$5.25 Thrift Store

I stopped by the base thrift store today after my doctor's appointment, and I hit the baby jackpot!  I got 2 shirts, a Fisher Price Bee-Bop Buildin' Twirlin' Whirlin' Garden in box, and 2 books for a grand total of $5.25.  That comes out to $1.05 per item. 

The princess really does not need anymore clothes, but I was trying to find some winter-y things for her since all we have are clothes for a California winter, and an Illinois winter is a LOT harder than a California winter.  I couldn't find any, but I just couldn't let those two adorable shirts pass! 

The "mutt" book is actually for me since I'm a dog freak, but it's a great find in perfect condition.  It's a Barnes and Nobles book, and sells for $5.95.  I got it for $1.05.  If I weren't so selfish I would give it away, but I'm definitely going to head to the thrift store every week in search of Christmas presents.  Last time I went I found a Shrek toy that was still in its package.

Our daughter is only 5 months old, but believe it or not she enjoys a bedtime story.  She reaches out for the books and touches the pictures and all!  Her first book was a freebie from the United Through Reading program that we got on Monday, and I have been reading to her everyday before her afternoon nap and bedtime.  She has a few Spot books that I found at Goodwill, but I got her a "feely" book today.  I figured since she's so into grabbing the book and touching the pages she'll really enjoy all the different textures.

I saved the best for last.  I found a Fisher Price Bee-Bop Buildin' Twirlin' Whirlin' Garden that was still in its original box.  I wouldn't say it's new, but it's pretty close to it!  It even came with spare toys.  It's marked for 6+ months so it's really for a baby that can sit up unsupported, but that's going to happen any day now and for a mere $2 I just couldn't pass it up.

I love my Thrift Store, and I'm definately going to make it a point to visit them once a week now...!

Tipster Tuesday: Countdown to Christmas!

Christmas countdown at FlashBannerNow.com

I'm not a Christmas nut...far from it. The only reason that I have a running countdown on my computer and on my phone is because Christmas might as well be D-Day to me. I'm not Ebenezer Scrooge, but Christmas is a lot of work and stress. I've already started panicking about the whole Christmas thing. But it's good to panic early, especially when you've got a big family.

My husband's family is gigantically enormous, mainly due to the fact that his parents divorced and remarried. We're not planning to be close to any of our family this Christmas, so just the postage alone is enough to break the piggy bank. Here is the plan that I've devised so far to deal with Christmas madness:

• Spend good money on pictures. No one gets to see us much, and besides...who could resist a picture of the adorable baby? Last year we spent $100 on a photography session. She wasn't a professional, but you really couldn't tell from the pictures. I got all 250 images with full rights, so I used some free print credits for a bunch of pictures. I made my own personalized cards with them and included some extra pictures in each envelope. Everyone loved them and it saved me the hassle of having to shop for and send odd-shaped packages. And I didn't have to guess what everyone liked. Since the cards were personalized, I didn't feel so bad about just sending a card. Plus it's very rare to have a good picture with the entire family in it since someone has to hold the camera, so we get something out of it too.
  
• Capitalize on baby cuteness. This year I am planning to make some ornaments and include that with our personalized cards. I'll get cute baby footprints on bakable clay, and the total cost should be under $10. It shouldn't be too much in postage to send them either.
  
• Hit the thrift stores and after-holiday sales. Last week, I found a brand new in-package Shriek toy for under $2. I also have gift sets that I bought at 75% - 90% off after last Christmas. Keep checking the clearance sections at stores like CVS, Walgreens, or RiteAid. Often times you can find odd-and-ends in there for next to nothing that will sure be a hit with someone you know.
  
• Make your own gift wrap. You know it's just going to get ripped up and tossed, so why bother with spending good money on gift wrap? If you have a toddler, get a roll of butcher paper and some crayons and tell 'em to go to town. If I end up wrapping anything, I plan on using enlisting those cute baby footsies.
  
• Remember the true meaning of Christmas. As absurd as it seems, Christmas is not about stuff. It's about family. Christmas is not a time for you to show off how rich you are and to give the most envied gift of the party. A homemade card from his grandchild will mean a lot more to your dad than a set of new golf clubs. Just remember what Christmas is really all about and use that to guide you.
  

And my last tip...? Panic early. Trust me...if you panic early, you will be all panicked out by the time Christmas actually rolls around. And you'll be way ahead of the game too. I doubt many other people will be trolling around the clearance sections or thrift shops for potential Christmas presents...!

