Challenge: No Spend Month

I’ve got a challenge for you!  Matt and I have been talking a lot about our financial goals for the future, and we want to do more to save towards those goals in the short-term.  For the entire month of March, we are attempting a “no spend month.”  These are the stipulations:

1. Pay regular bills.
2. Go to the grocery store once for necessities, but spend the month emptying the freezer and pantry of the food stocked in there.
3. Set a decreased budget for gas—combine trips, carpool, bike or walk to supplement.
4. No spending on eating out.  Instead, spend time cooking together and trying new recipes at home.
5. No spending on shopping.  We can do without “things” for a month and appreciate or reuse/re-purpose the things we already have.
6. No spending on entertainment.  Instead, we can take hikes, ride bikes, throw frisbee, play games, have friends over to the house, and go to free events.  This weekend, we’re going to go to this art crawl in downtown Nashville.

I’ll admit, it’s going to be tough, but I have no doubt that it will be liberating and rewarding. Throughout the next month, I will share our progress like recipes we try or free events we go to and our total savings at the end of the month.  Will you accept the challenge?

XO,
Mad

Photo: source