Finally I have a mortgage I can start to pay off!

Kittenkirst

Oh what wonderful news about your friend being given the all clear! Life isn’t sometimes amazing isn’t it

Well done on your chunky OP and reaching pay out on Yougov....I’ve got £3 odd left before I hit my first pay out. Itchingly close

Sorry to hear you had to turn down Work but I think you did the right thing, best to take some time to rest & heal now rather than rushing back and struggling more.

themadvix

Thanks Kitten - I think you're right about work, and it seems like I've probably got plenty of my own work to be getting on with anyway at the moment (at last!).

Feeling much better today than I have in a couple of days (mentally as well as physically) - popped out to Sains this morning and popping round to see Dad for a cuppa when he gets in (he needs my opinion on grey paint - he has a million samples on his bedroom wall!).

MS things:
* Shopping spends now at £50.78, but stocked up on a few bits that will keep us going for a while longer
* Reached SB daily goal - two surveys done
* MySurvey survey completed - hardly ever do these so was pleasantly surprised to find I've got enough points to claim a £3 Am/Starbucks voucher
* DH fixed the S&S issues we've been having
* PA - 2 surveys, £1.70 earned
* Lots of work coming in

Gratitudes:
* A good day today, long may it continue!
* Ginger kitty is snuggled up next to me
* May have bought a cheeky croissant in Sains this morning.... was totally worth it though!
* Seeing the BIL, his partner and niece on Sunday

Karmacat

Sounds good, madvix - and that number of survey sites is very determined of you, congratulations! I've done yougov for a million years, but SB is so bitty, it's quite difficult to get a routine going ...

Ginger kitty snuggled up to you

michelle09

Cat snuggles are the best snuggles! I have a black one using me as a bed right now.

themadvix

Cat snuggles are the best

KC, I tend to get bored with survey sites after a while, so work my way round in a circle, never closing the account, just in case! (VO and YSP are the two exceptions to that rule, both accounts closed)

Just a quick update as about to lose power - electrician is here to do circuit board, yay!

Super busy few days, will update properly later.

try_harder

So glad to hear that you are feeling better than you did but dont work too hard take some time to rest and relax too

themadvix

Thanks TH. Unfortunately feeling better meant that I got carried away (walking around at normal speeds, how dare I?) and by Saturday lunchtime was not feeling so good again. So I am... taking it easy... Nothing new there. I do feel that I am beginning to feel better overall though, so will continue with the gradual improvements.

Had a busy Sunday and Monday - long days, although fortunately for me, mostly spent sitting down. Saw BIL and family on Sunday (in Nottinghamshire) and went to France for the day on Monday (got back about 8.30pm from Notts to find we couldn't find DH's passport.... a very stressful 45 mins later, having nearly given up, we found it).

Sunday was fine on the spending front. DH treated me to breakfast at an American diner on the way up (£12) - but it was something we'd been meaning to try for a while. BIL cooked a lovely roast, so we were sorted for the rest of the day.

On Monday, however, spending got a little bit out of control. On Saturday DH had tried to replace something on our more reliable car and had failed due to a missing part, so we decided to invite the in-laws (to drive!). This meant we paid for lunch and breakfast pastries, as well as spending in the hypermarket. FIL gave us 30 euros, so we'll keep that for the wedding we're going to in Ireland next year, but we still spent rather more than I'd've liked. Some of it we'll pay for from the treat fund, but some of the hypermarket spends will have to be accounted for as part of the food budget.

MS things:
* SBs Swago complete, nearly at payout again there
* PA survey done
* VB poll, YG survey done, MS rewards clicked as much as possible
* £5 credit for Starbucks claimed from MySurvey (not £3 as originally thought)
* £1 £co claimed
* Transferred £5.90 reward from Santa a/c to savings
* Paid electrician last instalment yesterday - this has already been accounted for in my calculations, but it is nice to get it settled

Gratitudes:
* Long recuperative nap yesterday afternoon.
* Cinema tonight for DH's birthday (next Monday, but we've got to go when it's 241 - and total cost for two about £7 due to DH's work discount on cinema tickets too )
* Lots of yummy food from France - Port Salut, tarte tatin, brioche, lebkuchen.... mmm

Karmacat

The gratitudes sound great especially the tarte tatin

themadvix

The tarte tatin is good... except I didn't think when buying it - the French probably put lard in their pastry still I'm eating in (almost) ignorant bliss...

Thor was great last night - we think it's the most humorous yet of the Marvel films (not that we've seen all of them). And because it was on at a sensible time we ate before we went and so didn't need any snacks (and I didn't fall asleep!).

Took the cats for their annual check up and boosters last night too. £100 spent, but all budgeted for.

Have had veg box delivered today and think we'll have roasted veg and pasta for dinner tonight - there's some parsnips and squash that need using up from last week. I have done a meal plan, but am using it very loosely.

Beginning to think about Christmas presents now and trying to find good value, different experience-based gifts for people. Particularly struggling with the parents of the nieces - what do you get people as an experience with a 1 year old? The child is too young to appreciate much, the adults can't enjoy adult-y things (like the cinema, nothing more exotic!) because they can't go out. I might do some cinema and babysitting vouchers for my sister, but for BIL and partner it's trickier - they don't have a babysitter on hand. We've got a good balance in S&S for vouchers, so will try to use that and other deals. (Christmas presents are budgeted for but anything I don't spend in cash can be transferred to the debt/OP fund.) Hmm... thinking to be done.

MS things:
* MM survey done - slow-going there, but eventually I'll have another JL voucher.
* SBs clicks done - search win of 19, doubled with Swago click&spin win, well on my way to daily goal
* Caught up on comps yesterday
* Items relisted on ebay
* Work done.... twiddling thumbs now...

Gratitudes:
* Good night out last night and looking forward to Paddington next week (the deal with DH's cheap cinema tickets is you have to buy two codes at once, so with Meerkats, that works out at two trips to the cinema!)
* Cats largely behaved at the vets (ginger kitty goes a bit mental and has to be manhandled!)
* Sunshine today after the storms of last night. Thinking of those in Lancashire though who've been flooded

themadvix

Morning all!

Feeling very chirpy this morning as I've now felt well for two days and have been managing to do normal stuff at normal speeds (I am still making sure I get plenty of rest in between though). DH and I have even been for a walk in the woods this morning - it was gorgeous!

MS things:
* Claimed £5 Am voucher from SBs yesterday - will be using towards cats' dry food
* Bought a voucher for local zoo entry for sister and partner for family present, claimed £10 cinema voucher from S&S to go with this and some babysitting and will get a little something for niece to open - one family done, £20 under budget (£30 under actual cash budget) - saved ~£5 using DH's discount code for zoo voucher too
* Winnings: I received a book in the post yesterday that I'd won and an email to say I'd won another one. I'll keep the crafty one (some good ideas in it) and will see what the other one is like when it arrives - might make a good Christmas present.
* Ordered a freebie of dog treats for 'present stealing' game on Christmas day (for the dog!)
* SBs daily goal met a couple of times in last few days; NV and YG surveys done

Gratitudes:
* Feeling well enough to get on with things these last few days
* Lovely walk in the woods this morning
* The big smile from my niece as she crawled towards me when I arrived at mum's the other day
* Lasagne last night and leftovers for lunch today

Happy Sunday everyone!