Money Diary: A Marketing Officer On £35,880

Welcome to Money Diaries where we are tackling the ever-present taboo that is money. We’re asking real people how they spend their hard-earned money during a seven-day period — and we’re tracking every last penny.

Trigger warning: This article discusses miscarriage and pregnancy loss.

This week: "I’m a 34-year-old living and working in Essex. For the past six years, I’ve worked in marketing at a university but after multiple miscarriages, I’m finally on maternity leave with my seven-month-old daughter E. I’d pictured this moment numerous times in the past, but had traumatic losses, and was at a point where I thought I might never get to experience this. Thanks to therapy over the past few years and throughout my pregnancy to help with my anxiety and consultant-led care, I gave birth last year and am cherishing every moment. She still wakes every two hours in the night, but she’s the best thing that’s happened to me and my husband and I wouldn’t have it any other way."

Occupation: Marketing Officer
Industry: Higher Education
Age: 34
Location: Essex
Salary: £35,880
Paycheque Amount: £760.27 — statutory maternity pay.
Number of housemates: Two — my husband, E, and my seven-month-old daughter, E.
Pronouns: She/her

Housing costs: £1,282 mortgage.
Loan payments: Normally I pay £74/month towards my student loan although currently pay nothing towards this whilst on statutory maternity pay. 
Savings?: I pay £50 into a regular saver each month which currently has £100.02 in. My husband and I pay £200 into a fixed saver each month which currently has £600 in and we have joint savings of £2,500 as we have just depleted the rest with our holiday and associated costs. I’ve also got savings of £8,200 which was ringfenced for maternity leave. After receiving full pay for six months, I’m incredibly grateful for these savings as they’re much needed now I’ve started receiving statutory maternity pay. 
Pension? Yes, I pay in 6.5% and my employer contributes 3.25%. I have money in a pension pot elsewhere from a previous job and need to look at how much is in here as I have no idea!
Utilities: £228 council tax, £40 wifi, £178 gas and electric. We pay the TV license annually and water half-yearly. 
All other monthly payments: £10 phone. Subscriptions: £4.99 Netflix. 

Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
Yes, I did an undergraduate degree with a student loan covering the £3k yearly fees plus a maintenance loan. My parents helped put money towards rent and food shops and I worked various jobs throughout my time at university to contribute towards fun money. I also had a waitressing job that would offer me shifts every time I came back home for the holidays which really helped.

Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money?
My parents worked really hard to provide me with a good life and I’ll always be grateful for everything they’ve done for me. My dad had his own business and worked long hours to send me to private school. I never went without, but was conscious that I wasn’t as rich as some of my private school friends who had swimming pools and sports cars while we had a small three-bedroom house and a van. My mum always loved a bargain and often spent Sundays at car boot sales. They taught me to save and work hard for what I wanted, which has definitely been ingrained in me and I’ll always be grateful for everything they’ve given me. 

If you have, when did you move out of your parents/guardians house? 
I moved out at 18 to go to university in Brighton but returned to my parents in the holidays. When I graduated, I moved in with my brother as his house was closer to my workplace, before I quit to go travelling and ended up living in Singapore for a few years to work. I then returned to the UK and lived with my parents to help care for my mum before moving back in with my brother. I finally moved out at 28 to live by myself in my flat. 

At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself? Does anyone else cover any aspects of your financial life?
I would say I became financially responsible for myself the moment I moved into my first flat at 28 and was fully responsible for my mortgage and bills. Although if anything ever went wrong, I knew I could have asked my dad or brothers to support me. Currently, my husband covers most of our household bills while I receive statutory maternity pay. 

What was your first job and why did you get it?
I worked as a waitress at a care home in our village and absolutely loved it. I worked on and off there for around four years, calling the manager to ask for shifts when I was back from university and working as much as I could in the holidays of college and university to earn some money.

Do you worry about money now?
Absolutely. I’ve always paid close attention to how much is in my bank account, but it really does seem now that everything is so much more expensive. Even though we work hard, we get to the end of each month with hardly anything left. I’m nervous about the additional pressure of nursery costs when I return to work in September and what will happen in the future as we’d both like more children, but this will come with further costs that currently feel like we might not be able to afford them. I’m grateful for my savings as I’m dipping into these at the moment to enjoy maternity leave as well as support with household bills. However, I do have a slight panic every now and again when I think about spending this and how I won’t have this safety net forever, which I have often used in the past to cover car insurance and other costs throughout the year. 

Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income?
I received £30,000 when my mum died seven years ago which I put towards my deposit for my first home and without which, I doubt I would have been able to get on the property ladder in our area. When my husband and I got engaged, my nan gifted us £1,000 to put towards wedding costs and my dad covered the food and venue costs. I also received £1,000 when my nan died a few years back.

