January Jingles, Valentine Capers, Frugal Fun Shenanigans & Looking Forward to Spring!

[DirtyGertiefromno30]

Welcome to the New thread everyone 😊
Here's to everyone of us and hoping 2026 brings us all health happiness and frugal finances 🤗

£5 Starbucks coffee beans
£9.50 two knitted cardigans from next for DD. Genuinely (probably) needed them so ok with that.
£10 dress from vinted for an occasion. I don't tend to get much luck on therebbut considering I've tried one on from this brand before in this size fingers crossed.

Hello need. I hope you are doing ok, and things settle into their new shape for you soon. Keep on runnin’ ! And lifting heavy! I hope there isn’t too much of an admin mountain to climb, and that sibs can step up.

Nice day here, despite the rain. Mobility workout, French practice, admin, chores, book group. I have a LOT of reading to do over the next three weeks. No bingeing box sets for me.

£11 in butcher on a chicken. £8 in Sainsbury’s on fruit, veg, yoghurt.

Right leg and left shoulder were hurting like buggery when I did my walk yesterday. Limped in and decided to see whether a weight session would help. 2x 12 kg dumbbells, which is quite heavy for me, 3 short rounds of 5 exercises- sorted me out a treat. Slept like a baby, woke with no pain this morning. I was thinking yesterday I should go back for more tests, but actually I think I just need to strength train more.

We’ve all got a rotten cold, so spent £20.58 at the shop stocking up on some medicine and supplies to get us through tomorrow.

I recommend first defense nasal spray for colds, it can make them much shorter!

Thank you, I will get DH to get some. The DC can’t have it but if it helps me I’m all for it!!. Looking after pets, 3 young DC with colds whilst having one myself has been exhausting.

Oops, fell off the updating wagon a bit.

10/1
NSD I think, but will update if anything shows on my bank account

11/1
I was on track, but feel at the final hurdle. MiniFool did an amazing job of sorting out toys and books, and this was how we used to say well done. I need to get out of the habit!

£22 takeaway 🤦‍♀️😬❌

12/1
NSD. I need to stay home more often.

13/1
2.60 community larder
1.44 reductions for tea
-7.96 refund for damaged delivery

YTD: NSD 7, LSD 4, Spendy 2

Oh @needastrongoneagainim sending all my love you to. It must be a relief and the calm must be needed after the last few days/weeks. Ensure you take care of yourself and let others take care of you too. Xxxx

Did you get your workout in @pistachiosanscream?

Well done on doing a workout and ironing out the kinks @BigSkies2022

A LSD today. We went on the bus to the library, £2, and swapped DD books and then popped into the charity shop by the bus stop on the way home. I found a gorgeous Zara shirt, a m&s cardigan, a gorgeous tartan dress for DD and a toy for her. Think it was about £12 in all. Some items were on the sale rail. Bargain.

Yoga tonight which is £10. And I did a Davina weights workout earlier which I loved.
Hoping tomorrow is a NSD as at work all day.

There is a new café in town (all shops are now restaurants, cafes or nail bars now where I am) and it has villagey shop attached to it. I can see that being lethal. Esp as it's next to my fave charity shop next to the bus stop.

Low spend day today - £2 on playgroup and then £3 on an ice cream in park for DS because he didn’t believe me when I said it was too cold for them to be on sale…

pleased to report that the monthly meal plan is still going strong, it meant we could introduce some new interesting things at the weekend and so far… we seem to be on track with the groceries budget… though we have decided to switch to oat milk from cows milk so any recommendations for cheap was of buying decent oat milk are welcome!

I did @Frugal25, 8 days in a row now.

so not a low spend day today. €63 on boots and then I spent €82 on M and M direct on a new coat I don’t technically need but was a great price and will keep for next year and some other bits for small child.

£4.50 in Marks and Spencer. Not sure if it counts as a no spend as I used my gift card. Not sure how long I should support this tangerine habit for.

Good news about the car @Lockin26.

Rumours here too @Frugal25. Hope your day was better than anticipated.

Sounds like you have things under control @Johaanah. I read that you would like a cashmere banana and had to think for a moment.

Oh @needastrongoneagain. My thoughts are with you. Take things as they come.

Caught up with a friend today and we’re meeting up for lunch and an exhibition next week. Think my aim of only spending the cash I have until pay day is now out the window. It will be nice to see her.

No spend day today, aside from dh tube and lunch. He tells me he’s going to take sandwiches from next week.

