Diane and her teenage daughter, Adele, were at the mall shopping for
winter school clothes.  The budget was a little strict.  Larry had laid
down the law, explaining that there was a good investment opportunity on
the horizon which would really boost Adele's college fund but which also
required some temporary budget cutting.  $200 would have to do.

"Let's see," Diane mused, "You really need some new sweaters, your old
ones are quite worn."

"They're too small, too," Adele said with a small smile, thrusting out her
developing chest just a little.  Diane gave her daughter a sideways glance
that said "Watch it, young lady," and Adele ducked her head and giggled. 
She knew better than to misbehave on shopping trips.  The last time she
had tried that she'd gotten a spanking from both parents.  They were
really good about backing each other up.  

"Also, one new dress and a new pair of jeans for school.  That should do it."

The two stepped into a modest clothing store and started hunting.  Luck
was with them...there was a sale on.  

Diane was impressed with the quality of the sale merchandise.  Everything
was 2 for 1.  "You know," she told Adele, "if we buy some items a little
larger, we could get enough to last you 2 winters for the price of 1!"  

Adele frowned just a little.  Her mother's plan was practical, but it
didn't take changes in fashion into account.  Still, she knew that what
her mother had taught her about shopping, to buy conservative items like
straight-legged jeans because they always stayed in style, was true and
could be relied on.  Besides, self-indulgent pouting resulted in spanking
in this family.    

They picked out what Adele needed and moved onto dresses.  "We'll get you
a new Sunday dress and then you can wear your current one to school,"
Diane suggested.  Adele browsed until she found the perfect dress.  Both
she and her mother were so elated with the smooth hunter green velvet,
with it's tight waist and full skirt, that it was slipped right off the
rack and into the fitting booth without a glance at the price tag.  And of
course, once Adele had tried it on, it looked like it was made for her. 
Neither mother nor daughter could think of not buying it.

But then Diane peeked at the price tag.  Way too much.  She sighed.  They
either had to find a cheaper dress or give up the extra sale items.  And
Diane just couldn't part with such sale bargains.  

Adele bounced on her toes with eagerness.  She wanted the dress so badly! 
She wouldn't dare say so, because she'd get spanked for that, but there
were other ways to convince her mother.  So she bounced endearingly and
spun around entrancingly and generally did what it took to enchant her
mother.  And Diane caved.  She bought the dress and all the sale items. 
Larry would just have to find another way.

On the way home, the women grew more sober.  Adele stole furtive glances
at her mother, worried about what would happen when they got home.  Diane
drove with a puckered forehead, thinking it out.  Finally Adele asked,
"What are you going to tell Daddy?"

Diane drew a deep breath and let it out.  "I'll think of something," she said.

She considered not telling Larry right away.  No, that was a bad idea. 
Not only would the trouble be harder to fix if it waited until the bill
came, but that was cruel, setting him up for such a pinch like that.  No,
she'd have to 'fess up immediately.  He'd be angry, but when he saw the
dress on Adele and heard how thrifty they had been buying 2 years' clothes
for the price of one, he'd work something out.

"Adele, put the dress on as soon as we get home," Diane told her daughter.

After supper that evening, Adele presented her father with a little
fashion show in his den.  Larry was impressed, especially with the dress. 
He smiled at his wife and asked "How did you get all this for $200?"

Adele and Diane looked at each other and gulped.  "Well, you see,
darling," Diane explained to her husband, "we went a little over budget. 
By about $75.  But we really saved so much that I just couldn't make any
other choice."

Larry frowned, but he would never jump to conclusions about the women in
his life.  He pointed to Adele.  "Was that the cheapest dress they had?"

"Well, no," Diane said.

"Couldn't you have bought the sale items and a different dress for $200?"

"Well, yes, but...that dress is perfect for Adele!  See how good she looks
in it?"

Larry glanced at his daughter, who was bouncing on her toes again.  Larry
knew that deferential gesture of desire.  "Adele looks lovely in anything
because she is a well-behaved young lady.  It doesn't take an expensive
dress to make her look good.  And," he added, turning to address his
daughter directly, "you knew as well as your mother that the dress was too
expensive for the budget, didn't you?"  

Adele dropped from her tippy-toes back to earth and ducked her head.  She
couldn't answer her father.   Larry turned from her back to his wife,
addressing them both.

"You both understood when you left why I had to limit your spending money
today.  I know the dress is beautiful.  I know you're enchanted by it. 
But that's no excuse.  We had a goal, a goal I set for the benefit of this
family after discussing it with you." 

He turned back to his daughter.  "Adele, go to your room and take off the
dress.  I'm going to come up there and give you a spanking."

Adele obeyed, leaving Larry alone with his wife.  

