Showing posts with label home owner. Show all posts
Showing posts with label home owner. Show all posts
Living with your partner is one of the biggest steps in your life so it can be crazy, scary and over whelming at first. When we first got the green light to move into the home we bought i'm not going to lie, i was nervous. You always hear about couples who are together for years and years and then when they move in together, they can't make it work and break up. Some may call me a pessimistic, i call myself a realist.
Luckily for me and my partner, we are still going strong three years into living together and 5 years into our relationship. Living together has taught me a lot about relationships in general, so i thought i would share my thoughts with you today. Obviously everyone is different so some people will not agree with my five points and that is absolutely fine! This is just a few things which have made living with a smelly man work.
1. give yourself your own jobs
One thing i was really worried about when we moved in together was arguing about stupid house things. Most people argue about chores and people pulling their weight so when we moved in we subconsciously gave each other jobs. I do most of the cleaning and cooking in the house and Cal does all the hoovering and washing up, which is one of the things i hate thank god.
2. don't get stuck in a routine
Some people love routines and find life runs more smoothly when they are in one. Cal and I personally are half and half. We find when we have done the same for a few nights we can get bored, its when we get to this point we plan something spontaneous. Whether it is just a walk down to the local village pub for a drink after work, going out for dinner or even spending the night round a friends house. It breaks up our week and makes it a bit more interesting. I think sometimes we forget that we are only a 25 and 28 year old living a old married couples life.
3. don't forget to have your own space
Both Cal and I are quite introvert people so we can easily spend time by ourselves and some nights we really need that. Some nights when i get home from work and i really want to sit in the bath for a few hours and go straight to bed, Cal just leaves me to it, and vice versa.
4. give each other free rein of the house
Some people don't like to leave the house when the other half have company which is perfectly fine for them. I personally like to have space so if i or Cal have friends coming round, the other person goes out for the night. A lot of people don't feel the need to do this but personally i think its nice to give your partner the space to entertain.
5. having fights about absolutely nothing is all part of the course
You might not be the type of couple who normally argues but that will change when you move in together, and that is totally normal. If you don't argue about the colour of the wall or the Santa on the stairs then tell us all your secrets! Don't worry if you start to bicker about stupid things because that is just life and normally they don't last very long, well so far...
Sticking to a budget can be hard and when your a home owner and have bills to pay for you don't really get a choice. I've been living in my own home now for just over a two years now and I have found some ways that help me to stick to my budget and not go into my overdraft every month.
- Meal Plan
This can be a life safer if you are someone who ends up buying a bunch of food that you don't need. Cal and I like to sit down and plan what we are going to eat for dinner that week for many reasons, one is so we can get what we need on our weekly shop ahead of time and because it gives us something to look forward to.
- Stick to your list
I think it should be a known rule never to go food shopping while you are hungry otherwise I come back with 2 cinnamon swirls, 3 different biscuits and a box of microwave chips so stick to the items on your list. You made a list for a reason so only get the food that you need.
- Choose food with multiple uses
It's easy to buy food because you like it but it worked for one meal and then its done. I like to make meals which I can freeze for another night or pop in the fridge for my lunch tomorrow. It helps me save money and stops me using everything in my freezer in one go.
- Shop Around
Before I moved out I was a self confessed Tesco addict and if I needed anything whether it was food or random bits I would go to Tesco. When we moved out we didn't know how we would find balancing our mortgage, food shopping, petrol and such so we ended up trying the Aldi store which is 10 minutes down the street from our house. We've found we can get a full weekly shop with meat and chicken and the everyday bits for between £20-£30 which is really good considering how much we bring home so we are official Aldi converts now. I love the chicken and meat from Aldi so if you don't already shop there then you should try it once. I know down the line when we start to have a family it will really help with saving our money. Its easy to stick to a shop that you are familiar with but when you can save all this money you have to give it a go.
- Check your online banking daily
It sounds very silly but I am terrible for not checking my online banking for days and it has become Cals job to remind me to pay the bills. By checking it daily you know exactly what bills has already come out and what you still need to pay for, that way if you see something you want for the house you know what money you have left for the month.
- Reduce, Reuse and Recycle
Anyone else remember this saying up on every wall in your school?
It does still apply now in every day life so I have implemented it back into my life. When we first moved in we were still learning a rhythm and we ended up not using fresh food which meant it went off and we had to throw it away, which is such a waste. So when we plan our meals for the week now we also check what we still have in the fridge and freezer and what dates they go off. Then we make sure we use the food before the due date so that we don't waste the food anymore.
This doesn't just apply to food as well, we had lots of random house decorative bits which didn't have a home for a while and rather then getting rid of them we have rotated them round the house until we found a room where we liked them. Its so easy to chuck something away because it doesn't suit your theme only to need one a few months later and end up buying it again.
- Never impulse buy for the house
I love buying items for my house like most people and going into Home Sense or Dunelm can be really hurtful for my bank balance, I like to go home shopping with Cal because he does stop me going crazy for stuff that we don't need and don't have room for. Home stuff can be really expensive so I try and really think about what I want for the house and stop myself impulse buying. If I find something that I really like but it is super expensive, I like to sleep on the idea of spending that much money on one item. You can get into the hype of 'I need to buy this now, it won't be here tomorrow if I change my mind' but I have come to believe that if I return to the shop and the item is still there then I was meant to purchase it.
