Friendly Frugaleers chat their way into February...

[Ipsos]

Just setting up the new thread for the chatty Frugaleers.

By popular request - copied from last year

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/other_subjects/1324074-For-those-who-cant-afford-to-use-central-heating-this-year-How-are-you-going-to-cope

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/credit_crunch/1543785-your-top-tips-for-money-saving-and-a-more-frugal-life

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/credit_crunch/1600030-Small-money-saving-habits-petty-even

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/credit_crunch/1628874-Gas-Elec-Bills-monthly-and-SKY-so-angry

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/mumsnet_classics/1911061-NO-MORE-COLD-MUMSNETTERS

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/2209167-Slow-Cookers-are-shit

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/2224969-saving-money

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/legal_money_matters/2258202-Debt-mutual-support-thread-number-6-start-the-new-year-with-a-clear-purpose-and-keep-moving-forwards-even-by-tiny-steps?

orchard.tesco.com/ Sign up to this.

www.topcashback.co.uk/home And this.

www.quidco.com/home/ And this

www.moneysavingexpert.com/ And this

www.moneysavingexpert.com/cheapenergyclub ditto.

www.checkoutsmart.com/ Plus this.

www.hotukdeals.com/all/deals/new?page=3 Check this daily.

NSD hooray!!!
What is the step app please? Sorry, can't remember who mentioned it.

Spotty my DCs never mortified me like that because they would've pointed out my fat before anyone else's :o

Also, DH got an interview. Job would be perfect. It's not for a few weeks, and obviously I don't want to get too excited about it but fingers crossed. :)

Oh exciting times testing things.
£33 on hair cut which is going up to £38 as my stylist has been promoted.

Well done Fuzz. That's great to have your travel all sorted, and lovely of your Dm to help out.

Great news fuzz! Wax all done, it was fine she said I was very brave

It really is :) :)

Well done Spotty you're far braver than I am! Both for handling the potential pain, and for letting a stranger anywhere near the waxable area! :o

Well done spotty and good luck for the interview fuzz's DH.

thanks :)

Inspired by the bus fare calculations I also added up all the food related entries - both grocery/top up shops (including the odd household thing like laundry stuff) and any restaurant/takeaway type things... averaged out, £113.21 a week I think this week has been a bit less because having ordered our Tesco delivery more carefully, we haven't been buying as much when out and about (except today... I caved. Zero willpower when I'm full of sneeze! ).

DH wasn't really sure we could get it lower but I am feeling optimistic that we can. As long as we keep sticking to the meal plan, allowing for snacks and food on the go when we're shopping, and making sure we utilise the freezer properly :)

Glad I have the Frugaleers to keep me on the straight and narrow

Spends today:
£100 trampolining for both DCs up to July (although slightly less, as I paid by PayPal and I had £4.79 in there from a Book People refund)
£7.30 bus
£8.65 food when out
50p tuck money

That's good about the interview, Fuzz, and how lovely of your mum to help out with the bus fares. Unless I know I need to travel four days a week or more, it's not worth my while getting a weekly bus pass. If I had a bit more spare cash, I would get one, just for the sheer freedom having one provides.

Spends: £7 day ticket, for work.
£1.11 crisps and a bottle of water, to break a £20 note, for bus fares tomorrow.
£2.40 on a large latte with a FREE muffin, as I had time to kill between finishing work and a gp appointment.
£1.49 on multi vitamins and minerals.
Total: £12.

My Sainsburys online order came just there, but I had to send the barn eggs they substituted for my free range back. That will come out tomorrow.

Thank you all for your kind words. I sort of came over all self pitying as I had that realisation that I work full-time, come home, sort out dd and house stuff and then go to bed. I don't really do anything else any more. The odd thing is I am really confident and outgoing at work, but terrible in social situations (parties are my nightmare). I just get all freaked out and don't know what to say.

