I just got back from a quick trip to Wisconsin for a few days to visit an old friend from high school. It was an absolutely amazing trip, full of outdoor adventures! We visited state parks, went east to Lake Michigan (this was my first time visiting any of the Great Lakes), went west to the Mississippi River (much prettier than the parts of Louisiana I had previously seen), and went on several local hikes and nature walks.
What’s amazing is the price of this trip! For the entire four days, I spent less than $400! What fun! All of our outdoor activities were free, so the money we spent was split between food, airport parking, and pet care. I didn’t have to pay for accommodations because I stayed with my friend. And I was able to get my flights for free with reward miles I earned using my CapitalOne travel credit card (side note: they have a deal right now where people can get a $250 travel credit + 75,000 miles! If anyone is interested, you can use My referral link I would like to earn a few miles too. This seems like a really good deal, as the sign-up bonus typically ranges from 50,000 to 75,000 miles with no travel credit.
The unbelievable part was how bloated I felt when I got back. In short… bloated. While we cooked some food at home, we also ate some greasy food at restaurants. And we probably had a few too many drinks. Now that I’m home, the kids are back in school, and our lives are back to normal, I really want to start a diet. But not just a diet, but a financial diet!
State budget cuts
As for my diet, I plan to make a modification. Full 30– Type 2 diet. All whole foods – meats, vegetables, fruits. No sugar or artificial sweeteners. I plan to do a modified Whole-30 because Whole 30 usually requires cutting out dairy. I will allow cheese in moderation and a little milk in my coffee. Otherwise, I will mostly stick to the Whole 30. The biggest changes to my diet will be cutting out grains (we mostly have bread or rice with meals) and no sweets for dessert! Only fruit to satisfy your after-dinner sweet tooth! And of course, no alcohol or processed foods.
For my diet, I want to stay away from buying packaged or pre-packaged foods. A large portion of our monthly budget is spent on food. Between Costco, our local grocery store, and eating out with family or friends, we typically spend over $1,000 a month on food alone! That’s weird to me! I want to try to cut back by at least 25%, spending around $750 a month or less. Since we’re focusing on eating only whole foods on our diet, I think our money will go to the grocery store. We’ll be buying meats and vegetables and not indulging in any of the other items in the grocery store that would otherwise cause our bill to go up.
Additionally, I have a few things lying around the house (or, really, in a pile in the garage) that I’m trying to sell. Just like we did over the summer, I cleaned and purged the house, so I’ve put a bunch of stuff aside with the intention of having a garage sale someday. Since our neighborhood is having a big yard sale in November, I think I’ll try to start by selling some stuff on Facebook Marketplace and our local community’s Facebook buy/sell site. These are things we no longer use or need, so it would be nice to make a little money.
Financial plans
My plan is to take any money I earn and put it into my emergency fund savings account. I recently opened a high yield CD (5% APR) for my $3,000 emergency fund, and I’d like to slowly start adding money to my EF savings account so that I have liquid money on hand outside of the CD. (Side note: I have other savings outside of my EF savings account, so if a real emergency were to occur, I would have liquid money on hand. However, I wiped out my EF savings when I opened the CD, so I’d like to slowly start rebuilding it, if that makes sense.)
In this context, what does everyone think about CDs? In the past, I was a bit of averse to them. I felt that money should be in either savings accounts, checking accounts, or something that would pay a higher return. For example, a money market or mutual fund. But with the market volatility, I like having a safe and secure CD that pays a guaranteed 5% return on investment. I also like the idea of diversifying my savings and adding a CD or two to my investment portfolio, and I think that’s a wise move now.
Anyway, I’m currently planning my meals for September. Once the new month rolls around, I’ll start planning! I think a “diet” that is both about money and food would be a nice compliment to both. And it’s a great time for both, since it can be hard to stick to a diet when the holidays come around. I’d love to have anyone join me! We can be accountability buddies! 
Who wants to join me on the September “diet”? Feel free to join the food diet, the money diet, or both!
September Diet: Food and Money was first published on Blogging Away Debt.
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