The Diary of a Frugal Family

Dear Jen….

Cass@frugalfamily — Thu, 17 May 2012 18:59:43 +0000

Some of you might know that the lovely Jen from The Madhouse has had a bit of an accident and has broken her arm – Except, Jen being Jen, she doesn’t do things by halves and she’s in a lot of pain at the moment.

For the last year or so, Jen and I have had a bit of a date night every Friday night and I really look forward to our Friday get togethers, as do the kids who love Mini and Maxi. But for one reason or another (Cybher, broken down cars and chipped teeth), we haven’t seen her since she had her accident last week.

I think my two are missing her as they’ve just come downstairs with letters they’ve written to her and since we won’t be seeing her tomorrow, I thought I’d share them on here to show her how loved she is

Translated as: I hope you get well soon. I hope you do not hurt too much. You are lovely.

We all wish you a speedy recovery lovely lady!

The Ginger Incident….

Cass@frugalfamily — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:15:18 +0000

You might remember that a few weeks ago we had our first broken heart when Master Frugal was dumped by his girlfriend in favour of someone who’s apparently cuter than him! He was most concerned that he was going to be single forever and had a whole day of being miserable before finding himself another girlfriend – as you do when you’re seven.

They had a lovely week or so together until yesterday, when his new girlfriend told him that she didn’t want a boyfriend any more. She announced at Breakfast Club that all boys are annoying and she’s going to just play with girls from now on!

He recovered a lot quicker from this break up and managed to find himself a new girlfriend by break time. By the end of the day, they were definitely in love and Master Frugal was counting how many years it was until he was eighteen and could marry her. I didn’t like to point out that with his track record, it’d all be over by the weekend.

Today I noticed his new girlfriend in the school playground with her Mam, pointing to Master Frugal and proudly telling her that the little boy rolling around on the school field pretending to be some sort of dinosaur was her boyfriend and that she loved him.

How cute is that?

Or at least it was until her mother opened her mouth and said ’What, the ginger one!’

Yes, she was referring to the the little boy with ginger hair who is the kindest, most caring, loving and generous little boy (unless he’s tired then he’s best avoided ). He certainly doesn’t need adults judging him or commenting on the colour of his hair in that way and even though I’m probably over reacting, I don’t appreciate comments like that from other parents in the school who really should know better.

*breathes a big sigh of relief now that’s off my chest*

Frugal Bubble Fun….

Cass@frugalfamily — Tue, 15 May 2012 17:43:02 +0000

One Bottle of Bubbles + Two Children = Lots of Frugal Fun and Laughter + Two tired children.

Home and Away – Holiday Moneysaving Ideas….

Cass@frugalfamily — Mon, 14 May 2012 17:08:32 +0000

Up until a few years ago, I was very much a package holiday kind of a girl (possibly because I was a travel agent for years) and I wouldn’t have considered booking a flight and my hotel separately, but with the rising popularity of the low cost airlines it can be much more economical to book your flights and accommodation separately.

Another thing I’m more aware of now is that holiday cottages and villas can (not always) work out cheaper for us as a family. As well as being cheaper, I like the benefits and peace of mind that having our own accommodation brings. I don’t have to worry about the noise the kids make (within reason), it’s much more private and we can do what we want (again, within reason ).

There are some great family cottages to choose from, both in the UK and abroad. Here’s a few examples that I found on holiday rentals website HomeAway.co.uk to give you an idea….

UK
A beautiful converted barn with stunning 360 views in Cornwall
3 Bedrooms, Sleeps 6. From £550 per property per week
Middle Lanherne Barn is a converted 19th century barn boasting 360-degree views over the surrounding Cornish countryside. Ideally situated to enjoy all that Cornwall has to offer, approximately six miles from Padstow and Newquay and four miles from Watergate bay. The property has a modern, fully equipped kitchen, a lounge area with a selection of video games for kids, three comfortable bedrooms and a private enclosed garden and patio.
Property Reference: 874842

ITALY
Wonderful villa with private pool, stunning views and huge play den, Marche
5 Bedrooms, Sleeps 10. From £1,095 per property per week
This is the perfect traditional Italian farmhouse ideal for families and located in a wonderful rural location. The 360 degree views from the house are amazing with distant sea views to the east and the magnificent Sibillini Mountains to the west. Outside there is a large terracotta terrace and covered pergola, table, chairs and big parasols to keep the sun at bay. A private fenced swimming pool is located just below the house, with spectacular views of the mountains and surrounding rolling hills. There is a huge play den on site, with toys for toddlers, children and adults, from train sets to trampolines, ping pong to pool. Also close by, there is a double swing as well as a sandpit.
Property Reference: 459942

