Debt free by 30!?

wannabedebtfreemum95

Achieved a NSD yesterday and on track for another today as the only thing I’m paying for is the groceries. It’s been a bit of a miserable weekend so the national trust visit never happened. The big kid had a sleepover at Gran’s house instead so winner for me! Would love to have had a lie in but the babe was up at 5:30am… 

The online shop coming this afternoon cost £80 which seems a ridiculous amount for what should’ve been a wee shop. We’re away this weekend to the caravan so I’ve picked up some Capri Suns, extra biscuits and snacks. I also bought some snacks for our tea party this week for big kid’s birthday tea after nursery. Those were wee extras that we don’t usually buy and we’ve got banners left from the soft play party so that’s a win! The only thing left to buy is a cake - he’s requested chocolate so I’ll pick this up during the week. We’ve not got him anything to open yet either so no doubt this will be a mad dash this week. My aim is to spend less than £20 as he’s had his party and he’s got tickets to see the Monster Jam show as his main present. He’s very excited (and luckily has birthday money from family for the merch stands)! 

My aim is to have two more NSDs this week (Monday and Tuesday) which will take me to 8 overall. Not too bad! I’ve got some decluttering to do too. I keep looking around and thinking that all the stuff used to be money and now it’s just in the way. Spending less and having less crap lying about is a double win. I’m trying to remember this with birthdays and Christmas coming up! 

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We’ve had a NSD today, yay! We got our child benefit and our UC today so this has all been filed away as needed. Paid off £30 of my next account (clear now), paid £8.54 to my CC as a mini round-up and have put some away for the weekend as we’re going to the caravan. I’m feeling quite pleased with myself as I got 2 refunds from my Morrisons shop. Four things were out of date when they arrived and I only noticed them this morning so that’s £10 back off the shop. We’ve got £32 left of this week’s grocery budget and £200 budget for our weekend away. I’m hoping this is enough but we still need to pay for ferry so it probably isn’t!! I’ve got my personal spending money too as a back up. We’ve got some snacks to take with us, our water bottles, and fingers crossed the big kid gets loads of sweets for his birthday and we’ll have loads of picnic treats! I’m eagerly awaiting the direct debits for my credit cards to come out (19th and 24th) so my Monzo pots will be clearer and the balances will go down. I’m feeling really motivated and having this diary is helping me spend less so I’m not digging a bigger hole for when maternity leave ends. I’m close to going back to work now and can’t tell if I’m dreading it or excited for it. I’m definitely excited for the proper wage and the tidier house. I will miss the impromptu coffees and lunches out, but my purse will not. 

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We are back from our weekend away at the caravan and I’m a bit reluctant to look at the credit card app! We’d budgeted £300 for the weekend but have definitely spent more. The weekend got off to a bad start as the ferry was cancelled so we had to drive the long way around. The drive was beautiful (though an hour longer!!!) and I saw parts of the country I’ve never seen before but would’ve enjoyed it more without two kids whinging due to the windy roads. 

We’ve also booked the babe’s first birthday party! This was £80 for the hall hire and we’ll pay for entertainer (£130), balloons (unknown cost) and food (budget £100) closer to the time. I’m still eye-rolling at myself for paying all this money for his first birthday but he’s definitely my last baby and the party is mainly to avoid having to host lots of family in my house. Our house is too small and the weather is unlikely to be kind for having an indoor/outdoor garden party. We’ve put the hall cost on the credit card for now but will pay this off on payday this week coming. I’m not sure what we’re buying the babe for his birthday as he’s got so many hand-me-down toys and I reckon he’ll be walking in the next few weeks. I’ll need to make a list for family members too as we’re always getting asked, but feel like premium bonds are not what they want to hear!!! 

The house is tidy for once as we had our wee family party last week in the house so this evening’s task is to go through the fridge, freezer, pantry drawers and cleaning cupboard to make an inventory. Feels like such a September task! I’d like to avoid the shops as much as possible this week but will probably end up doing an online shop even though I was so disappointed with the last one. Failing that, I’ll go to Lidl and do a wee shop but they always end up more expensive! 

We’ve got a slightly busier mid-week this week. Tomorrow we’re having a rest!! Wednesday is our baby class, potentially lunch out, then my friend is coming after work to give birthday boy his present. That’ll be lovely to see her but does mean I need to keep the house semi-tidy so she’s got a seat! On Thursday we’ve got plans with my knitting friend which I am very excited about. We’ll get no knitting done as I’ll have the baby but it’ll be nice to chat about our cosy winter knitting queue. 

