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

motivated

Well done TOPM

3k is 3k :T

Worse case you could’ve added 3 thousand to your overall total so a massive achievement

I also managed to pay off a fiver short of 3k this year and it feels good to know the debt is going down and not up
M

kindofagilr

Well done TOPM that is a fab amount!!!! xx

JWPopps

Fabulous progress!! Just think what 2018 will bring!!

Treadingonplaymobil

Week 47: Day 4

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

What a hectic end to the holidays - we stayed with my mum for new year, and came home yesterday, with the DC back to school today. We should have come back on the 1st, I realised (too late), with the DC going back today, they were so exhausted this morning! And they can't even have a quiet weekend this weekend as it's DH's birthday and his sister and her family are coming down. Hoping to keep it as calm as possible though, and keep the evenings quiet until then.

I'm feeling nicely full of new year spirit, ready to get going on some 2018 debt busting. Must update my signature today, it's so out of date.

The mortgage broker is chasing the remortgage today, as it's been so ridiculously slow. Hoping it comes through soon. We are super tight this month otherwise as I started the architect on the initial house surveys (thinking, back in October, that the remortgage would be well through by now, with attendant monthly savings) and I need to pay him his first instalment soon. I have the money in my business account to cover it temporarily, but I'd rather not do that long term, as the money has a nasty habit of disappearing never to be seen again when I switch it from business to personal.

I'm going to do a separate post rounding up Christmas spending in a moment too, as there were definitely some lessons to learn. Also need to scroll quickly through my diary to check the big pain points of 2017 (mainly holidays and commitments made without thinking, from memory) and ensure we are prepared for them in 2018.

The house is beyond awful, but thankfully DH is off for the rest of the week, so it should be in good order in time to be trashed again on the weekend . I will attempt to organise it so ruthlessly that even having visitors to stay doesn't completely ruin it.

I have decided that my word of the year for 2018 is going to be SLOWER. Trying to do less, to do it more mindfully and to enjoy life a bit more. And not to stress about every last item on the to do list, but to prioritise the ones that actually need doing right now. Also to accept that running the house takes some time, and leaving precisely zero hours for everything from Christmas present shopping to cleaning to sorting insurances isn't manageable.

to do today
1. Update debt total in signature.
2. Make a start on tidying the house.
3. Post presents for the relatives we unexpectedly didn't see.
4. Menu plan and shopping list - hoping this can stay nice and cheap for Jan, as we still have some leftovers.
5. Pay for DC music lessons.
6. Pay HMRC NI bill (boo).
7. Pop into town to pick up thank you cards so the DC can do theirs, and a birthday card for DH.
8. Invoice for December contract work (yay!).

To do this week
1. Get the house into order.
2. Do some batch cooking.
3. Wrap DH's birthday presents.

To do in January
1. Review 2017 spending and try to improve 2018 plans by being more prepared - plan big spends like holidays and Christmas now and be realistic about the cost.
2. Redo SOA once the remortgage is through.
3. Make a 2018 business plan that is less frenetic than originally (I think I had too high expectations of myself, leading to much stress in Nov/Dec).

Treadingonplaymobil

Christmas round up

We spent a whopping £1,414 in total, not including food (I reckon we spent another £100 on 'special' food, most of which was a goose and a ham) but including ingredients for homemade food gifts.

Things I regret spending on:
Gifts for other adults in the family - every year I say I am going to do little gifts and give everyone the same, and every year I don't, I end up personalising, buying extras at the last minute. I am going to accept that I won't give everyone the same this year, and plan over the next few months what people will get (foodie hampers, plants, bought gifts etc) and make sure that I am on top of the handmade stuff, and that it is appropriate for the recipient so i don't end up panicking and spending loads at the last minute.
Vouchers for DH's niece and nephew - this gives me no opportunity to save or look out for offers. We did £20 for each (only two of them, so £40 total), which I resent but I can't see an easy way round it if that's what they want. One to ponder.
Not exactly a spending regret, but I didn't include a budget for the children to buy presents for each other and us initially, which meant it got added on once lots of spending had been done - if I'd remembered it earlier I would have reduced other gift budgets accordingly - we gave each child a £5-10 budget for each other and a combined budget of £20 for each parent, so a total spend of £85-130 (I think the final figure was around £110) which wasn't included in the original budget.