6:24 a.m. — Daughter, E, wakes up full of smiles and raring to go as she is most mornings. My husband, E, is in the office today and won’t be back until around 8 p.m. this evening, so I think about what a long day we have ahead of us and am glad we’ve got a few plans to look forward to. I bring a book and some toys into bed so we can enjoy early morning snuggles and stay cosy for another hour or so.

7:30 a.m. — We head down to the kitchen where I put E in her bouncer and get on with some chores.

7:45 a.m. — Make blueberry porridge for E and myself — add a spoonful of Greek yoghurt to hers and a spoonful of Nutella to mine.

8 a.m. — I get E dressed for the day and pop her under the play-gym on the bedroom floor next to the mirror while I shower and get ready. 

10:45 a.m. — Decide to drive to a garden centre café that’s about 20 minutes away for brunch as I’ve been thinking about this place for weeks now. Bundle up everything we need for the trip and get in the car.

11 a.m. — No need for me to sit down as I know exactly what I want — a (small) full English, an orange juice, and a slice of chocolate fudge cake to take away for me later. I also get a sausage roll for my husband E, £25.50.

11:50 a.m. — Home, and with E still asleep, continue watching Toxic Town and clock-watch, wondering when she’ll wake up and if I’ll need to wake her to get ready for swimming.

1:30 p.m. — Catch up with two of my friends and their daughters who are all the same age in the pool in between singing songs and practising new skills with help from our very lovely swim teacher. Me and one of my friends laugh when the teacher suggests putting E on my front while I swim back crawl with her balanced on me and E decides now is the exact time she wants milk and goes straight for my boobs. Classic breastfeeding life!

4:30 p.m. — I ring my dad for a catch-up and play with E for a few hours. While we’re playing, my husband texts to let me know he’s left work and will be home early which makes a lovely change. 

6:30 p.m. — Husband walks through the door and microwaves our dinners. Since having E, we always make sure we cook enough portions for two days. Tonight is leftover meatballs and pasta — I add parmesan to mine and we sit and eat together, catching up about our days. 

7 p.m. — I eat two triangles of Toblerone while we catch up on Love is Blind for a bit before calling it a night and deciding we’re both tired and would prefer to sleep.

8:30 p.m. — Since birth, E has never been a good sleeper and tends to wake every few hours. We’re now in a good routine of co-sleeping and my husband heads to the spare room so he can have a full night’s sleep while I take E up to our room and wake a few times between now and midnight to settle her back to sleep.

Total: £25.50

6:40 a.m. — E wakes up so I give her a feed before we read a book in bed and play with some toys. 

7:40 a.m. — We head down to the kitchen where I put E in her bouncer, hand her some toys and make breakfast. Take my daily vitamins, wash up the bottles from overnight and put them in the steriliser and fold some laundry. Honestly why is it never ending?

9:15 a.m. — Hand E to my husband and head upstairs to our bedroom. We’re going on holiday in just over a week and now that we’ve got E, getting things done is a lot slower than it used to be. I make the most of it just being me and sit down to pack toiletries for me before jumping in the shower and washing my hair. 

11:15 a.m. — It’s going to be between 35-40 degrees Celsius where we’re going and I’m panicking I don’t have suitable clothes. Get E ready and drive to a retail park nearby that I’ve been thinking about visiting for a while. I walk around the shops internally commenting on how nice the clothes were but unable to figure out what would suit me. Due to being plus size, feeling like I’ve lost my sense of style since having E and needing breastfeeding to be easily accessible, I’ve really struggled to buy a single thing since she was born. Plus things are so expensive now.

12:20 p.m. — Come home feeling rubbish about myself but I did at least buy new pyjamas for me and a winter hat that was in the sale for E at Marks & Spencer using a gift card a friend bought me, £14.50.

2:15 p.m. — E goes down for a long afternoon nap so I make lunch — a cheese, pesto and salad sandwich, Aldi Pom-bear crisps and some grapes. I continue watching Toxic Town while thinking about all the things I need to do around the house.

4 p.m. — E wakes up, so we spend the next few hours playing before I get her in the bath and ready for bed. 

6 p.m. — My husband E has made dinner for us tonight — chicken, bacon and avocado burgers with coleslaw, salad and chips. We tuck in while chatting about our days while E sleeps. 

7 p.m. — I head upstairs to take off my make-up, clean my teeth, wash my face and get into pyjamas for the night. As I’ve slept with E for the last few nights, my husband has her tonight so I can have the night to myself. I eat two triangles of Toblerone while we watch Love is Blind before calling it a night around 9 p.m. 

6 a.m. — Head upstairs to our bedroom to find my husband is already awake with E. I take over so that he can sleep for a few hours and feed E before she falls back asleep.

