2015 Controlled Spend/No Spend

[ses]

Are you ready??



A few months back Honeylioness had an impassioned plea to get us back to the focus of our thread. The fundamentals. The basics. Plus the friendship. Did y'all know we've successfully planned vacations together? Life keeps on going with new babies, relationships, homes, challenges, jobs and financial hurdles but we stick to it. So, get sticky!

Here are some way to get your goals to stick:

#1. Post your numbers - just put it at the top of a post in bold and let us know how you're doin' and what you need help with
#2. Track your numbers - technically this should be #1 but you know it. If you need ideas for tracking post and ask the veterans for guidance
#3. Share your life but please keep it somewhat financially related - we know that everything influences finances especially when we're stressed, tired, excited and busy. BUT this is a financial accountability group, not a therapy session If you want to go off topic consider starting a fresh thread and posting a link so those who are interested can support you there.

For the new people there are no real set rules here, you set your own. The basic goal most if not all of us have are to keep track of the days we don't spend and hopefully by that work on saving money. Some are looking to put it into savings others to pay down debt.

For some they only count the day as a no spend day if they spend nothing at all. Others will count it if they keep their total under $5. Some count all spending others only count a certain part of their budget. For example MittenKitten personally take $400 out of the the bank in cash for everything that is not related to vehicle expenses (like gas, oil changes, insurance etc) or the house (mortgage, utilities, HOA) If I spend out of the $400 I count it as a spend day (although if it is less then $5 I usually count it as a no spend day.) You set your own rules. Any questions feel free to ask.

You can post your no spend days daily or whenever you want, just put it in bold at the top with the first number being the number you want me to record. If you are doing daily then:
Today (or yesterday) $0 Spend day

More then one day at a time:
4/31 days $0 Spend Which translates into 4 out of 31 days in July have been no spend so far. Some use the bigger number as their goal number so do 4/15 No spend Days which means they have a goal of 15 no spend days this month.

[3catslady]

3catslady:  1 NSD, 0 CSD, 0 eating out days.

Thanks, ses, for starting the thread.  I am going for more NSD than CSD.  I really need to buckle down and get my savings built back up.  Car repairs and medical bills for both the cat and me sort of drained it.

[moneysquirrel]

Update: 0 NSDs , 1 CSD as of now.  

Will be going off in a few minutes and I suspect that today will either be a spend day or another csd.  I do better with nsds when I am at school.  Then I have very little time to go places to spend.

 Am going to echo 3cats thanks to ses for starting the thread. 

I did manage to get to the gym early this morning and am currently working on laundry.  I am beginning to take a few ornaments off the tree everything I go through the room.  I really hate taking it down but I know that with school beginning up again on Monday that I need to get it taken care of before I go back.  The rest of the Christmas decorations can stay up until the following weekend. I also wrote out a list of things I have to do in the next few days.  I am slowing beginning to knock things off of it.  

Will check in as time permits.  Need to get moving on that list. 

[shanendoah]

goals: 11 NSD - 13 CSD - 7 Spend (4 Eating Out)
shanendoah: 0 NSD - 1 CSD - 0 Spend (0 EO)


Going with actual goals this month now that the "holidays" are over and we should be getting back to a regular schedule.
11 NSD is an ambitious goal, given the way things have been going. But the truth is, that's only 3 weekdays (M,Tu,Th) each week, and not the Monday of MLK day. We can do this.
I am going to be tracking Eating Out days now, because it turns out, we really need to. I was going though last year's credit card statements and realized we spent almost $300/month eating out this last year, eating out, on average, about 7 times a month (because what happens is that on crazy weekends, we eat out more than once). That's probably the easiest leakage in our budget to fix, so the goal is to fix it.

Yesterday got to be a CSD specifically because we DIDN'T eat out. I wanted to. I wanted Chinese food for New Year's, but C and I had just had the conversation about how much we'd been eating out. So instead, when we went to the grocery store to pick up needed items like facial tissue (because the chest cold the rest of my family had is a head cold for me) and orange juice, we picked up some PF Changs in a bag and wonton wrappers. We made rice and cream cheese wontons and the PF Changs General's chicken. And I had Chinese food for New Year's dinner, without eating out. Yay us.

[moneysquirrel]

Update: 1NSD and 1 CSD

Today turned out to be a NSD after all.  I used a GC at the movie and decided not to run any other errands, therefore a nsd was born.  All that means is that there will another day that will become a spend day.  I have to make a trip to the grocery as I will need items for lunches.  I will also need to get gas.  The weather is expected to be yukky tomorrow so I hope to knock some more items off my to do list then.  I also am expecting a package to be delivered so I don't want to be away from home until it arrives.  So current thinking is that will be the grocery/gas day. 

