My debt free journey

bramble1

Did a food shop today - spent £33, only thing i couldn't get was chicken drumsticks, only had the massive packs!!!

Worried about how we will survive this month, OH is due to be paid £450, but he's got a loan payment of £240 outstanding, and i think we've both got bank charges coming out in January. He needs to put an invoice in to his boss soon.

I took all my money out of the bank so atleast i've got it. Bank charges can wait till pay day, I can't starve and need money to get to work.
Looking through the cupboard we've got loads of tins of soup, spag hoops, little things that can be eaten for lunch, breakfast will be porridge or cereal, we have so much. Dinners - i need to find somewhere that has slow cooker recipes.

Going to put my old laptop on ebay. Could do that today really. Got to dig through all my other stuff as well, see what else i can sell. Maybe put my books on...

bramble1

Well i've been really good at keeping my spending and eating diary.

Going to plan my lunches for next week today. I am so looking forward to going back to work and getting back into the swing of things! I need routine in my life. Nice relaxing day today, going to start the book i got for my birthday, take a nice long bubble bath and look forward to coming year.

bramble1

Back to work today, nice to be in the routine again, verrrry tired though!

Been trying so hard to eat well, dying for a cookie now though and a cup of tea! - How boring for a Saturday night haha.

Need to go food shopping tomorrow so will be trying to plan my meals this evening...

Wanted to so a yaki soba dish ( i think thats what it's called) but need to price up ingredients and find a recipe too!!

Was also thinking of
Homemade Burgers (make a batch and freeze some)
Spaghetti Bog
Minted Lamb Chops and Mash
Chicken and Potatoes

andddd i'm stuck! No idea what else!

bramble1

Got up nice and early today, cleaned house, put washing in machine and went food shopping. Spent £30.02 which is good, improvment on last week.

Decided on the following for dinner

Stuffed chicken thighs, potatoes and yorkshires
Chicken tonight and rice
Spag bol
Burgers
Steak
Sausage and Mash
New York Chicken.

The stuffed chicken thighs we've never had before but they look really good!

Got some bread rising in the airing cupboard as we speak, need to take the dog out and then i can totally relax!

bramble1

i just wrote the longest entry and it got deleted.....

basically
bad

started using credit card because i have run out of money for the rest of this month......

bad
ate chocolate bar, crisps,

good
walked to station this morning

good
food shop for week should come to under £30...

penguin83

Sorry to hear you are short this month Bramble, how long until you get paid again?

Well done on the grocery spend though that is very good xx

bramble1

Don't get paid till the 29th! We always knew this month was going to be tight so it's not too much of a shock, just need to keep plodding along! I'm pretty much just waiting till next month because then i know i can start to tackle my debts and just get my life organised in general!

bramble1

Sooooo this month now we are basically just surviving. Possibly my best intentions of paying loads of debt off next month are going to pot too. I have overdraft charges of £200 to repay, a phone bill to pay off and pet insurance.

So new plan. Keep record of exactly how much money i have, what's been spent and why i've spent it.

Feb, minimum payment on credit card, £20 on next account and get bank charges sorted. THen hopefully no more bank charges, everything will be hunky dory, due to get commission next month so that can got toward credit card.

I want to get debt free, but i need to live too. My life is on hold pretty much right now, i need to get back into the things that make me happy.

Reading is one of them, so i've started a book i was given for my birthday this week, should be done with it by the end of the weekend, have joined a book swapping site, will add my books this weekend and hopefully thats a free hobby for me to get back into.

One thing i am spending money on next month is i am going to join Weight Watchers. I've tried to lose the excess baggage myself for 2 years and it's not working, i need to bite the bullet and i know if it's costing me money i will want to succeed. This will also make me a happier person.

I've got some other things bubbling but before they're concrete won't spill, you never know who reads these!

Sooo need to sit down and work out finances all over again!!

Oh, still not go house deposit back, so logging a dispute with the people holding the tenancy and hopefully we shall get it back soon! Then all my problems will be gone! (well not all, but it would make things alot better!!)

bramble1

Bit of luck got £1000 back from our deposit for the house,, this was all my money to begin with so i shall be nice and pay £100 off OH's credit card and use the rest to sort myself out!

Bank Charges can be paid off

next account will be paid off

Money onto CC

Car back on road

join WW

Feeling VERY positive today!!

bramble1

OH needs to pay his loan, 2 months worth of it AND his bank charges...i don't know what to do. Do i use my own money to help him - bearing in mind i've spend the last 3 years bailing him out, or leaving him to it. I want him to write to the bank and try to get a reduced payment plan, not sure how keen he will be on this but i don't think we've got much option right now.

I want to sort MY debts out. Is that selfish of me?

Just checked his account, he owes £450 on his loan and £250 on being over his overdraft. he's due to get paid £500 this week so i guess thats a start. he really needs to get a job!

I'm thinking

£191 toward overdraft charges. There will be more charges to come out next month so will have to account for them in my Jan pay packet, but then that should be it over and done with.

£200 towards CCs - £100 on mine and £100 on OH's

£98.51 to pay off next account

£200 on car to get it on the road and taxed.

£100 to my dad

leaves just over £200. Food shopping, join WW and just keep some in the bank i think. Oh and pet insurance and mobile phone bill, OH needs to pay for his phone bill too and car insurance and tractor insurance - guess who will have to fork out for that!!

I'm also going to reduce my overdraft by £50 this month.

No idea what to do about OH i think he is just burying his head in the sand like i did. He needs to work this one out himself i think .