...with Thrifty Thursday.

I haven't been going to the Goodwill as often as I was...mainly because 1. it was a holiday this past week and I was busy and worked and 2) it's rummage sale season. I have been scoping out rummage sales in my area and stop by while out doing other errands.

The one thing I have been short on for Emanuel for summer is short sleeved shirts. I haven't been finding any good ones in his size at the Goodwill. So, I broke down and decided that I would just buy some online from Gymboree. There was a sale going on anyways, plus I had a coupon for 20% off. So I picked out 7 shirts online and the price breakdown came out to about $5-6 per shirt (which, isn't all that bad for brand new clothing that, in my opinion, is good quality - we love Gymboree!). Before purchasing though, I decided to look at a few more rummage sales. I checked Craigslist and there was one that advertised "tons of boys clothing". So I packed the kids up and took them on a ride. Boy, was I glad I did. The clothing at the rummage was in great shape and was exactly the style and brands I typically buy for the kids. The price was $2 each, which is more than I normally pay at rummages (I generally like to spend no more than $1 per piece of kids clothing)...BUT, I figured it was either spend $2 each, or come home and pay $5+ each at Gymboree. I ended up getting 7 shirts for Emanuel for $14.
Here's what we got: 2 Ralph Lauren polo shirts, 2 Gymboree sleeveless tank shirts, 2 Janie and Jack shirts and a Marquette jersey!

This morning on my way to a playdate I passed a neighborhood that was having a rummage sale. So I drove thru real quick to see if there was anything that looked worth stopping by for. I spotted a house that had a ton of kids clothing. I didn't end up getting any clothing (they were charging way too much....like $5 per item!) but I did score 4 pairs of shoes for Elena for a total of $11.
Here they are: 1 pair of pedipeds (for next year), 1 pair of See Kai Run shoes (2 sizes up), 1 pair of Robeez (they fit now, with a little room to grow) adn 1 pair of Nina shoes (next size up).

At another rummage sale, I found a pair of lined Old Navy pants for Emanuel, another corduroy jacket for him, and a few shirs for Elena. Oh, and a short sleeve shirt with a burro on it for Emanuel.....because what kid doesn't need a shirt with a burro on it?
Everything was $1 each.

...with Thrifty Thursday.

Tis the season for rummage sales!

I stopped by a rummage on my way to the grocery store last weekend and saw this vintage highchair for baby dolls. Elena has been really big into "cooking" for her babies and feeding them (and us), so I thought this would be a fun surprise for her.
I am happy to report that she loves it just as much as I do!

Stopped in to the Goodwill again this past week and stocked up on some more kids clothes. Found a couple more pairs of Gymboree and Cherokee shorts for this summer for Emanuel, as well as a cute red track suit jacket and a long sleeve shirt that says "Mommy's Little Monster".

Of course there were more jeans (in the next few sizes up), more shorts and 2 polo shirts for Emanuel.

For Elena I picked up a cute red Old Navy sweater dress for fall/winter, some Puma capris, a Gymboree panda pajama top and some simple fleece pants.

This weekend (Memorial weekend) the Goodwill is giving 15% off to customers with miitary ID's...too bad I still didn't have one!

...with Bookworm Gardens.

Last week I took the kids on a day trip to see my sister, an hour away, since she had a random day off and wanted us to come up and visit. It was a great day (sunny and warm) so we headed to quite possibly, the cutest place on earth.
A place called Bookworm Gardens.
Bookworm Gardens is a park themed around children's books, most of which the average person is familiar with (Charlotte's Web, The 3 Little Pigs, etc). You walk through the park and there are "exhibits" that pertain to a story book in some way. For instance, in a wooded area, there are three giant bears (made from some sort of twigs) and in front of the three bears were three chairs of different sizes.
Name that book.
Goldilocks and the Three Bears!
Here is Emanuel sitting in Papa Bear's chair!

