30 day want list for August

I started this list two weeks ago. I decided to post it now to help curb my unplanned spending. I won't be able to budget for these items until Sept. 15. I'll see if I still "need" them then.

new jeans--My old ones have holes. Maybe I'll look at Goodwill.

brown top--Would coordinate with a skirt and pants I already have

new shower and bathroom curtains--So DS can use his shower instead of mine.

added 8/19/09 small cooler for cross country meets

ynab pro--Since the online bill pay mess up last month, I've been thinking about upgrading to ynab pro.

Now that these are recorded, I'm going to let them go until September.

One way to decrease spending

In January, I went through a time of wanting to buy things. This happens to me periodically ;). I had read about the "30 day want list". The idea is to list items that you want, and then look at the list in 30 days. If you still want the item after 30 days, and have budgeted for it, then consider buying it.
Here is my list from January:
Jan. 17
blinds for dining room

paint for kitchen

new towels

jeans
scrubee thing from Flylady

What was the result of my experiment? Well, I didn't buy any of the listed items, so I guess I certainly didn't need them. I don't think my quality of life has suffered at all.

Did I save money? Maybe. If I had purchased all of the items, I would have spent over $150.

1. Instead of the blinds for the dining room, I saved the budgeted household money until March when I spent $60 on a mirror for over the dining room mantle. I didn't use the 30 day list in March!
2. I still need to repaint the kitchen, but this will not be on my list until next year.
3. My mother gave my some towels that she no longer uses.
4. I still need jeans, but these can still wait until September.
5. I really don't need the "rubba scrubba".

Final analysis: It seems that for some items, I merely postponed spending, because I will eventually have to purchase them--paint, jeans. This is useful information. I can compare the advantage of postponing spending to the advantage of having the item now.

I think this strategy is useful for me to remember when I am tempted to spend on wants, especially when I am debt-free and have more discretionary spending money. In order to instill this habit by October, I'm going to start now. I'll let you know how it goes.

Murphy strikes!

Yesterday, as I was stopping at a traffic light, I heard a horrible, metal-to-metal grinding noise from the front of my car. I made an appointment for this morning, and sure enough, my car needs new brakes on the front. Even though this is not great news, it is not the end of the world either. I will pay for the brakes with the money I was going to snowball to my credit card. I may have to use just a little of my emergency fund for food and gas expenses for the rest of the month. I'm feeling pretty good about the situation.
One interesting side note...as I was getting ready to write the check, I was tempted to pull out my credit card and use it. I think I will have to fight this temptation for a long time. Maybe it's time to take the final credit card out of my purse and leave it home. Maybe it's time to cut up the final card...
I'm thankful that I have enough money to cover this expense and I'm also thankful for friends and family who taxied me while my car was in the shop!