Goodbye March! It’s been a very strange month and that shows in my posting schedule during March; I really haven’t managed to get as much content as I’d normally like. I have had a stressful time at work recently which has totally wiped me of my energy. I have also had an asthmatic flare up for the first time in years, so have had to take it easy for a bit.
So yes, March hasn’t gone to plan! The main thing that seems to be already taking over is the fact that our building work has started. And it seems to be going smoothly so far, though I know that might not always be the case. The slightly frustrating thing I’m finding is the amount of dust everywhere – which might be contributing to my asthma flare up – as everything seems to have a fine coating of the stuff. I Just need to keep reminding myself that it’ll be worth it!
During March I also did a radio recording for BBC Radio 4 all about the No Spend month challenge, which was exciting. I spoke with another lady who was only into the No Spend challenge by a couple of weeks, so a differing amount of experience there. The only slight snag was that I had to take both boys with me in the background and they did not sit quietly! Needs must.
In terms of our finances, March has been a bit strange. I have done very well with my targets, but I have really struggled with my NSDs. If you follow me on Instagram you will have seen the dire pictures of my NSD tracker for March – I have definitely not hit my target there.
My Financial aims for March were:
– Have 18 No Spend Days (NSDs)
– Overpay our mortgage by £185
– Put £670 into savings
As mentioned, my NSDs have been a disaster this month. I just have not been able to keep a hold of those little spends. Whenever I feel stressed or anxious, I spend money. I am definitely an emotional spender. In the end, I have managed 15 NSDs during March. Not so bad when I think about it, but not where it should have been. In terms of our mortgage overpayment, this is going well so far in 2019! This month I have managed £201.67 to the mortgage. Finally, our savings amount has been huge this month, but will be non-existent going forward until all of the building work has finished. I have managed to put an amazing £1,524.13 into savings this month. Smashed this aim!
My Personal Aims For March were:
– survive the start of the building work.
Done! It hasn’t been quite as stressful as I’d thought and we still have a working kitchen (for now!) so that helps. It might get worse once we don’t have a kitchen to use as I think that might be tough with two little ones. We’re not aiming to move out of our house for the majority of the build, perhaps a couple of weeks and that’s it. I feel like coping with this might be an aim for a while!
The top 3 posts on The Frugal Cottage during March were:
How has March been for you? What has the best thing that has happened to you during the month?
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