Frugaleers chatting and saving into August...

[ipsogenix]

Just setting up the new thread for the chatty Frugaleers.

Useful links 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.

Lovely photo em

8 if that was admin fees complain, I complained about mine because I did it online and said therefore they should be paying me & I said it was grossly out of proportion to the actual costs involved. I emailed the CEO and had the money back as a goodwill gesture.

Well, M&S fully refunded everything easily which was £30. They were great. Blacks didn't refund my delivery until I emailed them again saying "by law you have to refund delivery too!" Which is good because that was £5!! They've processed that too. So I'm back on track.

Spent £3 on the bus and 80p on a gingerbread man for DS who was incredibly well behaved and polite. He can have it later

Every time I try on clothes I think of this clip from This Is 40

There's been some excellent frugalling going on in the last 24 hours!
Great photo, Em!
We decided last night to get all the jobs that need doing in the house before I'm on maternity pay. It means we won't save quite as much but I don't think the jobs will ever get done otherwise.
I'm also going to stop paying into the childcare vouchers scheme for the time being so I'll get more maternity pay. DH's vouchers cover DD's nursery fees usually anyway.
Have to go to hospital today for blood tests so more extortionate parking, also need to get petrol.
Last week's constant nausea has eased somewhat and been replaced with an insatiable appetite. I cannot stop eating! Will have to watch I don't spend too much on snacks, or put on too much weight.

Today will be spendy. Taking DGD to York for a few days. Going from King's Cross station was very spendy. There is a Harry Potter shop and platform 9 3/4. I should have said "no" but she was so excited and we nearly missed our train.
Lovely photo Em.

Morning all - this should have been yesterday's post
Money in Jar: £0.00
Money in Purse: £6.30
Money in Bank: £1162.52
Grand Total: £1284.40
Reduction since yesterday: £115.58
Days to Pay Day: 28

Spends:
£30.58 – Conservatory door lock
£81.00 – Tesco credit card
£3.00 – DS2 football
£1.00 – parking

Still to spend:
DH spends: £140

Gyms: £43.99
Bills Shortfall: £160.01
DS2 Football (cash): £6.00
DS2 Football (standing order) £15.00
DS2 bus fare: £7.20
Petrol Budget: £90 remaining
Grocery Budget: £265.40 remaining
Leaves for everything else: £556.80 (Not sure how I have this much left!)
Birthdays / nights out / dentis etc budget; £305
Actual 'everything else' budget £251.80 (Glad I got that overtime now!!!)

8 it's Kiki's Delivery Service :) apparently the book is quite different from the film so may try and get a copy of the book first.

cag we love that film. We have all the Ghibli books & picture books too from when we visited the Ghibli museum a few years ago. In fact we have a Ghibli Museum Box of Treasures. Keeping it all safe whilst DS is really young! He loves his cuddly Totoro and Susuwatari though.

Aww! DD has a cuddly Totoro and Catbus, I have a Jiji that my friend got in Japan. I will be wearing my shoes that DD got me for Christmas, they're black with the Kiki logo printed on :)

Don't stop childcare vouchers, your company has to pay them and cannot deduct them from your statutory maternity pay. Stick at it if you can as it means manerrity leave will be much nicer.

I've just looked at on trees, it seems like a good tool but not the detail and whole budget that YNAB is. It's a shame as it pulls in my bank account but it doesn't have the goals and long term savings elements. It's great if you use a spreadsheet along side it I think? I'm getting used to YNAB now so I'm almost loathe to stop using it unless something is as full featured.

Hi all just catching up.

Em fab photo! My mum went to Pisa last year and her attempts to hold up the tower were hilarious as she was out by about a mile

Collie that clip although dd was sat next to me when I played it and was goggle eyed at the naughty word

Snuggly you are eating for 3 remember so def don't restrict yourself in any way, shape or form! Get as much snacks in as you can!

Have had a friend over this morning for coffee and meeting another friend and her kids at the park later, spends should only be parking and an ice cream.....

collie that clip makes me really glad that I don't care what I look like.

