Buddiebabe's new beginnings....

Seaxwyn

That is discouraging, I sympathise. Hope April is a better month for you. I had a good month in march so I'm ahead in our little challenge, but I am sure you will be catching up before long.

buddiebabe

Hey

I know i still managed to pay something off but it really doesn't feel like much. Im really feeling down at the moment things don't seem to be going too well at all sometimes i wonder just what its all about. I've been selling loads on ebay and even managed to get rid of the wedding dress i had but i have so many bills to pay that im worried im not going to manage to meet the bills i need to.

Never mind things have to get better sometime soon... i hope!!

Am trying to keep strong but at the end of the day i just think it would be so much easier to give up.

I hope that im going to get back into a positive frame of mind soon. I've got a day off on Thursday and i hope that i can have a bit of a break on Thursday and maybe try and get things into a bit of perspective.

Buddiebabe x

MrsPorridge

Buddiebabe - try and enjoy your day off today - try not to worry too much and just relax - hopefully the weather is nice where you are.

I know what you mean about wanting to give up - this MSE lark is a bit like taking 2 steps forward and 3 steps back at times isn't it? You're not alone - you will get a break soon I am sure.

How are things going with the wedding?

xx

buddiebabe

Hey

Well as its the 1st May 2011 i thought id better update where i am with my debts so here goes:

OVERDRAFTS - NIL

LOANS:

ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND £4267.68 now £4016.64

CREDIT CARDS:

DEBENHAMS £1190.00 now £1170.00
MBNA £3760.00 now £3720.00
ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND MC 1 £9918.30 now £9819.00
ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND MC 2 £4280.02 now £4264.00
TESCO £2114.84 now £2100.00
SANTANDER ZERO £417.68 now £410.00

TOTALS:
OVERDRAFTS - NIL
LOANS £4267.68 now £4016.64
CREDIT CARDS £21680.84 now £21483.00

TOTAL OUTSTANDING MAY £25499.64

TOTAL OUTSTANDING JANUARY 2011 £26667.80 now FEB £26217.54 now MARCH £25979.12 now APRIL £25948.72 now MAY £25499.64

Total paid off since 1st January 2011 is £1168.16 :j
So this month i managed to pay off a grand total of £449.08 :T which is so much better than i hoped for and considering how iv been struggling this month i didn't think id manage to pay off anything.

So im finally back on track to start reducing this debt!!! In January i set myself targets and based on those i should have paid back £1047.80 but infact i have actually managed to exceed this and have now paid back £1168.16 which is £120.36 more than i needed to so am really pleased with this.

Now for the bad bit.... i have borrowed money from the wedding fund to make my day to day living expenses bareable and my OH has also paid a few bills that have come in (but these are out his savings) so he agreed that i could pay these back monthly which im not including as debt as they are now monthly outgoings which are being met. I am determined that i am not going to borrow any more out the wedding fund as it is only 20 weeks today till we get married so i don't want to be struggling to pay this money back.

I probably should include the money i've borrowed out it as debt but as i've said before if i don't pay it back it just means i need to cut back on what i want for the wedding and i don't think im prepared to do this so if it means just paying the bare minimum to my debts for the next few months thats exactly what i will do and i will have to use my credit card to get some essentials like petrol but as long as i pay off my target of £265.00 every month i will be happy with that.

I'd better get a move on am starting work at 10.30 so should really get out my bed!!!

Will try and update a bit more often.....

Buddiebabe x

Seaxwyn

Yay!!! :j:j:j Well done :T:T:T Very positive update!

I don't think you should count your OH paying the bills as debt, especially as he will be your husband in 20 weeks' time.

Life is going to get a lot easier once you no longer have a wedding to save for.

buddiebabe

Hey Seaxwyn

Today has been a relatively good day i managed to get this diary updated and i worked for 7 hours so my wages should be ok next week.... main bonus is that it wasve b another lovely day.

Walked to and from work today then went out for a walk tonight which lasted about an hour and a half which was good.

I've been for a lovely hot bath and will be going to bed shortly knowing im not working till 6pm 2moro night so its all good!

My OH has been paying my share of some of the bills which i need to pay him back for i really don't like asking him for money but at the end of the day he's a cheaper option than trying to use my credit cards!! and he's not in any rush for the money back.

Once the wedding is over i should be £50 a week better off but that money should really be put away for the house and the car but i'll see how things go when it gets to that stage.

Am going to catch up on a few diary's then get some sleep

Buddiebabe x

Seaxwyn

Hi again.

If your OH can spare the money to pay your share of the bills, perhaps he should do that regularly, to allow you to concentrate on the debt. As you are going to be husband and wife, everything will be shared, so he is taking on responsibility for your finances as well as his own. It's going to make for a better start to your married life if the financial stresses are shared. I really don't think it's right that you are struggling more than you need to.

