NST February frugality and frolics

mothernerd

Sparkle is a bit tarnished today (probably need a bit more sleep). Will rest and then start to tackle things. Mum's antibiotics came yesterday (sorry if I'm repeating myself). Will stop now before i drop the laptop.

thriftylass

Hello,

Finally managed to get up before the kids again (been down with the flu the last few days and it was impossible) and what a difference it makes to my day. Still not 100% but getting there.

Another SDF today and tomorrow I think. Might also go to the gym for the first time in a week and have an easy cycle. On Friday I'm off. I will be using my spa vouchers from my last birthday with a friend. Afterwards I'll do the weekly shop in Aldi.

So tonight will be spend doing a food inventory and shopping list. Despite being ill I managed to home cook and not resort to takeaway or else. The trick was to not freeze all the meat I bought last week but leave it in the fridge so that it was easier to see what was there, there was choice and it was less hassle and more spontaneous as nothing needed defrosting the night before. Need to remember that for next time.

Later

dolly84

Today will be a NSD. Not working today and have walked the dog, done two loads of washing, vacuumed downstairs, dusted downstairs, sorted some items out for donation. I will run later today I think and some more cleaning. Tea for me is the last of yesterdays chana masala, gnocchi for the kids and pie and peas for DH.

Shrewbie

Thanks Turtles for being lovely. I feel very positive, just a bit odd. Most of what i've known in madrid has revolved around this person who I've just split with and 2 friends from UK. Maybe what I need is to be on my own for a bit and making new friends. onwards and upwards.

Hoping for an NSD today! Mothernerd your garden plans sound exciting, I'd love to do that at some stage in the future.

have a good day everyone

chocolatelover93

Hello everyone,

Sorry it's taken a while for me to post. I wrote a whole post out on the 1st and lost it
So here goes try number 2.....

Food - My month starts 28th have already done a big food shop so will just need to get the odd top up of fresh bits. Already shop in L!dl or discount shops so can't really down shift anything. Did go for their own brand fabric softner, nappies and wipes this month so 3/5 isn't too bad

Entertainment - this is a hard one for me because a lot of my friends are busy we usually arrange things last minute but will try taking my own drinks and food when we go out.

Otherwise for this month only you are a hermit - this is me anyway tbh haha will try and go round friends and families houses rather than out for lunch and things.

Budgets - Do this already

Reduce - Spent £500 in Jan on food and takeaways, this month my budget is £175 I know that seems like a big drop but I know I can do it.

Useful Leftovers - Like the frog idea, have written a list of frogs today that I need to do this week.

Aim to take lunch - I only work 2 days a week and always try to take lunch in with me. Today is my first working day of the month and have bought lunch with me but did buy some snacks (chicken and fruit)

Remind - I am grateful everyday for my DS making me smile


You should pay off debt - Already done this and emptied my 365 pot the other day £59 into CC payment

S Spend Free Days (SFDs). You will aim for 18 - This is where I always struggle think I have bagged 1 so far this month.

Use it up - Did an inventory of food a few weeks ago and been using that to plan meals.

Regular check ins are recommended, daily if possible - Sorry it's taken a while!

V Turtles generally avoid the consumer fest of bad taste on the 14th of the month - My DS is my valentine this year

Indoors/outdoors. Regular exercise is important - keep saying this but I really do need to get off my far @rse lol.

Indoors - I mentioned being a hermit. - I like this idea

Vending machines, coffee shops, takeaways - Had 2 already this month but they were planned.

Advance planning. Meal planning and making meals from scratch (no food waste) are your friends - am trying to do this more. I have to pay for my garden waste bin too so I like the idea of making sure it is full.

Are there any garden prep tasks you could do now? Plan what you aim to grow and maybe set some seeds if you have a suitable place for them - Got some herbs growing already just need to sort seeds out.

Let the challenge commence at midnight on 1st February 2019 and end on 28th February 2019 at midnight - Already failed this one

C xx

Kerry_Woman

NSD today - 5/20.
Walked to/from local recycling point.
Dealt with a couple of frogs.
Put recycling into communal bin and a local recycling point - cartons.
Gave 4 items into a cs.
Still using items already in.
Stayed in after returning home.
Self care.

greent

chocolatelover93 wrote: »

You should pay off debt - Already done this and emptied my 365 pot the other day £59 into CC payment

Brilliant 365 saving there! :T :T

Avoided a random trip out today (OH's idea) and instead sorted out my make up and toiletries stash and the kiddy-craft stash (I know how to live! :rotfl:) Was almost a NSD then decided I needed coleslaw for dinner and we hadn't bought some the other day (because there was none on the shelf!) But that was all that was purchased :T

F Food Expenditure.
Downshifting etc.

