Paid off the £31,000! BUT - still scrimping!

Seasidegal58

HairyHandofDartmoor wrote: »

Happy belated birthday SSG :bdaycake:. I'm glad you enjoyed your Italian meal with friends.

Your cleaning routine sounds very organised. I think I need to develop a proper routine as I tend to just clean things when they look dirty. Although it's harder as our house has two floors plus an attic room, so two flights of stairs to hoover. Plus 4-5 inhabitants make for a lot of mess to tidy up :mad:.

Ordering a fan before it gets hot is an excellent idea.

Thanks Hairy.

A large house with several adults certainly makes for quite a bit of cleaning time especially if the main cleaner works. (which I think is you in your household!)!:eek:

The fly lady routine is very good - it's effective and it doesn't push you too much and make you feel guilty if your home isn't like a Mrs Hinch type show home!

Munchin wrote: »

Hi SSG - Happy belated birthday from me .

I'm the same with the weight loss - I've lost 1stone 6lb since Xmas but I feel like it could have been more. However my sister reminds me that if I had been more rigid I probably would have given up by now and be even heavier and more miserable.

You are doing brilliantly and heading in the right direction.

Thanks for your positive comments Munchin. I've completely lost the plot this last week re the diet. . I'm blaming 'Birthday week' but I could have been a lot more mindful of what I've been eating! I put on two pounds when I weighed in last Monday and I'm not looking forward to this Monday's result! I really don't want to undo the good work so far so must pull myself together!

Seasidegal58

END OF SCRIMPY WEEK 4 - APRIL

....which actually ended last Wednesday.

So scrimpy scores on the doors this week - I ended up adding £41.52 to the Ad Hoc pot.

Ad Hoc spends this week were:

Charity Donations: £13
Flowers - £20
iTunes Downloads - £1.98
Birthday Cakes for Work - £15.60
Takeaway - £7.60

Not too bad. Be back later with Scrimpy Week 1 - May......

milann

Happy belated birthday SSG - weigh gain is allowed on birthday weeks.:beer::beer:

Seasidegal58

Thanks milann - as I put on another pound today I am knuckling under with 500 calories today!:(


SCRIMPY WEEK 1 – MAY

….which began last Thursday.

I was paid on Thursday and this included my bonuses. Although I received my annual pay rise this month, I have used my March net salary figure as I can't quite work out how much extra I have received because it's all been lumped in with the bonuses. My May salary will have the definite figure.

I've sorted out my pots on YNAB. Any small debits left over this month I've cleared. In addition, I've also renamed the 'Ad Hoc Savings' port to 'Flat Renovation.' I've reimbursed it from the bonus with the £800 I borrowed last month which was what I used to pay for my cruise deposit plus a little extra. In addition, I've put some of my usual salary in there as well which has brought the total up to £4,000. I'm aiming for £5,000 to be on the safe side, but I've still had no word from the managing agent as to how much the total will be or when the works will start.

The other thing I've done is split the 'Entertainment' pot into two which are now titled 'Events' (which will be used for theatre/gig tickets) and a 'Eats and Drinks' for restaurants, snacks out, coffees, alcohol drinks out, etc.

I've also created a pot for the balance of my cruise as it will be due later on in the year and this is separate to my existing 'Holiday' pot.

I've paid for the new Shark vacuum and the new fan from the bonus and now need to order the extra large suitcase to replace my battered old one. I have had a Samsonite medium suitcase for few years and it has really stood the test of time. I think I will get another Samsonsite, but will shop around for it. They can be expensive but you can get good discounts on the end of line ranges, which is what I did with my existing case.

In addition, I've winged over £250 to DSis to put in little nephew's "Fund" for when he is older and may need driving lessons, etc.

The rest of the bonus I've put into a separate pot as this is earmarked for some redecoration of the flat this year. My cruise isn't till next February, but I've decided I won't have another biggish holiday this year and will spend on the redecoration instead. I will have to get a quote from my usual decorator. Hopefully there will be a little left over.

Anyway this month I've given myself £100 per week Ad Hoc spends and hopefully there should be plenty left over for the 'Flat Renovation' fund as I've now sorted out my pot categories.

Since the beginning of the month last Thursday, budgeted spends have been nails, drinks with my friend on the Friday evening, breakfast with another friend yesterday and drinks out with DSis and her OH yesterday, and a new mascara and hand cream.

