August No-Spend Challenge -- Congratulations no-spenders!!!! You made it to the end! - Page 9

[granola_mom]

Originally Posted by mrskennedy

Man! Always wanted to play one of those!!! But I've played instruments in the past and also spent thousands of $$$ on them, and have finally realized that I don't have the patience for them anymore! But good luck from a former prof. musician!

Yeah, I've always wanted to play one as well and then my dad bought me one for my birthday. I originally figured I could just mess around on it and figure it out (I've played instruments for years: piano, trumpet, sax and bass), then I realized I really needed help with the circular breathing and couldn't find a teacher... so I got one of those instructional cd's, which wasn't fantastic... then I found a teacher through a drum circle and was so psyched! Yeah, I realize instruments can be a drain on your $, but I try to keep it at one instrument at any one time and try to teach myself as much as I can to save money... and I just love the feeling of making music. Nothing compares to being in the music, creating.

[Beachlivnmom]

July 1
July 2 Costco-$73.74 $5.50 lunch

I finally got my brita and it came with a free water bottle. My friend and i split a lot of stuff. But then everyone wanted lunch and dh wanted some brought home to him.

I an tempted to buy another pack of diapers. I am washing and line drying the dipes pretty much everyday. What is a good number of dipes?

[imnotsupernanny]

Yesterday doesn't count! LOL I bought a Bubble tea that I didn't "need" but really wanted to treat myself after a long day!

I'm a single woman with 2 cats,no babies yet! At the moment I do not have a "real income". It all pretty much goes to rent

I decided to join this challange b/c I need to stop spending money on take out (it's been about 3 weeks),bubble tea and ice caps. I need to get out of debt. I need to start the process soon or I'm afraid that I won't be approved to be a foster mom.

My plan is to buy groceries just ONE day a week and pay with CASH only!!

Put money from my cleaning jobs in an envelope in my desk and put it towards bills and debt each week.

Only buy bus tickets (when needed),cat food and cat litter,groceries (but not junk food)!!

August 1st: I bought a bubble tea.

August 2nd: I payed rent and payed $40 to Hydro and $15 to a credit card and $50 to another HUGE credit card.

It felt good to make those payments today!! next week will feel even better b/c I'll be about $100 closer to being debt free!

[granola_mom]

August 2....

We drove to DP's moms house last night, which cost us some gas money but also saved us money on food and got us out of our sweltering apartment. Today we're at my moms house, which is in the same town as DP's parents'. So we're saving a bit of money on food but I did spend $20 on fabric to make DD a sling.. which is good on one hand because it saved me from spending $100 on a premade sling, but I had also planned on getting cheaper fabric but couldn't resist this one that I found, and it was 30% off sooo... yeah and I also spent $6 on movies, which isn't great because we usually try to download them for free, but the internet here is too slow.

We also had to go buy DP some deodorant, which was nearly $8 because he only uses axe! And then we bought baby wipes, the cheapies for $3.20.. then DP insisted on buying a lotto ticket which was our major downfall. We did win $4 but then we got another ticket (for 4$)! We keep dreaming of the cash for life... I have to keep telling myself we will never win. And since there was no food in the house we had to go out to eat lunch, which kind of sucks, but instead of spending our usual $12 on subway, we got a small veggie pizza for $7 and shared.

So we spent nearly $50 today!! Oh nooo! You don't realize how much you spend until you actually write it all down... damn.

[scrapadoozer]

August 1
August 2

[Ruthiegirl]

Originally Posted by imnotsupernanny

I decided to join this challange b/c I need to stop spending money on take out (it's been about 3 weeks),bubble tea and ice caps. I need to get out of debt. I need to start the process soon or I'm afraid that I won't be approved to be a foster mom.

I just have to know what bubble tea and ice caps are. They sound like fun food.

And I love your goal. Foster parents are my heroes.

[chime]

Hm.. not doing too badly yet but it's only 2 days in!

Aug 1: $20 on mailing supplies for selling stuff on ebay (listed a bunch of stuff, so hopefully that mad money will come in soon

Aug 2: *found* money! DH managed to shave $50 off our cell phone bill (no idea why it was that high to begin with since the plan was chosen back when I didn't deal with the bills but that's much less each month so I'm happy) and I finally returned cat food that was part of the recall, so there's another $25.

DS and I are going to the library a lot lately. That helps so much.

