Sunday, January 24, 2010

Awesome Kids Exchange

I'm so excited about this year's first Kids Exchange (there's going to be another one, in July). Last one I went to was a bust - I spent an hour standing in various lines, first - to get in, then - to pay for my purchases. And 2 hours browsing, trying to find something. And all I had to show for all this time and effort was a big red Elmo that M didn't even care to play with.

But this year the Exchange was fantastic. Of course, that was the first time I went as a seller, which allowed me to shop 1 day early, on Thursday. And boy, did this one day make all the difference!

Oh, I totally blew the budget. Wait, I didn't have any budget set. But I kind of hoped to stay under $100 and ended up spending $125, give or take a few pennies. But check out some of the goodies:

A Kettler trike with adjustable seat, rear bucket (for carrying pretend cupcakes and a Piglet) and a push-handle. The new one sells for $250 at Target. The one I got was a bit used, but in great shape and for only $50!
Some board games - Boggle Jr, Wack-a-Mole, and Sounds of the Seashore and WordWorld memory game - for a total of $10
A few Melissa & Doug wooden puzzles - alphabet, busy board, numbers, states of the USA - for $16 (all pieces included and some puzzles still in the original wrap)
Puppets - hand-puppets Piglet (who now accompanies M on rides in the trike), Pooh, Tiger, Eeyore and a guy in surgical scrubs, who for now is a Vampire - all for $10. And this adorable marionette clown for only $1.
An awesome cash register - fully functional with a cash drawer that goes "ka-ching" and a working scanner - for $5 (it just needed new batteries)

Lots of fantastic hard-cover books, most seemingly brand-new (here's a small sample) - the rest of the budget.
Oh, wait, I'm forgetting a Slide Projector for ViewMaster Slides for ... $2!!! (although it still needs new batteries and slides)

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