~~December No-Spend Challenge~~ Ho ho ho! How low can you go? Saving money is tough during the...

[Crunchy*VT*Mom]

This is a support thread to help you ~not spend your money~.

Everyone is welcome to join and you can start tracking your spending at any time. It doesn't have to be December 1st. Now is a good time to start.

The plan is simple (although tough to execute):

1. Vow not to spend any money on unnecessary purchases.

2. Come on here everyday and record your spending.

We all record our spending in different ways. There are no rules. You record and update however you would like -- pick a way that will help you spend the least amount of money.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Please write an introductory message when you decide to join our thread. We would like to know:

a. Who you are

b. Where you are going (your financial goals) and

c. How you plan to get there

Good luck MDCers!! Keep that money in your wallet.

[jimblejamble]

I'm in and hope to do better than I did in November.

Nothing spent
Necessary spending
Splurge

1 $640 rent, $62 at Sunflower Farmer's Market, $37 medical bill
2
3
4 $39 filled car with gas
5
6 $28 went out to dinner instead of eating in, oops. We were gonna do leftovers but there wasn't enough.
7 $35 power bill (yikes!), $14 at thrift store
8
9
10 $12 C's Christmas presents , $40 @ Chipotle (2 gift cards for Christmas presents plus dinner)
11 We did a looot of shopping today! Got presents for my mom, in-laws (father, mother, and brother in law), filled up on gas, went to Sunflower and Costco. Whew! I think we spent about $100 total. Yikes. My plan was to have an all-handmade Christmas but C decided that it seemed like the gifts were more from me than from him so he wanted to get a little something for everyone too. Sigh...
12
13
14
15 $27 -- a part of my laptop broke so we had to order a replacement
16 $5 for white elephant exchange
17
18 $50 @ Sunflower Farmer's Market, $73 car insurance autopayment
19
20
21
22
23
24 $55 @ Sunflower
25
26
27
28 ? @ Sunflower (don't know, my husband checked out...$25?), $40 gas, $35 electric (YIKES!!! ugh...!)
29
30
31

Goals:
20 no-spend days
No more than 10 spend days. Our auto-payments (phone/internet, car insurance, gas, electricity) are taken out all throughout the month so this could be a challange...
0 splurge days
Use some of Christmas money to make an extra car payment. I have 14 more payments including this month's. If we get $500 from C's grandma again we might use it on the car.
Edited by jimblejamble - 12/29/10 at 2:01pm

[FillingMyQuiver]

I'm back after a few months hiatus.

a.  I'm Jenn.  Pregnant, SAHM to 4 littles under 7yo, homeschooling 2 of them, trying to keep my sanity from day to day.

b.  DH and my financial goals are to be debt free.  We were on track at the beginning of the year to get it done, but then we let life get in the way.  We are now newly committed to putting every extra penny we have towards our debt or saving for our homebirth in April.

c.  STAY OUT OF STORES!!!  This is our biggest culprit in spending.  We step into a store and BAM, we've spent $100 easily.  We have a couple of hefty purchases coming up this month, my Suburban needs new tires and DH was in an accident last month and we were able to do a partial repair to get the car drivable, the rest needs to get done before the winter weather hits so he can get to and from work SAFELY.  I'm also trying to cut our electric bill by hang drying some laundry, trim our food bill through meal planning, and cut our holiday spending as much as possible by making a large portion of our gifts.

Key:

  no spend/ budgeted spending

  unnecessary/ unbudgeted spending

  hung laundry to dry

  spent at least 1hr holiday gift crafting

December Goals

no spend days  0/20

eating out  0/3

loads of laundry hung to dry  0/8

spent at least 1hr holiday crafting  0/20

[leigh2006]

I'm also back after a little hiatus (computer issues).  I'm a SAHM to two spunky girls and excitedly waiting for #3 in April.

Dh and I are trying to finish up paying off some cc debt and save, save, save to pay down our mortgage so we will one day be able to sell our little place.  

In December, these things are on my "wish list:"

1. Trim the food budget!  I try to buy organic, but am constantly frustrated at how expensive it can be.  I try to compensate by baking our bread, snacks, etc and planning a menu.  Open to ideas here...

2.  Don't shop!  Amazon is NOT my friend. Nor is Target. Yes, these are my weaknesses.

3.  Have "no spending" days.  DH likes to remind me how little purchases everyday add up during the month, but I still have trouble saying no at times to $5 buys.  This month my goal is to have 10 "free" days.  

[zebrachick83]

Hey! My name's Selena and I'm a WAHM to three littles. Our oldest is a 6 yo girl and she's homeschooled. The two youngest are boys, aged 2 and 1. I am a fellow Amazon junkie. I got eight - count 'em, EIGHT - packages from there today and I'm expecting another 6 or 7 tomorrow. Yes, I went a little crazy during Black Friday Week. But now it's time to get right.

