Frugaleers - joyfully jumping into June

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New thread. Xx

Need you most definitely don't sound anything like a tat! Ok fluffy of course you're proud of your daughter that's a brilliant letter to receive and we all like to hear that our own biased opinion of our children's ability and personality isn't biased but genuine. You too cag* that's super to have someone else acknowledge your sons manners and kindness.

Girlie I remember the fright we got when dss came over his handlebars and cracked his helmet in the process coming home from school when he was about 11/12. She'll be sensitive for a while and maybe nervous about cycling again too

I'm afraid politics are really not my thing & I don't understand the differences between parties etc here not to mind in uk.

Lonely I can't wait to see the finished cake!

Today I'm going to see my 90 year old Nan for a while and take her some lunch. Apparently she has had ham cheese and tomato sandwiches four days this week so I plan on taking her chicken sandwiches.
My friend and her dc will visit tomo so I'm thinking I'll make quiche and chips must check that hers will eat that, otherwise it'll be toasties and chips.

Em is your time for stopping horse riding coming soon? Enjoy your lesson. Dd & ds rode a horse and pony last weekend & dd really wants to start lessons.

I received my copy of Joe Wicks new cookbook in post during the week €12.50 as got it half price on preorder from Amazon. It's fabulous.

Spent €5 on lunch yesterday got chicken curry & rice from deli counter. Very cheap dinner & shared a Krispy choc slice with my friend but it was her turn to buy that.

Saved €50 that I didn't have by not buying this wardrobe for ds, he doesn't need it but I thought it was lovely. A subcontractor insisted on giving me €50 during the week for helping him with fines that were coming to him for a truck he no longer owned. I refused it several times but he insisted. This will go towards my bootcamp next week.

Welcome lodger how are our other newbie's doing. I can highly recommend ynabb as being a great tool to budget & see where your money goes laska* is a fan too. I've not missed a direct debit or become overdrawn since I started using it in April 16. I advise following Martin Lewis's advice too
If you answer no to any of the following questions don't buy
Skint? Do I need it? Can I afford it?
Not skint will I use it? Is it worth it?

X post! Obviously I was referring to the Twat comment. :o at T word being Tory :o :o

My one proper maternity top (so far!) came from H&M but it's annoying me. It's got a nursing modesty panel thing but it keeps slipping open and flashing my bra! Not exactly modest! :o I like it generally though so I'm wondering if my mum I can temporarily stitch it closed as there's several months before I'll actually need it to open and it's a shame not to wear it especially at £20 which is more than what I'd normally spend on a top - only problem is it'll still keep flapping open and showing off my probably much less pretty nursing bra?!

Sorry about my post I obviously bolded wrong text my words aren't that impressive or important that they all needed to be bold
Would a safety pin do the trick cag?

And thanks all, I should probably add (as I feel a bit mean now) that in the second example DD was also praised by the mum - but I sort of expect it from her IYSWIM? Not that I'm not proud obviously, but she has always since very young made little friends in the park and always loved little ones to 'mother'. DS OTOH is usually wandering around in his own little world, he is very 'classic' autistic IMO (expecting his final assessment soon) and can come across as rude, unsociable, selfish etc. While super affectionate with his close family he's been known to run away from little kids in the playground! So to see him suddenly being so nurturing was massive (and does make me feel a little more optimistic about him bonding with the baby).

Ooh possibly I'll try that, would it be ok to wash with it in do you think? Or might it rip the fabric?

cag could your mumyou sew a popper into it? Less rippage than a safety pin and probably less pokey.

mammy I told dh I'd go until end of June 😭😩 But I really don't feel ready to stop. I may go to end of June then play it by ear. But realistically at some point I know I'm going to have to stop.

Watch out with the dcs riding. It's a slippery slope. My parents found this out. Friends rode so they got me a block of 10 lessons when I was 6. I stopped when I was 12 after falling off...

This is the bump today. 24 weeks and 2 days. I've started to "flatten out" but bump hasn't yet overtaken boobs!

