Warning: Vent

I am standing in line at the grocery store last Thursday minding my own business, thinking why can't I just come in the store get what I came in here for and leave...but no, I wanted fish for dinner so I grabbed some salmon and tilapia. I grab bananas and I go to the baby isle and stock up just as usual. I grab juice and 2 gallons of whole milk. And I am standing there thinking maybe its under $100 as I grab my debit card from my purse. In front of me, is a lady with 4 children....all under the age of 5! Bless her, I am thinking! Twins, in my unexperienced opinion, would be a whole lot easier than a variety of ages all within a year or two from each other. So I am not really paying attention to all her groceries but I am thinking "Wow I bet she goes through milk" as the cashier scans her milk, her juice, cheese and then the lady gets her total. And pulls out her WIC check.

Now I am all about helping people. A temporary help to get them back on their feet. What crosses my mind though is that MY tax dollars are paying for this lady to have 4 children, which she cannot afford. But hey, she gets WIC and she gets extra tax money back, why wouldn't she keep having children? The government and we as society enables this. But even all that, what I had a problem with was her other groceries, ribs and steaks. I mean $20 ribs and who knows how much the steaks were and she pulls her cash out of her purse! Seriously I am becoming so jaded towards this type of thing. Just the other day, a girl....YES GIRL was in front of me trying to get cash off of her ebt card so that she could buy cigarettes. This is one thing that I can get on my soap box with and just ride all night. Thank goodness you can absolutely not get cash off of an ebt card.

Why does this bother me you ask? Because I work. I am a working mother. I have to leave my children every day and go to work to help provide for my family. Its not to have "nice things" or compete with the Jones'. I have to get up at 3:30/4 a.m. after getting up with my children all night, and I have to drive an hour to work, work all day, come home and still do my wifely/motherly duties. This is a subject that I bite my tongue on A LOT but you know what, I am starting to think that is the problem, we...that work....bite our tongues and let people take advantage of the system. Its a good thing that I love my job, because guess what, I have to work! I am one of the few fortunate ones that has a career that I adore. But not more than my children. But that is life and that is part of it. I love it when people make comments about me leaving my children ....like I have a choice. And I love it when people on WIC lecture me about being a good mother and being there for my children. Let me let you in on a secret.....If it weren't for me getting up and going to work, you wouldn't have WIC. So in essence, I enable YOU to stay home with your children.

I could easily join Glen Beck, unfortunately I think his show was canceled. I'm not against food stamps, WIC, unemployment money, etc. I think its a great thing. But unfortunately the point of this was lost somewhere. In my opinion, if you get unemployment money, which unfortunately there are A LOT of people on it now because of our economy status, but I think there should be rules that go along with it. You should have to spend x amount of time during the week looking for a job. I think you should also spend x amount of time volunteering your time for the community. With WIC I think you should only be able to use it for one child. WIC is being used to let people just keep having children when they really can't afford them. I have seen mothers be in line at Walmart with the brand new DVD that just came out in Disney, limited edition and then use WIC. EBT cards should be regulated to only pay for certain foods. I think it should cover off brands. You think thats harsh? I buy off brands. I don't think it should cover junk food either. It should cover the basic food groups and needed staples for a family to be healthy.

I know this post is me just going off and it seems like I am bitter, but I'm not. I'm tired. I'm tired of time being taken away from my children so other people can live off of me. I'm tired of the morals and values of good work ethic and pride for oneself has gone out the door. And I am tired of "entitlement". You don't deserve anything. You work for it and you feel a sense of self worth when you earn something. High schools need to be training money management skills to the students. I hear about people having money issues ...and then going on two vacations.

Well the post is not going to change anything, maybe I should run for office and start changing things where it starts or maybe I will just continue doing what I am doing and smiling at those that are in front of me in the checkout lane. Yes, I think I will do that and bring my children up to know better.