NST December: Festive Fun

Calling14

Foodbank/charity donation - Took some biscuits, warm clothes and xmas decorations to Charity which feeds homeless and lonely each Sunday.


Eat well - Trying but all I want at the moment is chocolate, think I am off food as bad chest still lingers on. Tangerines to be eaten before I leave work. Going to make Chicken Dinner tonight which last a few days.
Savings/debt repayment. Increased my monthly payments by £80 from today, my debts will be gone at the latest by May next year.
Treat yourself - Does Amazon prime count? Took free 30 days offer today, football tonight, after a hot bath. Going to sent myself to bed early as it seems midnight before I get into bed lately.
Invitations - Accept a maximum of 2 invitations during December. We dont have a works night out anymore. Get given money to got out for a meal instead, hope to have few nights in local pub with my daughter over xmas period, as haven't seen her for 15 months. Nothing else planned.
Very merry Christmas - Sunday popped into supermarket and then went to sit with homeless folk or people in need of help. What a contrast Mother with a DD who couldn't afford to put heating on until she got paid this week and rubbish gifts people were spending money on.
Exercise -10k a day getting done come what may

Fun -Xmas market free next weekend, watching a few bands.


Understand what motivates you - Not sure much does at the moment, think I need to get out of the hole I have dug for myself.
NSDs - 1/15 Counted today as will stop me spending. Last 2 days, been food and xmas pressie shopping.

Calling14

Ho ho ho Thrifty. That's brilliant news Like the way you just dropped in it btw. :rotfl:



You will have an amazing Christmas now.:T:T:T:T

apple_muncher

Yay! Well done thrifty! :T:T:T And what size KB did you buy?


Calling - is dd back from down under?


Today I want to know who stole all the buses. All of 'em. Well, all the ones I wanted anyway...:rotfl:


Today I am grateful for the bus app that told me my buses had gone awol, for finding a bus for the first 2 miles of the journey and being able to walk the last 1+ mile and not arrive too late, for beautiful sunshine, for dd being much better, for having enough acorn cups for my felted snowmen, for felling 'as ready as I'll ever be' for the Inspeckshun peeps tomorrow, for a warm house and such a choice of foods to eat.

dolly84

apple_muncher wrote: »

:bdaycake: Happy birthday to your dd Dolly. Hope she has a lovely day!

Thank you apple. Good luck with the inspection.

thriftylass wrote: »

:santa2: Hohoho and hello,

I will just be lurking this months as not to miss anything but not join in properly, December is just too unreliable. But might post now and then.

However, finances are looking good. Quite a few presents bought already (including a present of two kettle bells to myself ) and sold a few things on eBay for the first time in forever, hopefully a few more going tomorrow. Hope to break the £100 mark. Also listed my old SLR camera on my Amazon seller account but might just put that back on eBay too. I will keep this money in a separate account as I'm not sure what to do with it yet.

The small decorations got put out and limoncello was started (to give as presents). The kids wanted a little tree in their room this year, so I got one in Tesco for a fiver and filled their advent calendars with a mix of sweets and little decorations for their tree.

Oh and btw I am debt free as on this month. May this be the last decade I spent in debt. I just paid off the last £265 pounds and have money in my savings account to cover Christmas etc. :j:j:j

Well done, that's a great way to end the year.


I have spent £2.25 in the charity shop this afternoon on a pair of gorgeous tall glass candlesticks and a wooden tree decoration which I will put on my homemade wreath when I make it at the weekend.


DD was very pleased with her gifts, all bar 2 of them came from the charity shops, all either new or as new, the best way to get the most for you money.


My curried sweet potato pasties which I did for tea were a success and I have a tub of the filling to freeze and I think I will make samosas with that at a later date. Went cycling, always fun with the sun so low in the sky and wet roads :eek:.

abundant1972

Good evening!

Off to a good start this month and feeling positive... I'll do a quick summary of this month's challenges...

Foodbank/charity: I have signed up to the Woodlands Trust this month and will be giving £10. Not especially festive but I am pagan and we like trees!!!
Eat well : I am really back on track with my diet and though it's painful, I do find calorie counting works for me and I feel in control. I relax it if I have a treat meal once a week!
Savings/debt repayment : All my payments get budgeted for on payday. I am just waiting for my statement dates.
Treat yourself : I did treat myself to a few Black Friday items this year from the money left over from my birthday.
Invitations : Had a family meal out (paid for - thank you Dad!) and no outings planned as of yet. I've opted out of the Christmas work do.
Very merry Christmas : I don't 'do' Christmas as such so this has never been an issue Solstice is very low key and consumerism free!
Exercise : Aiming for the gym 3/week, and anything else is a bonus.

Fun : Fun things for me would be gaming, or a movie night. I do them anyway.
Understand what motivates you : Hmmm... I am very comfort-driven and need security and time to myself. I am going to work on getting that balance right next year.
NSDs : Aiming for 15

Yesterday was meant to be a NSD but they collected for the staff lottery so I shelled out £20! Must budget that in for a few months' time...

Today = NSD number 2

Work is very busy right now, but the days go quickly and I am grateful for the security and comfort my job provides. My larder is full, and I am grateful for how this also makes me feel 'full' inside, and that no matter what - I will have food to eat, and water to drink. I am grateful for my little apartment too and the shelter it gives me during these cold days and nights.

Enjoy your evening folks... oh...

