Taking it slowly, but doing it well.

pinkypig

Don't think it's going to be good news Wish:( They never go down do they? Xx

wishingthemortgaheaway

pinkypig wrote: »

Don't think it's going to be good news Wish:( They never go down do they? Xx

No, but I'd like to know the increase.
I'm pretty sure the council are increasing their bit by 4,99%, (which is a lot, but includes the social care precept which I completely agree with) but I don't know if that is the whole increase percentage, not sure what the police & fire etc are doing.

I should (!!!) have at least £100 left in my council tax pot when it's paid, but I'm hoping for more and wanting to redistribute it. - I'm just impatient.

wishingthemortgaheaway

Had a lovely family & friends day today. Pickle and his little friend needed their feet measuring and, as we've not seen them for ages, we arranged a 'play date' in the shoe shop. I've finally managed to persuade hubby to use the outlet place for measuring and purchasing (online & cashback is a step too far for him for shoes) so I managed to get today's shoes (which light up) for over £10 less than the last pair we bought full price at the standard store.

We also bought him a pair of trousers for £11.99 which is ouch for a pair of trousers for a 'not yet 2 year old' but as he's just moved up sizes and his entire wardrobe for this size has cost me £11.99 I'm not complaining. Both purchases from the 'Pickle spends/child benefit' pot. I even tilly tidied the 2p to his savings pot on Ynab. - start them young in the mse way right????

We had a lovely, but pretty pricey lunch out. We did use hubby's restaurant card and went to a restaurant with cashback on my bank rewards. I have turned down a night out tonight though which would have cost me a lot more.

Tomorrow my friend and I are taking Pickle to a farm for the day. So we have entrance fee, tractor ride and lunch to pay for, but my spends pot is looking really healthy currently, so I think a day out is definitely allowed.

A question to those of you paying for/have paid for childcare. Does your Childminder ever charge extra for activities In the holidays? Mine doesn't, which from a mse point is great, but I already feel like I don't pay her enough because she is awesome and takin care of my little boy. Next week (half term here) they are going to a den building day, a farm and a soft play place with a 'treat' lunch (aka the Golden Arches) this is probably about £10 worth of activities and she doesn't want any extra. Ok, you can argue that it's covered by the fact I pay the same amount all year, but, I only pay £35 a day.
Out of that she takes him to a toddler group twice a week, and gives him a cooked meal with pudding everyday.
I do provide nappies & wipes. But she does have an 'emergency stash' for when she runs out but hasn't let me know. She has her own car seat for him (which I know will have been used by several children), pushchairs and even hats & gloves.
I really feel we've landed on our feet with her, but I would like to know what's 'normal'

Updates below.

MSE February Goals

1) £210 Mop Pot
Target 1 - Interest added
£49.60/71.56
Target 2 - Next brick on the countdown house
0/£102.11
Target 3 - MFW 2018 challenge amount
0/£36.33


2) Emergency Fund Top Up
£88.82/£150

3) NSD
6/16

4) Complete Bullet Journal Tasks
3/16

5) Save the £2 coins
(Monthly Update)

6) get into the size 14 Jeans
(Monthly Update)

wishingthemortgaheaway

A lovely, lovely day out at a localish farm today, me, Pickle and our friend. Hubby is working away this weekend, so we're flying solo, but managing well as always. Pickle is already asleep, the very muddy clothes are in the washing machine and I just need to finish the quick evening tidy up before watching 'today at the olympics' £27 spent on entry fees, friend paid for lunch. So spending money pot taken a bit of a hit but not the eating out one. I will need to get milk tomorrow, should have picked it up today, but I forgot, so nsds are once again slipping through my fingers.

Ynab has been updated, put aside the money for my 1p a day challenge - actually did today,s and one right from the end as I've got the money to do it at the moment and want to have a few days in reserve for later in the year.

I'm finding receipt h0g really slow at processing receipts at the moment, and I've got nothing from my spins all week. I'm nearly at 2,000 points after 6 months of usage, so my £50 pay out is years away.

Only a week and a half of February left and things are looking ok at the moment. My expenses have been approved, that's £300 coming To me at the end of the month. £150 will top up my 'expenses slush fund To the £200 I want it to be then £150 to allocate to various savings and the mop pot.

