XSpender Speeds it Up - £0 to £60k in 27 months

XSpender

Star Wars was fantastic, much better than I expected We went for a meal before where they managed to get my order wrong twice so DH had just about finished his meal before mine arrived. They did knock off both our deserts and we also got 20% off for having cinema tickets (its next door to the restaurant) so we saved there.

Saturday DH spent the rest of his Christmas money (and an extra £50;)) on 2 pairs of shoes in the sale. One pair he has wanted for years but are expensive normally but were greatly reduced in the sale and were too good an opportunity to miss.

Last night was DH Christmas party which despite his boss buying bottles of champagne and lots of drinks cost us £100 as DH wanted to buy his department a Christmas drink :eek: £40 of this was on a taxi home! We also paid £35 for my ticket a few months back. I don't have a Christmas party at work thankfully. It was a very good do and the food was very nice for once.

I'm not sure how we have both escaped without a hangover!

Today I really want to clean the house, do the Christmas food shop, walk the dog, finish the washing and visit my friend in her new house. DH will be tasked with ironing and posting the neighbours cards.

I better get a wriggle on as it's 11 o clock and I haven't done anything but empty the bins and a couple of loads of washing:o

Goldiegirl

Glad you enjoyed Star Wars. We intend going, but will wait to the new year when everyone is back at work/school!

XSpender

There has been a slight change to our moving house plan which means that we will put the house move back by a few months. The reason is that DH wants to save a bit more so that we can buy a 4 bedroomed house that we originally wanted. This is our ideal forever home and will give us exactly what we want rather than compromising on a 3 bed room for the sake of an extra few months saving.

We still won't need to borrow as much as we have been offered, about £50k more, but will need an extra £8,000 to move including increased deposit and increased stamp duty and costs. We should have this by August or earlier depending on if DH gets promoted or if he receives the next level of bonus. I have based my calculations on receiving the same income as now.

Mortgage currently £117.5k so goal is to owe £98k when we sell. It's going to be tough and the summer holiday will have to be cancelled and a cheaper option/staycation chosen.

We visited our friends new house at the weekend, similar but a little smaller to the 3 bed we wanted and it is tiny upstairs, our 2 bed has bigger rooms.:eek: Lovely area and it has lots of potential to extend sideways and increase value. And it had a fantastic utility room I would love

I have one appointment this afternoon and will pop to Sains and M&S to finish my Christmas food shopping after it. I am on a mission to find rum sauce as couldn't find any anywhere in the big Mr T we went to on Sunday. I am a little over my food budget but not bad considering the amount spent on a turkey and ham in M&S and the amount of treats we have bought!

DH is paid on Christmas Eve but as everything is set to come out by DD on 1st Jan there won't be any shuffling to do

We are both really looking forward to Christmas this year, probably because it is really quiet and no visitors or visiting so we can spend the time together as a family which means a lot when I spend a lot of time travelling and staying away for work. Plus DS is really excited for the first time.

DS (aged 5.5) was so cute at the weekend. He must have heard DH and I talking about saving to buy a new house and DS was explaining to me that you only buy important things like food and save the rest of your pennies for a new house. :money: He found 5p on the floor and I said to put it in his money box but he said no he would put it in my piggy bank for the new house which he did. He then went and got my piggy bank and his money box and put all his money into our piggy bank to go towards the new house, I told him it was the parent's job to save up for the new house but he said he wanted to help. :A:happyhear. I will, of course, pay some money into his savings to compensate.;)

Popgirl

Followed your thread from the start but never posted. Just wanted to say your little story about DS and his money box brought a tear to my eye, he sounds adorable. No doubt you are so so proud of him. I hope Santa rewards him for his kindness. Have a wonderful family Christmas.

Best Wishes
Popgirl

XSpender

Hello popgirl, so nice of you to read my ramblings and take the time to post. Merry Christmas to you and yours xx

DS is a real character and has a great sense of humour for such a little boy.

I have finished the food shop, still couldn't get rum sauce or GF pork pies but I will manage without. Well over budget, about £80, but we haven't scrimped at all and we shouldn't run out of food until next year.

We have been without TV for 2 weeks since our Sky contract ended so have today invested in a freesat box which cost less than one month's old Sky contract. I did need to remind DH that we didn't need a new telly:rotfl:

Popgirl

Treasure the little boy moments they soon grow up. I have DS X 2 both are all grown up now both going merrily along their own life path . It still makes me smile when I think about the thoughtful and funny little things they use to do when they were little.

