"Simply not solvent!

taxi73

Glad the party went well.

mizmir

Sounds great - and tidy garden to boot! brilliant.

hypno06

Fab news on the cleared garden and alleyway :T My OH too has cleared our patio, cut the grass and generally made things a little nicer outside.....we still have some way to go, but def better than it was before!

bountiful

Hi Seaxwyn - so glad the weather cleared for you and you had a great BBQ for the twins AND got some clutter cleared - all good stuff. LOL xxx

chevalier

really glad this went well for you seax. what did you get the twins in the end? And well done to OH for getting the garden sorted. Now does that mean that there are still a load of things to go on freecycle/to the dump? Or did that get done too?

Hope the work goes as well as the bbq, this week
chev

Seaxwyn

Weekend's over, back to moneysaving for a moment:

Things are very tight. One account is nudging its overdraft limit, the other will be overdrawn when my life insurance DD goes out later this week - unless a cheque arrives in time.

OH is also overdrawn. He should be paid by both his jobs this week, but we have no idea how much. I'm glad to say he has gathered together the info of what hours he's worked to take into the pay office at the college today. A minor miracle that he got organised, I don't know if it's time for this month's payroll though.

The garden.... yes a lot of stuff went to the dump and the trampoline (which originally came from the dump) has been offered to a freecycler. There's a lot more stashed in the front garden where it's out of sight for now but at risk of being nicked. I will be really strict about what is allowed back onto the patio. eg we had three different crates for recycling - now we will have one small box inside the kitchen and stuff can be carried to the recycling banks every day if necessary.

Birthdays - I bought DD1 a sewing machine for her birthday - £39.99 from Lidl, looks pretty serious and comes with a three-year guarantee. It's more than I planned to spend but she really wants one and I've been looking on freecycle with no luck. She is keen on fashion and already makes/adapts her own clothes, bags etc. We may all benefit from her experimentation!

I will make DD2 a 'voucher' for the same amount to furnish her bedroom. Her loft bed is one of several things I am waiting for OH to put on Ebay (I need him to 'own' this as he will be the one who has to dismantle it!) Once that's gone, she can spend £40 on a cupboard/chest of drawers as she has nowhere to keep her stuff.

So a bit extravagant spending so much but they are good girls and deserve it. I never give them any pocket money as they earn their own, they are certainly cheaper than a lot of teenagers.

Work - only 3 days left with the kids at school so I need to get back into efficiency mode and get as much done as I can.

hypno06

A sewing machine sounds like a fab idea - and very moneysaving in the long run too.....even if you don't benefit too much yourself, she will use it for years to come, saving money all they way.

And good news on OH getting a bit of the right sort of energy.....I hope that it has not come too late and that the pay is received shortly.

mizmir

Such creativity should definitely be encouraged - who knows this might be the start of a wonderful career! And it will certainly stand her in good stead for the future.
Glad they both had a good time and good luck with the return to money saving today.

OliveOyl_2

They sound brilliant presents, and totally right for the girls. Ours all have birthdays at Christmas time and we say "happy birthday, we'll get you something during the year when you find something you'd really like within our budget" It's worked since they were about 16 I'd rather get something exactly right for them than a desperate "what can I get for £x?" especially at Christmas.

Karmacat

Sounds great, Seaxwyn - OH, the girls, the patio. Finances are tight tho, of course... hope it works out for you.