My diary... becoming debt free whilst still having a life!!!

rubydoiwannabee

Hi IC, I do feel like that. We have been so very stupid with money in the past and have so little free cash each month... it is a nightmare!! We will be like this for a long time to come as well, so I try not to worry too much.

Try and look at it this way, if you hadn't had your commission you may have had to put the oil on credit??!!

Keep smiling and thinking of edinburgh.

irishchick_3

Hi Ruby, I do exactly the same thing, get totally carried away with the whole Xmas thing, even when I promise myself Im not goin to!
By the way SH thanks for your encouraging words, its easy to feel like your the only one!

irishchick_3

Thanks Ruby! Isnt it weird to think we'll never meet and yet are just like friends, who really understand each other!

savingholmes

Hi everyone especially YB nice to see you back - and thanks too for the encouragement for me. I've managed to get my sister to deliver some hampers for me saving on postage and it was only about 4 miles out of my way... :money: It was nice to catch up with her too. She is planning an MSE wedding and has therefore halved her budget and brought her wedding forward by a year! :j Isn't nice when others do catch the bug and it achieves something so important.

We had a free night away through a holiday I won... :money: We only spent £20 on one meal and £16 on another, and had 2 meals of toast (30p bread) and jam. I only spent £1.25 in a shop on a compartment box for a basket and some holly sequins for cards for 25p at Woolies so pretty pleased. Petrol on top tho but we seriously relaxed as we had no kids. Normally we take books and laptops and things but this time we didn't take any of that...

Irish Chick - yes it can be very time consuming being MSE. I asked for a payrise and thought if I got it I'd stop doing surveys etc but I'm still doing them - but then I still haven't had a final amount confirmed! I think my next task should be actually to list some items and sell them. Our house is swimming with stuff we don't really need but it's just I have never sold anything on line. I decided tho that the amount of time surveys take for the reward isn't worth it and that it would make more sense to master selling on line.... We desperately need to de-clutter anyway!

I've also got my MIL looking out for baskets for me. She thinks she has some in the garage so I may be able to get some free baskets which means I can spend more on the pressie rather than the holder.

Ruby - if you remember when I said personalise things I said with the Freebie :money: section - I didn't say you had to spend more money! With the baskets it can be hard to know when to stop which is why Rustyflange and Rainmac wrap them so early so they are not tempted to keep adding. Add a reindeer or yule log or something if you must and STOP. I've wrapped some of mine already for the same reason.

Hope everyone has had a good day. I've got a long travel day tomorrow but technically should because of the mileage rate make a bit of profit compared to petrol price... so I will be add it to the £10 a day challenge once I get paid it! I got my first quidco money thro this month £22.30 but it is a start, hopefully more another month. I also some money waiting for me with pigsback, ipoints and lightspeed plus some of the other survey sites. I've not cashed any of them yet... I'm planning to wait until closer to Xmas if I can.

We are also going to cut back on some of the snacks in the kids lunchboxes which should reduce our spending on junk food and help my DS lose a bit of unnecessary weight. I've also talked to DS about dropping after school club completely and he wants to - which will save upto £60+ :j per month on top of current savings I plan to use some of the savings on extra swimming lessons for DS tho so he can exercise more, get fitter and lose some weight. I don't want him being bullied at school and altho he is quite tall unless he gets fitter and leaner I think he might be when he goes to high school next year... My OH has said he will try and go out with him on his bike more but again - I would want to buy decent lights for his bike and more reflective water proof gear to wear! Bike riding ultimately would be free but sometimes an inital outlay is required before you can save money...:p

sistercas feel free to nick the mixing bowl idea - I nicked it from one of the Rs on finished baskets anyway! Anyway bye all - hope that wasn't too long a post for you!

sistercas

spent waaaayyyy too much yesterday. trying really hard to keep spending to a minimum then spent £150 this weekend on nothing really.:eek: some xmas presents but mainly bits and bobs. I hadnt realised we had spent so much . I find it so frustrating because I scrimp and save all week spend ages doing meal plans and eeking stuff out and then we go and do that. I 'm really cross especially with myself!:mad:

DD2 off school with a horrid cold and temperature- bless her
on the other hand I have spent the morning in the kitchen preparing food for next couple of days which I enjoy
Hi to Ruby YB SH IC and Sky xx

irishchick_3

Sistercas, thats the pits! I am so tired of doing that, you can easily spend £100 and not have anything to show for it! Chin up! Tomorrow's another day!