Baby bump! YAY!!!

I just look even fatter than normal ATM :o

Oooh poppers there's a thought

LonelyOversharer yes it's me and DD who is nearly 1 (where has the time gone?!)

Welcome, Lodger.

Need and Cag that's lovely about your kids, of course you should be proud.

Pregnant frugaleers I have a few nice maternity clothes that I'm never going to get around to Ebaying. 2 dresses, 2 tops and a nursing jumper. All Jojo except for one. Pm me if you are interested and I'll sort some photos. All in good condition and I don't need any payment.

Hi All. Cag how about a little square of Velcro? Put the soft side on the facing out bit (softer for baby later) and the pokey side facing inwards. You can tuck it in on itself when feeding.

Realised this morning that I forgot to mention £19 for DD2's karate licence on Friday. This includes their insurance so us really important. DD2 has passed her second grading, both girls have summer camp on 1/2 July, then there is a competition the following week which would be DD2's first one.

Going to Tesco shop online to collect tomorrow (easier to monitor costs than going in) I have done a meal plan for this week. Unfortunately DH is miserable and demanding presents, he won't get them (nor would the kids!).

MIL is cooking for us tomorrow, she wanted to come today but I put her off as 2 days at the weekend means I'll get nothing else done and I have loads o do.

Also need to go and buy red ribbon to sew onto a pair of trousers for DD1 for our next cabaret. Hers are too small, last year she borrowed DS's ones, they are also too short. But I found a pair in the wardrobe that are a bit long, (too tight for DS) do will use those rather than buying new. Means I'll need to turn them up, but perhaps they'll last longer. Am also going to buy fabric glue rather than sewing as sewing ribbon down the length of the leg takes ages and is really hard to get straight.

Morning all

Well done to Cag and Need on raising such lovely children, they are a credit to you.

Fluffy I wouldn't dare!!

Dd unfortunately still looks a mess this morning, her top lip is massive she has a small cut just above it which must have been where she hit the pavement but I don't think it was caused by her teeth.

Was such a shame as she had just completed two days of bikability training at school and I had ummed and ahhed about letting her cycle home on her own ( the school is about 1 1/2 miles away but along quite a busy road) Dd wanted to do it though and so what I did was to let her cycle and then waited for her the other side of the estate in the car to make sure she had made it that far o.kay. She had, stopped to talk to me and then got back on the bike, hit the curb and went over the handle bars right in front of me!!

She is being brave though bless her, busy day today as riding this morning and this afternoon going to Bristol to watch Grease!! Am quite excited as love Grease, think will def cheer dd up as well

Am taking lots of snacks and water with us so hopefully spends will be minimal.

Got my tax credit letter yesterday and am feeling very depressed about it, my payments are going down by £70 a month God knows how they can justify that but all the figures for expected income etc look about right, whats really worrying me is that from the end of next month it will be even worse as my childcare bill will drop. So will basically be entirely dependent on what I earn which is going to be really really tight and probably leave me no choice other than to work additional hours on my day off. So the Tories have taken away my TC and not put my wages up by more than 1% in 8 years and they wonder why nurses are having to use food banks.

Poppers are great cag pass it through the tinternet and I'll sort it for you

em you're so slim still! But definitely a bump!! do take these pictures, you simply won't believe it in a couple of years otherwise

lodger you emigrated with a baby?!! Kudos. My "baby" is five today. We simply have no idea where the last 5 years have gone!

need cag celebrate your wonderful dc with us! No crap comments like stupid facebook here. We see how amazing our babies are every day - but it's always so lovely when it's recognised by others! Feel proud.

lonely that's the first pic I've taken. I kept meaning to but totally forgot.

girlie that is so awful. Here, kick you, then we'll kick you again. Ggrr. I don't think its going to be many more years before things change drastically now, we all just have to hang on in there until then

Have a lovely day with your dd.

I got supposed fabric glue in a sewing shop once and all the ribbon I glued came off in the wash. Annoyed as I never got a photo of the costume (I used gold ribbon to make a shooting star design on a black tee for DD's school dance, it was pretty cool if I say so myself!).

