Got Quads?

When I work my part-time retail job, I notice more and more shoppers heading straight for the clearance racks. Can you blame them? I’m always scouring the racks for great bargains for my daughters. I refuse to pay full price, and most times I won’t even look at a rack if it’s marked less than 50% off. A note to the kind folks at Target: 15% is not clearance, it’s a sale. You may be trying to “clear” the merchandise out of your store, but I’m not fooled by the clearance signs. However, after Easter my mother-in-law found some great bargains on baskets for next year… 75% off, so I’m not completely knocking Target’s clearance racks. 

I began my clearance shopping for buying a year ahead. When stores marked down their winter clothes I tried to guess what size my daughters would be wearing next year. So far I’ve generally been on the mark. Then I started noticing as the economy changed stores seemed to be marking things down earlier than normal. For instance, this week at Kohl’s the clearance racks already have spring/summer clothes marked down at least 60%. 

Some of the deals I’ve found in the last few months: a convection toaster oven originally $80 marked down to $20, shirts for my daughters for $3, shirts for me for $2, work shirts for Hubby for $10.

Times are tight for many families. I’m not suggesting anyone has time to spend all afternoon searching the clearance racks, but when you do go into a store, take a minute to check them out. You never know what bargains you’ll find. 

Today is my moms of multiples club’s spring sale. This is only the second time I’ve sold anything through the group, but I’m always amazed at how quickly everything comes together, how eager people are to find a good bargain and how much “stuff” everyone wants to unload.

But the thing that really piques my interest is the way we as club members price our things. The pricing is up to each individual. I’ve seen people with the same car seat I’m trying to sell and they’re asking $20 more for it. I’ve seen people with the same Diaper Champ I tried to sell and they wanted $5 less for it. It’s all about perspective. And can someone explain to me why the higher priced car seat sold instead of mine?? Same car seat, about the same “age” give or take a few months, both in good condition.

Obviously we want top dollar for our things, especially in this economy. But I also, quite frankly, want to get rid of my stuff. I have outfits on display at this sale that are in pristine condition. Yet on most of them I’m asking no more than $3. I know it sounds crazy to some but I want to sell my things. The people who come to this sale are bargain hunters and they want the lowest price they can get. I would rather sell 50 outfits at $2-$3 than 10 outfits at $5.

Have you ever seen the news coverage of the “Running of the Brides” at Filene’s Basement? Crazed brides-to-be are fighting practically to the death with hundreds of other women to get the wedding gown of their dreams at an unbelievable price. This sale is the same concept, only with moms. The doors open and women run to the strollers, cribs and exersaucers, nearly snatching things out of one another’s hands. They come armed with lawn chairs so they can be first in line to the early morning sale. They have laundry baskets to carry their “loot.” They don’t care if your child never wore that pretty spring dress that still has the tags on it… there’s no way they’re paying more than $5 for it.

The first time I sat down and tagged clothes for the sale it was kind of hard. I have so many memories of certain outfits. But alas, it is just “stuff” and I have those memories and pictures to remind me of the fun times. Besides… I want my money.

I always pictured myself as a working mother. I had a job I liked and never really thought twice about what would happen when I had a child. Except I had four children at once and knew putting four in daycare would simply drain our finances.

It kills me that I have to work part-time to help make ends meet. On the days I work I feel so rushed when I get home that I question whether my daughters are getting the best of me. But on the flipside, there are weeks when everyone’s crabby, sick, etc. and I can’t wait to get out of the house for a few hours and be around adults. 

I know when my daughters are in school “full-time” I will need to work full-time. I’ve already started researching what I can do. Going back to TV news is out of the question. I don’t want to miss holidays, weekend fun, etc. I want to be there when my daughters come home from school. Are there days that I miss the rush that comes from working in the journalism field? Absolutely. I can’t even describe the buzz you get when there’s breaking news or when you report on a story that truly makes a difference. But it was a struggle to become a mom and I’m going to cherish every minute of it.

Not all working moms have jobs simply because their family relies on that income. Some moms really like what they do and can’t imagine a life without that job. There’s nothing wrong with that. A happy, successful mother sets her family up for happiness and success. I’ve never understood this notion that working moms and stay at home moms are supposed to be enemies. We all have the best interest of our families in mind. 

The way this economy is going, there’s a good chance you’re looking for ways to save money, even if you don’t have four toddlers to feed and clothe. I’ve found some easy ways to do this.

Clip Coupons

Really, folks, this should be a no brainer. Even as someone who tries to buy store brand over brand name, I can generally find several coupons in my Sunday paper to clip. Most times the coupons allow me to buy brand names cheaper than store brand products. The money you save more than makes up for a subscription to the paper. (Want to know just how cost effective coupons can be? I have a friend who knew Walgreens was having a sale on makeup, because I told her about the sale. With her coupons she ended up getting four things of eye shadow for free. A luxury? Sure, but if it’s free does it matter?)

Shop at Discount Stores

I am not ashamed to admit that Big Lots is one of my favorite stores. It’s also my first stop when I go grocery shopping. You’ll find many brand name food products for less than the grocery store. Do your homework, though. Not everything there is a good deal.

Ditch the Long Distance

This one may not be for everyone. We do not have a long distance carrier. Instead, I buy phone cards and save a ton. Walgreens typically has a buy one get one free deal on $20 phone cards (360 minutes), so you get 720 minutes for $20. The cards don’t expire for 12 months. 

Do Your Homework

It pays to familiarize yourself with the cost of the products you buy the most. That way you’ll know a good deal when you see it. Plus you’ll know whether it’s cheaper to shop at the store with the lowest prices or the store that doubles your coupons.

I had a completely different topic planned for today until I found out my husband’s company is putting every employee on a mandatory “furlough.” Basically they have to take a week off without pay by the end of March to help ease the company’s financial burdens during these tough times. For those who know us, don’t panic. We’re not talking dire straits here, but, let’s be realistic, this is a blow for us. At least since my husband is hourly he can spread his furlough days out. Those on salary have to take all 5 days at once. I can’t even imagine.

So here’s my big dilemma… how do we (and the other affected employees with families) keep a brave face in front of our children? I hate talking about money in front of my daughters. It’s not that I want them to think we’re millionaires, I just don’t ever want them to think they are to blame for us having to scrimp and save. Times are rough and so many parents out there are doing what they have to in order to get by. Sometimes, though, it seems like when we have a sense of security, wham, things like furloughs come along. I truly never expected something like this to happen in the line of work my husband does. 

We’re not out there spending money like it grows on trees. We don’t have cable TV. We don’t have long distance phone service (instead we buy phone cards which saves us money). We don’t own cell phones. Our one splurge is the internet (dial-up, I might add, so is that really a splurge??). We clip coupons. I do my darndest to keep us at or under budget for groceries. There’s not a whole lot more we can do to cut back, and I’m guessing many of these families are in the same boat. I work part-time and I’ll try to pick up extra hours on those furlough days.

Yes, my family can live without material things. Yes, my daughters will always know how much their parents love them and that’s the most important thing. But I’ve got to tell you folks, it’s things like this that keep me up at night. Sorry to bring you down today. I will do my best to lighten the mood tomorrow.