Frugaleers Flying into the New Year All Welcome on the January Thread

[SpottyTeacakes]

New thread hopefully someone can add some old links?

M&s don't have a dine in for £10 atm it's a £20 NYE deal. We won't do anything New Year's Eve, in fact I'll probably be in bed by nine

Oops, random bold, I'm still getting used to the mobile site!

Bantam - perfect time of year for selling a treadmill!

Thanks for the new thread Spotty

Had a slight mishap in Boots, in an outlet, £116 on various items including perfume, make up, hair spray, nail varnish, and essential oil.

I said the same to DH that it's the best time of year to flog a treadmill!

I have spent the whole day taking nice photos, which cost nothing. Yay! I finally managed to get one of them to work quite well, which is very nice. I spent £2.30 getting Boots to print it. LSD.

linky poos

Register with these sites for cashback: (can't link it takes you to my accounts)

quidco.com
topcashback.co.uk
kidstart.co.uk

for points pending christmas boosts;
nectar.com and mycoupons at sainsburys.co.uk if you shop at sainsburys
tesco clubcard and here if you live near a decent tesco orchard.tesco.com
any other points card for shops you regularly use
www.checkoutsmart.com/

www.hotukdeals.com/ check here daily

for the weekly email and all things frugal and moneysaving: moneysavingexpert.co.uk

Sat down now. With a medicinal port, the first night we have had on our own for ages. Fancy a film. DH has helpfully done a turkey broth in the slow cooker and walked the dogs.

Frugal fail (but not mine). My phone is screwed, I need a new one. It's a known issue with the Iphone 5c. I told work I didn't want a 5c for said issues, I would pay for an upgrade myself or have a Iphone 4 or an alternative model. Told to shove it basically. Now I need a new phone, which will cost work £££.

£14 in Wilkos on paper plates, cups, napkins, table cloth for NYE. Plus tablets and toothbrushes, and facial wipes.

£20 Next but had a gift card.

Returned Vans and exchanged for a larger size. Returned sweatshirts and DD now has a £35 Hollister gift card to use.

So far, my financial goals for 2016 include.

Use cashback sites more.
Do not buy from Amazon before checking, because it's easy.
Open a Help to Buy ISA for DS.
Try to cut the food budget to afford someone to iron.
Plan food budget even better. I am pretty good, but still can over buy.
Plan food budget to include as much fresh variety as possible.
Ebay 2 things a month.
Go through old financial statements and shred as much as I can.

Thank you spotty for the new thread, can't believe the other one is already full
LSD today - £12 at Aldi for frozen medium turkey, mushrooms, bottle of cheap red for cooking and brown sugar
We had roast pork on Christmas day but sil and bil are coming for "Christmas" meal on Saturday and they both like turkey; took dc to Charlestown for walk on the beach and browse couple shops, ds found couple trains for his modern railway but they were just too expensive
Goals for 2016

• finish the bathroom - paint, flooring, airing cupboard and new WC
• get 2 Velux windows for room in the roof
• paint both chicken coups
• paint all sheds and summerhouses
• paint and sort out seating and storage and put down the flooring I got for free on Freecycle in the wendy house for dc
• try to grow more fruit and veg if the weather can cooperate in the summer

Collies 2016 goals!

Car fund £20 per month
Use Quidco to renew insurances, utilities & shopping
Save all Quidco money purely for Christmas 2016.
Not forget birthdays and use my calendar
Find a part time job by September. Will hold out for the perfect job
Save £1000
Relocate! Yay!
Increase pension payments
Overpay mortgage a little

Re: blinds are they verticals? Seller we use on ebay does replacement slats / weights and chain as long as you have the top bar for £1 a slat and they are fab, we freshened ours up that way :)

Potty training here. In serious need of tips! Hes nearly 3. Showing v little by way of signs (was running round quite happily earlier in poopy / wet pants, doesnt tell you he needs to go etc). Need to get it done in this week off though! 2 wees in the potty today after a long sit playing games on my phone vs 3 accidents that werent even acknowledged by him until I noticed... normal? :/

NSD though as we havent left the house! (Online sales v tempting though!)

Thank you Spotty

£6 on a radiator cat bed which is being ignored by the cat.

Yesterday I spent £410 on 30sqm of polished porcelain 60x60 tiles for the utility, kitchen-diner and reception hall. Unless I've fucked up the measurements and then the hall can stay as it is. It's £12.49 psqm.

They match the kitchen perfectly, much nicer than the £36 psqm ones I saw

I need a tiler who can do annoying shaped rooms now.

I put it on an interest free for 21 months cc with Tesco. I can pay it off in the summer if I frugal.

Not had the heating on till just now today.