E Excursions and entertainment should be planned

B Budgets set. Food reduced to £350 - plus a special extra Brexi-pocalypse budget of £50
Food £154.74/ 350
Brexi-pocalypse £14.00/ 50

U Useful leftoversWill carry on with frogs. SOrting messy make up was one today - as was the craft stash and sorting bits for DS3's topic project.

A Aim to take your lunch n/a

R Remind yourself of what you have and be grateful. Today - managing to find useful things in the craft stash, finding things I can give away in the stash (yeay!), DS2 & DS3 being in fab moods after school, a mild day

Y You should pay your debt/ savings first

S Spend Free Days (SFDs). 2

U Use it up. Food from stores - with the exception of the coleslaw! - had HM soup and hm bread for lunch. Dinner was things from fridge and freezer.

V Vending machines etc, None today

A Advance planning.Things keep changing due to external issues (wider family) at the mo. Sigh.

mothernerd

I am banning the use of the f word. No-one has failed, no-one is a failure, so stop saying you have or you are. It's only day 6, if you have slipped up, you still have 22 days to get back on course.

In between an exhausting game of cupboard tetris and a lot of domestic bits, I have been playing some on-line games. At a difficult point with several games and the phrase level failed has passed the screen many many times today. Do I give up, do I cry because the little animals look disappointed/ sulky - No. I try again.

You haven't got any where near failing until you get knocked down or off course and don't get up again. If life has dealt you a particularly hard blow you can even stay on the floor and feel about you before you attempt to get back up (when I fell on the ice I had to do this, patting around me on the snow to find my glasses - wondering if the people in the cctv control room were laughing their socks off at me).

To quote Oddball (Kelly's heroes) 'Quit with the negative vibes'.

Slept slightly better in the reclining chair but have been very tired all day. Waited for an hour or two before I went in the shower and held on to the grab rails all the time.

Mum had a little nap this afternoon (went back to bed as opposed to nodding off in her chair all the time) and I went in the back room (spare room/ second bedroom/ dining room - just too small for any of those really).

Pulled a sewing machine and a bag of garden stuff out of one of the cupboards plus random bits (wrapping paper, small spade, shoe trees, curtain tie backs) and used the space for two boxes of Christmas decorations (one a regular 48? pack crisp box, the other a bit shorter but fatter), the smaller Christmas tree, the nativity set and the Christmas linen and then all the random bits as well.

Took the jigsaws off the top shelf, tried out a box to store them in but had to climb up to free the top. Put all the jigsaws (ones already there and another bag full) except the 2 we haven't done yet, back on the top shelf and then a few store cupboard extras. There are also a few clothes, two umbrellas and bag of pegs in there.

Have brought home four more cs items mum has agreed to part with - I cleaned and tidied her pills drawer. Hope she will voluntarily part with the sewing machine but not going to push it - have left it on the table so she will see it (she wanted me to check if the pedal was still with it - it's still taped to the machine the way I put it for the move to the bungalow 3 years ago).

At home tomorrow, need to make some sort of plan.

Today i am grateful for lovely weather (sat outside at one point), for clearing yet another cupboard and for mum resting and taking care of herself properly.

cuddlymarm

Good evening guys

R Reduce your planned food expenditure - Today’s cabbage will be enough for the veg for tomorrow so will have that with a pie tomorrow night and keep what I had planned for another night

U Useful leftovers. I cut a scruffy towel up into wash cloths for around the kitchen.

A Aim to take your lunch to work every day. I don’t have lunch at work but am aiming at leftovers or as cheap as possible.


R Remind yourself of what you have and be grateful. Im grateful for the weather being warmer, for nice family, for an afternoon nap, for my t**co shop arriving so I don’t need to shop for a while.


Y You should pay to your debt or savings first. Will report again on payday.

S Spend Free Days (SFDs). 3/18 so far.

U Use it up. Rather than using up I’m trying to make things last as long as possible.

R Regular check ins are recommended, daily if possible.

V Valentine Day isn’t happening in the Cuddly house.

I Indoors/outdoors. Woke up this morning with a rotten bad back so I have taken today gently. Finally admitted we had to bite the bullet and order a new mattress. Didn’t realise till we tried a few at the mattress shop how bad ours was, so an unexpected expense but so necessary.

A Advance planning. Meal plan for next week done now my online shop has arrived. But it does swap around if something needs eating up. Flexibility is the key I think to as little waste as possible.

Speak again soon guys
Cuddles

ilovetea

Evening.
Another NSD 5/18 now.
Went to fat club but that was already paid for and posted 2 birthday cards,but they were from my stash.
Leftovers for tea.
Grateful for a lovely fine day,loosing 1lb.,Doing some cross stitch most of the afternoon.

ilovetea xx