Happy Fat Tuesday, friends! I thought I’d update you on our Lenten promises.

So we decided not to do the water-only thing. It just wasn’t something we felt called to do after all. We realized that we would be giving up most of that within our existing promises (no Starbucks, no alcohol at the grocery store), so we opted out. I hope you don’t think we’re wusses!

So the final Lenten promises:

* No spend means no money spent on anything but gas, groceries and bills. No exceptions. No blow money. Nothing. I’m excited about this.

* Handwriting a letter a day. I’m very excited about this. I’m wondering how many people I’ll have to ask for addresses. Want mail from me? Shoot me your address at questionsfordessert at gmail dot com and I’ll work you in!

With those goals means I need to do some Fat Tuesday gluttonous behavior. And it is funny how excited I’m getting about going to the mall today! My final shopping binge will look like this:

* GAP! I love Gap. And I want new pajama pants. I have 2 pair, one I bought for my pre-wedding girls’ trip to Chicago in 2003 and another that I bought with a gift card at Christmas 2005-ish. And they are getting pretty see-through. I typically can’t justify $40 for pajama pants, but between a 20% off coupon and a gift card I got with credit card points, I should be able to come out of the store pretty much even.

* Sephora! I am in desperate need of new mascara and I have a $25 gift card from Christmas. So, again, I should come out of there even. Oh, I hope I can get out of there with my debit card still in my purse.

* Sporting goods store. I need to buy some fuel for our upcoming runs (even though these will be worked into our grocery budget because they are necessary). No gift cards here, I’m just buying because I’ll already be at the mall.

* Joseph Beth. I love our local bookstore. And they have beautiful paper products, which I need for my Lenten Letter Project. I have a $25 Christmas gift card to spend there as well, and I’m hoping to not have to dish out much more.

* Somewhere with a prepaid card section. This purchase is my only “cheat” for Lent. I became slightly distraught when I realized that both the Hunger Games movie and soundtrack come out during Lent. I am cheating and buying an iTunes card that will be earmarked for the soundtrack. I decided that I was allowed to cheat with one or the other, and I didn’t feel like committing to a specific movie showing over a month in advance. So I expect to be at the movies right after Easter service.

* Barnes and Noble. Nathan has the job of picking up the new Chieftan’s cd and the Josh Ritter EP today. And the majority of this purchase will also be covered with a gift card.

So that’s my Fat Tuesday. Lots of buying going on, but mostly with Christmas gifts. I am so excited about shopping day that I can’t hardly focus on work.

Are you celebrating Fat Tuesday? Getting one last hit of your Lent vices? I’d love to hear about it!