I do need to book my car in for its service, I've got £500 set aside for this and any repairs, just hoping I don't need to use it all.

Updates below.

MSE February Goals

1) £210 Mop Pot
Target 1 - Interest added
£50.40/71.56
Target 2 - Next brick on the countdown house
0/£102.11
Target 3 - MFW 2018 challenge amount
0/£36.33


2) Emergency Fund Top Up
£88.82/£150

3) NSD
6/16

4) Complete Bullet Journal Tasks
3/16

5) Save the £2 coins
(Monthly Update)

6) get into the size 14 Jeans
(Monthly Update)

wishingthemortgaheaway

Today has ended up being a very unoroductive day. Pickle slept really well, but then snuggled up and fell asleep on me during the church service. So he didn't have an afternoon nap and has been very clingy. He may be sickening for something.
Tiny spend of 79p on milk today, so not a nsd, but I paid cash so no effect on the bank account. I have also put aside my 1p a day challenge.

Tomorrow it's swimming for Pickle, not sure what else, so hopefully some housework type jobs. I do feel a little like we will be limping through to the end of the month financially. Things are looking healthy, but not sure what's coming up. I must book my car in for its service this week though.

Updates below.

MSE February Goals

1) £210 Mop Pot
Target 1 - Interest added
£52.20/71.56
Target 2 - Next brick on the countdown house
0/£102.11
Target 3 - MFW 2018 challenge amount
0/£36.33


2) Emergency Fund Top Up
£88.82/£150

3) NSD
6/16

4) Complete Bullet Journal Tasks
3/16

5) Save the £2 coins
(Monthly Update)

6) get into the size 14 Jeans
(Monthly Update)

wishingthemortgaheaway

just a update to record two good things.

1) yesterday was a nsd
2) has an email from payroll today saying my tax code is sorted and the refund will be in my wages at the end of Feb.

Also... I'm still keeping up with my 1p a day challenge and I'm also managing to do the current day, and I've also been adding the amounts from the end of the year too, in case things get more squeaky as the year progresses.

Updates below.

MSE February Goals

1) £210 Mop Pot
Target 1 - Interest added
£53.12/71.56
Target 2 - Next brick on the countdown house
0/£102.11
Target 3 - MFW 2018 challenge amount
0/£36.33


2) Emergency Fund Top Up
£88.82/£150

3) NSD
7/16

4) Complete Bullet Journal Tasks
3/16

5) Save the £2 coins
(Monthly Update)

6) get into the size 14 Jeans
(Monthly Update)

wishingthemortgaheaway

I've been having a proper play around in ynab today.
I've engaged the services of a window cleaner, he will come every 4-6 weeks, charges £10 to do the whole house, but if he can't do the back of the house (we need to be in to give him access) it will be £8. He comes highly recommended by friends and has a proper van with fresh water for each house, unlike many of the local cowboys who just smear dirty water over your windows and charge you for the privilege. This will be a maximum on £130 a year, so I've put an initial £10 in the ynab pot and done some juggling to cover within the current budget.

Here is my jiggling:
Milk delivery pot reduced from £30 to £20 (usually 3.98 a week, so still covered even in a 5 week month)
Bacon subscription reduced from £30 to £20 (£5.90 once a fortnight, so covered even in a 3 bacon delivery month)
Created a 'window cleaner' pot funding £10 a month.
Increased the 'stuff I'll forget' pot from £90 to £100, I like to keep things nice & round.
Reduced the grocery pot from £250 to £200 a month. December & Jan were both less than £170 spends Feb is looking similar.

So the net effect is my monthly budget is reducing by £50 a month. This mean my mop pot tilly tidying and pot emptying is going to be reduced making my overpayment target harder to achieve this year. (As I'm not actually budgeting an op at the moment, just oping any 'surplus')

However. I do have £50 a month extra towards my savings pots, targets of which are:

Wage storage (creating an entire month's buffer of what we need to budget): £460/£2300
Rainy day/Emergency Fund: £850/£2000
White goods repair & replace: £230/£1000
1p a day challenge £42.70/£677

Once these are topped up to these amounts I'll spend some time having a focus on mop pot prior to remortgaging at the end of July.

As well as the £50 a month trimmed from the budget, I'm also going to be about £120 a month better off due to my tax code being sorted. Add this to the windfalls I'm expecting (energy credit rebate & tax rebate) things are looking quite positive.

