learning to shop....differently

I'm coming clean here. I've never purchased an article of clothing for myself at a 2nd hand store.

There I said it.

I'm not opposed to thrifting. I have purchased second-hand household items ~ at garage sales, auctions, thrift stores. Just not clothing. For me. When the girls were little, I found a 2nd hand store in a city about 35 miles from home that sold high quality, upscale brands that had been 'gently worn.' No one could tell that they weren't brand new. And I sure wasn't going to say anything.

Fast forward to the teenage years. Now it's all about having the right brand of shoes, the right brand of jeans, etc. Granted, I think it's ridiculous but it's part of being a teenager. I think you'd be hard pressed to find a teenager that wouldn't pick a NIKE sweatshirt over one from WalMart or Target. Heck, I'd rather have a NIKE sweatshirt too. Not solely based on name brand but based on quality. The statement, "you get what you pay for" is true to some degree.

I took my girls shopping on Saturday. The weather is changing here and we need jeans and long sleeves. First stop was Plato's Closet. I hadn't been there. I'd heard good things about it from Alison (she'd been there before and purchased several items) as well as a classmate of Madison's and another mom. I had to see it for myself to be convinced that it is all they say it is.

Well, it is. Everything was neatly displayed. Like items were together and by color. Yes, by color. And the selection? Oh my word. I couldn't believe the number of jeans on the racks. They even had display areas by brand ~ Hollister, Aeropostale, The Buckle, Old Navy, Victoria's Secret. Who knew? It was like upscale thrifting!

Madison scored. Jeans from the Buckle ($35) and a NIKE zipper hoodie ($12). Ok, so you may not agree that the jeans were a bargain. But when the regular price in the store is upwards of $80, I'd say we did ok. And they look brand new. I know she'll get my money's worth out of them. Already she's worn them 2 times.

Did the girls care? No. It was their idea to go there first. See? I'm learning. From them. One step at a time.

Kitchen Help

Lawman and I have known for some time that we needed new kitchen help. The old help just wasn't getting the job done anymore. During the past 5 or 6 months, we've done a lot of shopping, asking questions and research.

We finally agreed on the new help and she arrived today. She arrived before I got home from work and as luck would have it, the kitchen was a mess when I walked in. But I knew it would be worth it.

I'm of the opinion that new appliances constitute a major purchase. Not something I can just go buy on a whim. And, since we knew for some time that this purchase was going to be unavoidable, we planned for it. That translates to paid for in cash.

The dirty dishes were promptly loaded into the new help upon the departure of the installation dude.

I then read the instruction manual, sat on the floor and admired this new help.

Trust me when I say that she's going to get a workout in this house.

A Girls Day Out

I share my birthday with The Country Doctor's Wife, a.k.a. Rechelle. It was just another day for me but Rechelle finally joined us this year in the "40 and up Club."

Rechelle had an olive lodged in her throat. I just gave her a good whack between the shoulder blades.

Rechelle and I are lucky to have friends like Kim and Jenny. They treated us to a girls day.

They took us to the town of McPherson where we did what girls do best.

Shop...talk...eat...shop...talk...you get the idea.

Our friend, Katie showed up too. Katie and her family moved to another town about 3 years ago so we don't get to see her nearly as often as we would like but McPherson was an easy place for her to meet us. What a special treat!


We made our way up and down the street to check out the local shops.

We stopped at The Cake Lady. Check out http://www.oldmuffinfactory.com/. Wonderful, locally made baking mixes.

Blood sugar levels started hitting rock bottom so we knew it was time to find some lunch. There was a local cafe that served Mediterranean fare. Talk about a good sandwich -- the Greco -- turkey, hummus, sun dried tomatoes, cucumbers and spinach or field greens. Mmm.


We sat down for lunch about 1:00. Shortly after, the lunch line crew joined us in this back room with their sandwiches. They were all young, twenty-somethings (if that) and I'm sure we sounded like a bunch of old hens to them. They may have referred to us as the gossipy future blue-hairs. I hope we didn't sound as bad to them as I think we did.

We took in a few more stops and then decided we better have an afternoon drink. Chai tea for me please.

This little coffee shop was a great place to sit and talk awhile. Our topics of discussion covered the gammet. Not sure they were all appropriate. The lady sitting behind our group heard every word we said. I'm sure of it because when someone mentioned they were going to go find the restroom, she immediately turned around and offered directions. I bet she wanted to weigh in on our conversation at some point during the afternoon.

Must be time to head home. Rechelle overloaded on the caffine. Can't you tell that it's killing her to stay on that couch. Jenny on the other hand looks quite comfy. Just close your eyes, dear.

It was a good day. Any day is a good day when you get to spend it with friends. Thanks girls!

Saturday Treasures

Today is "City Wide Garage Sale" day in our town.

Our newspaper arrived Wednesday, complete with map and ads. Blonde 3 read through each ad and even high-lighted what she thought would be the "have to go to" sales.

She and I were out the door before 7:30 this morning. She didn't have much luck but I found a few treasures and spent a total of $2.25.

I purchased a corning ware pie plate to replace one that broke months ago. The holiday Debbie Mumm spreders will be a great little extra to give with a cheese ball and crackers to neighbors this Christmas. The wine charms will be a fun little extra to have when we entertain friends or family during the holidays. And what I consider to be the best bargain of all is the More Make A Mix Cookery book. I've checked this out from the library before and really enjoyed it. For a mere 25 cents, I'm now able to enjoy it anytime I want.

Elastic Required

More times than not, I'm happy to go shopping. However, there are two particular items I hate shopping for -- vehicles and swimsuits.



My vehicle is fine but given the current state of my swimsuit, shopping for a new one has been long overdue. No elastic left in either the top or the bottom. I mean seriously, any 40+ mother knows that high quality elastic is a necessity, especially in a swimsuit. Elastic was non-existent in my suit. So much so that my girls were hanging and my cheeks were bare. Oh, that's a visual, isn't it? I think we better move on.



I would like to say right up front that having a teenager and a tween in the dressing room while trying on swimsuits was quite humorous. I'm sure we created more than a few memories. And oh Lord, the comments. Let's just say it's a good thing that I'm comfortable in my own skin. I will have to admit that they were very helpful. And honest. That's probably an understatement.



I had my heart set on this suit. Apparently, women that wear Nike suits have no boobs. My girls just about had a stroke when they realized that their mother had that much cleavage.



This top was too low-cut. However, I can guarantee you that my 15 year old would think a low-cut neckline like this is totally appropriate for her. Well, her girls are still perky. She told me, "No, it makes your boobs look saggy." That's not what I needed to hear. I'm well aware that the perk has got up and left. Again, the need for high quality elasticity!



Finally, we decided on this and this. It was far and away the top choice. The girls say it makes me look perky and thin--words that this mama wants to hear over and over.