This Week

Apologies for not blogging much this week.  I haven't had much to blog about really. I only worked one day at the CS, as I'm using up annual leave this week and next, due to it being the last month of the financial year.  That being the case, I haven't really been getting a whole lot done at home.  Not sure why, just not in the mood really.

I did manage to sort out a purported overdue payment to the HMRC though, which was a weight off my mind.  I didn't owe the money, but my account said I did.  Apparently, it was an error on their part and I now have a nil balance which is good and my last two years' voluntary National Insurance contributions have been allocated to my records, leaving just five or 6 more years credits to accrue before I qualify for a full state pension, (if it's still around when I reach retirement age).  A small thing, but I just didn't have the time to do it last week when I was working 5 days and interest was accruing on the sum which was a worry.

I've mainly spent my week working my way through the washing and ironing mountains that built up when I was working.  This is why I don't really want to work full-time, as life at home gets out of control. I'm getting things back to normal slowly but surely.

This week was also the week of LB's Parent/Teacher evening at school.  Both OH and I attended and the feedback we got was mostly very good, which was reassuring. We didn't get to see a couple of teachers as they were fully booked up, but the one's we did see seemed pretty happy with her progress, although there is always room for improvement.  We try not to apply too much pressure and let LB take responsibility for her own learning. I don't know if this is a good or bad thing, but school is hard enough without your parent's giving you grief when you get home too.

On the wellbeing front, I managed to get to all my classes at the gym this week, which was great. I've put on weight recently, what with the trip to New York and not getting to many classes of late. I overcompensate for the tiredness from work, by overeating when I'm at home.  It's a habit I have to break somehow, but it's hard.

My finances, however, have taken a bit of a bashing this week, as I went grocery shopping yesterday, to a big out of town retail park. I needed a change of scenery, but I got drawn into a few extra expenditures. Mainly gifts and homewares, as I decided to buy LB a new quilt and pillows.
 
They were on the wish list, as the quilt she inherited from us when we bought a new one for our new bed a couple of years ago, is smaller than some of the bedding I have bought for her room and she often complains of being cold when using it. (Her bedroom has two outside walls and the windows are not double glazed). Her pillows have seen much better days too.

A new lamp that I bought for the living room, wasn't, however, on the list.  It was reduced to £16 in TK Maxx and fits much better with our décor than our current lamp, but I will need to buy a new lampshade for it at some point. A bit of an indulgence, but I like it as it is a bit quirky.

I also splurged on a new swimming costume for our summer holiday (assuming we have one this year).  It too was reduced to £13 in TK Maxx.  I do struggle to find swimming costumes that look anything like okay on me, so when I do find one, it's worth just buying it. I'm feeling the need of a holiday in a nice warm climate at the moment, after what feels like a very long winter, but it's not likely to happen until at least July of this year, due to other commitments in the preceding school holidays.

Today, I'm going to try to do some cleaning around the house.  We've been invited to a 60th birthday bash this evening, which will be interesting, so I'm spending most of the rest of the day at home.

What are your plans for this weekend?