My rule of shopping...

I'm quickly finding that outfitting 3 kids for each season can become very expensive, especially on our student budget! So I'm always out there looking for deals. Now is the time to shop for next winter as the clearances are in full force to make room for Spring and Summer. My rule of thumb is to never buy any article of clothing that costs more than $5. I REALLY have to like an item and think about it REALLY hard before I will pay more than that. So... I was very excited to find a stealer of a sale at our local Big K. Sweaters and fleece jackets were $3.99. Blue oxford church shirt and tie were $1.99. The shoes were $3.49!!!! Can you believe that?!?! Okay the boots were $7.00, but good winter apparel is hard to come by for under $5, so that was my splurge.

Since I am on the subject, they have these amazing children sales that they do here for moms. Schools, churches, and other organizations use it as a fundraising tactic. They charged a minimal fee for people to have table space to sell any baby or kid stuff. There are usually 50 to 100 tables--so it is like yard selling, but all in one spot! They charge a $1 or $2 admission fee for people who want to come. There is so much stuff that people want to get rid of, so you can usually talk them down on prices. I was at one booth a couple weeks ago finding a few things for the boys. She was going to charge $1 per outfit. I had about six. She then told me she would let me fill up a huge storage tote of whatever I wanted from her 4 bins for only $15! I got so much stuff! I couldn't even fit it all in one washer load.

It's very satisfying to clothe your children on amazing deals! I wonder if this will stay a habit and a hobby for me when the real money starts flowing through our hands! By then we will have teenagers though, so shopping for clothes will be a whole other story!