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New year resolutions update

Saturday, September 5th, 2009 | Life, Money Saving

Well we are now in September and boy has this year flown by!  I’m lagging behind on my blog, so really sorry to anyone that is following it but I hope it means I’m getting other areas sorted out!

So the resolutions for the new year, you can find them here if you haven’t read them before. I updated in April and I think I was doing ok… you can read the update here.

September now and not long left so here I am:

Simplifying my life… This is a very long journey indeed it’s going slow due to being affected by other areas, it will most likely be an ongoing journey!

Having said that the de cluttering is going well, again it takes a while as there are lots of things I can sell rather than just throw away. Sometimes selling these things takes a while in it self, you need to find the right buyer that is willing to pay the price your after.. A few things recently I had a couple of attempts at selling with no interest or interest at prices where to be honest I’d rather keep the stiff , I know I don’t need it, and something is better than nothing. But there are some things you just can’t let go like that! Anyway, a little later the right time and person came along and I was please to have held onto them. All the money raised from selling things has been put into savings to pay off the credit cards.. more on that later!

My last simplifying update in April brought good news that the bay window in the bedroom was almost clear, but that the spare room was being used as a store. Well this is no longer the case, the bay window is now full of more stuff than it ever has been. This is due to the arrival of visitors staying for a fortnight at the beginning of August. Still the spare bedroom is now a spare bedroom again, and the moving from one room to another uncovered some bits that were given a new home via freecycle.  Next week I plan to sort out the bay window!

my hotspots are: dining room table, top of fridge freezer, beside the microwave, on top/beside the beer fridge.

The dining room table is still the worst hot spot offender… nothing I seem to do can keep it clear! The top of the fridge freezer has been the most successful and it has remained clear. The microwave is still a bit of a hotspot.. but it’s better, the stuff that is there now does need to find a proper home I’m just not sure where yet! The beer fridge, again it’s better but things tend to get dumped there if they need to go in the shed – this needs to stop… I need to stop being lazy and go put things back in the shed or make sure I do it asap!

The old style life is coming along nicely, I’m enjoying cooking and it’s great doing extra to freeze gives you nice easy days/weeks . The home made washing powder is working well and I’m using a couple of drops of essential oils to give a nice fragrance especially if i can’t line dry the washing. The chemical cleaners have almost gone completely, and I’m pretty used to using the vinegar/lemon/baking soda alternatives.  I’m getting into the habit of doing quick wipe rounds rather than letting things build up and then having to do mass cleans. Microfibre clothes are my best friend!  I’m also mending things and altering things that I would have previously thrown away. My work trousers were getting too big for me.. they were handy ones with two buttons on the side to adjust them so I’ve removed the furthest button and sewn it inside the nearest button now I don’t need to keep hiking them up all the time:)

My crusade on toiletries is continuing… I think all the moisturisers I have will last me through next year as well, they seem to be never ending! Combining with simplifying and money saving, I’m bulk buying shampoos/shower gels when on offer. Ultimately I would like to have a go at making my own soaps. It’s a pretty simple but dangerous thing to do because you use caustic soda. So I will give this a try in November/December when the little one is at school full time. Will be nice to have some home made soaps for Christmas presents too. I can then also give up the commercial shampoos and shower gels as well.

I’m using the Tawas Crystal exclusively now and it seems to be doing the job… I have the odd paranoid day because you still sweat so on the hotter days it was a little strange.  The thing is you need to sweat.. especially women, if your using antiperspirants they block up the pores and stop your underarm lymph glands from draining this can be a cause of breast cancer! I know it’s not nice having wet sweaty marks under your arms, but think of your health and the environment!  when this crystal is done I’m going to have a try at the steel body stick it’s £19.95 plus £5.95 P&P but the steel disk never wears out so one will last you a lifetime, that’s got to be money saving!

On the subject of actual sweat and the wetness, I’m hoping that with the exercise I’m doing the amount of wetness I experience will be reduced.  The fitter you are the better your body becomes at regulating your body temperature and hence the fitter you are the less you sweat wet you become.

So having said that lets move onto the new year new me.. well I didn’t make the target I had set myself back in October 2008 which was to reach my target weight by April 2009  I’m way way off but things have started to happen. Mostly due to getting more regular exercise. Currently I cycle to and from work on Thursdays and Fridays, when im not working I’ve been cycling places when I’d have previously got on a bus. I do a Kickboxing class on Thursday evenings and I also do a exercise DVD, this is a little erratic and I’m working on making it more regular. I haven’t done anything with the wii/wii fit etc… but again once the little one is at school full time I will give that a go and see how it is.

The problem with me is that if I’m exercising well I slip into the mentality that I can eat what I like, which is kinda true as I don’t put weight on, but at the same time I don’t loose anything. Then if I’m not exercising, I eat well and again I don’t put weight on but I don’t loose it either. Need to get my head sorted in this department!

Finally the area I’ve had most success in is paying off my debts. Back in April I updated with the fact that I’d managed to clear my small (£536.19) credit card and that my larger one which started out at £1750.66 was going well and I had £1300 left and savings of £592.08 to make the final pay off.  Well with my monthly payment of £100 and selling things, ebay, forums, car boot, and doing the payment a day I managed to get all the money together and last month pay off all but £100. As my 0% interest rate ended last month I had to pay interest this month, so my final payment has been paid £107.xx this month and I am now totally free of credit card debt!

I now have zero credit card debt but also zero savings so no cushion now…. Though saying that I do still have my small change jar and my £2 coin savings. I think I have £156 in £2 coins but It’s probably a bit more as I’m sure I have forgotten sometimes when I have put money in! ….Onwards and upwards with the savings!

ohh… almost forgot, I have got this far this year without buying any new shoes, none of mine have been discarded yet although there is one pair that will need to go soon. I have not been so good on the clothes front and have succumbed to a couple of purchases.. two new t-shirts and a new hooded top.. there is probably more (not counting socks and pants) that I’m conveniently forgetting!

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