Did anyone do the shepherd friendly cash aback through quidco? Mine is now overdue paying out and I'd quite like that money! Does anyone know if there is a way of seeing how much is in my sf account online? I couldn't see an option on their site. I'm going to need to cancel it soon as I can't afford to keep laying in.

I don't think you can but if it's confirmed then it should be OK to withdraw it now.

On quidco it just says sorry that they are taking longer than expected to pay. Is that confirmed?

So I have to ring them and get them to transfer it out? Sorry, I'm so thick about those.

AGenie I think there may be a difference between caring what you look like and wanting clothes that fit

Very successful day here if a bit spendy - though not as bad as it could have been! Found a lovely dress for the wedding from Phase Eight - a navy and white maxi with lace effect skirt. I had vouchers for Debenhams and an IOU for a present from my mum (my birthday is right after Christmas, so I do that a lot!), so it was essentially free! Frugal win.

Then bought another casual dress in Monsoon as I found some gift cards that will likely run out soon, so got a £50 dress for £14. About £30 for hair dye, swim nappies, new knickers for DD1, a present for a friend's new baby and a card for the wedding next week.

I am struggling to get used to the lack of £450-odd quid going in each month, since I was booted out of left work!

REALLY need to actually bother sorting out that packaged account fees thing. It was on MSE right? Presumably something I can do myself rather than paying a company, like with PPI?

I'm also feeling a bit sad because I turned down an offer of regular work. Basically somebody asked me to teach a group in their house. But it would be a big, long term commitment and bearing in mind it'd be an hour travel each way (it's the other side of town, so two buses) and obviously my health being the way it is, I just can't.

I may get some pupils (who would come here) out of it, but even if I don't, I think I made the right choice - I got a bit of an odd vibe about the whole thing (other parents agree and have gone elsewhere), and I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable being basically employed to teach (by somebody who doesn't know the subject), rather than being freelance. Shame though.

Agree Snuggly. Don't stop the childcare voucher payments. The vouchers don't expire for years, and your employer has to keep paying the full amount, even when you're on statutory mat pay. DD1 gets her free hours now, so I'm stockpiling any left over each month for when DC2 starts nursery too.

Sierra glad you got the dress sorted.
Em fab looking holiday.

I have had 5 trips to the tip today to get rid of the rubble that once was part of a raised bit patio that I assume was made becuase they needed to put the rubble somewhere when the house was extended. DH removed the patio 18 months ago & somehow never got around to loading it into the car and driving it somewhere else. Funny that - I suspect because it was not a very fun job. [hmmm]

Collie Yes clothes that fit are certainly very useful. I just meant that I'm glad I would never feel strongly enough to be shouting like that girl in the clip.

interesting frugal read

That's really interesting lilac. The big difference between them and us is that they are vegan and we are not too far from carnivorous. That is a huge cost saving. Interesting notion definitely.

It contrasts incredibly strongly with one of the problems in my life just now which is that my neighbours are obsessed with private secondary education. Two of them have just committed to sending their kids to schools that cost £15k+ a year for fees alone. Ordinarily this wouldn't matter to me except that these kids are ds's role models. I keep thinking about all the amazing home-ed opportunities (computer gadget buying opportunties) that I would be throwing away by committing that kind of money to school fees though. It seems bonkers.

Those frugal folks certainly put that in perspective.

Wasted £3 parking this afternoon to do to the park in town only for my friend to not turn up, got our wires crossed and she thought we had said next week.

£3 ice creams.

Got a new tyre for my car which had been only to do list for a while £50 but that will come out of my 'car' account.

Fancied fish n chips but had them from the freezer and used up some avocados on the side!

Have just shed a little tear for the people of Syria after watching the news just awful.

Very confused about the childcare vouchers. I'll get half pay from work plus statutory mat pay for the first 6 months but that'll be based on my payslips for this term so surely it's better not to have that amount going out every month?
Also DD will get her free hours from April which pretty much covers the 2 days she attends for. If I keep getting the vouchers can I use them when the twins start nursery? If so that would actually be really good.
Just £3.75 on parking today, went to the park this afternoon.