2008 - Live on £4000 for a full year.

Janey51

CA...you have got me thinking there. When its cold, do we really need to have a fridge? We could put all the food outside. What a saving! In fact, its so cold in my house that getting the thermometer to register 16C has us throwing off our clothes and gasping for air.

Janey51

Mollymop5 a fashionable frugalite :T

DdraigGoch we could start a sub-group of the Frugalite Club for those with corned beef legs. :rotfl:

catshark my Mum makes the best flapjack in the whole world but its a trade secret and you would have to die if I told you :eek:

nyk please help me with Billy. I don't understand when I should put money into Billy or my many savings pots.

Frugaldom

Hi Janey, no, you don't keep money in Billy all the time, he's there for those especially challenging situations. A good example would be ... hmm... thinking...

OK, you know those times when you see something and you get one of those 'must have' moments, like being on a diet and seeing a huge bar of chocolate, or a drive-thru with a huge scrummy looking chicken concoction, or a pair of shoes, or a new-fangled gadget, or a friend invites you to a party plan type girly night, or an ad with a cute photo in the corner shop window for rehoming a rescued puppy/kitten/horse , you get my drift ... in that single moment of [STRIKE]madness[/STRIKE] weakness we become disfrugallyunctional and can, without even realising it, blow the entire annual budget to smithereens because of the knock-on effect of our impulsive actions.:eek: Thankfully, Billy Can is there to help us through those times. You have to summon all of the will power you can in an effort NOT to crumble and spend impulsively. I think that amount of restraint deserves a reward, so it's time to examine the budget and see just what impact the purchase would have had. IF you can see a way of incorporating the spend without affecting the overall outcome then start aiming for getting that amount into your Billy Can. Play catch-up by earning the extra needed, search for discounts or vouchers, do whatever it takes to make it affordable if you decide that you really, really MUST HAVE it. By that time, will power (billy can) has ensured that it is no longer an impulse buy. The difficult part is actually making yourself go and buy whatever the object of your sudden desire was and chances are that it will no longer hold the same appeal. It means that had you caved in to your initial compulsion, you would have wasted the amount of money you now have in Billy Can - it could have been £5, it could have been £100. Look at the money in your billy can and ask yourself the question... is this worth "burning" on that object? :rotfl: I think you'll find 'Billy Can' help talk you out of most wanton spending or help you decide if you still want the object, Billy Can now buy it for you. :T

Edited in - Further to the "burning money" reference - the money really is an amount that you would not have had if you had given in to your sudden bout of near compulsive spending. I don't burn the money (although I admit to buring the £5 note to make a point to someone), if there is any money, it's donated to a charity I support.

Janey51

Nyk Aha. Now me comprendo. Trouble is, Billy is going to be a very wealthy can some months :rotfl:

Janey51

Good morning frugalites.:D
What a gorgeous day. Only a week and a bit to go until payday and my finances are looking pretty good.:j

Watching what I have been spending on this challenge has had a knock on effect in the other areas of our finances that are not directly involved. I have managed to pay the service charge on one of the cars (£192) and the oil bill (£459.05) without disrupting the overall budget.
I have managed to cut the petrol consumption by thinking and planning very carefully about all journeys. For instance, whereas before if my car was needing diesel I would just have filled it up. Now, I think "Is there more petrol in DH's car (he has been off work) so I could use his?". Or "Can I manage without the milk, bread or whatever for another day or until I have to go out for something else?"
We live 7 miles from the nearest shops and have to be organised food-wise so always have 5 Pints, UHT milk etc in case we get snowed in but sometimes the system breaks down (i.e. I forget) so DH happily does a 12 mile round trip for whatever we need but always comes back with lots of little treats which all have to be paid for.
But no more. I am trying to always remember to pick up my shopping list before I leave the house. I have a "Don't Forget" corner of the table where I put anything I need to take with me so hopefully saving a lot of unnecessary journeys.

