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Tightening the belts for unpaid leave

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  • Your afternoon sounds wonderful- enjoy!
    Debt at LBM (Dec 2018): £23,167
    Debt free Feb 2021
  • Christmas was nice though I have had a rotten cold throughout and still suffering.  We didn't leave the house yesterday and so everything was from stores.  Today DH has been out to get milk (2) a baguette and some cereal (he actually bought supermarket own brand for once!) - total was £5.28 so will put that into accounts soon.  Don't think we are doing much today as DC1 needs a nap after lunch after refusing to go down for one this morning.  We might go do a drive by on a house which someone emailed me about which is coming on market in new year but having looked on satellite, not sure it is for us.  We have had to put heating on though as DH is v cold - he has put a hoodie on and been under a blanket which is not like him so think he is probably getting my cold.  Hopefully can turn it off soon as it is expensive to run!  All very boring diary entry today (not that my usual posts are particularly scintillating).
  • A wet, miserable day with not a lot to do! DH took DC1 swimming this morning so I think that's about £5.90.  Then he came back and picked DC2 and I up and we did a drive by the house which is coming on the market - not sure it's for us but we will probably have a look at it anyway as the more we see, the more we get a feel for the market and value (though we have seen over 30 houses so far!).  Then we went for a take out coffee/biscuits - not sure how much that was as DH didn't get a receipt but probably around £8.  Then car needed filling up with petrol so that was £54.06.  Bit of a spendy day.  Lunch was steak ciabattas with home made garlic butter - all from stores.  Trying to get DC1 down for a nap but not going well so might have to take him out for another drive this afternoon as weather too wet to go to park or similar.
  • Don't even want to put down what we've spent in last few days to take us up to today - I will just say I am drawing a line under it and will tighten belts from today!

    So, happy new year all!  Really really hope that 2021 is a better year for everyone.  I personally think the first quarter of this year might be pretty rubbish but that it will gradually get better after that and that we should almost be back to normal by the end of 2021.

    Today we are home this morning whilst DC's nap - burgers from stores for lunch.  We are going for a walk this afternoon and have printed up loads of flyers to put through doors of houses we might be interested in buying.  Dinner is a roast chicken with veg and hopefully a lovely gravy (using up last of white wine from fridge) - all from stores.

    We have decided to do dry January as we have been drinking far too much so using up last of white wine in the gravy will prevent temptation.  We have also taken all tonics out of fridge for same reason and have loaded it with sparkling water instead.  Later today we will do a meal plan for the week and a shopping list and I will go tomorrow.  So that will be spendy-ish but no alcohol and we want to start eating much better (at least during the week - we will allow ourselves to be fatties on a weekend).  

    Going to try to just take each day at a time as January is always bleak and miserable - never mind with the whole C-19 thing!  There are lots of books I'd like to get through so going to try to reduce my screen time and read books instead.  We also need to stop putting the heating on so much as we've had it on a lot over the xmas period due to being at home so much!
  • Yesterday was a NSD which is good.  We also took a long walk and put flyers through the doors of houses we'd like to buy.  Husband had a conversation with one of the owners of a house and he may well want to sell so was a productive afternoon!  We are going to do the same again this afternoon.

    So far today has not been a NSD as DC1 needed some more jeans and a hat so ordered those online.  Also got foot gauges (large and small) to measure their feet as can then order online which might be a lot cheaper than buying locally - but handy as taking them to a shop to wait in line to get feet measured is always a right pain!  So that was £58.50 in total.  However, those foot gauges will be used for a few years and can easily be sold on.  DC2 will also wear DC1's jeans when he grows out of them so they will get a lot of use.  One of the downsides of us having moved from the house we owned last year was that our neighbour used to give us all her DC's old clothes which were all in great condition - won't get that now!!

