Day Two

Well spent way more that I would have liked to do today but we have things that had been planned for ages such as the dog groomer coming and other half going out in Manchester with the lads.

I have a Shih Tzu called Dave and a miniture Pug called Pete, the Pug is great and doesn't need any grooming at all, just a brush 2-3 times a week as his fur doesn't really grow (but he malts like crazy all year round) it just stays nice and short.

My Shih Tzu on the other hand looks like nobody bloody owns him if he isn't cut at least every 12 weeks in spring/summer and once during autumn/winter and each time its £30. I must say at this point it is £30 VERY well spent as Angie (from Posh Paws Mobile Grooming) that comes to cut him is lovely and she does such a great job, she is so good with him as he can be a right pain in the arse when being cut. Dave only has one eye so can get nervous with the sound of the clippers but Angie is amazing, she is slightly mad and I regularly catch her singing to him (usually 80's rock) while she is cutting him but it seems to help calm him down so its fine with me lol and he does look a very pretty boy when she is finished.

for anyone that is looking for a great dog groomer that comes to you her details are below, I can't recommend her highly enough.

http://www.poshpawsmobile.co.uk/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Posh-Paws/113695505310327?ref=profile

As for other half's night out I really thought it would blow the budget, especially with it being in Manchester. I was pretty pee'd that it was in our 1 month (now 3 month) challenge but he agreed to get the tram there and back and he would only take £40. Even that amount made me sad, I really wanted to not spend anything that wasn't a necessity but like I have said it was already planned so I just had to except it.

Much to my surprise at 00:20 I got a drunken text message (spelling all wrong and more kisses than usual) saying he was walking down the street kebab in hand and had over £10 left to give me back!!!

Hip Hip Hooray he is learning to live for less at last :-)

Must admit I was very proud of him and I still have no idea how he managed a night out in town with tram tickets, drinks and a kebab for less than £30 and to be honest I don't really care I am just glad he did it.

So day two saw £60 spent on none essentials but I still don't think it was too bad and if anything it just gives me the challenge to make it back somewhere else.

Day One

So other half got paid yesterday so our 1 month challenge has begun. This is a quick outline of how day one has gone.

I started of making a meal planner for week 1 and looking at what I already had in, to my surprise I found I had two homemade meat and potatoes pies in the freezer so that sorted out two days, the other 5 will be taken up with sausage casserole, pasta bolognese and a treat on Saturday of pizza and garlic bread. With meal planner in hand I set about making my shopping list but checking what ingredients I already had lurking at the back of my cupboards. I was amazed at how much I already had in things like tins of tomateos, stock cubes, herbs and spices, in fact with the herbs and spices I had 2-3 pots of some of them and much to my shame even found a pot of chinese five spice that had gone out of date April 2001 (which means it was even out of date when I moved house in 2006 and i still brought it with me) a friend sent me this link after me telling her this!

The shopping was split between Aldi and Morrisons as I know nappies and wipes are cheaper at morrisons and to my total shock and amazement I managed to do a full weeks shopping for the grand total of £36.17.

This was mainly achieved because of how much I already had in and the fact my step son is away for the week so one less mouth to feed. I am sure next weeks shopping will be more.

All in all I think I have done pretty well for day one and to top off the day I even got other half to agree to extend the challenge to 3 months so I could look at saving on quarterly things (like the water bill that's paid quarterly even though I am on meter and can effect it daily) I am still hoping I can get him to agree to extending to to a year but we shall see, hopefully once he starts to see the savings he will come round to my way of thinking.

Well I am sorry its a pretty boring post but not much else to report on day one but not a bad start even if I do say so myself.

My kids have never planted cheese and our chickens can't swim!

I came across a news article today about children's lack of knowledge about the food they eat. It can be read here http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/healthyeating/10095183/Children-think-cheese-grows-on-plants.html

This article saddened me although it didn't surprise me at all.

