Note: I will pick the winners from the August challenge this weekend.
Grow Your Fund is a daily post that gives you a chance to win prizes by checking in on all the various challenges you are participating in. You can choose to participate in one, two or even all of the challenges giving you even more opportunities to Grow Your Fund!
The Challenges
No Dining Out: The concept is simple, lower your family’s dining out bill and add the money you save to your fund.
Minniemizing for the Mouse: Get in shape for your trip to Disney by walking at least 20 minutes a day, 5 days a week. The average person walks 8 or more miles a day at Disney World. Your feet will thank you!
Not going to Disney? Don’t worry. You can participate too. Just commit to working out at least 20 minutes a day, 5 days a week!
Budget Challenge: Can your family stay on budget this month for groceries, entertainment, dining, etc? Do you think you could even challenge yourself not to spend a dime 5 days this month? Be sure to report on your spending vs your budget every day. The goal is to be able to add the extra money saved at the end of the month to your fund!
*If you haven’t set a budget yet, you might want to check out this post.
Decluttering Challenge: Is your stuff starting to overtake your house? Do you feel like your kids room is full of too much junk and not enough fun? If so, I challenge you to find a new home for just 25 items a day for the next 30 days. This could be 25 articles of clothing, 25 books you no longer read, 25 toys your kids ignore. Have a box for items to donations, a box for items to sell and throw the rest away! At the end of the challenge, have a yard sale and add the earnings to your fund!
The prizes
At the end of each month, I will pick FOUR winners who will each receive $25 to add to their fund. Look for the winners to be announced on the 3rd of each month.
How to enter
Leave a comment with the title of the challenges it is for. You can participate in one, two, three or even all four challenges. There will be one winner per challenge, and winners can win multiple times! It’s all done by using Random.org, so if your number comes up and you are eligible, you win! In order to be eligible to win, you must actively participate in the challenge for at least FIVE calendar days.
Click below for even more details on each challenge…
No Dining
- Take a look at your current dining out budget. How much did you spend last month going out to eat? That is money that could have gone into your fund instead! Try cutting your out to eat costs this month and adding the difference to your fund.
- Set a weekly dining out budget, if you resist going out to eat, add that amount to your fund instead.
- If you were seriously about to go out to eat (like had your coat on and was going out the door or pulled into the drive thru and then pulled back out), add the amount you would have spent to your fund.
- Going out to eat and using a coupon or paying with a gift card? You could add that amount to your fund too. For example… if you had a $25 gift card to Cracker Barrel and you used it, you could take $25 cash out of your budget and add it to the fund. Or if you used a $10 coupon, you could take $10 cash out of the budget and add it to the fund.
- You must challenge yourself. Try to spend less than you spend now. If you don’t go out to eat at all, challenge yourself to try new meals this month. As long as you are challenging yourself when it comes to your family’s eating habits, you can participate!
- You are allowed 1 freebie meal that you don’t have to count or report back to us about. Please report on everything else though so we can encourage and support one another!
- Free meals do not count against you. This is a challenge to spend less money going out to eat than you usually spend. If someone else is paying for the meal or you have a coupon to make it free, great!
- At the end of the month, you will need to comment on the very last post to be entered to win. I will choose the winner from that post and verify that you have commented on at least 5 days worth of posts. The comments must of occurred on 5 DIFFERENT days. Meaning if on the 30th, you commented on that post and then went back and commented on 4 days worth of posts, you would be disqualified. You must comment on 5 different posts on 5 different days.
Minniemizing for the Mouse
- I need to get fit for the mouse. My feet hurt so bad from all that walking and for once I’d love to experience Disney without being in pain. We are going in November, so I am hoping to make a big lifestyle change between now and then. I can’t do it alone and so I need the help from all of you!
- Check in each day and report on your progress. The goal is to exercise for at least 20 minutes a day, 5 days a week. For those of us going to Disney, walking for those 20 minutes is a great way to not only get in shape, but prepare our feet.
- It really doesn’t matter what you do as long as you are moving!
- At the end of the month, you will need to comment on the very last post to be entered to win. I will choose the winner from that post and verify that you have commented on at least 5 days worth of posts. The comments must of occurred on 5 DIFFERENT days. Meaning if on the 30th, you commented on that post and then went back and commented on 4 days worth of posts, you would be disqualified. You must comment on 5 different posts on 5 different days.
Budget Challenge
- Everyone needs a budget. Budgets will help you to be in control of your money without your money being in control of you. You dictate where your money goes and how it is spent.
- Don’t have a budget? I’ve written a few articles that should help you set one… How to Set a Budget and How to Set a Grocery Budget. You’ll find even more helpful advice under Getting Started Couponing and Your Fund.
- Each day, check in and let us know how much you spent the day before and if you stayed under budget or not. We aren’t here to critique your budget (unless you ask!), but we are here to support you in staying on track!
- Also feel free to include bargain brags. Did you find a great deal or do something creative to save money, be sure to share it with all of us!
