Eager Elephant's Effective Everyday Excursion ...

Eager_Elephant

Just checked my Halifax c/c - balance is £872.55 with today's payment.
That works out at £29.08 per day so need to get my finger out!!

Obviously I get paid at end of March so any residue could be paid off out of that wage packet.


Work update - we are all still facing redundancy because one of the contracts is due to end 31/3 but no word either way has been given. The 2 contracts I work on are good for another year although of course that does not mean I won't lose my job as all the people with the same job title get redundancy letters and then we all apply for our jobs again and there may be more people than jobs.


I don't let it stress me - what will be, will be. If I have to go part time I am looking forward to doing the smallholding as my part time job.


Post has just been delivered and I have letters from Santander to tell me my esavers will change to Everday savers from 31/5. Interest will go from 1% to .5%.
Just checked online and esavers are only for 12mths and then change so I will make a note that at the end of May I have to open more esavers and close the old ones.
I know it isn't much interest really but as each account has money paid in at the end of each month and little bits are transferred out throughout the month it's not too bad as none really carry a balance of more than £50 over the month (I have rec'd 40p, 44p + 22p so far this year on those 3 accounts. I also have another 5 which haven't been open a year yet).


Need to look into a regular saver once I have my Halifax c/c paid off.

debtfreewannabe321

I swear our husbands are the same man! Mine is exactly the same with spending. I've paid his credit card off so many times he tells me it's because "it's impossible to live on £100 a month" now this is true, but considering I budget and pay for all the living costs, food, days out, restaurant trips & clothes I think £100 for a month's pocket money is ok especially when we're trying to save to buy a house. His credit card sits at £248. AGAIN. I kind of give up!

I hate food shopping so i can see why you've gone to monthly deliveries again! The sky multi room can you not take the extra out of ds's pocket money? I certainly would if it were my ds

I hope you have a good day and enjoy the doggy walks! I'm feeling too lazy to take the dog out so I let him out the front just now and let him have a run around there how lazy is that! I have to say though he gets a walk every day usually only once though. (about 3 miles) but you call him for a second and he totally ignores you lol....suppose he has got small legs though xx

Eager_Elephant

debtfreewannabe321 wrote: »

I swear our husbands are the same man! Mine is exactly the same with spending. I've paid his credit card off so many times he tells me it's because "it's impossible to live on £100 a month" now this is true, but considering I budget and pay for all the living costs, food, days out, restaurant trips & clothes I think £100 for a month's pocket money is ok especially when we're trying to save to buy a house. His credit card sits at £248. AGAIN. I kind of give up!

I hate food shopping so i can see why you've gone to monthly deliveries again! The sky multi room can you not take the extra out of ds's pocket money? I certainly would if it were my ds

I hope you have a good day and enjoy the doggy walks! I'm feeling too lazy to take the dog out so I let him out the front just now and let him have a run around there how lazy is that! I have to say though he gets a walk every day usually only once though. (about 3 miles) but you call him for a second and he totally ignores you lol....suppose he has got small legs though xx

Luckily DH can't get any credit - he maxed out all his cards before he got ill and when he was ill he defaulted on them all.
I think it's for the best as he cannot be trusted with credit of any kind.
I am now tucking most of his money away in an account he can't see and then I pay for all the petrol/diesel and if it's DH's turn to buy transfer it out of savings to my account.


The multi-room will be coming out of DH's wages - DS does not actually want multi-room, he has some basic Sky channels already. It is DH with the issue, I don't understand why he can't do something else when they watch the main TV - like go on his tablet (2mths old) or his phone or read?!?!?


Have been out to a fundraiser thing and spent £10 but all to a good cause. Have popped to Morrisons and spent £43 and now have a 4000 point voucher to use in next few weeks.


Plus ordered a months worth of cat food from Zooplus - never ordered from there before but it is very cheap so will use them regularly.


Going out later to a baby shower to a girl I don't really like, she is more of an acquaintance. My bestie has made nappy flowers and a cake of clothes so we have gone halves on the cost.
Will be home by 8.15pm!!


Hope you have had a good day.

Eager_Elephant

Paying off my credit card has gone a bit by the wayside in the last few weeks :mad:


We've had loads of animal related expenses and there was not enough in the pot to pay them all so they came out of my account - I was just going to pay myself back gradually over the next few months but I spoke to DH and he said we would just go halves on whatever we have spent instead of me waiting to be paid back.
The extra expenses were the dog and her vaccinations and microchip + a monthly payment to a PetPlan; the kitten has been spayed (we had to do this now as she was getting too friendly with the cat that came with the dog); plus we had a months worth of chicken feed.


We have also spent extra money on fencing as we will be setting up the chickens into proper pens instead of free-ranging the whole field and today we got 2 piglets so had to buy electric fencing and wire plus feed for them but in 4-5mths we will have a freezer full of pork.


Paying back the credit card is not likely to happen by end of March - I might have to extend it to end of April which I am annoyed about but I haven't even started selling on ebay yet.


I mentioned before about my job and redundancy - we got confirmation the other day that we are all ok for another 6 months.


Both my credit cards will be paid off by then and I will have even more savings so I am not too worried about what will happen.


Not much going on here - just balanced all the accounts today and will stop spending any money at all as still 2 weeks to go until pay day and I want to make some PADs still.

Eager_Elephant

Happy Easter


Finally managed to get a few bits on ebay - I have already sold a presentation pack of stamps for £6.00 so that money has gone to my Halifax c/c.

Sadly that is the only PAD I have made for ages.

Got paid at the end of March and have some spare money but I am worried about PADing it as we are still building the fencing and need to buy the chickens plus of course we need petrol til the end of the month.

