Stopping the backsliding… a family of four no longer living beyond their means

teapot2 · 18 August 2024 at 3:43PM

Happy birthday weekend 🎂🎁🎉🥂🎈🥳 sounds like you had a good time. Was the white water thing in a kayak? I'm trying to imagine what it would look like in a tube?

Baileys_Babe · 18 August 2024 at 4:07PM

Happy birthday @Bluegreen143 I'm pleased the family have made you feel cherished, enjoy your cake 🎈🎂🎈

Bluegreen143 · 18 August 2024 at 4:13PM

No teapot, it was a tube rather than a kayak. It’s quite difficult to stay on the tube on a whitewater course, as Red described the experience afterwards “it’s like being flushed down a toilet repeatedly” 🤣🤣🤣

Spendless · 18 August 2024 at 4:31PM

Happy Birthday - sound like you've had a lovely time.

Hadn't realised that Red's Mum was a bit older. Understandable that she really wanted to experience something but how it was in her head vs the reality was too much. Your MIL is nearer to my parents age and I'm closer to your Mum's and also in the 'sandwich years' despite my own kids being adults.

I would say keep the car too. 2nd hand is so expensive now. I bought mine 8 years ago when it was 10 years old and it would cost me a lot more to replace with similar than it did back then, so I keep hanging on though I know the next bit thing to go (garage owner has told me clutch will eventually go) it won't be worth repairing.

Bluegreen143 · 18 August 2024 at 4:36PM

Agreed Spendless. Eight years ago we got a low mileage second hand car for £2k which ran great with minimal repairs for 5 years. You just can’t get that kind of bargain anymore.

Red is 5 years older than me and is the youngest of a large family (he’s the product of a second marriage for both his parents) whereas I’m the eldest in my family and my mum fell pregnant with me (accidentally!) at 18. So there’s only a small age gap between Red & I but a massive one between our mums! Totally different generations.

The children love their Grandma, especially Monkey who has a lovely bond with her (she gets on better with boys I think, perhaps as she only had a brother, had three sons and her older grandchild is a boy - so not as practised with girls!). But we are keen to accommodate her when she wants to do stuff as we’re conscious they can’t make memories with her forever. My own grandparents were really formative in my own upbringing, probably because my dad wasn’t very involved, so I do think grandparents are so important.