We’ve got a holiday weekend coming up for the September weekend so no nursery on Friday and Monday. So far we’ve got no plans but we’ve got my mum on Monday so should be a cheap day… because she is so good to us! The rough plan is to go swimming as I definitely need another pair of hands with me but not sure what else will follow. 

I’ll update the CC totals at the end of the month. I get 0 pay this month but Mr DFW gets his big pay this month so very excited to not feel quite as skint for once. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t counting down til payday next month as I’m back to work!!

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It’s been a busy weekend and payday has been and gone for both of us. I got paid £76 which was a surprise - I’m unsure if this was because my mat leave ends on Monday or whether it’s a tax rebate, I’ll need to ask for my payslip. Either way, I was pleased and this went straight on to my tiny credit card. I want to pay this off ASAP so that I’ll feel like I’ve got a small win. I’ll then look for a 0% option for my John Lewis card. It’s quite depressing looking at the total going up. It’s only one card but we’re still using it (John Lewis card). I know we should stop but we’ve had a few larger purchases that it’s been used for. We’ve booked the baby’s party and we bought a new car seat for the big boy as he’s outgrown his rear-facing seat. The baby will now use the rear-facing seat and it’s a purchase that lasts until he’s 12, but the £220 did sting. It’s a price I’m willing to pay for a safe child! I think because I know I’m getting paid next month and it’ll be at least £2000, I’m getting a bit spend-happy so will need to rein this in. From next month we will be paying off at least £500 a month to these balances but I think my aim of being debt free by 30 is very unlikely. A girl can dream! 

We’d budgeted £100 per week for food and £50 per week for family fun activities. We did the food shop today and spent £93.25 which included a new doormat, baby nail clippers but no chocolate… the chocolate aisle is at the furthest end and I had a grumpy baby in the trolley. Very disappointing coming home and unpacking no treats! The family fun fund was raided on Saturday alone as we had pre-booked a big day out, but we all had a fab time and the kids slept all night and gave us a lie in. Next month I’ll increase this budget as well probably end up doing more indoor activities with the weather turning. 

Balances:

CC1 Virgin: £152.26 (0% until end of Nov)

CC2 NatWest: £6700 (0% until Oct 2025)

CC3 Lloyds: £2775.81 (0% until January 2026)

CC4 John Lewis: £1805.72 (24.9% APR) 

PayPal: £1020.03

Total: £12,452

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It’s been a while since I’ve updated this diary because it’s all felt very depressing. I think the totals will end up higher at the end of the month (although the minimum payments/DDs for all will total about £250) but I can see the end in sight with returning to work. I’m just really bored of constantly thinking about money. The car failed its MOT too and we’ve not had the quotes yet for how much it will cost but it’s an expense I hadn’t budgeted for. Note to self - add car related expenses to the budget!!

We’ve had quite a chilled out weekend this weekend. On Saturday we had our language class, our milkshake and breakfast out (£22) then dropped off some charity donations before going to the park with a coffee and a cake (£10). We went to a cool gelato shop that’s opened recently which was nice but definitely picked the wrong flavours… (£12). All of these spends came out of our weekly days out fund (£50). Looking back it seems quite extravagant but all places were small local businesses so that makes me feel less bad!!! Mr DFW was on a night out last night so the kids went to bed early and I was asleep by 8pm. Rock and roll!! All of the night out was personal spends so not counting that. Today we had swimming and football then went to do the Big Shop. I took both kids in myself as Mr DFW was feeling quite delicate after his night out which meant no time for faffing. We were the epitome of efficiency! After last week’s using up the jars/freezer stash mission, our cupboards are a bit less jam-packed. Meal plan for this week includes:

• roast chicken (today)
• Chicken gyros
• Fajitas 
• Burrito bowls 
• Homemade pizza
• Mac n cheese

It is a very chicken heavy week but I’m going to batch cook the fajita chicken to add to the burrito bowls. It was fruit card money top up day last week so we had £66 to spend. I only spent £36 but the fridge is full to the brim with healthy fruit and veg snacks and ingredients. The fridge is so full that I’m going to have to chop some for the freezer. The freezer is also now full because we had to buy fish fingers, chicken nuggets and potato fish things. This was at the end of the shop where I was losing the will to live with two grumpy children so in they all went. We also had to get drain blocker for the bathroom and kitchen and washing machine dettol stuff which isn’t a weekly buy but there’ll always be something. We had £5 off so total was £78. Not too shabby but thank god we had the fruit money as we’re well below £100 this week. I also like having a choice of easy freezer items for when big kid has play dates after nursery as we’re trying to serve dinner earlier rather than snacking for ages until dinner. Our usual guest can be quite picky and i would hate for them to feel stressed at our house so we keep it simple and easy. 

