Fall fun.

Being a cheapskate isn't always all it's cracked up to be.  Here's why: it sucks all the joy out of any family outing costing more than, say, $10.  To illustrate, I will compare two outings we've taken this fall.  The first was a long drive up into the mountains to some natural hot springs along the river.  It didn't cost a dime.  Sure, we froze our patookies off looking for just the right pool to fit our family without scalding ourselves, then we froze them again trying to get access to a bathroom in the vicinity, but we had a fantastic time!  The backside of the Sawtooth Mountains was our backdrop, the sound of the Payette River accompanied the girls' squeals of delight, and we were shrouded in a glorious mist and early fall color to complete the effect.   Here we are:

Completely worth the drive.  And completely free so we didn't mind spending a bit of cash in Idaho City for yummy lunch on the way.

On the other hand, we spent a night last week at the pumpkin patch.  It's not that we didn't have fun, it's that forking out a ton of cash puts on the pressure to get a return on the investment.  Plus, the kids kind of get the "gim-me's" when they know you're spending money because, to them, mom and dad have an endless supply of resources to be spent at will... on them, of course.  Still, it was a gorgeous fall evening - and we even made it didactic by tying our experience getting lost in the corn maze to our journey through life.  So, yay!  A fistful of money well spent, right?  Sort of.  My point is, sometimes the simplest (and often most inexpensive) things are the best.  And that doesn't just apply to cheapskates.