Friday, June 19, 2009

yard sale pricing woes and jonah, of course

Man, pricing stuff for a yard sale is tough! I can't stop thinking about how much money I spent on the thing when I bought it... and my books, my precious books. So hard to let them go. I will take it very personally if people try to haggle with my books. Just rip out my soul why don't you?

Matt's gotten slightly carried away with the "what to sell" pile. I've already had to rescue our fire escape ladder, our screen insert for our storm door, and a memory card for my digital camera. We were going through our books the other night, and while I sorted through my books on the bed, Matt was sorting his on the floor and reorganizing the book shelf. I came up with a huge pile to get rid of, but when I handed him my keepers to put back on the shelf, he informed me there was no room. "Where are all the books you are getting rid of?" I asked. "I want to keep all mine," was the response. Um, no. Try again. So he was able to get a small stack together to sell and mine found a place on "his" shelf. And I love my Matt, God bless him, but he's really more of a Sports Illustrated kind of guy than a book man. I think he likes the idea of the books and wants to be a reader, but the odds that he'll actually read them are slim to none. But hey, they look really nice on the shelf, and what if Jonah wants to read them in fifteen years?

We are giving away our extra Bibles for free, but you'll have to pay $3.00 to get our PlayStation South Park game. How 'bout them apples?

I'm excited about pretending I don't speak Spanish, and then fluently bargaining the socks off any Spanish-speakers that come our way. I've been out of the Spanish loop for a while, so I'll be excited to practice.

Kathryn came and helped me price some stuff today, and we've both decided that we collectively suck at coming up with good prices. Our mottos are, "You couldn't get that for a dollar at The Dollar Store," and "I paid ____ for that," and "That would make a great _______ gift." Anyway, I think we're looking for very specific buyers. We've pretty much mapped out their whole life story and the exact reason and motive they will have in order to pay $15 for a pair of shoes. (Just kidding. Sort of.) Anyway, it's hard, but I know the price is really just a suggestion anyway. Let the haggling begin.

I about put a "Make an Offer" sticker on a travel bandaid case just to be funny, but wasn't sure people would get my humor. I also have this big wooden circle decorative thing on a stand, and I was going to write, "Why reinvent the wheel when you could buy this one for $10?" but again with the humor thing. Maybe you just had to be here. I'm funny in my head, at least.

We're going to have a table set up with Jonah's story and some magnets. I don't really care whether we sell any magnets or not, but I am excited about spreading the word about EB. I'm actually looking forward to people's questions. It's supposed to be in the mid 90's here on Saturday, so I don't think Jonah will be making an appearance, but the 7th grade girls at church did a nice trifold presentation for us to put up with the magnets. It's kind of a summary of what EB is on one poster, and then another one with clips from the blog and pictures that tell our family story. I want people to know Jonah and to know about EB whether they buy a magnet or not.

Jonah had an appointment today with the ENT, and he said everything looks really good (just one small place on his tongue that he could see - he didn't scope him again). He says the noisy breathing is probably just from excess secretions (something any baby could deal with), and the stridor when he's sleeping is probably just a floppy airway that he'll outgrow. He's still breathing well, never in distress, always has good coloring. I'm feeling better about things on that front, which is a huge praise. We'll see him again for a check-up in three months. I'm nervous about the GI doctor on Wed. I'm not really sure what they can do for Jonah without going down in there, but hopefully they can give us some feedback on the acid reflux stuff. He's eaten more today, but it's still a lot of fighting to get him to do it. I guess just meeting with the doctor who would make the g-tube decision if it ever came to that scares me. I don't even want that to be in the realm of possibility for Jonah, and it just makes it too real.

Ok, I better run. It's almost 1:00 am, and I'm sure Jonah will wake up as soon as my head hits the pillow. He has a sixth sense about these things. Have I mentioned that he sleeps with his eyes half open? Freaks me out. I guess he knows I'm always coming at his face with a needle as soon as he sacks out. I can't really blame him. But unfortunately, he also uses it offensively as well, making sure to wake up as soon as I shut my eyes or sit down with a plate of food. I know, baby, revenge is sweet. Revenge. Is. Sweet.

40 comments:

Marie said...

No you HAVE to put the Make An Offer sign on the bandaid, that is FUNNY!

I love the idea of the Jonah stand! It will bring awareness and perhaps make people buy something because they will be supporting a cause. Jonah is definitely getting the word out, there are more and more people on Waiting for Happy telling them about Jonah!

