What is wrong with Instant gratification anyway?

All hail The instant gratification generation!

Lately, with Christmas looming, I’ve been wondering what to buy for family members.  All the Christmas songs make it sound easy and fairly inexpensive.  After all, isn’t a personal handmade gift something to be treasured?  Sorry to say this is not so for the instant gratification generation! 

Instant gratification, so what does that mean?  Well, when a young adult sees a material thing they desire, whether it be a car, television set, expensive handbag or shoes, they buy it.  There is no waiting for the right time, a holiday, birthday or event.  They want it; they get it, right there and then.  If they cannot afford it there are always deferred payments, sales, and plastic.  After all, if they wait they may lose out.

Don’t get me wrong, we, the parents are responsible for this trend.  We’ve told them from the time they could walk that they deserve the best.  We’ve supported bad decisions, and helped them out of a debt countless times.  After all, they are adults.  They know the consequences, or do they?

The dangers of instant gratification are many.  High-interest rates, bad credit ratings, and money spent on impulse, when it could be used for more important things like rent and food. 

And what does this generation do when they become parents themselves.  They can no longer give in to the instant gratification to which they have grown accustomed.  They must sacrifice for their progeny.  They must become us, giving until there is nothing left to give.

I remember when I was a young mother.  My daughter was on top of the list.  Whatever she needed came first.  I wore my clothes till they were out of style.  I drove a used car.  I cooked dinners because restaurants were out of the question.  I paid my bills on time and my credit was immaculate. 

When my mother raised my three siblings and myself, she deprived herself of anything frivolous. If there was one piece of pie left, she cut it into four pieces and left none for herself. I believe that if there was a drought that woman would have died of thirst before she let us go without.

I am afraid for the instant gratification generation.  We, their parents will not walk this earth forever and one day they will have to depend upon only themselves.  They will have to sacrifice.  I hope that any new mother will teach their children unselfishness.  I hope that new mothers will sacrifice only when necessary and teach their children that instant gratification is not always possible. Unfortunately, as we age, we learn.  Maybe we learn too late.

I am afraid for the children of today. Every time  I enter a store there are always children crying and demanding their parents give in to their demands. And they do.  That, my friends, is instant gratification in its infancy.  And we only have ourselves to blame.

Upcycled zipper charm bracelet tutorial

Use an old zipper to make a new charm bracelet.  This is a great teen or tween crafting idea.  This is such a simple project that is terrific to make during those snow days when there is nothing to do.  I’ve used word charms but you can use any sort of charms you like. For a super upcycle, you can remove a zipper from an old piece of clothing or just purchase a new zipper.

Supplies:

7-inch metal zipper

Oval jump rings

Large crimp bead for clasp

Lobster claw clasp

Medium jump rings

Charms of choice

Lighter or stop fray fabric glue

Scissors

Needle nosed pliers

Instructions:

1.     Cut the fabric close to the zipper with scissors.  Use the lighter to run over the edges to keep it from fraying, or you can use stop fray fabric glue and let it dry.

2.     Using the needle nosed pliers attach the crimp bead fro the clasp to the non-opening end of the zipper.  Squeeze it tightly.

3.     Open a large round jump ring twisting to open rather than pulling apart.  Add to the crimp bead and then add the lobster claw clasp.  Close the jump ring, twist to close.

4.     Add a second jump ring to the zipper pull.

5.     Using oval jump rings twist to open and add the desired charm.  Attach to the zipper and twist back to close.  Continue adding charms down the length of the zipper. 

Free apple bookmark printable

click for free printable

You may wonder where I’ve been lately.  First off, my hubs and I took an impromptu road trip to help our 22-year-old son in the military drive his car all the way across country.  Comfort was in short supply in a tiny little car that was so low to the ground that I hit the ceiling whenever we drove over a pebble!

We are also in the middle of redecorating our family room.  If you’ve ever started a project in a home you have lived in for several years then you have also opened the proverbial “can of worms”.  How so?  Well, after the painting, we had to get a new carpet.  After the carpet we had to get a new sofa.  After the sofa we had to get a better TV stand.  After the TV stand…well you get the drift. 

So as a result my blogging has gotten a bit lax.  After all, waiting 4 weeks for a sofa delivery has sort of displaced a lot of things.  I can barely find a chair to sit in so creativity has taken a back seat.

I know that school is either in session or almost ready so I am reposting a free apple coloring bookmark printable from my other blog Make it easy crafts that you may have missed.  Get them reading…and coloring.  And enjoy those little ones before they get old enough to buy a car for looks alone!

Busy, busy, busy

No time to sit back and relax?

Now that my daughter has graduated from college and my son is in the air force, one would think that my life should be settled down.  I shouldn’t be so busy. I should be getting bored right about now, right?  Um… no.

Life, I find, is kind of like a pail of water.  You stick your hand in that pail of water and when you take it out, guess what?  The space it was taking up in that pail of water is already full.

Your kid’s grow up and you think that things won’t be so busy, after all you don’t have to pick them up after track and you don’t have to take them for this lesson or that lesson.  Homework is no longer an issue.  Unfortunately that’s not how it goes.  Other things just take up that space! 

It’s even the same at the grocery store.  When all the kids were home and I went to grocery store I practically had a coronary every time the cashier gave me the receipt.  I don’t think I ever saw my son when he wasn’t consuming something.  I don’t know for sure, but I’d swear he even ate in his sleep.  A gallon of milk every two days was the norm. The refrigerator became an additional cooling device during hot summer days thanks to the door swinging open every few minutes.

Now it’s just the hubby and I.  We eat out a bit more.  I buy ultra-pasteurized milk in the quart size every three weeks or so. I don’t use near as much paper towels but even so, when I get the bill for my groceries each week, it’s the same!

Ok, so long gone are the days of picking up my daughter from a friend’s house with two different shoes my feet while she looks at me with the obligatory eye roll. (I mean just how do they roll their eyes like that and not get a headache?) And I won’t rush out of the house with my shirt on inside out while I try and make it on time to a PTA meeting. Even so, I still feel like there are not enough hours in the day to finish my do to list.  Yup, a pail of water.