Budgeting by the beach

DaisyCheerings

This is all so useful, thank you @foxgloves. I have now set up some account pots and a spreadsheet to keep a track of what goes out, where it goes, when it goes and for how much.  That shows me where to transfer money to and from on pay day. I've created the pots that make sense for me and have also separated out my personal budgets too.  These are diesel, groceries and personal spends because I've been thinking I have more than I do when I bunch them together and this could be why I overspend.  So let's see how this pans out for me.  A bonus for not spending on a money management tool.

It also helped me look at the current set up I have and have cleaned that up.  So now all of my direct debits come from the account I get paid into.  Personal spends go the accounts mentioned above, and sporadic payments have their own pots.

Next is the spending spreadsheet as I'd like to be able to keep a report of what's been spent and any other details I wish to add.  Got to think how I'll handle that now.

Thank you to everyone who helped inspire and motivate me to get this done.  I was so tempted to go the YNAB route and really pleased I didn't.

foxgloves

You're welcome, @DaisyCheerings. Hope your new system continues to develop & grow, allowing you to become a truly splendiferous budgeter! As I've said in my own diary, we now regard our budget as something which enables us to do things with our own money, rather than paying extra to use somebody else's.
Good luck,
F

DaisyCheerings

foxgloves said:

You're welcome, @DaisyCheerings. Hope your new system continues to develop & grow, allowing you to become a truly splendiferous budgeter! As I've said in my own diary, we now regard our budget as something which enables us to do things with our own money, rather than paying extra to use somebody else's.
Good luck,
F

That sounds like the perfect philosophy with your budget that you can do things with your money rather than paying extra to use somebody elses money.  That's a good reminder of the importance of budgeting.

DaisyCheerings

Yesterday I went through all of my accounts and was making little tweaks pretty much all day.  Today I feel more organised.  I need to check that the personal budgets are easy to access, and can do that later by checking that I know the PIN numbers for the cards.

Last night had just about cooled down enough that I could sleep ok.  I only needed the fan on for a short time too. It makes such a difference to be able to sleep uninterrupted.

This weekend I've decided that I need to do some blitzing with my housework and generally getting reorganised.  I still have some boxes that need unpacking and I also want to get some bits together for boot sales, online selling and charity shops.  Most of the things I have I think will be sold or given away as I haven't needed them since moving in, or I've replaced them already.  Because I wasn't keen on where I lived before I fell into the trap of buying things for my new life as an incentive and a bit of motivation.  Now I'm here I'm not sure many of those things fit with what I now want.  It's done now though, so getting some funds back or sending them to a new home will be the right thing to do.  I know there will be some fun things there though, so I need to make sure I keep my wits about me when I see these forgotten shiny things!!!  Happy Christmas in July to me!!!!  

Next on my financial goals is again the food planning in order to stay on top of my grocery budget.  I think that's my nemesis as I overspend on food and then dip into the diesel and personal funds and then get lost with myself.  I've mentioned a few times the weekly meal plan, but now it's time to properly enforce it.  I have such simple tastes too, so it's not like I need vast ingredients for beautifully cooked recipes.  So no more excuses from me.  This is my priority.

With the cooler weather brings items back onto the to do list too, so it's going to be a really busy one.

DaisyCheerings

This weekend was so busy.  I didn't blitz the way I hoped to, but I have been going through a lot of my things with the goal of getting rid of a lot/most of it.  I have such simple needs while having hoarding tastes!  It's made a bit of a mess in my house, but I'm calling it organised chaos as I methodically go through it all.  I've just put a whole lot of girly items in a bag and will go through that at some point today to decide what's staying and what's going.

I didn't get out and mow the front lawn over the weekend (I think I mentioned it's all been strimmed now?) but with the harsh heat we've had, it's not a problem that I haven't as nothing is growing.  The strimming last week got through all the cable so I've just replaced that with a fresh reel.  I'll either mow the front today or tomorrow during my lunch break to get that looking even and then I'll see if there are any straggly bits left.  I also need to weed in the small beds under the front windows. 🌻

Yesterday was a trip into London for me to work in the office.  I forgot how distracting it is to be in work with lots of people around all having different conversations.  I had a list of things I needed to achieve and I did get those done but I think it took 3 times longer than it would have at home.  Even printing anything meant I had a really long walk to collect it all, then you walk past a colleagues desk who says hello and asks a question, then grabbing a quick coffee from the machine, and it's rude just getting your own, so you're there a while making 3 or 4 drinks.  As lovely as it was seeing everyone, I hated being out of my own work bubble and felt discombobulated the whole time.  The commute was easier than when I lived closer to work though, and the journey home feels exciting as I see the dirty buildings reduce to make way for the rolling fields with the animals & hay stacks, and all the sky you can see for miles.  There's very little sky to see in London. 🏙

When I got home it was too late to eat, although I'd been taken out to lunch and had a massive pizza so I wasn't particularly hungry!  But I did get out and water my flowers as they were looking a bit limp. 🥀  I had a call with a friend for a catch up and then fell into bed and slept the whole night which is rare for me.

