2017 - A year of change and positivity

[Deleted User] · 15 June 2017 at 6:46AM

Morning - looks like it's going to be a nice sunny day here, fingers crossed.

Not a huge amount to report financially, still trying to plug the hole left by the tyres. I currently need another £118 to break even - I've got auctions ending tonight that currently stand at £21.50 with lots of watchers, so fingers crossed it could be more.

Have a few errands to run in town today and then hopefully a nice relaxing afternoon. House is still a tip but trying to do a little bit each day in the hope it'll make a difference!

Enjoy the sunshine everyone x

[Deleted User] · 16 June 2017 at 5:11AM

Good morning!
Well last nights eBay went better than expected - the actions finished at almost £50!!! That coupled with the £22 refund I've had through for the cancelled pony insurance mean that I'm just £50 off my target to break even. The budget for the remainder includes a full tank of diesel for OH that hopefully won't be needs fingers crossed!!!! 8 days until pay day - we can do it!!!

I'm planning on doing a car boot sale in a couple of weeks - we've got soooo much junk. Just need to find the time to start sorting.

Anyway better get packing the eBay bits - hoping to get into work early. Early start = early finish.

[Deleted User] · 23 June 2017 at 5:27AM

Yay it's almost payday!!! eBay sales have helped to plug the money hole, still needed to dip a bit into the OD as had very little food in the house, but we're almost there. Roll on Monday!!!

Plan of action for next month......
We need to pay for our holiday in the next couple of weeks - cost £200 and also the dogs jabs - approx £60. So £260 extra to find. The money is there but it'd mean cutting back on the debt repayments, so would like to raise the extra to cover it. I'm planning on doing a carboot for all DS outgrown clothes and all the clutter not worth ebaying. Plan is for a couple of weeks time so need to get sorting.

Housework is really dragging me down. Both OH and myself are shattered each night but sitting in a bombsite is doing nothing for our moods. Need to tackle this even if it's just 30mins a day it's going to help.....

Running and weight- need to start uping my distance in preparation for Septembers half marathon. The buggy is helping me get out in the week, but the furthest I've run with it is 5 miles - don't think I'd want to take it much further! So need to drag myself out of bed early on Saturday mornings and get on some long runs! By the end of July want to be running 10 miles on a weekly basis.

Right best get ready for work - have a good day x

[Deleted User] · 26 June 2017 at 5:44AM

Whoop whoop - pay day again!!!

So scores on the doors.....

Cc1 was £5606.20 now £5456.20 (-£150)
Cc2 was £849.52 now £819.52 (-£20.00)
Cc3 was £0.00 now £0.00 (-£0.00)
OD was £1015.28 now £984.81 (-30.19)
Very was £125.73 now £74.73 (-£51.00)

Total was £7596.73 now £7335.54 (-£261.19)

Still not as good as it should be, but it's going down and to be fair if it continues at this rate it'll be gone in less than 2.5 years - just in time for Christmas 2019. That's going to be our worse case scenario.

So this month we've got dog jabs and the holiday to pay for- £260ish to raise. I'm looking at doing the carboot next weekend and will continue to eBay as of my life depends on it in the meantime! The overdraft needs to be the big focus as this is the only one currently costing us. Aim is down to £500 by August and hopefully £0 by year end. Fingers crossed

Will check in later as I've just realised the time! Need to spring into action!!!!

[Deleted User] · 27 June 2017 at 6:03AM

Didn't make it back on line last night - I was too shattered!!!

£11 made last night in eBay sales - I've popped this into a separate account in the hope that it adds up to some nice big lump sum by the end of the month - fingers crossed........

The months already been off to a spendy start, our garden waste bin subscription had lapsed, so I've had to pay out £35 for that and also £35 for dog food. The dog food should hopefully last 6-8 weeks though. Farriers out tonight also, but this is budgeted for. Also need to sort our breakdown cover as this is due for renewal :eek:

In other (rather selfish) news, I've come to the conclusion I need to focus on me and my mental and physical health more. Work is dragging me down, but for the foreseeable looking elsewhere isn't an option. I'm finding I am permantly shattered which doesn't make me much use as a mother, partner or friend as all I want to do is put my pjs on and sleep! The house is a tip but I've no energy to do much about it and that drags my mood down too. I'm also finding that I'm turning into quite a negative and bitter (again largely related to the work situation) person and that's not who I am, so it's operation kick up the butt time! Somebody has suggested mindfulness to me. I've downloaded an app to get me started and have found that it does seem to help me relax and destress - definitely something I'm going to explore further. I also need to start reflecting on the positives and reasons to be grateful in my life rather than the negativity. So here it goes - I guess recognising there's a problem is the first step on the road to change....

