What small DFW things will you do this w/c 03/02

carrielovesfanta

When we start on the DFW trail we do loads of "big stuff" that makes quite a difference to our situation. These include having our lightbulb moment, cutting up the credit cards, and canceling Sky and the gym.

But once we have done the bigger stuff, we often feel that we are not making the same amount of progress, when in fact the small steps are helping us form good financial habits and helping us get closer every day to staying in control and becoming debt free, or staying debt free. 

Examples could be hanging washing out instead of using the tumble dryer or leaving your purse/wallet at home to avoid the risk of spending.   

So be proud of those small steps, they really are important 😀

carrielovesfanta

Afternoon all!

I couldn't see a thread so hopefully I haven't cross-posted. 

Another lazy day for me yesterday. Feeling better than I was but still tired. Some of my colleagues complaining of similar symptoms so I think there's something going round. 

Not much MSEness here today. Had to send OH £94 for his graduation attire hire. It's shockingly expensive! 
I rang about my referral as nothing has come through yet. Wait time is 4 weeks currently. 

Actual moneysaving things:
Borrowing suitcase from m-i-l for my trip as mine is a bit small
WFH
OH working today. He didn't take any lunch with him so I assume he'll eat either at his mum's or brother's. 
Veg box arriving - will deal with it after work
Chop up some languishing veg in the fridge and soffrito it. 
TOMM the living room during work breaks

Have a good one all

clf x

allydowd

carrielovesfanta said:

Afternoon all

OH had his CT scan of his kidneys yesterday and will see the nephrologist on the 10th so they can discuss which one they want to take out etc.
clf x

Good luck to Mr CLF with this.

allydowd

Hi February Finance Fans,

Thanks for the starter @carrielovesfanta.

A precious day off today, and for once I am actually making the most of every minute.

Debt-Free-Nillionaire Continuity Plan Year Nine:

• Alarm clock off at the wall during day time.
• Reconciled my finances spreadsheet and made a backup.
  
• Lunch was batch-cooked soup. Dinner will be something from the freezer. The soup cost 'nothing' as it as made from scraps.
  
• Cleared the laundry using as little heating as possible.
• Renewed my Railcard. £15 for a year. Last year the card saved me £60.51. I drive to work usually but I take the train when the weather through the 'mountains' is too bad.
• Tended a couple of my cacti so they don't die. I am rubbish at gardening.
• Went to a comedy gig on Saturday night. Only £17.50 a ticket, so within our means.
• Checked last charity lottery ticket. I cancelled the DD for it last week.
  
• Sort out my own nails. No point in going to a salon, I work in an outdoor occupation. They'd be wrecked in no time.
• Soothe my sore feet with a bucket of cold water.
• Tonight's entertainment will be a small beer at home.
  

• And the biggest thing today was spending 4 hours doing DIY around the house. I meant to do all of this over New Year but DW got sick and I had to play at Doctors. I had to really push myself to "eat the frogs" but now I feel really proud of myself. 🐸 Also managed to stand-up the mini greenhouse that fell over during the Storm.
  

allydowd

MONEY MAKING AND SAVING SITES AS OFTEN MENTIONED IN THIS FORUM:

• Benefits check-up (Link)
• Birthday Freebies (Link)
  
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• Freecycle (Link)
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• FreeStuff (Link)
• Income Tax Calculator (Link)
• Ipsos i-Say Surveys (Link)
• Marriage Tax Allowance (Link)
• Martin Lewis' Weekly List of Deals and Tips (Link)
• MSE Bank Charges Comparison Tool (Link)
  
• MSE Boost Your Income page. Gateway to lots of money-making links. (Link)
• MSE Budget Planner (Link)
  
• MSE Deals and Vouchers (Link)
• MSE Demotivator Tool (Link)
• MSE Credit Card Minimum Repayment Calculator (Link)
• NHS Minor Ailment Service article (Link)
• MSE Money Makeover (Link)
• MSE Reclaim Packaged Bank Account fees at no cost to yourself without using a claims company (Link)
• MSE Reclaiming guide (Link)
• MSE Stoozing Guide (Link)
• MSE Survey sites that pay for your opinions (Link)
• My Supermarket Compare (Link)
  
• NHS Free Prescription Checker (Link)
• OnePoll (Link)
• Parcel2Go: compare postage prices (Link)
  
• Parkopedia: compare parking charges (Link)
  
• Quidco (Link)
  
• Resolver tool. Helps you draft a letter, send it, monitor replies and then escalate it to an Ombudsman or key complaint body if it's not sorted. (www.resolver.co.uk)
• SayNoTo0870 cheap phone number finder (Link)
• Split Ticketing (Link)
  
• Super Saver Amazon Delivery Tool (Link)
  
• Swagbucks (Link)
  
• Toluna (Link)
  
• TopCashBack (Link)
• You Need A Budget site and App (Link)

Links last checked for workability 27th Jan 2025.