The week ahead should be quite relaxed. We’ve got playgroup two days, our baby class one day (already paid for) and a visit from my friend. We’ve got a birthday party this weekend so will need to pop out and get a card and a book. 

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The chicken week is over and it was fab. I did miscalculate though and end up with 800g of pulled fajita chicken to get through in one night (between us all) and it was too much. That’s the good news! The bad news was the MOT damage of £450 which went straight on the credit card. The end of the month cannot come quick enough! 

We’ve started some Christmas shopping and spent £50 so far (1 gift for each child). These are both bigger gifts but will need to have a think about budget for the rest of Santa’s offerings. I’d be up for smaller piles but Mr DFW is all about material things and spoiling the kids with a million gifts… hopefully we’ll meet somewhere in the middle! I’ve started making wish lists for big gifts that I’d love the kids to have for relatives who want ideas. So far we’ve got Magnatiles, more Lego and balance beams/stones because I’m all for gifts that make them think or get some energy out. We had a great morning building with Lego and it’s nice to see them playing happily together. 

We ran out of bread this morning so today I’ve made 2 loaves!!! After weeks of saying I’d do it, turns out all I needed for enforced confinement with a sick baby. His timing isn’t great as big boy is off nursery due to the October week but we’re trying our best! I’m very excited for this new bread making hobby and I already had everything I needed which felt like a great frugal win. 

I also rearranged things this week to make sure all debt was 0% as some offers ended this month. We now have 3 big cards to pay off and one that will be for emergencies only (and for my professional fees!). Both Lloyds and NatWest are joint debt and Virgin is mine to pay back. The PayPal is also all 0%. We’re at the annoying part of the month where direct debits haven’t gone out so the money is waiting in the Monzo pot, and I don’t want to tempt fate and pay it off too early and have to make double payments. Both Lloyds and NatWest end 0% in November next year, just after my 30th. We’re also trying to save for a house deposit. We’ve budgeted £350 per month for debt payoff for joint debts and I’ll set a personal budget for myself for my own card. That would be 2 years payback so we’ll need to up this slightly, or move some at the end of the term. It will all depend on how quickly we buy a house….

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It has been a long while since I’ve updated my diary! I’ve gone back to work and I am loving it. It makes such a change to have a variety of things to do with my days rather than parenting 24/7. I’ve also seen my payslip for this month and woohoo - it is a goodie! I’ve not been taxed this month due to being on maternity pay so that was a nice treat. I’ve split the extra £500 into £100 extra for house fund, £100 extra to debt pay-off and £100 to holidays. Our plan is to book my 30th birthday holiday this week! 

We had a money date last week and changed a few categories in the budget. Our food budget was over so this has gone up to £450 per month. We’ve also increased the days out fund from £200 to £300 a month. Anything extra will come out of our personal spends which is fine! 

My birthday was over the weekend too so I’ve got some birthday money and vouchers to spend. Feel a bit guilty at the thought of spending money on myself. I’m tempted to use the £30 next gift card I’ve got to pay off my Next card, rather than buy myself something… I probably will. I don’t need more towels! I had a few things on my wish list over the month. I’ve purchased a few things already (new knitting needles, wool for a scarf for big boy) and flowers for my mum and gran. I feel too guilty having it all for me! I have some fabric on my list but I’m determined to sew up some stash fabric first before I buy more in the spirit of declutterring. 

Updated debt totals: 

CC1 (Lloyds): £1,160

CC2 (NatWest): £6,682

CC3 (Virgin): £4,495

CC4 (John Lewis): £681 

PayPal: £1,096

Next: £60

Total: £14,114

Updated savings totals:

House fund: £2,745

Emergency fund: £160

Christmas fund: £135

We’ve still to save £400 this month towards holidays, another £50 for the emergency fund and £600 in the house fund. It’s a LISA so will see the bonus added on too!

