a couple pints of blue bell.

I did it.  I can say with integrity that I did an admirable job of cutting down my spending to essentials only in the month of March.  Did my essentials include a couple pints of Blue Bell ice cream from the grocery store? Maybe.  When I fessed up to my mom, she replied "anything you got from the grocery store doesn't count."  So I'm all good there.  She also told me, when she taught me to drive, never to go over ten miles per hour over the speed limit.  These are rules to live by, people.  Thanks mom.

Unfortunately, my essentials also included some unexpected and unwelcome expenses, such as car maintenance costs, toll road fines from a wrong turn in California (grrrr), and chiropractic visits due to a herniated disc flare-up in my lower back.  As it turns out, I spent nearly every dollar I saved because life throws you ironically timed curve balls.

However, I feel empowered.  It feels somewhat like eating only healthy food for two weeks after eating junk food for the previous ten years.  It's a painful process, but you feel great and you want to keep going forever.  Buying meals out for the sake of convenience hardly even crosses my mind anymore.  That's so cool.

My personal favorite little economic project was a gift for the sweet couple whose wedding I attended in California.  Rebecca is so special to me and I wanted to give her something really meaningful but couldn't afford to buy the whole Anthropologie home goods section like I actually wanted to.  Here is what I made, all from bits and pieces I already had around the house!  Another shout-out to mom, who taught me cross-stitching and other skills I never thought would matter in real life, like cleaning the kitchen.  She's killing it in this post.  Hi mom.

And then here they are for reals: :)