2008 - Live on £4000 for a full year.

Penny2myName

I have decided I am not adding my costs from London trip (food + drink) as I wasn't given reciepts everywhere, nor am I adding this weeks food, due to the fact I have had to do it on CC, so don't know the true costs. Will be back to normal by next weeks update though.

Total spend for 17 Feb 2008 - 23 Feb 2008:


TOTAL FOR ANIMALS £6.70
TOTAL FOR FOOD £1.31
TOTAL FOR OTHER £12.95
TOTAL FOR SCHOOL £11.00
TOTAL FOR TRAVEL £4.80
TOTAL FOR TREAT £1.50
TOTAL £38.26

Initial amount to spend = £4000 over 366 days, average £76.50 per week
New balance = £3217.59 over 312 days, average £72.18 per week .

mumzyof2

Hiya im just wondering if i started again from monday how much would i have to keep in track with all of you?

Burlesque_Babe

Got to my ex's place this morning and when I dropped my doggy off, he had gone out and there was the whole loaf of bread I saw yesterday left out for me :T It was quite stale so I've just pulled out the middle and made some breadcrumbs for coating chicken and also making treacle tart.

i've made my 'packed lunch' for the train to go up to see Bunnyinthelights, Snaggles and Immoral_Angel tonight. Yellow sticker rolls with corned beef and yellow sticker cucumber, some chocolates from Christmas and some yellow sticker bananas. I forgot to get something to drink so I might splash out on something on one of my changes.

Need to start getting ready.

See you when I get back tomorrow night, although there is every chance you'll see us all on the DFW party thread tonight!!!

mumzyof2

keren29 wrote: »

Got to my ex's place this morning and when I dropped my doggy off, he had gone out and there was the whole loaf of bread I saw yesterday left out for me :T It was quite stale so I've just pulled out the middle and made some breadcrumbs for coating chicken and also making treacle tart.

i've made my 'packed lunch' for the train to go up to see Bunnyinthelights, Snaggles and Immoral_Angel tonight. Yellow sticker rolls with corned beef and yellow sticker cucumber, some chocolates from Christmas and some yellow sticker bananas. I forgot to get something to drink so I might splash out on something on one of my changes.

Need to start getting ready.

See you when I get back tomorrow night, although there is every chance you'll see us all on the DFW party thread tonight!!!

I hope u have a great time, have u met them beofre?

Frugaldom

alli_baba2 wrote: »

I've been lurking for a while and would love to join. £3388 for the rest of the year should bring me in line with the rest of you starting Monday - maths is not a strong point so please let me if I've gone wrong. Trying to get hubby involved with this and he is making the right sounds - which will be a great help. I'm hoping to change jobs later in the year which will mean a pretty big drop in wages so this challenge will be sooooooo helpful. :j

Hi Ali, welcome to the 4k challenge where we are all trying our best to keep within our minimum budgets. As you'll see, different people in different situations need more or less than this but the object is to stay within your own comfort zone whilst budgeting to enjoy living your life. :T Well done for joining us and please feel free to post anytime. I have added your name to post one as challenger number 136 with a balance of £3388. It is up to you what you include in your cost of living but we do not include the cost of working as this varies so much from person to person. As an example, take the woman on Martin's TV show who was spending £900 a month on child care? :eek:

Welcome, have fun, keep us posted and never be scared to ask questions - we've all been skint, we all want to be debt free and we are all friendly

Burlesque_Babe

mumzyof2 wrote: »

I hope u have a great time, have u met them beofre?

I've met Snaggles and family and also I_A and her hubby Ste (at the Blackpool DFW meet last year). I've not met Bunny but she sounds as lovely (and she has a fab Pumpkin pie recipe she has given me!!).

mini_huny_money

squeaky wrote: »

They can be found cheaper than that. Honest.

Amazon search

Remember delivery will be free for one bought direct from Amazon - you'd need to check postage costs for a second hand one.

