Last weekend's garage sale finds

Oh. My. Goodness. Last weekend was INCREDIBLE for garage saling. It was a masterpiece. It was a great work. The Lord saw it, and it was good.

First of all. i found unexpected garage saling opportunities. David and i were making a simple trip to the grocery store, and we saw a sign. There is a huge neighborhood next to the store called Southbridge. The sign said "Southbridge Annual Garage Sale this weekend". It was a beautiful sign. Its yellow cardboard gleamed golden in the sun. i had about $30 cash in my pocket, so David and i went after grocery shopping. There were about 5 houses per block that were having garage sales, and many of the sales were multi-family, so i was very nice that we didn't have to get in and out of the van very much.

i found: a dressy winter jacket for David! A very cute gray Gap toggle jacket, and is very soft and kind of like wool. i wasn't 100% sure it was warm enough for going outside in the winter, but it was definitely warm enough for getting in and out of the car for church on Sunday mornings. $2

i found: a couch, chair and ottoman for David, complete with animal print, so he has his own little places to sit. The chair and ottoman are at my parent's house, but here is the couch. The whole set went for $5.

i found: a toy vacuum. David is terrified when i vacuum. i start vacuuming, and his little body starts to tremble. Then he screams. Like terror screaming. Even when i hold him while vacuuming, he screams. When i chase him around with the vacuum, he giggles. Go figure. Anyway, he saw this vacuum at a sale and he started pushing it around right away, and wouldn't let go of it even after i paid and was carrying him to the van. This toy makes noise, so i'm hoping his having his own will alleviate his fear of the real thing. It was $2.

i found: a large cooler. It is big, like the size a 4-person family would need for an all-day car trip. i'm excited about it, because i keep it in the van, and if i buy cold stuff and need to stop somewhere else, i'm not in as big a hurry to get home. $2.

That was the Southbridge sale finds on Friday. And there was evening, and there was morning, when i went to the Jefferson High School annual garage sale. It's a high school in Bloomington, the rival of my high school, Kennedy. Once a year, i forgo my bitterness and partake of the beauty, the joy of the JHS Band Boosters Garage Sale. People from all over Bloomington donate their stuff to the school, and the school sells it and the proceeds go to the band booster club. It's an awesome idea. The whole school is full of used stuff, and it's very cheap and very wonderful. The sale started at 9, and my dad and i got there at 8:45 and were about 50th in line. Everyone from Bloomington comes out for it.

One of my biggest needs this GS season was a couch. Our couch was a "chair and a half" which basically means the size of a love seat, but much deeper, and only one cushion, and low in the back. It was also very cushy, which made it impossible to get out of. It only held two people, was too short for napping, and took up too much space in the living room. Luckily, i found a couch! It is very ugly. Its structure is made of wood, it is purply magenta, and has random stains on it. And it works very well for us. It's very long, great for napping, seating three people, and doesn't come out into the room as much. Plus, it was so cheap that we'll leave it here when we move someday. i hope to recover it, but have you seen how much couch covers cost? They are expensive. So for now, i have a magenta couch to clash nicely with our bright orange recliner (a garage sale find 7 years ago) and it is wonderful. $20.

i found a ball and glove cake pan, for an eventual baseball birthday cake. $ .50

i found a beautiful ceramic thanksgiving serving dish. A great find, because i host Thanksgiving for my side of the family every year, and have very few fancy serving dishes, much less seasonal ones. $2.

i found a snow cone maker. i've wanted one forever, and i found one for $2. Hopefully it works. i'll be trying it out on Mother's day.

Then, after the Jefferson sale, my dad and i went straight to another garage sale across the street. It was a brilliant idea: to have the sale the same day and time across the street from the sale the whole city attends.

Anyway, i found a pop up toy for David that he hasn't stopped playing with. So far, he can only pop up Minnie Mouse, but every time she pops up, he giggles his guttural baby giggle. It's very cute, and he loves it! $2.

i found a Tommy Hilfiger winter jacket for him. This was definitely warm enough for playing outside this winter, and is super cute. It might be the most designer thing he owns. $4.

Then, lastly, i found a pink dress. And i had to get it. If this baby ends up being a girl, she will be able to wear it next spring and be adorable. P.S. May 23 is my ultrasound date, and be sure i'll be posting the gender soon afterwards! It was $1. Isn't it so cute?

So that was my incredible garage sale weekend. Aren't you jealous?

i have a question for you guys. i like it when people buy used gifts for David, because he doesn't know the difference. It saves money and is one less thing that needs to get made in a factory. Generally, for those friends that don't mind getting used stuff, i'm able to get a ton more gifts for them. Do you guys feel that way? Or does the idea of having your kid wear a pair of jeans from a garage sale squick you out because they are used? Would you feel weird if someone bought your kid something used?