My debt busting diary 2015

A question about : My debt busting diary 2015

Happy New Year!!!

So, I thought with the start of the new year I should start a new debt busting diary. 2014 hasn't been a great year financially or emotionally, but if it's taught me anything it's that life's too short and to make the most of it. At the minute I feel as though my life is on hold until the debts sorted and whilst I was pretty focussed through 2014, I just seem to have gone round in one huge big circle - making good progress until the next little emergency crops up and sets me back to square one. Not anymore - 2015 is a time for change. I'm determined not to be sat here this time next year in the same position.

So time to draw a line under 2014.....

Financial aims for 2015
1. Pay off all debt by the end of the year.
2. Get saving - aim to have saved at least Ј1k by the end of the year

Personal aims for 2015
1. Make time for those I care about and don't lose site of what's important.
2. Lose weight and exercise (my weight like my finances has yo-yoed over the last couple of years - approx 1.5 stone to lose)

So my current position is as follows......
Ј643.84 overdraft
Ј223.59 card 1
Ј2264.53 card 2
Ј746.33 card 3

Total Ј3878.59

Time to get cracking.......

Best answers:

• My biggest financial downfalls (the ones that I'm aware of anyway!)
  1. Overspend on food shop - budget Ј200 for 2 of us but always end up going over. This could be a lot less - need to meal plan and make full use of my slow cooker
  2. Getting caught out by insurance renewals - these happen same time every year so with planning there's no excuse to be caught out. Want to pay these in lump sums in order to cut monthly outgoings.
  3. No emergency fund - if it hadn't been for several car / pet / house emergencies last year the debt would be long gone. Would like to get Ј500 buffer in place ASAP so that focus can be solely on running the debt down.
  4. Birthdays & Christmas - love buying pressies but need to make sure I don't go OTT. Swag$ helped out massively with keeping last years costs down and intend to do the same this year.
• Good luck on your journey in 2015
• Thanks MrsR68
  Goals for January......
  1. Pay off card 1 in full - this is the only one I'm paying interest on.
  2. Swag at least Ј15
  3. Sort out house insurance and pay in full.
  I've paid the min payment of Ј50.95 to card 2 so time to put all the focus on card 1.
  I've got a few bits that need listing on ebay which I intend to do tonight. Fingers crossed they'll bring a few pennies in.
• Managed to get a couple of items listed on eBay last night - already got a couple of watchers so fingers crossed bids follow soon!
  Had a letter from the student loans company a while back saying my loan was almost repaid and to contact them to set up a repayment plan as rolling it on into the next financial year would result in me over paying. Need to drag out my wage slips for the year and give them a call. Once I've got confirmation of how much is outstanding I will add this to my other debts and treat it in the same way.
  It's back to work on Monday so I'm going to spend today having a good tidy and home and at the yard. Tree and decs also need to com down for another year
• Good morning!
  Have just managed to sort my insurance out saving Ј36 on my renewal and hopefully bagging Ј84 cashback into the equation - well happy with that
  Had a good tidy yesterday and it's made me feel so much better, just need to get the decs down and packed away this weekend.
  Meeting a friend for a cuppa and post christmas catch up later which will be lovely and also need to pop to Aldi and grab some bits for my packed lunches for work. Also need to brave the scales and see what the festive damage has been so I can get cracking with the diet from my first day back at work- it's not going to be good
  Right better walk the woofs and get over to the yard. Have a good weekend
• Well done on the insurance, hope the scales are kind to you later, I was suprised when I got on mine, not as heavy as I thought.
• Nice suprise, the cashback for the insurance has actually tracked at Ј99.75
• Been quite a productive day today. Filled all my haynets for the week in preparation for going back to work on Monday and managed to clear the field for the first time since the boxing day snow. Did a quick shop in aldi (Ј23), filled up with petrol (Ј53) and met my friend for a cuppa.
  One of my ebay items has sold on buy it now for Ј40 so have paid it straight off card 1. Got another couple of items to list - will do this tomorrow night as always find things sell better on Sunday evenings.
• Helloooooooo Excellent news on the cashback and the eBay sale
  I got on the scales for the first time in a fortnight this morning and got off them again very quickly. On the plus side, I now know why my running speed has dropped dramatically this last week!
• You sound so much like me!
  I hate insurance renewal time, I need to get my but into gear because I tend to think oh ill just go with it, it's just easier, then ends up costing me a fortune.
  I need to lose about ...well was one stone but reckon it's more like one and a half since Christmas, I am sooooo angry with myself because I worked like mad to loose the weight and all for a load of chocolate which left me feeling sick anyway I've put it back on, an idiot I think!
