I want to be a MFW........ LP's Diary

LilacPixie

No this will be the last mini pixie. We have friends/family over alot and as we are/will be a family of 5 if a family of 4 comes over for tea then space is tight. We only actually have 6 seats with it so not OTT.

Right so this weekend we have:

bought a dining table
got even more confused over fridge freezers
OH saw a car he likes :S not sure how i feel about that
Packed up some more things
1 black bin bag of kids clothes to womans aid, our current charity of choice, and some perfectly servicable toys the girls have outgrown.
Had to buy new wellies for DD1 as her's just too small and its ourdoor splashy play at nursery this week and she only had the one pair, hers were a 7 she is now an 8.5 according to the measurer but size 9 wellies with drawstring tops were most comfortable for her (and they have a butterfly on them) so that was £9 I hadn't budgetted for but food costs lower this month so I just dipped the food budget.

I am getting a bit nervy about money, we had a £1700 shortfall plus moving costs to cover the mortgage LTV we required etc etc. My dad/parents have offered to give us a short term loan of £1700 that is their holiay fund for easter so needs to be paid back ASAP. The shortfall was based on 50k being final redeption cost of mortgage but I think it will be closer £49450 plus I have around £500 tucked away from a mix of ebay sales, some quidco cash and a MS. so there is about 1k waiting for costs to be finalised. OH has to work saturday which should put another £130 on his wages but it will arrive with his wage on Christmas eve rather than 27th November. My Dad keeps telling me to relax and the move costs what it costs but I hate borrowing and as my parents are retired they already do our childcare and I have to fight with them to take anything for it which usually results in them refusing and me 'borrowing' my dads car for 15 mins and returning it with a full tank of fuel then him spending 5 days slipping £60 in the kids bag or pocket or something. They only head away for a week at easter and a week in October and I just don't like the idea that Easter may be delayed because the lent me money. Probably all the more nervey because dad is writting me the cheque tomorrow :S

I'm waffling but basically the MPPI/life assurance/critical illness has started with 1st payment coming off bank 1st December, 1st mortgage payment is 1/1/11 but its for just under 1100 rather than the regular 696 payment to account for the payment covering 40+days interest. We also 'need' some bits for baby I think. Firstly i'm used to living in a flat, with DD1 and 2 we had a battery operated swing and for naps put her to her cot in bedroom, now we being in a house not sure i want to be putting it upstairs all the time so thinking I should maybe aquire a moses basket for the livingroom. When DD2 was born we use same car seat as DD1 which fitted my car, now 'my' car is too small for the amout of poop I carry so OH drives that to work and I drive his bigger estate car rather than my hatchback. Neither the estate or the hatch will take 3 car seats over the back seat, my hatchback does take infant cariers and DD2 seat in the rear and DD1's in the front but with no space for a 2nd adult. OH car takes DD2 seat, dd1 seat and an adult in the rear and infant bucket in the from if we disable the airbag which I personally don't like doing or trust, dd1 could sit in the front with her booster seat DD" adult and infant carrier in the rear but we had the local police saftey people check the fit and they pronounced it as acceptable but not recommended I therefore want to buy another car seat but really struggling for a decent fit combo and obviously money. OH has saw a car he quite fancies to replace my hatch back. It's a Crysler PT Cruiser. He is mooting it as a stop gap solution to our all fitting in the car issue and it does make sense, the car is for sale in a local garage that is owned by friends of my parents so OH wants to go in tomorrow and enquire about a trade in value for my hatchback and take it from there. Parkers guide suggests the difference to be about 1k. I am just not sure so much is going on at the moment and so much 'cost' that changing cars plus changing insurance, changing address etc It all just seems too much yet I am acutely aware that we have a chok a blok 3 months ahead and there needs to be a solution of sorts in place before baby arrives and with 13 weeks until EDD not alot of time to decide on an actual solution.

pammyj74

Blimey you have so much going on!! Sounds like you have it all under control though.

