Estree Lauder taste on a Covergirl Budget

This is nothing more than my thoughts written down “on paper”

Today as I was doing my make-up my mind began to wonder. As we get older, live through different struggles and times in our lives, we are shaped, molded and blessed, with each experience.

I am a snob. A make-up snob that is. I was introduced to make-up at about 13, and I was started off with “the good stuff” – Estee Lauder. I have never known another kind of blush, eye shadow and rarely use another mascara. I have my “signature” scent of Estee Lauder Beyond Paradise. My make-up habit has come from a long line of expensive make-up wearers, from my great-grandmother, my Mimi, my mother, sister, aunt and cousin.

But with two babies in childcare there comes a time to make economic decisions. Huggies or Luvs? Store-bought or homemade baby food? Eating out or eating in? Fast food or sack lunch? Starbucks or Keurig or Folgers? Estee Lauder or Covergirl?

These seem trivial, even as I write this post I think “is it really worth writing about?” But sacrifices come in all shapes and sizes. One of my most recent changes was my purchasing of make-up. I thought about it this morning as I opened my brand new daily moisturizing crème that my grandmother got me for Christmas. It felt so smooth compared to the “Clean & Clear” I had been using, so refreshing. I felt spoiled that I was able to use the expensive moisturizer, I reminded myself to use sparingly to make it last, “Once this is gone, It’s back to the lotion from your teenage years.”

This is not really about make-up though. It is about making cuts in every area. My family was money-conscious as I grew up. I never had the “cool” shoes, we wore Payless. Soda was a treat. My mom made her own bread, jelly, pickles, even yogurt at one time. She would even make “lunchables” for us kids and pack them in Tupperware. I was taught how to live tight. However, years of two incomes and no kids quickly makes you forget how one can live in such a way.

I am thankful for the opportunities Scott and I have for our family. We are blessed with a house for our family of four, a great day care, two good jobs and a little extra at the end of the month. We are happy and together, isn’t that what really matters? Making little sacrifices here and there are worth it in the end. While I will mourn the loss of my expensive habits, I will delight in the knowing that God is still providing for all our needs (and still a little extra!)

So I will enjoy my Estee Lauder crème while it lasts and remember that every cut made to our once “extravagant” lifestyle is all worth it for our two boys and our strong family.