That sounds like a good use of your funds, SubC.

Nov 1 and 2, nothing spent on food.

In those first 2 days I have eaten
- green beans given to me
- a piece of fish from the freezer
- roasted broccoli my son bought a couple weeks ago and needed to be cooked
- roasted garlic I already had
- roasted orange pepper, given to me
- coffee with plant creamer and honey I already had
- rhubarb lemonade made with the rhubarb someone gave me that I made into syrup, and lemons I had that needed to be used
- an egg with cheese and half a frozen bagel, all of which I already had

I think that is pretty much it. I spent nothing on food.

I also took beef bones from the freezer and made a quart of rich bone broth, which I will drink. I do drink broth sometimes - I just do not eat any meat. I cut the meat off for my sons.

I also sliced 2 lemons that needed to be used and they are on a plate in the freezer. I will out the slices into baggies in the freezer for later use, probably for tea.

I feel good about what I am doing.

Lila, better is good.

Just keep telling yourself "I will not get fast food today." Just "today".

I have decided that I will drive just a little bit out of my way tomorrow and stop at the bricks and mortar store where I have $20 to spend. If I don't find anything for my family for Christmas, I will buy a toy for the holiday toy drive.

I kind of hate it when places give you coupons or "cash" that you have to use in a short time. Feels like pressurized buying.

I am doing much better.

This week I did not go to the grocery store, and my plan was to not place any grocery orders either. However when I was getting my free prescriptions delivered from the store, I did add to the order: one head of lettuce, one bag of chips, and some Halloween candy. I regret it. I ate the chips but am not going to eat anymore of the candy - will hand it out at the door tomorrow. Regardless, my goal is to ONLY eat when I have or am given, (including the $30 in coupons I have for free produce before the end of Dec). That is it. I also did stop at fast food twice, which I also regret, and needs to stop.

But overall this is still better than I did the last few weeks, and now, I will STICK to my plan to eat what I have.

Hi Lila!

Did you get things organized?

I have started Christmas shopping for my boys, plus Birdy's birthday. I ordered Birdy's big birthday present (it was on sale) and had it sent to his house. We still haven't really decided how we are going to handle celebrating his birthday, because it is Christmas Eve. Last year I sent him multiple small gifts and he opened them whenever his mom felt like it in December. This year he has the one big gift plus a thrift shop find that goes with it. There is another thing I want to get for him, but it may be too much. I am already over what I spent on Bean and Buddy (not that anyone is comparing)

Every year I buy the boys new pajamas and a book at Thanksgiving. Ordered the pajamas on sale (the place I buy them has a sale every fall) and I have used books coming for Birdy. I need to find books for Bean and Buddy. Hopefully when Dd and I go thrifting on Sunday (we go the first Sunday of most months)

I also ordered some new Halloween decorations. I have given myself an annual decoration budget for each holiday. Halloween is one of my favorites and unfortunately I am technically over it by 50%. However, that 50% is tea lights and two short extension cords which can be used for lots of other things, so maybe it's not so bad? I spent the rest on lights. The orange ones will stay up until December.

Here are my current challenges about not buying stuff:
The place I bought Birdy's birthday gift gave me $20 to spend by Monday. And the place I bought the pajamas gave me $10 to spend by January, but I have to spend $50 to get free shipping, and the shipping is almost $10.

So now I am looking to see if there is anything I "need" or a Christmas gift at those places (as they intended)

Also, I need to not buy discount Halloween candy. I will eat it.

SubC, I REALLY enjoyed reading your Christmas childhood experiences. Thank you for sharing that. I want my grandkids to have good memories of me and our times together. That matters more than what the gifts are.

It turns out I got my son a very good and practical gift that he will use, and I did not actually buy anything for the child who turned 1. There was no formal party and we were all busy and it was fine.

My no spend went absolutely terribly for the first 3 weeks of October. I just yesterday made a list of all the purchases. Today I will put them in categories (groceries, gas, fast food, clothes, etc) so I have a summary to compare to for the coming month.

But this week I have done better. I am eating what I have on hand. I am restraining myself from buying unnecessary things. I am will stay accountable.

So, here is the thing about Amazon, it was not a recommendation. (Although I use it) It is too easy to spend money on Amazon! Delete any payment information so that you have to enter it manually, and be sure you log out every time you visit..

The biggest key to managing spending on gifts is managing expectations. The good news is that most of your grands probably don't have gift expectations yet. What did you do for tot last year?