    DH made a roast from stores last night so leftover chicken in sandwiches for lunch.  Tonight is lasagne also from stores and finishing up the last of the mince pies and cream.  Going to do the weekly shop tomorrow instead as means can eeek out stuff from stores for an extra day which is sort of saving.  However, we do need milk today so will pick that up after walk this afternoon.  Think we might watch a film on Prime tonight
  • We spent just over £150 on groceries this week.  Which is obviously a lot but it included things like formula for baby, some new containers for storing food, soups for DH to take to work and me to have at home (we are splitting a big carton each day and then have bread rolls to go with) which will stop him buying a sandwich each day so is cheaper overall, loads and loads of the pasta sauce we use which was on offer as can stay in the cupboard and we can use it for quick and easy suppers (it's the lloyd grossman chilli one which was on offer at £1.25 a jar - we have it a lot with a few chopped up sausages and pasta then sprinkle with parmesan and parsley from the garden), for some "healthy" meals we planned this week, enough food to make 4 portions of that so will do 2 meals rather than 1, frozen veg and nut burgers x 8 so again, will do several meals, look roll, kitchen roll etc and we were out of certain condiments so stocked up on those, food for DC1, also bought lots of the stock cubes we use which were half price and the coffee we use as on offer.  So hopefully apart from top ups we should be able to reduce shopping bill for rest of month by working with what is now in store cupboard and freezer.

    Today should be a NSD as I've been home all day and we don't need anything.  Have had the heating on a fair bit so could do with cutting down on that but it's hard when we have 2 DC as want to make sure they are warm!  Tonight we are either having healthy chinese chicken curry (off bbc good food website) or veg burgers out the freezer - not fully decided yet but if we make the chinese chicken then we should be able to freeze 2 portions to go in freezer for another meal.

    Again, sorry for the very boring post but not a lot going on at present!
  • Never apologise for a post full of food thoughts 😆 
    Current mortgage (1 Jun 2022): £289,501 - originally £351,999 got to love London sized mortgages!
    OP Goal 2022 = 3.75% in OPs: £6,975 / £13,200
    Emergency Fund Target: 3 months saved ✅
     
  • So I've somehow managed to fu*k our normally working system for credit card up.  There is somehow a deficit of £400 odd in the savings account I use to pay the credit card and cannot for the life of me work out how/why.  So not very happy on that front.

    Also, we are renting at present having sold our house and trying to find a new one - renting from a friend and lease up end March.  We had said we might like to extend but they have now said we can't as they have someone else who wants it long term (and I understand this as it's certainty for them) but it's annoying and disruptive as means we need to find somewhere else to rent but don't want to take on a long term rental as we are looking to buy!  Also means another set of moving costs and potentially (unless we don't bother) re-connection costs for phone/broadband which we just paid out to move to this place!  Plus the costs of having the place and carpets cleaned.  Might see if they will let us clean ourselves and hire a carpet cleaner because we will have only been here 6 months and so it is not like it's really dirty.

    The solicitors also don't seem to be doing much re progressing my london property.  I have chased today.

    Just feel like everything is getting to me and that we are in limbo.  Wish we'd never sold our house - we are stupid idiots.  We didn't NEED to move, but wanted to and thought it best to just get on with it.  But now regretting it as we just can't find anything we like and we don't want to rush as this absolutely has to be the forever house.

    On another note, paid in some cheques from parents for xmas today which will help swell the coffers plus took out the notes and coins from my purse and paid those in so can ping them over into savings (only about a tenner but every little helps!).  And have only bought milk.  All meals from stores today.
  • Blackcats
    Blackcats Posts: 3,897 Forumite
    Sixth Anniversary 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    hello, it must be very unsettling for you.  It's too easy for us to say that we wish we hadn't done something.  I used to do the same all the time but I try to use the mantra "it is what it is" to try and stop myself doing that.  Or slightly less eloquent "you can't put the p*o back in the donkey" 🙀.  You will find the right house and selling your flat is another step in the right direction.  Final words of wisdom for tonight from me - it will be alright in the end and if it's not alright then it's not the end!  
  • savingholmes
    savingholmes Posts: 28,971 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Hugs. Things will sort. Give it a little more time. In the meantime be kind to yourself.
    Achieve FIRE/Mortgage Neutrality in 2030
    1) MFW Nov 21 £202K now £174.8K Equity 32.77%
    2) £2.6K Net savings after CCs 6/7/25
    3) Mortgage neutral by 06/30 (AVC £24.3K + Lump Sums DB £4.6K + (25% of SIPP 1.2K) = 30.1/£127.5K target 23.6% 29/7/25
    4) FI Age 60 income target £16.5/30K 55.1%
    5) SIPP £4.8K updated 29/7/25
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