My Mortgage Free Mountain - A 7 year expedition to climb to the top

~FlowerPot~

Sending you love and hugs today, I hope you all manage to get through it as best as possible

Flowers x

craftingmad

~FlowerPot~ said:

Sending you love and hugs today, I hope you all manage to get through it as best as possible

Flowers x

Thank you so much.
We got through but it was one of the hardest days of ours lives. The service was beautiful and was so fitting for such a young life taken so early but it was totally heart breaking to see how distraught her parents were and all the young adults of her age who were having to go through such sorrow. There was not a dry eye in the room.
Now it is over, we have no choice but to move on with our lives and be grateful for every single moment. She will never be forgotten and will live on in all our hearts every single day. Its going to be hard but as a family we have made a pact to all live our lives to the fullest and make time for each other in order to honour her memory. We know she would want that.

It's going to take us a while to move forward but we will get there together as a family and we now aim to continue climbing the mountain to reach the MF summit but also ensure that we set some money aside each month to enjoy and make memories x  

craftingmad

Morning everyone.

Stupidly I thought that after the funeral was over, we would go back to normal and feel so much better but of course this is not the case so I'm going to be gentle with myself today and not put too much pressure on me by coming up with a huge list of things I want to do today.

Instead I am writing a very intentional list of things which I MUST get done today so it helps me focus and actually achieve something whilst still moving forward with what our dream and vision is. 

One thing I do know is that I am going to have more focus on decluttering than before as with family threatening visits more often I am in absolute panic about the state of our house, so, thank you Lamara, beautiful girl, for giving me the kick up the bottom I really need to get the house sorted out I WILL finally have a beautiful, tidy and serene home because of you - I'm determined! 

So here is my intentional list for today of things I WILL achieve:-

1. Tidy floor of our bedroom. At the moment I cannot even see it for piles of clothes and other things. I'm aiming to get rid of at least half the items which are laying on it either by throwing them away or listing them for sale - half way through and so far found £30 amongst the old tissues on the floor so that's a good bonus. Filled one black sack with rubbish and things I no longer need but would not be able to sell. Also got rid of a huge pile of revision guides to next door neighbour for one of her grandsons. Happy days  
2. Take photos of father in laws car and list in a few places with a view to selling it - DONE photos taken. Now just need hubby to tell me the spec and I shall get it listed on some different places  
3. Make up proofs for 3 design planners for orders from Etsy - DONE
4. Make a cross in my pocket for Etsy order - DONE  
5. Print and post off stickers for an order from website - DONE
6. Meal plan for the rest of the week - DONE mainly using meals from freezers/fridges so minimal shopping required  

That should help to keep me busy (especially when you add in that I have to collect son from college at 11am and take him to work for 12pm and then collect him again at 3.30pm) and actually make a little difference to our overall plan. 

Thank you all so much for all your kind words during these difficult times. They really have meant so much to me x 

  
 

MatyMoo

I’m glad the funeral went well, they are always so difficult but so much harder for someone so young. I find myself mourning the life they have missed out on as well as the short life they lived 😢 

As you have found, things don’t miraculously go back to normal after the funeral, it is just the start of rebuilding a life without them. It takes time and the amount of time can me different for everyone. Be kind to yourself, take things slowly, support each other. It all takes strength and each loss affects us differently, there is no right or wrong way through this. 

craftingmad

MatyMoo said:

I’m glad the funeral went well, they are always so difficult but so much harder for someone so young. I find myself mourning the life they have missed out on as well as the short life they lived 😢 

As you have found, things don’t miraculously go back to normal after the funeral, it is just the start of rebuilding a life without them. It takes time and the amount of time can me different for everyone. Be kind to yourself, take things slowly, support each other. It all takes strength and each loss affects us differently, there is no right or wrong way through this. 

Thank you so much.

You are right, I was certainly thinking about all the things she did not get to do, which is just as said as mourning their actual life as well I think.

These events have certainly made us stronger as a family and it is lovely knowing that we are all there for each other when we need somebody else to help us through so we have to look for the positives which have come from it. 

I'm certainly being more mindful about taking time out to do what I want to achieve as well now and am feeling a little more at peace with taking time to do that so we can all only move in the right direction taking each hour as it comes. there will be good days and bad days I'm sure but we will get through them because we have too.

craftingmad

Wow I actually achieved all my list yesterday and it felt good and made me feel like I was actually making progress even if that progress was very small.
Maybe intentional lists are the way forward for me - we shall see Right now if they work I am going to stick to them We need all the reasons to celebrate something that we can at the moment  

I've work again at the chippy tonight. They laid off the other fryer yesterday so I'm sure there will be more to follow given that we are not getting many customers now. I really hope I don't go, not just because the wages are coming in useful for our mortgage free journey but also because it gets me out of the house and talking to people which I have not managed to do in a very long time before. But it is out of my hands so I'm trying not to worry about it and taking the attitude what will be will be. 

