Fearless Frugaleers Finding Their Feet in February

[SpottyTeacakes]

I've got fruflu

Obv affecting by ability to type too

Em thats totally do-able. Toms and peppers grow well on a sunny windowsill. I wotld try cherry tomatoes as they ripen quicker, I struggle to get chillies and peppers to ripen, but I think you get a good deal more sun than us! I have a good trug thing which has a false bottom so you can have a reservoir of water which you fill via a tube, so they keep moist if you are away for a bit too.

Bag of compost, tomato feed, and some seeds - lots of info online about how to grow stuff, but I go with plant seeds and wait.

nocuts hi! I am a newbie too, and this lot are amazing! I've already got lots more in my account than I would have normally, just cos I'm being so much more careful now (feel half term will be spendy with 4dc though)

Welcome nocuts.
Em I have grown chillies, herbs and lettuce on a window sill. This year I'm going to fill the window box on the front of the house with herbs and do tomatoes and strawberries in hanging baskets. My neighbours who are all elderly with immaculate gardens will tut but the front of our house gets so much more sun than the back.
Happy birthday creme!

Thanks id I'm heading to garden centre later with dm for scones and tea. So will see what they have plant/seed wise. I have loads of pots as orchids kept growing and needed reporting.

I'm lucky in that all of our windows are south facing so even on a grey day like today the place is lovely and light and airy and warm.

Morning folks!

Belated happy birthday Creme what pizza did you have? I always go for the pollo ad astra (has a slight cajun spice to it) with some of the house dressing drizzled on... strange but it works.

Sorry more people are poorly! Ridiculous amount going round at the moment.

Welcome to more newbies :) :) this is such a brilliant thread, it's helped me both in a practical sense - as I'm getting loads of advice and ideas for money saving - and in an emotional sense, as everyone has been so lovely and supportive when I've been really worried and down. :)

Spends from Friday:
£2.30 DH bus fare - he has pretty much emptied his locker and had a lot to drag home.
£15 Giffgaff - fiver for the 'goodybag' and a tenner top up (the latter will last several months)

Right, today it's dancing so will have DS' bus fare but will avoid the shop, friend coming round later and DSD staying too. She's meeting DH as her bus pass ran out, we've already agreed it'll go on the credit card, that's the only thing we hope to put on it for a good while (and I need to contact the bank - I got a letter saying that as I haven't used it for ages, they'll close it unless I phone them! WTF!). But again it'll depend on how the job situation goes. He's applied for some more places (Smiggle anyone? Good grief DD would be ecstatic if he got that one...)

I've been to lidl it was £49 something. I didn't do well because dd was being horrendous all the way round and is still being so.

(I meant my CC is going to be closed, as it's been unused for several months - DH's still has lots on as we agreed to only use one)

Ah, sorry Wreck I used to hate going shopping when my DCs were at that stage. Tesco delivery all the way for us now.

At walk in so will catch up.
Em window sill is same theory as greenhouse so those types of plants should do well.
That sounds a nightmare for budgeting nocuts. Can they give you an aggregated amount so you get a similar amount each month? Sorry don't know how these things work.
Fuzz sound like it's classed as a dormant account and from my credit card days fairly standard, even more so in the days of responsible lending. They may Adlai try some upselling while you are on

Ah wreck I hate taking dc shopping, blows the budget as well as the stress levels

Well I've managed to meal plan and I think all I need is tissues and loo roll as lidl have stopped selling andrex.

Spag Bol
Meatball sub (Jamie Oliver dh is making them for my v day dinner)
Roast chicken dinner
R chicken wraps
Chorizo risotto
Pizza (swimming night)
Chicken goujons and chips (Friday cba to cook )

Not the healthiest but all done for £50.

Oh and dd's foot is completely fine now so must have been ligament damage?

Ah ha pleased DD seems better wreck.
I think I need a new nn

no cuts good luck that budget sounds tough.

fuzz I agree this thread has helped in more ways than one. There's the budgeting side. And the emotional side which helps me realise I'm not the only one. We're all different in our situations/circumstances but can learn and share tips/ideas/support.

