Right, we are already at the bone, HOW can we afford 3 kids, and a car to transport them in, on one income? HOW?

[fillyjonk]

We are bascially breaking even every month

We hardly have extravagent lifestyles.

We cook everything from scratch, though I accept there could be less strawberies and more reuse of leftovers.

We buy 90% organic

All kids clothes, and most of ours, are handmedowns or from ebay/charity shops. Ditto most toys etc.

We use reusable nappies etc.

Holidays-camping, or with grandparents

Have already shopped around for cheapest utilites / insuance etc - ta Martin's Money Tips

I want a very safe car with 3 x ISOFIX seats, this is non negotiable, I am utterly utterly neurotic about car safety. This looks like the fiat multipla and whoa they are expensive.

Plus also-there WILL be another mouth to feed, clothe, etc.

we got 3 car seats in the back of a saab 9-3 hatchback, which isn't big, so you don't necessarily need an MPV.

However we're getting one because there's no room to ferry grannies around!

The big car debate pisses me off because it's always aimed at women. Noone criticises blokes driving huge executive saloons - alone - to work.

fillyjonk - we have 3 car seats in the back of our Skoda Octavia, which is a fantastic car. I love it so much. It's ridiculously economical to run - averages about 58 miles to the gallon (it's a diesel) and is really safe. And not too expensive - we paid 11k for ours brand new.

oh I criticise blokes. I NEVER fume at the women, I always assume they have a good reason

tortoisehell was looking at octavia but...11k is just too much.

We have a fabia and are sold on skodas but there doesn't seem to be so much of a secondhand market

they do hold their value and you can't break them really

There IS the option of trading up with the local dealer but I need to think on that

stoip buying oragnic

isofix is hystericla oev the top imo
ud bin that

are you pg again?

why?

pmsl

oooh which post first?

Oh blimey filly, only just caught up with all this. Science will have to wait, I guess

yes

got bloody 97% and 93% in last 2 assignments, which arrived just as I was picking myself up off floor

i am really about a lot of this. But hey. life happens, i guess.

God, well done! You are still very young though, and you will have a lovely little baby

My renault scenic has 3 isofix in the back. but isofix is probably over rated.

Toddlers can probably spend the summer in doodles. I'm sure many do.

Have read a couple of your other threads, filly. I was in exactly your position 2 1/2 years ago. I won't pretend it's been easy,in any way, but it's not impossible. Imagine yourself as a 100 year old, and think how proud you'll be.

If your dealer will trade up then that would be a good way to go. I honestly think it's worth paying a little more, because they're so economical. We save so much money on fuel, because it just doesn't guzzle it. And the boot is VAST (have a look - the boot may clinch it for you!). I'm sure you could get a deal on it, especially if you have a Fabia atm.

Why does being PG affect college?

DingALongACow, LongDistanceClara, what names do you post to dooyoo/Ciao under? I don't rate them as money earners but I enjoy reading and rating there, and hope to get back to the odd review some time.

filly do you actually sell on your old bits aswell instead of just buying. Thats how I pay for the extra bits, I sell the DC old things to pay for the new. Child benefit for 3 dc is £143 a month.

DH has been looking into MPVs and apparently the Espace has the best safety record, even the old ones. You can pick them up for about £5k, so with a trade in it's reasonably affordable.

We're counting every penny too though, so even an extra grand is a pain in the arse.

Our old espace cost £1100 private, they're out there if you look

btw, filly, I was SO depressed (literally) at being pg with #3. had left work with plans for own business. all buggered. and thought it would be the end of my relationship, blah, blah...

all changes once the midget arrives. if it's meant to be, it's meant to be methinks. It's so fantastic once their little personality starts emerging and you have another person in your family. the other kids LOVE having another baby around. you'll feel better about this soon, I guarantee.

I really don't want to add a downer here, but when you have 3 you must look after yourself. I was all fine and hunkeydory when I had my first 2, but unexpectedly had pnd with my 3rd. It wasn't recognised untill DD was 9 months old. Oh no, someone tell me if I'm out of order for saying this.

"Imagine yourself as a 100 year old, and think how proud you'll be. "

if i get to 100-my GOD i will be proud, I'll have 75 years of productive knitting behind me

The car...have been looking on the NCAP site. but also accepting that we CAN'T get the kids in our current car because of the central lap belt. But also there isn't space. Am accpeting that we are away as a family too much to manage on hire cars, really. Also, this is a long term thing and we do look after our cars so...

Renault scenic is front runner atm. I don't want a sodding new car though, (when I say "new" I mean...you know...new to ME, I dn't mean new from showroom).

I dunno, i just don't see why cardiff can't have an obscenely good tram system with my house acting as the hub, really. Rather than bus drivers who won't let you on with a double buggy if they are in a bad mood (GOD I am going to need to actually use a bloody BUGGY, I've hardly done that)

Nemo-yes I sell everything ex baby clothes/ cheapo things, which I mainly pass on, because most of them were given to ME in the first place. Or charity. I suppose the charity has to stop

lynette-no, thats very valid

I did find that I needed to learn to really look after myself with 2

when i am with friends and they are chasing around giving it their all with their only children and I am sitting back drinking tea...well, thats why, really

(am looking at espace also peachy. the thing is, I need to actually SEE it, but I have driven them through work-hire car for conferance-and i remember finding it just too big for me to handle. I dunno why. I like small cars. Actually I like NO car.

This is what is pissing me off. With 1 child I never needed to use the car. With 2-I do need it sometimes. With 3-I mean its going to massively increase my car use.

I am feeling hugely bad envonrmnetally about this.

oh and the nappies (reusables but STILL), extra food (organic, and yes we'll sodding grow some but STILL).

I know its daft and one of my kids could be an earth-changing enviornmental campaigner JUST becuase of having 2 siblings BUT

I still feel BAAAAD.

filly, I TRULY admire your commitment to the environment, but you might have to lower your standards for a bit or you risk driving yourself crazy. what's more important - your sanity or single-handedly saving the planet?

it's lovely having another addition to the family, but it's also difficult, financially and logistically. Try to make things easier for yourself and don't beat yourself up if you need to take short cuts. That way madness lies.

see it as a short term thing. once they're a bit older and can walk further you can ditch the car more, but try not to set yourself difficult goals and feel guilty for using the car, etc.

It's funny that I was once slated on mumsnet for admitting I had a large people carrier, despite having 4 very large children, and yet suddenly people with 2 or 3 NT little kids are getting defensive about needing one

My neighbour bought a brand new Galaxy when she had her third baby, so that was in the front of my mind when I read this thread. When ours were tiny we couldn't get a 7 seater because they were so new they were out of our league.

(Now there are 7 of us and we have 2x 4/5 seater cars because the MPV cost too much to run )

evenhope you have not anwered the question of how you get 5 people into a small car (the fabia is a supermini btw)

am dying to know