The Compact Update

Another month of The Compact almost complete. My friend Amanda just made me buy covers for the knobs on our stove so Ada doesn't blow up the house. I consider them a necessity and an insurance policy more than a splurge so I don't think they break the intention of The Compact at all. If they do, again, I just say Rick bought them.

My biggest temptation of the month was at Costco of all places. They had the New Moon -Twilight Saga DVD that was just released for $17. I just saw it again today at Blockbuster for $27. But I resisted and hope to buy it once it goes into the "previously viewed" bin. Otherwise, Rick might just have to get it for me for my birthday or something. Maybe I can download it online instead of buying the DVD. I'm so addicted to the whole Twilight series it is kind of ridiculous. Oh well. There are worse guilty pleasures.

Victoria's Secret has also been tempting me with their Free Panty offers. I have been meaning to give them to friends but instead just have been letting them expire. It is really hard for me to pass up a free deal but I don't really need them and don't need to be tempted in that store anyway.

A visit to Minneapolis last weekend included a trip to Nordstroms, the Mall of America and a fabric store. Absolute torture, but again, I resisted. I bought an ice cream cone while my friend Cadence bought wedding shoes and other wedding essentials. It really wasn't so hard not to shop since I'm pregnant and only had a tiny suitcase with me.

My challenge now includes what to wear to Cadence's wedding in a month. A book club friend loaned me two dresses and another offered me access to her closet to see what will fit. Cadence gave me three tops she had in a goodwill pile and a purple scarf that I'm enjoying. So I'm good on clothes for the most part. My friend Alison also just returned the last of my maternity clothes so I have a few more items to chose from in my daily struggle to get dressed.

And in a random search on the Internet for "reclaimed fabric", I was inspired by a craft website that showed several projects made from vintage sheets and old jeans. I'm hoping to get to go shopping this weekend for some fun fabrics so I can make baby gifts for friends. I have a backlog of baby gifts to work on and so getting a few more fabrics would be super helpful, or at least researching ideas for what I can make with the fabric I do have.

Mason jars to hold all of the new foods in my pantry has been the other issue. My mother-in-law gave me a few smaller jars for jelly that have come in very handy for spices and seeds. And a free-cycler just offered me her husband's collection of Nescafe jars with plastic lids so I hope to pick those up this weekend as well.

I've spent a mint on food this month, and stocking up at Costco on dried fruits, grains, and canned goods helped that bill mount quickly. But I think I can spread that over the next few months as these bulk items should last us quite some time. It's a great time to be learning how to cook and pregnant since I can spend on food and save on clothes.

April is the Sycamore kids clothing community garage sale at the school so it is my opportunity to get anything we need for Ada for the summer. And maybe a few things for baby boy in the belly too... I doubt that though. He already has a ton of stuff. We'll see.

Moral of the story: Month three of the compact wasn't so bad. And surely I've saved more money and a ton of time, and become even more creative than before.