NST July - Own your choices

498louise

Good Morning,

This month is going to be tough for us, husband was last paid at the end of May and starts his new job next week so won't have a wage for him until end of August, so just my wage for July! Managed to save a little from last month's income but not as much as we should have so need this challenge to help us through July.

Here are my thoughts on the challenge:
1. Financial Failing: It is definitely taking £10 out of the cash machine here and there and frittering it away on breakfasts, lunches, magazines, bits and bobs I don't really need from charity shops etc. I simply won't have the money to last the month if I do this so that is my motivation to not do it and I am hoping that challenging myself to the NSDs will help with this. By the end of the weekend we also plan to have fully budgeted for the month and taken money out and put into appropriate envelopes so there is no need to use the bank card. I also plan to be prepared by eating breakfast before I leave in the morning and preparing a pack lunch for my husband and I.

2. NSD target: 20, need it to be high as I can't afford to be spending money!

3. Plans: In January I made the decision to get rid of credit card debt which I haven't! Still have the same goal. Plan to stick to the NST challenges for the rest of the year, really work on only buying what I need and looking to make some extra money by selling stuff.

4. My future: I want financial freedom - for me this means being debt free, savings in the bank, money to help kids through university and enough income/savings to feel secure enough to do what I want to do with my life i.e. travel and perhaps become self-employed. I had my children young so by the time I am 43 my youngest will have turned 18 and my husband and I would love to go live in another country/travel and do something a bit different from what we are doing now.

5. Being Active: I passed my driving test earlier this year and it has made me very lazy so I need to work on this one. I am planning to get up earlier in the mornings and incorporate an early morning walk into my routine. If I want to do achieve my goals of travelling and self-employment then I would be best to address my weight/fitness issues so that it doesn't stand in my way of achieving these goals.

6. Doing more myself: Mmm not sure about this one, I do my own cleaning and our landlords do most of our gardening. We do all get haircuts as I would not feel confident doing haircuts myself, I have cut my son's hair with clippers before but now that he is older he likes a proper haircut. We don't get haircuts all that regularly or spend too much money on this. My husband takes the car to the car wash every so often so I guess we can do this ourselves instead. I do pay for a curves gym membership but I find this beneficial and now I would struggle to motivate myself to do strength training at home so want to keep this. I keep wanting to bake homemade cakes/treats instead of buying them and making homemade soup instead of tinned so I can work on that this month.

7. Report daily: I will try my best at this, this has been one of my downfalls in the past.

8. Choose kindness: I have a job where kindness is important but I will look at other ways to show kindness to others.

Here goes...

misstara

Morning turtles and what a beautiful day

I'm going to aim for 15 NSDs this month, will be back later with the rest of my aims for the month.

Hope everyone has a good day.

Calling14

Glad we get the 31st of July off Bob sniggers and runs off:rotfl:

Calling14

1. My biggest financial failing is overspending on food - popping in for odd goodies for gs(coughs) and using my credit cards - thinking I will clear them at the end of the month.
Shopping now once a week for fruit/veg only and no cc use.
2. 20 NSDs in Julyfor me

3. Priority areas set in January - Cleared a lot of debt, however huge blip last month, house in brilliant order now and if I can pay back 661 a mth until xmas I will still make DFD by xmas 2016. Going for it:cool:

4. I want all upstairs of my home and garage decluttered. Downstairs is perfect now. I would like savings to fall back on, trying to build my EF fund up again and once debt free an annual holiday. Cupboards/fridge full of nice food, Veggies grown in pots on my patio. No money worries.

5. I will start walking again, really struggling at moment, can do it but pain after is immense. Physio reckons I have done further damage to my hamstring over the last week.
Would like to restart swimming once leg is fully recovered. Can do small walks will carry on. Will get back eating healthy.

6. Do all the jobs myself as too tight to pay anyone. Got one of my friends to re sharpen my lawnmower blade yesterday saves me buyiug a new one.

