~August No-Spend Challenge~ - Page 3

[delightedbutterfly]

Aug 1: $200 of $200 Baby EF saved (our tenant paid rent ), and paid off EVERYTHING but the mortgage Starting the month off with a clean slate. However was the second to last day of Dh's preplanned activity so some preplanned unnecessary spending

Aug 2: more preplanned unnecessary spending
Aug 3:
Aug 4:
Aug 5:

My goals this month are (might add more as we go):

10 no spend days
10 no drive days
4 dinners made at home a week
$200 of Baby EF saved
groceries/other normal spending

and we do have some big days where we have some preplanned spending like a vacation we have coming up those will just have to be

[Turquesa]

Key:

= No spending
= Budgeted spending
= Non-budgeted spending

Aug 1: Paid electricity bill
Aug 2: Paid phone bill, $7.50 to get into municipal pool w/ LOs
Aug 3:
Aug 4: Groceries for $136.00. Lowest I've spent in eons, sad to say.
Aug 5: Unexpected, unbudgeted, and required items for craft class, $20.00. Planned, budgeted lunch with DH-$7.00.
Aug 6: $30.00 gas for car, $20.00 garage sale clothes for DS.
Aug 7: $5.00 much-needed pan from garage sale.

[C.Arden]

I guess I'm not joining in too late, it's only the 4th. This is my first time joining in, but I've wanted to for ages.

Who you are I'm Carolina, I'm a SAHM to a 5 year old, a 3 year old and an 11 month old. We're homeschooling, remodeling our house and I'm getting ready to start school myself again.

Where you are going (your financial goals) We're currently remodeling our house completely, which is taking a good chunk of money but we're doing everything we can ourselves and my husband is the best deal finder out there so it hasn't cost us nearly as much as it could have. We're also doing everything we can to pay off some massive medical bill debt and pay off our second car. We're hoping to be debt free, besides our mortgage by the end of the year.

How you plan to get there I'm going to take things one step at a time so I don't feel discouraged. I'm going to start by cutting out all nonessential spending. If I don't HAVE to have it, I'm not going to buy it. I will always shop with a list and I will leave the kids with dh to avoid temptations. I'll be posting here daily to keep on track. I'm going to use what we have in our pantry and limit food shopping to $75 a week, other household items to $40 a week. Oh, I will be buying two hanging organizers for the kids closets because with the remodel, our storage space is limited and it's driving me crazy! That will cost $25.98

No spend
Planned Spending
Unplanned Spending

4. $25.98 for organizers - Just placed my order and dh had a balance with Amazon, so I only ended up spending $12.67!

5. $5.35 unplanned spending

[mommyto4grits]

My key:
No Spend
No Driving
Budgeted Spending/Necessities/Thought Over Purchase
Unnecessary Spending
: Exercise Day

1st- $160 Groceries/Consumables
2nd- $60 more Groceries (after being out of town for 3 weeks I found more things we were out of)
3rd- $35 @ the Farmer's Market $20 Gas
4th- $50 Target all necessitities

[FillingMyQuiver]

Key:
no spend/ budgeted spending
unnecessary/ unbudgeted spending
hung laundry to dry
completed home improvement project


Goals for August
no spend days 2/20
eating out 1/0 (this is not including our vacation)
hung laundry to dry 1/10
home improvement projects 0/2

1. Not off to the best start. Spent some $$ at WalMart. Went to get budgeted items and bought *more*. *SIGH*
2.
3.
4. Ran errands today, $22 at McD for lunch.

[MomtoRyan]

I know we are late to the game but..........
We are a family that is trying to sell their home to have their Papa (who is ill) move in with them. We are upside down 50-60,000 in our townhouse. We need to buckle down and save save save!!

I used to be really good at coupons but lately we haven't been saving what we usually do. We are also trying to start a side business of a photography business to make some extra $$.