Direct debits this month:

CC1 (Lloyds): £116

CC2 (NatWest): £67

CC3 (Virgin): £75

CC4 (John Lewis): £240

PayPal: £150

Next: £30

£611 

This is 4% of the balance which is quite exciting. I would like to round this up to 5% so I will see where I can do this. I will use the voucher and that’ll help pay off Next too! 

I’m also going to start tracking my pension and our house savings fund. Our plan is to save £1000 per month towards a house fund. Part of me thinks we should pay more towards debt first but I want to get as much as possible saved as it’s Offers Over here. I’ve also done a MIP and we’d be accepted to borrow what we’d need and a mortgage would cost roughly £1k a month at current rates. I’m happy that if we’re saving that while paying rent and paying down debt on 0% cards, we’d afford the mortgage. The only card that isn’t 0% is John Lewis so my aim is to get this to £0, then focus on PayPal or Lloyds. 

wannabedebtfreemum95

Ah it has been a while! I am feeling the December frenzy but we are doing well money-wise. I’m finding it tricky to rein in the Xmas spending but I’m officially finished my shopping. Hope the big boy is happy with his Santa gifts but the baby will be none the wiser. 

We are still battling away with the debt but paying off £500 each month. We’re saving £1000 a month towards a house and aiming to buy in the summer. I’d love to get a bit more of the debt paid off by then! It’s that time of year where I start making goals and resolutions. Today we have £9541 of joint debt and £4697 in our house savings. We’ve got £150 in the emergency fund and £160 in the holidays fund too. I’m feeling good about how things are going but think I’ll need to plan quarterly. 

Goals for end of Q1: 
Debt total £7000
house savings total £10500
emergency fund £500

the holiday fund probably won’t have much in it as we are going to book a hotel for our autumn holiday as soon as we have cash to cover it. 

Weekly plans:
this week we’ve got our baby class, a play date, an unplanned Friday then a date day at the weekend. Thank goodness for free babysitters! We’ve got money sitting (£100) to cover this and it’s been over a year since we were out child free so I will enjoy every minute. Not sure wherher we’ll have anything child free to talk about but we’ll see!

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Forgot to budget nursery teacher gifts in the Christmas budget… luckily we had money sitting in the food shopping pot but jeez! Bought a wee gift too for his language teacher because she is lovely and so patient with us, especially taking the baby to class too. 

Treated myself to some leggings today too (£24). I’ve checked my bank and I’ve got £70.66 to last until next week but we’ve got enough food, enough Diet Coke and money in the joint account for our lunch out. I know it’s a short month but still feels exciting to have finished the pay period in the black. We’ve also not paid for any Xmas presents with credit cards so I  doubly pleased with that. 

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Merry Christmas everyone! I am glad to see the back of Christmas… Santa hadn’t quite planned where all the presents would be stored and the house looks like a toy shop. 

I’ve updated my signature and each time I do it, it feels so depressing. There has been direct debits and micropayments aplenty but it feels as if there’s no progress. We’ve still got £13k to pay off. 

The budget this month is looking healthy - we’ve got £250 in the days our fund (mainly as we’re all off until 6th Jan) and £200 in the food pot with shopping delivered yesterday. The kids got loads of lovely gifts and quite a bit of cash each too for Christmas (about £200 each) so half of that will go towards attraction tickets for our holiday next year and half can be spent on things they want/need. I’ve also got a fund of £250 to spend on myself (some of this is remaining from my birthday) and I’ve saved £100 into the house fund from gift money. The LISA progress is the only thing I’m feeling positive about! 

Looking at the list of debts outstanding, the John Lewis is the obvious one to go. This is where the swimming and football costs are charged to so I won’t close the account, but will pay it in full each month. I’m struggling to know how to tackle things going forward after that. I moved the balance on JL card onto Lloyds at 0% so everything is now 0% interest and we’ve not used the carda for day to day spending all month, which is a win! The direct debits are set to £50 (Lloyds), £100 (Virgin), £65 (NatWest) and £100 (PayPal). 

Plan going forward:
- take £10 out of each small savings pot and use this to pay off JL card
- change direct debits for Lloyds and NatWest to £75 each (this changes total debt minimum each month to £350 - 37 months) 
- allocate £200 each month to extra pay off  
Q1 - Paypal (900 total)
Q2 - Lloyds (1050 total) 
Q3 - NatWest (1275 total) 
Q4 - card a month 

if it all works out, the aim would be to pay off PayPal and Lloyds this year with a big dent into NatWest. I haven’t included extra on the Virgin card as that’s mine rather than joint. I’ll need another plan for that!