Copy Cat,Craig's List Purchases and this Weeks Yard Sale Finds.

I have a two-year old who, like a talking parrot in a Disney movie, repeats everything I say.

The funny thing is I have a desire to tell him everything I’m doing.

“Mommy’s doing laundry,” I say to him as I walk down the hall with a basket full of dirty clothes.

“Mommy laundry,” my little echo says back to me.

“Do you want to help Mommy?” I ask.

“Help Mommy,” Reef says as he follows me to the laundry room.

I make suggestions as we go throughout the day.

“Should we color?” I ask as he pulls out a bin of crayons.

“I color,” he says as the crayons fall onto the kitchen floor.

“Clean up, clean up,” I start to sing. It’s no surprise he sings along with me.

Occasionally, with no suggestion from me, Reef interjects his own need.

“I chicken,” he says at lunch time.

“I sippy,” he says as I fill up his sippy cup with water.

This weekend, the counselor was out of town with the three older boys and it was just Reef and I at home. We had a great time on Saturday, garage selling in the morning and later spending time at Changing Hands Bookstore.

Reef is no longer happy sleeping in his crib and I don’t like to sleep alone, so with everyone else gone, I laid him in my bed for the night. Within minutes, he was asleep and so was I.

In the middle of the night, I heard the faintest sound. It was Reef

“Momma,” he said so quietly I wondered if I’d heard anything at all.

Instinctively, I reached over in the dark and grabbed him right before he fell off the bed. I pulled him over beside me and he fell back to sleep. I, on the other hand, was wide awake, thinking of the danger he just avoided; amazed even in his sleep he called for me. For the rest of the night, he was right by my side and we both slept like babies.

I love I can be at home with my children full-time and make a little extra money on the side. This is the best part of collecting trash.

Like Reef, I play copy cat too. I found this cool shelf at a yard sale a few months ago and paid $10.00.

This weekend while browsing on Craig's List, I saw this Pottery Barn shelf for sale listed at $200.00. Looks a lot like my $10.00 find, doesn't it.

I found these Pottery Barn drapes on Craig's List for $100.00 and was able to hang them in the master bedroom this weekend (don't worry, I had help). I paid $1.00 for the curtain rod at a garage sale.

These are two of my favorite Pottery Barn finds, both from yard sales last year and both for under $10.00.

A few other Craig's list purchases; let's start with this pool fence. When we first moved into our home, we had a few bids for installing a pool fence. The bids ranged from $4,000.00 to $6,000.00. The counselor and I initially felt a bit hopeless, but I suggested we try to purchase pool fencing off Craig's list. For $500.00, we found all the fencing we needed and for $600.00, a handy man installed it for us. By the way, isn't my pool guy a dream! I'm having his baby! :)

When we first moved into the home I wasn't sure which boy would go into which room. Turns out, all three wanted to stay together so I purchased this futon off Craig's list for $40.00. Chandler, Payson and Reef snuggled into this bed every night. It was crowded, but they loved it until they got their new bed.

The counselor is a man of very little needs, but every since I've known him he's wanted a pool table. New, a pool table can cost around $3,000.00. Another thing about the counselor, he has excellent taste. He spent a week browsing the pool tables on Craig's List and found this beauty for $500.00. When he went to look at it, the home owner explained the pool table was left behind by the previous homeowner and he just wanted to get rid of it. He offered it for $300.00, a bargain the counselor couldn't turn down. Isn't it gorgeous.

More then not, it's used as a car track or play ground, but that's when the counselor's at work. :)

And at last, here are some of my favorite garage sale finds from this weekend.

A spring wreath for $1.00.

A stain glass heart ornament for $1.00. Isn't it pretty on my front door.

These Lucky Brand Size 14 jeans will sell really well on EBay.

This vintage chandelier was free at a garage sale. The owner saw my interest in it and said, "Just take it." Let's see how it does on Craig's list.

I purchased this clock for $5.00 and think it will do well on Craig's list too.

I'll let you know how they sell, you KNOW I will.