Ultimate Challenge. 457 days / £16600!!!

Happytogetdebtfree

Thanks lilt :-) I was going to save 5k to cover initial spends and then clothes as and when. The cost of nappies etc and something if I fancied days out or whatever I don't intended to spend it all on a baby but I don't want to be worried about paying things etc so I figured planning is best. In wiping the idea of debt freedom by 30 I don't want that intense pressure I don't want more debt unless its a new mortgage. But I intend to create a plan that's more manageable if you see what I mean xx

Siouxsie32

Good evening lovelies, how are you all? I can see you've all been busy in my absence - fab!! I've been reading but I've either been too busy or too tired to respond. Today's snow has forced me to stop and have a much needed duvet day! And, has granted me time to respond

Happy, I love watching dogs in the snow - they're so cute and funny! Well done on a 2 mile walk :eek: Sounds like sore cheeks and a runny nose but a healthy glow type of walk. Bravo you!!

Much confessing to hoodie and coat spends (or was that the JBFF peeps?). They all sound like :money: bargains (and inspired me to get my coat out to take to the dry cleaner after finding it at the bottom of my washing basket - ha ha, I thought I'd lost it!!)

I loved the philosophical chat earlier - I was going to join in, but all I can add is "enjoy being you"!! There is honestly nobody else on the planet I'd rather be and I hope you all appreciate yourselves properly cos loving yourself is fab . Oh yeah, and be nice (but you all seem to have that one nailed anyway )

Well, my duvet day started a little miserably when I had to cancel some work due to the snow so I planned to do a load of cooking but, eh, it was literally a duvet day after all I'm still in my PJs (and don't have any intention of changing that until tomorrow!!) and nothing any more taxing than toast has been cooked. It was quite a productive duvet day though. I cancelled my laptop insurance (so will be on here begging for help when it all goes wrong!), saving me £8 each month. I set the foundations for opening a Halifax current account as a) they have a £100 switching bonus and b) they offer a fee-free overdraft for a year so the £100 will go straight to my current debt of choice and the overdraft will be used to transfer a current Santander overdraft which costs £20 a month just to service (it's debt number 5 on this 6 debt challenge). To qualify, you have to have 2 direct debits set up on the account you're switching from so I did that this afternoon. I just need to wait for the paperwork to confirm they're set up then I'll apply for the Halifax account! I also registered my complaint with Northern Rock as I had a £30k secured loan with them 6 years ago and they're paying compensation to those that had loans under £25k and, well I want compensation too!! I forget who else from here has complained but that would be lovely if something came of it!

Oh, and I cashed out £8 from MySurvey!

Kat, I hope you get home ok!! Are you able to leave the bike at work and get the train home? My car is blocked in. I was going to move it in case anyone hits it coming round the corner, but I can't move it without digging it out of it's current spot so I'll just happily plod on busting debts and enjoying my heater I hope the snow clears up a bit by tomorrow afternoon as I have to go into central London....I'll lose more money if there's more disruption!

So, how was everyone else's day?

abundant1972

Hey everyone!!!

I feel like I've been away from here for ages... though have been posting on the January Challenge...

Kat - Thanks for your kind words... And sorry you've been feeling down in the dumps... I think sometimes we need days like that though - just as an outlet for life's stresses and strains.

Ok - I just looked up skin complaints in a book I have called 'You can heal your life'... It talks about what emotionally might be triggering the physical complaint - and gives an affirmation you can use to help... Feel free to tell me if you think it's a load of b*lls!!!

Skin Problems (general): Anxiety, Fear, Old buried guck (unpleasantness) I am being threatened.

I lovingly protect myself with thoughts of joy and peace. The past is forgiven and forgotten. I am free in this moment.

Psoriasis: Fear of being hurt. Deadening the senses of the self. Refusing to accept responsibility for our own feelings.

I am alive to the joys of living. I deserve and accept the very best in life. I love and approve of myself.

Acne: Not accepting the self. Dislike of the self.

I am a Divine expression of life. I love and accept myself where I am right now.

I'm sure that once we start breaking old patterns, our bodies release things in different ways. With your new way of eating - am sure that will help to cleanse your system and support a new glowing you... Do you like Green Tea? I swear by it... loads of anti-oxidants which would be a bonus living in the big smoke. If you can''t stomach the plain one - try the one with mint. It's yummy. I also eat a lot of oily fish for the Omega 3 oils... Now - as you're veggie... you can get it from nuts/seeds... am sure flaxseed/linseed are good.

I remember my 30th... I planned a big party then cancelled the night before and stayed in on my own having a mini crisis lol. Next day I was fine!!! I think being comfortable with yourself is one of life's great gifts. I have an ex who jumps from guy to guy and can't stand to be on his own. I went the other way and love my own company a bit too much ha ha! I think as long as you are open in your own mind/heart to start meeting guys... then opportunity often knocks.

Am laughing because I have post-its around my monitor with affirmations... "I am enjoying a new way of living - my life is full of love, good health and abundance"... "I am a magnet for love and prosperity"... Hmmm... nobody is banging my door down just yet!!! I expect they got stuck in the snow somewhere hee hee!!!

