Thrift Stores, Craigslist and Clearance, Oh My!

Lately my husband has accused me of "spending a lot of money"...it's like he thinks I've been going on some sort of shopping spree!  Well, maybe I have been shopping a lot this month...especially if you compare it to the last two years.  Let's just say I've been nesting.  But, in my defense I want to point out where I've been shopping and some of the screamin' deals I've gotten.  For example, just this week I dropped into the Salvation Army on Peach just to see if anything caught my eye.  Of course, more than a few things did but, they were things that I had been planning to purchase new eventually. So when I justify....er, I mean look at it that way, I consider this trip a considerable savings.
So, now for the fun stuff I found!

The wooden thing is one of those step stools that has two steps then you flip the smallest step up and it becomes a chair for your toddler.  I've been eyeballing them at thrift shops and antique stores for months and every time the Ogglette goes nuts and LOVES playing with/sitting on it.  So, for just $3 I finally bit the bullet.  The clear beverage dispenser I'm sure will be used at countless shindigs to come...IMHO an awesome find.

You might have guessed that the lamp is for the girls' room.  I had seen it at the store actually a few times before and resisted it's retro cuteness but, now that I know we're having another girl I just had to have it.  The lamp shade is actually from a previous thrift shop purchase and I'm so relieved I finally found a purpose for it since it cost me $3!  Look at that cute girl with her basket and her blue bird....too cute to resist!

The clock was purchased to replace the one in my kitchen that I bought awhile back at a yard sale for 25 cents.  That seemed like a screamin' deal until I got it home and realized it was broken. :-<  So, now I have my $2 clock that not only works but, came with it's own battery AND  tells me the day of the month and week!  Only a SAHM or retiree can understand just how helpful this is.  Now I will always know what day it is! Yes! (just imagine a little fist pump action)  And for the grand finale....my total purchase came out to $12 !  (victory dance) 

Well, I think I've maxed out my patience (and yours too, I'm sure) for good deal bragging so I will probably post again soon about some other stuff I've found and maybe even a few ideas I've picked up along the way on how to maximize your dollar even at a place like the thrift store.  So until then, stay thrifty my friends!

Drawing #2

So, I feel pretty good that I'm getting around to this again.  I know a month is not the same as a week but, it is so much more than I have been doing for the past 5 years or more.  So, just to remind you I am just starting back so don't judge too harshly.  This is supposed to be the Ogglette at 9 months based off of a picture my sis-in-law took.  I feel a little lazy for copying pictures so maybe next time I will try to draw during the day so I have enough light to draw something from life.  I will try. 
Last night I was feeling pretty discouraged about this drawing and probably would have given up half-way through and certainly never posted it but, felt a little obligated since I had already told you I would eventually.  I'm glad I did because it was good practice and looking at it this morning I decided it's not too bad.  I think it just will always bug me that her face just doesn't look as chubby as it should.  So never mind that she looks a tad like Jay Leno in this one.  If it's possible to get better by doing just one drawing a month then, expect better in October.  Until then, I hope you all will make time to do something you used to love.  Don't wait until the kids are off to college and you've forgotten what you used to like to do.

Tip of The Day

I'm thinking of starting a regular post called Tip of the Day. So, I am typically kind of ditzy on a normal level but, now when I'm pregnanat it's unbelievable sometimes the things I do....or forget to do. Some of these might actually be real tips but, most will just be for laughs so, hopefully my 5 followers (you rock!) and any lurkers out there can find the humor in these moments as well. Of course I unluckily have several tips just from today's experience so we will start it off with a bang.

Tip #1 When stowing your laptop in the car regardless of how tight the space is with cargo NEVER place it on the floor below your toddler's carseat for any reason....especially when you're sharing your bottled water with them. Nuff said

Tip #2 If you revert to opening a taco seasoning packet with your teeth don't breath deeply in through your nose as you are doing it.

Tip #3 Don't put too much stock in the "daily" part of this post.

Thanks for reading :-)

German Festival Rocks

This is coming a little late but, my mom came to visit us over the Labor Day weekend. Origonally my mom had wanted to go up to the Chataqua Institute for the day but, then we discovered that the summer season had ended which really limits the activities available. That paired with the constant drizzle made us consider other options. Luckily while searching around the net I stumbled upon this German Festival http://www.dank-erie.org/festival/ There were plenty of eating areas under tents and shelters along with surprisingly entertaining band and dancers in the main tent so the drizzle didn't dampen our spirits in the least. It was a $5 admission for both adults but, the ogglet was free. This turned out to be totally worth it because they had a great petting zoo and a few jump castles and slides at no extra charge. First we just did a little walk to see what was what and it wasn't huge but, somehow we still mananged to stay for almost 3 hours. There were several food vendors to choose from but, we were super hungry and wanted to test some authentic german eats. I was a little incredulous when I saw the biggest selection of german cuisine was offered by Sabella's but, we ordered the Oktoberfest Platter and took a chance. It was really worth it and between the three of us devoured all but a few bites. It came with two different types of sausage, wienershnitzel, green beans, potatos, pumpernickel rolls, some kind of pasta?, roast beef and potato cakes. The last two were my favorite. Besides the not so cheap but, yummy food the "free" entertainment was way better than I had hoped for. They had a live band and a huge dance floor. Of course there was lots of polka but, there were proffessional dancers doing traditional german dances which kept the Ogglette mesmerized.