Getting a Grip on 2013

Cinny91

I think the title says it all! My OH and I need to start being more grown up with our money. I've always been a bit of a thrifty frugal old-style soul, but living with a spend thrift of a partner does eventually rub off on you. And we want to get it under wraps!

A little bit more about us:
I'm 21, working a handful of part time jobs with different people as it seems I'm more likely to stumble across unicorn poop then get a full time position anywhere. My partner is 24 and works a full time 9-5 office job that he's thankfully loving after 3 career changes in the time we've been together.

We live in a semi-detached house in an ex-pit town (formally village, I think we pushed the population over!) with our crazed puppy Ryder. After 2 years I've really grown to love it here, plus the cost of living is peanuts compared to surrounding neighborhood which helps!

I'll save the next post as a (hopefully) neat place to keep all our goals and targets up to date. Lugging all that about on a signature never really works for me!

Cinny91

Goals for 2013: (last updated March 21st 2013)

Save £1128 to pay 12 months off OH's car loan: £5.40/1128
Have £2500 untouched in savings by December 31st 2013: £0/2500
Keep £500 float in our extra money account (for annual bills, car repairs etc): £500/500
Save £1200 for Living Costs £950/1500

Plans for 2013
Clear a couple things from our "to do" list around the house.
Try and visit my Sister around Thanks Giving.

Cinny91

Got paid from job No1 and No3 today. So popped £19 into savings, and hauled £49 onto the gas card.

Working a little shift at job No2 today, just 4:30 - 7:00pm but the office is sweltering so I plan on acting like a little storage heater and come home hotter than the devils bumcheeks and happy our heating is a little bit useless to cool off a bit We've got some chemicals sloshing around our radiators at the moment which will hopefully make them a bit more effective over the next couple weeks, if not we'll be getting new radiators in a couple rooms from my lovely Landlord/Uncle.

Sent our old phones off to Mazuma mobile yesterday. Would be a nice addition to our savings but I'm planning on using my share (£100) towards our Christmas food shop. OH's will be going on fuel as he's had a couple business trips which has killed the diesel that normally keeps him ticking over all month. Will be a nice boost to his December/January wages claiming expenses though. So all swings and roundabouts!!

Off to wrap up and take Ryder for a walk in the woods so he's nice and tired by the time I go to work. Hopefully he won't foster himself out to 3 different strangers and leave me looking like a complete loser this time!

Birdie85

Happy brand new thread! :wave:

Plans all sound good and manageable! Hope operation baby works out soon and you get to visit your sister in November, I'd love to go to America for Thanksgiving!

Cinny91

OH is in the bath and there's nothing on TV so I thought I'd update on here, exciting soul that I am

Thanks Birdie, I hope we manage it too!! Never been to America before so any time of the year will be good for me really. I just thought Thanks Giving for the food!

Spent all morning at my Grandparents putting their tree up for them - 3 hours was spent just on the tree and that's after I'd been and spent 30 minutes putting it up and fanning the branches out just so yesterday :eek: But now it looks like a tinsel factory threw up all over it so I left two very happy Grandparents! He also insisted I took £20 "for my troubles" so I put £10 into the tin for our Christmas shop and used £10 to do a bit of a top up shop and finally buy some razors as my situation was getting a little grizzly in places.

Retitled a couple of my savings accounts so I know what everything in each account is for, love that handy feature Also found £10 in an old account that I've put into the "extra money" account. The quicker I can get this up to £500 the better as I can start focusing my efforts onto getting OH's loan over payment together to get that bloody debt gone for good.

Early start for me tomorrow, want to get Ryder taken on a super long walk before the walkways get too busy. My Parents are in Dublin at the moment and I promised them I'd go see to their pooches for a few hours while my Sister is out at work and I want Ryder as tired as possible before we go. But now I'm off to put the left overs of the peach cobler OH made in the fridge and head to bed, been fighting the sandman since 8pm. Oh dear

Cinny91

Having a not so happy Monday. Today and Friday are the worst for back-to-back shifts, feel ready to crawl back to bed already. Need coffee/tea/a nice snuggly blanket.

Downloaded a free app yesterday that tracks your dog walks. I feel a goal coming on! Going to aim to walk Ryder 5 miles a day, unless it's bitterly cold and blatantly clear we both want to be at home.

My wellingtons died a death on Sunday though, I got stuck in what I can only describe as a sloggy clay pit in the morning and while trying to wiggle a foot free heard a tiny rip and then felt a rush of cold air around my toesies. Man in the corner shop gave me a very pitiful look when I popped in for a bag of sugar with my hair looking a wild mess and my feet about 10 times heavier with mud - and then grass from where I tried to stomp the mud off. Ordered a more strudy, less cosmetically pleasing, Dunlop pair on Amazon for £10 so hopefully they'll be here soon as my back up yard boots give me blisters and include 5 minutes lace-up time

Rounded all our bank accounts down this morning so our EM Savings are now at £158.99 :T Quietly happy with this as it was only at £110 this time last week.

OH was asking why we're focusing on saving an emergency fund alone and not concentrating on debts last night. So I thought I'd explain it here too! When it comes to money, while I obviously like Martin Lewis for using this forum, I'm a big believer in Dave Ramsey's "Seven Baby Steps" and Step 1 is to create an emergency fund before clearing debts to fall back on. (Step 2 is to pay off debts, Step 3 is to save 3 - 6 months of living expenses, Step 4 is to invest into retirement funds, Step 5 to save for your Children's College fund, Step 6 to pay off your home early and Step 7 is to build your wealth and start giving back) like he says "Live like no one else so that later you can live like no one else."

No exciting plans for today. Working at Job No1 until 12, have a couple hours at home to eat/clean/walk Ryder then I'm back to work for Job No2 2:45 - 9:15pm Need to try and talk to one of the bosses about nipping home during my break to let Ryder out for a piddle and give him his tea as OH is out tonight.

shrimpy_80

Happy new diary Cinny! I have to say, I'm not familiar with Dave Ramsey but I like the sound of those steps so might have to investigate. With the house and everything else I'm afraid the debt clearing has (once again) taken a back seat, so need to get that sorted once and for all in the new year.

Also - I insist you have a cup of tea immediately, and possibly a medicinal biscuit to boot

Tete_en_l'Air

Found you Exciting plans afoot and you're already making headway which is fab Look forward to following your progress! x

ruby_eskimo

Happy new thread Cinny! Wishing you all the best with your goals for the new year!

TimeforTea_4

Just want to say hi and Well done....

hope you don`t mind but intrested to follow your prgress.
xx

:T:p

lurvlyloz

Good luck on your plans x