I have mixed feelings about February ending.  February was a good month.  David announced on January 31st that we would be buying NOTHING for the month of February (except gas for the car and feed for the cow & chickens).  It was not really an effort to save money, although we could stand to do more of that.  The purpose was more of a self-denial exercise.  Thankfully, I was able to run to the store on the 31st and get a few things I knew we were already low on, but for the most part, we just determined to make it on what we had. 

David chose February for a few reasons...1.  We don't celebrate any birthdays in February.  2.  February has 2 fewer days than some months and 3 fewer than the rest...'nuff said. (Although it is now almost March 3 and I have yet to make it to the store).

Well, we made it.  We did have to make a few "exceptions", which I will confess here...the following are the things we bought in February:

• saline solution for David's contacts...I guess he could have worn glasses for the month, but that gives him a headache, and that's not good for anybody :-)
• 2 bottles child Ibuprofen, 2 bottles child Tylenol, 1 bottle infant ibuprofen, 1 bottle infant Tylenol (yes, the kids were THAT sick...we had to break into the second bottles of both Tylenol and Ibuprofen)
• Toilet paper (I let David make the call on this one...wasn't sure just where he wanted to draw the line
• Canola oil (weird one, but we ran out after only 2 weeks and I can't make granola or bread w/o oil and since we ran out of cereal at the same time, and our lunch options where shrinking, I felt I really needed to be able to make those 2 things.)
• Oh, yeah, I guess I have to tell you that we did go on a ski trip that was planned well before January 31st...but, we were minimalists...we were gone from Wednesday afternoon until late Thursday night and we only ate out 1 meal...we brought the rest.   ...and, yes, skiing was a blast!!  The kids took right to it...'nother post entirely.

That's it...not too bad, eh?

Now, keep in mind, that we do have a cow that gives us 2-1/2 gallons of milk a day (from which I also can make butter and yogurt), chickens that give us 15-18 eggs a day (if I beat the dog to them), and I buy wheat, oats and popcorn by the 50-lb bag, so we didn't have to do without those things.

I'm very ready for some fresh fruit and juice...and we definitely need some diapers, but doing this definitely had some benefits: 

• less trips to the store...i.e. more time at home
• less stuff in the house...I can navigate my pantry.
• David had lots more time on his hands during his lunch breaks since he usually does most of my shopping for me...several times a week.
• I realized that my pantry is, or was, very well stocked
• I can't even remember all of the things I thought of that I "needed" during the month...perhaps I didn't "need" them afterall?!?!?
• I learned how to cook improv style a little better
• The kids didn't waste their money on chips and candy every time we went to get cow feed.
• I lost 3 lbs without trying...couldn't make as many desserts as usual
• I found a new favorite snack...Ghiradelli dark chocolate chips and salty peanuts...yum!!

I could think of more if it wasn't past my bedtime...

What have I learned? 

• I learned that I send my husband to the store WAY too much...Once or twice a month should be sufficient...not to mention cheaper. 
• I learned that I should not buy things on the internet just as soon as the idea pops in my head...I should wait a few days and see if I even remember what I "needed". 
• I learned what how much we actually eat in a month so that I can plan better to reduce shopping trips. 
• I learned that it's really easy to clean a fridge and a pantry when there's nothing in them
• I learned that I really don't like to run out of ice cream

Most of all, we just want to be good stewards of what God has given us, and to teach ourselves and our children some self-discipline in the process.  Not an easy task for us Gen-X'ers (is that what we are???) that grew up during the start of the  "instant gratification" era.  We're certainly not rich, but we're used to getting what we need and often times what we want, when we want it...and we're able to do the same thing for our kids (thankfully, a side benefit of homeschooling and no cable tv is that our kids have less exposure to the media telling them what they "need", so their desires are pretty much limited to Legos and ice cream treats).

I am thankful that David took the initiative to lead us through this exercise...and I'm also thankful that it's over and I can go to StuffMart Wal-Mart tomorrow and load up the pantry once again!!!