Debt free wannabe by dec 2021

shoppingobsessed2020

We do weekly menu plans here but I always make sure we have a back up just in case we don’t fancy what’s planned.  So if we have lasagne planned that can be turned into tacos, bolognaise, chilli etc as well as lasagne and we always have the ingredients in to make all those meals from a pack of mince.  Gammon, egg and chips is less flexible but turns into gammon and cheese pasta etc.  

I’ve found a freezer inventory has helped so much the past couple of weeks in helping to menu plan.  Really easy to keep updated when you take things out,

Honeysucklelou2

I do weekly meal plans and try to do one big shop and a top up for milk( I have a large family, so need to get more mid week !)

Rgib89

Thank u shoppingobsessed2020 and honeysucklelou2 . I would def need a top up for milk, I go through it like no tomorrow and my children are nearly teenagers now. 

So today have been a productive day,
Managed to declutter one room and do all daily cleaning tasks, drank 2 pints of water, took kids for a bike ride. 
I popped to shop to pick up milk, £25 later. I really need to stop picking up extra bits and go for exactly what I need. 
I have been tempted to do a envelope containing money for the food budget. Does anyone find this helpful? This way I can only take the money I need and not my card so I dont spend more. 
Hope everyone saying safe xx

shoppingobsessed2020

Do you have a local milkman?  We use one it is slightly more expensive but I get my orange juice and eggs via him as well and I get fresh milk from the dairy 10 mins up the road delivered 3 times a week.  Stops those £20 milk top up shops so saves me money long term, although that depends on how much milk you get through.  

Rgib89

We dont have a local milk man (not that I no anyway) i usually go through 4/6pints a day, with me and partner having tea, breakfast and kids love drinking milk. 

shoppingobsessed2020

Defo not worth it then.  We go through 12 pints a week just me drinking tea so I’m glad monkey boy doesn’t like milk on cereal or as a drink!

Rgib89

My plan is to limit 1 top up shop a week, food budgeting is a massive must, the amount of food w going through now the partner have been furlough and 2 children home, there eating for the say so. 

Plan for today before back to work tomorrow-
- 2 ltrs water
- declutter another room 
- NSD
- compare car insurance as it's due up soon

shoppingobsessed2020

I know that feeling.  We’ve been baking a lot more.  Cheap tray of flapjack goes pretty far, same with basic fairy cakes and muffins.  With monkey boy I do him a lunchbox every day,  that’s filled with his snacks that he is allowed, if it’s all gone by 10am then tough.  He gets 3 meals a day and unlimited fruit and veg to snack on, so this works well for us.  He gets a biscuit or cereal bar, a cake or a muffin, bag of crisps and a can of fizzy juice or a hot chocolate pod and sometimes I’ll add in a note that he can get an ice lolly.

It stopped him asking constantly as he knew when that lunchbox was empty there was nothing till the next meal unless he wanted fruit.

Rgib89

That's a really good idea, I'm def going to be giving that a go, thank you.

So little update from me-
-I've found a few items to sell once the lockdown is over (will keep going through room by room to sell all unwanted items)
- had a NSD (let's hope tomorrow is one too)
- I get payed friday so left £30 in my bank account (dont need anything) to last me until pay day and transferred all other money off the loan, I cant be tempted to spend when i no i only got a small amount to last me.

Hope everyone keeping safe at these hard times x

FOMO_overspender

You sound super organised and on top of it! Good idea re selling stuff - I used to be quite good at selling stuff diligently on EBay but for some reason stopped! Might start having a look to see! 

Well done on a NSD and having money left at payday!