SPAIN
Charming traditional country finca with play area for kids, Majorca
4 Bedrooms, Sleeps 8. From £895 per property per week
This charming finca enjoys a private location just 1km from the historic old town of Pollensa with the dramatic backdrop of the Tramuntana Mountains. There are four bedrooms, two bathrooms and two lounges, one with Sky TV decoder and WiFi broadband access. Outside, set in 4000 square metres, there is a fantastic private pool, plenty of sun loungers and a separate play area with play frame, trampoline and a basketball ring to keep the little ones amused. For the grown ups there is a built in stone BBQ with dining area, ideal for long leisurely lunches or al-fresco evening dining. Separate shady sitting areas can be found around the garden for quiet reading spots.
Property Reference: 442526

USA
Fantastic villa with large pool and games room in Florida
4 Bedrooms, Sleeps 9. From £450 per property per week
The villa is situated at Sanctuary Westhaven, a gated community with high quality homes set in beautiful landscaped grounds. Ideally located only 10 minutes from Disney attractions, the property features a lounge, dining and well equipped kitchen area, four bedrooms including a Disney twin bedroom and a games room equipped with pool table, ping pong, ice hockey and a variety of other games. There is a large pool with lights for night-time and an area for dining with electric barbecue.
Property Reference: 851427

The larger properties are even better value for money if you’re sharing with another family. We’re thinking of going away with some friends next year and we’re really considering booking one of these rather than a hotel.

What do you think – hotel or cottage?

Magpie Monday – Boot Sale Bargains….

Cass@frugalfamily — Mon, 14 May 2012 04:17:28 +0000

Despite the weather yesterday morning, we decided to get up early and have a wander round our local car boot sale and I’m so pleased we did as we got some real bargains.

In fact, I’m so pleased with my bargains, I decided to join in with the lovely @missielizzieb’s Magpie Monday so I could ~~show off~~ share them with you all.

First up, I managed to find two lovely dresses for Miss Frugal from Next for £1.00 each, the pictures don’t do them justice at all as they are gorgeous and look lovely on. We also got a job lot of Lego with five mini figures in it for 50p and a brilliant game marble maze game that we’ve had loads of fun with this afternoon, also for just 50p. On our way out we walked passed a lady who was marking everything down and we managed to get 13 cuddly toys for £1.00 – this included two hand puppets and a few brand new teddies.

I know what you’re thinking, they’re OK bargains but nothing amazing. Wait till you see what else I got!

I got one of those V Tech Kiddizoom cameras in excellent condition for £4.00, a pair of shiny pink Birkenstock sandals for £3.00, a Batman wallet for Master Frugal for just 20p and what else did I get? Oh yes, a pair of GHD straighteners for just £4.00! And they’re pink.

See why I’m pleased with myself

Competition – P&G Future Friendly….

Cass@frugalfamily — Sun, 13 May 2012 07:58:11 +0000

When we decided that we were going to try and live a more frugal lifestyle, it was more out of necessity than choice if I’m honest. I wanted to be able to reduce my hours at work to spend more time with the kids and the way we were living at that time meant that we simply wouldn’t have been able to afford it.

As well as learning to save money and make the most of what we do have, we’ve become much more aware of the benefits of sustainable living. Using less energy, recycling more, reducing our waste and using less water – by doing these things, we’re not only saving money but we know that we’re doing our best for the environment too.

To celebrate the benefits of living a sustainable lifestyle, P&G are running the Future Friendly Awards, searching for communities and individuals across the country who are committed to making a difference by promoting sustainable living through their actions. The awards open until 21 May 2012 and are supported by leading sustainability experts the Energy Saving Trust, Waste Watch and Waterwise. You can get more information at www.futurefriendly.co.uk.

I’d like you to share your tips are for sustainable living with me as I’m sure there’s lots more I could be doing. To make it worth your while, in conjunction with P&G, I’m offering you the chance to win a hamper containing lots of products designed to make it easy for you to live sustainably.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Facebook – Frugal Bargains….

Cass@frugalfamily — Sat, 12 May 2012 16:01:43 +0000

Do you follow The Diary of a Frugal Family on Facebook yet?

If not, you’re missing out on all the bargains that I post on there so you really should get on over there and Like Me!

I often get e mailed about some really good bargains and discounts and I although I usually share them on Twitter, I thought it would be nice to have somewhere that I posted them altogether in one place. I’m going to start using my Facebook page to do this by sharing a daily #FrugalFamilyTopTip with you all. I’ve started today with a double deal by sharing how to get a 2 month Friends and Family Railcard for free and also how to get a free Clinique mascara in exchange for your swapping your old mascara.

Feel free to post any bargains you come across on there aswell.

See you there

Modern or Traditional – You decide….

