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I should have known better.

Usually I put a hard stop to the up-sell, but the cosmetics salesperson caught me at a vulnerable moment.

I'd come in to get my makeup done for a party. The bright fluorescent light at the makeup station spotlighted every age spot and discoloration.

"Are you wearing at least SPF 30 every day?" asked the makeup artist. Nope, not year-round, I had to admit. After our session, she led me back to the sunscreen section. As I was browsing, desperate to prevent further sun damage, another salesperson pounced.

"How do you take off your make-up?" he asked. "I'm just a soap-and-water gal," I said, putting up a little resistance.

"That's fine," he said, "but let me show you this amazing Japanese-inspired cleansing system." Too much time and money later, I left with a special cleansing oil and a fancy clay-based sponge. That night, I dutifully used the new oil and sponge to remove my make-up and hung the sponge in the shower to dry.

The next evening, my husband emerged smiling from the bathroom. "Is that your sponge that our son is using?"

I walked in to find him reclining in the tub, gently cleaning his (ahem) with my new sponge. I rinsed it thoroughly and found a new hiding place.

My friends wanted to know - would I use it again? Of course. I'm a mom. Rinse and repeat.

- Courtney Bennett

Courtney Bennett is the mom of three kids, two typically developing girls and a boy with special needs. In addition to parenting and blogging, she works in education policy for a university. She has contributed pieces to Sunset magazine, Psychology Today, parenting magazines, public radio and the op-ed pages of The Philadelphia Inquirer. She spent a long time in school avoiding the real world and holds a Ph.D. in communications and an MSc in social psychology.