Pardon the pun here but this post has been brewing in my head for many weeks. I thought about calling this post “Alcohol + Caffeine” but decided “Wine + Coffee” was more appealing. As it turns out, the post is about all four.

The reason the word alcohol isn’t as appealing as the word wine is because the general use of the word alcohol has a serious connotation. Wine, on the other hand, sounds like JOY, FUN, RELAXING, CELEBRATORY, SPECIAL, ACCEPTABLE - wait more than acceptable - DESERVING. There is an entire industry that exists just to support the wine swag, wine memes, wine decorations and wine essentials. Wine or any kind of alcohol is such a part of our American culture these days. Especially because the whiskey/bourbon and tequila connoisseurs continue to crop up. But in general, wine has mass appeal.

Please allow me to show off below just some of the fun thoughtful pinches that I have received because friends and family know how much I love wine, champagne and Prosecco. The wine-themed gifts market exists because people are readily spending money for these items. Look at all my blessings.

The topics of alcohol (wine) and caffeine (coffee) bubbled up to the surface when I went to Keystone with my son for his pond hockey tournament (he won!). When I was there, away from home, I realized how simple it was for me to “day drink” because I was only in charge of my son on that trip. It was very safe where we were and the hockey families looked after each other. I drank loads of wine at the team lasagna dinner and the next night, margaritas at the team enchilada dinner. I surprised myself because I also enjoyed Irish Creme in my coffee in the mornings and had a nice buzz going during the day. I thought about all the times I can’t drink during the day because I’m the only one holding down the fort, which consists of two teens and two dogs, for 3/4 of the year. With the amount of driving I do, the amount of day to day decisions that need to be made - I can’t drink during the day. I can drink, no one is saying I can’t but I really choose not to.

And while I was up in Keystone, I thought about coffee a lot. I am not much of a coffee drinker but I really wish I was. I wish I could tolerate caffeine because I love the taste of coffee so much. Black. Nothing in it. Just like how cowboys drink it. My sleep patterns are thrown off when I have caffeine and if I am not careful, I could be up all night. Getting no sleep wreaks havoc on my need to be 100 percent the next day. So even though I know I can have a cup of coffee, I usually choose not to or I have decaf.

Starbucks. We all know why Starbucks is a billion dollar plus company. It’s because the caffeine addiction has spread to our tweens and teenagers - everyone wants Starbucks. When teens are with their friends or their parents, they spend more money than the average person who buys a cup of Pikes Place Roast. Besides, we parents think going to Starbucks is much safer than letting them hang out somewhere else so we’re totally fine if our kids shell out $8 for a cup of sweetened ice. The one thing that bothers me is that THERE IS CAFFEINE in most coffee venues’ drinks and if we’re not careful, even the fun fruity teas have caffeine in them.

One of my reasons for bringing up alcohol and caffeine today is that as a Mama Bear, I am trying hard to keep the caffeine intake for my teens at a minimum but it’s very hard. The joy these kids have when they receive plastic cups of syrupy drinks makes me happy but I hate it. I really do. It’s a treat but it’s NOT because caffeine is addicting. The dependency on caffeine is real. Ask anyone who regularly drinks coffee and has to go without it for a day. Think about the kids tolerance level by the time they really need it. The need for more and more caffeine for these young people is concerning. So I’m torn: I love providing a joyful experience for my kids simply by stopping to get them a coffee treat. But the worry I have for their bodies is weighing heavily on my shoulders.

Circling back to alcohol. And before you panic - I can’t, and I won’t, bring up teens and drinking alcohol in this post. I am neither qualified nor ready to discuss teens and alcohol. However, along the same lines as “treats” - I love having a drink to celebrate any occasion. Wash Away the Day is my mantra. And when I stop to think of every occasion I could have a drink, I could see how it would be tough to have a Dry January or give up alcohol for Lent or for a New Year’s diet etc. There is no good time to give up alcohol because we have many reasons to have a glass of wine. So when I watch shows like Yellowstone and see the character Beth drinking at all hours of the day, there is a real pang of jealousy. Which is completely weird because I don’t want to be an alcoholic, I just want to have nothing else I need to be in charge of some times.

The point I am making in a round about way, is that whether it’s caffeinated drinks becoming every day pinches for our kids or alcoholic drinks being a reason to celebrate every day for adults, I feel like as a society, we are “over-treating” ourselves. And I worry about that. I remember when my hub would only drink a latte while on vacation but only once. Then it turned to twice while on vacation, then gradually every day while on vacation. Now it’s every day which is totally fine because he is a grown adult. This is what is happening to our kids. And I recall being a new mom and having drinks on a Friday at dinner. Then the second kid came along and it was drinks on Friday and Saturday. By the time my son was two, my weekends started on a Wednesday and went thru to Sundays.

I’m not judging anyone who drinks both coffee and alcohol every day. In fact, in most European countries it is normal to have both drinks daily and I feel like it is very healthy. I just wish we wouldn’t over do these two beverages and have more restraint.

Lately I have been bringing my faith into the mix and so here I am doing it again. As I think out loud here, I wonder how many can relate: 1. Caffeine effects me so much that I didn’t even eat chocolate for 7 years. 2. Because I am in charge 24/7, drinking daily, especially day drinking, is kind of impossible to do at this stage of my life. 3. I have also discovered that as I get older, if I drink more than two days in a row (while in the US - for some reason Costa Rica is not applicable to my theory) I gain weight. When I look at these three restraints as blessings and not curses, I feel as if these safety measures for me are natural by design. I think God is making sure that I am not really able to over “treat” myself.

I’ll finally wrap this post up by again by referring to Beth fromYellowstone. In season five she proclaims, “I am not starting this day out sober.” when she is faced with a confrontation early in the morning. I actually laughed so hard because those words will not probably come out of my mouth until I’m an empty-nester - which will be here soon - but still off in the distance. I’ve accepted this, but I can still share that I am jealous.

Pinches,

Barb