So relieved to get to the end of January. Not quite there yet, but just about. It's been a long and expensive month. LB's birthday, a friend's son's birthday, sales shopping and NI voluntary contributions have made it a struggle, but with help from the overdraft I got through and live to tell the tale.
February will be another difficult month financially, a 40th birthday, a 21st birthday, another adult birthday gift, a nephew's housewarming gift and Valentines Day to come. Some presents have been bought already, some still to get/give. Hence, I'm looking forward to March when my financial life should ease up a little with just two normal birthdays on the horizon and Easter of course. From then on I don't have any birthdays until May when it's OH's and his dad's, so I should be able to make up some ground then.
So back to the budget.
Food - Just within at £6 or so under, but I have to admit that OH paid for some of the food shopping last week when he came with me as I was struggling to make it through the month.
Household - £24 over, probably due to overstocking up on soap and buying some disposable items for LB's camping party.
LB's - £45 under due to it being her birthday and immediately after Christmas. She didn't need anything save some new tights for school.
Me -£50 over due to buying 4 new sweaters, a new bra, more tights, thermal gloves and other bits and pieces. Most were bought from the CS, so didn't cost much, but it all added up to quite a big overspend here.
Home - £3.50 over due to buying two sets of new towels in the January sales. I do now have all the bathroom towels I need and have replaced all of the ones that were pretty worse for wear, so I shouldn't need to purchase any more for a good while.
Misc - Massive overspend in this category, the total of which I'm not even going to reveal, as it's way too embarrassing. In spite of promising myself I wouldn't get much in the sales I did do some gift shopping for birthdays and next Christmas, bought 3 polo shirts for OH from the CS (I just buy good ones when I see them as they are so expensive to buy new), LB's birthday present, plus the voluntary NI contributions of course.
Savings - £100 put aside, but it might make more sense to use this to pay off my overdraft and replace it later in the year when things ease up.
It's been a crazy month, but it's over now and I'm not going to keep on punishing myself about it. Onwards and upwards. By next January, however, I would like things to be under more control than they have been for the last few years.
I have now began looking at the entire years budget rather than just the month. There are months that I am way over budget but I make up for it with the months that I am under budget. I just love looking at my totals and seeing the totals much less than what I had planned.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
Balancing the accounts these days is an art isn't it. Identifying where the money goes is the first step to getting it under control I always think and you sound like to have managed well in a month when you have had a number of unavoidable commitments. I always think January seems a long tough month to get through. All the best for the February budget!
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