Applicant #42: Jacinta Paulk

Jacinta Paulk is a mom from Stanwood.

My video application:

A bit about me:

My name is Jacinta Paulk. I am a mother of two amazing children. My daughter is 9 and my son is 8. Currently I work for a medical insurance company, but I am looking to go back to school to finish my BS in Business.

I currently live in Stanwood and am blessed with the community and opportunities for my family. My children are both active in sports, typically more than one at a time, so that keeps me on my toes. If I am not working or running around being "Mom's Taxi" I am usually working on how to budget in fun for my family and finding healthy creative meals to cook.

I have never been one for sitting still, and that is one of the reasons I feel this opportunity would be perfect for me. I do my research and I love adventure.

Becoming a mother certainly didn't quiet or slow down my life, it has only made it that much more exciting. I love being creative and getting out and meeting new people.

My blog post:

With Halloween quickly approaching, my 9 year old daughter recently decided it was time for her to do some web surfing to figure out what she wanted to be. After several days of intermittent searching she finally announces she has found the costume. I go to the computer and see a very cute, very appropriate costume. She has found a long dress "Little Red Ridinghood" costume. I might say, considering some of the costumes they make for little girls, I am happy and impressed with what she has chosen. That is until I see the price! I even had to take a second look. Did that really say $60? $60 for something she will only wear for about two hours and likely never put on again? And that did not include the accessories. I am left to wonder if the companies making Halloween costumes are the same companies that make Wedding dresses.

Once the shock wears off, I am left with much to ponder. Do I buy the dress and hope that I can later sell it on Ebay and hope I can make a significant amount of the money I spent back, or do I find a cheaper alternative, and hope my daughter will be happy? Frankly, the later seems more feasible. As much as I would like to be that mom that can get my children exactly what they want, I am not.. And let's face it Mom's, most of us aren't. I know very few young families who aren't forced to budget. With many other holidays quickly approaching, I just can't justify spending $60+ on a costume (and might I add we still need to get my son a costume as well).

So, without telling my daughter no, i suggest we go to the store to see what we can find… tell her maybe we can make our own.. After a quick trip to Walmart, we find a perfect red velvet hooded cape. One that she is very happy with and only $9.95. Next, we head to the thrift store. My thoughts are that for something she will only wear for two hours, I am sure we can find something suitable, and if I need to alter it, I won't feel bad if I mess it up. After an hour of two hunting through the racks, we come away with a perfect dress (no alterations needed I might add), and a basket to finish the ensemble. And the two best parts about it…. my pocket book was only a total of $20 lighter and my daughter was just as happy with her costume as she would have been if I had ordered the $60 costume.

What have I learned from this.. first, there are always alternatives And much cheaper one's. It doesn't take much time or effort to find reasonable alternatives and still make everyone happy. The holidays can be trying for those of us trying to manage a budget, but they don't have to be impossible. Second, pick your battles with your children. In this case, my daughter picked an outfit I would have been very happy with (if it weren't for the price), age appropriate and wholesome. Just because Mom couldn't budge that much, didn't mean I needed to be negative with her..There are many times when "no" is the only solution, but in moments like these, it is okay to give them a "maybe". With my daughter, I didn't even have to go that far. I gave her the positive encouragement that I approved of her costume, but suggested we go look at the stores, just to make sure. In no time at all, we found a way to make her happy, and Mom's pocket book happy. Win Win.

Jacinta