My Changed Life

My blog has been neglected for years. It looks so pitiful. It's time for an update. I will be working on moving it and updating the look slowly, but surely. So much has changed. Hubs and I are thinking about moving this year. Big Brother and Baby Jaws are almost as tall as I am now. We are homeschoolers now, which we love! I'm still selling on eBay and have a store now, which I love! I also just started taking/selling Plexus in December. This is why I wanted to title this post "My Changed Life".

Plexus has seriously changed my life. I know, you've probably heard that from numerous friends that take it themselves. It really has changed me. I started taking it on December 10, 2016. I wanted to try it to lose weight. To date, I have lost 13 lbs. without even trying. What I didn't expect with Plexus was a complete 180 with my mood. I'm much more balanced. I don't get upset or irritated so easily. I feel so much healthier and am making healthier choices with my food. I'm happier and I'm thankful for that. My family is thankful for that. It has brought so much balance. If I don't lose one more pound on Plexus, I will continue to use it just for the balance it has brought to my life.

If you've never tried it or have been on the fence about it, I urge you to just give it a chance. I was skeptical for almost a year before I finally gave in and tried it. The only regret I have is not starting sooner. If you want to learn more about any of the products, please visit my Plexus website. If you have any questions, please ask. If you are looking for a healthy change in your life, this could be exactly what you're looking for.

Yard Sale Finds

Big Brother and I went to a yard sale in town this morning. I found a few pieces of clothing for Baby Jaws. I would have bought more, but a lot of the clothing was priced a little high for me, especially the jeans. I bought 2 pairs of Carter's pj's at $2.50 each. They are like new and are two of Baby Jaws' favorite things; basketball and trucks. And $5 for two sets of winter pj's in the middle of July are a lot less than $10-15 each brand new at the store in the fall.
I also found him this cute Wonder Kids shirt for $.75. Not too shabby since I haven't been to a yard sale in weeks. It's been so hot, but I'm having withdrawls and may have to go again tomorrow.

All Star

Baby Jaws had his first t-ball practice tonight. He was so cute and did a really good job batting, throwing and even fielding a few. He is bound and determined to not play t-ball though. He wants to play baseball with Big Brother. He even said after practice, "I'm going to tell them I don't want to use the tee." He's so used to me pitching to him that he hits really well without the tee. My little all star thinks he's big stuff.

Ebay Woot!

Hubs and I were driving around a few yard sales a couple of weeks ago. I like it when he goes with me because I can just jump out and look real quick and if there's nothing good, I can jump right back in and go. There's no unbuckling and buckling Baby Jaws (who believe me, is no baby anymore) back in the truck. Sometimes I get irritated because Hubs will stop at every sale, something I do only if I'm in the mood. If I'm by myself, I usually go for the sales with lots of kid stuff. This sale has changed my mind forever!

So when we happened upon a sale with a couple of older ladies, lots of older people clothing and no toys that I could see from the road, I wasn't so sure. But Hubs insisted I jump out and check. Am I glad he did! I found two Jurassic Park III toys still in the box. The sound even still works. They were made by Hasbro in 2001. There were no prices so I asked the lady how much the two dinosaurs were. She said they were her son's and she would take $1 each. Sold!

I searched it on Ebay and Amazon to see if any had sold and found that some used out of the box had sold for over $20. I decided to start mine at $45. I only got one bid, but it did sell! I was really happy to turn my $1 find into $45.

I also had a Jurassic III Spinosaurus listed, but it didn't sell so I will re-list and try again. I'm so glad this guy is going to a new home though and glad I made a profit on it too!

Yard Sale Finds

I love Spring because I love yard sales! These are my resale finds from a couple of yard sales today.

I only paid $1 for both of these cute Halloween onsies. 

The Children's Place jacket was only $1.50

Gymboree shirt (for my little guy, not resale) $1.

Squeaky Lamaze frog that can hang from a car seat was 

only  $.75 and is like new. It's just so cute!

This four piece Starting Out Christmas set was only $1.

Gap Kids jacket was only $1.50. 

Tommy Hilfiger skirt was also $1.50. I'm going to put it on

ebay and if it doesn't sell, it will go into my Spring sale box.

I think I'm driving my husband crazy with all these finds, but I keep telling him that it will pay off in the fall. At the prices I find name brand clothing for at yard sales, I just can't pass them up because I know I will make a good return.

Thrift Store Scores

I went to a local thrift store today that has $5 bag days on Wednesdays and Saturdays.You can fill a bag with clothing, books, toys and other things for just $5. Since I'm geared up for the fall consignment sale and already looking for things for resale, I had to see what I could come away with for $5. This thrift store is really hit or miss on finding deals. There are times the clothing I've found just isn't worth buying, but today I hit the jackpot with a load of name brand clothing. I cannot wait to see how much I can make off of it this fall.

Here is my $5 bag.

Carter's romper, shirt and jeans from The Children's Place.

Girls Happy Halloween shirt which should do well right before Halloween.

Boyz Threadz hoodie/shirt and Little Brother Gymboree outfit.

So Girly onsie and flower shirt from Baby Gap.

Horse shirt from Talbots Kids and Baby Gap onsie.

U.S. Polo Assn. shirt with hood.

Carter's Baby's 1st Christmas outfit and Baby Togs Christmas sweater.

Faded Glory sweater and pants. I know cheaper brands don't sell as well,

but the sweater is super cute as is the flared leg on the pants.

