Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Putting It Towards The House

I seem to have this habit that both Chris and my mom have started to notice.  Whenever I'm given a gift card, I tend to spend it on something for the house instead of myself.

Take for example a recent trip to TJ Maxx/Home Goods with mom.  We both got a couple of gift cards during the holidays and while mom was busy looking for a new suitcase, socks and a new top, I was over checking out silverware, cutting boards and food storage containers.

the new lock top containers

In all honesty, they are all things that we needed to replace.  While packing for the move I wanted to get rid of items that were well past their prime which included the cheap silverware that was starting to rust, old containers that were stained from pasta sauce, and flimsy cutting mats that were scored from countless knife stokes.  I had every intention of making the rounds over to the clothes section, but with the goal of better fitness and eating I want to hold off on buying clothes until I feel a little better about myself.  I found myself doing the same thing at Target and walked out with some new everyday plates.  I need to hold off on looking at any more home items until we get into a house and can finally unpack all of the wedding gifts that are sitting in storage.

Side note - Those storage containers above actually started a mini internal debate.  I found them half off at Home Goods, but wanted to add a couple extra to the bunch.  I found them on Amazon and spent a day debating back and forth on heading to another Home Goods or Ross to look for more or just order them at full price online.  In the end the savings of finding the 3 exact sizes that I needed in the store did not outweigh  the gas it would have cost to get there.  No tax and free shipping on Amazon? Why yes that will make the decision easier.

Anyways, back to the habit.  It's nothing new, it was around before (putting money towards the wedding instead of spending it on myself) and I'm sure it'll transition towards our children in the future.  I don't think there is anything wrong with focusing on something or someone else, but every now and then I will have to remind myself that it's OK to pick up a new pair of shoes or a new outfit for myself.

Do you find yourself putting more towards someone or something other than yourself?

9 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness I'm the worst at that! Corey gets frustrated at me because I never buy ANYTHING for myself! It's always house stuff or stuff for the both of us! It's definitely something I need to work on. :)

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  2. i went through a period after the wedding where i bought a lot for myself (looking at all those wedding blogs made me want to dress cuter!), but now we don't buy much except for a few things for the house. it's cyclical for me, i think.

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  3. I think I have a pretty even balance between stuff for myself and stuff for the house. But I look at it this way - buying things for the house makes me happy, so technically it's for me? I know Josh could care less if stuff in our pantry is organized in plastic or glass containers, but for some reason, it was incredibly important to me. So I think in a way, the house stuff is still just for me.

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  4. Chris can be the same way. He doesn't care about most things (like I was really excited about our new pots and pans and those storage containers), but on the few things that he does care about (like our bedding or wine glasses), I really try to make it happen. With our bedding it involved going to the sale section of 3 different BB&B's to get it. That's a good way to think about it - the house stuff does make me happy so it pretty much is just for me.

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  5. I definitely put pretty much everythign towards the house. I know peopel joke about husbands getting them things like blenders, instead of jewelry, but I'd prefer home stuff over things for myself these days.

    Also, I got those containers at HomeGoods awhile back, too! I love them! So easy for storage. :)

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  6. I'm glad to hear the containers are a hit!

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  7. I go back and forth on this. Sometimes it's all about the house, then it's all about clothes and right now it's all about the baby. I can't remember the last time I bought something for myself.

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  8. You're not alone! I think we've spent more time {and money} at Home Depot, Pottery Barn and Bed Bath + Beyond than anywhere else since we've been married. It's exactly like you say... we went from focusing on saving for the wedding, to saving for the house, to now making the house our home. A reminder to take care of ourselves, too, never hurts! {On that note, I really should freshen up my wardrobe.}

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  9. I do the same thing! I always kind of feel like buying things for the house IS buying something for me because if it makes me happy... it counts as for me :)

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