Goals
no spend days 15
eating out 2/mth if needed

[nina_yyc]

Aug. 1: $25.50 movies.
Aug. 2: no spend!
Aug. 3: no spend!
Aug. 4: $52.88 groceries. A victory! Usually I do not leave the grocery store with less than $90, even if I just stop off for milk . No organics (except those on ridiculous sale) and just one $2 treat for DD. I read the ingredients on some store brand stuff that I would normally buy brand name and noticed there was artificial crap in it. Then I looked at my usual brand and...same crap!!! Why exactly was I paying more? Contemplating a trip to Costco to look for cheap organics

ADVICE PLEASE..... I have a baby shower this month and cousin visiting with new baby. The baby shower is for a really good friend (I was a bridesmaid at her wedding) who is planning to be an AP mom and I really want to buy her a carrier. But who has $90?? . I also have cousins coming into town with their 5yo and new baby and I have a feeling they will have gifts for my kids so I should have gifts for them. WWYD? As you can see from my budget I don't have a lot to spare. FYI you're also looking at Canadian $ and food is way more expensive here than in the US.

52.88/$475 Household
$25.50/$75 Frivolity

[Qalliope]

Okay my first no-spend challenge!
Who you are - SAHM homeschooling an almost 7 ds, and chillin' with 2 yr old dd.

Where you're going - I've got a laundry list of goals : remodel the basement into a usable play/work area, start a business, repair our credit, pay off our house. I have already completed several goals in the last year: paid off credit card debt, paid off the car, got our savings up to $3000, and made some major quality of life purchases that we had put off for a long time.

How you plan to get there - Confession: I haven't totally prioritized my goals. I don't know what to do first. The basement became a front-runner when it flooded, but I minimized the damage and fixed what caused the leak, so deciding whether to move forward when we're already dishing out a bunch of dough to a series of other minor catastrophes is causing me great anxiety. I find ways to make extra cash here and there with web design, mystery shopping, online stuff. But I need to step up my efforts and get money flowing in more steadily if I want to increase our savings and pay off the house. DH thinks we should get a small business loan and jump in feet first if we are going to run a business, but I am squeamish about borrowing money not knowing if what we want to do will pan out, and our credit is a bit bruised. I can put time and energy into fixing that, but I'm not at all sure I want a loan of any kind. In the meantime, I want our day to day spending to be as tiny as possible to maximize what I have to devote to these bigger projects. I'm going to have to be super-efficient, or stop sleeping, I havent decided yet.



I wish the first four days of this month had never happened. We're hemorrhaging cash. Insurance deductible, insurance premium, replace washing machine, dd's b-day... Omg! But I'm super motivated now.
no spend
budgeted spend
non-budget spend
extra earnings
bartered for or scavenged something we needed

1. Car ins. premium
2. Double irked! Oh Noes! Got the car back from the shop and had to pay the deductible, plus bought a washer. At least it was used. Total unbudgeted outgo - $638 Ouch.
3. $40 to the delivery guy of my washer
4 Dd's b-day fun : $25, $31 gas, $10 Walgreens
5

31/160 gas
10/200 groceries
0/1000 monthly bills
25/100 fun money

[urchin_grey]

Goals:
1/20 no spend days
1/15 no drive days
$0/100 selling items we no longer need/want (I made $73 doing this last month!)
$90/250 groceries

Key:
No spend:
Planned spending:
Unplanned spending:
Extra income:
No driving:

Aug 1: $90 on groceries, $3 for a lock to keep my nephew out of my pantry (this will pay for itself many times over...)
Aug 2:
Aug 3: DS woke up with a cough/high fever and was miserable so I had to make a 3am trip to Walgreens.
Aug 4: Gas and new auto insurance policy. I saved $600 by switching! Also, DS had an appointment in the city and we didn't spend anything extra. Normally we stop on the way home and get Sonic or Subway but instead we went straight home.

[Qalliope]

Originally Posted by nina_yyc

ADVICE PLEASE..... I have a baby shower this month and cousin visiting with new baby. The baby shower is for a really good friend (I was a bridesmaid at her wedding) who is planning to be an AP mom and I really want to buy her a carrier. But who has $90?? . I also have cousins coming into town with their 5yo and new baby and I have a feeling they will have gifts for my kids so I should have gifts for them. WWYD? As you can see from my budget I don't have a lot to spare. FYI you're also looking at Canadian $ and food is way more expensive here than in the US.
[COLOR="Magenta"]

I would do one of two options. A. Get crafty. There are lots of easy patterns for slings and carriers, and any number of toys, lovies, etc. you can make for your cousins' kiddos. B. There are some nifty programs that reward you for doing stuff online. Swagbucks, for example, lets you earn points for searching using their engine, and you can trade the points you earn for gift cards from Amazon.ca or paypal cash or whatever. There are a bunch of survey companies that reward you like this too. PM me if you'd like a list of links for either option.

