If I was ashamed then, it's worse now!

The Greek holiday has come and gone, and it was not what we had hoped. Anyway, six months down the line I am as freezer and store cupboard heavy as I ever was (freezer screaming out to be defrosted!) due to the lure of the supermarket and a couple of weekends foraging blackberries and apples. So, 'tis with some trepidation that I get back on track and declare October 1st as beginning of another 'no spend month'.

I suppose the notion of a 'no spend month' is different for everyone. For this month anyway, my aim is to avoid supermarket and non-essential spending. Some people may say I'm cheating as I have stocked up on toilet roll....! Additionally, I've told the OH that if he wants a beer he needs to get it himself (am not sure what I'm going to tell myself re. a nice chilled white...) however my one 'cheat' will be my lottery numbers. £2 a week....

Hope to post our daily menus (with pictures) and would love to hear from others.

Take care, Lizzie

Am almost ashamed to write anymore posts - especially after almost six weeks! However, am now going to submit my very first post on moneysavingforum.com. It's on Weezl's 50p a day thread and some of the stuff she has done has been smashing. In fact, the whole site is awe inspiring (if bandwidth challenging :) ) and I hope I can perhaps one day contribue something meaningful to it...

Retribution...

Well I broke my N.S.M. yesterday and am now 'paying the price' for it as I couldn't go to work today. Damn sinuses. I actually broke it twice so I suppose it serves me right...

Firstly, OH Rob was helping out some of my students yesterday with university applications. Bless him, he really has taken this frugality on board. Previously, he was a 'no way!' TVP-er. Now, he'll even eat it by itself (i.e. not half TVP and half mince) in spag bols and chilli! Therefore, I thought i'd treat him to a steak. So, off to Morrisons we went. Oh dear - bargain city! Won't bore you with the details (except that their pork shoulder was stupidly priced and shoulder steaks were going for 45 - 50p each!) but I came out with bacon, sausage, chinese ribs, the aforementioned pork!, and a bottle for Rob. Add to that some water and special offer Tommy K, and I spent under 15 pounds.

Normally, i'd spend that every other day, so once in six days is not too bad going.

Secondly, I booked a holiday for Easter. I've 'decided' it doesn't count from a 'spend' point of view as i'm classing it as holistic therapy for my mom. We managed to get a week at Easter (serious expensive time), full board in a four star hotel in Spain for under a grand! Rob tried - unconvincingly - to pretend he wasn't interested in going. That was until he saw the pictures of the spa....!

However, on a frugal note, I did make a list of evening meals for the next month, and i'm really pleased to say that eveything is coming out of the freezer or storecupboard. Each dinner also includes at least two portions of vegetables. I've resigned myself to the fact i'll have to buy some stuff for lunches, though as i'll happily take rice, pasta or soup it shouldn't be too much.

Talking about soup, Rob has just walking in carrying a steaming bowlful of home made split pea and bacon. Isn't he fantastic!

No spend Month

First day of the New Year, and there are 27 weeks until my OH and I go to Lesbos, in Greece. As a confirmed Grecophile, I 'selfishly' went ahead and booked a fortnight in Molyvos without really conferring with Rob... I'm glad he's happy though and having undertaken multiple checks on various holiday review sites I feel confident that the accommodation i've booked is going to be okay. We are a fair way outside of the town but we both love walking, and I can't wait to visit the markets to get hold of all the fresh Greek veggies and begin cooking!

So why the blog? Well, I wanted to have my own record (basically be accountable to myself and the whole of the WWW!) of our countdown and preparations for it. Counting down to a holiday isn't normally something to blog about, but my aim is get back into the black, pay for the holiday (with spending money!) and still be in the black whilst running a household (albeit just of me, OH, a goldfish and an albino toad!). Although I don't have a bad job, with our current economic climate, I believe there are many ways I can save but still live comfortably. Therefore, my first goal is to have a 'No Spend Month'.

I am a self-confessed hoarder and purchaser of bargain foodstuffs. My freezer is groaning under the weight of provisions and frankly, I am embarrassed of what we have. Therefore, my goal for this month is to have a 'No Spend Month' in terms of grocery and unnecessary purchases. I must admit that I went to my local Sainsbury's this morning - partly to get some fresh air, and partly to 'cash' my National Lottery scratch card winnings in (30 pounds in all!!!) and ended up spending the grand total of 10p! (I did get 3 bags of shallots, a packet of Bachelor's soups and a bottle of water for that (don't ask!)).

Therefore, I aim to not visit a supermarket once this month. I have milk, meat, fish and veggies in the freezer, and a smashing breadmaker. I'm going to make use of some of the brilliant frugal household and cookery ideas from the various forums on Martin Lewis's moneysavingexpert.com website and see how I do. I'd like to think that I could make both February and March N.S.M. month's too (seriously, I have that much in my food store!), but i'll see how things go...

Take care, Lizzie