Once Upon A Child

As fast as Colton is growing into and right back out of clothes, it's hard to keep an inventory of clothes that fit (especially sleepers). This week, I picked up 4 "sleeper sets" and one shirt for Colton. The items were on sale and still totaled over $50. Once I got the items home and out of the bag I realized 1) that I had very little product for the money I had spent and 2) that he was going to be out of these within a month (or two if I'm lucky)! I have never been one of "those Moms" who is afraid to put my kid in "hand me downs" and we have been so fortunate to have been given a lot of those from friends and family. Since we're running a little low on inventory of his current size, I decided to return the sleepers and re-think my strategy.

I've had several friends and family members tell me about Once Upon A Child. Unfortunately, "our" closest store is on the west side of Knoxville - so a little over an hour drive away. Matt, Colton and I took a day trip to Knoxville about a month ago and we visited the store for the very first time. Since I had never been and was not prepared, I was a little overwhelmed...plus the store was super packed that day (not to mention I had Colton & Matt in tow and shopping with them is like hunting with the game warden)! I walked around, took everything in and within 5-10 minutes we were back in the car.

After realizing how ridiculously overpriced baby clothes are, I re-grouped and made a plan. Today we re-visited Once Upon A Child and this time I suckered (I mean asked) Matt and my Dad to keep Colton company and Mom and I did some shopping. I absolutely LOVE this store. Since I had my hands free (well, not for long) and had time to do some searching, I stumbled on some really cute "finds". After about 25 minutes of shopping, I (Colton) ended up with 8 shirts, a "Childrens Place" Christmas sweater, a jacket, a vest, 2 sleepers (tags still on), an adorable Mickey Mouse Halloween shirt, some skeleton Halloween PJs and a pair of camo/tan "work boots". The best part? I got all this stuff for just $50.

I realize that Once Upon A Child is not a new store, so if this is old news, sorry! But, I'm sure that there are other stay at home Moms out there (or even Moms who work outside the home) who are looking for ways to save money and maybe, like me, are yet to experience the store's greatness. So, if you have a store near you, I would say give it a try - I think you'd be surprised what you can find. As for me, I plan on making another trip to Knoxville...


Comments

  1. PamAugust 31, 2013 at 10:48 PM

    Renee, I love shopping the thrift stores for clothes for my children especially when they were the age Colton is. Children don't wear out the clothes...they just outgrow them! So usually the clothes are still in really great condition for a fraction of the cost. We live in a rural area but we do have several consignment stores and thrift stores so you may want to check in your area about these too. Hospice Resale stores also usually have children's clothes. I have also found a few good deals on collections of clothes on Ebay. Glad you discovered a great store you like! :)

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  2. AnonymousAugust 31, 2013 at 10:56 PM

    Shopping with Matt Neal? Renee, what were you thinking?
    Sorry, have to go anonymous, don't know how else to do it. I know, I know, you told me how, but I don't remember. Bear with me sweetheart.

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownSeptember 1, 2013 at 2:12 PM

    We LOVE hitting Once Upon A Child and there is another thrift shop called Kid 2 Kid that's just as amazing!!! As soon as Dani & Hunter can get out for a couple hours, both stores are on our list! Makes it nice having the outlet mall close, too, with OshKosh and Carters!!!! Send me Colton's list with sizes and Mamaw will be ready to shop!!!! :)

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