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Frugal Friends Forging Forward Toward February and Further Financial Freedom

999 replies

Wolfcub · 16/01/2021 19:43

New fred

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Wolfcub · 23/01/2021 10:34

Drive safely Mrs
Em your dinner plans sound good

Radiator replaced £130 house now smells like powder coating. Bastard gas man has cancelled for Monday to fix the leak (have I already said this?) so I've now another two weeks hoping the boiler holds out or we will be a bit chilly

£47 petrol felt weird buying petrol after a good 14 years as a diesel driver had to think very hard not to put the wrong thing in

£4 bakery for baps and bits

Enjoy your walk Unescorted.

OP posts:
ememem84 · 23/01/2021 10:52

Wahoo. Postie just came and I’ve got £10 M&S vouchers. Yay. This is because I have rewards on my credit card. Yippeeee!

Am at the stables now and need to find my gloves. They’re in the car somewhere.......:

SnugglySnerd · 23/01/2021 11:13

We have a little snow too. It's all very pretty!

lifelongfrugaleer · 23/01/2021 11:48

No snow but cold and clear here.
Some decluttering done and some stuff given away. Tip slot in a bit then can pack some boxes.
£120 food.
£ for DD tea on a Saturday she doesn't like curry so I buy her Chinese on the way home from the stables.

Bastard boiler man indeed.

AmberItsACertainty · 23/01/2021 13:44

Afternoon everyone Smile

Strange to think I'm not the only one with the poverty mentality. I literally know nobody else who behaves that way. On the plus side it means I'm excellent at finding storage solutions where there first appears to be no space.

ememem84 the thought of that Chinese makes my mouth water.

No snow here. I've got bright sunshine. About to hang two loads of washing out.

Then I'll answer any messages and hopefully sell more stuff. Whoever said it's addictive is right. I don't understand how I get as much of a buzz from selling something and seeing it go off to a new home as I do from eagerly anticipating the arrival of another parcel, but I do.

northender · 23/01/2021 16:07

Haven't been posting so much as I just didn't feel I wanted to. Not really sure why, but have been trying to keep up.
Mrs we had a funeral on Monday and we stood out on the road as the hearse & cortege passed. It was a really lovely act of respect, but at the same time was so dismal. One of his daughters (our friend) was sitting in the back of the family car on her own as they weren't allowed 3 households on the same seat. Grandchildren didn't have partners with them, just miserable.
Girlie sorry things are so tough for you still with dd.
Welcome Amber
Work has been crazy for me and for dh. Dh now thinks he's over the worse for now, but mine will carry on like this a while I think as we are going to be involved with developing and delivering a "long covid" service. Ds' lectures restart on Monday thank goodness, it should give him some much needed focus! He has done really well in all his assignments so far. Dd is finding online school a real slog, but she did well in her mocks and parent's evening was really positive. She has got her college application in to do 2 languages and economics.

Good frugal news. Dh does tax returns for a couple of family members which has earned a bit of bonus cash. We have managed to keep a lid on spending through January and will have about £150 left at the end of the month to go in savings pot.

lifelongfrugaleer · 23/01/2021 16:30

Hey North

AmberItsACertainty · 23/01/2021 16:34

northender thanks for the welcome. That sounds really difficult for the funeral. I can't imagine how people coped trying to comfort each other whilst socially distanced. This virus is almost dehumanising people, like we're just entities to be kept physically healthy not people with emotions. I'm so sorry for your loss.

I've been reminded this afternoon why I haven't had a big clear out in a long time. The attitude of some people when they can't get their own way. And all the time wasters making offers where it says no offers, wanting postage where it says collection. It's so tiring dealing with them, especially the ones who then have a tantrum when I say no! Still, one straight forward sale has taken place. I now have a pile of stuff gone from a corner and I'm £100 better off. Time for a cuppa and rest.

Mrsmadevans · 23/01/2021 16:44

North lovely to see you here & great news re your savings Smile
I am so sorry you had the same experience with the funeral cortege as we did, it really was misery for everyone concerned Sad
Great that you Dc are doing well , it is a real worry for parents in this situation and l would be banging my head against a brick wall if it were my Dc . Flowers
Wolf we were careful thank you lovely , hope the bastarding Grin great word gas man cometh on Monday as promised ! Flowers
It is absolutely freezing here, my feet are likes blocks of ice ! BRRRRR!

lifelongfrugaleer · 23/01/2021 16:45

Oh nothing that sounds awful re the funeral. Just at the time people most need a hug.

Great going amber. IKWYM about people and time wasters.

Lovemaltesers · 23/01/2021 17:08

I went to collect my Amazon package from the doorstep yesterday, to find DH had ordered me some roses 🌹 Just because it’s been an awful week.

We had some cupcakes delivered today that I had ordered, because it’d been a bad week too! Smile

Ddad is likely to be sectioned next week if things don’t improve with the nurse taking over the administration of meds. I don’t think mum fully understands. He can’t go to a care home in his current state as he’s too aggressive. I went round earlier and he was sleeping, and then docile when he woke up. He knew who I was, but asked what Star fleet I belonged to as I was wearing a lilac hoody. He has an odd sense of humour.