In Amazon vouchers and nectar points I have £25 for next Christmas.

Blue I think boys do tend to take a bit longer to get the hang of it from what friends have told me, I know with dd it took a week of me pulling my hair out and then she magically just figured it out! It did help that she has some sensory issues and hates feeling wet though it took quite a while longer before she would poo on the loo though.

Can you use bribes incentives? I found the Gina Ford Potty training in one week book useful as a potty training for dummies type guide!!

You'd be surprised how many people struggle with this blue. All that "It only takes two weeks" stuff in the books is just cobblers. Daytime wetting doesn't raise an eyebrow in school until year one and nappies at night until the teenage years, if you ask a GP. Hang in there.

Unfortunately the blinds are roller blinds. I refreshed my living room blinds recently as I found a £1 per slat on e-bay seller and got mine done for £37 including postage which I thought was fabulous. I might just get a quote for vertical blinds as the initial outlay is expensive, but replacing them if the mould persists isn't too bad.

Hmm I tend to think if they haven't got it (not necessarily perfectly) within three days they're just not ready. Both mine were later to potty train but dry day and night in a few days. They weren't showing any signs either though.

I'm working tomorrow actually really looking forward to it. Going to beg for some overtime as dh is home this week and I could do with the money.

collie, I am glad we are posting goals. You reminded me that I also need to use the calender more and write down birthdays etc. And, have a supply of cards in too.

blue What signs is your DS giving you that he's ready? Both of mine were over 3 as I recall. I certainly remember getting loads of hassle from family and friends that had allegedly potty trained at 2 months and the like (!!!), which I ignored. However, both just did it, 2 accidents between them. But were older, and neither liked the potty and went straight to the toilet, DS standing and doing a wee from the off. If that helps?

Bargain on the tiles fluffy, at the cat ignoring the bed!

Great link Creme and thanks for all the others babs

My goals for this year are get the DD's spending under control, this means getting them bank accounts so they manage it themselves, sign up to cash back sites, reduce amount spent on food and set up DDs to a couple of charities. Oh, and stop spending in general.

DH has been turning the heating up to bloody 22, ffs, sod this travelling between climates I'm going to ground him if this malarkey carries on.

Hi all, may I rejoin you?

2nd NSD in a row. Feel really pleased as still have lots of Xmas leftovers and will only need to do a tiny food shop this week.

I have an expensive Jan as my car needs MOT and service, and have spent quite a long time doing my Jan budget which is something I had let lapse.

Goals for 2016: want to redecorate and replace flooring in most of downstairs rooms without doing it on a credit card!

Welcome 574

Potty training DS was 3 and a month or couple of month. Waiting made all the difference and he did it himself.

Hello, id like to join for the new year please! I was on about a year ago but a bereavement sent me of the rails a bit and I only just feel ready to focus on sorting things out again.

My main aim this year is to build up the buffer YNAB goes on about. I hate dodging the over draft every month and would like to just have some emergency funds for a change. I am hoping to put aside £100 a month for this.

My 2 immediate things is getting a handle on random direct debit and bills, and getting the grocery shop in order.

I am currently on a low FODMAP diet due to a severe IBS flare up, which means all my regular cheap eats are off the menu and the food spend has gone off the scale. I think if I get back to meal planning again I should be able to sort this out a bit. Thankfully I have an aldi down the road!

Welcome back, 574.

Sorry to hear that jeepers

Welcome back 574

Welcome JeepersMccoy .

My DS more or less did it himself in a week or so, when he was 2 and 10 months. The differences were it was summer and he showed several signs in advance.

So much for my NSD. I spent my £50 John Lewis voucher and my Christmas money from my mum online. £128 in total.

Fluffy, the floor tiles sound like a good bargain.

Jeepers I'm in the same boat as you food-wise and cooking two different cooked meals for myself and ds three times a day. The food bill is expensive here too. We're usually spending £25 a day for three people here for all groceries. I tried to cut down but it's very hard to make any dent in it. The no-wheat thing really bites, I find.

One thing that is helping is batch cooking meat. I regularly buy 6 pork chops, cook them all at the same time and stick them in freezer bags in the freezer. I do the same with a roast chicken and put the breast pieces and legs in freezer bags in the oven. That at least cuts down on electricity costs.

Dh has chilli batch cooked and frozen in boxes (really good cheap boxes from John Lewis)

I used to buy rice in massive bags but it depends if they are cheap and easy to get hold of.

Good luck with your plans!

todays diner is done and eaten. Singapore Noodles from Ching-He Huangs chinese food made easy.

May have used one too many chilli's mouth on fire.

worked out that same noodles from local chinese would set us back £8.50 per portion. the only things i have had to buy for todays dinner is pack choi.