[Synchro246]

Originally Posted by Nicole!

Can you go return the baby outfits?

Can you return clearance stuff? Each piece to the outfit was on clearance.
I can try at least

[nadia105]

August 1: ! Only spent on gas and groceries.
August 2: ! Didn't even go to the farmer'e market like I'd planned

Beachlivin, how many dipes do you go through in a day? Double or triple that and you should have a good number for you. I wash every other day and probably have 30+ dipes in there, but we go through a lot b/c we change so often (EC babe). I do use my dryer though, so I don't have to wait for them to dry. I would probably want 3 days worth if I had to wait for that.

Carla, when can you stop babysitting? It definitely sounds like it is more trouble than it's worth -- you can't put a price on your sanity!

[Beachlivnmom]

I only have 18 diapers. I only use cloth not disposies and I line dry everything so it takes awhile to dry. I may order a pack of 6 this month and then maybe another pack later.

[nadia105]

I would order at least 6 more, I bet it is really hard to keep up with diaper laundry when you are line drying and only have 18!

[imnotsupernanny]

Ruthiegirl an ice cap is an iced capucino and I get them at Tim Hortons. TH is similar to Duncan Donuts. When I was in MD and asked for an ice cap they gave me coffee with ice cubes : Bubble tea is so fun! It's a cold drink (normally) made of tea or sometimes just milk or both and a flavor and in the bottm there are tapioca beads. You need a big straw to drink them all up! It's an Asian drink.

I grew up in foster care and some were great and some not so great. I'm hoping to be a great one!

[Beachlivnmom]

That sounds sooo good!

[brooktosea]

beachlivinmom. I have 19 as well. The other day I had to throw them in the dryer because it was raining and I was down to my last one. I'm afraid I might have to find a larger diaper then the BG. But not this month.

[Mom2Joseph]

Aug. 1st
Aug. 2nd - $33 dinner with birthing class moms. This was planned 2 months ago and I really wanted to see my friends. We all met 4 years ago when we were pg. with our first babies and are very close. I can't miss seeing them!

Tomorrow, going to the aquarium for free and packing our own lunch and snacks. Only spending gas $.

This weekend will be tough - birthday party and baby shower. Might be able to regift a gift card for the birthday party and am giving a cloth diaper basket for the baby shower. Gifts are my downfall, I always go overboard.

Ordered our Angel Food ministries Aug. food today. We will see how that works for us in the month of Sept. seeing as how you get the food at the end of the month. My goal is to eat out of the pantry/freezer and at my mom's as much as possible till then!

[isaiahsmom]

Aug 1
Aug 2

[mom2tig99Nroo03]

Originally Posted by Mom2Joseph

Ordered our Angel Food ministries Aug. food today. We will see how that works for us in the month of Sept. seeing as how you get the food at the end of the month.

when you do pick it up, i'd lov eit if you could fill me in on what all comes in the box.

[kijip]

August 1st was fine. Today was a little bit trickier but I expected to spend on lunch today. My mother had a FULL day of cancer treatments and appointments and I took my nephew along. So I had budgeted some cash to take them out for an inexpensive lunch near the hospital. My husband came along as well and it was $34 for the 4 of us for lunch at a slice and salad type pizza place: . No other spending in the last 4 days, other than writing the mortgage check. Put $$ in our mutual fund account as well. So I am pleased.

We are, like I mentioned up from a family of three to feeding 8+. I have been really good about sticking to a menu plan and using up leftovers which has helped a lot. Have not spent anything on groceries since a monday/end o July Costco run for $55.

[bwylde]

Originally Posted by nadia105

Carla, when can you stop babysitting? It definitely sounds like it is more trouble than it's worth -- you can't put a price on your sanity!

I'm hoping the end of August. It's only 3, sometimes 4 days a week but it's still really hard on us all. Here is more of the story FYI (as not to hog this thread): http://www.mothering.com/discussions...77#post8799277

[ArtsyMomma]

Aug 1:
Aug 2: ??


Today didn't go so well. Spent 7.98 at Dunkin Donuts. Dh had the day off so we went to his moms to go swimming, he insisted on the coffee and muchkins for the kids. Then, I got in on a pf co-op - but DS is growing surprisingly fast and will need larger dipes soon. I did save $$ by doing to the co-op instead of buying the dipes outright. I DIDN'T need the one size fitteds I bought.

Well, better luck tomorrow!