Pay for the future and not the past

Blackcats

Great reason to buy a new cast iron dish - happy anniversary.  

Tax rebate is a welcome "windfall" although you had obviously paid too much to start with but still a treat to get it back. .  Hubby got a rebate recently too - always preferable to getting a tax demand.   My fax liability this year will be a bit hard to fathom as I'm switching to part time work this month 🥳 - I might get help from an accountant this year to help me get sorted and then for 23/24 tax year it should be more straightforward.

MissRikkiC

I have also calculated my annual income this year with being on maternity in order to ensure my tax code is correct but this was for last year. 

Finally calculated what I’ve been overpaid by my employer and considering the number I’m pretty glad I put all the extra to 1 side as I don’t think I’d like to be paying it back otherwise!  I still should have a little that was meant to be mine from my tax adjustment but I suspect that will increase go to funding my maternity leave instead. Makes me glad that Christmas is already saved for and I’m v much in credit with our energy firm as else I think we’d feel a bit like we’re rummaging around. I suppose I could’ve used the rebate to top up our savings for this period but I decided not to. 

This morning, the DW, the TD, the WM and the toaster was on and the smart meter said a very worrying number! I know these appliances are heavy on electricity so was glad to then be able to get 2 loads dry on the line as well (although 1 is still out there?!) 

Hub went to the shop and bought only the things we needed, consisting of things to make dinner with this week, coupled with other ingredients we have in. 

Meals 

Quorn chicken fajitas
Spaghetti and meatballs 
Broccoli pesto and cream cheese pasta 
Thai green chicken curry 
Fish and Chips. 

I’ve been trying to eat more recently due to breastfeeding and exercising however I know I need a heck of a lot to maintain my body weight (and so milk supply) so eating enough has been quite difficult. We don’t eat bad diets really and rarely have ‘treat’ food in so without paying SO much for extra food, I need to increase consumption of high calorie items such as butter and cream 😋 

Our wedding anniversary was nice, we both forgot to get cards (whoops) and we did spend a good chunk of our special occasions pot on T-bone steaks and red wine but of course we budgeted for it and enjoyed it very much so felt particularly pleased with us!

Blackcats

Glad you enjoyed your anniversary - congratulations to you both.

I made a slow cooker rice pudding - full fat milk and double cream ... might help with your calorie intake.  Certainly helped mine but I didn't need to increase mine 🤣.  Really yummy though and plenty left in the fridge for weeknight odds.

MissRikkiC

Oh this is great to know @Blackcats I love an old fashioned rice pud!

QueenJess

I’m right there with you on the lack of sleep. I didn’t sleep more than 90 mins at a time or more than 4 hours a night for the last 8 days (18 month sleep regression + teething + cold) and I can barely do the simplest tasks. I also really struggle to stay positive when I haven’t slept enough and piling work on top doesn’t help either.

I keep reminding myself that it’s all a phase. It kind of helps.

MissRikkiC

It’s hard isn’t it @QueenJess and just when you feel a tiny bit better; something else happens to throw you off! You’re right though, it will end, it’s not forever ❤️

MissRikkiC

Managed to finally get my butt in gear this morning and get into the bank to draw the balance out for what I owe the kitchen fitter from February! Thankfully he is a very good friend of mine and so wasn’t chasing but it was driving me a bit mad still having the cash! 

My work have confirmed they will take the OP so I’ve just asked for their calculations to be sure it’s all calculated correctly. 

Switched my current account this month to take advantage of an offer. £200 is not to be sniffed at! Must remember to change the details with my employer too. 

I reduced our food spend this month then realised its almost a 5 week month so feel like it’s likely to be very tight to stay within! 

We do have a bit of surplus which we will use if we have to but would rather manage without. 

Had to come to town this morning to get some clothes for my rapidly growing boy and found I had a free coffee On my loyalty card so feeding the littlest one and relaxing without having spent any money to do so. 

MissRikkiC

What a miserable morning here. So glad it’s almost the weekend! 

Have my MSE head firmly screwed on when it comes to the house this week on account if not having much in the cupboards but also not having much left of the budget either. I think we’re at about £15 left to last a week! Eeek! 

I have got an inventory of mostly the whole freezer and this week meals haven’t been rubbish like I’d expected. It’s forced me to be even more creative though! 

Monday - Bee asked for fish, mash and peas so we had tuna fish cakes with mash and peas. Id made a coleslaw over the weekend so hub and I had that with ours and no mash. 

Tuesday - sausage and butter bean stew with mash for everyone. This used tinned butter beans as I couldn’t spot the frozen ones I’d previous cooked and 2 tubs of HG tomato ragu sauce. 

Wednesday - Dhal from the freezer with a pork/beef mince keema and rice. 

Today - likely to be a vegetarian casserole with wonky veg and extras from the freezer. Hopefully enough sauce to make dumplings and I’ve found the frozen butter beans for a bit of bite and protein 

Friday- usually treat day but it’ll be spaghetti bolognese instead this week. 

Weekends will be difficult. But likely sausage and mash on Sunday with a red onion jous  which we always love then just to figure out Saturday! I might break the £15 we have! 

I’d love a TGTG bag from our local Morries but they do 1 a day and it’s usually pretty spectacular so it goes within seconds. I’ll try tonight as that would really help! 

We currently have 20% off M&S until Christmas which applies to everything including food so need to do an exercise to see what’s cheaper etc. I’d imagine it’ll make the cost that of other supermarkets but of better quality in most cases (or that’s what I’ve found in the past anyway). 

I’ve not given an update on the debt front for a while which was the reason I was here but I think that’s just because it all goes out via DD. However, this month coming I’ve reduced the payments we were making on 2 cards of the 4 (debt spread all across 0% cards) to the minimum as they’re the lowest and we’re on maternity pay. I know that once we’re not I will be able to increase them back again to the set amounts which were over double the required payment. That will mean they’re paid off before the 0% ends. 

Our mortgage payment is a nice round number now, so I think approx £30 over payment every month. It’s not much but feel it’s affordable regardless. 

Hub recently got promoted which came with a good pay rise which I’m both proud and grateful for! That should help as likely an extra £300 net take home. Actually can’t wait to clear all of our debt though! That would seem the right time to increase pension contributions and put money aside for other things whilst we’re not used to the extra. 

Gym tonight which I’m looking forward to after the afternoon with the children, I think we will venture to the library in town as it’s so wet and miserable and bee asked to ‘buy’ some more books. I did explain that we borrow them but I think she got confused as she didn’t want to give the Tiger who came to tea back last month so we renewed it and now I think she thinks that must be her book. 

jokono

I think you might need to spend some of that £15 on the Tiger, second hand of course. My boys used to get fixated on one book and read that every night. I can recite 'Eat your peas' in my sleep 😅

Great news about the promotion! I hope you enjoy the gym and I'm crossing my fingers for you to get that tgtg bag 🤞

MissRikkiC

We renewed it instead @jokono plus the highway rat and a few others. She is slowly understanding however I think it’ll be a Christmas gift instead of using the last of our grocery budget! 

I’ll have to check our eat your peas 😂 although she will eat frozen peas straight from the bag so maybe no issue there! 

Spends today we’re on a carton of UHT soya milk for my daughter. We need a lot more than that but making do for now. 

My youngest is 6 months next week (how fast has that gone?!) and will start weaning but since we’re low on grocery funds we will start him next weekend I think so we can give him the best chance of getting it right with the right food! 

Casserole went down well. It was very tasty as has been cooking since about 11 o’clock but with no meat I needed to ensure flavour!