Jobs for today....
1. Ring vets to pay bill and sort woofs appointment.
2. Laundry away
3. Sort porch and hall
4. Boots order for little man's supplies

Reasons to be grateful......
I'll start with the biggies....
1. I have wonderful little boy, a partner who loves me despite my moods and an amazingly supportive family.
2. We've got a nice house in a lovely village which is more than adequate to be our forever home.
3. My animals - walking the woofs and seeing to the ponies give me a daily escape from the pressures of 'real life'

[Deleted User] · 30 June 2017 at 6:02AM

Good morning!
I've had a shocking nights sleep so all I can think of right now is climbing back into bed tonight! For once I wasn't tired at bedtime :T but on the flip side really struggled to get to sleep (I'm never happy :rotfl: ) and then little man woke at 3am and refused to go back to sleep without cuddles - it's going to be a long day!

eBay and fb sales are ticking along quite nicely, with £42 made since payday and another definite £5 on its way and a potential £40 sale in the pipeline - fingers crossed! That'll be the woofs jabs sorted.

Have spent the last couple of days sorting through the loft and garage for eBay and carboot fodder of which I've found plenty! Plan is to do a carboot this weekend whether permitting. Would be nice to get a chunk to put towards the holiday.

Spendy day yesterday - food shopping and toddler shopping. DS seems to have run out of everything at the same time - nappies, wipes, bin refills, toiletries etc. On the plus side boots had some fab offers on the stuff I needed and with various app offers and baby club points it meant I could come home and order a couple more Christmas pressies using my points :j

So, jobs for today.......
1. Finish sorting Carboot stuff
2. Post eBay
3. Meal plan
4. Tidy hall and porch (still not done it :cool:)

Reasons to be cheerful
1. Early morning snuggles with DS - as much as I could have done with the extra sleep I really cherish these moments and will be gutted when he no longer wants mummy cuddles!
2. Spent a lovely couple of hours yesterday catching up with a friend - really pleased to see her settled as she's had a horrendous start to the year but is now coming out the otherside.
3. OH has his final day in a job that was dragging him down - he's onto pastures new next week. I couldn't be happier for him, he really deserves the new opportunity.

[Deleted User] · 6 July 2017 at 6:29AM

Good morning!
It's been almost a week since I lasted posted, so time for a well over due update....

I did a carboot sale last weekend and made £140ish.... this coupled with the eBay and fb sales means that the holiday and dog jabs are both paid for :T . Any eBay / fb money for the remainder of the month will be paid into a separate account for now and hopefully be paid off the OD providing it's not needed elsewhere before month end.

The house and garden need to be my focus for the coming weeks. I want to turn both into places where I want to spend time rather than just seeing what needs to be done all the time. I need to take the little and often approach to both, as with having DS with me all the time it's impossible to spend a chunk of time sorting it. Think it's time to bring my 15 minute timer into play - it's an eye opener how much you can do in 15 minute chunks. I used to be of the mindset if I haven't got half an hr it's not worth bothering, but 15 minutes 2-3 times a day really makes a dent in it, then the bigger stuff can wait til the weekend when OH is around to help keep DS entertained.

Right jobs for today....
1. Post eBay
2. Relist eBay
3. 15 minutes am / pm

Reasons to be cheerful....
1. Whole day with DS today
2. The sun is shining
3. I've woken up feeling very positive about things - need to bottle the positivity and keep it going.....

[Deleted User] · 19 July 2017 at 5:25AM

Good morning!
Been a loooong time since I last checked in. Things are ticked along not too badly. If I'm correct OH should get a week or so's wages from his old job a week today, plus his first pay packet from his new job at the end of next week - so just a week to get through.

So progress over the last couple of weeks........
The garden - finally beginning to look a bit tidier! Flower beds have been cleared ready to slate over, grass cut and patio deweeded. Doesn't sound like a great deal but believe me our garden was shocking! It may be finished come winter!