7:45 a.m. — E wakes up so we head downstairs. Usual water, vitamins, tidy things away before making breakfast. E has banana and Weetabix while I have peanut butter on toast and a banana. 

9:30 a.m. — My husband, E is eating breakfast and I’m feeding E in the kitchen when my best friend, D, walks through the door. She plays with E while I make her a coffee and she catches us up on what’s been happening. Our group of university friends live all over the country and today is our catch up in Henley, which happens to be a two-hour drive for us all. There’s no way I would have felt confident enough to drive E there myself as it will be the longest drive she will have done so far, so D offered to drive 1.5 hours to me for us to go together — if that’s not best friend vibes then I don’t know what is. 

10:15 a.m. — Pack up the car with a million toys for the journey, enough formula for the day and get going. E falls asleep within 10 minutes of us leaving the house and stays asleep for just over an hour of the journey so D and I catch up on the new man she’s seeing, work and general life. 

12:30 p.m. — Arrive at Henley and pay for the car park before walking to the restaurant where we’re meeting our friends, £2.20. I’ve not seen the other girls since December 2023 as two of us have had babies in the last year so I cannot wait to catch up. We spend the next few hours chatting, and it’s like no time has passed at all which is always the best. We share a starter of hummus, fried chicken, breadsticks and courgette fritters and I have an Apperol Spritz, a spicy salami and a nduja pizza and a tiramisu. The service at the restaurant was awful so we request that the service charge is taken off the bill and end up paying £50 each. Looking at the time I realise we’ve not paid enough for the car park so end up extending this on the app, £2.20.

4:45 p.m. — Get in the car and head back. E happy screams in the back while playing with D before realising she’s absolutely shattered and crying for about 20 minutes. We sing as many nursery rhymes and tunes as we can to distract her before she finally falls asleep to D stroking her hand and us singing "Wheels on the Bus", making all of our friends the characters — weird.

6:30 p.m. — Pull up on the drive and say goodbye to D. Offer to cook her dinner but she just wants to head home as she’s still got a 1.5 hour drive back so she heads off. I bring everything in from the car and hand E to my husband. He gets her into her sleepsuit for the night and gives her a bottle before getting her to sleep. We then catch up on our days while I finish off the pizza from lunch. 

8 p.m. — I’m so tired that husband offers me the night to myself and I jump at the chance. We say goodnight and all head up to bed. 

5 a.m. — I head up to our bedroom to take over so that my husband can sleep for a few hours. Feed E before she falls back to sleep. 

7:45 a.m. — We wake up and head downstairs for usual water and vitamins. I make E and I a cheese and tomato omelette with toast but as soon as it’s ready to serve she has a poosplosion. Head upstairs to change her before coming back down to eat…

8:30 a.m. — I finish off my breakfast while E plays in her highchair. Make myself a mocha and head upstairs to give E a feed before her morning nap. 

9:30 a.m. — E wakes up and I get her ready for the day. Hand her to my husband so I can go and shower and get ready. 

11 a.m. — My brother comes over for a coffee and catch-up and brings hot cross buns. I have one while we chat.

12:30 p.m. — Say goodbye to my brother and make myself a ham and coleslaw sandwich with Aldi Pom-bear crisps and grapes. Do an online order of cookie pie slices to be delivered to D to say thank you for yesterday, £17.45.

1:30 p.m. — Feeling exhausted from yesterday, I leave E with my husband and head up for a nap. 

3 p.m. — Come downstairs and feed E, before playing for the next few hours. 

6 p.m. — I get E in the bath and ready for bed while my husband puts a pizza in the oven and serves with salad and coleslaw for an easy night. We watch Love is Blind (and by watch I mean play it in the background while we chat) and I eat a Crème Egg. 

8 p.m. — Feeling tired, I head up to bed to chill before my husband brings E up at 9 p.m. I try my absolute hardest to sleep but just can’t switch off. Lay awake thinking about packing, listening to "Defying Gravity" playing on repeat in my head and E snoring lightly next to me. 

10 p.m. — Wake up every two hours to settle E back to sleep in the night.

5 a.m. — My husband E comes up to the bedroom to take over so that I can go to our spare room and sleep for a few hours before a busy day. 

8:30 a.m. — Wake up, shower and get dressed. Make myself a breakfast of granola, yoghurt and banana and a mocha before I head up to the living room to chat with my husband. E is having her first nap so I do a few bits around the house while she sleeps. 

10:30 a.m. — As we’re on holiday next week, we’ve got a make-up swim class this morning. I feed E, put on my swimsuit and get her ready for swimming. Head out the door on time for once!

12:30 p.m. — E sleeps within minutes of us leaving the pool so I sing along to the radio on the journey home. 

