Live on £4000 for a year - Part 2

MrDT

Happy 100 day everyone.

I've only been in on the challenge for 9 days, so I don't really qualify for a treat day I'll join in on the 9th of July though

Actually, I think I'll be celebrating a few days early...

Jay1_2

nykmedia wrote: »

DAY 100!

As for my houseshare, he may well become OH yet! He seems to be catching frugalitis!!

Oooh Nyk is romance in the air?

I'm feeling very smug today.:D Please forgive me, it doesn't happen very often. But I have paid my money into the ISA!_party_

Claybars seem to delight in making you wait... and wait.... and I still have to wait for the cheque to clear but wooo-hooo! I had forgotten it was day 100 (well it isn't for me coz I started a week late but I'm ignoring that) so I am going to make the extra effort to go in and make an overpayment on my mortgage too! :beer:

Aren't I a clever girl

And its thanks to you lovely lot. I'm not doing particularly well at the £4000 a year but it is really making me think and not do what feels most convenient today (the really impressive bit is that when I had an our off work on Monday morning I still got up so I could go to the bank rather than spent 61 more minutes in bed!)

Burlesque_Babe

wow - day 100!

£35.51 in house and pet insurance today but other than that, nothing. I've got a cheese loaf in the BM at the moment and I'm going to do pork pasta bake tonight.

This month is still going to be very tight - squeakingly tight. It's definitely going to be a case of using up everything I can in the fridge and freezer. I've got another tub of leftover chilli to add to the stash from one I made last night. The freezer is still really full, I know there is lots of mince, some duck and some pork so fingers crossed I can get as far through the month as possible.

I still have my car insurance to pay which is just under £13 and then I have my teaching course fee I've been accepted on to. That means I have literally no money left for the month other than going overdrawn, and in fact I wil go everdrawn when my course fee goes through, but as it is the first month of me trying to get back to normal, I'm going to be gentle on myself and not be too hard if I go a bit overdrawn as this is still a 'lean' month with the AQA money I earned.

I got a 20% discount on my course, which starts on Monday, so I saved £31 on it.

bails

Yae, Day 100!! (Well, 101 for me but I don't want to miss out on the party ) I'm so pleased that I decided to join this challenge in the end, it's made such a difference to my life already and I've 'met' a lovely bunch of people :T Haven't thought about how to celebrate yet but will do...it's our 2 1/2 year anniversary tomorrow so will be celebrating 2 days in a row :j

Janey, that is seriously great news about your pay rise, and I echo what SophiesMum said completely so definitely very deserved! Did you come up with any exciting figures/plans for the extra money?
Andromache, I'm going to try really hard not to give it to him until Graduation but I may just get too overexcited; we'll have to see! Might go and order it in a min :T
Nyk, glad you've come to a decision about the house, uncertainty is so draining (unlike your drains!). Really hope you can find somewhere perfect! And do tell us more about the HS to OH potential :T We've had frugalbabies and frugalmouse, now for some frugalromance!:D
MrDT, that looks great, I take it you're a wakeboarder then?
Lilaclady, sounds like a great hobby, hope your seeds grow (still waiting impatiently for mine )
Just found out that a travel writing course I've been trying to go on has been cancelled again, and now they're not going to run it any more :rolleyes: So the award-winning, multi-million pound book deal eludes me still...:rotfl:

Frugaldom

Good afternoon frugalites, my seeds arrived with today's post, so I am delighted! That means I have 4 packs to sow and can look forward to loads of lettuce and carrots (hopefully) and they'll all be coming with me [STRIKE]if[/STRIKE] when we move as I'll plant them all in large tubs. Next stage of my garden/food growing masterplan is the fruit - I want rhubarb (getting free from mum), raspberries and strawberries.

LL's dad appeared on time, looked at the drainpipe, couldn't find a manhole
anywhere and announced that he'd call Dynorod (sp?). We'll wait and see if that ever happens and, in the mean time, I'm scared to switch on the washing machine! He then announced that LL would be here tomorrow! Bit surprised about that, as we spoke to LL yesterday on phone and he never even mentioned that he'd be visiting! (He lives in Yorkshire somewhere, I don't know where, he's never given us his current address! :mad: )

I finally got around to dragging the BBQ out of the shed and gave it a clean. I have a bulk box of BBQ briquettes that I bought cheap from eBid last autumn, so my mind is on trying it out soon. Think of the savings on electricity if I could bulk cook on that! Wonder what it actually costs to have a BBQ? :rotfl:

I changed mind about the fruit flan and have now decided that it's going to be another trifle - I love trifle! I had filled the sponge case with tinned peaches and covered in jelly, but it soaked the whole lot up and left the peaches on top! It's now cut to fit bottom of trifle bowl and has another jelly on it and awaiting the custard. I am going to pop to the Co-op and use all my will power to make me buy cream for the topping and some snacks for telly watching tonight. How rash is that? :eek: I'll update the signature & grocery challenge when I get back.

lingojingo

Marru wrote: »

Sorry to hear about points. I am still desperately collecting points for that bread maker - have missed two from freecycle recently - but have run out of steam.

Marru, I got a morphy richards fastbake really cheaply on ebay a few weeks back, £3.78 plus postage. It didn't come with instructions, but I downloaded the booklet from the M R site.
It looks a bit old (well used and loved?) but works ok, and I haven't had a bad loaf yet.

lilac_lady

Nykmedia, I know you shop at the Co-op as I do sometimes. The groceries there are so expensive unless they're on offer. My nearest shop is a Co-op too. When I go I take a purse with £5.00 or less in it so that I'm not tempted by something that's a lot dearer than it should be.
PS - I now buy tinned cream for trifles etc as I'm fed up wasting cream.

sashacat

Hi again folks, sorry that I haven't been around for a while but I have been staying with a friend abroad which gave me a holiday at very little cost. She will come to stay with me and do the same. I haven't got round to working out if I am on target this month but I expect to be from now on as my electic and gas bills will both be much lower (heating has gone off til November again) and I will be eating what I grow. I have just had a cream cake (which a friend brought for me) to celebrate.

Janey51

Hello fellow frugalcentarians :rotfl:
I am really 2 weeks short but I am 100 in spirit

Treated myself to a cut and blowdry today and feel pretty cool now
Also bought a M&S Lemon Mousse which I have eaten very slowly and savoured every mouthful
Had to go into town to take OH's false teeth to be repaired as he managed to stand on them. That cost £30 :eek: and I am tempted not to tell him they are fixed after he blew the £20 note yesterday.
He did feel remorseful and hoovered the stairs with the unwanted Dirt Devil.
I also discovered why he claims to have lost the receipt from the totally unfrugal shopping trip.
A 28 pack of crisps :mad: I never eat crisps so I guess he has been having withdrawal symptoms as I conveniently "forget";) to buy crisps when I go shopping. They weren't even an own brand, they are W**kers :rolleyes:

What will I do with him

lilac_lady

Janey - you should congratulate OH on managing to get a bag of W""kers crisps for 28p.........Ooops just re-read your post. Don't let him out on his own again!