When I was growing up my parents often took us to yard sales during the summer time. In Oregon, people would run their sales from about 7am until 5pm - all day long.

When we moved to Arizona we found that the early bird gets the best! Yard sales would open at 6am and close by Noon, to beat the heat.

I've learned over the years that yard sales can be a blessing and a curse. Sometimes I'll be tempted to buy something I really don't need...just because it's cheap. "But look! It's TEN CENTS!" My husband will say, "Um, yes. I can't imagine you need that toe cleaner, though. You do shower on a regular basis, honey. I assume you clean your toes during that time."

On the other hand, yard sales can teach your kids to be on the look-out for fun and creative ideas!

Today we stopped by a sale and...

I found this roller in the kitchen goods basket for 25 cents. I gave it to my son and a lady walked past and asked, "Are you going to have him bake cookies?" (He's 2.5 years old) I said, "Well, we do bake together, yes, but this can be used with play-doh!" It has a "Made in Sweden" stamp on it and is very well made/sturdy. It will last through my toddler! As soon as we got home he asked for the play-doh so that he could use his new roller:

I saw this glass tile sitting amongst some glassware for $1. It had been used before and had paint inside. I knew I could clean it out, no trouble. This would make a cute bedroom doorstop (spell out the child's name in stickers, puffy paint, etc) or...a lovely vase. I stopped on the side of the road to pick some flowers for my vase. I had a friend with me (age 12) who said, "You are one weird lady. I've never known anyone to pick flowers from the side of the road before." I said, "Just you wait! You'll see how pretty they look!" Now she agrees.

I found a box of apples inside one of the rooms. They were sitting on the floor, quite neglected. I knew, right away, that they were hand made! THREE BUCKS for a dozen hand made apples! My husband said, "What are you going to use those for?" I can use them for counting, sorting, pretend food play, ornaments and more. In fact, if these had been turned into holiday ornaments with string attached, they'd sell for $3 each at a shop. I got the entire dozen for $3. My daughter carried them home in the box, refusing to allow anyone else to touch them:

We grabbed a shovel, a glass juice container (we didn't have one) and a few other items. In total we spent $5. That teaches our kids to bargain shop, as well. "One person's trash is another person's treasure" after-all.

Happy yard sale season!