misstara's debt diary 2014

misstara

OH gave me £40 today which I have put into the electricity bill fund. It's due at the start of november and I will probably need around £150 for it so that is a good start.

misstara

I have made a wee £3 payment to cc1 this morning taking the debt to under £7800 :T Less than £50 to go to meet my end of month target which I will pay on monday when I get paid from monthly job.

I'm just going to finish my coffee then head to get a few things from the supermarket. I'm then going to meet my friend for lunch before work. She texted me earlier to warn me that she had a cold so at least I don't have to worry about giving her mine.

misstara

I spent £12.90 in the supermarket and then £19 out for lunch so slightly overbudget on lunch but was worth it Today I have spent £2 on juice and biscuits and £2.50 on bus fare home from work.

misstara

Payday today so payment made to cc1 and signature updated with new mini targets.

misstara

Yesterday and today have been NSDs although lots of money has left my account for the car club and council tax. I have also made a £5.54 payment to cc1.

I have decided to try a slightly different way of budgeting (thanks to Steph as I pinched the idea from her diary ). I have opened 5 new online savings accounts with my bank and have renamed them
- electricity bill
- presents
- clothing
- holiday
- flat (this is to save money towards a deposit for a new flat but also to buy furniture in case we get a housing association flat)

At the moment, all but the electricity bill one have a £1 balance but will start putting money into them on Friday when I get paid again.

I'm hoping that this will make it easier to save for specific things

misstara

I got my payslip through for 2nd job today so will get £153.29 on Friday. Since it's more than usual thanks to the PH double pay, I'm going to order OH's christmas present. I always get him one big thing and then a stocking so at least that will be the big present out of the way.

Budget
- £49 OH's present
- £14.29 cc1
- £5 clothing
- £5 holiday
- £5 flat deposit
- £15 electricity bill
- £10 Lovefilm
- £25 food
- £10 crafts
- £5 bus fare

The £10 crafts is to buy bits and pieces to hand make cards and gifts for christmas. OH will also give me some money on Friday so will decide what to do with it once I know how much it will be.

monz

You are so organised!!:)

misstara

monz wrote: »

You are so organised!!:)

Thanks monz, I try

Payday today so I have made all the transfers to my new savings accounts as detailed in the post above. I have also made the payment to cc1.

I plan to buy OHs present later today plus visit a craft shop for supplies. I will also need to go to the supermarket soon as we're almost out of a few things. I literally can't function without coffee so must stock up soon!

The last week or so I've been feeling a bit down and not really feeling my usual self. Part of this is having a horrible cold (I feel better but still not 100%) but I think another part is that while paying off the debt is going well, I don't really feel like much else is.

I still feel stressed out about money a lot of the time, I feel as though I'm always going over budget especially with food (maybe not by much but the few pounds here and there add up), menu planning just doesn't happen and I've been eating mostly rubbish plus I haven't been to the gym for ages so I've put on weight and feel really unfit. I've also been making mistakes at work as I feel so tired all the time but I don't feel as though I cut back massively on my hours as OHs income is a bit variable at the moment. And breathe...

I tried to discuss how I was feeling with OH and although he's usually very supportive, he decided to take it as though I was moaning at him for not earning enough and we had a bit of a fight Ok it would help if he was earning more but that wasn't the point of the conversation.

Anyway I actually feel better just from writing it all down. I just need to get through 2 more days of work and then I'm off for 3 days so hoping that the rest will do me some good and also get rid of the last of this cold.

I'm going to do a meal plan later and will post it here which will hopefully make me do one. I'm also going to text my friend and see if she wants to go to the gym over the weekend. I'll have a think of anything else I can do to perk myself up and hopefully will have a more positive post next time. Hope everyone has a good day.

monz

Dont be too hard on yourself! You are doing fantastic x

misstara

monz wrote: »

Dont be too hard on yourself! You are doing fantastic x

Thanks monz, am feeling a wee bit more positive now

I've done a meal plan and am currently on my way to A*di armed with a shopping list.
Tonight - pizza and salad
Tomorrow - fishcake, wedges and salad
Sunday - roast chicken thighs, pots and veg
Monday - sausage casserole
Tuesday - spag bol and garlic bread
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday I'm working late shifts so will eat at work. OH just tends to make a sandwich if I'm on a late shift and he's at home.

I'm planning to make a pot of soup tomorrow so either that or leftover salad will be for lunches.