Sunday, November 20, 2011

A Thrift Store Christmas

This year my hubby and I have started becoming a little thrift store crazy. It started in January 2011. For our anniversary my Hubby took me to this little quaint town - Reedley, Ca. We walked down town and visited several little Thrift stores. We had so much fun. When we left Reedley we both decided we loved the feel of the little town, and could see ourselves living there. So when we got home we called our real estate agent and told him to add Reedley to our search. That same week we found a short sale house that we really liked, and 6 months later we moved into that house. Now that we live in Reeldey we visit the thrift stores as often as we can. John looks for books, I look for clothes and house hold stuff. We have found some great stuff.


With Christmas quickly approaching I found myself getting anxious about money, gifts, and how it was all going to work out. I thought it would be fun to do a "Thrift Store Christmas". I just wasn't sure what our family would think. One day my mother in-law and I were talking about Christmas and how things are going to be tight for everyone this year. I hung up the phone, and then quickly called her back and threw out my idea about a Thrift Store Christmas. She loved the idea and said lets do it. I was so excited! Instead of being worried about not having enough money, I am out getting tuns of deals and the best part - having FUN doing it! I was kinda worried that it would be hard to find something for everyone, but so far it has been easy. I can't wait to share with all of you the before and after pictures of the treasures I've found. But you'll have to wait till after Christmas, or else my family will know what they are getting.








How to have a successfully Thrift Store Christmas:



  1. Shop your thrift stores as often as you can.





  2. Have a list of people you want to buy for. Mark off that persons name when you buy them a gift.





  3. Keep a large box (with a lid) to hide your gifts in





  4. Ask when your local thrift store will be having special sales





  5. Buy things you know you can make look new





  6. Frames can always be spray painted, then add a special picture, kids art or scripture





  7. Make sure toys are clean or can be cleaned and have all the right pieces.





  8. Look for neat coffee mugs and put a Starbucks card in it or a small bag of coffee.





  9. Look for DVDs or VHS (make sure the receiver has a VHS still). Then make a movie basket with popcorn, hot coco, and candy in it. Then add a tag saying - Family Movie night!





  10. Shop with friends - just cause it's funner!





  11. Include your kids. If you buy a picture frame, have them make art for it, or have them pick out a special picture.





  12. Look through pinterest for inspiration. http://pinterest.com/






NOTE: LOTS OF ITEMS CAN BE WASHED IN THE DISHWASHER OR WASHING MACHINE AND COME OUT LOOKING NEW.







LAST BUT NOT LEAST - Remember, there is one perfect gift that was given freely to us all. His name is Jesus! May we not loose sight of that this Christmas.

If you have any ideas that might help someone out please leave me a message. Thanks!

Play It Again: Christmas Thrifty Gifts

Play It Again: Christmas Thrifty Gifts: A Reedley woman has been shopping for Christmas for months. She and her family are going to thrift stores hunting for treasures to make Christmas more meaningful.

Friday, November 4, 2011

In Awe

Today I was at CVS doing my coupon shopping. If you know anything about couponing, you know it takes a lot of focus. So, there I am trying my hardest to stay focused w/ my 2 daughters( Kate - 4 and Autumn -2). I know, I know, I am not very bright taking 2 small children with me while I try to stay focused. Who was I kidding? Anywho, I am getting down to the last isle and it's the makeup isle (I barely ever go down that isle, but today I thought I would look, since I had a coupon). As we get to that Isle Autumn starts pulling Kate's hair. Kate is now almost in tears saying "stop it Autumn". I then turn to Autumn and sternly say "No, it isn't nice to pull Sissy's hair, we need to be gentle", which now means her tears start flowing.... and she is ticked at me. I take a deep breath and sigh (cause now I am overwhelmed), then I feel this soft touch on my shoulder and hear this little voice say, "It's ok my dear, just be thankful they are happy and healthy". I turned to look who said this. It was a little old lady, with the kindest smile. So I respond "your right...she's just so ornery". She says "she may be ornery, but you are so blessed to have a child healthy enough to be so spunky". Then she proceeds to tell me for a half hour (which I didn't mind at all) about her twins. Which by the way, Autumn sat through it all without a peep. One of the twins passed away at birth and the other has cerebral palsy. She told me of Gods faithfulness to her and her children. At first I thought I was there just to listen to a little old lady that needed to talk, but as I listened, her words brought so much comfort to my heart. She spoke of being a Christian and how God brought people to her right when she need them. She spoke of heaven, and how He has treasures awaiting for me there. I just stood there with tears in my eyes in disbelief that this was taking place in the make up isle at CVS. I told her that her words of encouragement came at the perfect time, and how grateful I was to have met her. She then hugged me so tight, as if I were a long lost family member. It was amazing. As we said goodbye I noticed that a lady I had talked to earlier about makeup, was on her knees beside us. She had listened to the whole thing. She acted as if she were looking at lotion, but the way she looked at me at that moment said differently. So then i began to think that this may have been for her too. That thought made me so excited. This woman may have just seen the Gospel in action for the 1st time. Who knows! My heart is still overwhelmed with gratitude to God for His perfect timing. To see for just a glimpse the crazy amount of love He has for me, and how He cared that I was feeling overwhelmed. That he met me where I was at, at that very moment. Oh how he loves me...a wretch like me. It's truly mind boggling! Wow! So in awe.
May you know His amazing love for you today. If you don't know of His love, Ask Him to show you. He will.