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Becoming debt free has been a real focus this year and it will continue to be a focus for next year too however I am pleased to say I have done really well this year. We have paid of, I would say, at least half of our debts and hire purchases now which is fantastic progress. I gave myself two years to be completely debt free so we sill have until 31st December 2020 to reach that goal. I think we’ve made great progress.

In July this year we completed a hirepurchase agreement which was costing us £17 a week. It was one of those quite big spends that we couldn’t really change which was quite frustrating. The second hire purchase will finish at the end of this month which is about £6 a week. It’s not a big difference but it’s a completed hire purchase and it will finally be done.

I have now closed around six debt accounts too of varrying amounts and I currently have three left. I’ve had to continously adjust the amount I can afford to pay back each month but I am still on track to close two more debt accounts in December as they are both under £200. It does make me feel a bit sick still thinking that I have to pay out £400 between now and the end of the year as the payments are a little bigger than I can afford but the feeling I get when I see those debt accounts completely closed will trump that feeling.

That will then leave me with four credit cards and one last debt, which has been the biggest one for ages.The biggest debt is our water rates and every six months has around £200 or so added to it from the water company. It’s currently about £1400 and I’m only able to pay £5 a week right now as I focus on bigger payments for the other debts. I am then going to focus on my smallest credit card which has a balance of around £175 before increasing my weekly payments to £15 a week.

The credit cards are hard because there are times when we need to use them however, the balances on them is now quite high and I am keen to spend 2020 clearing those balances as much as possible. I do want to close the water account though so I will have to do a new budget at the start of the year and work out exactly what I can afford to pay where.

Here is my update:

Credit Card 1 – owe £175
Credit Card 2 – owe £650
Credit Card 3 – owe £950
Credit Card 4 – owe £2400
Debt 1: £140
Debt 2: £199
Debt 3: £1400
SimplyBe Account: £150 – currently paying £50 a month back on this one which I’m happy with as it’s clearing it nicely and I have a balance should I need any clothes – being plus size means my size isn’t usually stocked in stores.

The amount has fluctuated through the year as I expected it would. I’ve had credit limit increases on my card which seemingly have come at the right time for when we’ve been short and frustatingly that balance has increased because of the smaller, regular purchases. We also have not stuck to some of my budgetting tips, meal plans, shopping lists and have had some more extravagant purchases which we really shouldn’t have done. However, I don’t want to feel guilty about that because there’s no point to it. What I want to do is celebrate the fact that I have closed some debt accounts, we have closed hire purchases agreements and will have another two debt accounts closed by the end of the year.

It’s been really hard some months and I want to make it much more mangable for us next year. I am going to start putting money into a savings account each week again from the start of the year. I think I will start with £5 a week at first and then as more debt accounts and credit card balances come down I will increase this. Ideally I’d like to have saved around £250 by September to go towards Christmas.

I have two big financial goals for 2020. The first is to get rid of the water account debt of £1400 and the second is to clear the balance to within £100 on Credit Card 3. We have a cruise booked in December 2020 and I really want to put Credit Card 3 as my cruise account card. I won’t use the entire balance but I think it will be better to budget if I have some spare funds. Adam is going to link his own credit card to his cruise account so we can take it in turns paying any extras.

My other financial goals for 2020 are as follows:

Earn an average of £2080 a month through self employment, freelancing, blog and social media work
Pay off my two smaller credit cards and keep the balance under £50 on Credit Card 1 and £100 on Credit Card 2
Stop spending on Credit Card 4 and gradually increase payments as and when I can
Have £500 saved for Christmas
Add an additional £300 to my private pension fund throughout the year

We want to try and clear everything as much as we possibly can between now and the end of 2020 so we can start 2021 with as clean a slate as possible and focus the first six months on saving as much money as we possibly can to be able to move house. I would absolutely love to be able to save £6000 in those first six months of 2021 as it could make a huge difference to moving house. This would be enough to cover the first three months rent on our ideal type of property, deposit and fees, and then hopefully some moving costs too. In an ideal world, we would want six months worth of rent saved but e will just have to see how much we can clear next year first.

Celebrating Felix’s first birthday at the start of the month was really nice. We had a great day at Legoland as a family and got on a few rides. The weather was nice too which was great. This last year has been so busy and watching Felix grow, change and develop has been a real priveledge. He is such a happy little boy and has a lot of love to give.

Physical Development

Felix isn’t walking yet. I thought he might be by now but I think he just realises how quick he can get places by crawling. I know he will get there when he’s ready but it does make going out quite tough sometimes as he wants to be out of the pushchair, highchair or not being held. However, it’s not always safe to pop him down. He can cruise around the furniture with ease. He can pull himself up, reach down for things he drops with one hand, squat and get back up again. He is now climbing up and down the sofa. We are trying to teach him to climb back down backwards to keep him safe. He can also get himself out of his highchair straps and tries to get out of there too.

His pincer grip is getting stronger and he has mimicked clapping two objects together. He loves to knock down towers of bricks too. He very much plays with his toys now and of course one of his favourite games is throwing something down for you to pick back up again. He will hand me objects or try to put his dummy in my mouth which often ends with him punching me in the nose! He now likes to discard things by throwing them behind his back and is starting to try and put things together like putting the lid on his bottle.

Social Development

He is making lots of funny noises with his mouth at the moment like clicking his tongue and doing a sort of fish face. He has also started giving kisses to his teddies and to me, usually in the morning when I get him out of bed. Felix is constantly chattering away which is so lovely to hear. He is really practising all the sounds and shouts, screeches and has had more moments of that big belly laugh. He sometimes nods and shakes his head if we ask him questions but it’s usually with a smile and then the opposite reaction straight away. He does make us all laugh.

Recovering from a c-section is a long process and when you have an experience that’s completely unexpected or unplanned it can be really hard on your mental health too. It’s really important to think of yourself during c-section recovery so that you can recover physically and emotional from the birth.

What to expect in hospital after a c-section

Usually you can expect to spend a bit more time in hospital after a c-section but some mothers go home within 24-48 hours. I personally stayed in for four nights each time. The first time was because Evie needed extra antibiotics for 72 hours so it gave us a bit of time to have some extra help in hospital and the second time was because I had a complicated surgery and needed to wait for my wound drain to be removed. If you have a wound drain you won’t be able to leave until the fluid is clear and a doctor will come and assess this every morning for you. This isn’t commonplace though as it’s only for more difficult surgeries.

It’s hard to know what to expect during the hospital stay after a c-section but you will be offered around the clock painkillers, DVT injections and support getting you back on your feet when you can. As soon as you can get walking again, do so. Getting mobile really makes a big difference to recovery. I had help walking to the bathroom to use the shower around 12 hours after my surgery and then gradually moved from bed to chair a few times whilst I still had a catheter in.

The catheter is usually removed after 24 hours but this is sometimes longer depending on how hydrated you are. You then need to wee in a pot to show you’re still hydrated and your bladder is working properly without the support. Mine was measured a few times by the midwives on the wards before being given the all clear.

Self Care for C-Section Recovery at Home

There are plenty of things you can do to really help your recovery from a c-section birth. I’ve had two c-sections now and I wish I had known what I know now for my first recovery. It can be really hard to recover from a c-section with the pressures we tend to put on ourselves and it’s easy to forget that it’s not just birth but also major abdmonial surgery. You have to rest. Your body desperately needs it and this is the perfect reason for doing the absolute bear minimum. Your only goal is loving your newborn and recovering.

What should you buy to help c-section recovery?

1. A corded shower head or tap adapted shower head. We don’t have a built in shower in our flat so we bought one that suctioned onto the taps. Getting in and out the bath can be a little bit daunting as you have to learn to use those core muscles again but having a shower you can move around your body makes this so much easier. It’s also excellent for helping to keep that wound lovely and clean.
2. Pillows. Sleeping on your front or side can be tough after a c-section so you may find it more comfortable to sleep sightly reclined. I made good use of my pregnancy pillow for a good few weeks after my c-section to keep the pressure of my tummy. I started being able to sleep on my side around day 10 and within 3 weeks I was back to sleeping on my front so it does get easier.
3. Some good cotton pads, reusable or large maternity pads. Not only for the after birth bleeding but also helps to keep your wound nice and dry. You also want to give it plenty of air after bathing or showering whilst you’re healing.
4. BIG knickers. I’m talking big, comfort, cotton high waisted beauties. You want them completely away from the c-section scar so they don’t irritate it. I had a few issues with the dressing and had a reaction to this and anything rubbing against it was very sore for a couple of days.
5. Comfy PJs or lounge clothes. If there is any better time to truly look after yourself it’s after giving birth whether that’s vaginally or a c-section. Treat yourself to some comfortable, soft, pjs that make feeding nice and easy and don’t irritate any staples, stiches or wounds.

Other than that whatever you can do to look after yourself and make life easy do. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, don’t feel like you have to bounce back and if you want to stay home and snuggle your new baby then do. Anything you can do to relieve the pressure.

Disclaimer: We recevied the Cool Maker Go Glam Nail Stamper to review and feature in this post. Here is what we thought. Contains affliliate links.

Reviewing The Go Glam Nail Stamper

The Cool Maker Go Glam Nail Stamper is ideal for my daughter who is absolutely loving doing her nails up. She has been trying this out for a couple of months now and we seem to have got the hang of it. The kit we received came in a lovely bag which makes it nice and easy to keep together. We also received the daydreamer stamp pack which came with two extra stamp designs. There were multiple nail stamps to use to create different designs with popular emojis and cute animals to use. The nail stamper kit also came with two coloured polishes, purple & blue as well as a clear coat.

I even had a little go myself because at first use we had a bit of trouble getting the stamps to stick. At BlogOn I was able to speak to Spinmaster about this and they gave me a few extra tips. After painting the nails you want to wait around three minutes before stamping, ensuring the nails are completely dry. This made stamping them much easier.

Some of the designs we had included a unicorn, cupcakes and flamingos which have been the firm favourites for my daughter. The go glam nail stamper is pretty straight forward to use too and works in three simple steps. First you choose and insert your design into the stamper which is very clear and easy to do. You then paint your nails and wait for them to dry. Once dry you place the finger inside the nail stamper and press down to stamp. We got the best results when holding the stamper down against the nail, quite firmly, for around 20 seconds. My daughter found it easier and stamped better when I pressed the stamper down and it was a nice little nail decorating session we could try together.

We have enjoyed using the cool maker go glam nail stamper and I find we are getting better with more practise and have had better results. We will be using these again for the upcoming school disco to create a cool look for Evie. Evie really likes the make up and nail decorating sets that are available and as she’s getting older this seems to be the sort of stuff she goes for when choosing her toys. When you have the nail stamper you can extend your collection with extra stamps and designs.

There are plenty of other extra packs you can purchase to increase the collection which is nice as it makes the set last longer. There was quite a lot of packaging in the extra kit and I think coming in a bag was better because the bag can be kept and I would like to see less plastic packaging on toys and things for children in the future. However, that being said, it’s brought a lot of happiness to Evie and she’s had a lot of fun.

You can purchase the Cool Maker Go Glam Nail Stamper from The Entertainer (£20 currently, RRP £25), Smyths, Argos and Amazon.