Get a grip !

savingwannabe

fabulous news that you can spend time with your dad. Hurrah for two weeks off. I am soooo envious.

My parents are here. I was so run down and they did everything for me. Even sorted out my storage room which is a clutter free project for the holidays. lol.

Enjoy your week.

Skint_yet_Again

Payday :j


DF went home today will miss him. We got lots of jobs done while he was here. My friend took me out for lunch today as a (very) belated birthday gift. She has just got a 20 hour contract at a new employment after looking for work for many months. We got 2 for £10.49 and 2 drinks came to a total of £16.99 and bless her she insisted on paying. I drove so picked her up and dropped her off on the way home.


I called at the card shop on way home and got 10 cards for my birthday stash and 6 first class stamps total £10.01 which will come out of the xmas / birthdays fund currently standing at £50 from January.

savingwannabe

I posted last night but it didn't stay! I am glad your father came and you did so much. Glad you went out with friend. Hurrah for stocking up on cards. Hope you have a good weekend despite snow.

Skint_yet_Again

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 1
Number of children in household.........
Number of cars owned.................... 1
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1110
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 310
Total monthly income.................... 1420
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 214.9
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 0 paid over 10 months
Electricity............................. 69 & gas
Water rates............................. 46
Telephone (land line)................... 52 internet/tv
Mobile phone............................ 7.52
TV Licence.............................. 12.37
Groceries etc. ......................... 300
Petrol/diesel........................... 20 already £20 in car
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 28.04
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 50
Entertainment........................... 50
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 140 council tax free month
annual bills............................ 100
union................................... 7.92
dog food................................ 10
Total monthly expenses.................. 1107.75
Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 0........(214.9)....0
Total secured & HP debts...... 0.........-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description..Monthly...APR
cc1............100.......0 paid monthly in full
cc2.............50........0
car............160.......0
Total unsecured debts..310.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,420
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,107.75
Available for debt repayments........... 312.25
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 310
Amount left after debt repayments....... 2.25

Created using the SOA calculator at www.stoozing.com.
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using other browser.

Skint_yet_Again

I've worked out my budget for February and as it's a council tax free month I will start off my emergency fund at £140. Dog food fund £10 money from DS. He pays for dog insurance & monthly plan for flea / worming out of his account. We now have 5 x 15kg bags of food so enough to build up the dog food fund again. Xmas / birthday fund now £90.

We have a ladies pamper day booked at a friends house this month so massage & facial will be £20 from entertainment budget.

No snow left here. Hoping to get some washing out on the line today. I hoovered and mopped kitchen floor yesterday. Today I plan to wash kitchen windows & patio doors and put oven shelves into bag with cłeaner to soak overnight. I'm making a lamb and butternut squash curry in the slow cooker for tea.

Must not use the credit card in February !! My 0% card is reducing nicely but I still occasionally use my old card which is not 0% but I pay it off in full the following month. It's mostly takeaways so it must stop !!!

Skint_yet_Again

I fell asleep on the sofa last night:o so I didn't put the oven shelves into the cleaning bag overnight. I did clean the kitchen window/door/glass yesterday. Over the last 2 weeks also managed to do the following jobs, so feel like I have used the time off work productively

Skint_yet_Again wrote: »

clean u bend under kitchen sink
clean washing machine filter
clean back kitchen door & kitchen windows
fix blinds back door
replace torn piece of wallpaper spare room- have a spare roll & wallpaper paste leftover

The weather was lovely yesterday so I got a load of washing dried outside and took the dog for a long walk on the common. The sun was shining and even the wind wasn't cold


Week 5 of 52 week declutter - emptied kitchen "junk" drawer, cleaned it and sorted through "junk". About half of the stuff was binned and the remainder put back in the drawer using old cotton bud plastic tubs to put things together like screws, nails, glue, fuses, bits of wire/string etc, so its much tidier now and I can see what is in there. Also now that the spare room damaged wallpaper has been replaced I put away the wallpaper paste bucket / brushes etc which has been lurking in my bedroom . Starting to feel a bit more organised - aiming for tidy room, tidy mind


It was a NSD yesterday and should be again today. DS and his gf are walking the dog later. Back to work tomorrow so hoping for a relaxing day, just some more washing and a bit of ironing to do. I rarely iron and I try to buy things that don't need ironing but I will need to give my work trousers a quick iron.

Skint_yet_Again

End of January update on my new years resolutions

Skint_yet_Again wrote: »

1. look after my health better.
After losing DM so suddenly I have let thinks slip so I need to get back on track. I am overdue for a diabetes check, another ladies health check is due, and I haven't been to the dentist for over a year.

ENT appointment - done
speech therapy first appointment assessment - done
ladies health check - done
ENT follow up appointment - next week
mammogram appointment - mid February


I have had a letter about my diabetes health check so will ring dr tomorrow to make appointment


still to do:
dentist
opticians

2. continue to meet up / eat out with friends within budget.
I will try and stick to my drink & meal for under £10 or use vouchers
Have managed to stick to budget per meal even while DF was here

3. to do the 52 weeks declutter.
I will aim to declutter at least 1 thing every week. on track with this and starting to notice a difference in general tidiness of the house and feeling "lighter"

4. continue to budget for all my bills, pay off my 0% credit card and build up my emergency fund.
Budgeting still going well. Aiming for "no credit card spend February" and council tax paid over 10 months so £140 this month paid into emergency fund

Kittikins

*sigh* I long for a council tax free month, but as we moved to our love nest mid-year, we don't get one.

Naughty puppy chewing toys! Our cats (can't really call them kittens these days as they now weigh more than 3kg) are into chewing phone charger cables, I'd rather they destroyed toys....

Enjoy your last day of 'freedom'

savingwannabe

Skinty, well done on even facing your resolutions. Im too scared to look at mine!

Kittikins - I am where you are at!!!:rotfl::rotfl:

Skint_yet_Again

Oh Kittikins such naughty kittens

We've had to restrict puppy to a large playpen in her dog room when we are out as she has chewed skirting boards, radiators, door frames, walls, carpet, footstool and sofa :eek: She has also pulled a piece of dado rail off the wall and had a chomp on that and destroys any bedding or soft toys so now she sleeps on an old thick rug. We gave her one of those plastic dog beds and she even chewed that so it's gone to the tip. It sounds awful but she seems happy enough in her pen and is not chewing or eating anything dangerous !!

Treated myself to a McD Big Mac & fries for £1.99 this week paid out of entertainment fund. I am waiting for my car tax reminder to fall on the mat so I can pay that. I have the money in the annual bills fund where I save £100 a month.

Not much else spent this month so far. Week 6 declutter I have sorted out my large over-stairs bathroom cupboard and cleared out old part used toiletries that have sat there for years and sorted my stash of toothpaste / hairspray / shower gel. Also chucked old contact lense boxes so everything is much easier to see and get at and sorted towels.

It's been blowing a gale here for the last few days and lashing with rain. Doesn't make for very nice dog walks tho she enjoys rolling in the mud and splashing in the puddles :rotfl: unfortunately I left my passenger side window open slightly on my car the other night and the seat got soaked I am hoping this will dry out with the help of some old unused puppy pads with something heavy on them to weigh them down - I knew they would come in useful for something one day will I ever truly change my hoarding ways