The Final Furlong

beanielou

Great to be in the 8's :j :j :j

Dottles1

Thanks Beane, it really helps having you there cheering me on.:)

Yesterday was a good day, the ballet was fabulous, very powerful and lovely to spend time with my friend and her daughter (the bride from last month). I spent a total of £27 including lunch, drinks at the theatre, coffees etc. and some chips I bought on the way home as I couldn't be bothered to cook. I had £28 left in the personal spends budget so that's now all but wiped out but worth it. My friend paid the rail fares but I am buying her Country Living Fayre ticket which costs about the same. I'm determined to get on with some FB sales to cover that cost and will put them on the "just for points" c/c and pay them straight off.

On the weight loss front, I set myself a target of losing a stone before I go away at Christmas and have lost 5LB so far. I know I had chips last night but otherwise I was good yesterday and am back to cooking from scratch today. I'm now setting myself a target of 6000 steps per day EVERY day. I know that this is below the recommended 10,000 but if I increase a little each week I will get there.

I'm sitting in bed with a cup of tea, my laptop and Tilly by my side, all nice and cosy but will have to get up shortly as I want to try to give the lawns a final cut before the rain comes back, start the switching process for my bank account and do some ironing. After that I aim to spend some time with my book.
Today will be a NSD !!

speak later my MSE pals
Dottles x

beanielou

Glad that you had a lovely day yesterday:)

beanielou

Oh and on the steps front I have no idea how few I do but a lot less than 6000 you do so well done:)

Dottles1

The rain came and has lasted on and off all day so the grass didn't get cut again. However, Tilly and I drove (well I did the driving as her legs are too short to reach the pedals) to the beach and met up with DIL and GD with their dog. It wasn't too cold and with waterproofs quite good to be out on the fresh air. Both dogs loved running about on the sand. I have to confess that the ironing didn't get done either so that's at the top of tomorrow's list.
I've started the switching process with my new bank so hopefully £100 will be winging my way in time to buy Christmas presents.
also spoke with GD in SA for a while and guess what?? I'VE BOOKED MY FLIGHTS TO LA :j:j:j I've put the payment on my card for points and have one more pay day before the next statement is due so will be able to pay it off in full then. So excited now.

Tomorrow's jobs (after the ironing)include: sorting renewal of both business insurance and governing body (for private work). They both offer monthly payment schedules but I need to work out how much extra that will cost. That probably is the way I will go this year whilst building up a pot to cover both next year. This is all from a separate account so does not affect my budgets apart from what I can afford to pay myself each month.
Today has been another NSD so that is 4/31 and I've just been out again with Tilly and todays steps so far are 6920 All in all not a bad day
Enjoy your evening
Dottles x

Dottles1

I managed to get all my jobs done yesterday as well as cutting the grass at the front of the house. The back was a bit wet still but at least the front looks a bit more presentable for the winter. Who knows, I may yet get the back done but I think I'll be pushing it a bit now. I bought a few bits of food to get me through this week but spending was kept to a minimum. I then took Tilly to the vet to check on what she needs doing to her teeth. She needs to have some removed and it looks like it will cost me around £350 so I will need to work out how I can sort that payment but it is do-able with some shifting around. She is booked in for 4th and there was also a £30 fee for the consultation. I plan to cover that by selling some of the FB items. Today has been a NSD but I did remembered that I owed sponsor money to a colleague so I used the money I got for selling some shoes on FB. I have also sold another item that has been on there for quite a while and have added a few more items so we'll see how they go. Fingers crossed.
It was a very busy but productive day at work today, things seem to be settling down and the students are getting used to the pace. I'm feeling more on top of things which is good.
I heard from my solicitor today regarding the payment I'm due and it seems that, at last things are moving. I'm not going to count my chickens yet but it is good to have some positive news.
Yesterday's steps amounted to 6867 as I walked to the vet's.
Today I have only managed 3266 so far so Tilly and I are off for a trot round the block shortly before bed to make them up.
Have a good evening all
Dottles x

foxgloves

Hi Dottles1,
Re daily steps..... My daily target is 7000. I do sometimes do 10000, but it felt like a lot to set myself for every day. I read somewhere a while back that 7000 daily steps is the minimum amount for a woman of my age (50s) to get the health benefits of regular walking, so I went with that figure on the grounds that I often do more & when I do, that's a bonus.
F x

Dottles1

That's interesting Foxgloves. I don't seem to have a problem on the days I'm not at work but on the days I am I'm usually really tired when I get home and often fall asleep on the sofa. If I could just motivate myself I could easily manage more than 7,000 steps. I'm thinking of paring back my diet to see if it helps to increase my energy levels, cutting out carbs and sugar as this has worked for me in the past but they have crept back in a little. I mostly cook from scratch and plan ahead for evenings where I won't have much time so it shouldn't be too hard. I also think I need to look at my sleep routine again.
Yesterday was graduation day for last year's students. I get to attend along with my colleagues and parade through the town in our gowns to the ceremony. I feel so incredibly proud seeing them achieve their goal, some of whom thought they couldn't do it, and some going on to further studies. These are the moments that remind me why I do what I do. I also got to go out for tea with my team which is always good fun. (paid for out of grocery budget)
I have some private work this morning which will cover the vet fee from Monday and some more has been booked in for next Monday which is a bonus plus an enquiry for some possible future work. All going in the right direction.
Wednesday was another NSD which makes a total of 6/31 so far this month. I have to buy a birthday card but having plenty of wrapping paper in and present paid for so I'll get that over the weekend when I buy a few food bits for the week which will mean that today would be another NSD.
Well I'm off to make a coffee before starting work.
Speak later and happy frugaling
Dottles x

Dottles1

had a good day yesterday. It was a spend day but everything was planned. I bought a birthday card and some chocolate to go with GD's present which was accounted for with the money I had taken from the birthday pot. I also bought some bits of groceries to keep me going as I an make a few meals from what I still have in.
In the afternoon I made some soup from veg that was starting to look a little sad which turned out to be delicious. Isn't that always the case when you throw something together and then you can't replicate it? Anyway that was tea yesterday, a portion for lunch today and another for the freezer.
I also banked £47, 25 from private work, 10 from FB sales and 12 from the loose change pot I keep. That will cover the £30 vet fee from Monday and the rest can go into the holding account.
I still have £13.95 in the petrol budget and £11.46 in the grocery budget. I did take £22 out of groceries for the meal out on Thursday so I may replace that if I have some more FB sales otherwise it's going to be tight till the end of the month.
I have my friend's dog back to stay, this time for a week and am considering walking her and Tilly separately as they have very different paces and it would help to manage/increase my steps. Also plan to see if eldest DD wants to meet for coffee and a catch up but given the financial position, I'll suggest her house or mine.
Right I'm off to sort out a barking dog.
Have a fab day all
Dottles x

savingholmes

Sounds like you are making lots of positive steps literally and financially. Exciting to have booked LA ticket too.