Guess whose back!? The Return Diary

CAFCGirl

woohoo for days off work.
im off till friday but got lots of studying to do but im giving myself yesterday and today completely off!
The studying begins tomorrow!!!

Been out and done the food shopping, went over my expected spend..... not entirely sure how, and don't feel like I've got loads of food either.... my own fault for not going armed with a list!!
Really need to do better with the food spend......it seems to have replaced all my other spending.... opps!

bella2121

CAFCGirl wrote: »

Bell hun.... maybe he had just had a little tipple before you went round?

The slurred speech is a sympton of his ilness its fine though i'm feeling much more positive about things

Was back to work yesterday so double time for working on a bank holiday, we get our annual pay rise this month (cost of living increase) so that should be good, OH is really starting to get on board with the whole paying off our debts idea, he has said I can pay my barclaycard off which is only £230 but at least its a start then that card can be closed.

I have decided not to go on holiday and have cancelled it yesterday which is a bit sad but i dont wanna stretch myself and be miserable having no money for next few months just for the sake of 2 weeks away, so the money I have already saved i'm gonna book maybe a long weekend away in a caravan then pay some off the debts

xx

CAFCGirl

Hey hun...

Sory i was trying to make a funny..... guess it didnt carry that well over the internet.
All sounds really positive in the Bella household, and Im really chuffed for you.

Im spending my day trying to do some learning..... GAH!
But im doing an hour and then 2 hours off to try and break it up.....

we defo need to get back on the ball with our money and spending...... just need to have a brainstorm i think!

CAFCGirl

Ok so sat here for the past half an hour (doing what the structuralist does best... procrastinating)

Let me be honest, I've been poop lately... starting a new job was an easy excuse to take my eye off the ball and convince myself I needed to spend money...
What a crock!?

I am my own worst enemy at times! :rotfl:

I want certain things in my life, I want DH to be happy in a job which truly motivates him, I want to be good at what I do, and I want us to have an element of freedom in our lives, and not be so guided by superficial elements.... but at the same time I want the freedom in our lives to say "Yes, lets do that!" and be able to go for it and not worry about implications or how some other area of our life will suffer for it :rolleyes:

In short what I'm trying to get out is that I need to turn over a new leaf, Easter has just been an gone, a time for re-birth, forgiveness and living....
:A

So I'm getting my game face on, and getting some organisation going here! And ruddy well stick to it!

So the Born Again Plan!!!! Let it begin!

:T

CAFCGirl

People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing - that's why we recommend it daily

Part One

Food Spend Budget

This has been utterly utterly rubbish of late and I'm annoyed with myself for it, but I need to forgive myself and move on!:beer:

Now DH and I should be able to comfortably manage for an entire month on £150.
This will need to cover dinners, lunches for us both at work, breakfast for me at work, snacks.
This will not be covering take aways, restaurants and nights where I say I cant be bothered.

I NEED TO BE BOTHERED!
If we are going to get what we want in life, in the long run!

So my payday is the 17th of each month.
We have enough food to last us till then.

I need to get meal planning......

Part One Commitment £150 Grocery Budget

CAFCGirl

Tonight this could be the greatest night of our lives
Let’s make a new start, The future is ours to find

Born Again Plan Part 2
Household

Since moving into a two bed cottage, we've spread our wings and settle into it....
However the place does look like a tip!

Mainly because we had all this extra room, we just put things in places, and figured we'd sort that space later!:rotfl:

Well later has now come and I need to get the house organised.
Firstly is our front room (not our main living space)
This is meant to be a study space for me, as I learn better when Im in the right environment for learning.
The book shelves need sorting out, the table needs clearing and all the junk in there needs a home found for it!

Secondly will be the second bedroom which needs decorating as it was just left, wasnt really a priority.
The walls just need a coat really, and a general tidy up of loose ends in there really. Could be done in one weekend so no excuse there really either.