Ad Hoc spends have been £7.60 on a takeaway - which has now got to stop!:eek:
The outing with DSis and OH was to see Strictly's Aliaz and Jeanette, who are touring with their show "Remembering the Movies." I received my ticket as a Christmas present last year. It was at our local theatre and was brilliant! They are a lovely couple – so talented – a sell out and brought the house down!

AND – it is now TWO years till my retirement! I honestly can't wait – if only it was this month…………………:(

HairyHandofDartmoor

I agree that birthday weeks need to be exempt from diets .

You're obviously looking forward to your retirement . Do you think there's anything that you'll miss about working? What are your retirement plans?

doingitanyway

L love the way you are working towards retirement. The excitement bounces off the page.
I think I should copy you with ad hoc spends as you are right, £100 for one person should be plenty. Also allocating a budget will prevent me feeling disappointed with myself for 'overspending'

The cruise plans are coming along nicely too

Seasidegal58

HairyHandofDartmoor wrote: »

I agree that birthday weeks need to be exempt from diets .

You're obviously looking forward to your retirement . Do you think there's anything that you'll miss about working? What are your retirement plans?

At this stage I don't think there will be anything I will miss about working Hairy! When I retire in two years I will have knocked up 50 years of work (with only an intermittent break!) and I will be quite happy then to stop! I certainly won't miss the commuting! I do want to enjoy some free time doing what I want to do before I'm too creaky to do it!

It would be nice to sign up for some voluntary work. And, as my formal education ended at aged 15, I quite like the idea of studying for an OU degree - history perhaps? I aim to stay at my present locale for a year after retirement and then relocate to DD's town to be nearer to her family. DD and her OH would like to retire themselves in c.10 years time and then move permanently up to their place in the Scottish Highlands. I would move up there then too, but buy somewhere in the village nearest to them as their place is quite remote if, like me, you don't drive.

Anyway things could all change, but that's my general plan!

doingitanyway wrote: »

L love the way you are working towards retirement. The excitement bounces off the page.
I think I should copy you with ad hoc spends as you are right, £100 for one person should be plenty. Also allocating a budget will prevent me feeling disappointed with myself for 'overspending'

The cruise plans are coming along nicely too

Thanks DIA! The Ad Hoc spends work quite well – I've tried to allocate 'pots' for all categories I can think of on YNAB (YNAB speak: "giving every dollar (or pound in my case!) a job"), and then what's left goes in the Ad Hoc pot. If I overspend on any category I can usually replace it from Ad Hoc (YNAB speak: "rolling with the punches"). Plus anything left in Ad Hoc at the end of the week is going at the moment into the Flat Renovation category.

END OF SCRIMPY WEEK 1 – MAY

The Ad Hoc spends have gone well this week – just:-

Takeaway £7.60
Charity Donation £1.00

So £91.40 winged over to the Flat Renovation pot!

Categorised pots - I've also spent on coffees today. Plus, last week when I met up with my friend she gave me a £30 M&S gift card for my birthday. I've ordered some white leather loafers with tan coloured tassels – they were £45 so I've put £15 towards them from the Clothes pot. I've taken a chance as I find that M&S shoes rarely fit me these days. These are a wide fit so hopefully will be ok.

And I've booked some tickets today to see Lighthouse Family next March at our local theatre. DD is very keen to see them so I have bought her ticket as an early birthday present. I'm on the local theatre's Priority list so have been able to buy them before they go on general sale on Friday – there wasn't many good seats left when I went online so just as well I could get them now! Also it'll be cheaper seeing them locally than up in London!

HairyHandofDartmoor

Do you like DD's town SSG? Where you live now seems nice as you're near the sea. You sound as if retirement won't come a moment too soon .

I hope the M&S shoes fit you. I always have to try on loads of shoes before I find a comfortable pair, but I usually end up buying from Clarks as they do a good variety of sizings and have comfortable cushioned soles. The latter is a must as you get older I find and I was told that the fat on the soles of your feet gets thinner as you age, so your feet can get sore. I know that I can't wear sandals with just leather soles any more but need some sort of cushioning.

milann

The plans for your retirement sound just the ticket. The 2 years will go so quickly. I don’t think I’ll miss it either - but I’ve got 5 1/2 to go :mad::mad:- maybe I’ll miss some of the people - but as long as I stay well enough to enjoy myself and can afford some treats and fun I’ll be a happy Milann when the time comes to finish.

