Serious Scores at the Mother's Market

My mom and I hit up the local Mother's Market today. If you don't have one in your area, here's the lowdown: It's a huge indoor yard sale but only for gently-used kid stuff (and some pregnant mom stuff, like maternity clothes, breast pumps, etc.), put on by a local mother's group (in this case the group is ABC/After Baby Comes). Now I'm really not much on mother's groups--I don't want to hang out if the only thing we have in common is that we have kids, and I'm socially awkward in the first place (hence the blog name). I tried attending a mom group meeting once for Stenni's sake (there was a playgroup at the same time) and it just went horribly for all involved. But at any rate, ABC in my town is a big thing, and twice a year they hold a huge Mother's Market at the local middle school. Local moms can sell whatever their kids have outgrown, and there are tables set up all through the halls and in the lunchroom. Shoppers have to wait in line outside to get in, and it costs a few bucks, but it is sooo worth it. There are some serious deals to be had if you know what you're looking for. There's even an "oversized" room (the middle school gym) where people sell strollers, carseats, furniture, Exersaucers, outdoor play stuff, and things like that, and it's all in reasonably good to great condition. Some people are trying to make some serious money and their prices reflect that, but other people just want to get rid of stuff and they will take next to nothing (or sometimes actually nothing) to clear some space out of their houses. In the past, I have purchased an entire storage container full of clothes for $10 and a stroller for $20 and gotten so many great deals on things I'd have paid 5-10 times as much for anywhere else. It's a bargain hunter's dream, and with a ton of little girl clothes but nothing for little boys, I really needed to make use of it this time around! 

Despite the ridiculous heat inside the school, the over-crowding, and the physical labor/digging (sometimes you really need to get up in those storage containers that people bring to find anything worthwhile) I came home with bags and bags of stuff, but here are some of the real highlights:

A cute button-up and sweatervest combo for Cuatro, given to me for free by a nice lady I knew from Jazzercise who just wanted to clear out her closet!

These brand new jammies, see how they say $2 on the sticker? Well they retail for like $8, and I bought them for $1. YAY!

Of course my little man needs corduroy pants and a flannel. He'll be lumberjack like his papa!

Best score of the market? This L. L. Bean ski jacket and pants set. My mom snapped it up for $5.

My mom also bought a newer Graco carseat for $10 (which is a huge score). When all was said and done, I brought home 4 shopping bags full of stuff...and paid about $35-40 for it all. I also got Stenni a pair of tap shoes, because Lord knows I obviously need something to keep me up at night besides the kicks in the gut and ever-flowing bladder. But she loved them so much that it almost didn't matter. And I was/am so proud of myself for all of the bargains!