I kicked off No-Spend June as a bit of a reset. We were doing so well with our spending habits through January… and then came our honeymoon in Bora Bora in March, and everything kind of snowballed.
We got back from vacation, and almost immediately, Zack bought a new car. Naturally, I took that as the green light to finally get the canopy bed I’ve been eyeing for three years. In my mind, it was like: “Well, you just bought a car, so you can’t say anything about my bed purchase!” (Super healthy, I know—facepalm.)
That said, I had done my research, knew exactly what I wanted, and Zack’s only request was to see the bed in person. So we drove the brand-new car straight from the dealership to Pottery Barn, and yep—I bought the bed.
So… No-Spend June.
The goal wasn’t to freeze spending entirely, but to pause the impulsive stuff and realign with our financial priorities. I gave myself a couple of exceptions:
- Wedding album project – $144 (finally doing this post-honeymoon!)
- Landscaping project – $350 (rock and supplies for the front/side yard)
There were also a few life things that happened:
- Father’s Day – about $160 on food
- Fancy steakhouse date night – $385 (we had plans with family, but they got sick last-minute, and it would’ve cost $100 to cancel the reservation—so we went and had a great time)
I also didn’t spend:
- $230 on winter sheets that were on sale
- $50 on clothes I had sitting in my cart
Sometimes during a no-spend month, your Amazon cart becomes a holding tank for all your “maybe” purchases. But after waiting a few weeks, I still want those things—so they’ll probably be my “approved” purchases for July. I might even do a No-Spend July, but more like a “low-spend” version.
What’s Next?
My project focus for July will be:
- Finishing the backyard fence
- Completing the wedding album
- Maybe starting the garage paneling project
Side Note: My Husband’s a Pro at This
Zack basically does a no-spend month every month. He’s naturally frugal. I’m… not. I’ll probably write a separate post about my shifting relationship with consumerism—it’s something I’ve really been thinking about lately.
The Numbers
My goal for June was to keep personal spending under $3,650—this is based on my theoretical FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) budget. Lately, I’ve been blowing past that number, but in June, I hit $2,742.15, which is $907.85 under budget.
And no, we didn’t deprive ourselves. I still had a $260 haircut and that incredible steakhouse dinner. It just took a bit of conscious effort, and that made all the difference.
Here’s the breakdown:
| Category | Cost |
|---|---|
| Hair | $260.00 |
| Amazon | $223.15 |
| Food | $1,432.64 |
| Subscriptions | $109.95 |
| Dog | $188.08 |
| Target | $20.35 |
| Projects | $507.98 |
| Total | $2,742.15 |
Other (mortgage/insurance/utilities) totaled $4,850.00
Grand Total: $7,592.15
Monthly Budget Goal: $8,500.00
Leftover: $907.85
Final Thoughts
This month proved that our FIRE number is totally achievable—even with room for a few luxuries. Now that I know this is possible, I’m even more motivated to stretch this discipline over a few more months and pay off more of the mortgage by year’s end.
I recently came across this quote from Elon Musk and it really stuck with me:
“Stop being patient and start asking yourself, How do I accomplish my 10-year plan in 6 months? You will probably fail, but you’ll be a lot further ahead than the person who simply accepted it was going to take 10 years.”
That’s the energy I’m carrying into the second half of the year. My goal is to “retire” in five years—so let’s see just how far I can get in the next six months.
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