Mobile phone is struggling to upload photos and and running v slow.

I buy 2nd hand cheap PAYG mobiles but they don't last long. Can't afford a new mobile phone and unable to get a phone on contract as poor credit rating.

My son's current school is a Catholic one, and he is therefore not allowed to wear tracksuit bottoms, but has to wear trousers instead.

He has recently had a massive growth spurt, and has put on quite a bit of weight around his stomach area, and as a result most of the trousers I buy for him from the shops are standardised for a specific age group, but not very adjustable in terms of size, which often means even when I buy him trousers for an older age than he is (because often the waist is that little bit larger) the legs of them are often way too long, and I have to pay even more money (sometimes more than what I paid for the actual trousers) just to get them altered at the Tailors!

I often feel that I can't win, and that (even though they also sell elasticated waisted trousers) they still don't cater for slightly larger children.

This is one of the biggest challenges I face at the start of almost every school year.

The school new year gives me stress and anxiety, as my son will move to a new school due to bullying in previous school. New uniform, new people, and as a single parent working full time, it is sometimes very hard to manage it all. Especially with cost of living crisis, it is hard to manage finances and prioritise and rationing.

However, will get there as I am a proud and blessed single mom. My son is a blessing and keeps me strong and happy in many ways.

For me, I'm in quite, I guess, a lucky position really. Two of my children at university so they're sort of out of the way and my youngest is now going into year eleven at school because she goes to a special needs school. Thankfully, I don't have to cover all the expense of all the exam books. It that's general supplies that go with that. So financially, I'm not really worried or put out at all, thankfully, this time. Although it's going to be a bit of an emotional year because we're starting to look at sort of placements in colleges for her and being she's got special needs, it's a bit more trickier than normal. So that's the only fear I've got problems I've got this year, thankfully. So yeah, I'm in a luckily enough, a very lucky position.

That’s a very hard question to answer.

I make a lot of ideas up of things that I want to do or that need doing.

Some thing happens that ends up putting a stop to it.

I’ve dreamt of learning to drive over the past few years but then I just can’t afford to do the lessons and buy a car.

I have put a new plan in place in regards to controlling money better so it’s not spent wrong and hopefully that will allow me to save.

Partner started a new job back in May, which if he does really well there is a good chance of being on a higher wage and sorting our lives out

Having been on UC for a while, I have noticed that there are often times that when an employer asks for experience in the field in question, it is some times hard to get some, especially if you have been unemployed for some time.

Furthermore, I've even found that getting into voluntary work within my chosen field of work, has been just as challenging as getting the actual job itself because there are so many other people wanting to get the work experience that I need also.

So at the moment, I'm on housing benefit or they paid pretty good with the credit, but I'm having constant problems with my landlord. They are constantly on my case because the health and benefit system is paid slightly. I think it's a month in arrears and council don't like that getting told letters of I owe money even though a week after they sent me a letter the rents were being paid up. It's the benefit system in regards to University Credit, sending the payments to the local authority. The local authorities don't always seem to match up in my case, which is a bit of a pain.

It’s been awful I have been on the waiting list for over a year. Who wants to wait up until midnight to bid on a house? The rent prices are ridiculous you can’t get anywhere that is even covered by support from the council. So how are you supposed to find a house?

I know it's not the end of the world, but my 20 year old tv has packed up. A lot of people would just expect you to go out and buy another, but times have changed over the last 20 years, I struggle to buy food and clothing for my family and myself, so a tv is out of the question, this got me thinking about what I would do if the fridge or cooker stopped working!

So a busy hectic week is almost over. I'm so thankful my child is in school! This week started with a pest problem. Weevils everywhere.

Spoke to the housing association who said we had to deal with it and then they'll come in to fix everything that needs done.

So pest exterminator has been in and we're £140 out of pocket. Alongside that we had to stay out of the house because it needed to be clear for 6 hours after the treatment had been put down. Went out for dinner at Pizza Express because I had offers for it. But that's put paid to doing anything out at the weekend.

Roll on next week and more money coming in. I've now to get through the weekend without spending anything.... this could be fun.

This past week has been horrendous, I spent 4 days in hospital and need an operation, which has been declined by the NHS for the past 3 years. My only option is to go private with a cost of 8,000+ to gain a quality of life and hopefully get back into full time work. I come home to a leak in the bathroom. With no spare money to repair the damages caused in the bathroom. I'm hoping it will make do until after Christmas.

Awoke covered in sweat but freezing cold.

Still dark outside.

Tears running down my face.

News and media is depressing. North Korea is shooting off missiles, I'm making a a conscious decision not to look at it.

Difficult when the loneliness get the better of me.