"Diane, I'm really disappointed in you.  We're going to discuss this as
soon as I've finished with Adele.  I want you to wait here for me."  Then
he went to deal with his daughter.

Adele sat on her bed waiting for her father.  She had removed the dress
and was now dressed in her sleeveless t-shirt and underwear.  When Larry
saw her sitting there, the little silk bow on the cotton t-shirt quivering
on her chest, he felt sorry for the child.  But she had to learn
responsibility and sacrifice.  Larry sat down beside her and took her on
his lap.

"Adele, I'm sorry I have to punish you.  And I'm sorry the dress has to go
back.  But I have to tell you, I'm disappointed in you and your mother.  I
thought I could count on the 2 of you to make responsible choices for this
family, just like I try to do."

Adele blushed red with shame and began to cry silently, her lower lip
trembling.

"After I spank you, I'm going to spank your mother, too.  Then I want the
2 of you to return the dress together, come back home, and spend the rest
of the evening in your rooms, thinking about what I've said.  Is that
understood?"

Adele nodded, still crying silently.  Without another word Larry lifted
her from his lap and turned her over his knee.  He took down her panties
and gave her a sound hand-spanking.  He didn't scold her any further,
feeling she already understood quite clearly why she was being spanked. 
But after a good hand-spanking, he paused and said, "Now I'm going to use
the hairbrush to be sure you learn your lesson, Adele."  

The hairbrush was on her nightstand, where it was always available for
Larry to use if Adele needed spanking.  He picked it up, turned it in his
hand a few times to get a good grip, and then spanked his daughter good
and hard with it.  Adele squirmed and sobbed over her father's need while
he gave her a good, hard punishing spanking.  When he was finished, he
stood her up and sent her to the bathroom to wash her face with one last
hard spank on her bottom.  Then he headed back to the den to deal with Diane.

Diane stood nervously by his desk, waiting for him.  "Diane, I want you to
go to the kitchen and bring me the spatula and one of the breakfast nook
stools," he told her.  When she returned and had handed him the spatula,
he ordered her to strip and bend over the spanking stool.   

Larry bent the neck of the spatula, straightening out so that it made a
flat medal paddle.  He drew his arm back and landed 5 hard spanks to his
wife's bare bottom.  This brought Diane to tears.  After that, Larry
punctuated his spanks with scolding.  

"Diane, (SPANK) I'm really (SPANK) disappointed in you (SPANK).  You are
supposed to (SPANK) set an example (SPANK) for Adele (SPANK).  I realize
(SPANK) that you want what's best for her (SPANK) but I think that this
time (SPANK) you didn't really think that through (SPANK)."

Larry stopped spanking his wife for a moment as he continued.  "You are
just as responsible for Adele's upbringing as I am, and we are both
responsible for the general well-being of this family.  Isn't that right?"

"Yes, Larry, " Diane sobbed.  

"Did you feel I was unfair when I said you could only spend $200?"

"No, Larry."  Diane straightened up to address her husband.  "I thought
that it would be okay to buy the dress, that you could find another way to
come up with the money for the investment."

Larry frowned and shook his head.  "Diane, wouldn't it have been better to
set Adele an example about waiting for some things?"

"All right, Diane," Larry responded gently.  "I want you to bend back over
the stool for a good spanking."  She did, and Larry paddled her with the
spatula for several minutes.  He didn't lecture her anymore, but
concentrated instead on delivering a series of sound, hard unrelenting
spanks that turned her bottom crimson.  It broke his heart to have to
punish Diane but he had an obligation to both her and Adele, so he spanked
his wife until her bottom ached and he was sure she'd learned her lesson.

In the car on the way to the mall, Adele and Diane stared out the
windshield glass, both lost in their thoughts, until they realized they
were both squirming from their sore bottoms.  That made them laugh
together and started them talking.

"Adele," Diane said, "I feel really bad about what happened.  I shouldn't
have let you try the dress on to begin with."

"But it's my fault, too, Mom.  Did you see the way Daddy looked at me when
I was bouncing on my toes in front of him?  I shouldn't do that to you
guys, try to 'cutesy-pie' you into buying me stuff."

"Well, that's true.  But I'm the adult and I should have been more
responsible.  I guess we both learned a lesson."

"Do you think Daddy's still...upset with us?" Adele asked timidly.

Diane knew what was troubling her daughter.

"Honey," she said, "it doesn't work that way with grown-ups.  Your daddy
was upset, yes, and a little hurt that we let him down, but he also
understands that people make mistakes.  He knows we didn't mean to hurt
his feelings."  But Diane couldn't stop thinking about Larry's face
either.  A plan occurred to her and she shared it with her daughter.

After they returned the dress, they searched until they found a nice
inexpensive little number that looked charming on Adele.  And they used
what was left over to buy Larry a new fishing hat.