From £14k to in the clear

Drawingaline

Well done :T I will say these treats can come back in once you have really made a dent. It's all about priorities. So if a cleaner means that you get to spend more time as a family at the weekend doing fun stuff, then that is a priority for you. I say this because some people go all in and then find it all too hard and give up. Not saying you will, but do think hard about what YOUR priorities are now, and then going forward.

Mine atm is experiences with my kids. My older two have discovered a love of theatre because I found out about kids week via a friend (kids go free to the theatre in August with an adult) and I am loving vein able to accommodate this. We still have debt, but it is at a level I am more comfortable with now, it is still being paid off, but at a slower rate.

Anyway, enough rambling from me, glad you enjoyed your holiday and can see how you can have fun on a budget, something so many people seem to find hard. :T

greenpanda

I TRULY can't believe it but at the end of 'month one' we've managed to put £1400 towards our overdraft and £400 against the credit card! For the past 5+ years we've pretty much consistently spent more than we've earned which is how we racked about £14k in debt.

I've been shopping very strategically. We do part of our shop at Lidl and then I get a few bits from Waitrose on what is reduced (thankfully both are very close near to us). When I did my SOA someone mentioned that the amount we put against groceries meant we must be throwing a lot out. At the time I really didn't think we were. I can definitely see now how much food we were wasting. I've changed how we are cooking. Rather than do 7 nights of recipes with all different ingredients we are now doing chicken with veges, fish with veges etc so we are getting through everything.

I am missing the cleaner, especially as it is the end of the school holidays. Only one week to go!

Drawingaline - I couldn't see any of the free theatre tickets left for what we wanted but will be quick next year. We've done lots of free or cheap activities this past few weeks. Natural history museum, Tate Britain, Science Museum a few times. I'm just about to book the Family Sunday's activities at the Royal Opera House which aren't expensive.

savingholmes

Congrats on paying off £1.8K in a month - that's impressive! Keep going, you will continue to amaze yourself about how much further your money will go. I have been amazed at how much meal planning helps in our own journey.

Drawingaline

Yes the shows left now tend to be more suited for teens, which is great for me lol! I actually saw the Lion King for £20, and school of rock through the lottery they run. Kids week tickets for those shows go in minutes when they are released.

Congratulations on your fantastic first month, its always good to feel that reduction. Now buckle up for the hard slog. Getting that balance for the long term is so important.

enthusiasticsaver

Brilliant reduction in the debt this month. Well done. More than 10% gone already.

LadyP01

Great start! Your save more money once the school holidays are over. Best of luck

ohdearhowdidthathappen

Just had a quick read through, well done, you're doing great!