Hope you have a lovely bank holiday.

buddiebabe

Hey

My OH doesn't earn very much and he had a small amount of savings approx £1000 which he only has about £200 left due to me asking him to pay for things until i have the money. He already gives me more than half his wages and i dont feel like i could ask him for anymore. If he's lucky he ends up with about £20 left a week and then he buys takeaways for us and food when we need it too... i really feel like im already taking advantage of him. I know he would give me his last penny if i needed it but at the moment i get by so until i really need it i wont take it from him.

Im off my main job today but have hurt my shoulder so don't really feel like doing much at the moment. Im going to catch up on some threads on here and check my emails then maybe this afternoon go for a long walk before work tonight.

Hope everyone has a nice bank holiday

Buddiebabe x

buddiebabe

Hey

I've just put all my up to date figures into the snowball calculator and its come up with a debt free date of March 2016 which is 58 months aways (4 years and 10 months) and i will be 38 and 2 months old when its all paid off if everything goes to plan.

That is a long time and alot can happen in that time so will need to start some kind of action plan to get things paid off quicker.... really need to get moving on this.

Im thinking about splitting any extra money i get in 4 ways:

- 25% into my bank account for day to day bills
- 25% into paying back the money i have borrowed from the wedding fund
- 25% into my own wedding savings (which is for my hair and makeup and hen nights)
- 25% towards paying off the debt

I know i should be paying all my extra money towards the highest debt however the Santander is the smallest target an it is also the one with the longest DFD at March 2016 due to the interest being the lowest. I think it would be a small victory for me to pay this off first as it would be one debt thats actually gone as i have cut up the card and returned it to them.

The snowball calculator shows that the debts will be paid off in the following order:

1. LOAN £4016.64 - SEPTEMBER 2012
2. RBS MC 1 £9819.00 - NOVEMBER 2014
3. RBS MC 2 £4264.00 - JULY 2015
4. DEBENHAMS £1170.00 - AUGUST 2015
5. MBNA £3720.00 JANUARY 2016
6. TESCO £2100.00 FEBRUARY 2016
7. SANTANDER £410.00 MARCH 2016

I think for me I would notice things better if i paid off my debts in the following order

1. SANTANDER as this is the smallest balance i'd be able to clear it quicker giving me the psychological boost that its one down 6 to go! Im going to aim to have this paid off by December 2011 which would mean paying £51.25 a month to it plus the interest.

2. Now by this stage my debenhams card should be around £1000 which would be another good target to aim for as its not too big but i would give myself the full year to try and pay that off so would aim to have that cleared for December 2012 which would mean paying £84 a month plus interest which would be a bit harder to do alternatively depending how i get on with Santander i could keep it at £51.25 plus interest and it would take me to December 2013 to pay it off

There is no point in me making any further plans as you know what life is like something always crops up but if i have those 2 goals in sight i have something to work towards.... the only thing that keeps crossing my mind is my complete hatred for MBNA and i really want that card gone but as they have increased my minimum payment by over £30 a month they have really put me into financial hardship by doing that and when you try and reason with them on the phone you get no where in fact im sure the last person i spoke to said something along the lines of well you spent the money in the first place so you know you need to pay it back!

Anyway enought of that or i'll end up getting angry again and i don't want to spoil my day!!!

Today i have managed to do the following:

- update my diary
- update my snowball calculator
- make a payment for the day (55p to Santander)

Things i need to do:

- put the chicken in the slow cooker for tonights dinner
- clean the bathroom
- put on a washing and hang out to dry
- go for a walk
- go to work

Will go and get on with some of the things i should be doing instead of spending the day in bed on the laptop

Buddiebabe x

buddiebabe

Hey

Well i had a really bad day today!!! I slept in then when i went into the car it started then conked out and then wouldn't start again so i had to phone work to try and get a holiday for today then i had to phone the garage it was a nightmare!

I phoned my boss at my 2nd job and managed to get a 5 hour shift so i didn't completely waste my day then i went for lunch with my sister which cost me a small fortune but she was going to take me to work 2moro and then pick me up so i didn't have to waste another holiday. Then when i got home i realised i'd left the car unlocked and open all day :eek: then when i went to lock it i thought id try it again and it started the 2nd time! I think im going to have to put it into the garage next week and get it serviced! I need the car on Thursday night to do the election count and again on the Friday so i need to hope that it holds up until Friday night!

I've made a payment of 40p today to my santander card. I've also used £14.36 on my RBS credit card which im hoping to pay back on Friday when i get my wages from my 2nd job.

Am going to go to bed shortly so will try and update again soon

Buddiebabe x