Debt Destruction December!!!

Nowisnow

Hello everyone - hope you are all enjoying the challenge . I am a bit late adding my details but I am here to report

2SFDs:j!
I think it's the first time I have managed this since I first started to get pocket money in 1962.......:rotfl:

Right down to business:

SFDs 2/15

Food budgets - never, ever done a budget, will try

Spend money - as above

Envelopes - think I am more of a spread-sheet person - will get on it

Drop one Christmas outing/party - turned down everything except family gatherings - telling everyone I am booked up :cool:

£5 for food bank - 0/5 - will do this, its a marvellous idea

Batch cook now - never, ever done this either. I will try the 3 meal appraoch suggested by Kat. One to eat, one to freeze and one to put in fridge

Get a notebook - it will need to be something electronic or I will lose it!

5 things:
1.Enjoy my family and friends
2.Live in the present
3.Make my lovely boss proud
4.Lose weight and get fitter and healthier
5.Lose a large portion of my debt!

Choose a debt free date - February 2016

Spending will be kept to a minimum - that will be another first for December!

Lunch will be brought from home everyday - no problem

NO ENTRY to any sales in the month of DDD - easily avoided, I dont like sales

As you can see I am very disorganised, which is how I got into debt in the first place.

I would like to say a big thank you to Kat and everyone on here for giving me the motivation to crush my evil credit card debt.
I have shed £8,000 worth of debt this year thanks to MSE and this forum.
You even manage to make it fun. Amazing!:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T

vjacx

1st SFD for me

Haven't done the food bank stuff yet, its on the list for this week though, then I can tick it off!!!

stewby

Less dramatic post today (well, not really)...

1/12:spend day.
2/12: spend-free day.
3/12: spend day.

So 1 spend-free day so far. However, I have absolutely decimated my budgets and spent all my money apart from £12. Sorry.


Remaining positive... As a result of this, spend-free days will be very easy to obtain.


Also positive... On the plus side, all our xmas pressies have been bought.


Sorry but if I didn't laugh, I would cry at the moment.
:undecided

karmachilovething

thriftylass wrote: »

Anyone else get really excited at the start of a new challenge but once the monies are transferred, spreadsheets done, wallet left at home, big groceries shop done - there is this void. Nothing else to do (well challenge related, there is still life) apart from to wait for time to pass to the next challenge or spend day when I can put numbers in my spreadsheet again. Or is it just silly me......

Yeah, I find the daily posting "difficult" (that's not quite the right word . . . ) because when you're not spending there's not much to say!

As it is I had a spend day so lots to say!

I had another meeting so that was parking, train fare and lunch (to be reclaimed but under this month's rules they count) and so having messed up a SFD I stopped in TKMacks on the way back to the office and picked up some Christmas pressies. Auntie sorted, and Mum started (found some lovely soaps, rose and peony, so going to do a rose themed package . . . rose cremes (and violet, her favorite), maybe an actual rose, or some rose drawer scenters (DIYs) and whatever else I can think up)

Oh and I also bought myself a scented candle but it was cheap! Promise! I shall go sit on the naughty step . . .

karmachilovething

Oh and I forgot, 5 things for 2014:

1. Get healthier
2. Attend yoga retreat
3. Pay £4000 off debt (more than half)
4. Learn to tie bouquets (for BFF's wedding)
5. Install my own kitchen

tennisfanatic

Nothing to report here really....another SFD as at work but next week i'm not in work which could make the SFD's much more tricky.

SFD 2/15
Lunch to work 2/13
Food £34.41/£120 (including foodbank donation)
Foodbank £2.49/£5 (purchased but not yet donated)

TiptoesDB

Hello all

Should have, would have, been a spend free day today but DH split his trousers at work today and bought some new ones at lunch time... granted they were £14 from 4sda, but that still a spend. bah. I guess it was a necessary one as he couldn't really flash his office all day . He's also made plans to see a friend on Saturday which will involve a spend. Maybe this month won't be as easy as I thought...hmmm.

On a very MSE note, I took a break from report writing at home to duct tape up my cosy slippers that were falling apart. I WILL NOT SPEND ANY MONEY ON THINGS FOR ME.... I caught sight of myself in them later on in the day and marvelled at how much I have changed in the last 4 months... before it would have been any excuse to buy a nice new pair of cute cosy slippers...

I know what you mean Thriftylass about setting up the new month and getting all excited then pfumph... massive anticlimax. I get all excited at month end to pay off cc's and then set up the new shiny spreadsheet and challenge and then all I do for the next 30 days is stare at the spreadsheet every night!

Stewby keep laughing if you can.. but it sounds like things have been tough... keep your chin up We are here for you...

Ok, better scoot and put dinner in the oven...

kangadoo

Hello!

Think this is my first December check-in, given I was out yesterday and slept through (literally the whole of!) Sunday!

I have good news - while work is still a bit all over the place, got an agreement today from a client (assuming they stick to it, but I think we can rest assured I will be MAKING them stick to it...!) that they will make a payment early meaning the really scary bill coming up in January is COVERED! Rodents, we can eat again! :j This bill is the reason I have been scrimping so hard, and while I won't quite believe it - and will therefore stay a bit stressed - until the money's sitting there waiting for me to hand over I am so relieved.

Fear not though, I am staying on the scrimping bandwagon! Having seen how much money I can save - and I still can't believe how much that is when you filter out unnecessary things and stuff - I will be doing everything within my power to get rid of this bill, then pay off my credit card. It's just all suddenly a bit achievable rather than purely terrifying. (Credit card is currently at 0%, and is solely furniture I had to buy when I moved into my flat this summer.)

I know it's easy to say, and it has only been a month and three days, but now that I know how much was just disappearing I can't justify going back to that. Might buy myself a celebratory pizza when I pay the bill, though! :rotfl:

So, currently on 2 SFD for December. Going to sit and ponder my 5 things tonight and try to work out a realistic DFD... and possibly make my spreadsheet a bit zingier! thriftylass I loved seeing yours, really inspired me! You know how some people like looking into people's houses? I think I might be like that with spreadsheets!

Habibiboo

:wave:
Third NSD and 3rd day of actively avoiding sales surfing! Gonna have to do some Christmas shopping at some point though ...!
Loving everyone's spreadsheets, mine looks very boring in comparison!

splodgethefirst

Good evening!

NSD #2

This weekend I opened a new current account with Metr0 Bank - been moving my money around and giving it a go having 2 CAs - one with DDs/bills money, the other with spendy money.

has anyone else had experience with this? (realise it is somewhat contrary to the envelopes required by Kat - but I am very bad at having cash to be honest ...

Also read about the weekly saving challenge - you save the number of pounds for the week you are in ? considering making that a savings goal (but doing it in reverse so the highest amount goes out first)