Move mortgage mountain project

Hurdler

I have to say I use the snowball theory for my mortgage OPs - with each OP that is a lump sum repayment (eg over 3x the monthly amount in one hit) the mortgage payment for the next month comes down. Which means the next 3x OP is a little less and I have saved a little bit so can theoretically make more of an OP, which in turn reduces the monthly amount again and so on.

It gives me the flexibility to keep adding to the lump sum repayments month on month, but to be fair it all depends on what kind of repayments you can make on your mortgage, and of course what you can afford.

julliff

julliff wrote: »

Hi FN


List for this week:

• [STRIKE]Book car service and MOT;[/STRIKE]
• [STRIKE]Rearrange window and gutter cleaning (this is already paid for);[/STRIKE]
• Send old mobile phone back to Virgin for £17.00 cash payment;
• [STRIKE]Take photos to sell treadmill on Pr*loved;[/STRIKE]

[STRIKE]Arrange start date for builder to do renovations to dining room;
[/STRIKE][STRIKE]Pick up duvet set from Tesco;[/STRIKE]
[STRIKE]Travel to scuba outfitters to get fitted for drysuit.[/STRIKE]

Not feeling too bad about last weeks list, most of the stuff got done :-)

I am however, feeling extremely guilty because I have bought a drysuit, and it was a lot of money, but I fell in love with it. The man at the scuba centre did give me a good discount, but even after that I paid (gulp) £560.00. I feel so self indulgent and decadant spending that amount of money on myself. But, now I can start my open water training.

Trying to justify it to myself, I was given a set of regulators, a diving torch, a wetsuit, and a cylinder, so I have saved money on those items (the regs and the cylinder have to be serviced, but it will still save me oodles. Added to that I got a £300 bc jacket for £60.

Well, its done now, so I might as well enjoy it.

Not much to report this week:

£3 pine cone survey;
£2.40 discount on a new work skirt;
£17.00 saved on hamging basket offer (thanks MSE)

total £24.40

A bit rubbish, but it all helps.

Felt bad for dd2, and it has thrown me into a bit of an inner conflict. She is due to go on a college trip to Europe. The cost was £600 and I said I would pay half if her dad paid half (deeply manipulative of me, I know). He said he would, and he stumped up his half of the deposit. Well, now it is time to pay the balance, he says he can't afford it. I am so cross that he thinks its ok to let her down. Anyway, she tells me she is going to pay from her wages on her part time job. This was the money she was saving for Reading Festival.

Part of me wants to pay the amount for her sake, but part of me is reluctant, as I think maybe the girls are too shielded from the reality of the situation. I did get a bit cross, and said "oh, but he is still drinking and smoking" -- I regretted that as soon as I said it. Anyway, dd2 does not want me to pay, so I was thinking that maybe I would buy her some summer clothes when we go to the Trafford Centre next week (going up to collect DD1 for the Easter break). I will also buy her some currency. After its not her fault her Dad is !!!!less. Hoping to get my new 0% purchases credit card this week so I can spread the cost.

Right, will post again in a bit with a new to do list.

Secret_Saving_Squirrel

He is such an idiot. Good for you for finding a way to help her without backing down too much. Have a good weekend,

Squirrel x

julliff

Thanks SS

I think I am going to have a month off MFW, as I have had so so many expenses, and I would rather put any “extra” money to paying for these, as I don’t want to end up in debt.

I had my car serviced and MOT’d, which cost me £281 all told. This is a large amount of money, but usually it costs around the £400 mark, so I suppose you could look at it as a saving

Trip to Manchester to collect DD1 from Uni for the Easter break. That included a trip to the Trafford Centre (I did not buy much for myself other than a mascara, but I bought a couple of things for DD2, and some birthday presents for DD1), and a trip to Pizza Hut.

It was DD1s birthday this week, and as well as buying her presents, we had a trip up to London to see Wicked, and a meal out, all of which added up to a tidy sum. The spending has not quite finished yet, as she has invited my large family over on Saturday evening, so I will have to provide food/drinks and a cake!

Buying DD2 some currency for her College trip at the end of the month (grrr!)

So, I am just trying to cope with all of that, and this month there will be nothing over for OPs

Wicked was good though, but we did not get back home until 1.30am, and I get up between 5.30 and 6 for work, so I am exhausted. Think I will skip the gym tonight. Which is annoying, as I am really struggling to lose the half stone. I picked all the healthy things off the menu and have been using My Fitness Pal to keep a food diary, but so far I have lost a measly half a pound. I did go over slightly in London, but every other day I have stuck to the allowance..sigh.


