Seven Yard Sale Observations

Remember my bucket list that I've discussed before?  Its really long and not actually written out.

I should add that to my bucket list: "write out bucket list" and then do it.

Anyways on it was something like "host a garage sale, at least once".

True story:  I have never shopped at a yard sale.  Yet I decided to host one, with KM's and my mom's help, of course!  These are my partners in crime. 

Here is what I figured out:

Seven Yard Sale Observations From A First-Timer

1. Prices should be set high, and haggled down.   This was the hardest part of the whole event for me.  I had no idea what was the going rate for ugly southwestern pottery!  So we guessed and argued and then guessed some more.  Things I thought were over priced by myself, I sold!  Things I thought were under priced by the sticker got haggled down to way less.  You just never know, I guess.
2. People will buy anything.  A little cosmetic case full of girls headbands.  Again, I knew who's head they were on and what diseases she doesn't have...but people just trust away!  Best $2 that lady ever spent on her kid.  Also, used candles?  Really?  So weird.
3. Excellent signs make all the difference.  KM made them, she is very proud of them and we still have them for the next time, should we do it again.  We drove around to make sure they worked and they were easily the best signs EVER.  Legible, clear, concise.  Also: pink.
4. People will buy anything.  A bath mat.  The thing you put in your tub and stand on while you bathe.  The thing you don't dare think about what is living in and growing on.  Granted, it had never been used and we knew where it came from...BUT the lady who bought it didn't know. 
5. You need to learn Spanish if hosting a yard sale in southern AZ.  How mush?  Lower? Es bueno?  Que talle?  WHAT?  Try telling a young Latina woman that yes that tv works, no I don't have the remote, yes its color and its 10$.  That was a fun conversation.  My spanglish is laughable but I think it gets the point across.  I was very proud.  So was my mother, I think. 
6. People will buy anything.  A leather jacket with mystery "stuff" all over it.  It was very dirty, I have no idea how you clean leather, so I figured...let's try to sell it!  (A family member donated it.)  It sold.  For a whole $1.  I couldn't believe it - I almost let the lady just have it since I was in such shock. 
7. Fridays are very big yard sale days!  We made 4/5ths of our money on Friday.  We were spoiled.  We expected so much on Saturday since Friday was so great, but we were let down.  Still, we are thrilled to have made 5/5ths. It was approximately 5.5 times what I was expecting to make.

Next, I gotta cross  "shop at a yard sale" off my list.  I gotta get brave.  I like thrift store shopping, but yard sale shopping just feels...different.

Are you a yard sailor?  (see what I did there?)

PS: Totally forgot that my 100th post is coming up...and this was it!  So much for doing something special to celebrate?!  yay me!

Seven Reasons My Mom is Awesome

Happy September!

I can't believe its already the ninth(and best) month already!  And what an exciting month it shall be!  I have a couple more themed weeks planned for you and one week where all posts will be done by my army of guest bloggers! 

To kick off the month, we are celebrating a very special birthday today!  Today is my Mom's birthday!  She is enjoying a quiet day and has no idea this post is coming.  Knowing her, I'll get a text after this posts telling me of what I spelled wrong or what sort of factual errors I have included accidentally.  I wouldn't have it any other way. 

Let's get right down to the brass tax. My Mom is obviously amazing - look at me.  Truth is, she is better than your mom.  Yeah.  I said it.  Facts are facts!


Seven Reasons My Mom Is Awesome

• Smarts.  My mom is one of the top 3 smartest people I know.  She has a very important, fancy job which she kicks butt at and puts that college education to use.  Also, the family machine that she runs daily which is no simple feat.  Most importantly and the biggest thing I am trying to learn from her, she has an incredible ability to think things through and weigh the pros and cons and leave emotion out of the equation.  I call her all giddy and excited about a sale on something and she asks me a few questions and says Dev, that's not a sale its a ploy to get you to spend more money(or something like that).  Yeah, it bursts my bubble but she is (almost) always right.  
• Cookie Mom.  This could go two ways.  She taught me to make cookies and lick the beaters back in the day, and now its my profession so clearly she is pretty okay at making cookies.  What I remember the most vividly is being a girl scout for many years and selling the cookies most of those years.  There always had to be a cookie mom who received the entire troops' cookie orders and divided amongst us girls for distribution and then she also collected the money and tallied it all up.  Not to mention the booth sales, in front of grocery stores, these were also her responsibility.  My mom did this for several years and was far and above the very best cookie mom that troop #357 ever had!  She used a lot of those smarts I was telling you about...
• B-E-A-utiful!  My mom is very pretty and always has been as far as I can tell from photos and whatnot.  She hates having her picture taken but I love the ones I have of her because they capture her how I've always known her.  On more than one occasion we have actually been mistaken for sisters, as we look very much alike. 
• Honest and Helpful.  She will always do anything to help anyone out in our very close knit family.  She often is turned to at tax time by all of her kids, her kids' friends, her own taxes and she loves to help.  Full disclosure - she loves numbers and math and spreadsheets.  She does all of this without complaining and never expecting anything in return.  She tells me like it is, whether or not I want to hear it and has often told me straight out when I am acting stupid.  I wouldn't trade that pure honesty for anything in the world.
• Fun.  She is a very fun lady to be around!  She thinks differently and I have such a good time just hanging out with her(and my dad too, they're a package deal!)  I spend many of my days off in Tucson just hanging out with my mom and dad.  I know many people that don't like to hang out with their parents.  I'm lucky I guess. 
• Inspiration.  I'm not sure how she did it(best guess is witchcraft), but she is my inspiration in life.  If I live a life half as successful as hers I will consider my life complete.  Yes, everyone has flaws and makes mistakes but my Mom has learned and grown from any bumps in her road.  She is so awesome, its just hard to put it into words that make sense to anybody but me. 
• She married my Dad and they made me!  This is by far her biggest accomplishment, having me!  They got more than they bargained for all those years ago, and if they know what's good for them, they will tell you it was the greatest thing either of them ever did.  Creating this miracle child who is now the mastermind of this great blog.  You all owe her a big thank you!

Happy Birthday Mom!  Love you!