Budget Season

It's Budget Season. Allow me to share with you what Budget Season means to me.

What Budget Season Means To Me

By Mary Johnson, B.A. in Hanging By A Thread.

Before we begin, I must tell you something of the utmost importance. I can't believe I've never shared this with you before. But now, the time is right.

I hate Granny Smith apples. Except in apple pie.

And that is all.

Here we go.

1) Budget Season means many, many extremely late nights for Steve. About six straight weeks of late nights. Like 11:30 pm late nights. These six weeks of awfulness are repeated in March-April, which is also known as Audit Season. Don't even get me started on Audit Season. I am fully aware that despite the six weeks of awfulness, I have it really good. I really, really appreciate and admire all the women out there whose menfolk are serving our country and are gone for at least a year at a time. A year! So I'm being a whining baby; forgive me. Budget Season is tough. It's hard not to lose motivation to make "real" dinners for myself and the kids, but we muddle through. It's also difficult not to lose motivation to bathe my kids every once in a while, but I just spray them with vinegar, and somehow we muddle through that as well. Lots of muddling going on here, I tell you! I shall now share with you some random things that define Budget Season for me, along with some other current events in my household.

2) Budget Season means lots of old movies. I love old movies. Not necessarily old, as in classic Hollywood old (I love those, too!), but old favorites of mine. For example, as I type this, I am half-watching "Sleepless In Seattle". I LOVE THIS MOVIE. Do you love this movie?? BECAUSE YOU SHOULD. A few things happen when I watch this movie: 1) I cry at some point. 2) I want to move to Seattle. 3) I cringe at Victoria's laugh and pray that I don't laugh like that. Other movies I love to watch when Steve's working late:

1) Julie and Julia.

2) You've Got Mail.

3) Dan In Real Life.

I also love making popcorn the old-fashioned way. I use a ridiculous amount of butter when Steve's not partaking of the popcorn, because he hates butter. I know, I know. I KNOW. Hating butter...this I shall never understand.

3) Budget Season means lots of pancake and scrambled egg dinners. The boys love this. I get sick of it after about two turns. Then I start making crazy salads because I can't stand it anymore. I am tempted to start trying Thai salads. Sweet. Sour. Yes.

4) Budget Season means I start baking. Like a crazy, possessed, wild, feral, mad woman. Did I just type feral? I think I did. Pumpkin Currant Cake was my latest endeavor, and it was pretty stellar. I loved it. Which means, of course, that is was successful.

5) I made a shrimp quesadilla for myself tonight, and it turned out to be a very good idea. I couldn't bear the thought of another Bean-and-Cheese-Burrito night. The boys were happy with it, but I just. Couldn't. Do. It. So I consulted The Pioneer Woman and made this. However, I did not add the peppers and onions tonight. Not only did I not have any peppers on hand, but I also found out the last time I made this dish that I have developed a bit of a bell pepper intolerance. Um. Let's just say it wasn't pretty. And so it is with great regret that I have begun to greatly reduce and/or leave out all bell peppers in my recipes. I am greatly grieved about this turn of events, for I adore bell peppers, especially yellow and orange ones. But I contented myself with a shrimp and cheese quesadilla. I think I'll be turning to this recipe a little more often during these late nights.

6) Budget Season means being alone after the kids go to bed and having no energy whatsoever to do anything worthwhile. The fact that I'm blogging tonight is a rather small miracle.

7) I do bathe my kids. Just not tonight.

8) The One Good Thing About Budget Season: Cooler weather is ushered in, and lo and behold; Fall is upon us here in southeastern Wisconsin. And Fall...well, it's just the best. I don't care what they say.

Thus ends What Budget Season Means to Me.

Well, my movie has ended, so it's nighty-night time for moi. Thankfully, Budget Season is slowly coming to an end. Two. More. Weeks. You can do anything for two weeks, right? Stay tuned for more adventures...even if they are a bit on the feral side.