Cass@frugalfamily — Sat, 12 May 2012 08:48:28 +0000

If I tell you something about me, do you promise not to laugh?

*hangs head in shame* I don’t have a wardrobe in my bedroom! Really, I don’t.

When we moved house, Mr Frugal refused to bring our lovely huge wardrobes because of the fact that the staircase here bends round back on itself and there apparently there was ‘no way that big heavy wardrobe was getting up there’! Personally, I think if he’d been willing to try, he could have got it up there eventually but that’s a whole other argument

Anyway, the upshot of it is, my lovely huge wardrobes got left behind and I bought a few sets of canvas drawers as a stop gap until we got round to decorating to our bedroom – which we still haven’t done. But, I’m at the point now where I CANNOT live without wardrobes for much longer.

So…. I’m on the hunt for the perfect wardrobe and because I’m a little OCD, I’ll need new bedside cabinets and matching drawers. I thought I wanted to go all modern and have a boutique style bedroom that’s all dramatic and high gloss but I’ve been looking at some lovely pine furniture designs and I’m tempted to go all traditional now.

I’m a little bit in love with this bed….

I can picture it in my bedroom with a lovely wallpapered feature wall behind it and nice matching bed linen and curtains.

So what do you think, do I go all traditional or stick with the original modern idea?

Thank You….

Cass@frugalfamily — Sat, 12 May 2012 07:58:19 +0000

You know when you read something that makes you happy and you can’t help but make a little squealy sound?

Well on Thursday, I was on the way home from work on a busy train when my phone bleeped to tell me I’d been mentioned in a tweet. The tweet in question was from @MadBlogAwards to tell me I was one of the finalists in the Best Thrifty Blog category!

Obviously, I was excited to realise that my lovely blog readers had been voting for me and that I was in the final five and I *may* have made a little snorty noise followed by a not so quiet squeal. The older gentleman (a dead ringer for Santa) sat next to me decided that he didn’t wish to sit next to someone making strange noises and moved seats to the other end of the carriage and the rather posh looking ladies with the designer handbag would have definitely given me a funny look if she hadn’t been botoxed up to her eyeballs. As it was she managed a little shake of her head and went back to texting (probably about the freak on the train).

Anyway, my point is that I was really excited to be nominated for the award, even more so because I know that it was voted for by you lovely, lovely people and I wanted to say thank you to everyone who took the time to vote for me.

I love that the brilliant Becky from Baby Budgeting has been nominated too (that’s who I voted for in the first round of voting) and one of my favourite frugal blogs Frugal in Cornwall is also up there with us. These are two blogs that I regularly read for frugal inspiration and I’m really proud to be in the same category as them. The other blogs nominated are Lulastic and Mortgage free in three - both new blogs to my Google Reader but I’m looking forward to getting to know them

If you have a spare minute, I’d love you to vote for me to win The Best Thrifty Blog category in the final round of voting – it only takes a minute and you don’t have to vote in all categories if you don’t want to. You can vote here

Thanks again x x

Attitude – With a Capital A….

Cass@frugalfamily — Tue, 08 May 2012 20:13:18 +0000

Life with a nine year old isn’t always easy – especially not when the nine year old in question is the most headstrong, independent and stubborn child you could imagine.

I think we’ve entered the teenage hormone stage a few years early with Miss Frugal judging by the last few weeks and I’m struggling a little with how to cope with it to avoid the house becoming a battle ground.

She’s always been stubborn and fiercely independent but lately, she’s developed a rather large attitude as well. She isn’t a demanding child but when she wants something that she can’t have, she turns into a complete madam. She’s like a mini pink version of the incredible hulk and can’t control her mood. She stands with her arms crossed and no matter what I say or do, she can’t seem to snap out of it.

I’ve tried reasoning with her and talking to her but she just looks at me as if she couldn’t care less. I’ve tried sending her to her room but to be fair that’s not much of a punishment as there’s more to do in there than Toys R Us and I’ve even tried telling her that we’re not going to do things that she’s looking forward to doing.

Nothing gets her out of her sulk, even though she does know that she’s wrong. She’s just so stubborn that she has to stand her ground. When she does finally sort herself out, she has a good cry and we have a hug but I always stick to any punishments that I’ve given out. We’ve talked about it and she knows that nothing good happens when she sulks but she can’t help it.

She doesn’t have these sulks very often and most of the time she’s still her usual loving self but they are getting more frequent and I’m a bit worried that if she’s like this at nine, she’ll be a nightmare when she gets older so I want to try and get this nipped in the bud now.

And while I’m asking for advice on pre-teen children, I don’t suppose anyone has any ideas on how to encourage said pre-teen child to wear the clothes I want her to wear….