Pride Cometh Before the Fall

I need to step back and explain something for a minute.

If you remember, I wrote about my daughters' Christmas gifts, and how I didn't spend very much money on them.

Before I wrote that post, I was feeling proud of myself, but it wasn't that big of a deal to me. We're on a tight budget, so I did my best, shopping-wise, to get as much as I could for as little as possible.

And I did. I really did.

However, now I'm beginning to feel too much pride in myself; I didn't want to share how I managed to buy what I bought; I began to want to keep it all to myself and keep everyone guessing.

Because the truth of the matter is I didn't do anything spectacular. I didn't hit any phenomenal sales; I didn't get any great bargains.

I began to want everyone to think that I did. My pride was beginning to cause me to stumble.

So, let me confess to you. Here is how I spent $20 on gifts (plus the $20 on shipping and tax):

Sleeping Beauty

When Sleeping Beauty was born, we didn't need anything for her; not one single thing. So, everyone gave us gift cards and cash. We saved them until we found something to spend them on.

Enter Christmas.

With one gift card, we got her 5 cute pieces of 18-24 mo. clothing at Old Navy. Each piece was on sale, costing around $5 each.

With another gift card, we got her a set of pattern blocks from Toys R Us. They're too old for her now, but she'll grow into them.

Since I prefer Pampers diapers above other brands (Kirkland from Costco isn't bad, though), I used the rewards program at Pampers.com to earn a Lego shape sorter. It wasn't my first choice, but the bat and ball set I wanted for Cinderella was out of stock by the time I redeemed my points.

Cinderella

Cinderella was even easier. I had already won this bracelet from Vienna's Treasures through Bloggy Giveaways (isn't it darling?).

We used another of Sleeping Beauty's Toys R Us gift cards to buy a different set of pattern blocks for Cinderella. (Since the Pampers redemption did pan out the way I planned, I justified using Sleeping Beauty's gift card on her sister.)

The last item we got for Cinderella was a doctor's kit. This is the only item we actually spent money on.

That's my confession to you. I feel a whole lot better now. No more pride, no chance of falling.

For now.

I've got other issues to deal with, I'm sure.