My Month of Not Buying Recap: By the Numbers

0 -- amount of money spent on eating out (restaurants or fast food) in July.

1 -- number of times I had to tell my children that I wasn't buying anything this month before they believed me.

2 -- number of times I broke my "no buying" rule purchasing adhesive to attach my car's rear view mirror back on the windshield.

3 -- number of vacuums I borrowed because mine broke and I wouldn't buy a new one.

4 -- number of times I had to tell the neighbor kid that I wasn't going to buy her anything before she believed me.

8 -- number of large garbage bags full of clothes that we gave away to a local thrift store (emphasizing how much we DON'T need any more clothes).

11 -- number of super fun free activities that I went to in the month of July (my kids went to even more than I did).

14 -- number of free samples I got from the Farmer's Market, See's Candies, and snow-cone stand (this prompted my family's idea of setting up a booth that gives out ONLY free samples -- no product, just free samples).

16 -- number of dollars I came in under budget for buying gasoline in the month of July (not buying also equals not driving?).

18 -- number of days before I broke down and bought prepared foods from the grocery store.

21 -- number of nights until Frances started having dreams about eating a Papa John's Meat-Lover's Pizza.

31 -- number of days to learn this important lesson: I will not be thrown in "bad mommy jail" if I don't buy everything my kids (and their friends) ask for.