Amazing April Austerity.

[CremeEggThief]

Hi All,
Taking the liberty of starting a new thread, as I went to post spends on the old one and it's full.

We had a lovely day out at the seaside and visited an old lighthouse as part of it. As we rely on public transport, that's always a big part of our days out spend.
£9.60 bus fares.
£9.60 train fares (with the family railcard).
£6 lunch from Sainsburys ( £3 meal deal each).
£4.50 entrance to the lighthouse.
£7.10 coffee, hot chocolate and cookies in a café afterwards.

Oh and DS needed a haircut, which I think was £6.50.

We've been out for the day to a theme park- didn't cost as we bought an annual pass and already had our money's worth. We've been about 6 times so far this year as it's only a 15 min walk away.

However our spends there.

3.45 for a Starbucks latte oops.
5.09 at burger king for 3 hot chocolates
2.95 for 6 donuts.

We took our own packed lunch and resisted all other food which smells so good but is so bad for you. There were four of us all together.

As it's rained all day it was very quiet and we were able to go on bigger rides without queues whilst one of us watched the kids.

All in all its been a perfect day even if we were soaked wet through. We got home and all had a hot shower or bath.

Now relaxing in my pyjamas. I let DS and my niece raid their easter chocolate stash.. They took an adequate amount and offered me some ha ha so all in all a happy day.

NSD for me today, not sure about DH as he's still running.

Expense coming up though - DD has been entered for her first ballroom exam! :o

Not caught up with the thread but I need to know Pointless - cream first or jam first? :)

£56 food delivery. Spent about £45 today including £20 on dominos. Going to be lovely and sunny again tomorrow. Frugal win the bar forgot to charge us for our first round so saved myself £9.50.

I prefer jam first cag but DH disagrees, DD doesn't care so long as there is jam!

NSD today
wet and cold today so stayed in, did some housework and made simple skirts for both dds with the fabric I bought yesterday
Enchiladas for dinner tonight

I'm allergic to milk and would fucking kill for a naice scone with butter, clotted cream and strawberry jam.

Em I am so pleased the plumbers been. Frugality is all about prioritising the important spends.

NSD. Picked up dotty p top and it fits me. Sandals going back to shoeaholics though from the other night.

Hope everyone's having a good weekend. Great news about your holiday pay Cag.

NSD today. DS and I took two black sacks of stuff to the charity shop today, then I spent about three hours looking for jobs. Applied for one, contacted someone about another and got another application to work on next week.

I'm in a right old money mess. My March child maintenance is missing late and when some direct debits go out of my account on Tuesday, I'll go over my overdraft limit. That means I'll get charged £5 for every day I'm overdrawn. Shit, shit, shit. I've had almost constant headache for the last few days, think it's the stress and worry.

Can you extend the overdraft?.

Pointless I'm with your DH on that one. Cream is the equivalent of butter in my view and therefore needs to go first :o

Still haven't caught up. DH finished the 12hr run thingy, he ran a marathon's worth in under 4hrs but then tripped over, the twit. Walked the rest, still came 7th. Stubborn git. :)

Overdraft charges are horrendous Money I hope it gets sorted ASAP

Weirdly I think butter on a scone is just wrong but I do see the logic about the cream being like butter! We bought some posh jam home so there might have to be some scone-making and experimenting!

Money, can you cancel the direct debits and reinstate them when you have the money?

Cag, I agree with you on most things, but I can't about scones. It goes scone, jam, clotted cream on top. The only optional is butter (or spread, if butter is too much of a pain!)

Think it may be north that does this
An offer has come up on subscription f & v boxes - essentially one free the first month.
Are they worth it? Au pair is vegetarian so I'm sure would like it, might make the kids more interested, thinking if we didn't like something or had leftovers we could make soup of it.

I changed to buying from supermarket to grocer & the difference is amazing

money have you called the bank? I called when my maintenance money was three weeks late one time (long story with ex, I usually have to ask nicely for the money...he's been a bit better of late), and I cried down the phone, as I was at the end of my overdraft, credit cards, the lot. The lady put a temporary extension on it for me. The panic is the worst thing for me.

Getting onto this thread is bringing me away from the end if my overdraft (I long to be out of it), which takes away the direct debit panic.

Had to put diesel in the big car (finally fixed) £25.
Aldi £46, but lots of grow pots and some chilli plants as I struggle to get them to germinate.
£4 from an internet shop, massive sale on seeds, some packs for 5p! Have stocked up for next year.

Mizzly rain all day. Hope it clears up for tomorrow, having belated egg hunt with nephews if it's fine.

Over here butter is served with scones as standard. My jersey granny thought my Devon granny was odd for not putting butter on scones then cream then jam. But we do have nice butter here.

Should be nsd.

I spent my evening pouring over bathroom books and have narrowed choices down to two of each of sink toilet bath and shower. So will see if Dh agrees with any of them.

Talking of scones.. my mum went on a baking frenzy last night and made them, almond and walnut bake or cake (I don't know which lol) and my brother made chocolate chip cookies ha ha!!

Those all sound delicious dontlet.

I absolutely love cookies from millies and places alike however I can't justify the price.. just like I also enjoy hot cookie dough desserts!!

We have found a recipe online that is just perfect either for normal chocolate chip or double chocolate chip. They are so good!! Just like what you buy in shops.

I've spent years trying to find a good one and now I'm in cookie heaven lol.

ipsos hope things improve for ds
cag great news re your annual leave
lilac we Get a local veg box delivery, I think it's need who gets a subscription one (?Abel & Cole). It's not cheap but. Like getting it, it just sometimes is difficult to use everything up, you definitely have to be organised.

Need does get Abel and Cole.
LSD planned today, family event at the skate park £10, maybe swimming for another £10. Which is low spending compared to recent weeks

I think this photo encapsulates what is wrong with my spending. Do you think I have overbought for an egg hunt for 6 little people????

Lunchbox choc treats until Christmas I think!

Hello all. Went to Homebase yesterday to get a few bits for the very little balcony at the flat where I'll have dc 50% of time. I HAD made myself an Ikea shopping list to compensate for missing a garden, but that's not very frugal, so I moved a Poang armchair onto the balcony at the sheltered end - it just about fits and if I take the cushion off at night, it won't get damp. Brought a string of fairy lights from our Christmas hoard rather than buying new. It's beginning to look lovely out there.

I did spend £28 - a grow-your-own tomato bucket, 2 narrow trough planters, some beetroot seedlings and little fruit trees. (The great thing about shopping without a car is that you can only buy what you can carry...). I'm going to try to take cuttings from the herbs I planted at H's house rather than buy new. I'm back to the house today, where I'll start to divide up our kitchenware & bedding, etc. DETERMINED not to buy anything if I can avoid it.

A website on my Facebook claim to have the sainsburys 25% off dates to 2017. Can't account for the provenance of it. Bargain buys for busy mums it's called

You lot are making me want to eat scones!! I like a nice savoury cheese scone with butter on Mmmmmm

Got some friends popping over in a bit, so cheap morning.

Picking up a couple of things from Argos later, have ordered a non slip bath mat as dd managed to slip over in the shower the other day and also a new pillow as dd has decided she prefers 2 pillows now.

May go and see Kung fu Panda 3 later......

Feel really bloated today so have passed on the bacon sandwich for breakfast in favour of green tea and shredded wheat with yoghurt. booooorrrrrriiiinnnnggg

Once I get out of bed I'm doing a food shopping list, am getting back on the eBay train (have started wearing clothes in my wardrobe now instead of just the same old ones and now see that things I've bought don't suit/don't fit properly).