£25,000 to clear. Ready...steady...GO

banwa

Not a lot to say about the last few days really. Just feel like I am kind of waiting for 2012 to begin.

Am thinking about goals for 2012, and will add ideas into this post as I think of them and then formalise them before the New Year.

Money



Obvious goal, reduce debts by at least half. I will need mini goals to achieve this

• Reduce weekly cash spends by 10%. According to what I worked out and posted the other day, food, alcohol, petrol, pet food, toiletries and cr*p are going to cost me £7500 next year.. I would like to reduce this by 10%.
• Eat one vegetarian meal per week
• Car share to work
• Only carry cash with me 6 days a week, no card

Health



Need to lose a bit of weight and get fit

• Cycle to work when spring comes around
• Run when evenings get lighter
• Swim or run on lunch hour
• Cut from 2 bottles wine per week to one, also helping with above. Wonder if I can persuade Mr Banwa to join me only drinking 2 nights per week

I'll be back

Beencounting

Hi Banwa

Well done on keeping such accurate records of spends, I've been really poor at this lately and have just tended to keep an eye on the overall picture. Luckily due to the good timing of a cheque received it's been ok, but I can't rely on this technique forever .

I'm in a goal setting mood too. The major goal being to reduce the debt A LOT this year! Not sure how much to plan for yet, but will do some work on this over the next few days. Good luck with your goal-setting.

Been

Itsadogslife_2

Hi Banwa,

I have been a bit premature again looking forward to 2012 I have updated my signature again already By today, I have updated all my totals and can't wait until the 1st. I am quite excited about 2012, I am being very optimistic that this will be a good year

Have had a good day, healthy food is a nice change

banwa

Beencounting wrote: »

Hi Banwa

Well done on keeping such accurate records of spends, I've been really poor at this lately and have just tended to keep an eye on the overall picture. Luckily due to the good timing of a cheque received it's been ok, but I can't rely on this technique forever .

I'm in a goal setting mood too. The major goal being to reduce the debt A LOT this year! Not sure how much to plan for yet, but will do some work on this over the next few days. Good luck with your goal-setting.

Been

Re the spends, there has been the odd fiver here and there where Mr B has bought little extras, I have tried to log them but I am sure some have slipped through. I want to keep doing it though, it has been a real eye opener.

Itsadogslife wrote: »

Hi Banwa,

I have been a bit premature again looking forward to 2012 I have updated my signature again already By today, I have updated all my totals and can't wait until the 1st. I am quite excited about 2012, I am being very optimistic that this will be a good year

Have had a good day, healthy food is a nice change

Just been doing the same. I am around £100 ahead of where I thought, that's okay but I secretly hoped it would be better than that.:o

banwa

Beware - moan looming

Step children are on their way home.

*breathes sigh of relief*

They are nice people but, aaaargh, they have no respect for other people's property. I was brought up to care for belongings especially belonging to others. I can't stand carelessness and wastefulness so I find it particularly jarring.

If they open sweets or crisps they leave the wrapper where it falls. I nag and nag and they still leave drinks on the floor, so another one of my nice glasses got smashed last night. We get through TWO loo rolls per day when they are here. They either don't wash and choke us all on lynx fumes or take 20 minutes in the shower (no exag) and I'm sure they pour shower gel down the drain. They put too much butter on their knife and then scrape the disgusting crumby leftovers back into the pack (okay I might be being picky now). They help themselves to all our drink and never bring anything (I refer to the two adults here, 18 & 22). And the newest one which I have found particularly annoying this weekend, they go into the fridge and leave the door open when they are finished:mad:. I lost count of the times I closed the fridge door after them, and came downstairs this morning to find the freezer had been left open all night.:(

On the plus side, the youngest (14), and only girl, has been a dream all weekend.:happyhear

Sorry for the rant I just needed to get it off my chest. I can't say anything to them because I don't get any back up from Mr B who just thinks I am being tight. Which I am but I know you guys understand why

I feel better already

Knitting_Nora

Pfft! None of that seems tight to me - it seems like very, very basic common sense (leaving fridge and freezer doors open etc), and the perfectly reasonable expectation of basic manners no matter whether your own home, or someone else's!! That's your home, your sanctuary and somewhere you have every right to be comfortable and calm in....anyone else who steps through that door - family or termite - is a guest and should behave as such or not be invited back.

Might I suggest electic fence around the fridge and freezer so as to keep them away altogether...and simply don't buy in any drink etc before they come. As for Mr B - well, if he won't enforce some basic respect and commonsense, then not only do his kids know he's a pushover and are clearly trying it on, but he can't expect you to rush around catering to their every whim etc. Take what you would normally spend on food and booze around their visits, and treat yourself to a weekend spa break instead! Or even just a stay at a travel lodge!

I'm officially grrrrr-ing on your behalf!

Nora.x

banwa

Oh Nora, thank you so much. It' great having people out there who are not only willing to indulge me, but who truly seem to be on my side.:A That makes me feel so much better that I am not just being a wicked step-mother.

Thankfully we have three weeks between visits, just long enough that I forget all the annoying stuff and am looking forward to seeing them again.

I told you, you aren't the only one who finds family 'testing'.;)

ZTD

banwa wrote: »

Sorry for the rant I just needed to get it off my chest. I can't say anything to them because I don't get any back up from Mr B who just thinks I am being tight.

Why don't you give Mr B putrid milk on his cornflakes, and tell him this is to emphasise the lesson that things that must be kept cool, need to be kept cool, and an open fridge does not keep things cool.

The lesson can be repeated until the penny drops.

The same with the wrappers. If you hoover and tidy around them, but tell him that they don't move until he moves them. The next ones they drop he will also have the honour of moving them.

Finally, make sure there is only a limited supply of shower gel etc for when they visit. Mr B will doubtlessly be only too overjoyed to make a special trip to the shop to buy fresh.

If he doesn't want to back you with words, he can back them by tidying up after them.

Knitting_Nora

Oh well sure, Z's being all practical and almost mature....I still think there's scope for electric fencing!

Woo ha ha!!

banwa

ZTD wrote: »

Why don't you give Mr B putrid milk on his cornflakes, and tell him this is to emphasise the lesson that things that must be kept cool, need to be kept cool, and an open fridge does not keep things cool.

The lesson can be repeated until the penny drops.

The same with the wrappers. If you hoover and tidy around them, but tell him that they don't move until he moves them. The next ones they drop he will also have the honour of moving them.

Finally, make sure there is only a limited supply of shower gel etc for when they visit. Mr B will doubtlessly be only too overjoyed to make a special trip to the shop to buy fresh.

If he doesn't want to back you with words, he can back them by tidying up after them.

He did actually say something about the fridge to them in the end, when he went in the kitchen and found it open himself.

What I don't understand is he used to be such a hard father, I'm not sure where all this lenience has come from. Permissiveness is the word I would use actually and I think that annoys me as much as the misdemeanors themselves.

And I am going to try the shower gel idea. Anyone got any ideas about subtly rationing loo roll?

Knitting_Nora wrote: »

Oh well sure, Z's being all practical and almost mature....I still think there's scope for electric fencing!

Woo ha ha!!

*daydreams*