Dear Diary...

HeadAboveWater

Well done on the clear out! :T I was at mums at the weekend and was VERY ruthless! Bundle of stuff for recycling, handful of things for the bin, few bits and pieces for the girls and the house, and a boot full for charity - which was dropped off this morning!

And I bought a much-not-needed purse in TK Maxx yesterday too! I've a weakness for Billabong It was £25 down to £6.99 It is casual, but it's black so I can use it when I'm out for dinner. I'm not big on handbags. Plus my phone fits inside

Bad_Weather

Thanks HAW! One of my sisters is coming to rummage through it tomorrow before i give the rest to charity.

Read this today about Pixie Lott getting the bus home!!! Something we all should note - especially me - who got a taxi for a distance of approximately 1 mile last night at a cost of £4.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2455389/Pixie-Lott-watches-pennies-gets-bus-home-night-friends.html

That is how she will earn and KEEP her money!

I feel ashamed of myself for getting that taxi last night now...

Bad_Weather

Well.

It has been over 2 months. And if you guess that that was abad sign you are correct.

The pros?

Erm… I had a nice relaxing holiday where OH and I spend approx. double what we anticipated.

That is is.

The cons?

I had a nice relaxing holiday where OH and I spend approx. double what we anticipated.
I have went mental again with the spending. It started inAugust and has full on continued until Iwent on holiday.
I have not saved anymore wedding money.
I have not done anything else re the wedding.
I have basically, not done anything.
I am scared to look at my credit card. Scared. :eek:

HAW pointed out that stuff was getting to me. But since coming back holiday I have only noticed how much it was. Pre the holiday everything was so cloudy – if that makes sense? I was EXHAUSTED. I was fed up. The housework was not getting done, house was a mess. My mum even went over after the holiday and started doing housework and washing for me. It was that bad. On hindsight I sound like I was depressed, I WAS NOT, but I don’t know what it is? I never mentioned that I had an operation in August and it was actually quite a big operation on my leg and I honestly think I have not recovered from that. Like my body is still trying to repair? That fact that I gave myself zero rest has not helped I am certain.

With a clear head I am back on track with the money. This isit this time. I actually feel a little sick worrying about it all. It’s notthat bad, Its just I feel really bad. That I’ve left it too close to the wedding to get my act together and now I am just going to be chasing my tail until then.

Plan of action.

Been thinking long and hard about xmas. My OH thinks weshould can xmas this year (as all my bros and sisters did the year they weregetting married). And just do the parents. :money:

I didn’t want to do this as I thought it would be a bit miserable waking up to nothing on Christmas morning. But now as I have realised how bad things have got and how stressed I have been about everything I am thinking that it is a good idea. Save pennies and less worries than I alreadyhave. Plus to continue being the Grinch, It is totally hit or miss whether Iget anything decent. Sometimes it can be a cool wee clutch or bangles orsometimes it is something I just would not use. Almost giving for givings sake.

Next. I thought I had a wee old ring that had diamond in it.Turns out it was not a diamond. So that is my wedding necklace now scuppered. And I know I should just get a cheap something but I actually really wanted a good dressy necklace as I have nothing. Isaw a £300 saphire and diamond on in Ernest Jones. Considering that. Thinking Iwould rather sacrifice some stuff from xmas and get the good necklace for my wedding day.

Lunches to work and the spending STOPS unless I reallyreally need something, like a moisturizer or vitamins or something. That is it.

Going to have a clear out of my house, I have far too much clothes. TOO MUCH. Half of it I only wear as my scummy clothes. I am going to chuck it. It adds to housework and I end up only wearing it because it is clean.

I’m going to cancel a couple of nights out. Cancelled onealready, But I still have nights 1st December, 8th December,13th December, 19th December, 21st Decemberand 22nd December! Also got a wedding on 28th December. Thankfully the accommodation for that has been already paid so it is only thespending money that needs to be paid. But it is a big fancy hotel in Edinburghso going to need a lot. And we are not staying at the hotel so can’t put drinkup in our room.

Money has been paid for them all either in full or a deposit or tickets for something. So still got 3 dinners to pay for! The 1st, 21st and 22nd. Ohh dear. :eek:

Lastly trying to be healthy now for wedding and hopefullythat will help will help with clothes. Going to go to some bikram yoga and run.Bought a baked potato with quorn chilli for lunch and had some porridge with honey for breakfast with some fruit. Also coming off coffee and tea. I do not think it is helping with the tiredness.

Need to get my life back. I feel I have been lost!!!

HeadAboveWater

Welcome back! You were lost. Not any more. You just gotta stay found and stay focussed

So, now that you’ve had a nice relaxing holiday (where you and OH spent double what you anticipated!), time to get back on track!

It does sound like you have let things get on top of you, be it physically, mentally, financially, or any other ‘ally’ way. Today is the day you take control. I would personally suggest that sorting ‘me’ out is your first step. If you can’t or don’t feel like you, then no amount of savings, wedding planning, or clothes will help. Feel free to disagree with that by all means. I just know from my own experience that if I don’t feel well in myself, or physically well, then work/family/relationship/money suffers.

I like that your OH suggested canning Christmas I would second that motion! As you say, you end up buying or giving stuff just for the sake of it. And it’s for that exact reason I stopped pressie stuffs with siblings last year. Kinda gives me that wee bit extra to spend on mum and dad. Me and OH don’t do pressies. We try to get away for a night by ourselves (be it Premier Inn or Hilton Hotel it doesn’t matter!)

Yes to the lunches to work too. I do that all the time and save buckets. Once in a while I’ll meet someone for lunch, but even then I’ll have already eaten my lunch and will just get a coffee.

