This is a random post...I just wanted to talk a tiny bit about being a bargainista.  I love getting a good deal and since I'm a reformed shopaholic, it's actually essential for me.  But I swear even if I won the lottery tomorrow I'd still hunt for a bargain.  And shop at thrift stores.  It's in my blood.  Now that I'm a stay at home mama, It's even more crucial that I stick to a budget.  Sometimes in blog land, it seems like everyone has a ton of money.  I don't.  And I'm not ashamed of it!  I'm actually really proud of the fact that I find 95% of what I buy on sale or clearance or a discount store.  I think I'm the only one who loves Wal-Mart.  No it's not glossy and pretty and fashionable like Target.  But it's cheap.  And I dig cheap.  But, I also like to look good (although unfortunately that's less of a priority lately) and for my kids to look good and for my home to look good.  It doesn't.  But I want it to.  [Man, this is totally a stream of consciousness. I hope you're still reading!].  So in order to accomplish that I hunt for a bargain.  I bring up Marshalls (and TJ Maxx) because I've often been asked where I got something and when I name one of those places, I always hear "Oh, I forget to go there."  So this is just a tiny bit of encouragement not to forget.  Our latest obsession is buying gifts from there.  I'll be honest- we don't typically end up spending less but we do end up buying a couple of items for what we would have spent on just one...so the giftee gets more and that's so fun!  In fact at Christmas I bought my niece a my little pony play set from there.  It was only $9.99 and I felt like that was cheap so I picked up another gift for her.  Later I looked on Amazon and Walmart.com and the exact same gift set was $24.99.  Score!  Ok, this obviously isn't a tutorial or lesson in getting a good deal.  It's just an encouragement to hunt for a bargain and not to forget Marshalls and TJ Maxx.  It's also an excuse to brag about these adorable items I scored the last time I was there: