Mortgage Free by 50???

hatch_five

My wife thinks I'm mad (well more mad than before)- I have started darning socks on an evening whilst we watch TV! Partly this is a bit of money saving as they last longer and I go through socks at a ridiculous rate (big, flat feet?), it helps keep them out of the landfill for a bit longer which is good, but mostly I actually find it quite relaxing! I am trying to cut down my screen time as I spend all day on the laptop for work, and sitting and doing some mending whilst we watch TV gives me something to do with my hands that requires little brain power. My OH thinks I'm bonkers as socks are not expensive, but I quite like the idea of repairing them and getting a bit more life from them- my darns are also slowly getting neater so I must be improving my skills...

vampirotoothus

Hi I think it's great for the reasons that you point out. Perhaps you could make a small payment to one of your CCs for each sock you darn, so you can see the monetary saving having an impact too. Good luck on the rest of your journey V x

Sarahwithlove

When did your wife last apply for PIP as it may be worth trying again, there's quite a lot of help on the forums with PIP claims. 

hatch_five

Not a good week for accidents! Monday OH's knee went getting out of the bath and she managed to whack her head on the sink with a big bruise and yesterday I went out to refill the log basket and managed to slip on the ice and bruised my ribs... I don't think I've cracked anything as I would be in a lot more pain, but my chest is certainly very tender and trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in was a challenge. Aren't these things supposed to come in threes, so what weird and painful accident is left to happen???

hatch_five

Sarahwithlove said:

When did your wife last apply for PIP as it may be worth trying again, there's quite a lot of help on the forums with PIP claims. 

It was last year. I will mention it, but I think she is very disillusioned with the whole thing so until she is in the right headspace she doesn't want to know at the moment.

hatch_five

Seems a while since I updated. This month seems to be lasting forever! I get paid on the 28th and money is already pretty much allocated and I have revised my budget about ten times already. Daughter has asked to do a dance class after school one night a week in February and March, so that is £20, I have a £25 membership for a group I am part of (as it covers my public liability insurance for a hobby and I get to do fun things, this annual payment isn’t much, but it is another £25 I have to find this month), dentist for me and the kids which even on the NHS with a checkup and bus fare will set me back £35 and then putting some money aside for a meal deal on Valentines day (no babysitter and ridiculous prices at a restaurant so this is our go to special thing), trip out with DD and a friend to a model railway show etc. Nothing major but it all adds up- I will still be able to over pay my credit cards and save something but it is a little depressing how quickly everything adds up. I got a small payrise before Christmas which was nice, but UC has gone down to reflect that so we are back to square one. I need to go into work a week on Monday (day before payday!) but as the whole team are in and I have a colleague who lives in the next village I am going to ask nicely and see if I can get a lift there and back and save £11.

I am planning a quiet weekend in (with my finances that seems to be a common occurrence but as I am very much a home bird I don’t mind). I need to take DS into the village for a haircut- OH cuts mine but that’s not cool enough for a twelve year old- and I need to pick up a few essentials in the supermarket. UC is due through on Wednesday and we normally do the weekly shop on a Tuesday so just need a few bits of veg etc. to tide us over. I am going to crack on with a card kit this weekend, try and get some more of the book written and do a big bake to refill the cake tins. I found a punnet of raspberries and blueberries in the freezer I picked up in the chuck out before Christmas so I might make a pie for after Sunday dinner…

Sarahwithlove

Do you have any local hairdressing colleges or does your hairdresser have an apprentice. They tend to be much cheaper 

hatch_five

Sarahwithlove said:

Do you have any local hairdressing colleges or does your hairdresser have an apprentice. They tend to be much cheaper 

We are in a small village so no colleges near by and the barber works with his cousins so no apprentices (do male barbers go to college or just learn on the job?). Its £7 for kids so not too bad but as his hair grows so fast he needs to go every month. If it was up to DS he would have hair like Donny Osmond, but it sticks out in every direction so needs to be kept under control. I've had the same buzz cut since I was four years old and my OH can do that easily with the clippers but DS would look like a convict if he had his cut like that!

hatch_five

Its been a while since I updated, but it helps keep me on track so I need to do it more often, even if its only for my own benefit. Yesterday was payday so managed to chip away at the credit cards a bit more and the savings pot is now up to £200 in the emergency fund and £200 in the Help to Save fund- not a massive amount I know, but its better than where I was a few months ago and it feels different this time. In the past I have received some sums of money and put them in the account and then frittered them away over a few months- this time as I know I have been putting it aside bit by bit, I feel a lot more precious over them than if it had been a lump sum I had been given so I am very loath to touch any of it (not sure that makes sense, but its how I feel).

On the money saving front, I received a code for a 1p card from Card Factory yesterday with free postage. As I had already got OH’s valentines day card, I picked up a nice card for my mum for Mother’s Day- still a way off, but its one more thing ticked off and I am amazed at how organised I am being at the moment. I have the month budgeted out with pots to cover a meal deal for Valentines day (can’t afford to go out and no baby sitter so a nice meal deal, a movie and a bottle of wine will be a good substitute), taking the kids and myself to the dentist at half term and a day out with DD this weekend. Nothing earth shattering I know, but the idea of having the money allocated in advance, rather than trying to scrape it together at the last minute is rather novel!

The big shop arrived yesterday and the cupboards and freezers are full- the thought of having an empty pantry fills me with dread (grew up on a rural farm and we could be cut off by snow for a week or more at a time so learnt my mum’s habit of stockpiling). I have been picking extra bits up each week to try and fill my larder- not quite prepping for the apocalypse but I want to have that buffer just in case. I have been made redundant three times in five years in my sector and its still a bit squeeky bum so trying to clear my debts, build up some savings and having a full store cupboard seems a bit of sensible future planning at the moment, and with food inflation the prices will only go one way so best to stock up when I see a bargain.

linz

Hey, just stumbled across your diary and thought i'd suggest geocaching as a free activity you could do with your children? Don't know if you've heard of it. There's a free version and a paid for, but the free version has plenty of caches I think. Combine with a nice walk, and picnic when it's nicer weather and it makes a really fun and cheap day out