No Spend Lent

Jake and I decided to not spend any money during Lent other than paying bills and buying groceries.  This was much harder for me than it was Jake.  Mostly because I am addicted to Starbucks and I eat lunch out at work instead of packing a lunch.  I broke No Spend Lent by buying some facial items at the mall because I was overly confident and went into the den of temptation to get Sary a haircut and use my free STBX Birthday coupon.  It was very easy to fall into the old habit of buying things I wanted but didn't necessarily need.  I partially bought it out of guilt that I got a "free" facial and used the sales ladies time.  So I "owed" her a sale right?  I am proud that I didn't buy any lunches or coffee though.  We decided that we needed fastfood on a long car drive to OBX that was supposed to take 5 hours and took us 11.  We also stopped on the way home because the return trip was 9 hours. 


What I observed from No Spend Lent:

1. I am addicted to spending $5 for the same coffee I can get out of a machine at work 
2. I like to buy things when I am stressed out (doesn’t solve anything when I am stressed about $) 
3. I buy fattier foods than I make (hence the NSL weight loss) 
4. I often spend $ when I socialize I was very anti-social during NSL

What I learned from NSL:

1. Keurig Coffee is pretty good
2. I do not need new shoes for every important meeting
3. Packing my lunch will save money and calories
4. I can invite my friends over for no reason and eating at a restaurant does not equal quality time
5. Jake does not understand facial products are a need not a want ;-)
6. God does not want us to be mean to each other even if tht means breaking NSL to stop at a fast food joint on a car trip that has turned into 11 hours instead of 5

The first things I bought after Lent: 

1. Starbucks Iced Caramel Macchiato
2. Premier jewelry from a friend
3. Picture frames from Target