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guitarnan
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| Posted: Aug 11 2008 at 7:11pm | IP Logged
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I have been visiting thrift stores looking for books for our upcoming school year. I found a couple of good cookbooks (OK...not too schooly) and a Spanish-English dictionary for 50 cents.
So far my best discovery is The Penderwicks for 50 cents!!!! What a wonderful book. I can't wait to read the sequel.
What have you found lately? Let's inspire each other to use our resources wisely!
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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lapazfarm
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Since we moved we have had to re-furnish almost our entire house-on a very limited budget.We have been spending a good bit of time at yard sales and thrift stores and with a bit of patience we now have nearly everything we need for a fraction of what it would have cost new. I cannot even begin to list the amazing deals we have found-everything from furniture to school supplies to books and toys. Dh and I have found it to be a fun, enjoyable and productive way to spend some time together. We really enjoy our saturday morning jaunts around the neighborhood! There is always something new to see,it's cheaper than a trip to the movies and we have something to bring home to show for our money! Best of all it makes me feel like a good steward of the income my dh works so hard to bring home.
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
LaPaz Home Learning
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JennGM
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lapazfarm wrote:
| Dh and I have found it to be a fun, enjoyable and productive way to spend some time together. We really enjoy our saturday morning jaunts around the neighborhood! There is always something new to see,it's cheaper than a trip to the movies and we have something to bring home to show for our money! Best of all it makes me feel like a good steward of the income my dh works so hard to bring home. |
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Theresa, dh and I love to do shopping or treasure hunting together. It is a bonding time!
Love your finds, ladies! I was excited to find the Beginner's Bible for cheap at the local used book store. Saved money for the book and postage.
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Jennifer G. Miller
Wife to  & ds1  '03 & ds2  '07
Family in Feast and Feria
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Kristie 4
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| Posted: Aug 11 2008 at 10:26pm | IP Logged
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Lately I have been going to our local MCC thrift shop with a friend on the morning (tip off from this wonderful friend) that they put out the new stuff for the week....talk about deals!!
This weeks haul...
-one cookbook and two craft books for 5 cents
-11 cotton dinner napkins (great colors too) for $2 (that was my splurge)
-new paisley retro skirt for $1.25
-shorts for hubby $2
Last week it was the BEAUTIFUL pottery teapot with creamer and two mugs (think artsy pottery here) for $6!!
You have to love spending $6 and getting a whole bag of goodies (especially when it wouldn't buy hardly anything at the grocery store these days  )
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Kristie in Canada
Mom to 3 boys and one spunky princess!!
A Walk in the Woods
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Tina
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| Posted: Aug 11 2008 at 10:41pm | IP Logged
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Love to hear about bargains!
I love the thrift stores and consignment shops. Any deal, anywhere, actually. Especially the used book store in our local town. Last year I bought several beautiful (mostly hardback!) picture books there (Beatrix Potter, The Polar Express, Max Lucado books and The Tale of Three Trees, Little House Books, etc.)~~each around $3! The only problem with the place is it's not really organized. They have "sections" of children's religious books, and nature books, etc., but no computerized system for showing what's in stock and what isn't. Still love the place! Sometimes searching is half the fun!
And one last bargain....not sure if it's still on or not, but my children and I came upon spiral bound notebooks on sale for Back to School at Walmart for 5 cents a piece! We bought 20 and spent a whopping $1!
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~Tina
mom of 3 girls and 1 little man
The Best of Times
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Erin
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I LOVE op shops and garage sales.
My recent finds include three trays for our Montessori shelves, actually I'm not sure what they were in their 'previous life' they are solid timber frames with white upholstery on top, just perfect to turn over and use and fabric stops table being scratched.
And 25 picture and chapter books for $9!! Including Geraldine McCaughrean's The Snoiw Country Prince in immaculate condition. Thanks ladies if it wasn't for you I wouldn't have known this author.
Another thrilling find was Idjhil by Helen Bell a truly incredible Australian picture book on an Aboriginal child taken from his parents. Incredible introduction to the 'Stolen Generation'. Immaculate condidition.
Kate Seredy's Philomena complete with dust jacket was also at the top of my favourites. Actually I already had that one but I have started a 'grandchildren's box' of priceless treasures, OOP books. First time I've been to this op-shop but not the last
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Erin
Faith Filled Days
Seven Little Australians
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Paula in MN
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Garage sales, thrift stores and Goodwill. I have found a lot of Vision books, Catholic Mosaic books and good picture books at Goodwill - usually .49 each!
