26 for 2026

suzeesu2000

@thechubbyunicorn can I be cheeky and ask….your gift cards, are they for you to use over Christmas? Do you stick to the same amount on each? Sorry to sound nosy.

thechubbyunicorn

Not nosy at all @suzeesu2000 I spent £20 on each. For places like Amazon, Boots, Next and all the supermarkets. I stop at the end of October and use them for all my shopping. Not necessary for Christmas things but if I can spend £20 less on my food shopping by using the gift card then I put that £20 into my Christmas fund. It definitely works for me and November / December don't seem quite so expensive as I've spread the cost throughout the year.

Week 32 update…

I've found it really difficult to get motivated to do much this week. Never mind tomorrow is a new day / week so I shall try again

1. Watch 26 movies I’ve never seen before - Bridget Jones’s Baby 

6. Post 2026 photos to Instagram - 43

8. Watch 26 documentaries - Lewis Capaldi: How I’m Feeling Now  

16. Save £2026 - £8.89

17. Walk 2026 miles - 29.3

19. Complete 26 walks from the book ‘Lanarkshire Walks’ - Auchinstarry and Drumbreck Marsh

21. Try 26 new restaurants / cafes - University Cafe, Glasgow, The Nook, East Kilbride / Rico, East Kilbride / Sister Midnight, Glasgow 

23. Save 26 of each coin / note (£1 to £20) - 1x£5, 1x£10, 1x£20 

26. Send 26 cards / gifts to others - Candle holder for colleague as it was the anniversary of her son's passing

❤️

Dakota_Rose

Book 16/26 is complete 😊

While on holiday, I finished Richard Osman’s We Solve Murders, which I enjoyed. It was an easy read and I really quite liked the characters. Like the Thursday Murder Club books, it was far-fetched and despite the topic of murder, a comforting read. I would rate it 8.5/10.

Dakota_Rose

26 books for 2026

1.You Are Here (easy read) 9/10

2. The Seven Murders of Evelyn Hardcastle (time-travelling murder mystery) 9.5/10

3. Love Untold (ending made a middling read worthwhile) 8/10

4. Way Back (engaging easy read with a farm theme and a few typos) 8.5/10

5. The Cuckoo’s Calling (first of the Strike detective novels) 8.5/10

6. Yellowface (‘too awful to look away’ page-turner) 10/10

7. A Thousand Splendid Suns (emotive, heavy but worthwhile read) 10/10

8. Before the coffee gets cold (Japanese coffee-shop time-travelling scenarios) 8/10

9. Us Three (screenplay-style friendship story) 9/10

10. The Twyford Code (a puzzle within a puzzle) 9/10

11. The Shock of the Fall (first person narrative with flashbacks - includes childhood trauma told sensitively and with humour woven throughout) 8/10

12. Guilty (lots of shock factor details, but predictable storyline) 7.5/10

13. The Falls (Scottish detective novel) 8.5/10

14. The Examiner (murder mystery told through emails and messages) 8.5/10

15. First Blood (prequel to a favourite detective series) 10/10

16. We Solve Murders (cosy murder mystery) 8.5/10

suzeesu2000

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82097122#Comment_82097122

Thanks, think I will adopt that idea as well, makes sense.

I see you want to do 26 Lanarkshire walks….well, if your ever in Douglas, pop into the churchyard with your camera as a lot of my Carmichael ancestors seem to be buried there😁. xx

DundeeDoll

book group was No Mercy (Martina Cole) - got the big thumbs down from 6/7 of us, but it is my N book ticked off.

Now have Us (David Nicoll)

and of course XTC to listen to @marrob :-)

Dakota_Rose

I finished A Court Of Thorns and Roses last night. I enjoyed it and found it similar to a mix of stories I had read before. It really reminded me of Beauty and the Beast, Twilight and The Hunger Games. For that reason, it was quite predictable but I still found it engaging. I’d rate it 9/10, purely for the page-turning qualities it had.

