We made it!
What an experience! I recommend everyone should try it!
It was stressful at times, but a good learning experience.
Also, it helped me be even less wasteful (and I am a pretty frugal and non wasteful person anyway)
We didn't really throw away any food. I was extra conscience of making sure we ate it before it went bad and had to be tossed.
We did not spend $0, but we did very well.
We likely spent $1,000- $1,500 less than we otherwise would have.
In this past week, I just had a $5 target purchase I used a giftcard for, and $10 charge that went on the credit card for milk, bread and bananas
Kevin is doing home improvement projects this week, so he had spending from those from the last 2 days, but didn't have any charges of eating food/drinks out or anything like that.
Spending less than usual made it easy to spot another wrongful credit card charge. We had $620 worth of charges on the credit card we are sure were fraudulent. I think we would have caught that anyway, but we are getting good reminders to always check your statements very carefully.
We did a pretty good job of cleaning food out of the freezers this month. We have a few things we are still going to eat up this week. Otherwise, we get to start fresh, which was needed.
My pantry of boxed foods, canned goods, snacks, etc. Is still pretty full. We could probably go another month (or 2 or 3) of buying only dairy, eggs, bread and meat. I like it well stocked though so I'll think about that. I stock up when foods are on sale, that way I never have to buy foods at full price. It works very well, but some things we don't eat regularly so they have been sitting and need to be used.
We ate out a few times with gift certificates and coupons. We didn't even use all those up.
Again, I encourage everyone to try this. You could be a little more flexible in your food buying than I was and still have it be a success.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
This project saved us $500 in credit card/bank errors!
so our Costco credit card bill came, Kevin opened it and grumbled "$500... so much for no spending month" and put it down.
I said no way! There must be some mistake, It should be like $50. There was no way that was possible!
He looked again more closely to see that it had our previous month's total still as that we owed it, plus a late fee.
He checked our bank records and confirmed we did pay our last bill. He called the Costco Credit card company and got the error taken care of, removing the $450 bill with late fee.
There is a very good chance that if we were spending money as usual he would have just sighed, paid the bill and been done with it.
When looking up the records to figure this out, he saw that the last couple of months the bank has been charging our account a $25 account fee. Since our statements are just online, it was easy to miss this fee from the normal view of account, (AKA- hidden fee?) But he called the bank and they apologized and removed the fees, giving us back $100.
Good reminder to check all bills very carefully!
I said no way! There must be some mistake, It should be like $50. There was no way that was possible!
He looked again more closely to see that it had our previous month's total still as that we owed it, plus a late fee.
He checked our bank records and confirmed we did pay our last bill. He called the Costco Credit card company and got the error taken care of, removing the $450 bill with late fee.
There is a very good chance that if we were spending money as usual he would have just sighed, paid the bill and been done with it.
When looking up the records to figure this out, he saw that the last couple of months the bank has been charging our account a $25 account fee. Since our statements are just online, it was easy to miss this fee from the normal view of account, (AKA- hidden fee?) But he called the bank and they apologized and removed the fees, giving us back $100.
Good reminder to check all bills very carefully!
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Week 3: Spend $0 in February (or as close to it as possible)
Week 3
Day 1 & 2
no spending
Day 3
Kevin got gas- put some on an old gift card, the rest went on the card $30 or so
Costco- had to get water and eggs and some other food I am blanking on $15
Kevin went to Denny's while at work, but had a free meal code from doing a previous satisfaction survey
Day 4
no spending
Day 5
Kevin went to the store and bought milk and 2 bananas about $7
Day 6
I went to Target- got bread, Will's pasta, and special frosting and baking cups for a baseball themed cake we had to make for T-ball. Used a gift card about $15
Went to Trader Joes- passed up the neat looking cinnamon sugar grinder shaker, got yogurt and cottage cheese. $5 on the credit card
Went to Stater Brothers - bought Will's favorite noodles (that they only sell there now - Nature's Way Pasta Roni) Could have just got one, but bought 4, as I had a coupon for $1 off 4, and because I don't want to have to be going out of my way to Stater Brothers all the time just for these noodles $4 on the credit card
Day 7
Spent $14 at the Post Office, on the credit card, paying to ship some textbooks I sold on half.com. But I made $160 from the books :)
Day 8 (I guess this should be counted in next week, but oh well, since I already advertised about my Sprouts trip)
Went to Sprouts $8 on the credit card for produce- but got a lot for $8 as there were good sales!