None of these are referral links from which I make any money. They are all links to either MSE pages or the homepages of organisations often mention on this forum.

Please click Thanks if this post helped you.

ziggy2407

@carrielovesfanta - Thanks for starting us off today

Today:

Checked Bank 
Swagbucks 
Garlic Butter into freezer
All meals from cupboards/fridge/freezer 
Check: Freebirthdatelottery, Lucky Spinner, PMP, WinaDinner 
Read (Miss Marple)
NSD 

My achievements today:
sorted meds for week
grated cheese for tea
washed and dried breakfast pots
unloaded washing machine 


Have a great day!

C x

DawnW

Evening all

Late post today.

Thanks for starting the thread CLF  

Moneysaving bits today:

Checked banks

Lots of tidying jobs

Used up some old bread for toast at lunchtime

Used up all sorts of veg to make a salad to go with tonight's quiche

Squeezed some lurking grapefruit that have been hanging around since the last L*dl's £1.50 box. I had considered making them into marmalade but I already have lots of that, and I wanted something not sweet to drink to stop me wanting a glass of wine (that I haven't got ) 

And a non moneysaving thing, I ordered a lightweight vacuum cleaner to avoid having to lug Henry up 2 flights of steep, narrow stairs. Figured it was better than falling downstairs with a massive heavy hoover on top of me! Now Henry can stay downstairs at all times. Did go through Quidco though, and got free delivery.

carrielovesfanta

Morning all!

I didn't end up dealing with the veg last night and OH was Jonesing for a burger after all his low sat fat efforts, so a bit of spends for dinner. However, I did stop in the local supermarket and pick up several bits to freeze which came to less than half price (what happened to the little Martin Lewis emoji?)

Today - I'm not sure of the plan. I could do with dealing with the veg in the fridge but my friend might want to go to the gym. If she does, I can do the veg tomorrow - I don't suppose it's going anywhere. Or possibly I will get bored of work and gradually chop it through the day as I'm WFH today. 

Gym? Veg marathon?
Bit of cleaning to stretch myself out in between working
WFH to save petrol. OH has the car today

Hmmm not much mse'ing going on really. Will have to think of some of the ingrained small things I'm doing!

Have a good one all

clf x

allydowd

Hi February Finance Fans,

Another precious day off today.

Debt-Free-Nillionaire Continuity Plan Year Nine:

• Alarm clock off at the wall during day time.
• Reconciled my finances spreadsheet and planned for April.
  
• Thought the washing machine was broken, but thought the problem through and realised it was me being an idiot and the machine was actually OK.
  
• Soothed my sore feet with a bucket of cold water.
  
• Pulled a new pair of work safety boots out of the cupboard. I bought them ages ago when I saw them cheap but my old pair still had some life in them so I kept them until they were really needed. Bought cheap on Vinted for about £17 instead of from the supplier for £100. 🥾
  
• Unblocked slow bathroom basin with a £1 drain sink from the Poundshop that we keep in the cupboard. Tossed in some bicarb and vinegar and then some hot water.
• Going to the dentist soon to get a repair evaluated. Hopefully not too expensive. I pay monthly to go private and it is usually pretty economical. My dentist is great but stopped doing NHS work; I didn't want to lose her as she is really talented so I pay £17  month and travel to her two towns away. 🦷 There's going to be roadworks going through, though. Would have preferred a 9am rather than a 5pm appointment but that wasn't possible.
  
• Virus scanned Macbook with Avast and Antivirus One, which are both free at the basic level. 💻
  

allydowd

carrielovesfanta said:

 (what happened to the little Martin Lewis emoji?)

clf x

Challenged accepted. 👀💻 There you go.

carrielovesfanta

allydowd said:

carrielovesfanta said:

 (what happened to the little Martin Lewis emoji?)

clf x

Challenged accepted. 👀💻 There you go.

Hahaha epic! it used to be :mse: didn't it?