[3catslady]

3catslady:  2 NSD, 0 CSD, 0 eating out days.

[Happy prose]

What is csd?

[moneysquirrel]

Welcome Happyprose,

CDs =controlled spend day.  A day that you only spent on something that you budgeted for, or was on your list. For example, if I follow my lost at the grocery this weekend, then it is a cad.  If I throw in something that is not needed say a box of cookies then it becomes a spend day since that was an impulse spend.

Also realize that this is a mind game.  Each person sets there own rules but the purpose is to make one more aware of their own money habits/impulses.  The longer one does this I find it easier.  I do find that I often hear the voice in my head asking if this is a need or a want.

I don't count basic living expenses like utilities, groceries or gasoline.  Impulse shopping items or things I do not have on my list, have not saved for in advance or buy in a moment of weakness will lead to a spend day.

Remember this takes practice and even those of us who have been here awhile still have setbacks but it is a way to challenge yourself to become aware of your habits.  That includes the snack machine purchases that you might hit because you forgot to plan for the midday slump, or the daily coffee you pick up due to habit.  Little changes can lead to bigger success.

Good luck with the process.  Let us know if you have any other questions.  I am not on here as often as others due to my schedule but I do try to pop in when I can. 

 

[3catslady]

3catslady:  2 NSD, 1 CSD, 0 eating out days.

I paid the bills and did laundry so a controlled spend day.  

[Happy prose]

Thanks moneysquirrel! So yesterday 1NSD, today 1CSD. I'm trying for a controlled spend YEAR!! Trying to up my personal savings account. Today was a little hard because I went to Aldi, and I'm addicted to that middle aisle with all the good 'stuff'. I did browse it, but kept walking.

[dakota4600]

It has been a long time since I've been on.  Life has been busy.  I can catch everyone up, if you are interested.

Anyway need to get back to mindful spending.  I think for this month I'll just track.

So far 

1/1- NSD
1/2- Spend(Left my breakfast on the kitchen counter )
1/3- NSD (heading out to an office holiday party in a few so pretty sure we'll make it without spending.)

[forwardwego]

Good morning controlled spenders 

I haven't spent a ton, but have been quite busy with 2 rounds of company. So though my spending was moderate I wouldn't call it controlled. But in January, no eating out yet so one bright spot to this update:


Update ?? NSD ?? CSD  No eating out as of January 4



I have a plan for tracking CSD or NSD, if it seems helpful I'll tell about it in my next update 

[Happy prose]

1NSD; 2CSD

Went to the grocery store, and didn't even get all the items on my list. But most important, no non-list items made it into my cart! Woo hoo!!! 

[3catslady]

3catslady:  2 NSD, 2 CSD, 0 eating out days.


I got groceries today and that is all.  I was going to do a load of laundry but I took a nap instead.  Anyway, I want to get back in the habit of doing laundry on Wednesday.  That went to the wayside through the holidays because I worked both Wednesdays and Thursdays and had family gatherings on the weekends.  Hence, no laundry was done until yesterday when I did a load of whites.

[moneysquirrel]

Update: 2NSDs and 2 CSDs.
Finally got to the grocery/gas station today.  We had bad weather yesterday and since I had enough in the house I just waited until today to run those errands.  Returning to school tomorrow so hopefully my numbers will be more NSDs than CSDs this month.  I also won't be on as often if history repeats itself.

Welcome back dakota!

[shanendoah]

goals: 11 NSD - 13 CSD - 7 Spend (4 Eating Out)
shanendoah: 1 NSD - 3 CSD - 0 Spend (0 EO)


Friday we managed not to spend any money. Saturday was a grocery store run; then Sunday was CostCo and ordering a couple needed items on line, so both were controlled spends.

We have a couple big spends coming up that I need to plan. We want to get Pop Tart enrolled in gymnastics classes (will become on ongoing expenditure), and I need to schedule my quarterly hair appointment, which runs about $160.

[forwardwego]

Update 0 NSD 2 CSD No eating out as of January 6

[Happy prose]

1NSD; 3CSD. Had to go to the store again. The good news though, I got 4 boxes of SpecialK Protein cereal for $.40 total!!!! Happy to spend!

