Ginevra Posted February 27, 2016 Share Posted February 27, 2016 The "rules" of this challenge are self-defined. Anyone can join in at any time. The aim of the challenge (for me) is to combat consumerism, wastefulness, mindless buying, and overspending. It is meant to nurture creative problem solving, ecology, frugality, intentionalism, and resourcefulness. To support these goals, I seek to buy nothing new/unnecessary. I aim to use existing resources, borrow, hand-craft, and buy existing second-hand materials to the greatest extent possible. However, I recognize that life is unpredictable, and family life increases this factor exponentially, so I will buy new in the following cases, when a non-buying option does not present: Food, health, and necessary household goods excluded. Requirements for school, work, or health and well-being which cannot be obtained used. Gifts, when a creative non-commercial option will not suffice. Anything animal or gardening related that cannot be obtained used. Fuel/energy sources. Posts will appear each Saturday, referring to the week that is ending. Post your successes, creative solutions, relapses and weak moments. It doesn't matter if you have a weak moment! Just keep swimming! I bought a few things, but nothing too crazy. I bought some yarn and a loom knitting kit, because I am taking a class at the co-op and learning how to loom knit. I made a tiny baby hat for my grandniece and hope to make some others things coming up. I did cave on my no books thing by buying a GF Cookbook mentioned on here. *sheepish grin* I am in a GF Cooking Club once a month and the way I rationalized it to myself is that it will be easier to come up with recipes for club with a well-rated GF cookbook (which is true, though.) i bought a couple of other books, but they were at Goodwill so that is acceptable. Here's a cool thing: I joined a Book Club this year with a bunch of other homeschoolers. Unbeknownst to me before my first meeting, the ladies choose the next month's book in part based on the library availability of the choices! So, picture five woman, representing three counties, looking on their phones and saying, "Carroll has three copies....ooooh, Baltimore has twelve requests in already...but Frederick has five copies..." It was so great! I was thinking, "Holy smokes! These are my people!" :D Readers who are also conscientious about getting the book from the library. I bought some vegetable seeds this past week, but I went to TSC, instead of ordering them from the glossy seed catalog. (Always a temptation.) Also strove to not over-buy because that is something I easily do. Bought a pizza (rather than making one) for family movie night last night. I did choose one of the sale choices to make it less expensive. The expensive/going to be expensive day was Wednesday. DH took DS16 to the dental school because he's going to have some (cosmetic) work done to his four front teeth. This will NOT be cheap, although it will be a reduced price because he is a subject for the dental students. His initial visit was $174.00. the real trouble came on the way home, though, because the van broke down just outside the city and they had to get towed. The belt had broken and that will probably be at least a few hundred dollars to fix. :( That van.....*sigh* I'm *trying* to keep it going, since a paid-for car is (theoretically) cheaper than a newer car. But I could really beat my head on the wall over it sometimes. Went to Aldi again today and am still amazed at how little I spend there. :) 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 (edited) I told in the last thread that I found some interesting summer day camps sponsored by the library, which (like many other programs there) are free. One of the libraries also has daily free lunch, I think for any kid who shows up. I don't need free lunches, but I thought I would mention that for people who might be interested - check your library and see if they have it. I signed up for the last couple paid day camps (cooking and arts sampler), and paid for horse riding through April 2. Also signed up for spring theater day camp (paid). I like the spring theater camp because they base it mostly on books. I can have the kids read the books, and then it becomes a literacy / language exercise. I like the kids to do theater camps because it encourages them to get up and talk and present to a group. Now if I can coordinate this well, I can turn this into a scout badge too. :) They have done enough theater that they should have a badge, but so far we've never gotten around to the formalities. My kid broke the zipper on her new winter coat, but I was able to fix it using pliers, yay! We ate at home more than usual this week. I don't think I bought anything unusual, but I did add another kid book to my Amazon cart. "Moon Runner." It sounds like a good one for my kids. I was trying to find a sweater to replace the mint green one my kid is growing out of, but they apparently don't sell them anymore, so I have an excuse to let that go. :) Edited February 28, 2016 by SKL 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joanne Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 I am preparing for an international educational tour. I bought some Euros. Does that count? I *am* being ........ mindful? of the preparations. I put things on my Amazon Wish list, then wait. Then consider and look again before I delete or move to cart. And I wait again. It's easy to get wooed into buying for a once in a lifetime trip! Very seductive. I NEED packing cubes. :) 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 This was probably my best week so far this year. The only purchase outside of groceries was a $2 piece of lemon pound cake while I was using the local coffee shop to tutor. They don't mind if people come hang out without buying something but I really like that lemon pound cake. Dh and I spent today looking at cars and might have found one we're interested in. Mindful? Yes. Necessary? Not really. Ds and I have been sharing a car and it's working out just fine, but it's a really old car and I'd rather ds just take it over. We're still in the thinking about it phase- boy were those car sales people pushy! We drove three cars and the one we like best is the least expensive one that will last me many years. So if it's still there Monday and we still want it, I guess next week's spending won't be as pretty as this week's. SKL, our local elementary schools do the free lunch during the summer. Sounds like the same program- anyone can come in- parents, kids, whoever. In the large town nearby they run the same program at community centers but not schools. Where do they serve lunch at the library? Do they bring it in ready to serve? 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 Joanne, how exciting! Where are you going? Hope you have a blast!!! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joanne Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 Joanne, how exciting! Where are you going? Hope you have a blast!!! Oh! Thanks for asking! I am going on this tour: http://www.eftours.com/educational-tour/french-promenade It's work in that it is for my school job and I am an Administrator and will have a group to lead, supervise, etc. I turn 50 on the 3 day extension to here: https://www.ricksteves.com/watch-read-listen/read/articles/the-enchanting-cinque-terre-fiatfree-italy 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarbecueMom Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 I'm not sure how mindful it was, but I bought some Target things to make the house run better - towel bars and hooks for the boys' towels and coats (right now they get thrown on the floor, which is about as good of a spot as any in the remodeling chaos) and a laundry basket that won't try to gut me like a fish with its broken handles. DH had surgery yesterday. For the kid-free sitting and waiting and general bedside company keeping, I ordered a book from Amazon I wanted to finish that library doesn't have, and I *ahem* owe too much in fines to get it ILL again. Yes, I have other books I could have read, but seriously, I had no kids to manage for most of the weekend while I sit here at the hospital, and it's pretty much my yearly vacation. Not sure DH sees it the same way... 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 Turning 50 in Italy sound pretty spectacular! France looks awesome too. I'm sure the days will fly by- hope you can soak it all in! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 I have spent money, this week, but it was mindful/intentional. Our lawnmower broke (completely dead) at the end of fall, last time we absolutely had to mow. I've been watching for a good deal, and found one on Amazon yesterday. Went ahead and ordered, because the yard is needing work, and that's the best deal I've seen. $159 I ordered Heelys for ds8 birthday present. $40 At least the mower had to decency to die at the very end of the season. We once had one quit about 3 weeks before the end and there was NO local stock left. Back in the day before Amazon sold stuff like that. We went into a store last week that had a sign that said No Heelys are allowed to be worn there and we commented that they've had that sign up for a decade and wondered if Heelys still existed. Glad to hear they do! I think my oldest two granddaughters would love those. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baseball mom Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 I have missed a couple weeks. Think I have done pretty good just buying necessities but dang things are so high. This week at store I got the "needed" items and then picked up a few really good clearance items that we use often. I also picked up some of the clearance items for bil. He helps us often and these were 10c & 25c items. Seemed to make him happy too. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 (edited) I'm still flabbergasted that my past two grocery shopping bills have been the same as before we started eating more meat. I'm tickled that even though we're eating more meat we're spending the same amount of money. I guess all that pasta, bread, milk, and cheese was waaay more expensive than I'd realized. I had thought our grocery bill would skyrocket, but it didn't. Bought my ds10 a couple of books that weren't available at the library. He haaaaates reading and I forced him to read Emil and the Detectives. He told me through 2/3 of the book how awful it was and he hated it, but I made him keep reading. 