Light the fire...

woodfired

What a difference a sunny morning and a new month make.  

I had a very productive day yesterday, woke up feeling very motivated and made the most of it.  I tackled the house, 3 loads of laundry washed and hung to dry, clean washing folded and put away, house tidied right through, hoovered right through then out into the garden where DS and I cleared all of the remaining leaves and debris from the drive (a full tonne bag no less) swept the drive and trimmed back the overhanging ivy & other plants from the low walls right round.  Took almost 2 hours but it looks so neat and tidy now, ready for spring.  One thing that is driving me mad is that I cant find my knapsack sprayer to treat the algae/moss growing everywhere.  We are under some enormous trees - hence the leaves - and everything turns green every few months.  I spray a product called wet & forget which treats it and keeps it away for ages and is much kinder than bleach type products but I've lost the damn sprayer grrrr. 

This morning has been a slower one, DH has taken DS to his football match, I've pottered round and then I'm off out for a walk and catch up with the girls in an hour or so, should be nice in the sun.

Happy Sunday x

woodfired

Hello Diary

Just popping in with a bit of an update.  We are doing well in our new roles in the shop, the new range of homemade pasta salads are selling really well and some friends persuaded me to try selling my homemade sausage rolls, which have also proved a big hit.  Alongside the homemade sandwiches and other lines the shop is booming and us working there is working out better than I could have hoped for.  I'm very thankful for how it has turned out.  We have lots of free time in the afternoons, although, we are often tired from early mornings and busy shifts so we are perhaps not getting as much done in the house and garden as I thought we might but the balance is lovely and we are appreciating being home from 12 every day now the weather is warming up.

Financially, all is ticking along fine.  We sold our machine and the industrial unit we own is up for let.  The van was sold along with the car and replaced with a 4x4 that allows us to do bigger shops at the wholesalers when needed.  I am overpaying the business loan and the family loan on the unit and should have both cleared in the next 3 years which is a huge goal that I am desperate to tick off.  I am also building up the savings across a few different accounts in the hope we may be able to replace our en-suite and renovate our bedroom later in the year, fingers crossed.  
The mortgage stands now at £209 608
Business loan on shop, £30 967
Family loan on industrial unit, £29 000
They are all heading in the right direction.

lucielle

Glad things are working out. I’m sure the loans will be demolished as quickly as possible. 

L

woodfired

September update as I always feel like this is the start of a 'new year', a hark back to my teaching days I suppose.

We have had a quieter month at work due to school holidays which has made me a bit cautious, when the business is our sole income I get a bit jumpy when it goes quiet.  It is picking back up a bit now the schools are back thankfully.  Hopefully we will be back to more normal levels in the coming weeks.  We are still working towards paying off the loans , starting with the business loan which is now just under 9% interest following the latest rate cut.  We had some cash saved towards re-doing our bedroom and non-functioning en-suite, however, DH suggested postponing the work until next spring so we paid off a lump sum of £6500 last month, bringing the amount owed down to £22500.  I don't think our bedroom is ever going to get done, I'm too easily persuaded to overpay!
The family loan now stands at £25000 and our mortgage is £206 560.

I believe we are fairly on track to have both the business and family loans paid off by Christmas 2027, that is my new goal and it will be amazing if we can manage that.  On that subject though, we haven't had much luck in renting the unit out.  We have reduced the price but still no takers and we are considering marketing it to sell.  I didn't want to go that route but we are covering the overhead costs personally whilst keeping up with the £1000 per month loan repayments so it isn't helping our financial situation really.  Local businesses just seem to be so quiet and, therefore, cautious about spending.  This government is causing more harm than it realises to small companies, it's a shame.  I've asked accountant SIL to advise on the tax implications of selling so we are waiting on those figures before making a decision.

woodfired

I hope everyone is ok following the stormy weather.  We have hunkered down this weekend and enjoyed a very slow and quiet couple of days by the fire with lots of good, homemade food and a bit of wine.

We had planned to go to our local and watch my cousin sing last night but just couldn't muster the enthusiasm, the weather was horrific and the fire was blazing, there was no contest really.   It seems to have calmed down now and DH is getting itchy feet so is out pottering in the garage.  I have submitted one of my VAT returns and done a few other financial jobs but I'm staying in the warm whilst doing so.  I have shuffled some money about, paid this month's family loan installment, filled in a form to convert DD's CTF to a JISA, messed about on the overpayment calculator and completed aforementioned VAT.  I love a bit of money shuffling!  

I have been doing a bit of research and have applied for a business cashback credit card.  They pay 1% on any purchase and I'm planning to use it to pay my main supplier, which is usually between £33 - 45k per month.  I pay them weekly as it is so I'm hoping I have enough credit limit to allow me to make most of those purchases on the card as that is a good chunk of cashback.  Even if my limit is low, I should be able to clear the balance pretty much immediately to re-set the credit limit, it will just involve a bit more work.  I have sent off the requested info and will see if I'm accepted, it was a bit more difficult as we are a partnership and lots of the companies only deal with Ltd companies but I'm hopeful that we meet Barcl@ycard's criteria.