The two makes most recommended on the Old Style board are the Panansonic 252/3 and 253/4 (remembering that the one that automatically adds nuts or seeds is often £20 dearer) and the Morphy Richards Fastbake - which I can recommend 'cos I've got one

And in any event - keep an eye on your local Freecycle, they show up now and then as people upgrade from a cheapy. A direct link to find a group local to you is here ---> Click Me

Thanx for that Squeaky, kept on meaning to join Freecycle and have just joined my local group, goodness ......looks like thats another site that could become quite addictive!!!!!!

Mollymop......I never even thought he would charge me!!!!!:eek: Am I naive or what?????.....

Dont think he will as I'd just paid him the day before for installing the bathroom and changing the boiler over and he's coming back next week to do all the plumbing work for the kitchen refit.

He texted me this morning to check that everything was ok

mumzyof2

Could I Join? Does Anyone Know How Much Is Left For Year Out Of The 4k Spread Over How Many Weeks Are Eft?

Frugaldom

Mini - thanks for sharing your 'drip in the night' story, I can just picture it! It actually reminded me of the OP who shared her tale of the open loft hatch! Who said feminism rules? There's always a job that I would prefer to hand over to a man! (No offence meant to any feminists, I'm a wimp at heart and used to stop the nearest garage attendant get the air put in the tyres of my car! Am still scared I'd blow them up to explosion point and am glad I no longer have a car.) Sorry about your mug, if I could send you one, I would... got 6 free with my eBid points last year

Janey - make the most of your shopping trip, it will be truly telling how you are responding to going public with your strict budget. Don't feel guilty in the least, think of Billy Can - you CAN do this, you worked for it, you saved for it, you deserve it. I say let hubby have his burger and make it a special weekend :rotfl:

Molly (& Mini) - Having just read Casey's suggestion, and having insisted on DS having Haynes manuals for his cars, I am a firm believer in learning new things all the time. Did you see the lafy on Relocation, Relocation who quit her job and trained as a plumber whilst her hubby quit his and trained as an electrician and then they decided to DIY their own home and register self-employed? :T (Missed a bit, so I don't know how it all worked out)

Penny - Feel free to count in everything that is relevant to the cost of living. I sometimes think it is better to count it all and be over budget, as then it's far easier to assess your next budget and know how much you need to earn extra (or save) as a back-up for the future However, the choice is yours. I use credit cards every month but add in the shopping spends as I make them. It's the only way I can save Tesco points and Co-op points at the same time :cool:

Mumzy - I am delighted to see you back. I hope you are now fully recovered, settled in and it can't be long until you go to visit your mum? If you start on Monday, the 4k challenge amount is £3388 for all living and food expenses. On top of that you have your Child Benefit, your rent, council tax, any debt payments, savings, work related expenses and anything extra you need to pay. Good luck and see you here again soon!

Keren - Have a great time this weekend, I didn't even know there was such a thing as DFW meets! :T

Casey - You are welcome to join us on this challenge if you are living on a really strict budget. We don't focus on living accommodation, employment status, political or religious beliefs. It's a level playingfield where all these things are concerned, you could simply take part without stating your position. I know freeganism isn't free, so therein lies the question of your cost of living. If you had to set a target, how low could you go? (I don't mean that in any derogatory way.) That's mainly what we are trying to work out here. Perhaps try contacting the site directly for answers to administrative questions. I know my signature got deleted simply for including a link to this challenge and I got a nice 'warning' type email but I hold my hands up to that - I hadn't read all the rules properly.

Sorry if anyone is or has been offended on here, I try my best to keep it neutral but we, too, have labeled ourselves, albeit as Frugalites. How far we choose to follow our frugal lifestyles is personal to each and every one of us. On one end of our spectrum are the upper tax rate high-earners working to pay off huge mortgages and the other end are aiming for self-sufficiency. Everything in between is relevant to frugalism and challenging ourselves to live within our means.

mumzyof2

how many weeks is left in this year starting monday?