8 pages from the end and he tells me, "Well, it got a lot better. I really like this book a lot. Can you get me the next one in the series?" You bet I can! And I got him 2 other books by the same author as well. Then I stopped because he might not like those and I thought I'd better quit before I'd bought 8 books that he won't touch. But when a non-reader asks for a book, you just gotta jump on that like a chicken on a bug. Spent $38 for a tour of maple syrup tree tapping today. Breakfast was included. I'd planned on going to the cheaper one, but due to a schedule conflict we couldn't. In the end, I'm glad we went to the $38 one because the tour was much nicer. We were going to go out to eat with friends tomorrow but decided to eat with them at home. As usual, they are going all out buying a ton of food. I wish they wouldn't, but food=love to them so that's what they do. It's a "breakfast for dinner" meal, so we're going to bring our own syrup and eggs. Edited February 28, 2016 by Garga 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prairie~Phlox Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 Very little spending here & I ended up working ~11 more hours than normal this past week, so my next paycheck will be above average. This will help with graduaion supplies. Currently we are looking for a car for dd. Not enjoying that. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 Still going thru the squeeze. Things will be tight until mid-March. Then we can catch up a bit. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 I'll celebrate our success this week---dh fixed our broken faucet last night for $35 in parts and supplies. A plastic piece inside had failed. I splurged a bit---bought books so that we could get tickets to attend a book signing by the kids' favorite author. He personalized their books, we did photos, and we were able to ask questions! Dh wore out a few shirts, which I replaced this week from Costco. Other than that, it was the usual groceries, gasoline, and medical stuff. Dh got a bonus at work, so the $$$$ in dental bills and $$$$ for OT isn't hurting as much. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 (edited) One of my goals for the month or two ahead is to use up the produce that I froze last year. I have lots of blueberries, some strawberries, peas, pumpkin. Who knows what else might be hidden in the back of the freezer. Part of my personal challenge includes conquering food waste so this is a priority. When we were in Denver last week, my niece asked me to make another portable diaper/wipe bag that I originally made for her first son. It is a streamlined affair that fits in a handbag and holds a couple of diapers and a pack of portable wipes. She carries it with her wherever she goes and the pouch is showing significant wear. I am thrilled that one of my handmade gifts has been so appreciated!! One never knows... Being busy continues to have its advantages. I attended a meeting in another part of the state. The organization pays for my hotel, provides meals and reimburses mileage but I bought a jazzy coffee drink on the drive home, a treat to keep me awake and going on the road. Sometimes a $4 coffee is so worth it. Edited February 28, 2016 by Jane in NC 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 IKEA packing cubes work pretty well. Dh uses them in his business travel. He lives for a week at a time out of a carryon bag. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 Jane, thanks for the nudge to remind me to use freezer produce! I fill it full and try to ration it so I don't run out months before the new crop comes in but usually that means I ration too carefully- and this year is no different. Part of my hangup is that having a well stocked freezer brings me comfort...something I need to get over. I'm going to inventory that category today and start planning to use those things up. My sister had a bumper crop of blueberries last year and I brought a ton of them back with me- but how to use them? What do you do with yours? We eat little that uses flour- so muffins, pancakes, etc. are out. And I can only make so many smoothies...and since it's still cold outside, smoothies aren't a big hit. So other than saving them for warm weather smoothies...suggestions? Your portable diaper/wipe bag sounds great! I would have loved that when the kids were little. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 blueberries are good mixed in as a warm stewed fruit for breakfast! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarbecueMom Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 Looks like I'm going furniture shopping today. I got the "what do you mean you don't have a chair at home?" thing from the PT at the hospital this morning. Oops. Minimalism and budget conscious and remodeling fail. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 (edited) IKEA packing cubes work pretty well. Dh uses them in his business travel. He lives for a week at a time out of a carryon bag. My packing cubes are the Eagle Creek brand, something that I picked up from Sierra Trading. When traveling I also use a bunch of small zip bags that I made. One holds adapters, ear buds, etc., another for my knitting. Jane, thanks for the nudge to remind me to use freezer produce! I fill it full and try to ration it so I don't run out months before the new crop comes in but usually that means I ration too carefully- and this year is no different. Part of my hangup is that having a well stocked freezer brings me comfort...something I need to get over. I'm going to inventory that category today and start planning to use those