Ding! Ding! All change, please... (now replaced with new diary on MFW)

RelievedSheff

I hope you don't lose the house and get some interest in your flat now you have a better listing.

It sounds like everything is ticking along jut nicely finances wise.

We also have more credit in our energy account that we anticipated we would at this stage of the year. We will be leaving it in the account for next winter though and keeping our direct debit the same. Who knows what will happen with energy prices next winter!!

EssexHebridean

Once we've moved RS we'll need to complete rethink things as obviously we'll have a totally different set up both for heating and generally energy-wise.  If we were staying put into the longer term I would be looking at increasing our DD by around 20% to take account of the increasing prices in April I think - and of course the fact that whatever happens with prices, we've had the £400 of help from the Government this winter too. There's clearly no point in us doing that at the moment though.

beanielou

Positive vibes for you for house.

Hope all goes as well as it can do tomorrow  xx

EssexHebridean

Thanks Beanie!

The funeral went extremely well - MrEH did the eulogy - with just the right amount of laughter and tears. The older of his twin brothers did a rather wonderful poem - ditto. (And managed to insert the word "bu993rs" in there too - which , as his older brother said, lead to a very interesting expression briefly appearing on the face of the lady who took the service!) Younger twin did a bible reading - carefully chosen to slot on well with both eulogy and poem. His Mum held up quite marvellously - a minor wobble at the end of the service as it came to the point to follow the coffin out but I just grabbed her hand and held on, and she did really struggle by the grave but we knew she would - and she had MrEH on one side and our lovely niece on the other for support. Youngest nephew required one of my emergency tissues at one stage - bless him he's only 8, it's a big ask for one that young. The 5 boys carried the coffin with MiL's nephew who stepped in at the last minute as they were one short. The wake was a wonderful afternoon and evening of lovely memories, fabulous stories of FiL, and catching up with all the lovely folk who turned out while eating and drinking lots. All in all as MiL said yesterday - he would have heartily approved!

I need to do some financial shuffling to sort out where various payments for things are coming from - we had a big family meal out on Saturday night for MrEH's older brother's birthday - we paid for his Mum's meal as well, and with our share of older brother's side of things too there is £100 to get allocated across to the card from that. It can come from next month though as it will be after the credit card cut off! I also need to add up the food spending for last month and get that sorted. Went to try to use my personal spends card via the phone yesterday only to discover that of course that was the one I got sent the new card for recently, so I've changed that over ready for use this morning, and will need to clear that payment off the cc as well - it was only a snack on the way back though. 

Shopping will be going on our personal bank cards for the next little while as N@t1onw1de are apparently doing a cashback deal if you do grocery shopping using their debit cards. MrEH paid for yesterday's - and now I need to pursue him until such time as he remembers to do the transfer for it...and I will need to remember that I have to take my physical card with me when I shop, going forwards! This is where I'm grateful for the "buffer" I've built up in the groceries account as it means we can easily do this! 

Other than that, this week will mostly about beginning to get ourselves back to some form of normal, I think. Obviously the last few weeks have been difficult with MrEH up and down to Devon, and then us both down there the last few days...we will be booking in a trip for probably the end of next month I think - depending what else is going on by then. It's about striking a balance between not leaving it too long, but also not rushing back too fast, as MiL needs some time to start to adjust too. Judging by the traffic this morning it would appear to be half term this week which always much improves the commute - such a shame it's only a week! 

First grocery spend of the month for me was just over £20 - keeping track this month is going to be a devil I suspect as money will be coming from all over... We have a veg box on Saturday* - that will be our last one for the time being - and also plan to go to the farmers market next saturday. 

*Just checked - no we don't - it should have been this week, but of course that had to be cancelled! Doh! 

foxgloves

Awww, I'm glad to hear that the funeral went well. @EssexHebridean. I find funerals such an ordeal to get through, but it does kind of help with the grieving process knowing that we've given our loved ones a meaningful ceremony, doesn't it? I had a pocket of sweeties at my Dad's funeral for dispensing to my young nephews to help with wobbles. 

Our budget feels a bit all over the place too this month. I know exactly what has been spent, so it's all fine in that respect, but because I haven't been able to get our workman in yet (he's behind schedule for genuine reasons), I don't know how much of 'February's money' I need for paying him, so have not been able to pay any Savings Pots apart from the holiday one to which we are committed & need to keep on schedule. Hopefully I shall know this week & be able to get my February budget fully signed off. Considering that I spent from age 19 to my early 40s not budgeting at all, it's quite surprising just how twitchy I feel about the incompleteness of the process this month!
F

EssexHebridean

Hello Foxgloves - yes, with you on the funerals thing - to all intents and purposes FiL's was the polar opposite of my Dad's, but both would have very much approved of what was done, which is the main thing! 

Definitely with you on slightly floundering budgets too - I need to get  my head round that grocery money I think, and the "joint fun" spending then I can get that squared away and I'll know where I'm at with everything else on the card. Joint account surplus will be a long way down this month because of the diesel spending - three weeks on the bounce with £80 worth is ouchy but necessary in the circumstances. The plus side of course is less Oyster feeding for MrEH so that balances it a little - he forgot to pick it up this morning too so that's put the top-up off another day!  Having just checked, we're actually not as far down as I thought we might be either - but then there hasn't been much other discretionary spending this month outside of the stuff related to Devon... 

I opted for easy straightforward food options for this week - bought sausages so that will sort tonight, with mash and beans I think, tasty, simple and straightforward comfort food! I'll get mince out for a cottage pie for Wednesday - that means I can double-cook mash tonight and use it for topping. Tomorrow will be couscous - probably with lamb - MrEH will be at rugby training. Thursday will be sausage pasta using the two "spare" sausages from this evening...I do love a roll-over dinner! I'll probably take that as a chance to use up some more of the HM pesto from the freezer, too. 

lucielle

Glad the funeral went well. Good idea to give mil a bit of space. 

L

beanielou

Glad that all went well.

CL21

Glad the funeral went well @EssexHebridean

have been wondering whether to start Happy Valley also. How are you finding it? It looks like something I’d enjoy but have never got around to it 

RelievedSheff

We have just finished watching the first series of Happy Valley (watched the last one last night) and we really enjoyed it.

Going to start the second series tonight.