[dakota4600]

3 NS, 2 spends

Sunday-  DH went to Costco and picked up a shelving unit for basement, so I can organize my craft room.  I bought a controller for the Wii my brother passed on to us, so all 3 of us can play.  Mini-D is already better than I am, I was never good at video games though.  Then I went to Hallmark and picked up some stuff for next Christmas. Then the grocery store.  I also ordered a case for my new iPad mini, that was what my boss gave all employees for Christmas.  Mini-D and I already have kindles, but I'm sure it will get used.  DH doesn't really like tablets, but I may let him use my Kindle now.

Today- NS  



Mini-D heads back to school tomorrow, halfway through 1st grade, I can't believe it.

[shanendoah]

goals: 11 NSD - 13 CSD - 7 Spend (4 Eating Out)
shanendoah: 1 NSD - 3 CSD - 1 Spend (0 EO)

C had to go buy bread yesterday. We were at Safeway/CostCo like 3 times this weekend, never once did we think about bread. We weren't saying - oh, we'll be near the bread store on X day and get bread then. Nope, just didn't even think about bread until Sunday night when Pop Tart went to make her lunch for Monday, and there was only one piece of bread left. So C went to the store and bought bread yesterday.

He was also supposed to pick up an Rx, but after waiting for 45 minutes and nobody's number being called, he left. He'll go back today and try again.
I also forgot, when I was planning my goals, that on Tuesdays I have a 7:45am meeting in a cafeteria. I pretty much always buy myself a chai. I have decided that if, on Tuesdays, I only get a chai, it will be a CSD. However, if I get a bagel or some pastry, it will be a spend.
In addition Wednesday will still count as NSDs if the only thing we spend money on is gas.


Great deal on the cereal, Happy prose.
dakota4600 - they grow up TOO fast.

[Happy prose]

2NSD; 3CSD. Went to work, and home for the night. Too cold to go out and spend money.

[ses]

1CS/5NS (too cold to go out)

Dakota, welcome back!!!  It seems like everyone is off to a good start, lets keep it up.

We are having a heatwave of 21*.  It has been too cold to spend much time in the computer room. Minus 18* and blowing winds I just want to huddle up inside and not extend my fingers anywhere cold, not even a keyboard.

The holidays are over, the guests are gone, the cookies are all gone, the dishes are all washed and stored for next year now life can resume.

I have been giving some thought to my goals for this year and they are all do-able.

1)Get back to the CS/NS lifestyle.  I have become very inattentive to my spending habits.

2)My medical bills will all be repaid to my EF February.  It had been very uncomfortable without a full EF.

3)Eat healthier and shop healthier.  I have an appointment with a nutritionist tomorrow.  I plan to pay close attention.

4)Be more active.  Add at least one more minute of activity every day.

5) Organize and clean out household products and HBAs.  I will keep a diary of all household expenses this year.  I already make my laundry detergent, how hard can some of the other stuff be.

I plan to shop and live as though my grandmother is whispering in my ear.  If something was not in her life or something she would recognize as food it is not coming into my home.  There is something to be said for simplifying my life.

[ses]

Shanen

What is YNAB?

[moneysquirrel]

Update: 4 NSDs and 2 CSDs.
I'm back at school and therefore I have no time to shop and to spend.  

Dakota -- I can't believe that mini-D is 6 already.  It wasn't that long ago since our get-together in KC, was it?
Stay warm ladies!

[shanendoah]

ses - YNAB (You Need a Budget) is budgeting software. It's "agenda" is to get you to a point where you pay this month's bills off of last month's income.
It asks you to budget money each month for different categories (you can totally change those categories as you go) and helps you track where you spend your money.
I don't know that it's a whole lot different than my excel spreadsheets were, as you still need to manually enter your transactions, but it budgets forward, which is nice, and I needed something "new" to get me back to recording all my transactions again. The 9 month break during my unemployment really had me dreading going back to my Excel sheets.

[shanendoah]

goals: 11 NSD - 13 CSD - 7 Spend (4 Eating Out)
shanendoah: 1 NSD - 3 CSD - 2 Spend (0 EO)


So yesterday, C went back to the pharmacy to pick up his Rx. For me, this normally wouldn't count at all, as it's an on-going Rx, and like a bill, just needs to be paid when it needs to be paid (and I don't count bill paying in my spending). But then he decided that since making soup on Monday turned into a massive fail (he burnt the stock/base he was making and little miss Junebug got the whole half turkey breast that was supposed to go in it) that he wanted to "get back up on that horse" and make soup last night. That required a trip to the grocery store (which is right next to the pharmacy, so quite convenient) for ingredients that got used up yesterday or that he needed for the soup he was now going to make.

