Garage Sale-ing

A few weekends ago, a friend of mine posted a comment on someone else' s page.
They were advertising for a garage sale. This happens often but this one was different.
For one, they posted pictures of items that were for sale.
And, it was a fundraiser for a missions trip so they were also seeking donations.

Reyna and I headed out there first thing in the morning. If there is one thing I remember from my garage sale days (I used to go almost every weekend), its that the good stuff goes fast.

We pulled up only 10 minutes after it started and there were tons of cars!
I knew what I was going for so i headed straight to the toys table. I had seen a picture of a cute play kitchen. It was nowhere to be seen. BUT....I did manage to pick up a few, quality toys.

I got this Thomas the Train set. Complete with multiple bridges, boulders, trains, etc.
I had recently looked up the cost of something like this as a consideration for her birthday gift. They easily ran about $50. I just assumed it would be cheaper than that so I took the whole box.
I also knew Neil would love this. He did. How do you think this got set up so quickly ;)
She likes it more than we thought. She likes when the train goes by.

This ramp set is a high quality brand and I thought the cause and effect relationship would be a good learning tool. A new one is priced around $24.
She mostly likes to chew on the wood cars but has also put them on the ramp a few times!

We were walking through Target the other day "testing" toys and Reyna loved this one.
I put it in her lap and she played for 30 minutes which allowed me to browse a little while longer ;)
This got us through the drive to San Antonio. I set it in her lap in the car seat and it was a hit.

This was another great find. I remember playing with these in my elementary school.
Wood shaped blocks. Maybe it was a nostalgic buy but I also know these types of toys help foster creativity and problem solving.
This interaction mostly involves chewing and breaking down what we build.

I had also picked up a few others but after thinking about their use, I put them back. Some were too big. Some too loud. Some repetitive of what we already have. I went to check out without knowing the cost. They rang me up for EIGHT DOLLARS!!! For everything! It was a good reminder of why I love garage sale-ing so much!
(know that I wiped and cleaned and sanitized them very well ;))

I also donated a box of stuff so I guess it was a good day all around.