We had curry for dinner, bulked out with frozen butternut squash and lentils. It was nice! Getting the use out of the pressure cooker again.

My Ocado shop is sitting around £80 this week, feels ok.

DH is taking the beavers camping this weekend and the scouts next weekend with ds1, so he’ll be shopping and cooking for lots of kids. He’s going to brave farmfoods.
scouts will feed themselves but he will do chicken going wraps with salad and cheese and sauce for the little ones and probably chips! Easy then for the little ones to eat the bits they want.

Im signed off work until 17th Feb so cancelled our wrap around care. I was hopeful I’d get back this month, but still recovering from surgery.

Read parts of the thread today, I am trying to keep up, sorry!

@needastrongoneagain so sorry to read about your DF who will be at peace now, go easy on yourself.

£60.92 Lidl was supposed to be a top up but I finished work much earlier than expected so I did a bigger shop. Ate at home at lunchtime so not spent on lunch yet this week 😊

NSD for me today. Returned something to Amazon for £50 refund, and been sorting out my packing for my cruise this weekend.

Beauticians appointment tomorrow (pre-cruise) so that will be about £35.

@FurForksSake your post reminds me that a friend of mine swears by Farmfoods. I’ve never been there but think I need to run my freezer down before I pay them a visit (that’s going quite well actually). I’ve just caught Tim Spectors new programme about eating more healthily whilst I was eating my white bread toast and jam for dinner…..

£9.03 in Home Bargains, £30.01 on Petrol (it doesn't matter how careful I am - I always get the 1p!!!) and £17 in Lidl on first real shopping day for January. As we are at 13th - that's okay - it was literally all stuff we had run out of but we are still eating our way through Christmas leftovers. Turkey Curry last night and Prawn Cocktail and party nibbles for tea on Sunday! I'm seeing gaps in the freezers now - found some sausage meat so need to think of what can I do with that!!
@needastrongoneagain I'm sorry to hear about your DF
@chimichangaz We often get money off coupons through the door for Farm Foods but somehow I never seem to get there - there are two local to us but we smack in the middle of both of them. I don't go out of my way for some shops but always cut the coupons just in case!

So sorry to hear about your DF Need.

would have been an NSD but I had to order another multipack of Vaseline chapsticks for DS, who gets through one every few days at this time of year.

@needastrongoneagain so sorry
monday nsd
yesterday petrol

@needastrongoneagain so sorry about your DF.
Monday was a LSD, £4.99 (!!!) on soup from Pret. Wanted it to go with my very basic lunch.
Yesterday, haircut for DD and money to a friend for a gig ticket.
Got a Sainsburys delivery coming today-£75. I used Nectar points to get money off.

We’ve also got sausage meat in the freezer. I do many things with it. Sometimes I just make super special stuffing balls to have with a roast, sausage rolls, meatloaf (with beef), giant sausage roll / sausage plait, I make it into meatballs and cook them in the air fryer. Sometimes I fry and crumble it up with slices and make a dirty rice. Love sausage meat!

Thanks @needastrongoneagain
I’m really sorry about your DF. Please look after yourself.

I posted back some more unwanted purchases yesterday. There will still be more to return as I’m ordering multiple styles and sizes of a few items. Keeps me busy I suppose!

I use farm foods especially if bulk buying with the coupons. It’s very similar to Iceland these days.

more prescription charges but should be able to claim back when my exemption is processed

Need to chase gym for refund today add DH has £300 dental insurance bil to pay

Ooohhh white toast with jam! Nom

I'm running my freezer down quite well too. Got lots of gaps now. The "mash" I took out for dinner two night ago turned out to be creamy mushrooms. So I put it with veg and mince and it was delicious albeit a surprise.

I do get farm foods leaflets through the door and always tempted but never do it. Maybe I should once freezer is clear. Got about 2 more weeks I think of top up shops and then I'm out of food so can start again with bulking it back up

Thinking of you @needastrongoneagain. Xxx

@DirtyGertiefromno30hows your mum sweetie?

@lifelongfrugaleer how are you feeling darling ?

Eating down the pantry and eating on a tight budget is not always compatible with ideal nutritional guidelines. I find. We’ve paid the house insurance out of this month’s housekeeping, so I am keeping a tight rein on food costs- potatoes, rice, the packets of fish fingers in the freezer, pearl barley, pasta, tinned tomatoes, flapjacks for sweet treats when we need them, will be featuring heavily! I will spend on posh sausages and duck legs and make them stretch a long way. No booze helps. And endless pots of soup.