Tracy said...

My husband is the same way about books! I have 2 cases full (and I have gotten rid of even more), so I bought him his own small case. I thought it was full size, but I stink at measurements and was very surprised when we put it together, and it was only 4' tall! oops

Sam used to sleep with his eyes half open too! Now he doesn't do it that often! When I worked in day care we had a set of siblings who slept with their eyes completely open. Seriously freaky. I am so glad Sam grew out of it - hopefully Jonah will too!

Kellie said...

Good luck on your sale. two of my 4 children use to sleep with their eyes half opened. they grew out of it Thank god. You are right it is kinda Freaky. Glad to hear that things are going alright.

Just Believing said...

I'm excited about pretending I don't speak Spanish, and then fluently bargaining the socks off any Spanish-speakers that come our way. I've been out of the Spanish loop for a while, so I'll be excited to practice.

Can I Just say I am laughing my head off about that one! My BFF speaks spanish but totally doesnt " look like" she would and I swear it throws people off everytime


Best wishes with the garage sale and so happy to hear all the good Jonah news!

Queen Mumma said...

Patrice, I just wanted to commend you for pumping breastmilk for Jonah. You are giving him the perfect food for his body! Kudos!

jenlar3 said...

Speaking of books, I look forward to the day when you publish a book about EB so that kids can read it and understand their friend and classmate (Jonah!) better! In addition to some of the practical advice on how to treat someone with EB, I bet it will be full of Jonah's antics and adventures. It will have to be a comedy of course!!!! Good luck with your sale!

Angela said...

You're not just funny in your head..you're really funny!! I love reading your blog!! And I pray for beautiful little Jonah every night. Good luck with the yard sale!!

kace said...

Oh my goodness, you are too funny! I love reading your blog, especially since we have the same "unique" sense of humor. ha. Good luck with the yard sale and we'll keep praying for lil Jonah!

Anonymous said...

Yay! Jonah sounds like he's really doing good...I'm so thankful and grateful to hear that. I hope you have a really successful yard sale and I think it's great you are putting up a table about EB. Here's hoping it not only brings awareness but hopefully a bit of cash as well for his care. I really need to get me one of them magnets...I hope to do so next month! Oh, and my brother sleeps with his eyes half open as well...that has ALWAYS creeped my sister and I out big time! Have a great weekend!

Staci said...

My kids know as soon as I get in bed also. They can be sleeping quietly for hours but as soon as I lay down and pull the covers up someone inevitably starts fussing.

ashpuck said...

You crack me up! It's not just in your head, you are funny. Well, to me at least ;o)

Oh, and about Jonah sleeping with his eyes open, I hear that most people out grow it, but I have a friend who's in her 40's and still does it! It was pretty creepy when I saw it for the first time.

Have a wonderful Father's Day weekend!

~Ashley

Our life is a bowl of Barry's said...

Good luck with your sale. Be ready for people to offer you .25 for each and eveything.....it gets so annoying! The spanish trick should be fun! You can even eavesdrop.....even better! Glad things are looking good for Jonah right now....

Lisa said...

Good luck with your yard sale! I remember when we had one growing up, my Dad said we would never have another. "It was the most insulting thing ever. People offering me less for my things. Next time I'll just give them away!" You're way tougher than he is though. :)

blog said...

So what will the hours of the yardsale be? Jude and I will be Shawn-less this weekend, so getting out of the house can be an ordeal, but we'd love to try to come out and help you haggle (except my haggling is more like, "you want that for half the marked price? Sure!" So maybe I'll help bag up items or something. :)

And I totally agree with JenLar3's comment - you would do an awesome job writing a book about EB!

Erin said...

Patrice, you had me ROLLING! What an hilarious post! Good luck with your sale...I would totally stop by if I lived closer!

Erin in VA
youmeandwipee.blogspot.com

Julia said...

Hahah..oh my gosh you are too funny! I feel the same way about pricing for garage sales. I am thinking about having one this summer. I have a lot of clothes to sell but I (realistically) know I can't price clothes for a lot of money. I know I'll be thinking "that Gap shirt you're getting for 2.50 cost me 20"

brightleigh said...

