Debt free by 40 -- 19 Months and counting

StressedSteph

Morning all,


Had a horrible start to the day, waking up at 8.30am :eek:.
Something had gone wrong with hubbys alarm clock, so I somehow managed to get kids up dressed,fed, packed lunches made and bags packed and at school by 9am . didn't manage to fit a coffee in that 20 minutes but amazed at how quickly we can actually do stuff if we are in a panic


I have been hearing about Dave Ramsey's SmartKidsLaunchpad.com website which is supposed to teach children the values surrounding money and family. As I literally adore everything that comes out of Mr Ramseys mouth with his old school values, I thought I would try it out.


Its completely free, you can print off the progress chart and rewards sheet (all free) and I will start working through the tasks with the children starting tonight.


the first one is them picking 5 items from the household food cupboard and placing them on the table. I have to find out the prices of them and keep them hidden. Then they have to guess the cost of each item and I will do a game show type reveal to see how close or far away their guesses were.


Then they have to add up all the groceries to a grand total and work out how many chores/pocket money it would take to buy those groceries.


I think its a great idea and will give them an idea as to how much food costs and how it shouldn't be wasted.


When we have completed it I will reward them with a sticker for their chart (not a sticker but will bluetac it )


It looks like fun and hopefully they may learn a little through it too.


I haven't decided on a final completed sticker chart reward yet it may be £5. My son is 9 and sometimes need a little more reward than just the taking part :rotfl:


Not much happening on the money front today, will be a NSD.
House Insurance DD has come out, otherwise all quiet.
Still got a £250 shortfall for this month, it appears I can't afford to save any money but I will, I just have to find that money from my craft business.
On track to earn £62.50 today/tomorrow and also earnt £32.50, so hopefully I will get there.


Have a great day all. xx


There are tonnes of other challenges

lhead123

Hi Steph,

What a panic waking up late! J didn't wake up until 7.45 this morning and she's normally my 7.30am alarm clock!...unless S has woken me up earlier!

Glad you managed to get the kids to school ontime. Luckily J's nursery is 2 minutes walk from our house and they always open the doors late, so we can leave at 9am and still be early! From september she will be at school though, and that's a 20 minute walk and an 8.35am start, So I think I will have to start setting my own alarm for 7am. She will be getting free school dinners though as they have rolled that out nationally now, so at least I won't have to worry about making packed lunches

Hope the crafting brings in a bit more money for you this month - I love your stuff and would love to buy some bits, but it will have to wait until YNAB tells me i have spare money...which will be at least a few months yet!

I ended up paying £29.99 for YNAB through steam. I looked every day to see if they had in on sale right up until my trial ended but i wasn't lucky It was still cheaper than buying it a $60 with the exchange rate though, even with $6 off with a referral code.

That Dave Ramsey smart kids thing looks really good. I may have to use that with J when she is older. She has no idea about the value of money at the moment. We tell her if things are too expensive or that we dont have enough money, but it doesn't sink in. She's got a water table out on the balcony to play with and is forever asking us for more water. If I haven't got any left over from washing S's bottles or old bath water she gets told no....that doesn't go down very well and often ends up with a tantrum and a time out, and then she has to just play with the inch of water left in the play table that she hasn't tipped all over the floor!

I'm hoping for a NSD today too....Well, we are getting our A$DA delivery tonight, but I ordered it 2 days ago - does that count as a NSD? lol

Hope you've had a coffee now the kids are at school and you can be properly awake.

L xx

StressedSteph

lhead123 wrote: »

Hi Steph,

What a panic waking up late! J didn't wake up until 7.45 this morning and she's normally my 7.30am alarm clock!...unless S has woken me up earlier!

Glad you managed to get the kids to school ontime. Luckily J's nursery is 2 minutes walk from our house and they always open the doors late, so we can leave at 9am and still be early! From september she will be at school though, and that's a 20 minute walk and an 8.35am start, So I think I will have to start setting my own alarm for 7am. She will be getting free school dinners though as they have rolled that out nationally now, so at least I won't have to worry about making packed lunches

Hope the crafting brings in a bit more money for you this month - I love your stuff and would love to buy some bits, but it will have to wait until YNAB tells me i have spare money...which will be at least a few months yet!

I ended up paying £29.99 for YNAB through steam. I looked every day to see if they had in on sale right up until my trial ended but i wasn't lucky It was still cheaper than buying it a $60 with the exchange rate though, even with $6 off with a referral code.

