When David told me he had spent our car savings, I was furious. But when he revealed what he’d spent it on—a trip to Paris for his mother—my anger shot through the roof. I couldn’t believe it. He had drained three years’ worth of hard-earned savings without even discussing it with me.
I knew I had to teach him a lesson.
Life in our house is chaotic but full of love. With three kids under ten, my days are a whirlwind of spilled cereal, missing socks, and heated debates over who gets the last waffle. By the time I drop them off at school, I’m running on fumes and cold coffee.
David, my husband, is a great dad and a dependable partner—except for one fatal flaw. He has a habit of making impulsive decisions.
I’ve learned to brace myself whenever he starts a sentence with, “So, I’ve been thinking…”
Like the time he decided to turn our garage into a home gym. “Think of the savings!” he had said, conveniently leaving out the thousands of dollars he spent on equipment.
Or the backyard project—he swore he’d build a treehouse for the kids. Instead, we ended up with a half-finished platform that sat there for weeks before he lost interest.
Still, we managed our finances well—at least, I did. We made plans, set goals, and stuck to them. And for the past three years, our biggest goal was to save for a new car.
Our current van had been with us since before we had kids. It had been through everything—road trips, soccer practices, emergency diaper changes in parking lots. But it was old, unreliable, and too small for a growing family.
We were finally there—after years of skipped vacations and sacrifices, we had saved enough for a solid down payment.
At least, I thought we had.
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