~January No-Spend Challenge~ We're at the finish line! How did you do? What will you do... - Page 2

[Danielle283]

I'm a SAHM and also take care of an infant full-time during the week. We've been spending too much lately, needed some parts for both of our trucks, and had to pull from our savings account. DH will be driving even farther to work every day for the next 10 weeks which is going to mean double the gas. We need to stay in our budget in January!

No eating out, more meal planning, no buying clothes or things for dd. If we need anything extra I'll use my giftcards from Christmas. I'm also putting all of my pay into savings.

[wahlmn]

a. Who you are
I'm Mindy, SAHM and small business owner. I have two boys, Wyatt almost 4, and Archie, 19 months.

b. Where you are going (your financial goals)
We have some credit card debt, and a tendency to spend money on things we don't need to. I am embarrassed to tell anyone IRL because DH makes very good money, but we still spend nearly the same way we did when we were both working, and we seem to be treading water, and not able to pay down our credit card debt and get am emergency fund set up.

c. How you plan to get there
I am really pushing DH to go to an all cash system, I am hoping this brings home the point that when the money is gone, IT"S GONE! We use debit cards for most everyday expenses, and only added to our debt a bit over the holidays, but we tend to operate in our overdraft account, and not in the black, and it makes me feel awful everyday. I am hoping that by using cash, it forces us to think more about our purchases, cook from our pantry and (2 well stocked!) freezers, and do less eating out.

I think I will start a list by day so that I can really be held accountable for the rest of Dec/Jan spending.

Dec30 Okay, I suck at this. We had major water damage in our basement, and insurance will not cover all the repairs, so we had to pay out of pocket (on our credit cards...) for the new faucets & light fixtures for the bathroom
Dec31 Nothing, yay!
Jan 1 Had to go visit DH's grandma who does not cook, $17 at Wendy's for the 4 of us for lunch
2 Payday So far so good, I am making homemade fettucine alfredo with shrimp (all from the freezer, yay!) for dinner too.
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30 Payday
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[Amys1st]

Back for more!!

I am Amy and I am a SAHparent to my 2 dds. We live a pretty frugal lifestyle and contribute to our retirement very well. We live a debt free life w/ exception to our mortgage. We would like this paid off within 15 years instead of 29. To get to this, I will eventually go back to work plus we will be done the major remodeling on our home within the next 3 years which will free up funds.

Goals this month:
-have several no spend days the first few weeks, we are going on vacation the 3rd week of the month.

-keep grocery costs under $350.00 this includes my produce and dairy delivery every week. 00/350

-Feed my freezer, use my pantry

Key:
planned spending such as grocery, bills, church or errands
no spending at all today
: eat from what I have on hand at home

Costs:
paid for airline tickets already, have hotel, amusement park entrance, plus eating out. We do vacations pretty frugal and this one, plane tickets 3 were free, paid for 1.

Side of beef this month. We are using our xmas money we received from family members plus DH's holiday bonus. Its in the savings acct awaiting to pay for this.

1 & :
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3 & :
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5 Payday &
6 & :
7 & :
8 meeting a friend for sushi w no kids! and groceries
9 & :
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15 $5.66 for taking dd1 to lunch today.
16 & :
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18 depart
19 for
20 vacation $Payday$
21 and
22 come back!
23 & :
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25 & :
26 & : paying bills
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30 went out for breakfast and lunch!
31 pick up our side of beef loot.

[ananas]

I'm joining again and this time I MEAN it! I just moved into my first place and have to get very serious about watching my money and where it goes. I've been doing very good, only splurged a few times, but I'm going to join to keep me on track even more!

[triscuitsmom]

a. Who you are: Alison, living life with my DP J, and our wonderful two year old T. We are expecting another baby in February.

b. Where you are going (your financial goals): We are Dave Ramsey followers. We are currently working on paying down debt. We are going to be getting a significant extra amount of money this month and will be using it to pay off some cards in full : Our current goal is to pay off debt.

c. How you plan to get there: We have a pretty good budget system going. We want to stick with that and continue to pay down the debt when there is extra money

Goals for the Month of January
1. Half the month with no spend days: 0/15
2. Unplanned spending 5 or fewer days: 0/5
3. Pay off three debts: 0/3
4. Tim Hortons 5 or fewer days: 0/5
5. Place two book orders without using credit (for DP and I for the upcoming semester): 0/2
6. Obtain the rest of the baby and homebirth supplies under budget and no credit

[mimid]

a. I'm miriam, mom to 3 toddlers.

b. For january I'm just trying to see if I can stay within a budget. i've never lived with one, but with the economy...well, you never know. i need to see if what I've set up is feasable.

c. planning meals to cut down on grocery bills and take-out is the big one. Other than that, just not shopping. I don't really have much that I need. Okay, I can't think of anything I need.

