With Halloween upon us it makes me think of vices. I don’t have a problem with the bowls of candy we’ll be dishing out. No beef with having the leftover sugar load of my minions come November 1st. Snickers, no problem. Payday, go away. Laffy Taffy, get lost. Frosty coupons, to the recycling. However, if there was a house handing out K-Cups I’d be first in line and perform multiple costume changes until I cleaned her out. If Dunkin Donuts held a Halloween party, I’d camp outside the night before. If Starbucks had booklets to purchase to pass out to Trick-or-Treaters I would drive around to all stores within a 30 minute radius and buy each of them out. As you guessed it, my vice is the terrible C-word. COFFEE. The dark golden goodness that comes in all sizes and tastes across the world. Trick-or-treat? I think treat.

I gave up coffee when trying to get pregnant. Stayed away from it when Brax was little. Wouldn’t even smell it while breastfeeding. But then the twins were born. With their birth came breastfeeding and pumping for two hungry screamers several times during the night, not to mention no naps for this mommy because my then 2-year-old was no longer napping. So I gave in and started my love affair with good old Joe again (cup of Joe that is).  No one else in my household drinks it, which means all the more for me. I read the other day that I am one of millions in America that has a crippling morning crutch.  I got up and refilled my cup and silently cheered to my fellow coffee drinkers.

It angers my addicting personality that every money saving article I read refers to dropping purchasing a cup of coffee outside your home. Who invented this tip? Not a mom, not a coffee drinker. I don’t allow myself much so why can’t I spend a dollar or two on a cup of dark, rich goodness? Don’t get me wrong, I ‘m not out there buying coffee every day but if I’m on the road or need a moment of sanity after preschool drop-off I’ll stop for my deep dark roasted treat. Which leads me to justifying buying coffee from your local coffee shop (aka Dunkin Donuts, McDonald’s, Starbucks) rather than making it for yourself at home: I get it free any which way that I can (or as I think of it, trick-or-treating for coffee).

Unlike Halloween candy, your neighbors aren’t happily opening their doors filling your pot with liquid gold but someone somewhere is giving it away for free. Dunkin Donuts has DD Perks, when you sign up you get a free coffee plus you get deal via email and app. I enter small contests to win free coffee, a $5 gift card to Starbucks is at least two coffees. I rack in the diaper points with all the poopy diapers I change and restock, did you know these same diaper companies offer coffee gift cards for redeemed points?! So do other companies like Kellogg’s and Chase Banking. Bring on the free coffee. Within just the last 3 months I won a card for $5 on Facebook, redeemed cereal points for $5 and diaper points for $10. Then there are loyalty programs. This means I get free coffee for drinking coffee, sounds good to me.  Many local coffee shops and even your neighborhood 7-11 have these. Last but not least, don’t forget coupons. I’m always finding free cups of caffeine loveliness in the paper.

Over the years I’ve gone from drinking coffee all day when I was just out of college to drinking decaf when trying to get pregnant to drinking none while pregnant. I’ve drank it black, iced, hot with cream and sweetener and nowadays with full fat coconut milk the good old Paleo way. I’m sure in the years to come my tastes will change and I may even give it up. But for now it’s my one bad habit, my one treat among the tricks I deal with on a typical morning around here. And I am okay with that, so bring those hell raising tricksters on 🙂

Feel free to share: What are your treats to deal with your tricks? What vices do you dabble in?