Things that make me giddy

In many ways I am my grandfather's granddaughter.  Grandpop always loved a good bargain.  If he found a bargain, he didn't just buy one, he'd buy a dozen.  If Sears had a good deal on hammers, Grandpop would buy 12 of them.  It didn't even matter if he had one at home already.  After he'd get his great bargain he'd happily tell everyone and anyone about it.  He'd tell the story, pause to run and get the item and then come back proudly holding his latest bargain.  I always found this rather amusing.  It wasn't enough that KMart had Fruit of the Loom underwear on sale, Grandpop had to buy a lifetime supply [and NEVER use it].

The cool thing about my grandpop was he liked hearing about other people's great bargains as much as he liked telling people about his.  When Madeline was very little money was quite tight and I turned to yard sales to find the pricy outdoor toys I wanted for our yard.  Spending $45 on a little car or $200 on a play house or Power Wheels vehicle was just not in the budget for us.  By going to yard sales I was able to get the items I wanted for Madeline for literally a small fraction of the price.  One particular day, I managed to find a Power Wheels Jeep for $10, a Barbie Power Wheels Jeep for $10 [Which we sold to Bryan's co-worker for $20, thereby making the one we kept FREE], a Little Tikes house in desperate need of a good cleaning for $5 and a cozy coupe and yellow little Tike's chair for $1.  In the end, I got the items on my most wanted list for a whopping $6.  My grandfather was so proud when he heard this story, that he insisted on paying for my yard sale finds.  He wanted to tell others about the $6 he spent, and he had a picture of Madeline playing with her new to her toys that he could show to others.

So I think it's safe to say that between my Grandpop (Mom's side) and my dad, I learned to be one frugal bargain hunting gal.  Sure I like to buy the occasional high end overpriced item here and there, but for the most part, I want everything I buy to be the best deal I can get.  Example: I won't buy Cheerios at Acme.  Instead, I'd rather drive in pouring rain to Target, get soaked going in and out of the store and save a dollar and get a bigger box of cereal, rather than give Acme my money and reduce my time in the rain.  Faced with the same scenario Bryan would take the hit and buy the cereal at Acme.  Not me.  I play the game.

Yesterday we took the girls out to lunch and stopped in at a not so local Target to check out their baby clearance.  I had already scored a Graco Pack N Play for $35 and a Fisher Price Bouncer for $15 a couple weeks ago.  I've been stressing about the small size of the nursery and how limited I am in where I can place the furniture.  We decided that perhaps a changing table would be a good solution to our problem.  We could put it on the small wall, place the dresser in the closet and pull in a chair so I have a place to sit with the baby.   Two Targets in one day yielded the same result.  Changing table for $58 that would require me to spray paint it a color to go with the nursery.  I'm not a fan of spray painting things that cost more than a few dollars when I'm not sure how the end result will look.  We decided to pass on it.  Then I spied the bargain that I simply have to tell everyone about.

I managed to find a Britax Roundabout 50 Classic, in a girly pattern with a harness that goes with my van interior, for $77!  I'm so thrilled at this.  I had seen the seat for $105 a few weeks ago at another Target, but I didn't buy it thinking that it would be cheaper to buy a new cover for a seat I reviewed last year.  It wasn't until I found out that the company wanted $70 plus shipping for a new cover that I started to think that I'd be better off buying a new Britax Marathon classic so I could use the spare covers I have from Ellie's old seat.  Anyway, I got the carseat I'll be using for the baby once she's no longer in the infant car seat.  The bonus in all of this is the Marathon covers I have from Ellie's old seat which will expire in 12 months, actually fit this seat perfectly.  In the event of a major mess, I at least have a cover which I can use in a pinch.

Oh, and I think I have the nursery furniture problem solved.  Ellie's white armchair fits nicely on the tiny wall.  It's not the best furniture arrangement, but I think we can live with it.  I'll probably be posting a few pictures of the room in the coming days.