26 books for 2026

1.You Are Here (easy read) 9/10

2. The Seven Murders of Evelyn Hardcastle (time-travelling murder mystery) 9.5/10

3. Love Untold (ending made a middling read worthwhile) 8/10

4. Way Back (engaging easy read with a farm theme and a few typos) 8.5/10

5. The Cuckoo’s Calling (first of the Strike detective novels) 8.5/10

6. Yellowface (‘too awful to look away’ page-turner) 10/10

7. A Thousand Splendid Suns (emotive, heavy but worthwhile read) 10/10

8. Before the coffee gets cold (Japanese coffee-shop time-travelling scenarios) 8/10

9. Us Three (screenplay-style friendship story) 9/10

10. The Twyford Code (a puzzle within a puzzle) 9/10

11. The Shock of the Fall (first person narrative with flashbacks - includes childhood trauma told sensitively and with humour woven throughout) 8/10

12. Guilty (lots of shock factor details, but predictable storyline) 7.5/10

13. The Falls (Scottish detective novel) 8.5/10

14. The Examiner (murder mystery told through emails and messages) 8.5/10

15. First Blood (prequel to a favourite detective series) 10/10

16. We Solve Murders (cosy murder mystery) 8.5/10

17. A Court of Thorns and Roses (fantasy romance) 9/10

thechubbyunicorn

@suzeesu2000

I'm sure one of the walks in the book is around Carmichael. It's not too far from me but I've never actually been, it's on the list though!

Week 33

1. Watch 26 movies I’ve never seen before - Spider-Man: Brand New Day

6. Post 2026 photos to Instagram - 49

15. Walk along 26 different beaches - Troon / Sandyhills Bay  

16. Save £2026 - £11

17. Walk 2026 miles - 30.4

22. Tick 26 things off my bucket list - Camp out overnight / See a movie in 4DX

❤️

Ms_Potato_Head

Hi 26ers, I'm still chipping away in the background:

✅️1. Catch up with all old friends in person
2 . Visit 26 new places in the UK - 11/26
7. Go on 26 walks - 6/26
9. Read 26 books - 10/26 - Wuthering Heights and Gone Before Goodbye (Harlen Coben and Reese Witherspoon) both 8/10
✅️ 11. Sit final 2 exams
12. 26 mediterranean diet recipes 5/26

MPHx

itsthelittlethings

1. Go the gym at least once a week.Doing ok with this.
   2. Do Veganuary. Yes
   3. Buy a Picturehouse membership and go to the cinema at least once a month. No, but I've been to the cinema 3-4 times
   4. Have dinner with family at least 26 times. Counting my mum, could be on track for this.
   5. Read 10 books. 1.
   6. Visit my sister and family. No 👎
   7. Wild swim over the summer. Doing well at this.
   8. Go camping for the weekend. Sadly didn't manage that this year, it's very hard without a car.
   9. Shoot 6 rolls of film on my camera. Shot 3, lost them somewhere.
   10. Do an evening class. Starting BSL at the Deaf Centre.
   11. Knit 12 items. Probably at about 3 but all to play for.
   12. Visit my mum 6 times. Have visited about 4 times maybe.
   13. Make a significant start on an emergency fund. I started…
   14. Pay off all debt. I have a plan.
   15. Stop using my overdraft. I need a plan.
   16. Go on a long walk 6 times. Maybe 3 times.
   17. Get my bike serviced. Not yet.
   18. Do 6 pieces of training at work. Have done some Excel training.
   19. Make bread rolls/ bagels for lunches at least 16 times. Twice.
   20. Complete the Access course I’m doing and start some more study. Yes!
   21. Swim in the sea 3 times. Twice so far.
   22. Listen to 26 CDs. No.
   23. Stay in my job all year. So. Far.
   24. Invite people who are not my family over for lunch or dinner 6 times. I invited my friend over but she didn't come.
   25. Go to 6 exhibitions in London. No.
   26. Drink more water. Am managing this.