I Have Issues!

First off, we are home and arrived in one piece. During the flight I was thinking to myself that the Princess figurine souvenir set for Madeline was the BEST $13 I ever spent! She played with them for about an hour and a half of the flight. I would've given her a 10 out of 10 but she lost it upon the final descent into Buffalo. No, it wasn't her ears that sent her over the edge. She was simply exhausted, wanted to lay down on the seat without the seat belt, but couldn't because we were about to land. Once Madeline got worked up, there was no consoling her. But a 5 minute meltdown during the end of a 2 1/2 hour flight was still pretty good considering how much we were running her ragged over the past few days.

As for my "issues" David thinks I am a freak. I just know that I have "Grandma Jimmie-itis". My maternal Grandmother Odziemiec (Jimmie for short) lived through the Great Depression and became conditioned to *never* pass up a freebie. She would leave a senior's luncheon with extra treats in her purse for later. One time in particular there was a celebratory function to commemorate the anniversary of the place from where my grandfather retired. I think that the stuff my grandma got out of there fed my grandparents and my family for a week. Well, my mom learned from my grandma and I learned from my mom. Of course, each generation still loses a bit of this skill but I think I would still make my grandmother proud.

The Orlando hotel left nice things in the room for our use. Nice name brand items. Starbucks coffee, Tazo tea, and Bath & Body Works shampoo, conditioner, soaps and lotion (my favorite scent too) And the flight down also offered toothpaste. For anyone not familiar with these name brands left by the hotel, these are not cheap. I wouldn't do this for no-name brands, but this was good stuff. So, each day, I tucked away any of the unopened items into my suitcase so that housekeeping would fully replenish our stock when they cleaned the room. David makes fun of me. He says I am "stealing" these items. How can I be stealing them if they are giving them to us for our use? Isn't it part of the room rate? Keep in mind that David picked up every possible freebie available with his conference (flashlights, mugs, mints, chocolate, etc) David says that the conference items are gifts.....hmmmm?? I just don't see a difference. So my question is, where do *you* stand on this? What are your thoughts?

And by the way, don't be surprised if you see Coconut Lime Verbena lotion in your stocking this Christmas....