First Steps to Solvency

alt80

@MovingForwards why do you think I'm sat working out how much money I've got to play with each year mate. Said to wife it would give our son some amazing childhood memories and us some good ones when we're old and doddery and can't get out of NG3 lol. 

@Sun_Addict you need to stop this mate, it looks another nice place - £220/n inc breakfast in the suite on my birthday almost !!!!!! booked it as I was too late to book my usual yearly pig out at Sat Bains.

enthusiasticsaver

Great to hear you still sounding so positive and past your first challenge. Even better you are contemplating a life with little to no debt commitments. Honestly on your income you could have a great life if you could ditch the debt repayments. 

As for holidays I can confirm Cornwall is full. We live here but have also booked a few days away further down in Cornwall so on holiday at the moment but in a quiet less popular place than the usual busy spots. Don't touch Newquay, St Ives or Padstow. 

Good you have the MG to drive. Have some fun with it. 

alt80

@enthusiasticsaver thank you. Tomorrow is my last day of goal 1 so not signed off that challenge quite yet. 90 days is next goal which seems almost insurmountable rn however I am carrying on with having very limited immediate access to money. I have thought if this is what I need to do on a day to day basis, it's just what I need to do. Rest of my life I'll do it if it means I stay on the recovery road. Idk in some ways it's almost liberating for me have to think about spending - I can't go and spend a couple of £k or whatever on unplanned things and I can't buy the other stuff.

Not sure what a 'great life' is anymore or what it looks like tbh. I don't think any amount of money can alleviate thoughts that the people you care about would be a lot better off without you in their lives but you can't let them go. 

Absolutely not surprised re Cornwall and I don't envy you living there during the summer hols.

QueenJess

I feel for your son - hayfever can be awful.  I've always suffered with it. As a child my eyes were the worst and I remember my eye puffing up so much that I couldn't see one day - the school panicked and rang my mum to pick me up. She wasn't impressed!

Anyway, the only thing that I found that helped was using hayfever eyedrops. My mum used to put them in for me and I hated it, but it really did help. They'll do them at the local chemist.  The other thing is to never ever rub your eye - once you start you can't stop as it makes it more itchy.

warby68

Just to say @alt80 I'm still reading along and am urging you over the line tonight every bit as much as England (if not more)

So pleased with your (and your lovely family's) success 

RelievedSheff

Can you not break your next target down to a smaller chunk. Say 45 then 60 days then onto 90? 

From 30 straight to 90 seems like a big leap.

When you get to 60 give yourself another small treat and then at 90 make it a special family outing somewhere. Treat you all. 

Sure you don't need me to tell you this but you are doing really well and in your own words you are smashing this. 😀

Grumpelstiltskin

Alt start closer to home with places to go in England. A day out at Dovedale ( assuming you haven't taken your son there )

OK you will need Wellies or old trainers and if you take the dog he will be wet through but your son crossing the river on the stepping stones will be an adventure for him. 

Then the coast, forget Skeggy, go a little further north to Chapel St Leonards, very little to spend money on just miles of sand and sand dunes ( you can't take the dog on the beach in summer )

First of all do as others have said and get him a map of England and get him to mark off everywhere  he goes this year starting with York.

The sand dunes at Chapel are not Instagram material but every time you go somewhere your son will experience and learn something new.

alt80

Day 30, get through today I will have reached goal 1 and will be back training at the proper gym ha - def a sense of normality returning post-covid there. 

No plans to spend have enough to be getting on with but the car washing looks optimistic given the weather forecast for the weekend. 

@QueenJess both my wife and I get it but nothing like that. He has everything and sometimes it's still bad but he does rub his eyes which makes it a lot worse. 

@warby68 thank you. You watching the football with your boys or they going out?

@RelievedSheff thank you. You're just trying to persuade me to spend my money again aren't you lol? Tbf would be nice to have a 45 day treat idk just something little - take son through the Maccys drive thru in the Range Rover he's !!!!!! obsessed with putting it in access mode for the window. 60 days maybe a nice meal out locally and 90 days might book that hotel for a weekend or something. I really don't need to be persuaded to find ways to spend money I'm the !!!!!! expert in that.

@Grumpelstiltskin I've never been to Dovedale but my son has with the in-laws - they are big into going walking in the Peak District. I don't really know Derbyshire all that well tbh but he'd like that very much. One for summer I think only going to cost the petrol and a bit of food. Might give the milk float a run out if we've worked up the bravery to trust it'll get that far and back haha.

I have promised a day trip to the coast this summer so will try CSL or anywhere dog can go on beach? He's not seen the sea and I reckon he'd go absolutely !!!!!! crazy.

Really like the idea of my son seeing different things / landscapes etc thank you & others for suggestions. Idk this probably sounds a bit sad but think it'd be nice for him to look back on when he's older as I say I didn't go to many places as a kid - school trips / London at Christmas and somewhere Sporting Life free ha and that was about it so I think my son would benefit from seeing a bit more of the UK. 

Grumpelstiltskin

Alt scroll down a bit.

Public Space Protection Orders and Dog Free Beaches - East Lindsey District Council (e-lindsey.gov.uk)

It looks as though once you are away from the beach entrance you can take dogs on the beach.

Sun_Addict

Anderby Creek is lovely and you can take dogs on part of the beach all year round. Just up from CSL and Skeggy, very close by.