Happy Halloween!

Monday, I did my runs to Goodwill and the thrift store. I found a couple dresses for my oldest at the first GW and nothing at the second. Well, I saw some costumes, but I didn't buy them... wanted to do a little research first. The thrift store came through again - guess they want to prove me wrong after saying they never include the pieces to sets. I found a vintage little people school with ALL the pieces. Well, almost all. The magnetic letter set is missing the "Y." I am pretty sure it got lost when packaged because all the letters were in the bag with the other pieces & people except for the "Z." I got lucky that one somehow stayed in the tray, but the "Y" is gone. It was 25% off Monday, so I scored it for $8.24! I'm pretty sure we either had that set when I was a kid or I played with it somewhere else because I was having flashbacks as I put all the letters in the tray.

I also picked up yet another pair of shoes (I can't help it! It's an obsession! I can't justify buying myself shoes anymore since we're on a tight budget, so maybe this is my way of getting my shoe fix.) - Gymboree patent navy clogs which looked barely worn. And, now it seems I can't resist Groovy Girls when I see them cheap. I've been seeing them here and there for a while, so I decided I'd start buying them and sell them as a lot as I get enough.

I checked the costumes I'd found on Ebay and immediately made a plan to load up the kids after naps to go back and get the ones I'd seen earlier at GW. When I went to check out, the cashier told me I'd have to wait a minute while he called back for a pen. There should be one in my purse, right, so I dig around and find one. Only, it won't write. As I scribble to get it started, I notice my 5 year old pushing the cart toward the door. No big deal - she's pretty careful. 4 year old son walks with her (2 year old is in the cart). Next thing I know I hear a crash and look over to see the 4 year old has run into an older lady's cart... and then the yelling started. Oh, my, the yelling! "WHERE is your MOTHER!!??" Her tone was vicious. VICIOUS! And she went on and on as she made her way out the door... making sure everyone in the store knew I was the worst of the unfit mothers. My poor son ran to me and hid behind me! The cashier and everyone else just stopped and stared. And then they told me not to worry about her. Still, I'm sure I turned 20 shades of red - this is why I don't take my kids on my shopping adventures! Pardon the rotten picture. It was an afterthought after I'd taken a bunch of pictures to go along with listings and I apparently no longer cared.

All three were in excellent condition - there's a Cookie Monster, a Blue's Clues, and a purple dragon from Old Navy. Cookie was $4 and the other 2 were $5.

I came across this handy calculator. If you know you want to make a certain amount on an item, you can plug in all the details and it will figure out your profit after calculating Ebay & Paypal fees. Love it!

Okay, I'm determined to get busy listing items - this is what always takes me the longest to do! Taking the pictures, editing them, weighing, calculating shipping costs, writing the descriptions - needs to be done, but it's not nearly as much fun as shopping! However, if I want to bring more stuff home, I HAVE to get some of the stuff here moved out... not to mention needing to replenish the funds so I actually have money to shop.

Oh, and I may have run to Target on Tuesday after I heard all the hubbub about the Missoni line. I bought a few things and already made one sale. I left PLENTY of product there, but I figure if I can help a few people who couldn't get something at their local stores, that's a good thing, right?? Right? I still feel a little guilty...