The only exception I'm giving myself is Gymboree's Gymbucks redemption mid-month. I need some spring casual clothing for the girls to fill out their wardrobe through April-ish. I've already made my list, though, so I know what i'll spend barring out-of-stock items.

[wholewheatmama]

OMG, I'm taking the plunge!

1) I'm Lynn, single mama to a 12 month old.

2) First, I need to see exactly where I stand. My first goal is to get organized. Everything has been chaotic since my daughter was born. I have my own business, and that's where things are messy. Personally, I don't have any credit card debt, thank goodness. I need to rebuild my savings that were wiped out (and get rid of the debt taken on) after trying so long to get pregnant.

3) Get organized. Stay out of Target :. No on-line shopping. Make all of our food/clothes/toys in January. I am budgeting $50 for non-essentials in January.

[bandgeek]

Ok, my first no-spend challenge! I was making a list of household necessities I need to buy for the month. I only had two "must-haves" on it. Trash bags and baby wipes (we're using sposies right now due to no washer/dryer). I was going through the ads to find the cheapest bulk pack ($5 at walgreens) and then I thought, "Don't people make these things out of paper towels?" So I did a search and found a good recipe for paper towel baby wipes. DD's home nurse bought me paper towels and toilet paper for xmas so I have plenty to work with. She's funny like that. For me it's no big deal to have no tp or paper towels (I just use cloth if I run out) but she goes crazy so she bought bulk packs.

So now my list is down to just trash bags. $5 not spent!

[Patrick's mummy]

Hi
I'm Sarah, I stay at home to care for my three kiddos aged 5, nearly 3 and a baby. We took the decision for me to SAH about 18 mths ago for various reasons and we can just about do it on my DH's salary but it's tight so I do these challenges.

In Jan I would like to cut back on our grocery spending - this is linked to wanting to slim down a bit myself, although just through eating less "treats" rather than consciously dieting. This can only be good for our purse. I have a fair amount of meat in our small freezer and got a good vegetarian cookbook from BIL for Christmas so am all set to experiment with beans etc this month.

I would also like to reduce our elec usage but may not see the benefit of that in Jan as we are billed quarterly. It's been high as I haven't been hang drying so much - we have a small house with no laundry room/basement/garage etc so the laundry just hangs around the house on various airers looking untidy and encouraging my kids to run through it and toss it about which drives me mad

It would be a big improvement if I could get DH on board so I am thinking about giving him a cash allowance for spending on soda/breakfasts etc at work. We both know he doesn't need to do this spending but he still does it so maybe a modest cash budget to work with (and when it's gone, it's gone) would help...?

Also looking at rejigging our home phone/internet costs and seeing if I can get a better package.

Look forward to a frugal January with you all
xx

[jen&james]

I am going to join you guys this jan. We have started a budget and I am planning on sticking to it strictly.

[KnittingKara]

a. I'm Kara - it has been ages since I've visited MDC, but here I am now There are 5 of us, 3 kids and 2 adults, living on a very modest income and a dog & a cat, too. (and THANK YOU all for the warm Welcome Back! It's nice to be here!)
b. We've decided 2009 is going to be the year we really tackle our debt - between the mortgage, school loans, and credit cards it is really just shameful how much we owe. We're pretty frugal, but that has been slipping lately (I got really lax after the baby was born this year) and I think this is just the ticket to keep me accountable and get us back on track.

c. We've got excess we need to sell and my plan/hope is that any thing not necessary I can raise the money for via ebay, etsy, etc. (the "slush fund") Dh is recomitting himself to his diet, too so that means more lunches from home and less eating out. I've also established a budget for gas and groceries.

My goals:
- 20 no spend days ~ 1/20
- Less than $50 unnecessary expenses
-> "Slush Fund" = Earned $0.00 / Spent $0.00
- stay on budget
-> gas (0/$80)
-> groceries ($5.28/$240)


Dec31 - Paid (paid bills, set up envelopes for budget $)
Jan 1 - Happy New Year! had to spend $19 getting a patch on a flat tire on Dh's truck ... also $5.28 in grocery (but at least at our local store, not a big box chain store)
2 - No Spending! Awesome!
3 -
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31 - Paid

[lactivistmama]

a. Who you are: I am a mama to a 3 and 5 year old. I work part time as a nurse, and am in an online BSN program.

b. Where you are going (your financial goals) I am a spendaholic.. I am trying to learn to budget and stick to the budget. I am with dh for right now, but most likely will be going at this alone soon, so I need some control now.. That said, I need to get a small savings together and a few smaller debts paid off.

c. How you plan to get there: I just need to stop spending $$!!!

