Thrift Store Christmas Shopping

At Target a new holiday dress would be at least $20. This one was closer to $2.

A couple of weeks ago I was at Target. I have always gone there because it's close to home and easy, and they have great hours. I saw the cutest holiday dresses and decided this year my girls would have nice dresses for the holidays. They do have some nice dresses (thanks, Miss Kay, Mom and Nancy!), but I was thinking of something festive they could wear to all the parties and family gatherings we attend.

Then Christmas shopping started in earnest, gymnastics started, and other life and home things got costly. I decided I would fuel up my kids with some good snacks and we would hit the thrift store. Not just a small one, but a huge one that would be more likely to have things we were looking for. I have always loved vintage and thrift store shopping but it got hard to do once I had the kids and my brain was too foggy to even contemplate keeping track of the kids while shopping for them at the same time.

Well, today I spent $16 on:

A fluffy yellow scarf for Callie
A nice shirt for Joel to wear to church ($1!!!)
Pants for Joel to wear around
A couple of things for my dad that he asked for
A Christmasy dress for Callie
A Christmasy dress for Eva (see above!)

I was also dreaming of some new clothes for myself as I hopefully continue to lose weight, but things cost so much new. I vow to have Aron watch the kids on one of his Fridays off so I can go vintage and thrift store shopping for my new CHEAP wardrobe. It's the green way to go, by the way, for the planet and our wallets.

What will we do with all the money we will be saving since I finally got smart? Well, we were talking with my dad the other day about going to Germany (where I was born) ... and I'd love to take my mom to Italy and the family to LegoLand. We shall see!

Holiday Baking: Treat Boxes on the Cheap

Below is a picture of something I gave to friends, family and neighbors last year for Christmas.

• I had gotten a bunch of mocha brownie mixes super cheap so I made them in festive cupcake wrappers.
• I bought a chocolate bar from Germany from my local Aldi store.
• I bought a bag of assorted uncracked nuts.
• Don't mind the mini-toothpastes! I'm not very classy and had gotten a ton of them from a nice dental hygienist friend and put them in the treat boxes I knew would be going to kids. They are Spongebob toothpastes!
• I bought some Gladware with coupons to store the treats in.

I like my treat box because it's something I would like to receive. I could reuse the Gladware, not be too unhealthy eating a ton of sweets, and have fun with the kids cracking the nuts the old fashioned way. The toothpaste is kind of a funny, like "brush your teeth after eating these sweets" ... ha! On top of the box I put our Christmas card. You could also wrap the box or put a bow on it or ribbon. I inherited a giving spirit from both of my parents, and especially my mom.

What are your holiday treat box ideas?

The Tale of the Tooth Fairy Box Set Review

Man, the Tooth Fairy has a hard job. She/he has to wait until the kid with the lost tooth falls asleep, then she/he has to FIND the tooth, then quietly remove it and replace it with a gift or some money. That Tooth  Fairy is busy. Sometimes she/he even comes to our house while we are in the other room praying and doesn't even wait until the kids are asleep. It's like she/he just KNOWS when the kids have hidden their lost tooth and quickly swoops in to replace it with some cash.

"The Tale of the Tooth Fairy" box set would make a great birthday or other holiday gift for a special child in your life. It not only comes with a very cute book, but also comes with a Tooth Fairy doll with a pouch to hold a lost tooth. This way the child can put the lost tooth in the pouch and put the doll on a dresser or shelf and the Tooth Fairy can easily find the tooth! This set comes in a sturdy box which could serve as the Tooth Fairy doll's little home when not being played with or used for official tooth business!

Here's the skinny from the writer and illustrator:

Now for the first time - The Tale of the Tooth Fairy tells the story of how a little fairy finds her trun calling in helping children with the very first sign of growing up - the loss of their baby teeth!  Includes hard cover storybook with Tooth Loss Record Keepker, a boy or girl Tooth Fairy plush doll with Tooth Pouch and a Keepsake Box.  Similar in likability to The Elf on the Shelf, the Tale of the Tooth Fairy will be a darling for parents, grandparents and children alike!    The Tale of the Tooth Fairy was written and designed by husband and wife team Mary Kate Fleming and Brian Ledig. 

Here's where you can buy this super cute set, and here's how to friend them on Facebook!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Holiday Baking: Chocolate Stars

Now that Thanksgiving is over, let's concentrate on our holiday baking, shall we? For years now I have not had time to mess with this, as much as I love making things for people and sampling the chocolate fun! But this year will be different! This year is as easy as 1, 2, 3 ... (okay, and 4)

ONE ... buy some milk chocolate melts from your local baking store.

TWO ... melt them in a double boiler or White Trash Double Boiler as I have made below

THREE ... spoon chocolate into a mold like stars or Christmas trees or skulls or whatever floats your holiday boat

FOUR ... pop the mold into the fridge for a bit until they set up. Then pop the chocolate creations out of the mold and ... into your mouth, of course. And then the next batches can go into nice holiday boxes or bags to give to neighbors, coworkers, friends, family and your mouth again. ENJOY!

That Freaky Anti-Germ Mommy

You don't want to be one of those parents who is all freaky about your kid getting sick off of another kid. You don't WANT to be that mom who is like, "Oh, your kid coughed. We have to leave the playdate now."

So you write Zen things on Facebook like, "Oh, it's okay that your kid puked last night. We are still coming over for the playdate today." and then after the playdate, when the kid puked AGAIN, you write stuff like, "Oh, I like to just pray and do positive thinking and it will all turn out okay."

And usually it's fine. Your kids have a nice, built-up immunity.

Then they all 5 get sick at once and are puking and you're cursing yourself and your damned positive thinking and Pollyanna sick-itude because plans are cancelled and puke bowls are handed out and hair is held back and Saltines are blown through like money in this house.

Then, yeah, you kind of turn into that freaky mom who sees a runny nose at a mass playdate and you bribe the kids to get in the car NOW and we'll get some ice cream on the way home.