I get described as a "crunchy mum" or "hippy" quite a bit (although i don't see myself like that and i hate labels anyway) but it hasn't always been like this before children i used to be a Bank Manager always on the go, eating convenience food on the run and generally living my life at a million miles an hour. Yes i breastfed my son and used cloth nappies (not all the time we mixed cloth and disposables) and yes we keep to home made meals from scratch instead of convenience food, my kids can get messy in fact its actively encouraged and they can ask any questions they want oh and i wore my son in a wrap and we keep chickens and grow veg (i guess that does make me pretty crunchy lol) but i choose to do these things as i believe it is the best way for me to raise my children.

I parent the way i do to help my children grow not just physically but mentally and emotionally too and personally i  feel if more parents where a little more "crunchy" there would be far fewer articles like the one above.

Don't get me wrong i don't want to start a debate on parenting styles and i don't believe any one parenting style suits everyone. I understand cloth isn't for everyone and as i stated i didn't use it all the time, just at home and only until weaning (real poo stinks!!!) and not everyone can breastfeed but ditching some of lives conveniences such as pre-packed processed foods and helping your children learn how food goes from field to plate is achievable by everyone in my eyes.

Ok not everyone is lucky enough to have a big garden (or a garden at all) and i know not everyone can or wants to keep chickens but little things like cooking weekend meals from scratch with the children or growing some strawberries or herbs in a pot all help their learning and understanding of the food chain and nutrition.

When my eldest step-son Jake moved in with me at 9 years old i was shocked and saddened by his lack of food knowledge. I cooked a leg of lamb with all the trimmings which he loved but when finished he asked "why was the chicken brown?" i couldn't believe he didn't even notice the difference in taste but until living with me he was pretty much brought up on cheap, convenient processed chicken pressed into any shape imaginable so he really thought 'meat' meant 'chicken'. Unfortunately this is an all to familiar situation and the Jamie Oliver's of the world can do whatever they want to get it out of schools but until parents start preparing and cooking fresh meals from scratch at home and getting their children involved then its a situation that's only going to get worse.

Here is our herbs and strawberries in pots

And the baby chickens

And the veg patch at the start of spring

I also have tomatoes, peppers and chillies growing

My 3 boys will eat almost any veg i serve them as they are so excited to taste what they have grown themselves from tiny little seeds. They know that our eggs come from our chickens and that eventually when the chickens stop laying eggs we will eat them. They also understand that they need looking after and making sure they have a happy life, but ultimately they are going to be our food.

My boys know that our chickens can not swim and do not live in the sea and therefore could never be the main ingredient in a fish finger, they have also never picked cheese off any of the plants in our veg patch.

my budget bible for the next 5 weeks

After scouring the internet, using common sense, getting tips from friends and thinking about the things I do already I have complied a list that will serve as my budget bible for the next 5 weeks and thought I would share it with you.

I have split the list into the areas that I think I can cut back/save money then listed all the ways I can influence them (such a geek I know)

FOOD BILL

This is the biggest and easiest area for cut backs so i warn you in advance is a bit lengthy

1) Shop around - see where has the best deals
                            is the market cheaper (fruit and veg at the end of the day can go for less than 50%)
                            buy own brands and compare who's are cheapest

2) Meal plan - plan 7 days meals (breakfast dinner and tea)
                        list all ingredients needed to make all these meals
                        tick off the ingredients list what you already have in (actually check the cupboards)
                        only now make your shopping list

3) Make a shopping list - see above

4) Portion control - measure out things like pasta and rice, these are easy to over estimate
                                if you are left with extra once cooked box/bag them up
                                children eat less that adults

5) Buy in bulk - non perishables like toilet roll, cans, nappies anything you regularly use thats on offer
                          buy meat in bulk portion it out and freeze
                          cook big batches of things like chilli, stews, etc and freeze in portions

6) Left overs - spag bol, chilli, stews even if not enough for a full meal freeze and have with a jacket potato for lunch 
                        cooked too much veg with tea chop it up and mix with mash potato and cheese make into patties and freeze for yummy bubble and squeak ready to just throw in the oven
                        stale bread, blend into bread crumbs and freeze to use later to crumb fishfingers, chicken  nuggets or kiev, or mix with some cheese and sprinkle over a pasta bake for a yummy crunchy topping
                        compost, compost, compost

