It's a lark, this money saving.

Hello. It's a bit blustery today, nearly got blown away doing my three miles. It was a case of pull my woolly hat down over my ears and barge my way through it. Crafty Club was a bit quiet this morning, and I visited the mobile library this afternoon.

It didn't take me long to sort the wool box out, I was checking if I had enough of the right colours for a project. I don't want to buy any, I want to use up what I have. Most of this came from charity shops. There should be enough for what I want. I am not a big knitter or crocheter.

What's this bag of cat litter doing here? I thought I would tell you how I reuse the bags. First I cut through the stitching with a pair of scissors, leaving the handles attached to the bag. I put the full bag on the floor on the right hand side of my little table, just outside the back door in the covered passageway. On the left hand side is an empty bag. The tray sits on the table and I transfer the soiled litter into the empty bag. When that bag is full, the fresh new litter has all been used to refill the tray. That bag then gets moved over to the left side, and a new bag is opened, and so it goes on. Opening the bag with scissors and not tearing it means it's easy to carry it outside and put it into the grey general rubbish bin. This Tesco litter is £1.55 a bag, same as Aldi, and other cheap supermarket own brands.

My lunch today. I had some pasta in the fridge, I made extra on Saturday. Put it into a pyrex bowl with a splash of water, and half a tin of baked beans. Zap in the microwave, stir and make sure it is hot all the way through. Grate some cheese on the top. Minimum cooking time, 12p for the beans, 10p pasta, 10p cheese. A cheap lunch. If you have access to a microwave at work you could easily take this with you, cheaper than buying lunch out. 

I am always looking for ways to save a few pennies, some may say I am a bit obsessive, but I can't see any point in paying more than I need to. As well as saving money on food I also like to be careful with utilities, gas, electric, and water. The money saving aspect of it is important but I am also aware of how much damage my actions might be doing to the planet. We are lucky in this country that we can just turn on a tap or flick a switch to get whatever we need. That is no reason to waste it willynilly. I am on a water meter, and although my usage is low, I still want to be careful with it.

I am washing pet dishes all the time, usually rinsing under a dripping tap in the kitchen. Today I came up with another idea. There is plenty of rain water out there, which I collect in buckets and bowls. Some of it is used to flush the downstairs toilet. Why not use it for cleaning pet bowls. So now I have a plastic bowl of rainwater outside my back door, and an old wash up brush. A perfect cleaning station for pet bowls, and no yucky food getting stuck in the plug hole in the kitchen sink. The water can be chucked down the drain and the bowl refilled. Perfect, a good idea.

Most of my money saving is about finding ways of saving only a few pence. Like not using my oven because it uses too much gas. I don't need to bake, roast, or casserole. I can make perfectly good meals on the hob or using the grill and microwave. Buying children's tooth brushes because they are cheaper than adult ones. Using diluted washing up liquid in an old spray bottle to clean everything. Get rid of the electric clock radio alarm and get a wind up clock. Cut up old greetings cards and use them for notes and making lists. Use the bath water for flushing the toilet. Give up wearing a bra if you have small chesticles. Use rain water to wash the car. Over a year, lots of pennies saved turn into £'s.  

There is a thread on Money Saving Expert called, 'Lots more sneaky ways to save the pennies'. It was started nearly six years ago and is still going strong. Even if you think some of the ideas are daft, it gets you into the mindset of looking for savings in all aspects of day to day living. I am pretty good at this money saving lark, but even I don't know everything, I am still keen to learn more. For me it's a challenge, I will not be beaten. I will get the most for my money, and I decide what I spend it on. 

Thank you to the Walking Group members for sending in your mileage for January. There are some impressive figures there. I am chuffed that so many have embraced our new fitness drive, and are hopefully feeling a lot better for it. We are only one month into it, so don't worry if your numbers are not as high as you hoped they would be. The main thing is that you are doing more exercise than you would have been had I not started this. Still eleven months to go, it isn't a race, no one is doing better than anyone else. It's a personal thing, you are doing it for yourselves with one aim in mind, to boost your fitness levels, to keep your body healthy, which in turn will be good for your overall well being. Everyone who exercises is a winner. 

Thanks for popping in. Catch up soon. Toodle pip.