I hope your yard sale goes well. I think it's a good idea as well about the Jonah/EB Information Station. We had one set up at the church yard sale, and although I didn't sell a lot of magnets, I got a lot of looks, questions, and DONATIONS! I also got a lot of "Bless his hearts" and "We'll be praying for him and his family." I have found that it is hard to part with things, but when it is cluttering up your life, SELL IT! Don't get discouraged when people want to haggle with you over something you paid a lot for--you reach a point where you want to get rid of it. Glad that Jonah is doing well and I hope that the GI doctor has some pointers for you! Eyes half open, huh? Wait until you find him with his eyes open and he is talking to you but he is actually asleep! Funny stuff! You guys take care, and don't melt in your efforts this weekend. Stay cool, and HAPPY FATHERS DAY to Matt! Love you much and still praying!

jmuench said...

This is in regards to the diaper/aquaphor woes you posted a time ago...

Maybe you could try using a disposable diaper inside of a clothe diaper liner. That way you could get the absorbency from the disposable diaper, but the looser fit of the cloth diaper.

I don't have kids, and have very little diaper experience... but my wheels were spinning last night and I thought I would share.

Praying for y'all!

McCullough Family said...

Good luck with the yard sale! Stay cool out there!

Ryley @ That's My Family! said...

My baby had stridor when he was little too. it bothered the HECK out of me that my doctor just brushed it off.. like "Ehh.. it's just a floppy airway.. not big deal he'll grow out of it.." And I was like "HELLO.. a floppy airway???? I don't have a phd or anything but i would assume and airway is not something you would want to be "floppy". " Scared the crap out of me.. I really hated it.. but before too long he was sleeping silently.. I couldnt believe it.. still... floppy, airways, and ehhh.. are not 3 words that I think should be used in a sentence!
Good luch at the gargage sale.. i'll be sending lots of good selling vibes your way..
The only thing worse than preparing for a garage sale is the crap thats let over afterwards!!!!

Jennifer W. said...

Thanks for sharing what's in your head...it's funny to us too! I know how you feel about your books-I couldn't part with any of mine for our yard sale. I just couldn't make myself do it. I think the Jonah table is a wonderful idea! Be prepared-by the end of the miserably hot, long day (I live in South MS, and it's miserable here too!) you will be giving those shoes away for whatever they offer you for them!!
Jen

Amy said...

Aren't yard sales GREAT? HA! NOT! Kind of fun, but TONS of work...

I had a similar experience with my husband a couple of months back when we did a yard sale. We have TONS of VHS tapes that we NEVER watch. I went through and cleaned out a bunch that were mine and asked him to do the same. He found 1. ONE! Then he wanted me to sell them for $5 each!

Ah, husbands... What are we going to do with them?

Oh well... Good luck with the sale, hope you make LOTS of $$$!

Kelsey said...

You crack me up! Good luck with the yard sale, I hope you make some much dinero...now that's some spanish for ya!

Anonymous said...

You sound so upbeat! Hope the yard sale goes well. Hard to part with things, ain't it? The hubby's things.... not so hard! HA HA! Loved the stories and the rescues! I do like the 'why reinvent the wheel" and the "make me an offer". We have done things like this and it is fun. Have to have the "right' people for sure. Let us know how it goes. We are praying for you in all things and always!
Jennifer in Southeast, NC

M J said...

lol That's exactly why we've never had a yard sale! We just end up giving stuff to Goodwill or the women's shelter. Ought to try and make a little money off it, but nooo just can't get that organised! I WILL take old books to Half Price Books and sell them, though. Unfortunately, I never seem to actually walk away with that money because I always get more while they're pricing my books! HA!
My younger daughter sleeps with her eyes half open, too. She can never play opossum, because I can totally tell when she's really asleep! :)

Krista said...

I think you should take pictures of your special books and let your readers make bids. Then you can send them to the highest bidder and know that someone who loves you and prays for you is taking care of your books!

Not sure how all that would work - but I wish I could come to your sale! Washington's a little too far...

Krista said...

Reading other comments - have you ever heard of G-Diapers? The pants probrably wouldn't work good, but the flushable liners could be tucked into your cloth diapers. They can be flushed or tossed. If tossed, they decompose in 50 days. In a parenting magazine they were found to be even more environmentally friendly than cloth diapers. You can check them out at www.gdiapers.com

Cristin said...

I think the "Make an Offer" sign would be hysterical.

We had a yard sale a couple years back and my mom swore that she would never do one again. LOL I was still young and I was pricing my stuff at about 1/2 cost to what I really paid for it. I felt about my odds and ends things like you do about your books...