My goals for December are:

Go back to CD'ing full time

Keep frivolous spending to $100 for the entire month

Eat at home every night

Pay off $1000 in debt this month

[mattemma04]

Mattemma in Ohio.Sahm to 2 kiddos.Dh is a OTR driver. Paying off credit card and not using it. Pay extra on other bills and house.Taking out $100 cash for weekly food/supplies. Getting weekly $25 gas card instead of using credit card.Looking forward to the no spend days!

12-01-10: Car $330. Student loan $140. Electric $52. Tuition $4,450. Food $26.32. Food $6.36. Pizza $8.98. Medicine on HSA card $26.47.

Edited by mattemma04 - 12/1/10 at 2:07pm

[worthy]

sorry, double post - not sure how that happened.

[worthy]

Hi, I'm Amanda (formerly amyamanda), mom to two preteen boys and two slightly younger girls.  I just finished up my holiday shopping except for three things:  story CDs for all the kids (a tradition and I'm not sure where I'm going to squeeze the money for this), a specific holiday concert that we always attend (same thing, not sure where the money is coming from), and the usual nuts/dried fruit/chocolate/oranges for the stockings. 

Oh, and some food treats for Christmas Day.  I have to make sure that happens - it's a big part of our tradition.  Nothing super fancy but I can't skimp and do just a pantry challenge between now and then.  Also we have a 1/4 cow coming any day, because when it's available, I have to take advantage of it.

Aaaaaggghhh!  Time to pinch pennies!

My best plan is to stay out of stores COMPLETELY and off buying websites.  Also go without some things that are technically optional, and push some bills off until next month.  Every year I try to plan ahead for Christmas spending, and every year I don't quite manage it.  I still resolve to do better this time around.

When I'm trying very hard to no-spend, it helps me to declutter the house again - uncover treasures, appreciate what we have, find things we forgot we had, get new ideas on how to enjoy the stuff we found, etc.

Also, this is not exactly no-spend, but I work hourly from home and I keep a spreadsheet with my budget and planned expenditures.  I literally change the number in my upcoming "income" box on my spreadsheet as I work more hours so I can see those anticipated near-future expenses get funded.  It helps me stay on target with working and also stay acutely in touch with what is being spent and how many hours it costs me.  I try not to spend money that isn't premeditated and already accounted for.

I have my fingers crossed for a bonus this year.  I got a nice one last year, for the first time, and we had a better year this year.  It won't ease everything, but any extra will make a difference.  My emergency fund is (sad to admit) down to almost nothing due to unexpected car repairs and a few other things, and it's time to refund it.

Taking a deep breath and trusting that ends will meet this month without too much stretching.  Good luck, everyone, with your no-spend month!

[Turquesa]

a. Who you are

Laura, SAHM to two and obsessed with financial security!

b. Where you are going (your financial goals)

I have saved up three month's worth of DH's income and am striving for another three.  Our mortgage is more than halfway paid off, and I've worked out a plan to nail the other half in five years.  I also contribute at least 200 monthly to the children's education fund. 

c. How you plan to get there

Record daily spending, keep weekly grocery tab under $110, continue making my own lattes and packing snacks when we run errands.  And finally, I will make a detailed list of stocking stuffers and STICK TO THE LIST!!

[nwmomof2]

I'm in! Suse, mama to 2 girls - 4.5 and 7. DH is uber frugal and seems to go weeks w/o spending much at all. That makes me the spender in the family. Trying to rein it in, this thread helps.

My goals for this month are:

Stay within my food budget and Christmas budget (sticking to cash this month for food/gas)

Stay out of stores 

No clothes buying 

Attend free holiday activities w/family

Sell 5 items on Craigslist and ebay to help pay cc 

Limit Starbucks. I have 2 lbs of coffee beans in my freezer so there's no reason to get coffee out. 

Pay cc balance in full by 12/27

Cultivate gratitude 

1. 

2.

3.

4.

5.

0/10 no spend 

0/21 budgeted spend

0/16 stay out of stores

0/5 items sold

[FillingMyQuiver]

Key:

  no spend/ budgeted spending

  unnecessary/ unbudgeted spending

  hung laundry to dry

  spent at least 1hr holiday gift crafting

December Goals

no spend days  1/20

eating out  0/3

loads of laundry hung to dry  1/8

spent at least 1hr holiday crafting  1/20

1.   

[nwmomof2]

Sold some books at Half Price Books today and used the credit towards a book which was on my list for DD1. Yea!

1. budgeted spend - $42 groceries

2.

3.

4.

5.

0/10 no spend 

1/21 budgeted spend

0/16 stay out of stores

0/5 items sold

groceries $42

xmas $0

[thatgirliknew]

Originally Posted by Crunchy*VT*Mom 

This is a support thread to help you ~not spend your money~.

Everyone is welcome to join and you can start tracking your spending at any time. It doesn't have to be December 1st. Now is a good time to start.

