After the holidays, our credit card statement looked like it had been through something. Between gifts, travel snacks, a new car seat for June, and two dinners out we didn't really need, we spent about $900 more in December than we usually do. So Dan and I are doing a no-spend January.
I'm writing out the plan and our rules now, on day six, so I can't quietly move the goalposts later. I'll add an honest update at the end of the month.
What "no-spend" means for us
A true no-spend month doesn't exist with twenty-one-month-old twins. They still need diapers, they still eat constantly, and rent is still $2,650. So for us, no-spend means no discretionary spending. The bills get paid. The essentials get bought. Everything else waits until February.
The rules
- Fixed bills are paid as usual. Rent, PG&E, phones, internet, car insurance, daycare, the minivan payment.
- Groceries are allowed, with a cap. Our normal grocery spend is around $1,050 a month. The January cap is $850, and we have to eat down the pantry and freezer first.
- Diapers, wipes, and medicine are always allowed. No arguing with a fever.
- Gas for the minivan and Dan's commute is allowed. His work truck covers most job sites, but not all.
- No takeout, no coffee out, no dinners out. The one exception is a birthday dinner for my mom, which we planned months ago.
- No clothes, home stuff, or toys unless something breaks and we truly need it.
- No new subscriptions, and we cancel one we're not using.
- A 48-hour rule for anything that feels like an emergency but isn't.
Why I think this will be hard
My weak spots are very predictable. It's the $6 latte on the way home from a long shift at the dental office. It's the "we're out of dinner ideas" pizza on a Friday night when the twins went to bed late. It's the online cart at 10 p.m., filled with things I convinced myself would make mornings easier. Dan's weak spot is the gas station on the way to a job, where a coffee and a breakfast burrito somehow cost $14.
We're both putting a sticky note on the car dashboard. Mine says "Is this February?" His says "Burrito tax."
What we're doing with the money
Anything we don't spend goes straight into our emergency fund, which took a hit in December after the water leak in the twins' room. Having an actual destination for the money makes me more motivated than "save more" ever has.
Update, Feb 1: the honest results
Okay. January is over, and I promised honesty, so here it is.
| Category | Normal month | January | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Groceries | $1,050 | $884 | -$166 |
| Takeout and coffee | $310 | $41 | -$269 |
| Dining out (incl. Mom's birthday) | $180 | $96 | -$84 |
| Household and clothes | $240 | $58 | -$182 |
| Kids' extras (toys, books, classes) | $120 | $0 | -$120 |
| Subscriptions | $64 | $48 | -$16 |
| Total savings | $837 |
We moved $837 into the emergency fund on Friday. That's not a life-changing amount, but it's real money, and it's the biggest single deposit we've made since the twins were born.
Where we slipped: we went $34 over the grocery cap. The last week of the month the freezer was genuinely empty and I had no energy left to be creative with a can of chickpeas. The $41 in takeout was one pizza night after both kids got a daycare cold and none of us slept. I'm not sorry about it. The $58 in household was a new pair of rain boots for Theo, whose toes were hitting the end of his old ones, and a replacement baby gate latch.
What surprised me: the latte habit broke faster than I expected. By week two I just stopped thinking about it. What didn't break was the late-night online cart. I still filled it. I just didn't press the button. There are four things sitting in there right now, and honestly, I don't want any of them anymore.
Will we do it again? Not every month. But we're keeping two rules for good: the 48-hour rule, and a firm cap on takeout. And maybe one no-spend month a year, right after the holidays, when we need it most.