7. Try and stop me wittering on daily basis

8. Think I am fairly kind person. I try to cheer fellow folk up and do odd good deed here and there.

Bobarella

Calling14 wrote: »

Glad we get the 31st of July off Bob sniggers and runs off:rotfl:

Snort. Whoops....

apple_muncher

NST July challenge:

1. This month I want you to have a good think about what your biggest financial failing is. The best way to do this is to go to your bank records and work out what patterns emerge. It might be that you start off with good NSD intentions but fail to plan meals properly and so end up with 5 trips to a supermarket per week instead of 1. Or do you draw money out of the cash machine and then fritter it away with nothing to show for it?
You then need to tell us all here what your weakness is and how you plan to address it.

I can maintain NSDs when at work; during holiday time it is a different matter. My biggest weakness is probably the charity shop visits... Solved simply by not going! I/we also need to look at the food we have in, and use it up. We get through the fresh stuff fine, but have loads of 'staples' sitting there.

2. This month I want you to set your own NSD target, but would hope for most to say 5 or higher.

16

3. We are 6 months till the end of the year now. What decisions did you make back in January and how have you done with them so far? If you've gone off the rails, tell us now how you plan to sort it out. No more vague hopes for better futures the way to success is tight organised planning.

Haven't sorted out saving accounts. But have kept on the straight and narrow with not spending, knowing that dh would be out of work. It is now nearly 5 months and he does have a tiny job, for which they dock his jsa allowance (grrr). The jsa continues until the start of September, and stops just when dh has another eye op. Need to continue being super careful... I would love to pay 3980 off the mortgage, but that is 4 months' salary in its totality!!!

4. Most of us have an idea of what perfection looks like. Dont be scared to visualise what that is for you. Tell your fellow turtles what you want from the future and how amazing it will be!

Perfection is owning the house outright, with all the niggly jobs complete. I continue work part-time, and so does dh. We'll both have time for things we enjoy: for me that is making things, for dh that is computery things.

5. Choose to get active. Can you leave the car at home completely and cycle or walk to work? A lot of our behaviour is habitual so challenge those negative reasons for not choosing a more active life. Worried you will be late? Set the alarm 30 mins earlier.

Indeedy. I have had 2 lazy months with poorliness and the ensuing inactivity. I am hoping to swim and walk a little whilst dd is still finishing off her term. Weight loss is vital if I turn out to have some sort of arthritic condition (should find out this afternoon), and will actually be a 'good thing' anyway for my health. The workoutst hat I was doing just 3 months ago are far beyond my capabilities now, but can serve as a fitness level/goal to get back to.

6. Consider doing more for yourself. Do you need to pay £10 an hour for a cleaner when taking up a Flylady routine will mean your house is clean and you get a free work out. Or why not consider cutting your partner or kids hair with clippers & putting the saving to debt?

I still cut dd's hair and dh has clippers. I get mine cut every 6-9 months (!). I don't think we actually pay anyone to do things often: dh mended the flat roof, the leaking pipe...

7. Report in daily with your updates and tips for others. Cat hit gold with her frugal daily frugal tips idea so do keep those coming if you have them.

Will try to.

8. Choose kindness. There are many people out there who need our kindness. Find ways throughout the month to make those around you happier some how.

Absolutely!

doingitanyway

Not much to report as I was WFH today

I’m out of the starting blocks to chalk up a NSD.

FOOD SHOPPING: I ran out of honey so none for my breakfast. Ate it without and it tasted fine so I will not replace honey until next pay day. :money:

HEALTH: I ate very well today and kept to my IF eating plan. Feel better for it too.
I made a batch of soup and grilled some chicken for salads.

A rainy day so I stayed in. I’ll do an hour’s exercise tomorrow to make up.:o

I CLEANED a window today (inside) and kept on top of the washing-up

DECLUTTERED CDs for CS and papers to take into the office tomorrow to shred

Hope you all did well today folks
DIA x

Eager_Elephant

1. Financial Failing
My financial failings are to budget in YNAB but only update two or three times a month rather than a few times a week, by the time I have caught up I have overspent and I spend the month playing catch up. I will log into YNAB twice a week minimum and not overspend.

