November Numbercrunchers *blows the budgeteering bugle*

[claretandamberforever]

In here please.

Feel free to post a daily spending diary, to ask for advice or just for a general money moan.

Too tired To read through properly, sorry, but Solid I know it's a paín and moré costly but you are doing the right thing in eating what you can tolerate rather than going for the cheaper option and suffer for it. My DH realised as few weeks ago (at the tender age of 57) that he can't tolerate gluten. He'd spent his Life blaming it on the other ingredients in the sandwich/pie/steak & kidney Pudding and putting up with the paín.

So, I caved. DH needed a small tube of shaving gunk To take on a plañe and the supermarket has Loads of productos mostly crap on £1. Nachos, crisps, choc biscuits, chocolate, pasta and few actual essentials later and his £1.30 shaving stuff cost me nearly a tenner

DH spent £18 on fresh food for the dogs and, hang on - 2 sepárate pharmacies- musta been, about £25/28 on DD2's vitaminas.

Tomorrow should be an NSD.

Managed To avoid the road tolls for school this week by being close To the área anyway in the afternoons, and haven't been anywhere else. Need To Go into soon though To do a few errands.

Oh, DH can't use the gas guzzler as planned, his new cheaper parking spot is even tighter than the previous one, so I'm still using it for short journeys. I am getting better consumación than the dealership has ever seen though.

I am going to stop lurking because I really need to save money for an overseas trip. My goals are to stop stopping off at the supermarket after work or when bored and to buy no groceries for three weeks. I think I can do it as I have plenty of meat and vegetables in the freezer, and have a full fridge and stock cupboard.

Firstly, well done with EDF claret. That's a great result!

I am having a dilemma. DS has a birthday just before Christmas. I have already bought his presents and now he is doing that thing where there is something that he really wants. Of course, I'm kicking myself that I didn't leave a bit of the budget for this eventuality. However, he's been very vague up to this point and is usually happy with whatever he gets. He will be 5.

Not sure. Do I get him it?

Over to you, wise frugal ladies.

Kinky is it very expensive? Is it a reasonable request? Could you get it instead of something you have already got and keep that for another time? Or, can you afford to get it?

Ds3 (7) has asked for a popcorn maker, his older brothers had one years ago, we used it once and got rid of it. I am not buying another or a candy floss machine, umm, just no. Fortunately we are going to see "Santa" at the local fayre and he and I are on first name terms so I might get him to explain that these are not what he is giving this year!

It is hard though.

It's obscure. He wants a Lego Cad Bane specifically from this set:

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/150891600241?lpid=83&device=c&adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1&ff11=ICEP3.0.0&ff12=67&ff13=80&ff14=83&ff19=0

The mini figure is about £14. I'm just so loathe to pay that though!!

www.amazon.co.uk/LEGO-Star-Wars-Blasters-Minifigure/dp/B004ATD2HU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383809979&sr=8-1&keywords=lego+cad+bane

I blame his father. He has brainwashed him with bloody Star Wars.

I think my worry is that I've already spent a lot on him and I think he has plenty. I might do what Jinty suggests and put something else away for next year.

Blackberry I doubt I'll get it cheaper. People make a killing on these mini-figure sales.

NSD on Tuesday but spent £20 on ingredients for DD's cookery project (chutney making - I don't even like chutney!!), extra fruit, mushrooms for a risotto (used up leftover chicken - 3 meals from one £6 chicken ) and some work stationery bits that I'll be able to claim back.

Christmas shopping going well. I have a list and I'm sticking to it! This year the DCs will have my mum's presents at the same time as ours. She goes completely over the top so I'm scaling back what we get them as they won't notice. DD is likely to need an iPad when she goes to high school so the money saved will go towards that.

kinky could you hold back a birthday present for Christmas?

I really need to start thinking about Christmas shopping. Have agreed no big birthday or Christmas presents with DH, which is a fab step for him (he loves giving and receiving big presents).

Need to do a good shop today and have the car so can venture to Aldi for a change instead of lidl/waitrose combo ( Aldi bigger than lidl here). Going to go through the freezer first though as it's pretty full.

Helen I have bad memories of DD doing cooking at school - it was so expensive and they asked for some really obscure ingredients.

I haven't started my Christmas shopping yet either and I really need to start thinking about it. I have got my cards as I bought those in an organised moment in the January sales.

Fell off the wagon a while back - again - so jumping back on if I may. Morrisons £55 then £11 in Home Bargains (my budgetting nemesis, I always see something I need that would be twice the price elsewhere then but gubbins as well)
Going to try using cash in purse for shopping, the card is just too easy but I am going to stash an emergency £20 in there too in case I come across reduced meat etc that would take me overspend but can't be walked away from. Anyhow, off to do spend/banking plan for next four weeks as payday is next Friday

Aldi shopping trip was successful - £66 for a week's shop for four, although I am menu planning with some stuff in the freezer, so it's not that amazing. Stuck firmly to my list apart from one free range chicken (they don't always have it in Lidl, so thought I'd get it cheaply while I could) and our first Christmas purchases - one bottle of cava and a couple of rolls of wrapping paper. I'm going to try to buy a little thing every week in an effort to make the big Christmas shop slightly less traumatic. I need to find a box or something to put it in though, otherwise it's going to end up eaten/drunk, rather defeating the object of the exercise!

