This spring, we’re focusing our energy on community-building – from our recent political action workshop to helping you retool your budget to be less consumption-minded. And being more community-focused means putting your dollars where they can make the most impact: through a community foundation that’s fueled by people in their local region. 

For those of us here in the NYC area, The New York Community Trust is the region’s trusted community foundation, playing a vital role in making life better for everyone, from those struggling to pay the bills to immigrant families and LGBTQ+ communities, among many more. With more than 2,200 charitable funds created to benefit NYC and beyond, a Donor-Advised Fund at The New York Community Trust is the best first step to make a big difference. A DAF works like a charitable checkbook that lets you give tax-smart, eliminate paperwork, and use a variety of assets. Your fund is invested for growth, meaning your money often goes further than through a simple donation.

Level up your giving to the causes you care about with The New York Community Trust. 

For all of 2026, I’m sticking to a no-buy challenge I created myself: The Nothing-New-Year. There are exceptions, of course; I can buy replacements for things I genuinely need (including for makeup and skincare), I can attempt to find items secondhand if I need something for a special occasion, and I can buy books if I already read and loved them from the library. But the point is to bring nothing net-new into my closet and make better use of what I have, especially after refamiliarizing myself with my closet now that I’m postpartum. My rules are a bit more extensive than that, and you can read them in full here. And, as always, I’m tracking all of my spending on Monarch, which honestly takes me mere minutes each month.

After having spent a wonderful sunny day out seeing some cherry blossoms in Brooklyn this weekend, I am thrilled to finally say happy spring to you all! I also, apparently, spent a lot more this month than I did in February. Here’s my report from my Monarch app:

My biggest category this month was restaurant/bar spending, by a long shot. As I’ve mentioned before, this includes basically all of my solo/friend-centric dining out as well as going out with my husband and baby, since my credit card gets the best points back for dining out. Still, this was a lot this month! Between a date night, a friend’s birthday, a few of our friends visiting, and a goodbye brunch for another friend moving, I had a whole lot more going out on my calendar than usual. I was happy to treat people in most of those instances, and I’m glad we can afford to! It does add up, but that’s also part of the reason I’m embarking on this no-buy challenge: I’m not interested in not spending any money, especially on experiences that foster deeper personal connections. I’m simply recalibrating my relationship with buying material items, so that I can better appreciate what I buy/already have.

My other big expense this month (under the entertainment sinking fund umbrella) was about $600 for a longer/more intensive figure skating class. I took a less-expensive class at our local outdoor rink in February/early March, and it was great! I felt comfortable committing to the pricier class (which is also a longer commitment) knowing that I’ll actually follow through and show up to all of the lessons, so as not to waste the efforts I’ve already put into the low-lift class. Since this was a bigger expense, I paid for it with sinking fund money rather than our “regular” monthly budget.

The one item I bought for “myself” was a new baby carrier now that Sadie is getting bigger. This wasn’t planned, but I have been carrying her to daycare in a wrap carrier that she is now too large for, and I’m not about to cart the stroller in and out of my apartment by myself every morning. My husband has his own carrier, but I find it pretty uncomfortable, so I did some research and landed on one I think I’ll use for a good long time. It wasn’t cheap, but the reviews were great and it should be able to handle her until we are well into toddler hood.

I did spend much more on items for Sadie (about $300) this month than usual, and I fear the impromptu visits to the children’s consignment shop are becoming my new outlet now that I am not buying clothes for myself. It was mostly clothing items, though I did get her a super cute Easter basket (with felt flowers and bees!), which I’m planning to be The Easter Basket of her childhood. But we’re reaching critical mass on 6-12 month-size clothing, so my goal for April is not to buy her any new clothes. I am actually going to a baby/toddler clothing swap next week, and I have many bags of her newborn/0-6 month clothes ready to go, but I’m aiming to only bring home items if I really love them. 

Other than somewhat overboard restaurant spending, this month was pretty standard. I’m definitely starting to feel like I’m wearing the same wardrobe items all the time now, so I’m curious to see if that remains true once I switch my closet over for spring/summer. I’m also tracking our ongoing childcare savings goal in Monarch [LINK], and have so far met my $700 contribution minimum each month, though in February I was able to save a bit more than I did in March. 

I’ll check in with you all next month!

— Holly

Make sure to check out our latest YouTube series, The No-Fuss Budget, centering on the realities of budgeting when you don’t make six figures or come from substantial generational wealth. In each episode, we’re focusing on some of the most common money issues we see among the TFD audience: emotional spending and overconsumption, living paycheck to paycheck, the debt payoff struggle, and much more!

In our first episode, How I’m Paying Off $30K in Credit Card Debt, our wonderful guest Stephanie shares her budget as a recovering emotional spender: how she's changing her consumption habits, learning that you can't spend money to make yourself into a different person, and how she factors $30,000 of consumer debt payoff into her budget. Her hard-won outlook on rethinking her relationship with money and building a good life is a must-listen!

Please go watch this video and leave a comment!

APRIL 8TH: Join us THIS Wednesday for Your Anti-Overwhelm Approach to Budgeting — a free, live workshop designed to help you build a budgeting system that actually works for your real life (no stress, guilt, or burnout required).

Co-hosted by TFD’s Alexa Claire and Rachel Samara, this session will walk you through how to create a simple, sustainable approach to managing your money—whether you’re starting from scratch or trying again after a few false starts. You’ll leave with practical tools to reduce money anxiety and finally stick to a system that feels doable.

The workshop includes a one-hour presentation followed by a live audience Q&A.

To attend, you’ll need to download Monarch using TFD’s link. Register here.

A quick reminder about one of our most practical resources that you might’ve missed: TFD’s Ultimate Budgeting Guide, created in partnership with our favorite budgeting app, Monarch Money.

This interactive guide helps you identify the budgeting system you’re most likely to stick with—and walks you through exactly how to set it up inside Monarch, step by step. It also includes a 30-day budgeting challenge to help you reset your spending with clarity and intention, not restriction.

All you have to do is sign up for Monarch, and the full guide will be delivered straight to your inbox. If you’ve been meaning to get more consistent with your money, this is an easy, low-lift place to start.

Whether you’re starting fresh or resetting your approach, this is your roadmap to feeling more in control of your money.

The Society at TFD