Day 8: Can't buy love.

It doesn't take money to have a good time with these goofs. (These 3 are my nanny family, by the way!) We can read, or make crafts, or visit free parks or zoos. We can just hang out! They have plenty to say!

In the past, I've felt like we'd have more fun or, as silly as it sounds, they'd like me more if I bought them things or activities (including those butterfly wings...)

I'm not quite sure where I've come up with this theory considering my parents certainly didn't shower us with STUFF. I grew up in the era of "Go play outside!" if you were bored. And having an active imagination was encouraged!

They'll like me, with or without the crap.

DAY 1!

Happy 2013, everyone! I love new beginnings. Everything seems fresh, like a do-over of all the mistakes you may have made in the past year (or years.) They've been wiped clean. And now you can do things differently!

Except that old habits die hard.
Today is Day 1...and what I should have done is STAY HOME. There's no temptation in my cozy bed.

Instead I found myself at a bar with my man, cheering on his Wildcats. (Ok, so in addition to my bad shopping habit, as a couple, we spend far more time and money in bars than we should. Even when we've been "hooked up" by our friends and co-workers we still spend over $40 a night without a second thought.)

SO here's the run down of how I did on this first day!

I brought my own mug of coffee that I made at home (1 point for Tiffany) AND I walked the 20 minute walk there instead of taking a cab (2 points...what? Are we not keeping score here?) I ate before I left so I wouldn't be tempted to order food, but the smell of fried deliciousness overtook my senses and the man bought me an order of chicken fingers. (Ok, I lose a point here.)
I didn't order any drinks (because I shouldn't drink before work and because drinks cost money.) But I did accept drinks that were given to me (Is that cheating?)

Then I walked home and made an early dinner before I had to be at work. Even though I was running late, I still managed to take public transportation to my job and be on time.
After work, I waited the extra hour and a half for my manager to get off so I could bum a ride home instead of taking a cab!
Then I patted myself on the back for being so resourceful :)

The running tally for January so far:
$700.36 (Rent/Utilities)
$0 Cash

If today is any indication of how the next month will pan out, I think I'll probably be saving countless money not taking cabs or ordering coffee out.

I should mention that this Spending Fast project is two-fold.
Not spending money to pay off debt is important to me. Very important.

But so is living more simply. Enjoying life (without so much STUFF) and the people I share it with (without the burden of having to spending cash to spend time together!)

Even after downsizing from a one bedroom apartment with 3 big closets and ample storage to my charming little studio with it's one.tiny.little.closet and no usable storage space to speak of, I still have more stuff than I know what to do with. My drawers are at capacity, under the bed is overflowing tupperware containers, and I can't close the closet door without using all my body weight..

And, sadly, I can count the number of times I've "entertained" on one hand. ( I use the word "entertained" loosely, because in order to actually have people over for a meal we have to picnic on my floor...and if we're just hanging out, it has to be on my bed watching my 13 in. television. or listening to music on my Macbook... Really, I may as well live in a dorm.)


So! In addition to using "eat more cake" as a forum to share my journey (journey? really? bring on the cheese...), struggle, and most importantly, successes out of debt, I'm also using this as a platform to display all the simple (see: cheap, inexpensive, free) pleasures that I'll be paying more attention to and photographing!

I'm assuming most of the images I'll be sharing will be of babies and food. But who knows, I could surprise myself! This is, after all, a growing process.