Drawing a line under the debt. Take two.

bd80s

hey, have pm'd you.
You've been on a mission money wise!  all sounds very organised and everything is heading the right way for you  
got my fingers crossed that the job stays for you, understand how up in the air some places are at the moment though which must be a worry, 
oo little puss tats! excited for you that they may now become a reality.....

Drawingaline

If I can figure out how to post pictures I will share some of any kittens we get. 

Shopping day today, did my parents shop too. Then I had to drive to my brothers to drop of some letters my mum had for him, managed to hit the kerb going into his drive and bent my front wheel. But still all OK, could have been worse, could have burst the tyre. It was because I could see my brother going around the corner so I was beeping him and didn't have two hands on the wheel. Felt a bit of a plonker! 😂 Anyway letters delivered.

Also managed to get some plain flour 😁 so will be baking again tomorrow. 

By the time I got back and then went to the other shop for the other bits the day had just gone. 

So tomorrow am getting up earlier and will be doing all bedding, cleaning both bathrooms, do some work with the small two, and make a start on gardening or painting the porch. The smallest has a birthday at tee end of the week so need to wrap the presents we have. 

savingholmes

Sorry to hear about the wheel. 
Savings goals / debt clearance before moving sounds good too.
Hope you keep your job - I think everyone other than perhaps nhs feel  a bit on tenterhooks job wise currently. I've redone our budget in different versions to see the impact if went down to one wage. Hopefully that is the worst it would get. 
Hope the birthday celebrations go well. My DD's birthday is next week but I managed  to get a cake mix she likes a BC one with choc fudge icing and silver balls to decorate it. Looking forward to eating that!

Drawingaline

SH I managed to get a cake today, it got a bit squashed, but it is in the cupboard ready.

My hubby works for a supermarket (online dept) and even he is concerned about the future of his job. We think it will be OK, but there is going to be some tough decisions coming up for the people at the top.

I am concerned my se job will take a while to get going again, but I used the checker and I qualify for the grant, and can apply next week. This will help my funding goals. 

shoppingobsessed2020

Just sat and read your whole diary from start to finish with multiple cups of tea and biscuits!  What a roller coaster youve been on!  How’s the shoulder doing now? 

I was so excited when I saw about the job interview and my heart sank when dh didn’t get it, but as my nanny used to say, what’s for you won’t go by you.  

I need that birthday breakfast recipe as it sounds like heaven.  Did you get it this year as you didn’t say? I hope you did.

was excited when I saw you had been to Loch Lomond.  I grew up 10 mins from there and miss it so much.  The aquarium is £££££ though but it’s a nice way to kill a morning.  Dh and I love going out on a boat round the loch, some friends of ours have a boat up there so we often do that when we go back home to visit.

im glad you’ve found the swimming lessons working for the kids.  I want to say for the weird one in particular.  We switched to one on one and monkey boy is flying through the stages so feel it’s worth it as he needs that discipline and we spend a lot of time on or near water in school holidays he needs that skill.

re YNAB is it worth it?  I’ve had a look and it seems so complicated but you juggle it all so well.

Dh and I went to London in October 18 to see hp and we also went to the o2 to see a concert at the time.  Those seats killed our behinds as we did the 2 parts of the play in one day, but the play was AMAZING.  Im so jealous of you being close to London as it’s a real military operation for us to go.  We’ve been a couple of times but usually
its specifically planned to see a big show or concert.  Last time we were there is was to see pink in the summer, what a show that was and im glad he was home for it.  

What authors do you like?  I read anything and everything bar horror and sci fi.  Really like a good crime book, there’s a couple of series I’m really into and they are big enough books that it takes a few days to get through.  Stuart Mac bride and l j Ross are the authors I’m into at present.

Really looking forward to reading more and seeing how you get on with everything especially the current situation.  I’ve no idea how you are managing with the kids, it must be so disturbing the lack of routine.  

I really should get to bed but it’s been lovely reading and getting to “know” you through your diary.  

Drawingaline

Wow, from start to finish, that's dedication! Hello and welcome 😁

My arm is probably at 95-98%. But it took from oct right through to March to get there. Even in feb it was only at about 75%, that last month before being signed off by the hospital was needed to get where I am now. It still niggles, atm because I am spending longer in bed 😂 but when I get back to my se job it's going to ache.

I didn't have my birthday breakfast this year. You reminded me! May have to find a different reason to have it this year. It is awesome. And always reminds me of Vegas.

You are jealous of my locality to London, and I am jealous of your childhood near Loch Lomond. I love the parts of Scotland I have visited and am gutted that our trip this year may not happen. My friend keep posting pictures of her epic walks during this time and while Island living is tough for a whole variety of reasons, the ability to be that close to the most amazing scenery and nature is definitely a huge benefit. I am hoping that if I can't get up there with the girl over the summer that we can maybe do a long weekend in sep/oct. After that the weater is too unpredictable and I don't want to drive all that way only to not have the ferries running.

I am missing the theatre trips. But we only had one more booked this year due to the girls gcse's, and that's in September and was a ridiculously cheap one too. I was savigg up for kids week, which won't be happening which is a shame, so no trips to the capital for a good while. Can't wait to get back into it. It is nice being close, means we have the ability to do these things like theatre and concerts as the teens are getting older. And it will mean I have a list of things I want to do as this lock down eases.