The plan is simple (although tough to execute):

1. Vow not to spend any money on unnecessary purchases.

2. Come on here everyday and record your spending.

We all record our spending in different ways. There are no rules. You record and update however you would like -- pick a way that will help you spend the least amount of money.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Please write an introductory message when you decide to join our thread. We would like to know:

a. Who you are

b. Where you are going (your financial goals) and

c. How you plan to get there

Good luck MDCers!! Keep that money in your wallet.

Well, I'm in it, starting today no-spend December.

I'm a 21 year old wife and SAHM of 2.

We are so far behind financially due to low income and husband's poor financial decisions.

We need every penny we can get just to get by.

[Hollycrand]

a. Who you are

I'm Holly, single mama to two beautiful children, ages 4 and 7.  I WOH full-time, am a part-time student and am very busy with my kid's activities.

b. Where you are going (your financial goals)

I have accumulated debt on 3 credit cards, and I'd like to get rid of it (pay them off) in order to improve my credit rating and get a loan to buy a house in a couple of years.  I also want to have a monthly budget that I stick to

c. How you plan to get there
 

I plan to write down all of my expenses, so as to keep track of all spending, especially the little expenses (that quickly add up)

I plan to pay $100 a month towards paying off my credit card debt, and using my income tax refund money early next year to descrease that debt as well

I want to plan meals ahead of time, also bring my lunch to work, so I can avoid having to buy lunch or making mid-week runs to the supermarket to buy things for a quick dinner.

I want to avoid the Internet, as this is my weakness in spending.  Amazon, Land's End, even daily deals (coupons and such).  I need to block these sites from my computer for a while.  Does anyone know how to do this?

Yesterday, December 1st, I did not spend any money as I took a day off from work to study for two exams I have later today.

[Turquesa]

1: $32.00 in dog food.

2: $8.00 at LCS (local coffee shop), $10.50 budgeted lunch for family, $10.00 Christmas gifts.

Edited by Turquesa - 12/2/10 at 2:25pm

[mattemma04]

Mattemma in Ohio.Sahm to 2 kiddos.Dh is a OTR driver. Paying off credit card and not using it. Pay extra on other bills and house.Taking out $100 cash for weekly food/supplies. Getting weekly $25 gas card instead of using credit card.Looking forward to the no spend days!

12-01: Car $330. Student loan $140. Electric $52. Tuition $4,450. Food $26.32.

              Food  $6.36. Pizza $8.98. Medicine on HSA card $26.47

12-02: Gas $25. School Music $7.

12-03 Scratch and shavings $16.Dollar tree $2.14.Medicine hsa $22.18.

             Walmart food $7.06.Goodwill books $1.07. DH credit card $200

12-04 NO SPEND DAY!

12-05 NO SPEND DAY!

12-06 NO SPEND DAY!

12-07 Pizza $15

12-08 House $600. Marcs Food $43.06. Walmart food,pets,car $33.32. Aldi  food $32.35. Deals paper,bleach,soap $3.20

12-09 NO SPEND DAY!

12-10 NO SPEND DAY!

Edited by mattemma04 - 12/10/10 at 8:12am

[SilverFish]

Who I am: SAHM to one 9 month old daughter.
Goals: Stick to my $400 grocery budget, cut down on unnecessary spending, work on finding ways to ADD to our income.

Last month I more than met my no-spend days. So I'm upping the goal this time. I'm also going to try again with a more specific budget, since I just tracked spending last month. This work/art category is HARD... gotta work on that one too. Because I'm spending a vast majority of the month at my parents' and my inlaws' houses, I fully expect it be tough to stick to... even more so because my husband is going to be at home working for about half the time I'm travelling, so staying on top of household and personal spending might be hard. Hopefully this thread will help curb the holiday spending! Looking over November, I seriously overspent in the baby stuff department. I am giving myself $100 this month, but aiming on spending nothing, at least until after Christmas.

1/12 no spend days
1/8 art/work days
1/4 eating out days

$82 / $400 grocery budget
$100 snacks/entertainment

$100 assorted baby stuff

no spend day
unnecessary spending
budget spending day
art/work day

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2. $82 groceries. working on paintings and sewing projects today. also, happy birthday to me! $45 on my birthday dinner. mmm!
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Edited by SilverFish - 12/3/10 at 5:35am

[Hollycrand]

Happy Birthday Silverfish!!

[FillingMyQuiver]

Key:

        no spend/ budgeted spending

  unnecessary/ unbudgeted spending

  hung laundry to dry

  spent at least 1hr holiday gift crafting

December Goals

no spend days  2/20

eating out  0/3

loads of laundry hung to dry  2/8

spent at least 1hr holiday crafting  2/20

1.   

2. 

 

[nwmomof2]

1. budgeted spend - $42 groceries

2. no spend, cleaned my kitchen and volunteered at preschool, so stayed out of stores today!

3.

4.

5.

1/10 no spend 

1/21 budgeted spend

1/16 stay out of stores

0/5 items sold

groceries $42/500

xmas $0/150