magicgirls debt free new life

magicgirl

I have been trying to keep a positive head on my shoulders and it seems to be (sort of) paying off.

2011 started with our water being cut off. There was a leak on our road from about Christmas eve when a pipe burst. Thames Water were scheduled to fix it NYE and they actually did! Shame they forgot to tell the residents that they would all be without water for a few hours. However, I figured as long as the water was back on, we would be fine. Well, Thames Water turned the water back on as promised. Sadly, My housing association did not think that despite the block being full of ‘socially vulnerable people’, they had any duty of care to either turn the pump back on so that residents could access the water, or to provide any back ups such as bottled water. I am absolutely livid. Any other time, I would have headed over to a friends or family members but being NYE, no one was home. It was 24 hours that we were left without water in the end. To say I am unimpressed is an understatement.

I refused to let this bother me and managed to do my best even though at eight weeks pregnant, I was unable to use my own toilet facilities or pray to the porcelain God despite suffering from terrible morning sickness. I just made a note of this to be raised at the next meeting with teh landlord which was scheduled for 12th January. Surprisingly (or not!) this meeting has been ‘postponed’.

Dh was waiting to go back towork and received a text saying that it was unlikely to be this week but next. He was waiting patiently but decided to call the ‘boss’ to double check only to be told that there was not enough work and he was being let go. He was treated very badly just before Christmas and this did anger him somewhat but (And I am very proud of him for this) he channelled his anger well and managed to find a start the very next day (today!) He has also managed to wangle a small pay rise. So well done to him.

I have a very careful budget set out now to take into account the new addition and all sorts. The only sticking point so to speak is that I was hoping to have a small honeymoon. I know my DH is desperate to visit New York and if I can afford it, I would love to take him there. Only problem is that while I will have the money at some point, I also need to get us both a new passport which is adding to the cost. I have already enlisted the help of family to look after the children but because of my due date, we really need to do it by around April. We do still have a small balance we need to pay off from the wedding and until that is done, he will not feel entirely comfortable going away. I am feeling a tad frustrated over it all and I know our new addition will not be welcomed by all. But I will cross that bridge when I come to it. I think he is right and our priority should be to void all our debts. Once that is done, if it is too late for me to fly, I will find another way for us to travel for a short spell and see what we can do.

Hope the new year started well for all. xx

magicgirl

I refuse to see this as a ‘bad’ thing but.... the honeymoon is well and truly scrapped.

The lady that was looking after my youngest on a Tuesday has gone AWOL. No one has heard from her for a few weeks and given how little time I have before my maternity leave starts, I really need to ensure I do not cause any upsets at work. SO I have bitten the bullet and put dd3’s name down for an extra day at nursery. Starting today. The only problem is that it takes me over the limit of what I can claim in tax credits and so the extra £61/day is coming out of my own pocket. That equates to about £250/month which in the grand scheme of things may not sound a lot but over six months, its about a grand and a half and it sure does feel like a helluva lot!

Anyway, I am taking the view that my dd is loving her time at the place (finally) and its good for her social development and so what if it leaves me out of pocket? I already have most of the things I need for the new baby so it won’t cost me anymore and most of the money I would have been saving, aside from what I wanted to spend on the honeymoon, would have been for that and it would have been lots of things that are probably made by some developing country with high trade emissions and so in the bigger picture, the extra £250/m is in effect an offset of my carbon. (I am getting good at this ‘looking on the bright side’ now. )

One thing it has done is made me determined to take my mat leave as early as possible as I cannot possibly cope with the extra stress. It may mean some extra time off without pay toward the end but I hope that our business will have taken off enough to afford me that time.

On a brighter note, I am off to spend some time away with the children over half term. I will have two nights at the old faithful (Prem Inn) on their £29/n deal and see some friends and some new babies in the process. I am quite looking forward to it. More importantly, so are the children and it certainly helps to break up the holidays a bit. Jsut need some exciting events for me and the hubby to look forward to as a couple!

magicgirl

Have decided to try and fit as much travel as possible into the time before baby arrives. So far, have a trip planned to Manchester (next week) Devon (mid March) and Leicester (end of March). Another trip to Devon in May and possibly Hastings in July. Any more I can squeeze in will be great. Once the new arrival is here, it will be difficult to find a family room that will accommodate us all.
I have also applied for a voluntary exit at work so need to wait two months to hear about that. If it's a favourable response, I will finally gave my dream of a family holiday abroad realised in October. Fingers crossed... X

magicgirl

This year just keeps getting better....So hope it continues. I finally heard today which school our eldest dd has got into and it was a favourable response. the only bad point is their term starts on my birthday which also happens to be the day after my sil's wedding which we are across the other side of the country for. so its gonna be a long night the day before school starts! ah well... needs must.

magicgirl

I feel on top of the world right now. There are so many financial issues that could come back and bite us in the very near future but the sun must be going to my head as I really don't care. lol

Very soon, the cc debt that is hanging over us from our wedding will soon be paid off. this is largely down to the fact that my voluntary exit at work was accepted. I will have ample time off with our new addition and enough money in the bank not to worry for the first year of how we will live. It may even allow us a small break and if all things work out, it could help us to properly launch our business which means i won't even have to look for more work in a years time.

I think the flylady thread has helped also as my whole life feels less cluttered and having four children in a two bedrrom flat is no easy feat but I shall manage and I SHALL make it look easy. I have lived in much worse conditions and I still feel so lucky to be able to have such a great start. All I have to do now is ride out the time before my bankruptcy is off my file. Of course, it will be very hard to get a mortgage in the future whenever that happens but we seem to be on the right track for now which given the current climate is a nice reward for the efforts we have been putting in. we always did work better as a team.

magicgirl

had a quiet spell with our business but its picking up again. we know it will be quiet at times and have accounted for that.

I only have eight weeks til i meet my new baby (unless its late but i tend to have them early so not expecting a late delivery) I have managed to get all the bits i need including pulling items out of storage etc.

i have also had the credit limit on my credit card increased! that was unexpected but welcome surprise. I don't intend to use it but its nice to know i have it available in case of emergency.

I have now been discharged three years (just over) and i feel like I am getting some of my life back. I have not yet 'needed' to apply for credit cos i need it. the credit lines i have such as bills (inc mobile) and credit card are more conveninece than neccessity and while i have dipped into my card every now and then, its only really been used as a protection like buying large items and wanting cover that comes with buying on credit.

heading off to bed soon. being 32 weeks preg and staying up til these ridiculous hours is a bit silly but hopefully it will make it easier for when i have a night owl wanting to play at this time.. lol

magicgirl

after haing my credit line increased, i ws curious to see if it was just with the one place because of behaviour or if other lines might be opening to me. SO i applied for a sygma card. I forgot about it after the application and was quite shocked when a card landed in my post box yesterday with a £2k limit.

so I appear to be slowly going up the rungs of this ladder. I am not fussed about having credit and have had little need to use it since the bankruptcy. only time it was 'needed' was for our wedding which we managed and that was admittedly down to us not having considered the possibility of dh being out of work for the sake of illness but we got through it and i really hope that in another couple of years, we will be in a position to buy somewehre of our very own. it doesn't feel such an impossible dream now that we have taken steps towards it although its still going to be a tough battle getting where we want to be.

Still, having this diary will be nice to look back on when i get to that point. I do try and include for the highs and the lows and I really do want to remember it all.

magicgirl

Just passed the anniversery of going bankrupt. Its been five years.

Things are tough at the moment but no more than for most people. Four children. Rising costs. One income for a family of six. But we are coping and we had a wonderful holiday earlier this year. Have lots of housekeeping to do but trying to find the time in between running our business and keeping house. Wanting to get some beds for the younger children but these things cost money and therefore take time. buying one piece at a time and slowly getting it all ready. Will be done by easter at the rate we are going.

fermi

Bloomin ek. 5 years.

Thanks for the update. Glad to hear that things are OK. Well, as much as they are for anyone. :cool:

magicgirl

Thanks fermi. I have a good feeling about this year. Lets hope i am not disappointed. lol

I was a little shocked how quickly its all gone by. but in a good way. I may need to look for an income source (other than the dh.. ) but with childcare costs and suc like, it hardly seems worth it. I am looking to have a couple of days by september as baby will be two and childcare just ever so slightly cheaper then I think I did find my ideal job but i only saw it the day before applications closed - a sales assistant in the nursery dept of john lewis! any sort of selling of childrens goods would suit me seeing as i have tried and tested so many and on all budgets.
for now, I will keep looking.