~March No-Spend Challenge~ The Day of Reckoning...how did you do? What did you learn? What will... - Page 4

[DoomaYula]

WHO AM I?
Erika, mom of four, just starting midwifery school (payment plan is $100/month), married to a spender

MY GOALS
For this month, keep track of all spending and stick to our budget (which I won't bore you all with here). No eating out this month! Walk the kids to and from school unless it's raining or snowing! Long term: pay off cc ($2000, plan to pay it off with tax refund) and start SAVING!

HOW TO DO IT
Keep track of all my spending. Walk.
= no spend
= necessary/budgeted spending
= unnecessary spending

3/1: $45.01 (car)
3/2: $195 (preschool tuition) $100 (AAMI application) $1.09 McD's 4 pc McNuggets
[Got $26 back for car items from 3/1 that we didn't use and returned, put it in our checking account ]
3/3:

[melissel]

Alright, I've been contemplating this thread for awhile now, and I'm ready to jump back in. I need some accountability!

I'm Melissa, a WAH and HSing mom to two DDs. I have a bad habit of spending to ease stress and comfort myself (not loving my job, but can't leave--a whole other post!), and I need to find a way around that. My very general, baby-step goal for this first month is just to make myself accountable for frivolous spending. My overall goal is to put 6 months' of expenses in the bank so we can have some options, financially speaking. We're about a third of the way there, and could be all the way there by the end of the year, IF I can put a lid on it Soooo...

No-spend day:
Necessary spend day:
Frivolous spend day:
Get everyone moving day:

Full disclosure: I decided to jump on this thread right after having spent $10 on re-upping my MDC membership, so I'm officially starting as of 3/2 And I'm going to steal a few other posters' idea and add another accountability here as well (thanks!).

3/2: / Balanced accounts and paid some basic monthly bills
3/3:
3/4:
3/5:
3/6:
3/7:
3/8:
3/9:
3/10: Food co-op pickup scheduled
3/11:
3/12:
3/13:
3/14:
3/15:

[kalisis]

I have to pay the kids' preschool tuition today and my cell phone bill. Necessities.

FTR, I have bought both children each a new pair of shoes through a coop and myself a new pair of boots that should be here any day. We do not need another pair of shoes until EASTER. And I mean it.

[turalis]

- make sure we only spend $100 a week on groceries
- be 100% committed to using cash and leaving the cards (especially debit) at home
- continue to make extra student loan payments
- stay close to home & go to the library


weekly totals for food:
March 1 - March 7: 76.50/100

= budgeted spending
= un-budgeted spending
= no spending


3/1- on : 76.50

[dfunk98]

BIG snow day today, so we won't be going anywhere or spending anything. YEY!!

Also, I've been racking my brain trying to think of what I could give up for Lent, and last night it came to me. My debit card!! Starting this week, I will go to the bank every Sunday (since I thought of it last night, I'll have to do it Tuesday this week ) and take out $40 for the week. I will also fill up my gas tank on Sundays. Then I will only have that $40 to buy the things I "need" (ineveitable thing I forgot to get while grocery shopping, blah, blah). Since I won't be using my debit, it will help me curb my sending, I hope. With any luck, this will become second nature and I will continue after Lent is over. Wish me luck!!

My Key-
No Spend
Necessary/Planned Spending
Unnecessary Spending

Goal
No spend 12/30 days (up 2 more from last month!!)
Groceries $0/$250
Household $0/$100
Saved for trip to CO $20/$50

3/1- $56 Target (Food, household stuff)
3/2-

[Ruthiegirl]

01 -- :
02 -- :



no spend
planned spending
: eat at home



0/200 groceries/household
0/200 food co-op
0/800 cc payment
0/50 garden
0/100 gas

[tiffany21074]

not a good start

1- 18.27, food out

[MomtoRyan]

a. Who you are
I am a SAHM to a beautiful spirited little 19mth old boy.

b. Where you are going (your financial goals)
We are trying to just be better with money in general. Since having Ryan it has come apparrent that I tend to buy way too many toys etc for him. Granted they are second hand but we made a playroom out of our downstairs bonus room and we can not fit all his toys seriously!! I need help!! Part of my problem is I am so sentimental and I have to hang onto all his toys from infancy. I would love some ideas and suggestions on how to improve upon that.

c. How you plan to get there
I plan on using coupons for almost everything. On the Feb thread I saved $360 in coupons and shopping at an alternative grocery stores and sales etc. I was floored that I could save that much on alot of organic foods!! I would really like to take advantage of free things to do with DS and DH. I would love get organized and have cooking trades (if that is a word, lol) where one person3 makes 2-3 of something and you invite 2-3 people over and everyone takes one of that item so you go home with 2-3 diff meals and you only cookes one.

Man am I a jabber mouth today, sorry. I just get so excited to save $$

I would love suggestions and tips regarding anything to save $$ or to help with my um.......problem of keeping everything.