Weekly Totals:
$ put on credit card = $68
$ put on Costco credit card = $15
cash spent =0
Summary
Day 1 & 2
no spending
Day 3
Kevin got gas- put some on an old gift card, the rest went on the card $30 or so
Costco- had to get water and eggs and some other food I am blanking on $15
Kevin went to Denny's while at work, but had a free meal code from doing a previous satisfaction survey
Day 4
no spending
Day 5
Kevin went to the store and bought milk and 2 bananas about $7
Day 6
I went to Target- got bread, Will's pasta, and special frosting and baking cups for a baseball themed cake we had to make for T-ball. Used a gift card about $15
Went to Trader Joes- passed up the neat looking cinnamon sugar grinder shaker, got yogurt and cottage cheese. $5 on the credit card
Went to Stater Brothers - bought Will's favorite noodles (that they only sell there now - Nature's Way Pasta Roni) Could have just got one, but bought 4, as I had a coupon for $1 off 4, and because I don't want to have to be going out of my way to Stater Brothers all the time just for these noodles $4 on the credit card
Day 7
Spent $14 at the Post Office, on the credit card, paying to ship some textbooks I sold on half.com. But I made $160 from the books :)
Day 8 (I guess this should be counted in next week, but oh well, since I already advertised about my Sprouts trip)
Went to Sprouts $8 on the credit card for produce- but got a lot for $8 as there were good sales!
Weekly Totals:
$ put on credit card = $68
$ put on Costco credit card = $15
cash spent =0
Summary
T-ball is expensive :)
Selling books on half.com made up for all our spending :)
This project has made me plan meals more closely. We have had less food waste. And, I think I have lost 2 pounds :)
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Week 2: Spend $0 in February (or as close to it as possible)
We are still working on our goal to spend as little as possible for the month of February, keeping our usually credit card, which is usually a couple thousand dollars a month to as close to $0 as possible.
Week 2
Day 1
no spending
Day 2
I had to get gas. $30 did co on the card :(
Day 3
Had to pay some t-ball related expenses for shirts and team banner. Total $35. I think we are about even now on the money we got reimbursed from our sign up fees for being team manager, so that purchase is fine.
Day 4
no money spent
Day 5
I saw a groupon type coupon I really wanted for ice skating. We went once before on a coupon deal and the boys had a great time and keep asking to go back. This was definitely not a justifiable purchase though, so I had to get creative. I bartered with my sister. She bought the deal for me, now I owe her babysitting and a loaf of pumpkin and banana bread.
Day 6
Needed some produce.
Spent $6.75 at Sprouts.
Spent $18 at Walmart on bagels, yogurt, and pull ups that Will wears at night.
These purchases went on an old gift card we got from a rebate that we had.
I had found 2 old groupon type codes for Papa Johns. I thought I had used them up, but realized I hadn't. It said on them that they expired, but I tried and it worked. So we got pizza without spending any money tonight. It tasted really good... especially up against all the freezer food we've been eating
Day 6
no spending
Day 7
Valentine's Day!
I had a few things I bought a long time ago so I made little gift cups up for the boys. I wanted to decorate but realize I didn't have any crepe papers or balloons or anything. We had many valentine picture crafts Will had made so I hung them all up. Grandma Kathy was here with us and had gotten 2 mylar balloons at the dollar store so that livened things up too. She took us out to lunch on Valentines day. Thanks Grandma Kathy!