That Dave Ramsey smart kids thing looks really good. I may have to use that with J when she is older. She has no idea about the value of money at the moment. We tell her if things are too expensive or that we dont have enough money, but it doesn't sink in. She's got a water table out on the balcony to play with and is forever asking us for more water. If I haven't got any left over from washing S's bottles or old bath water she gets told no....that doesn't go down very well and often ends up with a tantrum and a time out, and then she has to just play with the inch of water left in the play table that she hasn't tipped all over the floor!

I'm hoping for a NSD today too....Well, we are getting our A$DA delivery tonight, but I ordered it 2 days ago - does that count as a NSD? lol

Hope you've had a coffee now the kids are at school and you can be properly awake.

L xx

Morning lhead,


You are lucky you get to walk the children to nursery/school, I would love to do that to save on diesel costs, but we are about a 40 minute walk away, which isn't too bad, except its narrow country lanes with no path and the cars whizz up and down, think we may be squashed by the end of the first week walking .


Shame about having to pay £29.99 for YNAB, mine wasn't much better at £18.99, worth it though for a lifetimes use of an excellent budgeting tool. I have been using mine since January and I wonder how I EVER managed without it.


You are doing the right thing with the water and your Dd. Because of my overspending in the past, I have spent many years never telling my children about money and lavishing stuff on them between birthdays etc, so I have a lot of re-training to do with them. I really do not want them to grow up and spend like it grows on trees and then live in debt all their lives.


I think my Dd will be fine she is 7 and saves all her money, she currently has over £20 in her money pot from little jobs she has done for me.


Ds who is 9 is a whole other ball game, he can't save at all, as soon as he has £2 he is thinking of how to spend it, he will give his tuck money (30p) away to children in the playground without thinking and if he has a WANT of any sort he will play up trying to persuade me to get it :mad:.
I know that his behaviour is the fall out of my past over-spending and I have taught him that if he wants something he just gets it.!! Unfortunately Momma has had her LBM and now he has to as well :rotfl:.


This Dave Ramsey thing is free and I think at 9 and 7 they are at just perfect ages to catch them and teach them new ways to view money. I don't think my son will ever be overly cautious with money, but at least if I can teach him Debt is a bad thing then maybe he may work hard to get a decent well paid job so he can spend.


Food shop shouldn't be class as a Spend, I expect its in your budget. I don't class budgeted items as spends as they are just the normal part of living that can't be avoided.



Hope you have a great day, I'm off to put the kettle on again xxx

debtfreewannabe321

llhead / Steph do you have a referral code as I have seen posts about them meaning I get $6 off and you also get $6 back? Not sure if this is correct but would mean you end up paying less and so do I if you see what I mean. Let me know if you do and i'm happy to use it as i've only got about a week left on my trial x

lhead123

debtfreewannabe321 wrote: »

llhead / Steph do you have a referral code as I have seen posts about them meaning I get $6 off and you also get $6 back? Not sure if this is correct but would mean you end up paying less and so do I if you see what I mean. Let me know if you do and i'm happy to use it as i've only got about a week left on my trial x

If you click on my name to see my profile my referral code is on there...though as this is Steph's thread she should get first dibs on the code, as we get $6 if someone uses it as well.

L xx

StressedSteph

lhead123 wrote: »

If you click on my name to see my profile my referral code is on there...though as this is Steph's thread she should get first dibs on the code, as we get $6 if someone uses it as well.

L xx

Its ok, I am a little unsure about how all this referral code business works, so go ahead and use lheads one


xxxx

StressedSteph

Morning Diary,


Another quiet day on the horizon.


Ds tried her luck getting out of school this morning with a mystery tummy ache, but once I said you are definitely going to school but I will tell your teacher you feel unwell, she perked up fine and didn't mention it again Kids!


More direct Debits have come out today but nothing unplanned. Mr T is due between 10-11, but otherwise another NSD.


Had problems with my sewing machine last night, but hubby being the logical/practical star that he is got it fixed for me, so more sewing to get some today. Must get these commissions finished to get some money in. My hourly rate is dreadful. I would probably get more profit from surveys :rotfl:.


Not much else to report. Speak soon xxxx


P.s As a little update, hubby works with his father, and I asked him when he can home, if his dad has mentioned anything about the weekend issues, with dinner not happening etc. Apparently his father didn't mention at thing!!. This really annoys me as I feel if things go unsaid and unresolved then bad feeling festers and yet again I will probably get the blame and as its never discussed hubby or I never get the chance to defend ourselves.
Grrrr got to let this one go, but its really annoyed me x

maddiemay

Hi Steph, great that OH has mended your machine, he is a star. I know what you mean about the hourly rate for hand made crafts, perhaps you should nudge your prices up a little at a time, not enough to put people off at this stage, but even small amounts will add up. Some people just do not get the worth of things, but unfortunately ATM it is down to what people can afford.

