No Spend Challenge is Back!

We have had a lot of extra expenses lately, so we want to rein in our finances and recoup some of our savings by challenging ourselves to a No Spend Month. We may even go two months. We will only spend money for the bills and our basic needs. 

We have done this challenge before. No Spend Challenge Plan There are plenty of free resources out there to guide you through a challenge. We used Ruth Soukup's book 31 Days of Living Well & Spending Zero. 

You can find out about some our experiences here: 31 Day of Living Well and Spending Zero. For us, we have already gone through this challenge, so we have a leg up so to speak. We will need to put in some fresh produce in order to make it through a month like carrots, cabbage, potatoes and onions. We only shop bi-monthly for fresh produce and dairy. Now that we have a fuel-efficient vehicle, we will now only have to shop for fresh foods and fill up on gas monthly. Yea!

I used the last of our fresh vegetables in Refrigerator Soup when I cleaned out the refrigerator in preparation for out next fresh food run. We will also need to purchase milk for our milk kefir grains and yogurt. In other words, we will keep our spending at a minimum until the challenge is over. 

This may seem like an easy challenge, but it's not. There is a lot more to it than not shopping. This challenge has us take a look at our expenses and everything we own to decide on its value and if it is important enough keep it around. It also includes activities like organizing and cleaning. 

I started this challenge by making a list of the things I wanted to achieve this week, I planned out our meals and I paid our monthly bills early, so that I could see our financials more clearly. Last night, I made a batch of yogurt and soaked some thick cut oats for baked oatmeal. I also put together a Kettle Pizza and baked it this morning for breakfast. Yes, breakfast! I prepared rice for the week and froze the excess. I made High Protein Rotis this afternoon. I will soak beans overnight and cook them tomorrow.

 

Meal prepping helps especially if you are prone to eating out. We rarely eat out, but I like to meal prep so I can easily put a healthy meal together without much effort on busy days or on days when I do not want to cook. Freezer meals also help on those days. Planning saves time, effort, money and reduces waste. 

The weather is perfect for baking and cooking. It is raining and snowing all week. I am grateful for the moisture. Hopefully the spring rains will get us through until the monsoon season starts. If it starts, I should say. 

I hope to share new affordable recipes and our experiences on the blog during our No Spend Challenge. I also hope that our experiences will encourage others who want to participate in a challenge such as this one. 

Shalom,

Mrs. Smith