Trying to take the stress out of the debt - little steps

Triggles · 29 September 2009 at 9:39PM

Argh!! Sick sick sick! Between computer problems, sick kids, and sick me, it's been a long week with no input here. But I'm feeling better, kids getting better, computer sorted. So things are hopefully back to normal.

DH off work this week. We've gotten some DIY started and some "reclaiming" of bits of the house from the clutter. All our ebay stuff sold, has been sent, and now we're getting ready to put some more things on ebay this week.

I need to look at school stuff - I don't have a clue about when we need to register our 3yo for school, but I figure I need to check into it as we have a few choices all about equidistant from us.

Well, off to take care of the baby and get him settled for the night. Will be a bit more normal sort tomorrow. LOL

slm6002 · 29 September 2009 at 11:11PM

i am currently having issues with my laptop as space bar not working pro perly unless i hit it quite hard. making typing very long winded.
My dd starts school next sept so i have to register her by end of jan i think. recently visited catchment area school but didnt take to it. going to look at the school thats closer to us(not the catchment area one) end of october. i'm hoping this one will have a slightly more structured approach

Triggles · 30 September 2009 at 12:38PM

Finally, back on track and getting things done. Have gotten a bunch of DIY stuff done today, which we've been putting off. Already taken care of laundry, bottles, sterilising fluid, washing up. DH put up a strip of coat hooks in the hallway for the kids' jackets, a small corner shelf in the downstairs bathroom, curtain rod up in downstairs bathroom and has started preparing the living room to do some painting tonight after the kids are in bed. I felt very OS and clever today, as I took our old net curtains from the living room (which I recently replaced as they were torn at the bottom edge), cut it down the middle, trimmed the bottom edge, and the two halves work perfectly for our downstairs bathroom window and upstairs bathroom window!! :j So two curtains put up with no extra money spent!! And now the downstairs bathroom is looking quite nice!

Off to tuck in to a lunch of beans on toast, and then back to the cleaning/DIY for today.

Triggles · 30 September 2009 at 3:37PM

Alright. I've signed us up for the October grocery challenge (£200 for month, including food, household items, formula, & nappies for 2), started browsing the Flylady thread to get into the routine of cleaning (although not braved joining it yet!), and done just a bit more DIY.

Net curtain now up in dining room, and this evening another net curtain will go up in the upstairs bathroom. (Yup, I like them - gives some semblance of privacy while still letting light in!) We were going to do a beef roast this weekend, but noted that pork roast was on sale, so will be doing that instead! It'll be a nice change, anyway.

Tonight will be a relaxing evening of DVD, glass of wine, and nice fire in the fireplace for DH & I after kids are in bed. Ahhhhhhh.... the good life....

Triggles · 1 October 2009 at 11:31AM

Getting strict with the grocery budget starting today. I'm withdrawing £200 cash and that is it for the month. No more ££ until 1 November. End of. That's it. I have to stay within budget. I do sooo much better staying on budget for grocery expenses when I am dealing in cash. It's far too easy to just slap it on the debit card if it goes over the planned amount. But to put myself through the embarrassment of having to put something back at the end of the shop because I've gone over? :eek: No thanks - THAT will keep me in line!! :rotfl:Then I religiously keep a running mental tally of the spend as I shop. MUCH better that way!

We have to make a few purchases at B&Q today - some paint and supplies for the living room. I hate spending the money, but I look at it as an investment and a necessity. We NEED to finish the room (as well as other rooms in the house), so we need to spend a little money. We will just have to make sure we don't spend unwisely in the process.

Not much sleep in the last few nights, due to baby waking a lot (for both DH & myself as we share the duties this week as he is on holiday from work this week). It does make getting in gear a bit of a challenge, as sometimes all we want to do is sleep. LOL It also makes sticking to the menu a bit more of a challenge, as it would be soooooo easy to order takeaway/delivery instead of fussing about the kitchen cooking. *sigh* The temptation is unreal!

Triggles · 3 October 2009 at 10:00AM

Little things again today. Gotta get them all done. Curtains up in upstairs bathroom. Paint trimming around edges of living room. Curtain rod up in third bedroom. Withdraw winnings from bingo site (won from free bonus money yay!). And of course, cleaning.

Dishes washed up. Laundry washing now. Bottles washed, sterilised, and made for the day. Will need to sweep kitchen and dining room, then mop tonight before going to bed. Can't believe how much more room in the dining room now that DH locks up his bike in the outside shed instead of it being in the dining room! LOL And I put a lovely tablecloth with lace overlay on the table yesterday, so the table looks nice - sounds silly, but it really makes the room look nice.

MIL & SIL coming to visit today, but already have some baked goods to serve with tea/coffee, so don't have to scramble to get that done. Yes, it's just one of those things with me - if I know someone is coming over to visit, I feel it's only polite to have something to go with the coffee/tea. One of the "that's how I grew up" things, I guess.

DH is also going to be taking down the old shelf (left by previous residents) by the television and putting up a nice new one (with matching brackets and everything :rolleyes: unlike the current one!). The big goal is to get it all sorted nicely with what is NECESSARY on it - telephone, baby monitor parent unit, and wireless router. And maybe my oil/wax burner. And make sure NOTHING ELSE gets put on it!!! It tends to be a bit of a junk catcher, so I want to stop that now that it's a nice new shelf. It just seems like certain key areas in the house attract junk and it drives me mental!

slm6002 · 3 October 2009 at 11:03PM

sounds like you are really getting sorted. My OH has a very long list of DIY jobs to do that has been getting larger for many many months now. He has a week off in nov so hopefully a few bits will be done.
i was really lazy today and did near enough nothing but sit on the sofa. The kids and i just relaxed all day and a very lazy dinner of pasta with tomato sauce (from freezer).

Triggles · 6 October 2009 at 9:39AM

I need to dig out loan paperwork today! I believe we have a loan that is paid off as of last month's payment! So not only do I need to verify it, but check with the bank, as they just took a payment out for October, and it should be paid off! So that is my mission today - find that loan paperwork and double check it! That's another £165 that we can use to pay other bills.

We managed to finish painting (except for the ceiling) the living room this last week. I am so incredibly pleased that we've finally gotten it done. It can be a real bear trying to find time to do DIY with 2 little ones in the house! And of course, because we were tied up doing painting, we didn't get DS2 to the potty as frequently as we should have (potty training) and now he doesn't want to use the potty, he is just weeing in his pants again!!! :mad: I may go spare today over this alone!!

I have a nagging cough and a fussy baby today, so not sure how much I'll get done. We'll see......