Tommy Hilfiger and Okie Dokie pants.

Hello Kitty shirt.

Old Navy and Gymboree dresses.

These last two photos are clothing for my little guy that won't 

be going to the sale quite yet. Jumping Beans and Osh Kosh shirts.

Granimals pants and Sonoma shorts.

I was happy with my haul and I'm really excited to see how much I can make off of it this fall.

Nothing Runs Like a Deere

I wish my little guys were still little enough to run around in these sweet John Deere boots. They wouldn't be doing much running because these are an infant size 2, but they are the cutest things I've seen in quite a while. They're actually Johnny Poppers and velcro in the back. They are really soft on the inside too. I found them at a yard sale today for $2. The guy selling them said they had spent $50 for them. Does he not realize how much I can get at yard sales for $50? I was happy with the $2 price tag and will put them on ebay. If they don't sell there, I can always put them in the consignment sale this fall.

Yard Sale Scores

I went to a few yard sales with the boys today. I had found one on Craigslist that had listed boys clothing that would fit Big Brother so I decided to give it a shot. It was funny because when I got there, I realized I had been to the same house last summer and bought a lot of boys clothes. Here are my finds for both boys.

 

Yellow shirt by Falls Creek for Big Brother, which he wore for Easter. $.50.

Big Brother picked out the Gymboree Surf Camp shirt himself. $.50

 

Arizona Jean Company shoes $1.50

Gymboree shirt for Baby Jaws, which he wore for Easter. $.50

Stearns life vest for Baby Jaws. $2

When I got back to our town, I spotted a few other sales I decided to stop at and look around. I'm glad I did! I'm excited about selling at the consignment sale this fall and am starting to keep an eye out for good, cheap items I can make a profit on.

These Koala Baby crib shoes are so cute!

 Wish my boys could still fit into them. $.50

A pair of Skidders. $.75

These were my favorite find at this particular yard sale. A pair of Converse

high tops with flames. I love them! Again, wish my boys could wear them. $.75

A pair of Baby Gap 18-24 month jeans. $1

After my great finds at that sale, I headed to one more that I had spotted a sign for just a couple streets over. It was a big success for me too! I'm always excited to find name brand/looks like new clothing at sales. The woman kept telling me how much she just loved to shop and would even buy new outfits for her kids just for a photo and then they would hardly ever wear it again. I love people like her!

Three more shirts for Big Brother at $.25 each. John Deere, 

Go Team Go and Arizona Jean Company.

These three Gymboree shirts for Baby Jaws were also $.25 each.

Three pair of shorts for Baby Jaws at $.25 each. 

Gymboree, OshKosh and The Children's Place.

Three pair of jean shorts for Baby Jaws at $.50 each.

Arizona Jean Company, Gymboree and Carter's.

A pair of Wrangler jean shorts for Big Brother for $.50.

Two pairs of pants for Baby Jaws. Osh Kosh and Gymboree for $.50 each.

And finally, the cutest pair of Gymboree pj's (practically brand new) 

that will fit Baby Jaws this winter for $2.

Thrift Store Scores

Today was the first day our local consignment sale was open to the public. My friend, who was a consignor, gave me a free pass to get in and shop. I was going to consign for the first time this spring, but I have a lot more fall/winter items and decided to wait until this fall to get my feet wet with consigning.

I was excited to go to the sale until I stepped inside. It was extremely packed; I'm talking Black Friday-esque. The line to check out wrapped around the building and the couple of items I actually found were not worth standing in line that long.

I left the consignment sale and headed to a thrift store just a couple miles away. I've found that I have better luck at thrift stores and yard sales than consignment sales and the items are much cheaper. It irritates me to find cheap clothing at consignment sales priced as high as some of the name brands. But at thrift stores and yard sales, I can usually find name brand items in great condition a lot cheaper than a consignment sale.

Here are my finds for the day.

A pair of And 1 pants for $2.98.

A Star Wars Lego shirt for $1.98.

A pair of Old Navy shorts for $1.98
This was my favorite find; a Nike Dri-Fit St. Louis Cardinals hoodie for only $3.98 and it is practically brand new.
So although my consignment shopping was a big bust, my thrift store scores more than made up for it.

Ham Sliders

These ham sliders are so good! I found the recipe a couple of years ago at My Litter, who got the recipe from Vanilla Kitchen. We make them for a quick, easy dinner and have them quite a bit during football season. I've even taken them to church for our snack fellowship and came home with an empty pan. They go together quickly and bake in no time.

Ham and Cheese Sliders

recipe from Vanilla Kitchen

2 TB dried minced onions
1 TB Dijon mustard (I used 2 TB)
2 TB poppy seeds
I used a couple dashes of Worcestershire sauce
1 stick melted butter
1 dozen dinner rolls (We use Sara Lee)
1/2 pound ham
1/2 pound thinly sliced Swiss cheese (We use baby swiss)

Preheat oven to 325°.
In a small mixing bowl mix onion, mustard, poppy seeds, and melted butter.
Leaving the dinner rolls intact, slice them open so that you have one solid top and bottom. Don’t slice each one open, but rather as a whole.
Place the bottom half on a baking sheet or in a 9×13 inch baking pan, the pan size will depend on choice of rolls.
Line the bottom half of the rolls with cheese slices and ham.
Return the top part of the rolls and drizzle the butter mixture evenly over top.
Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes.
Use a sharp knife to separate the sandwiches.