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What small dfw things will you do this week? Monday 19th Sept

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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:
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Comments

  • Hi legomum - not sure what time you were up but looks early! I liked what you did to end last week's thread :)

    Quick post before jumping in the shower

    Small things for the day:

    * hang out washing that didn't quite dry yesterday
    * all meals from stores
    * lo mexican chicken salsa soup with lo rice and veg for lunch - doing well at using up freezer items! Will take tinned peaches and yogurt for snack
    * put yellow split peas in water to soak before bunging in the s/c for tea tonight
    * submit meter readings
    * list 3 things on fleabay
    * bath, book and early night I think

    That's all. I have a dilema. I suggested to my sil we meet for a glass of wine after work. My nephew, her youngest, has left home for uni and she is at a cross roads in life. When she left I remembered I only have £7 to last me until Friday. Don't want to let her down, but also annoyed with myself as it will leave me with no cash! Actually now I've written it down I realise it's not really a dilema, just annoying I didn't think before opening my mouth! Anyway have a great day x
    DF as at 30/12/16
    Wombling 2025: £87.12
    NSD March: YTD: 35
    Grocery spend challenge March £253.38/£285 £20/£70 Eating out
    GC annual £449.80/£4500
    Eating out budget: £55/£420
    Extra cash earned 2025: £195
  • ha so I can see now you were up an hour before me legomum. Could be worse! x
    DF as at 30/12/16
    Wombling 2025: £87.12
    NSD March: YTD: 35
    Grocery spend challenge March £253.38/£285 £20/£70 Eating out
    GC annual £449.80/£4500
    Eating out budget: £55/£420
    Extra cash earned 2025: £195
  • La_escocesa
    La_escocesa Posts: 3,119 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 19 September 2016 at 7:30AM
    Well hello there legomum and all who follow :hello:

    Thanks for starting us off. :A

    I cooked my pasta a la DNMS, old-style way with the pasta in a pan of cold water and then turning off the gas when it boiled. Wow - no stressing about having it 'just right' so it doesn't boil over and I didn't need to fill the kettle etc first like usual. ;)

    So...we have run out of porridge oats :eek: so I am on the toast for brekkie - just not as good....
    Then it's leftovers for lunch...with pasta :D
    Working job#2 tonight. :A
    Early night
    Sorted YNAB and checked banking all tallies
    Put 2 cheques and some coins in the bank
    Buy porridge!!

    YNAB is funny - I can see how tight things are going to be until payday (a week on Friday) even though we have around £900. Pre-YNAB I would've thought 'wow, I've got loads of money' and gone out to buy whatever I wanted not thinking about all the expenses coming up!

    Big love guys :wave:

    ETA Hi DNMS - missed your post....Could you meet for coffee instead? A wee cortado/espresso for just a couple of quid??? :)
  • Hello and thanks legomum and everyone else!

    I'm new but these are my DFW plans for the week:

    5NSDs this week (one low spend probably today, one spend day Weds)
    Made myself a mega packed lunch to avoid going to the overpriced shop at work (12.5h today)
    BANNED myself from supermarkets this week (big shop yesterday) - I'm hoping to stay away until payday a week on Weds
    I'm also not setting a goal but interested to see how many steps as today is the first day I've had my step tracker on a long day at work.
    Stay on top of flat cleaning (mopping and hoovering got missed at the weekend out of sheer laziness!)
    Book my day pass for the gym I'm planning to join next month to make sure it's what I want before I shell out for it.
    House fund: ~£5000 / £10,000 :D_£1000 emergency fund #208 - £151.74/ 1000 _
  • foxgloves
    foxgloves Posts: 12,557 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Morning Monday Money-minders,
    Have put today aside for a big sorting out/decluttering job upstairs. This will include emptying my wardrobe, packing away summer clothes & getting out winter ones, making piles for mending, charity shop, etc. Also intend to clear out ottoman (yarn stash & craft stuff) as I want to see how many projects (esp for gifts) I can do without buying yarn/materials. Feel sure there will also be items in there for ebaying. It's set to be too rainy for working in the veggie garden & I've no need to go anywhere which might involve spending, so apart from my everyday bits of money saving like meals from meal plans, making tomorrow's packed lunch, prepping a few l/o runner beans, etc, I can really prioritise my decluttering/reorganisation plans today.
    Have a strong start to the week all.
    F x
    2025's challenges: 1) To fill our 10 Savings Pots to their healthiest level ever
    2) To read 100 books (36/100) 3) The Shrinking of Foxgloves 6.5kg/30kg

    "Life can only be understood backwards but it must be lived forwards" (Soren Kirkegaard 1813-55)
  • ziggy2407
    ziggy2407 Posts: 4,106 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    edited 19 September 2016 at 9:34PM
    Good Morning All

    Legomum - Thanks for starting us off today

    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.