Weekly Total:
$30 on credit card (gas)
$28 on gift card (food and night diapers)
$35 cash (for Tball stuff)
Week 2
Day 1
no spending
Day 2
I had to get gas. $30 did co on the card :(
Day 3
Had to pay some t-ball related expenses for shirts and team banner. Total $35. I think we are about even now on the money we got reimbursed from our sign up fees for being team manager, so that purchase is fine.
Day 4
no money spent
Day 5
I saw a groupon type coupon I really wanted for ice skating. We went once before on a coupon deal and the boys had a great time and keep asking to go back. This was definitely not a justifiable purchase though, so I had to get creative. I bartered with my sister. She bought the deal for me, now I owe her babysitting and a loaf of pumpkin and banana bread.
Day 6
Needed some produce.
Spent $6.75 at Sprouts.
Spent $18 at Walmart on bagels, yogurt, and pull ups that Will wears at night.
These purchases went on an old gift card we got from a rebate that we had.
I had found 2 old groupon type codes for Papa Johns. I thought I had used them up, but realized I hadn't. It said on them that they expired, but I tried and it worked. So we got pizza without spending any money tonight. It tasted really good... especially up against all the freezer food we've been eating
Day 6
no spending
Day 7
Valentine's Day!
I had a few things I bought a long time ago so I made little gift cups up for the boys. I wanted to decorate but realize I didn't have any crepe papers or balloons or anything. We had many valentine picture crafts Will had made so I hung them all up. Grandma Kathy was here with us and had gotten 2 mylar balloons at the dollar store so that livened things up too. She took us out to lunch on Valentines day. Thanks Grandma Kathy!
Weekly Total:
$30 on credit card (gas)
$28 on gift card (food and night diapers)
$35 cash (for Tball stuff)
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
February = Spend $0 (or as close to it as possible)
So Kevin and I took on a challenge for the month of February. The goal is to spend as little money as possible for the whole month. We put all our monthly purchases on our credit card. Then we pay it off at the end of the month. Our system works well with us, and we are fairly frugal people always so we always can pay our bill. But often it is higher than we hoped for.
This month We are going to eat the food we have in our house (just buy dairy, bread and produce - foods I need to feed my boys because I do not want their nutrition to be affected) not spend money eating out, and not spend money shopping or for entertainment.
We did not stock up on anything in preparation of this month
Week 1
Day one - I had to go to Costco. Will lives on peanut butter and honey tortillas and I give him the multigrain with flax seed tortillas I get at Costco. I also needed eggs and AAA batteries. I could have not bought the batteries, but they are for some flashlights we have for emergencies. I couldn't stand the idea of there being an emergency and needing them and I didn't have them because of this project. Also, Kevin needed yogurt. So I left spending $44. This isn't bad considering our usual trips to Costco are $150 or more. I passed many food items I normally would have saw and bought. I didn't even go near the clothes or other non food items. I have enough tortillas for at least a month so we shouldn't have to go back there to be tempted again this month.
We saved $65 today by canceling our YMCA membership. We haven't gone in a few months, so we finally took the steps to canceling, preventing the monthly charge for February
Day two- Kevin had to buy gas. Like I said, we didn't stock up in preparation for this month, so that is an expense we just have to deal with.
We had a bowling groupon to use up. It included bowling and food. We ordered just enough food to reach the groupon limit. We don't want to short others with this challenge, so Kevin did tip $5 cash
We saved $4.50 on newspaper subscription. Before I was told that $6.50 was the cheapest way to get the newspaper. I only wanted it Sunday but they said it was cheaper to get it everyday. So we have but rarely read it on other days. Funny that when I went to cancel it altogether I was then offered a special for Just Sundays for $2.00 a month. That's all I wanted all along
Day three- I went to Sprouts. I don't want my children's nutrition to be affected, so while we could survive without fresh produce I didn't want to do that. I had a Mastercard type giftcard we have had a for a while I used and I spent $11 on produce that was on sale (so no charge was put on the credit card). Many times I buy produce and I don't use it all and we end up throwing some away. I bought just what I needed, we have been eating all and are not throwing any away. Usual Sprouts bill is $30. The week previous I bought a watermelon there. As soon as I cut into it I could tell it was no good. Normally I would just throw it away. I saved it, took it back and exchanged if for a new one. So in a sense, we got a free Watermelon.
