Friday, May 3, 2013

ADOPT Yard Sale: Day 1

 Whew!  What a day!

We have been so blessed by all of the generosity shown to us once again.  People have blown us away with kindness - donated items, help in sorting through stuff, help watching G & K, help spreading the word, help working the sale, and purchases!  

It is obvious, we couldn't do it alone.  Thank you to all of those who have had a hand in making our ADOPT YardSale a success!  This is a very humbling experience.

** I had lots of pics from the sale today, but my computer isn't receiving them from my phone...um, so I don't know.  Sorry!  

Getting it all organized:

So, here's how our day went:

Cuban Daddy and I stayed up super late last night (shocker, I know) getting everything ready for the big sale.  Note that when I tried to go to bed, K kept coughing and waking his little miserable self up...so I was up until about 2:00 am.  Up again at 5:00 something.  Not exactly the high energy start I was hoping for, but there ya go.  So, CD sets out early to put the signs up, stopping first to buy the posts to put them in the ground.  Only...the store didn't carry any anymore.  Um.  So, by the time this was all realized, I really needed him to come home and help me set up instead of doing signs.  So, I got tired myself & two tired babies ready, bag packed, snacks eaten, and then tried to juggle keeping them out of the street, occupied, and not seeing too many of their old beloved toys in the YardSale pile as I started setting up...in the drizzle. Quite the task!

This is just a portion of the sale...we had tons!

So, we hustle and get it all set out (there were some BIG items that he and I moved ourselves.)  I was sweating before anyone even showed up!
So, then my awesome mom showed up:


and she and I continued setting up while CD took G & K to my Aunt & Grandma's house.  They love going to visit & always bring home treats to share  they're always so helpful to us!  Then, Cuban Daddy proceeded to put out the rest of the signs. This took him much longer than anticipated (not his fault), so that left Mom & I working alone most of the sale.

It was super slow at first (Sprinkling light rain. No signs up. Hmm.), but we could tell as he was getting the signs up, traffic started to flood in!  We did great business overall!

We joked that I am totally not a salesperson (absolutely true).  I'm like, "Is that price okay with you?" and "Oh, you can just have it if you like/need it." (I know!!), whereas my mom was wheelin' & dealin'.  It was a 'good cop, bad cop,' and quite funny.  So, I was told I couldn't be the negotiator learned early on to send the 'challenging customer' her way.  Speaking of challenging customers, there were certainly a few.  I actually had one woman get me down from $35 to $25 on a big pile of (already awesomely priced) items, and then asked me, "And what else will you give me for free?" as she looked around.  Oh, she was dead serious.  Don't worry, I actually said, "Nothing. I just took $10 off."  Total disbelief and unconcerned about "Our Cause".  Oh well. 
In opposite reactions: I received a 'high-five' from one guy, and hugs from two other strangers when they learned of our adoption.  And one lady stopped by ONLY b/c of our "Adoption" sign b/c she, herself, was adopted.  *Sidenote: Although she only found out she was adopted when in her 30's, she still was a HUGE proponent of adoption, and was so proud to be a part of our journey.  
Now, that's the kind of lovin' I'm talking about in the South!  


Upon near-starvation & the kids' near-naptime & near rainstorm, I rushed out to pick up the kids & lunch for CD, mom & me.  Got home, put food inside, & kids down for a nap.

And then, just as our 'closing time' approached, so did the rain clouds, and down it began to come (not hard, thank God), so Cuban Daddy & I pretended we were young and started sprinting all over the place, lifting heavy things, folding tables, etc, and getting it all into the garage. (I kind of thought, well if any neighbors are peeking out the window, they're having a good laugh! lol)  

There was about one table full left & I told CD my back just couldn't take it...I felt like it was about to go out.  Never had that happen before, but it was like 'Oh My Gosh'.  (Hey, I helped him carry a huge armoire, several large chairs, tables, exercise equipment, & bins, okay?!)  I was kind of afraid I was really going to really injure it, so I got off a table early. *This may or may not have been accompanied by a huge fall onto the concrete when my foot got caught in a bag strap & I slammed into the wall of bins.  And I instantly felt the need for a chiropractic adjustment.*  Just glad no one was around for that one.

So, we trudged in, starving, physically exhausted, sleepy, rained on, & concerned about what tomorrow would hold for our Yard Sale.  We ate our then-cold lunch, & then counted the money we made today!



I know, can you believe it?!?!?!?!?!?!

Totally blew me away!  

Apparently, it was just too much to take for Cuban Daddy, who attemped a nap with the kids.  =)

Here's a crazy cool God part:  One lady overheard me tell another person that we were adopting from Honduras, etc.  She proceeds to light up, pulls a paper out of her purse, and hands it to me.  It explains that she is going on a Mission's Trip to Honduras this summer!  She's asking for extra clothes to pick up to take to the people of Honduras.  We checked it out- totally legit.  How cool is that?!  

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*** Due to nearly 100% expected rain showers ALL DAY tomorrow in our area, we will have to POSTPONE tomorrow's Yard Sale!  I don't know when it will be (possibly next Sat.), but I will let you know!   DON'T COME TOMORROW!  THANK YOU!

*And unless you've already made plans with me, we are 'good' on stuff for the Sale.  We are maxed out in space, and don't need more at this time.  Thank you! 

~ 6 in Love ~


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