Anyway, I think I will keep an eye out for good cheap or free evening things going on near by and also I'd like to save to do an evening course starting in September. It is almost £1000 though so I need to keep on the savings if I'm going to do it.

fuzz that is great news about your dh's interview. I know you are trying not to get too excited so I will sit here and be excited for you :o

I am far too terrified for waxing spotty. I keep thinking about getting my eyebrows done properly but I am even too much of a wuss for that so just sort of pluck round the edges occasionally trying not to sob too much.

Fuzz approved food are good for snacky things I find. You're like us I think, if there isn't chocolate in the house for dh he will go out specially to buy some. I always get him loads in lidl as they're cheap for stuff like that.

The lady who did it was really nice I didn't feel embarrassed at all!

For those who asked the step to points app is bounts. Lilac linked the moneysavingexpert post about it yesterday so there's info there.

I've also used pacer. But didn't like it so much.

And I use mapmywalk to um...map my walks.

I was interested to see exactly how much/how little I move.

spotty that's it now you'll never look back. I get waxed every month-6 weeks. My lady is brilliant. She does my eyebrows and bikini and I generally don't have to do much to either myself.

Did you get strip wax or hot wax? Hot wax apparently is less painful. I think strip is where they use stripe of cotton on top of the wax. My lady only does strip wax.

But the more you go the more your skin gets used to it. So it hurts less.

Need to book an appointment...

I was about to report 50p on a coffee at dancing, when I realised I had also paid £80 towards DD1's residential in April. £80 left to pay next month.

Paid £75 for the balance of this half term's dancing fees.

Have completed my tax return, will submit tomorrow, should get about £880 back. Will really help towards credit card bill.

Thanks folks

Unfortunately for me willpower is a problem with bulk buying! My friends use Costco but I don't think I could leave stuff alone if we had loads of it we've done well this week as I've been able to say 'we are saving that for .....' :o so hopefully will get into good habits that way. Hopefully.

Oh fuzz haha I know what you mean I have to hide stuff from dh!

Em she used warm wax for most then hot wax for the inner bit. I think I'll probably start adding my eyebrows into the mix! I'm really pleased.

Nsd

Hi all, just catching up. Been a really busy day at work I'm knackered and planning an early night as tomorrow looks as bad.

Popped to Sainsbusys after work for what was meant to be a top up shop and ended up spending £64 oh well that included a gift for my dneice who turns 2 this wend as well as some other baby clothes for my friend that were in the sale. We are having a buffet at work tomorrow for someone who is leaving, so spent £10 is on bits for that. So probably actual food spend was £40 ish for a week which isn't terrible.

Jeepers your life sounds much like mine I don't really get any child free time when I'm not at work so am quite curtailed as to what I can do.

£9 on new slippers for me. I have destroyed my current ones that I bought the day before I had Gabriel in early September.

My
Phone is no longer showing me the mobile version of this site so I am fining it very hard to keep up at the moment. Sorry!!

Hey fuzz well done on dh getting interview. At least they are shortlisting him to interview. Fingers tightly crossed.

Fingers crossed fuzz for your DH.

£20 on coffee pods. £17 on mud fever boots for the pony.

DS had a great parents evening. Recurring themes are how bloody clever he is, and what he could achieve if he really really tried, i.e he's a tad lazy. This is true, completely true. The problem is, he's an A grade kid. It's hard to find a way to make him try harder. Oh to have had this problem at his age

£25 in Lidl
£55 in Tesco
£30 petrol
£42 haircut

A very spendy day tomorrow as well 😆

A spendy day of the end of the month !

£13 in WH Smith (though that did include the Purrfect birthday -mindfulness cat colouring book - for a friend , even though her birthday isnt until May..she has recently got a cat and is besotted)
£24.25 on Frontline for our own mangy moggy.. ( who shouldnt have fleas this time of year but does! GRR, ill need to buy some more house flea spray now also)
£25.67 in the co op
£194.28 to BT for years rent in advance (I always for get about that one coming due ..its now on my YNAB !)
Plus I upgraded my phone data package today for another £2 a month ..

Im making a friugal chilli in slow cooker though for tomorrow evening , with some reduced oxtail and shin of beef

Sorry have been busy this evening so havent had t time to read back on the goss , but good luck to fuzz DH!