Day 17 - Taco Tuesday yeah... I know it's Wednesday

Deployment is such a freaking maddening thing at times. Errands he'd usually run are now being run by me which means the errands that I usually run are being run by me which means me is usually running behind. In this lies the monster. The sleeping dragon that is culinary complacency. Simple sustenance. Fast.. freakin... food.
It is common sense. Really it isn't rocket science...

Kids' Meals x 3 = $12

       Mama Meal = $7

w/ Tax..................$25

After a week you're looking at $100 - $150, over an average Navy deployment you're starin' down the barrel of $3600 - $5400 literally in the toilet. That isn't even counting the times you "treat" yourself to Starbucks or I don't know get fancy and go to BWW for a night. 

After our parent/teacher group meeting, and running to walmart and finding out Blue Eye's bike hadn't been assembled I heard the siren's call. I could see her beckoning me with her beautiful curves and golden arches. I had every intention of buying the kids a carton of nuggets and letting them split a sweat tea. Then I remembered.

I set a goal.

I made myself a promise.

This time around one of my simple goals is to avoid letting a restaurant do the cooking for me as often as I have in the past. Now let me put this in perspective. Within our family we very rarely go out to eat. Almost every afternoon I'll get a text from Big Sexy "need anything"... I'll roll out  a small list (usually veggies) for dinner and he'll grab them on the way home. The exception is Pizza Night - that would be Fridays at our house. Every Friday we grab a couple of pies, dive in and relax. We know that lunch tomorrow is already done, and we go on with our day.

Weeeeell...

During deployments that schedule is out the window, and I've been known to roll through the drive through on the daily. This time? Pizza Night and our once a month feast. NO cheating. That is five times a month I have no work to do, and today was honestly the first day I had to fight it.

As I pulled out of my parking spot with K-Baby crying she was hungry I remembered I didn't eat lunch. Dug through my bag and handed her my banana... forked over my pistachios to the boys and promised everyone we'd have tacos when we got home.

I am proud of this taco dinner. It wasn't fancy. It wasn't elaborate, but it was homemade and a promise made was kept. In the future I'll be sure to have some small snacks on hand in the event my running around leaves them running on empty.

Each step I make toward a goal is just another proving I am stronger than the stress building around me. That an easy out isn't necessarily going to be the better plan.

Hope everyone is having a great night - here's to Taco Tuesday (or Wednesday).

XO XO & Stuff,

Jinger