Frugal January, part two.

[Fluffycloudland77]

Everybody is welcome.

No spends so far but dd has a cub camp tomorrow night and needs a new waterproof so am going to go and get that and order the wallpaper for her room. Shouldn't be any other spends though.

Glad you got antibiotics Nk.

I wonder why they didn't advise people to shop aldi or lidl?. The order we had from tescos was rubbish quality. You had to virtually wring out the bacon. I've still not watched it though.

Fuffy, it'll just annoy you. They were so clueless!

Hope the medicine kicks in soon for you, Nk.

£2.14 in Lidl, on tiger bread, jam (we have scones and clotted cream to use up) and a spare pint of milk. Hope that will be it until Monday. Our street is slippier than an ice rink, even wearing snow boots, so it was a bit of a mission to walk the short walk there.

Glad to see people still posting here, I hate dislike when we move on before the month has ended! Am I slightly OCD?

Me too lila!! Especially because I get paid at the end of the month.

So, first round of antibiotics, and first round of ibuprofen in. My throat isn't so sore, and I feel half human. Methinks I can sleep tonight. Dr said 'oh, big glands, and ohh lots of pus on tonsils'. Kinda glad I went to the dr then. It's so difficult to judge sometimes whether they'll just fob you off with a 'drink lots and rest lots'.

I've managed a bovril, a slice of bread,and a bowl of rice crispies. Will try and have some dinner tonight. But first, a round of antibiotics.

Hope everyone starts to feel better soon.

NSD here but even better than that, I got a £10 cheque for my car tax on my old car! Better than nothing! Plus, it's pay day for me, hooray.

£48.75 from joint account in Lidle. More than anticipated but got a lot more, lots of meat, loads of tuna and salmon, chicken, etc etc.
Then £30 from personal account on wine and a rice cooker. I'll pay myself back at the end of Feb (big payday then). I've used it already and I'm really pleased.

Happy Friday y'all

Bank: £548.18 (was £558.18)
Purse: £4.18 (was £7.80)
Jar: £39.50 (was £41.35)
Grand Total: £591.86 + £120 + £15
Reduced by: £15.47
Days to payday: 14

Spends:

£2.50 on a shop bought lunch (this is the first time I have bought lunch out since I started tracking my cash about 6 weeks ago)
£9.35 – in hardware shop on drain unblocker and lightbulbs
£1.77 – 3 x birthday cards
£1.85 – kids bus fares..

Had to buy a new iron today too – all of my electrical appliances seem to be dying. Since Christmas I have replaced a fridge freezer, microwave, fan heater, now an iron and several lightbulbs. I'm starting to worry that there is something afoot with my electricity - ? power surges? If anything else electrical goes within the next month I think I'm going to have to speak to a sparky. Anyway iron was £19.99.

I've got a Morrisons order coming tonight but two of the components for main meals are not available (!) so that means I'll probably have to make a trip to the supermarket this week.

Snap Lila. I get paid middle of the month so my month starts when everyone else is half way through theirs!

Confused - rice cookers are fab. I don't know how people cook it in a pan....

I spent £15 in tesco earlier on not much... Got Elle magazine which has a free benefit mascara in it, some reduced bits which will do two lunches, dinner for tonight and a box of matchmakers

1. so is the awesome sistema microwave rice cooker
2. I've done it! got to the end of Jan on £10 ! I spent an extra £20 that should mean I can get to the end of Feb and into March!

I have to say I've never had a problem cooking rice on the hob, but it was excellently cooked in the cooker earlier - and it was only for the dogs!!

bantam That is so unusual for Morrisons, in the 8 months that I have been taking deliveries, I think I have had one substitution/omision so sorry to hear that.

Love my rice cooker, which is also a slow cooker and porridge maker and something else, probably a car

Such a busy day today, this weather means the pony is stabled, which means DD and I are out of the house at 6am to feed and turn her out, then back down later to feed, muck out and bring back in. Decided to muck out at 6.15am today. Fun in the dark!!

Then 2 lots of dog walking at an hour a time, cleaned the house, pile of paperwork, filled the horse box with diesel. Cooked tea (spare ribs, corn on the cob, roasted cinnamon sweet potato), took DS to karate. Went to farm shop.

Anyway, Spends were £60 diesel but budgeted £80 so good there. £25 farm shop but lots of meat and 36 eggs.

I know I am living on the edge of doing far too much and coming down with something, but hey ho!!

£30 on an Oyster top-up - didn't have enough on there to get home after work. Couldn't cycle the latter part of this week as DH was ill and I had to walk DD to school in the mornings.

I've never thought of a rice cooker: I've been cooking rice in pans all my life and never felt the lack of it, but if it keeps the rice hot I can see that might be an advantage.

Is the free Benefit mascara Bad Gal Lash or They're Real, Spotty? If it's They're Real I might go in search of Elle when I shop tomorrow.

I went to beauticans which was cheaper than excpected €17 as opposed to the €24 I thought it would be.
Ordered new mineral foundation there too but that'll be week after next before it's in so no spend yet.

Had trial of a few different ones across my face so didn't go buy diesel afterwards! But that'll be tomorrow.

Are rice cookers good or could I use small slow cooker instead?

Robin it's a new one that isn't in shops yet. I'm not going out tomorrow and swimming Sunday so won't be trying it for a few days I'm excited though I love benefit. I will let you know what I think if I try it before you've bought it.

Oh it's only sample sized too but still cheaper than buying it.

lilac I am a convert, and I never felt the need for one. The rice is perfect and it keeps warm for 2 hours. I've only used the bloody thing once.
Get yourself down to Lidl. £9.99 for a rice cooker at the mo.

lilac I like starting a new thread on the 1st too, even though dh gets paid mid month so that's when my budget starts.

Congratulations vinegar it's great when budgeting pays off.

£53 delivery from Tesco. Definitely won't spend anything tomorrow, although I am now thinking I need a rice cooker! Why are they so great?

My mother can cook rice perfectly every time in a saucepan. She finds it very easy.

I get a claggy rice even in a rice cooker. Maybe I'm adopted?.

I watched the food programme, felt a bit sorry for them really. They did switch to some Aldi brands but they're probably scared to say "right everyone, the first step is to avoid the big 4 supermarkets".

Pleased you got antibiotics NK

1.29 on a birthday card and £6 in Morrison's and £4 for beavers

Spendy day tomorrow in town shopping and lunch at a jamie Oliver place. Paying for one and a half as its a friends birthday and clubbing together for her.

£2.16 today on milk and nuts which we needed but cross with myself for buying a bag of crisps too. I never buy crisps and was shocked to discover they cost 60p!!

Thanks bab and everyone else. Turns out dh is now ill. Argh. I feel a helluva better though. Amazing stuff antibiotics and ibuprofen.

Rice cookers - I'm Chinese by ethnicity. That's the only way we cook rice and I can probably bet that every Chinese student that comes over here brings a rice cooker or buys one pretty darn quick.

If it's claggy, it might be because you are putting too much water in it. The process of making perfect rice in rice cooker:
Put rice in cooker. Put tap water in till it covers it. Swill it around, pressing down occasionally so that you get the cloudiness out. Throw water out. Repeat 2-3 times till the water is clearer.
Fill pot again with fresh water and put enough water till there's about a little finger (first line) worth of water in it (from the top of the rice, so not from the bottom of the pot). Does this make sense?

Put in cooker. Press cook. Should take 10-15 min.

When it pings to warm, wait a few minutes before opening the lid. Stir it around. The rice will lose some more steam. The rice will be perfect.

:) not sure how one does it in a slow cooker. Didn't even think one could!