If I don't PAD I will just spent it and have nothing to show for it - aarrgghh!! Decisions Decisions!!

Am trying to reduce the food bill, have done my 3 shops at Sainsburys and now have a £50 off £100 spend for April.
I also had a voucher for Lidl, £10 off a £50 spend which ran out yesterday so on Thursday I went a did a shop and stocked up on bits and pieces.
I am hoping I can get through April with the £100 Sainsburys shop and bits and pieces from the greengrocers.

I have joined My Coupons with Sainsburys which is a site that lets you have 5 coupons which you keep in a virtual wallet and once you have brought the item and used your Nectar card you get the extra points.
I did this 2 weeks ago for a home delivery I already has arranged and had bought some of the items but none of them credited so after 12 days I emailed Sainsburys and after lots of toing and froing that have manually credited my points.
On another home delivery I used a voucher for 600 points if you spend over £30 - that credited in 4 days.

I wonder if there is an issue with home deliveries on MyCoupons so I will try it again when I have my next delivery - if it's doesn't credit again then I will try buying instore instead. It is worth it because a lot of the extra points are on things I already buy.

Am also following Marie Kondo (sorry to those who know this from reading other threads) and it is working wonders.
I did mine to start but did it drawer by drawer and so I still have bits to do, I have got rid of so much, some has gone in the bin and the majority went to charity.
DH thinks it's great and asked to do his so last Sunday we did his - I emptied his chest of drawers and wardrobe on to the bed and we sorted through.
I reckon he must have had over 100 tops, we are down to about 40-50:T. The problem we have is that DH relegates old t-shirts down to field wear but as he has do many none of them get worn so he just ends up keeping it all and his drawers are always full. he now has 5 tshirts for the field and about 15 for normal plus all his work shirts.
You can actually fit things in his wardrobe with ease.

I have done some of DS' wardrobe, he is a hoarder so I did it when he was at college one day:rotfl:.
Just need to get him to look through all his books (he has kept some from when he was a toddler and says he is saving them for his children, he is 18 and children are a long way off!!)

Need to do DD's with her as I got rid of some of her PJ's and she went mad:(. Too be fair they were age 8-9 shorts and an old tshirt and she is now 12. Plus she has some lovely matching PJ's I got her last year which she does not wear.

I have been on annual leave since Thursday and have been doing more and more sorting. One of the charity shops I use has a clothing bank outside the back door so I can drop off at any time - I have loads of stickers with my name and address on from Royal mail survey so I have been sticking a sticker on and writing Gift Aid so hopefully they can make a little bit more from them. It's a nuisance when you work as the only time I can usually go is weekends and town is very busy on a Saturday.

Today I am trying to get some washing done and will do some more sorting and then going up the field to help with the new fencing and to clear some more bramble.

Forgot to mention that I am now Chairman of the Allotment Committee, it has been hard work but we are getting there and it will be nice to see the allotments start being worked as they have not been for years and are all overgrown.

Taking this on has made me consider all my other Committees and whether they bring me joy - I am about 75% decided that I will leave one of my committee's after the big event later this year.
I need to simplify my life and Marie Kondo is my hero as her book has really made me consider everything in my life.
DH better watch out as he could be next!!!

Eager_Elephant

Feeling bad about the lack of PAD's so have made a payment of £21.00 to my H credit card.

Igamogam

Eager_Elephant wrote: »

Feeling bad about the lack of PAD's so have made a payment of £21.00 to my H credit card.

How about just PADDING say £1 a day.You won't miss it and that way something is paid and you don't feel guilty - it's one less pound spent on 'stuff' Anything else you can add to it is a bonus then.

Hope yout have sunshine. I am in full KM swing here. Just having a minute cos thought I may be starting with a migraine.......dehydrated !

Eager_Elephant

Igamogam wrote: »

How about just PADDING say £1 a day.You won't miss it and that way something is paid and you don't feel guilty - it's one less pound spent on 'stuff' Anything else you can add to it is a bonus then.

Hope yout have sunshine. I am in full KM swing here. Just having a minute cos thought I may be starting with a migraine.......dehydrated !

Thanks Ig,


I either try to PAD the same amount as the day so today I would PAD £6 and then tomorrow I would PAD £7.00 or I PAD £1.00 plus the pence for the day so today I could have done £1.06 and tomorrow £1.07 (I do it that way so I can keep track of the payments and make sure none go astray).


The £21 I did was the amount in pounds for each day of the month so far.


We don't have any sunshine, it is just cloudy but warm enough to be outside. I am hoping the sun pops his head through later this afternoon.


Hope the migraine does not develop, I woke up with a headache and I think it is dehydration as yesterday I barely drunk anything. I find when I am at home I never drink enough whereas at work I make time for breaks including a drink.

Eager_Elephant

So yesterday I managed to get 3 loads of washing dry, I put it all away this morning.
Also went to visit a long term plot holder who may possibly give up his plots as he is now severely disabled and cannot work them.


Did some bramble cutting and also helped DH do some fencing although it did not appear to look right, DH has double checked and we need to redo some bits - only about 10 minutes worth of extra work.


Today I have done some washing and am just about to go back up to the field to do more bramble cutting and help DH with the fencing.


Just away to ring the garage as my car won't start so I need it fixed - this happens every few months when I don't use it for a day. I need to ask the garage to look into what causes it and not just keep charging the battery so it works again.

sashybo

Hi EE, sounds like you're doing well with the Kondo-ing. :T I've done a bit but only through browsing the thread on MSE. I think it's quite helpful so need to apply to other areas of the house.

I too have been rubbish at PADding.