I'm not cheap, but, over the years, I have figured out there are certain purchases, which, even though I still make some of them sparingly, are just futile:
1. Tape - every toy must be taped to the next one because...well, I don't know why, it's just a law when there is a filled tape dispenser
2. Kleenex - Must get white squares out of the box as fast as possible. Touched your face? Away with it!
3. Single serving size anything - even my oldest can't resist the siren song of the individual applesauce
4. Paper Towels - Cleaning up spills 47 paper towels at a time since 1994.
5. Canned air - this is a new development. Before I realized we burned up the motherboard on our computer, I figured I'd clean it out a bit. I used the $13.00 can, and, stored it near the computer, only to figure out later that someone dusted the entire house with it because it was "cool'.
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From our house:
Cheese slices. Because the baby thinks it is SO COOL the way the dogs follow her around. She'll happily unwrap and feed them the stuff all day, and they'll happily let her.
We get the tape thing, too, and instead of canned air they like to spray Febreeze everywhere.
Band aids are a hot commodity at our house - even the icky cheap ones. Mr. M finally hid them so that the Princess wouldn't use them up in one sitting. The oddest part - she never reported needing them and was never seen wearing them, yet she is responsible for using up a whole box in 1 week.
I have no idea and I don't want to know.
So true. So very true.
I confess. It was me who used up all your canned air. I'm addicted to that stuff. It IS fun.
Just beware of the "high" kids can get off of canned air. http://www.hoax-slayer.com/dust-off-warning.html. Read this. This "hoax" isn't a hoax, it's true.
Canned air isn't only for kids.
Even though we recommend that stores carry canned air to blow out keyboards and battery backup vents, some of the managers at stores we give tech support to don't order it because their clerks use it to dust too.
Like everyone else, I'm completely enthralled by canned air.
We cannot keep any in the house, because I find all sorts of excuses to use the stuff up.
My kids use up all the canned air, too. Drives me nuts. As for the bandaids mentioned above, I solved that dilemma by buying my kids their own boxes. The novelty wore off pretty quickly after that.
LOL... canned air! too funny!
We have the tape problem and the band aid issue at our house.
But we also have a scissor issue... everything MUST be cut to pieces! It's some sort of Kindergarten law.
TRUE TRUE...Beware of the canned air the kids are using it to get high these days..who would have thought!
"...47 paper towels at a time..." Oh how true it is.
Great piece, Mom.
Same goes in our house.
What about Smuckers PBJ? My children (18, 16 & 7 yrs old) have all discovered they love the tiny box with only 4 sandwiches which sell for $4/ box.
If Mom's car has a full tank of gas or just a quarter of a tank..must use it all even if initial goal was to run down to the quickie mart for a bag of chips. Next morning when Mom gets in the car to take everyone to their designated destination....
PS You have our votes!! Good Luck!!
Besides the tape and Febreeze, we go through an awful lot of Q-tips which never seem to make the trash can. If I only had a quarter every time I have to pick one up, I could afford a maid.
We can't keep any toilet paper in the house. But that... we can't live with out. We'll just have to get used to the fact that our child loves to unroll every spool until it's all in a pile on the floor.
We'll just have to pick it up as we need it...
How true! My kids are the only kids I know who get their own roll of tape in their Christmas stocking from Santa. And the Kleenex! That's a dolly blanket don't you know? Even when the dolly is made of a clothespin? A few months ago, my youngest (10) made lifejackets for all her Bratz - entirely from tape and Kleenex.
Other things: Kool Aid singles, toaster strudel, mini powdered sugar doughnuts. They're gone before I'm finished unpacking the groceries.
I was down in my nephew's playroom yesterday and saw that he had torn his plastic fireman's helmet. "I'll just throw this out", I thought to myself, until I saw his OTHER helmet. It had mounds, reams of tape covering the entire top of it. I think if you had taken all the tape away the thing would have fallen into teeny-tiny pieces. Resourceful? Perhaps, but what a waste o tape!
We ran out of paper towels yesterday. I think that's the first time that's happened in about 5 years. My kids won't know what to do in a papertowelless home. Sam's Club must be missing us. :)
LOL -- too funny!!! (And oh so true!)
I've never owned a can of air. I vacuum my computer with the brush attachment.
We rarely use paper towels. We use old rags and then wash them unless they are totally gross and disgusting.
String is more dangerous than tape. My kids tie everything - including important doors to important rooms - together. Just call me Spiderwoman.
I read a really sad account of father's story of losing his son to canned air. Apparently he found his son in bed with the little straw sticking out of his nose. He'd killed himself huffing Dust-off.
As for tape and Kleenex, I can so relate.
This post is such a good example of why you were nominated for a Blogger's Choice Award.
Oh so funny, and oh so true.
Like GE... you bring good things to light. :)
I agree with cursingmama. Band-aids go fast in our house, most of the time when there are no injuries. Of course we are the suckers that buy the barbie and strawberry shortcake branded boxes...
Our hot commodity? Baggies. Everything HAS to go in a baggie - snacks, leftover pop tarts, juice (yes), grass, rocks, boogers...it all goes in the baggie.
I love it! Same in our house - what drives me nuts is the individual drink boxes. Never mind that there's a cup right there - nope, it apparently just tastes better in a cardboard box with a straw....
How very true!
So true. And might I add Swiffer products, my 16 year old has chores and has to use the entire box of dusters or moppers to clean. And my hubby has a serious paper towel problem.
I'd have to include couch, throw rugs, broom, anything that can be moved at all, cat food, cat, novels without pictures (huh? why are they so interesting to 3 year olds?)...this list could go on all day.
I'm LOL at "the siren song of the individual applesauce." So, so true!
Ahhh...the taping phenomenon..I remember it well. I long for those days! And the days when 'dusting' was a household chore and not a way to get high. No canned air here. I'll take a dusty keyboard, thank you. Sigh.
Oh I laughed until I cried when I read this entry and the comments! I am so glad to there are other moms whose families use things, (Kleenex, paper towels, toilet paper, tape, canned air, etc!) like it is the end of the world!
Don't forget large caliber handguns and small batch premium whiskies. I sweat to GOD one more empty bottle of Craggamore and I'm gonna brain somebody.
Why be so specific....
We can't keep any food in the house :)