Poor DD2, kids are just so helpless when they're sick, you feel so sorry for them. But you also get nothing done because they want you to spend your time with them!

rubydoiwannabee

Hi everyone,
Sistercas, you are not alone and I know just what you mean about it being frustrating. In the spirit of the title of this diary try and think of it as 'life' and try and get the enjoyment from the spending.... so that it isn't always considered as a regret.

My DS is off school today as well with a stomach bug, although he appears to be on the mend now. I hope your DD gets better soon and that it is only a 24 hr thing.

IC, thanks for your comments I agree it is strange that we will all probably never meet. I am so grateful to have you all to confide in about money worries, I don't talk to any of my friends about it so it is a HUGE help having you all here.

YB, I hope you have enjoyed any shopping you have may have done by now.

SH, I feel well and truely told off and promise I will try and not spend anymore on baskets!!! Should have followed your advice but find the freebies boards a minefield to sort through and just can't be bothered!!

Start of the week not too bad today, apart from DS and OH both being ill. DH went to work though and has gone to footie training tonight, so he isn't that bad. I am starving and just had a funny moment after getting out of the shower.... think my sugar levels have dropped too low!! So need to eat now....

love to you all and a big thanks.

xxxx

savingholmes

Hi all - on the freebies section - I have had mixed results - Christina Agulera was just a perfume card but estee lauder was real little sample bottle for their perfume sensuous. I'm still waiting for most of them. The other thing to try is things like the magazine group things on the cash back sites where the deal cost you £6 and you get paid £5.80 for signing up - as long as you cancel it quick enough within the trial period - you've effectively got 3-6 issues for 20p:money: But what ever works for you - hope Ruby you don't feel too told off....

Hope those of you with sick kids - have them get better soon.

One the over-spending bit - we all did it which is why we are here - one trick is to take out cash once a week and divide into little pots or envelopes for the type of thing it is for eg £20 dinner money, £80 groceries, £20 cleaner, £3 pocket money or whatever it is for you and when I did this which I did for a while but have stopped again I had one with £20 in for emergencies and one marked treats that I put 5 pences in.... Just a thought...

Bye for now...:A

savingholmes

Ruby I've taken my own advice and a) taken 3 items out of one basket - for use another time and b) wrapped 2 hampers so I stop adding! I was then shocked to remember that I still had another gift costing £7.50 RRP £20 to share between the 2 of them which they are still getting.... I probably only took the items out 'cos the person it was for said I thought you were just getting me X, I would be happy with X so I realised that the other £3-4 spend could be re-allocated! It is hard to know when to stop sometimes! I was even more shocked when I realised the RRP in total for the couple was £80 but my actual was £20 so I won't beat myself up too much. I just hope no-one compares presents based on RRPs but if they do that is their problem.

I've got some chocolate smelling potpourri (Asda) and am thinking of being cruel and putting it in my reindeers to fool people they are getting chocolate when they are not... how sadistic am I! :rotfl: What do you think?:p

Have a good day tomorrow everyone - sending thoughts of health to you!

sistercas

thanks everyone for your supportive words re my overspending. i have put it behind me now.
SH i do have little pots for different things for day to day stuff such as for the papers/ milkman, it works for me. I think its when i use my debit card because you dont actually see any money change hands its hard sometimes to realise how much you have parted with.
YB hope you're ok you have been very quiet of late
Ruby hope DS is feeling better, my DD is ok now and back at school
doing some overtime this week just a few hours but it will help towards xmas
hi to IC/ SKY