We’d like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum.
This is to keep it a safe and useful space for MoneySaving discussions. Threads that are – or become – political in nature may be removed in line with the Forum’s rules. Thank you for your understanding.
Resourcefulness: The budgeter's friend
Comments
-
Our local tiger station is 121.9 for petrol and 133.9 for diesel - but it is on the nearest A(nn) "trunk" road and I rarely go there because it is so dangerous queuing on the main road slip road. There are queues all day, every day. I gladly pay 3ppl more in the next village where the staff serve the fuel.
Save £12k in 2026 #2 I have banked £2870.61 so far, against a £10k target The 2026 Save £12k in 2026 thread is here
OS Grocery Challenge in 2026 I am sticking with a £3000 annual budget for 2026 - currently £568.34 and most of my March purchasing made
I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the grow your own in 2026 discussion thread
My keep within our budget diary is here6 -
Wow...that is so cheap!
Making the debt go down and savings go up
LBM 2015 - debt £57K / Now £26,764....its going down
Mortgage Free December 9th 2024! 18mths ahead of schedule.Challenges
EF £630/3000
.
Studies/surveys April.....£156.32
Decluttering items 1402/2025. 195/2026
Books read 23 in 2025. 2026- 11 (target is 52)
Jigsaws done 20 in 2025. 3 this year.
My debt free diary...https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6396218/we-will-get-this-debt-d£own-the-savings-up4 -
We always check fuel prices when we're going anywhere else in the country by car a so often it's worth filling up elsewhere - the recent fill up in York saved us 10p/litre - well worth having and about £4 on what we put in! I used to be able to always save by filing up mine when I was in Lincoln but not so much so now, sadly. Diesel around us is at 142.9 at the moment.
🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00. Balance as at 31/12/25 = £ 91,100.00
SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her6 -
@EssexHebridean - Yes, our route into the city you mention for shopping used to be relied upon to provide at least 2, sometimes 3 options of cheaper petrol than available in our town, but not at the moment. And as for when we are on a long motorway trip, I often think I shall need to send for a defibrillator when Mr F sees the price of fuel at the big motorway services!
2026's challenges: 1) To rebuild our Emergency Fund to at least £5k.
2) To read 50 books (12/50) 3) The Re-Shrinking of Foxgloves 8.1kg/30kg
Remember....if you have to put it on a credit card, extend your overdraft or take out a loan to buy whatever it is, you probably can't afford it, as that's not your money, it's somebody else's!6 -
Hello Diary Friends,
A few budget-friendly efforts today:
*Transferred the money for our one-off 'builder's clean' window/gutter cleaning tomorrow into current account so I can pay without anything being adversely affected.
*The remaining (disputed) money from my recent book trade arrived today so have sent it to our Emergency Fund.
*Did 8 surveys. I am already on £25+ for my PA Feb efforts so I am hoping for a nice little payout at the end of the month, as my Jan earnings are already sitting in the Pay of Pal.
*Baked a loaf.
*Chose next week's meals from our February master meal plan.
*Wrote grocery shopping list.
*Swung by village garden centre to price up annual supply of compost so that I can include it in March's budget. Treated myself to 3 primulas while I was there, which I've popped in the containers by our front door for a bit of colour until the mini-daffs & pansies flower. That teensy garden activity inspired me to fetch my secateurs & prune a couple of shrubs……which in turn inspired Mr F to sweep both the front & back courtyards again….it's going to take a few goes to get rid of all the roofer dust/gubbins. They did have a good sweep themselves but the ground was so wet, it was impossible to do effectively. So my 3 x £1.99 pretty primulas actually resulted in other useful tasks plus fresh air as for once……it wasn't raining!!!!😊
Well, as Mr F won't be home from work until extremely late due to covering an event, I shall be Queen of the Remote Control tonight. I think I will watch 'Lord of the Flies' - I enjoyed studying this at school & maybe see if there is a film I fancy seeing. The cats get very grumpy & unsettled when Mr F isn't here on an evening, so I hope they will be in the mood for sofa time & a film too. Soot has already been crafty. As soon as Mr F departed for work at around 1pm, he set up such a lunch pester that I thought he must not have been fed. Mr F did say he was going to feed them, but thought he must have forgotten so I pinged him to check. Yes, they both had a full quota of lunch, Soot was simply trying it on & being a big furry pants on fire. If I go to bed before Mr F is home tonight, I must make sure I leave a note saying exactly what they've had, in case of further furry fibs.
Right, that is enough chat from me, As for the pennies….keep them in your purses, m'dears. never know when you might need them!
F x
2026's challenges: 1) To rebuild our Emergency Fund to at least £5k.
2) To read 50 books (12/50) 3) The Re-Shrinking of Foxgloves 8.1kg/30kg
Remember....if you have to put it on a credit card, extend your overdraft or take out a loan to buy whatever it is, you probably can't afford it, as that's not your money, it's somebody else's!10 -
Soot does make me laugh with his crafty attempts at scoring extra food. Enjoy being queen of the remote this evening.
I get knocked down but I get up again (Chumbawamba, Tubthumping)6 -
poor Soot - he tries so hard and yet gets thwarted. A former black cat of ours was very similar and was completely ruled by his tummy. He had been a long term stray before he came to us so I assumed he wanted to eat whenever the chance arose, And my goodness he loved a dream ee. The tub we keep them in still has his teeth marks in the lid.
7 -
My dd worked in a care home that took pets.A married couple, who both had dementia,and were in adjacent rooms,had a cat. That cat had a field day, miaowing Nobody’s fed me…..!!
6 -
We found out my Grandma had dementia when I lived at home - my parents had gone on holiday for a fortnight and a week in, my Grandma said we needed to get dog food, so I bought two week's worth, so Dad didn't have to worry as soon as he got home. When my parents got back, Grandma announced she had run out of dog food, and Dad quietly muttered to me that she must have used up the 3 week's worth in 2 weeks - so when I told him it was five weeks instead, we realised. It also explained why our two border collies had turned into little Sh** machines as she kept forgetting, and dogs are well known for being opportunist dustbins!
Save £12k in 2026 #2 I have banked £2870.61 so far, against a £10k target The 2026 Save £12k in 2026 thread is here
OS Grocery Challenge in 2026 I am sticking with a £3000 annual budget for 2026 - currently £568.34 and most of my March purchasing made
I also Reverse Meal Plan on that thread and grow much of our own premium price fruit and veg, joining in on the grow your own in 2026 discussion thread
My keep within our budget diary is here6 -
Pets don’t miss a trick, do they!
6
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply
Categories
- All Categories
- 354.4K Banking & Borrowing
- 254.4K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 455.4K Spending & Discounts
- 247.3K Work, Benefits & Business
- 604.1K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 178.4K Life & Family
- 261.6K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16K Discuss & Feedback
- 37.7K Read-Only Boards