by Hope
I could certainly relate when Ashley wrote about her daughters’ First Children’s Activity; while that was many years ago for me, I remember it vividly…Mommy & Me Gymnastics classes…me with two children. Little Gymnast and Princess must have been 2 and 3 respectively at the time. If I could do it again…well, I probably wouldn’t. It was a lot of work keeping track of two during the class, but I do remember it being fun too.
So this week I splurged just a little bit. I know, not the best idea when you are struggling to pay the most basic bills, but in my defense, I have been hired to do 4 websites this month in addition to my on-going part time job and new part time job starting next month, so I’m not just twiddling my thumbs.
First splurge, knowing that we are now going to be staying here when our lease is over in April and that school would also be over for us, I decided to sign the kids up for a new activity session (spring session, Princess has been playing basketball during the winter session.) So Sea Cadet, Gymnast and Princess will all be playing volleyball for the spring session and Princess will also be playing softball. This will give us something to do and get us out of the RV for a few hours each day. The total cost for all four activities was $185 and the season will run from March thru the end of May. This will take us right into swim season so I’m happy with it.
Second splurge, new athletic shoes for the four kids. All the kids were overdue for new athletic shoes and in light of the new sports, I decided to bite the bullet and buy them. I knew I wanted name brand shoes that had lots of support, all my kids are really rough on their shoes. So Rack Room shoes, buy one get one half off combined with an earned $15 discount from their loyalty program that I had been saving, plus a gift card from returning shoes Princess received for Christmas…and all of them got shoes they wanted, fit them well and are exactly the support I wanted. Average cost of shoes $45 per pair. I’m please with that. (All my kids are now in adult sizes with two of them with exceptionally large feet, so felt like this was a great bargain.)
I did not make these financial decisions lightly, especially looking at bills that are past due, but I am pleased with them and feel that the intrinsic reward my family will get from these two purchases will far outweigh the financial cost. And I am continuing to seek more work and make much healthier financial decisions overall.
Hope is a creative, solutions-focused business manager helping clients grow their business and work more efficiently by leveraging expertise in project management, digital marketing, & tech solutions. She’s recently become an empty nester as her 5 foster/adoptive kids have spread their wings. She lives with her 3 dogs in a small town in NE Georgia and prefers the mountains to the beaches any day. She struggles with the travel bug and is doing her best to help each of her kids as their finish schooling and become independent (but it’s hard!) She has run her own consulting company for almost twenty years! Hope began sharing her journey with the BAD community in the Spring of 2015 and feels like she has finally in a place to really focus on making wise financial decisions.
I think buying quality sneakers was a good choice. Proper footwear is important, even if you’re just walking around!
I’m sure you struggled with making the choice of spending that money on things other than paying bills, and I’m sure there will be those that criticize you for it. But I don’t think you can let your kids go without shoes. And if you buy cheap shoes, you’ll end up replacing them sooner. It’s all about balance. If you were going on trips and not paying bills, that would be a totally different situation. You’re working hard to make the right decisions, even re-homing your pets. You’re making progress; I’m sure when you’re on the other side you’ll see the purpose of this temporary situation so keep your faith and keep moving forward, no matter how slow it may seem.
I think you are really good at balancing needs and wants. Both of these purchases seem very inline with life. Kids need good shoes and four activities for two-three months for three kids for $185 is a deal!
I continue to be impressed with how you are juggling the needs of four kids and yourself! Sounds like work is picking up a bit so kudos to you for the hustling! And of course kids need quality shoes and I think the activity fees are well considered and worth it. I’m pulling for you Hope!!
You’re doing great Hope. Your decisions are always measured. I hope more work continues to come your way.