Throughout the past couple of months, Jesse & I have learned the benefits of searching Craigslist for the nursery furniture we have needed! In regard to this, one perk of living in the North Shore/Boston area is that there are a lot of people. Therefore, there are a lot of babies... and a lot of baby items listed on Craigslist!
When my parents were in town over the Fourth of July weekend, we found a $10 crib on Craigslist from an Israeli family who were moving back to Israel the following week and needed to get rid of it! The crib came with a mattress, but during our move to Gloucester, we had put a bottle of bleach in the crib during transport, which turned over and spilt on it. Our friend from church, Sarah, who also works for Boston Catholic Charities, knew about our bleached mattress and asked if we would like a brand new one from her work. Apparently, a grandfather with twin grandchildren had bought two brand new crib mattresses, but they didn't work for him and he donated them to Catholic Charities. No one was taking them, so Sarah's co-workers agreed to donate one to us! It came still in the box and fits perfectly in our crib!
Since the great crib purchase, I've had a hard time accepting changing table prices in store for $80 plus, or even on Craigslist for over what we paid for the crib. I've had a critical eye for the past many weeks as I've periodically checked Craigslist for a changing table. One was offered as free and left on a curb side in a town about 25 miles away, but by the time I made it to the house, it had been taken. Finally, last week, I found an ad for a white changing table (which was ideal as our crib is white) for $10! The lady said it was still available and we immediately let her know of our interest! She also said she had several other baby items for sale and would give us a good deal if we took any of it. I asked if she had a rocking chair, as that was the remaining piece of furniture that we needed. She did! She had it listed for $40, but offered it to us for $25! She also gave us a brand new changing table pad for $5. It was almost an hour's drive to her home in Chelmsford, MA, but well worth it after our $40 purchase. We came home with a truck full of nice nursery furniture!
I have become somewhat addicted to bargain shopping. I get daily e-mails from Money Saving Mom, a blog managed by a mother of three who continually uses coupons to get groceries and other items at very low prices, often free. Their grocery budget is $40 a week and they are often under it. I am not as diligent as she, but I have learned the benefit of using coupons and scoping out good deals for grocery shopping. Craigslist is now our supplier for furniture needs, and we're having a lot of fun with the deals we have found so far! God has already been very gracious to us as we plan for baby Anna's arrival and we are continually learning the value of good stewardship with the gifts and finances we are given.