I have to say, I don't have many other spending regrets. The DC have presents they will use and enjoy, I felt like our gifts to other adults were really appreciated, there is no un-played with tat, DH and I have gifts we love and will get good use from (and, in the main, would have ended up buying for ourselves eventually anyway - like a waterproof outdoor mini speaker for DH, we have been planning to buy one for ages for radio when camping, but this way it has been rolled into the Christmas budget).

I also really liked (although it's a pain at the time) that so many relatives just gave me a budget for the DCs and either got me to order or asked for specific instructions when ordering, so the DC got almost entirely really good, useful presents. I will make a point of telling relatives how well that worked.

So, all things considered, yes we spent a lot, but my solution is to budget better in 2018, not to cut the total spend. And can I take this opportunity to add apologies to the mega frugal among you who are now having kittens.

Cherryfudge

I'm on my second year of determinedly not giving tat, and I think 'm getting better with practice. One has to be very objective and person centred which is more mental effort, as you've said. However I do think it pays off both in terms of spending and in that the end result is more appropriate for the recipient.

I really like what you say about gifts for other adults, as I'm another who falls at the last fence and ends up feeling so and so should have more. It's a difficult balance. If everyone is equal because they all have the same, where's the element of surprise? However, if they won't see each other, that doesn't matter. But if Great Uncle Herbert gets hyacinths because everyone else does, and it sets off his hay fever, he would be better with a box of Turkish delight. So yes, personalise, but also remember what worked so well this year...

I have a similar problem with nieces (no nephews here). Always vouchers, and apparently that's what they want, and on birthdays too - but a few times I've seen something more personal that I nearly bought then didn't because 'we always get them vouchers'. I wonder if they always say vouchers because they don't know what else they could suggest to us. I think I might just drop them a line and say 'this year, would you really prefer a voucher or can I choose you a surprise'?

arsenalbarnie

Happy New Year Topm. Going forward for next Christmas maybe think about secret santa between you and children rather than each child buying everyone at home a gift. Saves money and we here find it quite good fun. Last year we did secret santa for everyone who was at the Christmas dinner. Limit was £5 spend and had to be from charity shop. We had more fun with those presents than anything. Obviously you and OH would still be buying the children presents. Maybe worth considering, even if limit was £10 then a small Lego set or game would be affordable maybe.

I must admit the baked bean puzzle my dad bought my daughter did go back to the charity shop after tho! No one has got time to complete that!

poddle911

Hi TOPM
Glad you had a good Christmas and love the idea of a slower 2018. Have you tried Zeek for vouchers? Now is probably a good time to buy them (if you know what you want) as people will be selling their unwanted xmas vouchers and you could probably get 15/20% off - not a massive saving but just a thought!

warby68

Tesco do a number of Gift Card promotions during the year - 15-20% off usually. Obviously you need to be careful stockpiling Gift Cards, that the business you buy them for is at no risk of failure.

A lot of employers have discounted gift card schemes as well - not sure if your OH might?

I bought Vue cinema £25 for £20 around October in Tesco and I know they had iTunes and a few others in December.

Treadingonplaymobil

Rounding up yesterday's lists before today's start...

to do today (yesterday)
1. Update debt total in signature. Not done!
2. Make a start on tidying the house. A bit done.
3. Post presents for the relatives we unexpectedly didn't see. Done.
4. Menu plan and shopping list - hoping this can stay nice and cheap for Jan, as we still have some leftovers. Done, and DH went shopping.
5. Pay for DC music lessons. Done.
6. Pay HMRC NI bill (boo). Done.
7. Pop into town to pick up thank you cards so the DC can do theirs, and a birthday card for DH. Not done.
8. Invoice for December contract work (yay!). Done, and paid.

To do this week
1. Get the house into order.
2. Do some batch cooking.
3. Wrap DH's birthday presents.

To do in January
1. Review 2017 spending and try to improve 2018 plans by being more prepared - plan big spends like holidays and Christmas now and be realistic about the cost.
2. Redo SOA once the remortgage is through.
3. Make a 2018 business plan that is less frenetic than originally (I think I had too high expectations of myself, leading to much stress in Nov/Dec).