No Zero Days (unless it's zero spending!! 😉)

[Deleted User]

I've been lurking for a while and thought it would be a good thing to have a diary on DFW! 
There are lots of changes ahead for us (most imminent is dh working from the office again from tomorrow) and I think it's time that I got my MSE head back on!! 

ETA - No Zero Days refers to my decision not to have days where I do absolutely nothing! 🙈I will do something every day towards saving money, living frugally, diminishing my debt, improving my health, keeping my house clean and reducing my alcohol intake ☺ 

We have a lot of debt (around 40k🙈) but it's all from years ago (about 12 years) when we had a few financial disasters due to ill health and everything spun out of control. We managed to weather that storm and have a much better attitude to debt now! 
Thankfully, all of this debt is being paid off on an interest free basis and the amounts I pay are negligible in comparison to the size of the debts. I could continue the way I am forever - as the debts are so old the only contact I have with the creditors is when they offer me huge discounts for 'partial settlement ' - but I want to clear them anyway and I'm hoping to get full and final settlements on the two biggest (which are both on charging orders) once I have saved enough to make reasonable offers. 
Dh and I both have a relatively decent salary now and our jobs are as safe as they can be these days - but as we have become more comfortable, we've become much more lax about the value of money 🤔 I tend not to think about the cost of things that I would never have paid out for before, I would have always looked for a cheaper alternative; I don't really follow my budget anymore because I know that I don't need to scrimp and save just to pay the bills now; I have stopped looking for the best deals etc. Although it's a lovely situation to be in, I know that I'm wasting money that could be saved to clear these debts and I have to stop, get back in control and make every penny count! 
I don't have an emergency fund - I have two cc's with quite high limits on them and no balance, I do use them for big purchases for the additional protection if things go wrong but I pay any balance off immediately - I have kept them for emergency use. However, I would like to build an emergency fund over the next year so that I have that security.
Our outgoings are pretty low really - we don't socialise, we're not materialistic, I cook from scratch, we grow some of our own veg, I make preserves - in all honesty, our biggest money drain is alcohol! 😕 we drink a lot but have decided that we need to cut down as we're not getting any younger and we need to take our health more seriously! We decided that we shall drink at weekends only from tomorrow- I've got quite a bit in at the moment so hopefully won't need to purchase any more for the rest of the month. 
I've got a million other things that I want to get sorted but this is already a bit like an essay so will stop here! 😂 I'm putting a five year target for paying the debt - I could do it more quickly but I want to strike a balance - I have one debt which I need to get rid of in the next 12 months so will concentrate on that and my emergency fund first! 

[Deleted User]

So, achieved my first 'no zero' day 🙌 
Financial - I have sorted my budgets, made some decisions and set some milestone targets. I have also started to sort my new personal budget so that I know how much I can put towards the debt. I found £5 in a jar that I'd forgotten about so I have added that and some wiggle room cash to a savings account to kick-start my debt repayment fund 🙌 

Personal:
Frugal & Moneysaving - I had some stock leftover over from yesterday's food so instead of throwing it away like I normally would, I added a couple of handfuls of rice and cooked it. Had that tonight with some leftovers from during the week. 
I don't meal plan as we tend to eat whatever we feel like having using garden produce and store cupboard ingredients. This serves us well generally but occasionally we will have stuff just because we fancy it - this means that we have leftovers which I then make into something else. 
1st NSD achieved! 
Health -  went for a walk with family in the local woods - first excercise for a long time! 🙈 
Alcohol - It's the weekend so am drinking, however, I have made an effort to keep it at a lower level than normal 😇 
Home - Laundry done! Nothing else on the house or garden today as had a family day 😊
I'm pretty pleased with my progress today - I haven't overdone it but I've done stuff towards my targets! 

[Deleted User]

Today's check in! 
Financial- I have finished sorting my budgets and I will add my 2nd real debt target (done) which is to have half of the other debts (£32000 so £16000) saved so that I can start the full and final settlement process. Once I get to that (which is a much more manageable sum) I'm pretty sure that it will be enough cash to achieve their acceptance 😉 The regular payments I make to the debt will come off the debt part 2 as I'll be doing the last % f&f when I start the offers so may not even need the current budgeted amount - whatever happens, once these debts are gone the money goes to savings and holidays and house maintenance 🙌
All money saved from my variable expenditure will be put towards debt 1 first and once gone the money will then split in half between debt 2 and EF. 