The hardest part of this frugalism is shepherding DH into the fold :rotfl: He is generous to a fault which is one of the reasons I love him but is also one of the reasons we got into so much debt.
I am hoping to be able to increase our monthly DMP payment when CCCS do our annual review next month even though we have both had a tremendous drop in income.
2 years ago, CCCS calculated that it would take us 61 yrs to pay off what we owe :eek: but last year we had got this down to 12. Still an unimaginable length of time but we are whittling it away.

In case you all think I should have Hopeless Spendthrift's username :rotfl: DH was made redundant 3 times in 2 years, then he tried to start a business which folded and I was off work sick for a long long time. DH had to take early retirement because of his health but is struggling to do a few hours a week in a local business. He is due a major op in a couple of months time but I will not worry about that...much :rolleyes:

But, onward and upward :T We will be debt free by the time we retire :rotfl:

carrottopsuk

Janey51 wrote: »

2 years ago, CCCS calculated that it would take us 61 yrs to pay off what we owe but last year we had got this down to 12.

Fantastic :T do you mind me asking how you managed that?

mama67

Janey 51, do you have a chest freezer as you can freeze fresh milk as long as it can stand up whilst freezing down. You just take approx 1 inch out of the top of the plastic carton and then freeze keeps easily for 6 months. I've had some longer!!! Just have to remember to take out approx 24hrs before you need it. I do both f/f and s/s.

I live 3 miles from nearest shop so have always done this, it also helped if kids were ill or when I broke my foot DH didn't have to go to shop after work etc. I do have some delivered by doorstep delivery but that is for convenience.

whitewing

We don't even open the milk carton. we just buy 4 or 6 pints (or metric equivalents) and stick it straight in the freezer when we get home.

Nervous today as mum in law is arriving later. First time I've met her, and she will be with us for some months.

I'm working as normal this weekend to give her and OH a chance for some catch up time and rest (OH has been round the house like a whirling dervish, trying to get everything ready, bless him).

Will only have spends associated with airport parking.

Must go now - lots still to do.

EagerLearner

Hi all just wanted to say another well-done to all who are taking this challenge - your posts are inspiring me - I am aiming for 2008 to be our best year yet in terms of spending, ie, not wasting money and instead putting all money saved towards a deposit on our first place (still holding out and being hopeful that we can actually afford anything in our area). Since I joined MSE I think 2 years ago, our spending patterns have totally changed and now they are saving patterns! Will ready all your messages with interest - have a fab weekend all!

Burlesque_Babe

Cheers for all the comments about my new job - I'm a bit scared to be going out there after what happened in my old job (long story but it wasn't nice) but excited as well.

CA - 5 dairy milk bars for 99p - that made me go oooooooooooh!!! Bargain of the day!!

Flapjack recipe - 3 oz butter, 4 oz sugar, 2 big dollops of golden syrup. Pop in a pan and warm gently. Add 6 ounces of porridge oats and stir. Put onto greaseproof paper. Pour on a packet of chocolate drops and put in fidge to set.

Mine were sticky as my dollops were generous but they were delicious. There......erm.........aren't many left after me and OH sat munching them last night. The old pre LBM in debt me would have ordered a huge takeaway and gone out and bought expensive bottled beer and wine or said sod it, let's go out for a meal to celebrate. However, I was happy with the dinner I made, the last glass of rose from a bottle I've stretched over 3 nights topped up with lemonade, OH had a can of Mild and then loads of chocolate flapjacks!!

My Spanish recipe book arrived from the Book People yesterday. It is excellent and VERY frugal. It's all the old fashioned recipes made 'in the hills' etc - lots of beans used, cabbage, odds and ends for tortillas etc. It's very good.

I'm off to look for a flatbread recipe that has yoghurt in it. I'm doing lamb tagine tonight and I've got a tub of yoghurt that is now 2 days out of date so I'll make flatbreads to go with it along with the cous cous. I can freeze the breads that aren't needed for another night.

Edit: I'm going to do this one

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vow-kxTPatc

They look amazing when they come out of the oven! I know naan is technically for indian food, but it's still a flatbread .