Sunday, March 30, 2008

Another Man's Treasure

Of course, there are many things one learns when one becomes a mother. Recently, I've been learning no matter how long (or how well) a baby gets on one schedule, they're bound to change it. I guess I should have known Kate wouldn't need four nursings a day for the rest of her life...(yeah, shoulda seen that one coming). So we're adjusting to that and the addition of solid food. Despite a rough beginning (we haven't reintroduced the rice cereal again yet), she loves her avocado and oatmeal. We're trying to coax her into liking applesauce, but it's a harder sell. Squash is totally out--but sweet potatoes may be making a comeback. But I digress!

My good friend Courtney introduced me to one of motherhood's secrets--consignment sales. Yes, Kate's Easter dress was a consignment sale find (see posting below) but this past weekend, Courtney and I geared up for one of the biggest sales of the season. Because we didn't consign or volunteer, we had to wait until the sale on Saturday opened up to the public. That was at 9am. We were standing outside the church doors just before 8. Mercifully, the people in charge of the consignment sale handed out numbered tickets so we got our numbers (6 and 7) and headed back to the car for a few minutes to wait and warm up. About 8:30, after consulting our consignment sale map and designing our plan of attack, we got back in line to await the opening of the doors. Here's the line at 8:40 (the entrance is under the awning):

People were standing in line with laundry baskets, bags, and strollers--all to load up on whatever gems they could put their hands on (before the other parents beat them to it). Of course, you gotta have something to carry your treasures around while you search for more, but as Courtney says, the hunt is half the fun. Here's the line at five to 9, stretching about 1/4 the way around the building:


We could see people who were admitted earlier coming out with bikes, Barbie castles, play kitchens, basketball hoops, etc. Once the doors opened for the general public, we raced to the large items room (strollers, cribs, pack and plays, riding toys, furniture, etc) and the chase was on. Seriously, ugly things can happen when you get between a parent and something they want for their child. Thankfully, that didn't happen today. All in all, it was a great sale with lots of variety. How wonderful it is that people can get rid of their old items by passing them on (at a significant discount) to other parents. I mean, you should have seen the number of double strollers, cribs, clothes and used pottys (ugh). (It got a little ugly in the book room, but that's because it was very crowded.) My best find was a swim suit for Kate and Courtney found a fun bowling game for her son. Sadly, the swim suit doesn't fit, but I already have a bag of stuff to consign at the next sale so I can get in early and REALLY find the bargains. Here we are, heading home. Thanks, Courtney, for a fun morning!

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

What fun! You two must have had a great time scurring around, laughing, watching others and making a few finds! Thanks for the neat story. Like walking the beach, searching for a treasure! (Well, sort of!) Love, Mom L

Beth said...

wow. that's amazing. nice work.

Mrs_Scotsman said...

In Ohio we are also in the middle of the Spring Mommy Sales. I'm so glad that you have gotten in on the craze. I sell at the Tri-County Mothers Connection for one reason...TO GET IN EARLY. Last weekend was the Mother of Twins Sale which as you can imagine is HUGE.

Erin said...

That is awesome! Glad you're in the consignment loop. It's a fun thing to do. Wish we had that here. I have the joy of "boot" sales here ...