CONGRATULATIONS to Thriftylass - way to go!!! That's awesome! Well done! We are proud of you!!!

crazy_cat_lady

Oh you sneaky little sneak Thrifty - just casually throwing in there that you've only gone and gotten yourself debt free. Congratulations to you - what a fantastic Christmas present :dance::T
And apple - thinking of you with the big O - we've already had them in this year. I have to say it didn't feel as stressful under the new framework, but it still wasn't pleasant.
I've bagged myself the first nsd of the month at last. Happy days. Tough day at work between hyper excited kids, norovirus and me having somehow slipped into not being able to sleep again. I'm desperate for sleep until I get into bed then my brain decides to go into full busy mode. Ah well...

mothernerd

Well done thrifty.

Another fun-filled, action-packed day for me. Up early to hand deliver a birthday card and post my cousin's Christmas card - looked up the postcade last night and what a chore it was. She lives on a road of more than 300 houses and it started giving me ones at the wrong end. Kept opting for streets nearest to where I wanted and guessing which postcodes were likely to be furthest south.



Anyway they've all gone now except ones for neighbours (1 or 2 - one set ignore me for 3 years on the trot and then push one through the door when I'm least expecting it).


Had a shower and got dressed (I just pullled on the nearest things to take the cards) then had a go at the ivy which belongs to the furniture shop. I asked permission a few years ago and try to keep it under control - it pushes mums with pushchairs out into the road and blocks the little gully which allows the rainwater access to the drain. Just did a bit today (out of breath and having to hold onto the wall).


Put both bins out that are being collected tomorrow in case I was too tired when I came home. took DVDs to the YMCA shop, bought two hooks for mum (to hang garden chairs on the back of the shed), withdrew cash and walked down the side of the building society to check out the flower shop at the market. Bought pots for the cemetery (£16 off my budget, £16 off mum's) and called for a taxi.


Builders were late so I made mum lunch. Builders had been delayed by trying to find a shelf unit to mum's requirements (they will continue the hunt online). Concrete drilled out and new edge piece inserted, new knobs on the cupboard doors, hooks on the shed, plinth fixed, small fence put up.


I scrubbed more of the yard (I put tarpaulin down when I was doing the shed and then found paint underneath when I took it up), collected all the loose plant pots and planters, chopped the lavender back hard (have two buckets full to decorate the house with), used the rooting powder and planted sprigs from the main plant to make new plants.


Mrs Builder did some weeding, Mr Builder joined in but got shouted at for pulling up strawberry plants. I said it was alright as they were the old ones (I have another bagful).


Unfinished jobs are the shelf unit (to be done when something suitable can be found - there may be one that can be modified in Mr Builder's shed), new table to be assembled (lost it's label and got sent back, they have despatched another one), the flags (I'm going to have to work on that a bit at a time) and a small patch of ground at the side of the front path.


There are too many roots to be able to put edge stones in. Mr Builder might be able to dig them out but he would put himself in hospital doing so. Likewise the tree roots (you have to look to find them, they are flat to the ground and only a few inches across). My plan of action is to encourage the 'termites' in the dead stump which holds the birdtable to move across to the buried tree stump.


I changed back into good clothes and mum and I went off to her hearing appointment. She now has new hearing aids and we went to get her bloods done as well. She was chattering away to the nurse, now that she can hear properly (was the d-i-l of an ex-neighbour). I was let out of the taxi close to home (we tell the driver to stop where it's safe to do so, the lights changed to stop as we approached and I crossed the other two roads with the lollipop lady).


I've taken two library books back and checked how much space there is in the charity bin. I want to make a start on the kitchen but am already sleepy so may sleep and make an early start.


Today I am grateful for mum's hearing aids (should make life simpler and better for her), for most things working out okay if not exactly how mum wanted them to be and just for getting through the day in one piece (my health isn't great, I've had to sit down at times, wait for dizziness or coughing fits to pass and I'm really hating the stairs atm but I'm okay, I did the things I wanted to get done and a couple of extras - now have a shopping list a mile long for mum).

f0xh0les

Foodbank - not today

The bit for my car has arrived (£80), so will talk to the garage tomorrow when they can fit it, if they don't use all the bits I can always 4bay them.

Eat well - many more than 5-a-day today
Savings - all pots full - shaved the sides of DS4s head (saving myself a tenner!)

Treat yourself - all beds have clean sheets -

Invitations - nothing to add
Very Merry - not got my ho ho ho on yet
Exercise - it wasn't outdoors, but it was 5 beds stripped and remade, and speed hoovering 3 floors and stairwell. Did not need the heating on today!
Fun - erm, not today I haven't.
Understand your motivation - to make other people happy. But you cannot truly make another person happy unless they want to be made happy. Or you bring a puppy...

NSD 1

lcc86

Congratulations thriftylass enjoy your new freedom! Horrible cold and back pain flare up today so feeling a bit sorry for myself, but I'll survive!

Foodbank/charity donation - one DD has gone out today, the other one goes out later in the month.
Eat well - snacked on chocolate today.
Savings/debt repayment - done. Big DDs have gone through today as well.
Treat yourself - I'll classify the chocolate as a treat to try and perk myself up.
Invitations - sticking to the 4 I have, won't accept any more.
Very merry Christmas - did some more Xmas shopping last night online, not much left to get but need to crack on.
Exercise - meant to go gym at lunch time but a meeting beforehand overran and tbh I wasn't really feeling it anyway with the cold. Did manage a walk round the block.

Fun - not much today, work was frustrating today plus it took me an hour and a half to get home instead of the usual 40 minutes.
Understand what motivates you - already done.
NSDs - Aim for 15 NSDs. Up to 2/5 now, I did buy some painkillers for my back but classing that as a medical spend.

ditty1234

Grateful for a half day of work and for having talked to a few important people this evening and for free ways of talking to people on video apps. And grateful for chilled dog (westie) who possibly could be dressed up as Iorek the polar bear for Christmas.