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lunar

hayley_jayne wrote: »

Lunar, just wondering would you fancy being a 'virtual' weightloss buddy after we both have the babies? (although I'll have to be sensible with it as plan to breastfeed). I'll have to do something though as am closely starting to resemble a hippo.

H x

That sounds like a good idea Hayley. Unfortunatly i resembled a hippo prior to getting pregnant so i have loads of work to do to shed some pounds. I have put on about 20lbs since i have been pregnant which i know is not too bad, it is possible i may break the scales if i gain much more. i also plan to breastfeed for 6 months if i can so it will prob be a slow weight loss.

have you looked into the child savings accounts yet? just trying to figure out what to do.

lunar

well today has been a no spend day, mostly because i have been too lazy to do anything and go out. I have been bugging family too tell me what they ant for christmas and think i know what to get for most people now. I might spend some time online looking for some bargins tonight. im going out with mum on friday if nothing happens by then to do some shopping so i will have to sift through my vouchers and make sure i check the cupons section for any discounts.

I want to get my OH a new work bag and dont want to get that online as i want to check the quality. he currently uses an old laptop bag that is pretty much falling apart and looks really tatty. im hinting (several times a day) to my oh that he needs to get me a wii fit for christmas before they become impossible to find. I did tell him not to buy it at an over inflated price though.

hayley_jayne

That sounds like a good idea Hayley. Unfortunatly i resembled a hippo prior to getting pregnant so i have loads of work to do to shed some pounds. I have put on about 20lbs since i have been pregnant which i know is not too bad, it is possible i may break the scales if i gain much more. i also plan to breastfeed for 6 months if i can so it will prob be a slow weight loss.

have you looked into the child savings accounts yet? just trying to figure out what to do.

You have done better than me, I have put 2 stone 2 lbs on :eek: and I was overweight to begin with! I'm going to go for a slow weightloss of 1-2lbs a week and hope to do that in the main by avoiding junk food, breast feeding and hopefully getting some exercise. So if you fancy having a go at that with me it would be great

I've looked at child benefit and I think we are eligible for a small amount of tax credit but not that much. I haven't looked at the trust funds yet. I have set the baby up a regular saver, which I have been putting £25 a month into but I believe you need a special one for the £250 voucher so 'it is held in trust' on behalf of the child???? If you find a good one, let me know!

H x

lunar

I didnt realise you had to put that voucher in a seperate account to a regular savings one, its just so complicated. I have posted on the savings boards and got some advice and links there which are helpful.

I keep weighing myself everyday now so i know how much i way on the day he is born. whenever it finally happens ill pm you my weight from the day of his birth andstart from there. 1-2lbs a week sounds a good target to aim for, i just need to stay away from the junk food.

lunar

Managed a 2nd no spend day today, again due to being too lazy to go out. I might log into my online banking i a bit to see if i can pay off a bit more on the egg loan. I have to make all overpayments to it before the 15th of the month otherwise it gets confused with my direct debit, they still take the payment but dont credit it to my account untill i ring about 6 times.

I have been having some stomach pains through the day but not regular and not too intense so i guess i prob have a while to go. to be honest saturday would be the best time for him to appear for me and OH but i guess i cant put in requests!

pania

hey lunar!!! everytime i log on i wonder if there is news. I can't believe how quickly the 9 months has gone. where has this year gone infact!!!
i'm kinda having enforced NSD's at the mo!!! I wish it WAS good for the pocket, if i had money in my pocket to start with it may be he he

Hugs and good luck if i miss the event!!! P xxx

lunar

Hi Pania, its quite scary how fast its gone now the end is so close. I cant believe how much can change in just 1 year. Where is the new diary you promised? have i managed to miss it?

pania

nope... still promising... just trying to pluck up the courage to do it!!!

pandapaws

Ok, I'm clearly no expert on savings but here's what little I do know about the child trust fund: You get a voucher for £250 to be held in an account for the child when they're 18. There are 2 types of account: one that invests in the stockmarket, the other is like a standard savings account. The first is obviously risky but has potentially higher returns (or you could lose the lot), the second is steady. Both mine have been invested in the second, safer type of account with the Britannia Building Society, simply because they seemed like nice people (and also had the highest rate of interest at the time - I'm not completely dumb!).

I'm not paying anything other than the governement vouchers into my CTF accounts for 4 reasons:

1. Because we have debt and can't afford it - I think we're better reducing our debt because in the long run it'll be better for the kids to live in a debt-free family, and when we're debt-free we can make up for it.

2. There are better savings accounts out there, and unless you're saving massive wads of cash, kids savings are tax free anyway so I can't see any massive benefit to the CTF

3. The CTF automatically gives your child ALL the saved money on their 18th birthday. :eek: With the best will, and the best parents in the world, you don't know what your kids are going to be like when they're 18. A friend said to me that she'd be terrified her kids would spend the lot on drugs and kill themselves. I laughed at first and thought the usual 'my kids won't be into any of that because I'll be such a perfect parent' sort of thing, but you really can't know what your beautiful, innocent newborn will be like in 18 years time, and how well equipped emotionally they'll be to deal with a large windfall. A stroppy teenager in the huff with their parents, knowing that you had saved for them to buy a house/car/university/gap year might just take the lot and blow it on something totally ridiculous just to spite you. So I'd rather still have control of the cash - if my boys are (and I'm sure they will be) good sensible lads when they're 18, I'll sign their savings (if we ever have any ) over to them. But at least I've got the option to keep hold of it for a bit longer if they're going through a rebellious phase. They'll get the Govenment's £500+interest, but not a penny that I've saved out my own pocket until I know they'll put it to good use.

4. The money you're saving is completely tied up and totally unaccessible. So if - God forbid - a child took seriously ill (again something you wouldn't ever dream of happening and hopefully it never will, but it does happen to some people) and you wanted to get the money out before they were 18 for private medical care, home alterations, holiday of a lifetime, or whatever, you're stuffed.

So there you go...the Pandapaws guide to child savings. Sorry if it's irrelevant and long-winded, but I know most people just don't consider those aspects. (Panda shuffles off her soap box to stop lecturing at people and go play some free bingo instead)

lunar

Thats a really good post panda, as i dont have anything in my ISA at the min i could just use that for the child benifit money. I dont want to use it for the debts even though that would be the most sensible option with regards to interest! If i keep the savings in my own for now i can use it however i need to. So all i will need is an account for any government vouchers. you have made it all sound so simple now! Ill just make sure not to put it in any iceland bank. I have to say i would be much happier with the child savings accounts if they didnt get them until 21. I can also ration it out over uni years if he goes, saving it this way. Im so much less stressed over it now!