NST: May the NST force be with you

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Another NSD to claim

Today I am grateful for a quiet day at work with no incidents, for dd's smile and hug when I arrived home, for dh doing the brownies pick up, for getting all my assessment paperwork, marks and recordings all done at gcse level, for finding a spare banana to eat.

My kind deed was to get my 6th formers some cake.

Frugal tip? Bulk out meals with veggies. Sorry - cannot thin of anything else!

-Selene

No NSD today -- somehow we have eaten three loaves of bread in three days :eek: Tomorrow will not be an NSD either as I am going to the dentist

Something that made me happy today -- my mother and I decluttered some items recently. She was going to chuck them out into the rubbish :eek: but I advertised them online and sold two items for £45 :j There are more items still to sell so fingers crossed I achieve the target of making £50 this month

I have not done anything especially kind today Stayed at home all day (bar a trip to the corner shop) but out tomorrow so will try harder.

A frugal tip is to read water meters regularly (only if it's safe to do so, of course!) and monitor usage to help reduce bills (sorry, I couldn't think of anything better )

The_Only_Girl

Hi all! Good evening!

Was planning to have NSD number 2 today but it wasn't meant to be. Hubby took his car to have its MOT and came home with a bill of £500, which is £150 more than was budgeted. So thankful we have the EF to act as a buffer. Despite that unexpected dip into the EF we are still grateful because it would have been more than £800. The garage rang my hubby with the estimated cost £800+ if they were to use original Honda parts but they managed to get the same parts somewhere else for only £500. Whew... I am claiming £300 as a womble. Also had £2.26 cash back from cos and 5p roadkill. Another 18p for receipt upload. Hubby also had to buy some packed lunch items and some toiletries from aldee (£24.19)

My Good Samaritan deed today was to act as a sounding board, crying shoulder and listening ear to a colleague who is working away from home (we are up North and her family is in Norwich). She and hubby are having a bit of a rough patch and she's struggling to deal with it on her own in a strange place with no family and no friends. We had a very low cost dinner date and I spent only £10 (a friend gave it to me last weekend as payment for something she owes me.) My colleague was a bit happier when we separated. i was glad to be able to gain a new friend in her.

Another thing that made me happy today was the sun!. I can't believe we finally had the sun all day. It's such a nice change from the horrible wintry week we had last week. Work was a bit busy so many of our machineries breaking down. I did manage to get them all up and running so that gave me an inner sense of accomplishment.

WelshKitty85

Hi everyone!

I was sure I posted yesterday, but it seems to have disappeared!

Today is SFD 1 for me.

What made me happy - my amazing mum who does so much to help us.

Something kind - I held lots of doors open for people today. Can't think of much else.

Frugal tip - cooking disasters aren't always a disaster. Before our hols I needed to use up some berries from the freezer and decided to make jam. But I did it from memory, not measuring out ingredients and timing it properly and it didn't set. So I threw it in the fridge and decided to leave it until we got back. Well, I have been using it up this week a spoonful at a time in a bowl of natural yogurt and its delicious, nicer than those corner yogurts. Glad I didn't bin it when it didn't turn out right!

mothernerd

Spendy day today. £12.73 on food and £8.48 on extras. Extras this month is covering entertainment and anything other than food and travel. Today this was for a new key cutting (keep losing mine) and 2 light bulbs. One went last week when DS3's friends were here and one went a while since. As I spent on the quilt and pillows last month, I am trying to think of low cost things from my list to buy this month. I need a new purse - pound coins keep escaping and as it doesn't close properly my door key often goes missing (usually turns up a few days later at the bottom of a bag or wrapped in a receipt).

Spent more on food than planned to but mostly things that go with things I already have. I have to fast overnight and then for 2 hours after I get to my appointment tomorrow so I am planning to have a sandwich before midnight and make a couple to take with me (don't want to make them when I am starving in the morning). Bought a tin of sweetcorn, some to mix with tuna for sandwiches and some to go with the celery for soup. Only unnecessary spend was a £1 for 3 cans of diet coke. I rushed out without having a drink of water and went round quite a few shops and was spitting feathers.