- Treat Yourself
This one may sound strange in this list but when you have been really good for a long period of time you deserve a treat. Me and Cal have the occasional take away when we have cooked dinner for the whole week because it gives me a night off from cooking and its something a bit different. If we don't have a take away we sometimes go out for date night instead and again its just a little treat for our hard work. Just watch they become too much of regular thing!
I love inviting people round to my house and hosting people whether its for a hour or for the night. I don't know where I have got this from but since having my own house I have developed a lot of house pride which I think everyone gets once they own their own place. I use any excuse to make people come round my house now so that I can play host so I thought Id take you through what I like to do before someone comes to stay.
One thing I love doing when someone is coming over to stay is make the bed with a fresh bed sheet, obviously tidy the spare room and then close the curtains and turn on the fairy lights. Whether it is sunny or in the middle of winter I think a dark room with fairy lights look so much more appealing. I want to make the bed look really appealing for the person because I know it isn't always nice to spend a night in someone else's bed.
I have got into the habit of leaving fresh towels folded on the end of the bed in the spare room because even though the people who stay over are mainly family members and properly wouldn't care about using the same towels, it is nice to have a fresh one. I also don't want my guests to have to ask for a towel. I am planning on replacing all of our towels soon so that they all match and match the bedding so it looks more pretty all together, sad I know.
On the night stand beside the spare bed I like to leave everything my guest could possibly need, a tooth brush in case they have forgot theirs, a empty glass and a new bottle of water in case they get thirsty in the night and don't want to go roaming round my house, a pair of fluffy socks which are very important during the winter (we are lucky our whole house is covered in carpet so we don't feel the cold too much (but some people don't like showing their feet which is where the socks come in) and a few hair bands because I know what it is like forgetting a hair band and sweating during the night with your hair stuck to you.
Because I love bath and shower products I have a huge collections that I spread across both bathrooms so when people stay over I like to leave out my mini shower gels and scrubs so that if they have a bath or shower they have something to use. Can you call it a shower if you haven't used a shower gel?! I also like to leave cotton pads out for our female friends to remind them to take their makeup off because I know how much they will regret it in the morning if they forget.
Whenever people are staying over at my house I like to stock up the fridge and cupboards, half of the time I cook a proper meal for my family and friends and the other half we get take away depending on whether I have been to work or not but I find the snacks and drinks are the most important. I know what it is like to get the munchies during the night so I like to have little snacks that people can take up with them to bed in case they do get peckish (we've all been there) and a mixture of drinks so people have a choice. I know alcohol isn't everyone's cup of tea and I am not a big drinker myself but whenever we have friends or family round we always get something to put in the fridge whether it is a bottle of wine or a crate of beer. Even if we don't drink it ourselves it is there in case our friends/family want it. We also have mason jars with little chalk boards on so we can write our guests names on the jars which goes down a treat.
Now I'm not saying I am the most amazing host in the whole entire world and that I do all of this every time someone comes over because I'm human and I work a lot but when I do these things, you can tell people really appreciate it and it gives them a rest from doing it themselves at home.
Since I moved out with my fiance in May I have learned a lot of things about myself, us and the whole process in general. Although I sometimes feel like I am talking about my house non stop on my blog... I'm bringing you another post!
Since this is my first time living away from home I had a lot to learn!
1. I can actually cook, who knew it!
I have never been an fantastic cook at home because I never needed to be, i'll be honest I was a pampered princess and loved it. So since moving out and having to cook for Cal and I, I am actually a pretty good cook! Our favourite is Toad in the hole which isn't very technical but super tasty! I've also recently been making butter and herb new potatoes which taste amazing!!
2. House pride is an actual thing
I used to make fun of my sister who would spend all her spare time cleaning and tidying her house even though no one was coming round. I have got the disease now, especially with my kitchen! It might be because it were we eat and prepare our food, it might also be because my kitchen is at the front of the house so when people walk past they can see through the window. I don't know but the kitchen has to be perfect.
3. You have to compromise when you live with someone
Cal and I are quite lucky that we have the same taste with most things so choosing decor for the house isn't too much of a challenge but I have learned you can't always get what you want. Which is fine because i'm a grown up and I don't have to have my own way... all the time!
4. It is super fun to play house
I don't know about you but I used to play house when I was younger and pretend my barbies were families with a big house and a car and babies and now I don't have to pretend! Apart from the babies I have everything I pretended my barbies had and it is so fun. Inviting our friends round and doing dinner and drinks makes us feel really grown up and cool! And then we have to tidy and clean up and the fun stops!
5. I do actually miss home
I have never been a real home sick person before I loved staying over at new places but since leaving my childhood home permanently I've realised how comfortable I felt there which is something I haven't felt yet here. Whenever I go home and visit my parents I instantly feel relaxed and comfortable as soon as I enter the house and could fall asleep at any moment because i'm so comfy. Hopefully soon my house will feel like that!
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