Do I run too tight a budget?

Zazen999

I don't think it's tight at all; that budget.

However I think £1k on a fortnight's holiday is money well spent.

Perhaps it's a question of not having your priorities right?

January20

Any wrote: »

I completely agree with everything that was said appart from the above.

I have worked too hard all my life to walk around with a fiver in my pocket and my friends asked to have quick glass of wine after work I would have to decline...

I think £150 is just right. Especially if it covers presents to each other.

I'm a cheap date...:rotfl::rotfl:
Seriously though, I don't spend £150 a month on pocket money, and I don't deprive myself from anything I want. But what matters is what the OP and her OH think.

katie1234

i have the same take on money as you do and save almost the same amount. i desperately want to move house and due to the amount of negative equity on the property this is my way to do it. my OH hates it however. i would rather get by now and be thankful later. he does it to keep me happy. however, it leaves us with no 'spends' each month which is hard sometimes so if u both get money to treat yourselves with every month i say stick to your guns. it would probably only rain the whole holiday anyway!!

Any

January20 wrote: »

I'm a cheap date...:rotfl::rotfl:
Seriously though, I don't spend £150 a month on pocket money, and I don't deprive myself from anything I want.

No, I probably don't any more... But when I worked in a centre I would buy myself a lunch (even cheap one) and this and that.. It would have probably amounted to that (especially with hair cut every now and then, that was my spend too)... It easily adds up.

Now I work away from centre, have to do my lunch every day (hate it) and there is nowhere to "pop" for drink without having to drive home..

I preffered the first option... however my new job was good carier move, so had to be done..:)

peachyprice

I don't think your budget is too tights, but you can't go through life just seeing the goal, you have to stop every now and again to enjoy the journey.

You'll never get these years back with your children, is it so bad of your OH to want one nice holiday you will remember for years if it means reaching your goal a few months later?

eleanor73

I am over the top sometimes when it comes to looking after my pennies (and pounds!) but give yourself the holiday (in my opinion) -it sounds like you deserve it. Also really it should be a discussion rather than a dismissal should it not? I don't mean that in a critical way - I just know I am very like you with my partner and would react in the same way so can spot it a mile off in others!:)

DKLS

Like all diets a financial diet can be very miserable, its important to remember the value of something instead of just the price.

Say the holiday costs 2k all in, yes its a lot of money but if the holiday is a great one it will be remembered for years, a chance to re-charge, see somewhere different and do something different from the normal day to day grind etc. For me that would be well worth the money, spent and it can always be clawed back from other areas if needs be.

slightlyconfused1

Hi
I agree with a lot of the posters above. Life can be really short.

When my DD was born an amazing bit of advice we received was "spend time building memories". The person that gave us the advice was an incredibly successful, wealthy man that had missed out on all the fun with his kids and knew he could never get the time back. We have tried to compromise along the way. We have our amazing life in the country, but with a mortgage.

I think it is great that you are looking to the future but you need to take time to enjoy life along the way. It sounds like you have a good balance with saving/ spending but renting a holiday cottage at the beach will not put your plans back that far.

Your OH "likes camping well enough" doesn't sound over enthusiastic to me.

The fact that your OH went to the trouble of finding the cottage indicates that he really wants this. Why not enjoy the holiday and build some memories. It will only set your long term plans back a couple of months.

andrealm

If you have children I think £150 each personal spending money is quite generous, OH shouldn't feel hard done by with that. I know we had a lot more disposable income to spend on ourselves before we had children.

I think money spent on a family holiday is money well spent. I'd cut back a bit on personal spending if it meant we could have a good holiday, something you can look back on in years to come. I've never been a fan of camping and really wouldn't want to do it with young children. Maybe you could compromise and stay in a caravan or find something cheaper?

JodyBPM

Thanks for all the replies - a bit of a mixed bunch, some seeing it from my POV and some from my DH's I'd say.

Will have a chat with DH this evening, but I was thinking about a compromise - one week, rather than two, and doing a big supermarket shop when we get there and taking pack ups with us for days out and an agreed spending budget for activities. Does this seem reasonable, or (especially to those who are seeing it from my DH's point of view) would you feel that I'm diluting his "fun" by suggesting the compromise ie carrying the MSing into the holiday, rather than an escape from it.

I'll see what he thinks.