Don't Panic, December is frugal this year.

[Fluffycloudland77]

NSD = no spend day
LSD = Low spend day

NSD

£87 spent on DH's card ordering a delivery for our trip. Difficult because we need everything but things like tea/coffee/sugar/olive oil only small, expensive by comparison, packets because of our schedule. Shopping included a bottle of champers for new year's eve.

I really will try to catch up with thread this week

Dd has the sick bug now. I'm so tired. Last time she was sick, about an hour ago, resulted in a bath and hair wash as she couldn't find the bowl. ?? should definitely be a nsd!

Well, party at least went well, and we now have several months' worth of wine stashed away! Yesterday was NSD for me: I didn't leave the house in the end, just baked like crazy for the party.

Spotty, much sympathy - hope DD gets over it soon and you don't catch it! We've been spared the sick bug so far this winter: I'm just praying that DD gets through her last four days at school without catching anything new.

Sorry, it was robin that had the party, was very tired last night!

spotty - I remember those times, hope you DD is ok.

girlie That's a lovely gesture, and what Christmas is really about, kindness, generosity, consideration of others.

Hoping for a LSD, I only have to get my car washed, which I will do at the jet wash, it's to muddy from dropping DD at the farm to do it from the drive.

lilac yes, I'll see the big specialist again on 22nd Dec, hopefully he'll put my mind at ease for Christmas!

Have decided not to do cards next year - postage alone was about £25-30 and I don't even know if people appreciate it tbh. Am going to send a tiny handful to people I know really do like getting them (DH elderly auntie, my granny) and go cold turkey on the rest.

spotty hope DD feels better soon.

Will be spendy today - cleaner is coming again to do all the jobs I can't do atm, then I'm off to London to meet DH for theatre (and hopefully quick pre-theatre Mexican, yum!)

Need to track down a tofurkey for DH for Christmas, meant to do it ages ago and freeze but life got in the way. Argh.

Oh MissA sounds great, have fun! Very jealous

My frugal Christmas gift has been little ginger spice biscuits!

Bought a massive tub of biscuits from Tiger for £2 and some of those cellophane bags from a cake shop. Then I've divided them up and have been tying the bags with bits of ribbon and nice wooden tags - cost about 20p each and are making nice gifts for people like workmates and so on. Total cost about £5 and it's made about 30 gifts.

decided to have a temporary festive namechange watched Polar Express last night, starting to get into the spirit!! If I have time after clearing the decks for the cleaner I want to wrap DH's presents so if he finds them it won't be obvious what they are.

trainers I do this with Aldi chocolates - I bought 100 little cellophane bags on eBay and have loads of festive ribbons, I buy big boxes of chocolates and divide them up, tie with a ribbon and a brown paper luggage tag with a message.

Have also done with pink/yellow ribbon and used as small thank you gifts.

Such a lovely idea MissA! I think people appreciate the thought even if it doesn't cost much.

(Love your festive name change btw! It reminds me of the lovely book No Holly For Miss Quinn)

Spotty I hope DD recovers quickly and you get some rest.

I néed to do similar to you trainers with gifts that DDs want for their friends, I'm thinking cheapo costume jewellery (teen girls) split into bags.

Today will not be an NSD, need to try and get school sport shorts and a few bits of grocery shopping. Also need to book to see a dermatologist so that will be pricey either this week or next.

adora what about cheapo accessories, hair bits and even breaking up multipacks of nail varnish and stuff into little bags? Don't know if you guys have pound shops but you can usually get 3 packs of nail varnish for £1 etc.

Eek, spent nearly £60 on food shopping and still got more bits to get from supermarket later. Bit more than usual as ILs coming for tea. It's all dps fault as he eats so damn much. Does include all lunches though and snacks food for BLW baby.
Christmas shopping all done and mostly wrapped, a few more bits to arrive is week and then complete. £10 limit totally blown on every single person, just felt so stingy! Ah well.

Really liking the frugal pressie bag idea. Too late for me this year, but I am going to save for the future

Free Managing Your Money Online Course Read about this on another thread, it's 8 weeks about 3 hours per week so I'm making it my business to follow it.

Great ideas there about the chocolates. I'm on the slow cooker saddos facebook group and they've recipes for fudge and to do a pudding with a terrys choc orange in the middle, maltesers on the outside and some white choc melted on top for snow. I may make the fudge for presents for people I'm not that bothered about giving gifts to but must do to keep peace with hubbies first set of inlaws

That's good peonies/misteltoe, at least you can find out if you will continue to have pain going forward.

Went to a local bazaar yesterday for santa, cost €3 per adult on the door, spent €4 on tickets and dh had free entry and spent €3 on tickets and won a huge hamper worth €60/€70 with whiskey, wine and all the extra bits for christmas like ingredients for pudding, fizzy drinks, chocolates etc, no christmas food shop needed in this house.

So not a LSD as such, £2.10 on printing from library, £2.30 registered post, 30p envelope, £5.03 bits from Asda, but some of it will make meals!

Will be baking all rest of week, I make a Portuguese speciality called broas for my family one sort have sweet potato in and another sort honey. I am also making some home-made Christmas decorations with DS to give to my sister. The card making and writing yesterday was hard work but DS loved it.

We got the news that DS now has a new little cousin as well which is lovely (and he's pleased cos it's a boy and he only has girl cousins so far!).

FIL is sending some money as a gift so it will make a bit of difference to our Christmas this year.

lilac those treats look really pretty! I need some of that ribbon you can curl with scissors... someone needs to tell Santa to put it in my stocking

They had it in lidl recently 5 different colours on a spool for little over €1!
I didn't make anything yet but I've just been through my lists and I think two batches of fudge would cover a multitude.

Got a present at work of a box of ferrero rocher, not even going to unwrap just going to stick on a gift tag and give to my old childminder with a bunch of flowers from aldi.

nipped into town to get eyebrows removed threaded and the lady was off on her break, wasted a few mins in Oxfam, they are seriously ripping the piss with their prices - £30 for a dress with a ripped back seam, which they'd even written on the tag "needs repair to seam" £50 for a second hand coat... you could get stuff cheaper in Next!

Car wash done for a fiver but that's it for today, phew!!!

Nsd!

Congrats on winning the hamper, Lilac .

£28.50 for DS's monthly bus pass.
£3.50 lunch.
£4.63 Tesco.
£2.80 post office (£7.64 in total, but most of that had already been paid through eBay).
£39.43 in total (I think).

Oh yes, lilac, what a fab win!

Missed that lilac - excellent win!