It's no secret prices for everything but homes are going up.
One family in West Plains says the increased cost of living has made living more difficult than they ever imagined.
The Melvins are a young married couple with three kids.
Russell works for DIRECTV six, sometimes seven, days a week.
He drives all over the southern half of the state and even into northern Arkansas.
But there's a catch to his good-paying job.
"When we first started out we lived paycheck to paycheck.”
But that was nine years ago.
Now the Melvins have three kids, their first home, and bills to worry about, so living paycheck to paycheck is the last thing they need.
Holly Melvin explains, “When he started working for DIRECTV it was great because for the first time we were able to save money."
But that was three years ago.
Now gas prices are sky-rocketing, food prices are following suit, and the Melvins had use all their savings to compensate.
“Gas has gone from $150 a week to $250-$350,” Russell Melvin says.
That wouldn't be horrible if his company paid, but his job takes him all over the region and he has to foot the fuel bill.
Plus Holly's going to nursing school, and when she's not in class, she's caring for her kids, so a part-time job is out of the question.
The Melvins have made some changes.
Over the last year and half the Melvins say their grocery bill has increased by $150 a week.
Holly sticks to store brands, but she'll still be spending $300 every time she goes shopping.
“We've got tomatoes, corn, cucumbers, watermelons, squash.”
Holly planted a garden as an alternative to buying produce, she heats the home with a wood-burning fireplace in the winter, and has put off the purchase of a kitchen table until the economy does a turnaround.
“They’re going to destroy this country if they don't do something about it. They're going to destroy this country."
But clearly Russell doesn't expect to buy that table any time soon.
He still says he is making more money working for DIRECTV than he would be working elsewhere in West Plains.
But even with that extra money, the Melvins are again living paycheck to paycheck, hoping the economy makes a comeback before they're hit with a big expense they can't handle.