Austere April continues with the Friendly Frugaleers! Join us as we discuss our direct debits, prattle about penny pinching and possibly babble about Brexit...

[Cagliostro]

All welcome!

I love Bluebell meadows. They are so restful.

The village is absolutely rammed today. Urban areas must be like ghost towns. It made cycling down for supplies a little more sedate than my usual commuter blast.

Hiya we're home from holiday, had a fab time and were very lucky with the weather! Am now working my way through the massive pile of washing, luckily it's still very sunny so can get lots done and dried.

Not caught up with the thread yet so hope you're all well.

I managed to stay on budget and have about a fiver left in my purse 😁 going to aldi in a minute to restock the fridge.

It's my works leaving do tonight 😕 quite a few are coming which is nice, makes it a bit real that I'm not going back though.

Bread is in the machine (bread made in a bread maker totally counts as homemade bread 😇), cake is in the oven and I made a really yummy virgin sangria (actually feeling pretty smug about this). Now got my feet up reading my kindle in the garden. Bliss. MIL & SIL has taken DS to a forest park so he will be having a fab time too.

Happy to help unescorted!!

That looks gorgeous sea

Just found a ducking in my garden. Not sure what to do with it! There's a few ponds found here but I've heard it crying all morning.

Bluebells and ducklings couldn't be more apt for Easter weekend 🐣 !

The escape room was so fun and we made it out with 8 minutes to spare - phew! We only paid £3 in parking, I was expecting much more as it was an NCP in the city centre but they had a £1ph weekend offer. Also popped in to Primark to get the kids some summer sandals - £18 for 3 pairs (we were lucky to just 'pop' in - it was the enormous new branch in Birmingham and was rammed. We made it in and out in 10 minutes 😂)

I'm frugal news we're just taking a break from cleaning the car. Man it's hard work!! But has saved the usual £25 we spend and DD1 is having so much fun with the hosepipe!

I've also rearranged my May hair appointment to June as I've got some hotel and dinner expenses for an event I'm going at the end of May that I haven't budgeted for so trying to re-direct as many funds to that as possible.

MrsG that Sangria looks awesome! What a great idea!

My neighbour has taken the ducking. She's a veterinary nurse.

My other neighbour (from down the road!) has been flying round in his helicopter all day...

Ah cute ducking. I would have said vet so great your neighbour is a nurse.
Went to a lovely quiet nursery £7.90 ice cream, £20.28 plants.
Kept fil happy planting with the DC.

Back after the rude Meg-and-Mog interruption earlier.

Hope that duckling finds it’s mum Wreck - that is indeed very Easter-y!!

Meadow, I meant to say yesterday: glad DD is getting a little easier, even if it is two steps forward, one step back at times.

Not such a frugal weekend. Just spent £100 on Tu online, though definitely won’t keep more than £70 of stuff max as I bought some things in more than one size to try. My weight loss is slow but steady so still needing some new bits, also DD does too. I also bought a bubble machine for the garden yesterday for £33. Since DS was little I think I’ve bought 4 of the ELC fish ones and they just eat batteries and break... so I’m spending more on a robust mains powered one in the hope it will last. It’s a sensory thing for DS so he’s not going to grow out of it any time soon and DD loves them too. We’ve been outside with it on all afternoon and the kids have been very happy dancing around! DD has also learned to climb the 4 steps up on the ‘big’ garden slide but isn’t wholly reliable so we can’t turn our backs for a moment now 🙄

I had big plans to do lots of sorting in the house and garden this weekend but I ran errands all day yesterday and today I haven’t had much energy at all - not like me really. I’m making a Bakewell tart for tomorrow and chilli for Tuesday to get ahead, but really need to get off my butt and put away the dry laundry. And tidy my very messy house. Mum and sisters are coming for an egg hunt and lunch tomorrow. We are having roast beef and all the trimmings, but it’s not really the weather for it!

Happy Easter to all Frugaleers.

Exhausting day. Ds still his usual maniac self despite funny tummy. 5 poops today which is way more than normal. Thankfully the last two were better than the first three.

we’ve only fed him BRAT food today. He’s not happy about it and I felt awful about it. But makes sense just in case. He’s drunk a lot of water and has napped lots.

But he seems fine in himself. Wants to eat, wants to play, has been causing mischief. So I don’t think there’s too much wrong aside from tummy. No temperature. Snotty nose but that also combines with teething.

Fingers crossed he’s on the mend and no one else gets it!

Stating to get pissed off with Fil and his gf. They keep popping in. Then getting annoyed because ds is napping. I get they want to see him which is fine but please call first. Today they popped in and I felt extremely judged because baskets of clean laundry were everywhere kitchen untidy etc and I’m expected to sit and gossip with them as it’s considered rude to get on with the things I actually wanted to do....

Will tell dh to tell them to call in advance in future. Even if it’s 10/15 minutes. No problem.

Nsd today.

That would nark me. By all means pop in but understand stuff needs to be done and we have a routine.

I've ordered s loads of stuff and will send not required sizes back too. My summer work stuff is ok so will do.

It’s only since we’ve moved here they’ve done it. Never when we were in old place. Dh said he always pops in there. But I pointed out he calls beforehand.

It’s the disapproving looks we get for not having a tidy house, or being ready, or as this morning, not having. Enough cups for tea. Because we’re lazy fuckers and they were mostly all in the dishwasher.

