In the words of Yazz...

please-let-me-be-lucky

Ah chocolate cake! Food of the Gods

Sounds like you are doing well with the pre planned birthday gifts. Hope you feel better soon too Xx

Fudgefund

Thanks PLMBL. I do feel a lot better now, it was just three off days and I haven't been near the chocolate cake since (sadly I can't say the same for many other chocolate things though!)

I have a good cheap weekend behind me, stayed in on Friday night and watched Glastonbury with DB and his housemates. They are younger than me; I spent a lot of the time saying 'never heard of 'em' and nearly nodding off. The perfect introduction to this month's slide into my 30s really. We also managed to stay in on Saturday and Sunday and only spent money on food and drink, so all in all I spent £15 which I am really pleased with. I've bought the majority of my food for this week, just need some more pitta and hummus on Thursday, and I'm going to the cinema on Wednesday so I'm hoping to get through this week on £10. DB's budget is also as tight as his jeans were when I met him so we're very much in it together this month, it's good. We're going out for something to eat on Friday as a treat, and then it'll be another cheap few nights in, using up left overs (I made him keep a portion of bolognese last night to have tomorrow night as a cheap tea, he is learning). I'll have £50 from Friday to Friday next week and I'm confident I can make that stretch.

It's 12 days until I get paid (but 11 if you don't count the day I have the money in my hand) and I can't wait. I have many out goings in July so it's not going to be a great one for debt busting but if I can book a holiday and get through my birthday and this wedding whilst budgeting I'll be well pleased. I'll write up where it's all going (it's going in many directions) once I actually get the money.

In other news, tomorrow is the bi-annual farce which is 'pretend fudgefund doesn't live here' day for the benefit of our Estate Agents. I've done very well doing all sorts of housework, and my room is as clean as a bean. It was all very much like exercise and I've stayed under 1200 calories today so well done me. I also found 10p on the floor. The excitement.

please-let-me-be-lucky

Hi Fudgie, how goes it in fudgeland?

Is it the big 3-0 in the next few days or have I missed it?

Did you make it to payday?! Xx

Fudgefund

Hey How sweet of you to remember my impending birthday! It hasn't actually happened yet - I turn the big 3-0 on Monday.

I actually did do well on the budget front for the last 11 days of the month, I'm quite proud of myself. I think I have the princely sum of 35p in my purse, and I got paid today, so somehow I pulled it off. There were angry scenes yesterday - last Wednesday I went to the cinema with DB and bought some pick 'n' mix (not a treat I buy every week!) but paid for it on my debit card with only a few days to go before my interest came out, leaving me worrying that it would take me over my overdraft limit after the interest. Anyway, it appeared on my statement on the Friday and I breathed a big sigh of relief and carried on stretching out the money in my purse. I got home yesterday to get the infamous blue letter from Barclays telling me that due to my transaction at the Odeon I had gone overdrawn! :mad: The letter said the money had gone out on the Monday. I rang them straight away and got the charge refunded but honestly, I have to watch them like a hawk.

I do have a confession to make, hence my absence from the world of MoneySavingExpert. I think I've been wondering how I'm going to put it. :think: In my infinite wisdom, I have decided to forget about the beach holiday (incidentally I've thrown up twice this week from the heat so I'm not sure who I was kidding anyway) and, erm, book a holiday to Chicago which is costing me £695. Worse, I now have £660 worth of flights on my credit card, so I'm not updating any totals at the moment.

In my defence - this is only about £200 more than I would've spent on going on a package holiday and I do love going to the US. DB works for a travel company so we managed to get the flights for £330 each, which was a bargain. The accommodation I found is also quite the bargain for 7 nights in the Windy City - £636 with no taxes, and this isn't paid until arrival. As I said before, my family are giving me spending money so I am saving quite a lot there. This does however push my credit card free date back to September and I realise this is not good. I'm paying off my half of the flights today, and DB will pay his off at the end of the month so it won't be long until I'm back on track. Obviously I'm working hard to spend as little as possible this month to keep within my goals otherwise. I owe my Mum £100 for various things so that has to go, and I'm having my hair done for the wedding, another £90. For the wedding gift I've told DB I'm not giving anymore than £50 to the happy couple so that's budgeted for. I'm paying Barclaycard £450 so this covers my flight and a bit on top. Next month I'll get my accommodation half paid.

So there you have it. I had to come clean because it would have been so confusing pretending I'd paid off my credit card and I need my diary to keep me on track through the week. I'm staying in tonight to help DB with his best man speech and then tomorrow I'm off to Southport for a nice cheap day of ice cream and crazy golf. DB has paid for the hotel, and I'm thinking fish and chips would be better than any expensive meal out given what we've just booked. Then on Monday I'm stopping off to visit a dear friend on our way back from the seaside and she is making me a cake, then back home for bowling (2 games for £10) with some more friends. I'm really looking forward to my long weekend and I'm not crippled by the 30 fear, because I had all that angst last year.