I had two grandmothers with very different circumstances and approaches. I would see them both every Christmas. At the first house, I had a stocking full of treats I now realize were mostly homemade, often from yarn or fabric leftovers, one or two presents (a game, or toy, a book - sometimes a hand me down book) (plus gifts from my uncles) a chocolate Santa, and my grandmother's complete attention. - we played with the game or toy. There were stories - If got roller skates - there were stories about my dad and uncles roller skating. there were crafts and baking together (because my grandmother never had time to get the baking done before we arrived) - I remember stringing popcorn for the birds.

If the chocolate Santa had been missing, I would have been disappointed. Because there was ALWAYS a chocolate Santa.

The other grandmother put on a huge event with extended family, piles, of presents, a huge spread of food, a fully decorated house, music. It was always amazing to walk into. Then there were hours of watching other people open presents, too many gifts to actually appreciate, and so many treats that I almost always made myself sick. My dad always got frustrated because we were given so much it was hard to pack the car and the evening went on so late I was exhausted and cranky. My grandmother was too exhausted to do anything but watch and there was no space to use most of the things I was given (I heard "don't open that, the pieces will get lost" a lot) but it was a wonderland, and my best friend cousin was always there to share it with and to play with.

If we arrived first, I would take in the beauty of the untouched scene, get excited about all the presents (even though I knew most of them were not for me and some of them would be unexciting clothes - they were like a window display in their glittering promise) grab some cookies, and demand "when is K getting here?"

So, Christmas for me was a chocolate Santa and my cousin. Everything else was equal. If it had changed, I would have been surprised, but not dissapointed.

Unplug the Christmas machine is about evaluating what is really important to you and your family about Christmas. It has a Christian focus. One year when Dd was a baby I gave copies to all the women on my second grandmother's side of the family. Everyone said it was a great idea and very meaningful. Only my cousin changed anything.

When my first grandson was born, Dd set rules - only a few gifts, well thought out, used if possible, experiences welcome. Ddil, who grew up in different circumstances, said "anything!" As the boys get older, this may be a challenge.

oh! I forgot to add -

I have two birthdays this month: one grandchild and one son. Then thinking forward about Christmas. I do have Amazon! Will think about what would be meaningful and not expensive! Suggestions welcome for my adult children and my grandkids ages 1 to 7.

hi SubC! Thank you for the book recommendation. Yes, please do join me! This is open to everyone and I appreciate the support.

We are a week into the month so on my day off I will come and post how I am doing so far on not spending. I probably spent more than I wanted, but a lot better than last month!

Back in a couple days!

Good morning Lila!

Who are you buying gifts for and for what occasions? Do you have Amazon prime? And also, it is not too early to make a plan for reasonable Christmas choices.

(Have you ever read the book "unplug the Christmas machine"? See if you can get it from your library!)

Do you mind if I join you here? I know I have said my finances are currently solid and about to change for the better because of retirement decisions, but I still want to make sure I stay focused on good stewardship and thoughtful choices about where to spend that money, and I have lots of practice finding ways to not spend, so I'd like to help and cheer you on.

Here is my first post as I prepare for a No Spend October.

Of course I will spend SOME money on things I need. But I am hoping to stop all extraneous spending for the month. I am in deep doo doo with my finances because I recently spent:

- over $1000 on a trip
- over $1000 on my annual house insurance payment, which went up from 800
- about $250/month for new health insurance when I used to get it for free

I now have over $3k on a credit card when it was paid off 2 months ago. It has to stop. Some things I have noticed that I spent a lot on:

- ordering food deliveries because I was tired, sick, grouchy, etc
- picking up fast food, pizzas, expensive coffee drinks
- ordering extra stuff I want but don't need on amazon etc
- buying gifts for people on amazon etc. Not sure how but I need to get a handle on the gifts by either making things, getting more personal less expensive things, planning ahead
- buying clothes I don't end up even liking or wearing

I have some expenses coming up, most notably my property tax payment which is twice a year about $2k. I tend not to worry about expenses like this, because God provides. But I am sensing that if I am wasteful with what I have, that is not being a good steward. I need to do my part to manage the money well, and he will still provide.

These are my thoughts as I stop spending NOW and make a plan of what I NEED to spend in October.

- mortgage
- utility bill
- gas for the car
- health insurance
- dog insurance (it's only thirty bucks a month or so)
- some food for me and for the dog

Really, there is nothing else I must spend money on that I can think of now. I have no other bills except the one offs:
- pay off that credit card
- property tax

I lift this up to God and trust he will help me as I do my part. I hope to be debt free again by the end of October, aside from the mortgage.

I am creating this new thread to help anyone who wants to gain control over spending habits. Join in and share anything that is helpful to you: goals, ideas, plans, mistakes, etc.