I love Isabooties. They’re machine-washable, soft, vegan, and adorable. I have two pairs in a larger size that P wore, but wanted a set for the little boys to keep their feet warm (and their socks on) in the winter.

I have a million eBay email alerts running at one time. Things I have and want to sell, to see how many are listed and what they are priced at. Things I love that I want more of or need to replace, in case someone lists some. And then a simple alert, just for “isabooties,” hoping to score a pair or two or three for less than  $29.00 (retail)!

I was delighted this morning to get my alert for a variety of sizes and colors at $12.00/pair!!! I have no experience with the seller, so of course buyer beware, but I know I will be ordering 3 pairs today.

Green Your Decor posted some very inexpensive bamboo tab top panels. Digging around at the Brylane Home site, I found bamboo roman shades, blinds, very stylish panels with grommets, and my favorite: the tiers, which are cafe-length. I can’t decide if I want to order these for my unsightly sunroom/office, or if I want to keep holding out to make my own someday.

If you’re thinking about a big ticket purchase for the holidays or just want to save a bunch on a case of formula or a lot of baby clothes, you can save what appears to be 20 or 30% off one eBay item. You have to follow a crazy number of steps and pay through PayPal, but what a great deal!

Vitamin C? Glucosamine? Or maybe both? (I have a cold and persistent joint pain. Fun!) Thankfully, I also have CVS. Centsible Savings shares:

This week Nature’s Bounty vitamins are on sale Buy One Get One Free. They are also printing $2 ECBs when you buy 2. The cheapest item is $4.79. Sign up for the Nature’s Bounty Rewards Club to print $2 coupons. Buy 2 products for $4.79, and use two $2 coupons. Your total will be $.79 plus tax, and you’ll receive $2 in ECBs!

If you’ve ever gotten one of the Nature’s Bounty 2 week freebie trials, those come with a coupon as well. Not a bad time to stock up.

Christmas prep has hit the blogophere earlier than I expected this year. We are Jewish, but half of our family and most everyone else we know celebrates Christmas so there are many aspects we take part in. In my mind, I’m already gearing up the asks for our boys (both the wants and the want nots, like plastic baby toys that take batteries!). Even though we don’t have a tree or anything, the holiday Martha impulse still hits me pretty hard, though fortunately the urge to shop and overbuy for friends and family does not. One tradition I love: holiday cards

This is my hard and fast rule for cards — I always buy next year’s cards in January when they are on sale. I store them in the same place each year and I address and sign them over Columbus Day weekend. We may not have the family photo taken yet, let alone printed, and the little update letter comes later, too, but I can do the bulk of the job in October. If I meet someone between October 15 and December 15 that should receive a card, I add theirs at that time, but really, what’s the chance of there being a lot of people like that?

In regards to the photo, we generally have a professional do an outdoor shoot the last week of October. We order a CD of the shots rather than individual pictures, and then I used up photo credits I’ve banked all year to get prints. I have more than 200 credits right now at snapfish, if you can believe it, just for paying attention to their promotions. You can use the web services to print copies of school portraits as well, just scan them in so that two jumbo wallets make one 4×6, order half the number you need, and then cut them yourself when they are delivered. Must cheaper than whatever “Package B” gives you!

Assuming you don’t have a stockpile of cards to make this work, the internet won’t let you down. eBay has tons of odd lots of cards (modern and vintage) available. The holiday stamp isn’t available yet, but if you want to add postage to your cards early, the cute “Celebrate” stamp available now would certainly do.

Since I last posted a victory shot, I hadn’t had the best weeks at rummage. Until today. I went to a handful of sales this morning, but then around 2pm one of the babies was fussy and the rest were asleep, so my husband suggested that I take R out and hit some garage sales. Who was I to argue?

I noticed some late posts on craigslist in a neighborhood adjoining ours so I headed out that way. I stumbled across a few signs for a sale on my way home so I decided to stop. I was so tentative, based on what I could see from the car, that I left baby R in his infant seat with the minivan door open, assuming I would take a peek and then come right back (he was about six feet away from me, don’t worry). I was so very wrong…

The family having the sale has one child, a boy. They were parting with his perfect condition size 4-7 clothes for $3/bag. I grabbed the infant seat from the car and started making piles. I took about half of the clothes! I got 7 pairs of pants, 2 button down shirts, 3 pairs of pajamas, 2 long sleeve t-shirts, 2 pairs of cargo shorts, 1 sweat suit, and a pile of underwear, for $7, or less than a quarter a piece. All brand names: Gap, TCP, Gymboree, Ralph Lauren. I spent another $1 on a much-needed twin Ralph Lauren Home sheet set that will fill out the used Pottery Barn Kids odds and ends we use in our older son P’s room. They threw in some vintage fabric, of the type I collect, on top of everything.

Also inbound this week was the first of our 4 Halloween costumes. Our precocious P decided he should be the big bad wolf and his brothers could be the little pigs. I’ve won 2 on eBay, one which arrived yesterday.

Baby Gap, size 6-12m. If you happen to have one laying around, or a wolf in 3T, I’ll take them off your hands