If anyone has a baby girl, then they can understand how easily one can go broke while clothes shopping. Walk into any baby clothing store, and 75% of the store is taken up with adorable, must-have-it-all girl clothing, and the rest of the store offers a sad, measly baby boy selection.
Before I had B, I thought "I am going to save so much money! I will provide for my daughter! I will pay down my credit cards! I will be so frugal! Hooray for my savvy money skills! Thank you Suze Orman!" Well, that was all fine and good until I walked into Carters and Gymboree. Oh my!! Racks of bright colors, cotton candy ruffles, soft cotton and shiny satin. I inhale that fresh, new clothes smell and prance over to the first rack. Ballet pajamas! B cannot live without these pajamas!! Wait - is that a fluffy pink fairy-esque onesie? B MUST have that! And oh, wait, I think I have a coupon. If I spend $40, I get 20% off, so I OBVIOUSLY must spend $40 because then I get the best deal, so I'll just check out these precious "I love Mommy" shirts...ahh, yes, shopping for a girl will put you in the poor house.
And not only that, but I have baby toy envy. Trust me, B has oodles of baby toys. Balls, loveys, blocks, chairs, jumpers... But then we go to a playdate and suddenly B must have the new tummy time mat that her little friend has. Granted, when I put B on the tummy time mat, she promptly spit up and began to scream. Yes, yes - B loved it for sure! So, at our next Target trip or next time I'm on Amazon (oh, Amazon, how I love thee - but more about you later) I pick up the tummy time mat.
And Amazon - how can I express how much I love this site? I would be afraid to know how much of my paycheck goes to Amazon! First, I am part of Amazon Mom, so things ship (any price!) for free in 2 days. So, I can buy B a pacifier for $3.99 on Monday and it will arrive on Wednesday. Amazon is just way too easy. As I peruse, I see a cute baby toy that B needs - add it to my shopping cart with a single click and voila! It is on my doorstep in two days. Hmm? I need some more baby wipes? No problem! The UPS man surely thinks that I have a sickness. He is at my door every other day. And when B was first born? Forget it! I bought so much on Amazon, UPS would sometimes make up to 3 trips a day! I realized how many little things I needed while I was a breastfeeding machine. A second cover for my Breastfriend, a diaper caddy for the living room, a pack and play mobile, diaper cream for the diaper bag...
And how can I leave out the faux-shopping for when I want to spend, but I just can't? I go on to one of my favorite sites. One Step Ahead, gap.com, Hanna Andersson, Mini-Boden USA, - and I put all of these lovely little outfits into my shopping cart. Click, click, click. Sleepers, bathing suits, cable knit sweaters. Ahh - it feels so fulfilling to fill up my sweet digital shopping cart. Then I check the total when I am finished. $275 - not a problem! And before I can truly consider purchasing my goods, I quickly click the screen closed. Yes, that shopping spree was fun. I enjoyed it thoroughly. And the best part - it didn't cost a dime! (Of course, I will try to go back later and buy some of those items when I have a COUPON!)
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