  I used to open a hay or haylage bale and promptly net it all up, I had over 40 nets at one time! Now I put it on the floor to save time,and I also find it hard to lift the nets but to be honest I could have killed the lot of them today, he just trampled it everywhere and promptly lost me about a fiver of wasted hay at least, need go re think, may put hay boxes on the floor ...hmmmm
  I think I may try to do the swags thing,I joined up but havn't done it for a while, I do watch the free postcode lottery though,i watch that daily, never know! Cheerio
• Hi both!
  Still not plucked up the courage to stand on the scales but since I don't go back to work til tomorrow I've technically got 24 hrs before the diet commences!!!
  Cwtchie - I saw an interesting tip on one of the horsey forums re. Homemade hay bars. Someone had fitted planks of wood across the corner of the stable and hey presto a hay bar for next to nothing.
  I hate hate hate filling the nets but am soaking it for my little cushinoid pony and his mate and the big lad would wolf it all down in no time without a net.
• Or if you're handy with a hammer and nails - Mr Minx made me two of these and they've saved a fortune in trampled-on hay.
  We cobbled together the grid out of something from a builders' yard, but if you don't live somewhere with Highlands & Islands delivery charges, look for something called Gridwall on eBay - it's the shop-fitting stuff that retailers hang hooks off and it's perfect for hay boxes!
• Oooo I like the look of those Caz
  Well first day back at work today - can't say I'm looking forward to it but it's got to be done.
  Soup was made in slow cooker yesterday so have lunch to take in all week. Need to remember to take my kindle so I'm not tempted to pop out and spend at lunchtime.
  Listed another couple of items on ebay last night. If they all sell for minimum bid I should be looking at Ј80 which will pay a chunk off the cc1.
  Still not back in the swing of things with swag$ - really need to do this as it was sooo useful for Christmas and birthdays.
  I have also braved the scales this morning 12st 4 my ideal range for my height is between 9st 10 and 12st 1 although from past experience I feel at my best at between 10st 7 - 11st. Time to get cracking!!!!!
• Hi there
  I honestly could have written your diary myself so I simply have to join
  I too have horses and am in the same boat of wanting to clear debts through this year (mine will go into next year though )
  I would definitely look at doing something home made for the hay. I hate hay nets.
  What soup did you make? I've put a veg one on last night that I found online - never had it before so let's see how it turns out. Making a quiche too.
  Good luck with your weight loss. Again, I am the same!
• Hi debtfree2012
  Lovely to see so many horsey people on here.
  The soup was carrot and coriander although reading this I've realised I completely forgot to put the coriander in doh!
  Looks like I've got another vet bill heading my way for the little pony. Fortunately the vet is writing me a prescription as I can get the medication online for half the price they supply it at, so not as bad as it could have been.
  I've been through this months budget this morning and have realised I hadn't accounted for January being a 5 week month. My goals for the month are now looking a tad on the optimistic side especially given the latest vet bill
• Aw wow...thanks for the advice re the hay! Deffo doing that!
  What medication does you pony take? Mine has prascend one tablet a day, really have to watch him with the laminitis though
• Fortunately he was diagnosed with Cushings prior to prascend being licensed so I can still get prescriptions for Pergolide which works out a lot cheaper - think I paid just over Ј100 for the last lot which should last him about 13 months. The vet suggested ventipulmin for him this time as he's had a niggling cough due to having a dusty batch of hay before Christmas. My other two were also coughing but cleared as soon as I swapped the hay but his is lingering - I guess because he's already compromised with the cushings it's a pain as it means that I've had to buy hay in rather than use what's supplied on the yard but his health comes first.
  Laminitis is an evil disease - almost lost my little one to it last year (hence the massive vets bills and lack of debt busting!), although both his bouts have started in December. Been a long battle but he's pretty much recovered now - just in time for the spring grass
• Our pony out on loan had ventipulmin, she used to get inflammatory airways disease which played up around May when the mayflower was out.
  Hmmmm prascend has cost about Ј161 for 6 months!!! Will speak to the vet......
• Goodness the bills are expensive. My big girl had an op to de-nerve one hoof (only option that was viable) and if she wasn't insured I couldn't afford it as it was thousands but that was over a year ago now.
  I worry about my little man as ours are in over winter and last year he started to get a solid crest so we had to restrict his grazing but I really want him to live out from when we're allowed back out however after being in over winter, the grass is even better than normal spring grass and again I need to limit him. Grazing muzzles are a piece of cake to get off lol plus I worry he gets bullied as there's alot in the field and I want him to be able to protect himself. Roll on getting my own place!!!
  Good news that you can get meds cheaper though but bad news re Jan being 5 week month.