Sorting through my rubbish

3_kids_2_jobs_1_dog

Yeay, its Friday (does happy dance :j:dance::j)
Been a bit fed up at work lately (various pressures, lack of staff etc) but today got a beautiful bouquet of flowers thanking me for my efforts, no idea who they are from but have really made my day!

Got a lovely family weekend planned and will not let the attrocious weather dampen our fun!

So all in all a great Friday, no MSE wisdom to impart, but have a lovely weekend one and all!

321 xxx

JoJoC

What a lovely gesture from your mystery appreciator! It really does make all the difference to feel appreciated and be treated - well done.

Enjoy your family weekend!

lucielle

Always nice to receive something unexpected.
L

3_kids_2_jobs_1_dog

Hi All

Payday yesterday so first £500 payment made to my snowball (will amend signature later), feels like I might be in with a chance of clearing this at last. May be able to pay a little more at the end of the month once I see how things pan out.

I have been offered promotion at work, not a job I really want so am holding out to see what is on the table, may be too good to refuse or may not be worth the aggro!!

DH still not back at work and may be off for a couple more months yet but at least he is getting plenty of work done on the new house!

Oh and JoJo and Lucille - had a box of choccies given to me at work today! Someone's trying to butter me up!!:rotfl:

321 xxx

3_kids_2_jobs_1_dog

Hi All

Been MIA again - sorry!

Had a lovely, frugal, weekend, trying to keep bills down now there are only 3 of us at home (in the past there were frequently 7 in the house). Lots of cheap but tasty meals, having friends/family round for drinks rather than going out, dog walks, chilling in the garden and home pampering treatments.

Been a very busy/stressful/expensive time, DH still off of work, DD started a new school and DS2 went off to Uni. I have battled through all of the expense of new uniform, Uni kit out etc without putting things on my credit cards.

Through paying off some credit card balances in July, closing some accounts and being meticulous in making payments on time etc I have managed to get my credit rating from a low poor to a very high excellent. I have taken the opportunity to clear my remaining credit cards with a loan fixed at 3.2%, obviously a lot lower than I was paying on the cards. The payments are less each month than I was paying in minimum charges and I have taken it for 5 years, my plan being to pay it off in 3 years. I have closed three more credit cards and just kept two open for emergency funds (REAL emergencies) and to keep my credit rating up (access to credit which is not used helps your score apparently). I know consolidation loans are frowned upon but I feel this is the best course for me.

I'm hoping the household bills willl be reduced now that DS2 is at Uni, less power and water obviously and less food, plus we can make more use of cheap/reduced foods and stretch things a little further.

Have a great day

321 xxx

3_kids_2_jobs_1_dog

Hi All,

Beautiful day here!

DH is still off of work but is making himself very useful around the home. He has sorted through the two freezers and made a list of what food we have and planned the meals for this week. Last night we had chicken kebabs using frozen chicken skewers left over from previous bbqs and frozen reduced pitta breads, salad and mayo, they were lovely! Tonight is Taco Tuesday :rotfl:, not sure what the rest of the week holds but should be nice and frugal given all of the food we have stashed away!

He has also started 'Winter proofing' the garden, grass cut and swing seat etc packed away, we still have some of the sturdier furniture to use on sunny days.

We have improved the house no end since we moved in in January and hopefully it will be cheaper to run and warmer too this winter, we have had a new boiler, insulated the utility and entrance porch and had the gas fire checked and serviced, we have also insulated the conservatory roof with some energy saving film. With all this and DS2 going to Uni I'm hoping our bills will come down a fair bit.

I had a sort out of our bedroom over the weekend, tidied and got rid of a few items, still more to do but I'm getting there. My toilettries are the main problem, I have too many! I am still doing the £1 per item used and saving that money to replenish when I do run out of something. I am being far more selective about what I actually buy, whether that be clothing or toilettries, I aim to get quality at a good price, I am also going for more classic styles rather than trendy so the things I buy should last. Am also carrying on with my £2 coin saving, had £300 towards DH's 50th birthday treat earlier in the year.

Must fly, have a lovely day

321 xxx

trixiepix

Hello lovely,


Glad all is going ok for you at the moment.


Well done on meal planning and home improvements, you've managed to do so much since moving in!!


