*sigh* this may take a while

lucielle

Done the stepping on the scales thing. I moved deftly off them and sent to the corner to think about what they were telling me

Happy new year

L

ohdearhowdidthathappen

lucielle said:

Done the stepping on the scales thing. I moved deftly off them and sent to the corner to think about what they were telling me

Happy new year

L

    

ohdearhowdidthathappen

Happy New Year!!
Thanks DITR, SH, Crunchie and Lucielle....
Well I took a peek at the scales and the bank balance.  Both weren't as scary as they could have been but definitely need some work
Bank account took a bit of a battering in December; present buying, days out and lots of hosting.  By my maths, being sensible in January with the extra shifts I already have booked will make us straight by end of January.
Scales show a 5lb increase, but I know at least 2-3 of that will be bloat and will come off fast with little effort.
So all in all could have been worse.

lucielle

Wish mine was bloat…….
L

savingholmes

Glad things are reasonably on track. 

ohdearhowdidthathappen said:

lucielle said:

Done the stepping on the scales thing. I moved deftly off them and sent to the corner to think about what they were telling me

Happy new year

L

    

Loved this

ohdearhowdidthathappen

3 years since I started this diary and a lot has changed in that time. 

-We paid off a lot of debt, consumer debt we paid off ourselves, although debt accrued through extension works we ended up adding to the mortgage.  It was costing us a lot monthly and if we'd known how much extra the build would cost we'd have taken out more against the mortgage at the offset.
-The 5 children are obviously all older, aged between 6 and 18 now.  That has saved some money in childcare, but that saving has been wiped out (and more!) by the cost of teenagers  
-I've gone from having 3 small job roles that fitted around the children to 1 main job and a second flexible role that sits alongside it but can be increased/decreased with ease.  This now means I work 3 weekdays and no weekends, which is so lovely.  In the school holidays I don't do the extra day, so only work 2 days those weeks.  It's proving to be a lovely balance.
-I'm more aware of my health and often hit my 10000 step a day target

Other things haven't changed as much as I'd like:
-I've still got the same 7-10lbs to lose (especially after Xmas!), I've lost and gained these pounds several times over the last 3 years!
-I still feel I should moderate my alcohol intake more
-I would still like to learn to incorporate more exercise into my life, I do regularly hit my step target, but strength training falls by the wayside as soon as life gets busy
-We're still too spendy and tend to have to 'mop up' overspends rather than planning in advance and saving.  
-We're still rubbish at long term saving and planning for retirement

Am plotting and planning targets to try and improve these things in 2022

mark55man

That's a good summary and great progress.  I know I can bang on about pension stuff, but with your OH doing well in his job and with your NHS (albeit part time) + your year by year growing entitlement to state pension - you are in a position where you have already achieved a solid baseline, with many options for improving it. 

Although you have side hustles your main NHS entitlement will be growing nicely, and there are ways to buy extra which can be a good deal if you don't want the risk of investing your own 

ohdearhowdidthathappen

Thanks Mark, you always seem so knowledgeable about pensions.  I must admit, I find them confusing and rather than educate myself, I ignore them!  Not the most mature attitude!  

savingholmes

Great round up. Looking forward to watching your progress in 2022. Definitely look at pensions. Much cheaper to do it earlier in life so the money has time to grow.

Alchemilla

I really enjoyed reading over Christmas but hadn't sorted my login so couldn't post.
It is really interesting to read your reflections on your job and the NHS.
Hoping you all stay Covid-free in '22.