There are also books throughout the gardens (they are laminated so they don't get ruined) that you can sit down and read with your kids. Here was Elena returning the book my sister read to her and Emanuel:

While Elena wasn't familiar with many of the books, Little House on the Prairie, for instance, she did have a great time sweeping the prairie house floor.
The gardens also made for an awesome backdrop for taking pics.
So I was that mom. The one who continually took photos of her kids.
My sister was hanging out with the kids, so I took advantage of the free moments to take photos without at least one of my kids crawling/hanging all over me!
Elena, sitting pretty:

My sister with the kids:

Old school desk inside the barn where they do story time:

Charlotte and her web:

Elena watering an apple tree. They even had an old fashioned water pump that worked! With my help, Elena pumped water into the watering can and then watered the various trees.

My sister reading Curious George to the kids. George was making pizza (which we ate for lunch after leaving the gardens!)

This was the magic school bus. Elena did NOT want to get on it. Even when we got on it and showed her that it was fun (I sat in the driver's seat and got to operate the door!) Elena stood outside the bus and yelled "I don't want to get on the bus"!

We didn't even make it around to all of the various parts of the garden, so I hope to visit again soon. I can't believe more cities don't have a place like this. I think it is a genius idea!
Did I mention it was free?!?

...with Thrifty Thursday.

I felt like I hit the boy jackpot a few days ago at the Goodwill. I was dropping off a large bag of baby/toddler clothes to donate and decided to swing in and see if there was anything new. That's the thing about the Goodwill, you could shop today and then go back tomorrow and the selection is completely different. It just depends on the day!
It also happened to be the 15th of the month on this trip, and my Goodwill hands out these scratch off coupons when you walk in the door. Mine ended up being 15% off my total purchase.

Everything in these 2 pictures was purchased on the same day! With my coupon and Goodwill Club card each piece was $1.20.
The first column is babyGAP jeans (18-24m), Gymboree lined athletic pants (18-24m), Children's Place khaki shorts (24m), Gymboree khaki shorts (18-24m) and Cherokee print pants (18m).
Middle column is babyGAP jeans and brown cords (both 2T).
Right column is Children's Place jeans (4T and 3T) and Levi's jeans (3T).

This photo is 4 babyGAP shirts, sizes 2T and 3T and a pair of 18m Children's Place shorts and 12m Koala Kids shorts.

At this rate, by the time the kids are wearing these larger sizes I may not have to buy them any clothes!

...with Thrifty Thursday

My thrifty addiction continues. I continue to find great deals at the Goodwill.
These clothes for the kids were actually purchased in two seperate shopping trips.
I occasionally find clothes in several sizes larger than what the kids are wearing now, but I figure for the price I can't pass it up. I am really only buying in larger sizes for things that are "clothing staples" - like jeans. Jeans can be worn year-round here, so I know they will get worn at some point...even if it is 2 years from now.

Lately, I've been finding more boy clothes for Emanuel and not as many girly things for Elena.
On the left is a Kenneth Cole brown button up shirt, and a Cherokee red/white striped polo. In the middle are shirts in larger sizes - the top one is Genuine kids (4T) and the bottom is a Calvin Klein short sleeve shirt (3T). On the right is a yellow and blue striped polo onesie (18m) - it was new with tags still attached. All were $1.42 after discount :P

Something girly!
Left is Gymboree pajamas (3T), middle is Gymboree sweater in (3T) and Gymboree pink corduroy pants (3T). On the right is a Circo plaid purple pea coat (4T - too cute to pass up and coats for kids are expensive!!!). I got the coat for half off (so it was $2.37).

A few more girly items for Elena. On the left are 2 Gymboree skirts (4T) and a pair of Circo shorts (4T). On the right are 3 pairs of jeans in larger sizes (3T and 5T).

On the left is a Cherokee dress and Cherokee tshirt (new with tags). On the right is an Old Navy peasant shirt (new with tags) and Genuine Kids green khaki pants. (The shirt and pants are both 2T and actually match....but were bought in 2 different trips!)

..with Thrifty Thursday!

Welcome to my first installment of Thrifty Thursday...inspired by my previous post about my Goodwill addiction!

Here are my latest deals shopping at the Goodwill.
I snatched up 7 pairs (7!) of Old Navy shorts for Emanuel in size 2T (the size I predict he will wear next year over his fluffy cloth diapered butt). Each pair was $1.49, but I had a coupon that brought the price down to $1.28 per pair!

