No spend January

[ivykaty44]

anyone up for a no spend January?

just the normal utilities, food shopping and transport costs

then put the purse/wallet away and don't spend till February

a good way to rebalance the balance after xmas

Really getting annoyed with DH now. In addition to cheese-gate, I’ve just found out he left the heating on for 4 hours today, 3 of those he was at his mums for!!!!

I’m forcing myself to eat bloody miserable cheese sandwiches for work and not buy treats. I see he has also bought himself a bag of crisps when he picked up milk today - and as fast as I’m doing all those things, he’s pissing it all away in (wasted) heating and treats!!

He also mentioned today getting a new radio unit for our old car so he can play podcasts and songs. I get sick of “it’s only about £x”, because, it’s the lots of little “only x, only y pounds” which all add up!

We’re about to buy a house which is going to need a fair amount of work and I just think he appears to have different priorities to me

What annoys me also about that is that I’m putting in about 3 x the cash he is - were married with kids so just all effectively family cash but it just irks when I’m going without to try to save and he’s spending or looking to spend with carefree abandon!!!

(Apart from the above he’s a very good husband/father)

We don't have family money. My husband was briefly married (under a year) to a woman who robbed him blind and left him in debt in danger of losing his house which he had bought a few years before they met.

When we married he was uncomfortable with a joint account and by the time he was happy for that I decided I liked having control of my money and it meant I didn't fret about what he spends. I know people on MN frown on not having family money but it suits us.

I know all the spending on things would drive me mad if we had shared accounts so I sympathise. My husband is a great one for hobbies, usually something to do with electronics and is forever doing some project or other.

@ancientgran - we used to be separate but then when I had several months unpaid maternity it sort of got merged into one. The idea was I’d keep the proceeds from my flat sale but as house prices have gone mental we need them to buy the house we want/do the work so it’s kind of got merged that way!

@gracedentsleftbumcheek

• attitudes to money/spending/saving is an area where consensus counts, and people are often advised to thrash it out beforehand. Most of us leave that conversation until it's too late! Well, maybe it's never too late to reach a compromise. I think I would struggle to agree that a bag of crisps was a wild extravagance, but new electronic gadgets for an old car? could he use his 'phone for podcasts and songs?

£51 in Aldi today on a biggish shop that will provide meals for days. £16.65 in Sainsburys on tea, coffee and hot chocolate brands that I can't buy in Aldi! When I consider how much money I wasted during the years that I continued to do our main shop in Sainsbury's before switching to Aldi, I want to cry!

Yes please can I join ?!
We have had the bad luck of 2 of dc dla
Claims stopped at the renewals were at similar times but one has dragged on 😱 it massively impacts us till it’s sorted

[quote gracedentsleftbumcheek]@ancientgran - we used to be separate but then when I had several months unpaid maternity it sort of got merged into one. The idea was I’d keep the proceeds from my flat sale but as house prices have gone mental we need them to buy the house we want/do the work so it’s kind of got merged that way![/quote]
Oh house prices have gone mental, awful for people to get on the ladder or move up.

Spent £30 on cheese today 🙈 there’s only 3 of us at home! Some of it is fancy vegan cheese for DD, didn’t realise it was so expensive until I looked at the receipt 😩
Luckily it’s going to rain all day tomorrow and I am working Sunday so no chance to spend anything

@CheeseMaiden 🤣🤣🤣that did make me smile. True to your name!

@tigerbear our household is built on the stuff 🤣

The last week has been appalling spends wise I don't know where I am with my incoming and outgoings this week as I'm ordering maternity stuff and sending sizes that fit back etc need to sit and work it all out tomorrow.
New start tomorrow, right?

Spent £18 on a takeaway today, which will also do me tomorrow. Haven't had one for a month, and used to have them at least weekly so I don't mind. Have a vague plan to start the Mediterranean diet/IF next week so this is one last blowout....

Have also had my monthly Amazon vitamin delivery (about £4) but I'm counting that as a regular spend.

@gracedentsleftbumcheek my Dh is the same. I was also in the same situation as @ancientgran Dh so we have completely separate finances. I pay the majority of the bills because I’m the higher earner and have dc. He pays the phone/internet, his phone and mobile, council tax and oil, I pay everything else. I mostly pay for the food because he’s not often home for meals but is at the moment so he’s paying!

Another no spend so spends for the year remains £17.

@CheeseMaiden party at your house?!

Oops fell asleep on the sofa but yesterday was a NSD 🥳 so in week 1 I have only spent £27.15. Not feeling deprived or like I'm missing out. Good start.

