£67,031.92 is a frightening number indeed....

MoneyMission

Good to hear you've had a great summer.
Your enthusiasm and drive for getting on top of your debt whilst not resorting to eating gruel and living in hair shirts is inspirational. I always find it harder to strike a moderate balance than go all out for either spend or scrimp. You are doing marvellously!

Narola1976

Hi...so some positives ...you managed to spend less than usual even with additional spends...but the budget is a really challenge. The only thing I spotted was the Audible subscription? I love audio books myself and used to hire the CD's from the library but wasn't happy to pay the cost. Then discovered my library does have an audio book lending library via an app and its FREE!! You just download the Borrowbox app and then I can choose up to four audio books at a time. They have a great selection of books. Once I have downloaded it onto my phone, I have the usual 3/4 weeks to listen, and I can renew if I want to. Because you download it onto the app, you don't need Wifi to listen to it and I connect it to my car and listen as I drive. Once I am done with the book, I just click return and it instantly removed it from the app. If for some reason the time lapses before I have finished , it is also instantly removed from the app. Its worth checking to see if your library offers something similar?

Treadingonplaymobil

debtfreeoneday wrote: »

You may want to look at Nat Trust again? You can get a subscription to the New Zealand NT for about £50 a year which covers NT here and English Heritage. We have it purely from a MSE point of view and have used it lots. I appreciate not everyone agrees with it, but needs must at the mo!

Never knew that! Will look into it before next membership renewal.

Treadingonplaymobil

Suffolk_lass wrote: »

If you get a chance for a family chill-out walk today the blackberries in hedgerows are plentiful and plump (and free) - you might want to take a plastic bag in case you spot some free food!

Good idea! Will definitely do that today or tomorrow (pouring at the moment but nicer tomorrow apparently).

Treadingonplaymobil

MoneyMission wrote: »

Good to hear you've had a great summer.
Your enthusiasm and drive for getting on top of your debt whilst not resorting to eating gruel and living in hair shirts is inspirational. I always find it harder to strike a moderate balance than go all out for either spend or scrimp. You are doing marvellously!

I don't feel I'm so much 'striking a balance' as 'oscillating wildly between pauperhood and wild spending', but I suppose it averages out to striking a balance. :A

Treadingonplaymobil

Narola1976 wrote: »

Hi...so some positives ...you managed to spend less than usual even with additional spends...but the budget is a really challenge. The only thing I spotted was the Audible subscription? I love audio books myself and used to hire the CD's from the library but wasn't happy to pay the cost. Then discovered my library does have an audio book lending library via an app and its FREE!! You just download the Borrowbox app and then I can choose up to four audio books at a time. They have a great selection of books. Once I have downloaded it onto my phone, I have the usual 3/4 weeks to listen, and I can renew if I want to. Because you download it onto the app, you don't need Wifi to listen to it and I connect it to my car and listen as I drive. Once I am done with the book, I just click return and it instantly removed it from the app. If for some reason the time lapses before I have finished , it is also instantly removed from the app. Its worth checking to see if your library offers something similar?

OMG what is this witchcraft of which you speak?! I am so investigating that. DC1 and I both love audiobooks.

redofromstart

TOPM, our library does e-magazines too, current issues of popular magazines to your device. No need to return them. Just need your library card number and PIN. What it has done for me is reminded me why I stopped throwing money away on them, given that I flick through in five minutes and take a photo of the one things i did like.

Treadingonplaymobil

redofromstart wrote: »

TOPM, our library does e-magazines too, current issues of popular magazines to your device. No need to return them. Just need your library card number and PIN. What it has done for me is reminded me why I stopped throwing money away on them, given that I flick through in five minutes and take a photo of the one things i did like.

I really need to reacquaint with the library! Have been thinking how much I was looking forward to reading more/listening to more books in the evenings when DC3 starts preschool and I can work in the daytime, but been aware of the amount I would spend on kindle books/audible if it was all accessed that way.

Treadingonplaymobil

A musing from this summer holiday: I have always aspired to basically exactly the same lifestyle - not extravagant, a holiday a year and a few long weekends in the UK, the odd nice item of clothing mixed in with H&M stuff, nice furniture in the house but not all £4K sofas. And we have been cheerfully living that lifestyle for the past decade while we didn't have the income for it, getting ever further into debt. The stupid thing is, if we had cut our cloth appropriately over the past decade, we would now be able to afford the lifestyle we aspire to. I know that's easy to say while we aren't able to, but I genuinely feel we would be content on the extra income we would have if it weren't for the debt repayments (£700+ per month extra!). I'm not sure yet whether I find that motivating or depressing, but it does make me confident that we will manage perfectly well once we finally nail this debt.

Now we just need to tackle the minor hurdle of nailing the debt...

I do so hope my income increases with DC3's additional preschool hours. I really am pinning so much hope on it.

Suffolk_lass

Treadingonplaymobil wrote: »

A musing from this summer holiday: I have always aspired to basically exactly the same lifestyle - not extravagant, a holiday a year and a few long weekends in the UK, the odd nice item of clothing mixed in with H&M stuff, nice furniture in the house but not all £4K sofas. And we have been cheerfully living that lifestyle for the past decade while we didn't have the income for it, getting ever further into debt. The stupid thing is, if we had cut our cloth appropriately over the past decade, we would now be able to afford the lifestyle we aspire to. I know that's easy to say while we aren't able to, but I genuinely feel we would be content on the extra income we would have if it weren't for the debt repayments (£700+ per month extra!). I'm not sure yet whether I find that motivating or depressing, but it does make me confident that we will manage perfectly well once we finally nail this debt.

Now we just need to tackle the minor hurdle of nailing the debt...

That £700+ per month that you are paying down debt with was going on your lifestyle choices before you started this process and this diary to make you accountable to yourself for the process. What this process has clearly taught you is that you can make some room in that budget (however disappointed you may intermittently feel) and your overall direction is one of reducing debt and recovering, compared with your previous position of hurtling towards bankruptcy - I think that was a phrase you used.

While you stop and reflect on what a lovely summer and holidays, you should also go back and read a few of your early posts here to reflect on how much you have changed. I think it will surprise you.

Chin up girl, it's not forever! :T