Monday, January 9, 2017

Dig down and find those shopping genes

As a Christmas bonus, Older Daughter's employers gave her a prepaid debit card in a generous amount to be spent on whatever she wants. (No, this isn't a photo of her actual card.)


Since she didn't have a package under the tree for her sister, Older Daughter decided to take Younger Daughter shopping after Christmas. I thought this was very sweet.

So one day, off went both girls with plans to paint the town red ("town" being Coeur d'Alene, an hour's drive away). They came back smiling, many hours later, having looped through Spokane as well.

I expected to see two young women staggering in laden with packages and bags. But no, they were virtually empty-handed.

"So where did you go?" I asked.

Older Daughter started ticking off stops on her fingers. "First, we went to All Things Irish."

(This is a favorite store to walk through, but it's fairly expensive so we never buy anything. The week before, Older Daughter and I had stepped inside and she'd tried on a darling but pricey capelet.)

"Did you buy the capelet?" I asked.

"No. It's pretty, but not that pretty -- for the price. But I bought a Christmas ornament on sale, and some tea."


After this, Older Daughter related, they poked through a number of favored thrift stores and Older Daughter purchased Younger Daughter a second-hand purse and some trendy "army" boots.

Then they drove into Spokane because Older Daughter wanted to treat Younger Daughter to a brand-new outfit from an establishment called Forever 21, which evidently has become one of Older Daughter's favorite clothing stores (apparently it specializes in stylish but inexpensive garments). Younger Daughter was outfitted in a brand-new blouse, skirt, and warm leggings. (We realized later this was one of a handful of new clothing Younger Daughter has ever worn, sock and underwear excluded. The other new outfits were also gifts from relatives.)

"And then where did you go?" I asked.

"Nowhere. We came home."

I gave a snort of laughter. "I definitely raised a couple of girls who aren’t into shopping."

"But I am, really," Older Daughter contradicted.

"But a lot of girls could have spent that entire debit card in, oh, ten minutes."

"Well, I’m into cheap shopping," Older Daughter amended.


And there you have it. Despite having a debit card with a generous amount of money burning a hole in her pocket, Older Daughter spent a total of about $50 on their grand day out.

This is what happens when you raise kids exclusively on thrift stores.

Ahem. They may also have inherited my shopping genes.

15 comments:

  1. Now, where's that "Like" button? :)

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  2. Awesome girls. My daughters were raised the same way, on thrift shop clothes.
    Youngest daughter moved to the big city and is wearing power suits. All new and expensive.
    andy

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  3. Patrice, thanks for sharing. Yes indeed, you raise them right!
    Montana Guy

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  4. Hey, that's what the Duggar's do, not that we should care. - lol

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  5. They sound like my daughter. Years ago she was on a church youth group trip to the skating rink about an hour and a half away. They stopped at a mall after skating. Most of the girls were looking for their "favorite brand" of clothes. One girl asked my daughter what her favorite brand was. She replied, "Clearance."

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  6. We have an area thrift store that moves items that have not been sold in a prescribed time to their $1 thrift area. My daughter and I shop that area quite often and makes it hard to go into the regular thrift area and pay more than $1! lol

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  7. What a fine example of not blowing the money burning a hole in one's pocket! Very smart, frugal, and thoughtful spending.

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  8. Ahem. Not 'cheap' hon' -- FRUUU-GAL. There's an important difference between those two in spending wisely? (""Well, I’m into cheap shopping," Older Daughter amended.) G/B

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  9. That's a decent cuppa tea and not an easy one to find in the States ... definitely a step up from your average builder's tea anyway.

    One suggestion for her to try: see if she can find the lemon and orange blended black tea from Taylor's of Harrogate, the makers of Yorkshire Gold.

    As for me, I'm a definite tea snob -- I'm still working through a few boxes of TWG Tea I picked up at the Harrods tea and coffee hall in London.

    Something nice that's a bit less pricey would be the teas from The East India Company -- yes, that East India Company, and they're still in business ...

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  10. My son, about the same age as your girls, is also extremely frugal. My husband and I are very financially responsible, but the Kiddo takes it to a whole new level. Maybe there is hope for future generations.

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  11. Maybe she was wearing the wrong pair of 'jeans' (pun intended) to go shopping.

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  12. Sorry, but I'm not computer literate in blogs. Recently, as I traveled to an appointment the conversation on radio made me sit up and take notice. Chickens are being fed chemicals to make them mature and gain wgt. very rapidly - economics. These chem. are new varieties. The chem. are in the meat that we eat. Who knows what it is doing to us. How may I find info on what is happening and where do I start? I don't trust organics either. Any comments are welcome. Sorry if I didn't do this correctly. Elaine

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    Replies
    1. The only way to really know what you're eating is to raise it yourself, or know and completely trust the farmer who raised your food.

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  13. These... These young ladies are beyond belief! Sometimes I wonder if they're not a figment of Patrice's imagination. They are so incredible, they can't be real - can they??

    Steve Davis
    Anchorage, AK

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  14. Good for your daughters! They will never be in the position of many women that I have known:
    Unable to quit working & stay home to raise children & take care of a home.
    Constantly under the gun to make minimum payments on credit cards and utility bills.
    If a crisis happens, there is never $100, $50, or $20 to spare. So then they are in the position of borrowing money.
    The phone rings & they don't/can't answer it because it is a demand for payment from some company.
    A mortgage that eats a family alive because the house is in the best area, or it is 4000 sft, or it is "impressive".
    Just some of the things that I have seen from women, who think that $400 shoes, $500 purses, and the "Best" clothing is worth living like that. So award to you for raising such smart kids!
    -Stealth Spaniel

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