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Over the past year we have experienced some financial setbacks that have forced me to live on a much smaller income than I ever have before and to support two babies on that reduced income. I had to make some obvious changes to my spending habits and lifestyle. Now we are (thankfully) recovering from our financial dry-spell, but I’ve found that I’ve held on to most of the changes I was forced to make. I’m a much more fugal spender than before. This does not mean I’m cheap! I just consider every purchase more carefully and truly consider the return on each dollar I spend. Before I run off to buy something at the store, I first ask myself “Is this something I need?” If it is, I ask, “Is this something I can make myself?” I reuse EVERYTHING! That package of zip lock bags cost over $2.00 and I can make it last twice as long by washing and reusing the bags. I go to the grocery more frequently, but spend less overall since I’m buying fresh ingredients to cook at home. All these little changes add up to a considerable amount of money and honestly, once you start doing them they easily become habit.

The single best way I managed to cut my spending though was by far the simplest: I stayed at home more. Every time I leave the house I run into the opportunity to spend money. There is the gas for my car, if the errands take longer than usual I may have to buy lunch, and retail stores, of course, are designed to make you want to buy their products! Staying at home avoids all of this. It seems every time I leave the house I think of something I “need”. When I make a point of staying at home, I can usually come up with a creative way to fulfill those “needs” without buying anything.

When my day is uninterrupted by trips out of the house its amazing what I can accomplish. My house generally stays cleaner since I can straighten up throughout the day, rather than digging out from underneath an entire day’s accumulation of mess just once a day or so. I spend more relaxed, quality time with my girls because tasks around the house haven’t piled up. When my list of duties around the house is manageable I can let my 2-year-old “help”!

There is a less tangible benefit to staying at home. We hear often that the world is becoming smaller. We are so connected electronically and travel is relatively cheap for Americans. The entire world is at our fingertips. Within five minutes of my home are a myriad of things to do, to buy and to see. The more of that stuff there is and the more accessible it is, the less content we become in our own homes. There is something healthy about being comfortable in your own home, being comfortable in your own company. You can choose to find joy in keeping your home, rather than drudgery, but it has to be chosen in resistance to the drive to move, spend, and be needlessly busy. Be busy! But be busy in a way that is fulfilling rather than feeding a restlessness that can never be calmed.

Rather than embrace our shrinking world, I have slowed down and allowed mine to grow larger. Surprisingly (or maybe not so much), I’ve found much more fulfillment in ceasing to chase it than I ever did in the pursuit of it.