Living life on my terms..

Hoffnung

Over recent years I've come to realise that I need to start living life on my own terms and to stop trying to meet other peoples/societies expectations. 

For a while, I was constantly putting myself under unnecessary pressure in many areas of my life, thus creating extra additional stress that then started to affect my own health and well being.

One day, the cascading effect of this cycle became too much for me and I had to take a step back and re-evaluate the current situation I was in and my personal circumstances.

In the end I decided that all I want to do is live a simple life and that from now on I will prioritise my health over wealth.

The reason I'd like to start a saving diary is to keep myself accountable and remind myself how far I've come, continue to work towards my goals but also to share my journey with others along the way

AlexSJ1988

You're right! You don't need to live your life to please other people, just live your life how you want to live it. You can have all the money in the world and be unhappy, or have no money and be happy, it's what you make of the moment and what goals you achieve personally. A saving diary is a good idea, it will help you realise where you started and what you have achieved. 

MovingForwards

It's easy to neglect yourself when focusing on everything else, sometimes realisation can come a little late.

Set a small goal, one that you can achieve and do that for a few months before increasing it.

Have an overall aim, with lots of steps to reach it, that way you won't get disheartened along the way.

Most of all set time just for you, whether that's once a week or once a month, an hour or all day. Maybe go for a walk round the park, read a book, take a long shower / bath and wash the stress away, bake a cake or even try a new recipe. 

savingwannabe

Welcome Hoffnung. I look forward to your posts. Happy saving.

doingitanyway

prioritising health over wealth is definitely the way to go. good luck.

Hoffnung

So a little bit about me:-

There are two adults, one child and a 7 month old puppy in our household.

We are currently renting at the moment but hope to buy within the next twelve months or so.

I currently work part time as a nurse, in a highly stressful environment within the NHS. 

I cut back my hours a few months back to give me a better work/life balance and also to minimize the risk of me becoming burnt out. 

In terms of my health, I've a long standing mental health condition which has been difficult to deal with over the past two years and I'm finally coming out of the other side- thank goodness as it hasn't been easy. 

So there is a combination of things that lead me back to here. I used to be quite active under another username but this time I wanted a fresh start. 

Previously, I've always been sensible with money and would save as much as possible. However the past two years have seen many frivolous, unneccesary spends due to the Manu highs and lows that I have experienced.

Although I have managed to save some money along the way but I now want to rein it in further as I'm ready to move on to the next chapter in my life.

There are a few things in the pipeline for the next 12-18 months that may happen-  one thing is to buy our own house, the next is to maybe try for a baby but we would also like to do some travelling. I'm excited at the thought of all of these but I want to be prepared as much as possible. 

I already have a help to buy ISA and my partner also has a LISA which he pays into. When it comes to buying a house, I think we will aim for a 20% deposit between us both and we will soon start looking into how much we can borrow and everything else house related.

And in regards to possibly trying for a baby in the near future, I'd like to build up a baby fund to cover any expenses and cost of living over twelve months of maternity leave. I've roughly calculated what I'd be entitled too regarding my wage and my partner also has a steady income which would fill in the gaps.

Overall, thankfully we are both pretty good with money and each have our own savings. These cover things such as an emergency fund, house fund, travelling fund and an everything else fund! 

I'm very grateful that we are both lucky to be in the position that we are in and we have no debt either. 

I have slowly been getting back into budgeting- it has been a work in progress over the past few months whilst trying to decide what works best for me and how I'd like to manage my money.

I separate bills, savings and other outgoings between a few different accounts/pots so I am able to see where my money goes and budget for yearly expenses too.

I hope I'm on the right track for success and look forward to the future now it feels like everything else is falling into place. 

I just need some more routine, structure and stability in my day to day life and get back to my baseline level of functioning. 

I'm confident that by sharing my journey, it will keep me accountable and motivated along the way. I'll most likely do separate posts for different things so I am able to think clearly, write it down and remind myself of things when needed.

That's all for now !

Skint_yet_Again

Your life sounds hectic @Hoffnung ! Work & looking after a child and a 7mo puppy. My puppy is 4yo now and just starting to calm down 😆

I hope your health continues to improve and look forward to following your journey. 

MovingForwards

It's a good plan you've got, maybe do the travelling before buying otherwise your home will be empty (or rented) which could add to your stress levels.

Keep checking in, your diary charts how far things have moved on and helps to see plans come together.

Hoffnung

Afternoon,

I can't believe how quickly the days seem to pass by just lately. I really need to start keeping on top of things a bit more..

I have quite a few hectic days coming up work-wise which I know is going to be extra tiring so I've decided to take today as a light cleaning day and plan to go for afternoon tea with my son, after school.

I know this means spending money but it's also quality time together and something that we both enjoy.  I've yet to spend anything from the entertainment fund so far this month so I don't mind as I've put aside funds for outings such as this.

So the plan today is:

1) Put dishwasher on.
2) Quick clean kitchen.
3) Put DVDs into bag.
4) Put outside carpet in garage.
5) Clean out dog crate.
6) Wash dog bedding.
7) Fill up dog food supplies.
8) Send Eufy round front room
9) Put clean laundry away.
10) Open all windows to let fresh air in.
11) Go for afternoon tea.
12) Take son to his football training tonight.

I reckon that list should keep me going over the course of the day and I'll check back in where possible!

Hoffnung

Evening.. 

We are not long back from our afternoon tea which was lovely and I've also bought some cake home with us.

When there, we got talking to the owner who said they were having a charity psychic night tonight and raising money for more defibrillators in the community. I decided to leave a £20 donation in aid of this as it's definately something we as the public need more access to in an emergency- every little helps.

I'm feeling rather tired now but I have managed to get quite a few things ticked off my to do list today and some light cleaning done. 

A little reminder to myself of what I have achieved:

- I've washed all the pots, pans and other bits in the kitchen as well as putting the dishwasher on- this just needs emptying when finished. I've also taken out the rubbish and recycling and cleaned the bin.

- I've cleared some items from the living room including putting aside bags of clothes and DVDs by the door which are waiting to go to someone else; I've opened all the windows to let fresh air in, sent our Eufy robot hoover around the room and then put the outside carpet into the garage.

- I've cleaned out the pup's crate, washed the bedding, filled up her food supplies and carried out other doggy owner related duties! I just need to rebuild her crate and replace with clean bedding before she comes back. 

The only thing really that is left to do on my to do list is to put the clean laundry away and give the kitchen a little extra clean. However I think I'll ask my other half for help with that later on tonight. 

I'm going to make myself a hot drink now and relax for a bit, before having to take my son to his outdoor football training session.. I'm not looking forward to this as it feels very cold outside but I'll make sure I'm wrapped up as much as possible! 

MovingForwards

You've done well, that was a big list!
What I found easier was writing a weekly list, depending on mood / energy levels each day I could pick off various tasks knowing some were getting done.

Do you have a flask to take a hot drink? Also, double up socks if you've not got proper winter ones. Hat, gloves and a scarf round your face / neck makes a huge difference.