I can't quite believe how quickly the year has passed ( I find it always passes quicker when I'm spending than when I'm not, lol!!, same applies with dieting too, Ha)


Bit of a roller coaster ride this end as I'm still trying to break the habit's of a lifetime, short term success but long term still a way to go!!


Anyway, Christmas soon !!! lol!!!


Trix xx

3_kids_2_jobs_1_dog

Hi All, especially Trixie, good to see you back.

Had a bit of a ding dong about money with DH. He has been suspended for the last four months, full pay, and unsire whether he will keep his job or even if he wants to return. With this in mind we had talked about a back up plan, I had asked him to draw up a budget without his main income (he has a second job which will keep running) and also to save hard whilst suspended to cushion any shortfall going forward, without a 50 mile round trip everyday the petrol alone should have been quite a saving. Anyway four months in he has done neither, infact he has managed to fritter away a considerable amount of savings too!

I'm furious, hurt, disappointed etc etc. He has buried his head in the sand and just assumes that, as before, I will keep everything ticking over! Not this time!! I have DS2 to support through Uni and with first DGC on the way I was hoping to drop a day a week at work to help with childcare. He will have to sort this mess and fast! He has also become far too comfortable at home, admittedly it's nice going home and my dinner is ready etc and he has done loads of diy and gardening but I feel cheated, I was hoping it was finally going to be my time to take my foot off the pedal!!:mad:

Anyway, personally I feel in control of my finances for probably the first time in years. It was payday on Tuesday, I sent DS2 £500 towards his Uni rent payment, popped £500 into my savings account and have everything covered, new loan payments start 01/10 and I'm feeling good about it all.

One plus point in DH scrutinising his bank account to see where all the money has gone, he noticed his car insurance had increased from £40 pm to £123!!:eek: He phoned his insurers and apparently its because they now use one underwriter instead of several, I've honestly never heard such ****. Anyway he shopped around and got it down to £24 pm. I'm annoyed he didnt notice this when his renewal came through, obviously didn't even look at it and admits he hadn't checked his bank in a while! At least he's only made 3 payments (!) and not the whole year!!

Must go and do some work, have a great day and Trixie, hope foe a catch up soon!

321 xxx

trixiepix

I feel your pain lovely!!


It feels as though I'm working harder & more hours now than I ever have and had wrongly assumed by now I would be relaxing a bit, I keep rumbling on to DH that I won't be working full time for ever as my life had so much more of a balance when I was working part-time, now I feel I'm constantly on a merry go round that I can't get off of!! - The full time wages are a bonus but you really can't put a price on time!!
I can only imagine how disappointed you're feeling, you've been trying so hard and juggling so much that we all hope our partners are on the same 'wavelength' and working towards the same goals.


You must be so excited about the prospect of DGC !!!!
I'm so glad you are in a positive place with your finances, seems as though you have definitely cracked it!!
Mine on the other hand is a tad up and down but I'm trying really hard to get a grip!!
Payday today, so I've most definitely got to keep myself in check - the prospect of being able to work part-time again in the future is a definite motivator to get some savings banked!!


Take good care xxx

3_kids_2_jobs_1_dog

Hi All!

Hope everyone is well, lots of colds doing the rounds here which I am doing my best to avoid!

Trixie, you are so right about not being able to put a price on time and no matter how much extra we earn it seems to disappear just as fast. I have just turned down a £6k pay rise as I didn't want the job (internal promotion), hadn't applied for it for that reason but was offered it anyway, the extra money would have been nice but my heart wouldn't have been in it and I know i would have been stressed to the gills with it. Plus, I really would like to drop a day a week in the next 12/18 months. Oh and yes, very excited about first DGC!!!

DH has sorted his finances and made a start in repaying the money he has frittered, shame he is having to repay instead of building the savings pot!!!

I think we need to sit down and look at the household budget, energy saving etc as I've not noticed much difference yet in the amount we are spending and I thought with DS2 leaving for Uni I would have saved more. I've just attended an Energy Saving seminar so have a few things I need to check about our new home.

I have also asked DH to address our diet, since he has been home and doing most of the cooking I seem to have put on almost a stone:eek: I think this is a combination of what he is cooking and the portion sizes which are totally out of whack, plus he is a devil for puddings and snacks in the evening, the odd chocolate bar, popcorn etc. I was moritifed when I got on the scales this morning!

Anyway off to do some work now, have a great day all

321 xxx