was the latest scam where you are told you have a terrible PC problem & give them your details then they have control of all your online stuff. Wrong house, mate! Oh, & the caller was anonymous. No sh*t!!
Right, that's me!
f x

solvencyseeker

Hello all,
Thanks for the start Ziggy
Missed posting yesterday as was on duty at lunchtime and always get distracted once at home with dog walking, food prep, laundry and, last night, the final of GBB.......
Clothes airer broke last night, collapsed just as I put the last item on. In fairness it is over 20 years old and has been weighed down recently with all the things I used to throw in the tumble dryer. I can't help wondering if the cost of a new airer cancels out the non dryer savings.
On the subject of electricity - Bob - I'm also not sure how much the slow cooker saves us but we use it more because it is a convenient way of cooking large batches of stew/soup/curry sauce etc. One of the kitchen gadgets I get out regularly.
Today I am at work, got a lift, have had my packed lunch. Fridge is emptying rapidly but we have the makings of a Spanish omelette in there for later.
Foxgloves - we seem to be getting more and more unsolicited calls (and we are registered with TPS) but I haven't had that one yet. They would get the same response from me!
Best wishes x

Bagpuss741

Thanks for starting the thread Ziggy:beer:
Today I have/will:

1. Checked online banking
2. Had eyebrow wax/tint but was budgeted for
3. NSD
4. Meals from stores
5. Received £15 gift voucher from sweaty betty so bought a new water bottle with it as I always have water with me and won't buy bottled water.
6. Surveys
7. Won £25 on the lottery last night again (Two £25 wins in a week:eek:)

Bobarella

[QUOTE=solvencyseeker
On the subject of electricity - Bob - I'm also not sure how much the slow cooker saves us but we use it more because it is a convenient way of cooking large batches of stew/soup/curry sauce etc. One of the kitchen gadgets I get out regularly.
Best wishes x[/QUOTE]

thank you. We only have a small freezer so I don't really batch cook. If I do its more like I did yesterday, split 1 pack of mince to make 2 dinners. Then we eat one on one day & one the next. So not sure I'd see the value of being able to do that. Hummmm one to consider. A frugal blog I was reading this morning basically said we shouldn't use appliances if we can help it as you use more energy that way. For example mashing stuff instead of getting a stick blender out etc etc.

foxgloves

I really like my slow cooker & use it at least a couple of times a week this time of year, often more. I think they use roughly the same amount of energy as a lightbulb. I like using it for stews & have made various lovely recipes from slow cooker books I've borrowed from the library.......lamb rogan josh & pulled pork particularly nice. I also like to use my slow cooker for cheap tougher cuts such as ham hock, shin beef, ox cheeks, oxtail, etc. The time saving element is good. If we are having a day out, I'll often get dinner into the SC before we go & then we come home to something ready-cooked.......which has the knock-on bonus of keeping us away from take-aways! Most SC recipes take 4-5 hrs on 'high' or 7-8 hrs on 'low', you just choose whatever suits your day. So SCs get a thumbs up in this house.

GettingOrganised

Hi everyone, haven't posted for a while, but I always take a look at this thread if I come online - you're all amazing!

Today I got my bank statement and for the first time since I can remember (at least 8-10 years), I haven't been charged any interest as I've not used my overdraft. Before I came on MSE at the start of the year, I didn't even consider my overdraft as a debt and I dread to think how much money the bank has made from me over the years. It feels like a mini achievement on the road to being debt free.

Today, I've also:
All meals from stores
Worked a little extra over as I've got some time to make up this month
Got some bits together for some Christmas presents, hope to have most sorted by the end of this month
Put a load of change in my sealed pot - I'm panic potting now with only a few weeks to go
General tidy up around the house, not much done so far this week with working extra each day (starting to feel it now!)
3 loads of washing done, with some drying on radiators (although no heating on tonight, so they will take a while to dry!)
Checked pcl and bb

Bye for now...