Remember when we started this no-spend challenge at the beginning of February?!!  It’s over!!

Here’s what we ended up buying this week:

• Dillons:  $41.46 + $10 for farm eggs +$10 towards next week’s eggs (I only had a $20 on hand)
• Gas:  $38.55

Previous total for the past three weeks:   $292.30

Final Total:  $392.31

We made it under $400 for the month for the five of us!  I can honestly say we were ready for the month to come to an end however.  My husband needed a haircut so badly and a handle for his truck (I’ll share more about that tomorrow).  I’ve been craving some of our favorite snack foods (almonds, raisins, and chocolate chips for trail mix), so I’ll be replenishing our supply.  We’ve been eating a lot of air-popped popcorn and basic foods to get us through the month!

I’m thankful for this month, and I’ll share a few reflections tomorrow.  I hope you’ll share tomorrow if you’ve been following along and attempting this challenge, too!

I’ve been so surprised by this no-spend month, because other than gas or groceries (and paying our basic bills), we haven’t bought anything.  I guess it just goes to show that we don’t really need as much as we think we need!  There have been several times the girls have reminded me it’s “No-spend” month, but I’ve also had to remind them on occasion (like when they really wanted a sticker book from Amazon)!

I do wish we could spend a little less on gas, but I knew going into this month that we had several day trips to make that would keep our gas bill higher.  If we lived in town, we could walk to quite a few places, but that just isn’t feasible with our location right now.  I have been trying to cut down our trips to run errands and stay at home more often, but I’m not really seeing much gas savings yet!

Anyway, we’re down to one more week! 

What we spent from February 17-23, 2013:

• Gas:  $38.28
• Groceries:  $54.54 (Grocery Store) + $10 for Farm Eggs = $64.54

Total for the week:  $102.82

Total for February 1-23, 2013:  $292.30

I’m going to try really hard to keep us under $400 for the month!!  That’s my final goal!

Well…you can see it’s Wednesday and I was supposed to update last Saturday how our no-spend month was going!

Last week was a bit more challenging, but still not really “hard”.  With Valentine’s Day, we usually buy each other a small gift, but we didn’t this year.  Instead I made a jar of printable date ideas and John made me a card!

Saturday was the most challenging day, because we traveled to an AWANA Quiz event in a larger town an hour away.  Whenever we go to said town, we like to shop and eat since the options are a little limited in our small town!

Anyway, after the quiz, everyone in our group went out to eat together…and honestly, my husband and girls really wanted to, too!  I (being the instigator of this experiment) had packed a lunch.

They were a little disappointed, but they were troopers about eating in the car since it was too cold to sit outside!

One thing that has been so interesting is to hear the girls whenever they talk about buying something.  I heard my oldest tell the youngest, “We can’t get that, remember?  It’s a no spend month.”

I guess it has made us all think a little bit more about how we’re spending our money!

Here is what we bought from Feb. 9-16:

• Groceries:  $40.15 + $17.70 (Amazon TP deal from the beginning of the month)
• Gas:  $51.39

Total for last week:  $109.24

Total for Feb. 1-16:  $189.48

Because we started a “No Spend” challenge at the beginning of this month, my husband and I agreed not to buy Valentine gifts this year.  I’ve spent a little bit of time thinking about what we could do instead, and here are a just a few ideas for free (using what you already have) or pretty cheap Valentine gift ideas.

1)  Serve breakfast in bed.

I’ve gotten breakfast in bed a few times, but I’ve never served it to my husband (probably because he is usually awake way before me)!  If you’d like to try it, Design is Yay has a super-cute Breakfast in Bed printable set for free.

2)  Write a love note.

PaperCoterie has these free printable love notes, and there are some pretty printable notes at One Charming Party.

I also love these printable love notes and envelopes from Frog Prince Paperie.

3)  Make a jar with a year’s worth of date ideas.

We try to have a weekly date, but sometimes it is challenging to come up with ideas.  PaperVinenz has a simple tutorial for a date jar that includes 12 date ideas.  You can also find 52 printable date ideas over at Oopsey Daisy.

4)  Serve a special dinner.

Set up a special picnic indoors with some of your significant other’s favorite foods.  You can find yummy recipes all over Pinterest!  You might even try a red theme–pick out red foods, drink red drinks, wear red clothing, etc.

Side note:  If you are a member of eMeals, they are also offering some special Valentine dinners (like the Paleo plan in the picture above–I’m going to try the butternut squash and share the recipe tomorrow)!  They are also offering 10% off with the code HEART.

5)  Make a yummy dessert.

Pick your sweetheart’s favorite dessert and make it for him.  You can also try this easy Cake in a Cup recipe (with Printable) from Studio DIY.  These gluten-free brownies are delicious, and I keep getting hints that I should make this Extreme Chocolate Cheesecake!

6)  Have a game night.

Try a Valentine-themed Yahtzee game from The Idea Room.  You can also pull out one of your favorite games to play (one of our three favorite at-home date night ideas).

7)  Make a Valentine Coupon Book.

Mommy by Day, Crafter by Night is offering a FREE printable Valentine Coupon Book.

I also love these free printable Valentine coupons from Elegance & Enchantment.  You can fill them in with your own ideas!

Through February 13, 2013 only, you can also get this freebie.  Add your photos to this premium collage design from Smilebox, then print it at home!

Do you have any free or inexpensive homemade Valentine gift ideas?