Pay for the future and not the past

Bluegreen143

@Suffolk_lass so if my shower is heated by gas, which is the same for the bath, it is cheaper to have a (reasonably quick) shower than a bath? 

MissRikkiC

Electric shower here so costs a fortune to run, I jumped in this morning to make my self presentable for swimming with my children but annoyed as I could’ve used the pool showers which are always hot (probably because their changing rooms are glacial) and saved me the £1 odd on my bill. 

I’d have usually been more organised and bathed the night before swimming but had a fun filled day yesterday meeting another mum and her boy at a national trust park then having a very impromptu pub dinner. This was followed by a trip to the cinema with another friend so home late (and just in time to feed my boy as he woke for the 1st of 4 times) with an olio collection on the way home to boot. All in all a spendy but really lovely lovely day out and everyone was happy. 

@j@jokono the install and the unit were £750 however I’ve just googled and I think units are £720inc vat so likely my friends contractor did me a good deal! 

I’ve decided to save and pay minimums on everything from now till August. My daughter will get 30 free nursery hours from September so when that kicks in, we will have some savings, have been able to afford to do a few bits to the house and then pay big time towards the cards. That’s the plan for now anyway. 

Seems I’ve also got more put to one side from the overpayment than I needed now that work have confirmed the net amount so that should start the savings pot off nicely! 

Suffolk_lass

@Bluegreen143 It should be, as long as it isn't a long shower and your bathing isn't in a children's bath depth. Think about the amount of time it takes to run a bath versus a shower. It is the same energy source.

By the way, to minimise the water we use in the motorhome we turn the shower on, get wet, turn it off, shampoo hair, wash body then turn water back on to rinse off - using less water and energy to heat it. If you have a condensing boiler (ie no separate water cylinder) there is usually a small reservoir of hot water that the boiler has around it, even less if that is all you use, as it is already hot. Of course this is usually in warmer weather and I don't tend to do this in winter at home (but DH does)

MissRikkiC

@Bluegreen143 he’s reacted to it having it directly but has always been snotty and chesty so wondering if that’s because I’m having dairy. So I’m cutting it out for a few weeks and seeing if he gets better. We already know he’s got an allergy to soy so trying to slowly reintroduce dairy back into my daughters diet after she became intolerant after a bad case of chicken pox! 

MissRikkiC

Paid over the overpayment to my employer today and feel better that it’s just gone with now. It’s left a bit of savings which is a nice bonus. 

Husband had his tyre replaced Sunday which we have paid for by reducing the groceries budget this month however it came in at an extra £45 which I didn’t plan for. I’m kind of glad that now I have some savings, that can be covered from there but annoying that it cost us extra. We did fund the car pot prior to maternity but my husbands tyres have been costing us a bit for a while now hence it was empty. 

The first sign of available money and my brain immediately goes to what we need for the house which I’m annoyed with myself for. But for such a while we’ve managed with stuff, I do think it’ll be nice for us to not have to do that as a result of savings. That what they’re there for, for us. To save now, spend less on basics so we can afford the bigger things. 

With this in mind, I researched a new hoover last night. We haven’t had ours that long but it was used to hoover debris up after we renovated which probably wasn’t that smart. Anyway, I put my MSE head on and instead I have removed all the filters and given them a wash and cleaned all the bits that says it’s possible to clean. They should be dry by now so I’ll get the hoover on and test. If it’s no better, I’ll pay to replace the filters and then if that doesn’t work buy a new one. I have to say we are pretty useless when stuff gets broken. Neither of us (DH and I) are v good at mending stuff although I will (in the right frame of mind) learn but more often id rather buy new. How awful and wasteful.  

Spent some hours outside at a free play thing for the children today and a few hours in the garden too until 445 which was just amazing having more daylight hours. I was able to turn over my compost heap with the garden fork, feed and cover the rhubarb and weed a few pots. 

Both children fell asleep whilst we were driving to the national trust park to take the dog out so parked at the end of a dirt track and threw stones for my dog whilst listening to a podcast which was very relaxing. Thanks to @grey@Greying_Pilgrim for showing me the way with the food podcast on BBC sounds. 

MissRikkiC

I’m hiding from the February grocery challenge this month. We did SO well last month coming in at £156 but this month we’ve been hit with the being dairy free issue and the milk costs are crazy! 

There is still soy in the house as it was already in prior to realising bear needed it as it was for her who is lactose intolerant but today we had out at breakfast, soy milk, Alpro not milk, almond milk and barista style milk for my coffee. I could not have the barista style and the Alpro not milk is great in tea but we could manage without but good tea and coffee are necessities at our house. Not luxuries. 

In addition the usual biscuits/chocolates and treats have all been replaced with DF so we’ve been shopping a lot and I’m irritated by it. 

Given that it’s February, i need some new goals. 

January was to manage on a low budget for groceries and to keep the electricity costs at £4.50 per day average (exc car but inc the week between Xmas and NY) but we came in just over £5 a day. I can’t wait till the weather is a little warmer although I did dry washing on the line yesterday! 

February will be to take stock of the car costs and not unnecessarily use other costly appliances. But also to stay within the £250 grocery budget. We can’t be as reliant on stores this month and I fear we’re high up there with spends already but it was to pay for the tyre so gotta stick at the game plan. Better go and check what grocery money is left over now ….. 

Suffolk_lass

Getting stuff repaired is often quite hard in terms of knowing someone or somewhere that can. You could look and see if there is a man-shed scheme near you and ask them if they could overhaul your vacuum cleaner. I used to regularly take parts of ours apart as my (then long) hair would get wrapped around the brushes. I have repaired the washing machine and got DH to fit parts I have ordered for things like the tumble dryer. It does make you feel better and save you money (but does not satisfy the little adrenalin boost from the pleasure of buying).

I wondered if you had tried oat milk as it is straightforward if a bit of a faff to make. Here is the method I use (except I have been known to not discard the initial soaking water). It might help with the dairy free as it is gentle on the tummy too

MissRikkiC

Well the hoover seems to be okay but you’re right @Suffolk_lass it’s hard with stuff like appliances. I’ll have to check out if we have someone local. 

@Suffolk_lass

MissRikkiC

I wrote more than this but I’m not sure why it’s disappeared. I was saying that I will look into making oat milk, it’ll be grand for tea and breakfasts for my OH and I. 

A poorly boy this week has meant that it was freezer surprise for everyone Thursday and a slow cooker curry last night. Tonight will be some kind of chicken 1 pot dish, no idea what but likely with chorizo served over mash. Broccoli and sautéed spinach on the side. 

I haven’t left the house yet today but managed to get on top of most of the cleaning for the first time this week (although 2nd time hoovering). Haven’t managed to get out too much either but 1 gym session and 1 run this week isn’t completely rubbish. Will try and run later and train tomorrow so that I still get my normal 4 days in. I’m always surprised at how much a 20 minute run can help me after little sleep or a rubbish day. Really love having the ability to do that, 2 running prams mean I never really have an excuse 

MissRikkiC

I’ve been reading through some other peoples diaries and I thought I might start a new one for 2023 albeit a bit late since so much has changed since I began here 18 months ago. I think I might do that once maternity pay is over but for the time being I did look at the debt we had back in June 2021 vs now. 

£26,160 vs £16,842 as at Jan 23

In 18 months we’ve cleared £9318 and whilst I’m sad it’s not over the 10k mark, I’m pleased with it. 6 of those months I’ve received statutory maternity pay so really feel like I should be happy with that  

That number should quickly fall in Q4 of this year so I’m excited to see more progress