3 car seats is a tricky one, I know what you mean about having them plus another adult. At some time you all need to be in the car and something has to be sorted for it or you'll be taking two cars lol

My ex FIL used to be like your dad, if ever we visited which was a over an hours drive, he used to give us petrol money plus a bit extra. It was embarrassing taking it but if we didnt accept it, he would slip it into one our bags! He would also get things on offer at the supermarket and have a food parcel for us too (that is what I miss lol)

Queen-Bee_2

Thank goodness for families... your mum and dad sound like mine, happy to help you get the place you need. Nice to have that support - otherwise, you have lots on your plate, but seem to be steadily chomping your way through it. Well done!! QB

LilacPixie

I think thats the thing, we really need to be able to all fit in the car just for silly things like visiting parents, I want to do it as 'cheaply' as possible but not at the expense of saftey for any of us, OH car has independent rear seats and the only 'good' fit appears to be the manufacturers seat which is £300 :eek:. We literally had mothercare fitter and 13 stage 0 car seats and we struck a big fat zero :eek:. Too much stress, I am seriously getting lost as to what I need to be doing and what is a priority. Not to mention my hatchback is pushing 9 now and is starting to get a bit tempremental :eek::eek:. I really cannot see where all the money is coming from short of credit card, I do have balance availible and 56 days interest free and an empty card that i could BT to and keep the 0% then pay bare minimum until I am back working FT.

We also have the added issue of moving so won't have the Feb/March free from CTax months. Apparently they use the rate per year divide by 365 and do the same for current property. They will then apportion how much we should of paid for here until December and then new house until new financial year add together, subtract what we have paid (£107 x 9) then spread it over jan/feb/march.

I fancy having a go at doing that myself TBH. We are currently band A and the valuations office listing new property as a band C so I know thats the difference between £2.93 and £3.91 a day!!! We will be in new house 111 days of the fiscal year compared to 254 in old house. I make that around a £203 shortfall. Now if it is true they spread than over jan feb march its great however if they decide to take the lot as Jan 1st payment then added to the bigger mortgage payment etc we will struggle I think.


Oh when we were clearing out we found an old phone of OH's £58 on envirophone so i have asked for an envelop, every penny counts as they say.

LilacPixie

Well another day another dollar so they say. I think i need to get a 2010/2011 diary and start writing down what is due when. My dad is off to friends garage today, i resisted the urge to get him to enquire about the PT Cruiser. My little hatchback, well not that little she is a laguna is a nightmare in the slippy icey weather. DH going to work at 4am on untreated roads hit some black ice, he kept her on the road thankfully but he really is not happy with the idea ofhaving to collect me and bump from hospital in it and me driving DD1, 2 and bump around in her in feb/march.

LilacPixie

OK I folded first and went to see the PT cruiser, looks nice enough but apparently to be avoided. He does have a 2001 Mazda 626 though which seems ok.

LilacPixie

Arrrggghhhhh you know what my husband is just an idiot, told him i didn't like the PT Cruiser but i did like a mazda 626 which BTW would only cost my car as trade in and £250 so less than the cost of new car seats for the kids and the britax fit finder says our existing seats fit etc etc. So off he toddles down, bare in mind we would be replacing my car for something for me to drive with 3 kids in it. Now I point plank refuse to have a MPV and my car is a renault and the electrics can be problematic so I wanted to avoid french cars as a whole. I wan Audi, BMW or something japanese. At a push a ford mondeo or a volvo. Basically large saloon for 3 kids plus pram. So he goes has a look and decides he wants to buy a RENAULT SENIC. Its a 2.0l petrol and the best part of 4k after a trade in. Mazda in his opinion is too old at 9 years and thats a 2.0 diesel. I am so annoyed, requirments been totally ignored not to mention where the hell does 4k come from!!!!

I need a drink...... or a punch bag.

babyb06

Wow - you are busy!

The whole car seat combo seems a nightmare - never thought it could be so complicated.

I understand where you are coming from with the loan from your parents - I hate owing money and don't like borrowing from my parents (although I do lend it to others!) but as they have said to me, we like helping, it makes us happy to see you buying a house etc, it is more help now than an inheritance in the future. Your dad wouldn't lend the money unless he could afford it and I am sure he just wants to help as much as he can and make your life easier. So accept the help and in return they could be the first people you invite for dinner around your 10 seater table!

cha97michelle

poundland do the 2011 diaries. I picked up an A4 and A5 one in there. Hard backed. Ok.

Don't blame you for wanting to be safe in whichever car. It might be better to go backwards for a few months financially to do it. It will work out as it should.

CathT

busy times Lilac. I remember getting stung with council tax when we moved from a band B to an E. We moved end of Jan and i was quite shocked to receive another bill to cover me till April. I was under the impression that i'd paid a full year in my old house and my sellers had paid a full year for mine. Shock costs when you move are not nice at all!