Week 3 Meal Planner & Shopping

Well i knew this week was going to be a much more expensive shop as it was my monthly shop, by this i mean the shop where i get things like washing powder, pet food, nappies and oil. Even though i was expecting it to cost more i was shocked at just what the grand total was.

I had spent the grand total of £57.03!!!!!

I couldn't believe quite how much i had needed to spend and i was actually a little annoyed and upset about it, well until my other half pointed out we used to spend that much and more every week and almost always double that for the monthly shop.

This is this weeks list

1 packet corned beef
1 pot mild chilli powder
1 pack night time nappies
2 packs day time nappies
3 packs baby wipes
1 packet chocolate bars
1 pastry mix
1 deodorant for me
1 deodorant for lee
2 multipacks crisps
1 tub soured cream
1 roll tin foil
1 garlic
1 pot paprika
1 bag table salt
3 large bottles milk
2 packs flavoured water
1 bag dog food
1 box washing powder
1 box cat food
1 bottle fabric conditioner
1 bag carrots
1 bag potatoes
1 bag onions
1 bottle sunflower oil
1 can chopped toatoes
1 tub soft cheese
1 block mature cheddar
2 packs part baked rolls
1 pack minced turkey
1 box chestnut mushrooms
1 family box mushrooms
1 pack mixed peppers
1 pack bananas
1 bag rice
1 tube tomato puree
3 packets biscuits
1 box wheat biscuits (weetabix)
1 bag porridge oats
1 jar coffee
3 loafs white bread
1 bag chicken food

and this is the weekly meal plan

Wednesday - Chicken curry and rice
Thursday - mushroom stroganoff
Friday - Chilli con carne and rice
Saturday - being naughty and having pizza
Sunday - Meat and Potato pie
Monday - Mushroom stroganoff
Tuesday - Chilli con carne

The pizza and garlic bread on Saturday will cost another £4.50 so the total will actually come to £61.53. Even though this is what i now consider a big spend i have been looking at the finances for week 4 and we are still looking good.

Normally the day before payday we have nothing left in the bank account and are usually down to the last few pounds in my purse (occasionally we have even had to borrow of the mother in law to buy essentials or put petrol in the car) i cant remember the last time we put anything into savings. I never want to be in that position ever again. As it stands at the moment we are on track to have left at least £500 i cant believe it :-) :-)
The night before payday i will transfer whatever we have left into the savings account (which has had a very sorry balance of £0.00 for at least the past 8 months) i cant wait to see what the grand saving total will be.

Plan of action for week 2

Well this week my plan of action is Christmas prep and before anyone says it, I know what you are all thinking, you're thinking "WHAT??? Christmas is she mad? The answer is NO i am not crazy and there is method to my madness, i will explain.

As a lot of you know i love growing my own fruit and vegetables and now is the time to plant my potatoes ready for my Christmas dinner and this got me thinking about the festive season and the costs associated with it.

So as well as planting my potatoes i will be getting the rest of my winter veg planted out (sowed the seeds indoors a few weeks ago to get them started). I will be growing onions, turnips, carrots, swede, cauliflower, beetroot and as mentioned potatoes. Nothing beats the taste of your very own grown and freshly picked veggies.

As well as making my Christmas dinner as frugally (and tasty) as possible i am determined to have as much of a handmade Christmas as i can. This isn't just for cost reasons either i really believe that handmade presents are so much nicer than shop bought. It takes no thought, effort or love to nip to your local Boots and spend £15-20 on some smellies that are mainly all fancy packaging and nothing else anyway, where as to make your own personalised soaps, bath bombs, candles etc takes time and thought and they are totally unique, just one offs just for the person they are meant for. Now how much nicer is that?

Once i got thinking i realised there are so many more things i could make for gifts. Everything from chilli jams and herb oils (from my own grown chillies and herbs) to scented wardrobe hangings and knitted/crocheted hats, scarfs and glove sets.

So far my main ideas are:-

• Crocheted little stockings (24 of them) numbered so i can hang them on the Christmas tree and fill them with little chocolates so the kids have a reusable advent calender. This is a picture of a few of them i have made already

• Making my little man a Minion (from despicable me) hat, scarf and mitten set. i have already made a start on this and have completed the mittens and most of the hat here they are so far.

• Soaps and bath bombs. I am still trying out different scents and colours but they are so cheap and easy to make and who doesn't love have a nice relaxing soak in the tub with some nice smellies? here are some i have already made.

• Scented wardrobe hangings. For anyone that doesn't know what these are they are basically little stuffed pillows joined together with ribbon with essential oils in them. You hang them up in your wardrobe to keep your clothes smelling nice. You can also do individual ones to go in draws. Here are some i made for a friends birthday.

• I am going to make my little man a "Stuffy" toy. He loves the programme show me show me from CeBBies and you can't buy the toys so i am making him one myself.
• Herb oils and chilli jam with chilli truffles made from my home grown chillies and herbs.
• Hot water bottle covers personalised with initials
• Mug Huggers. These are cute little covers for a round coffee cups (knitted or crocheted) usually with faces on. I am making snowmen ones and giving them around a mug with little jars of hot chocolate powder, mini marsh mellows and chocolate chilli truffles in them. This is the pattern i will be using, i love this woman and have crocheted loads of her patterns.