The only thing I'm annoyed about is that a lot of things you guys do I can't (switch energy suppliers, phones etc). There just isn't that option here sadly.

Yes that is strange, a company having a total monopoly.

Mind you I have acted like that is the case here, as I've only ever banked with NatWest, we've had one phone supplier since we moved here, I'm not even sure we've ever switched energy supplier really need to get on with that.

Happy birthday creme. Just over £50 spent in Sainsbury yesterday mostly due to knackered can't be arsed to get something out of the freezer itus. In my defence it's been a really busy work week and a long day travelling on Thursday so I am in a fair bit of pain. Dh said "we must get more organised with our Ocado shop" I bit my tongue as there is no "we" involved in the shopping! Ds was bloody awful in the supermarket which reminded me exactly why I shop alone or online.

Yeah it's a pain.

I want to switch banks. Hsbc are so annoying. but our mortgage is with them so it makes no sense to switch now and go elsewhere. Once mortgage is up for renewal/we sell (whichever is the earliest) were going to switch. We were going to do it last renewal but Hsbc had the best rates.

[little bit of this post removed by MNHQ for a privacy issue]

Fuzz, giardineria (artichokes, mushrooms, olives, peppers and cherry tomatoes, with some pesto). One of my two favourites from there; the other being the spinach, olive and egg one (fiorentina).

Babs, hope your DS is feeling better soon too. I've managed some washing up and a load of laundry, but back in bed again.

Welcome more newbies and cheers for all the birthday wishes.

Antibiotics prescribed
£69. Odd in sainsburys collecting his free prescription !
£22 in butchers.
Home now and not leaving. Sleet here so house blitz.

We visited that sports club this morning but it was no use at all. The children's activities were all very testosterony, and no parents allowed in, and cost extra. The pool was nowhere near as nice as the public swimming pool. No point paying £8 a day for three months up front, to join there. Better to just use that figure as a home ed budget, I think, and look for better options.

Ds enjoyed watching people play tennis.

Smug, as I have remembered I have a £1 voucher for the paper:)

Happy birthday creme.

Accidentally spent £7 in Sainsbury's but found £6 in an old purse.

It's a chilly day so the heating is on.

In 1 week we have used

£7ish electric
£8ish gas

How does that compare to everyone else? 3 bed semi.

I think it'll naturally go down next week as DS has been poorly so we've done more washing, boiled kettle loads for steam & Vicks, he's had more baths/ showers and we had to run the Vicks humidifier all day to ease his cough. Which helped amazingly.

Happy Birthday Creme

Em Herbs and peppers (hot and sweet) would be my suggestions. Or courgettes, if you pick early, they will crop and crop. Tomatoes take up too much room imho. Re banks, you wouldn't need to close the HSBC account to open up a new one. We have our main current account with M&S and a swapped pretty much everything over, but I do use the old Lloyds one too for a couple of DD's and savings, as our mortgage is with them.

Wolf Meal planning when you are rushed off your feet is really really hard, I know this for sure!

Sorry collie, I can't make the comparison re fuel living here for you.

Ipos Shame the sports club wasn't suitable. Of the reasons why, I personally would think that parents no being allowed to stay is the least concerning. I used to drop and leave my DC with a very cheerful 'you will be totally fine', but sneak back 10 minutes before the end and spy somewhere, to check and ease my concerns. I really think they gauge their reactions to situations by your own, so I never showed any anxiousness, so they never thought to have any, if that makes sense!! A little independence is A Good Thing, even if they are a touch worried by a new situation. But totally agree that it doesn't seem this particular club would suit your DS.

I'm off to get some bread now as we have a competition tomorrow and we are making bacon butties when we get there. I need some cash, but this is budgeted for.

Oh, and Morrisons have been, £70, more than usual but it's half term next week so I've stocked up with extra fruit, snacks and milk etc for the DC.

Collie we are electric only and pay £122 a month. It evens out over the year.

Happy birthday creme! I got mumsnet to change your post, hope you don't mind.

Ipsos would your ds prefer doing tennis maybe? If he enjoyed watching it maybe he would like to play.