Had a good day. Clean bedding is all folded and on the shelves. All clean clothes are hung up or away in drawers. Paper, rubbish and charity shop items collected. Minor reshuffle of fabric and two more baskets put away on the shelves. Not finished yet but bedroom is looking much better.

Pathetic but the tidy(er) bedroom makes me happy. Feel of sunshine on my back. Enjoying my new to me author.

Being kind. I reminded DS3 that it is (2 fer) Tuesday.

Being frugal. Banana skins are also good for roses (according to my mum). Buying things to make meals using the things you already have in - cheese (to go with frozen broccoli/cauli, pasta and UHt milk) = broc/cauli cheese, cooking bacon (with onions, green lentils, more celery and a stock cube, chilli flakes) = bacon soup. Bedding on single bed is staying as DS3's friend only used it for 3 days and when DS3's bed goes next week (bulky waste collection :j:j:j) he will be using the single bed - postponing buying him a 'new' one (charity shop purchase) until after the building repairs have been done.

misstara

One of the ladies at work was selling raffle tickets to raise money for her grandsons football team so bought a few - that can count as my good deed for the day and cover my charity donation for the month

Thing I'm happy about today is a very productive day at work. Frugal tip is to cut off the tops of any almost empty lotions, creams, etc, you will get a few extra days use.

The_Only_Girl

Oh I forgot my frugal tip for today. I never buy spring onions full price. I only buy them when they are YS ie 5p a bunch or 2p a bind. When I use them for cooking, I leave 2inches from the roots, put them in shallow water until they develop roots and plant them in pots. Within a couple of weeks I have fresh spring onions. You might ask - if that is so why do I have to buy them in the first place albeit YS? Because my sons love making cheese and onions quesadillas so much, my pots could not keep up with them. Still... Every little helps.

The_Only_Girl

misstara wrote: »

One of the ladies at work was selling raffle tickets to raise money for her grandsons football team so bought a few - that can count as my good deed for the day and cover my charity donation for the month

Thing I'm happy about today is a very productive day at work. Frugal tip is to cut off the tops of any almost empty lotions, creams, etc, you will get a few extra days use.

I do the same on squeeze toothpastes! Great minds think alike!

Dizzy_Imp

Evening fellow turtles :wave:

It's been a bit of an up and down day today for me. Some nice times and some sad ones but pleased to report that helping DH build and light a bonfire after he got home from work made me happy - I love a good burn up!

My kind act of the day was cooking my builders a hot lunch as the weather was very cold here and they looked like they needed warming up. Pulled slow-cooked beef in a bourbon BBQ sauce and flat rice noodles...yummy! I even snuck in some broccoli and carrot too...

Frugal tip? When you're offered misshapen veg from a friend's garden, accept gleefully, as once chopped up, it's all the same! I was treated to some wonky carrots and a huge bunch of sprouting cauliflower which will make lovely side veggies for dinner tomorrow.

TOG - do the onions 're-sprout' or am I misunderstanding your method? One day I'd love to have my own kitchen garden for fruit and veg, but so much building work going on that I think it'll be a few years in the waiting.

The_Only_Girl

Dizzy_Imp wrote: »

TOG - do the onions 're-sprout' or am I misunderstanding your method? One day I'd love to have my own kitchen garden for fruit and veg, but so much building work going on that I think it'll be a few years in the waiting.

Yes spring onions re-sprout. They are the kind of plants that keep on giving and they can withstand tough weather conditions. You don't have to have nice/big gardens to grow vegetables. Any size or shapes of pots, even recycled tubs, tins, (the list is endless) could be used. I heard celery, leeks, carrots, lemon grass can be re grown from kitchen cuttings but haven't tried them yet.