October Frugaleers part deux

[CremeEggThief]

HI all, took the liberty of starting a new thread.

There is a new, free Future Learn course starting next week called "Managing my Money" with advice on debt, investments and budgeting.

dh has just come back from the shop £42 which included 116 weetabixes (72 boxes on special offer in the coop at the moment).

i have sorted through my handbag and had a check at my vouchers/receipts etc. Have £30 to spend in next, a beauticians voucher, a hairdresser voucher, and a ton of boots vouchers. and about £7 left to spend in m&s.

went in the other day for tights, ad can't find anything. i just want to be able to buy a multi pack of black tights. can i do this? no. only one pair at a time.

sigh. must look elsewhere.

Gah just spent £16 on Amazon, mostly on stuff for dd that she has managed to break in the last week including a new water bottle and new swim bag. Also a 'shopping' bag that is going to be one to keep on me so I don't end up wasting any 5ps on plastic bags!!

I also know of a 'coil baby' and someone that had an ectopic due to the coil

A trip to Paris sounds amazing Ipsos you should def get planning!!

Am really going to reign in the spending for the rest of this week, well intact rest of the month

I think you can use glycerin suppositories too, I suppose they soften it.

It was me nagging about the loft elctro, only because it's something you can have done by british gas for free if you dont have enough lagging.

One of our relatives had it done for free but then they boarded over the lagging thus rendering it ineffective because it's the trapped air that insulates.

£1 work stuff and 10p on marked down broccoli. £3.75 refund.

missed you

How old is your dd Binglet? My dd really struggled as a toddler and ended up on Movicol which sorted her out. Lots of fruit also seems to help keep her regular!

Girlie she's 22months. She eats lots of fruit. I've been told boiling pears and giving her the water. Pears are on the shopping list. Thanks for advice, reassuring to hear other people have had problems too.

Can i join? Although I am useless at keeping up with these things (time is never on my side)
I try and be really conscious with money and stick to a tight food budget of £30-35 per week for me, dh and dd (she is almost 2) and also the pooch.
I rigorously plan my weekly meals and cost them out and then change them if I calculate it as over budget. Be great to read how others are saving at the moment.

Want to save for another child some day.

Well have now caught up with my YNAB! All is ok and the budget for this month is looking fine , but i didnt like having to do two weeks worth at once.. ( didnt before I went away as rushed..)

It's certainly reinforces the lesson about keeping up recording spends everyday , its just so much easier , (and so much easier to just forget whats inthe bank and go overboard if you dont..).. Luckily the naughty indulgences, ( duty free perfume, naice cheese , a scarf and a bit of pottery, I brought back all came out of the DH's 'euro stash' but I havent told him yet!! (I went on my own to see a friend)

I do now keep every receipt now and looking back even over the last two weeks its a bit of a revelation (even one year in doing this ) as to my spending habits .. seems to have featured quite high!! but it was a holiday in France..

Ive also bought a new handbag!! however my old one was 9 years old, falling apart and I only ever have one at a time , that was £60 .. and have just ordered a dress on a MN recommendation for a wedding im going to in December £49.. that may go back though if not suitable.

Rest of the month should be ok , we have people comig this weekend , but thats sorted .. only one big meal to cook (and they are veggies).. and its Mums 90th this month .. so that may be expensive.. but hey , 90!! she deserves it .. looks like we will be mostly eating beanz though

FFS 3 pages already, seriously?! Are you trying to make me square-eyed? :o

Our freezer dinner was lovely. Turns out it was Bolognese as I'd hoped. Got leek soup out of the freezer for DH as he's coeliac and the lentils I use say 'may contain wheat' - just wondering, as I know there are folks catering for gluten free on this thread, does anyone know of anywhere I can get (dry, red) lentils that are guaranteed gluten free?

I'm feeling rather on edge though as our freezer door doesn't seem to be sealing properly. Fingers crossed we won't find a load of defrosted sauces tomorrow!

No other spends today myself - staying at home in jammies has some advantages (we spent the afternoon making various components of blood out of clay! :o) - but DH stocked up on Vosene spray as they are hard to get at the moment, and they were massively reduced so we got 12 bottles for £2.88!

Having a very rare few hours child-free with DH tomorrow. We've got some clubcard vouchers so will have a cheap lunch date :)

Binglet this is going to sound odd, but ds also struggled until we had him vaccinated against chickenpox and that cured him permanently. Pricey, but effective.

I love coming back to this group after missing a bit and playing "Guess the ailment". Discussions of tampon brands, coils and constipation are hilarious to read if you are not quite sure what's being discussed or why.

Em for a minute there I thought your dh had bought 72 boxes of Weetabix. Hats off to the man if he did.

Pink just catching up on the thread, well done for resisting the takeaway temptation!

Electro I freeze pesto, I just spoon it into the middle of a square of foil and wrap it up like a present. Defrosts super quick too so it's great for those 'oh shit I didn't get anything out for dinner' days.

I'm sure I've seen free hot drinks at Waitrose mentioned here before... can anyone explain please?

DCs have started a new weekly club and as it's a fair distance away I'll be waiting nearby while they're there. There's a Waitrose and it has a cafe, thinking I might wait there if it's open.

Hello!

Sorry I've been away for a couple of weeks. No real excuse. I'm up to date on my budget again and feeling a bit more in control even though we've had some unbudgeted but legitimate expenses that have run away from us recently like sodding car tax. As it was always paid by DH ex work I didn't know it was coming up.

Also, most excitingly, we are up to date (actually 2 weeks ahead) on rent. I've also changed it from a weekly payment to a monthly payment so I don't get caught again.

Anyway, hello all!

Fuzz you need a MyWaitrose loyalty card (free). My understanding is you can have a free takeaway tea or coffee, but if you want it in the cafe you also have to buy something to eat.

Morning. Lovely to have people back.

Should be nsd number 3 today! Ds off to pre school so I will sit and eat do some housework

Morning. Nsd planned today

I'm going to finish clearing out my loft after dc birthday end of the month. It has some insulation but boards are balanced on them. I started before but didn't get finished.

fuzz my local waitrose only let's you get free coffee (not tea....) on your way out of the store. Too many people mooning around with hot drinks and spelling them in the store I think. It's annoying though as its a small shop. And there's only one door. So there are always crowds around the door gossiping with free coffee.

Drives me insane.

ipsos re weetabix. I had another look. We have 2 boxes of 72 weetabix in the cupboard. I can't stand the stuff. But it will get eaten. And he did save money buying a huge amount that'll last him about 3 days...

Also hoping for lsd today. Meeting friend for coffee at lunch.

I think I might have conjunctivitis if so I suppose that will mean spending money on a prescription? I've never had it before so not sure what to do about it.

Pointless you can buy it over the counter for about £5. Go to the chemist and ask them, although most conjunctivitis will clear on its own without drops. I would leave it a few days just wiping with cotton wool and warm water (separate wool for each eye)

Marking my place! I thought you all had gone awfully quiet!