hi all im new can any 1 offer me advice?

totalnewbie_2

hi every1 a freind told me about this site and particularly this forum
iv read a few posts but completely lost
ill start from the start my husbands hours have been cut drastically and although we will b ok for money the way we live at the moment id like to cut down expenses in order to save money for other things
are main expense is food as neither of us drink.. i have a 10 month old baby who is fully weaned and eats the same as me....
i have a small garden out back and idealy would like to grow some fruit an veg but have no idea what is easy to grow ect ect
i love home cooking but tbh at the moment we live on convienience foods which i just bung in the oven
soooo id like 2 know what types of foods i can grow in the garden?
and any food ideas for meals which just use cheap ingredients ect?
any ideas advice really appreciated
thank you xx

squeaky

Erm... hmm...

Starting slowly would be the best idea.

Have a read of this post first:-

Welcome to MoneySaving Old Style - (Read Me First) ---> CLICK HERE

And then a browse through this collection, picking the the things that are of most interest to you, should give you some helpful pointers:-

Getting Started ---> CLICK HERE


After that - you'll know your way round well enough to be able to ask any specific questions that you may have on the relevant threads.

I know there's a lot to take in - so just pick one or two easy and simple things to start with and you'll grow from there. Honest

As for gardening - we have a dedicated board for that, so just click on the link below...

Greenfingered MoneySaving


Good luck

Pink.

Hi totalnewbie,

Welcome to MSE and in particular to the Old Style board. :hello:

Just to add to what squeaky has said these older threads might help you with cheap meal ideas:


Cheapest recipes???

Meal for two for 50p. Suggestions?

The Cheapest Healthy Meal Ever!

Feed 6 for £1.62

Cheapest meal

Your Cheapest Evening Meal.

cheap, easy family meals


Pink

totalnewbie_2

hi thank u both i am now going to read properly an ill be back with any qs x

metherer

Hi Totalnewbie, and welcome.

I'd like to recommend the daily board too. Its a kind of diary thread, people post with birthdays, sucesses, problems, and for general chat. It can be helpful seeing what everyone else is up to, and might give you a few ideas.

One tip I can give is that if you are making something like shepherds pie (dead easy) then make two at the same time and one can go in the fridge or freezer. Might as well make life easy for yourself!

Hope you like it here.

Metherer
x

mary43

Hello totalnewbie and welcome. I only joined myself at the end of last year and have found everyone so friendly and helpful. Seems whatever you want to know, someone here has the answer.
Can I recommend the Special Occassions board.........loads of ideas on presents many of them very very cheap.

Good luck :j

Olliebeak

Hello totalnewbie - and welcome to the OldStyle board .

You mention that your husband's hours have been cut at the moment.

Does that mean that between the two of you, you will be able to perhaps to think about growing some stuff in your garden? I don't mean turning the entire garden over and having row upon row of carrots, spuds, caulis etc. - BUT it would perhaps be a good idea to have a think about what you like, what would come in handy and more importantly what is easy to grow - especially if you are both new to the idea. Check out a couple of websites or your local garden centre for help and ideas. This is the exact right time of year for planning - but you only have a few weeks to get that planning done. The 'nitty-gritty part' of growing starts very shortly.

One of the most important things about starting 'moneysaving' is to make sure that your OH (other half) is 'with you' on the idea. Much easier if you are working together - no point in you working hard to get the shopping budget down, if he likes to go out and spend money on an 'expensive hobby'. Like everything else in relationships, it's best if you both agree on the strategy.

As others have said, there's loads of advice and information on these boards - and the 'search facility' is usually quite good. But if you still have trouble finding something, just ask - there's always the board guides and lots of others around who are only too happy to point folks in the right direction.

Again - welcome to the fold - grab a tea/coffee - and start browsing .

Ollie xx

squeaky

Even if you are not currently in debt there's a board that can help you out with reducing all your various bills and outgoings:-

Debt-Free Wannabe

You'll need to write an SOA (Statement Of Affairs) which is basically a list of income and outgoings.

There's help for this in a well written post here:-

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=107280

HTH

Mappygirl

Hi totalnewbie,

Just wanted to say hello and how lovely everyone is on these boards! I only started 'proper cooking' at the start of the year and i love it! It's very addictive and you'll get lots of help/ideas/support here!

Have fun looking around!