Kevin wanted to spend some one-on-one time with Will while Westley was in school, so he took Will to Legoland (we have annual passes) Will wanted to get ice cream, so I found a free Milkshake coupon we had for Chick-Fil-A and they got that on the way.
Grandma offered to watch the boys for us to have a date night. We had some old movie gift certificates and a Ruby's gift card which were still valid, so we used those for dinner and a movie.
Day four- Kevin bought $20 worth of girl scout cookies. Again, don't want to short others and me stingy even though we aren't spending. He used cash, so at least no purchase on the credit card.
At work Kevin went to Denny's He had a free meal coupon he got at an SDSU game so he used that to pay.
Will needs more sweaters. I thought about buying them, but knew I couldn't. I asked a mom friend I give baby stuff to if she had any from her son. She brought over two. I avoided clothing stores
Day five- I went to Albertsons. I had a $5 in rewards to use. I bought Milk, some cooked chicken strips that were on a good sale and I had a coupon for to make them just 50 cents. After my $5 reward my total was $2 that went on my Mastercard gift card
Kevin was asked (begged) to take on the manager/coaching position for Westley's newly starting T-ball team. Bad news is T-ball has some expenses, like $40 for pants, cleats, cup, and belt. But the good news is we get a full refund of the money for registration. Not sure how much it was, I think around $100?
Day six- I went to Walgreens. I never go there because they are expensive, but I had a $10 gift card I got as a baby gift when pregnant with Westley (6 years ago) I bought children's ACT for the boys and a package of shredded cheese. I have $1 left on that card.
Day seven- I had a $2 off groceries coupon for Vons. It expired today. Usually I miss using these as they expire quickly. But I made a point to use this one- at 10:00 at night after teaching my class. I got a loaf of whole wheat bread and bananas. Total cost after coupon 60 cents. went on the Mastercard Giftcard. It should still have like a $5 balance on it.
Summary:
It was surprising how much more aware I became of things. The first day Will asked for cereal, once I poured the milk he didn't want it anymore. I got the idea of how people feel who do not have much money. Usually I would be annoyed that he didn't eat, this time I was upset... he just made me waste the milk!
Despite the project we have been eating well. I have made good meals with frozen meat I had. I also made more things from scratch including crepes and a new healthy banana bread.
This week totals
$45 on Costco Credit Card (tortillas, eggs, yogurt, emergency batteries)
about $90 on regular Credit Card (for Gas and T-ball Supplies)
$25 in cash (tip and girl scout cookies)
This month We are going to eat the food we have in our house (just buy dairy, bread and produce - foods I need to feed my boys because I do not want their nutrition to be affected) not spend money eating out, and not spend money shopping or for entertainment.
We did not stock up on anything in preparation of this month
Week 1
Day one - I had to go to Costco. Will lives on peanut butter and honey tortillas and I give him the multigrain with flax seed tortillas I get at Costco. I also needed eggs and AAA batteries. I could have not bought the batteries, but they are for some flashlights we have for emergencies. I couldn't stand the idea of there being an emergency and needing them and I didn't have them because of this project. Also, Kevin needed yogurt. So I left spending $44. This isn't bad considering our usual trips to Costco are $150 or more. I passed many food items I normally would have saw and bought. I didn't even go near the clothes or other non food items. I have enough tortillas for at least a month so we shouldn't have to go back there to be tempted again this month.
