Pay off mortgage and start having fun!

Very chilly this morning, its not go be long before we have to start thinking about putting the heating on, I am hoping to wait until maybe the start of nov. the meter has not been read for ages and even though its been a hot summer my kids have spent half their time have very long showers while I bang on the door to get them out

Anyway, as part of my " get more organised" routine I shall include reading the meter in a set date every month, I did used to do it weekly but that may be overkill!

I'm trying to weigh up the mse stuff I do (for money saving or because I enjoy it) to see what I should continue to do and what should be dropped due to having less time.

Not currently going to stick with list:


Doing surveys, never remember and don't enjoy

Meal planning more than a week in advance, confusing to keep track of

Batch cooking lots of different meals so I have a freezer full


Stick with it list:



Baking bread in bread maker everyday or two to supplement the sliced stuff the kids use for toast

Follow flyladying and a daily routine of bathroom/kitchen quick tidying

Reading diaries from lovely mfw's

Not using the tumble dryer-use the low energy heated airer

Thick fleeces on top of duvets and heating off a lot at night and when kids at school, daytime dressing gown over clothes wearing when alone

Shop at Aldi and meal plan for the week around what has taken my fancy and what's in offer that week.

Check bank accts daily and make daily op's - even if its 10p a day

Set a grocery budget and stick to it

Resist buying for pleasure and stick with buying stuff that is needed

Making packed lunches

Using orange weds for cinema trips

Shop for Xmas all year round- its money saving and you have more time to get the right gifts.

Start knitting/sewing again in the evenings, its fun and stops me drinking wine and eating chocolate :rotfl:


That's all I can think of at the moment , I think I might also set a challenge for the least quarter of the year to live off a fixed amount, I have done it in previous years end it has worked well, back later

Oh good tyo any ideas for other challenges?

Ds2 's friend didn't turn up today which was a bit mean, not even a text we went to to the garden centre which was fantastic but didn't buy a single bauble.

I did stop at choice n the way home (the next sort of outlet shop) and bought a massive round mirror with wooden fretwork for £10 , a few tiny chips In The varnish in places but not a problem as I was going to chalk paint it anyway. When I got home I looked it up and its still on sale for £125 :eek: its going to go on the back wall above the bed when the new room is finished.

So far we have 2x large handmade pine cupboards
2x antique pine bedside tables
1x Antique pine dressing table with heart shaped carved drawers
An original cast iron Victorian antique bed

All for free , plus the ten quid mirror, not bad so far :beer: