Live on £4000 for a Year, 2009 Challenge, part 2

savingfortravel

I can remember my mum teaching me when i was six - she didn't believe in stabilisers and she use to grip the back on my saddle and run behind:D.


BB: What a lovely memory!!
And we will benefit from more of the lovely pictures that you post from time to time..(just like Sarah's).


So glad I went for a walk this morning (even if it was just to the Dry Cleaners*) as it has been pouring down all afternoon. Did give us a chance to watch escapist t.v.-I admit to quite liking the Real Swiss Robinson family prog as it seems quite honest and the families (so far) have learnt to simplify their lives/spend quality time together/learn from the local community/the youngsters have thrived on what they can do..I get really cross at how we don't cherish our young people today. All we do is moan about the riff raff and tar the rest with the same brush.
* Wedding dress is back on Ebay..do feel sad but it would only sit in my wardrobe and we could spend the money on something worthwhile.
Have also been going through our finances and looks like we may still beable to pay off a quarter of our mortgage like we had planned before we decided to move. Also still take nephew to Pearl Harbour...So we are quite excited.
SFT X

purplevamp

Hi everyone, hope you're all feeling better, those of you who are poorly (namely sophiesmum, loopylou and brighton belle :A)

After having a nearly NSD yesterday (£1 on milk), today saw £65 lining Mr S's pockets and then nearly £35 went on this . But in my defence I will use it all the time as I have to make cupcakes for school, birthdays, work, etc. And it also means that they'll stay looking yummy and not crushed!

Ooh, I've just remembered (rather sheepishly) that I spent £28.50 on a chinese last night :whistle:

sophiesmum_2

Good evening frunchkins:D
The arm is feeling a little better today, still can't manage to drive though so have been relying on OH to get me about. However this has had to fit in with football etc so not a lot achieved by me. Spent £5 on two iced Thornton's eggs for my parents, £3 on veggies from market,£5.98 on 12 litres of UHT milk, and £120 on some garden furniture:eek: although this was in the half price sale at Homebase. It is just a small woven table and two chairs which we intend to install down near the greenhouse and hopefully me and OH can get some quiet time undisturbed by the oldies when it is decent weather, or he can sit with a cuppa and chat with me whilst I am doing my pottering.
So like BB I have decided to spend some money on something that will enhance our lives.It is quite difficult to get real privacy when you live and work in the same place, so this is our attempt to create some space for ourselves. Overall I am doing quite well on the challenge so think this spend can be incorporated into the budget without too much stress, and as SFT says the aim of the challenge is to free up cash for those things that we really want and cut out the mindless spending.

BB - the bike and the camera sound like lots of fun and I hope when you get sorted they will provide you with lots of enjoyment and enrich your life in small ways. You live in a lovely place where you should take advantage of your surroundings to the best extent you can, and make the most of every day that your illness allows you to enjoy.

Total spends this week £133.98

Penny2myName

Well back from my holiday and ready to face second quarter of challenge. Due to how things have been this last month, sort of lost track of imputting into my spending dairy so not fully sure where I am at with that or what my final ist quarter worked out at. Going to look at a rough guesstimate for it, then go on from there. I know have something solid to work towards, so need to save every last penny I can.

I went over by a lot less than I was expecting. £93.24, leaving me with £906.76 for this second quarter. £302.24 per month.

[Deleted User]

Hello All

Thanks for all your good wishes. Am feeling alot better now thank you.

Trying to think of ways to keep our tiny house tidy/set up new routines/learn to manage my time better especially now we will be running a business from home (must keep tidy place for paperwork)

Gotta go - Daisy crying xx

savingfortravel

Loopy-Good to hear you are feeling better.

Sophiesmum-Your new chairs and table sound wonderful! What a great investment. Would love to see a photo and its the least you deserve for rejuvenating that area in your garden (Mrs Mc would be proud) and after feeling poorly. I know you will really enjoy your relaxing times with DH.

Take care SFT

Skint_Lynne

Evening folks,
I'm all set for round 2 of car booting - I am all packed, sandwiches made and clothes laid out for my early start. DH is meant to be coming with me but he has a bottle of wine on the go, so I doubt that he will make it.:rolleyes:

I've not much else to report, so will let you know how it goes when I get in tomorrow. I made £120 last week, but I'm going to try a different place tomorrow to see what it is like.

