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Original poster

Austere August come join us!!

314 replies

takeaway2 · 31/07/2013 18:42

New thread. Smile

OP posts:
AdoraBell · 26/08/2013 20:46

Hope the job offer works out Platinum

Don't think I could handle low carb thing, the few times I've not had carbs at lunch I find myself buying crisps or chocolate within 20 minutes of finishing the meal.

AdoraBell · 26/08/2013 20:49

Hope the job offer works out Platinum

Don't think I could handle low carb thing, the few times I've not had carbs at lunch I find myself buying crisps or chocolate within 20 minutes of finishing the meal.

AdoraBell · 26/08/2013 20:53

Oops.

northender · 26/08/2013 21:30

Thanks Adora we had a great time, great weather and really active. I feel so much better for it but now really don't want to go back to work tomorrow.
How is your house situation?

confusedofengland · 27/08/2013 13:18

Right, am back from a bank holiday weekend camping in Great Yarmouth, which was OK. Spent about £150 on various meals/coffees out, fetes etc. Would have been a lot more if we'd have gone along with SIL to a little town where the streets are lined with arcades, every single night Shock. We went twice & even that felt like too much Grin. It is so easy to feed loads of money into these machines without realising & that's without all the pound stores they visit, too. Me & DH would much rather wander round a quiet village & seaside, so we didn't end up doing much with SIL & her family.

So far today spent 89p on cookies & chocolate Blush, don't foresee any more as am at work.

Annoyingly, my 2 Dnieces are staying over at my parents' house again tonight. This is fine, except nobody bothers to tell me, & we live there at the moment & the DNs share a room with my DSes when they are there. This means that the bedtime routine gets totally disrupted. Plus I have to try & think of things to do tomorrow as was going to have a lazy day around the house with DSes, but can't do that with 2 extra DC around. My Mum is looking after Dnieces and, much as I love her, it drives me batty to spend a whole day with her as the only other adult. So, will probably head to town to get school shoes for both DSes.

Also, tomorrow we should get our new house!!!! Keep your fingers crossed for me Grin

Hope everybody had a lovelu Bank Hol

AdoraBell · 27/08/2013 14:01

Confused good plan to get the shoes with Dses. I know what you mean about disrupted routines, really bugs me. Well done on avoiding the spendy arcades.

Northender house is still on the market, we did have one offer but it was only 60 per cent of the price, which is below market price anyway. We think what's happening is people are deciding they will spend X then look at houses costing Y and can't understand why they would would need to pay more than X. We know that 2 of the people who have looked have decide to build instead. We also know from other people who have built that if it comes in less than 50 per cent over budget you've got a bargain. So they are not going to get the houses they want for X, either way round. The economy is still growing here and land prices are going through the roof.

Fluffycloudland77 · 27/08/2013 16:07

I think if history taught us anything about capitalism it's that it grows, contracts and re-grows again.

People don't see recessions coming. My young relatives hadn't even heard of recessions before this one, they literally had no idea it could all go belly up. They thought they'd leave school and walk into £30,000 starting salary jobs.

Pluto · 27/08/2013 16:22

thatsinteresting I know what you mean about limping to pay day. We've only just been paid and I'm already wondering how we can stretch out the budget until the next one at the end of September. We really want to be debt free by the end of November - this is probably doable but only if we are really boringly frugal. Perhaps it won't seem so bad when the school term begins again.

Bobbygentry I keep meaning to check out that website so your post was very timely. Off to meal plan now!

Thatsinteresting · 27/08/2013 19:59

Pluto November isn't far away really. Definitely stick with it. Starting 2014 debt free will be an amazing feeling. We've not been in debt for 5 and a half years now (if you don't count the huge mortgage) but I gave up work 5 years ago to be a sahm so for us it's about avoiding debt until I eventually return to work. We've just got used to the way we live. Bills get paid and there's some treat money so we're ok.

Gas and electricity bill is due to go up next month. I've shopped around and, if the cashback pays out, new supplier is around £15 per month cheaper.

We've made jam and a pie and frozen the rest of the berries. I've menu planned for next week but the following week it'll be 'Things I found in the freezer'.

Hope everyone is enjoying the last of the good weather.

AdoraBell · 28/08/2013 04:37

Spent on DDs Today, will up date Tomorrow, plus £3 on McD's and just under £3 on roads and parking. OH paíd for a month's worth of dog training and 6 months of car tax.

Fluffy I get the feelling many people here haven't seen a down turn in the ecónomy either, OH is convinced the bubble is going to burst and so stressed about selling the house but everyone he speaks to seems to think the ecónomy will continúe growing forever.

Pluto good luck with your plan for November.

roguepixie · 28/08/2013 13:19

£4.10 on postage today but it was an Ebay sale so technically a no spend.

NSD today byt will be a bit spendy for the next few days - have a couple of days out planned befotre school starts again and have the uniform/shoes/hair combo to cope with on Friday .... arghhhhhh.

confusedofengland · 28/08/2013 14:03

Not spent anything yet today BUT we have a new house! Completed at lunchtime Grin

So, in the space of 10 days we will have had 1 clear baby scan, 1 new house & 1 DC starting school. We confuseds don't do things by half Grin

Have to pop out when DSes wake up for nappies & school shoes, plus to exchange some locks that we bought last night for the new house.