Omg Seacow yes!! Those bloody fish bubble machines... drain even the most expensive of Duracell batteries and then take effing ages to unscrew the battery compartment whilst the 2 year olds scream around my ankles and have then lost interest by the time I actually manage to get it working again 🤯!!

Tonight has been a perfect example of where our money gets frittered away. We ended up being the ones who volunteered to pick up the family Chinese take-away - £70 (faint). The thing is, we can't complain as we probably haven't picked it up 3/4 of the last times we've had a family get together, however it didn't figure in our non-existent budget so now we have around £80 to last the rest of the month and we have an empty tank of petrol and the car booked in to the garage for a repair on Thursday.

It's ok, this must happen every month and we quickly shift savings around but now I'm aware of it I'm annoyed 😂!

The awareness is really enlightening isn't it @maddenlightfoot? I had some similar moments when I first started tracking my spending.

Spends today:
£21 diesel and a treat for DS (for reaching his quota of reward stickers).
Hairdresser was covered by a voucher.

Had a lovely frugal trip out with a walk and a little picnic at a local scenic spot.

madden tracking spending for a while is so important I think, before you can properly understand where your money goes & then hopefully do something about it.
unescorted I forgot to say the other day, how amazing your dd is exhibiting her work. I presume that means she is still doing well with it?
life did you have a good break? Girlie glad you had a good time, enjoy your leaving do.
Today has been exhausting as it was the first day of the cricket season so both ds & dd were busy with it all day. I did teas for ds' team which went well. Just going to be watching tomorrow as he captains & she does the scoring. The ground they are playing at is near to a lovely, big local park so I'm hoping to go for a walk too.

Happy Easter everyone. Can I add new born lambs to the Easter mix? I was in the agricultural merchants the other day and they were full with fraught farmers. Now the fields are full of lambs ...so cute.

North yes is - all 3 of her A level are art based (fine, 3D and Graphics). She is predicted A -A* for all 3 and is currently being courted by the art schools. She is a good example of why kids should be allowed to follow their interests and not what might lead to a "good" career.

Cricket started here too - neither of my kids do it. DD is not very sporty and DS couldn't fit it in around his cycling. The whole village comes alive b/c the pitch is right in the centre of the village.

Today is another day of washing, weeding and bike fettling, Followed by dinner at M&D's. Should be a nsd but I may need peddles if I can't find any in the cupboard of doom.

Unescorted the farm up the road has loads of lambs and the farmer has asked anyone who can do go up and cuddle the ones who've been rejected by their mum to give them more chance of survival, the dc love it.

It's my dads birthday today so they're coming round for lunch. I have lots to do and have to go spinning first so should probably get up.

Have already made the coleslaw now need to make couscous salad. Later I'm making Greek salad and roast lamb (never cooked lamb in my life) with flat breads, tzatziki, humous. stuffed vine leaves and roasted mini new potatoes. Think that'll be ok? Hope so.

Wreck when can we turn up for tea? that sounds lush.

Oh I also have halloumi! It might be a bit overdone by the time you get here but the more the merrier!

Thanks north and thatsnot - I've downloaded a spending tracker app so will try and get a grip on what we're frittering on!!

North and unescorted I love how passionate your older children are about their hobbies and interests. It's currently only our eldest who is at school/clubs age. She currently does 3 clubs (gym, swim and Beavers) and I hope she's lucky enough to find 'the one' that ticks all the boxes.

Wreck your lunch sounds absolutely perfect 😋! What a great idea to do roast lamb but with lighter side dishes to suit the weather. We will, of course, be sitting through a full roast, cooked in mum's kitchen which bears the full brunt of sun so we'll already be 🥵 before anyone sits down!! After lunch we'll head back to our home town. I'm really looking forward to a couple of days at home before back to work/school chaos resumes on Tuesday!

That sounds like our version of inviting people over - before we know it the house is full. Makes it all more relaxed though.

Sounds lush wreck. Full carvery for us in a pub for DM birthday.
Will be a LSD if we go to the local pumping station which only opens 6 days a year.

Yes we had a lovely break. Defo recommend the youth hostel. National forest.
We don't play cricket here but full the end of footy session with days out. Though swim and pony are year round

We’re off to dparents today for dinner. Dm is making garlic lemon chicken and salads. Mmmm.

Ds still has a funny tummy. I thought maybe he was ok. He’s had a banana. And some toast. All good. Then the living room smelled like a farm. The back door was open and we do live near a farm. So I gave him the benefit of the doubt. Turns out not the farm.... although nowhere near as bad as yesterday. Fingers crossed he’s ok by Tuesday as need to go to work (selfish as that sounds I do need to go in - have had the last week off and need to go in to catch up).

Sigh.

Anyway. Not nsd here. Have just ordered a casual maternity skirt and a pair of shorts from ASOS £36.

Welcome newbies and I hope everyone is well.

We had a lovely time at a local wildlife trust on Friday (cycled there with ds in the bike seat) and saw lots of babies, so cute! We also bought ds a hat there (£5) because it seems his head has grown considerably since last summer.

Nsd hopefully today, although I spent £2 on vegan sausage rolls for ds and me yesterday.

Happy Easter everyone! We'll be having a vegan feast including nut roast, potatoes and roasted veg later, with banana cake for dessert.

Morning all. Easter is over for us, we just have a little egg hunt in the morning. It gets nerdier every year! This year it included Japanese, coordinate grid plotting and spelling out locations with element symbols from the periodic table :o

We now have a visit from SIL and co, as usual we had less than 24h notice of this