Living for the Present...after all who doesn't love a gift!

Evening !

Well this is my second diary on MSE, I've decided to start a new one because I feel like I have come a long way since starting the old one back in Jan 2011

My LBM hit me like a ten tonne brick in December 2010. My husband was serving on tour in Afghan, I was left with 3 children, my depression had crept back up on me, spends were out of control and then one day I ran out of credit. And that was it. *ping* a switch had been flicked on! I confided in a close friend and she recommended a DMP as I couldn't afford the minimum payments anymore and to be honest going it alone just wasn't an option. I wasn't in a good place so I called up a fee paying DMP company. I just happened to be within the grace period of cancelling when I literally stumbled across MSE....found out about the CCCS and well the rest is history (and if you really want to read more here is the link to the old diary!)
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=3011024


In the last year and a bit I've not spent a penny on credit cards, overdrafts, loans catalogues (one of my biggest vices when I was sat at home bored in the evenings) Obviously being on a DMP has helped with this as it goes against their guidelines lol. :T

I started off with £17.5k of debt (first figure I state in my other diary was wrong as we 'found' another debt to add to it!) we've paid off around 5-6k since Jan 2011 and my debt free date according to the CCCS website is march 2014.

On my journey I have learnt many things, i've found quidco, topcashback, my supermarket, budgets & most importantly myself. I feel ten times better in myself. :T In the last year i've gone up and up on the anti depressants until just this year I did a reiki I course (am saving for my reiki II which starts in June yay!). I loved it and felt it gave me the strength to finally come off them. So forgive the first few weeks if I seem up and down. It's probably withdrawal symptoms lol. I've also done a meditation course and loved every minute of it. I must try and fit it into my routine more often! I want it to become a way of life for me eventually, so I must try and take time out to nurture myself as well as my children!

On that note I have 3 kids, a 2 year old boy, 3 year old girl & 13 year old boy. Also have one husband which I usually count as an extra [STRIKE]burden[/STRIKE] child

My aims this year are to carry on paying as much as we can to the CCCS, complete the C25K (couch to 5k) and my reiki II and learn how to take things as they come and not be so controlling. I also as my title states, want to live for the present, not tomorrow and wish my life away (so guilty of this in the past) and not yesterday which is done and can't be changed. The present is all there is and that is the way i wish to live from now on :Av

Ummm anyway I could actually talk for England so I will stop there -if you got this far well done lol and I hope to see some regulars from my old diary popping in as well as anyone else who wants to say hi! I love a chat