This and that

So, it's been three full months since we started our "no holds barred" debt reduction.
At first it was difficult just to experience what felt like "limits" on myself. Not that there were all kinds of things I wanted to buy - I just don't do well with rules.
But I have to admit what felt like a straight jacket at first now feels incredibly liberating.
We budgeted for absolutely everything and eliminated lots of unnecessary spending. I reduced Netflix to streaming only and the newspaper to only four days a week. We eliminated one of our trash cans (we paid for two), I haven't renewed any magazine subscriptions, and we were able to knock $30 a month of our cell phone bill. I no longer buy sparkling water unless we're traveling (I got a SodaStream for Christmas this year). This alone is likely saving me more than $50 a month.
Every extra penny - what some people call "found" money - goes toward debt.
My husband and I each get $100 a week. This covers all groceries (including cat litter and toiletries) and gasoline for our Prius and minivan and any "extras" not included in the budget. Last week that included garden seeds and brewing supplies for my husband. This week, a trip to a specialist in Iowa City and and an oil change. At first it seemed nearly impossible to feed 4-6 adults and gas up two vehicles for that amount, but now I love the challenge of having leftover cash at the end of the week to put toward debt.
We are on track to have all of our debt, except the mortgage, gone in two years.
In some ways that seems really fast, but the day-to-day reality can feel quite slow.
I have been way too obsessed with the numbers lately - no matter how many times a day I log into my bank account or check my debt level it's not going to change much. It's the long haul that counts.
My daughters both have commented that going to the mall for lunch or to Barnes and Noble for coffee is much more fun now that it doesn't happen so often. I have to agree.
Today I decided to stop staring at those numbers and get busy.
I'm waiting until next month to order the roving Melissa needs to make more yarn for my afghan project, so I needed another cheap or free project to work on in the interim. She helped me sort through the yarn stash and we found enough yarn for me to make an entire afghan - no purchase necessary. I'll start on it this afternoon.
Supper tonight will be reincarnated leftovers. I turned Friday night's leftover Tuscan beans with garlic and rosemary into pasta e fagioli. We'll have that with fruit smoothies and homemade bread. A quick look through the fridge and I found 2 cups of squash puree from the last of my winter squash. We had pumpkin bread and pumpkin pie last week. A quick search turned up a recipe for Spiced Pumpkin granola. In the process, I used up lots of dribs and drabs of this and that - cashews and walnuts, sunflower seeds, and dried fruits.
We've made so much progress in these three months - it's exciting to look at the possibilities when our finances include no consumer debt at all. We have upcoming house expenses, including front porch repair, yard work (we need about a dump truck's worth of wood chips), a new window, and a sump pump for the basement.
Instead of feeling overwhelmed, I feel in control.
It's a nice way to feel.