    Today's list looks a bit like this:

    Packed lunch for DH & DS - Done
    Check Bank - Done
    Appointment at 9am - Done
    Craft -
    Clean own black bin (saving £60+ a year) - Done
    Declutter -
    Bump Sale Posts on FB -
    Ironing (only a tiny bit but will get it done) -
    Write shopping list for tonight - Done & used vouchers RM Survey - Done
    Walk at least 7000 step for Bounts points -
    Continue purge on emails -
    Surveys -
    Enter a few comps - Done a few
    All meals from cupboards/fridge/freezer - Done
    Check: Lucky Phone, Ashleigh, Numberplatelotto, FPL - Done

    Have a great day!

    C x
    Goodreads 2025 Challenge :16/75
    Goodreads 2024 Challenge: 65/80
    Goodreads 2023 Challenge: 77/52


  • DawnW
    DawnW Posts: 7,750 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Morning all :)
    Thanks for starting us off Legomum :)

    Today I have / will:
    Use up more boring cornflakes for breakfast, thought I would finish them today but there is still enough for another breakfast :( I will not waste them though :D But I WILL murder OH if he buys them again and then refuses to eat them :rotfl:
    Dog walks x 2 (1 done)
    Wrap an ebay parcel
    Post office
    Go along to my sales unit while out, to tidy up, swap over stock etc. Not much happening there for me this month :( Come to think of it ebay is a bit quiet too!
    Few shopping bits, bin bags etc, pound shop probably!
    Check banks, must do this!
    Check for surveys
    RM surveys tasks
    HM meals from stores
    Make a cake, found a recipe for a chocolate orange cake on one of the frugal living blogs. I will report back and post a link if any good!
    Clean and polish the wood stove - not looking forward to this mucky job :(

    That sounds enough to keep me busy today!
  • Morning all,

    Today's a spend day but I'll do my best to keep the costs low. My list for today;

    - Check banks and YNAB
    - Exercise
    - Meal plan and meal prep
    - Re-read key points from Marie Kondo
    - Charge phone at work
    - Have a productive day at work
    - Shop wisely when getting my big shop for the week ahead

    La escocesa - That's what I love about YNAB, I'm the exact same!
  • allydowd
    allydowd Posts: 4,965 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Uniform Washer Name Dropper
    MONEY MAKING AND SAVING SITES AS OFTEN MENTIONED IN THIS FORUM:
    • Benefits check-up ( Link )
    • Coupon Shop Forum list of money-off coupons (Link)
    • Cooking On A Bootstrap, cheap recipes ( Link)
    • eBid ( Link )
    • Freecycle ( Link )
    • Free Postcode Lottery ( Link )
    • FreeStuff ( Link )
    • FreeUKStuff ( Link )
    • Income Tax Calculator (Link)
    • i-Say Surveys (Link)
    • List of online newspapers. At bottom of the linked page. ( Link )
    • LuckyPhone free lottery with loyalty rewards (Link)
    • Marriage Tax Allowance (Link)
    • MSE Boost Your Income page. Gateway to lots of money-making links. ( Link )
    • MSE Abbreviations Explained ( Link )
    • MSE Deals and Vouchers ( Link )
    • MSE Wow Offers ( Link )
    • NHS Minor Ailment Service article (Link)
    • My Supermarket ( Link )
    • OnePoll ( Link )
    • Quidco ( Link )
    • Reclaim PPI at no cost to yourself ( Link )
    • Resolver tool. Helps you draft a letter, send it, monitor replies and then escalate it to an Ombudsman or key complaint body if it's not sorted. (Link)
    • SayNoTo0870 cheap phone number finder ( Link )
    • Survey sites that pay for your opinions ( Link )
    • Swagbucks ( Link )
    • Swapit ( Link )
    • Tesco Orchard product testing (Link)
    • Tickety Split cheap train tickets (Link)
    • Toluna ( Link )
    • TopCashBack ( Link )
    • Wombling Guide (Link)
    • You Need A Budget site and App (Link)

    SPOTLIGHT ON FREECYCLE:

    What is Freecycle?

    Freecycle is a site where, instead of binning goods or trying to eBay them, people harness the web's power to offer them to their local community. In return, they often hope they can grab back something when they want.

    Here's a link if you want to read more. (Link)



    Links checked 28 August 2016.
    Debt-free day: 8th May 2015 "Remember that sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck," Dalai Llama
  • Thanks for suggestions guys but after all not needed! Feeling terrible with this virus so have rescheduled for pay day. Am longing it out at work as think it's respectable to go home at 4. But man am bored have done all of my induction tasks. Bored and poorly not a fun combination! All I can think of is my bed. ..
    DF as at 30/12/16
    Wombling 2025: £87.12
    NSD March: YTD: 35
    Grocery spend challenge March £253.38/£285 £20/£70 Eating out
    GC annual £449.80/£4500
    Eating out budget: £55/£420
    Extra cash earned 2025: £195
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