Fo FREE.

Hello from the homeland of Lawrenceville, NJ! I'm at my parents' house- last night we drove back from Vermont, where my cousin got married. I've decided that Vermont weddings might be the most beautiful things ever.
Today I'll be getting some work done (I have a speaking gig next weekend all about closet decluttering/organization tips, so I'm updating and fine-tuning some of my go-to stuff for that), and running some errands for my folks as a thank you for flying me out here for the wedding, which was very nice of them. Then tomorrow my dad and I hit the road on a two day drive to Kansas City- Dad and my stepmom Rachel are attending a Wyoming wedding this weekend, and Rachel will be flying out to meet him- Dad is a sucker for road trips in the western United States, so he prefers to drive. Also he is retired, and Rachel still works, so she needs to fly.

I'm delighted to report that I've spent NO money on Wants on this trip so far. I did buy some grocery items to get through the week- I have lots of little food sensitivities and even a few allergies so it's necessary for me to forage for myself during family vacations. Groceries are Needs, so it's okay. Today is 19 of my spending diet, and here are some little things I've done so far to keep costs down:

  • Said "No thank you" to a lot of things. Including a trip into town for people to get their nails done the day before my cousin's wedding.
  • Walked into a liquor store to buy the cheapest bottle of Chardonnay that wasn't Barefoot or Yellowtail (a girl has to have some standards) for a BYO gathering of friends- and then decided that I didn't need to drink that night to enjoy myself. I awkwardly put the bottle back, and then pretended to answer a call as I slunk out of the liquor store, so that the guy behind the counter wouldn't be like "HEY why are you leaving empty-handed?? That's so WEIRD! Look everyone, look at this weird girl leaving without buying anything!!!" (nobody can say that I don't have a blossoming imagination when it comes to "but what if people think/say" scenarios).
  • Bartered with a client for fresh and abundant vegetables from her garden for a little organizing fun. (FYI I don't welcome all kinds of bartering, because I hate telling people "No thank you"... But this family's vegetables are oh so delicious and worth bartering for, and I always seek her and her hubby out to trade, and I'm so thankful that they are on board).
  • Googled how to remove my gel manicure, and did it myself- the manicure was a fun treat when I visited my best friends in LA in August, and normally I would go to the salon to have it removed. But using the tiny metal file of my nail clippers, acetone, tin foil and cotton balls, all things I owned, I managed to actually do it myself. I didn't do it perfectly, but enough so that I could paint my nails clear for the two weddings I went to this month.
  • Used my epilator on my legs instead of going to the salon to get waxed. I have the BEST waxer on earth, Donna Fields, and she is worth EVERY penny, and I cannot cannot wait to pay off my shit so I can make a beeline for her salon. Also I don't know what's better: the amazing job she does, or the fact that I can relay all my crazy R rated stories to her and she'll be like "girl, tell me more!" Ugh. I love love love Donna. Here is a link to her services. She does facials too.
  • I wanted Thai food so I made my own Drunken Noodles with this recipe. Seeew good.
  • Went Pokémon hunting with my young friend. As long as you don't spend actual money on extra stuff in the Poké-shop, that game is free fun.
  • FaceTimed with my brother's girlfriend Laurie to show her my dresses for my cousin's rehearsal dinner and wedding, so that Laurie could show me some cute sweaters/wraps in her closet for me to borrow, since I own zero sweaters or wraps... I didn't have to buy!
  • Started watching Galavant on our family Netflix account (thanks parents!).
I've also obsessively been reading the archives for And Then We Saved- Anna Newell Jones inspired me to do this spending diet in the first place. I listened to her audiobook, then joined in the wonderful facebook group, and it's keeping me excited about this project. I love her positivity. Also inspiring are nomoreharvarddebt.com and mrmoneymustache.com.

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