£29,303...Enough is enough!

WelshKitty85

efes_shareholder wrote: »

Sorry to hear about the passing of the family pooch

Its surprising how upset we get over them x

Thank you. She was only 5 and she was part of the family. DD had a special bond with her as since my dads health took a turn she's has been walking the dog at weekends to give him a break (and earn some pocket money).

WelshKitty85

I've just cashed out another £10 amazon voucher from SB. I've gone through my history and have cashed out £10 almost once a week for the last few months.

I've hopefully made another sale which should result in around £40 profit if I can arrange a courier (it's a big item).

WelshKitty85

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt...........Monthly.. .APR
Barclaycard....................8800...........200.........0
Hitachi..........................10,173.82.....226.5.....3.4
MBNA...........................3718.42........50. ...... .0

Debt total = £22,692.24

Savings total = £300.77

My totals haven't come down as much as I would like this month, but they are still heading in the right direction at least. Unfortunately my mini spending challenge hasn't quite gone to plan after £3 on a theatre programme (well worth it as 2 lovely photos of DC1 in it), pennies for pudsey, milk for work etc I definitely dont have enough left to last the month.

In more positive news, i have just placed an amazon pantry order worth nearly £40 and after using my SB vouchers it only cost me 14p! There's lots of treats in there to last us over Christmas.

WelshKitty85

Oh dear I've been neglecting my diary. I'm still plodding along with debt repayments but not made any spectacular progress. We're well and truly in Christmas mode here - the tree is up, presents are wrapped and placed under the tree, and the cupboards are well stocked. We'll just need a few fresh ingredients closer to the time. Oh and DC2 has just decided what he wants most in the world for Christmas is a chess board :eek: so that's one more thing to buy, but hopefully won't cost too much.

WelshKitty85

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt...........Mont hly.. .APR
Barclaycard...................9004.16...........200. ........0
Hitachi..........................9973.76...........226 .5.....3.4
MBNA...........................3668.42............50. ...... .0

Debt total = £22,646.34

Savings total = £300.98

So...I've not made great progress in the last month. Unfortunately we've needed a series of house repairs, including fixing a hole in the roof, which has halted our progress. We've also now got a problem in our front garden/driveway which is going to cost £1,700!! :eek: The full job should actually be around £4,000 :eek: :eek: but we've decided to get the essential work done now and the rest at a later date. My dad has come to the rescue and agreed to pay for the work and we can pay him back as and when we can afford it (but this is a priority for me as it's his retirement fund).

It's so hard to plan when DHs hours are so uncertain but we really need to get on top of saving money and repaying debts again. I got a free diary from the union today so that's saved me a couple of pounds. Christmas is pretty much sorted. I have some M&S vouchers that I will use tomorrow to get a token gift for MIL & FIL and I'll probably spend £10 on a board game for Christmas Eve. We usually go out for a family meal on Christmas Eve but DH has been eyeing up some of the Ald! Christmas food so we agreed to buy them instead and do a buffet at home, which will be much cheaper. I'm also catering for 10 on Boxing Day but have already made and frozen a chill that I'll put in the slow cooker and serve with jacket spuds, and have party food in the freezer that I've been buying over the last few weeks. There should be enough left for DDs birthday on 28th too.

I need 3 more YG surveys to cash out £50. I have more than enough to cash out £10 on SB but am thinking of saving these up to convert to vouchers for future birthday/Christmas presents etc. I also have £15 in my PA account. The roofer that did the work last year has begrudgingly agreed to refund £300 as it's his fault we've had a leak :mad: but I'm not counting it yet and will believe it when I see it.

WelshKitty85

I'm sneaking back in to admit (to myself more than anyone) than our debt has actually increased over the last month. Between car expenses, household emergencies, Christmas and DDs birthday we've now got close to £1000 on the M&S credit card. I'm not happy about it as this card has a 22.9% interest rate so it's a priority to pay off (as is the £1,700 we have loaned from my dad). I've got £320 in savings but this was put aside to pay for car tax and insurance due next month. I'm contemplating using it to make a payment off the cc though.

I've got loads of stuff to list for sale so am going to set myself a target to get things listed for sale before I go back to work next week. I can feel another lurgy brewing though so hoping that doesn't get the better of me and ruin my plans.

WelshKitty85

Today is a good day - a NSD, 12 items listed on eBay so far, £20 worth of items sold on fbook and already collected, a freezer stock take done and have about 2 weeks of food in there, including party food for NYE and a (post Xmas bargain) gammon joint for New Year's Day.

BabyStepper

Hi there Welshkitty85

I've just been reading your diary and wanted to say well done on all your progress so far. It's not easy getting a handle on debt repayment but you seem to be managing it in good humour and with 3 children to take care of. You're inspiring.

Sorry to hear about the recent increase caused by the work needing done on your drive and Christmas/birthday/repairs. If you hadn't been debt busting all this time the situation would be much worse, and you are still in a better place than when you started. This is just a small blip. You can keep doing it.

One thing I wanted to ask is what your husband is doing to increase his income? Does he have any plans for more regular work? I know how hard it is with an irregular income as I recently went self-employed.

Wishing you all the very best for 2019. I've subscribed.

WelshKitty85

Thanks for popping in Babystepper and for your kind words. DH does tend to get fairly regular work now he has more experience, it's just the fact it's not guaranteed that sometimes worries me. He's unofficially been told there's a part time contract coming up at a place he did some temp work. It's likely only 2 (long) days a week, but with additional holiday/sickness cover and the guaranteed 2 days would more than cover our essential outgoings.

I was back to work today but it was an early finish. I spent £20 on my way home. We needed nappies and milk but I also got loads of yellow sticker bargains (£1 whole chicken, 10p sack of potatoes etc) so this will keep my grocery shopping down for the next few weeks. I also got some 49p/99p bargains in Superdrug that will be ideal for DDs friends upcoming birthdays.

We've stayed home this NYE and made a buffet from the Christmas leftovers in the freezer and played board games. DH and both DSs have gone to bed already and DD is asleep on the sofa next to me. I'll be heading off to bed myself once the neighbours finish letting off their fireworks! I'm glad we haven't paid to go out - I think we all needed a quiet one and it will be nice to have a clear head tomorrow.

HAPPY NEW YEAR to anybody reading this - I hope 2019 is a fabulous one for you all!

brizzlegirl

Same to you WK, and echoing what babystepper said, if you hadn’t taken a grip on this then things would be much worse and debts even bigger so well done.

All the best for 2019 x