As you know, February was a Month of No Spending for me. Now that February is over, I can sit back, relax and look at it objectively and see what I learned.
1. I learned that I need a few indulgences. My Tuesday morning coffee was a big fail for me. I tried to justify it each week (got caught in traffic and didn't have time to stop at McDonald's to use my free coupon, was just just too tired, etc), but the truth is that my Tuesday morning coffee from the coffee shop was one of the few things from my "non-frugal life" that I hold on to....and I won't feel bad about it.
2. I learned that if we needed to cut way back on expenses, it wouldn't be as hard as I thought. I've been so busy patting myself on the back for cutting spending that I didn't realize how much more I could cut! It's not necessarily the life I want, but it can be done.
3. My boys finally learned that the Toy Gravy Train is over. Aside from the gift cards that they got from my in-laws for Valentines Day, they went the entire month without a new Pokemon or Bakugan. Instead, we dusted off some board games that we hadn't touched for a while and that was like having new toys. Oh yeah - I also learned that I absolutely suck at Skip-Bo. My 7-year old kicked my butt every time.
4. I got to try a bunch of new recipes. Vowing to cook primarily from my stockpile created a challenge, but with the help of some online recipe sites, I was able to just plug in ingredients that I had on hand and create some interesting dishes!
5. I learned how much my husband respects the way that I have changed. He didn't believe that I could cut our grocery bill, he didn't believe that I could switch to the cash envelope system (mainly because the employees of Coldwater Creek I loved my credit card too much). He really thought I had "maxed out" on my Frugal SuperPowers. The night he said "let's get Chinese food" and I told him that we had to wait until March 1st? He got a look on his face the likes of which I have never seen....and I liked that look!
Will I try another one of these months? Absolutely? (but next time I'm getting a manicure first!)
A big thanks to MomAdvice for the challenge!
CJSime
Good for you! It sounds like it was a positive experience. . . .or are you skipping the bad so we readers are more motivated? :o)
Mindi
You know, there really wasn't any bad! As I had created a few exceptions at the onset (the Sunday morning Wawa milkshake for the kids, not giving up Weight Watchers since it had been paid for in January, etc), it really boiled down to not buying "stuff" and cooking from the stockpile.
There were a few times I ran in to Wawa to grab a gallon of milk and looked longingly at the coffee area, but other than that.....
Sara
Way to go! 🙂
Lisa
Great post! March is my first attempt at a no-spend month. I am not even going to tackle groceries, or even pizza or a night out at a restaurant. I am easing into things by just not buying other "stuff" for now. So far, so good (although it's only 2 days into the month).
I really enjoyed your list of lessons learned. That's exactly why I am going to give this a try!
Heidi @ GGIP
Thanks for posting the recap. BeingFrugal.net just posted something about the "limits to her frugality." I thought her list was very reasonable. And also having that one expensive cup of coffee a week is also reasonable.
I'm glad you found a lot of positive out of your month.