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 Paula
A Catholic Harvest
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EmilyC
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I've had a pretty productive summer as far as frugal finds! I have gone to a few book sales and come away with tons of great books for school for just a few dollars. I finally went to Goodwill, and for $7 got a large bag of books. Our local dump has a table where people can leave out things they no longer want and people can take whatever for free. Dh has found several textbooks, and lots of really neat books. I can't believe some of the stuff people will get rid of!
I've probably managed to get about 100 new books this summer and I spent less than $50 altogether!
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Emily,
Wife to Rob since 8/98
Mom to 4:
Sarah (13) Robbie & Riley (10) Regina (nearly 3)
My secular lit-based curriculum:
Build Your Library curriculum
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Servant2theKing
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This Summer we've replaced the fading, tattered maps on our library walls with several "new" versions of the National Geographic "Making of America" series from our library's used bookstore. At 25 cents apiece they make wonderful homeschooling wallpaper that teaches and inspires year round! We discovered several other treasures while we were there...some Civil War and WWII books, several guide books and art books, a copy of St. John of the Cross' Dark Night of the Soul, two books on St. Margaret Mary and the Sacred Heart, a Butler's Lives of the Saints. The library bookstore is one of our favorite homeschooling resources.
At Goodwill we found another set of Upwords, a letter game we use for spelling manipulatives and a spelling game called Hugger Mugger, both under $2.
We found the Ticonderoga pencils for $1.99/dozen at a local store and we love the quality compared to any other pencils we've tried.
Online, I was able to purchase Clare Asquith's book "Shadowplay; The Hidden Beliefes and Coded Politics of William Shakespeare" for $10.17 at Amazon.com. I was thrilled to get such a bargain. We're planning a study of Shakespeare this year centered around Asquith's book, Joseph Pearce's "The Quest for Shakespeare" and "King Lear Ignatius Study Edition", along with "Shakespeare the Papist", by Peter Milward. Not great bargains, but definitely treasures for the price. Where was this wealth of information when we studied literature?
Lately I have come to realize, more than ever, that homeschooling itself is the greatest bargain of all! Several friends and relatives have been discussing tuition costs recently and I am utterly astounded at how much more we are able to give our children for a fraction of the costs others are paying for tuition and all kinds of additional school expenses! I spent $500 this year for several children...that wouldn't even pay for one month of tuition for the same number of students at our local Catholic school, and that's without figuring the costs of uniforms, books, fees, supplies, extra-curricular costs, etc. I consider homeschooling to be a wise investment and an incredible bargain any way you look at it!
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All for Christ, our Saviour and King, servant
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missionfamily
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I have a huge doll house that we use as a laundry center ( everyone has a cubby with a basket for folded clothes, a hook for a belt, a cubby below for shoes)...we got it at Good Will for $10. WE have an antique iron headboard and an antique iron stove that we rescued from trash piles.
I love flea marketing ans garage sales too.
I'm too proud to admit that sometimes I have to shop at that W store because it's the only thing nearby. The other day I found suede slip on shoes niceenough for church on clearance for $3! They had sizes for everyone except the baby. I got four pair of shoe sfor $12! I was pretty proud of that one.
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Colleen
dh Greg
mom to Quinn,Gabriel, Brendan,Evan, Kolbe, and sweet St. Bryce
Footprints on the Fridge
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trish
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My favourite thing is trading. I just recently traded a small batch of handmade soap for 2 handmade pottery stoneware pie plates. I've been wanting to buy these for ages but they can be sooo expensive. (well worth the price by the way) I think it cost me a total of 5.00 in materials. Yay! 
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~ Trish ~
Wife to Les
Mom to 8 Wonderful Kids
+AMDG+
Saintly Soaps
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Kristie 4
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| Posted: Aug 14 2008 at 12:51pm | IP Logged
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I had to share my awesome find this morning...
A $5 Table Loom
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Kristie in Canada
Mom to 3 boys and one spunky princess!!
A Walk in the Woods
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mama251ders
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| Posted: Aug 14 2008 at 3:19pm | IP Logged
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I have a post about my absolute best thrift find on my blog today!
The Best Thing I Ever Thrifted
Oh, and if you get a chance to look at other posts you'll see the beautiful photography my 5yo took this morning. 
Blessings,
Bets
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Wife to Oliver
Mama to 5 Wonders
Benny, Braidon, Olivia, Anna and Saragh
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Servant2theKing
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Bets, the playset is awesome! What an incredible bargain! Perfect for homeschool phys-ed, huh!
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All for Christ, our Saviour and King, servant
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4Real Forums : Tea and Conversation
Topic: Frugal Finds...Share Here!