Also received a payment today (am self employed) which will pay off the last bit of lingering credit card debt, so it will be nice not to have to think about that in terms of budgeting. My mission now is to make enough to pay the rent before mid-month without having to resort to the overdraft. A bit of manic eBaying will be taking place in the evenings! Have some big things like my serger (like a sewing machine, but for t-shirt type seams), a couple of other sewing bits, an expensive saucepan we never use and a brora cardigan, as well as tons of 99p type things, so hopefully will make it.

Scotty it's things like reduced meat and veg that makes me avoid doing online shopping, as although I don't get it that often, we have a massive freezer so I can stock up when there's something good. A decent chest freezer has been one of our best 'frugal' purchases ever.

Helen can I ask, please, the iPad you say DD will probably need for school. Is that just her school/your área or do most schools have these requirements in the UK now?

I've heard some schools advise them now, my dn doesn't have one though.

£2.05 on bread and smart price flour.

£7 on school uniform trousers for work. Bit tight but I can return them if they develop a fault.

£1.25 veg oil from Aldi. Tesco was £1.75 for oil! I want to cook with it not run the car on it.

Well done for getting money out of EDF claret! And well done Badvoc on the wine

I spent £2.26 on bread and Smarties yesterday. Today was £1.60 parking in town, £3.89 on cards, 99p on a bag of chocolate coins, plus £3.99 on a sparkly nail varnish to cheer up my friend who is awaiting bowel surgery.

BUT due to extreme tiredness and period fatigue, I forgot to move the car this morning out of the two hour space that I was forced to park in last night because there were no spaces in our road, so we will probably get a parking ticket through the door at some point soon :( Really pissed off with myself.

Oh Bitches what a pain! I got stung a few times like that as a student, it's a nightmare.

Re iPads I don't think they can make them something you 'have' to have, but there is more and more of an assumption that kids will have some sort of tablet at home, IME.

Having yummy ancient leftovers from the freezer for dinner tonight, meatballs I completely forgot I made!

Need to make myself be organised tomorrow as have a long car trip with the DCs and I know we will stop if I don't have sufficient snacks and drinks with us.

That is annoying, bitches!
Spent all afternoon running around doing errands. £4 on travel; £2.34 on milk and two chocolate bars and £12 on my niece's Christmas present. So, £18.34 altogether.

Trying to get to grips with Quidco... is the site always this slow?!

I've seen something about adding receipts, but can't get the page to load at all Will keep trying. Yesterday I did my Asda online grocery shop through Quidco and had a message saying I'd earned £6.50!! I would have shopped there anyway, so definite gain, if I actually get it at some point. It's all new to me, so will keep playing around with it...

Adora the iPad isn't a requirement as they can't enforce it but they do strongly recommend one and homework is iPad friendly and you have to ask for printed copies.

The problem I have is that it's a girls' school with a somewhat distinctive uniform and everyone knows that those girls will have an iPad (and probably a phone as it's a church school with a wide catchment and most girls travel a good distance to go there) in their bags and they're just sitting ducks for thefts.

Managed not to spend anything - but that was because I've spent another day in A&E. I've got scleritis in my left eye and if the steroid eye drops don't work they're going to inject steroids into my eye

Oooh Helena. That doesn't sound very pleasant.

NSD for me. Yippee.

Helena, you poor thing! But well done for not spending on the vending machines.

ilove well done on NSD.

Am aiming to keep my spending to the £1 for toddler group tomorrow. Car is filled ready for kind journey and we have plenty of picnic type ingredients.

I really hope your eye improves Helena and Thanks for the info re iPads.

I Spent £3 on yoghurt and rice cakes, plus £1.30 on a coffee, 90p parking and £2.40 getting into town and back. Had To check something at a clínica, now have go To the maín one To book. Next week.

Haven't been on for a while sorry! Trying to catch up. Work has been manic. Haven't been home all week to see the kids. Wasn't at home last two days.

Had a few NSDs. Big spend on Tuesday on hair cut and colour (£111?). Other spends are chargeable to work. Need to pay credit card bills this week somehow. Argh.

Today taking car for service. Gulp.

Helena - hope your eye gets better soon. Sounds horrific!

£10 petrol

64p cat food

Hope your eyes better Helena. It must hurt a lot.

Just posted in the duel fuel thread but no replies and need some moral support...very pleased with a NSD yesterday and then only bought 4pints of milk today until...£700 EDF arrears bill arrived earlier :(. Have paid it out of my overdraft rather than face astronomical DD increase but am worried it will result in financial crisis! I'm now tempted to go out and buy a bottle of wine...is this totally out of spirit of the thread? (Very new to mumsnet, correct me on etiquette if this is out of line!)

Hope you're feeling better Helena. That sounds pretty awful.

Far too much on monthly shop, £150ish as loads of stuff like mouthwash, toilet roll, kitchen roll and washing powder all ran out at the same time. I've meal planned so we should be ok.

£30 at the hairdressers. I can't remember the last time I had it cut so it was long overdue.