And so it begins...

So this is the first entry of what I hope is many in this year long experiment in reducing how I consume. This blog came about after I decided I wasn't happy with how I was spending my money, time and energy. After talking with my husband, Mike, about this, we determined that making some changes was in order. I wanted to really dedicate myself to these changes and it seemed like if I announced it to friends, family and the world then I might actually follow through with it, hence the blog idea.

Over the course of the last month or so, we came up restrictions on how we consume. We wanted to make the restrictions those we could live with in our world of owning two small businesses, a house, a business property, two animals, a cycling racing team and social interactions. We couldn't give up all consuming without a major life shift nor did we want that. We just wanted to become more careful about how we allocate our money, time and energy.

As I talked about this with friends and family, it seemed to intrigue people to learn more and to think about how they might become careful consumers also. A good friend, Jill, decided she wanted to participate with us and she will be blogging as well. She and Mike will have different restricitions, goals and observations.

Over the next few days I am going to post more about this process and my motivations. But now I want to share my restrictions for the year:

Reducing TV consumption from 32 hours a week to six hours a week.
Reducing cable by eliminating premium pay channels.
Limit computer game time to four hours a week.
Limiting iPad time. The TV rules apply to watching movies, etc. on the iPad.
Eating out at restaurants once a month versus eight to ten times a month.
Budgeting $125.00 every two weeks for groceries.
No buying clothes, books, or music.
No buying presents for people over the age of six years old. I will give gifts of time or service.
No out of town vacations.
Limit number of paid cycling tours and rides to four a year.
Limiting number of cycling races.
Budgeting work expenses to $1500.00 for the year. Includes CEUs, books, supplies, etc.
I will try to use something I already own before purchasing.
I will try to barter or borrow what I need before buying.
I might need to add to these as I go but this is my starting point.

I invite you to share this journey with us and follow our experiment. It should be interesting. I am already excited but feeling a little deprived.