Future Proofing my life: Deposit saving then MFW journey in under 13 years

LadyWithAPlan

Grocery spend £55.38/£160 July + £30 bulk 
I used a previously bought £10 gift card for Morrisons via TCB - think I got £2 cb then AND  I had 4% via ZipZero so thats 93p due back It took me ten mins to find the voucher on my phone but worth it.

Aldi today - beware of the YS not going through on self check-outs  - £26.42 plus toilet paper (part of home)
YS sausages and pork ribs  but I notice in the self check out they did not reduce the prices 0 it was highlighted in red on the screen but that was actually the normal price so I had to call an assistant to reduce and add the % off - so saved some there by being awake.
I only went in to Aldi for the toilet paper .... £27 later .. 
Lots of healthy foods though 

EMS TRAINING reporting and saved my £3.50 return bus or £3.90 train fare by walking
I did  my second ems workout today - you are supposed to do max two a week and a gap between  the strength ones. It has an online account that tracks your stats  and there is free nutritional support that I probably wont use - I know I need to eat more protein and less crisps
You stand on the scale/body fat machine before each workout and then can look back at measurements from % body fat to waist changes per session which is great.

I am still not in any pain from training  1 or 2 days after beyond a slightly stiff hip for 10 mins yesterday from an old weight training injury .. I do feel much stronger and apparently my muscle has gone up by 0.6lb and fat down 1.1lbs .. of course as a woman your body fat/water weight really fluctuates each month so I will be looking at it more monthly. My body feels great, worked out, happy, alive  and leaner  though and it is great if one is injured - in my case I can see I need to restabilise my core due to my sciatica thing and my balance is not what it was - as witnessed by wobbly on lunges (given you have elecro magnetic pulses to throw you slightly off balance)  so the trainer and I are working at strengthening all that.

I am only a week in but I am feeling v positive about it - lots of research showing strength gains and for athletes  from rugby to ice hockey  had greater range of movements, muscular density  and  increased speed  - I will keep you all informed. I do feel leaner since my trips away in May/June and I now think I have a fighting chance of getting rid of the slight bulge since Covid/sitting down/ pre menopause thats crept up
Of course as I am now paying for this EMS  I may also be eating slightly better (i bought only salted peanuts and no crisps or sweets today) and I will be sleeping well tonight. One is meant to do cardio on days in between so a swim I think tomorrow.

When I went training Monday the overground (london) trains had been cancelled so I caught a bus .. however today looking on my fav Map guide City Mapper (which is in most cities in the world now) it said 43 mins train, 40 min bus OR to walk ... 2.5 mile and would take 55 mins.. however I walk fast - and via my apple watch I recorded it took me walking 38 mins at a  fast pace (I did have a take out  from home coffee for the first bit) and was 4.17km there so approx 250 kcals burned on way there and it was uphill - the bus passed me
So actually taking into consideration the time one waits for a bus or it is a 18 min walk from train station,  walking  is the way forward as saves time, money £3.50 2 x a week adds up, burns energy and is a nice walk. (past shops though)
On my return I walked back but then picked few bits up from some shops further on  so was 5.57km back. This is good as I have then sat on my behind all day since working..

NSD 2/4
Tues was a NSD day as was Wed but shopped today


June Month end MIA again  NAV gone down ...
Yet again I have not done an EOM on here - I can see spending  on the YNAB - I actually had more in than I spent to the tune of £400 approx  but May was expensive including some work expenses - I have some incoming cash/income/reimbursements to cover  a lot but even taking that into acct when it finally arrives I still spent probably £2.5k more than I  received income wise in May 
i can also see in  7 months Dec to now I am spending on average £350 per month more than actual income received - I need to also contrast the actual invoices I raise but either way its in the wrong direction to buy a home!

I am pushing for some money to be paid.. but actually  I have had a decent amount of money paid this month - but I have been spending a lot, I have been catching up on the CC float, I have been abroad May/June and buying things ...

SIPPS EOM
Main sipp up £279.52  mom- I note I have £275 cash in there - all from July dividends so I will invest  that back in
Smalll sipp (1/5th big sipp)  up £144 MOM - I have £75 ready to invest but as HL now only allows investments of £100 plus ... annoyingly 

ISA EOM UP  £92.64
My savings - was just £25 on interest - did not add anything to isa etc . 

