My Money: 'I had forgotten how it all adds up'
- Published
Toni found tracking her money harder once she was splitting her time between home and office again
My Money is a series looking at how people spend and save their money - and the sometimes challenging decisions they have to make. Toni works in marketing and lives in Leamington Spa with her husband Duncan, a design engineer in the car industry. They have a young dog, a Vizsla named Cooper.
During the lockdown Toni started a new role working for a technology start-up, ufurnish.com, a search and comparison site for furniture. She has gone from a role that involved working away from home, in an office with a big team, to working from her home study - with Cooper for company.
Her monthly income and outgoings have both changed significantly. She has always been teased by her friends for having "spreadsheets" that track everything. However, she says they have really helped her make more conscious choices about her personal finances over the last year.
Now, over to Toni.
I am really looking forward to this week - we have a weekend away planned with friends, camping in the Cotswolds. It will cost £45 for two nights - and the campsite has lakes for open-water swimming, so that should be great fun.
Whilst the weather forecast looks poor, the good news is our long-awaited campervan is due to arrive on Thursday. Whilst I say campervan - it's yet to be converted. Luckily, Duncan converted our previous VW, which we sold earlier in the year to help fund this new one. It is a large payment, and leaves a big hole in our bank balance today but will be worth every penny!
Raining this morning but I still got out to run with Cooper. He's not quite a lockdown dog but pretty close - and we spend as much time as possible in the countryside near home or, now restrictions are lifting, at the coast.
This is one of the greatest things about working from home: no huge commute and a really nice start to the week.
Whilst working at a start-up can be quite intense, working from home has given me a better sense of balance and our use of technology means I haven't really missed being in the office all that much.
I recently visited a shared working space and intend to use it one day a week from autumn onwards. It's the most cost effective way for me to get out of the house, get some energy from others and be in an inspiring workspace. As I will be paying for it myself it's a real financial consideration as I am lucky enough to already have an office at home - but £120 a month is good value and it's not an annual contract so I can try it out at first.
Went for an extra walk this evening as there was too much intense screen time today. I love that I can get outside, do exercise and save on gym costs all at once. My gym used to cost me £70 a month but now I use an app on my phone which costs £100 a year (and actually came out of my account today - I had forgotten about that).
Total spend: £145
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Toni's home working companion Cooper
Super-early start today…..out in the fields with Cooper - but met a lovely lady walking her dog. I have now met a number of local dog owners. I don't know any of their names, but we all know the name of each other's dogs!
Today, my monthly subscription to Freddie's flowers came out of my bank account (£25) for my Mum and I to both have a delivery of flowers. It's a lovely treat for us and gives us something special to chat about once we have arranged them. It's also got my Mum using WhatsApp.
I joined a local running group this evening. I have been wanting to try out for a while but lockdown has meant they have only recently been able to meet up again. It's a free club supported by the local GP practices and is aimed at keeping people both physically and mentally fit. It was great. I met some interesting new people - and will definitely go again.
Off to London tomorrow for a meeting with the founders of ufurnish.com and our new chairman. Pre-booked my ticket for £88.50 (return).
Total spend: £113.50
I took the car and parked at the railway station this morning (£8.70). It was really exciting to see that the coffee shop on the platform has re-opened - it's been shut since the first lockdown and they make the best coffee. I treated myself to an Americano (£2.40) to wake me up.
The trains are much busier than earlier in the year and social-distancing has become a much bigger challenge. I took the Tube across London to the meeting venue (£5.80). I still haven't mastered Apple Pay and a face mask! I grabbed lunch at Birleys, an amazing sandwich (£6.70).
My charity direct debits came out of my account today, so, all-in-all, my account saw more outgoings than normal. I had forgotten how it all adds up when you don't work from your home study but it's great to be in London for the day. I even managed a quick drink after the meeting with my colleagues - a work-funded treat.
Cooper was at doggy day care today (£25 per day), plus our new Dyson vacuum cleaner arrived, a model especially designed for "animal hair". These are costs I never thought I would have to consider - pre-Vizsla!
Total Spend: £48.60
A long awaited trip to get highlights at the hairdresser
My magazines arrived in the post today - both are on a subscription. Red is a treat to myself now my weekly outgoings for work have decreased and Vogue from my Mum and Dad, as they worry I spend too much time on my laptop. I love them arriving - but it's a race to get them from the doormat before Cooper does.
A much-anticipated hairdresser trip today. They have to "correct my hair" after I got a bit too cocky in lockdown with a home dye kit. It's definitely worth the money although it's a little eye-watering at £150.
Total Spend: £150
I go for an early morning run with Cooper in the muddy fields and then dive straight in to a team call - everyone looking super happy for the camera.
These morning calls are our equivalent of when we would catch-up on everyone's plans for the day at the office coffee machine. I have only met a few of the team face-to-face but we feel like we know each other really well. This has been helped by the fact we are in each other's houses virtually, via Google Meets, so have met partners, pets and parents across the year.
I finish work a little early today as we are trying to get to the campsite before the rain arrives. We buy a couple of bags of shopping from Tesco (£64.23) to keep us all fed over the weekend, including a bottle of fizz and chocolate.
Total spend: £64.23
We enjoyed a great couple of days camping with our friends. We managed to get into the water to swim with the kids, but left the paddleboards behind as the charge was £25 despite us having our own kit.
It was a pretty low cost weekend but we buy some of the worst coffee ever (£19.00) but recover with some ice cream with the kids. (£3.20).
We discussed the costs of keeping our dogs - between insurance, vets costs, food and day care, Cooper costs us a minimum of £220 per month, and that's before he eats any more of his dog beds!
But I'll happily trade the amount I used to spend on shoes and clothes for this dog.
Total spend: £22.20
It's been a good week; lots of getting out with friends and work colleagues and our long awaited van has arrived… now to book some more campsite trips.
Total Spend: £0
Weekly total: £543.53
How does Toni feel about her week?
Looking back, I can see this week has involved more expenditure than normal. But writing those outgoings down and reflecting on what I used to spend on - things like the gym - has made me realise how much my spending has changed for the better.
Also, smaller things like a magazine subscription can make me feel really happy. The next few months will be all focussed on kitting-out the campervan, which will be quite expensive. We will continue to pool our joint savings to fund this, so that we can buy the awning and all the big expensive items.
In the meantime, I am off to find some bargain-priced plates and bowls - a new van with a new colour-scheme surely means we need new crockery?