Priorities

Jeb was notified on Friday that he would be laid off and his position eliminated June 30th. We'd been semi-prepared for this, but the reality of it still always seems to catch one off guard.

Over the weekend I had explained to Alanna that we were going to be just fine and tried my best to reassure her that she had nothing to worry about. I told her that Daddy was going to get to stay home with her for the summer and wouldn't that be fun! I told her that we'd need to be more careful with our money, but that she didn't need to worry about a place to live, food to eat, or clothes.

She looked up at me and said, "What about toys???"
I explained that we could still buy toys, but we probably wouldn't buy things as often and we'd really need to think about the toys we want and budget them in.

She looked panicked and asked, "What about Happy Meals!!???"
I explained that we probably wouldn't go out to eat as often, but that many times Mommy has a coupon for McDonald's and that she could still get a Happy Meal once in a while.

She looked downcast and declared, "We're POOR!!"
*sigh* No, honey we're not poor, we're just fine.

I suppose though it's all a matter of perception. When you're six, those happy meals can seem pretty important even if she's only getting one maybe 2-3 times a month. It's a treat, and she is not happy about that treat possibly going away.

Yesterday, she announced that she had packed her own lunch to help save us money. I told her that she didn't need to worry about that and that her lunches were all paid for through the school year. She declared that it was ok, she still wanted to take her lunch because "then I get to be in the front of the lunch line!!!"

Again...it's all about priorities.