How our Financial Game turned into a Family Affair: It had been several years since we did our first no-spend month challenge. Long ago, in a low-lit Italian restaurant on a rare date night, I had laid out my plan.
I loved reading this! I was especially struck by the line, “We have the privilege of doing a no-spend month because that’s not how we live our lives.” Last year I did a 3-month no-spend on all nonessentials and later a 4-month one on clothes, shoes, and accessories. Scarcity really does breed creativity.
Thanks for reading, Laura! I'm sure you found lots of insights in your experience! I initially became interested in no-spend several years ago by reading about someone who did it for a year. I also got caught up in reading about people who only bought food/things that were sourced within 50 miles of their homes. I thought it all sounded nice and good, but I wondered how that looked for a family. After our initial challenge, I noticed how my spending changed for that whole year. Fast forward several years, and I'm so glad I did it again. There is really something to appreciate about limits, even for a short time.
Thanks for sharing this! I’ve been on a spending spree (which I usually am not) and I can already see the need to pull back. And I love how your incorporated your kids!
This is so cool! “Scarcity breeds creativity.” I’m tempted to do a no-spend month just to see how we adapt and use what we have. I’m curious, what were your six grocery items?
4. kefir (my kids devour all the above regularly, so that's why they were on the list)
5. apples (this was the item I regretted. We had blueberries at the beginning of the month, and I tried to stretch them. I wished I had chosen a more perishable fruit because apples last a long time. But I found ways to make apples interesting by adding peanut butter, baking them, etc.)
6. bone broth (this was my husband's item. I usually make my own broth, but he was doing something special with his eating that month, and I didn't think I could keep up with his consumption!)
Great question, Becca! We chose those because they were the most perishable. In the post, I implied that they were shelf-stable, but what I should have said was that they don't keep! There wouldn't have been a way to buy them ahead of time to use for the whole month. (The apples and kefir would have kept for an extended amount of time, but since we eat a ton of fruit and kefir, I included them on the list.) We could have gone without these items, but I felt that would have been even more challenging, especially for my kids. Our pantry and freezer were pretty stocked from the holidays, so I thought we could make a month of meals. But, if we completely ran out (which we did not), we could eat eggs and peppers and apples. That was my backup plan. =)
Ashley, I enjoyed reading this so much! Thank you for sharing. I have dipped my toes into no-buy months and always find it *immensely* challenging. Like you said, just the boundary of not being able to spend makes you WANT to spend. But I also love how you pointed out that scarcity can lead to creativity. So true. And I love how you involved your kids with this challenge!
It is so challenging, especially at the beginning! And the kids were a surprise for me, too. I love how eager they were to participate. Thanks for reading, Megan!
I really enjoyed this, the line “Just the boundary of not spending created an urge to buy.” Has really rung true with me as I try not to buy, for the same reasons as you, and the impulse is legit! Thanks for sharing, you’ve inspired me to write about my own experience
Now that the month is over, I keep thinking, "I really want to buy something," but there isn't really anything that I need. Ha! Now I'm having the reverse. =) Yes, please write about it! I'd love to read. (Also, I'm emailing you soon.) Thanks for reading, Linda!
I loved reading this! I was especially struck by the line, “We have the privilege of doing a no-spend month because that’s not how we live our lives.” Last year I did a 3-month no-spend on all nonessentials and later a 4-month one on clothes, shoes, and accessories. Scarcity really does breed creativity.
Thanks for reading, Laura! I'm sure you found lots of insights in your experience! I initially became interested in no-spend several years ago by reading about someone who did it for a year. I also got caught up in reading about people who only bought food/things that were sourced within 50 miles of their homes. I thought it all sounded nice and good, but I wondered how that looked for a family. After our initial challenge, I noticed how my spending changed for that whole year. Fast forward several years, and I'm so glad I did it again. There is really something to appreciate about limits, even for a short time.
Thanks for sharing this! I’ve been on a spending spree (which I usually am not) and I can already see the need to pull back. And I love how your incorporated your kids!
This is so cool! “Scarcity breeds creativity.” I’m tempted to do a no-spend month just to see how we adapt and use what we have. I’m curious, what were your six grocery items?
That's what drew me in, too. Curiosity!
Our six items were:
1. eggs
2. milk
3. peppers
4. kefir (my kids devour all the above regularly, so that's why they were on the list)
5. apples (this was the item I regretted. We had blueberries at the beginning of the month, and I tried to stretch them. I wished I had chosen a more perishable fruit because apples last a long time. But I found ways to make apples interesting by adding peanut butter, baking them, etc.)
6. bone broth (this was my husband's item. I usually make my own broth, but he was doing something special with his eating that month, and I didn't think I could keep up with his consumption!)
I was just about to ask for the six grocery items as well!
How did you decide on those particular six items?
Great question, Becca! We chose those because they were the most perishable. In the post, I implied that they were shelf-stable, but what I should have said was that they don't keep! There wouldn't have been a way to buy them ahead of time to use for the whole month. (The apples and kefir would have kept for an extended amount of time, but since we eat a ton of fruit and kefir, I included them on the list.) We could have gone without these items, but I felt that would have been even more challenging, especially for my kids. Our pantry and freezer were pretty stocked from the holidays, so I thought we could make a month of meals. But, if we completely ran out (which we did not), we could eat eggs and peppers and apples. That was my backup plan. =)
this was encouraging! i've been contemplating doing this & your perspective was helpful!
Wonderful! Thanks for reading!
Ashley, I enjoyed reading this so much! Thank you for sharing. I have dipped my toes into no-buy months and always find it *immensely* challenging. Like you said, just the boundary of not being able to spend makes you WANT to spend. But I also love how you pointed out that scarcity can lead to creativity. So true. And I love how you involved your kids with this challenge!
It is so challenging, especially at the beginning! And the kids were a surprise for me, too. I love how eager they were to participate. Thanks for reading, Megan!
I really enjoyed this, the line “Just the boundary of not spending created an urge to buy.” Has really rung true with me as I try not to buy, for the same reasons as you, and the impulse is legit! Thanks for sharing, you’ve inspired me to write about my own experience
Now that the month is over, I keep thinking, "I really want to buy something," but there isn't really anything that I need. Ha! Now I'm having the reverse. =) Yes, please write about it! I'd love to read. (Also, I'm emailing you soon.) Thanks for reading, Linda!