I also found Old Navy denim jeans in 2T for him and a canvas-y lined jacket in 18 months.

My next deals are this brown Old Navy sweater for Elena and a denim Old Navy skirt. The second denim skirt is Circo brand. Each piece was $1.49.

Check out this awesome corduroy blazer for Emanuel. Ok, so it's a size 3T so he won't wear it for a few yesrs, but I just love the elbow patches and think it will be great for family portraits or even holiday portraits!

...with a thrifty addiction.

I am addicted to the Goodwill. ::blushes::
No lie.
Here's how it all started. The Goodwill is conveniently located next to the Target I shop at (like 2-3 times per week o_0).
So I stopped in one day when I was on the hunt for wide-mouth canning jars. After I found the canning jars I was looking for, I decided to take a look around. Now, I was always falsely under the assumption that the Goodwill sold junk...like ripped, torn, broken junk. But let me tell you...I have come to learn that one person' junk, truly is another's treasure!
I checked out the shoe section and found some toddler boy Nike shoes...with clumps of dirt on them, but nothing a good cleaning couldn't handle.
The price?
$2.99.
I generally buy all my kids' shoes at consignment shops anyways, but even this was cheaper than a pair of Nike's I could get at the resale store!
So I snatched up the shoes and continued browsing. I made my way to the kids clothing 'bins'.
These bins are intimidating....complete chaos. All baby and toddler clothing smaller than a size 4 is just thrown in 3 large bins. So you have to rummage thru the bins. Everything in the bin is one price: $1.49
I began my rummage and came across some really nice pieces of clothing. Lands End jeans in the next size up for Elena. Baby GAP denim jeans in Emanuel's size (for the fall). Some name brand long sleeve shirts (Gymboree, Me Giant, etc).
I looked over each piece and was amazed to find there were neither stains nor holes. I checked to make sure the zipper and buttons worked and added them to my pile.
After this first successful shopping trip, I decided to go again the following the week.
I continued to have success.
I have since found several pairs of denim capris, shorts and skirts for Elena for this coming summer and fall.
I've scored another pair of Nike's for Emanuel in the next size up from the previous pair: $2.99
A pair of Land's End rain boots for Emanuel (they will fit in about a year): $3.99
Gymboree jeans for winter for Elena: $1.49
Children's Place pink houndstooth dress for fall: $1.49.
New with tag panda shirt from Target: $1.49

After having such good luck with the kids clothing, I decided to check out the adult clothing.
I rarely buy new clothing for myself. More often than not, I have my children with me when I shop, so there is no way to quickly/joyfully try on clothing with a toddler and an infant (whom I usually wear in a carrier). Not to mention I've spent the past 3 years pregnant and/or post partum.

I went to the jean section, found my size and thumbed thru each one. I am pretty picky when it comes to jeans. I am short and not stick thin. For some reason, the fashion industry thinks short, petite women are uber skinny. I am not. So finding jeans short enough for me that fit my curves is a depressing task. There are 2 brands of jeans I have found to fit me well, so I usually only buy those jeans: GAP Long and Lean in the ankle length ($60-70 retail) and Ann Taylor Loft in petite ($60). Goodwill did not fail me. I found a pair of GAP L&L jeans in my exact size, checked them out for stains, rips etc. Next, I tried them on, just to be sure there wasn't anything wrong with them. They were perfect and already broken in. The price? $7.99.
But wait....as I was shopping, the Goodwill played an ad over their speaker system. Any items with a yellow tag were 50% off. I looked down at the jeans in my hand....YELLOW TAG! No way! Was I really about to buy a pair of jeans for less than $4.
Yes, yes I was. But I also scoured the racks again and found another pair of the same jeans in excellent condition...also with a yellow tag!
I am pretty sure I will never pay full price for a pair of jeans again!

I plan on continuing to shop at the Goodwill...and I will probably share my thrifty bargains here on the blog! (Hmmmm, maybe I will call it Thrifty Thursday!)