Some food totals so far for April...

Groceries: $284.09
Restaurants: $91.47
Starbucks: $37.50
-------------------------
Total: $413.06

And 11 days left to go in April. I did just go grocery shopping yesterday, so I won't have to do a major shop for at least a week. I'll spend $10-$15 tomorrow at the farmer's market, most likely. I feel like I'm obsessed with these three categories and yet doing very little to change them. I'm doing some things, but truth be told I'm not doing nearly as much as I could. I nickel and dime it by saving stamps with online bill pay, only to go blow the equivalent of 7 stamps on one latte. Ten again, I'd be buying the latte anyway, given my habits, so saving some stamps is still a savings. The point is that it doesn't add up to much.

I wish cooking were different here. I wish it was something the family did together, that it didn't feel like a chore that has fallen into my lap by virtue of being the at-home parent. It wasn't so much my responsibility when we were two-incomes, no kids. I've talked about this with DH and he is just as unhappy at times with how we've fallen into these very traditional gender roles. We both crave more balance.

Cooking - maybe it's time to try and get DD more involved. And I mean truly involved an not just pouring the ingredients once they have been measured. Get her to help plan some menus, do some shopping, really get in there and be part of the process. Maybe it would have more meaning to me if we did that, as opposed to the way I view it now - something that has to be done by someone, and that someone is usually me.

Sometimes I want to go out to dinner because I get sick of eating the same old things here.