NST March 2020 Merriment

dolly84

mothernerd - woo hoo to a found tenner, I'm over the moon when I find money.

Just finished my coffee and need to get my backside in gear.  Am taking the dog for his booster this morning, will post an ebay sale on the way home, then I need to walk the dog, do some ironing, clean the bathroom, deal with the washing, wash the floors, fork over my compost heap and add some more leaves, I also need to bake a loaf and some buns but that might have to wait.

abundant1972

Good morning!!!

So happy Mothernerd that the Universe sent you something nice

I have spent today getting myself into a positive space. Part of me feels guilty - I can almost hear my parents when I was younger... 'you haven't done anything today...' However - I am seeing it as self-care. I am trying to be a good parent to myself... putting things in place for when I am having a bad day, when the clarity I have now might seem far away. I know what keeps me well - I just need to not forget on my darker days. 

I am listening to new music to my normal chart selection... I have two artists I find positive... Bliss is one if I need words to uplift me, and Nigel Shaw if I want instrumentals. Does anyone else have any musical artists that lift them and help you feel happy?

Today I am grateful for:

1) For the people I met in Glastonbury who taught me how to find happiness
2) For the artists I am listening to today that have helped re-ground me
3) For all the love, happiness, prosperity and abundance that I already have, and that is yet to pour into my life

Today = NSD number 2 (I miss using different colours haha!!!).

I am trying something different this month with my money. I will still aim for NSDs etc... but I am not tracking every penny to see what I spend it on. Instead I am drawing out my allowance on 01st/08th/15th/22nd (£40 this month for food and spends). When it is gone it is gone. I have tried using my credit cards to get extra points, but it gets confusing and I end up having cash in my wallet then having to try and pay it back in the bank to clear the card etc. No - I am keeping it simple. £40 cash each week. No guilt attached to what I buy... as long as I am looking after myself and eating well. I am still going to try and run down my food cupboards and freezer before any big shops, and am being thrifty and batch cooking etc. I am also reminding myself of what I have rather than what I don't have. Hopefully I won't feel so empty and depleted (financially and emotionally) as the month progresses. 

That's me done waffling haha! Have a lovely day and see you tomorrow x

PurpleFairy26

#9 checking in. My plans for the month in more detail below:

MARCH forward. The mistakes of the past should be left there. They were a lesson not a life sentence. - have a very positive outlook even with a big challenge to deal with at the moment in life. Am determined to keep this perspective. 

ARMOURY The turtles have lots of rules and it can be bewildering at first. Each one is a weapon in your fight against debt. The more weapons you can use, the faster you will pay off your debt or achieve your savings goals. Pay to DEBT or SAVINGS first, live off what is left. - yep. 

REVIEW your shopping habits. - don’t really have any weaknesses as just don’t shop anymore but am aware it’s all to easy to get something swiftly from Amazon - using YN AB should help me with this. 

CHECK out what you have in your cupboards, fridge and freezer - always meal plan and currently working way through freezer. Always cook from scratch. This definitely helps. 

HAVE all your budgets in place before the start of the month - first full month on YN AB. But budgeted on spreadsheet before for 7 years since LBM so all good there. 

MIX IT UP Try new things and new ways of doing things - will do. 

EXERCISE According to your current state of health and abilities - aiming for some decent walks and to get step count up. Even if it’s an average for the week that’s up. 

REST AND RELAXATION. Good sleep is priceless. Read, meditate, do yoga. Am using knitting to relax but should do some yoga too. Thanks for the prompt. 

REDUCE Tread lightly upon the earth - tip run yesterday, but in to recycling we can’t get curbside. Donating 2 big household items to someone who is moving. 

IGNORE the mass media, ads telling you their product will make your life complete, 'friends' posting about their perfect life on bookface (so fabulous they need to escape from it). - do try and do this as it helps with point 1 but good to be reminded. 

MUSIC Play happy songs. Dance. More of a talk radio person but will join in when DH and smalls are playing music. 

EVERY DAY check in is recommended, but not mandatotory - will try my best

NO SPEND DAYS (NSDs) 15

THREE things each day to be grateful for - this is good for point 1 too. 

Today will be a NSD, yesterday wasn’t in the end (£2 spend at SM - was higher but used a gift card for the other £4.69) so still at 1. 

3 gratefuls:
for blood donors 
free WiFi at a long appointment 
no rain and some blue sky 

mothernerd

Took a book back to the library and put some tins in the food bank box. Paid cash into the bank - cashier suggested opening a savings account. Ate, collected stuff to take to mum's, letters in the door as I left the house. Brown envelope - 'You recently told us about a change, (last week's lengthy phone call) which means you are no longer entitled to tax credits. Ah well, back to abject poverty for me then.

