A new debt free journey

lcc86

A quiet weekend so far. I had yesterday off work as a study day, I got a bit cocky and thought I'd have an easy day of it but was on the go until about 6pm in the end. But I did get everything finished for my professional qualification which was what I needed to do, so I'm happy with that. Today I went for a little cycle, did some errands while I was out, and have been just pottering and cleaning at home. I've been wrapping Xmas presents (seems too soon!) as my parents are down next week so makes sense to give them their gifts as this will probably be the last time I see them before Christmas. Right, time to review November's targets and set December's!

lcc86 wrote: »

1. Finish coursework. I really have no excuse for this now! I must set aside a day or two and just get it done. - managed this with a couple of days to spare! for my field of work, this is THE qualification/accreditation to have, so to finally have it means an awful lot

2. Make a plan for paying the remainder of my debt. Once the cheque clears and I clear the credit card and some of my Very account, I just want to try and blitz it and get it paid off as quickly as possible. - my plan is to pay £100 a month for the next three months, and also pay any additional pennies I may have too if possible. I DEFINITELY want to be debt free by February.

3. Complete online Italian course. This actually started two weeks ago, but I've been so busy I haven't sat down and done any of it, so I must make time for that too. I used to learn Italian as a child as I have family from there, but I've forgotten it all and would like to pick it up again. - well I failed miserably here :rotfl: I just haven't had the time to sit down and actually do any work on this. It's disappointing because I would like to pick it up, but on the plus side, this course was free so I haven't wasted any money. I probably would've forced myself to do it if I'd paid for it!

So now onto December's targets:

1. Make an extra payment to my Very account - I've budgeted £100 as planned to keep on target with my debt repayment plan, but I would also like to pay a little extra off if I can.

2. Join a MSE challenge for the month - I haven't looked at which challenge to join but it's more than likely going to be a NSD one. Will have a browse after I post here and decide.

3. Sort out the spare room! I actually made a start on this earlier this week as it's been used as a bit of a junk/storage room since we moved in, so I want to put some pictures up and just turn it into a cosy den/workout room :rotfl:

4. Apply for my Irish citizenship - I really want to crack on and get this sorted. Just waiting for my dad to confirm whether he's got some of the documents I need and if so, we're good to go, if not, I have to apply for copies. But there's no reason why I can't apply asap.

So, it's payday on Monday. Any spare pennies I have from this month I will squirrel away in a savings account and pay off my Very account - I should have about £60 spare which is unheard of for me! December is always a tricky one with Christmas and various outings to go on with friends/work colleagues, but I'm determined to get through in one financial piece

Tomorrow I'm not volunteering, which I'll miss, but I'm doing a bit of dog walking in the morning and then I'm off to my sister's house for her baby shower. I've never been to a baby shower before so no idea what to expect!

lcc86

Payday has been :j I've moved various funds around to where they need to be and all is sorted. I've joined the NST challenge and have decided to aim for 15 NSD's throughout December.

Today I was meant to be on training but a. The train into Victoria was massively delayed (thanks Southern) and then once I got to Victoria the underground station was closed! Stood around there for about 15 minutes before completely giving up so am now on the train to work. £30 wasted on a travel card, not impressed at all. Hopefully work still let me claim the cost back as it wasn't my fault. This is why I tend to drive everywhere, every time I get public transport it's always a shocker of a journey! :rotfl:

Paid £100 off my Very account yesterday so that now sits at £233, not long to go now! Will be aiming to overpay throughout the month.

lcc86

Have been a bit naughty and not posted for a few days. My parents came to visit on Thursday, they wanted to see my new house and it's the last time I'll see them this year :eek: Unless my sis has her baby early in which case they'll be down again, but who knows. It was nice to see them, I took them out for lunch and cooked them dinner too.

Friday a few friends came round and we had dinner, again probably a last catch up of the year. That came in at £21, which was £1 more than I'd budgeted so can't complain.

Yesterday I went out riding, went to a new place and was pleasantly surprised. I'd felt really nervous about it beforehand for some reason but my horse was fantastic and gave me loads of confidence :T I'll definitely go back there from time to time. Last night a friend had a Xmas get together at her house so went there for a few hours, again just nice to catch up. Feel like I've done all my Xmas socialising in one weekend!!

Today is just a chores day, popped into town to get some bits I needed, also bought a £1 scratch card and won £2! :rotfl:

lcc86

Have tried to be productive this morning, have done a load of washing, transferred £50 into my savings and am going for a walk atm before work. Am still feeling a bit stiff after my ride so trying to loosen out. Was dreaming of owning a pony again last night, dangerous stuff! :rotfl:

My savings now stand at £320, I should be able to add another £100 to that before the end of the month. I have other savings pots but it's all allocated to various things. Sorting out my citizenship is a biggie. Then getting an electrician round to do some minor work on the place before we decorate. There's also a horse care course I might do in January too but am undecided.

