Frugal February is OVER!

This year FF was much easier than last year. Last year we had a couple of unfortunate events that made the whole month a lot more difficult, but this year we breezed through FF. This year we bent the rules slightly, so we did not feel as trapped indoors as last year.

Wells Fargo online has a nice little report feature that details the monthly spending. I was so impressed to see the category for Household Spending a big fat $0! Our Auto Gas usage was down, Department Store Spending was down $400 (Ouch – I need to stop going to Har Mar Mall ;-) ), Groceries were down slightly and Target spending was WAY WAY down! In the raw numbers it looks like we saved close to $900 by avoiding department stores, babysitters, going out to eat and other small indulgences. We also spent more wisely using coupons or avoiding groceries we really did not need. We got Tivo three months free!

I even found a way around my SA fountain pop issue. By using my built up reward points I was able to get a $10 SA gift card. Woooo Whoooo – We were BACK IN BUSINESS! I was able to use that gift card to get fountain pops and my other recently acquired secret indulgence: ice in the bag. No more stinky freezer ice.

A few friends of mine took part in Frugal February and had similar results. The best was a friend of mine who saved about $1,500 by avoiding Target, online shopping, the Mall, and going out to eat! She really enjoyed the experiment, but was happy when it was over. Maybe you will join us next year for Frugal February.

This year Frugal February was again a challenge well worth it. Now, if you see that consumer spending is going back up, I would attribute it to my March 1st spending… Yikes, maybe I need to partake in Miserly March.