How Did I Do?
Well I managed to restrain myself completely and entirely and have spent a grand total of £0.00.
Nada.
Nothing.
Zilch.
Now , I have nothing against the sales. Not at all. In fact I think approached with caution and a with good plan, you can save yourself a great deal of money on items you need for the months ahead. However, I also know, from experience, that you can get dragged into the black hole of having to get a bargain. You end up trawling the shops and online sites for tat treasures you never planned on buying , just because the price is appealing and they have your size left.
But - there is always a but isn't there. I have been hankering after some Ash boots or wedge trainers all year and have restrained myself because of the price. If I can source a pair within a budget, I may cave. I have set aside money from my e.bay sales to buy some so watch this space. These are my favourites:


There is a reason for my frugality this year. 2013 is the year we plan to launch into our big extension on our house. We have been saving for a long time for this project and it is not a small one by any means. We wanted to avoid getting ourselves into debt to do it so caution with money at this stage is necessary! We plan to take down a large detached double garage and a lean to garage that is attached to the house. The existing small kitchen is going to become a study and the footprint of where the two garages were will become a 26' kitchen and then a lobby, a utility and a smaller garage. The planning permission has gone through and builders are quoting as I write. I am beyond excited, if a little apprehensive. I will keep you informed of progress and bargains I manage to find on the way!
It's amazing how much willpower you find when you have a goal to work towards. I think I am the sort of person who works best with structure. I need organisation, goals, and targets to work towards. I can become easily demotivated otherwise and with 3 children our lives can quickly descend into disarray and chaos. I do like to take the opportunity to set myself some new goals going into the New Year. Although these tend to be along the lines of :
"I would like to discover some more family recipes " and " I would like to try and create some time in our schedule for me to go swimming" rather than,
" I must try 2 new recipes a week" and " I will swim 3 times a week" - I would fail straight away with direct goals like this.
I am working on some realistic goals at the moment to help me organise our budget and household going into the New Year and I will share them shortly.
Do you set New Year Resolutions ?