• I would like to shoot high and try for 25 no spend days.. I hope that is an obtainable goal.
• Grocery Budget $400

[Amys1st]

I have to say a big Hello! to

KnittingKara and Mimid!! Good to see you guys! :

[boigrrrlwonder]

I'm K, mama to a toddler and partner to a plumbing apprentice. Our long-term financial goal is to get together the down payment for a house. This month's plan:
- 20 no spend days
- grocery budget = $250
- transportation budget = $30
- I'm decluttering and hoping to sell off some of the junk. As an incentive to declutter and actually get it out of the house (the hard part for me!), this can be used for pocket money but no spending beyond that.

[Ruthiegirl]

Joining in for January. I am Ruth, SAHM to three little ones. We make a decent living, but have $6500 in cc debt right now. I am miserable to have this debt and determined to get rid of it by the end of May.

CC are cut up and gone. Our budget is planned and ready for the month and most importantly, dh and I are in agreement about not spending this month. My goal is to send $1000 to debt.

This next week should be relatively simple since I have paid the bills, bought groceries and am now out of cash for the next 10 days. All I have to do is sit tight, eat at home and wait for our next paycheck on the 9th.

[missmich]

I really fell off the No Spend wagon in December. Not that I started to spend,spend,spend or anything but I just stopped posting my spend days and the forgot what was spent. I know I spent a little to much on coffee for when I worked the night shift at the call center,I have to have something to keep me awake! I'm back again to start all over in January!

[jakesmama]

I'm all set to tackle this challenge! I'm a WAHM/WOHM/unemployed mama to two kiddos, 6 and 1. I was recently RIFed from a great job, I do a little freelance writing on the side and am expecting to get rehired for a different position with the same organization at a significant reduction in pay. I need to not spend above and beyond the essentials and even those need to be thought about very carefully.

Since even our grocery budget is tiny to non-existent I'm not posting a budget, just aiming to keep the spending very low. I will be doing 20 no-spend days and trying not to incur any library late fees or other unecessary spending. I have just a few bucks left on a Starbucks gift card from Christmas and when it's gone, it's gone. This will be the hardest thing for me!

I will be looking at stocking our pantry with high-fiber, high-protein items that can fill us up without costing a lot. I'm also decluttering and trying to sell off what we don't need. I think I'll start keeping track of our "slush fund" as well!

Thanks for having me!

No-spend days: 0/20

Eat at home days: 0/20

Slush Fund: earned 0.00/0.00 spent

Gas: 0/$50

[kedwards313]

I am Kim and I am a WOHM to a 2 yr old DS and have been married to my wonderful DH for almost 16 years. My goal for 2009 is to live off of my DH salary and put mine into savings to put toward the purchase of some land. I have laid out the budget and plan on eating out of our pantry and freezer as much as possible.

[Purple*Lotus]

Hello again ladies

I am Jaime, and my goals for January are:
1. Limit eating out.
2. Sell as much as possible on e-bay to apply to debt paydown.
3. Devote as much of the extra paycheck to debt as possible.
4. Limit the grocery budget to $70 a week.

I can't wait to join in with you all this month

[Arwyn]

Well, due to the fun in December, we're out of cash for the next two weeks, so this seems like a good month to join.

I'm Arwyn, partner with Gary, massage student (the winter quarter starts on 1/13, but I have all my books already -- ordered used online when I started the program -- and should be able to use just the supplies I have already). We have a 21 month old ().

Our financial goal is to pay off our credit card debt. We've been able to stop using credit cards almost completely (the last week we've used again, but that's the first time in probably half a year), but need to get that debt gone.

This month's plan is to avoid spending on credit, and hopefully to have enough at the end of the month to make a larger payment next cycle. Our biggest weakness is eating out, followed closely by Starbucks. So this month's goal is to not eat out, at all. I'm not yet skilled at meal planning, less so Gary, so this'll be interesting...

So my specific goals for January are:

• 20 completely spend-free days
• Absolutely no eating out or Starbucks in the first half of January
• 14 days eat-at-home-only in the second half of January
• Only food purchases at the grocery store, with no or minimal packaged foods

I am allowing for one large-ish purchase, a pillow for me, because it'll be cheaper in the long run than having to see the chiropractor every week!