2018 New year, new focus and new mission

Choccygirl123

Thanks tea, I've started the ironing but have days and days worth still to do! I've still got to sort the bag of coins out but did find an old £10 and £1 so will get those paid on.

We're keeping spends to a minimum and using store cupboards and freezer supplies. Hubby needs to fill the car again, not sure where it goes just know it's not me!

We do need some more bread so will ask hubby to pick that up and remind him we only need that, not the stack of chocolate.

Bank £194.04 / available balance £189.34

Choccygirl123

Not much to update today. Hubby filled car up with fuel again yesterday, grabbed few bits of shopping yesterday. I added some cash to the kids school lunch account, as it's so cold. Like them having warm meal.

Bank account is starting to look empty. Will transfer the £250 from the EF to make sure don't go into the red. Roll on pay day.

teafor2

Just popping in to say hello Choccygirl. Wish DS would eat a hot lunch but he's fussy so it's always packed lunch for him. Mind you, when he's on holiday I really appreciate not having to make it. Did you get to the bottom of the ironing pile Hope you've all had a lovely weekend.

Choccygirl123

Hi tea, I'm quite lucky that my two will make their own.,I just find the school ones so expensive and I do wonder how their friend's parents afford breakfast and lunch at school must be £7/8 a day!

No sign of the bottom of the ironing basket yet! Did 2.5hours of uniform and all the kids stuff. They've got the enjoyment of hanging it all up tonight

Lovely weekend and only 5 schools days left!

teafor2

Morning I'm now sat her thinking why doesn't DS make his lunch or hang his clothes up. I think it's because I'm home during the day so I just tend to do everything but there's no reason why he can't start putting his lunch up. That can be his NY's resolution by proxy :rotfl:

No idea if breakfast's are covered, but maybe some of DC's friends are on FSM? £7/8 per day is a LOT of money! We're on countdown to the hols as well. Have a great day.

Choccygirl123

I'm all forgiving them life skills and preparing lunch is a great place to start. How old is he? Mine are 14 and nearly 13 and I'm a mean mum compared to friends. They have to pull their weight with jobs around the house, especially with way I am at minute.

Our eldest is amazing on the kitchen and will rustle up a sausage plait with h/made pastry. She hates peeling veg so little one will do that. She often will help me with dinner and make a curry or something on toast when a scouts/activity night.

The clothes is me just putting my foot down after I've picked the dirty clothes up, washed them, dried them and ironed them:eek:

teafor2

He's 13 and does show an interest in cooking but I tend to prepare the evening meal during the day and after it's all cleared away I don't encourage messing the kitchen up again. Funnily enough he recently asked if he could start cooking so maybe every couple of weeks we could make Friday night 'meal' night.

DD likes cooking but is terrible at it :rotfl: I don't actually know how the 2 go together but they do where she's concerned. Apparently when she cooks at Uni she's that bad flat mates pull up a seat and watch She's undeterred though and carries on regardless. You've gotta love a tryer :rotfl:

Choccygirl123

Haha poor dd, at least she tries! My two both love to cook and bake and seem to have natural flair. I know they won't starve when they leave home.

I've been busy making fudge and sweeties for our low cost family presents. This year and the whole sick pay thing has got me more organised that I've ever been. I do need to keep track in the spending though and balance!

Current balance £247.23 / available £238.24

I'm hoping to nip to the bank to pay those cheques and old notes in from weeks ago. That money will just be added to the joint to keep us going for rest of month (£50ish) I also have a cheque for Christmas from my aunt so will back that abd send hubby and kids their £25 each to their accounts.

I did read a post about the December pay trap and think Essex's idea of moving cash out until your actual pay day is a great idea.

Going to nip to shops for top up bits of shopping tonight and more sweetie ingredients. Making the fudge and other bits seems quite expensive, but broken down per person it's £5 or less each.

The freezer and cupboard sticks are doing well and we're continuing to meal plan. The top up bits are usual milk and bread to keep kids in lunches.

My surveys are still plodding in and pain is £3.40 (nothing for days) one poll is £26.10 and growing steady. Min withdraw is £30 so that'll be destined for my sealed pot challenge for next year.

Still not really that Christmassy, but think that's down to current mobility issues. I'm hoping this will change once kids finish school abd we start baking together.

teafor2

I think homemade gifts are lovely and even better if they're edible :T Shopping day for us is usually Wednesday and our meal for that day is in there as well. I've stretched shopping til Friday this week, so needed an extra 3 meals out of the freezer/cupboards, which I didn't have :rotfl: so I've done a top up shop today to see us through.

We've not got that Christmas feeling yet either. I don't think it properly arrives until school and work have finished and the programmes in the TV magazines start .

Choccygirl123

Shopping is always a pain around this time of year Tea. We did monster freezer shop in Iceland couple of weeks ago so slowly ploughing through all of that. We ended up spending £60.70 in Sainsbury's but got loads of chas bits : 2 x jars goose fat £5, crackers £5.25, 3 x packs chestnuts £6.75, sweetie stuff £9, bread, milk, pop, trifle ingredients, all the Christmas pickles onions, walnuts, cabbage blimey it was a stack! Need to keep an eye on spends but will hopefully get rest (apart from meat) from Aldi.

The eldest left shopping late so nipped to boots abd for t 17.75 on 3 pressies but I'll take that out the Christmas money they've got due.

Bank was shut so still have cheques and old notes stuck in my wallet.