Mrsmadevans · 23/01/2021 17:24

Aw Love my heart goes out to you all Flowers

lifelongfrugaleer · 23/01/2021 18:03

Oh love it is awful but he will get the care he needs as an inpatient. My mil was volunteer patient but the hospitals were both as nice as they could be and it was a bit of a weight off. Only need to worry about one parent not both then
Ah to the flowers and cakes, enjoy both

SnugglySnerd · 23/01/2021 18:05

Nice to see you North. That's sad about the funeral though. Dh went to one a few weeks ago and said it was horrible not being able to hug his bereaved relatives.

That's lovely about the roses Love, sorry it's been such a hard week.

Not quite an nsd. Ordered a lockdown box from a local brewery we like.

PeanuttButtaCup · 23/01/2021 19:03

Hi can I join the thread please? I’m expecting my second child in April, and although I’m not in any debt, I’m still worried I’ll struggle for money when he comes along so I need to start being a bit more frugal

lifelongfrugaleer · 23/01/2021 19:04

More the merrier peanut

Wolfcub · 23/01/2021 19:07

Welcome Peanut

It's lovely to see you North, that is incredibly sad about the funeral.

Love ThanksI am so sorry. It's lovely that dh bought you flowers and enjoy the cakes

Life well done on the decluttering

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ememem84 · 23/01/2021 19:38

Added sesame tofu to my dinner menu. So so yum.

Got the kiddos to wash the car. Dd (18m) did an amazing job of the number plate and ds (3) was ace at the hubcaps. I did everything else....

Ds is apparently going to be a policeman when he’s older. He’s going to get everyone with his clanks (handcuffs). 😂

northender · 23/01/2021 19:59

Amber I feel your pain re the time wasters. I had the same last year with something I was selling. Then when it sold, the buyer cancelled. I was so pissed off.
Life well done on the decluttering. We are accumulating a small mountain of stuff to get rid of through decluttering. I think a job tomorrow might be picking out things I could try selling.

lifelongfrugaleer · 23/01/2021 20:05

I'm past selling now, giving away stuff I really don't want to move or donate to scouts charity.
Got a couple of boxes packed too. Although I'm paying for packing I'm doing it until I run out of boxes and they can do the rest

Unescorted · 23/01/2021 20:18

Hey North DD started on Monday. I am stunned by the amount of work she is doing - it is a 6 day week with early starts and late finishes.
I know a few people with long covid now... I would not wish it on my worst enemy. Previously physically & mentally active people reduced to a shell of themselves.

Love just think of it as any other hospital. DH was in a psychiatric unit for a bit and once I had framed it as being hospital to get better it was so much easier to cope with it. It also helped being really open about it - the pressure of concealing it caused more issues and stress.

Welcome peanut lovely to have you here. I found the 2nd not so financially disastrous as the first - I knew what I needed and what was a waste of money. We had a long enough gap to not have both in nursery at the same time which was a lucky break. The other lucky break was Working Tax Credits were a really new thing when our first was born ( we had a single digit reference number) and a lot more generous than now. On maternity I was £12 a month better off than working. I kept asking them if they had calculated it correctly.

em mine always manage to leave streaks along the sides and I have to pay them.

I am tired after my walk - although b/c it was snowing in flurries we had the hills to ourselves. We walked in the opposite direction to the cafe so it was a NSD.

SnugglySnerd · 23/01/2021 22:21

Welcome Peanut!

AmberItsACertainty · 23/01/2021 23:27

Mrsmadevans do you have no heating at all? If you need blankets check out the Facebook sales pages I got 6 for £30 when my boiler broke. I've seen a few people selling piles of blankets lately. Hope your gas man comes.

Lifelongfrugaleer thanks. I've been trying to sell this particular pile of stuff for a year so it was a relief someone finally wanted it. I'd happily donate but where I am there's literally nowhere to donate to at the moment and I'm all out of space. It's my own fault.

Lovemaltesers Aww that's so sweet about the roses.

Hi Peanut I'm new to the thread too. Congratulations on your pregnancy.

Northender I can't wait until I'm done with this clear out. It's partly why I wanted to regain my frugal habits. If I don't buy unnecessary stuff I won't have to clear things out.

Lovemaltesers · 24/01/2021 01:08

I’m currently sat at my parents house, waiting for an ambulance to check dad over. Mum called 999, police came, dad has calmed down and police left after I arrived. I suspect they will check him over and then go. I’ll be on the phone to the dementia team in the morning.

Bornlazy · 24/01/2021 06:35

Love what a worry for you. You must be exhausted from the stress of this. I hope the situation improves soon for you all Flowers

Hi north nice to see you. I'm the same, reading but not posting. Don't know why really, think I'm just in a bit of a slump.

Funerals during covid are just so sad. Not being able to reach out and comfort people is the hardest part of all of this. I see it in work all the time. Patients whose life's have just been torn apart and they are not allowed visitors. It goes against everything that we would instinctively do Sad

Welcome to the new posters. I don't post as regularly as I should but just keeping up with the thread makes me more accountable and keeps me on the straight and narrow (mostly Wink)

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