Time for a new start

Queen_of_the_Hive

lucielle said:

Sometimes ticking along is the best thing. 

L

My thoughts exactly

Drawingaline

Right, New Year, new resolution to post more!!! Sure I said the same thing last New Year though 😂

Catch up time. The end of the year has completely decimated our finances 😭 Where to start?

The girl finished her project in November. Was a tough one, she really didn't like it at all. She luckily was on top of it all and did the shooting all early, so she could spend more time with editing which is what she likes anyway. It was coming together, but lots of phone calls to me with her really down (the winter never helps her) and extra life admin now she is no longer in halls didn't help. And then 5 days before her project was due in her MacBook broke. She managed to get water in it while it was in her bag 🤦 she was in a complete state on the phone, but give her her dues, she had checked her work was backed up (luckily the main bits were, she only had to rewrite some stuff) had got herself to apple to get it sent off for fixing and had called me with a quote of £600. I explained we could have maybe sorted it through her contents insurance, but was proud of how she had dealt with it (alongside a stinking hangover as well 😂) and she had access to the uni Macs to complete her project. 

Bad news came a week later with an updated quote of £1k and with her already planning on upgrading it in 18 months when she graduated, we decided to bring that forward and do it now. After talking it through we went up to the next model and made sure to order apple care this time too. She came home for a few days for a dental appointment and we went in-store. Glad we did they said straight off 'are you using student discount?' didn't know that was a thing, so it ended up being around £2100. She is paying half and we are paying half. Have it on a 0% card for 2 years. Hoping to get it cleared sooner though.

The boy passed his driving test first time 😱😁😁😁😁 he had almost 3k saved for a car, and I managed to find one locally for £1600. But the insurance 😱😱😱😱 Wta!!! I am the only adult driver we could add and I have points on my licence (after 28yrs of a clean licence I got a speeding fine in Oct 2022 😏) so we couldn't get it lower than £2200 and that was with a black box. When we looked into the policy, it stated he couldn't drive after 10pm without penalties which is no use as he works evening shifts and often finishes at 11. So ended up with a policy for £2700!!!!! I mean the car cost £1600 and is a Peugeot 107 3 door, basically a moped on four wheels!!! He adores it though, alongside the freedom he has and is a nice driver. He is paying 2k of the insurance and we are paying the rest, again on a 0% card. Annoyingly work have cut his shifts down, but I am hoping this may prod him to actually start looking for a new job. Now he has transport he can look a little further afield too. 

So two massive outlays in the past two months. There is a plan to pay it off, but I hate seeing the numbers in YNAB. 

The younger two are doing well, but I have all the guilt that we don't seem to be able to get out and do much atm. Xmas has been a complete write off tbh. Hubby has been off work, but had a dreadful virus and is still coughing, and I started with tooth pain on the 22nd which by the 26th was excruciating. Managed to see my dentist on the 28th, to be told I had somehow compressed the tooth into the gum slightly which had caused it to flare up in pain due to trauma. No infection then, but given a script incase it did, couldn't see any cracks etc, but couldn't rule it out. Just a wait and see, it will ease in time. By sat it was a bit better, but yesterday I woke and there is now a swelling low down in the jaw line, so filled the script and started taking the antibiotics as the dentist said to do so if there was any swelling. So my week off was spent crying in pain, on painkillers which gave me huge headaches and nausea as a side effect and barely eating or sleeping. Have lost about 5Ib, so silver lining I suppose! Am feeling a lot better today, and can almost touch the tooth pain free, so fingers crossed the worst is over. But I have a feeling I may lose the tooth on the future. It was honestly horrific. 