Now do you all understand why i need to start the Christmas planning now? I am going to be a very busy lady over the next 15 weeks and i will keep you all posted with how i am getting along with it.

Week 2 Meal planner and Shopping list

I am having to stretch our weekly shop over 9 days this week as we don't get paid until next Wednesday and i really don't want to dip into saving for food shopping.

I already had chicken breasts in the freezer and a massive bag of rice as well as all the spices needed to make a cheap tasty chicken curry. This is the recipe i use

http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=1110136

I add mushrooms to to this curry to bulk it out and double it up and by doing this it feeds 3 adults and 1 toddler for 3 meals, so 10 adult portions. That takes care of 3 days and i think i will make a pasta Bolognese as that does 2 days. I have some potatoes left from last week that need using so making a big pan of potato hash as that also does 2 days, with the sausage casserole i have left in the freezer from last week i just need to think up something to fill one more day and i think i will probably do either a cheese and mushroom omelette or chips, egg and beans so now for the shopping list. This is my list that will feed 3 adults and 1 toddler 9 evening meals plus breakfasts, dinners and snacks plus all the usually extras.

1 packet nappies
1 bag of onions
1 packet of chocolate bars
2 multi bags of crisp
1 garlic
2 packets of baby wipes
1 box of beef stock cubes
1 pot of natural yogurt
1 bag red split lentils
1 jar pickled beetroot
1 large bag of carrots
8 bottles flavoured water
3 bottles of milk
1 tub soft cheese
1 block mature cheddar
12 fromage frais
6 tomatoes
3 peppers
1 bag of pasta
1 tube tomato puree
1 can baked beans
large bunch of bananas
broccoli
4 cartons passata
4 cans chopped tomatoes
1 family box mushrooms
3 loafs white bread
2 packs minced meat
8 part baked rolls
3 packets biscuits

The grand total for this weeks shopping has come to..........................£33.91. that is broken down between £24.87 in Aldi (but i did buy an extra mince meat as it was on offer at £1.39 for 500g and it freezes really well so would be daft to miss out) and £9.04 at Morrisons.

Not only am i starting to really get to grips with this frugal way of cooking/shopping but i am genuinely enjoying it.  

Week 1 summary

First of all let me apologise thats its been a while since my last post but its been crazy busy here with getting the boys ready for school next week and birthdays, naming days, building projects, other halfs interview prep and generally just getting everyone where they should be, when they should be there and with what they should have (i feel like i am a PA not a SAHM).

Although i said i would update daily with how my living for less challenge is going on reflection i feel weekly updates would be best as there are days that i dont spend any money at all and some days i dont even leave the house which would make for pretty boring reading.

Week 1 has gone amazingly well, we have now got rid of one of our cars so we are back to being a one car family and this in itself has saved us a small fortune (£1334 p.a to be exact). This is broken down as £121 car tax, £45 M.O.T (if it doesnt need anything doing to it to pass), £10 p.w petrol and £54 p.m insurance. On top of all that we got £175 for the car so to my total shock that is roughly a saving of £125 p.m!!!!!!!

I have also had my mum's birthday this week but sticking to my frugal way of living i have made her birthday present and got the card for less than £1 (card factory is now the only place i will ever buy cards from). I have made her a lovely red and white patchwork quilted blanket, i already had the material and wadding so all it cost was my thought, love and time and with having my little man's hand and foot prints on it i am sure she will love it.

I did have to pay postage (which i nearly had to remortgage the house for!!!) £4.50, when did postage start to cost so much? but i also sent my little brothers and step dads birthday cards and presents in the same parcel so i will have not birthday or postage costs in weeks 2 & 4 (beginning and end of September). My brother just wanted a maths set from W H Smiths which cost £6.50 so across 3 birthdays including postage and cards i spent £13.25 which i think is pretty good going.

I also had my friends little boys naming day to go to which would normally see me spending £20+ on a present but instead i ask her if instead of a present she wanted me to make his cake (i make a lot of cakes) she happily excepted the offer. I spent the grand total of £2.94 (butter 84p, icing £1.21 & card 89p) i already had eggs thanks to my girls (the chickens), flour, sugar, jam and food colourings. This is the cake i made her.

This week i have also been out in search of free wood or pallets as our chickens where in desperate need of a nice big run. This is the wood i found just dumped by the side of the road

After pulling some of it apart and rebuilding, a lick of paint and some wire mesh we had a finished chicken run. Kirstie Allsopp would have been so proud of me :-)

It may not be the prettiest chicken run in the world but it serves its purpose, was free(ish) and loving made by me. I did need to spend £17 on the wire mesh but its a small price to pay for happy safe chickens and they will have paid for it themselves within 6 weeks as they provide me with 14 fresh free range organic eggs per week and if i was to buy them from a super market they would cost me £3 a week. I already had nails and paint and i feel very proud of my little self and have had no complaints from the girls.

All in all i would say week 1 has been a roaring success. we saved money on everything from cars to cakes, we stuck to our food shopping budget and didnt need to get any extras and we even upcycled some free found wood. I must admit i am feeling a little smug and looking forward to what week 2 will bring.

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.