All my gift giving falls into one of those two categories. Make it or get it for free. Yeah!

[Crunchy*VT*Mom]

I buy food every.single.day. wow.

It is just bad planning on my part. I need to learn how to make menus and do a once a week trip.

Bought a ton of school supplies for my daughter who is actually IN school, but then bought more for her two sisters who are not in school but just wanted supplies. They like to be like their big sister.

August 2010

01..
02..
03.. $147 shrubs and bushes at Lowes
04.. $30 school supplies -- some were necessary but most were not.
05..
06..
07..
08..
09..
10..
11..
12..
13..
14..
15..
16..
17..
18..
19..
20..
21..
22..
23..
24..
25..
26..
27..
28..
29..
30..

My Goal:

3/20 No Spend Days
1/5 Let the Car Rest Days

[FillingMyQuiver]

Key:
no spend/ budgeted spending
unnecessary/ unbudgeted spending
hung laundry to dry
completed home improvement project


Goals for August
no spend days 2/20
eating out 1/0 (this is not including our vacation)
hung laundry to dry 1/10
home improvement projects 0/2

1. Not off to the best start. Spent some $$ at WalMart. Went to get budgeted items and bought *more*. *SIGH*
2.
3.
4. Ran errands today, $22 at McD for lunch.
5.

I'm really annoyed at the weather lately, we've had passing thundershowers for the last couple of days, so I haven't been able to hang any laundry outside.

[SumnerRain]

Spent all day yesterday making chili from dried beans in my pantry, and cinnamon rolls from scratch so I didn't have time to check in. Here is my update

Goals:
3/20 no spend days
4/25 days of using something from the pantry for dinner
Save $150/600 for Back to School.

Budgeted Spending (Planned spending days):
(July 28-August 10)
138.47/250 - Groceries
0/199.91 - Household spending

Unplanned Spending:

August 1:
August 2:
August 3:
August 4: - ran out of tomatoes and needed powdered sugar $10.40
August 5: - Leftover night! No cooking, no pantry use either though.

[Turquesa]

Originally Posted by nina_yyc

[B]

ADVICE PLEASE..... I have a baby shower this month and cousin visiting with new baby. The baby shower is for a really good friend (I was a bridesmaid at her wedding) who is planning to be an AP mom and I really want to buy her a carrier. But who has $90?? . I also have cousins coming into town with their 5yo and new baby and I have a feeling they will have gifts for my kids so I should have gifts for them. WWYD? As you can see from my budget I don't have a lot to spare. FYI you're also looking at Canadian $ and food is way more expensive here than in the US.

52.88/$475 Household
$25.50/$75 Frivolity

I'm NOT a seamstress, and if you aren't either, you probably don't have time to learn before the shower. But go for it, if you can learn quickly!

I "contract" out my sewing to a friend. She helps me pick out the right pattern and tells me what type of material to go pick out. I pay for the material plus a little extra for her time ($10-$20).

If you don't have any sewing-handy friends, get a bid from a professional seamstress. It's still money, but I'll bet you pay a LOT less than you would for the first-hand carrier.

And honestly, for the visiting children, hit the dollar store for some cute containers and then stuff them with home-made cookies or candies. Five-year-olds are pretty easy to please, and the baby isn't expecting anything. Don't worry about them out-gifting you; traditional etiquette used to call for only the guests giving a gift because the hostess was giving her space and hospitality for one or more nights.

Good luck!

[my2girlz]

8/1
8/2
8/3
8/4
8/5

$0/$7500 lower level remodel
$0/$250 bday party
$0/$300 school clothes/shoes and supplies
$0/$300 spending when guests are here (state fair and misc. spending)
$0/$100 gas
$10.58/$300 groceries
1/10 no spending days
$61.71/$0 unplanned spending
$129.25/$100 ext. hard drive

[nina_yyc]

Aug. 1: $25.50 movies.
Aug. 2: no spend!
Aug. 3: no spend!
Aug. 4: $52.88 groceries
Aug. 5: no spend!


