We are so excited to do our first no-spend month...and we already know this will be a challenge for us. Our goal was to prepare by doing a basic grocery store run this weekend before hand, spending no more than we would any other grocery run, but would be shopping smarter for things that would assist us making it through the month.
Rather, we decided we would put $50 in our grocery budget this month since we skipped grocery shopping last week. We originally planned to have a zero budget for groceries this month, with the except of purchasing fresh fruits/veggies. Instead, we decided to just do a $50 budget and any fruits/veggies we purchase must be within that budget. Our hope is that it will encourage us to use what we already have in our pantry/fridge and since we didn't do a "smart shop" the weekend before, it will allow us to do that throughout the month.
Already on day one , just hours into the new year, I found myself realizing I cannot go shopping for the entry-way rug this month that I wanted to get. We hadn't realized we were missing a rug, until it snowed this week and we had family over with no place to put their shoes. Since we go through the garage and drop our shoes in our drop zone/laundry room we never realized this was missing. Since we aren't spending money this month, we put down a beach towel to do the trick for the time being.
That totally failed due to extreme low temperatures, time spend with family and my non-desire to run to the store.
Rather, we decided we would put $50 in our grocery budget this month since we skipped grocery shopping last week. We originally planned to have a zero budget for groceries this month, with the except of purchasing fresh fruits/veggies. Instead, we decided to just do a $50 budget and any fruits/veggies we purchase must be within that budget. Our hope is that it will encourage us to use what we already have in our pantry/fridge and since we didn't do a "smart shop" the weekend before, it will allow us to do that throughout the month.
Make your no-spend month fit whatever your goals are as well. But still make it a challenge!
We did plan had and "pre pay" for a few things this month, which is key to making your no-spend month successful! The items we pre-paid for were a birthday gift for a family member, a calligraphy class we are scheduled to take later this month (a part of our 2018 goals to take 5 "classes") and a meal prep class which coincidentally should really help out with the no shopping for groceries part this month. We also pre-paid our mortgage this month, just for convenience of being able to track money going in/out. Money that will be going out of pocket this month will be: utilities (gas, water, electric), trash. We decided it was not worth the hassle of canceling Netflix this month just to sign up at the end of the month, although that could be a goal for you. We do not have cable, but will continue to pay for internet and our cell phones.
We will not be spending money to go out to eat, no shopping, buying gifts, and no...gulp....online shopping (my weakness).
Things we are allowing as an exception to "No-Spend": Booking future travel, as we have been waiting for southwest to have one of their big sales to book our trips to Denver for the year. I also should be good for the month for photography supplies (postage, mailers, CDs) but if something occurred where I ran out, I would be willing to spend money on the business. The same for Etsy, as we will still be paying any Etsy fees for sales and item listings since those are business expenses rather than personal expenses.
I took photos of our pantry, fridge, and freeze today to see if it affects our storage of food items.
Already on day one , just hours into the new year, I found myself realizing I cannot go shopping for the entry-way rug this month that I wanted to get. We hadn't realized we were missing a rug, until it snowed this week and we had family over with no place to put their shoes. Since we go through the garage and drop our shoes in our drop zone/laundry room we never realized this was missing. Since we aren't spending money this month, we put down a beach towel to do the trick for the time being.
Looking forward to tracking our no-spend journey and sharing what we learn this month!
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