Help - I'm a mess :(

pixnmix_2

I hope you have a bug free home soon Flis. Get well soon And great news about the new mindee :j

flis21

immie wrote: »

Not sure if if's been mentioned, have you thought about tutoring?

Since you have a teaching degree you must have done A levels? My friend was tutoring kids for gcse maths/science/ key stage 3 maths/science etc, she didn't have a maths degree, but she did those subjects at a level, you have to prepare the lessons but the pay is £25 an hour these days!

I didn't do A Levels, I did a Btec National Diploma in Childhood Studies and got into uni vis that. Not sure I'd be up to tutoring, but it's something to look into. Probably in the future tho, as I'm gonna have my hands full with new mindee, working 50 hour week is going to take some getting used to!

Oh and thanks for messages about the boys, they both seem much better today, but still a bit tired. Just me suffering now with the horrid cough and cold!! Altho I'd rather I was ill than they were.
F x

flis21

Forgive me MSE for I have sinned!!! Made a big mistake today. Decided to do some cooking, last minnute, with the chidlren (it's half term, so my after school kids are in all day). We didn't have all the ingredients we needed, so popped up the shop. Thought i'd just grab a couple of other bits and ended up spending £24!!!! Feel so cross with myself, I'd been doing so well with my grocery shopping. Lesson learnt - make sure I plan in cooking sessions and what we will be making, so I buy the ingredients in advance and don't make unplanned trips to the shop!!!

Good news I sold another DVD on Amazon, made £2.50, every little helps (as long as I don't go and spend it all at Mr T's!!!)
Flis x

blackmaff

Just wanted to say how well you're doing Flis, so proud of you! We'll even forgive your sin We all make the odd cheeky mistake with money, but all the other hard work you're doing is helping you so much

TiaBaby

Wow, what a brilliant thread. I have just sat and read it start to finish and the change in you has been truely inspirational. You have certainly grabbed your debts by the neck and have started to throttle them with vigour and resolve.

I have been a lurker for years and have recently started over on the old style board again as our circumstances have changed and I need to make a few savings where I can to eek out the pennies.

I wish you every success with reducing your debts and am sure that with the help and guidance of the amazing folk on MSE you will come out the other side happier, healthier and wiser.

Brenster

Hi

Sorry to hear of your troubles.

Presumably you have a good relationship with your ex? and again I am presuming he is the parent of your children? I am making these presumptions as he is going to Butlins and splitting the cost with you?

Could he not help you a bit more ? especially with maintenance payments and clothing and essentials for the kids? Perhaps he could have them an extra evening a week to allow you to maybe find a bar job etc ?

I think in your case Bankrupcy is the sensible solution. With respect you are not a home owner, and are renting so you wouldnt need to worry about the effect of bankrupcy on obtaining a mortgage, and secondly, presumably if you were to go bankrupt, you would be starting with no debts, and would ensure you would live within your limits (i.e not obtain further credit cards etc)

Wishing you the best of luck.

CoffeeCup

Hi Flis

Been away and catching up on your thread -

read 6th Feb "day 16 without a cig" :j

WELL DONE!!

Hope it's still going well, be proud of yourself :T

Take care x

flis21

Whoop Whoop, 4 weeks today I have been a non smoker and have saved £122.88 (according to my quit smoking app!!). Am so proud of myself!

I earnt some extra money in half term and used it to buy an annual pass to a local leisure place, it has soft play, outdoor play, crazy golf, gardens, dinosaur exhibitions etc. My kids love it and £60 for the year means we can go as often as we want, so it will reduce the costs of days out. (It's normally £28 for me and the boys to get in their anyway!). And the plus side is I can take in up to 4 children on the pass so i can take children I mind in as well. I've put it in my books as a business cost as well. My Mum always buys us an annual pass to the local mini railway adventure park as well, so that's 2 different days out I can now take the kids on without incurring extra costs. Will take picnics, drinks and avoid the souvenir shops to make sure I keep the costs down.

Got some more bits to list on ebay today, am doing really well on there. Just leaving the money in my paypal account to build up at the moment.

Have had one more of my creditors come out of the woodwork. The ones I am paying off now total £10,676.79. I currently have £400 a month I can put into my debts, but from a week Monday this amount will increase substantially as I start my new work. I reckon I should be able to at least double the payment to £800 a month. At that rate I should be able to pay off the 10k in just over a year. Am amazed that I've got myself in such a good position now. Obviously will change a bit if any further creditors come out of the woodwork, but I am still qutie positive that at least 2 if not more of the creditors have written off the debts and I know that I can get things paid off in any more come along.

The only thing I will have to watch is working out my new earnings and giving the details to the tax credit and housing ben people, as obviously it will probably mean that my benefits are going to come down. I have given myself a bit of leeway in my budget to cover this, but it might mean I have to reduce this amount to make up for shortfall here.

Right, am off to ebay stuff. Thanks for all your comments and support,
Flis x

FrugalLina

Wow Flis, you are an inspiration! Well done on giving up smoking and on dealing with such a big problem.

Also, I think you sound like a great mum.

Well done and keep up the good work!

mfmaybe

Hi Flis

Just popping by, haven't been on MSE for a bit so thought I'd try to catch up with your thread. Glad things are moving in the right direction with work etc, not so happy to hear about your children being ill, hope they are ok now?

I thought I had posted this before, but perhaps forgot? Anyway, I notice you mentioned the cost of the bus vs walking anywhere, and I had a biking brainwave! Cycling to places is a great solution. Firstly if you don't already have bikes, try freecycle. You could certainly mention on a wanted ad that you are a childminder. Or ask your ex to buy the kids bikes for their birthdays :rotfl:. Not sure about insurance aspects etc for those you look after, but it would be fun to go out cycling with your own kids, age dependant, and it's exercise and fresh air too. Not to mention, it's far cheaper than the bus, and heaps quicker than walking!

I also mentioned ages back about smartphones, and yes the android is a smartphone. You should be able to get the Ebay app from whatever the equivalent of the App Store is. There are also cashback apps as well, telling you what offers are on. The Tesco app allows you to scan barcodes for your shopping. Basically there are heaps of ways that, used smartly, they can help. Just make sure that you are using wifi rather than risking breaching your data limit, so it's not costing any more.