things up. My sister had a bumper crop of blueberries last year and I brought a ton of them back with me- but how to use them? What do you do with yours? We eat little that uses flour- so muffins, pancakes, etc. are out. And I can only make so many smoothies...and since it's still cold outside, smoothies aren't a big hit. So other than saving them for warm weather smoothies...suggestions? Your portable diaper/wipe bag sounds great! I would have loved that when the kids were little. I am a card carrying member of the I Love Glutton club so I may not be too helpful. Do you eat oatmeal? There are a bunch of baked oatmeal recipes out there and I suspect one could be adapted for frozen berries. Also, my husband makes a great blueberry barbecue sauce. You might want to google that as well as blueberry salsa. About the freezer: my husband works crazy hours in March every year so I stock the freezer with lots of single portion grab and go meals for this busy season. As the freezer empties, I plan on taking stock of the remains and moving it out. I know what you mean about the comfort of a full freezer. There is a grocery store in biking distance now but for years I lived a number of miles from a grocery. I had to keep a well stocked freezer/pantry or waste time and money driving. Neighbors often borrowed sugar, baking powder or milk in those days--which was sort of nice to be honest. I need to strike a balance between decent basics and overflow! Edited February 28, 2016 by Jane in NC 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 One of my goals for the month or two ahead is to use up the produce that I froze last year. I have lots of blueberries, some strawberries, peas, pumpkin. Who knows what else might be hidden in the back of the freezer. Part of my personal challenge includes conquering food waste so this is a priority. When we were in Denver last week, my niece asked me to make another portable diaper/wipe bag that I originally made for her first son. It is a streamlined affair that fits in a handbag and holds a couple of diapers and a pack of portable wipes. She carries it with her wherever she goes and the pouch is showing significant wear. I am thrilled that one of my handmade gifts has been so appreciated!! One never knows... Being busy continues to have its advantages. I attended a meeting in another part of the state. The organization pays for my hotel, provides meals and reimburses mileage but I bought a jazzy coffee drink on the drive home, a treat to keep me awake and going on the road. Sometimes a $4 coffee is so worth it. This was something I was thinking about as I was watching (of all things) "The Martian" with Ds11 the other night. It just made me focus on how, when resources are scarce, we can become ingenious. I recognize that it's so eady to just forget and ignore those Cupboard Castaways and Freezer Forgottens, when you can just go buy something else. I even have some potatoes in my garage that I didn't plan to use as well as I could have; they are now too shriveled to be appealing and are not good for much but for seed potatoes. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 This was something I was thinking about as I was watching (of all things) "The Martian" with Ds11 the other night. It just made me focus on how, when resources are scarce, we can become ingenious. I recognize that it's so eady to just forget and ignore those Cupboard Castaways and Freezer Forgottens, when you can just go buy something else. I even have some potatoes in my garage that I didn't plan to use as well as I could have; they are now too shriveled to be appealing and are not good for much but for seed potatoes. Funny you should mention potatoes in the garage... I just stepped in from my garage where I grabbed a sweet potato to add to the soup pot for tonight's dinner. I bought a bushel of sweet potatoes last fall and I am making good progress on using those. I also have four butternut squashes left. A basket of butternuts went for $15 last fall at a farm market--came out to be about a dollar a squash. What a deal! From the orange food fiend, Jane 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 Ok, blueberry barbecue sauce would be awesome!!! I'm going to check that out. I eat oatmeal nearly every morning, and about half the time I put blueberries in it. But it takes me a few weeks to go through a quart size ziploc of blueberries because I only add a spoon or two of them. I really prefer raisins so that's what I do the other half of the time. Time to bump up the berries. I don't care for the overnight oatmeal- I just like to cook 1/2 cup every morning. