need to clear the debt once and for all

MrsGSR

Ahhh it's so hard at times! Thaks to DH and his picking up bits and bobs reduced the shopping budget for the rest of the month in really low :-(
Still as the previous post states we have worked out meals for the next few weeks which is pretty good. We should just get away with buying milk. Not sure how I am going to manage DH next month because he gets stuff from his own money and then has the cheek to say "I'm skint" the trouble is the money is there in the shopping money tin for him to take and use for stuff we need. Argh! Not sure I will ever win this one!
Made another payment to CC1, it's good to see the balance go down.

Made soup, bread and cake for a playdate with friends tomorrow, sadly they are dropping like flies with various illnesses so ill freeze the bread and the soup (saving some portions for lunches this week) for next week and I guess we will have to just eat the cake, oh dear, such a shame!

MrsGSR

Well I'm pleased to report that we have paid off £1,212.47 since I started this thread. DH reckoned it would take longer than a few months to pay off everything but I don't think it will. I'll have CC1 paid off by next month which will be good then I can put the monthly payment towards CC2. I'm aiming to have that one paid off by the end of April £412, I think it's doable....

MrsGSR

I haven't posted for ages, apologies!

Well all seems to be going well, after tomorrow I have £72 left to pay off CC1 which considering at the beginning of September I had £210 on it!

Bank account switched over last weekend so we don't get charged for overdraft for 12 months so we should be able get well into credit by then. We are -£68 in the overdraft and everything has gone out so that's amazing progress really.

I've upped our shopping budget to £200 as £150 was just completely unrealistic, the cupboards and freezers are full so we should be fine and only need milk and fruit top ups.

Energy company switch happens on the 1st December and we will be saving £14 a month. We also got £20 of M&S vouchers so they will probably be given to my parents as Christmas presents as they shop there. Still barely turned the heating on here, generally only for a hour at a time. Kids have extra blankets on their beds and we are all wearing extra layers.

I mentioned in another thread that I am beginning to feel more and more like the stingey one in my group of friends. They all seem to be going out shopping and having coffee and stuff and while I am pretty happy keeping things simple and to be tackling our debts I feel a bit like the poor relation. Maybe I should keep quite about my frugal ways?

MrsGSR

So I've sat crunching some numbers and have realised that if I do 6 hours of sunday overtime for 7 weeks I can pay off CC2. Planning to start this next month as I work in retail I should be able to get lots of extra hours.
If I can't get much sunday over time (as it pays better it goes quicker) I could do 8weeks of 8 hour shifts. However, I can't see that happening so being realistic if I do 16 4 hour shifts I can pay it off with £25 left to spare.
My goal is by the end of march. I think thats doable. Sooner if possible. That will make me personally debt free then I will help DH pay off his.

MrsGSR

Well it's been a busy few weeks but CC1 has now been cleared! I'm doing the 100 days v1 debt challenge which is going well so far as have paid £40 off CC2 already.
£360ish to go.
My new year planner for next year has arrived so I can put everything on it like when car taxs, MOTs, car insurances are due, who is working what hours, what activities the kids are doing and how much needs to be paid out so hopefully I can forecast a little better.
I'm feeling really fortunate, I have a nice house that is warm, I have a lovely husband and children and money for food. Thats I need, thats all anyone needs.

MrsGSR

Well I'm really proud of my progress.
I set a goal for next year of having at least £300 left in the joint account after all the bills had gone out and worked out their should be near on £350 left this month! So very pleased with this progress and so quickly too.
My two savings accounts are looking healthy, CC2 is rapidly going down, the ISA has a good amount in it too and I am hoping we will be in the position to be able to save more to that. My personal account is well in credit and I'm putting money aside so that January's car tax isn't such a hard blow!
I've started filling in my year planner, love having everything all clearly set out and loving have colour coded stickers for everything!
I do need to look at our insurances for the new year though, we have 4 and I am not sure we need them all, life, life style protector and building and contents so not sure what the other one is!

MrsGSR

Well it's been awhile but things are really looking up.

Our JA will be around £700 in credit after bills have gone out which i cannot believe and this is BEFORE the changes with insurances! I have changed our home insurance, it's just life assurance and income protection that I need to finalize tomorrow now I have all the info I need. Worked out we should save £50 a month which will go into the children's ISAs each month, we will also be in the position to save more to our emergency account so that will make a difference. As long as there is min of £350 a month in there after bills then I'm happy.

I'm taking on as much overtime at work as I can manage and this is going straight on the CC along with the monthly payment I already do. Thanks to NSKs challenges in a very short space of time I have become so much more aware of what I am spending and whether I am getting value for money. My friends were asking about it the other day as I'm sure they think I am a stinge! When i mentioned the 4 personal savings accounts I had and the way I sort out my money each month they were amazed!

One thing I have been very conscious of is my depression and how I am dealing with it, I'm trying some DIY CBT so talking myself out of bad thoughts which does seem to be helping, making time for myself and exercising gently.

I'm feeling a lot more positive about things now