MF - now the 2 year journey to financial freedom 😁

[Deleted User]

It's been a rollercoaster few days with a very difficult situation to process but, the best outcome is now expected so I'm feeling a lot better sorry if that sounds cryptic but I can't give too much away due to rl....I have had a total lack of interest in anything vaguely related to my plans and have spent money, blown out on toxins and dumped all routines- it's been three days of meltdown

Anyway, following this curveball, I'm getting back with the programme!

It's the Imbolc weekend ahead - new beginnings and commencing the plans that have been growing in the darkness of my brain through the winter Now that the light is shining again on my situation, I'm feeling positive about the time ahead and want to get the most out of it. That means really deciding on what is realistic to achieve this year now that I have made different financial decisions; taking responsibility for my health seriously and doing something about the things I know I have to change and above all else - get back in control of my life :D
I've bought flowers for the hallway in colours that reflect the festival - red carnations representing the vitality and energy moving within the earth; white carnations and freesias representing beginnings,the path of new ideas and self awakening and yellow carnations representing the bringing back of the light and sun to warm the earth.
Tomorrow, I will make a start on the garden stuff and plant some seeds - I've got lots of veg seeds and also lots of white sweet peas I'll get dh to get the replacement glass for the greenhouse next week and will clean the rubbish out of it this weekend. I'm excited to get started on it! :j
Right, I'm off - Happy Friday!!

Msmoneyspider

I am absolutely loving your diary squirrelgirl, it is the first diary I have read that refers to the solstice and Imbolc and eating according to the seasons. That is such a natural way of being and living, nature is incredible.

Life like seasons has terrific thunderstorms, so a three day maelstrom is inevitable at some point. I hope you are able to enjoy some calm after the storm.

[Deleted User]

Thanks Msmoneyspider, glad you're enjoying it! 
Unfortunately, I was not over the meltdown and I'm pretty convinced that I won't be until after the end of the week on the plus side, acknowledging this has relieved  some of the burden so I feel okay about it! 
Truth is - my perspectives have changed dramatically. 
Financially, things are very different than they were at the beginning of this diary - I've taken on more than expected, spent money on rubbish and am not in the position I expected to be at this point. I will have to rethink my financial goals for the year and not get sucked in to feeling that I have to stick to the original plans. 

With recent events, I've decided that I don't need to push us anymore - having everything as I want it will happen organically and at a pace which suits our needs at any given time. Life is such a short and fragile thing - I know that we have gone without and spent so long getting into our current position,  I owe it to everyone to actually stop and enjoy what we have achieved rather than ignore it and push ourselves further. I'm going to start to really live the way that I want to and live it in the present - I'm incredibly lucky in my life; I love my relationships, my home, my job and I have a comfortable income. As a general rule, my life is highly enjoyable and stress free - it's my self-imposed expectations which cause concerns so ditching them makes sense!! 
I live my life as naturally as I can normally- during the renovations this was more difficult and I think that has added to my feeling of unease recently. Getting back to being able to be in my garden, growing my own food and enjoying the sound of nature always give me a profound sense of peace and I'm really looking forward to immersing myself into it soon

Anyway, must get on - I have a busy day ahead but I'm looking forward to it! 

Msmoneyspider

It all sounds very wise Squirrelgirl, especially the bit about getting back into the garden and communing with nature; your passion for this is palpable.   I like reading all the different perspectives on the diaries, they are food for thought.   Wishing you all the best and looking forward to reading of your adventures, living in the now!

[Deleted User]

Thanks Msmoneyspider! 😁
True to form, yet another huge curveball has been launched into the mix and all bets are now off! 😉 
Following the latest news, I have got to completely rethink my plans - the financial impact is huge so now it's a revamp and rejig of everything and a shift of priorities- unexpected but not unwelcome and a lot of planning to do! 
I'm spending this week catching up with everything that has gone by the wayside and starting fresh next week- it's going to be massively busy over the next four days but it will be worth it! 
I'll write as soon as I've got my new plans together! 😁

longway2go

Changes in plans happen all the time. You look like you are in a great position. Wishing you luck with your next plan 

[Deleted User]

