Bargain Hunting

One of the things that I try so hard to do, being a SAHM, is to make Ben's hard-earned income go as far as possible. This means clipping coupons, watching sale ads, buying generic, finding cheap and free activities for the girls and for our family to do and...bargain hunting for clothing.

Cara is usually pretty set because I have, thankfully, saved hand-me-downs from Caitlin and, double thankfully, she was very nice to her clothes. I do try to get her a few brand-new outfits, just to balance things out. Unfortunately, it is harder for Caitlin as I do not have anyone to bless me with some gently-used (and free) hand-me-downs, so I have to work harder to find deals.

I have to admit, I struck gold in this past week thanks to a referral from one of my best buddies to a children's resale shop called Tumbleweeds. If you live in the Aurora/Parker area, you must visit this shop. The owner only sells name brand (think Children's Place, Gymboree), high-quality & gentle used clothing. Before this experience, I haven't had much luck finding a decent selection of used clothes for Caitlin. It seems that kids wear out their clothing before it makes to the resale shop. At Tumbleweeds though, the owner had several adorable outfits with the promise of more to come in a few weeks. I really had to restrain myself and to stick to my budget. I could've easily spent $100 in there! I am proud of my end result though, and the outfits I chose received two thumbs up from Caitlin. Here are my great steals:



L to R:
-Outfit one is from Gymboree and when I looked online, a similar outfit would go for over $40 in the store, I paid $15.99 for both pieces.

-Two long sleeved shirts, one from Gymboree and the other is a Macy's brand. $5/each. The top shirt retails for $12.99 @ Gymboree.

-Outfit two's top is from JCPenney and would sell for about $12 and the skirt is from Gymboree. I found one very similar online and it was $28. I paid $5 for the top and $9 for the skirt.

++My grand total for these outfits *drumroll*--$40+tax plus a $6 credit to use the next time I shop there!++

Earlier this week, a Freecycler posted an offer for girls size 7-10 clothes. Somehow, the stars were aligned in my favor, because I was the first responder and got a great lot of clothes. On top of all of this, the woman said that she would call me if she found anymore clothes. Here is what I received:

Three pairs of jeans, a pair of brown lounge/yoga pants, a pair of brown cords, two summer t-shirts, two pairs of shorts, a pair of pajama pants, three pairs of capris, a pair of pink yoga pants and a black velvet skirt (not pictured).

Now, I will just have to watch sales to get a few more outfits and pieces to complete outfits that we already have as well as under garments. I'm keeping my eye out for Kohl's and Old Navy ads, two of our favorite places to go to for back-to-school shopping.

Going on a jet plane

In case you have been wondering why I've been so quiet lately, here is the reason. I have been running ragged trying to prepare 4 people for a trans-continental flight to Detroit for my brother-in-laws wedding. We've had to patiently (or not patiently) await the arrival of Caitlin's flower girl dress, drive way across town to have it altered, take suits to the dry cleaners, find suitable clothes for the mother of the flower girl and then attempt to pack our family of 4. Let me give you some of the highlights.

--Finding a "formal" dress when you've not been blessed with a model's body has been nearly impossible. I have been to store upon store and resorted to ordering from JCPenney (thanks for the gifts cards Mom & Dad). What a mistake that was. First, did you know that you really can't pay with gift cards on JCP's website? Well, you can't. Especially if you have more than one. You have to pre-pay in the store, wait for them to receive the payment to "release" the order to be shipped, then wait for the order to arrive in the store. To make a very long story short, let's just say that JCP's right hand doesn't know what it's left hand is doing, or saying. They told me the order was shipped one day via the 1-800 number and when I arrive in store to pick it up, I'm told another date, four days later. Umm, hello...I'm on a deadline here! Grr! Thankfully, in my running about today, I found a cute outfit from Catherine's. Granted, it cost me about twice what JCPenney was charging but hey, it's in my hands and it looks good. No guessing if JCP's periwinkle will be more purple than blue.

--Having a dress altered is a royal pain in the arse. Caitlin's dress for the wedding is beautiful. It is kind of an antique ivory almost a sheer with lots of layers, a petticoat, the works. Well, turns out, that in order to take up a hem off the length, one has to take it up from the bodice due to the delicate ruffle on the bottom. The seamstress made it look simple enough even if there were pins every 1/2 inch along the bottom. The dress was promised to be ready to go today. Well, we get in there, Caitlin tries on the dress for the final fitting and what do I immediately notice, despite my naive eyes? That the ruffle along the bottom is not the same length all the way around. OMG, are you serious?! I momentarily panic because in exactly three days, we are to be mid-air. I politely (don't ask me how) point out the problem to the head seamstress who promptly comes over with her pin cushion and begins to make the adjustments. She asks me, again, when I need the dress back by and when I tell her, you can just see the color drain from her face (that makes two of us). "Umm, our plane leave bright & early Thursday morning, so I'll need it by Wednesday". So, we are due back in Lakewood, about 40 minutes away again at 4pm on Wednesday--lovely, with the price of gas being what it is.

--Coordinating and packing for 4 people is a gigantic undertaking. You'd think, enough said, right? Not quite. It's not just doing the laundry, folding clothes and packing them into a suitcase...oh no, it's more complicated than that. Here's a sampling of my internal monologue: "What is (insert family members name here) going to where to the family portrait? To the rehearsal?...Do we have tights and shoes to go with it? What about if there's a pool at the hotel? Better pack a bathing suit. Oh wait, since we're not going to be at the wedding/rehearsal all day, I've got to pack casual clothes for everyone too. And, let's not forget that every one's beauty care products must fit comfortably into a quart size Ziplock bag...how are we going to pack Caitlin's pink hair lotion? Shoot, gotta remember to pack diapers, wipes and Pull-ups". Once that is accomplished (sometime Wednesday). I still have to put together carry-on bags for the girls and Ben & I, figure out how best to carry-on Caitlin's flower girl dress, arrange for off-site airport parking and pick up Ben's suits.

That said, I will be so glad when we finally board the plane on Thursday morning. It will feel good to sit back and try to convince two kids to behave somewhat like humans for three hours. That seems like a piece of cake compared to the past couple of days and the days yet to come. Just writing this post has made me tired. Traveling as a family of four is bound to be an adventure, I'll let you know how it goes. I'll tell you all about the journey and the wedding when we get back.