30 small steps

jodles16

Fantastic win!! How exciting! Sounds like you have had a lovely weekend, family time is super important! Well done on reaching over 50%LTV and reaching OP target last year! Good start on this year as well!

Jodles

cookie9

Thanks MG and Jodles. We do try to make the most of our family time at the weekends.

Today I thought the bank was having a little Aprils Fools joke on me as mortgage showed up as being on variable rate instead of the new fixed rate. A quick call confirmed they have the paperwork and are progressing it and will backdate the correct interest rate. Hopefully this will mean another £30 OP per month.

Had a nice email from the children's charity where I dropped off some of wee man's things to say they raise £16.99 so a bit more space for us and some help for a child in need. My usual charity where I drop off my things wasn't taking donations the other day so had to go somewhere else but didn't have time to register for Gift Aid which is a pity.

Confession time I have spent money on new clothes and trainers but to be fair my last pair of trainers were 15 years old! Managed to get trainers, running top and capri pants in the sale so don't feel too bad. With the days getting lighter hoping to get a little bit of running done.

Freezer slowly being re-stocked. Healthier me is having avocado on toast for breakfast and eating lots of fruit and vegetables. Well I would be eating more fruit if I could get to it before wee man. Supermarket delivered strawberries and raspberries today and he has eaten most of the raspberries already. I could hear the fridge's telltale beep beep beep informing me he had stuck into it.

Happy weekend everyone.

mortgage_girl

Happy running! Congrats on your bargain buys.

MGx

cookie9

A week off work and I have been super busy trying to get everything in the house organised. This has lead to spending on a few bits and pieces for the house and for the garden. Today I did spend a bit more than I anticipated in the garden centre but got a nice clematis, a peace lily, plant pots and compost so not too bad a haul. At least I got £18 off with vouchers. With that shopping trip and soft play this morning I am exhausted. Must get to the supermarket later to buy picnic things for tomorrow and also need to drop off books and sheets to recycle.

mortgage_girl

Well done on your voucher savings and house organising. Have a lovely picnic tomorrow.

MGx

cookie9

Another OP made so small steps to be MF. It certainly is a marathon not a sprint. At times the OP seem very small but using the OP calculator gives me hope.

Today I noticed the freezer had iced up again so performing an emergency defrost. I fear that we will need a new fridge freezer very soon.

Small steps taken: Making Money
Well very little improvement here. A small additional amount from work but that's it.
Reviewing savings accounts. Need to set up new regular saver soon. Thinking Halif*x for wee man as 6% and NW for us at 5%.

Small steps taken: Cost reduction
Keep an eye on energy bills and switching off at the plug.
Meal planning is helping reducing waste and hopefully making us healthier
Growing herbs and fruit - fun and cheaper than buying them each time I need them. Well at least the herbs are. Best buy has to be the rocket which grows like fun.
Not buying clothes. I confess I did buy a top recently but at least got 25% off. Justifying the purchase on the basis it's pretty enough to go out in and smart enough for work.

cookie9

Alas fridge freezer died so we had to buy a new one. On the plus side it is bigger so can freeze more and no longer have to pile things in the fridge. It is more energy efficient so a small long term saving there. We re-organised our space so have decided to get a larger dining table. Yes I know we are going on a big spending spree at the moment but with a growing wee man we do need to make better use of our space. This means I will not make any OP this month however we are ahead of schedule for total OP this year and should hit target. Small steps.

cookie9

OP on hold until later this month when I can see how much money I have left. Washing machine, fridge freezer and new dining table and chairs make for an expensive few months. Thankfully we are unlikely to have to replace these for a while.

Cost saving
Hopefully the warmer weather will mean less tumble drying. I do need to make sure I do a last thing at night walk around to ensue everything is off and not on standby!
Meal planner now easier we have a working fridge freezer. This week coming should be even cheaper as just me and wee man.
Days out - parks still popular and also taking advantage of the children's cheap weekend cinema when it is wet. Just have to remember to take snacks with us rather than buying treats there!


Making more money
Small additional payment due from work.
DH is going to start making OP to mortgage so that will be a boost.
Have a couple of things to try to sell from the decluttering session

cookie9

Unfortunately we have had another expensive bill. As a result I am now watching the pennies very carefully so we can make OPs again. Yesterday my DH suggested takeaway which I am usually up for at the weekend but heldfast to my MFW ideals and made lamb curry in the slowcooker instead which was a hit. I have taken advantage of the M+S deal advertise in the weekly newsletter so will buy something small once I get the card to get my £30 gift card. Recently we have had a spate of eating out so I need to be strong and not be tempted although will be using my T£sco vouchers boost for a couple of meals out.
Garden and house have been soaking up money this year and I would still like to get double glazing for downstairs so no ending to the spending. At least the garden pays for itself a bit by providing us with herbs and salad. Growing herbs is a good MFW thing to do as the packs you get in the supermarkets are expensive in comparasion.

Confession time now. Although I have been quite good at not buying clothes for myself I had a bit of a spending spree in the sales. I think I am not too bad with myself but my weak spot is the wee man. I need to be a bit stricter with myself here. Wish me luck!

cookie9

What interesting times we live in!

Not sure what will happen next as we have voted to leave the EU. With uncertainty abound want to make sure we have emergency funds and a low amount left to pay on the mortgage.

First step taken has been a review of spending. Admittedly we have gone a bit mad with things for the house but until I did my analysis I hadn't realised quite how bad food spending has been. For a family of three we have averaged £716:eek: yes you did read that figure correctly. Some of this is due to top up shopping at waitr*se but even our internet shop is averaging £560.

I used to be very good at watching our food bill but have become complacent. No more! This has given me the big kick to realise I really do have to monitor what we are doing.

New plan.
No more extra top up shop. Going to freeze a pint of milk to avoid it.
Return to baking at weekends - cheese and onion muffins, blueberry muffins to help with packed lunches.
Menu plan with cost in mind

Aim to save £200. Wish me luck!