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

Treadingonplaymobil

Re the architect - we have a sort of fixed price. The price includes two lots of consultation and revision of drawings, so he can propose a few designs, we can refine and then refine further. But if we do that then change our minds totally it's something like £400 per redraw and revision after that point. I feel like he's been really fair and broken things down really clearly in our quote, which is what we asked for, so I'm confident in the quote.

wishingthemortgaheaway

Thank you to those who've mentioned Campbell's meat, I've just spent a good 20minutes looking at the website and am going to put an order in when I've had a bit of a freezer sort to check I've got enough space.

Goingroundincircles

Slight irritation this morning - was reconciling receipts and noticed that DH is buying sandwiches and snacks when he fills up the car, at maybe £4 a pop, affecting both the diesel budget and his waistline. I was going to go and have a big go at him about it, but I have done that before to little effect (he struggles with his weight, and this picking up of huge unhealthy snacks at random moments is historically one of the key reasons why). Instead I am going to keep checking the receipts and assigning any food he buys to his personal kitty, and when he asks why it's all depleted in a few weeks time I will tell him. I think that will actually make it hit home for him much more than just nagging over a couple of quid here and there. He is theoretically saving up for new clothes, but between the vending machine at work and these £4 food outlays when he fills up the car, he has already spent almost a tenner of his kitty this month, and he only gets £40, of which a tenner goes on apple music. Irritating, but he needs to see the effect to understand why I go on about these little spends I think.

Just catching up with your blog and couldn't help but laugh at this. I haven't posted in a while but logged in today to post the same thing! OH spent all his diesel/spending money for the month within the first few days. I despair. I also had to refrain from having a go at him because it doesn't work, he'll just shut down. So instead I've decided not to bail him out when he needs to fill up his van - he'll have to work something out for himself. He gets that we're in a lot of debt and that our budget only just covers the essentials, but hasn't quite grasped the fact that every time he spends a few pounds here and there that basically means a bill that cannot be paid (although I always make sure they are somehow).
Sorry that's of no help, but you're not the only one in that boat!

Verbatim

Would it be possible to pay out the personal spends/diesel money weekly?

Treadingonplaymobil

Nothing much exciting to report on the day's activities. Bought a couple of little extra presents for the DCs' birthdays, a present for relative's DC with imminent birthday, and got cash out for another relative's DC with another imminent birthday. That was quite enough spending for one day, Luckily I got paid for some work I was provisionally booked for, so had another £50 to top up the birthday fund with. SO pleased I'm nowhere near needing to rob my other savings pots, although I am aware that I'm using extra income to top up the birthday pots, rather than getting my business account further ahead or overpaying debt. Can't win 'em all I suppose, and I still have three months salary/expenses in the business account.

Made some more sourdough crackers today, which have been already pretty much entirely inhaled by the DC. So pleased to have found a use for the discarded sourdough starter! Baked them while the oven was on for a batch of savoury muffins. Must try to get in the habit of using the oven for several things at a time - I cook so much, but I can turn the oven on and off a couple of times every day. Would be more sensible to use it every other day or so, and cook more things at one time, where it's possible/reasonable.

I don't think dispensing diesel money weekly to DH would work (well maybe it would, but it's a bridge too far even for a control freak like me) - I think once he has the short sharp shock of realising he is spending his personal money on his regular little snacks, he will stop doing it.

Three things to do today
1. Town - present for relative and top up food shop.
2. Clear ironing. Not quite clear, but made good headway.
3. Savoury muffins for DC lunchboxes.

Debt repayment:
- £20.42/31 March rounding down pot.
- £1,608.78/£5,000 2018 debt repayment goal.

Verbatim

Yes I can see it would be a step too far! Do you both take your personal money out in cash at the beginning of the month or use your debit cards as you go? If the latter it must be a risk/ temptation to have !!!8220;just one more!!!8221; when the occasion arises.
I!!!8217;m curious as to what you are planning for the dc!!!8217;s birthdays? I!!!8217;m sure it will be splendid!

Treadingonplaymobil

Week 57: Day 2

Morning! Had a really good night's sleep last night (although I'm not sure the same could be said for DH, who groggily mentioned he'd been up with DC3 a few times when I got out of a bed a little while ago. Whoops) and feeling nice and energetic this morning. Although not sufficiently energetic to balance my YNAB account - I have £40 more in the bank than YNAB thinks I should have, and I can't figure out why! Better than not having as much as I think I should have, I suppose. I imagine I've entered something twice, or something equally stupid. Possibly reconciling my bank accounts with YNAB every morning at 4:30am isn't playing to my strengths :rotfl: .

Nothing terribly fancy for the DCs birthdays. DC2 is getting a steam train ride with three of his friends. It would actually be quite cheap if we didn't also have to pay for DH, me and DC1 and 3! One of the party expenses (which we will never have again, hurrah for no more plasticy paper cups and straws!) has been reusable glass bottles and stainless steel straws which we will also use for DC3's party, and we'll make a picnic lunch for each child to have on the train for the 'out' journey, and we'll have the cake on the 'home' journey. I've made some of these bags as bread bags, and I might temporarily reclaim them as picnic bags for the day, with our huge linen napkins for any spills. The cake is always an important part, and a number seven cake has been requested, with an icing train track and a Brio train on top (a duplicate of a cake I made for DC1 a few years ago). Tamer than last year's Lego Minecraft block cake, which was INSANE.

DC3 is having a party at the house, which has morphed from three invited guests to seven, but I'm sort of hoping a couple won't come as it's over the Easter weekend. Decorations are all reusable/recyclable tissue paper pompoms and flowers and we'll use our linen napkins and plates. There is a vague unicorn theme so I have bought the world's ugliest unicorn pinata (need to find things to fill it with, ideally not plastic wrapped sweets, but whatever it is needs to survive being dropped all over the floor!) and the al important cake will a rip off of this one. Might also do a unicorn treasure hunt, we made this minecraft one last year for DC2 which worked really well, they had to find the matching picture and stick it onto the board - easier for small children than clues etc.

I haven't tackled party bags for either DC yet - I don't want to fill them with tat, so I'm thinking mainly paper bags of sweets from the local sweet shop which sells from those big jars, plus maybe one small toy each - I think for DC3 the pinata treats will form the contents of the party bags, rather than buying two lots of stuff.

All worky things on the to do list today - still playing catch up from last week! Thankfully have leftover stew on the menu plan for tonight, so no cooking.

Three things to do today
1. Send follow up client email.
2. Sort schedule for contract work.
3. Order stock.

Debt repayment:
- £20.84/31 March rounding down pot.
- £1,608.78/£5,000 2018 debt repayment goal.

warby68

You sound 'on the up' ToPM

I have a son whose birthday regularly fell at Easter. I used to buy Easter Eggs rather than party bags for the going home treat. Always some cheap offers even on the nice stuff without too much packaging. A cone of mini-eggs also went down a treat one year.

My other son was born close to Christmas so another good time for themed treats which don't break the bank

Verbatim

All sounds great fun. I am sure the children will all have a wonderful memorable day. I will lay off the apostrophes seeing what is done to them on here. So please forgive the rather formal !!!8220;I am!!!8221;.

Verbatim

Ah inverted commas are affected too. Dare I use an exclamation or question mark. Nope.