We saved $65 today by canceling our YMCA membership. We haven't gone in a few months, so we finally took the steps to canceling, preventing the monthly charge for February
Day two- Kevin had to buy gas. Like I said, we didn't stock up in preparation for this month, so that is an expense we just have to deal with.
We had a bowling groupon to use up. It included bowling and food. We ordered just enough food to reach the groupon limit. We don't want to short others with this challenge, so Kevin did tip $5 cash
We saved $4.50 on newspaper subscription. Before I was told that $6.50 was the cheapest way to get the newspaper. I only wanted it Sunday but they said it was cheaper to get it everyday. So we have but rarely read it on other days. Funny that when I went to cancel it altogether I was then offered a special for Just Sundays for $2.00 a month. That's all I wanted all along
Day three- I went to Sprouts. I don't want my children's nutrition to be affected, so while we could survive without fresh produce I didn't want to do that. I had a Mastercard type giftcard we have had a for a while I used and I spent $11 on produce that was on sale (so no charge was put on the credit card). Many times I buy produce and I don't use it all and we end up throwing some away. I bought just what I needed, we have been eating all and are not throwing any away. Usual Sprouts bill is $30. The week previous I bought a watermelon there. As soon as I cut into it I could tell it was no good. Normally I would just throw it away. I saved it, took it back and exchanged if for a new one. So in a sense, we got a free Watermelon.
Kevin wanted to spend some one-on-one time with Will while Westley was in school, so he took Will to Legoland (we have annual passes) Will wanted to get ice cream, so I found a free Milkshake coupon we had for Chick-Fil-A and they got that on the way.
Grandma offered to watch the boys for us to have a date night. We had some old movie gift certificates and a Ruby's gift card which were still valid, so we used those for dinner and a movie.
Day four- Kevin bought $20 worth of girl scout cookies. Again, don't want to short others and me stingy even though we aren't spending. He used cash, so at least no purchase on the credit card.
At work Kevin went to Denny's He had a free meal coupon he got at an SDSU game so he used that to pay.
Will needs more sweaters. I thought about buying them, but knew I couldn't. I asked a mom friend I give baby stuff to if she had any from her son. She brought over two. I avoided clothing stores
Day five- I went to Albertsons. I had a $5 in rewards to use. I bought Milk, some cooked chicken strips that were on a good sale and I had a coupon for to make them just 50 cents. After my $5 reward my total was $2 that went on my Mastercard gift card
Kevin was asked (begged) to take on the manager/coaching position for Westley's newly starting T-ball team. Bad news is T-ball has some expenses, like $40 for pants, cleats, cup, and belt. But the good news is we get a full refund of the money for registration. Not sure how much it was, I think around $100?
Day six- I went to Walgreens. I never go there because they are expensive, but I had a $10 gift card I got as a baby gift when pregnant with Westley (6 years ago) I bought children's ACT for the boys and a package of shredded cheese. I have $1 left on that card.
Day seven- I had a $2 off groceries coupon for Vons. It expired today. Usually I miss using these as they expire quickly. But I made a point to use this one- at 10:00 at night after teaching my class. I got a loaf of whole wheat bread and bananas. Total cost after coupon 60 cents. went on the Mastercard Giftcard. It should still have like a $5 balance on it.
Summary:
It was surprising how much more aware I became of things. The first day Will asked for cereal, once I poured the milk he didn't want it anymore. I got the idea of how people feel who do not have much money. Usually I would be annoyed that he didn't eat, this time I was upset... he just made me waste the milk!
Despite the project we have been eating well. I have made good meals with frozen meat I had. I also made more things from scratch including crepes and a new healthy banana bread.
This week totals
$45 on Costco Credit Card (tortillas, eggs, yogurt, emergency batteries)
about $90 on regular Credit Card (for Gas and T-ball Supplies)
$25 in cash (tip and girl scout cookies)
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