Stoptober - an eye opener

on
Mr Crafty Blueberry's sausage rolls - these used up sausage meat left over from making scotch eggs
 and  have gone into the freezer for a future picnic or lunch.

How was your Stoptober? The first two weeks went really well for me, the third was pretty good and the fourth was OK but could have been much better.I didn't throw money around but I did slip back into the 'I may as well' spending habit towards the end of the month and I can think of a lot of things that I could have happily gone without buying. I'm not going to beat myself up over it though because although I've not reached the standard I want and need I've learnt a lot form Stoptober 2012:

  1. I can comfortably do without 3/4 of what I buy in a normal month
  2. I can firmly say 'No' to the consumer in me, and it feels good.
  3. I'm skilled at making meat stretch a surprisingly long way!
  4. Shit happens; sometimes unexpected spending can crop up that is unavoidable. Best to be prepared with a little money set aside if possible.
  5. Batch cooking makes a huge difference to how much we spend on food, so I'm going to do more of it.
  6. Stockpiling at the start of the month cut down on supermarket visits and impulse buys in a big way.
  7. It really helps me to have my reasons for reducing spending, and my aims, stapled to a noticeboard at the front of my mind because it keeps me motivated.
  8. In a normal month I waste a shocking amount of money!
All in all it's been a worthwhile experience and I've enjoyed reading about other people's Stoptobers too. It's given me some ideas on how to move forward and has come at just the right time for our house as this month we have to tighten our belts and keep it that way for the foreseeable future due to some changes in our finances.

I hope you had a good Stoptober, reading people's posts about it has been truly motivating.