Tuesday, January 08, 2013
New Year, Resolved.
Before my husband and I got married, we discussed our vows, and agreed that the foundation of our marriage is that we both promise to try to not be an asshole to the other. When we looked in each other's eyes on the beach while repeating back the minister's words, that is what we meant. We may have said a lot of words, but that was our only promise. It's a promise that we can both keep.
That brings me to New Years' resolutions. I hate them for that very reason: they are promises that are not likely to be kept. I've said so before. But every year, better judgment notwithstanding, there are always a few things that I promise myself that I am going to do better.
This year, there are three of them: (1) Be healthier; (2) Be better with money; and (3) Try not to accumulate things that I don't need.
There's some overlap. If we eat healthier, home-cooked meals, we are likely to save money. If I don't buy things we don't need, we will also save money. Still, all of this is a challenge.
My husband and I have been good over the past eight days. We've made healthy meals, gone out less frequently -- and ordered more salads when we have. I think I've eaten more vegetables in the past 8 days than in the past 8 months! And, other than a cute outfit for the baby (on clearance at Babies-R-Us!), a toy or two for her (now that she's almost 6 months, the toys are way better!), and some (clearance!) ornaments for our Pagan Winter Solstice Shrubbery, I haven't really bought anything that was not addressing some kind of immediate need. I mean, maybe we didn't need quite so many boxes of oatmeal...but they were on sale and we will eat it, sooner rather than later.
I'm also going to try two different approaches to save a little bit extra cash. In one savings account, I am going to save $1 per day, for a total of $365 (duh!). In another, I am going to save $1 the first week, $2 the second week, $3 the third week...and so on, for a grand total of $1378. Not sure yet what I'm going to do with that $1743, but I hear that college will be very expensive in 2030. (Sigh.)
Wish me luck.
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2 comments:
We eat at home pretty much constantly because we have been on a very tight budget for a long time. Luckily we both like cooking. I also like cookbooks, so there's always something to wander through. We're trying to save for Katja's college, too - the cost is a little scary. We've found a kid's clothing store that sells gently used clothes, which works much better than buying new things, which helps. In other words, good luck - we're trying to do the same things! :)
It's hard because we work so much, and with the baby, time is a premium. I would rather play with her than go to a store or cook dinner. Lucky for us, L likes to cook, so he does most of it. But he doesn't always like to make the healthiest things (he likes a lot of bacon, cheese, etc.).
Even when I have money, I'm a bargain shopper, but I still tend to go overboard. To the extent that we did not receive gifts or hand-me-downs, I bought a lot of S's 3-6 and 6-12 month clothing on eBay, mostly because I don't have time to search through thrift stores. I just buy too much. I suppose it's a good thing that she's not very big; she should still be in size 3-6 for a few more months.
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