SKI-er or Sk-ater. We know how to enjoy ourselves

sloan

What would you like us to be discussing?

margaretclare

DH and I have just booked a 4-night Christmas break at the Royal Court Hotel, Coventry. As well as all the usual meals, entertainment etc there's a heated indoor swimming pool and leisure club which is open over Christmas even on Christmas Day! So we can escape if we want to.

Last weekend we were at a Diabetes Support weekend at the Savoy Hotel, Blackpool. Very interesting and informative. The most enjoyable session was run by personal trainers Steve and Marie Halls: www.stevehalls.co.uk

In response to DiggerUK, I don't do chocolate, or conservatories. I'm on a weight loss/fitness programme and if I wasn't doing that before I certainly would do now, following some of the things I learned last weekend. I go to over-50s aqua-aerobics and adult beginners' swimming, as well as a weekly keep-fit session sitting on chairs.

donny-gal

Arthurian wrote: »

Sorry to barge in here - I've been wondering about this for ages. Is anyone here actually planning to spend their kids' inheritance - i.e., spend their savings, use the value of their house to fund holidays, etc? If so, perhaps you have a plan to spend your accumulated wealth at so much per year over a certain number of years. How do you know how many years that will be? And what happens if you last longer than the money?

DiggerUK wrote: »

All I can say about this thread, is that you only ever get to hear about chocolate, knitting needles, conservatories, dongles and how to lay back and think of yourself.
If I last longer than the money, I don't think I'm going to wake up the morning after I kick my clogs off, moaning about what I should have done the day before.
Can't explain why the hell I keep returning here.
See you around.

Let me try to respond to both these in one.

We are fortunate enough to have a house here and one in Spain. Our comment to our son has been, "you will get one house, you may get two but don't expect any cash as we expect to spend it" If we run out of cash, then we will have to live on our pension(s) and if we are entitled Pension Credit. We have found from our own parents and the need for money other than heating is minimal as you get older. Not everyone is as fortunate, and the trick is to spend enough to enjoy what you want to do or put a cap of where you stop.

Digger - When we decide to stop earning be it at official retirement age, before or after, we make a decision on what we want to do with our time/money. Some decide to spend on their home to make it more confortable/useful to them when they are not as able to put up with the mess. Some decide to travel to far flung lands, other just to travel more locally, others may like to travel but the euro is against them. On the other hand, if you have been working full time and raising a family all your working life, then it is a time to "do what you want", be it knitting, embroidery, reading, researching the family tree, shopping, or whatever. Others may wish to see their offspring enjoy some of their riches while they are here to see, I am unsure if you feel that extensive travel is essential to stop you feeling you have wasted your time, we are happy just to travel to europe, my husband does not wish to travel to see the rest of the world. He finds flying "boring" and prefers to go where he can drive to. To me being able to get up and please myself is a bonus.:j

I will now stick my head back into my family tree research, which is why I am so quiet:o
DG

seven-day-weekend

We too have a house in UK and one in Spain. Our son will have the UK house. He almost certainly will not have the Spanish house. When the time comes when we find we are not using it, we will sell it.

However, we have found that even when we ourselves are not using it, it is a good asset for Home Exchange holidays, so we may keep it just for that. There is always a broke expat happy to clean it up in between visits for a small fee. This year we had three weeks in a beautiful place in beautiful Pembrokeshire while the people from there came here; next year we have a month in a cottage in a pretty Shropshire market town. This is definite, there may be others. So even if in the future we find we are not using it much, it may be worth keeping just for this.

As to Digger, I'm not quite sure what he/she is talking about.

margaretclare

Arthurian wrote: »

Sorry to barge in here - I've been wondering about this for ages. Is anyone here actually planning to spend their kids' inheritance - i.e., spend their savings, use the value of their house to fund holidays, etc? If so, perhaps you have a plan to spend your accumulated wealth at so much per year over a certain number of years. How do you know how many years that will be? And what happens if you last longer than the money?

Well, we've already used the 'house' i.e. we did equity release to pay off the original mortgage and that freed up £260 or so every month for which we could see pleasanter uses. The following year the roof needed replacing - 70-year old asbestos tiles, roof beams had to be strengthened and modern tiles put in place, that was about £3.5K IIRC.

Last year there was quite a lot of spending when DH was seriously ill - I had to get the new shower enclosure, loo and re-tiling in the bathroom, plus new chairs, one a recliner, and new curtains. Just before he had that infection we had a fantastic holiday down the Rhine valley in Germany as far down as Bodensee.

We've just been away on a weekend, going on a 4-day break over Christmas. And we had our September holiday in Brittany.

In answer to your question, it's not so much a question of using 'accumulated wealth' because there wasn't any. We're still saving but we choose what we spend money on.

One of DH's 2 granddaughters is trying for a music scholarship at Repton School. The other one wants to become an RAF pilot. I think it's fair to say that neither of those 2 will actually need any 'inheritance', but they'll each get a 5th share of whatever is left because that's only fair. Bit different from my eldest GD who lives in a council flat, but even then, she's independent, doing a job she loves, and pays her own way.

Savvy_Sue

At the moment, I am SKIing wildly on trains and petrol to visit my dad in hospital, and paying for my boys to do the same. DH knows I am in 'Hang the Expense' mode.

pollypenny

Hope your dad is improving, Sue.

donny-gal

Me too Sue

We are also in the same frame of mind, new caravan ordered due end of year, just researching new TV, PVR and bed or mattress.:o

DiggerUK

seven-day-weekend wrote: »

As to Digger, I'm not quite sure what he/she is talking about.

He was talking whilst allowing some Belgian chocolate to tickle his tonsils, best done with the tongue in the cheek.

Newly_retired

Well our bathroom and kitchen are now finished after 5 weeks disruption. I am pleased with the work.
Two problems now - massive clean up operation to get rid of the thick layers of dust throughout the whole house. Getting rid of stuff I no longer want around the house, and not upsetting DH in the process. He says the bathroom looks like an operating theatre - too clinical. I'm not minimalist but our house is too full of stuff.