Want to be a mfw but worried?

ally18

Thanks smlsave and sara, haven't looked at mortgage calc all afternoon :T, its starting to feel like an addiction, daft really isn't it.

Sara, its really difficult knowing what to do, glad I'm not alone in that. Kids are more important really so still going to see what they want to do, it might be they don't want to go on holiday with me anyway at their age, 16, 14 and 11. Problem solved then.

Have just checked my bank account and its looking so weird, should be about -2100 cos of car loan but its gone up to - 1000, which looks fab but I know its not real, car ins to come out plus other bills. Still less interest this month to pay. Don't mind that anyway as using the mortgage reserve is loads better than having an actual loan, what a good idea B***ys!

cha97michelle

I've had a similar rant this week on my diary after forking out £1100 on the CC in the qst 3 days of the month before any food or diesel/petrol. Wouldn't be so bad if it had been treats for us but it was all absolute essentials like my car being Mot'd and serviced, paying the huge vet bill after having the cat ill and then having to have him put down, and house building and contents insurance.

I will have managed to physically overpay only £8 this month, and have set aside about another £40 but daren't send it as i know there is nothing else coming in.

I alternate between feeling ill at trying to juggle it all, and then angry that life has to be so hard and expensive at the moment. My biggest fear is i will have to put our term right back up when the rates go up and wipe out my efforts to now, and all the effort will have been for nothing.

Is it better to live in ignorance and spend everything you have on treats?

We have to keep the faith don't we that we are doing the right thing and things will get better as a result.

ally18

Hi Michelle, a big hug for you

Yes I suppose we do have to just keep our chins up and hope we are doing the best all the time, have a rant, I think you have to just to keep going otherwise it stays inside and festers. I sometime wonder if having a car is worth the expense because all they do is eat money don't they but I so like having the freedom to just get in the car and drive whenever I want to. I wouldn't be able to do that using public transport, it just couldn't work and I wouldn't get anywhere so its pros and cons all the time.

I haven't paid anything off my mortgages for some time now apart from the little £6 and £5 extra on the so each month. I really have to get my car loan out of the way as that is a debt but hopefully that will be gone by April/May so I can start and put that money away for my target. Have to be honest though, I am worried about what I will do when the rates start moving up as things will be tight for me by the end of this year but hopefully we have a little more time before then.

I've even joined the Old Style forum now, going to start and do more os things as I can to save money.

The things we do eh?

A

cha97michelle

I've also turned to OS to try and help with keeping my pennies. I think it really helps to know we are not alone in the battle of balancing the books.

I feel less ranty this week and i am just trying to make the best of a bad job for this month. Give us another month or two and christmas will be well behind us and we won't need to pay so much on electric and gas and we might be better off.

Is it just OS you are looking at? I've been meaning to check out the gardening and the special occasions boards too. I wish i had more hours in the day to do all i want to. I don't know how people who work out the home do it all.

Have a lovely week. x

ally18

Hiya Michelle,

No, I've started to look at all of them tbh, you wouldn't believe the tips you can pick up and the support on here is absolutely fab.

I've even got my ingrediants ready to start and make my own laundry gloop, how money saving is that! :j God knows what it will be like but loads of people say it works and for a fraction of what we normally have to pay for cleaning products. Plus I'm terrible at spending money on convenience grocery foods so I'm going to stop that if I can and start cooking at weekends and freezing. I spent £50 last week on nothing and fridge is nearly empty already!

Will get there eventually.

GeorgieFTB

ally18 wrote: »

I have seriously thought of removing the money I put away for a holiday now or perhaps halve it, will discuss it with kids tonight. The thing is though that I feel awful if i cant treat them to something at least once a year plus I have to admit, some kind of break is what I look forward to as well. Whats the point of scrimping and saving now just to pay the m off if my kids are not enjoying their lives as much as I want them to, after all this is the time they remember most. The trouble is you never know what to do for the best. I wish I was not a Libran, because I can never make decisions!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, moan is now over, there are so many people out there in a worse situation than me, in fact I'm not in a bad situation, I don't know what I'm talking about today so please ignore this post.

Its fine to have a rant, as you've seen I can rant my way through life, makes everything seem... less after a while. About the holiday, I'd say get the kids involved, mine are 10 years younger than yours but I'm starting them thinking about budgets. Give them a slightly stingy budget and tell them when and any conditions, eg I need a pool/beach, tell them any money they don't use for the flights/hotel they can have as spending money and see how creative they get, good lessons for them and cheeper holiday for you. The added incentive if they plan it they can plan their time away from you as they wish, you might want to make another condition that you have one evening meal together. You can always threaten a dayglo pink bikini:eek: if they argue too much when planning it!:rotfl:

Gx

SmlSave

Ohhh, ally if you find the laundry gloop works well for you may I have the recipe?

ally18

Hiya smlsave,

Yep will let you know what it is like.

Update, had no spend days this week so far but did spend £5 on icecreams at the park Sunday. It was cold, windy but just had to do it.

Pay day still too far away.

Jar total - £8.75 (not much but as this is just loose change that I have in my purse, it is mounting up. Going to see what it is by xmas 11)

ally18

My monthly update -

MFW No 16. M2 TARGET bal Dec 11 = £14,000.00
M2 start bal Oct 10 = £17.103.03
M2 current bal Dec 10 = £16,926.52
O/P total (being saved in sav act)=£210 end Jan 11
Car Loan now 1665/5100 end Jan 11


Grocery spend last week £37 - total for month so far £140/210 so some left. Oooops spent £5 today in Mr Ts, going to make some twinks for kids and got some reduced bits. Total now £145/210

Managed to get diesel to last this month, finally put in £34/40 yesterday so again some left.

Haven't spent much this month apart from £40 on an exercise bike last weekend, have lost 1lb through using that.

On the plus side everything going down steadily so far.
On the bad side, bf decided to go back to ex wife last week. :sad:

SmlSave

On the bad side, bf decided to go back to ex wife last week

Would you like us to send him bad vibes? ....may his hair fall out....may his hair fall our.....and his *** fall off.....