Early morning here. Was laying in bed thinking about how crap I was at running and was worrying that I am so unfit that I couldn't sleep and got up at 0600.
So now am unfit and tired!
Will do my run this morning as soon as it gets light and then it will be out of the way.
Am catching up on some blogs and everyone seems to be well prepared for Christmas.
We have had a huge cut down this year on presents. I have been know to go a bit mad and it's all too much especially when we are trying to pay off debts.
Big Man said to me last night that we just won't know ourselves when we are debt free.
We will be making 2014 THE YEAR when we pay off our debt or most of it anyway.
The most important thing I have learned from all your blogs, the tips we share and other forums is planning ahead. I know what's coming be it car insurance, tax, Christmas, house insurance, chimney sweep time. Therefore there is no excuse to not be prepared. I will make sure next year that I have all the money saved and stashed so its there. I can't stand having to scrabble around and get into more debt paying for things. I got seriously caught out this year with a huge repair bill for my car.
I will start by saving the council tax that we don't have to pay in February and March. That can be stashed away towards the insurances we pay.
Back to now and Christmas. We haven't any decorations save a twig tree with lights on it. We won't have any visitors as we go to my mums for Christmas. No children come here and as we are mostly at work we don't have anyone round for drinks. We sound like a right old pair of bah humbugs.
The shops were packed yesterday when I ventured out at lunch time. The card factory had queues out of the door but their prices are very good. 89p for lovely, large cards that would be at least £2.50 elsewhere.
I hope your plans are coming together and you are not too stressed.
Have a great day and weekend
X
Same here. Next year I have a huge tax bill to pay because I planned badly. There's also wedding debt, mortgage buyout and big house repairs. It feels like I'm knitting a massive debt blanket, having to unravel row after row to pick up dropped switches. In this for the long run, but we'll get there!
ReplyDeleteI'm currently saving the water d/d , for some reason they take it over 8 months and not 12. So I save the remaining 4 ( dec,jan,feb and march ) and put it towards something else :-)
ReplyDeleteWell done on getting your plans for next year sorted now. That is a good idea to kick start your savings using council tax money, as it always goes out you won't miss it. I have decided to go looking at Multi Fuel stoves, my underfloor heating is cheap enough and the ground floor is lovely and warm but I also have to have an immersion heater running for hot water. I tried turning it off and boiling kettles but found it REALLY frustrating especially on gardening days. I had to wash my hands in freezing water before filling the kettle, not good when you are desperate to pee. I could have 2 small radiators upstairs, I like my bedroom cold but Francesca feels the cold and when she is here her electric heater costs an arm and a leg to run and she has to put the bathroom fan heater on for 10 minutes before she will consider having a shower.
ReplyDeleteWell done on the planning, you will feel much more in control, just don't beat yourself up if you cannot quite manage all the frugality you hope, or the weight loss. It will get easier the more you do (most of the time) just by getting used to your new way of living. We are currently saving all of our earnings, as we had planned our budget and allocated our savings until the end of 2014 as a 'worst case scenario' that we did not get any real work during that time. It was a little disappointing that when we started earning regular full-time wages a few weeks ago that it was immediately transferred to the savings account, but this is balanced out by the fact that the balance on the account grows considerably week by week, and within a couple of months has built up to a four figure sum. We will of course, be able to do lots of travelling for that money in 2015 so well worth it. Have you considered working your budgets out on 'basic' wages, then transferring the 'extra/overtime' money into a separate account? You will be less likely to spend it then.
ReplyDeleteWhen we first made the decision to pay things like insurances upfront rather than in installments, we worked out the "real" monthly cost and then started by putting that amount aside, plus any extra that was needed due to starting this part way through the year. Now things like home insurance, car costs etc are all budgeted for and the money feeds off into the various savings accounts each month without us even noticing - we're just used to it. Our council tax & water rates money for Feb & March always goes against mortgage overpayments now too - again, we don;t have that money for the rest of the year so don't miss it for those two months. it's a great idea to use it to set yourselves up for your annual funds for things though!
ReplyDeleteI have a deeply scrimping year next year. I have the house to fix up, my savings to build up and no matter what, we are having a little holiday. To do this, we will have to squeeze every penny until it squeaks. Good luck with the debt repayment - it will change your life xxxxx
ReplyDeleteHi FIB, I have a twig tree also. Not bought any new decs just using a few selected items from my stash to give us a Christmassy feel. It's great to see your New Years plans. Reducing debt and improving health. We all need to focus on those things.
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