There have been discussions of us moving to nearer my dd and gdds but I couldn’t go and leave ds here....so I don’t think it’ll ever happen. I’d love to be closer to them and by the sea - although it’s still technically estuary where they are. I couldn’t afford to either as the house prices down south are much more expensive than where I live. It’s a nice pipe dream though along with retiring

An OU degree sounds like an interesting challenge - the achievement would be very satisfying to say the least.

Great plans :beer::beer:

Seasidegal58

HairyHandofDartmoor wrote: »

Do you like DD's town SSG? Where you live now seems nice as you're near the sea. You sound as if retirement won't come a moment too soon .

I hope the M&S shoes fit you. I always have to try on loads of shoes before I find a comfortable pair, but I usually end up buying from Clarks as they do a good variety of sizings and have comfortable cushioned soles. The latter is a must as you get older I find and I was told that the fat on the soles of your feet gets thinner as you age, so your feet can get sore. I know that I can't wear sandals with just leather soles any more but need some sort of cushioning.

Hi Hairy – I love, love, love DD's town (or rather "small city") – it's one of my favourite places in England! It ticks all the boxes for me – historic, vibrant (it has a university), great shopping, a gamut of good eating places covering all price brackets, and not far from some beautiful countryside and other historic venues. Hopefully DD and OH won't move anywhere else in the next couple of years!

Re. shoes, I'm at the stage where I need extra cushioning as well. I like Clarks, but I do find that they are not wide enough for me now. My feet width has definitely increased over the years. Added to this I also have funny boney lumps on my heels which have increased as well and which means I have to go up a shoe size if I want to wear a closed-in shoe like a court. I'm ok with boots and sandals. One of the (young!) girls in work was wearing the most beautiful pair of black patent court Laboutins – but, oh were they high! When I complimented her on them, she said she did wear flats to commute to work and put her heels on when she got to the office. I couldn't even wear heels like that just in the office anymore!

milann wrote: »

The plans for your retirement sound just the ticket. The 2 years will go so quickly. I don’t think I’ll miss it either - but I’ve got 5 1/2 to go :mad::mad:- maybe I’ll miss some of the people - but as long as I stay well enough to enjoy myself and can afford some treats and fun I’ll be a happy Milann when the time comes to finish.

There have been discussions of us moving to nearer my dd and gdds but I couldn’t go and leave ds here....so I don’t think it’ll ever happen. I’d love to be closer to them and by the sea - although it’s still technically estuary where they are. I couldn’t afford to either as the house prices down south are much more expensive than where I live. It’s a nice pipe dream though along with retiring

An OU degree sounds like an interesting challenge - the achievement would be very satisfying to say the least.

Great plans :beer::beer:

Thanks milann – I hope the two years will pass rapidly – at the moment it feels like a long, long stretch….. I'll still see my boss and my good friend after I retire, but can't really think of too many people in work whom I'll miss! Yes - staying well and affording treats is the way to go!

I live near the Thames Estuary – it's still very nice although you don't get the rolling breakers like you would if you lived near the sea proper. I wonder if your daughter lives near me or whether I would wave to her from across the other side! The property prices here where I live and in DD's town are pretty comparable in respect of flats, or I could afford a small two-up two down house there. A bit of thinking to do when the time actually arrives.

SCRIMPY WEEK 2 – MAY

…..which was yesterday with £100 Ad Hoc spends for the week.

DSis took me out yesterday for my birthday matinee performance of "Witness for the Prosecution" at the old London County Hall. We both thoroughly enjoyed it. The old Council's Grand Chamber was used as the stage setting with the play set in the round. It's a bit like sitting in a horseshoe shaped House of Commons – so it felt like you were in an actual court room – the judge sat in the enormous throne like chair at the end where the Mayor of London used to sit. Great performance too all round. She then treated me to early dinner at my favourite restaurant.

I spent just £5 Ad Hoc yesterday on taxi from the station to home in the evening.

Today I've also spent £4.20 in Pret on soup, roll and butter as I was too tired to make my sandwich last night and I ran out of time this morning!

Time to get back to work! Will catch up on diaries tonight.