Nite all, I'm off to bed cause it is an early start.

cha97michelle

Expensive day in our house. We set out to go shopping as i needed some clothes/shoes for me for work, so might as well go today while the weather was grim. To cut a long story short, DH went through a pot hole in the road - not even a very big one, and we heard a big bang. We thought it was a burst tyre, but he has managed to snap part of the suspension on his car. Spends today was £100 to get it towed to our house as we couldn't leave it where it was. The AA wouldn't pick us up as they classed it as an accident, and the insurance company excess was way to high. I could have cried as we haven't even paid the credit card bill yet from both cars needing fixing last month. I wish we didn't need them.


I'm trying to look on the positive side. At least we were only 2 miles from home and had the double buggy in the car, so could get ourselves home easily. At least it didn't bang on the motorway or it probably would have burst the tyre and made us have an accident. Anyone else feel though that they get all the bad luck? I like to think i am a nice kind person yet things pile up like this all the time.

loopy glad to hear you feel a bit better. I got mastitits with DS2. Hot baths and putting a flannel on the area, and also expressing a bit of milk helped. I also used baby oil and massaged the blocked duct, and it cleared within a week without antibiotics although my skin was a very weird texture for ages afterwards.

sophiesmum sounds like your corner is coming along nicely. A good idea to get yourself a bit of privacy. Must be hard to be on site all the time at times.

BB i am envious of your sea views. I went to Brighton while DH was working a few years back, and it was bliss to sit in the hotel room as it faced the sea, and just read my book and look out. There were loads of cyclists, and it looked flat and safe to cycle. I'm often put off by traffic here although we like the old railway lines that you can cycle along. We are hoping to do some this year with the kids in the boke trailer. Great fun although hard work for DH as he has to pull at least 65 Ib on top of his own bike and weight. I found it hard just me cycling. I think i need a gel seat if we get well into it.

I am thankful i am on this thread. I have had loads of urges to spend, but as we walked back from the car we were talking, and said although we aren't flash with cash at the moment, we can afford to put the car repairs on the credit card and pay next month. Our savings have dwindled a lot while i have been on maternity leave, but i have also put money in our ISAs and kiddies trust funds. I know if it wasn't for this thread i would not be as comfortable as we are. I only hope i can keep it up when i am back at work and pushed for time so i can really make a difference to the kids lives as they get older. I know we are fortunate.

Anyway, enough of my musings, i hope you all have a lovely Easter tomorrow. We are just going to have a quiet family meal. We had DH's 80 year old aunty and her friend round for lunch yesterday, so we plan on just pottering in the garden. Got the courgettes and cabbages planted out today before the rain, but really plan to get on in the next few days and start the next lot of seeds off. Happiness, healthiness and good weather wishes for you all. Hope you enjoy however you spend it.

Michelle x

cw18

cha97michelle wrote: »

Expensive day in our house. We set out to go shopping as i needed some clothes/shoes for me for work, so might as well go today while the weather was grim. To cut a long story short, DH went through a pot hole in the road - not even a very big one, and we heard a big bang. We thought it was a burst tyre, but he has managed to snap part of the suspension on his car. Spends today was £100 to get it towed to our house as we couldn't leave it where it was. The AA wouldn't pick us up as they classed it as an accident, and the insurance company excess was way to high. I could have cried as we haven't even paid the credit card bill yet from both cars needing fixing last month. I wish we didn't need them.

Get back out there tomorrow with a camera and ruler, then on Tuesday phone your local council for a claim form. I can't promise they'll come through, but I know of some people who've managed to claim against them due to poor road maintainance. (An extra help would be if you could find out from locals whether the council have already been told about it, as they should have been to investigate/repair if they have!)

ETA: I'm surprised the AA wouldn't tow you! My breakdown company will, but they then send a bill for you to try and reclaim from the insurance company......

Skint_Lynne

Cheryl is right Michelle,

My MIL fell down because of a big hole in the pavement, and she claimed the council. She got £2000. It wasn't the money that she done it for although that was a bonus for her. She done it as we all pay council tax and the councils don't fix the roads/pavements. She also felt that it was her duty to do this as they get away with all sorts of stuff and because a kid or an old person could have really injured themselves. She broke her wrist because of it.

That could have resulted in a really nasty accident, so they might be able to compensate for you having to get the car fixed. If you don't ask, you don't get. xx