Mothering Forum banner

~November No-Spend Challenge~ Don't let little purchases gobble gobble up your savings! Come join us!

8K views 186 replies 27 participants last post by  nwmomof2 
#1 ·
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 November 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.
 
See less See more
#80 ·
= no spending!
= necessary, budgeted spending
= necessary, unbudgeted spending
= unnecessary, unbudgeted spending

1-
mortgage payment, $32 for pizza to thank our niece and nephew for help with yardwork (comes out of entertainment allowance)
2-
$74.48 at Meijer for groceries (and only groceries, yay!) + $11 for apples at the market to make applesauce
3-
$45 for eye doctor, $15 for the prescription, and $5 for coffee
4-

5-
$6.50 for Chinese for lunch + $24.29 at Meijer + paid for car repairs
6-
$12 for lunch, $8 for dinner +
$3.80 for coffee
7-

8-
9-
10-
11-
12-
13-
14-
15-
16-
17-
18-
19-
20-
21-
22-
23-
24-
25-
26-
27-
28-
29-
30-

$109.77/$500 groceries
$450/$500 savings
$19.50/60 work lunches
2/15 no-spend days
 
#83 ·
= no spend
= planned spend
= unplanned spend
= wasteful spend

2.
$5.83 at the grocery store
3.
$5.50 washed the comforter at the laundrymat
4.
$8.80 at the post office, needed stamps for pen pal letters for the kids!
5.
$24.27 at the grocery store
6.

7.
 
#85 ·
1.
No Spend! but did drive our car to another city
2.
Spent $20 on bus pass for family member, but I get to return it because it wasn't needed!
but did drive our car to another city
3.
No Spend! Earned a little extra from my business.
4.
No Spend! Earned a little extra from babysitting.
5.
Spent about 8 dollars on junk food. But did pay the credit card bill.
6.
No Spend! Earned a little extra.
7.
Spent $7 on complete JUNK. Bad day.
 
#86 ·
1.
$39 oil change, $35 gas for car
2.
$3 clearance Halloween decorations. $6 chicken breasts.
3.
No Spend!
4.
$10 lunch out, $23 play tickets, $100 DD1 Girl Scout troop fee (for entire year) Stayed out of the stores!
5.
$15 craft supplies (household), $107 groceries, $9 birthday gift (household)
6. Well, not entirely planned but considered in budget - I spent $114 Christmas presents at church bazaar, $1 cookies, $3 coffee

7. No spend

8.
$25 groceries
9.
10.

planned/budgeted spending
true no-spend
frivolous spending

Goals:
138/$400 groceries (doesn't include milk delivery or prepaid CSA)
14/$50 eating out (including coffee)
27/$100 household
114/$200 Christmas (just added this category)
0/$500 put in savings
8/30 not buying clothes days
5/15 stay out of stores days
2/10 true no-spend days
6/20 planned/budgeted spending days
 
#87 ·
I am not doing well on the no-spend front this month, and I am heading towards going over budget for holiday shopping as well
. I always feel as if I haven't spent/given *enough* to my friends and family at Christmas. I have special problems with my MIL who has no other family and thus I feel as if we have to give her gifts to make up for her lack of other presents. (It probably doesn't help that I just plain don't like my MIL and thus feel guilty in regards to her already). Sigh. I hate holiday shopping.

1.
gas
2.
$20 gift for DD "from the new baby" for when he arrives.
3.

4.

5.