Personal - Frugal and money saving: ate last night's leftovers (which were comprised of leftovers from during the week! 😉) for lunch and am making a black kale, beetroot, broadbean, pea and possibly french bean warm salad with salad leaves, lemon oil cannellini beans and buckwheat served with raw courgette 'hommous'. All from either the garden or food cupboard contents
2nd NSD achieved! 
Health - I've drunk over a litre of water and will be doing quite a bit of housework soon which will count for excercise in this weather! 
Alcohol - I'm drinking water instead
Home - needs cleaning and I will do so shortly 😉 
No Zero day 2 has been pretty good so far - I've made decisions on imminent projects but resisted the temptation of buying everything immediately and have spent time thinking about how I can re-purpose things we already have and think of cheaper alternatives where we don't have the materials. I've made sure nothing has been wasted food wise and I'm happy to not drink alcohol and substitute it for water which will do me the world of good. 
Still to do the house but thats okay 😉 I've cleaned the washing line and put a wash on so I'm making progress there too 😂

[Deleted User]

Financial - finalised the budgets and have rejigged them slightly. I am away at the end of the month so am not going to transfer any persie cash I have until we're back. I am committed to certain payments until the end of this year but then these budgets will come into play. 
Frugal and money saving:
another NSD 😊 We've got another meal of yesterday's leftovers for dinner (although the kids were going to chuck out some boiled rice so I rescued it, jazzed it up and served it instead of buckwheat 😉 so no food spends today. Another laundry load dried on the line. 
Health: water drunk today - healthy lunch eaten and healthy dinner ahead. 
Alcohol : dropped the ball and ended up having a bottle of wine! 🙈 oh well, still less this week than normal - I'll see how I do tonight 😉 
Home - cleaned and reclaimed my office today 🙌 pleased with the sort out 😊

[Deleted User]

So today I need to make basil jelly - I have loads of basil in the greenhouse and want to utilise it in a way to last through the winter 😉 I love it on roasted tomatoes, roasted veg, stirred through pasta, pulses, grains etc, spread on sarnies etc, it's a great 'pick up' for lots of stuff 😊 I really do love condiments- I love mixing flavours - so the more I can make myself, the more money I save 🙌 
Financial- not a lot going on - I've added another forgotten category to the budget though - as I seem to be adding stuff I've just put a Discretionary fund in - it will cover any other stuff I've forgotten and give us a little wiggle room just in case 😉 
I've got another NSD on the horizon as I have enough at home food wise and nothing else to buy.
Frugal and money saving: I've made cornbread and have got some bbq beans and seitan bites out of the freezer - I've cooked some homegrown beetroot and popped that in a flavoured vinegar over the last couple of days so will have some of that with it and salad leaves from the garden. No spends required 🙌 
Laundry hung out

Health - I'm drinking lots of water and keeping my meals healthy. I pigged out on starburst last night though 🙈 

Alcohol: Anyway couple of JD and cokes last night - less than I would normally have though -2 instead of 3 - so not a total failure 🤔😂 Hot weather makes it more difficult for me - I have always associated summer with increased alcohol - it's not an excuse, I know that's how I think so have to train myself to think differently , that's my responsibility - identifying, acknowledging and owning triggers is something I do well when I am not feeling complacent 😂 

House - we've almost finished rigging up a veggie bed watering system 🙌 That will save lots of time and make sure that the plants are getting a consistent amount which should mean more and better veggies! 🙌🙌🙌 
I've done laundry, dishwasher and very little else today - it's just so hot I am struggling 😕

[Deleted User]

It's been a busy week but I'm pleased to report that I have had no zero days! 😊🙌 
I've also kept the run of NSD's but that will end today as I need to get some 'yoghurts', juice and fruit for my dgs as I am looking after him tomorrow 😍 

Financial: Not a lot to report - payday tomorrow so will do the money shuffle then 😉 I do have about £50 left of persie money but as I'm going away this weekend, I'll keep it as a buffer....
 
Frugal & money-saving: All meals this week have been from stores and/or garden 😊 I've been using my washing line to reduce electricity consumption and I've saved lots of boxes and jars to use in the garden and to store garden surpluses! 