One final piece of good news, I got my refund with 3 days to spare! I have a gift card for £45 from Debenhams, just need to find some shoes for the wedding now.

please-let-me-be-lucky

Wowzers! Chicago

Happy birthday for Monday :j

I'd be tempted to put another £5 on the Debenhams gift voucher to make £50 and give that as the wedding present (although £50 seems a lot to me as a gift). Then you can buy a cheaper pair of shoes from the £45 cash you have left over from the wedding gift budget, and use whatever is left over on living expenses or towards paying of the hols.

Have a lovely weekend Xx

*Robin*

Belated Happy Birthday Fudgie - hope you had a fantastic day!

Rxx

Fudgefund

It has been a long time since my last post, I hope anyone who reads this will forgive me, I've been very very busy.

PLMBL - Thanks you for your suggestions about the wedding gift, they really were the wake up call I needed. It was totally ridiculous giving the happy couple £100 when me and the best man are struggling, not to mention the fact that we gave his sister £50 the year before last! I talked to DB at length about it and he agreed it was too extravagant, so we are now giving £50. I feel a lot happier with this!

Robin - thank you for the bithday wishes, much appreciated. I took your advice last weekend and went up with my Dad for his flying lesson which lasted an hour. It was a tiny plane, only room for 4, but I got over the fear pretty quickly. What I didn't get over was the nausea! I spent most of the flight in desperate fear of vomiting mid-air, with not a sick bag to be had. I made it - just- but I don't think I'll be going back up anytime soon! Thanks for the recommendation though. I think. :rotfl:

My birthday itself was lovely, we went to Southport on the Sunday and the weather was beautiful. We went for drinks in the hotel bar which was really quite posh, and then went for some drinks in some establishments which were considerably less so. I woke up very hungover on the big day itself, but had a lovely day regardless seeing close friends and playing two appalling games of bowling. I spent far too much money though - £70 which is horrific. I suppose you're only thirty once.

Mid week I went to a 50th birthday party with a Cliff Richard impersonator which was absolutely hilarious but by the time I'd spent money on the train, and a meal and drinks the evening came in at about £30. Not good at all. Last weekend I went home to see my family, and DB's parents also came to meet mine for the first time. It all went off very peacefully, no one exploded, no one got drunk and caused a scene and I was very pleased. I also didn't spend very much money as I was the birthday girl, and I think the extent of it was £20. Even better though, I got my bithday present from my family and they have given me $500 to take to Chicago with me! As I'm going for 7 nights this is the vast majority of my spending money paid for which is really helpful. Honestly everyone was so generous about my birthday I was really quite embarrassed. DB is taking me to see Wicked in November, I'm really looking forward to that.

I've done really well with my money this week and have only spent £10! This is largely due to the fact we didn't go to the cinema this week, and I have spent a great deal of time writing DB's Best Man's speech with him whilst he has fed me beans on toast. I find myself wondering how many women have written Best Man's speeches by default, to help out their partners?! Must be thousands. The best bit was trying to think of compliments for the bride. That was hard work. :ROTFL: The big day is on Saturday. I couldn't honestly say I'm looking forward to it, but I am looking forward to it being over. Then I can put my energies into a healthy, well budgeted out August. I've got £60 a week to live on and I'm feeling confident about that, then I'll be able to reduce my part of the debt for the holiday sizably. If I can be credit card free by September I'll be well pleased.

please-let-me-be-lucky

Hope Saturday goes as well as it can! Relieved you have reduced the gift budget!!

Glad you had a nice birthday and got all that lovely mobey for Chicago Xx

Fudgefund

Thanks for the good wishes PLMBL, unfortunately though the wedding was, for me, an unmitigated personal disaster. I some how managed to turn up to the church wearing the exact same dress as the bridesmaids, and I can honestly say I've never wanted the ground to swallow me whole quite so much in my entire life. I spent the entire of the wedding service feeling like I was in some very bad dream, and wondering when I was going to wake up, only to be promptly prodded out of it by DB's Nanna saying a very loud voice 'you're wearing the same dress as the bridesmaids!'. Obviously I was about as far down the list of possible bridesmaids as the men present so I felt unbearably embarrassed. DB could tell I was really upset (I probably could've laughed it off with any other bride but not this one) so thankfully he got one of the guests who was driving to take me home to get changed, which I did. I cannot get over my bad luck though, I'm still cringing as I write this now. The only positive is that my chubby self isn't in any of the photos. I tried to crack a joke about it with the bride but she didn't look amused so I gave up. It could only be me, honestly.

I spent £40 on the day, buying my driver drinks and getting myself a couple to steady my nerves. Otherwise it passed without incident but I actually can't think of anything worse than what actually happened. I also overspent on the shoes, which I only wore in the event for about two hours, so I've severely dented my month's money. I now have £95 until payday (two weeks Wednesday) but I think I can do it, I have no plans. DB is giving me £600 on Wednesday but that is going straight to Barclaycard for the holiday so I'll need to be disciplined there.

I'm hoping for NSDs tomorrow and Friday when I'll be having tea with DB and taking lunches from home. Might have to buy a cinema ticket on Thursday but hopefully it won't break the bank! I'll make up for it with my saintly weekend I'm sure.

beanielou

OOops to dress but hey ho.

£95 is a fair amount, I am sure that will tide you over.