Monday, March 1, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
Bargains-R-Us
Once you get to the third kid, you've figured some things out. Sippy cups and bottles don't necessarily have to be super-sterilized every time. White clothes and children do not mix. Sometimes TV is a good short-term babysitter. And frozen chicken nuggets are...well, convenient if not tasty or particularly nutritious.
Another thing I have learned is how to shop for clothes at a consignment sale. My first trips there were full of what I now see were mistakes. There are several large kid clothes consignment sales each year in the Memphis area (in addition to shops that are around all year). This weekend, I hit one in full force, at the Agricenter. Some tips, from this seasoned mom:
1. Take a laundry basket with a belt or leash attached that you can pull behind you as you shop. It ain't pretty or even classy, but it's functional and you'll be glad you did. The floor is smooth enough for dragging the basket. The check-out lines move quickly but they are LONG and you don't wanna be holding clothes draped over your forearms for 30 minutes. Your arms'll cramp up. Lots of folks have learned this trick, so you won't look silly.
2. Buy things a little bigger than you think your kids will wear, mainly because these clothes have been worn and washed by others and have probably shrunk a little.
3. Look carefully for stains. If the previous owner couldn't get it out, you won't be able to either.
4. Note how the fabric wrinkles. If there are folded fabric edges, they will curl up after washing. In my house, at least, this means the item will simply not be worn because I rarely iron. Basically, if it looks like it will need to be ironed after every wash, I will not buy it.
5. Do not buy used clothing with ribbons or dangling accessories--they will also curl and fray. If my orally-inclined kids get ahold of anything that dangles, they will chew on it/suck on it. And that's just gross.
6. Items already paired together tend to be a better deal than items being sold separately. Not always true, but often. However, check the tags for both items. Sometimes, the consignor will put a cute name-brand high-quality shirt with a threadbare, cheapy pair of pants. Then you'll be stuck with a shirt that doesn't match anything else you own.
7. I'm skeptical of used shoes and socks. To each her own.
8. I do not buy $40 dresses at a consignment sale. Just not gonna happen. I know plenty of mommas who disagree--if it's usually $80 and you can get it for $40, that's a deal. True enough. But unless my kids are having a picture made in an outfit, they will not wear anything that costs $40, except occasionally shoes. I just have a philosophical issue with paying what I consider big money for something to be worn once, twice, or for only one season. My children are messy. They are too young to get the value of things, so a $3 shirt is the same as a $25 shirt to them in terms of how careful they are with eating or playing in it. Kids have fun when they're dirty. And I have enough battles to fight without worrying about how much I paid for the pants they're wearing that now have grass stains on the knees.
9. Most big giant consignment sales have a half-price day. Obviously, the best selection can be found in the early days of the sale. But the best bargains are at the end.
10. I shop alone. If I can't go childless, I will not go at all. I need to focus and move swiftly. I first pack my basket with everything I think I want, then I go through and do the first purge. Finally, I add up my total and do the second purge based on how much I planned to spend. If I were keeping up with kids or--even more damaging--pushing a stroller, this process would take approximately 152 times longer. This longer duration is scientifically proven and applies to all errands/jobs involving children under the age of 10.
My booty from last weekend came to $99. I got 15 outfits (5 for each kid) for Spring/Summer. They are cute, fashionable & of good quality. They do not need to be ironed, and none are white. I love a deal!
Another thing I have learned is how to shop for clothes at a consignment sale. My first trips there were full of what I now see were mistakes. There are several large kid clothes consignment sales each year in the Memphis area (in addition to shops that are around all year). This weekend, I hit one in full force, at the Agricenter. Some tips, from this seasoned mom:
1. Take a laundry basket with a belt or leash attached that you can pull behind you as you shop. It ain't pretty or even classy, but it's functional and you'll be glad you did. The floor is smooth enough for dragging the basket. The check-out lines move quickly but they are LONG and you don't wanna be holding clothes draped over your forearms for 30 minutes. Your arms'll cramp up. Lots of folks have learned this trick, so you won't look silly.
2. Buy things a little bigger than you think your kids will wear, mainly because these clothes have been worn and washed by others and have probably shrunk a little.
3. Look carefully for stains. If the previous owner couldn't get it out, you won't be able to either.
4. Note how the fabric wrinkles. If there are folded fabric edges, they will curl up after washing. In my house, at least, this means the item will simply not be worn because I rarely iron. Basically, if it looks like it will need to be ironed after every wash, I will not buy it.
5. Do not buy used clothing with ribbons or dangling accessories--they will also curl and fray. If my orally-inclined kids get ahold of anything that dangles, they will chew on it/suck on it. And that's just gross.
6. Items already paired together tend to be a better deal than items being sold separately. Not always true, but often. However, check the tags for both items. Sometimes, the consignor will put a cute name-brand high-quality shirt with a threadbare, cheapy pair of pants. Then you'll be stuck with a shirt that doesn't match anything else you own.
