The Friendly Frugaleers, saving and chatting as autumn arrives

[AGenie]

Hello all :-)

[Collieballs]

My posts are now a strange baby vom colour

Roast chicken and med veg traybake for tea tonight! First proper decent meal since being ill. Excited!

[needastrongone]

Glad your feeling better Collie.

[Mummyshortlegz]

£31 in primark on fluffy pyjamas for the boys and jogging bottoms for wilf to wear to preschool, new socks and some t shirts for dh.

£32 in sainsbury. On barely anything but did include a present.

[Mummyshortlegz]

My posts are a weird colour too!

[SnugglySnerd]

Afternoon all! Was hoping for NSDs yesterday and today but had to buy cat litter yesterday and have just asked DH to pick up some garlic bread on the way home to have with our pasta.
2 frugal wins though, found a good Halloween costume for DD in the charity shop £2.49, and set up a standing order to transfer the £40 a month we are saving on the mortgage straight into savings before we cam get used to having it as extra spending money.

[CremeEggThief]

Mine too. What's that all about?

NSD so far, but taking DS to see Owen Jones tonight (finished reading Chavs last night), so will probably have to get a taxi home, as our last bus goes ridiculously early.

Pleased you're on the mend, Collie. Take it easy.

[needastrongone]

Mine are normal, same as ever. How strange!

[WreckTangled]

Not all bosses are like you though need. When I worked for a small company I got jack shit. Dh works for a small company and doesn't get a pension, doesn't get paid on time and is currently owed £2k in overtime which he keeps being promised. Look at the likes of Sweden who do have all the provisions for their employees, they manage it and I assume it's government subsidies rather than out of the businesses pocket. Anyway I was only having a little moan wasn't really saying businesses should fork out just that I personally can't afford to lose any money.

Glad you're feeling better collie.

[needastrongone]

He has to have a pension now Wrecked, the law is changing. Look up auto enrolment if that helps? I don't know the ins and outs of the Swedish tax system, but a quick Google tells me the average rate of income tax in Sweden is 57%, so if the Govt does subsidise companies to provide additional employee benefits, it's effectively the tax payer paying anyway. So, if you fancy higher taxes but paid parental leave, that's cool.

[needastrongone]

Also was just wondering if Italian was ok, as she hasn't posted for a while.

Hope you are ok Italian.

[CremeEggThief]

I was thinking about Italian too. Hope all's well.

[WreckTangled]

Yes I have heard it's very high tax but for a better life. Who knows, the grass is always greener isn't it?! I keep telling Dh this but apparently his boss reckons he's exempt for some reason and Dh is too lazy to look into it

[Fluffycloudland77]

I'm committing suicide when I'm older. Wether that's euthanasia abroad or a sudden interest in growing foxgloves here remains to be seen.. No way am I staying here long enough to be eating the contents of my inco pad.

£1.60 on cat food. Need to take the other lot back to Aldi because he hates that one now.
£1.59 beer
£10 petrol.

Aldi was rumoured to be starting online shopping, I am all over that when it happens.

More free cider on checkoutsmart and clicksnap. Good for Xmas parties when people are drunk and will drink anything.

[needastrongone]

I wasn't having a go either wrecked, sorry if it sounded like I was. I often hear how employers ought to be providing this and that and the other and for a small company, there's a very real cost. I often see the employees side and not often the employer.

Problem is, we are not used the that tax rate, I guess if that was normal, and all we ever knew, it would be different.

Let me look into the pension thing a bit more for you.

[WreckTangled]

Thanks need. He is the only employee if that makes a difference.

Ds still hasn't got his appetite back, he couldn't finish his vienetta

[needastrongone]

*see the employees side being promoted, that is. Too much multi-tasking here!

Comes down to money doesn't it, always? Got to be paid for somehow, by someone!

[WreckTangled]

Also I've finished paying off the dishwasher, had it over a year now!

[Collieballs]

I would love a vienetta right now!!

I'm feeling really anxious which is so bad for my stomach. the anxiety won't even end until the end of the month. But I don't want to wish the month away. I want to enjoy Autumn!

[needastrongone]

Wreck He's not exempt. Auto enrolment applies to all employers, even say, those employing a nanny etc. Have a quick Google. x

Collie, there's not I can say, moving is stressful. It's hard. Bless you.

[Tryingtosaveup]

Yes, Need is right. The employer has to,provide a pension unless the employee opts out. They don't have to contribute but they do have to enable it. It became law a month or so ago.
YAY , another NSD. 8th this month.a who,e week of not spending.
Will end tomorrow though. Running out of food and I gave to go out anyway.
I am have the cloakroom / downstairs toilet redone as it was old, leaky and manky. So all of my no spending goes in that pot.
And the other bathrooms need doing as they are not much better.
Enjoy that meal Collie.

[Wildernesstips]

Collie glad to see you are picking up a bit. I love this time of year and have been trying to do autumnal things - we lit our fire pit at the weekend and had s'mores, and I made a pumpkin pie.

NSD for me.

Frugal things today:
Posted off for a refund on my pre payment prescription as I now have medical exemption.
Leftover lasagne for tea.

Frugal fail:
Finally put my heating on

[Sierra259]

NSD here so far, though have to write a cheque for the credit card and settle my Next bill for a shirt I bought BIL for his birthday £15. I really dislike the credit account way Next use for online shopping, I'd rather just pay up front.

I work for the NHS, so in theory my pension should be ok-ish, but who knows in this day and age! Sorry you're feeling anxious collie, waiting to move house is the worst

[Sierra259]

Bleurgh, my posts have gone a weird colour too!

[SnugglySnerd]

Pleased to hear you are feeling better Collie. Moving house is horribly stressful isn't it?
Trying to do meal plan but I've gone blank, I can't think of anything. Just heard risotto mentioned on radio 2 and I quite fancy that but otherwise I'm stumped!

[WreckTangled]

Snuggly I'm going to make Swedish meatballs next week. Along with:

Chilli
Shepherds pie
Macaroni cheese
Sausage casserole
Chicken tray bake
Fish cakes