Other sources 

Interest Paid £25.82 (more accruing)
Cashback   £26.18
PB win June (nothing in July) £100

WINS
I was nominated for TWO awards with my side hustle in June (didnt win though)
Won a phone

Main June spending ouch ... but was abroad working on side hustle

Health and Fitness £96.80 inc dentist checkup - however I have a £150 white filling to save for - no masive urgency but needs doing in next 2 months
Travel costs £1038 in June after £1800 May ( 2 trips)
Fun spending £423 (inc new joggers etc) after £488 in May (not inc social)
Socialising  £103  June vs £126 May - this is low as I was away and some social spending in in travel categories

Review thoughts 
- I could definitely have saved more looking at my extraneous spending (even though I was travelling)
- The waiting on invoices has meant I am not as focused on saving but instead more on working out what money is where and might be coming in.
-The YNAB reports are amazing as without any effort I can produce these details and see what came in  BUT although I budget when money comes in I have been shoving costs onto my cc (always paid in full)  as I am never sure when more cash is coming in. So I am using YNAB as a tracker vs YNABing - so before I spend anything I am looking at whats left in my categories. 

LadyWithAPlan

WINS
I won today 2 tix to an art exhibition.
 £50 restaurant voucher won last week  was used by my parents

Voting - dogs of polling stations - makes me want to have a dog even more  with the pics on twitter - I vote via postal vote though now always

MG July 10 /3 
10  declutter total in 3 days - yet to do Day 4
I have pulled out a load of toiletries from a cupboard - most waiting to be used but aiming to centralise all of them and use them up.. throw if never to use but have a next pile to use.... So I am trying to use up tubes etc and not replacing with my normal brands but work thru what I have.
 Currently toiletries are in 4 places PLUS makeup on the dressing table top.. including that pesky wealth corner..

Cashback £17.94 today 
£10 airtime rewards redeemed  against phone bill
Plus  £7.94 requested today (from a MB offer)


Conversation about value of cash
I had a great chat with MWAP on 'cash now' and inflation and he was saying I need to sell what I dont want asap to maximise cash in hand. He is right, i have been busy/lazy/not focused on this.
So I am really focusing in July to earning more money, and only spending with my budgets as opposed to letting myself pick up the slack next month and shoving on CC. Suddenly leaning on the CC float (I never pay interest) means I just spend and when income does come in it goes against the cc. In June I used my  put aside money where I had already spent on CC to cover some of my July rent so again when I get paid in July its covering cc float. I could cash in some of my 7% Cov regular saver or my PBs' and admit the NAV going down.. However plan is to get flat completely this month.
My one step though is to only pay for things by debit card rather than letting cc grow, its comfortable but it hides my spending.
The plan was to sell the won phone and put it aside for my new phone but I think instead it has to go in the 'get flat pile of money again'.

July To do's as MSE after my June review
A no spend month sounds lovely but not that realistic - Birthdays plus I am away in 2 weeks with MWAP, its summer and all the fun there however I plan to re-prioritise my income generation and  saving over spending - 

Track NSD - 13 at least
Track grocery shopping
Do the 2 sessions EMS a week, walk there and do cardio 3 other days
Keep lid on costs for social things and I dont need any new clothes! I do need some cotton so I can get my sewing machine running and try to make these new dresses I have bought material for.
Sell phone I won - its not on ebay but on couple local groups yet - I  thought neighbour was having it but she changed her mind  before paying me/or popping round to pick it up- I will do ebay this weekend. Then look to sell current phone and upgrade
Add 13 things to Vinted and sell 10 - have 4 things up - have reduced prices today
Declutter my wealth corners (and my main one is my bedroom arg)
MG do it daily - need to do my 4 things today 
Gain 3 lbs muscle and burn 4 lbs fat in July
Dont add anything to my CC til its paid in full and down - all new spending pay via cash.
Cancel Amazon  prime - on student discount but I really dont need it and the subscribe and save is a pain..

July other goals
Get invoices clear and paid up for 4 diff clients
23/24 tax accts done and put aside tax needed
start and get to 50% on the software language - I can use it to get my programme (yes thats still on my list) over the final hurdle I believe
Update CV
Earn loads
Updates websites etc for side hustle

Next month is my THREE YEAR ANNIVERSARY ON HERE - 11 AUG - !
savings up a lot on both pensions and hse , still no home bought and more stuff in the house .
So I will see what I can complete by 11/08/2024  to get some things over the line (inc the cintract jobs and that pesky programme)

LadyWithAPlan

South_coast said:

It has me thinking I'll be weeing all the time - way too many references to water 🤣!