7. I'm skeptical of used shoes and socks. To each her own.
8. I do not buy $40 dresses at a consignment sale. Just not gonna happen. I know plenty of mommas who disagree--if it's usually $80 and you can get it for $40, that's a deal. True enough. But unless my kids are having a picture made in an outfit, they will not wear anything that costs $40, except occasionally shoes. I just have a philosophical issue with paying what I consider big money for something to be worn once, twice, or for only one season. My children are messy. They are too young to get the value of things, so a $3 shirt is the same as a $25 shirt to them in terms of how careful they are with eating or playing in it. Kids have fun when they're dirty. And I have enough battles to fight without worrying about how much I paid for the pants they're wearing that now have grass stains on the knees.
9. Most big giant consignment sales have a half-price day. Obviously, the best selection can be found in the early days of the sale. But the best bargains are at the end.
10. I shop alone. If I can't go childless, I will not go at all. I need to focus and move swiftly. I first pack my basket with everything I think I want, then I go through and do the first purge. Finally, I add up my total and do the second purge based on how much I planned to spend. If I were keeping up with kids or--even more damaging--pushing a stroller, this process would take approximately 152 times longer. This longer duration is scientifically proven and applies to all errands/jobs involving children under the age of 10.
My booty from last weekend came to $99. I got 15 outfits (5 for each kid) for Spring/Summer. They are cute, fashionable & of good quality. They do not need to be ironed, and none are white. I love a deal!
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Florida Send-Off
Our friends, the Beltons, moved to Florida at the end of January. Sad to see them go. A few families, whose kids all go to/went to our beloved Montessori preschool, got together at Bahama Breeze for one last hoorah. Don't think we won't be visiting them in sunny Florida!
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Icy Death 2010, part 2
Peter arrived home this morning (DC to Charlotte to Philly to Detroit to Minneapols to Memphis--and if he hadn't convinced them to route him back north on another airline, he'd STILL be in Charlotte!) and promptly whisked the girls out for another round of sledding. Most of our accumulation is ice--looks like snow but solid as a rock, thanks to the massive quantities of sleet that came down in the late afternoon and evening. This made some traditional snow playing difficult or impossible, but the sledding was good! A few pictures from our neighborhood:
Friday, January 29, 2010
Since We've No Place To Go, Let It Snow!
As I post to this blog, we are the midst of Icy Death 2010/Arctic Assault/State of Emergency, etc. (When you live in a place that is not used to much winter weather, any prediction of snow or ice is met with fear and anxiety by all, fueled nicely by the weather personalities on our local news stations. To their credit, this one really is pretty nasty, with sleet and snow still coming down in torrential amounts, going on the 8th hour or so.) My clinic closed in advance, so that we could see some of today's patients yesterday. Schools, of course, are closed (they ain't afraid to close some stuff around here at the first whisper of the word "snow"). Everything is canceled. So, here we are, confined to the house. Peter is in, well, I guess right now he's in Philadelphia in the midst of a ridiculous airline fiasco. Looks like he'll get home tomorrow morning. The girls are about to kill each other, if I don't get to 'em first. But on the bright side, we baked chocolate chip cookies, made homemade hot chocolate, painted pictures, played board games, watched one epsisode of Dora, played on webkinz.com, listened to some Joni Mitchell & some Dave Matthews and ate garlic cheese grits. We went outside to have a snowball fight and went sledding on a hill nearby (going just fine until Molly got snow down her pants, and that was that!). The forecast includes continued frozen precip of various types until about 6 am tomorrow. So, since we've no place to go, let it snow!
"Mommy, I ready to pway inna snow! Got my boots and a pretty dress!"
Maybe this is a little more appropriate for the snow!
Snow buddies
My little competitor, ready to pummel someone with a snowball
Molly is ready to "Get Mommy!"
First run: Molly
And Molly again
Rebecca trudges back up, fully dressed with a smile
Rebecca, the fearless one
Ice, ice babyFriday, January 22, 2010
Hello, Mr. Sunshine!
After that frigid cold, we had a couple of lovely days, one of them falling on the King holiday, when Mom and Dad weren't at work and the kiddos were out of school. It didn't take much convincing to get outta the house & into the sun! We went to the Botanic Garden to enjoy their children's area called My Big Backyard and then closed out the day at the zoo.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Chasing the Cold Away
We had some days in January that were just bitter cold. Like most of the country, we were frozen to the core, huddling inside by the fire, trying to avoid going outside lest our nose hairs would freeze. There were points when our temps--with windchill--were 15 below zero, awfully cold for our neck o' the woods. One afternoon, we pulled out Molly's pedicure kit, a gift from Santa, and tried to will away the cold with some TLC on our toesies.
Rebecca
Molly
Amelia
Rebecca
Molly
Amelia
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