Anyway, my to do list for this week, is:
[STRIKE] Take leather hadbag to be mended;[/STRIKE]
List treadmill on Pr*loved;
List DD1 prom dress on Pr*loved;
Send off phone!;
Check DD2 mobile package – showing

[FONT=&quot]–2147483648[/FONT]
(which just happens to be the minimum figure for an int value – sorry, nerd alert);
Pot plants up (currently sitting in tray of water);
Look at DD1 laptop – DVD drive not showing up in Windows 8.

Goldiegirl

Hello!

I would love to lose half a stone... Well to be honest a whole stone would be good!

In the last couple of years, I've crept up a whole dress size. I think I've been mentally making excuses for myself saying it's an age thing, but I really must nip this in the bud, as I don't want to increase further.

I do eat quite healthily- I think I need more exercise.

I'm being very focused about finances at the moment, I think I need to put the same focus on going for a walk each day.

Good luck with your efforts - you have reminded me that I need to improve in this area!

abouttimetoo

Hi Julliff

Good to see you posting again. Well done on the bargains you've got for your diving and try not to feel too guilty about the new piece of equipment, i'm sure you deserve it and this shouldn't all be about deprivation. Doing stuff 'just for you' is hard I know but I think can help with our mental wellbeing as well in our busy lives

I think you're doing the right thing re not OP'ing this month re other heavy expenses, remember you are OP'ing because *you can* not because you must so there is no need to get into debt to make an OP. I dropped my OP's right down towards the end of last year while I was making home improvements, didn't like it mind :rotfl:but was still the right thing to do

Regards
ATT

julliff

Been feeling a bit like I am not coping so well lately. A bit overwhelmed. I really don’t know how other people do it.

Anyway, to try to get some order back, I have listed a shed load of things that I need to do (this was started yesterday, so a few are done):
[STRIKE]
Plant up plugs for hanging baskets;
[/STRIKE]Return phone to Virgin;
Complete CPP claim form;
[STRIKE]
Make soup for week – curried parsnip;
[/STRIKE][STRIKE]Make oat and banana cookies for work breakfasts;[/STRIKE]
Take necklace to repairer;
Sell DD1 prom dress;
Sell treadmill;
Finish emptying out dining room for builder next week;
Find instructions for power washer;
Power wash decking;
Re string rotary airer;
Email hairdresser and make appointment;
Clean out lockup (this is a huge job!);
Sew up dress as seam is split;
[STRIKE]
Pick up new scuba mask;
[/STRIKE]Cut grass;
Deadhead daffodils;
Iron work blouses (I iron as little as possible, but work blouses need to be crisp);
Sort out old shoes from understairs cupboard, as want the space for storing scuba kit.

To be honest, by the time I have worked all day, cooked, washed and shopped, I just about manage to keep the kitchen and bathrooms clean, and then I run out of steam. The only way I could do more would be to give up scuba or the gym. I’m not even practising my guitar much these days. I am so disorganised.

Trying hard not to spend money too, until I have paid off my stonking credit card balance from last month (I will do this by taking a larger dividend from my co, and taking less next month – that’s better than paying interest on an outstanding balance).

I am still trying to read other diaries, so that I remain motivated (and amused too, there are some lovely folk out there). Thanks everyone :j

Primrose

Julliff. If you are trying to reduce the stress in your life I'd suggest you reposition restringing your rotary airer to the bottom of your list. :eek:It looks a fairly straightforward job in principle but is more complicated in practice and unfortunately you have to remove the old stringing first so then have no remaining example to look at to see where the odd complicated twirly knotting devices are interspaced .

If anybody has a diagram of how it's done, perhaps they could give us all a weblink to reduce our collective blood pressures as ours needs doing too!

Don't get downhearted. Just try to take each day as it comes.

gallygirl

Primrose wrote: »

Julliff. If you are trying to reduce the stress in your life I'd suggest you reposition restringing your rotary airer to the bottom of your list. :eek:It looks a fairly straightforward job in principle but is more complicated in practice and unfortunately you have to remove the old stringing first so then have no remaining example to look at to see where the odd complicated twirly knotting devices are interspaced .

If anybody has a diagram of how it's done, perhaps they could give us all a weblink to reduce our collective blood pressures as ours needs doing too!

Don't get downhearted. Just try to take each day as it comes.

Trust me. Life's too short. buy a new one :eek:

Primrose

:rotfl: obviously somebody who has already tried to do it!