Just Call Me Thrifty McThrifterson

Saturday morning, and an epic battle with the alarm clock.  7:30 - for some reason - felt like the dead of night, and I just couldn't hang.  Somehow, 7:45 was infinitely better...so I dragged my butt out of bed and into the shower.

By 8:30 I was in the car, generic Slim Fast shake in hand, driving to school for my three-hour psychology course...the official start of Week Two as a full-time student.  Class went well, and I'm pretty confident about the upcoming exam that's slated for next week.

I rolled into the garage at about 12:30, taking a running leap into the house to see The Princess for the first time today (that's going to take some getting used to).  There was hugging, smiling, tickling and giggling...and then we settled in for some lunch.

The early afternoon was spent unwinding from school and hanging out with the fam.  In keeping with tradition, The Hubbs announced out of nowhere that he knew what we were going to do today.

Wii Music.

We've been looking at it in the stores since, oh, about the day it came out.  There's been lots of talk about the possibility of procuring such a game at some point in time when we aren't broke (ha!), but up until today our bark has been far worse than our bite.

Until today.

I feel the need to defend myself here...I was all, "Before we go buying the game, let's see if we can rent it from Blockbuster.  And why don't you go online to see what kind of price we could get from Amazon or eBay, so we have some sort of comparison when we get to the store?"

I tried.  I really did.

Blockbuster didn't have any copies available to rent, so we headed across the street to Game Stop.  Another disappointment...no copies on the shelf.  Last ditch effort: The Hubbs waited in line to ask the video game dude if they had any copies in stock.

It was our lucky day.

They had one used copy (guaranteed for seven days - we can return for a full refund if it doesn't work right or if we don't like it.  I checked to be sure.  I know...I can be a funsucker, but I freak out at the prospect of spending a bazillion dollars on a video game you don't even know if you're going to like.) in stock for $17.99.

Score one for Thrifty.

Leaving Game Stop, we made a quick left on the sidewalk and veered into the next storefront: US Cellular.  The Hubbs' phone has been in a sad state of repair for quite some time now.  The glass is cracked and threatening to sever his hand with unruly shards, the battery doesn't hold a charge anymore, and it's just all-over kind of beaten up.

And can I just say I don't care for somewhat dislike despise detest abhor going into the cell phone place?  They're always trying to sell you crap you don't need and services you don't want.  I get it that they're required to do this...and I feel sorry for each and every one of them because no one wants to hear the schpiel...but that doesn't mean I have to like it.

We happened to walk into the store when there were no other customers present (whew!), and were promptly greeted by the assistant manager.  He asked what he could help us with, so we told him we were looking to replace The Hubbs' phone with a cheapo model...maybe with a full keyboard, but maybe not.  He showed us a couple of full-keyboard phones that were in the neighborhood of $69, and we asked if there were any free or penny offers.

Yep.

The Hubbs is the proud owner of a brand-spankin' new Samsung flip phone, purchased for the gigantic retail price of $0.01 (plus tax on the normal retail price -- making our total come in just under $7.00).

For those keeping score, that would be 2 for Thrifty.

Sitting in the parking lot outside the cell phone and video game places, The Hubbs asked if there was anything I wanted to do while we were out.  I thought about it for a minute and decided that I'd like to cruise over to Old Navy to see what was available.  We haven't been there in eons, and it sounded like fun.

They were having a sale.  On their clearance items.

Long story short: eleven killer tops, one super-cute pair of jeans, and one adorable jacket.  Anyone care to venture a guess as to what this haul cost me?  I'll give you a hint...it was more economical than my trip to the local goodwill store for The Princess yesterday.

Don't be shy.  Go on, make a guess.

$26.72.  Including tax.

Three for Thrifty.  Hell, this was such a good deal, I almost think it should count as three to make it a nice round Five for Thrifty.

This evening we basked in the knowledge that we saved a buttload of money while playing Wii Music, organizing my new mini-wardrobe, and watching Alvin and the Chipmunks (SUPER cute, by the way). 

I feel guilty that none of this post is about The Princess...so here's her portion.  My little girl was an absolute angel today.  No tantrums.  No freaking out in stores.  No peeing herself in the middle of a store with no public restroom.  No grabbing strangers' butts from her stroller perch.  Lots of smiling and laughing, and plenty of eye contact. 

A good day, all around.

Now, my dear readers, it's time for this sleepy momma to throw her feet up and veg out in front of some HGTV.  Have a fabulous night!