Right, time to put my phone away and crack on with my walk. My fingers are freezing! :eek:

lcc86

The last few days have been quiet, everything is ticking over nicely. Most importantly I'm feeling confident about my finances and not constantly worried like I usually am, so that's a pleasant change.

Have got the majority of my Xmas shopping done, have one more gift to buy and that's it. Still got some money left over too, that must be a first. Just need to wrap everything, which I'll probably do this weekend.

Worked from home today and took the opportunity to borrow a dog, explored some of the countryside at the back of my house. I had no idea we had quite so much on our doorstep so I was pleasantly surprised and really enjoyed it. Work is a bit tricky atm, some of the staff i supervise are potentially facing disciplinary action, which I found out today. Not what I need in the run up to Christmas. They've very much pulled the wool over everyone's eyes and have now been found out. I say no more.

It's my work Christmas party tomorrow. As it's close to work I'll be driving, so will probably just have water, the meal itself is cheap, £17 I think. I've budgeted £25 for the night which should be plenty.

lcc86

Work party came in under budget, it was a good night and I was home tucked up in bed by 11

Had a group horse riding lesson on Saturday, cheaper than private but I really didn't enjoy it. There are new people in the lesson so I'm at the point where I'm trying to progress and had to basically take 10 steps back. Think I'll stick to private lessons even if they are more expensive.

Yesterday I was volunteering and then just chilling at home. Have racked up 5 NSD's out of my target of 15 so happy with that. Today should be number 6.

Transferred £50 to savings this morning, paid £5 off my Very account and £15 off the cc - I used it to buy a jumper the other day, not sure why as had the funds in my current account but it's all paid again now.

Off on my Monday morning walk then off to work.

lcc86

I seem to have nothing to report these days!! :rotfl: Everything continues to tick over nicely tbh. Work is quiet, finances are quiet. Paid another £5 off my Very account on Tuesday. I also bought a new coat, a replacement for one which recently broke and a much better winter coat in general. £25 spent. I have been naughty and spent money on things for myself this month which weren't budgeted for. I've also booked a tattoo session for this weekend :eek: It's something I've wanted to do for ages but never had the money for. Yes I could clear my Very account instead but I have a plan to clear that by Feb so I'm not going to beat myself up any more.

I've managed 7 NSD's this month so far, today should be number 8. Doing well!

lcc86

Monday morning already! Just five more days of work before a few days off. Am working from home today, waiting for someone to come and check our electricity meter. It hasn't worked since we moved in, so we've not been able to give a reading and I wasn't able to do a reading on the day we moved in, so have no idea how they're actually billing us for anything atm. Hope to have that all sorted today.


I've managed 8 NSD's so far, the weekend definitely wasn't very MSE! I had my riding lesson on Saturday morning - back to private and am so glad I did now, as I've been given some really helpful pointers as to where I was going wrong over something which has been frustrating me for a while. I would never have got that 1:1 in a group setting so I think it's private (expensive) lessons for me from now on!


I also got my tattoo done. Came in cheaper than I thought, they charge by the hour, and I got it done in 3 instead of the 4 hours they'd quoted by not taking any breaks - always trying to be MSE in a backwards kinda way lol. I do still feel guilty for spending the money but I think that's just because I've had that mentality for so long that sometimes it's hard to let go.


Yesterday OH and I went ice skating. This was prepaid but we also bought lunch which was £5 and I bought a lipstick which was £2.


I get paid on Thursday instead of the last day of the month, but am going to move all the money to another account until 'real' payday and then put it back. Not that I have any plans to go spending it all, it's more a case of getting confused when I have more money than I should. And my maths is so poor that I get confused VERY easily!


Today was going to be a NSD but I have to pop to the shops and the bank at some point, and meet my cousin for coffee later. The only other time I could've gone to the shops was Xmas eve, and I definitely don't want to be doing that if I can help it!


Right, should get on with some work now and wait for the man to come and sort this meter. Happy Monday all.

lcc86

A frustrating day - electricity man never showed up, I called the company and they said "oh it's been rescheduled to the 5th Jan"... They reckon they emailed me but I got nothing apart from the original appointment email, so side-eye that one. Not impressed. And my cousin cancelled coffee, so all in all a bit of a fruitless one. At least I saved some money. Did pop into town and got some chocs as a gift for someone and guinea pig food from the pet budget.

[Deleted User]

lcc86 wrote: »

A frustrating day - electricity man never showed up, I called the company and they said "oh it's been rescheduled to the 5th Jan"... They reckon they emailed me but I got nothing apart from the original appointment email, so side-eye that one. Not impressed. And my cousin cancelled coffee, so all in all a bit of a fruitless one. At least I saved some money. Did pop into town and got some chocs as a gift for someone and guinea pig food from the pet budget.

Oh poo! Still at least you saved some money and didn't stress getting to work xx