Happy New Year?

Why do I always want to start something with a question? There, bugger, I've gone and done it again. I used to do that in all my essays at school because it saved me from having to make a statement. I reckon that's what I tend to do, avoid making a statement..

Then comes the question of why I decided to blog. Don't know really, I'm not an expert on anything, but I find that I get asked lots of opinions and advice, from people from all over. Maybe that just makes me a friend, but it might be interesting to someone.

Most commonly, a lot of people seem astounded at the cost of my weekly shop. It doesn't astound me, it's just not wasteful and to be honest, all we can manage a lot of the time.  Background is probably helpful eh?

Well, in my little house is me, 32, an Office Manager in the Public Sector. I reckon I'll lose my job next year. If I thought I could get another, it wouldn't bother me as it's not a career choice and I spend most of my days utterly pissed off.  I won't be blogging about work, for me or anyone else, only the mood it puts me in. Confidentiality and all that.

I'm married to, let's call him B, 37, a Police Officer. A poorly one, but one that is at work every day.   We have two boys, "Mac" who is 7 and "Fru" who just turned 4.

We have a very decent combined salary, a mortgage, but most significantly, piles and piles of unsecured debt. We got ourselves here, mostly before we even met, but we both take it incredibly seriously so, rather than opt for IVAs, Bankruptcy and all the quick wins, we chose to negotiate what we could afford each month and pay it all off. We're about half way through after two years, but expect that the remainder will only take another 14 months to pay off. In order to do that, we have to cut back. Considering I could lose my job quite easily, we have to be ready to do so even more. Losing a couple of stone each wouldn't be a bad idea either!

That's us in a nutshell - somewhat skint, most of the time, despite our earnings. I think I'll probably be sharing meal plans, money saving ideas and shopping lists, but might throw a few extra bits in there too

Enjoy xxx