Try and let the other stuff go if you can, it is a waste of good energy, you have lots of lovely people in your life, a dear friend of mine used to say fix a smile on your face and forget it:D

Trying to get my head around a food plan, shop, and personal packing for 10 days away in the motorhome, I love going, but I hate the preparation:(. I seem to have far too much of some foodstuff and not enough of the rest, sadly I am not organised:(
MM
xx

StressedSteph

maddiemay wrote: »

Hi Steph, great that OH has mended your machine, he is a star. I know what you mean about the hourly rate for hand made crafts, perhaps you should nudge your prices up a little at a time, not enough to put people off at this stage, but even small amounts will add up. Some people just do not get the worth of things, but unfortunately ATM it is down to what people can afford.

Try and let the other stuff go if you can, it is a waste of good energy, you have lots of lovely people in your life, a dear friend of mine used to say fix a smile on your face and forget it:D

Trying to get my head around a food plan, shop, and personal packing for 10 days away in the motorhome, I love going, but I hate the preparation:(. I seem to have far too much of some foodstuff and not enough of the rest, sadly I am not organised:(
MM
xx

Hi MM


I am always trying to strike that balance between under charging for my items but then pricing them so that they at least attract some purchasers. The whole intent for this is making some pennies so I do need to price them on the lower end as unfortunately it isn't just a fun hobby. Tricky....


I have calmed down about the inlaws now, I was quite happy before with how it was (not seeing them) and it now seems that even though they moan, they have not much intention on making an effort either. So it is best to just leave it alone. I feel like I almost opened a can of worms inviting them to dinner, and I think they don't want to make an effort as its much easier to sit in their homes complaining. Oh well...


I have troubles menu planning but I am doing ok this week so far. Not spent a penny in the food shops :T, I have figured there really isn't any point me strapping myself to the sewing machine for 10 hours a day to then blow it on stupid extra from food shops. Got to get my self control back.


I am so jealous of your motorhome, I would LOVE that, It is hard getting organised though, but soooo worth it. I will miss you

StressedSteph

Hi guys.


I have a dilemma, and could really do with a mum to help me figure out the best way forward, but in the absence of one, I wondered if you guys could help me?


So...You know I am always hunting for ways to make money. I can't really get an traditional job as I have no support network for childrens sickness/holidays.


I currently do my little craft business (TheOrchardGoose) which has peaks and troughs and does bring in much needed pennies but I feel like I could do with something else.


Well........About 5-6 years ago before my mum got ill, I trained as a Reflexologist. I did it for a few years self-employed around the children and bought in a small income. Then mum became ill, I was the only child and with all that chaos I just dropped it.


Fast forward to now.
A friend who owns a spa/retreat is having staffing problems with her self employed therapists and during a general chat I confessed to having trained as a Reflexologist. she jumped up and said that if I would also add Indian Head Massage to my abilities then she would love to give me some work through her Spa (£20 ph).


Here is my catch......


The nearest Indian Head Massage Training Centre is Exmouth which is about 2 hours away from me and costs just over £200 for the 1 day course.


Now.....I could possibly scratch that money up from somewhere, and I have two trains of thought and I wonder if you could help me decide which is true.


1) We are not in a financial position to find £200 for a massage course, of which I do not have any clue how many sessions I will get from the friends spa, and it will take 10 sessions before I even start breaking even. Its another whim that will just end up costing us money rather than earning any.
(I will have to spend some time at home also refreshing my Reflexology as its been a long while since I have practiced).


OR.......


2) This is an amazing opportunity, and with a little bit of investment you could start another little flexible career path that will fit around children. I could do the massage/Reflexology and in quiet times do my crafts. Between those two enterprises, I might actually start to bring in a half decent part-time wage. My only current option until children are old enough to be left on their own for long periods. which is at least another 6 years.
I could advertise in my local village magazine and be mobile.




Aaaargh I can't decide which is correct.


I know I have a previous history of fads and starting things and not seeing them through and I think that is what is scaring me. I can't afford to mess up financially.


I am just scared that I am potentially missing out on a nice little business just because I would find it hard to find a measly £200 for the training course.


Can you help me please guys.... Many thanks in advance for sticking to reading my rambling