Prosperous soul embraces creativity & mortgage neutrality

savingholmes

Thanks @powerspowers and @L9XSS

Finished early today. Really need to catch up over the weekend. 

So relieved re PIP. It's a life changing amount of £ even though I'm on a good salary - my mortgage is huge and I already pay 8.5% for my pension. Hopefully I can use this award period to build up savings for annual pots - as well as my long term goals. I am very aware there's no guarantee I'll get the same amount when it is reviewed in a few years time.

My friend has agreed to put up the roman blind and shelf next week when he comes to look at quoting for the stairs. So now debating painting that wall white this weekend before he comes so it goes better with the grey faux silk blind and new curtains than dirty magnolia!! Once I know what's happening with the stairs - if it doesn't need major spend - I'd love to pay someone to come and decorate - at least the hall, stairs and landing and preferably the lounge too. Other rooms if I can afford it. Last time I asked this guy didn't fancy decorating but I'll ask him about that while he's here too in case he's willing now. It's so much easier if you already know the person and he's someone I'd happily trust with a key too. If my stairs need replacing though that could be £2K and would have to be the priority.

I am back to wanting to save and spend the same money - so need to pace myself. I also need to find wherever I last dumped the paint... 

Hope you have nice weekends planned.

beanielou

Have a good weekend 

MovingForwards

Double check the t&C's as most times only one RS is allowed.

Leggings sound great and I bet it gave you a lift seeing a dress size has gone.

Stairs are a priority, for obvious reasons. Hope your mate can come up with a pocket friendly solution. Decoration can get slotted in as funds allow. R0me wasn't built in a day.

edinburgher

Congratulations on the pip, it will be a weight off your shoulders 👏

Re. Savings pots, is there any particular reason you're not using Ch@se? Can have as many 1.5% savings pots as you like 

ohdearhowdidthathappen

You've had a busy month!  Glad you got over covid ok and well done on losing a stone, that's great progress.  I'm so pleased for you about the P!P

Alchemilla

Such lovely positivity over here. Great news about the money.

jwil

Great news on going down a dress size

girlatplay

Great news on the pip.
Great news on the weight loss and drop of a dress size.

elantan

Well done on getting work people you can trust, I have been trying to get some work done now for the past year and had a few out to look at it, no one has given us a quote, they come up with yep we can do that we will contact you within a week for a quote then zilch. 

Dont let them out of your sight. 

Well done on going down a size as well 

savingholmes

Thanks Beanie, MF, @edinburgher @elantan , jwil . GAP, Alchemilla and @ohdearhowdidthathappen

Edinburgher - I need to look into Ch@se - but I think you need an account with them first - and they are taking over a month to open I believe. Not done anything about that yet.

On the tradesman/friend - I've started writing a wish list and will see what he says when he comes. If anything this guy is a perfectionist so I'm pretty sure he'll do good quality work. He left a managerial job - and now works for himself and loves it. All his work has been word of mouth. Last time he worked for me he had a pilot friend on furlough who was helping him. Now I assume that person has returned to his day job. The other day I spotted an arbour at BnM for £199 - so I may ask him how much he'd charge to put that together if I got it too. It's a bench with a roof and would go perfectly where I took down the metal shed. I already have honeysuckle growing next to that area so could train it over...

I found yesterday's wider family event really hard. I think it was a combination of covid fatigue, Ex crossover & DD's response, and my mum insisting that Ex just wants to be my friend and that he just has a walking buddy not GF. As if!! So I told her some realities of life but she was still insisting on that carp. Sis and BIL swore when I told them as they speak directly to Ex so know my mum is just naive. My body battery recorded 98/100 for stress during the visit - and I went from a 74 body battery before going to 17 out of 100 in just 2.5 hours. By the time I went to bed my new watch said I had 5/100 energy left. For comparison - the lowest I'd seen it go before was 27 at the end of the day. My normal stress level at home - when I'm alone is about 30ish. What the watch did for me - which I didn't know it would before I got it - was validate that how I feel in terms of being completely wiped out by family events - is borne out in my body - and it's real, not just in 'my head' if that makes sense. Any conversation I had yesterday - gave me a high stress score...  

The best bit of yesterday was there were 5 littlies and I gave them bubble wands to play with (and naturally also joined in). So we had bubbles floating everywhere.

I've been eating more ice cream (and some cake) this weekend as my throat just feels rough still. I still have a very quiet, cracking voice. Really hoping that sorts soon. Very grateful I've booked 2 days off this coming week - even if one is graduation where presumably I'll have to sit with Ex. I'm taking DD there - and then bringing DS and DD back. Will be nice to spend some time with DS. Just hope that goes okay and things don't kick off.