I do have a weekend away with Church to pay for which will mostly be covered by my work expenses this month. I need to find about £40 on top.

If anybody has any other suggestions, or ideas, please share.

In other news... a nsd...

Updates below.

MSE February Goals

1) £210 Mop Pot
Target 1 - Interest added
£53.12/71.56
Target 2 - Next brick on the countdown house
0/£102.11
Target 3 - MFW 2018 challenge amount
0/£36.33


2) Emergency Fund Top Up
£88.82/£150

3) NSD
8/16

4) Complete Bullet Journal Tasks
3/16

5) Save the £2 coins
(Monthly Update)

6) get into the size 14 Jeans
(Monthly Update)

wishingthemortgaheaway

Really not much to say today, so I'll keep it brief:

Nsd
2 days of the 1p a day challenge done
Tilley tidy

Updates below.

MSE February Goals

1) £210 Mop Pot
Target 1 - Interest added
£55.86/71.56
Target 2 - Next brick on the countdown house
0/£102.11
Target 3 - MFW 2018 challenge amount
0/£36.33


2) Emergency Fund Top Up
£88.82/£150

3) NSD
9/16

4) Complete Bullet Journal Tasks
3/16

5) Save the £2 coins
(Monthly Update)

6) get into the size 14 Jeans
(Monthly Update)

wishingthemortgaheaway

Exciting day for the bank accounts today.....

Money in...
Energy company refund has hit the bank
Hubby has transferred bill money into my account.
Payslip from work has arrived: salary + extra day from November + tax refund.

Money out:
£48 on groceries to last until at least March.
£57 for fuel.

Money shuffle allocations:
All standard ynab categories for March, funded from money from hubby and my wages.
Weekend away funded from energy refund, £40 from wages & £2 of spends.
'Wage storage' pot topped up with remaining wages - I think I've only got 2 more months and this will be fully funded.
Tilly tidies to Mop pot.


Updates below.

MSE February Goals

1) £210 Mop Pot
Target 1 - Interest added
£59.79/71.56
Target 2 - Next brick on the countdown house
0/£102.11
Target 3 - MFW 2018 challenge amount
0/£36.33


2) Emergency Fund Top Up
£88.82/£150

3) NSD
9/16

4) Complete Bullet Journal Tasks
3/16

5) Save the £2 coins
(Monthly Update)

6) get into the size 14 Jeans
(Monthly Update)

wishingthemortgaheaway

I'm beginning to like February from a financial point of view. (Yes, I'm very sad)

Had a lovely nsd at a nat trust place today with friends. Then, came home to the water bill for 2018/19. Not only is there no increase from last year. I've 'oversaved' by £77.70 so £70 to the emergency fund (smashing this month's target) and £7.70 to the mop pot. I've only got £80 to go to get me up to £1k which I will get to when my work expenses are paid.

I've done another 2 days of the 1p a day challenge, which is £4.10, so an additional 90p has been tilly tidied. Still not quite at the 'overpay by the interest' amount, but it's getting closer.

A total overpayment of £173.something is the minimum I want to achieve this month or I'll fall behind on my '100 brick house' anything over that brings my mortgage free day closer just a little bit.

Somebody should be coming round tonight to pick up a baby toy she was looking for so that will be £5 in, but this is going into Pickle's spends pot.

My last big expense of the month is the car service on Wednesday, and it's the horrible one where the timing belt needs doing. I've got £505 in the 'car' pot. Anything over that will have to come out of the emergency fund and will mean I've not quite hit my target for the month, but needs must.

Hubby going out tonight which leaves me at home having a bit of a tidy round, icing some cake s I made this morning and making a lasagne for tea tomorrow.

Updates below.

MSE February Goals

1) £210 Mop Pot
Target 1 - Interest added
£69.29/71.56
Target 2 - Next brick on the countdown house
0/£102.11
Target 3 - MFW 2018 challenge amount
0/£36.33


2) Emergency Fund Top Up
£158.82/£150!!!9989;

3) NSD
10/16

4) Complete Bullet Journal Tasks
3/16

5) Save the £2 coins
(Monthly Update)

6) get into the size 14 Jeans
(Monthly Update)