5 budget busters!

I've been tagged! It's my first time so I'm pretty excited! This should be easy for me because it is "What are your five biggest budget busters?". For a family of four living on a Resident's salary a better question would be what doesn't bust our budget! But I will stay within the parameters of the tag because I've waited so long to get tagged I don't want to get blacklisted for not following the rules. So here it goes:

1. Publix - Their motto is "Where Shopping is a Pleasure" and they are truly right! Shopping is a wonderful pleasure at Publix - wide aisles, articulate young stock boys at every turn asking "Are you finding everything, Ma'm?", a free cookie for the kids, racecar shopping carts (see my other post about grocery shopping with young kids), and for the grand finale . . . special parking for "new and expectant moms" (which I have qualified for most of the last 3 years) unfortunately all of this comes with a price tag that is more that the local yucky Wal-mart. However, Publix has recently taken Rhett's favorite ice cream off the shelves and made it a "seasonal" item that won't be back until September. His ice cream was my last good excuse for shopping at the more {pleasant} expensive store so I guess I won't be back too often until September when Santa's White Christmas is back in the freezer section.

2. Been to the gas station lately? Even with a hybrid car and a smaller SUV that gets great gas mileage it is painful to see how much gas is carving out of our budget. I can't imagine filling up one of those monster SUVs. I hope the prices go down before we have to get something big enough to cart more kids around in.

3. A Disney vacation. Thankfully this is busting my parent's budget and not ours because if it were up to us we would have to stay in Valdosta and drive to the parks each day or we would have to hope our bank would see the value of the memories from a dream Disney vacation over several silly mortgage payments. Thanks Mom and Dad.

4. Half price children's clothes sales. There is no argument that a smocked Anavini bishop for $35 is a bargain (not to mention beautiful and very practical for how much wear you can get out of them) however it is not free. Good deals tend to be a budget buster for me.

5. The government. I despise taxes. Yes I know that I have to and should pay taxes but enough is enough! All of you economists and accountants hold on to your pantyhose because I have read the book, done some research and support the Fair Tax. There is a better way and I think this is it. Not that I think it will ever happen but I support it. I also have to mention that if I do have to pay city, county, state and federal taxes from my paycheck in addition to 9% sales tax on everything I buy I should at least drive on decent roads. Have you driven in Alabama recently - oh my where are my tax dollars going?