Health: Nothing to really report 🙈 I haven't done much physically so no real progress there - however, I'll be doing lots of walking while I'm away so will use that as a kick-start 😉 

Alcohol: Poor! Drunk less than normal but still far too much - no point in worrying about it as I am likely to overindulge at the weekend- I'll get on the wagon next month 😉 

House: Seeds planted for flowers next season, veg beds now rigged up to a sprinkler system, lots of cardboard acquired and plans finalised. Housework has been sidelined but I've kept up with the basics 😉

[Deleted User]

Totally unmotivated today! 🙈 I need to clean the house, do laundry, make food, harvest veg, feed the birds/squirrels, do some paid work and pack ready for my weekend away! So far I've managed to make a coffee and look at my phone! 😂 I'm going to get another coffee and then just get on with stuff - can't let it be a zero day!! 😉 
I've got to do the payday shuffle soon - I like doing it though so I'm keeping it as a 'pressie' to myself after doing the other jobs - it's strange what can make me happy!! 😂 
My dgs will arrive at about 3pm so I need to make sure that everything is sorted by then - I plan on doing some painting and playdoh so will need to set that up prior to his arrival too 😍 
Anyway, coffee calls (and the housework screams but I'll ignore that! 😉)
 

[Deleted User]

Had a lovely time away and came back to mountains of stuff to harvest along with a carrier bag full of apples from my travels! Courgettes, green beans, peas, runner beans, cannellini beans, coriander, beetroot, turnip, kale, sweetcorn and salad were all ready ☺ I've had a great time cooking and preserving over the past 24hours 🙌 

Financial: I've been good with NSD's and I've done pretty well with eating predominantly from the garden and stores. I've done the money shuffle and will post figures in my signature.  
I've also come home with lots of garden plants (some freebies and some purchased from the garden budget) including some treasured comfrey which will give a huge boost to keeping my garden spends low 💱 

Frugal/moneysaving: Everything cooked from scratch and no additional grocery spends. I've re-purposed leftovers. I've made preserves from garden produce along with gifted food.  I've taken loads of cuttings from a relative and discovered some of my other desired plants at a better price. Used spare cardboard to line where the raised beds will be so that it saves me buying weed suppresent. I've dried washing on the line as opposed to using the tumble dryer. 

Health: I've walked and gardened over the past week- I'm happy with the amount of activity I've achieved 😊 

Alcohol: I've been away! 😞 nothing positive to report 🙈 

House: Pretty clean, laundry up to date, raised beds started on, some garden jobs done, cold frame built.  

I've had a really positive week this week and I'm feeling much better about where I'm heading. I've had no zero days- even the drinking has reduced so that's progress 😉 and mentally I feel better for achieving stuff! 

[Deleted User]

Bit of an epiphany day today so I've been planning my budget for the next 18 months along with the life changes I am implementing.  I'm really happy with the targets - although incredibly challenging they are achievable - just! 🤔 👍 
I'm planning on completing my current commitments this year and next year paying debt one and part one of debt two. I currently have a deficit of 2.5k which I have to find over those 18 months. That's a lot of additional money to find so I'm going to have to bring projects in under budget and spend the minimum amount possible in all variable expenditure and save the excess. I'm going to update my signature to have a running total of all my budgets for this years projects, along with my grocery spends, estimated electricity usage/ fuel costs and petrol costs. An SOA of sorts. 
This transformation is part financial, part personal. I'm changing my lifestyle in a frugal way but it involves improving my health - both physical and mental - and then maintaining that too along with creating a garden and home that are completed and at a stage of maintenance only! 
Minimum spends, maximum using up/ recycling/re-purposing/alternative uses in the garden and house to save as much money as I can on planned completion projects - beauty and function are important though, I want the feeling of peace and tranquillity throughout so I won't scrimp on the important bits. 
I'm having a bit of an electronics detox/cleanse so will update monthly. 
I'll post my targets in my next post so I can mark my progress easily. 

[Deleted User]

18 MONTH PLAN:
Current commitments to be paid by winter solstice: 
Health expense: £1800/ £2500
Garden: £0/ £4500
Solstice:£0/ £1000
TOTAL: £1800/ £8000

To be paid by end of 2020:
House: £0/ £5000

To be paid by winter solstice 2021: 
Debt 1: £0/£8000
Debt 2: £0/ £16000

Expenditure - September -December 2020

Petrol: £0/ £1400

Groceries:£100/ £1200

Fuel: £0/ £720

Jessy103

Good luck with your targets