Food (the same as everyone else) is another one, I have not been doing regularly shops and just calling in when we need something and then before I know it I have spent £80. I need to meal plan and buy enough for the month (bar fresh bits) and make sure that once the food budget has gone its gone.

2. NSD’s
I have checked back to Feb and I am averaging 15 so as July is a 31 day month I will aim for 15.

3. Plans.
In January we wrote a plan for the year and what expense this would incur – this included the lounge, kitchen and smallholding. We have decorated the lounge after having the whole floor replaced. Still paying back the cost of the sofas which went on the credit card. Kitchen on hold for now. Have been making headway with the smallholding and have more pigs with brand new pens that DH made.
We also agreed to save more and that has been going well although DH withdrew all his savings to buy a new truck but once our old one sells he will have his savings back. My savings were withdrawn to pay the field rent but I have paid DS back the money I owe him.

We need to keep on saving and not spending on frivolous things so we can get the kitchen and eventually the driveway sorted.

4. Future
In the long term future I will own a smallholding with campsite, this will bring in all the money we need to live on and I will spend time growing my own and rearing my animals. Not sure when this will happen but happen it will.
In the short term future I hope to buy the house we currently rent, be able to save and keep happy and healthy.

5. Active
Unfortunately I live very rurally although we have an A road running through our village – there is no way I can cycle or walk to work so not sure how I can get more active – maybe I need to walk the dogs for longer in the mornings/evenings?

6. Doing more for myself.
We have been contemplating a cleaner for years and never got round to it – I have a rota system for washing up and room tidying at weekends. It can be hit and miss so need to get stricter with everyone.
DH and DS get their hair cut so rarely that I don’t begrudge them £10 every 3 months!!
I also have a very handy DH so if things need mending DH will do it (even though we could ring the council to do it)

7. Report in daily
Will do

8. Make people happy
I always do!!!

Eager_Elephant

Daily update

Today was a spend day as nothing in the house for tea and I am not shopping until the weekend so popped to Sainsburys to get pizzas for tea and lunch for me plus soya milk for work.


Tip

Always take lunch from home!! Let my experience today be a lesson to you all!!
Today I couldn't be bothered to make lunch so grabbed some packet rice and some tinned curry while at the supermarket. Heated half up for my lunch and within the hour I had the most horrendous stomach pains and upset tummy I have had in a long time. This continued on and off all afternoon, made worse by the fact I was at work and had to spend so long in the loo. I felt so ill, hot and shaky - it was awful.
Made it through the afternoon and was dreading the bus journey home but luckily DH had an emergency at work so worked til 5 so he collected me from work.
I can only think it was food poisoning of some sort - I have the constitution of an ox but when I get like that it has always been food related. Personally I can't see how long life items would give me food poisoning but other than long life soya milk and a bag of crisps I haven't had anything else (I have drunk soya milk since I got home and am fine) so the moral of the story is to take lunch from home!!!

Florence_J

Today was not a NSD. Spent £4.91 on lunch, £2.95 on coffee and cake whilst doing some writing, £40 on clothes for my friends wedding (was budgeted for and also had 20% off), £3 on bus because I was running late (shame on me) and £8 on a beautiful necklace.

Need to pick up BBQ things tomorrow as we are having our friends round, but that should be it for my spending.

My frugal tip, and I'm sure some people do this already.

I use the Shopitize app, which rewards you with small amounts of money for buying certain products on offer that week on the app as long as they are from one of the main supermarkets (Iceland doesn't count I'm afraid)

I only buy products I could realistically see myself buying as you won't be saving money if you buy something you don't usually buy.

Before I buy anything though I go on the website 'MySupermarket' and type in the product name to see who is selling it cheapest. For instance recently Boursin was on offer. In Tescos it was £2 but in Morrisons it was £1, so i bought it from Morrisons as it was within walking distance and that means I saved even more money with it.

Again, don't go out of your way to go to the 'cheaper' store if you are going to spend what you save on petrol/public transport.

I'm sure you all do this anyway, but this is my tip.