So, the story so far....
This year has been bizarre!! 🙈 January was horrendous with scary health issues in the family- thankfully the worst is now over but we're not out of the woods yet; February came the news of a new grandbaby on the way!! 🙌 which is lovely but means that living situations need to be changed rapidly and a lot of work needs to be done as a result! 😥😂 This month, well along with the rest of the planet, travel plans, holiday bookings etc are all in doubt or cancelled 😔 in some ways, I'm sort of grateful  - our financial situation this year has not even vaguely resembled the plan I had, so not having to fork out for these trips is not a disaster - it actually gives us the ability to do more for the kids so it's a bonus really! 

So, my new plans for the next two years is literally to have no plans!! I have decided to just go with the flow - I'm hoping to pay off my family loan and have clear credit cards across the board by the end of this year but it's just a hope - I don't know what I will need to do financially for the family until living arrangements have been decided so I'm not going to pressurise myself into anything 😉 
While I'm taking a relaxed attitude with the finances, my lifestyle will be much more planned 😆 I'm totally up for getting my garden sorted - I started on the greenhouse last weekend and did a general tidy-up.  This weekend we'll hopefully be able to do a tip trip and finish sorting the greenhouse.  I want to start doing 15 mins of digging a day from this weekend- hopefully it will mean the veg beds can be ready by the middle of April ready for planting. I'll start some seeds off this weekend too 😉 
Having to isolate by order of my employer means that I have weeks ahead of me to really get back on top of my job - there's a lot I want to get done so this has created the ideal opportunity for me to get ahead! 

As far as the current environment is concerned, we have plenty of supplies in so if we do have to go into full lock down (house of 4, 3 in high risk groups 🙈) we'll be fine for a considerable period and I have enough for dd and family too - not through buying recently, I always buy in bulk. Thankfully we live in a rural area so I can walk around freely without seeing anyone - not that I would want to, I'd rather be in my garden! I feel sorry for those who don't have access to a garden - it will be awful if they have to stay put for a prolonged period of time 😔 
Anyway, work beckons....stay safe! 

[Deleted User]

It's been a lovely weekend- had the grandbaby Friday night and Saturday morning which was enormous fun then spent the rest of it just chillaxing 😁

With everything that has been happening with the virus over the past couple of days, it has become more likely that the kids won't be able to buy a house in the near future which has a massive knock on effect for everyone - also my dd & sil will probably need financial support too over the coming months. I'm incredibly fortunate to be able to help them now - if this had happened a few years ago, it would be a worrying situation all round. It's really made me appreciate even more what I have now - I've decided that when this is all over, I'm going to set up a regular payments to both the kids mortgages to help them op. I want my children to have the security of having a roof over their heads as soon as practical - I know with inheritances they'll be fine but if everyone lives long enough it could be decades before they have access to any of that! 😉 
I'm going to rebook at budgets when this is all done and rethink my priorities.
Hope everyone is keeping well and staying safe!

beanielou

My DS is due to complete at the end of the week 

[Deleted User]

Oh beanie, that's awful!! 🙈 I wonder if it will be able to go ahead? I expect that it's completed electronically in the most part but its worrying and if removals are involved that may prove difficult 😔 I really hope it all works out! 

Well other than one member of our household, we're all at home from today - dh and I both work in essential services but can work from home (I do anyway); ds has been told to stay home as the business is not essential - he'll have to be on the government scheme once that kicks in; dil is an essential worker too but may be told to come home as she is in a risk group 😔 although precautions have been taken,  I think she should be at home. 
I'm going to sit the babies down soon and have a sensible conversation about the medium term - with the lock down starting, there is no chance of them being able to move within the next five to six months so we need to think about how this will work once the small one arrives 🤔 interesting times ahead for so many reasons! 🙈
So today I'm doing a recce of the cupboards and fridge to see what I'm going to use up - I'm going to need to get some fresh fruit and veg so I might see if my local veg place is open later. I'm not certain that I will be able to stick to organic food for the duration of this lock down- I'm going to have to see what I can do delivery wise- hopefully there's a local scheme I can join 😉 
Okay, off to get my day started...keep well!