It's market day here today and I've started to shop small for my groceries as much as possible, so I rushed out to the greengrocer stall to stock up on fruit and veg.  I've also seen a stall that has given me some ideas for lovely Christmas gifts so I'll pop back on Saturday to get a couple of items.

I need to pop into the city on Saturday and I usually like to take the train, but they're on strike!!!!  So I've made a note of the bus timetable and am considering using the bus service instead.  I've found an app where I can buy my bus ticket, rather than needing to not lose the dispensed ticket the bus spits out. It's 2/3 of the price of the train, but takes an extra half an hour each way.  I think I'll look at it as a little adventure and see if I can get a seat upstairs at the front so I can be the extra driver! 🚎 


Midweek blessings to anyone reading this. I hope life is being kind.  I also need to find some time to catch up on the diaries of others as they're often very inspirational.

savingholmes

Sounds a huge contrast between where you live and where you work.

DaisyCheerings

savingholmes said:

Sounds a huge contrast between where you live and where you work.

There is now a huge contrast, and I think loving where I live now also highlights the differences.

liselle

Daisy, have you thought that your low energy and tendency to put on weight could be due to an under-active thyroid? This is often overlooked by the medical profession yet it’s very easy to detect by a blood test, and managed by a once daily tablet.
You’re doing so well with your gardening and sorting, and the location sounds perfect.

DaisyCheerings

Thank you @liselle for that advice.  I have been to the Dr's a few times and had various tests, including bloods, but I don't know if they've tested for an under-active thyroid. I may be speaking to my Dr in the next few days so I'll ask then. 

The gardening and sorting seems to be a never ending mountain, but I guess that's the fun!

DaisyCheerings

It's payday today and I have to say that from the advice I've been given here I have set up a system for budgets that works perfectly for me.  I have different pots/accounts for different bills/budgets and a spreadsheet that includes all relevant information like renewal dates, last paid date (for quarterly bills) etc.  I'm so grateful to foxgloves, enthusiasticsaver and SarahwithLove for the advice.  Thank you.

So after being paid I've sent off the money to where it needs to manually go.  I've totalled up money remaining and bills remaining and that's tallied as expected.   

Amazon Prime has gone up in price and although I know it's stayed the same price for years, I still think Amazon is a company that really benefited from us being stuck home (and bored) during the pandemic, so I'm a bit miffed about it going up with this current climate.  I also want to stop buying from larger corporations as much as possible and the couple of things I order from Amazon which are essentials for me, aren't part of Prime anyway.  So I'm going to let it lapse and see how I go.  I have the money put aside if I really need it, but I just don't want to line their pockets anymore than necessary.  I'll keep the money aside for 6 months and then add it to my savings if I don't renew.

Sky renews in December so I'm going to cancel it then.  I'll start shopping around for broadband only and see what the savings are.  I rarely watch TV and I've also decided that I no longer want a TV in the lounge anymore.  I could put it on the wall, but I'm going to try out not having it accessible at all once my TV package is cancelled.  I went from November 2021 to May 2022 without a TV and didn't miss it at all, so I don't see the point.  I like the idea of having a large TV if needed for Netflix or any other account I may open, but in general I'm not using it enough to keep any active subscriptions right now.

Spotify is my only subscription I'll keep as I already use it a lot and will do even more in the winter.

Most other outgoings I have are essentials, except maybe one that I'm working out whether to keep or cancel.  I'm hoping for a pay increase in October, so I'll see where my finances are then.  No doubt the energy companies will grab all the savings I'm making and any extra I earn, but it's just me here so I can make sacrifices that don't affect anyone else regarding gas and electricity used.  I feel lucky to be in that position.  There's already some horror stories out there of people struggling to make ends meet.

On a lighter note, I visited Edinburgh Fringe recently and loved it.  It was my first "proper" trip out, and my first time on a plane in two and a half years.  Most of the shows I went to were brilliant, with some not being my thing at all, but still an experience.  I only went to around 4 shows a day, which was enough for me, and I definitely want to go again and again.  I'd definitely recommend.

I hope everyone's having a great week, so far and enjoying the UK cooler weather.  It's nice to be able to sleep comfortably again.