- At the end of the month, you will need to comment on the very last post to be entered to win. I will choose the winner from that post and verify that you have commented on at least 5 days worth of posts. The comments must of occurred on 5 DIFFERENT days. Meaning if on the 30th, you commented on that post and then went back and commented on 4 days worth of posts, you would be disqualified. You must comment on 5 different posts on 5 different days.
Decluttering Challenge
- It doesn’t take long for the stuff to start taking over your home. The kids rooms start overflowing with broken, neglected and just plain weird no idea where they came from toys. Your stockpile starts to spread from the kitchen, to the hall, to your bathtub. You start finding that the home for more and more items is the middle of your living room floor. Etc!
- It can be overwhelming to take on the task of decluttering your home, but the end rewards are so worth the effort. To make the process easy, I challenge you to find just 25 items every day to find a new home for. Get a box labeled donations, one labeled to sell, and one for trash. Go through 25 items a day and either put it in one of the 3 boxes or find a new permanent place for it.
- At the end of 30 days, you will have an organized home and you can have a yard sale to add more money to your fund!
- Be sure to post every day that you have gone through your 25 items and found a new home for them. Don’t just put them back where they don’t belong.
- At the end of the month, you will need to comment on the very last post to be entered to win. I will choose the winner from that post and verify that you have commented on at least 5 days worth of posts. The comments must of occurred on 5 DIFFERENT days. Meaning if on the 30th, you commented on that post and then went back and commented on 4 days worth of posts, you would be disqualified. You must comment on 5 different posts on 5 different days.
Good luck!
no dining out: made breakfast, pizza for lunch (but the inlaws treated), leftovers for dinner
minniemize: stormed here today – so no walk
declutter: inlaws visited – no housework today
Went to the zoo today and I wasn’t going to buy any food or drinks, we bought water, but I caved and wanted a soda SO bad. So I bought a small Mt Dew and an apple juice for my daughter.
budget–we got an awesome deal on dog food today, it was on sale, and they had 10% more in the bags so we got it for alot cheaper, and we got free wet dog food! Also got a good deal on groceries at Sams Club–they had free evalue coupons for everyone this weekend so we saved $$ on things we usually buy and froze it all! My favorite was the chicken–I have trouble finding chicken breasts for less than $1.99/lb…at Sams its priced at $1.97/lb, and this weekend they were offering $2 off a package–we also spoke to the butcher who told us we could buy it by the case for $1.59/lb!! Woohoo Chicken! I’ve been wanting to work on some more freezer meals, just waiting for a chicken sale!
Minniemize–Ran/Walked a 10k this AM
No Dining Out–Free Chick Fila at the race this am (snagged extra as they were closing so the kids had some too!) We sampled at Sams, (another free half of a meal) and my DH is cooking up some cheap chicken right now!
Declutter–worked on my Christmas binder–I’m so organized its crazy! Woohoo!
Decluttering: i’m doing my best. In a freak string of events we are going to be moving, and we don’t know exactly when .Whenever my other half lands a job, could be 2 weeks, could be 2 months. But it will mean leaving our 3 bedroom house, to moving 1,000 miles away into a 2 bedroom apartment! yikes!
No Dining Out- My husband made breakfast. lunch, and Dinner for us today :)
Budget- I was able to stick to my budget this week for groceries, gas, and fun
Decluttering- I cleaned out my sons room today.
Minniemize- I didn’t :(
How nice of him!
no dining out-just taco bell for lunch after work $3.89
minniemize-did yoga yesterday and nothing today
budget-no spending today and started new method of tracking all spending on my calendar in hotmail. just to double check and keep my on track
No dining out: Today is my hubby’s birthday so we went out to eat for lunch, but I used a $3 off coupon and some money that has been set to the side for a few months.
Budget: Had to make walmart trip today to get batteries, printer ink, and lots of other items that aren’t on our typical shopping list, so we spent more than usual. However, we should still be under budget since we won’t need groceries for a few weeks.
Minniemizing: Shut in today from TS Lee, but I made 5 days of working out last week! Hoping I can maintain this weekend!
DeCluttering: Taking advantage of this rainy, long weekend to get rid of some unnecessary items.
No Dining Out- had my family over for a big brunch today. CInnamon rolls, omelettes, hashbrowns and fruit salad. Something simple for dinner coming up…maybe frozen burritos?
Decluttering Challenge—cleaned up my kitchen & living room today—threw away lots & reorganized both rooms (my in-laws are visiting tomorrow so it has to be super clean!!!)
Budget Challenge—no grocery money spent today—actually have some to put into the fund tonight!!!
Minniemizing for the Mouse—getting a workout just by cleaning the house today (my in-laws are visiting tomorrow!!
