NST December 2018 – Exterminate the debt!

Me please lovely xx

Sounds good I'm in

Hello Everyone

I'm posting my goals today in case I don't get time tomorrow. They are adapted slightly from the challenge to take account of me being away for the first two weeks.

Tomorrow is pension day so all the bills will be paid and finances/budgets for the month sorted.

I'm not setting a number of NSDs as I don't think it will be practical but I'll try to be really careful about what we spend. I've taken cash out for food (we're self catering) and Himself has taken cash for going out. I'm hoping this will work better than using debit/credit cards as it'll make it easier to keep track of spending.

I will not browse on my phone or tablet. Really I won't. Looking forward to long chats with Himself and friends instead.

There are loads of sales in the outdoor shops in the Lake District but I honestly don't need anything. Whether I can stop Himself buying yet another jacket is another matter. We are intending to eat in most of the time (lovely market and lots of local shops including a fantastic butcher) but I have promised the Boy that he can have fish and chips from his favourite takeaway and a Sunday roast dinner in one of the pubs. Other than that not planning anything else. In fact, I'm going to have a proper breakfast (I'm terrible for just having coffee) to resist eating lunch out. Much better for me anyway.

I've downloaded lots of free kindle books so there will be loads of reading.

I'm pleased that I had an alcohol free November so I'm hoping to continue eliminating that bad habit by cutting down by limiting the number of alcoholic drinks I have (not easy when my friends are about).

Hoping to go different places, walk and have new experiences.

Back on the 15th to a quiet Christmas.

Hello, Can I join please? Thankfully no longer paying off debts but trying to maximise savings.

*tentatively pops head round door* can I join too please? I disappeared in June as DD arrived and have been meaning to come back ever since. Unfortunately we had a bumpy start to her life, she's well now and I'm looking forward to trying to get as much back to normal me as possible (including being a turtle!). I definitely won't achieve everything this month as we also have a family funeral to attend. We're now living 6 hours from home so need to factor in travelling back for funeral and Christmas, with 5/6 month old DD. Anyway, here's my intentions:

Debt-free date / Mortgage-free date / Savings target date.
We're dipping into savings for day to day living, planned and saved for but trying to limit damage

Organise your outgoings. Budget for the month. For e v e r y t h i n g. Write it down. And stick to it. Plan your meals – avoid waste. Batch cook
Difficult to meal plan given current uncertainty of our whereabouts for the rest of the month but I try. Spending diary has fallen to pieces and I really want to do this again.

Count up to 15. Fifteen No Spend Days.
I will try...

“There is no such thing as an ordinary human.” So says The Doctor. You are unique and amazing. Treat yourself well. “900 years of time and space and I’ve never met anyone who wasn’t important.”
I can't do this right now

One thousand days. More on this later as it’s a meaty one. Or a vegan sausage-y one. But definitely gluten and dairy free.
Veggie sausage for me please!

Refrain from browsing your phone when nothing else is going on for the duration of the challenge. Waiting in line? Commercial break? At a red light? Be present in the moment. Be okay with “boredom.” Okay, okay: do try it for a week at least.
Tricky as I always reach for my phone when stuck under baby - but I will come here for inspiration instead of mindless browsing

What kind of month do you want for yourself? Take a moment and really ask. What activities do I want to enjoy? What seasonal foods do I want to take advantage of? What do I want to have the energy to take on? Where can I build more leisure into my week? How can I be outside as much as possible?
I want mince pies... And hot tea. And I would like to finish my Christmas food and gift preparation before we travel for the funeral

Here’s a space to make up your own rule for the month. Please share it!
Pondering...

Outings. Drop one. Decide which one, inform those who need to know and enjoy the time and money you have just given yourself.
I only have 2 outings a week anyway which are invaluable to me, the rest is just me wheeling DD around running chores and encouraging naps!

Slow living this month. In a month of manicness, make a clear intention to keep your schedule and pace in check. Because, really, does anyone want a hectic December?
I will worry less about housework, I will also need to put DD in disposable nappies for travelling so less time on laundry

Omm. Take care of your mental health. Do something every day this month that makes you feel good: gym, reading, time with family, favourite tv programme, meditation, building a snowman. NOT spending, of course!! Write down 4 gratitudes each day.
My gratitude is the same every day

No entry to any sales. Unless you have a planned budget and have been saving for a specific item PLEASE do not go to the Boxing Day Sales. Or any sales. Anywhere. It’s temptation you can’t handle to buy tat you really don’t need. STAY AT HOME! Likewise, no takeaways, canteen meals (unless free), coffee shop or corner shop visits.
I have some gift vouchers received for my birthday which I have saved for the sales so they go further. I'm replacing things that need replacing and have seen what I'm hoping will be reduced. Will try and do online as I've never understood physically shopping on boxing Day.

“I am and always will be the optimist. The hoper of far-flung hopes, the dreamer of improbable dreams.” So says the Doctor. Be a dreamer. Be an optimist
That's quite a push but I'll try!

Candles - Switch to candles and firelight after dark (or the high-tech adjustable hue bulb equivalents). Plus, everyone likes a good fire. (But not so much that the fire brigade come to see you…) And switch off your tech an hour before going to bed please.
No candles with devil cat and increasingly mobile baby but we do all enjoy the fake flames on our electric fire of an evening. We shall use that

“Some people live more in 20 years than others do in 80. It’s not the time that matters. It’s the person.” “We’re all stories in the end. Just make it a good one.”

Chase down more awe and joy. Go after it with a purpose. Go and enjoy the sparkly lights. Take a tour of your neighbourhood to look at other people’s outdoor decorations – and be smug about how you are not wasting your money like that. Go and seek Santa’s sleigh in the sky on Christmas Eve.
I've always done this, sadly we'll have no call to put our own decs up, a shame as I've collected them all for free over the last couple of years

Read fiction before bed. Reading fiction gets you into the right state of mind for dreamland.
Will try

Exercise. Get 10,000 steps a day (or set your own target). Move a little more. Embrace the outdoors and enjoy the fresh air.
Love getting out with DD, we go for a walk even if it's raining

“What’s the point of being grown up if you can’t be childish sometimes.” Go play. Go have fun. Laugh. Smile while you eat. Just because.
Unavoidable!

“Don’t give up. Not ever. Not for one single day. Be safe if you can be. But always be amazing.” Pop on here every day and tell us what you’re up to. Not just the good stuff, but also the bad and the ugly too.
I'm going to aim for every few days

Refuse to get sucked into guilt spending. Reject the mindset that needs to constantly acquire more (Now that is true Ferenghi, a whole other alien race)
Love this. All gifts this year are handmade

Identify activities and people who drain you. Give yourself permission to take a break from them for 21 days (or as many days as possible) if you can. Just maybe this is a gift you should’ve given yourself a long time ago…?
I don't have any of these thankfully

Visit your local area. Find new footpaths, see where a road or path takes you. Explore new horizons. Boldly go where no one has gone before. Oops, mixing my sci-fi….!
I have bought DH an ordinance survey map of our new area as a present so yes, definitely. Just once he's unwrapped it...

Exterminate (see, we can learn from the DALEKS…) one bad habit from your life for the first 10 days. This is NOT about food.
I will not buy DD any more clothes on eBay for 10 days. Yes she will use them but still, my poor postie must be knackered. Unless I'm asked to put her in something dark for the funeral...

Remember that you are blessed. Count your blessings daily. Be grateful for what you have. And remember those that have less – donate money, food, non-perishables, blankets to a charity that you want to support. Relish life, one day at a time.
I count my blessings everyday and have taken to supporting a few (new to me) local charities