I am apparently a very impatient person - I really wanted to have people enquiring about the car as soon as we listed it but this appears to not be the case so I will be trying to find more places to list it over the next few days so we can get it sold and off our drive (5 vehicles between the two people in our household who do drive seems a little excessive )

So here is my intentional list for today of things I WILL achieve:-

1. Continue tidying the floor of our bedroom (I'm hoping I might find more money I had forgotten about) - more progress made. Found a bit more of the floor and listed two sets of books (34 books in total) for sale on FB Marketplace (fingers crossed they sell quickly so I can get the room back)  
2. List father in laws car in a couple of other places - DONE listed on gumtree and in another 11 FB selling groups including lots specifically for cars  
3. Print 3 design planners for orders from Etsy and post off - all printed. Will post off on my way to work this evening
4. Make and post off Lucky Gnome for Etsy order - made just need to post it off on way to work  
5. Print stickers for Etsy order (as long as the correct stickers arrive today - the wrong ones got sent yesterday but it does mean I get another 10 sheets of a popular size sticker free of charge so another silver lining to celebrate) - still waiting for stickers to arrive  
6. Print and cut large plantable business card order - proofs made. Just waiting customer approval before printing can begin  
7. Return unwanted shirt to Amazon - parcelled up and barcode ready to scan when go to post office on my way to work  
8. Fill in claim forms for missing parcels from Royal Mail and send off (as I cannot seem to do them online which is a pain in the bottom)
9. Chip Shop Shift - DONE 4 hours wages to be paid at end of month  
10. NSD - DONE £5 added into the OP savings pot  

craftingmad

Morning all.

It's pretty chilly here on the Broads today and I cannot find my slippers (I think our daughter may have taken them back to Uni with her!!) so I'm already wearing two pairs of socks but at least my feet are nice and toasty. I'm also sporting a rather fetching black little toe after dropping my phone on it yesterday whilst taking photos of things to list on FB Marketplace    No pain no gain as they say and it was worth it as I have had somebody enquire about something I added for sale yesterday so fingers crossed they actually collect and I get a little bit of money to add to the pot and a little bit of clutter leaving my house  

I've woken up feeling motivated to achieve so fingers crossed that continues. I must catch up on last nights MAFS episode today as well. I've managed to go the whole series without hearing any spoilers and now I'm so close to the end I don't want that to change Sad I know but a little trash tv is exactly what the doctor ordered at the moment so I won't apologise. Actually I secretly think hubby even enjoys it too although he would never admit it   

The chip shop was so quiet yesterday. I really do feel that it just cannot sustain us all over the winter months but when I asked the boss yesterday he said it's all fine and not to worry. I suppose only time will tell. I still haven't got the rota for next week yet but I am hoping for more than the two shifts I have this week as this money is really making a big difference to the amount we will have when the first BTL mortgage fixed rate ends

We have had somebody enquire about the condition of the car so fingers crossed they will arrange to come and view and we can get it sold. I'm not going to lie, I'm a bit worried we are never going to get our money back and we are going to be stuck with it forever, annoying our neighbours with all the vehicles we have. Apparently patience is not my strong point - who would have thought it 

OK time for my intentional list for today of things I WILL achieve:-

1. Continue tidying the floor of our bedroom 
2. Answer enquiry for display cards which came in late last night - DONE fingers crossed they go ahead as the order will be at least £28.75 but could be up to £65.00 depending on the quantity they require  
3. Print stickers for Etsy order (as long as the correct stickers arrive today) - DONE will post off later this afternoon  
4. Resend proof for plantable cards and then print , cut and post - proof sent. Now just to print and cut and post   
5. Design stickers for goal planner and send proof
6. Make more plantable heart stock for Farm Shop wholesale customer
7. Check cardstock which was returned to Amazon has been credited - DONE had to contact them regarding return which was received on 30th Oct. Accepted a refund to the account so it was instant as I don't trust them and when I threatened to report to Trading Standards for Distant Selling Breaches I also got a £5 voucher added to the account  
8. Write and schedule the remaining social media posts for my business for this month
9. Fill in claim forms for missing parcels from Royal Mail and send off (as I cannot seem to do them online which is a pain in the bottom)
10. NSD - FAILED - took son into college and stopped at supermarket on way home to pick up a couple of bits needed for dinners  

craftingmad

Morning all from a very wet and windy Norfolk Broads today.

Well yesterday did not go to plan at all. The plantable cards are taking far longer than they should and I've still not finished them I will have to keep plodding away on them today but it's not started well as I started playing on Mistplay again and got right into a new game so I've already lost a couple of hours when I really should have been working. At least I feel calmer and more relaxed than I did when I woke up so as well as earning points that is also a bonus for my mental health. 

Good news on the chippy front. I'm back to 4 shifts for next week (16 hours) but they have cut down the Monday-Thursday shifts by an hour which I totally understand as it is so quiet. There are also far less shifts available now as whoever is on the counter serving is now by themselves (rather than there being two of us over the Fri-Sun period) so there are now 3 less shifts each week than there were which I am sure will make an impact but fingers crossed I always pick up at least a couple of days a week over the winter season which will at least bring a bit extra cash in to throw towards the mortgages.

