£31k of debt to go in 18 months.

flapflop

@puckishpixie Thank you. I have opened a Monzo account now. Just need to wait for the card. 

flapflop

Urgh, this new fleabay payment thing is so frustrating. At least with paypal the money was there and you knew what you had. I don't know whether I'm coming or going with the new system. Anyway, moan over. I have £115 coming today and still have £77 to come which only leaves £13 to pay on Next. I gave myself a month but managed to clear it 2 or 3 days. Normally, I would have spent it. 
I need to go to the post office today but I am hoping, once again, to not spend any money. Well, any of my money, the buyers have paid for the postage hence going to the post office but I must not be lured away by chocolate. I'm doing pretty well using the food we have in the house and only buying fresh stuff like milk, eggs and veg. I know that at some point I will need to do a big shop but I'm hoping to keep that at bay for a while. The month that I need to do that means there won't be any savings to be made from the food budget so that it quite incentivising. 

puckishpixie

flapflop said:

@puckishpixie Thank you. I have opened a Monzo account now. Just need to wait for the card. 

That is a card that is almost impossible to lose at least. Neon orange i believe is the best description.

flapflop

So, that is the Next balance cleared. I'm so shocked. I thought I was pushing it and had set an unachievable goal. I guess next up I will try and put as much towards the £320 Very account as possible. Thank you so much to everyone for your supportive comments and to everyone who has been writing diaries or contributing. I still have a long way to go but I am one debt cleared closer to being debt free. 

IzzyBee

Well done on the next balance you are really focused keep up the good work 👍

dawnybabes

Brilliant news. 

Once ones gone you can start snowballing the debt.  

remote_control

That's so amazing!!!! Congratulations, you must be on cloud 9! It's not going to be long at all until all the high interest ones are gone and you just have 0% cards and the loans. 

I signed up to some emails from a frugal website (can't think what it's called right now). There was one about how all the food you have in the house is like having cupboards full of cash and so I have today written a list of all the things in the cupboards which I won't replace if I eat it. I reckon I can make a few meals and a few lunches out of it all. There is probably a website out there where I can write what food I have in and it tells me a recipe I could make. I'm enjoying the online shopping and making sure it comes in at £100 each week. 

flapflop

Mixed day today. I ended up spending £47.38 on a top up shop for things like cereal, milk, eggs, veg, cheese etc. I also bought ice cream because the freezer was left open all night the other night and we had to sacrifice what was left in the ice cream tub. I probably could have got away with not doing the shop for a few days but I would have needed to eventually and I think I needed a change of scenery for a bit. A big shop is like a day out at the moment. Next time I might get dressed up for it. I managed to sell 3 things last night which is an extra £40 but I have just switched to Monzo and it takes 48 hours to update so I probably won't see that money until Tuesday. I still have £100 to come from ebay in addition to that £40. 
I need to sort out the car insurance this weekend. I anticipate that this will be about £275 but I'll check the quotes tonight. I'm going to buy the little one a McDonalds tomorrow and I think that is everything. 

flapflop

Today ended up being more expensive than anticipated. The coffee machine packed up so I've ordered a new one at £29 and some instant coffee at £4.90 plus sleeping tablets at £4.15 because SO hasn't slept for days and is driving me mad. On the plus side, have sold £35 so that at least pays for the coffee machine and coffee. Must tighten belts next week and get back on a thrifty track. 

MrFrugalFever

Hi Flapflop, sounds like you’re making some really good progress there! I have gone down this route and I am now almost out the other side, it’s a good feeling isn’t it?

if I may add a little something....as it stands you’ve been able to sell assets to assist, but eventually that option will cease. Have you made provisions for further expenditure cuts for when that time comes? There is indeed further ways to become ultra-frugal should you need too