doing great with no money month

Lesson for today: I don't have to spend $$ on most days, even for entertainment!!

Ok, so all this week, for 7 days straight, I have not spent a penny, other than 9 bucks (unplanned event for a friend who was having an emergency).
And in case you think I have been doing nothing but staying home, not so!

I went to a retirement party, and a free movie. I went to book club one night and I had a mini spa night another.

We even lost our power for three hours one night during a bad windstorm and couldn't have the dinner that I had planned, but we did not go out to eat,which would have been our previous go to solution. (Tuna fish sandwiches worked well)

I have been looking on youtube and instructables for all sorts of things that I want to learn (how to use my camera, how to knit, etc.)

I have noticed that so much of what I have wanted to spend money on this week was available elsewhere for free if I just looked. I think it is just a bad habit of not thinking things through and spending money is convenient. Mostly I have wanted to spend $$ for things for my classroom.

I even made a cooking substitution,which turned out just fine as well. I made crock pot chili, and had no cumin (gasp!!!) so I threw in a packet of taco seasoning that had been sitting in the cupboard for gosh knows how long. The chili tasted fine, the same really, no one commented that it tasted any different and there were no leftovers, so everyone ate it. Before, I would have gone to the store, gotten the cumin, come back home, and been all frazzled and stressed before I went to work. This was like, hey, a substitution, no problem, and I got to work on time and came home to a great dinner on a busy, hectic night.

It has also been freeing to throw away (recycle, really) ads for places that I like to go. I noticed that I felt relieved when it came to the grocery ads and the like. I thought, I don't have to take care of that, nothing to do, it's no money month. Whereas before, I would have felt compelled to go and look through the ads, try get the best possible price on groceries, etc. That can be pretty stressful. I didn't realize how much:)

SO, hopefully, next week will go as well. I have all 40 bucks still that I was going to spend on fresh groceries for the month. No one is drinking milk all that quickly this week (which is a little odd for us). Tomorrow I am going to make my dutch oven artisan bread again, so we won't have to buy bread! I am good on gas for my car, so I think I can go another week.

Try a no money month, it's easier than you think!