It feels good, but it's not without pain. The trade-off of living on a budget is a HUGE BENEFIT, that which allows me to stay at home and raise our son.
Our money isn't just ours anymore; it's his. Every decision we make effects him, we've come to realize. Whether we spend or save affects where we'll live, which determines his school, which will affect his learning, which will influence his post-high school education, and, therefore, which affects the rest of his life.
So last month, when I joyfully bounced home bearing these goodies, Michael gently urged me to reconsider. They weren't in our budget, after all. And he was right.
What I liked about these 6 wooden letters was: (1) For now, they could spell out "Liam" in the nursery but later they could be used to spell out "Family" in our living room, (2) I scored them with a 40% off coupon, and (3) the color scheme was perfect for the light green shelf in his bedroom, yet it also worked well with our bright green piano in the living room.
I also brought home this guy, a life-sized puppet which we named Eddie. He was discounted, discontinued, and in need of a good home. My heart went out to him.
And while Eddie was pretty cool and would have made the perfect playmate for Liam, my husband reminded me that we already have a cute, 2.5-foot boy toddling around this house, who wears red sneakers, khakis, and a striped shirt. Why bother with a second, who is a mere imitation?
He was right. I uncrumpled my receipts, and both went back. :)