Ha I did have an indoor fountain and the cats kept splashing the water everywhere...

debtfreewannabe321 said:

Ooo how bizarre! I decluttered my corner in the furthest left last November and said to DP we need to take down that cupboard and put up some natural wood shelving! So that's what we have in the corner (it's the kitchen) and a money plant in a sea blue pot with crystals around it...I have a tap next to it I think that will do for the water element 🤣

Nice! Are you feeling luckier? And  wealthier?  

Its 'bagua' - my phone spell check argh

debtfreewannabe321 said:

PennysIntoPounds said:

The far left corner of our home has the cat's litter tray in it and there's nowhere else it can go 😂 

😆 Lucky cat being in the abundance corner 🤣

I was told to move my cat litter out of there when mine was in the wealth corner or at least keep it very clean every day

Watty1 said:

I just tidied the wealth corner. There were too many pictures on the small table so I moved those spots around the room.  The drawer in the small corner was empty but for one picture which I have hung in my office for now (it might go in the donations pile later).  The far left corner upstairs will be checked later. It has a rubbish bin in it so I think that will need moving

Yes definitely remove the rubbish bin  
Also every room also has a left hand corner once you done the upstairs! It is never ending .. but they always say clutter is the enemy of flow and energy in your home 

Boundaries 
I have agreed til the end of July only to have a friends large case here as she is travelling a lot, got fired and dragging excess luggage around the world as she has not gone back home yet as she has a re-think. Like I need more stuff in my study. However I have said to her she has to remove it in 3.5 weeks or get some else too (she should be back in a week). She dropped it off yesterday and its currently in my hall as I need to move everything around in the spare bedroom - which definitely blocks energy
I have family here then and I need the space, plus I know she has left cases in 3 other cities across the world and I dont want that .. 

I am having someone pop in tomorrow on adding some extra shelves in the hall cupboard - Its tricky - high and i can help but he is v reasonable and it will make me clean out that cupboard!

LadyWithAPlan

Got paid some cash today re an invoice on the big owed client ..., enough to give me some breathing room but not enough to fully budget my YNAB month ahead for July  - managed most essentials  (but not my paid 2 x year water  I set aside monthly etc) and  not all my true expenses nor much fun money! Maybe I had enough fun  

Actually the most fun part of being paid cash is to do my ynab budget - I loved my monthly paper budgets but this is so next level.
In the 7 months I have been using ynab I have somehow managed to not be OD despite v little cash coming in vs my spending. I also have correct costs for what I am spending from annual trips, to food, to drinks out and  how much I am NOT saving.. plus it shows me clearly all the upcoming DD's and also now 7 months in I have a lot of the big annual bills coming through so whilst they are often not funded fully I can see them clearly and there are monthly saving targets in YNAB now for true expenses.

I have had a chunk of cash but as I start budgeting it down this months  expenses plus things I have already committed to such as my 10 weekly hair appt  and future expenses which are looming again ... I am feeling YNAB poor.
YNAB poor is a thing where you have money in the bank but know it is already all  allocated, I am thus feeling YNAB very poor as I have cash, its allocated but there are additional things to fund in July so any spending I do on top just pushing my spending into next month cc float etc which is NOT happening again.

I have home insurance next month - last year was £123 but who knows - though it is just contents ins  nor  did I receive enough to completely clear CC  whilst leaving cash in the bank accts in my pots etc. I also had to cover any overspending this month so far as I have not been paid anything since mid June..- I mean I could pay all my cc today but will leave me just adding to cc  this month and after my review in June I dont want that as it makes me lax and I just think oh I will just slap it on cc. I am not getting into debt or being charged interest but I am not saving either.
So cleared 2/3rd of CC today. If I buy anything I will use debit card unless it is section 75 or my TFL stuff as thats all set up for me to use my apple watch as I go in/out .  I am aiming for low spend as possible til I get a month ahead on all my bills.

I am waiting on a full chunk from client D - was supposed to be here Monday ... that will clear all CC and fill up some of these true expense pots - TRUE EXPENSES in YNAB are basically sinking funds - semi annual water, insurances, annual fees etc so looking at those annual/quarterly bills plus also money aside to replace things  - I have just added a  new Replacement Category Group and added the phone/mac/tech stuff that needs saving  in there instead  rather than them being in TRUE EXPENSES as  I look at that amount £ needed and its a lot.

 I do have 2 tranches of money coming as well from diff clients which will help fill my pots. However I am cutting my  voluntary spending down until I have got my pots up to date and a month ahead in my accts again. I cant keep draining my savings

I also am having a dispute with an overseas tax agency who want to withhold tax on a forthcoming payment from my side hustle but I am within the waiver requirements so I need to make an international call this eve to explain again.

