MY NEW CHALLENGE: No Spend September

Happy September everyone!

I have decided to do a new challenge for myself this month. As you may recall, last October I played the Mins game and ended up donating/trashing 465 items in a single month.

My new challenge: No Spend September.

The inspiration for this challenge comes from reading The Year of Less by Cait Flanders this past month. Cait was able to resist take-out coffees, fast food, and buying anything new (other than items she had previously anticipated purchasing) for an entire year. Her challenge totally inspired me and made me think, “if she can do it for a whole year then surely I can do it for a measly month!”

Additionally, our credit card is the highest it’s ever been due to some unforeseen pet expenses. We recently adopted a new dog in June and when we took her in for a routine checkup, we discovered that she needed a whole bunch of rotten teeth removed, and also required an ultrasound to take a look at a heart murmur. All of these veterinary trips = really expensive and really difficult for a person like me, who desires to always have a credit card balance of zero.

So here we are. No Spend September. Is it gonna be hard? Heck yes. Do I think it will be worth it? Absolutely, because the best way to save money is to not spend it to begin with.

Without further ado, here is a list of items that I CAN purchase (AKA the essentials):

• Gas
• Groceries (food from grocery stores only)
• Mortgage, utilities, condo fees (I wish I could include these in my no-buy list)
• Other various bills (mostly just different types of insurance)

And here is the list of things I CAN’T buy:

• Food and drinks from any restaurants, including fast food joints, liquor stores or coffee shops (see ya in October Timmy’s)
• Clothing
• Household items
• Cosmetics or hygiene items (unless I am simply replacing something that I’ve run out of)

Additional things I anticipate needing to buy and have already fit into our budget:

• A dining table. Ours is scratched to death – literally not fixable because it’s a cheap IKEA tabletop made of particle board – and it decided that it wanted to permanently tattoo the design of a plastic Walmart bag onto the top of it (yes, seriously…don’t put grocery bags on glossy white tables from IKEA). I found a steal of a deal on a secondhand one for $80, and asking the seller to hold off selling it until October so I can purchase it just isn’t realistic and would also make me sound kinda crazy. Therefore, I will be buying it next week.

• Restaurants and coffee shops for September 2nd and 3rd. Scott and I are road tripping down to Montana for a day, and one of my favourite parts of going on vacations is checking out the local restaurants and cafes. Sorry No Spend September, but a girl’s gotta eat and support the locals down in Great Falls, Montana! (On that note, if you have any good restaurant/cafe suggestions in Great Falls, let me know in the comments below!)

I should also note that my husband Scott has decided not to fully participate in the No Spend September challenge. HOWEVER, he has agreed to a spending budget of only $100 on non-essentials for the entire month. For a guy who loves his Tim Horton’s lattes, McDonald’s hot chocolates, and Long & McQuade equipment rentals, I think this is an awesome first step. The money has already been placed in his separate account and he can spend it on basically whatever he wants as long as he doesn’t exceed $100.

Okay, so now that I’ve told you the basics of what No Spend September entails, it’s time to get started!  I will be periodically filling you in with any updates, including successes, challenges, and slipups (hopefully none of those). Make sure you check out my Instagram to follow along and let me know if you’ve ever done a challenge like this. Or even better, join me and make September a no spending month for you too!

Forget sale price. Everything is 100% off when you don’t buy it. – Joshua Fields Millburn

UPDATE: September 9, 2018

Since people keep asking me how this challenge is going with concerned looks on their faces, I thought I would give you all a bit of an update! There’s no need to be concerned – it’s actually going really great! With the exception of September 2-3, we haven’t spent a cent on anything except groceries and our regular bills.

On September 2-3, we went on a short trip to Montana and checked out some local Great Falls restaurants. These expenses were exempt from the challenge (read above) because I wanted to check out some local restaurants and coffee shops.

• Total amount spent on food/drinks at restaurants and coffee shops in Montana = $151.83 CAD

We camped while we were there; unfortunately, I accidentally forgot a couple of necessities including pillows, toothpaste, and my toothbrush. We had to buy pillows at Target (the cheapest ones were $3.99 each x 2 = $7.98 USD) and I bought a toothbrush and some toothpaste at Dollar Tree for a grand total of $2.00 USD.

• Total amount spent on necessities I forgot (pillows, a toothbrush and toothpaste) in Montana = $13.39 CAD

Obviously, we’ve spent a little more on gas in the past 9 days as we had to drive to Great Falls, and then back to Calgary the following day. I’m guessing we drove approximately 1200 KM (750 miles) in just two days. I also drive at least 65 KM Monday to Friday as it’s a 32.5 KM commute from home to work, which definitely adds up.

• Total amount spent on gas in the past 9 days = $246.82 CAD

In the past 9 days, we have spent a lot more on groceries than I thought we would. Instead of doing one or two big grocery trips, we’ve made several little trips to the grocery store in order to buy items for certain recipes. This is probably not the best way to save money on groceries, but I think this might be the best way to avoid wasting food?! I dunno, but if you have any money saving grocery tips, send them my way! However, I’m not too upset because we spent almost the same amount on food from restaurants in only 2 days!

• Total amount spent on groceries in the past 9 days = $165.68 CAD

Scott might have been a little upset with his $100 limit… Only three days after beginning the challenge, one of his favourite bands announced that they were coming to town. Tickets for a meet and greet package plus seeing the band cost $249 CAD. Obviously, he really doesn’t want to pass up on this opportunity, so we made a deal: he can buy the tickets with any money he makes from selling some of his old stuff. He has a bike and some music gear that’s just been sitting in our basement for years. I’m totally okay with this deal because he gets to see his fave band, and I get more junk out of the house! WIN-WIN MUCH?!

Additionally, my sis-in-law asked if I would join her team on a 5KM charity walk in a couple of weeks. The cost to join was $25. At first, I thought I wouldn’t be able to do it… Then I realized I could if I returned some pants that I bought in August and hadn’t yet worn. I returned the pants (which  also happened to cost $25) and was able to join the walk! Technically, I spent the money in August, so it doesn’t count toward my No Spend September challenge… At least that’s what I’m telling myself!

Hope you are all having a lovely September so far!