Sadly still nobody has contacted us to view and test drive father in laws car. We even dropped the price by £500 yesterday but we have only had one person enquire and they have not been back in contact at all after we told them the car was in very good condition. It looks like we won't be getting our £5k back any time soon I'm not going to lie - I am getting a little worried and thinking maybe we will either have to use one of the well known car buying sites (who only offered £5k) or pay to advertise on other places. Any one have any experience of either?  

More bad news of the cars front too - My cars engine fault has reared it's ugly head again and now OH car also has the same problem appeared. His is really old now and he does not think it will pass it's MOT next month anyway so unless I can persuade him to drive either our daughters car (who still has not passed her test) or Bernard the van to and from work then we may need to break into the savings to buy a replacement for him. The MSE way would be for him to have either father in laws car if he really does not want the first two options so I may have to sit him down and try and make him see reason that we really do not need another car at the moment.
That said daughters car has also just failed it's MOT so it is off the road until OH can repair the sticky hazard light switch. We would be rich is we didn't drive or have kids - but I would not be without either of them

I'm not at the chip shop today so I am really hoping I can get my head down and crack through my whole list and more but I seem to have lost my motivation today so we will have to see what happens. 
I'll add the list and pretend that I am going to be super productive and cross everything off but tomorrow will tell  

OK time for my intentional list for today of things I WILL achieve:-

1. Continue tidying the floor of our bedroom 
2. Decide if I really want to keep the blue trousers from Amazon which I did not wear and if not send them back for a refund
3. Post stickers for Etsy order printed yesterday
4. Finish printing and cutting plantable cards and post off 
5. Design stickers for goal planner and send proof
6. Make more plantable heart stock for Farm Shop wholesale customer
7. Write and schedule the remaining social media posts for my business for this month
8. Fill in claim forms for missing parcels from Royal Mail and send off (as I cannot seem to do them online which is a pain in the bottom)
9. Decide what I am purchasing from the wholesalers to make up the order from regular customer (lots of options for Christmas presents and items I could use to make new items for my shop)

    

craftingmad

Wow I have amazed myself with just how little I have achieved this weekend - absolutely nothing crossed off my list yesterday and I'm not even going to bother with a list today as I have to go to work in hour and a halfs time so really no point.

Must try harder tomorrow 

Hope you are all enjoying your weekend x 

craftingmad

Good morning.

It's the start of a new week and I think my motivation has returned (until maybe I go to finish the plantable cards which are proving to be a very big pain in the bottom)
Today is the day that I am determined to actually achieve something and get lots of little things to help with our mortgage free journey crossed off my list as I feel like we have made no progress at all these last few months.

I really also do have to start thinking about Christmas. With the past few months events I just cannot seem to get my head around at all but I do think we owe to those who are no longer with us to put the time and effort into it as both of them loved Christmas so at some point this week I hope to drag myself into festive mode and start shopping for some little gifts. Anyone else really not feeling this year?

We have still not had anyone enquire about the car. I think we are going to have to keep hold of it until after Christmas now which is a bit of a pain but hey ho but good news on daughters car front as hubby has mended it (it only needed a new switch which cost a tenner) so we can now get that booked in for a MOT retest and then hopefully I can start using it again as it is much cheaper to run than mine  

Right, I'm going to get on and make a start on my list.

Today I WILL:-

1. Continue tidying the floor of our bedroom - I've tackled a big pile of clothes which I have either put away or put in a box to donate to our village jumble sale. Also managed to get rid of a carrier bag of things not good enough to donate and thrown away an old broken wash basket The floor is now almost clear   
2. Follow up on display card enquiry for display cards - DONE now keeping my fingers crossed that she will go ahead and order  
3. Post of stickers for Etsy order (already printed) - DONE  
4. Print and cut and post  plantable business cards - DONE finally  
5. Design stickers for goal planner and send proof
6. Make little bag of love for Etsy order and post off - DONE 
7. Make and post off two bees for Etsy order and post off - DONE 
8. Make pink guardian angel gnome and post off - DONE  
9. Make more plantable heart stock for Farm Shop wholesale customer
10. Renew FB Marketplace listings - DONE 34 listings renewed
11. Write and schedule the remaining social media posts for my business for this month - posted today and all but one post written for the rest of the month Just need to schedule them now  
12. Fill in claim forms for missing parcels from Royal Mail and send off (as I cannot seem to do them online which is a pain in the bottom)
13. Meal plan for week and write small shopping list - DONE trying to use up what is in freezers and fridges to make room for Christmas goodies  
14. Move Christmas items into a box so they are all together
15. Design a new item for my Etsy shop and promote it
16. Play on Mistplay (aiming to cash out a £25 voucher next month) - 37 points earnt so far  
17. NSD - DONE  
18. Chip Shop Shift - DONE was cut short as we shut early so I lost an hours wages  

That little lot should keep me out of trouble for today