Trash to Treasure

While I was walking earlier this week I spotted a familiar white pick-up cruising through our neighborhood.  When I saw this truck for the very first time, I thought it was one of our neighbors.  However after spotting it on several other occasions, I realized that the driver does not live in our neighborhood.  He makes an appearance every Wednesday, though.  Wednesday is trash day.

The driver of the truck comes through our neighborhood looking to find refuse, stuff that lacks value to its previous owner.  He takes what might have been tossed into a landfill and salvages it for his own purposes.

Our God is like the man in the white pick-up.  He sees us in our sin, destined for hell, and rescues us to be His forever.  Although we may have been tossed out by others like yesterday's trash, in His eyes we are today's treasure.

Little by Little

Yesterday Morgan and I made a date to go clothes shopping for her.  Because of how much she's grown in the past year and a half, she's needed to replace almost everything in her wardrobe except for t-shirts.

Purchasing a whole new wardrobe can be expensive.  When I let my husband know of the need a few months back, he suggested that we budget a set amount of money each month to fund this need.  Do I have the smartest husband on the planet or what?!  By setting aside $30 each month for Morgan's clothes, we don't break the bank and we capture store sales that cycle around specific months or seasons.  Below I have listed some tactics that I use when shopping for clothing.

• Sign up for email notifications of one or two stores that you like and frequent.  Kohl's emailed me a $5 coupon, mailed me 3-$10 coupons, and I get coupons emailed to me for 20% off any purchase.  I have combined these for free merchandise!  Only do this for one or two stores because the emails may come daily which can be annoying.
• Go to Salvation Army Family Store on Wednesdays.  This is their 50% off day for clothing.  Their prices are already low, but add an additional 50% off and you really save!  Yesterday I got Morgan a pair of skinny jeans ($7.99), a pair of jean shorts ($2.99), and got myself a top ($3.99) all for only $7.50.  The skinny jeans were brand new and both the jean shorts and the top looked brand new.
• If you have some time on your hands, you can shop in the "bin rooms" at the Goodwill--one is in Harrisburg on Cameron Street and one is in Lancaster on Lincoln Highway.  All of the clothes are mesh-mashed into large bins so that you have to sort through them to see if anything suits your fancy.  But you only pay 85 cents per item.  Perfect for those who love the thrill of the hunt...and own a pair of comfortable shoes.
• Don't forget about Gabriel Brothers.  This is my go-to store for great deals on new clothing.  They regularly have clearance racks loaded with off-season clothing priced in the range of $1-$7.  We found two tops for Morgan for $2 each--same shirt in two different colors that she can wear with practically anything.  These are the kinds of deals for which Gabes is notorious.
• Ross Dress for Less is the place to find a nice dress at a decent price.  I don't mind paying a little more here than what my frugal nature normally allows because it's worth it.  Ross has excellent quality, selection, and style.  Whenever I need to find a dress for an event or to freshen up my wardrobe, I make a bee-line to Ross.  I also love the name :-)
• There is a Clarks shoe outlet in Hanover, PA about an hour drive from Harrisburg.  Every May and September they have a sale during which some of their shoes are available for as little as $19.99.  Believe you me it is worth the drive for comfortable, quality, stylish shoes.  We went there last month and spent $35 dollars for 3 pairs of shoes and a pair of socks by using a coupon and a frequent shopping card reward.  These are shoes that normally cost upwards of $60 each so it is quite the bargain.

Hopefully these shopping tips have been of help to you.   It is difficult to make money go far these days in any area of spending.  But by saving in whatever areas you can, little changes can grow to be big savings.