1. :
2. :

=no spend
:=eat at home
=budgeted item day
:=not budgeted item

Goals
2/20 no spend days
2/27 eat at home (Feb we ate at home everyday so this month I am a bit more loose on the subject so DH is a bit more happy

[smeisnotapirate]

2/25 - : -$20
2/26 - : -$13
2/27 - :
2/28 -
3/1 -
3/2 - We're snowed in! So....... :

4/15 : or , $33/$150 :

btw,

= spending in the budget
: = spending off-budget
: = spending-free day!

[Hollysmom]

I am back again. Last month wasn't great, but better.

I am Kristine WOHM to 3 amazing girls. I am consciously trying to simplify our lives so I am hoping to make our finances simple as well. So, in keeping with that theme I am not going to set any crazy goals, just going to commit to trying to spend less and come here and keep track.

Plans:

1) No on-line shopping
2) Eat out of the freezer & pantry
3) Go through the kids clothes and figure out what they really need for spring/summer (with three girls it shouldn't be much for anyone except dd1)

[kalisis]

1. $0
2. $6.40 groceries/lunch

* 1/10 no spend days
* $100 total (cash) for food/entertainment while in NY (I plan to do a cleanse while I'm there next month, so this should more than cover it.)
* $50 misc total for the month
* no new shoes for anyone this month.

[ThisLove]

I came on the right day, at the right time to jump in.

a) I'm a SAHM to one, TTC #2. Self-proclaimed wonderwoman.

b) Main (longterm) financial goal? To provide ourselves with a little bit of a cushion to lower the stress level in the house. I would like to be able to treat myself to a mini-vacation to visit my girlfriends in May, so I'd need to save about $600 to cover all of my expenses and I honestly believe that I can do it!

c) I'm going to cook from scratch more often. I took an inventory of what I had already in my kitchen and then looked through the sale ads to find the best prices on what I needed. I plan to cut our food expenses down significantly: no more eating out (which we rarely do anyway, DH has an issue with buying lunch though), no more convenience foods. Instead of spending $450 a month on food, I want to pare that down to about $200 (especially with spring around the corner, the Farmer's Market will open again and our indoor growing system will be set up so I can start some veggies!).

I'm recording all of my spending and modifying the budget this month to free up some money, as it was just brought to my attention that I may need to be shopping for a new dryer ... Argh!

: - groceries
- bills (electricity, gas, water & cable) & other necessities
- no spend!
- unnecessary spending

Feb. 1st - : ($71), ($7.30 for new mop bucket, leftover containers, Cream of Mushroom soup from Dollar Tree)
Feb. 2nd -

[fullofgrace]

Stickying to the top.

[Hollysmom]

Not starting off the month very well. Went to a wedding on Saturday night so I wasn’t feeling all that great Sunday morning so I didn’t cook nor did I get breakfast and lunch ready for work today.

March 1 - $22 fast food :, $26.95 :
March 2 - $2.65 breakfast, $7 lunch


:$26.95/$560
Unbudgeted/Unnecessary Spending: $31.65
No Spend Days 0/15

My Key:

No Spend
Unbudgeted/Unnecessary Spending
Budgeted/Necessary Spending
: Groceries

[Crunchy*VT*Mom]

01.. $23 Pizza Putt
02.. , : $750
03..
04..
05..
06..
07..
08..
09..
10..

~~~~~~~~~~
My Goals:

1/20 No Spend days
0/5 Let the Car Rest Days :
: Put Money in Savings

[Scribe]

OK. I have got to focus on bringing my lunch to work. No fridge access or microwave makes it HARD.

March 1: $46 on K-cups
March 2: $7 lunch; $61 bath product containers

[Crunchy*VT*Mom]

For this month, keep track of all spending and stick to our budget (which I won't bore you all with here).

Welcome Erika! Please...bore away.

The whole point of this thread is to help YOU and you can fill an entire page with budgeting stuff and we will be happy. I can't promise you that any of us will read it...but it is good for you to write it out.

These threads are all about public accountability, not close reading, so most of us aren't going to pore over your budget details (although some wil ) but it will really help you to write all that out.

So please feel free to write as little or as much as you would like on this thread. That's what it is here for.

[Crunchy*VT*Mom]

Originally Posted by tiffany21074

not a good start
1- 18.27, food out

Tiffany -- That is an okay start. The month of March is loooong. Don't beat yourself up because you spent on the first day. It takes a while to get the hang of no spending. I bought pizza on the first day of this challenge too (and spent more than you did)

Originally Posted by aoife

Stickying to the top.

Thank you!

Originally Posted by SimplyMom

Not starting off the month very well. Went to a wedding on Saturday night so I wasn’t feeling all that great Sunday morning so I didn’t cook nor did I get breakfast and lunch ready for work today.

See comment to Tiffany above. It is all good. This is a learning process and it takes time. Hopefully you are building a habit that will last the rest of your lifetime...that is a long long time, so slipping up here or there is okay. Forget about it and drive on.

[mamayarn]

We're a sticky - fancy!

DH is stopping for milk on the way home... it's a snow day here so that will be it for the day!

[Scribe]

I've missed you, Pru.