Trying to save money

We are looking to book a holiday abroad next year, our first since 2013. Unfortunately since then, our outgoings seem to have increased so we need to look at how we can save some money. All our bills are paid via direct debit so those are covered.  We have looked at these and cancelled any which are no longer essential. We have also reduced our TV/phone/broadband package as we do not really watch that much TV, so that is a saving of about £35 per month on those outgoings.

We shopped around last year when our insurance was due. We changed our home insurance and we saved about £30 a month. I don’t think we would be able to save much this year. We do regular checks on our utilities and we really can’t save much more on those.

One of the biggest areas we can save money on is on food. Although we would not qualify for ‘Eat well for Less’ we can still make savings. Craig is terrible in the supermarket. I ask him to call in and pick up 3 things and he comes back with 3 bags full. He is a sucker for special offers and not all of those get used and end up being wasted. I need to keep him out of the supermarket and that would surely save us money. The other way is to do the ‘click and collect’ option where you order online and then just pick it up from the supermarket. My nearest supermarket is less than a mile away so it makes no sense to pay for delivery. Doing the menu plan helps me with the list but if I go I do tend to pick up extras as well which I don’t do when ordering online.

I must also be more organised with the actual meals themselves and remember to pull the meat out of the freezer to give it time to defrost. This wasn’t to bad when we had a microwave oven because I could just use the defrost option, but since we have no longer got a microwave I have to be better at remembering, especially seeing as though I  do not tend to have alternatives that can be cooked from frozen. Perhaps it might be worth investing in a microwave rather than falling back on take-aways which would be cheaper in the long run. I know the kids would be happy if we had a microwave.

One thing I also do a lot is impulse buy. I read somewhere that if you see something you want then you should wait 72 hours before buying it. There is a good chance then that you either forget about it or decide that you don’t really want it. I think this is something I need to implement to save us money. An example of this being successful is when I decided I could do with a new camera. I wanted one because I could not find the cable that connects the camera to the computer and a bit of plastic at the bottom of the camera had split and kept getting caught on things.  I had an idea of which one I wanted but decided to wait. During that time I analysed how I use my current camera, I found the cable and glued the plastic back down. As you may guess, I decided I didn’t need a new camera.

I have heard a lot about the Kon Marie method of decluttering and organising and I like the idea of sorting by category and putting everything together. This should help me save money as I know that I  have ended up with duplicates due to my disorganisation. It might also help me with my stationery addiction once I see just how much I have got.

Before I go and buy any new clothes for winter I am going to analyse what is in my wardrobe and look as to whether I actually need anything. I know I will need some jeans and a couple of jumpers to replace ones which are now to big due to losing weight, but in winter I do not seem to be as bothered about clothes as I am in summer. I am quite happy to live in jeans and jumpers at the weekend and trousers and jumpers for work. I know I don’t need a new coat or boots this year. I am also going to look at all my formal dresses and wear those rather than buy new. I am not going to be the principal Lady this year so the attention is not going to be on me so I can get away with it.

I am not one of those people who would do a car boot sale to get rid of the stuff (been there, done that, hated it) but I do know somebody who could sell the things for me on Ebay and on a car boot. I won’t go along so that I can’t change my mind ( or buy anything).  Anything that doesn’t get sold will then be donated.

To ensure that we put the money away, whatever is left at the end of the month, be it £2 or £200 I will transfer the money into the savings account so that it doesn’t get spent in the next month. I also read that if you decide not to buy something to put that money away as well. I think I will have to see on that particular option but on the months where we do not pay council tax,  that will be put away as will the money we will not have to pay during the holidays for breakfast and after school club.

I will keep you posted about how it is going each month.

Menu Plan (5th September 2016)

Matthew has gone back to school today (Hooray!!) and Emma is back on Thursday, so things should be settling back into a normal routine, including meals. The Masonic season is starting again however, which means that Craig is going to be out more often. 

This week we have a Masquerade Ball on Friday so the kids have chosen the meal for that night. I have no idea what Craig and I will be eating but I am going to have to stick rigidly to the Slimming World plan for the week as I have weigh in at 8.00am on Saturday morning and after a 5 course meal there is definitely going to be an issue on the scales.