Right! Have taken up enough wall space so will say Ciao and see you on January's Big Financial Freeze!!!

Hugs xxx

killerpeaty

Lilt and his mrs: normally I would be doing the "nice" thing and say they are relatively small purchases and they are useful (they are, I'm not denying it!). But everyone else is doing that so I just want to ask, has the money come off somewhere in your budgets? I am asking because I read a lot of SOAs and they tend to start with "I just didn't keep track of my spending".

Well done mrs for getting mr on board!

Happy, christmas already?! You're like the most organised person in the world! Whenever I buy something in advance I lose it! Ha ha.

Kat; I don't know what to say really. For skin, I would say go back to the doctor, it took 4 years for me to get a doctor to believe that I was in pain and a further 6 months to get diagnosed. A friend had terrible skin from age 12 and was 18 when she found meds that actually helped her.

As for dating, that's something I need to work on as well. I think the people who date the most are the people with the largest friend networks (not talking about facebook). So I've decided to concentrate on expanding my friendship groups and from there... maybe man-candy :rotfl:

Siousxie: loving your duvet day, I'm in a blanket trying to find some surveys to do. I have £3.00 of my target to get : ) Well done on cashing out on mysurvey : )

Kittie: You want to buy some more of wales?!

Abundent: I wish I had a bit more love for my own company, I get lonely easily.

his_missus

killerpeaty wrote: »

Lilt and his mrs: normally I would be doing the "nice" thing and say they are relatively small purchases and they are useful (they are, I'm not denying it!). But everyone else is doing that so I just want to ask, has the money come off somewhere in your budgets? I am asking because I read a lot of SOAs and they tend to start with "I just didn't keep track of my spending".

killerpeaty -In the past I have been pants at budgetting and keeping track of my spending so this year I've decided to try a different approach. I'm giving us a very generous £100 a week budget to cover food, entertainment, treats etc... anything left over at the end of the week goes into an emergency fund. So whilst I'm not keeping many NSDs at the moment, I haven't actually gone over my £100 budget. Only been doing it a few weeks but it does seem to be working for me AND I have managed to put money aside each week into the emergency fund (now somewhat depleted after yesterday's trip to the vets) Most weeks we spend up to £50 on groceries (incl. 4 cats) and about £10 on other spends. This is a vast improvement on the £80+ we seemed to spend in the SM every week before so I'm going to stick with my new method of budgetting:D

liltdiddylilt

Hi all

Abundant - I wish my skin were as simple as that!! I am very comfortable in it and a ridiculously open and affectionate sort. I am however prone to bouts of work related stress. The more I work the worse the psoriasis gets. Always been the same. I generally don't worry about it to be honest but right now it is stopping me from going to get a tattoo. The inside of my upper arm is clear but I don't want them to be thinking eugh at my lower arm as they do it lol.

Peaty thank you for your words of wisdom. I did in fact move the £13 from my savings to cover the sheep suit and the hoody. I'm hoping to be able to move it back at payday but I am not worried if that doesn't happen.

Karma is at work for me this week. I received my final gas bill and saw a depressing £46.99 through the envelope when peeking as I opened... It got worse as I realised I had read backwards and in fact it said £99.64.... But then I read the glorious "WE OWE YOU" sooo £106 cash back from the elec and gas supplier woohoo!!!

That, plus £10 more than my highest expectation of my wages means a very cheerful lilt today!!

killerpeaty

I'm sorry for bullying you both. T_T

Mrs: It's interesting to hear about your budgeting method, its a bit like mine. I've given myself an average (entertainment) budget over the month of £50 a week so if I am expecting a big weekend then I save on a different one. Congrats on the coming under budget!
Was the depletion about the jabs your cat/s got?
And more excitingly, FOUR CATS!?!!! Well excited about that. Are they excited about the snow? Have they met it yet? Are they hilarious? Have you filmed it? Can I see it?

Lilt: What's lil squirt think about the snow? Is psoriasis painful? Does the cold affect it? I know nothing about it! >D

Happytogetdebtfree

My dad said that in the old days you used to soak in a bath of porridge oats for psorisis and it did wonders. I have spent this morning budgeting and have realise after much reading that a 5 I saving for one kid is crazy saving so we agreed on 2400 for 12 months that's 200 a month for child related expenses if needed lol x

liltdiddylilt

Howdy all!!!

First things first:

My little lamb :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Also could not resist this....

Snow angel!!! :T:T:T (She was rather bemused by it all Peaty)

Quickly, or this will be a mountainous post.... I have porridge baths happy, but they are better for eczema than psoriasis really!
Peaty, it is a disorder where your skin cells reproduce at a far higher rate than normal, causing red patches with 'scales' of a sort across them which do not slough off in the same way as normal dead skin cells. Steroids help me no end but that's obviously not a long term thing. It isn't painful unless it flares and I do something silly like go to the swimming baths :eek::eek:

Happytogetdebtfree

Ah she is adorable and i just love love love the snow angel:), i have done another 2 mile walk and some pilates stretching im thourghly tired haha x