6.
groceries, paint for spare room, Christmas cards,
$1 for library fines
.
7.
gas
8.
shelving for the new kid's room, Christmas gifts ($65), lunch out with DH, DD & step-MIL $40

3/15 no-spend days
7/25 planned spending days
$0/$700 into savings
$115/$400 holiday spending

My key:

no-spend day
budgeted/planned spending
frivolous spending
 
#88 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by fustian View Post
I am not doing well on the no-spend front this month, and I am heading towards going over budget for holiday shopping as well
. I always feel as if I haven't spent/given *enough* to my friends and family at Christmas. I have special problems with my MIL who has no other family and thus I feel as if we have to give her gifts to make up for her lack of other presents. (It probably doesn't help that I just plain don't like my MIL and thus feel guilty in regards to her already). Sigh. I hate holiday shopping.
s

I'm sorry that the holidays are so stressful for you. I don't know how much spare time you have with a new baby on the way, but could you maybe make some gifts for people? I started giving home-canned food (jam, apple butter, applesauce, pasta sauce, etc) as gifts to my aunts and uncles and some of my friends. I just bought some inexpensive baskets at Hobby Lobby to put the items in, and within a month I have the baskets and jars back (and requests for refills!).

I've seen lots of of recipes online for gifts in jars as well. You can make brownie mixes or muffins, cakes, etc. Here are a few links:
http://www.allfreecrafts.com/giftinajar/index.shtml
http://christmas.organizedhome.com/g...r-recipe-index

Another inexpensive gift I've given in the past was a large ceramic or travel-type coffee mug filled with cocoa mixes, teas, chai, or whatever.

I'm a big fan of consumable gifts. I'd miuch rather receive some thing I can use up instead of have laying around the house collecting dust...


Hope this helps...
 
#89 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by fustian View Post
I am not doing well on the no-spend front this month, and I am heading towards going over budget for holiday shopping as well
. I always feel as if I haven't spent/given *enough* to my friends and family at Christmas. Sigh. I hate holiday shopping.


Quote:

Originally Posted by diana_of_the_dunes View Post
I'm a big fan of consumable gifts. I'd miuch rather receive some thing I can use up instead of have laying around the house collecting dust.
Me too. Very big fan of consumable presents. Or flowers that are beautiful for a few days, then head to the compost pile to enrich the soil later.
 
#91 ·
= no spend
= planned spend
= unplanned spend
= wasteful spend

2.
$5.83 at the grocery store
3.
$5.50 washed the comforter at the laundrymat
4.
$8.80 at the post office, needed stamps for pen pal letters for the kids!
5.
$24.27 at the grocery store
6.

7.

8.


Just being aware that I don't want to spend has made this so much easier. I second guess everything now, soooooo much stuff never makes it to the checkout!
 
#92 ·
4/10 no spend days
1/10 art/work days
4 eating out days

$182/$400 grocery budget
$20 FUN money

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

1.

2.
, $177 groceries, $65 toiletries
3.
, $50 cat food
4.
... getting an insurance-covered massage today! woohoo!
5.

6.
$688 on winter tires!!
. we did obviously budget it, but it was still a shock to the system. now i REALLY have to stick to our budget this month, since that ate up pretty much any wiggle-room we normally have
7.
slightly unnecessary grocery spend of $5 for dessert
8.
shy.gif
$20 on a weekly yoga pass
9.
thumb.gif
plus, set up my desk, unpacked my art supplies, and did some sketching WOOHOO!
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
 
#93 ·
Quote:

1.
$39 oil change, $35 gas for car
2.
$3 clearance Halloween decorations. $6 chicken breasts.
3.
No Spend!
4.
$10 lunch out, $23 play tickets, $100 DD1 Girl Scout troop fee (for entire year) Stayed out of the stores!
5.
$15 craft supplies (household), $107 groceries, $9 birthday gift (household)
6. Well, not entirely planned but considered in budget - I spent $114 Christmas presents at church bazaar, $1 cookies, $3 coffee

7. No spend

8.
$25 groceries
9.
$6 donuts/coffee out w/DD1, $34 desperately needed new bra for me - I suppose this breaks my not buying clothes day count, but I don't care!
10.
$20 fleece sheets, $68 groceries, $3 Costco hotdogs - so much for staying away from Costco today. I couldn't bear the thought of going tomorrow with both kids, since they will be off from school. So I went today. And stuck to my list.

