On the up (Hopefully)

sugarcube84

Update on my monster list, while i'm at home ill :-(


To Do List

- Change holiday money
- Buy Sun cream- Done
- New underwear/bikini- Done
- Buy Lilo/rubber ring - Done
- Pay for new kitchen table -paid through paypal delayed until delivery
- collect new kitchen table
- sort out oven connection - Hopefully tomorrow
- sort out skirting Hopefully tomorrow
- buy new plates and serving bowls
- decide on menu for when my dad comes for his early xmas dinner -sorted
- clean house- mostly done, need to scrub kitchen floor and then a quick hoover/mop through
- get decs and wrapping paper down from loft- done
- put up decs- tree up being decorated tonight
- wrap presents -done
- buy cards -done
- write cards- half done
- get ds to write his cards
- buy ds xmas jumper- done
- sort secret santa present - done
- post secret santa present
- finish presents for dad/niece/sil -done
- sort out dog sitter
- get suitcases from loft
- pack


Not doing so bad, a few extra below


- sort pony present
- sort friend and family present
- put decoration boxes back in the loft

sugarcube84

Signature updated :-)


To Do List

- Change holiday money done collecting on monday
- collect new kitchen table
- sort out oven connection - done!!!!
- sort out skirting not yet
- buy new plates and serving bowls done
- clean house- done
- put up decs- done
- write cards- done
- get ds to write his cards
- post secret santa present done
- sort out dog sitter
- get suitcases from loft
- pack


Not doing so bad, a few extra below

- sort pony present
- sort friend and family present
- put decoration boxes back in the loft

sugarcube84

Just when it was all going so well dh loses his job :-( so that means we aren't quite df this month, i'll update my signature. I had to reduce the last 2 payments to the cards so they will be paid off next month instead, that should give us some breathing room for dh to find a job.


On better news we had a lovely holiday and xmas /new year in the sun was brilliant.

sugarcube84

Well we have made a big decision, dh isn't going to find a second job to replace the one he lost instead he is going to up the hours at his part time job (nights) and then do the school runs, saving us £4k a year in childcare and concentrate on finishing off the house so we can get it up for sale. It's been working well for us the last week and its so much better for my job as it means I don't have to leave at 4.30 to get to school for 6, he has also been tidying/cleaning the house and cooking at night as well as sorting homework/uniform etc for ds.


It might mean not quite as much money coming in, but we have a better family balance.

AspiringButAnxious

That sounds like a great solution. I know it might not sound MSE to say so, at least on the face of it, but there are considerations which make staying in debt and/or having less money worth more in terms of happiness. Your new plan seems to be saving you a lot of stress — probably more so than being able to get debt free quicker but struggling in other ways. Good luck

sugarcube84

To be fair a big part of us making the decision was that this time next month we will be debt free. We still owe some money to my mum for the holiday but we are saving that up and giving it to her in one big chunk in June that's how she requested it but no more card payments, store cards or overdrafts!!

sugarcube84

Not updated for ages!! Everything is going well with the new arrangement we have more time together as a family and we have finished off another 2 rooms of the house. Only 2 more to go and then some finishing off outside when the weather improves.


New Job is going great :-) i'm now 8 months in and I've just found out that i'm getting a pay rise and a bonus. Small ones..but better than a kick in the teeth, I wasn't expecting anything as i thought i would have had to have been there for a year. The bonus will help replenish the emergency fund after we had to use it to pay for the new boiler :-(


Had to edit the signature :-( due a number of things all happening in close succession


- boiler breaking and new one fitted £1300
- car insurance increasing due to claim as it got stolen before xmas £120
-husband losing job, loss of £400 per month taking into account saving on childcare
- professional subscription renewal (new company doesn't pay and i forgot to update the SOA ...OOPS) £512


we haven't quite been able to finish paying off the credit card...it's not a massive problem as it's on 0% but as we also had to use the emergency fund (grr nee boiler) our priority now is replenishing the emergency fund again before overpaying the credit card to clear it.


We are also prioritising getting the house finished and balancing paying off the last of the debt v spending on the house and we have come up with a new DFD of September 2017. I know it's a while off but as we are close we have decided to balance family life with debt repayment for once.

sugarcube84

I rang up for a settlement figure on my student loan, it's one thing that i need to get rid of before we look at moving. I can afford to pay it off after pay day on Friday, if i stick to the miniumum payment on the credit card, i spoke to dh about it and he said go for it and get rid of it. So next week i will be student loan free, will save some money on interest and will have another £176 each month to throw at the last credit card/put into the emergency fund.


DH has struggled a bit lately with balancing his current account and has dipped into the dreaded overdraft!! I think it's for a number of reasons
- he is now at home during the day
- he lost half his pay when he lost one of his jobs but is still spending as if he has 2
-honestly has never been very good with money
- he is now in control of the shopping and the shopping budget and has been overspending because he keeps forgetting to do a big shop and keeps picking enough up for tea that night which is uneconomical


...only 5 1/2 years late he has finally had his lightbulb moment and .....downloaded a spending tracker app!!! and he loves it!!!!


This doesn't mean he hasn't been committed all these years to paying off the debts, he has, but the way we have basically gone about it is that I controlled all the money and gave him spends and petrol money. Now he has more responsibility and is in charge of more and we hit a little bump in the road...but he has recognised and has done something about it. Fingers crossed it stays that way.


Onwards and upwards

sugarcube84

Student loan paid off....woohooo!!

sugarcube84

DH's spending app seems to be doing the trick, he seems to be much more aware of how the occasional spends can add up and make a big difference.


He has cracked on with the outside of the house while the weather is nice, he should have the front garden finished by the weekend. Then that leaves us with


- finishing fencing behind the garage
- painting the fence
- painting the decking
- jet washing everywhere
- painting the soffits and fascias
- replacing a bit of downpipe
- ridge tiles re pointing


It might look like a long list but will probably only be a weekends worth.


In the house the jobs left to do are


- paint the bathroom
- decorate our bedroom
- put up new ceiling light in the kitchen
- fill holes around sockets in kitchen,
- buy/fit blinds for kitchen and bathroom
- get kitchen guy back to finish end panel/boiler housing
- replace/paint internal doors
- skirting in kitchen


I've also got a second coat of paint to put on my second-hand wardrobe for ds bedroom and repair/sand/paint a sideboard that I picked up for the front room.


That lots going to keep us busy!!