We are rounding the corner to Day 30 of my Limited Spending Challenge.

Overall, it has felt like a pretty successful month.  Excluding a few specific spending whims and indulgences (namely a spending spree on Black Friday and some online holiday shopping) I managed to stay pretty true to my budget of $80 per week.

The Highlights

Overall this month has forced me to become much more planned and organized.  In a typical week, I put about $40-50 towards groceries.  Keeping such a tight grasp on groceries really forced me to pay attention to what I was buying and concentrate on the priorities.  I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I could buy the essentials (brown rice, chicken, broccoli, salad, etc.) without sacrificing healthy choices. If anything, I discovered that much of what I spend in excess on is junk food.

This month has also unearthed a creative flourish of baking.  Instead of spending money on various snacks, I managed to tap into my inner homemade baker.  I also found ways to maximize leftovers by making new meals out of them and planning leftovers for lunch.

This challenge has given me the confidence to live with less.  I feel strangely empowered to know that I can cut my spending by half of what I normally would spend and it has given me some savings that I can use towards my upcoming cross country road trip.

30 Day Review

Level of Success in Completing Challenge: B+

Likelihood of Continuing Challenge Beyond 30 Days: VERY! In fact, I plan to continue the challenge into December.