In yet another sign the U.S. economy might be thawing out a bit, consumers told Discover Financial Services in May that they were a bit more confident about the economy and would spend a little more money.

The number of consumers expecting to spend more in the month ahead rose to 20%. This rise coincided with an increase in the number of consumers expecting to spend more on household expenses like gas and groceries, the card issuer said. For May, 30% of consumers expected to spend more on household expenses, a five-point increase from April as gas prices reached their highest levels of the year. However, the five-point increase is still less than half of what was reported in May 2008.

With summer approaching, Discover also saw a two-percentage-point rise, to 16%, in the number of consumers expecting to spend more on major personal purchases like a vacation.