planned spending
no-spend
frivolous spending

Goals:
214/$400 groceries (not incl. milk delivery or prepaid CSA)
23/$50 eating out (incl. coffee/treats)
81/$100 household
114/$200 Christmas (just added this category)
0/$500 put in savings
9/30 not buying clothes days
5/15 stay out of stores days
2/10 no-spend days
8/20 planned/budgeted spending days
 
#94 ·
This month is not going so well.....
November
1 -
- all day meeting = $4

2 -

3 -
$2 pizza slices
4 -
$62 shoes for girls, $4 recipes
5 -
$2 Fall decoration that was on sale
6 -
$10 postage to return something I shouldn't have bought in the first place
7 -

8 -
$10 stuff from the dollar store
9 -


3/20 = No spend days
$94 frivolous spending
 
#95 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by diana_of_the_dunes View Post
s

I'm sorry that the holidays are so stressful for you. I don't know how much spare time you have with a new baby on the way, but could you maybe make some gifts for people? I started giving home-canned food (jam, apple butter, applesauce, pasta sauce, etc) as gifts to my aunts and uncles and some of my friends. I just bought some inexpensive baskets at Hobby Lobby to put the items in, and within a month I have the baskets and jars back (and requests for refills!).

I'm a big fan of consumable gifts. I'd miuch rather receive some thing I can use up instead of have laying around the house collecting dust...


Hope this helps...
I, too, love consumable gifts (or "experience" type gifts: museum memberships and the like). My MIL is the queen of cheap tchotchke gifts and I've been working on cutting down on the number of them that she "blesses" our house with.

My husband is a super cook, and we usually do give out some consumable gifts each year. We've done homemade chocolates for the past several years, and this year he's making up some of his homemade bacon for gifts as well. I sew and knit, and I often put together some handmade christmas ornaments, hand knit mittens, or the like to act as present toppers.

However, I always feel like these are gifts I should give "on top of" the usual bought presents. DH's truffles are to die for, and apparently his bacon is too (I wouldn't know, as I'm a vegetarian), but I would feel very guilty if I were to give these to people without something purchased to go along with them. I'm not sure why that is, exactly. Part of it may be due to the fact that we are financially better off than almost everyone in our circle (with the exception of my parents).

We give my mother a consumable gift each year (we have flowers delivered to her once a month for the year) which she loves. And that feels fine to me, because it costs me an ungodly sum of money to do it. If I were to give her cut flowers from my garden once a month for a year, I'd feel very guilty about it.

Does anyone else struggle with this? How do you find peace with the fact that you have spent or given "enough"?
 
#96 ·
1.
gas
2.
$20 gift for DD "from the new baby" for when he arrives.
3.

4.

5.

6.
groceries, paint for spare room, Christmas cards,
$1 for library fines
.
7.
gas
8.
shelving for the new kid's room, Christmas gifts ($65), lunch out with DH, DD & step-MIL $40

9.


10.
(I'm projecting here. There is no reason for me to spend money today!)

5/15 no-spend days
9/25 planned spending days
$0/$700 into savings
$115/$400 holiday spending

My key:

no-spend day
budgeted/planned spending
frivolous spending
 
#97 ·
I can't figure out how to get my no-spend smilies on here anymore. hmmm.... I'll just write no-spend til I figure it out.

01.. $9.98 Wendys
02.. $10.90 Subway
03.. $15 Costco Lamb Blanket

04..

05..

06.. $11 hat, $3 Starbucks
07.. $10.90 Subway
08.. no spend
09.. no spend
10.. no spend
11..
12..
13..
14..
15..

My Goals:

3/20 No Spend Days

1/5 Let the Car Rest Days

3/20 Fast Food Free Days
 
#98 ·
= no spend
= planned spend
= unplanned spend
= wasteful spend

2.
$5.83 at the grocery store
3.
$5.50 washed the comforter at the laundrymat
4.
$8.80 at the post office, needed stamps for pen pal letters for the kids!
5.
$24.27 at the grocery store
6.