Monday - Steak and Prawn Stir fry
Tuesday - Sausage and Mash (Slimming world sausage for me with broccoli and a little mash)
Wednesday - Spaghetti and Homemade meatballs
Thursday - Cottage pie with Sweet potato Mash
Friday- Burgers and fries
Saturday - Mushroom Risotto
Sunday - Beef in Red wine and Shallot sauce with potatoes and Veg.

Linking up to Organising Junkie to get inspiration for the future.

Have a good week.

Deborah

Goals for September

During July and August I decided to set some goals to achieve during the month with regards to various areas of my life that I want to work on.

I have found this easier then just setting a big resolution as although the monthly goals are all part of the main resolutions they are broken down into smaller, time constrained and achievable targets which is the foundation of any objectives that people set.

I have decided that this month I am going to share them and at the end update you on how things have gone.

In September I want to

• Finish decorating the kids rooms
• Achieve my target weight at Slimming World (only have 3 1/2 pounds to go)
• Work towards my Gold Body Magic award
• Read 2 Agatha Raisin books
• Get back into a proper meal routine by meal planning Lunch and dinner
• Complete one craft project.

Do you have monthly goals? I would love to hear what they are.

Visit to the Black Country Living Museum

Over the Bank Holiday weekend Craig, Matthew and I visited the Black Country Living Museum near Birmingham. It is a place I have wanted to go to for a while as I love finding out how people used to live. I like the fact that there was a proper community spirit with people knowing everybody around them. I don't even know 1/2 of the people who live on my street.

Although I wouldn't have wanted to live in those times I think in some ways they may have been simpler as there were less distractions and definitely less choice in everything. I sometimes wish we had less choice nowadays and that we weren't constantly bombarded with advertising, news, TV programmes that are a 'must watch' and food.

Life in the concrete house depicting life during World War 2.

I am glad we no longer have to black lead these.

 No supermarkets back then.

Getting a bit more modern in the kitchen with an electric oven

Built in shopping list and inventory Genius idea!

Girls being told off at school for wearing nail polish

Beautiful needlework

I hope to pay another visit to the museum nearer Christmas and the beauty is that the admission price you pay the first time you visit means that you are then able to make as many visits as you want within a year without paying again. If I lived closer then I would probably be there at least once a month.

Menu Plan (29th August 2016)

Wow, it'[s Tuesday already. The Bank Holiday really threw me for which day of the week it is . Anyway better late than never with this weeks menu plan. I am not holding out much hope to sticking to this as we didn't really last week due to all too common last minute change of plans by the other members of the family.

Monday - ended up having Chinese take away.
Tuesday - only me eating so Slimming World Ready meal that I keep for days such as this.
Wednesday - Tacos
Thursday- Steak and Chips
Friday- Tex Mex Omelette Wrap
Saturday - Slimming World Bacon Double Cheeseburger
Sunday - Sweet Potato Curry and Rice.

I know it isn't the most exciting menu plan but Craig and Emma are out Tuesday and all weekend and most days Matthew will have eaten at his Aunties.

Roll on next week when they are back in school and college and things can get back to normal.

Linking up with Organising Junkie to see what everyone else is cooking and to get inspiration for next week.

Have a good week.

Deborah

Box Sets- Heaven or Hell

Box sets are a great invention but also the worst thing ever. Box sets allow you to watch series that you may have missed or re-watch old series that are no longer on TV. But they also encourage binge watching as you know that you don’t have to wait a week to find out what happens next. This can be really useful if you have a busy life as most of us do and a lot of people now watch TV this way. Craig and the kids have got into this way of watching so much that we have downgraded our TV package and upgraded our broadband.

I have recently fallen under the spell of box sets as I discovered Nashville. There are only 4 seasons with 22 episodes in each and after 2 weeks I am already on episode 4 of Season 2. I have to say Deacon reminds me of Hugh Jackman but a better singer.

