Working to a ten year plan

HappyNow

Ninno820 wrote: »

Whats the "piggy bank" technique? I'm still learning and everyone is so helpful.

Hi again

At the bottom of this link is Martin's proper guide to piggy banking.
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/Budget-planning

But basically it's about working out what you spend on various each items of expenditure over the course of, say, a year, then dividing that figure by 12 and setting up different 'pots' for each, which you pay the amount into each month. You should then have enough to cover things when they're due for payment. Some people set up seperate savings accounts (I set up five last month but they're all still empty!!), other people actually use envelopes with cash in.

It's great for budgetting for things like Christmas and holidays etc, but you need a relatively easy couple of months to get it started and I haven't had that yet!!

It's just one idea and it might not work for you if you're already organised, but worth a look. x

Ninno820

Thanks for that. Its half term next week - and pay day the follwing week - I'll take a longer look at things then. I do try to pay for most things monthly anyway.

Ninno820

Not much to report this week. The frozen lunches helped me avoid the temptation of the school canteen and the ebay proceeds have now paid for the flat tyre. With half term this week, I am trying to stay away from the shops and am aiming for 4 NSD's between now and next sunday. I have so much school work to do that shouldn't be too hard.

Its 11 days until pay day - its tempting to keep checking what progress has been made against the debt and I am hoping to break the £1000 barrier - but until you see the statements and factor in the interest then its dificult to be exact - its like waiting for christmas.

Talking of christmas I am aiming for a home made christmas and am working through the year to make the gifts for different people. I have a large family and am fortunately limited to a £5 limit per couple and have to keep the gifts to a 6" x 6" x 6" (don't ask - we are a strange family who liek to challenge ourselves with a different challenge each year). So far I have made 2 lots of 7 embroidered hearts to sew on to a metal ring to create a christmas wreath and a lush "loopy" scarf. My next project isto make seed cakes for the birds - I really like these http://www.intimateweddings.com/blog/birdseed-wedding-favor-hearts-easy-and-inexpensive-diy/ and am going to experiment. Some of my family really like the outdoors so will appreciate the birds that these will attarct into the garden. Its all about planning and keeping the cost down me thinks!

Ninno820

Just had to tell someone - and yes, I know that this is not saving money but ..... Last year was spending money hand over fist with two overseas holidays to salzburg and New York. This year I had decided to have a quiet money saving year with just a couple of small quiet holidays. Today I booked the first one - two nights, three days in Yorkshire and derbyshire. On my bucket list I have visits to chatsworh house and Whitby so i am planning to drive up to whitby for the day (around 3 hours drive), stay in York overnight and then drive on to meet friends in Leeds where we have booked to see Phantom of the opera. That night i will drive down to chesterfield and stay overnight before going to chatsworth house and then driving home. I have booked into two premier inns. They dont have their special offers on yet but I have found that, nearer the time, you can try your luck and book a cheaper deal whilst cancelling your full price - heres hoping.

Full price the holiday will cost me £135 for the hotel (£58 if I can get the deals) plus food and petrol so I am hoping to raise £300 through ebay / table top sales tocover the costs. Apart from the theatre ticket, everything else is paid for nearer the time / on the day.

I think that its do-able and I am up for the challenge.

The second holiday is a couple of days away with friends in Oxford at the beginning of June. I am due a pay rise and some back pay in April so am planning to put this towards this holiday.

Its a plan - yes?

Ninno820

This week has been half term and so have focussed on loading ebay with items to sell. The cheaper ones are moving more quickly than the more expensive ones. However my total since 1st January is £223.96 which is impressing me at least!

I have also discovered Amazon trade in - they will pay you to retuen certain text books to them and I have posted about £40 of claims today and am hoping that they accept them. They turn the money into amazon gift cards but I have some luxury shampoo which they sell so the money wil come in handy and relieve the grocery budget.

Talking of which the grocery budget has gone haywire - due mainly to overeating / half term if I'm honest. At the moment it is around £150 for the month which finishes on the 23rd - I had set myself a target of £90. I need to remember that it was common last year to spend in excess of £100 a week and then throw away food that could never be eaten in time so I have still come a long way and the bigger picture is more important. Next month I am going to set a target of £80 and try to spend just £20 a week - I have discovered that setting foot into the sm gives me quite a high and is my downfall so want to try and go cold turkey. If I only have £20 in my purse then it is difficult to do a large shop? worth a try any way.

My month ends next week on the 23d so can update the debt position then.

HappyNow

Ninno820 wrote: »

Its a plan - yes?

It IS a plan, yes! Sounds brilliant, especially if Premier Inn do give the offer. York is lovely. We've stayed there a couple of times (at The Hilton, when we thought we could afford it!) and it is a beautiful city. I love The Shambles.

