Climbing the Mortgage Mountain step by step

Me_v_The_Mortgage_Mountain

@savingholmes, we're actually staying on a small private estate with a lake where we are holding the ceremony, just us relaxing for a few days, we may or may not venture out!!  We will be going on a traditional honeymoon at some point, maybe next year, but we already have a lot of celebrations and events this year to budget for!

Me_v_The_Mortgage_Mountain

Hi All

Well it's been a busy few days, I can't believe it is Thursday already!  

We have been quite frugal with food, the leftovers from the roast made Bubble n Squeak for Monday and half went into freezer for another day. Tuesday we had Corned Beef Chilli from the freezer and Wholegrain rice, yesterday was DD's turn to cook and I was hoping she would make a ratatouille with some more of the Lidl's veg box but she 'couldn't be bothered' so made pasta with a sauce instead, I wonder if I can get away with 'I can't be bothered'!?    I'll make something tonight with some of the veg, not sure what yet though.

MSE wise, I need to read the meters and submit my readings, we are being careful with usage as I really want to keep the hot tub running, at least during the summer, it brings so much joy to all of the family but we do know it is a luxury and if necessary will be turned off.  I am switching Broadband and landline supplier, saving £15pm for the same speeds etc.  I have changed from HD Netflix at £13.99 to the basic one for £6.99, will see if it makes much difference, if necessary there is a middle tariff that I could try.  Still awaiting the £150 CT Rebate, that will be put in my savings account for later use towards energy costs.

Savings pots - I have had more UUs and have squirrelled away the £1s, mainly handcream that I have used as body moisturiser and odds and ends of bodywash that have been used as bubble bath (I do love my bubbles!).  A few £2 coins have gone in the terramundi but I don't seem to get many of these now, I think too many people save them!  I'm still doing the 1p per day challenge for Christmas and our holiday, have c£130 in my cashback account and £25 in my airtime account, both of which will also be cashed in at Christmas time.  So all progressing.

We don't have much planned for the Bank Holiday weekend as we are both quite tired still from Covid.  We will wander into town as there is a festival on Saturday and Sunday with live music etc, OH also has an appointment to get his wedding suit so we can do that at the same time.  We want to do some gardening if the weather is good and that will involve a trip to the garden centre but it is all planned and shouldn't be too expensive.

DD still having issues with her father, he has now closed the savings accounts which were in her name and transferred the money to his account, still won't tell her how much is there and is being very evasive, demanding explanations as to why her student loan won't cover her rent, he should just take her word for it. He is making the whole thing more stressful for her rather than trying to assist, he is on a much higher salary than me, will not be paying maintenance come September, which I will obviously lose along with Child Benefit, and yet will only say he will TRY and send her £25 per week, she is his only child!  I obviously will support her as much as possible, even if it means other repayments/savings go to the wayside.

Anyway must get on with work

Have a great day

MvTMM

Me_v_The_Mortgage_Mountain

Hi All

Happy Friday and happy payday!! 

I've updated my signature to reflect mortgage payments etc.  I'm hoping this month will be a fairly frugal one, no major events planned, just a low key wedding to attend.  We obviously have our wedding etc in June but I am still aiming to be debt neutral by the end of that month, it's going to be tight!  I still need to try and sell the clothes that I sorted out from my wardrobe, they have been sat in a bag on the floor ever since, that's a little job for this weekend.

Well I didn't make anything with the veg last night, I really fancied wraps so bought some chicken strips and a bag of salad from Iceland on my way home, I could have defrosted some chicken and made my own but I was tired and hungry and late leaving work.  I've been exhausted all week, it must be a hangover from the Covid as I've actually been sleeping quite well, I've not even sorted out the spare bedding after our visitors left last Sunday so that's another job for this weekend!

Thank goodness it's a Bank Holiday weekend, I'm going to need the extra day with all of these jobs pilling up!!

Our new router arrived yesterday and the switch happens on 3rd May so the £15pm saving will kick in then, my DD for Nettyflix went out yesterday at the new lower amount of £6.99 so I timed that change just right!  Must do meter readings tonight!!

Have a great day and a fab long weekend

MvTMM

savingholmes

Sorry your Ex continues to be a pain and that your DD is getting the fallout of that.

Your mini moon sounds like it will be lovely.

On the hot tub - a friend insulated hers and then clad around the insulation boards. It massively improved her elec usage. Worth looking into.

Me_v_The_Mortgage_Mountain

@savingholmes

I really don't understand my Ex, DD is so lovely and trying to be organised with Uni etc, she works really hard both at college and in her part-time job she doesn't deserve how he treats her.  I understand him trying to control and manipulate me but as he can no longer affect my life he has transferred this behaviour on to DD and has destroyed any respect she had left for him, very sad for him!

