$140 Richer

I don't like clutter.

I am sentimental.

My upstairs is clean, but my basement is overloaded with stuff. A quick jog downstairs to grab a jar of spaghetti sauce will cause anxiety to pulse through my insides. It bothers me and sometimes keeps me up at night, because someday we will finish the basement and the stuff must be dealt with.

So I made myself start and complete a project that I think was very helpful to me. One of the largest piles of stuff downstairs consisted of an ever-growing pile of Gracie's clothes, from the time she was newborn up til last winter. Every time I clean out her drawers, I just drop a new garbage bag full of outgrown clothes on the pile. I clenched my stomach every time I considered doing something other than keeping them.

But I knew the local children's consignment sale was going to be setting up at the fairgrounds this fall. I determined I was going to use the opportunity to get some clutter out of my basement (ouch, it hurts to call it clutter) and make some money. I knew that they only accept clothes that are fairly current and trendy, and that if Gracie's baby clothes were going to make the cut, I'd better act fast.  

I started by sorting through the clothes and keeping my VERY favorites.

I found I could think more objectively when I sorted through the clothes during the day. I was WAY too sentimental at night, especially after Grace had gone to bed. I wanted to keep everything. 

Thought process: "....oh! The purple outfit! Remember that cute picture of her in the purple outfit!" Yes. And because I took a picture of her in the purple outfit, I will remember it.

"Remember the cute picture we got of her in this outfit?!" Yes. Again. You have the picture to remember. And that outfit's STILL cute! I would STILL buy it! So let's let someone else grab it for a good deal.

There was NO WAY this one was going. This one's never going.

My tags printed off and ready to attach to the clothes. It's a pretty cool system.

Organized by size in the living room

Packed and ready to drop off at the sale... sniff

It took me about two weeks to get all the clothes ready, and yes, the majority of the work took place the day before the clothes were due... but it's done!

I sold 58 outfits total and made $140. For stuff (really special stuff :) that was just sitting downstairs. I have about 50 outfits tagged and ready for the spring sale too.

If you're interested in doing the same with your clothes, stop and visit here. I participated in the Just Between Friends event. I know the same thing or something similar takes place all over the U.S. If you have any questions about my experience, email me at brittneycollado@gmail.com.

I Love My New Budget

I recently imposed a budget on myself. Not because I was spending recklessly, but because I really wanted to be told how much I could or could not spend.

I settled in on a modest amount that I would not go over on buying things for Gracie and me, which usually translates to mean.... clothes, and it lasts me through the month. I can spend all of it on Gracie or all of it on me or somewhere in between.

It's almost like an allowance... I can spend it as fast or as slow as I want, but when it's gone for the month, it's gone. And this is why I have loved it...

My new budget helps me shop with purpose. I have sisters, and I also have friends who we go out to the mall or stores with mostly as an outing with our kids. And I ALWAYS find something that will look cute on Gracie and even worse, I can ALWAYS find something for a good deal. Before my budget I understood that I couldn't buy everything I liked even if it was on sale, but now I feel like I know when I should or shouldn't. That's what I lacked before. The difference now is that some outings are fair game for buying a new shirt for spring or a new pair of shoes and some outings are strictly for window shopping. Window shopping has its benefits too. On those trips when I'm not buying anything, I get a chance to just analyze what I like and what I don't, what's a good price and what's not, and in the process make better shopping decisions on future outings.

My new budget helps me return things I plan on returning. For example, I spent the tail end of my spending money this month on a pair of shoes to go with a skirt I bought for Easter. I had to order them and they arrived yesterday. THEY DON'T GO WITH MY SKIRT. I was reminded again why I don't buy shoes on the internet. Ivory looks a lot like white on a computer screen, but a lot more like beige next to my white dress. Luckily I am able to return them here in town, and with the difference buy a pair of white sandals that do match, staying within my budget and saving money, because returns = either saved money or money that can be spent elsewhere. When you only have so much money to spend, every dollar becomes important! It's helping me improve on my habit of not returning things I have planned to return that sit in a bag until I'm convinced that it's not worth the hassle. Now I'm convinced that it is.

My new budget helps me feel accountable and responsible and like I'm exercising restraint. I don't have to have it all, but I can pick up some simple pretty things for Gracie and me. It feels good.

My new budget helps me find good deals. I go back for that coupon I got in my email inbox instead of driving off without it. $5 saved here is $5 spent or saved elsewhere.