52.88/$475 Household
$25.50/$75 Frivolity

Originally Posted by Turquesa

I'm NOT a seamstress, and if you aren't either, you probably don't have time to learn before the shower. But go for it, if you can learn quickly!...
And honestly, for the visiting children, hit the dollar store for some cute containers and then stuff them with home-made cookies or candies. Five-year-olds are pretty easy to please, and the baby isn't expecting anything. Don't worry about them out-gifting you; traditional etiquette used to call for only the guests giving a gift because the hostess was giving her space and hospitality for one or more nights.

I know the basics and can borrow my mom's sewing machine, so I'm gonna try. I'm planning to consign a few diapers so hopefully that will cover the fabric purchase. Unfortunately if I want to get done in time I need to buy fabric before the dipes are ready to go (they need some TLC before they're clean enough to sell and I need to find a good nonchlorine bleach...insert trip to health food store and overspending here.)

My cousins are actually staying with my mom. This is one of my biggest problems month to month. I love to give gifts and I pride myself on being a good gift giver. Seems like every month something comes up....my mom's birthday, father's day, my dad's birthday, etc. etc. DH and I also used to give each other gifts just because and I really miss that.

[Crunchy*VT*Mom]

Dunkin Donuts. My Nemesis.


01..
02..
03.. $147 shrubs and bushes at Lowes
04.. $30 school supplies -- some were necessary but most were not.
05..
06.. $9.50 evil dunkin glazed yumminess....and iced coffee for two
07..
08..
09..
10..
11..
12..
13..
14..
15..
16..
17..
18..
19..
20..
21..
22..
23..
24..
25..
26..
27..
28..
29..
30..

My Goal:

3/20 No Spend Days
1/5 Let the Car Rest Days

[triscuitsmom]

Goals for the Month of August
1. No unplanned spending: 5/20
2. Prepare all meals at home or in the home of friends or family: 5/31
3. 659 items decluttered (ambitious, but it's all I have left to hit my 2010 in 2010): 0/659
4. 13 days with exercise in them: 0/13
5. Do laundry to stay on top of it as many days as possible: 3/31
6. Do dishes to stay on top of it as many days as possible: 0/31

Key:
- No Spend or Budgeted Spending only
- Unbudgeted Spend
- All meals eaten at home
- Ate out at a restaurant or ordered food in
- Decluttered stuff out of the house
- Exercise
- Did two loads of laundry (my goal is to not let it pile up)
- All dishes done before bed

Aug 1 -
Aug 2 -
Aug 3 -
Aug 4 -
Aug 5 -
Aug 6 - (still time to get the laundry and dishes done for today)

[nina_yyc]

[QUOTE=nina_yyc;15706869]Aug. 1: $25.50 movies.
Aug. 2: no spend!
Aug. 3: no spend!
Aug. 4: $52.88 groceries
Aug. 5: no spend!
Aug. 6: $27.08 fabric store - Bought materials to sew some baby gifts - little shoes for a new cousin and a wrap carrier for my friend. Got the fabric all deeply discounted, around $5/m and borrowed sewing machine and scissors from my mom. Wish me luck. I'm calling it a no-spend victory, this could have been a $100 Babyhawk purchase. I also was in the baby store to pick up a gift from my mom to the new cousin and DIDN'T BUY ANYTHING!!!


52.88/$475 Household
$52.58/$75 Frivolity

[Qalliope]

Not spending is a lot easier when your mom comes over and buys a bunch of stuff for the kids. Just sayin'.

no spend
budgeted spend
non-budget spend
extra earnings
made, bartered for, or scavenged something we needed

1. 
2. 
3. 
4. 
5. 
6. $37 groceries and toiletries Picked up some free homegrown veggies from someone with more than they can eat. We got to talking and they also gave me a bag of organic apples they had - didn't like that variety. And DH worked a couple hours of OT.
7. $3 for peppers and tomatoes at the farmers market, and my mom bought the kids an adorable handmade play tent. $240 in Utility bills. $298 - biweekly mortgage pmt.

From this point out I should have a good string of no-spend days. We have everything we need for at least a week, and I have a family fun day planned that should be totally free. I think I'm going to aim for 20 spending-free days this month. It will be a stretch, but I think I can do it. I want to save as much of our fun money as possible over the next few months to put toward our basement remodel.

31/160 gas
50/200 groceries
538/1000 monthly bills
25/100 fun money