“Stop talking to me about money,” my husband said. “I don’t care if that costs $45 or if you saved 30 bucks. Just spend the money on things that matter and don’t feel guilty about doing it.”
But how could I stop? I’ve thought about money for as long as I could remember. “How could I spend it so easily?,” I wondered, and then I did.
Two days ago a large box arrived at my doorstep. It contained ten sets of brightly colored new towels. Our old ones were mismatched and threadbare. Most of them were over fifteen years old.
I didn’t just buy new towels. I bought luxuriously soft, name brand, new towels. I had a hard time clicking the purchase button and even hesitated before cutting off the tags, but wouldn’t you know I feel pure joy now.
Those beautiful, fluffy towels feel so soft against my skin. I wrap my boys in them after baths and my hair after a long hot shower. When I step into the bathroom all the towels are the same color and they all match the bathroom decor. I feel a sense of peace in there now that I didn’t before.
The bathroom isn’t the only place I spent money. I also bought a new set of dishes for our kitchen. A few of the old ones broke, (at some point or another), and I constantly found myself running out of the salad plates we use primarily for snacks and dishing out meals to my oldest son.
If I didn’t run the dishwasher every evening I found myself a few plates short by the end of the second day. I didn’t want to use a big plate when a small one would serve the purpose equally well.
I hemmed and hawed at the idea of replacing our old dishes, but I’m so happy to have a full set waiting for me in the cabinet now.
As I remove clutter from our house and downsize our possessions I find a strong desire to make our house feel more homey. Why should I look at ragged, mismatched towels or feel frustrated by a lack of dishes? If our finances were not in order these purchases might be a big deal, but we no longer live in a place and time where I have to worry about money.
It’s hard to stop weighing every financial decision, but I am a long way from where I started in 2005 (when this blog was created). Perhaps I no longer need to be One Frugal Girl? How much money does one need to have in the bank to stop worrying about having enough of it?
I think part of why you don’t have to worry about money is that you do worry about it. My parents make a considerable income, and yet they go through their credit card bills line by line every month. My husband and I are in a pretty decent place as well, but we still pay close attention. That’s how you get to a place where you can then drop the $600 on a roof rack (us over the weekend) and be okay with the purchase – because your finances are in order and you only spend on what you really need/want.
I agree with this completely. If you pay attention to your finances you can spend money on the things you need and want without feeling guilty or going into debt. Your comment is spot on!