Mid-year Austerity Plan!

...like the European ones but without the riots.

So, there are a lot of things I need to be saving up for on the horizon: car, kids, projects around the house, September vacation, and student loan debt (this last one is more of a looming cloud than something on the horizon). I've decided I've been spending too much money on stuff. Also, I had a crapload of money at the end of the 2009 Year Without Shopping. It all went into my down payment on the house, but it's still kinda painful to see my account balance. I need to start making a "equity in the house" statement every month and sending it to myself, accounting for the rise/fall of our house value. Thankfully we bought at the bottom of the market, so now we have a 2-bedroom condo with a $90,000, 15-year mortgage. Actually, $90,000 was at the start a year ago. Now it's like $86,000. Boooooo, interest.

Anyways, we need new plan. At least until the State of Maine drops off some kids at our door, rings our doorbell, and runs. Hopefully we'll be home at the time.

*Eating restaurant food is back to the 2009 plan: one dinner and one breakfast/lunch/brunch a week.

*Buying stuff: clothes, books, and STUFF is out. No knick-knacks, no decor. Stuff for around-the-house projects is okay. No more plants either, I think. Went a little crazy with the backyard there.

*Groceries: one trip a week to Hannaford, Whole Foods, and the Farmers Market (each gets 1 trip/week). I'm thinking of instituting a hard $80/week grocery and toiletries budget for 2 people. I think this is highly doable. I'm not even sure we spend that much now, actually.

*Exceptions: stuff for our backpacking vacation in September (gear only, no new clothes and nifty gadgets) and on a related note, 3 automatic cat feeders. Also, dance-related shoes at some point. Oh, and maybe running shoes.

*Entertainment: I'm thinking no rule is needed here. We're too freakin' tired these days to go out to shows and movies much, so it's not a huge part of our spending.

Okay! I feel good about this! Gonna miss the second-hand stores and the flea-marketing but those always provided me with too good of an excuse to buy crap we don't need. Although angry fisherman lamp is here to remind me of why I love flea markets so much: