Archive for the ‘Goodwill Hunting’ Category

Are you a Playful Parent?

Wednesday, November 23rd, 2011

Playful Parenting: An exciting new approach to raising children

I have heard of the practice of playful parenting in my circles, and had a marginal idea of what that meant. I recently grabbed this book, Playful Parenting, at a local Goodwill. Now, I am only about 25 pages in so I haven’t really gotten to the meat and potatoes of it but the gist looks to me like instead of yellin’ and screamin’ to get your way (remind you of anyone? LOL), turn it into something fun, positive and memorable. I hope to one day finish the darn book and write a little review for y’all here :) In the meantime, I wanted to share my revelatory  ’playful parent’ experience from my dinner table last night…

My 2 1/2 year old was what everyone called a great eater. She would eat lots of food, with a great variety and sophisticated palate. Now- not so much. When she is hungry she asked for a few staples:

 

  1. Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich
  2. Yogurt
  3. Quesadilla
  4. Smoothie
  5. Snack (crackers, cheese and the like)
I could go into further infuriating details about her food aversions, but that’s a whole other post!

 

Last night I made her a plate with a main dish, applesauce and lima beans. We argued back and forth about the plate of food. Eventually Gigi offered some ketchup dip and Marlowe obliged by eating the main dish. Now, on to the lima beans. These lima beans were pretty darn good, too! I used a bit of EVOO, coarse salt and our family’s secret ingredient ( Montreal Steak Seasoning). But, there was no convincing her. Not 5 bites, not one bite; no planes or trains; no bribery of bath or TV; NOTHING. We were full blown tug-of-war at this point. I was fuming, she was crying.

While this IS NOT my daughter Marlowe, this is the very reaction to lima beans she had- NO! :(

Then, it hit me. Suddenly I thought like a playful parent! Here’s how it unfolded…

 

I asked Marlowe if she wanted to see Mommy catch the lima bean in her mouth. So I threw one in the air (like popcorn) and caught it in my mouth. We cheered and clapped. She laughed and asked for more (BTW- since she had been crying and upset she actually signed for more. That’s how she still uses her Baby Signs :) )  Back to the topic at hand. So I did a few more and then asked if I could throw one at her to see if she could catch it. She wasn’t so sure. I mean, they were STILL lima beans. So the first one took some verbal prying to get her mouth open wide enough to actually warrant a throw. But soon she caught on and I made the first one. She thought it was hilarious! I then took my turn before trying with her again. It was working!! She was eating the loathsome lima beans :) I made sure to miss a few, also (on purpose, of course LOL) which she also thought was fun. But, in the end she ate the 5 friggin lima beans. Success. With play.

 

Have you been a playful parent lately? Please share with us!

 

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Posted in Athens, GA, Atlanta, GA, Baby Signs® by Adventures In Childbirth, Blog Adventures, Goodwill Hunting, Gwinnett County, GA | No Comments »

Vistaprint Booty

Tuesday, November 1st, 2011

Since I let y’all in on my Staples deal yesterday, I remembered that I had wanted to also share my first ever Vistaprint haul. I had been putting off buying professionally printed materials for some time. Some monetary restrictions, but also I prefer to get the instant gratification of buying in-person or printing at home. So, the day finally came when I decided to bite… Vistaprint had some deals I just couldn’t refuse.

 

I don't even remember how much all this shoula cost!! :)

Inventory:

1 T- Shirt to wear when I ‘Doula’ -It says “RELAX… I’m a Doula”

100 Double Sided Postcards (basically my business card, only bigger :) )

20 Calendar magnets with my business card image at the top

1 Stamp

11 click pens with my business card image

1 sticky notepad

2 Large Car Magnets with my business card image

4 Small Car Magnets (2 each for Baby Signs® Program and Hypnobabies® Childbirth Hypnosis)

1 Large window decal with my business card image

 

That’s a lotta stuff! 141 items, to be exact. Grand total delivered to my door? $39.01 :) And the best part is, I chose slooooow shipping (21 days, I think) and the goodies arrived within 10 days! Great job, Vistaprint :)

How do you manage to save money while running a small business?

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Posted in Athens, GA, Atlanta, GA, Baby Signs® by Adventures In Childbirth, Blog Adventures, Goodwill Hunting, Gwinnett County, GA, Hypnobabies® Childbirth Hypnosis | 1 Comment »

Staples Rewards Booty

Monday, October 31st, 2011

As a small business owner and operator, I joined the Staples Rewards program a while back. Recently I got some coupons in the mail for online /phone purchases. One coupon was for $25 Off $75+ and the other was for a FREE ‘flip’ style digital video camera with a $100 purchase (valued at $79.99). So, I went online to take a peek. I usually do not like to shop online, because I find that even if I found a good deal, once I pay for shipping all is lost. Hooray for me that I was also eligible for Free shipping. So, I took a look around and found some items that are staples (no pun intended) in my home office: Printer paper, cardstock, clasp envelopes. I also was happy to come across a really great deal on media storage; 8GB PNY capless flash drive for only $9.99! If I remember correctly they were originally $29.99. So, I stocked up (FOUR) with the intention of using them as cool Holiday gifts for some people on my list. So, here’s my haul:

Merchandise Total $196.42 plus tax

I ended up paying only $98! That’s a great deal if you ask me :) How do you save money while running a small business?

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Posted in Athens, GA, Atlanta, GA, Blog Adventures, Goodwill Hunting, Gwinnett County, GA | No Comments »

Nighttime wetting solution

Wednesday, October 19th, 2011

Well, I am not actually here to solve your overnight leaking- but instead to give you a helpful hint :)

Sometimes it takes several nights of trial and error to get just the right system down for maximum absorbency, especially if you have a heavy wetter or loooong sleeper (yes, I am jealous!). With my daughter, we tried a whole bunch of different combos and most of the time she couldn’t even walk right. It was definitely fun to watch her waddle :) Since then she has earned herself the 99% Potty Trained badge, with few accidents in the day. She is still wearing a nighttime diaper, though and I am OK with that. Right now we use a Flip (hybrid style) with 2 inserts. Seems to work pretty well for us.

I am now using the same trick for my 9 month old son as I did for Marlowe back in the day. While Zephyr isn’t a long sleeper, I try very hard not to overstimulate him when he does wake. This usually means infrequent changes at night. We still are working on an overnight leak-free solution for him, but are considering going straight to the Flip solution that is working so well with his big sister.

So, I’ve brought you this far- you are probably wondering when I am going to tell you my nifty tip… ok here it is:

Buy yourself several crib sheets (deep pockets) and several waterproof (flannel) crib mattress covers. I usually find them on my thrift store hunts, but you could of course buy them new pretty much anywhere. Go ahead and layer up the bed. One mattress cover/one sheet, one mattress cover/one sheet, and so on. Then, when your little does a piddle (LOL) you just whip off that top layer and you are ready to go within minutes! Back to dreamland instead of wrestling that darned bumper (if you use one) and the bulky mattress and the baby, etc…

You’re welcome! Do you have nighttime stay-dry tips to share? Love to hear ‘em…

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Posted in Athens, GA, Atlanta, GA, Blog Adventures, Goodwill Hunting, Gwinnett County, GA | No Comments »

Kidsignments Fall 2011

Tuesday, August 16th, 2011

Kidsignments is a semi-annual kids consignment sale held at the Gwinnett County Fairgrounds in Lawrenceville, GA.    Many of Gwinnett’s smart parents have discovered the secret of buying and selling with us.  People line up before this great event with laundry baskets (and those coveted garbage cans with handles and wheels) in tow (serving as shopping baskets of course!) to gather up the many  bargains!  It has become quite a tradition!   Since we have filled our spots so quickly at the last several events and have had a long waiting list, we increased our seller limit to 1,400.  With a 1,400 seller limit (yes, you read that one right – 1,400!) many great bargains should abound!  This is not one to miss! Come see why this event was voted “Best Place to Buy Childrens Clothing” by Gwinnett Magazine and listed as one of the “101 Things to do in Georgia!”

 

 Kidsignments 
Fall 2011
 Sale Dates:

  

Tuesday        Aug. 16    9am* – 7pm (No children/infants or strollers allowed until after 2 pm Tues.)
Wednesday   Aug. 17    9am – 7pm
Thursday       Aug. 18    9am – 7pm
Friday             Aug. 19    9am – 6pm (many 25% off items!)
Saturday        Aug. 20    9am – 6pm (many 50% off items)


*Due to the crowd size on the first sale day,
it was neccessary for us to implement the  following policy: 
No children/infants/carriers or strollers until after 2pm on the first sale day.
We tried for a long time not to have to implement this policy,
but safety makes this necessary.  We apologize for any inconvenience to you. 
That is not the intention, only safety. Sorry, no exceptions.

 Find out even more by going to their site!

Kidsignments.com

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Posted in Blog Adventures, Goodwill Hunting, Gwinnett County, GA | No Comments »

Lil’ Hands Kids Sale- Dacula, GA

Tuesday, July 26th, 2011

Lil’ Hands Kids Sale is pleased to announce our Fall/Winter Sale! July 27th-30th

NOW WITH A NEW LOCATION!!!!
…Next door to Fernando’s Mexican Restaurant
465 Dacula Road, Dacula, GA 30019

Presale: Wednesday July 26th Volunteers 5:30pm and Sellers 6:30pm
Sale Open to Public: Thursday July 27th “Working Mom’s Madness” 6-9pm
Friday July 28th 9am-12pm and 4pm-8pm
Saturday July 29th Half Price Day 9am -1pm

 A  semi annual kids consignment sale held in the Dacula, GA area. Offering brand name Kids clothing, toys and baby items for up to 90% off Retail! For more information email  kid.sale@yahoo.com
For this sale we are accepting Fall & Winter attire.

Gently used and new clothing newborn to juniors, and young men’s and ladies sizes. Also  shoes, handmade hairbows, Halloween costumes, Christmas and Holiday attire, uniforms, accessories, toys, books, DVDs and computer games, baby equipment, furniture, outdoor toys, bikes and much, much more.

All clothing will go through a rigorous inspection process so you don’t have to root through stained or damaged goods.

This sale is limited to the first 150 sellers. If you are interested in participating as a seller in this sale you may contact us by email at kid.sale@yahoo.com or by calling Heather @770-540-9323 or Kellie @ 770-265-3303 .

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: We have some exclusive opportunities for local businesses to target hundreds of our shoppers. If you would like to market your business to local shoppers, please contact us for more information.

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Posted in Atlanta, GA, Blog Adventures, Goodwill Hunting | No Comments »

Goodwill Hunting April 25

Tuesday, April 26th, 2011

While today’s post won’t necessarily involve Goodwill, it will involve one of my favorite pasttimes- bargain hunting! 

I have tried, so far unsuccessfully, to ‘coupon’. Last week I printed out coupons, matched deals and mapped out the 3 places I was gonna go. While I was making my list and printing out coupons, I discovered that not ALL of the coupons were still available… waste of time. After printing the coupons that WERE still available (none would print more than once for me, I might add) I headed to my first stop: Target. After 20 minutes of trying to find the stuff my coupons were for, I realized that I couldn’t find the merchandise that would’ve cost .04 because the Extreme Couponers had bought every last one! All I wanted was 4 measely body washes… oh well. There was also supposed to be some cat food for free, but I never found the one for the price that would make my coupon a $$ maker. But, I headed to the checkout with my 2 trial size toothpastes, and a box of stuffing. My total should’ve been .49 befor tax. Forget the fact that I don’t really care for the toothpaste, or the stuffing for that matter. At checkout it was discovered that the toothpaste I was instructed to buy with the coupon I was instructed to print didn’t match. The toothpaste was the wrong type from that brand… so time wasted printing said coupon, paper wasted printing said coupon, ink wasted printing said coupon and energy wasted located said toothpaste for said coupon…. but I did walk out with my .49 box of stuffing. Whoopie. I should also add that .04 body wash was completed blown out at the other 3 places I ended up going, too.

So, tomorrow I am going to get educated on ‘proper’ couponing. There is a great networking luncheon hosted by The Budget Author that is ultimately a coupon workshop. I will be sure to post you all on my findings!

Now that all my bitchin’ and moanin’ is outta the way (for now), I will let you in on my great deals from today :)

I started this afternoon at the library for my ‘Mommy & Me’ time with Marlowe. Each Monday at our branch is Storytime at 1:30. On our way in I stopped by the Info Desk with no expectations of good news, but when I asked for the Zoo DVD they said “As a matter of fact, it IS here!”. OMG. Finally! We scored our Family 4 pack to Zoo Atlanta. That’s a savings of $42 for us, but more if your children are over 2. We are headed there Wednesday May 4. Yay!! And, now we move on to deal #2.

Mondays are very special days for me because:

1) Mike is usually home so we get the house straightened up

2) I SOMETIMES get to leave the house ALONE

3) My local thrift store offers the entire place 50%

Yep! Every. Single. Thing. Half off. So, here’s the rundown of my booty from today’s haul…

This is a great summer top that is lightweight and button down for ease while nursing Zephyr

  • Step 2 Water Table

  • Blue’s Clues VHS tapes x6

  • Baby Gap boys plaid pants

  • Cherokee girls top

  • Garanimals girls skort

  • Osh Kosh girls top

  • Children’s Place unisex romper

  • KidConnection girls dress/bloomers

  • Sonoma girls top

  • Little Lindsey girls top

  • LizSport womens top

  • Gloria Vanderbilt womens top

  • Old Navy womens top

  • Jaclyn Smith womens top

  • Sonomas womens top

  • Ann Taylor Loft womens long short

  • Mossimo womens long short

Our 'new' water table $3.50 (reg. $6.99)

And, so you might be wondering ‘what makes this such a good haul?’. And here is your answer- my total came to…

Blue's Clues- Marlowe's #1 favorite- .50/each (reg. .99)

 

wait for it…

These baby Gap pants are normally almost $30!

 

Isn't this a cute top?! Sonoma :)

 

$28.44

Yep, that’s it! So, now I must abide by the rule- one in/one out. Look for my posts on Facebook as I sell off the old stuff that we don’t wear or cannot fit anymore. You can come shop with me at the location near me, or find one closer to you. The Metro Thrift Store 134 S. Clayton St. Lawrenceville is also known in other areas as Last Chance Thrift Store. There are locations in Decatur, Morrow, Lithia Springs, and Norcross. They have specials every day of the week, and coupons online, too! They are also on Facebook :)

Where is your favorite place to find a good bargain? I ‘d love to know and perhaps become a regular there, too!

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Posted in Blog Adventures, Goodwill Hunting, Gwinnett County, GA | 1 Comment »