Sorry haven't seen rum sauce while out shopping so can't help with where to buy some. I do recall my grandmother was fond of a little rum sauce with her Christmas Pud but she made her own with vanilla,cream,milk and plenty of rum ! Would you be tempted to try and make some or you could cheat and buy a white sauce and add a miniature ( or 2) of rum!!


Like yourself my food budget has well and truly gone out of the window and I still need to pay for my M&S food order although DM has offered to pay. My collection slot is 7am Christmas Eve so will be queueing from 6:30am so I can be in and out. I have always said I would never queue outside a shop waiting for it to open but needs must.


We have queued once before outside Toys r Us many years ago. DS2 wanted a Tracy Island for Christmas like 100's of other little boys and we could not get one anywhere until we heard TrU had a supply coming in so I sent DH down to queue at 5am and he wasn't the first in the queue. We were one of the lucky ones and got one DS2 was so excited on Christmas morning He played with it all of 20mins and it never came out of the box again!!!!!


Merry Christmas xx

XSpender

Someone on the grocery challenge thread posted me a recipe for rum sauce so next year I will make my own

Luckily DS hasn't really asked for anything specific as a gift, he is just excited about the whole event. I think this is the first year he has really 'got' Christmas. He had the supervisor lady in Sains chuckling over his explanation of the baby Jesus.:rotfl:

Done a fair bit of housework this afternoon/evening as I cannot have a relaxed Christmas if I am sitting in squalor. DH and DS have gone out to buy my surprise presents. Although I had to write DH a list of possible presents so not much of a surprise for me I still need to dust and vac our bedroom and mop the kitchen floor but this might have to wait until tomorrow as DH will be wrapping in the bedroom and I am sitting on the sofa with a beer;)

DH promised to clean the bathroom but hasn't managed it yet so I may have to do it. He also hasn't posted the neighbours cards :mad:

Retrieved present hidden at DPIL and that has been wrapped and put in loft with the rest.

DH wages are a little less than expected so I may need to shift the rest of the CC balance to the new 0% CC rather than pay it off. I got the original balance wrong when I did the 1st transfer so this is the remainder not additional spending.

I am at home tomorrow and will switch off my laptop at 12 and don't go back to work until the 4th.:j

Pearla*Merle

Aww, such sweet DS stories!

In awe of your housework achievements, I've given up as I've been thwarted at every turn! May wear blinkers on Friday

Have a lovely Christmas! xx

Suffolk_lass

Pearla*Merle wrote: »

In awe of your housework achievements, I've given up as I've been thwarted at every turn! May wear blinkers on Friday

I agree. Bathroom floor looking very hairy and despite much vacuuming, the sitting room looks terrible - mostly because the Christmas Tree fell over last night. It turned out DH had propped it in a bucket of water but no sand. I assume as it drew up the water it became heavy and there it was over, spilling water everywhere. I wish he had said, I would have insisted. It broke one of the china bells too. Oh well. He will see to that this morning and I will re-dress it when I get home from my last gift and card delivery to my dear friend, about 35 miles away. Just 3-4 errands left to run today, and I hope my Mum and DH do some housework and post the neighbours cards.

Still got all presents to wrap! Phew!

Have a good one
SL

XSpender

Oh dear SL, hope you have rescued the tree. DS pulled our artificial tree over and broke it so last year we got a real one which also ended up on the floor and broke a personalised bauble we had only bought DS a few days before It's still on the tree but hidden a bit so you cant see the smashed bit).

I ended up posting the neighbours cards myself last night.

All housework (except bathroom) completed. I am no domestic goodness, I hoovered the stairs for the first time in weeks last night:o

YNAB has been updated and tweaked so it is correct as we move into January. Registered my new 0% CC so I can action the last part of the balance transfer.

So I didn't see the transactions and know what DH has bought me before Christmas he has used the CC to pay for my gifts I instead of the CA. That means I can't pay the card off today as I need to check the balance before I do it and will also have to wait to complete my Uber Frugal January Budget.

I am going to sign up for the NST challenge on the DFW board as I really need to spend as little as possible in Jan.

DH is at work until 2pm and I am pretending to work DH bought me some presents yesterday but DS was getting tired so he wants to go back again today. :eek: I hope he is going on his own as I am not going anywhere near a shop! I will clean the bathroom if he goes on his own Plus if he is going to buy me something there is no point me going to wait outside the shop in the rain.

DS has been worried all week he wont get to sleep tonight, he doesn't usually have a problem, so roast gammon and dauphonise (sp) pots for dinner, Santa sign in the garden, bath, treats out for Santa then 'twas the night before Christmas and lights out. Fingers crossed this will work!

Merry Christmas, I hope you all have a wonderful time with your loved ones x