Part 2 Commitment Two Rooms - To Be Done

CAFCGirl

If you want to feel rich, just count the things you have that money can't buy

I came to this site years ago! And I feel like part of the furniture, and its comforting.... even when the debts are clear, I'll still be here, so if there was any shadow of fear of actually achieving debt fredom.... well there shouldnt be.... coz I'll never lose sight of what this website and everyone on here has done for me :A

With that said.... I actually NEED to pay these debts off!
They are going nowhere fast... and that sucks in no uncertain terms.
Now I cant boost my income much, as I simply dont have the time/energy to take on an additional job, but I do have the time/energy to be able to show my true skill set and therefore command a higher salary.
My salary should increase shortly following the end of my probationary period so thats pretty good.

What I can do however is stop spending what spare money I do have, on just absolute rubbish, which goes nowhere, and that effectively I forget about in about a week! :eek:

So back to drawing up a realistic budget and sticking to it!:p

Personal spend money I should easily be able to last on £75 a month, which sounds like a lot but I want to go gentle on myself for a month or so to get back into the swing of things!

I also need to update my snowball calculator so I know exactly where I am and what I'm doing! And get those payments made!:rolleyes:

DH and I can make payments to our debts of £700. No excuses!

Part 3 Commitment £700 Debt Repayments Every Month

CAFCGirl

As the person who has health is young, so the person who owes nothing is rich.

Every day at work Im surrounded by people who have come to our practice as a last resort, thinking of what they would give to just have a little more time of adequate health....

Theres something inherently wrong in this country, in the system, that noone is driven to take responsibility for their lives and ultimately their health.

Now don't get me wrong there are some diseases and illnesses which will take hold of people, and I feel for them, but I myself, personally, cannot complain about my state of health, saying that "someone" else hasnt done enough for me.
Its me, I've not done enough for me!
I can take full responsibility for it, because noone can do my exercise for me etc!

So changing jobs was probably the best thing that could have happened to me after the latter part of last year.
Being told that because you're underweight, you increased your own chances of miscarriage was a blow.
But since being in the environment Im in now, I feel like going back and giving my GP a two fingered salute, and I no longer blame myself for what happened.....:p

Now my health is mine, and mine alone, noone else's responsibility and noone else's property.....
My levels of fitness/energy levels could be much improved, and undergoing care at work is having a massive impact on that, but health is not a 9to5 clock on clock off part of life, its inherent in everything I do...:D

So half an hour of physical exercise each day is not difficult, especially with a young puppy who needs walking, what is difficult is motivation and habit building, but hey 28 days is all it takes to form a new habit... today is day 1!

It's not just what I do with my body, but its what I put in there!:rotfl:
So in partnership with part 2, my eating habits need to be altered somewhat!
Getting my 5 a day is a challenge for me as I have a significant hatred of fruit!:o So veggies it is then!
Water intake should probably be doubled as well.
DH and I have started trying to eat more fish, and we're loving salmon at the moment, and considering it takes no time at all to cook, I've got no excuses.
So 5 a day, protein and more dairy is the order of the day for us! My meal plan may take longer than I first factored!

Part 4 Commitment 30 Mins Ex' a day/Improved Diet

Purpleroses

hi
nice to hear you sounding so positive caf. not sure why but i seem to have slipped backwards and and started ignoring the debt again and can't seem to shake this weird unhappy place i'm in and i'm not exactly sure why. anyway enough blabbing, best mate is taking me camping tonight (oh lord help me!) should be good though.

hows wee gordon? he looks so cute in your avvie pic!

CAFCGirl

Hey hun....

Join me on the Born Again Plan....

I feel a hell of a lot better since I typed it all out and stopped whinge bagging to myself and just decided to stop thinking, and start doing....

Hope you have a top time camping.....Those are the kind of moments that money cant buy...

Gordon is super, and getting bigger (woohoo!) and he's off to go and stay at Grandma and Grandpa's house tomorrow for the night so we can go off for a day trip to London (woohoo!)