So I was just reading on momlogic and there was a post about staying at home having an affordable valentine's dinner with your honey. I'm thinking, great i'd love that. i look at the recipe and then i think again. this is not affordable for me. here are the ingredients:

½ lb swordfish cut into eight bite-sized chunks
8 sea scallops
12 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 thin slices pancetta, cut in half
1 lb fresh angel hair pasta
1 bunch fresh asparagus tips
¾ cup pitted klamata olives
¼ cup jarred sun-dried tomatoes in oil
¼ cup olive oil
4-6 cloves finely chopped garlic
Juice from half a lemon
Fresh chopped herbs (whatever you have on hand)
Sea salt and pepper
Toasted pine nuts for garnish
Olive oil for grill pan

Sounds great, right? but by the time you buy all the ingredients ~especially the fish and the pancetta etc. it will be less expensive for me to go out to an inexpensive restaurant (ie. z-pies -pies start around $6) not to mention the fact that I need a babysitter. you'd think they would have thought of that on a site called momlogic. so i guess we will be going out to a nice, quiet, inexpensive dinner. YEAH!!! Thank you Lord for grandparents that are willing to babysit.

This is a frequent problem i have with the rest of the world, especially as of late. I hear about things that people say are affordable, and yes I admit it would probably be less expensive to prepare the dish at home than order it at a restaurant, but they really aren't affordable to the normal family who doesn't make much.
But i'm glad my husband and i will splurge and go out to dinner to celebrate our love for each other. although it's silly to choose just one or two days out of the year to celebrate a loving relationship. but maybe the point is that we take the time to remember.

rant for npr

so, i'm an NPRer. i barely ever listen to music on the radio anymore. and no, i did not watch the grammys. i don't know of any music out there on the radio worth giving an award to, or worth listening to really. anyhow, i love listening to npr but i do find at times npr is elitist. by that i mean they think everyone is green and has money. they refer to people's 401k's, their equity in their mortgage, their compost piles, their eco-friendly cars etc, etc.
today as i was making grilled cheese for my two little boys and listening as usual to my local npr station they had a segment about an article (i believe in the NY Times) about how the government wants to cap the salaries of ceo's to $500,000 a year. now the guy who wrote the article is talking about how these ceo's couldn't possibly be able to live on this meager amount of money and sustain their lives. of course that would be impossible with all the balls they are expected to attend (at least 3 a year) and they must buy new gowns for each ball, (only couture fashion here) and they have to have a personal trainer, personal chef and nutritionist to fit into these high priced gowns. of course with all they do they must have a nanny for their children (they couldn't possibly take the time to raise their own kids) probably more than one, because one nanny couldn't take each child to all the many extra curricular activities each child participates in. and of course these children must attend the best private schools and have the hottest clothes and gadgets while attending these schools. when these ceo's come home to their nice houses or penthouse apartments they look at their bills and pay each and every one, being sure to put aside money for their 401k, retirement, children's college funds, savings and of course money for that vacation they've been planning.
Oh if only these people lived in my world. i rent a small, over-priced house. my oldest son goes to a good state-preschool on the other side of town. while i am very lucky -my husband and i have decided for the moment i can stay at home with my youngest child. i get to raise my own children, the best job in the world, and i believe one of the most fulfilling. (if i did work my whole paycheck would be spent on childcare expenses.) i have no 401k, no retirement, no college funds, no savings, and no vacation fund. i'm not careless, i can't afford it. all my money goes to my bills. and we aren't extravagant. we don't have cable, or blockbuster. we don't have cell phones ( i know - we may be the only people on earth who don't). we have basic Internet because we need it for work. we don't go out to eat except the occasional fast food meal when we are rushing to an appointment or are out of food. we don't have the latest fashions. our guilty pleasure -books. every couple of months we get a good coupon from borders and buy some books, usually for our kids.
if a family of four can live on under $30,000 a year i think a ceo and his or her family could learn to live off of $500,000. move out of the cities, out of the expensive homes or penthouses. put your kids in public schools. get rid of your nannies. i'm sure you'll get by. i do.
now i'm not a socialist, and i'm not tring to complain about my life. my husband works very hard to provide for us. but don't complain to me about your meager salaries.

a trip to the city

Packed the fam in the car and drove to the city today. Had big expectations, as the last time I went I really enjoyed myself. But now I remember, that was without the kids. Did some business stuff and then went to walk around and have fun. Not too bad, but seems so different. A lot of shops are gone. This great sheet music store that I was really looking forward to is gone. Sad! :(
My oldest was not so well behaved, complained the whole time. Saw a restaurant we went to last time, but can't take the kids into. But got lots of exercise and ate lunch at Baja Fresh -delicious and not too pricey! Unfortunately capped off with a parking ticket :~< Had a quiet ride home, as the kids were sleeping. Next time want to go to some antique stores and leave the kids at home. A bright spot: saw a cool sign at a constuction site. looked like pop art. told my sig. fig. we I would hang it up in the dining room. would love to create a piece like it. wish i had had a camera , would have loved a pic.