On Shopping

I sure love me some good shopping. (Editor's Note: in Jeanese, "good shopping" = "good bargains.") And, incidentally, I've had two of the best shopping experiences EVER within the past few weeks. I was going to blog about them separately, but I think I'll just combine the joy into one big happy pot of shopping stew.

First... here's the question I was asking myself earlier this summer:

What the heck is "JBF"?

So many moms here were saying, "JBF this...!" and "JBF that...!" But what the heck is JBF? Well, as it turns out, it's the bomb-diggity of baby/kid consignment sales. It stands for "Just Between Friends," and people (well, moms) here in Oklahoma are FANATICAL about it. I guess it's really big in the South in general, because while JBF sales occur throughout the country, they tend to be concentrated in southern/midwestern states like Texas, Oklahoma, and Missouri.

So, here's how it works (and here's why moms are fanatical): you can go as a shopper, a volunteer, a consigner, or all of the above. If you are a "consigner" (you're selling your gently used items), then you drop off your stuff one day, already labeled and barcoded at your own prices. Then, you get something like 65-70% of the sale price, and they just send you a big check after the conclusion of the sale. So, it's pretty nice because it's a lot faster and easier than going it alone by, say, selling on eBay or something. Plus, you can also pick up your unsold items at the end, or just designate them as "donations" and not have to worry about them at all.

However, it's also nice and convenient for the shopper because all the items are organized by boy/girl, size, etc. So, you don't have to look through the items of individual sellers - it's all just packed together in long, long rows. Therefore, it's GINORMOUS -- Tulsa's JBF sale was contained in one of the huge warehouses at the Expo Center, and it was probably larger than a football field:

Finally, it's great for volunteers, because as a volunteer you get special presale opportunities (in other words, the opportunity to shop first). Depending on how many hours you put in, you get to shop in advance of the public at the opening, AND you get to shop in advance of the public at the 50% off day at the end. Plus, it's just fun to be a volunteer (I've gathered), because it's like a little community of hardcore bargain-hunting moms. Seriously... people make their own crazy JBF shirts and spend tons of time taking part in volunteer activities. Hardcore.

So, although I am not a hardcore bargain-hunting mom, I am a medium-core bargain-hunting mom, and naturally I was thrilled at the prospect of what is basically a monstrous rummage sale. My friend Jessica is one of those consigner/volunteer/shopper combos, and because she felt shopped-out the first day, she gave ME her pass to the 50% presale. AHHHHH!!!! It took place at 7 PM on a Friday evening, the night before the last day (the 50% off day) of the weeklong sale.

So, I drove to the Expo Center that night (complete with my laundry basket, as recommended), pretended to be a volunteer while waiting for my number to be called, and then set off on a journey for Awesome and Cheap Clothes, Shoes, and Toys. I shopping the entire two hours (only once taking a break to indulge in some of the volunteer refreshments, never mind the fact that I wasn't actually a volunteer), and finally called it quits and reviewed my spoils. (Toys on the bottom - hello ninja turtles!, followed by shoes, followed by clothes, followed by the giant Hot Wheels thing that I couldn't fit in the basket):

(Most of the toys that I bought are being stored until Christmas - action figures, toy animals, a huge robot, etc. But see that big fella? Well, it was much too big to put away, so I just gave it to Weston the next day. HE LOVES IT. And it was only $10 - marked down to $5 for me! It's nice that he finally has something to do with his 30 Hot Wheels cars.)

Anywho, here's the thing about JBF: it's NOT rummage sale prices. I've left rummage sales with bags of 50-cent clothing before, but at JBF, all of the toddler clothing that I was looking at was priced around $3 to $8 each. That's fine when it's name-brand clothing that you're seeking, but I don't really care about brands, so it was a little steep for me. However, the 50% off day is what it's ALL ABOUT. That really made it for me. No, I wouldn't spend $8 on a used GAP sweater, but I would spend $4 - heck yeah! So, I love love loved it. It's really great if you're expecting and trying to accumulate all that expensive baby stuff that you use for 4 months and then put away, because you can get it much, much cheaper and still in nearly new condition. For me, I just loved having SO much selection and such low prices for new-looking clothes. In the future, I'll probably do the same thing that I did this time: skip the regular-priced days and then let loose on the 50% off day.

Oh, and one more thing: I found pretty much the most splendid Motherboy outfit of all time (priced at $8 - down to $4!):

Happy, happy day! So, if you're interested, go to the JBF website and see if there's a sale near you, because then you can take a picture of yourself like this, too:

And now for my second note on shopping:

You may recall (probably just I recall, haha) that I won a $15 Target gift card in a giveaway by the fabulous girls at Smitten Blog Designs a few months ago. YAAAAAAAAAY!!!! I was beyond thrilled.

Well, I held onto that precious gift card for a LONG time, even though I was going to Target at least once a week (and usually more often). I couldn't use such an exquisite prize on just anything. It was special, and I had to save it for the Most Wonderful Thing in the Entire World (priced at $15 or less, of course). I just didn't know what that Thing was. So, I gave it a lot of thought, and I waited for the inspiration to come.

And then one day... it came!!! And not only did I have my eyes set on what I knew to be the Most Wonderful Thing in the Entire World, but fate was on my side, because that Thing was ON SALE!!!!

So, wanna know what it is...? Wanna guess...? Any ideas...?

Think of what you love more than anything else, after God, family, and country, of course. THAT'S RIGHT...

PAJAMA PANTS!!!!!!!!!!!

And here's the kicker: the super-awesome pajama pants sale on the day that I went enabled me to buy not one pair, but TWO! So I came home and had a fashion show for Tim, who humored me:

Here's what I don't understand: how can a pair of pajama pants as AWESOME as these possibly be $3.78? How???

Anyway, they made my day. But there's more: there were still a few dollars left over, so I got the Second Most Wonderful Thing in the Entire World:

NUTELLA!!!!!!!!!!

AAAHHHHH!!! It was a very, very happy shopping experience. Two pairs of discounted PJ pants and a jar of Nutella for $15. Shopping (and life, for that matter) are rarely so magnificent. Thank you, Smitten Blog Designs! Thank yoooouuuuu!!!!!!!!

The end. :-)