Ninno820 wrote: »

Talking of which the grocery budget has gone haywire - due mainly to overeating / half term if I'm honest. At the moment it is around £150 for the month which finishes on the 23rd - I had set myself a target of £90. I need to remember that it was common last year to spend in excess of £100 a week and then throw away food that could never be eaten in time so I have still come a long way and the bigger picture is more important. Next month I am going to set a target of £80 and try to spend just £20 a week - I have discovered that setting foot into the sm gives me quite a high and is my downfall so want to try and go cold turkey. If I only have £20 in my purse then it is difficult to do a large shop?

£150 for the month is still a MASSIVE improvement on £400!! Have you tried joining the Grocery Challenge on the Old Style board? I've joined and although I rarely post there it does make you feel a bit accountable for your supermarket shopping. £20 a week will be tight for you, but if you've got lots of stuff in your cupboards/freezer you could manage it - especially if you haven't included toiletries in that, purely food. Good luck with it anyway x

Ninno820

HappyNow wrote: »

£150 for the month is still a MASSIVE improvement on £400!! Have you tried joining the Grocery Challenge on the Old Style board? I've joined and although I rarely post there it does make you feel a bit accountable for your supermarket shopping. £20 a week will be tight for you, but if you've got lots of stuff in your cupboards/freezer you could manage it - especially if you haven't included toiletries in that, purely food. Good luck with it anyway x

Yes - I try and post daily on the GC board - just to keep me focussed. I have cupboards stacked high, enough make up and am aiming to use the amazon vouchers from the books for shampoo (the only toiletries that I am short on). Truthfully I could get away logistically with spending nothing but thats going too far!!

I'm also going to try the tip posted on the gc of allocating myself some "pocket money". Living on my own it seems a bit daft but I need to move away from food being a treat (for the sake of my waist band at least!) and perhaps having a small amount of money - say £20 - will help to refocus myself.

I'm also interested in the idea of a whoopsied veg box. If I understand the concept right its using the veg that are reduced each week and making you try different things. Can't do it ever week since that would mean going into supermarkets every week - and they are the problem - but will try when the opportunity presents itself.

Ninno820

Okay - so now I think that the time is right to introduce phase two of this journey. By nature I am a bit (or friends would say large) control freak. This journey was always about regaining control over parts of my life that were spiralling out of control. The financial sides of life were symptomatic of other areas - most notably my weight. Three years ago I lost eight stone - sadly much of that has been regained so now is the time to fight this particular demon again.

I am therefore going to set my self some targets for the next two months. Having proved to myself that I can "save" approx £500 per month towards my debt and am therefore grow new financial habits I want to apply the mse approach to weightloss - does that make sense? Inspired by members of the grocery challenge thread, I want to lose weight naturally by reducing portion sizes and by incorporating more fruit and veg into my diet. I also want to incorporate more exercise into my daily routine. Last october I had a bad fall and have not been out as much as I used to but I have two dogs who appreciate much longer walks than they currently enjoy so I dont have any excuses. I also have a natural gym in the garden (its a mess - nothing more exotic!) so am aiming to take advantage of the increasing length of day and improving warmth.

So - by April 23rd - my targets are:-

1. Lost 2 stone (I am a large lady so this is quite achieveable if I put my mind to it)
2. Increase steps taken per day to 12500 on a regular basis.
3. Increase debt repayment to £2000
4. Save £100 towards summer holiday

All tall orders I know but I think achieveable - I just need to step up to the next gear!

chevalier

Well done on keeping on! When you are trying to budget for the first time in a while, it does take a bit of time to get the balance right.

So the grocery budget may well be a bit hit and miss for a few months anyway. As you are trying to lose weight I am sure you will see both the amount spent and your weight go down as you regain control over both.

Do you have an proper market near you? I found these were great for getting a lot of fruit and veg cheaper than the supermarket. This would mean that you didn't have to go into a supermarket, but could still have more veg and fruit in your diet.
chev

Ninno820

chevalier wrote: »

Do you have an proper market near you? I found these were great for getting a lot of fruit and veg cheaper than the supermarket. This would mean that you didn't have to go into a supermarket, but could still have more veg and fruit in your diet.
chev

No I dont - its just a small village tho it has a veg shop and a farm shop where the veg is good and reasonabl prices all the time so I have no real excuse!

Well - Day one and I took the dogs out as promised. So far today I have done 5063 steps which isn a bad start since I have only really been pottering around the house. My ankle hurt all the way around on the dog walk but I fear that that might be my lot in life and am hoping that, as the weight drops, so the persistent ache fades.

I have also looked at my quantities today and the mince mixture that was going to do today's dinner will stretch to tomorrow's as well. This will take time but I am focussed.

On the financial note my car insurance is due next month so spent some time looking at my options. My current provider is quoting around £120 cheaper on line. When I phoned up to query and to ask if they could reduce my quote I was told that I should just cancel theirs and take out the online offer. Since I have protected no claims bonus with them for 9+ years I cant see any reason why I shouldn't do this - can anyone else?