My new budget helps me plan ahead. I was walking the aisles of Target looking for a wedding gift when I stumbled on their pajama section. Oh how I could use some pajamas. Pre-budget I may have just spent the 10 to 20 bucks on them right then and there... but I used up my budget by April 5 this month :). The pajamas will have to wait til next month, and until then, I will look for the ones that I like and not just make an impulse buy.

My new budget has helped me splurge a little. In trying to use our money wisely, I have always tried to shop smart. The budget just gives me some direction. So I buy a lot of clothes at sales and the employees at Ross know my face well.

a typical Ross price tag... it's like magic the way that $28.00 turns into a $9.99

But a few weeks into my budget days, I found a shirt at Down East that I really really wanted to own. It was $18. Call me cheap, but I have rarely spent that much on a shirt in my life. I usually remind myself that I could buy two or three shirts for that elsewhere. But I reasoned, if that's how I want to spend my money this month, then that's how I'm going to spend it. And I did. I could have hunted at Ross for something close to it, but I bought the real thing. And I got a little thrill out of it. I don't do that every time, but sometimes it's fun for a change.

I love my new budget because I can get a pedicure without worrying much about whether I should be saving money instead. When my toes are pretty, I feel pretty.

And I have tried doing it myself, but I like to have someone with experience do it so that they look fantastic and not pathetic. If I want to spend a chunk of my allowance on my toes, and I do, then I can.

Lastly, I love my new budget because it helps me feel like I'm being responsible with the money that this man works so hard to provide for us. He works so stinking hard I don't know if I'd be able to sleep at night otherwise!

$59 and a Really Wonderful Husband

Today Danilo and I ran and grabbed a bite to eat for lunch. As we were leaving the restaurant, I noticed that ShopKo across the street was having a huge garden sale. I'd been wanting to go pick up some gerber daisies to put in a pot on our front porch, and when I mentioned that to Danilo, he said we could go take a look. As we walked in and saw tables and tables of trays of flowers, I started to get a little gardening bug. Long story short, a couple of stops and $59 later, we'd picked up everything we needed for our first flower garden, which has to consist of hanging baskets and flower pots when you have cement instead of a garden plot. Danilo was wonderful and I kept telling him he was as he followed me through the aisles and the greenhouses. We didn't forget a thing among the 40 pound bag of soil, the Miracle Gro, and my very first own trowel and gardening gloves. I think he felt like I did the time I followed him around RC Willey to find the best entertainment system. While he worked on homework, I sat on our porch and threw our little garden together. Once I got it all cleaned up, he came out and said all the right things about how pretty it looked. I go out every half hour just to look at it again and get all tickled inside. I think it's because I planned on being inside all day long doing the house cleaning routine and instead it turned into a beautiful outdoor Saturday in May. I'm also especially feeling grateful for Danilo this weekend. I had a co-worker and friend unexpectedly lose her husband this past week and it has given me a fresh perspective on how fragile life is and how grateful I am every time I get to be with him.

Burdens Eased

This picture may end up in a brochure for the tutoring center where I work (photo by Joanna Taylor). This morning I was reading an article in October's Ensign called The Lord Can Ease Our Burdens by Elder Maury W. Schooff. He talked about being a husband and father while going through an intensive graduate program when he received a call to serve in the bishopric. He accepted the call with the promise from his stake president that he would be able to fulfill all of his responsibilities. The article goes on to talk about Alma and his people when the Lord promised them that he would ease the burdens on their shoulders even so much that they would not feel them while they were in bondage to the Lamanites. I am grateful that I'm not in bondage to any Lamanites, but I can say that the Lord is easing our burdens as a family this very year, day, and minute. We knew there would come a time when only I would be working to put Danilo through school. Sometimes when I pull in to the house it's amazing and a little overwhelming to think the work that little me does each day is what keeps us in a house with the electricity and gas and water on and food in the cupboards and cars running. Last year after teaching a full day of school, I would come home and collapse on the couch and nap with the news on. This year after teaching a full day of school, I go to the tutoring center or teach piano lessons for a couple of hours. I usually get home around 7 and sometimes 8. I don't feel stretched too thin, and it gives me peace of mind to know I can be bringing in a little extra. One of the blessings I recognize aside being able to get up each day and do it all again with out being extremely exhausted is that in order to get to my other appointments after school, I can't stay very long grading, preparing, etc. It has actually worked out for the good because the time I do have to plan after school gets used very well since I know I have less of it. Heavenly Father has truly blessed our family as we strive to make time for each other and live healthy and balanced lives.