Creditcardshame I have a separate “bills” account with my bank account

I calculated - CTax water electric gas house insurance Internet phone AA cover MOT car insurance car tax car service, total over 12 months and divide by 12

Get paid on 1st and a standing order is set for the 1st to pay into the bills account

All the direct debits come out of that account

If you start this month then the pot builds up February and March if you only pay ctax on 10 payments, as there are no ctax payments until April. I would budget for 5% more for ctax and 50% more for utilities.

Leaving the current account free of direct debits

Alternatively open a separate current account and have a standing order into to that account for the remainder of the money each month after the Bills amount

Grrrr. Did big shop (and still things to get) - going to be back up to our usual £150 a week ish. But this is because we needed to top up on big things this week and I saw things we normally buy and use on offer so got them - the DC go through LOADS of bear paws and they were on offer so got 12 packs(!) as that saves us around £8.50 but obvs forward buying. Then coffee was over £2 off so, whilst we don't need it right now, it will get used and was cheaper to buy now. Same with sweetners. Then some things are just always plain expensive!!

Also need to get DC1 some new undercrackers today. The fun never ends!

£4.30 on the FT today - we always buy it every Saturday. Counts as a treat, but one we'd be miserable without. So Low Spend rather than No Spend today.Went back to the wool shop, but still no navy wool, so frugal mending of jumper will have to wait,.

Was thinking of going to the cinema tonight, to make up for cancelled theatre performance. But the weather is so miserable, might just wait for another evening. So - could be a low spend weekend if the weather doesn't improve. For some reason, we were given a tin of golden syrup, which none of us eat. But I have rolled oats as well, so might dig out a flapjack recipe.

NSD so far but I’m off to the beach in the pouring rain to donate stuff to a nearby charity shop.

I might buy a cosy hot chocolate and watch the sea view from the car

We made flapjacks today yummmmm

Mmm, sea views...enjoy it, plus your hot chocolate. Week you've had, you deserve it!

Have booked cinema for tomorrow, but I insisted on the cheap local fleapit, rather than the fancypants Everyman, so we've got two tickets for £11 including booking fee, rather than £35!

In the first lockdown DH and I saw no one and went no where, online shopping the lot, except once things started to open once a week I ordered fish and chips on line and then went down to the beach. I'd take plates, knives and forks, glasses and have a very civilised picnic on the beach. I think it kept us sane. I don't feel like it to day, the beach is a mile away but it is really grey and gloomy and heavy rain so I am just sitting around not doing much so it will be a NSD for me. I suppose that's a silver lining.

I'm making a trifle to satisfy DHs sweet tooth, I had most of the makings just bought a tub of cream with the milk yesterday so that will keep him happy for the weekend. He normally likes something like a big chocolate gateau from Sainsburys with cream so it was definitely cheaper to make the trifle.

My fridge is starting to look a bit empty but the freezer and cupboards are still full so I will continue to use what I have and avoid spending for now.

I read Johnson is planning to stop free prescriptions for pensioners in April so I need to find out about buying a prepaid thing as we both get 3 items per month and that will add up if I am paying per item , I think it would be around £50 a month which would be a bit of a shock to the system on top of everything else.

£31 on hospital bag bits today...plus £2 for parking which I felt a bit bad about but it is absolutely chucking it down here today and me and my 34 week belly couldn't face the walk up the huge hill up from the free car park into the town.

Still need a nursing nightie, but I'll wait until the cheaper of the ones I like is back in stock and that'll balance the cost of the parking!

NSD yesterday, spent £20 on coal today but counting that as an essential spend. Have also spent the morning decluttering and writing out all essential outgoings and income. This should have been done a long time ago instead of just winging it constantly. It's nice to feel like I'm taking back some control over my finances and being proactive rather than reactive

Had to post a heavy parcel so spends for January so far = £43

Pissing it down here and we're all waiting on pcr tests so staying in.

NSD yesterday (there had to be some upsides to having no time to eat lunch!), spent £7 today on things to eat on the train back from a conference.

So glad Im on this thread. Sounds like everyone is doing well. We ve only done essential food shops this week plus 1 book for school and thanks to this thread Ive decided not to buy the potentially non essential item I was umming and ahhing about. Ive also eaten alternatives for breakfast when the milk ran out rather than buying from the more expensive local shop.

Have sold 40 euros worth of lego and asked around to see if any mums want to do a book swop instead of just buying new books like I usually do (found someone with the whole series of a book that my 7 year old loves but takes less than 10 minutes to read so not worth the 6 euro price tag...)