Re insulating the hot tub, that's a good idea.  We already have it stood on a couple layers of insulation but there is nothing around the sides, I'll suggest it to OH, thank you

Have a great weekend and safe travels home 

savingholmes

Thank you. I have enjoyed the peace and quiet of being away.

Me_v_The_Mortgage_Mountain

Hi All

I hope you have all had a great Bank Holiday weekend.

We had a lovely day on Saturday, popped in to town, got OH measured up and his wedding suit ordered, then we had a wander around town as the festival was on and went to a favourite coffee shop for lemon and blueberry cake and a coffee.  Then we went to the garden centre and bought the plants for the new border and some additional bedding plants for pots etc spent just under £70, could definitely see a price increase as we bought similar plants a couple of years ago for the other border, this time the plants were half the size and cost 50% more.  Went to see my parents and then home to do the gardening, made the new border and got the plants in in time to benefit from the next two days of rain! 

Sunday and Monday have been very chilled, lie-ins and cooked breakfast both days and pottering around the house, sorted out the spare bedding; listed a few items of clothing on facebook (1 pair of jeans sold so far); emails sent re the wedding confirming songs, photographer etc.  We have ordered a new microwave as the one we have has rusted inside and we have decided to get a matching kettle and toaster, OH had £100 in All4One cards from work so we have used those and put the difference.  I will sort out the kitchen cupboards and have a good tidy up before they arrive, give the kitchen a bit of a makeover.

Friday night OH and I had a Port and cheese night and DD ate up the leftovers from the wraps the night before, Saturday I made a stilton and spinach tart with some of the leftover cheese, Sunday we had stilton pies and triple cooked chips from the freezer and yesterday I made a chicken tikka masala again from the freezer, to night I am going to roast some mixed veg and serve with chicken kyiv, looking at it written down it has been a very cheese heavy weekend

Our internet provider changes today so I will sort out the new router tonight whilst dinner is cooking, we shouldn't notice any difference as the speeds should be the same and the saving is £15 per month, however, if it isn't as expected we are only tied in for 12 months and can re-assess then.

My vertigo is back with a vengance this morning so will sign off now, have a good day everyone.

MvTMM

savingholmes

Garden plans all sounds good. Glad you had some time to relax. Hope the vertigo lifts soon - not nice at all.

Me_v_The_Mortgage_Mountain

Hi All

I'm back in the office today, worked from home yesterday as the vertigo was bad and was making me sick.

We received the £150 energy rebate this morning which was a nice surprise as I wasn't expecting to get it so quickly after checking our Local Authorities website.  The broadband switched over without issue on Tuesday and if anything seems a little quicker than BT.  My energy provider (BG) have put my DD back up to £250pm after decreasing it to £203 for the last couple of months.

We had an unexpected dinner guest on Tuesday night, one of DS1's old friends who thinks of us as his second family, luckily I was organised with dinner, chicken kyivs from the freezer with new potatoes roasted with garlic cloves and rosemary and mixed Mediterranean roast veg, yummy.  Last night I made a fake away, chilli shredded beef (from Iceland) and vegetable chow mein.  Tonight OH and I are having a date night, going to the brand new cinema in town, only £4 a ticket as opposed to £12+ at the Odeon, the refreshments are also a lot cheaper, plus we don't have to do a 50 mile round trip, what used to be a treat once or twice a year can now be a more regular occurrence, we might popped for a drink on the way home.  Tomorrow night we are due to go and see a band at one of our favourite pubs, meeting a few friends there, not seen this band before so will see what they are like.

I've so far sold a couple of pairs of jeans on Facebook, I'm going to reassess my listings and reduce the prices to see if that helps, I'm also going to sort through the kitchen this weekend and see if there is anything in there to either sell or donate, I want to have a good sort out anyway as the new microwave etc are being delivered tomorrow.   

I checked on the garden yesterday, the new plants seem to be settling in well and the ones I transplanted from the other boarder seem to have adjusted, I think it helped having two days of rain, bedded them in well.   My potatoes are all growing well as are the small fruit canes we have (raspberries both red and gold, blackberries and some wild strawberries), courgettes are planted and we should have some plums judging by the amount of blossom on the tree.  We don't grow a huge amount but enjoy what we do produce and DGD takes great joy in tending to the 'spuds' and helping herself to fruit as it ripens.

Have a great afternoon

MvTMM

savingholmes

Glad things are going well. Have a fun weekend