My neighborhood has garage sales on a biannual basis.

It is a lot of work to get ready for a garage sale. Weeding through all of my closets is something I get very frustrated with. A garage sale does force me to evaluate my wardrobe for out of date and unused items though and I appreciate that.

Then there is the cleaning of the garage. UGH! How come garages get so dirty? I mean really all I do is park my car in them. I also store a bunch of stuff along the walls but it is not like I eat, sleep and/or work in the garage so I see no reason why it tends to get so disorganized and dirty.

This year I decided to forego the garage sale. I will be attending my son’s regional water polo championships tomorrow and that is a whole lot more fun that selling items for cheap.

I did clean my garage out yesterday though so I can gloat about that and my closet is going to be weeded next week.

I do not usually go garage sale shopping but I went a few times when my kids were little. I found some of the very best toys ever at garage sales. I found a small three wheeler for 25$ at a garage sale which was a very popular toy for my children.

This did not compare to the other treasure I found at a garage sale. I found a chalkboard which had a dry erase board on the other side and it stood up on four legs.

My sweet daughter used that and an antique desk to set up school for her brothers. She spent endless hours in my study trying to teach them. Although they complained about having to go to school again they both turned out to be honor students.

To be honest I was pretty ruthless about making sure they learned their lessons also. Between the two of us girls it would have been difficult if not impossible to be anything other than an honor student.

The chalkboard only cost 5$. So for 30$ and a bit of shopping I found toys that both entertained and taught my children.

If you are struggling financially as a single parent I would suggest garage sales as a way to find good toys during the summertime. Then you can save up your money for new ones at Christmas time.