Ecoelle's MFW Diary

ecoelle

Done the bath, and filled the holes in the boiler cupboard. I'm now having lunch of homemade lentil and veg soup while the filler dries. Then i might have time to start sanding it when I get back from the dentist. I want to get that finished before I paint anything else as the dust always gets everywhere.

brizzledfw

All sounds positive. Like the Lush idea.

What colour is the paint elle? Hadnt thought of upcycling some of our stuff but you've got me wondering..

ecoelle

Hi Brizzle,

The Lush idea came from last year when our little one had her birthday and we ended up with lots of little gifts which were not particularly good quality, not built to last and just cluttered my house. I like to buy disposable gifts or experiences. So for one friend we treated her to a trip to the local soft play, me and her mum got an hour to chat and I treated her to the cost of the entry and a coffee, plus I paid for a juice for the kids. In total it was a tenner and we had a lovely afternoon without adding to the 'stuff' we all own. I have been looking a lot at minimal living, and what truly brings us joy, I would much prefer to spend time with friends than be bought items I don't really need so I figure others probably feel the same.

The spray paint I bought was called Velspar and I was really pleased with it, although other brands are available! I just got to thinking about how we are all very quick to buy new and just get rid of the old when sometimes all that's needed is some TLC. Our bed frame was very expensive when we bought it and I love the design and sturdiness of it. Plus I knew we wouldn't get hardly anything if we sold it so I think it's better to paint it and have the bed I really want. Even if it took 3 or 4 cans of spray paint, which I don't think it will, it would still only be a spend of £30-40 for a whole new look.

Off to town this morning with LO. Got to pay in the money for the car tax DD plus I have £20 to pay in to then transfer off the mortgage as another OP!

Had lunch out yesterday with the family and a friend and it was supposed to be our treat, came to £30 for lunch and drinks. I asked before we ordered about the ingredients in the burger I ordered as I avoid dairy due to my allergies. Got halfway through and realised the 'cheesy' texture was actually cheese, tingly mouth ensued plus more unpleasant symptoms 2 hours later. On the plus side, I returned the half eaten burger and the pub comped our entire meal with a big apology. So i nipped to the charity shop and treated myself to a nice pair of M and S chinos I 'd seen Still £25 up in the 'treat' envelope though!

Got friends coming later for coffee and a play date so nipping to town this morning then back for lunch and then play time.

Have a good weekend all

x x

ecoelle

Ooh, just found out for every £100 I pay off the mortgage as an Op I'm saving £113 in interest!

Happy ecoelle x x

ecoelle

Evening all. Took LO into town today and picked up a few bits we needed. Also had a lovely time in the Disney Store, they had a free session on for kiddywinks so LO was well happy doing her Rapunzel art class for 45 minutes. Also got to make a free mask in one of the local art shops so all in all a productive trip.

I paid another £20 off the mortgage so totaling £187.50 OP this month instead of the usual £125. If we did that every month we would be mortgage free in just over 12 years, if we stick to £125 then it's MF in just under 15 years.

I think I like the idea of using cash to 'buy' the vouchers I earn from surveys. That way I can then use the cash to pay off the mortgage. I did 2 more surveys today, one a telephone one for £2 and one a TV viewers one for £2soonce that comes through I will be able to put it off the mortgage as well.

Feeling very positive at the moment. xx

ecoelle

Evening guys and gals. £10 voucher arrived today from valued opinions so £5 holiday fund and £2.50 into each for house fund and mortgage OP.

Had my wageslip today for January's hours and it is looking good, also got extra hours this week so 4 full days instead of 2.5 which is an extra £95 this week. Although they are killing me on tax, not sure why but I'm still on BR code so I need to ring HR tomorrow.

Tried filling in my job application tonight. I did all the boring bits like dates of education and grades and stuff but lost the will to live once I got to the personal statement section. Think I'll finish it tomorrow.

On a plus note I'm really pleased with my survey figures so far this year I'm averaging £5 per week which would be £260 for the year. If I manage to cash out on onepoll it could be even more :-)

ecoelle

Morning all. Well the job of monthly figures is done and it's all looking pretty healthy.

I have left enough in the current account to cover the DD and then I've transferred the extra to the right acounts for savings, house fund, wages cover etc. It left £50 for house fund and £50 for mortgage OP pot so i've transferred that too.

Hoping to really stay on top of it this month x

Off to town ina bit to draw out some money for food shopping and also to get my hair cut. Using the 'treat money' which got refunded from the meal we went for. LO is coming with me and then we have a birthday party this afternoon so she'll be happy. I'm going to try and do the food shop today as well but if not I might do it tomorrow morning instead as I have nothing else special planned.

Off to do my menu now then get ready for town.

Hoping everyone has a fun filled money saving day x

ecoelle

Evening all. Had a really nice weekend with LO. She enjoyed going to town and made the most of the free session in the Disney Store, plus she got another goodie bag for taking part which included some great drawing sheets and some pin badges so she was really pleased. The party was fun too, I had chance to have a bit of mum time with one of the other mums and we had a right old natter. Then today we had a lovely time at the park and then had a play date at home followed by watching Tangled.

I did a slow cooker veggie chilli, I'm trying to get away from packet spice mixes so I mixed my own chilli spices (based loosely on this recipe, although I used mild chilli powder instead of paprika http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/vegetables-recipes/veggie-chilli/#HwqmhSwly3TKw5bJ.97) It worked brilliantly. I have decided I need to refocus on our eating as me and hubby have both put weight on, mainly due to eating too much processed food and snacking too much. I'm weighing in at 11st 5lb and really want to be about 10st 10lb so a bit to lose. I signed back up with myfitnesspal so fingers crossed it works. Plus my friend does slimming world and has promised to lend me some recipe books.

On the money front the end of the month has been fine, I did treat myself to a new handbag, I have 3 bags at the moment, a satchel, a rucksack for shopping and a small black evening bag so I treated myself to a Matt and Nat Vegan bag from ebay. It was £20 but would be nearer £100 to buy new so I was chuffed. Hope I like it when it arrives. I know I'm supposed to be minimising but I couldn't resist and I do need a more professional looking bag for work,plus, I think they are very good quality and so it should last me a long time.

Right, off to bed to read my book, hope you all have a good week if I don't get chance to pop by, although I should be working less this week so I may pop by sooner x x

brizzledfw

All sounds good in the EcoElle land..well done.

The bag sounds promising and that chilli sounds great. Love it when a recipe really comes up trumps

Have a great week (and get that emergency tax code sorted!)

X

brizzledfw

Oh and did you do that application?? Hope so.

X