The big freeze

The other day I bought some ice cream that both DH and I like. Normally I only buy what I like because I hate to go to the freezer and not see the ice cream that I bought only days earlier. Anyone with a man living in their home knows exactly where this is heading. Anyway last night I went bulk shopping for milk, bread, and fruit. I asked DH to put the new bread in the freezer and he came back with a sad look on his face. He told me that the new ice cream that I bought was thawed and so was the bread that was already in the freezer. Uh oh. You know where this is heading. Luckily since its been very cold here and in the single digits at night the other perishables were still in tact. I think I neglected to tell you that the freezer/refigerator is in the unattached garage. Normally I dont go out there unless I need milk or to find something to thaw for dinner. Twice last year we lost power for several days and had to replace everything. It sucked. So you can see my panic. I went out there this morning and pulled out some chicken and then touched the other frozen foods and everything seemed in tact. Dh got the idea to put a thermometer in the freezer this evening to see exactly where we stood. No more wishful thinking that it would come back on and work again when it warmed up. Silly I know but its just the way I work. He came back with more sad news. It was time to get it fixed or buy a new fancy freezer to store everything. I opted for a new fancy one. We had been talking about buying one forever and now it was time. Dh and I started making plans on borrowing the truck from the inlaws. He calls his parents and then the games begin.

Now, if you know me, you know that I am not really a fancy kinda girl. Yeah I like nice things but they have to have a practical purpose to be worth the investment. I always shop around for the best price and take time to think about what I am buying and if its really necessary. Well, ok, most of the time I am that way. I have on occassion bought something that I dont need and cant really afford but since I have had the boys those days are very few and far between. Having said all that, for Christmas the MIL gave me two very expensive (for me) gifts that arent really practical and I promtly took back because I could use the money for something else, for instance.....food or diapers. But of course she paid with her credit card and I got store credit, which I guess isnt that bad. The reason I mention all this is because tonight the inlaws gave us a hard time about buying a freezer at Sams for $177. The MIL bought me a purse that cost $180!!!! What the hell am I going to do with a nice fancy designer purse? I need something practical that if it gets dirty or puked on its no big deal. She also bought me a sweater, which I would never have worn because of its hideousness, that cost $120. Hello!!! I am the Mom of triplets that barely gets to leave the house except for shopping trips to Walmart, Schnucks, and Target. So you might be saying to yourself, awww those are nice thoughtful gifts. STOP RIGHT THERE, and remember who I am. Practical Mother of triplets. And of course dont forget that I am kinda funky and dont really go for all the designer things and she knows that. Wait, I do have a point.

DH called his Dad when we were done feeding and bathing the boys. I could tell by the phone conversation that he was getting questioned. "Did we know that the freezer would make our electric bill go up by a dollar everyday?" "When did we decided to buy said freezer and where are we going to put it?" "Did we really need one and why cant the one in the garage be fixed." I will answer the last question first. First of all, its none of your business what kind of major purchases we make. Secondly, if we dont get some sort of freezer tonight we will lose all the frozen food by tomorrow afternoon because its supposed to be around 50 degrees. Thirdly, its none of your business!!!! And lastly, DUH we know that the power bill will go up. Ameren IP made sure that everyone, everywhere in the state of Illinois knows that no matter what they do their power bill was gonna skyrocket. The sticker on the side of the freezer said that it was a very efficeint model that would cost $25 a year to operate. And dont think I didnt mention that when we got home.

J.H.C., DH and I are almost 39 years old and we have a family, we arent young kids who are buying some outrageous thing that we cant afford that we will only like while its trendy!! Kill me now.

The freezer is now downstairs in the basement working its freezing magic as we speak. Too bad Dillards doesnt sell freezers, we could have paid for it with my return merchandise credit. Yeah right, impulse purchase my ass.