I feel it is going to be a very spendy time coming up Hmm

Platinumstart · 28/08/2013 14:25

Nice one confused Smile when do you move in?

NSD yesterday, and small (ish) spend today: DH has taken DS for haircut and I had a manicure and pedicure which whilst is something of a luxury was "frugal" in so far as I have gelish which I'd eked out for at least three weeks Hmm

Cupboards are looking a little bare and DD has two friends for an unplanned sleepover so either I make pancakes or we get a takeaway.... The former is not going to assist with the low carbing.

AdoraBell · 28/08/2013 17:55

Fantástico news Confused , hope everything goes smoothly from now.

Spent £4 in the supermarket, £12 in the pharmacy and £1.90 on a coffee. Forgot fruit juice and need to pick up a birthday cake later, just a supermarket one.

Rogue good luck with your shopping tríp Friday.

confusedofengland · 28/08/2013 18:09

Back from my shopping spree. It was not pretty. £28 in Clarks for DS1's school shoes, need to go back for DS2, but might get some in the sale. £22 in Mothercare on a maternity swimsuit & laundry marker pen. £6 in B&Q as the locks we bought were dearer than the ones we took back iywsim. £20.02 on diesel from Sainsbury. Then, finally, £24 in Tesco on champagne (half-price, have to celebrate house purchase, I will have small glass!), orange juice, nappies, mouthwash & a couple of fridge bits.

Tomorrow have promised to take DS1 swimming as we didn't go on holiday, plus have to pay nursery £230.

Pluto · 28/08/2013 21:16

Blimey confused that is a triple whammy of big events. Exciting times! Good luck with the move.

DS2 starts school next week too, so I also spent the afternoon buying up the last items from the uniform list. Clarks was heaving but I had my smug face on as I had booked a shoe fitting appointment. Didn't stop them from charging me £58 for 2 pairs of shoes though, which undoubtedly he will have outgrown by half term. I am not even daring to check if DS1 fits into anything after the summer hols growth spurt...an expensive teen.

Good news is that last Thursday's food shop, which came to £43, is going to keep us going into the weekend. DH is on a diet and we seem to be saving a lot on grub!

northender · 29/08/2013 09:41

Oh confused I'm so glad it's gone through at last. You must be so relieved.
Good week so far spending wise. Should be NSD today. Still need school shirts for ds and shoes for dd.
Dd goes in to have her perforated eardrum repaired on Tuesday and has to be kept off school for 2 more weeks after so that will keep spending down but we'll be stir crazy by the end!

AdoraBell · 30/08/2013 03:29

NSD Today.

Fluffycloudland77 · 30/08/2013 06:55

I Have a house too! since 11am on Wednesday Shock but no B2B. bastard bt want £65 leaving fees Angry

Fluffycloudland77 · 30/08/2013 06:56

broadband, not B2B Angry

ArtemisatBrauron · 30/08/2013 08:33

Flowers to confused and fluffy for your new homes! I have been awol due to house move, necessitating a huge amount of expense, some of which went on credit cards...

Need to get back on track and start saving up!

ArtemisatBrauron · 30/08/2013 08:35

fluffy can you transfer the broadband to your new house rather than leaving and setting up a new account? We did that when we moved in August and it was free, plusnet did it all and we had internet and phone in the new place the day after arrival!

confusedofengland · 30/08/2013 09:31

Lots of house moving going on! Congrats to Fluffy and Artemisat It is definitely an expensive business, though. We have found that our new house has a prepayment electricity meter, so need to change this before we can shop around for the best deal. Also, we have replaced all our locks, just to be on the safe side, which cost £120. And we still need more furniture (bed for me & DH, bigger sofa), which we will get from Ebay, but it still all adds up. This weekend the ILS are coming down & helping us to rip out all the old carpets (5 bedrooms, lounge, dining room), so we'll hire a van to take those to the tip. Still, it's great to be in Smile

Northender hope your DD will be OK

Today should be NSD. Off to friend's house shortly, with instructions not to take cakes like I usually do! Then picnic at the park with DS1's new school friends (who we know from preschool). Then home to wait for ILs.

AdoraBell · 30/08/2013 13:39

Congrats Fluffy

Shock at BT, I'd try what Artimas suggested.

Northender, hope everything goes Well with DD and she recovers quickly.

Today I need to pick up bits for the dogs.

roguepixie · 30/08/2013 16:03

Congrat's to fluffy and confused for getting your house's sorted. Flowers Brew Cake and Wine tonight for you Grin.

Can't even begin to think about what I have spent today...here goes:

£20.00 haircut for DS. He is "at that age" where only salons will do Shock.
£90.00 on school shoes for DS ... I know, I know. It's an obscene amount but he takes adult shoes.
£70.00 on underwear: vest, pants etc.
£201.00 on blazer, trousers (x2), scarf, beanie, PE shorts and vest top, tie, bag, gloves (x2).
£30.00 on pencils, pencil case, geometry set etc etc.
Total: £419.00

I am off for a lie down and a stiff drink.