Money making - eBay sales are ticking over nicely, nothing major just the odd £5 here and there. Also took £50 at a local baby market. Still got loads to get rid of, so hoping to do at least one more car boot and list the better stuff on eBay.

House- beginning to get a little bit more organised. Have some time off next week, so hoping to make the most of a few child free hours and blitz it.

Running- I've been so lazy. Running and warm weather do not mix for me. I'm behind on my training plan and on my 1000k for the year. The local leisure centre have an offer on a monthly pass for £20 over the summer, I think I'm going to take advantage of this as it gives you unlimited pool, gym and classes. That way I can swim before work when I can't run and also clock some mileage up on the treadmill. Be well worth it as I can also take DS swimming and usually pay between £4-£5 depending on where we go.

Weight - see above but add in to the mix that I'm a greedy guts who likes my food. Back on it as if yesterday - everything is getting written down.

So baby steps are being made, just need to remind myself that it's not all going to change overnight.

Reasons to be cheerful.....
1. DS slept through!!! He's teething and had a virus this week so very little sleep been had in our house.
2. OH seems to be settling into his new job better after an initial wobble.
3. Two whole days with my little man

[Deleted User] · 27 July 2017 at 7:46AM

My favourite time of the month again - payday!!!

Scores on the doors...
Whoop whoop - pay day again!!!

So scores on the doors.....

Cc1 was £5456.20 now £5306.20 (-£150)
Cc2 was £819.52 now £799.52 (£20.00)
Cc3 was £0.00 now £0.00 (-£0.00)
OD was £984.81 now £963.97 (-20.84)
Very was £74.73 now £64.73 (-£10.00)

Total was £7335.26 now £7134.42 (-£200.84)

Again, not a ground breaking month but it's heading in the right direction. Plan was to clear very and reduce OD to £500 by the end of August. Very is no longer a priority as this is now in 0% until December, which leaves 5 payments of £13ish. OD must come down and I'd ideally I'd like this gone by the end of the year. 6 paydays until the end of the year would mean approx £161 per month :cool: - going to give it my best shot......

Spendy month coming up - MIL 70th, OH car tax and woofs op is going to mean approx £350-£400 in additional spends

- need to be disciplined!!!

Plan for today.....
1. Post eBay
2. Buy monthly pass for leisure centre. Currently half price @£20 gives unlimited access to pool, gym, classes etc. Can take little man swimming and have a last ditch attempt and getting fit before the half marathon!
3. Meal plan - falling off the slimming world wagon again!

Plans for the month....
1. Pay £160 off overdraft
2. Lose half a stone
3. Run 120k

clearmydebts · 27 July 2017 at 8:06PM

Seabiscuit wrote: »

My favourite time of the month again - payday!!!

Scores on the doors...
Whoop whoop - pay day again!!!

So scores on the doors.....

Cc1 was £5456.20 now £5306.20 (-£150)
Cc2 was £819.52 now £799.52 (£20.00)
Cc3 was £0.00 now £0.00 (-£0.00)
OD was £984.81 now £963.97 (-20.84)
Very was £74.73 now £64.73 (-£10.00)

Total was £7335.26 now £7134.42 (-£200.84)

Again, not a ground breaking month but it's heading in the right direction. Plan was to clear very and reduce OD to £500 by the end of August. Very is no longer a priority as this is now in 0% until December, which leaves 5 payments of £13ish. OD must come down and I'd ideally I'd like this gone by the end of the year. 6 paydays until the end of the year would mean approx £161 per month :cool: - going to give it my best shot......

Spendy month coming up - MIL 70th, OH car tax and woofs op is going to mean approx £350-£400 in additional spends - need to be disciplined!!!

Plan for today.....
1. Post eBay
2. Buy monthly pass for leisure centre. Currently half price @£20 gives unlimited access to pool, gym, classes etc. Can take little man swimming and have a last ditch attempt and getting fit before the half marathon!
3. Meal plan - falling off the slimming world wagon again!

Plans for the month....
1. Pay £160 off overdraft
2. Lose half a stone
3. Run 120k

Well done! As you say, everything is heading in the right direction and that's the main thing!

2017 - A year of change and positivity

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