NSD aim today..
I am working til late tonight so hopefully a NSD! I have a fun day tomorrow as at a big festival but I am volunteering for a charity for a few hours so free tix etc. They are also showing the footie - which means I will not be spending big money in the pub watching it, I will be volunteering so no alcohol either.

Swim - hoping to get for a swim tonight - lets see on the work.. Need to keep the cardio happening as I am sat on my behind working all day from home..

Rachel Reeves confirmed as Britain's first female chancellor in 800 years!

Its about time! However I am hoping she is a frugal MSE-er ... though with the state of the UK coffers now its going to be a struggle I am sure.
Apparently the 1st time buyer threshold is £300k and was raised to £425k by Sunak. However it is due to expire April 25 and looks unlikely Labour will extend it - so I have 9 months to get a move on as there in nothing liveable in London for £300k  bar the odd studio ...

Queen_of_the_Hive

Oh my goodness a bit late to the party, i'd definately like to win a house renovation! 50k would be perfect.

Wealth corner most def needed! Is the opposite corner the debt corner?

Well done on the phone win. Do you have any tips on best places for comps? The only thing i've won on a comp was a life sized poster of Hunter from Gladiators as a kid & a board game at a work "lucky dip"

Hope you manage to sort out the non bill payers...

skint_spice

I’m glad some money has come your way at last. Your weekend sounds busy!

My wealth corner is actually the dining part of my lounge/diner so apart from the table and chairs there’s very little in there although there is a painting of a croft by the sea. I shall buy a money plant and try not to kill it…

savingholmes

Well done on your wins. 

Good luck with your wealth plans. Glad you've had some £ in. Hope the rest comes through soon and you resolve the overseas tax issue. Glad your Mum was able to help - but get how awkward that probably felt.

LadyWithAPlan

Just a quick dash in as I have just finished work at 11pm for a client (yep on a Sunday) as early start tomorrow elsewhere.

TRANSFORMATION x 3 
I am declaring that I might have finally transformed my view for good  on all my clutter - started when I was travelling, being restless surrounded by too much stuff since I got back  so I got  back to starting the Minimalism Game and then the final straw  - the Guardian review of the new TV series on 'the gentle art of Swedish Death Cleaning' (and has the trailer)
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/article/2024/jul/06/the-gentle-art-of-swedish-death-cleaning-a-rare-tv-show-that-will-change-your-life-for-the-better
I have heard of the book before but not read it but the guardian review was amazing so I have googled and watched a couple interviews with the Swedish author and the main tips and philosophy is all on line and loads YT videos of people doing the process ... not read the book yet nor seen the show.

It is not as dark as you think - it is good for all stages of life as we move through them, we can celebrate past memories and joys but as we all know life does move on, including eventually us (hopefully not for decades to come). It helps one focus on what is important now, not hanging on to the past, its about letting go of stuff that is just stuff.
The idea is to declutter your life before you die to release the burden from the loved ones you leave behind. If I died tomorrow my family would be swearing over my office and my clothes/shoes/handbag collections.. They will like my art and at least it can be sold..
So it has somehow impacted me on a much broader sense which I gather it does a lot of people.

So I have since had a rethink/re-belief  on a lot of stuff I have been holding on to from the past - shoes I loved and went clubbing in but not worn them in 7 years since I lived in this flat and possibly 7 more years before that.. Handbags I loved and partied with but now mobile phones are much bigger ... Charity shop buys or new clothes I have never worn or were always not quite right.. Death cleaning is about asking  'if I die tomorrow will I want to have a loved one deal with it' - nope so why not deal with it now?

One lady on YT was talking about how her brother had died when she was 16 and he was 21. She remembered when he had bought this leather jacket he loved so she had it as a memento. However 15 years on, moving this jacket from many apartments to a house, to then  a new marital home, now her current home with  her kids in as well, this  jacket  that noone had worn and it taking room in a stack of coats so she hardly saw it... she did the death cleaning and remembered the love she had for her brother and was ready to release the jacket.  She said he would have laughed at her keeping this jacket and now it has gone to a CS where it can keep on living, she has a photo of him wearing it but the love and the joy is in remembering him not this old jacket
I thought that was so wise, my mum is decluttering sllloooooooooowwwwwwllllly as she has so much stuff (she laughed when I told her I was doing it) and the idea we see something we loved, or has memories and we remember those memories/experiences/people with joy and dont need to hang on to every item they had. Just the odd precious one to you.
It also warns about assuming what your loved ones will want to keep of yours..


