Frugal Shopping and Random Thoughts.

I am so excited with my finds today that I can barely contain myself, so I had to share them with all of you. I got some awesome items and I only spent a total of $8.00!

First. Ems has lost all of her tennis shoes in the black hole/abyss that the girls call their room. If anything is missing, you can bet it will be found in there...when it's actually cleaned. I go through there once every few months (usually) getting rid of stuff, cleaning the closet, and under the bed. They basically throw everything in those two places, as most children do (at least I did when I was a child). Okay, back to Ems losing all her tennies. She has gym on Tuesdays, so needs a good pair, yet, I've been hesitant to purchase a new pair because I know that she will lose them (Ems loses EVERYTHING...and I do mean everything). So, while looking through items at the Salvation Army, basically killing time, I came across a pair of Nike's in her size. They look almost new! I'm going to go around the soles with a toothbrush dipped in bleach and water to get rid of the bit of yellowing and I'm going to wash the shoelaces. That's all that they need! They look so good and I'm so happy that I found them. Best of all...they only cost $2.99! How's that for frugal shopping?

I also bought several books for Baby D's bedtime (or naptime, or any other time) at $0.10 each. I found Ella Enchanted and bought that for Alex and Cami to read. They love the movie and the both like to read, so I thought that would be nice. It was $0.50. I thought, man, I'm doing good!

I also bought an alarm clock since the one that the girls had was broken in the abyss of a room. That was the third one (or second?) that they have broken. I have no idea how they do it. I still have the alarm clock that my mom bought me when I was in 4th grade! Anyway, I came across this alarm clock for $2.00 and bought it on the spot. It's heavy and sturdy, which is good. The cheapest ones at WalMart are about $6.00 and they are light and....cheap seeming. So, I'm hoping this one will last them longer.

I'm so ecstatic about my purchases! Can't you tell? On to other things that I have on my mind at the moment.

My mom has been wanting to purchase a pair of Converse for each of the girls that they have designed, but I'm extremely hesitant to let her do that. I've told them that they have to prove to me that they can take care of their stuff. So far, Cami is doing a good job. She got her cheer outfit recently along with two pairs of bloomers and three pairs of socks. She knows that if anything happens to any of those items, she is in BIG trouble since we have spent so much money (that we didn't have) on her cheer items, camp, etc. So, she hung her uniform up in the laundry room, covered with a trash bag so it doesn't get messed up while it's not in use and put her shoes, a pair of bloomers, and two pairs of socks in her shoe box and stuck it in the laundry room cabinets. Her other bloomers and socks were put in a ziplock bag and placed in the laundry room cabinet in case something happened to the others. I'm proud of her for doing that. I'm hoping that the other girls will do the same.

My mom is also talking about buying laptops for Alex and Cami for Christmas and I'm not so sure that will be a good idea. They aren't the extremely expensive kind, but I know how these girls are with things. I sincerely hope that they know I'm serious when I tell that I'm not buying them anymore new items nor am I allowing anyone else to purchase them anything until they can prove to me that they appreciate them and can take care of them. We shall see.

Anyway, have a great weekend!

p.s. I got most of my list finished today, woohoo! I couldn't find a table skirt at the Salvation Army, Goodwill, OR Walmart, so that wasn't done, but everything else was. Yay!