Join the Fantastic Frugaleers for a February full of frugality

[northender]

Shiny new thread ready for Sunday. Newbies very welcome. This is a wonderful thread full of encouragement and support

Also - wondering where Laska is? She's not been on for a few weeks.

I am going to have to add a clothes 'pot' to the budget. I think it was stupid of me not to. We are a family of essentially 4 adults. Just everything costs so much, it seems

Dc didn't touch their pasta

Nsd

Been at work all day very busy again and everyone is fed up with it. Oh well am off again next week for half term!!

Got a friend coming over tonight, got a pizza going to have with salad. Dd going to have beans on toast for tea tonight

Has anyone elses mn bookmark disapeared??

Well HELLO PAY-DAY you sexy beast!

Bank: £1136.38 (was £116.04)
Purse: £4.73 (was £4.53)
Jar: £11.20 (was £13.45)
Grand Total: £1152.31
Days to payday: 28

Spends:

£56.00 petrol
£10.82 Catalogue
£180.00 – to DH, wonder how long it will last him this month! >.<
£2.25 – bus fare

Rough budget leaves me £460 for incidental spends. DS1 already needs shoes. I've got a mystery shopping job for Sunday – I haven't done one in ages – doesn't pay much but I get a free sandwich from it, might do it tomorrow actually. I've got next week off work but no plans other than a few lies in and lunch with a former colleague so I'll either hardly spend anything all week, or be boredom spending!

bantam It will last him ALL month and you will not cave!!!

£10 on some craft stuff for dds and friends today. Leftover Bolognese for dinner tonight, egg and bacon for lunch tomorrow, M&S Chinese plus homemade cow mein for dinner, roast chicken on Sunday, soup Monday. Only need top up of fruit and veg, cheese and bread tomorrow. Happy Valentine's day for tomorrow everyone!

Meal plan for the week, pretty boring and still cost me £70.

Fakeaway with pitta, chips and salad
Fish cakes with mash and veg
Sausages with boulangere potatoes and veg
Beans on toast with cheese on top
Pasta and tomato sauce with bacon
Bacon with pasta, creme fraishe, mint, peas and parmesan

Lunches

Coleslaw
Ham
Cheese
Crackers
Bread
Pot noodle
Leftover pasta

Breakfast

Ready brek
Malt wheats (dd loves these but I think they're quite sugary?)
Greek yogurt and fruit

Snacks

Fruit
Crackers
Cheese
Cheese scones

Bought some gu zillionaires desserts for pudding tomorrow they were half price and are delicious that'll be our valentines treat.

The plums I got in the shopping are best before tomorrow should I ask for a refund? They were £2!

No, not worth the hassle. If they're a little squishy make plum and apple crumble with cinnamon, yum! Can I pinch a menu idea -sausage and boulangere potatoes for us on Tuesday too!

Congratulations Blue I love new baby snuggles.

Yesterday £11.50 lunch at work as a colleague is leaving. Lent another colleague the £11.50 but then had to dash off for a school emergency. I will get it back next week.

Today £5.80 for lunch, M&S meal deal plus popcorn and cake. I have been really bad at taking lunch this week, will try harder next week.

I need to do a Tesco shop, will try to keep it under control, the list is looking quite long and spendy!

Clippity we will still eat them but if I email them they'll refund me as they didn't make me aware of the short date when they delivered. There was only four in the pack too

360 you asked for camping food ideas. Rather than taking loads with us, I bought stuff like pasta and bread on a click and collect from the local supermarket. I also took bags of frozen bolognaise sauce in a cool box that were still cool after 2 days, this meant a really filling meal just in saucepans.

We bought a cheap electric 2 ring hob from (I think) Argos which made cooking easy.

The onsite mini markets are usually expensive and poor quality, better to use a normal supermarket. The suggestion above to take herbs and spices and also things like washing up liquid with you.

Good news and bad here. Good news is that some family I rarely see have just said they are in the area tomorrow and could they visit. Bad news is I've just sent DH out to get some nice treats for their lunch. He is also getting me Friday beer treat to celebrate surviving the first week back at work. At least he got paid today.
Took £10 out for a team building visit to the pub after work but my boss paid - good but now have to resist spending tenner!

I did tgat yesterday pointless, got cash out to buy milk then realized I already had some, was annoyed because it's easier to fritter as cash I think.

Was supposed to be out at a thing tonight but it's been cancelled so NSD - which means I've only spent £1.45 (on milk!) in the last 5 days!

I'm taking eldest out for a treat tomorrow so will try my best not to splurge and spoil things.

£15 petrol
£4.60 dishwasher powder
74p food bags

£6 asda, wine, biscuits and crisps. Another £4 has been reimbursed due to cashback.

£2 free crisps and 4p for popcorn thanks to shopitize and clicksnap in tesco.

I'm worried about Vinegar, she's not been back for ages,

£4 for beavers as they are both there now. £15 in home bargain on a birthday present and some snacks for half term

ohhelp - I'm just with one company now called Market Force, I used to be with a few and topped up a part time wage with that and Avon but then I got full time hours at work which was more money and less hassle. Just google the company - there is a link to join, I dont want to post to it in case MN get mad at me.

Couple of NSDs. Thursday paid for lunch out with meeting £8. Today £2.99 valentines card for dh.

Happy valentines everyone!!

Expecting congratulations on your DD too! Thanks for all the well wishes guys :) to those who need them. The t-shirt sounds unsalvagable to me but worth a try :(

NSD here. Dm took DS to toddlers whilst I waited around for community midwife to visit - got all my housework done then went to pick him up and DM invited us to stay for tea as OH working late, so that was nice.

Car passed the MOT so chuffed about that :)

Should be a nsd. Dh got me a card and chocolate orange going to my aunts as it was her birthday the other day.

We didn't do V day this year as going to Rome tomorrow for 4 days for a "yay, Miss A is well again" trip
When I booked it I couldn't even imagine being well again, but DH convinced me to book it so I'd have a goal to focus on. Can't wait!

Won't be NSD as we need various small bits for trip but nothing major, do we count changing £ to € as a spend?!

It's around 12-14 degrees in Rome, have no idea what that means clothes wise, would i be ok in skirt, tights, cardi, light coat // jeans jumper, jacket?

Oh MissA have a lovely time! I think jeans, top, jumper and light coat would be best.

Have a lovely time Miss A - I'm quite jealous.

NSD yesterday and probably today too. Normally on a Saturday I take the DCs into town for piano lessons and art lessons and then call into the bank for 50 euros cash for the rest of the week. Half term so no classes so no money in purse - means I can't spend anything. I can't go to the hole in the wall either because I refuse to pay the bank 10 euros for a PIN number - mostly it helps me regulate my spending because I can't have cash but sometimes it can be a PIA.

I think I've sold an old woodburner I had for 50 euros but won't get the money for that till next Saturday. I was going to clean it up and sell it for more but to be honest I don't have the time and it creates more space when it's gone.

Have a lovely time missA. 12c isn't that warm but you might find that you feel warm as used to the temps here. ....I remember going to Malta in winter, 20c and I was SO hot, walking about in vests and crops and getting told to wrap up by the locals who were wearing winter coats, hats, gloves, the lot!

£20ish in sains yesterday, they have some lego rrp £19 for £5.40! Bought 2, also hair dye, 2 for £7. Off to dps parents to be fed and watered and might go to the cheapie cinema there (£3.50 a ticket instead of £9....). Will also go slot machines I guess as by the coast, but gps usually give some change.