1 p.m. — How do babies know when it’s time to wake up? She’s awake as soon as we step in the door but happily stays in the car seat while I make a tuna mayo salad sandwich. Transfer her to the highchair to have some tuna flakes and celery while I eat my sandwich and yoghurt. I catch up with my husband while he makes his lunch and takes E so that I can do make-up and change.

2 p.m. — Arrive at my friend L’s house for a playdate with her baby girl. Our other friend Y arrives with her daughter a few minutes later and we have a lovely afternoon on the floor laughing at the girls playing together and catching up over Mini Eggs, biscuits and popcorn.

5 p.m. — Say our goodbyes and head home. Catch up with my husband before he takes E upstairs to bathe her while I speak to my dad on the phone and make dinner.

6:30 p.m. — E is fast asleep, so we eat, chat about our upcoming holiday and what we need before we pack and you guessed it — Love is Blind. My husband has a bit more work to do so leaves me to chill for a bit and I make a start on Adolescence. I’m only 30 minutes in and I’m already hooked but decide while E is sleeping, I should probably go to bed! 

8:30 p.m. — In bed with E snoring lightly next to me, I start making a list of everything we’ll need to pack in her suitcase and hand luggage. 

10:30 p.m. — Wake every two hours in the night to settle her before my husband E comes in at 3am to take over so I can go sleep for a few hours. 

8:45 a.m. — Wake up, take my daily vitamins, make myself granola with yoghurt and banana and empty bottles from the steriliser.

1:30 p.m. — Is it just me that wants to return to a spotless house when I come home from a holiday? Make the most of a free morning and spend some time cleaning while playing with E in between.

2 p.m. — Make myself a lunch of fried egg on toast with some of the leftover tomato sauce from last night’s dinner then go for a nap.

3:30 p.m. — Wake up and come downstairs to find my dad has popped in for a cup of tea. He absolutely loves E (his only granddaughter) and has been shopping today for clothes for her to take on holiday. I remember wistfully when he’d buy me things and joke with him about it but it’s so lovely to see how happy E makes him. 

5 p.m. — After my dad leaves, we go for a walk and stop to play with some blossom and look at some trees. I then get E ready for dinner — she’s got leftover salmon, broccoli and potatoes from last night, which she has a tiny amount of before deciding she’d rather just slap her highchair. Get her cleaned up, fold the laundry and hand her to my husband now he’s finished work so I can have 10 minutes to myself. 

7 p.m. — Get E ready while my husband cooks dinner — chilli con carne with rice tonight which he makes a few portions of. Watch Love is Blind, catch up on our days and talk about what tomorrow looks like. 

8:30 p.m. — Bedtime! Wake up every two hours to settle E in the night. 

5 a.m. — My husband E comes up to the bedroom so I can come downstairs to the spare bedroom and sleep for a few hours. 

8:45 a.m. — Alarm goes off and I can hear from how quiet the house is that E is having her morning nap so I head to the kitchen for some water, my daily vitamins and to wash up the bottles we used overnight. Make myself peanut butter on toast and munch a banana in the kitchen before making a mocha. Of course as soon as I walk up the stairs to the living room, I hear E stir — how do they know!?

10:45 a.m. — Showered and ready, I pack E and everything we’ll need for the morning into the car and head into town for our favourite baby group that I really look forward to every week.

12 p.m. — Why did I spend the last 30 minutes at our favourite group sitting in a quiet room trying to get E to sleep and not talking to anyone? Walk back in to the group with E firmly attached to my boob while she sleeps and sit and chat with some of the other mums while I eat a slice of ginger cake and drink some water. 

12:30 p.m. — Stop in to The Works to see if they’ve got any fun toys that might be a good distraction for E on the six-hour flight. Find nothing suitable but do pick up a bubble wand, £1.50. We then head to Tesco and pick up formula, pre-made formula for the flight, bread, milk, Oreo eggs, Mini Egg chocolate and some granola, £85.35.

2 p.m. — After enjoying the sunshine and blowing bubbles with E in the garden, I make myself a chicken mayo salad sandwich and have some grapes and a Pepsi Max. Get E to sleep and sit down to watch Adolescence.

4:30 p.m. — Sit E on the floor of her room and manage to pack her suitcase and hand luggage.

6:30 p.m. — My husband brings E down from her bath and gets her ready for the night while I reheat leftovers from last night — chilli and rice. Chat about our upcoming trip and have TV on in the background which we don’t pay much attention to. 

8:30 p.m. — Head upstairs to get ready for bed. My husband brings E up not long after and we have an early night, taking it in turns throughout the night to settle her every few hours. 

"I would say this is a fairly typical representation of what life looks like at the moment, so I don’t feel like my spending has been too bad. I already knew most of my spending would be on food and drink as it’s the easiest way to catch up with friends and family. For now, I won’t be changing anything, but ask me when I’m not receiving any pay in a few months’ time and maybe my answer will be different!"