Not spending money is hard! I am thinking I'm going to have to implement a few strategies. One thing I need to do is keep all receipts in a place that I can make sure I record my spending. Another is to print off a weekly report from Microsoft Money to review. I respond well to goal setting and charts, lists and stuff (a strategy I also implement to lose weight) because I think it makes it very visual for me.

I did not spend much money over the weekend, but we were in Austin for Iain's MBA graduation so it is a bit tricky to really gauge. Back to normal this week. I do have D's birthday party on Sunday and am really trying to spend as little as possible (for instance, passing on the personalized, light blue M&M's...so cool!) while having a really nice party. I am a hostess at heart and it's easy to overspend in this arena. I am going to try to get some nice flowers to plant in the yard, inexpensive favors, stick to cake and ice-cream (both from scratch) and not freak out that I am not having the back yard professionally landscaped by Sunday.

Because, really, doesn't this kid deserve an awesome party?