Yard Sale! From tips to treasures...

Have you been to a yard sale yet this season? I've been to a couple and found some great bargains already and I'm really excited about the upcoming street/community/subdivision yard sales. Although I watch for signs in my area on Thursday's and Friday's, I also visit craigslist since they have a section just for yard sales.

Some of the great deals I've already found were some Fisher Price Little People sets (barn, animals, etc.) for $2, Little People doll house plus all the pieces for $2, Sketchers shoes for my daughter, also $2, a large alphabet floor puzzle for .75 and lots of great books, always less than $1 and most just a quarter.

If you haven't been in years, have never been, or are considering taking your children along, here are a few things I've learned along the way.

• Toss some sanitizing wipes in the car. I don't let a dirty plastic toy deter me from buying but I know there's a chance my daughter will want to play with it in the car so with the wipes I can give it a quick cleaning before handing it over to her. No wipes? Stash the toys in your trunk, out of sight, out of mind. Either way I give all toys a good cleaning at home.
• Carry small bills and change. If you want to negotiate in hopes of getting that $10 item for $7, then you better be prepared to pull out $7 since asking for change from your $10 bill is just embarrassing. Plus, those who are having the yard sale are not bank tellers, they don't want to break your $20 for that $2 item you want to buy.
• If you do negotiate be considerate, people are more willing to bargain if it's Saturday afternoon, not Friday morning and making an offer means you're interested. If they want to sell, they'll try to be reasonable too, trust me that they are trying to get over the fact that they paid $35 for that item which is marked for $10 and you're begging for less.
• If kids are selling their own toys don't negotiate, it's their most prized possessions, just pay the price.
• Watch where you park. You don't want to block traffic but be careful about driving/parking/pulling out in people's yards too. They are trying to make some extra money, not spend it on grass seed.
• Speak up, ask questions and be nice. You aren't at Target and these are real people who probably spent hours getting things ready to sell. They don't want to haul it back in the house but they don't want to hear you say it's all junk either. Since they're selling they may know that but they still bought it.
• Stick a small cooler in your car with snacks and drinks. You are out there trying to find bargains, not stop at every fast food place along the way.
• If kids are selling lemonade, buy a cup. If you don't want to drink it, take it to the car, drive away and pour it out but at least they're trying to make their own money.