Time to clear the remnants of my old life

leftatthetrafficlights

I've got to go through and rearrange my kitchen cupboards this weekend as I am making some more pickles and chutneys along with the flavoured gins and vodkas tomorrow- I don't want my worktops covered in jars and demijohns plus we've done pretty well at eating some storecupboard stuff so it's a good time to do the storage shuffle!

I'll do an inventory again but will be paying much more attention to it so that I plan more meals from it - we've used stuff but its just been what will compliment the veg plot haul over the summer, obviously we'll be making more use of it over the autumn and winter. 

I've been talking to dh about our grocery expenditure as it seems to be creeping up again - a lot of it is due to the amount of fruit that we get through which is something that we probably won't compromise on so we need to look at other ways to reduce the costs and make better use of what we have already. I'm going to spend the next month or two keeping a note of every grocery expenditure- hopefully it will highlight any bad habits we've picked up recently! I'm also starting a 'bulk buy' fund again as I know that the figures have become slightly skewed over the past couple of months as a result of bulk buying olive oil, 'chicken' stock etc...I'm going to reduce our day to day grocery budget by £50 from October and put that £50 into the bulk buy fund. I'll have finished my detox by then so will be able to eat more of my storecupboard staples (got to say that I am seriously considering just dumping the food part of the detox to a great extent and just sticking to eating a healthy diet instead 🤔 - as long as I avoid processed vegan foods and wheat I can't see that the detox food plan is really necessary considering my normal diet) I may just see what sort of meal plan I can put together after I do the inventory tomorrow. 

The washing line use has continued in earnest and I'm beginning to get my head around doing fewer washes each week at a lower temperature- I was looking into getting a heated airer for the winter but we have the towel radiator in the bathroom which will probably do the job just as well 🤔 plus with no longer working I can probably make reasonably frequent use of the line anyway as I'll be able to plan around the weather as opposed to my availability! 

I've started the inside of the loo roll collection again to make the firelighters for autumn/winter - I've got plenty of logs and kindling along with a decent amount of coal and I'm hoping that once the new boiler is installed we'll use a lot less oil this winter due to the increased efficiency- I had the oil delivery this week into the new tank and have realised that it was 33% more expensive than last time I bought it (and the last time was 25% more than the time before that!! 😳).

Looking at the figures for 'average' energy costs really doesn't take into account those of us who have no access to mains gas - the 'new' figure given for October is pretty much what we've spent in the past 12 months! Heating oil prices have been
 increasing dramatically over the past 18 months and are incredibly volatile 😔 

Anyway, I feel that I've had a pretty good productive planning day today - not having an income anymore has really made me stop and think about where I can make savings and how I can be more frugal without compromising our quality of life. I always have the option of rejoining the workforce but I'd much rather just be more mindful of what we're doing and simplify things where possible! 😉

savingholmes

Sounds like you are preparing well. As you say you have options too 🙂

leftatthetrafficlights

Pickles, chutneys, gins and vodkas made! I didn't sort the cupboards though, just had a quick move around of a few bits to fit the new stuff in - I'll sort the cupboards next week when I've got more time. 

Food this week has been using up courgettes mainly - did a large one stuffed with dates, apricots, apples, raisins and rice; had loads of the filling left over so turned that into curry with tomatoes and curry paste; also made cabbage, red beans and rice. 

I've got my grandbaby this weekend and family coming next weekend so have decided to put my 'left work' plans on hold for a couple of weeks as I've just got too much to sort out to be able to give them my full attention- I'm going to be able to start a few bits next week but it's all a bit disjointed which has thrown me off my game if I'm honest, however, I'm just making the most of the time with my grandbaby and feeling very grateful to have this flexibility 😁 

I am debating whether to start a new diary on here - my lifestyle, income, goals and plans are very different now from when I started this diary so it's become less of a case of clearing the remnants of my old life and more about creating a new, more frugal and mindful one 🤔 documenting it as a new entity may make more sense so I'll give that some thought over the next week or so. 

liselle

Speaking of doing washes at a lower temperature,I just heard that if you use Dettol Laundry liquid you can wash bedlinen at a low temperature and it will still kill the germs,etc.

savingholmes

Good luck with all your plans and enjoy seeing the grandkids...

leftatthetrafficlights

I've started a new diary: 
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6385340/changing-my-life-goals-and-finances/p1?new

We had a bereavement at the weekend and it made the decision for me really- I need to get my act together and build a life which is healthy, peaceful and frugal. This diary reminds me too much of where I've failed/ not taken advantage of the opportunities I had/been unhappy.

I have so much to be thankful for and that's what the new diary is going to focus on (along with my debt busting but incredibly long journey ahead!! ) 😉