30 Day Challenge - Day 29 Almost there...

We're nearly done. We've been pretty good about sticking to our rules and budget and we've been very successful with clearing clutter.

Let's recap the rules of the 30 day challenge.

• $200 grocery budget
  • No problem, went slightly over but still $200 LESS that usual
• no pop, slurpees or juice
  • Done. July 1st I'm having a fucking Coke.
• no junk food
  • Done. we've been tempted by chocolate bars several times but didn't give in. We have some in the freezer for July 1st.
• no icecream
  • Done
• no takeout or restaurant meals
  • Done. We had 1 meal out and was paid for by my Dad. Doesn't count!
• no Starbucks
  • I was forced to one time, that resulted in 2 more free Venti Frappuccinos from survey receipts
• Get up earlier
  • Mostly yes, some effort was made. Needs improvement
• Get to bed earlier
  • Fail. Alice is a wild animal at night and we've been unsuccessful at getting her to sleep at all, nevermind alone or in her own bed or at a decent time. The struggle continues
• Exercise everyday
  • Fail. We had a few good walks but we definitely have not been going out every day or any kind of exercising at home.
• Document the progress
  • Yes even if it means staying up late. We skipped one day because there was absolutely nothing of interest to report. Blogger has been a frustrating platform to work in with multiple authors. It's down right now so I can't even post this when I wanted to.

Getting back to clutter, it's just about July and we haven't used our air conditioner yet, we had been using it already this time last year, but we didn't have as many fans and it's not as hot this year. I'm very tempted to try to sell the AC immediately. Selling it would pay for a month of groceries and cell phones or internet, well $250 is the minimum I'd expect for it. If I wait, we won't need it and no one will want it. If I sell now, it will be hot as hell for the rest of the summer. We learned a lot about dealing with the heat last summer so we're much more prepared so I think we can handle it.

Tomorrow is the last day of the month and because I have a meeting, Holly is going to get a head start on the groceries for next month. 

For over a week we've had the meal plan for July filled in. We have the grocery list for the next 11 meals written. Our freezer is full of useful meat and vegetables and homemade sauces and berries. Holly has been kicking ass with baking regularly which saves us money and there's less waste.

For July, we're going to continue the challenge and stick with the $200 budget and try to spend even less. I'll write som more on this tomorrow. There are 31 days in July so we're having a cheat day to celebrate what we've accomplished this past month.