AND.... my wife and neither drink nor smoke and I genuinely can't remember the last time we went out together on our own. We could't even afford to celebrate my wife's 40th earlier this year - which I still feel terrible about - much to the annoyance of her family who kept pestering us about what we were doing.
still, next month I will be making the 30th payment so it will all be downhill from there, hopefully
I know the feeling about the summer holidays scooby, we haven't done much at all, had an unexpected bill we had to pay which scuppered some days out we had planned, no holiday as we couldn't afford one (and don't have kind parents who will pay for one for us!)so it's been a very long 6 weeks, really going to have to try and save from allowances to do something with the kids next year.
Its my 40th in a couple of months and we won't be doing anything to celebrate that either, but hey ho, being 40 isn't something to celebrate imo lol!
I had a party at home for my 40th, nothing special, just family and a few friends and it didn't cost a lot at all.
My 50th was another matter - the plastic paid for hubby to surprise me with a trip to the Maldives. My 60th is coming up and I'll be going nowhere for that one!!
Hubby turned 65 last year and we did nothing for that either!
Thankfully family know he is a miserable so and so when it comes to his own birthdays so it came as no surprise!!
We all make sacrifices for ourselves or children within an IVA.
I particularly feel for those of you with young children that don't understand, my own daughter has 4 and know how difficult it is for her with a good wage coming in for uniforms and days out etc.,
Time with parents can be valuable doing simple things. x
IVA final payment left the bank on the 26th January 2013...looking forward to a debt free future.
Thankfully our daughter was at uni when we did ours and got a student loan so we didn't have to do much other than help her with meals to take back when she stayed in halls for a year. She has been working since she was 16 (part time and now full time) so was able to fund her own fuel to get there and back (she already had a car).
We have our granddaughter to look after (we're childcare!) but I'm afraid funds mean that we can't spend a lot on her at the moment. She's young enough that it won't bother her though.
Maybe I am missing the point here but we only get £40 for 2 adults for clothing so for someone getting £100 for themselves and 2 children seems more than adequate to me.
If you insist on buying all the brand names etc cut down on other stuff, yes when my 2 were at school we had to buy uniforms etc, but I bought it throughout the year (a size bigger so it fitted in the Sept) so it wasn't a big expense in one go. My kids now both left school never felt different etc and we had a tighter budget then as hubby was only working seasonally, we actually have more money now for food etc then we ever did when they were little.
If life is what you make it, I must have been in a strange mood when I made mine
I agree with you Peejayel, I have never been one for buying my kids all the branded stuff anyway as I have tried to teach them how shallow it all is, my daughter fortunately is very much an individual and tells me about all her friends who wear all this Jack Wills and hollister stuff but she can't stand it.
It is hard with young kids, my son who is 9 doesn't really understand what's going on, I think with tots it's easier in some ways as they can be happy with very little, you can take them to the beach for the day and they'll be happy to just play in the sand with a bucket and spade, older kids want more, arcade games, constant food and ice creams etc etc!
My children have not reached the age yet where i have to worry about 'names' as such but i do buy good quality clothes for my chidren and sometimes this means spending more but i do believe (and i think someone else has said) that in the long run it is actually the most cost effective option. I buy clarkes shoes for example as i think this is very very important, i have on the odd occasion bought a cheaper pair and they have not lasted two minutes. Plus at the age my children are i think footwear is very important. Clothing too, i will but things from the supermarkets if they look nice but i do find alot of things look cheap and dont wash well so i do shop at Next and M&S for them aswell. I dont ask to pay less money into my IVA to allow me to do this, i make cut backs myself as i have said. Not sure what i will do when they are older if they want branded things as IVA or no IVA i think alot of the branded clothing comes across as a little 'chavvy' i prefer nameless but good quality things for my children. (other than the clarkes shoes as i have said)
I agree with you about the 'chavvy' ness of some branded stuff josu (didn't want to be the one to say it though!) I always bought Next stuff for my kids when they were younger but they don't stock beyond age 12 in the store so none of it fits my 2 anymore, and I can't use the directory or online as they are one of my creditors!
I don't like supermarket clothes generally as I find they do look cheap and tatty and poor quality although I will get underwear from there, I have tried primark but don't really think much to their stuff either, my daughter I tend to get stuff from New look for her now, my son is a bit more difficult as there aren't as many options for boys of his age when you rule out the supermarkets!
I have to say I disagree that supermarket clothes look cheap and tatty! I've found some of my supermarket clothes last longer than things I've bought in M & S! My work clothes today consist of Tesco value trousers (£5) and a top from Asda (£12) and it's fine!
I don't have children but I don't see why Asda, Tesco, etc isn't good enough for white school shirts, t shirts, trousers etc.
Unfortunately, Tesco and Asda – like nearly every other clothes outlet – only stock children’s clothes up to age 11/12. Trying to buy stuff a for a very tall, skinny 13 year old girl and a VERY tall and skinny 15 year old boy really isn’t easy or cheap – especially when it comes to getting uniform for very picky schools.
Mine does too but for my children i just cant get it all from there. Where it is from is really not the point anyhow, even if i bought all of it from the supermarkets i would still spend a bomb i have two children under 5 growing every month, its crazy i cant keep up and ive just checked my own I&E and i only get £50 for a family of 4 so i am gonna raise this at my next review. Sorry if i am repeating myself but does anyone know where i can get a set of acceptable I&E figures from for a family of 4?