7) Grow your own - herbs are easy and dont need much space of time
                                strawberries, carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, chillies and peppers can all be grown in pots
                                if you have a good harvest make preserves/jams
                                swap you harvest with friends/family that also grow their own for more variety

8) Walk to the shops - this stops impulse buys as you can only carry so much home
                                     saves fuel costs

9) Re-usable bags - better for the environment
                                 some stores charge for bags so taking your own saves pennies
                                 only take as many bags as you will need for your shopping list so you cant fit any                                          impulse buys in

10) Dump the processed - making your own from scratch is not only cheaper but also healthier


UTILITIES

Gas - turn thermistat down by 2 degrees
          tin foil behind radiators
          draft proof doors and windows
          turn off radiators in unused/spare rooms

Electric - energy saving light bulbs
                use lamps instead of main light
                turn off lights as you leave the room (drill this into the kids)
                turn off electricals at wall
                dont use standby if they are going to be off for more than an hour

Water - turn tap off while brushing teeth
              have a shower instead of a bath
              if having a bath share, throw the kids in together or after you
             use bath water to water the plants/garden
             dont over fill the bath, your not going swimming just having a wash
             fill sink for a wash rather than having it constantly running
             use buckets/tubs outside to collect rainwater to water the garden, plants, clean the paving flags
             toilet - do you NEED to flush it everytime??? if its brown flush it down if it yellow let it mellow ha ha


CAR COSTS

Insurance - shop around to get cheapest quote
                    put a more experience/older driver on your policy to lower cost (only do this if they may       actually drive the car within the year, even if only once otherwise its naughty naughty naughty and I cant condone this!)
       
Fuel - can you car share
          look for cheapest price and fill the tank
          look for loyalty deals (morrisons miles, necter points)
          LEAVE IT ON THE DRIVE! nothing will save you more money than walking
          check tyre pressure
          empty the boot

General - keep water and oil topped up
                 do small jobs on the car yourself
                 get punchers repaired instead of getting a new tyre
                 look at part worn tyres instead of brand new

MAKE DO AND MEND

Clothes - Fix missing buttons, small holes etc yourself instead of throwing out
                Do your own alterations
                buy second hand (ebay, charity shops)
                customise old clothes instead of buying new (you can make a demin skirt for old jeans)
                have a clothes swap with friends

Home - do jobs around the home yourself
             use sites like freecycle and fregal
              upcycle (instead of buying shelves use old doors, pallets, planks to make your own)
             use the internet (look for tutorials on simple jobs like fixing a leaking tap or how to hang wallpaper)

Kids - Dont buy new, ook at carboots, ebay, charity shops for toys
           Use your imagination, there are hundreds of ways to entertain the kids for free (crafting, free day out, den building, cooking)
           Look for great quality clothes second hand (they grow out of them so quickly anyway)

Well that's pretty much it the rules for living for less for the next month, I am sure I will be able to add more as the month progresses but for now that my lot.

An Introduction

For anyone stumbling across this blog I will introduce myself and what this blog as all about.

I am a 29 year old SAHM (stay at home mum) to my little boy Harry (16 months) and my step-son Jake (13 years), I also have another step-son Samuel (8 years) but he lives with his mum and spends all the holidays with us.

I have always been one for getting value for money (some call it cheap I prefer frugal) but when I decided to leave my job as a bank manager to be a full time housewife and mum getting value for money became a necessity, it doesnt take a degree in accountancy to see that 2 adults + 3 children / 1 income = A HEADACHE.

Its amazing how quickly you learn to turn lights off when you leave a room (and drill this into the kids) and how it becomes second nature to look for super market deals.

We dropped our income by £28,000 p.a and added another tiny person to our family and yet we still have everything we NEED.

It is this very thing that has prompted this blog and my slightly obsessive compulsive behaviour for penny pinching, super scrimping and overall living as frugally as possible. It got me thinking, just how little money can we live off????

Over the 5 week period 24th Aug - 26th Sept that question is exactly what i set out to answer. I have challenged the family to live off as little as possible and I will be blogging daily with how we are getting on.

I will also be sharing all the cost cutting tips that I come across and hope that in doing so it will show just how much we waste and show how we can change that.