So the boys did nothing the first week of the holidays as I worked until the 22nd planning to do stuff after Xmas and they have done nothing then either. I have a trip to London planned with the smallest on Wednesday as he has inset, but am waiting until tomorrow to see how I feel, and I have an old friend supposed to be coming to visit on Thursday which is my last day off. Was so looking forward to these much needed two weeks off too 😭

So not the best update, but am going to try and be more regular in my posting. The plus is we are saving £160 a month in driving lessons, bad news is I am paying out £110 for the MacBook and insurance 😏

savingholmes

Phew! Glad that year's done from the sound of things. At least you are £50 a month up compared with before. Well done to girl and DS on their respective courses / driving test pass. You sound like you are juggling things the best you can. Hope your DH feels better soon - and here's to a more positive new year.

Drawingaline

Just realised I am an extra £28.99 up as hubby was paying for his Xbox 0% over two years and that ended in November! The last lot went straight into Xmas, but that's a little extra to accommodate the increase in our water bill, cat insurance and energy. 

Crazycatlady2

My son has a 3 door toy car Paid 3k and insurance was over £2k plus he had 3 tests to pay for for theory and practical 😂 we call him 3rd time lucky 

Drawingaline

Lol! He took four attempts to pass the bloody theory test, kept failing by one mark! He is a confident driver, I, however am terrified every time he leaves. It's getting easier, but I was shocked at how anxious him driving made me feel! Especially as I was so determined that they learn at 17. 

TBF the car was probably quite underpriced, we struck very lucky with it. 

savingholmes

I'm really nervous about DD driving herself or with other young people. I think it's natural as a parent - especially when it's all still new.

Drawingaline

The boy got paid so has paid his keep and the £60 for his insurance. So that £60 has gone to the credit card it's sitting on. I also paid most of hubby's tax bill (it's repayment of the child benefit due to his pay) just £200 left to do before the end of Jan. 

Spent Wednesday in London with the smallest. The girl got us tickets to Madame Tussauds, it was rammed! But the smallest got a wax hand made by one of her friends and I met the older lady who runs the gift shop who the girl adores, which was lovely. 

Then we spent around 45mins in the National Portrait Gallery (the smallest had a limit!) One of her lecturers has a photo hung there, and we spent a while in the Tudor but with the smallest telling us which king was which, the girl was impressed 😂 annoyingly I didn't realise that the network Railcard doesn't give discount until after 10am, the friends and family was always good for after 9am. So it cost more than I planned. But had money set aside for the trip. 

My friend visited yesterday. Popped into town and we went to a spoons for lunch so not bad. I treated as she had travelled to see me. We try to meet up a few times a year, but it often gets shifted, so was lovely to meet up. Hoping to get up to see her at half term for the day. 

Had to have another emergency appointment at the dentist again today. It's definitely infected, and it's highly likely that it will need to be extracted at some point. I have an appointment with my dentist in March, and booked an appointment for a root canal in Apri, but if I make it then it will possibly be changed to an extraction. Been given some more antibiotics as the first lot haven't cleared the infection. But at least the nerve pain has gone (probably died) but it's still a bit twitchy and I cannot chew on that side at all, so still living on soft food. If it has to be extracted I may look at an implant, but it's £££ and not sure my gums are in a state to have one. But I lack molars (I just never grew 6 of my adult teeth) and to lose one will really affect my bite. Worse case I will have to go in as an emergency and get it taken out if the pain ramps up again. 

This has shown that I need to bulk up my medical/dental category in YNAB. I get a spare £80 on Tuesday so may shove a bit in it then. 

Not the start to 2024 I was hoping for tbh 

savingholmes

Glad you had a positive trip out even if it cost more than expected.

Sorry about the tooth. I'd conserve it if you can - root canal and crown if at all possible - otherwise ask if a bridge is an option...  I've spent up to £2K the last couple of years rescuing my teeth with bridges (3 sets) and 1 crown but well worth it. I first had dentures over a decade ago but despite spending a fortune on them they were uncomfortable to wear. The bridges are amazing and hugely boosted my confidence.

lucielle

Sounds like you had a nice trip and a good meet up with your friend. Sorry to hear about the dental issues, hope it stays pain free. 

L