I cant sleep as well  so I have been decluttering at 4/5 am the last 3 nights 
MG numbers 
July 6th  30 items
July 7th (5am) 40 items +

transformation  2 on declutter - donate it to help others rather than waste hours ! 

Instead of Vinted and ebay as  I have a few items on there that are not shifting - though I have just lowered the price, I am giving to CS instead and releasing the stuff out my life. As  I also have had a transformation in that as well - I gave 2 huge bags of clothes and stuff today to my local pet hospital charity - rather than me trying to find a singular buyer (and the time it takes to post the item online, then sell,  then go to the post office .... I have now helped the lives of lots of animals - ! Plus the stress of more stuff to do ... and honestly my hourly rate of pay - its far better to get focused on new income than earning 10% of whats already been spent...

I will sell a couple of very expensive items - the phone I won, the dress I was given with tags on still which was over £600  and when I look at its seams etc I dont think its made that well and far too big ... however most stuff is going straight to save an animals life.
I have given away a nice (but no value)  oil painting from the mum of text-ex I took it home 24 hours before I got dumped by text and it just brings up bad juju and I am not  that keen. 

Transformation number 3-  don’t buy more stuff ! 
so I love a certain artist and I have one of her paintings .. she is on my eBay as a wish list so I get emailed her work when people put it up on eBay - dangerously - a lovely pic of hers did pop up - and I have been thinking of getting /bidding for it 
currently it’s on for maybe half I think the value is .. and it’s another version of one I have already got .. 
its lovely  and I have a birthday coming up so people could put money towards it but its still in the hundreds so I was going to put an opening bid in … I checked on delivery 
BUT today after the death cleaning I thought I don’t need it , I only saw it cos if an email - I have some great art and it’s v  similar to my fav piece so I really don’t need it - 
I thought ‘let’s get my current stuff cleared out before adding any more in my home ‘ 
I also think taking stuff to a CS without any pretence of trying to sell it - including some fabulous expensive CS purchase I then never wore … has really hammered home the message of don’t buy - echoing my signature.  

As part of my 5am decluttering I did pull out toiletries and now in an easy to see and access place is my hair stuff in one basket , my body in another and face creams /magic potions in a third  vanity case and  my goodness there is a lot ! I will not be buying anything til I use it all down .. it’s much better than it’s out rather than hidden away .. so many body lotions! 
there is also my makeup section elsewhere AND my travel to go toiletries so samples and my always decanted stuff as I travel
loads 
 

Queen_of_the_Hive said:

Oh my goodness a bit late to the party, i'd definately like to win a house renovation! 50k would be perfect.

Wealth corner most def needed! Is the opposite corner the debt corner?

Well done on the phone win. Do you have any tips on best places for comps? The only thing i've won on a comp was a life sized poster of Hunter from Gladiators as a kid & a board game at a work "lucky dip"

Hope you manage to sort out the non bill payers...

The far right corner is the LOVE corner There is literally nowhere to hide ones clutter in feng shui  

On comps I have PM'd you .  - tops tips are however low entry comps are always the easiest to win - so I follow local restaurants/bars/shops to both me and my family on social media - 
There is a competitions board here on mse which is where I started

savingholmes said:

Well done on your wins. 

Good luck with your wealth plans. Glad you've had some £ in. Hope the rest comes through soon and you resolve the overseas tax issue. Glad your Mum was able to help - but get how awkward that probably felt.

She was cool and insisted rather than me taking cash out my PBs before the draw but not cool for me at all. It did highlight the late payers

skint_spice said:

I’m glad some money has come your way at last. Your weekend sounds busy!

My wealth corner is actually the dining part of my lounge/diner so apart from the table and chairs there’s very little in there although there is a painting of a croft by the sea. I shall buy a money plant and try not to kill it…

Well done on the wealth corner - I have lots of flowering orchids in mine - but have actually sorted some shoes out, decluttered a makeup unit thats in the corner - more to do but getting there.

Super busy weekend closing with no sleep and working till 11pm on a Sunday - its rare i work on a Sunday but ..

KajiKita

Love reading about your decluttering 😊
If we ever get this flipping leak sorted so we can put the bathroom and then the house back together, I will get back on it here too! 😊

KK 

TallGirl

That sounds like a good concept to clear clutter I am so aware of this especially as I want to emigrate I really do not want to lug stuff with me I am never going to use. I am holding on to stuff that has memories and I am guilty of stuff on Vinted that is not selling but really should just go to a good charitable cause. Keep up the good work and get those invoiced paid and that new contract you can do it!!