No Dining Out—saving that for tomorrow after church (when my in-laws visit–they usually pay for it)
No Dining Out – None for us
NDO- no dining out yesterday, had a corn roast (we supplied the fresh corn) at a friend’s house…no clean up for me! :)
MtM- 2 hours of volleyball practice, in 93* heat, I’ve never sweated so much as a coach
budget- spent 0 yesterday
Declutter- went through our kitchen *junk* drawer…now i know why it’s called a junk drawer! :)
Minniemize: 45 minutes of P90X legs and elliptical machine for 20 minutes.
Budget: Planning to go to a local amusement park with my kids this afternoon. We have season passes and will probably eat dinner at home.
Good job!
NDO – We were planning on going out to eat last night, but after the amazing deal I found on meat yesterday, I decided we should stay in. I was so proud! Then we planned on going out for ice cream after a walk around the neighborhood, but we decided to eat ice cream in. :)
Minimize – Took a good long, and pretty fast walk with the family. The kids on their bikes, and us keeping a quick pace to keep up!
Budget – I went grocery shopping yesterday and found some GREAT deals on stuff that we normally use. I know have enough in the freezer to last us for nearly 2 weeks! I love sales! I will figure this into our budget this weekend.
Declutter – That’s today! My husband is taking the kids to Home Depot any minute, then running a few errands and out to lunch. I will have 2 hours of uninterrupted time to clean and declutter my house! :)
No Dining Out: Ate leftovers for dinner.
Minnimize: Ran 3.5 miles and biked the dog for 45 mins. But did not plan meals very well today. I was good up until an incident with breadsticks at 9pm, ugh.
Budget: My DD’s birthday is next week so I did a bit of shopping for her. Justice had a ton of accessories marked at 99cents plus and additional 40% off redlines, plus they stacked my 40% catalogue coupon! I got a whole bag of goodies for only 8 bucks! That sale really put me on track for being under budget with her birthday.
Declutter: Went through about half of DD’s pants to see which ones still fit. She’s growing like a weed. Doing a consignment sale in a couple weeks and need to get her whole room decluttered!
NDO – Ate in for every meal and am planning on doing the same this weekend
Declutter – didn’t do much on this – plan on working on this over the weekend.
minniemize – I was good about my eating habits but I did not have a chance to exercise
budget – went out and bought groceries tonight. Spent about $45 dollars but the savings were twice that. I thought I did pretty good.
No dining out for us, we used tomatoes from our garden and made bacon tomatoe sandwiches, yummo!
No dining out:
Date night at Texas Roadhouse again last night. We take turns picking where we go, and my husband ALWAYS chooses there. :)
Minniemizing:
Walked a little over 2 miles yesterday.
Decluttering:
I think we went backwards in this area yesterday! We bought a new dining room table and chairs (to fit more people), so now we have the old one in our office. Thankfully, one of our friends seems really interested in buying it! :)
Budget:
Went out to eat and bought a new table! Thank goodness my husband saves up for these things! :)
No Dining Out: going to a cook-out…even better I am not cooking tonight :-)
Minniemizing for the Mouse: gym this morning 45 minutes
Budget Challenge: I did my Simply Orange and Simply Lemonade purchase this week – yummy choice for free
Decluttering Challenge: on to the garage….this may take awhile
You did great!
no dining out for us for the last 13 days. We may eat out today…not sure yet.
budget…still under budget for the week, despite planning for my 6 year old’s bday party. We may go over a little after paying everyone’s admission to the waterpark, but not by much because it is half price after 5.
minnie…did better yesterday. Still no exercise, but ate better.
decluttering…not much progress here. Trying to hit drawers and closets a little at a time when I have 5 minutes or so to spare.
No Dining Out: Staying home today, dinner is in the crockpot.
Min. for Moust: Walked a mile with the dogs this morning.
Budget: Not leaving house today. Spending no money.
Decluttering closet under steps right now.
No dining out- No dining out for us. Leftovers for lunch and taco night at my mom’s for dinner.
Minnimizing- Did well with calories…some exercise but did not meet my goal…which means now I am exercising both Saturday and Sunday.
Budget- Used up a gift card for groceries and gas from last month, so no money out of the budget for this month for that. I did stock up on Melissa and Doug items at half off from a local art store that is going out of business. We spent $60, which is a big hunk of my “spending” money for the month, but stocked the gift closet (or in my case chest). I hope that they mark down further before next week when they close, I will be back!! Doing well with the budget so far though.
De-clutter- Cleaned out my coupon organizers, not much, but we are preparing for a birthday party and had a lot of other stuff going on yesterday. Today I am kicking my family out and getting down to business.
No Dining Out – we went out for breakfast at McDonald’s and then had pizza from Little caesar’s last night. I’m going to give myself some grace on eating out this weekend since hubby’s on a fun weekend trip and I’m home with little miss by myself.
Budget – Went to the grocery store but I still need to track it.
Declutter – Nothing on this one. I thought of doing something but didn’t. (-:
budget…we are participating in our county extension service “health and wealth” challenge this month, so we will be setting up a budget for everything–not just food like last month (we’ve never done this before, so wish us luck)
exercise…20 minute walk
dining…we did eat out last night :-(
You can do it! Good luck!