One Christmas dinner out planned for me. That’s it so far. If you’re gonna stuggle with ££, then cancel some nights. Or else no drive rather than drinking or something. You’ve plenty going on to still enjoy the festive season

Chin up and keep smiling

Bad_Weather

Statistics:

Credit Card Balances -
Tesco - £1,391.57
M&S - £0
Bos - £3,200 (Balance transfer getting paid off at £150 a month).

Wedding Savings £4,300 (now including personal savings I had that I have moved over due to lack of saving)

Bank Balance - £145

Bad_Weather

Ohh thanks HAW. Bless you! I was away getting the financesonto paper then and saw you had posted.

I have not felt like myself, I think that is why I have beenspending. Like you said no amount of clothes is going to make me feel better. Iknow that now. I knew I was not acting normally but couldn’t help myself.

I don’t know how to fix it, but I need to do something.

I am going to can Christmas! It is too much and I cannothandle worrying about presents aswell as money. Also that was the last of my friends birthdays(and mine) this month so I will be telling them no more birthday presents. Itonly took me 12 years to come to my senses. I could rant about the birthdaything more but it is not healthy. Live and Learn.

One of my sisters will moan about xmas as she did when anotherdone it, but I will take that moaning.

OH and I discussed not doing pressies either this year.Actually he suggested it (he is struggling with money aswell). Again it becomesa bit buying for buying sake doesn’t it? A nice wee night away sounds like agreat idea, out for a nice meal. I counter suggested that we maybe just do amax £50 spend on each other and get something…but now I’m also thinking he is rightwe should just have a nice wee night somewhere.

Deciding both those things has taken a weight off myshoulders already! I have text OH and told him he was right, we are not doingxmas. He agreed completely, we are "broke" and need to get ourselves sorted!

CHRISTMAS IS CANCELLED Well not the wine and food…but thepresents J

please-let-me-be-lucky

Sounds like you have a plan! Cancelling Christmas gifts and taking your lunch to work will save you heaps.

Do you have a cash for clothes type place nearby? If so, make sure you weigh in your old clothes not throw them away. All the pennies add up. Also, re the necklace, do you have a second hand jewellers you can check out? You might get more for your money Xx

HeadAboveWater

good to read your more positive post!

Your christmas will be fab. I just know it

Bad_Weather

Awww thanks ladies! CHin up. Stop feeling sorry for myself and get it sorted. That has been my new attitude.

Good idea PLMBL! I honeslty think a homeless shelter might not take some of the clothes anyway!

I did actually have a look at some of the second hand shops for jewellery. My mum used to tell my buying second hand jewellery was buying someone elses problems but Im a bit more realistic than that. A good old clean and that jewellery would be my problem . BUT I never saw anything at all I liked.

Soooo I went back to see it and it is literally the only necklace I have saw that i liked (of course it was at £300, that is my taste ) and went in and enquired. I knew there was wee stones on it, but some places it has been cubic ziconia (sp?) in these really really expensive necklaces or these fake diamonds that are somehow called diamonds (Im still not clear on this, but they are basically man made diamonds thermally set or something made from other materials) so I said to myself if it is cubic ziconia or something else I am not buying the necklace. Only saphires and diamonds will do for me... the girl who is skint.

Anyway, of course, it was diamonds, and I tried it on and it was just perfect. And they only had one, and i've not saw anything like it anywhere else. SO I paid £50 deposit to get it put aside (I figured I saved this from my xmas night I cancelled).

I then said I will put aside the money I WOULD have spent on people and will go in after christmas and pay it off.

It IS alot of money, but I just think of my two sisters, one spend nearly £300 in swarovski on jewellery that will tarnish and eventually be unusable. And the other spend £300 on pearls that she has not worn since. Bless, she did offer me them to wear - I'm not a pearl kind of girl though. So I think £300 on a diamond and saphire necklace that is gorgeous AND I can wear after the wedding is actually a bargain...if i you think really really really hard about it. Keep thinking...now try harder.

Anyway I started to tackle the tesco credit card. It is 0% so that is a positive but the balance is HUGE to have ran up for nothing. NOTHING I TELL YOU!!! :eek:

I paid £100 towards it today from my own money. I took 87.85 from the joint account (as it was joint expenses). OH owes me about £500 of it from holiday (flights and accomodation outstanding). SO hopefully it will be under £1k soon. :money:

On the plus side, with OH travelling with work and a bad train journey we had in January last year we are getting the train to London for FREE. Hoping to actually get first class but need to wait until next week to find out. AND I think we are getting a free nights accomodation as OH has about 1 million hotel points. That is a £250 a night hotel - for FREE. What a way to start the honeymoon eh!

Will be on tonight to catch up with everyone and get back into the money saving ways. Its been about 5 months since i have properly been online, and not just to confess my sins! x

Bad_Weather

Never got on last night to catch up.

But I was doing lots of wedding planning. Getting the invites sorted to go out soon. Got a hairdresser. Put some washes on, done the large stack of dishes. Changed my statements to online. So although I never got on, It was a productive night.

Next up on the list is to buy some booze for the wedding, and some stuff to go on the invites. Then hopefully at the weekend I want to start sorting though the 4, yes 4 large bags of paperwork I have. It is a mess. Thats a sign you have no idea about your finances, when you have no idea where the statements are.

Also want to Dye my black and navy clothes and handwash and steam my fancy french connection jacket, that is dry clean only. But ive hand washed before. Thinking I could put it in the washing machine as delicate and then use my hand steam (which i bought nice ironing water for) and that will make it as good as dry cleaned, if not better!

Going to go a run tonighht aswell. Been running this week. took yesterday off as I was exhasuted and tired and sore. But back on it today!

Laters xxxxx