Thrift Store maddness

Can you believe that I got all of the above for $2? Yes, TWO bucks. As in 8 quarters. Or 20 dimes. I made a stop at the thrift store on base again, and struck gold. I go so much that the ladies there knew I was going to back and saved the shoe that I lost last week for me. I love them. I think I need to bring them cookies.

The Shrek toy was just too cute, and in too great of a condition, to pass up. It's still in all of its packaging and I figured I could gift it to someone for Christmas. My husband has a nephew that just adores him and loves Shrek so much that as a result, my husband can now recite the entire movie. So we'll probably end up sending it to him. It's never too early to start Christmas-gift gathering.

Then I got a little Halloween hat for the baby, even though she already has not one, but TWO Halloween costumes. I got them for a $1 each at Target at the end of last Halloween - one's a duck, and one's a penguin. But the little hat she can wear in the days beforehand, and it'll still look cute. I also found a little white shirt for her - my latest goal, now that I've gotten my diaper covers, is to find her shirts that are NOT pink or purple in color. I'm all for dressing her up like a pink princess, but the poor girl needs a break sometime!

And my last victory came with a little sailor dress. I've been seeing them in the NEX, and every time I went to the commissary it took just about everything I had to walk past and not go in to buy one. And good thing I wanted too, because I finally got one in her size for 50 cents. We're going to get family portraits done this weekend, and I had a little outfit with sailboats that she was going to wear for her picture with daddy in his uniform, but this is MUCH better. Then we can compare who's got the cutest bow thingy in the front =P.

It comes out to around 50 cents for each item. No matter how you look at it, I got a GREAT deal. Have I mentioned that I love my thrift store?

This week's shopping in review

This week just completely flew by for me, especially the past two days what with my back-to-back major shopping trips. Here is a quick recap:

Thursday 08/28/08
CVS: $22.45 of stuff for $1.09 OOP with $8.99 ECB for next time
Walmart: $3.98 of stuff for $2.61 OOP with $2.99 back from the BUNdinos rebate
Walgreens: $24.35 of stuff for $0.25 PROFIT
Thrift Store: 9 items for $5 (stuffed Dalmatian, lunch box, winter snowsuit, 4 diaper covers, 2 pairs of shoes)
Merchandise total: $50.78 (not including thrift store purchases)
OOP expense: $8.45
Rebate/ECB: $11.98

Friday 08/29/08
Commissary: 26% savings of $16.60
Walgreens: $65.65 of stuff for $34.35 OOP with $57.23 rebate (profit of $22.88!!!)
Merchandise total: $128.48
OOP expense: $83.72
Rebates: $57.23

Since I won't be doing more shopping this week, here are my grand totals for the last week of August:
Merchandise total: $179.26
OOP expense: $92.17
Rebate/ECB: $69.21
Total savings: $87.09
Total savings AFTER rebate: $161.38 - that's $17.88 for $179.26 of stuff!!!

Later today I will be closing up the August budget spreadsheet, and I cannot wait to see how we did. Although we've had a wild and busy month, I'm very excited to see what the final outcome is. This is the very first month that we've strictly stuck to a menu plan and budget, and so far it's working! I think we did so well that there may even be leftover funds to go out for a celebratory dinner!

Thrift Store madness

Can you believe that I got all of the above for FIVE DOLLARS? Yes, five US dollars. I made a quick 10 minute stop at the thrift store on base, and I struck GOLD. I would have gotten more stuff but they were closing. Let's count what I got, shall we?

• 1 HUGE stuffed Dalmatians that's as big as Chip (it's a peace offering for Chloe because I accidentally left her out in the rain before I left. It was an accident! It's not my fault it started to rain when she was out pottying!)
• A winter snowsuit thing
• 4 diaper covers
• 1.5 pairs of baby shoes (I picked out 2 pairs, but when I got home there was only one shoe of the other pair. They put everything in the lunchbox for me to carry, so I know I didn't drop it somewhere. I'm going back next week to see if they found it.)
• A lunchbox for hubby so he can stop his whining and complaining.
  

That's 9 items for $5...it comes out to about $0.55 each. It's a great deal, because I have been looking for about a month for diaper covers. A lot of the little princess' dresses don't come with diaper covers, and it's just not lady-like to be showing off your diaper in public, so I am VERY glad to have found these.
I hate this base, but I sure do love that thrift store (which is okay, because it technically isn't on the actual base, just connected to it by a bridge).