To keep us on track, I've made a little calendar to keep on the side of the fridge. At the end of every day we abide strictly by our no-shopping challenge, we fill that day in with green. See the bright pink on the days we caved in and shopped? That's right, you don't!
EXPENDITURES
January Year to Date Category
$0 $0 Clothing
$0 $0 Shoes
$0 $0 Accessories
$0 $0 Cosmetics
$0 $0 Kitchen items
$0 $0 Gadgets/electronics
$0 $0 Furnishings
$0 $0 Books
$0 $0 Shrubs/trees
$0 $0 Non-necessary household goods
I'll be honest, I still have a little bit of a Pavlovian response when I see a UPS or mail truck. And it doesn't help that my neighbors across the street must have a full-on shopping addiction because packages arrive for them just about every day. But now that we've gone a month, I really don't think about it in quite the same way. An example - now that I know I will have absolutely no new clothing items for at least a year, I'm actually wearing more of what's in my closet. And I find myself wondering why I hadn't been appreciating all the nice clothes I already have. Or when I think about a book I'd like to read, I'm grateful for a wonderful library system.
Although we didn't include going out to eat on our no list, we agreed to cut way back and get better about meal planning and making sure we had things prepared to take to work for lunch. I met an old friend one night for dinner, but for the first time was really mindful of what I ordered. And even with a drink and a good tip, my tab was under $20. Tonight, my husband I and went out to eat for the first time this year, to celebrate our successful first no-shopping month. But we did it by going out on half-price sushi night and getting a pot of green tea with it. Under $30 for the two of us. In addition to my calendar, I have a count-down app on my phone. I imagine we'll re-up for some version when the new year gets here. Because this whole re-evaluating our spending thing? We've got this.
No comments:
Post a Comment