For the record, it was a very yummy chicken and rice soup with kale. Very tasty and healthy. It still turned yesterday into a spend.


Today should be an NSD. C will go out with friends and get gas, but gas is a bill. I'll take Pop Tart to her first gymnastics lesson, and I will have to pay for that, but again, this is something we intend to become a regular monthly expense, and have budgeted for it among the bills, so it doesn't count.

As a note for new people who may wonder about how people count their spend/no spend: I don't count monthly bills and ongoing expenses when it comes to spend/no spend days because if I did, I feel like I'd never have a no spend day. Most of our bills are automated and simply come out of the account when they come out, with nothing being done by me. And while we obviously don't have something coming out of the account every day, they are scattered enough that it would just bum me out any time I thought I had a no spend day only to see a bill paid, and then it was a controlled spend.

[forwardwego]

Update 1 NSD 2 CSD No eating out as of January 7


finally got my first NSD 

shanendoah the soup sounds delicious, I also don't count regular bill paying and regular expenses as spend days.

The benefits of trying for NSD's is that not going to the store equals not spending money. And CSD's keep spend day amounts lower. So it's a double whammy against spending, which leads to saving and reducing debt, win/win/win


Welcome aboard Happy prose

nice work moneysquirrel with 4 NSDs already!

nice to meet you dakota4600

good start for you 3catslady   

thanks for getting us rolling ses 

[Happy prose]

3NSD; 3CSD Yay, another no spend! I'll probably have quite a few in the winter. Too cold, too dark. The wind here today is incredible. Tomorrow too. The NSDs are easier for me. I'm more proud of the CSDs- sticking to my list in the grocery store with no extra items. I'm pretty frugal to begin with, so eating out, etc doesn't happen too often anyway. I also have a problem passing up good deals. I almost bought a new printer yesterday online, but passed! 

In the summer, we usually go to the beach every weekend. I'm trying to figure out if I should list that as a CSD or spend day. I'm thinking spend day because it's not a necessity. We do bring our own lunch and drinks, but tolls and beach fees add up. I'm not counting gas.

[reeneejune]

Um Hi.  Remember me? 

So it's been an interesting year, ending with getting engaged last month.  Life is finally starting to level out and be less chaotic.  Some of the highlights:
- I completed rehabilitation on my last defaulted student loan, allowing me to begin school full time in September.  I got straight A's in my first term, and the plan is to complete all of my prerequisites this year to transfer to a university next year for my bachelor's degree.
- I got a part time job at an adoption agency, which allows me to work in the social services field while I'm going to school for social work.  The pay is good (13.50/hour), the hours are great (20 hours a week, weekdays only), and my coworkers are all invested in my success in school.
- My boyfriend proposed to me December 17th, and we're planning a wedding for next January.  I'm planning to make my own dress, and I've been seeking out resources to plan a wedding that doesn't put us into debt.  He even honored my request to purchase a ring that didn't require him to use credit or put a strain on his budget.  It's beautiful, and even more so knowing we won't be paying for it for years.
- We're moving out of the roommate situation and into our own apartment.  It's also more convenient to where we both work and where I'm attending school (both this year and next year), and it gets me out of the situation where I'm responsible for anything that goes wrong.  Like when one roommate flooded half the apartment a couple of weeks ago.  Or when the other roommate decided that they aren't paying rent until the 16th of this month because they're ticked off about getting notice to move.
- Financial aid for next year is shaping up well.  I expect to have enough aid to avoid taking out loans beyond federal direct loans, and may not even need to borrow the maximum on those.  (While I'd prefer to not take out loans at all, that's impractical.  Once I complete my master's degree program, I'll qualify for the student loan repayment program under the National Health Service Corps, as long as I accept a job in a high need area.  That can pay back between $30,000-$50,000 of my student loans, which will cover most if not all of the balance.)

Anyway, I'm going to work on setting some goals tonight when I get home from class.  I just wanted to say a quick hello and give you all the update on what I've been up to.
~Reenee

[mizbear]

reneejune! Congratulations! I miss you so much!

I miss everyone actually. I am still working full time and going to school part time. I am totally off my diabetes meds. This year's goal is to get a solid savings started and go back to making NSDs a priority. MommaBear will be moving out at some point, but that is not set in stone yet.

DB has a good paying full time job now and is getting his act together. He is considering moving in with me as my roomie. We will see.