Anyway, good luck with the sale and I hope you makes lots of Mulah$$$

On the other hand, I'm glad the ENT appt. went well. Jonah is just about the cutest baby ever and he's such an inspiration. To be so young and so courage, he's just amazing!

I'll be praying for you all and hope everything turns out ok at the GI dr.

Unknown said...

I saw on Lauren's blog (with pics of Jonah) that you got a D40. Just wanted to say I love mine! Have fun with it.

Nutty Mom said...

That's so exciting to do your garage sale and let people know about Jonah and EB. I did a garage sale a while back for Kayleigh Freeman, and it was so fun to hear total strangers say they'd be praying for her. I hope it goes as well for Jonah!!!

I'm glad to hear that Jonah just has a "floppy airway". I almost laughed out loud when a doctor told me that was Donut's issue. Like really that's the best you can come up with? I wanted to ask if that was real medical term, but I didn't figure she'd appreciate it. But I guess it's better than anything more serious.

I hope ya'll have a great weekend, praying for each of you!

Jane said...

Wishing you good luck on your yard sale. Loved some of your ideas,especially making people aware of EB and knowing Jonah. Glad Jonah got a good report, praying all goes well with the GI doctor. Will be gone for about a week, but Leigh will keep me updated, she will have her laptop and keep a check on your blog. Have a great week-end, Happy Father's Day to Matt.

Anonymous said...

LOL...you're so funny! My little guy does the same thing. I could go to bed at completely different times every night and he would always wake up within 5 minutes of me trying to fall asleep. Even if I laid in bed and watched TV for an hour, the moment I tried to fall asleep he knew! It's kind of creepy!

Glad to hear that Jonah seems to be doing okay, and that the appointment went well. I am no expert by any means, but he seems to be doing well on the weight gain front, so I bet the doctors will be okay with things...even if it's totally stressful for you trying to get him to eat. My little guy holds steady in the 1st percentile, but as long as they're growing on some kind of a curve then that's a good thing. Good luck with the garage sale!

~Amy

Kathy Lang said...

Very funny post! I actually 'get' and really like your humor. So glad to hear that Jonah's doctor appointment went well, and will pray that the next appointment goes well too. I also hope that a feeding tube won't be necessary.

Good luck with the yard sale! I admire your tenacity, b/c I can't stand the idea of all the work it requires to do one myself!

Laura A said...

Hi Patrice-

Hope the yard sale is a big success! What a great time to tell people about Jonah and EB as well!

Glad the ENT went smoothly, and that Jonah's breathing is ok. Will pray for the GI visit - and always am praying for healing.

Have a great weekend!
Love,
Laura

PS - I think the Make an Offer sign is hilarious!

queenmari said...

do the make an offer sign and then be surprised at what people offer. at our garage sale i didn't pre-price anything and made everything "donation". it was good and bad and it was a lesson to me in judgment and not becoming upset when someone didn't "donate" as much as i thought they should. we donated all the money made to world vision, so it was a donation.

Melissa said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Melissa said...

Sorry, I left a comment and messed it up. I am passing on a blog award to you. You always have such a nice blog. Anyway, you can pick it up on my blog on Saturday's entry, titled: Bloody Nose and no panties....at www.thenolandnews.blogspot.com
Enjoy!

nikki said...

my little girl had reflux BAD and we tried everything when she was about 6 years old we found out it was all a milk allergy even thought she always tested negative for milk when she was tested four times we removed milk from her diet the refux was completely gone no meds needed now. Just thought I would share.

Jenny in CA said...

Hope the garage sale went well! Did you hear about the free chick-fil-a milk shakes for dads today?? Just one more reason to love them...

Anonymous said...

This seems like a very dumb question, but is there any possibility his eating issues could be from teething? I nurse my 9 month old, and whenever he is teething, he pulls off and cries a bit, and arches his back like he is in pain. I know you said Jonah does some of that. Jonah's is more likely due to his other issues, but just a thought. I mean, he is going to go through regular old baby stuff too, and like I said before, my son has done what you have described. Oh, and I had one other possibility that is a WAY long shot. Peanut butter, or peanuts. Do you eat either? I had to stop eating them with both my kids while I nursed. It caused some discomfort for them both. My daughter, who is 2 is not allergic to peanuts, but as an infant there is an enzyme (specifically in peanuts) that is difficult for them to digest. Again, just a thought. Hope you find out soon what is going on.