I love Target. Like really, really love it. So much so that back in the day, somewhere around 2005, my husband asked me to stop doing our grocery shopping there because every Monday morning, I would return from the Target with a new American Express charge for about $200. For groceries. For TWO PEOPLE. I don’t blame him for asking me to stop that. Because I wasn’t just buying groceries. I was buying cute sweatpants and workout DVDs and dog toys and socks and all of that would have been fine had they been things we’d actually needed. But they weren’t and so I stopped.

Then Pea came along, and I had a reason to go back to Target. Diapers. And then she started eating real food, and I had another reason to go. YoBaby smoothies. Target was the only place that sold them and you know, the books all say she has to have whole milk until her second birthday, and these are the only smoothies made with whole milk, and on and on and on, and so the love affair with Target was once again back on. And then, I started noticing how cute the little toddler girl clothes were. And then they started selling Erbaviva skincare for mommies right when I was pregnant with Coco. And then they started carrying this really cute line of bathcare for babies called Funky Farm (from England!) and then they started carrying the Boots beauty line from England (this “wonderbalm” is one of my all-time favorite products) and it was all over again. My trips for diapers and YoBaby smoothies were seriously turning into a major blow-out shopping spree every Monday morning. We’re talking major dough. And now, with Pea coming up on her 2nd birthday, I’ve switched her to a new smoothie made with low-fat milk, so we don’t need the YoBaby anymore, meaning that my only real reason to go to Target is for diapers. And then I found this website, 1-800-diapers that sells Pampers, and now I cannot think of one good reason to go to Target (except that there’s a Starbucks in it, but is that enough of a reason?).

I think we need to take a break. Not a break-up, just a break. A hiatus. Time to really take stock. Because I know that in my household, my husband and I are trying to be loyal to the FAMILY BUDGET. It’s a good budget, it’s been working for us for quite some time now. It’s fair and generous but also practical. We don’t go without in my household, but we also know when enough is enough. And quite honestly, enough is enough. I think Target is coming between us and our budget. No, I know it is. So, I’m officially calling it quits. I’m going to order my diapers (free shipping!) from the above-reference website and just steer clear of that side of town. For my marriage.