IT has been months since I last posted my last blog as times were tough due to my husband's loss of a good-paying job (end of contract), Employment Insurance runaround, my pregnancy and caring for my two sons under 4 years, floodings in almost all parts of Saskatchewan (yes, we did get basement flooding in the current rental home, which is why we are moving into another rental home pretty quick), hard decisions on whether to move to another part of the province, c-section and birth of my third son, and then a close member of the family recently diagnosed with breast cancer. It may be good and bad times, but we as a family pulled through, but we can make it through if we stay positive through challenging times.
The last few months were basically checking online garage sales on FaceBook, even checking out good deals and bargains on Kijiji, www.usedeverywhere.com, and whatever we have access to. My family and I did go to a few garage sales in the city, but there was nothing interesting we find, except that we needed alot of things for the baby, from recieving blankets in great condition, to a baby swing barely used, to finding a set of cloth diapers NEVER USED AT ALL, just brand new. I do see alot of parents go spend big bucks on baby needs, but my husband and I rather spend a fraction of the costs by checking out online garage sales for baby clothes and toys in great shape. Even my mom could find cool kids' clothing at 75% off at the local store in my hometown and I never stopped her from finding them (clothes are ALWAYS worn and passed down from my 4-yr-old to my almost 2-yr-old to my almost 2-month-old). But pretty soon, once my youngest grows out of onesies and sleepers (still in awesome shape and no set-in stains), they may be going on sale for cheap either online or this spring at the multi-family community garage sales. I will keep a few things as keepsakes, but for now, I NEED to find a baby keepsake box for my infant son :) .
When my husband's contract position was finished, he was asked to help out around the village for income for a short time, from collecting garbage, to trimming bushes and cutting grass. At garbage collection days, he and his foreman would find what we call it treasures rather than junk. The guys would find alot of garden hanging baskets by garbage cans, still in great shape, and my husband would bring them home to me, so I used them to plant flowers. At one home, the foreman would be shaking his head when he and my husband found a battered box and inside it was an artificial Christmas tree in PERFECT shape. My husband brought it home, and I set it up to see if there was something wrong with the tree, but after setting it up, there STILL nothing WRONG with the tree. Today, it is in the corner of the living room, all decorated with colored lights, gold bead garlands and lots of ornaments we love. Better than spending $60 to $80 on real trees that I will never know it will end up a waste on investment or not. And I am very impressed that my cats and kittens never paid any attention to the tree at all.
My family and I will continue to check out good deals as usual. And I just can't wait for spring to come when the season of outdoor garage sales starts again. And yes, we have a load of items going up for sale,.....just as soon as my family and I move everything to the new place at a very low, low rental rate, just enough for my husband and I to fill up our closet with new clothes again.
In case I don't post another blog until New Year, I wish you a happy holiday (Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hannukah, Yuletide, etc,....)