Bookwise I am really enjoying crime drama and thrillers, not a genre I hae ever really before. I also like the authors you mentioned, also J. D. Robb, Sarah Hillary and Angela Marsons. My normal go to genre has always been historical fiction. But if you like crime drama I can recommend Lindsay Davis. Her Falco series is set in ancient Rome, bit the main character is a PI so they are really a crime series. I love how she writes, her poor character has a colourful life with many interesting family members! And also the Peter Grant series. A crime series with a huge dollop of fantasy. If you like Harry Potter, these are a bit similar with the idea of the supernatural, but based around a policeman and various crimes. The author set up a brilliant back story regarding the supernatural element in the uk too. I also love Terry Pratchet, and collect a series by the author Chynthia Harrod-Eagles. 35 books spanning one family from the war of the Roses to just bfore ww2.

However my all time favourite book is Polo by Jilly Cooper 😂 I adore her books, they are so frivolous and draw you into a world of fantasy in a different way. The rich and famous and their lifestyles, bad boys and bored women, Polo remains the only book I read through, got to the end, and immediately started again. Finishing it was so devestating I wanted it to keep going 😂 

Anyway enough book talk I could go on forever! I will just say that to me ynab is worth ever single penny. But I have always budgeted on paper, although it was more forecasting really, but I haven't found it difficult to use at all. I did start simply, using it for a year before tracking the mortgage and other debts in it. And it took me ages to pluck up the courage to use the credit card as it was intended, but I am on fbook groups who are super helpful, and the support from the ynab team themselves is brilliant if you have a big problem. I use the app almost exclusively as I am less bothered by the reporting aspect and 99% of the stuff can be done in it. It's worth the trial, and if you are not ready to commit you can email them and they will often extend the trial by a month or two. You do have to be determined to enter everything, I do it in the shop or car or just as I get home, and tend to check online banking every morning too. But I would do that before I used it anyway. There is a YouTube channel and loads of videos by all sorts of people, the videos by Nick True are often recommended. Most show the desktop site which is probably best to use to begin with, but once it's all set up then the app is so simple to use on a day to day basis.

Anyway enough praise, hope you can plough through that essay and stick with me. Welcome once again 😊

savingholmes

Have a good day. I love JD Robb too.

Drawingaline

So today I got the wierd one to do a bit more work, this time on VE day and he coloured some flag bunting. The smallest did a maths worksheet thing on a website the school have started to use. 

Then I started digging a new bed in the front garden. From scratch! Got it dug, laid the weed membrane, put the edging stuff in (that was hard work) and finally got the four bags of stones out of the car (been there since the day before lock down 😂). Going to need another our bags, so will have to take a trip to the shop on Monday. Am so proud of myself though. Took about 3hours in total, and still did our family walk this evening. Am exhausted! 

We have a birthday in the house tomorrow. Presents wrapped and I bought a cake on Monday. Obviously won't be doing much though. 

The breeder who has kittens has had another litter, still in discussions about wethr or not to go ahead and get kittens. Have been pricing up pet insurance and trying to get an idea of food and litter costs so I can work it into the budget. We will have enough to buy them by the end of May, and I imagine much like a new baby, things like toys and beds can be as cheap or as costly as you want to make them. We would need at least one cat tree if they are going to be indoor cats, and have been looking at screens for the conservatory doors so they can't escape if we have the doors open. May have to actually make a list...... 

Mumoffourkids

Ooh so exciting about the kittens. I think you do need a list for what they will need. And then a line in your budget!

shoppingobsessed2020

Yay to kittens!  We did have insurance for our cat but I stopped it a while ago as it was getting ridiculous given how old he is (we had the conversation and decided quality of life and comfort is more important to us for him, just taking him to the vets for his annual check up stresses him out so if we were going more frequently that would play a part in our decision)  We used more than and they seemed to be pretty reasonable to start with but when we started getting into double digits it got pricey.

cat food I buy in bulk on amazon.  Subscribe and save is a lifesaver as it’s heavy and I used to use Costco cat litter that came in a green container.  Was the BEST cat litter out there.  Wee would clump nicely and the litter didn’t need changed as frequently as others that I tried.  Cheap nappy sacks are good for cat litter scooping and binning.  

cat toys, now that ours is an old man there’s nothing he likes more than a scratching post (replaces every couple of years) and some wool.  I can’t crochet with the cat in the room as he likes to attack the wool when I pull more off the ball.  When he was younger and an indoor cat we had all sorts of balls and mice and things on sticks for him but pets at home and amazon are great for that kind of thing.

i wouldn’t bother with a cat bed.  Mine never slept in one.  He prefers to be on our laps or our bed.  As he’s access to the outside and hunts he isn’t allowed upstairs on a night.  One too many dead mouse on the bed incidents!  Bought him a bed and he sleeps on my seat on the sofa!  Some cats love a bed others like mine don’t.  You won’t know till you have one though!

my list would be litter tray and litter (get a big one if you can) food & water bowls, a few toys, a bed and a cat carrier.  We used the one carrier for both my vats growing up and just lay a fleece blanket in the bottom of it.  The biggest ongoing expense will be food and litter, but food can be as cheap or as expensive as you like.  We used Costco’s own brand dry cat food till we switched to wet food on vets recommendation.  

I’m excited for you.  Kittens are so lovely and fun.