Inara Scott | Your Secret Indulgence

Right now, I have three things hidden in my sock drawer. Item one: a large bag of left-over Halloween candy. (To clarify, the bag is large, but the candy is mostly gone. Sad face.) Item two: a box of mini dark chocolate bars from Trader Joe’s. (Also mostly empty. See a theme here?) Item three: Hmm. Well, in the interest of decorum, let’s just say there is a three, and I really hope no one finds it.

These are my secrets. And as a mother of two, with two jobs, two cats, and two dogs (only one husband, thank goodness), I don’t have many secrets left. My closet gets raided by my daughter, who is now tall enough to steal my clothes. I find my shirts balled up in her laundry bin, my jewelry on her bedside table. She has also been known to rifle through my drawers in the bathroom looking for makeup, although she is NOT allowed to wear it to school. (And I mean it!)

My kitchen cupboards are regularly pillaged by my 6’4’’ fourteen year-old son. If I leave a speck of food unattended, it’s gone. I mean, GONE. I stopped buying ice cream when entire cartons would disappear in two days. Now I only buy raisin bran and whole wheat bread, because those are the two things he won’t eat and by God I need something for breakfast.

I suspect even if you don’t have kids at home, you know how hard it is to keep your indulgences to yourself. Whether it’s a roommate who knows where you hide that gorgeous velvet scarf or a husband who takes your People magazine before you get to read it, you know what I’m talking about. So you might have resorted to a little hiding yourself. It’s not something to be ashamed of, right? Sometimes we just need a little something secret. Just for us.

As the holidays approach, I’ll be looking for new hiding places. Partly because I don’t want anyone finding Item Three, above, but also because I am determined to have some surprises on Christmas morning. So I’ve got two questions for you: first, what are the secrets you’re hiding from your significant others? And second, where do you hide the presents?