Springing into the New Year with the 2017 Frugaleers

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Just setting up the new thread for the chatty Frugaleers.

By popular request - copied from an old thread grin

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.

I've also booked various dentist, vet appointments, done an exercise class (Cardio and Core) and run 6 miles with my friend, walked the dogs for a further 4.5 miles in total, made chicken stock, chopped up veg for stir-fry tonight, vacuumed house and swapped washing over 3 times.

I'm so pleased your getting the cat neutered mammy. He'll live longer for it.

Cath Why don't you fantasy stock buy for 6 months? No money lost and you'll find out if your good at it.

I wash my own Windows because they open out and slide across so you can reach both sides. It's £14 to wash Windows here 😳

£10 petrol.

£14 for windows? Mine are £4.20!

Busy, busy, busy bee,Need. It's great when you feel you've achieved lots in a day. I've hoovered and mopped downstairs, cleaned all the mirrors and dusted the whole house and the Venetian blinds. I aim to do the latter three jobs every other week, but they haven't been done since before Christmas, due to decorations. Sometimes I fantasise about getting a cleaner monthly just for dusting and wiping down the woodwork!

Good for you, Cag and Cath too. My resolution to be in bed by 10.45 Sunday -Thursday isn't going well at all. I get too cosy on the sofa.

NSD.

It neutering cats the same sort of 'responsible'thing to do too? Like with dogs, given the amount of dogs in rescue, i.e there's plenty enough without any more?

OH Creme, cleaning the Venetian blinds, aaarggh. We have shutters, I feel the pain of that job. You've been busy yourself! I do feel like I've achieved a lot, but struggle with not being busy, which is my issue entirely. I have to be 'doing' ha ha.

Although, Creme, I've promised to read 40 books by the end of the year too. The Power by Naomi Alderman was my first, what a book. What happens when women have all the power in the world and not men. I bought it for DD for Christmas (she's 15) and will urge her to crack on and read it. It's not often I think about a book so often, but it fundamentally questions power and feminism (in a positive way) that's provoked my own questions that I mull.

Hearing your window costs makes me feel a bit better about telling our nice cleaner he'll be losing 6 jobs a year. To be fair, I think his charges are based on number of windows, and we have a LOT of windows, which is why I won't take them on myself (yet).

I'm going to add that to my want to read list on Goodreads, Need. I hardly ever read non-fiction, but it sounds like the sort I'd like. Thanks for the recommendation.

I don't mind the wooden Venetian with wide slats in my living room that much, but I'm actually contemplating getting rid of the aluminium blinds in our bedrooms and replacing them with voiles, or even nets! DS's black one in particular is impossible. It didn't loo much better after I wiped every single slat, one by one, with wet wipes.

need we previously had a female cat who had litter after litter of kittens and I don't want our cat incidentally called Tom to be responsible for lots of inbred cats in our neighbourhood also it discourages them from straying and his brother disappeared after a few months so I would like to keep this guy around. Downside is that they're not meant to be as good at catching mice & rats afterwards.

Ds's preschool teacher hunted me down on facebook and is going to keep in touch there with how he's getting on daily, I'm thrilled with this and she sent me a couple of photos too

need you had an extremely productive day. I got up, brushed my hair and teeth, ate breakfast, made dd's lunch and mine and came to work. I will refuel mine and au-pair's car, eat dinner and check homework before bed

That's a great idea about washing windows bi-monthly to save money. Window washing isn't a service around here, dh does ours a few times a year

Spends today was €50 to cc 2

That makes sense. I only know about dogs, thanks mammy. You haven't felt well though, that's totally different.

My windows are £10, same at the old house. The price hasn't changed in 10 years....!

And it's not a non-fiction book after all, is it Need?

Mammy we have constant parking struggles here too. Whenever there are builders anywhere in our end of the street I end up going air traffic control because I'm the only one home in the daytime.

That book sounds good need
I have read 3 books so far this year, being in bed unable to get up by day and unable to sleep by night helped a lot with that.

The Girl on the Train is on my list and I download almost every free book offered on Bookbub email daily too.

Nope, but I didn't like to mention.

There's a thread on here '50 books a year' or something, it's very busy at present but some great recommendations on there.

I would think the book might be better than the film, from what I hear mammy.

I want to watch the film but I won't until I read the book first as the book is always better than the movie!

Even when feeling well I'm not that productive

I was doing ok 60p for a coffee at work then I remembered I needed to fill up. £3.00 for dd's football subs then that should be it. Feeling a bit meh today I don't usually mind January I enjoy not shopping and having a more time to relax. Maybe it's because it's my first full week at work it feels very long.

Good idea re "fantasy stock buying" I suppose I do that. I have a list on the "stocks" app that I follow.

Easyjet is up 2.57% today. Hsbc pay out really good dividends.

No further spends today. But I did sneak early and went to my Drs managed to get a cancellation.

The vitamins I'm on are fine (pregnacare ones). There's nothing they can do for my re periods if I'm ttc. Anxiety wise I need to calm the fuck down (recommended more acupuncture and also that I try to remove some of the stress).

She asked what was on my mind. And all the stuff re the flight to nz and mil came tumbling out. She suggested that I don't go. If it's too much. I'm going to broach this with dh this week. It's not going to go down well. But I need to say it

So £40 for dr but I can claim it back so it doesn't count.

Oh em. I think you get to a point in life where you realise you've got to fuck what anyone else thinks and do what makes you happy. Obviously you don't want to upset Dh in the process.

£3 on four m&s long sleeved tops for ds. Look brand new.

Both dc will need new summer wardrobes.

That sounds draining, Em, hope you are ok.
Good idea re - window cleaner, I might do that. Ours charges £8.
£10 tonight on yoga.

I'm feeling a bit down - we have been married for 8 years, I'm 31 and DH is 32, he really doesn't want biological kids because he's paranoid they'll inherit his mothers MH issues and alcoholism... we had talked about adoption but I've done a lot of reading over the holidays and it is so, so complicated and full of red tape. Wish he would consider having our own.

NSD so far but meeting friends tonight but should only cost the price of a cup of tea.
Cath, I have dug up part of the lawn and made two vegetable beds and covered them with horse manure from next door's horses.
I will plant a few early potatoes, some onions, peas, runner beans, leeks. My next project ( for which I will save up) will be to clear an area for a greenhouse so I can grow tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers. I grew them last year in the conservatory and will probably have to do that again. My bathrooms are not yet finished and I then have to start saving again.
What does DS like to eat, Cath, because eg. if he will eat peas they are fairly easy to grow.
Also it's fun for kids to grow sunflowers and have a competition to see who grows the tallest one ( measuring is good for maths) and then you can put the heads out for the birds....they love them.

Oh Peonies, that sounds really difficult. My DF was an alcoholic but none of us has inherited it. Is DH sure that the MH issues and alcoholism are genetic?
Em, hope it goes well with telling DH. Really though, if it stressing you out so much is it worth going? But you do love NZ don't you.
My windows are dusty. There is just too much dust here with the builders that they can stay dusty...for now anyway.

Sainsbo's delivery, about £60-ish. They've sent me a £10 voucher.

peonies my understanding re alcoholism is that environment is as important as genes. So the child who doesn't grow up with an alcoholic in the home is far less likely to go down that route.

Has DH spoken to a Doctor about the MH issues? Could it be those are not hereditary? It does sound tough.

MissA that sounds so hard. Would be consider speaking to a gp about the genetics? My step mums biological mother was an alcoholic. Her and her sister were both adopted to different families and neither have MH issues or addiction issues now. Nature vs nurture I suppose.