Last night was a prime example of how you can get sucked into the ‘box set binge watch’. I had intended on doing some sewing on my machine and clean my bathroom. I made the mistake of thinking that I would just watch one episode after finishing dinner. Instead 4  hours later I was still sat in front of the TV and had watched 4 episodes. The dishes hadn’t been loaded into the dishwasher, I hadn’t got my sewing machine out and although the bathroom had been cleaned it only happened because I had to walk one of Matthew’s friends home and made the decision when I got back that the bathroom had to be done. At 10.30pm I was posting photos on the WI page that I am responsible for that really should have gone up a lot earlier.

I think that when you are watching a box set there should be an automatic shut off after 2 episodes so that you then don't feel guilty about sitting in front of the TV when you should really be doing something more productive.

What do you think about box sets?

Our Week In Whitby

We spent a week in Whitby with Craig’s family last week for our holiday. We have all been to Whitby before and it is a place I enjoy going to. We booked into a cottage which turned out to be a 3 bedroom Victorian terrace house which was not what I was expecting as when I think of a cottage I think of one of the little fishermen cottages that are tucked away up little passages which we have stayed in before. We had the terrace as Craig’s brother was with us and because of the stroke he had nearly 2 years ago he would not have been able to manage the stairs. The house the others were in had a downstairs bedroom and bathroom which was a lot more suitable for him.

Whitby is a good place to explore with lots of things to do whether you are interested in history, with the Abbey, and interest in Vampires and Dracula, Walking (lots of walking and hills) or just good old seaside fun there is something to appeal to every one of every age.

Whitby Abbey

Craig, Emma, Matthew and my nieces Tara and Libby

We were quite lucky with the weather as although it was breezy it stayed dry most of the time which for me is fine as I am not a fan of heat. I am also not really a fan of sand and sea but I don’t mind it over here. My least favourite holidays have been beach based holidays abroad. I would much rather be seeing the sights and doing things instead of lying on the beach doing nothing.

It was my niece’s birthday whilst we were there and it was her choice of what everyone should do that day. She decided to start off doing some painting of pottery at Doodlepots. All the kids painted something and I decided to join in as well rather than just sit there for a couple of hours so I painted a jug to go with the sugar bowl and milk jug I had done last time.

After that was a boat trip which I avoided as I get sea sick on a pedalo so I waited with the scooter we had hired for Jason (Craig’s brother). Luckily it was only 20 minutes long

We then tried to go into a diner for dinner but unfortunately is was rather busy and they weren’t able to accommodate such a large group in one go (there was 11 of us). We had to take a picture because of the name and Emma does want to own a cafe or diner one day.

Although there is plenty to do in Whitby we decided to spread our wings and see some other places. Craig’s Mum is a fan of Heartbeat so we went to Goathland which is where Heartbeat was filmed. Whilst her and her husband explored Craig, Emma and I followed the trail to Mallyan Spout and Beck Hole

The In-Laws in Goathland

Hedwig's alive and Emma managed to hold him

Mallyan Spout

We also chose the best day to go to Scarborough and Matthew went in the sea, something he hasn’t been able to do to much before as the weather has either been too cold or we haven’t been near a beach since he has a toddler.

Scarborough Harbour with the castle on top of the hill

On the last day we did the Curse of the Whitby Vampire trail which is like a treasure hunt where you walk around solving clues. These can be downloaded from www.treasuretrails.co.uk.  There are several available for Whitby but we chose this one because the kids like vampires.  The trail is a good way of exploring  and  is ideal if you have never been somewhere  before as they take in a few of the main attractions. Some of the clues are quite easy to solve, some a bit harder, especially those where you have to find information of plaques as a few have become faded and difficult to read.  At the end you can go online, enter your answer and unique code. If you are correct you can download a certificate and get the chance to be entered into a monthly draw to win £100.

You end up at the church at the top of the 199 steps for the final two clues. One of the things Jason had wanted to do was to go up the 199 steps by himself. Obviously everyone was a bit concerned about this but he was determined and to his credit he achieved it. Everyone was so proud and hopefully it will give Jason a boost as he has had rather a bumpy journey emotionally as well as physically since the stroke. He has no movement in his left arm and although he can walk he is unable to walk long distances and on uneven ground.

We had a really good time in Whitby and we hope to be able to visit again in a couple of years time. It is a great place for families and there is certainly plenty to do for everyone.