I'm fairly sure it's wrong. At no point in the discussion did he suggest I might no longer be entitled to tax credits, just that they had been paying me at the higher rate. They also want me to repay over £2000. I've used their own tax credit calculator and it says I should get £150.91 every 4 weeks, which isn't much but it is something. Comparing this to what they have paid me over the past year gives a discrepancy of £670.10 (which I would have to pay back) but the claim would continue. However as they have broken the claim (wrong decision) even if I were to fight and win an appeal, I'd probably be treated as a new claimant and come under the Universal credit rules. More forms, more hoops, more complications (it would be based on the whole house income).

Unfortunately it has become standard practice to reject claims on spurious grounds. Many people are too ill to continue an unequal battle with little or no money (benefit is stopped until the appeal is heard, which might be for a year or more).

On a more positive note, I have made progress on one of the two embroidered pieces I want to finish. Unfortunately when mum saw me sewing, she outlined another 'project for me - two cream curtain tie backs which I should do 'some sort of squiggle in purple' so that they would match the curtains (then she can do away with the metal tie backs that are screwed to the wall). Good appointment, leg seems to be improving, although the ankle is still swollen and I went round the corner to our doctor's to order repeat prescription items for us both. Taxi arrived in under 5 minutes. Put a load of washing in at mum's and left it drying on her radiators. Left the cabbage and carrots there to chop tomorrow.

Today I am grateful for some sunny bits in the day (nearly had snow at one point), easy food from the freezer, cough not being too debilitating, resilience.

Opened a new pack of fibre tips. I have been using up all my old gel pens, biros and pencils (down from 3 pots to less than one) but some of the softer pencils are hard to see when the light isn't great, so finally opened the new pens.

apple_muncher

Today I am grateful for being seen so quickly at the hosp that I was out of there before my official appointment time, for dd going happily to school, for a good day at work, for some sunshine, for the Thunderbirds boys finding their dad!

greent

apple_muncher said:

Today I am grateful for being seen so quickly at the hosp that I was out of there before my official appointment time,

Whoop!! x

greent

REVIEW your shopping habits. -Bad habits of buying unnecessary stuff (food)  - no shopping today

CHECK out what you have in your cupboards, fridge and freezer. Had run freezers right down then had massive YS meat haul in Feb. However, it will all get used within March/ April - had YS chicken from the freezer for dinner. 

HAVE all your budgets in place before the start of the month. Food, Travel, Bills, Entertainment, any one off bills or family birthdays. 

EXERCISE .- I am aiming for 4 sessions/ week - none today

REST AND RELAXATION. Planning an earlier night  

REDUCE Tread lightly upon the earth. Reduce spending, screen time, clutter, stress,  - am aiming for 2020 items to have gone in 2020 (not inc regular recycling, rubbish etc) WIll be clearing out more in March.  - added an unopened pack of coffee filter papers and a coffee machine to CS pile today. Little screen time - Spring cleaning kitchen

MUSIC Play happy songs. Dance. Sing - Standard behaviour in the greent house - had sp0t1fy on for most of the day - Easy 00s playlist - lots of singing whilst cleaning

NO SPEND DAYS (NSDs) Up to 2

THREE things each day to be grateful for. DS3 being pleased with his allocated secondary school, DH & I agreeing about getting rid of a large something, Spring-like weather
THERE is always someone worse off than you so give - time/ money/ goods  - 2 things added to CS pile today. Foodbank to do 

Day 2

misstara

NSD 1 yesterday   Did a food shop today and paid for a hotel for our weekend away later this month.  Grateful for having the afternoon off work, a yummy ham and pickle baguette for lunch, coffee and a good workout at the gym.

BadBookkeeper

Day 2
NSD - 2/15
Exercise - walked an extra mile for our charity challenge.  Cold tonight but clear sky means beautiful moon and stars. DS was chatty we all enjoyed it.
R&R - Keep waking up around 3am.  Today I felt really tired late afternoon.  I go to bed early enough but don’t seem to have quality sleep.  

Reduce - our walk means less screen time for me & DS.  Decluttered a drawer and found something to sell on FB.  Only £5 but it will go in a pot towards paying for DS birthday party in December.
Tidied another drawer in DS room, sadly nothing to sell but looks so much better.  Only took 5 minutes if that!
Grateful for - sunny crisp day, Fb sale, easy day in work even though its month end.
Charity - almost reached our target for RNLI by ‘going the extra mile a day’ and it’s only day 2! left charity bag out it was empty but usually forget to put them out if not used.

Deni_debt-free_dreamer

Evening all (or should that be morning all;)
Will catch up properly in a day or two.... Had very long day on Sunday as was visiting family which involved about 50 miles driving round between the various family members then drove DD2 back to uni then drove DD1 and I back home!  Spent about 8 hours in the car and family time was stressful and not relaxing Heyho.. When I got home at 10pm I found a carrier bag on the doorstep with milk, hot X buns and mini eggs from my lovely friend who i'd been offloading onto via text at various points of the day
Today I've had a long day at work but 6 weeks into my job and i'm enjoying it and the memory of my previous awful job is fading into the distance.
So my gratitudes are:
Lovely caring friend
Productive day at work
A bright sunny day
Deni x

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