Keeping on the Straight and Narrow...

savingholmes

Hope you recover quickly. I always want extra treats when ill so it never saves me £

DancingInTheRain

Thanks Savings x

I literally have had no time to spend other than the basics to top up fresh food and cold/flu type remedies so the spends remain low.

I'm much better but DH is struggling and DS1 has had a dreadful weekend, so has slept in with me some can keep an eye on him (which means I haven't slept much) He's finally showing signs of getting better today, hoping to get him back in school before the week is out, just in time for our half term next week.

Being largely tied to the house with 1 thing or another means I've managed to largely up to date with work & in my downtime I've started clearing out the boys bedroom as the plasterer is coming in a fortnight, we just need to get the wall chipped back to brick and then it'll be ready - the boys furniture and toys are dotted all around the house in the meantime & I've even managed to declutter a few bits without them noticing 😉

We've had a couple of doorstep charity bags through our door so I've filled a couple of those, getting rid of some too small clothes for all of us and sent another small box of books to Z!ffitt 

Only 2 weeks until payday and we're on track. DH and I couldn't get any time off for half term next week so the boys are having a combination of time with grandma on our busier work days and then we'll juggle the childcare with WFH on the other days before I'm off on Friday. Hoping we're all clear of these bugs by then so the boys can at least enjoy a bit of downtime not rushing to and from school 

savingholmes

Never nice being ill. Hope things improve for you all soon.

DancingInTheRain

Do I dare say we all feel well today? 🤫

DH has been stripping the boys bedroom back to brick today so I took the boys for their swimming lesson this morning then onwards to our local city for a Mummy & Sons lunch date (at A$da so theirs only cost £1 each ☺️) before popping into Primarni to get the boys a new hoody & a pack of socks each ready for spring. Still need to pick up DS1 some new school trousers as he's had another growth spurt, will hopefully pick those up from A$da later on the week

Both boys have been saving their pocket money recently so asked if we could go to the toy shop, they both kept to their budget and looked carefully at the cost of everything - even better, they each still have money left after their purchases ✔️

We've got a playdate tomorrow at soft play with a friend and her children and then it will be a lazy half term week for the boys while DH and I are working. Our Mums are very kindly helping out so the boys will be able to have some time relaxing at Grandma's while being spoiled rotten no doubt 😃 the weather forecast isn't great next week so some lazy down time will do them both some good, wish I could have the same 🤣 x

savingholmes

Glad things and health improving.

DancingInTheRain

Another week gone by in the blink of an eye!

Work has been full on for DH and I so this weekend has been about family time - a lazy day yesterday pottering around the house and watching films while having a few more treat food than we normally allow and then today we go out for some fresh air, the kids brought their scooters and we ended up at a playground before stopping off at a cafe for a late lunch. It's been lovely just spending time together wihtout 1 of us being poorly!

The boys have had a lovely lazy half term with their Grandmas while we've been working and I think it's done them both the world of good to relax and recharge their batteries, they're both very excited to go back to school to see their friends tomorrow.

I'm travelling for work most of this week which means slightly longer days but I'm looking forward to getting out and about and having a change of scenery after being WFH since the start of the year, thankfully DH is WFH on the days I'm out so we should be able to juggle the school runs between us.

Our plasterer is coming tomorrow to start work on the kids bedroom, We're really pleased to be getting this sorted as it will help to further insulate the house as well as dealing with a damp issue that had started to develop in there. We've also paid a deposit to a company who are going to install a perimeter fence around our garden, they're due to come in April so we've got a busy few weeks ahead of us but it feels good to be getting some more outstanding work done on the house. We've got a couple of other projects we're going to try to do this year but will make a final decision on these once the bedroom and garden are completed.

Finally money news seeing as it's almost the end of the month - Child Benefit coming in tomorrow then DH and I both get paid on Tuesday so we will feel rich for 24 hours before all the DD's go out on Wednesday 

We've managed to reduce our "What We Owe The World" figure by £850 in February through a combination of normal payments and then sending all free money to the CC, we did really well on Pro!ific and a a good payout TCB in Feb which has had a large impact. So for all I'm not updating on here as often as I used to, things are definitely heading in the right direction. Savings - erm, well we do have some but will definitely be better once the bedroom and garden are sorted 

Hope everyone else is okay x

beanielou

Always good to tick things off the list 

savingholmes

£850 reduction is great - well done. 

Good luck with the work on the house. 

Glad the kids had a great half term 

DancingInTheRain

Hello all. Busy 2 weeks since my last post. Sadly my only Aunty passed away after a short illness, we're all pretty devastated but we did at least get the opportunity to say our goodbyes before she died. The world seems a very different place without her in it and I'm going to miss her so much. Been trying to support my cousins where I can as well as my Mum as it was her sister so she's been badly affected. 

Work for DH and I has also been incredibly busy, but good, we're both counting down the days until we have a week off, 3 weeks to go! The boys have been in good health and been lovely giving me hugs and kisses when I've been sad about my Aunty.

Work on the boys room is progressing, the plasterer got Covid just before starting with us so he was delayed by a few days but he is making good headway now. DH and I have been talking in some detail about the work we'd like to do to finish modernising & changing some room usage in the house for a while and, as tradesmen in our local area seem to be much more available at the moment, the very BIG financial update I have is that we've taken the decision to borrow an additional £25,000 on our mortgage to complete the work. We've already spoken to the mortgage provider and had a valuer round and have had confirmation today that the formal mortgage offer is in the post!
 
A big decision but one we're comfortable with. We could have taken our time and saved up but with DH and I both often working from home and the kids wanting more space as they get bigger, the way we use and live in our house has significantly changed we've decided to go for it while we're in the fortunate position of being able to afford it. We're going to continue to add to savings where we can while we're doing the work on the house and then once the work is complete as well as maintaining a savings buffer moving forward, we need to pay off the credit card which is 0% until Nov 23 (currently balance £6550), DH's student loan (current balance £3930, interest rate 4%) and then the mortgage (balance with the extra 25k will be £67,200 - £42,200 at 2.52% and £25,000 at 4.12%) so all change again. I did contemplate starting a new diary but I do like doing the occasional brain dump on this one so will keep this one going.

Think that's enough for now! Hope everyone else is okay x

beanielou

So sorry to hear about your aunt.
For what it's worth I think you have made the right decision with the further borrowing.