Support needed please

cocalls

well done wannabe in credit.
Just out of interest how much does he earn per month?

Also you mention on another thread that he works 4am till 2pm and is next to no help around the house, could he not pick up your 7yr old from school rather than going to the after school club even a couple of times per week as that would save you a lot of money?

wannabee_in_credit

He normally brings home just over £1000 a month. He's on minimum wage now - hasn't had a pay rise in 5 years unfortunately - but at least he is working.
As for school, dd comes to work with me in the morning and goes to the school next door, which is 15 miles from where we live. I couldn't find local childcare for her as early as 7.30 so she came to school with me. There are pros and cons to it but it was my only choice at the time other than to give up work.
There are a couple of other possibilities on the horizon re her childcare, so fingers crossed for after Christmas.

Spendless

wannabee_in_credit wrote: »

Well - we've spoken and he's agreed to another £100 a month into my account. See how we get on with that now.
I hope you're all right and that his frugal nature helps me to curb my obsessive need to buy things for people all of the time.
Thanks everyone for the extra push I needed to do that.
Very much appreciated.
I've already said it about a hundred times but I'm so pleased I posted here.

Well done. :T What sort of things do you find you need to buy and for whom?

HARSA

Hi and done.

You said that family tax credit was not much but surely should have been added to your SOA.

You will be slighttly be better off next year when the 15hrs free nursery kicks in. Also when full time schooling starts the following year.

Just hang in there ..... I see the light at the end of the tunnel for you in 2 years time. No that long eh!:j

wannabee_in_credit

Spendless wrote: »

Well done. :T What sort of things do you find you need to buy and for whom?

This is my trouble - I don't NEED to buy anything. I just have this mentality that if I buy things for people it shows that I care for them.
Trying to get over that...

wannabee_in_credit

HARSA wrote: »

Hi and done.

You said that family tax credit was not much but surely should have been added to your SOA.

I see the light at the end of the tunnel for you in 2 years time. No that long eh!:j

Tax credits are on my SOA, as benefits but now I'm thinking I've left my child benefit off.
There is light at the end of the tunnel - just gotta move towards it.
Thanks

Spendless

wannabee_in_credit wrote: »

This is my trouble - I don't NEED to buy anything. I just have this mentality that if I buy things for people it shows that I care for them.
Trying to get over that...

Ok. Worded a different way What sort of things ARE you buying and for whom?

wannabee_in_credit

I buy clothes for my kids and my OH.
I buy food for people, including lunches for people at work.
I buy toys, books and games that my children don't need.
I buy things for friends and family because I think they are bargains, or I see them and think 'Oh, that's nice - who could I buy it for?'
It's terrible really and completely learned from the way my parents were when I was growing up.

Spendless

wannabee_in_credit wrote: »

I buy clothes for my kids and my OH.
I buy food for people, including lunches for people at work.
I buy toys, books and games that my children don't need.
I buy things for friends and family because I think they are bargains, or I see them and think 'Oh, that's nice - who could I buy it for?'
It's terrible really and completely learned from the way my parents were when I was growing up.

Ok. So seperate each bit. Go through the clothes your family already has. For the kids put the bits away that your eldest has outgrown that will do for youngest. Now learn to shop in the sales for the following year. eg when jan sales start with winter kids clothes buy things for the following year eg winter 2012 in the next sizing up. When you go through your OH's stuff you'll probably find he doesn't need anything more.

Food -just try to stop or take in some HM goddies for your workmates.

Toys, books and games - shop in sales but with a specific event in mind- that'll do for youngest's birthday. I can put that away till Xmas that sort of thing but don't go OTT. Ditto shopping for other people if you like it.

Something I do is check out the discount vouchers for the newspaper offers on a Saturday. A couple of months ago I got a £5 off fragrances voucher from Boots. I found a Boots thread that told me that davidoff cool water wave was reduced from £20 to £10 the voucher worked on it so I gained a perfume for a fiver -that's become an xmas pressie from my nan. I also checked the newspaper code and found if I bought a telegraph there was £5 body shop voucher in it. Walking past a (railway) WH smiths I found there was a bottle of water free with purchase of telegraph, so I bought the paper , got the water, put it in my bag. Tore the voucher out of paper went browsing Bodyshop for a pressie for someone, picked up the perfume in boots, went for a cheap lunch using a voucher I'd also got declined the drink cos of the water in my bag. It satisfies my desire to shop for things without it actually costing anything or much.

wannabee_in_credit

I could use some serious training from you. I'm very early doors with learning to bargain hunt like that, but I'll start doing that.
Thankyou...