“A goal without a plan is just a wish.”

So, I'm on this frugality kick as of late. And my challenge to myself this week was to not spend any money except for my cash on hand. I took out $40, to cover any miscellaneous gas, dinner with a friend, random grocery needs, my Friday Starbucks, etc.

In order to make this successful, I had to make a plan. I am a sucky planner. I mean, I LOVE planning fun things, like trips. But this was.not.fun.

Anyways. This was my menu for the week.

Sunday - Bourbon Chicken, first draft

Monday - Hamburgers

Tuesday - Grilled chicken breast with spinach salad and broccoli (2 & 3 had rice that was leftover from the weekend, and #1 had a sandwich with the leftover buns from Monday)

Wednesday - spaghetti for everyone else, baked potato with salsa and chicken for me (late gym night)

Thursday - Bourbon Chicken (the magical one, I'll post that recipe in a bit)

Tonight - Pizza

Okay. So, I realize a week is 7 days, and this is only 6, but I can't remember what I had Saturday.

Anyway.

Last weekend, I did a mass dumping of all weirdness in my fridge - including the mysteriously vanished Ikea foodsavers that I now need to replace. Sorry, I'm trying to be frugal, but at $4 for a set of 16 pieces, I am not washing some of the funk that was in there.

For some things - like the bourbon chicken - we didn't have quite the right ingredients, so I subbed what I did have on hand, to avoid hitting the market and destroying my resolve.

And it worked!! Success!!

Today is Friday, payday. This is what my fridge looks like:

In there right now, I have... 2 beers (!!), some rum, water, apple juice, milk, some peachy liquor of some kind (!?), eggs, cheese, a bag of spinach, green bell pepper, half of a SmartWater or whatever that I've been semi-drinking for 3 days.

And the freezer.....

Contents: A teeny bag of coffee sample from Cost Plus Worldmarket, an Ikea fishy-shaped ice cube tray, and a bag of frozen edemame.

And the benefit to this is... $2 left in my pocket, and $110 in the bank, after everything has cleared.

That'd be a bit of an improvement over my $5 last week. (I tried to calculate the percentage, but I got confused.)

Plus, adding in the additional cost savings of not having thrown any money away on crap that we didn't eat... well. I'm practically a millionaire now.

I suppose the key to making something USEFUL of this discipline is what I do now. I mean, I COULD use my leftover cash stash to pay for some new makeup. I could take the kidlets out to dinner. I could buy some brown leather boots, that I'm dying for. I could buy a purse. I could... go on and on about what I could do.

So. Is my discipline wasted now if I DO those things? I think so. I mean, I really, really, REALLY want to do stuff, like, ALL of the above. I will probably do a little of some of them. I'm not sure yet. I need to contemplate this.

Feel free to leave suggestions ;)