lil_chookie - We have a General Store. It's just me and DH and we open from 7.00am and generally close around 6.30pm, 7 days per week. Although now that this is our little towns busiest time of year (now and over easter) we open 6.30am till no earlier than 7.00pm, sometimes closing at 9.00pm depending on how many tourists are around at that time of night. If it's hot they all want ice-creams, which i will say will be happening over the next 4 or 5 nights due to 40 degree + temps. We even had to open for 3 hours on xmas day as there is a paper. I told DH that while it is just the two of us, then it's fine, but when we get some bubbas, theres no way we are opening. He just said that we would all just go in there together and have a nice family xmas morning in the shop (yeah right!!) We have a lady that comes in on a Saturday arvo for 6 1/2 hours, so thats our only time off. (and it's only a Saturday arvo so that DH can play footy over winter). It does get really tiring, so no wonder the BDing is not so spontaneous for us anymore. DH's parents own the shop, but we run it. They try to help out if they can but they run a motel in town, so they're pretty tied up in that. It is for sale but if it hasn't sold by September this year, their lease runs out, so will be out of it soon (they've been in there 15 years). Then they will take over the shop and DH and I can either stay around here and get jobs or move on the bigger and better things. Have to do something though, coz unfortunately we don't get paid anything for running the shop. Have to try and live off the stuff in the shop, but the upside is that we get to live in the house at the back and don't have to pay rent or anything. It just gets really hard as we dont get much money to do other things, and its especially hard now that we are going through assisted conception and having to pay for that. I just keep telling myself that it will be over soon and we will start to make our own money (and babies he he he)