7.


8.
thumb.gif
thumb.gif


9.
irked.gif
$10.50 at McDonald's for lunch for DD1 and I on our way home from her new primary care dr. in Boston
 
#100 ·
1.
No Spend! but did drive our car to another city
2.
Spent $20 on bus pass for family member, but I get to return it because it wasn't needed!
but did drive our car to another city
3.
No Spend! Earned a little extra from my business.
4.
No Spend! Earned a little extra from babysitting.
5.
Spent about 8 dollars on junk food. But did pay the credit card bill.
6.
No Spend! Earned a little extra.
7.
Spent $7 on complete JUNK. Bad day.

8. Spent $15 at Target, plus $9 to take the fam out to lunch. Bad. Very bad. Target is not good news for my bank account.

9. No spend. Yay!

10. $8 on miscellaneous groceries. I'm so upset. Failing a little at this no spend thing. This weekend needs to be full of FREE fun.

Can't figure out how to insert smileys on the new MDC.....they freeze my screen (im on a Mac).......
 
#101 ·
Hi- do I ever need this thread. I am trying to cut back on my spending. I have never been a shopper but I am realizing that I spend more than I thought.

I am Beth- WOHM to two boys 6.5 and 22 months.

My goal is to get rid of our debt. I am tired of paying the debt, interest and trying to juggle everything to make sure it is paid. I want to have the money put away so that if I want to go on vacation or make a big purchase the money is already there. I also realize that I need to have security of money in the bank.
 
#102 ·
4/10 no spend days
1/10 art/work days
1/4 eating out days

$240/$400 grocery budget
$35 FUN money

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

1.

2.
, $177 groceries, $65 toiletries
3.
, $50 cat food
4.
... getting an insurance-covered massage today! woohoo!
5.

6.
$688 on winter tires!!
. we did obviously budget it, but it was still a shock to the system. now i REALLY have to stick to our budget this month, since that ate up pretty much any wiggle-room we normally have
7.
slightly unnecessary grocery spend of $5 for dessert
8.
shy.gif
$20 on a weekly yoga pass
9.
thumb.gif
plus, set up my desk, unpacked my art supplies, and did some sketching WOOHOO!
10.
irked.gif
yesterday was a tough one. my dd needed some new winter clothes, but i went shopping with a friend. bad idea, mixing shopping with socializing... spent $56 on clothing, $15 on assorted snacks, parking and other little things. i may return the one full price item i bought... an adorable sweater dress. not the most sensible purchase for a crawler
eyesroll.gif
.
11.
shy.gif
$58 on groceries, $20 on boots for dd and a new pack of pacifiers.
12.
thumb.gif

13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
 
#103 ·
1.
$39 oil change, $35 gas for car
2.
$3 clearance Halloween decorations. $6 chicken breasts.
3.
No Spend!
4.
$10 lunch out, $23 play tickets, $100 DD1 Girl Scout troop fee (for entire year) Stayed out of the stores!
5.
$15 craft supplies (household), $107 groceries, $9 birthday gift (household)
6. $114 Christmas presents at church bazaar, $1 cookies, $3 coffee

7. No spend

8.
$25 groceries
9.
$6 donuts/coffee out w/DD1, $34 bra
10.
$20 fleece sheets, $68 groceries, $3 Costco hotdogs
11.
Home with 1 sick and 1 well kid. No chance to spend.

planned spending
no-spend
frivolous spending

Goals:
214/$400 groceries (not incl. milk delivery or prepaid CSA)
23/$50 eating out (incl. coffee/treats)
81/$100 household
114/$200 Christmas (just added this category)
0/$500 put in savings
10/30 not buying clothes days
6/15 stay out of stores days
3/10 no-spend days
8/20 planned/budgeted spending days
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top