Oh Crap! – Musings of an Unperfect Mommy

Modest Splurges

May 29, 2011

Well, this could also be titled Spending Habits, but we’ll keep it the way it is. As you know I’ve been reading “The Happiness Project” since February or March and I’m up to July which talks about money and happiness. One of things she mentions is spending money on modest splurges – things that cost a little more but are very worth the money spent because of the happiness they bring. I have to admit, there is a lot of truth in this one! I’ve always done it to some extent, but not really thinking about it. Since we had to tighten our belts severely here for the last 3 years, I have learned to do without a lot of things. However, I also learned how to really stretch a buck and to make every one of them count. This brings me to splurge which means “to indulge oneself in some luxury or pleasure”. For each of us that luxury will be different, but I think we can all find at least one thing we spend our money on that is a little more expensive than we’d usually buy, but because it brings us pleasure it is worth the extra expense. Take these for example which are some of my splurges that aren’t overly costly, but that are worth every penny to me.

1. The entire thirtysomething dvd set – I had waited 20 years for this to come out and I wasn’t going to waste the opportunity and not buy it. I saved all my birthday and Christmas money so that I could buy these. I also waited until the price at Amazon was in the range I wanted ($35 per set) and I nailed it every time. Oh, the first set Matt bought me so that was a freebie :-). This has made me so incredibly happy and I’m watching the series for the second time. It was worth every penny I spent. In fact one of my things is that I don’t buy dvd’s unless I really love the movie/show. I don’t believe in spending money on them just because they are new or out or it looks good. I have to really love it and know I will watch it again and again before I spend on it.

2. Good coffee and good chocolate – To me it is much better to spend a little extra on good coffee and chocolate and really enjoy them, then to buy the cheap stuff just because I gotta have a coffee or chocolate fix. This is something that is new to me (the last year or so), but it’s kind of a rule with me now and it makes me much happier to buy the better stuff and know that I will enjoy it more.

3. Busy Body Book Planners – I started buying these back in 2008 and I will not buy any other anymore. I have tried other planners, but the layout of this one suits my needs much better so I spend more because I know for me it will work, rather than trying to put up with something just because it was cheaper or cuter.

4. Mrs. Meyers cleaners – These have made me ENJOY cleaning so much more and if that’s what it takes to get me to do my job well then I will buy these. It all started with the honeysuckle spring clean kit in 2008 and now that I can afford them again, I will buy them all the time. They work, they smell good, and I clean my house. Win-win-win!

5. Amazing Grace perfume – I love this scent and I would gladly pay extra for a fragrance that is me and that I love. That said, I couldn’t buy anything for 2 years, but when the opportunity presented itself last year (and on easy pay – kind of like layaway in reverse) I went for it and I’ve been so happy with it. This doesn’t hold true for everything though – Wal-Mart has some pretty good bath and body products called Bodycology and they smell good and are long lasting. They are every bit as good (if not better) than Bath and Body works. Besides, Bath and Body works is tailoring their stuff to high school and college girls more now so I really don’t go in there anymore.

6. Candles – The ones that actually stink up your house (in a good way). I will pay more if I KNOW that I will get the fragrance that I enjoy wafting through the house rather than spend money on one that smells good in the store, but when you light it does nothing.

I think that this way of looking at money and indulgences can also be applied in a broader sense – spending wisely your money, time, and resources….but….I think I’ll save that for another post.

3 comments
Comments

On May 30, 2011 at 6:20 AM, dxprog said:

I think my Ode to Japan shelf is more than enough of an indication where my splurging habits lie. Of course, like any good Jew I got most of them used for half or less of retail price which makes it feel like I didn't spend so much.
Wait... I'm not Jewish >_>

On May 30, 2011 at 11:17 AM, java_queen said:

Hehe - "ode to Japan shelf". You certainly aren't the only anime and manga lover in the world. Oh, and you simply got my thrifty gene - the last three years plus are testament to that :-). It's not a bad thing.

On May 31, 2011 at 1:56 AM, dxprog said:

A bad thing it certainly is not. It cuts down on the guilt of this little hobby of mine.

Leave a Comment

Click here to cancel reply.

Name *

E-mail Address *
(will not be published)

Website

Comment

Δ