$$$ Money, Money, Money $$$$

Ok, so I have been trying to get into the fiscally responsible, a recession is coming, groove. I decided to take a pantry challenge and not grocery shop until I absolutely, the children stomachs' are bloated, the cat is catching it's own dinner, had to shop. Is that a completely made up sentence structure, or what?? Anyway, that day ended up being yesterday, for two reasons actually. 1. We are leaving town, friends and family are watching the kids, and we were out of, shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrushes, wetwipes(eww), milk, cheese, bread, cereal, and FOOD in general... And secondly, Maddy asked in the car yesterday, "Are we dirt poor?" Would our children even know what dirt poor is? I think NOT, as she is playing with her Nintendo DS.....

Just because I cut Chick-fil-A out of our monthly budget (yes it had it's own category), Maddy thinks we will be living under a bridge soon.



Anyway last night I decided yes, we MUST grocery shop, and once again I became task oriented and must shop NOW! Unfortunately I had not had the TV or radio on, and did not realize until after I had all 3 kids in the car that the weather was a little inclement. As in tornado watch, inclement. Ok, well it didn't seem too bad, just a little wind, and publix isn't too far away.. So we persevered and I dragged 3 wet bedraggled children down each aisle.

After saying NO to every prepackaged junk item, Valentines day balloon, Dora Valentines book, Hairbands, Lunchables, and Shining Stars Pets I turned around and said, "Do you want that toy, or do you want to EAT???" A startled hush fell on the whole aisle as people turned around to see who was yelling at such sweet cherubs. Cherubs who should be home eating dinner watching the storm reports on TV, and getting ready for bed.

After checking out, and still not where I wanted to be in my budget ~~ugh~~ I pulled through Chick-fil-A for dinner!!

Part of my new budget awareness came in the form of last months power bill. Let me just say the first number on my bill was a 4 (ouch). Once I revived my husband, I vowed I would try my best to be more electrically responsible. So, out I drag the Amish laundry line we purchased this summer. It was so quaint, and in Lancaster, PA who can resist the thought of, hanging laundry, baking bread and sewing clothes??? Mike dug the holes and set the post, and then proceeded to attach the pulleys to each post. I am pretty sure that the Amish men DO NOT swear while installing their laundry lines... Anyway about 2 hours later I have a genuine pulley clothesline. It is a huge novelty right now. The kids are looking for things to wash so they can hang out the clothes. I wonder if they will be that eager in the dead of summer...hmm..

We placed it right beside the pool cage so it is not visible to either neighbors except the neighbors who built their 2 story home behind us. But since they bought the home knowing it looked into our yard, our pool, and our living room, I figure that seeing my flapping underwear in the breeze is their just desserts!

Well I have blogged too much, and need to go pack. Mike and I are going to Arlington, VA tomorrow for John's funeral. We should be back late Saturday night.