‘Tis The Season … for Yard Sales, Have Fun, & Get Bargains

Hunting for treasures at a yard sale is an activity enjoyed by many. It’s fun. It gets you out into the fresh morning air, and, with luck, you’ll find great bargains.

Marenda Babcock, author of Frugal Times Newsletter takes these items with her on a bargain hunt:

• A map to locate the houses
• a canvas bag for personal items
• a tape measure to check clothing sizes and the length of curtains and furniture
• and a roll of quarters

She recommends wearing comfortable shoes, going on the first day, and arriving when the sale opens to find the best selection. Other recommendations:

1. When you arrive at the sale, scan it quickly for what you are looking for. If you aren’t sure you want an item, pick it up anyway. You can always put it back.
2. Take your time and look under tables, in corners, and at the bottom of piles.
3. Offer a lower price if you want to. Make it about 25 percent less, never half the asking price or less.
4. Sniff items. If books or stuffed toys smell bad, move on.
5. If you take your kids, give them money to shop. It’s good experience.
6. Take a drink and a snack with you so you don’t have to waste time between sales.
7. The last day of a sale can also be good because prices may be marked down.

For Your Own Yard Sale

• Advertise in newspapers; hang posters with directions in laundries and libraries, and post signs the day before the sale.
• Team up with friends. People love a four-family sale.
• Put large, attractive items near the curb, like a baby bed or lawn mower.
• Mark every item with a price. Have plenty of bags and lots of paper to wrap breakables.

To Discover How To Cut Your Expenses And Save Money, Without Feeling Punished go to our Frugal Living for Moms page.

10 Things You Can Create With an Empty Glass Jar

Kids have a way of using their imaginations to turn everyday objects into something extraordinary. A large cardboard box can be a house, car or spaceship, a rock can be their dog or a walkie-talkie, and a hairbrush can be a microphone used in their on-stage singing debut. With an empty glass jar and some craft supplies, they can use all of that imagination to create some wonderful crafts. Here are ten ideas you can use to help them along.

1. Beach in a jar - This is a fun project for kids who have been to the beach recently and gathered seashells. Simply put some sand in the bottom of the jar, and add lots of shells and some driftwood. A larger shell can be glued to the lid for a finishing touch.

2. Lantern or candle holder - This is a good project for a glass jar of any size. The kids can use glass liner and paint to create a stained glass look, or they can add semi-transparent material such as tissue paper to the outside of the jar with Mod Podge. For a lantern, a handle can be made with string or wire.

3. Christmas lights in a jar - This can actually be used for a variety of occasions, or year round with the right kinds of potpourri. Simply place a layer of lights on the bottom (clear works best if it’s not for Christmas), put some potpourri on top, and repeat until you’ve used all of the lights, leaving the cord on the outside. Cover the top with a doily, secure with a rubber band, and tie some pretty ribbon around it.

4. Flower vase - Glass jars make charming vases. All that’s needed to spruce them up is some glass paint, and maybe some stick-on jewels. Dried flowers or pieces of fabric could also be added with Mod Podge. If the opening seems too large, and adult can cut a large hole in the lid and let the child cover it with ribbon.

5. Cake in a jar - Find a good cake recipe, and measure out the dry, non-perishable ingredients. Then add one ingredient to the jar at a time, and do not mix. This creates a nice layered look and gives the recipient most of the ingredients to make a delicious homemade cake. Write the recipe on a tag and attach it with ribbon.

6. Jar lamp - You can find jar lamp kits online that include the electrical parts. All your child has to do is put some paper shred in the bottom, add any items that he wants to the jar, and add a lampshade. You can find a decorative shade at a local discount store, or your child can use markers or fabric paint to decorate a plain one.

7. Bank - Jars make great banks. Simply cut a slot in the lid to put change in, and let your child decorate the outside as he chooses.

8. Jack-o-lantern jar - This is a great Halloween project. Cut shapes for the eyes, nose and mouth out of masking tape, and place them on the jar. Paint with orange paint, and remove tape when dry. Add a candle or small light to make it glow.

9. Candy jar - This can be decorated any way your child likes. Fill it with candy and give it as a gift, or keep it on the coffee table for guests to enjoy.

10. Planter - Put pebbles in the bottom of a small canning jar, then fill with potting soil. Plant herb or flower seeds, and put in the windowsill.

Flip-flops and Escalators: Are Your Kids in Danger?

It’s summer, time for flip-flops and those plastic shoes called Crocs. But here’s a thought. Whether it’s you wearing them or your child, either of you could get caught on an escalator. Loose-fitting shoes made of flexible, spongy material can get caught in the escalator teeth.

A spokesman for the Washington, D.C., subway system, which has 588 escalators, says they are seeing five or six incidents of shoe entrapment a week during summer. Most related injuries are minor, but toes could be amputated.

The Good Housekeeping Research Institute says shoes should be of a type that stays securely in place and completely encloses the foot. Leather is a good choice but so are sneakers as long as the laces are tied.

Puma cell brown/limegreen leather womens sneakers sz 10

BOYS TOMMY HILFIGER SNEAKERS 13 13M ATHLETIC SHOES

Baby Boy Girls NIKE Athletic Sneakers Shoes LNEW 6 6" C

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