Photo for 12-8-09 BlogNormally I wouldn’t consider myself a bargain shopper.  I have lots of girlfriends who save tons of money cliping coupons or making the garage sale rounds each summer, but for some reason I just can’t get into it.

Last week I was out running some errands and passed Once Upon A Child, a children’s consignment shop in Grand Rapids.  I wasn’t sure what quality of stuff I would find inside, but I decided to stop and check it out.  To my surprise I found some really cute stuff, many of it with the tags still on it.

While I was there I couldn’t help notice tons of traffic in and out of the store with moms bringing in their old items for resale.  They’d drop off a tub of old clothes and within ten minutes be out the door with cash in hand.  At that moment I think some sort of “savings bug” bit me, because I left and immediately made a b-line for my daughter’s closet.  I have tubs and tubs of adorable clothes that I’ve been saving over the past three years.  Most of it I can’t seem to part with in case I have another little girl someday, but like most moms, I have that pile in the back of the closet of things that were gifted to me that I didn’t like or just never seemed to fit right.  I gathered up my goodies and made my way back to Once Upon A Child.  Within 15 minutes they gave me $26!  While I was waiting I nabbed two cute brand named shirts for Sophia, but still profited $20 after my purchases.  It was like getting paid to shop!  Or at least that’s how I explained it to my husband.

Maybe being a bargain shopper isn’t so hard afterall.  What are some ways that you save money or find great bargains?

Photo courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/christaface/2968169906/