I want to stop drowning

Working_Mum

Hello debtagh,
I have a "spending diary" which I write everything I spend by my debit card or cash down in - it helps keep me on track and mindful of where I spend my money. In my diary I have columns for:-

Fuel
Food
Kids School
Kids Other (ie pocket money)
Other (DIY, Amazon etc)

This year I have kept a tab on my Finances spreadsheet and I break down my spends a little further into:-

Food
Personal i.e deodorant, shampoo etc
Cleaning (for the home)
Socialising
Car fuel
Car maintenance/repairs

By doing this I will be able to allocate it a budget for next year and also see if things will quieten down at all.

Maybe try splitting out your receipts into areas which are relevant to you and your family and I feel sure you'll see where the money goes but also where it'll likely reduce in future years i,.e nappies!

Good luck!!

debtaghh

Thanks working mum, that's what I do which is how I know how much I've spent :eek:

Working_Mum

OK, you should be able to plan for these kinds of spend then, have you got a budget for things like your cleansing lotions etc?? You could allocate money into pots (or envelopes) so you only spend on items that you've budgeted for.

Have you done an "inventory" of stuff you have already so you are not buying anything you already have in stock?? I had over 10 bottles of bleach at the start of my debt free journey!

If you've seriously overspent you either need to allocate more budget to that particular area of spend or reduce the costs of things by shopping around - but by what you wrote you do that already. No easy solutions are there!

debtaghh

I just allocate it out of my food shop budget but I clearly don't allocate enough.

Working_Mum

I had exactly the same issue - so I had to drill down a bit further! I like to think I have flexibility and I am a free spirit haha so work a weekly budget (I am self employed) - I put £30 of fuel in my car each week and let that build up for when I have a lean week I can still get around.

I take out £120 in cash each Thursday and that has to sort my food, cleaning, dog related and social spends. By working weekly I can shave money where I need to and I am only ever a few days from having some cash again so if I need to live on beans or egg on toast for a couple of days it is doable!!

I think keeping things flexible for me has meant that I feel I am not a complete slave to my past mistakes (whilst still paying down my debts).

enthusiasticsaver

Is it expensive cleansers? I have to say I just use Nivea and am suspicious of these branded products. £100 on cleaning things and toiletries is ridiculous. Washing liquid, dishwasher powder, toilet cleaner/bleach and unbranded flash comes to less than £8 and would last us 6 weeks, you probably 3 or 4. Add on shampoo/conditioner/shower gel/hand wash and deodorant and maybe £20-£25 a month in total. You have nappies and sanitary products too presumably for 2 of you.

I would try and cutdown top up shops. One big shop a week and one top up. All own brand as far as possible. If you don't serve meat what do you eat protein wise?

debtaghh

Cleansers are boots botanics as I have sensitive skin.

We do eat meat but not a lot, we also eat quorn.

I don't really buy many brand.

This month I literally bought

Washing powder
Fabric conditioner
Big pack of nappies
Shampoo
2 x Conditioner
2 x Cleanser
1x Toner
5 packs of 24 toilet paper
2 x Kitchen towel
Baby wipes

These are just some of the toiletries/ cleaning products bought in May

enthusiasticsaver

Goodness that is a lot of toilet paper. The rest is about right for a family of your size. For 2 adults we find a 9 pack of toilet rolls lasts 2 weeks. Do you overstock? You probably could have made do with 1 cleanser for a month. Not sure what to suggest if you are already downbranded.

debtaghh

I only bought two cleansers as they were on offer which doesn't happen often. The toilet paper is an issue and I moan at the others all the time! My son does have special needs and goes to the toilet every hour at least whilst awake.

MrsSave

Are there 5 of you that you're feeding? How do you plan your shopping? Do you shop once a week, or pop in often? I'm not perfect by any stretch of the imagination with food shopping, but I do have some good weeks :rotfl: I meal plan and then write my list form that. I don't generally eat a pudding, my boys have a yoghurt or an ice lolly for theirs. I don't buy many treat foods either. There's always something here, but it's not often eaten. For snacks the boys have fruit or crackers and cheese or something similar and they don't randomly snack throughout the day. I don't buy expensive drinks either, the eldest has water or squash, the youngest drinks water or milk.

I sound really strict here :rotfl: They do get cakes, biscuits and treats, but they are a treat and not a regular. I do fall off the 'wagon' far too often and spend too much!!