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomtoCandJ Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 (edited) We went to Chicago... Spent +250 at AG store for the girls, consider that thier Easter though dd2's bitty baby was also part of her birthday, went to Shedd aquarium and the children's museum. Had oil changed in car (oil change covered in protection plan) and had air filter changed due to rodent damage before we left. Vacuumed car though need to do it again. Dh took dd1, dmil, dd1's friend to Disney on ice (dd2 and I were supposed to go but dd2 couldn't handle being in the car again). Edited February 28, 2016 by MomtoCandJ 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knoxinsox Posted February 28, 2016 Share Posted February 28, 2016 Didn't do much spending this week. Spent my time assembling my new drying rack and doing a ton of laundry and drying it outside on the porch. Turned off the heat for most of the week and opened windows. I love this time of the year! I made granola bars and 5 loaves of bread, and a pan of choc. chip bars. Researched zero waste more, and I can get a lot of things bulk if I drive 30 miles to Winco. They still don't let me bring my own containers, so I I think for now I'll focus on the budget and making everything I can from scratch and just continue shopping at Aldi and the bulk bins at HEB. I went out yesterday to shop for the next 2 weeks. Grocery shopped at Aldi--totalled $120. That was after a $10 off coupon, mark downed chicken, and 2 marked down houseplants. Spent $15 at Target on a new Pyrex dish, a soap dispenser top for a Mason jar, and some organic dates. Accountability is a good thing--I put back several things. :-) Got a coffee at Starbucks. $5!! Ouch! Filled up my car for under $20. Headed out to walk with the kids and then coming back to make dinner and cut up fresh veggies and fruit for snacking for the next couple of days. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomtoCandJ Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 I'm putting this down now though it probably won't be done until week 9 (that's when I'm on spring break and will have time to get it done). New tires and brake pads for my car (dh wants me to get Continental DWS tires and ceramic brake pads) he has done all the research for this and so I'm going to go with that oh and I'm supposed to look at weather tech mats and having some special undercoat put on the bottom of my car to help with rust issues. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 Our weather tech mats have been such a good purchase. We live where winter lasts 6 months and snow and ice are contained in the weather techs instead of on our car's carpet. I have a lot of trouble spending that much on a car at once...it makes me twitchy. But then I'm glad it's all over with at once! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomtoCandJ Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 I'm getting the mats for my birthday... Wish they made them for seats. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsheresomewhere Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 Love my Weather tech mats. Check the Amazon warehouse for damage box ones. The discount on those is nice. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myfunnybunch Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 I love this thread because now I will be using some of my freezer blueberries to make blueberry barbecue sauce, and I am reminded that I've got some wrinkly potatoes in a box in the garage. Just enough to make hash browns and plant some in the garden. I bought new small plates this week, to the tune of $10. Years and years ago, dd wanted to have a fancy tea party for her friends, so I bought ten small plates, all different shapes and sizes and colors. I broke one of the two remaining survivors yesterday, and we were already feeling the lack of small plates, so I hit Goodwill and found six different good quality small plates. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyofsixreboot Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 I had to buy new running shoes for 2 kids because 14 yo only had one pair of shoes and 17 yo was getting blisters because the cardboard had come through the material in the heel. His were on sale for $28. Hers were not! I had a 20% off coupon. I also bought a new yoga shirt and tights to teach in from the 75% off rack. It was more than I wanted to spend but a reasonable amount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baseball mom Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 I cooked to much last week. Shouldn't have made so much food but 1 time I accidentally added to much stuff to one recipe. The only thing to do then was double the recipe or toss it out and start over. Another time I was expecting company and they didn't show. We had been eating leftovers but still had quiet a bit. The food needed to be eaten or thrown out. I hate wasting food. So I found a way to get rid of leftovers without throwing them out. Heat all leftovers, sit them on the counter buffet style & set out a pile of plates. Then call in a group of teenage boys. Problem solved, food gone :hurray: :lol: 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 Should I pay for wifi on my one hour flight tomorrow evening so I can watch election results? It will be just as the east coast polls are closing. My deal last week was $1.50 body wash. I added two bottles to our stash. I used frequent flier miles for a last minute flight. I am paying for a rental car and having to eat out (my mom is in the hospital). I didn't buy any groceries last week though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 I wouldn't pay for wifi for an hour, but I would for a two hour flight...so I'm weird. How much does wifi cost on a plane? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted February 29, 2016 Share Posted February 29, 2016 Nope. Plane time is one of the few times I can disconnect from the wifi. I'd spend the flight napping or reading. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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