Kicking the Habit

Do you have a habit you need to kick or an addiction you need to break? 

I did.  I had a Diet Coke habit.  I say "habit" rather than "addiction" because I always knew I could give them up whenever I wanted to.  It wasn't something I just "had" to have.  I just wanted it because I liked it...I liked the taste.

I need to clarify, though.  I didn't just like Diet Coke (referred to as D.C. from now on) by itself.  I liked it with cherry syrup.  And, I didn't  like it in a can or in a bottle or even from most fountain drink places.  No, I was very, very picky about my D.C. I liked my D.C. with real cherry syrup from Sonic Drive In and occasionally from Wayne's Drive In, which is in Lawton, Oklahoma.  And, I must (sadly) even go further in my problem.  I didn't even like all of the Sonics.  I know the ones that taste the best (because of the water in the town/location) and I have all of the special prices down by memory. 

The closest Sonic is 15 minutes away from our home, in a nearby town.  Even though there was a morning drink special or a Happy Hour special, it still added up - from the D.C. (and my husband's Diet Dr. Pepper) and the gas to get to the Sonic.

Everyone that knows me knows of my habit.  In fact, as a special end of school gift to me from several of the teachers (for organizing the PTO every year), I was given a gift card to Sonic.  A $50.00 gift card actually - and TWO of them!  I was soooooooo excited and they helped support my habit for a month (with a few treats for my children sometimes).

So, what made me decide to kick the habit?  Well, from time to time I would cut back on the D.C. on my own - knowing that I should for my health and my pocket book.  But gradually, I would always go back up to more.  Several months ago, Laura at Heavenly Homemakers wrote about how she had given up Pepsi.  That got me to thinking about giving up D.C.  I thought about it, but never committed.  But last week I was thinking again about giving them up and Trey Morgan wrote this blog post.  The next day on Facebook he said there were 40 committed to kicking the habit.  I commented to him on Facebook that I was actually thinking about it, but I just wasn't quite ready then (mostly due to the fact I had a D.C. waiting for me in the fridge and I didn't want to waste it!).

But then, the next day, Trey wrote this blog.  This post pricked my heart and made me totally committed to giving up something I had done for years and years.  This was the exact thing I needed to read to make me kick the habit.  A free trip to Honduras....a place I want my family to go and serve some day.

So, for this Gratituesday, I say "thank you" to Laura and to Trey and to others who have committed to kicking the habit. 

The only thing I feel badly about, is that one of the workers at the Sonic in Frederick may lose their job because of my absence. 

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!