I've tried to be organised and have written the dates I'll get PIP in the diary (it happens to also be the same Tuesday as child benefit) for the rest of the year. DH knows all the dates various things go in and out of his account (pretty much all bills go from his as he has wages!) and he's so organised he instantly knows if something is wrong, I thought I should take a leaf from his book :) I have already made the improvement of actually checking my bank app every day for the last month or so. I was such an ostrich about it before.

I think we are quite lucky we can do that - a friend was saying her DH refuses to use online banking, they recently had an epic issue with a direct debit suddenly increasing but they had no idea for a few weeks because they didn't see until the statement arrived, and it really messed things up financially. I'm determined to stick to it and be more aware of what's going in and out of my account!

Forgot to say, welcome lodger (I notice we are using the second half of your name :o)

Hadn't thought of velcro either thanks! My mum is bound to have one or t'other so I will ask her :o I should really learn to sew properly. I mean I can get by very messily but I tend to ask mum as she is awesome (she used to sell handmade historical costume dolls)

Girlie that's so pants :(

Wotcha! Just popping in.busy last few days.house stuff this morning. Parents DB and DS (with girlfriend weve not met yet - brave woman) will be here in a mo ,we all out to lunch.. Glorious day here.
Looks like youve all been postinh loads ill have lots to catch up with tomorrow

HI lodger ! Welcome to this really friendly corner of MN
Lots of good frugalling tips here!

Gosh you guys have been chatty!!

Need and Cag well done on raising such lovely kids ! They were sweet stories.

Em You are so slim!! Especially for someone who is pregnant!

Loved the joke about the T word being tory .

Girlie I'm so sorry to hear about your TCs being cut and stuff . I hope you all get by ok. You're already frugal so that's a start. It's so unfair I know though. I can't believe NHS workers have had a real-terms pay cut over the last few years when MPs voted to increase their salary significantly in that time, it's absolutely disgusting!! But as a member of the public we are so grateful for the work you nurses do!

I got my first letter from the tribunal service about my PIP appeal the other day. They are waiting to hear if the DWP are going to object to my appeal because it was late...I don't think they will but we'll see. And if they don't then they're waiting for the DWP's written submissions and then I will get my welfare rights group to sort mine and send them in. Sigh. God knows how many months it will take, and our income is gonna be quite a lot less over the next two months as I've only got the odd few days work here and there instead of anything regular now that my proper job has finished :/ and because DH works full-time I'm not entitled to any means-tested benefits or anything. I've got a fair amount of savings atm though so we should be ok as long as I get a job sorted by September at the latest, which I'm optimistic about.

So, £15 in Sainsbury's for a few bits, still need to buy frozen Chips for dinner. This did include £6 for 2 pack of PE shorts for DS.

£64.50 in Smiggle. But if that £20 was for DD2, she had already given me £10 and has another £10 at home to give me. £20 was a birthday gift for one of her best friends, I don't normally sound that much, but this mum often has DD2 over for play dates etc. Another £5 for a gift for another party. The other £20 was DD1, she offered to give me some, but she had a really good report from school, so will let her have it as a gift.

No parking to pay as took mum with me and used her blue badge (she had shopping to do too, didn't just take her to save 80p parking !)

£25 riding. £28 in m&s on stuff for parents and some bits for us (milk bread salad etc). Wanted to use a £5 off voucher I got the other day and was told it was only for our town store. Sigh.

We just went to the country show and bumped into ds's best friend, which was great as it meant he had someone to go on the bouncy castle with. Ended up costing £35 with parking and lunch but was a very good outing.

7.88 in one shop on newspaper, sweets for dc & cream buns for my Nan, then a further 14.41 in Aldi 1.89 will be reimbursed from work & rest was on 2 colouring books, punnet of grapes sandwiches & juices

Okay, so this is one of my better ones!

It has taken me 4 hours to finish, but my ds will love it!