those sneaky outlet bastards.. 5 tips for the next time you go to the outlets

so this was a post i did awhile back and i thought i'd share it again because it's actually some good advice! go me back in the day.

these are tips for when you're shopping at outlet stores and tricks to keep in mind while doing so that i read in an article back in 2013.. here's what they had to say. along with a little of my two cents.

one. location: if you've ever noticed, they locate outlet malls wayyy out of the way or right off an interstate in the middle of freakin' nowhere. according to the article, it's the psychological reasoning. if they make you drive far, you're thinking hey i need to make my trip worth it. so you'll end up buying things you wouldn't normally buy. not to mention the land that the mall is sitting on is probably very inexpensive. 

two. return policies: the article says to make you sure you know the return policy! MOST outlet stores will only let you return merchandise back to another outlet. you can't return them to the same store at the mall. so read the receipt or ASK before you buy if you aren't sure about the item(s) you're purchasing. i'm actually really anal about return policies because i'm a little bit of an impulsive buyer, so this was a sneaky sneak i already knew. yup cooler than you.

three. different merchandise: "outlet stores often do not have discounted merchandise from their mall counterpart. they instead have an entire line of clothing manufactured just for their factory stores. these clothes are usually made with less quality fabrics and even have different tags in them. be careful, the discount price may come with discount quality. some stores that do this are: banana republic, gap, & j crew." 

anyone else noticed this? i've bought some "lesser quality" clothing from the gap outlet and i noticed AFTER i washed them. i'm very picky how i wash drey's clothes and when they don't come out how they're supposed to, it's not because of me! hate you, gap! jk i love you. i thought maybe they threw in gimpy clothes that were messed with the mix (which i'm sure they do) and that's why they weren't washing as good. but after i read the article, it all made sense! those sneaky, sneaky bastards...

so watch out for lesser quality clothing, because let's be honest, if I want cheap clothes, i'll just shop at children's place. not that children's place is bad clothing, it's just cheap. but still cute.

four. reference pricing: so because they have their own line of clothing, most of the "retail price, our price" deals are totally made up. so by stores making you think you're getting a good deal, you'll spend MORE. guilty... :-|

five. non-outlets: this was something i didn't know... "just because you're at an outlet mall, doesn't mean all the stores are outlets." they may have a larger clearance rack than most stores but they aren't outlets. some sneaky stores who do this are: under armor and nike. 

and if you're like me, you love shopping at outlets and getting good deals. so now you can shop a little smarter next time you go! you're welcome.

original article source here

oh, hiiii

whoa. i'm writing a post. whaaat? it's been forever, i know. i've actually had a very busy couple of weeks guys. my lack of content is justified! and i know i've already apologized to a couple of my clients, but again, i'm sorry! it's sooo hard coming back from another country, getting your shiz out of storage & situated ready to move, moving, starting the unpacking process, making sure you make family functions in between all of that because heaven forbid you don't divide your time up equally, keeping random finances in order because hubby is still in japan.. all while being pregnant & sweaty. with a 4yr old. oh, and trying to find an OB to transfer to. who would have thought it would be so hard to switch being 31 weeks preggo? i sure didn't. blech, seriously.

but i just wanted to tell you guys not to go anywhere! because now that my life is slowly settling down, there are lots of good things coming up! i'm talking giveaways with my favorites (hello apparel! lavender & lace co.!), a little sponsoring and fun with indie boys world, a guest post you literally don't want to miss, and more pre baby posts than you'll be able to handle. so excited for all of it! and you are, too. i just know it ha.

so stay tuned.

  

mom, can we have a dog?

that dreaded question. seriously, i cringe when drey asks me about getting a pet. full disclosure: i don't hate animals okay. but ughhhh. i don't want any. ever. i don't want a dog, i don't want a cat, i don't want a bird, i don't want a hermit crab, i don't want a salamander. i just don't. ever. no fish either, ew. eventually i'm going to lose the battle because dreydan wants some type of animal/pet so bad and tyler is a sucker for anything his son begs for. but i'll be holding my ground for as long as i can. 
i swear i don't hate animals. i just don't want any as pets. i don't want to take care of them, i don't want to spend money on them, i don't want to clean up after them.. haha i sound awful, i know. but mostly, i don't want to get attached to them! my mom and step dad recently had a dog die that they've had since i was in like middle school. dreydan was heartbroken! and i was too, she was so sweet. her name was snuggles, that's how freakin' sweet she was. i had pet cats growing up and i just loved them so much. we had this cat, her name was darla, and she the best. actually, she was kind of an asshole, but she knew we loved her. after she died, we got another. i was in love and then it died. and then we got another. it died. we lived in this house in the country that i swear was killing our animals.. true story. 
anyways, pets just aren't my thing anymore. i fall in love easily and i can't risk it. tyler, believe it or not, is a big fat cat lover. if he had to choose to save the life of a helpless little kitty or mine, he'd probably choose the kitty. which really is understandable. i mean, you can't make eye contact with a kitten and look away without feelings. but then it has to live inside and i'm not even going to go where i want to go with indoor pets.. all i will say is: hair. litter box. drool. random smells. me. no.
as far as the other ones go that he's asked for, like fish, no. just no. my sister had a fish tank that she kept in our living room growing up and i secretly hated them. like what was the purpose? she had one fish that kept eating the other ones and so she'd get new ones,  only to be eaten again. that fish was out for human blood too, i just know it. and then when she'd clean out the tank.. ughhh! so gross. it was messy & smelled like ass. i will never ever have anything to do with fish. unless it's salmon and it's going in muh belly. because i already know i will be the one taking care of any pet that comes into the house. and chances are, i will probably love it the most. because i'm a mom and that's how moms are wired. and like i said.. i just can't risk that.
so dreydan boo, to answer your question. no, we can't get a dog. but pleeeaaase don't ask dad.

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how i get my fix // and my new page.

everything is different in japan. what i've becomed accustomed to in america is not normally readily available here. like netflix, or my car, or a delicious mexican restaurant for me to eat my weight in chips & guac, or grass to lay on, or a gallon of milk. princess problems, i know. but the worst of all... the thing i miss most... fountain drinks. they have little "gas stations" (they aren't really gas stations because they don't sell gas) on every corner, but none of them have fountain machines. sometimes a girl, in my case pregnant, needs her ice cold fountain dr. pepper with extra ice. last summer i was on a like a weird soda strike (long story), so i didn't care as much. but i care now. i care!

so how do i get my fix?

there is a 7/11 at the end of our street, like 3-4 blocks down or something. i walk down there & go to the back where liquor section is...

there, they have little cups of ice you can purchase  

and then i pick my poison. coke, coke oooorrr coke? blech...

once i get home, i pour myself a drink. a mini fountain, if you will. and when i find 'fujita'. i might share with him/her.

and then i enjoy my mini sorta fountain. as much as one can enjoy a coke.. a bottled coke.

they actually do have dr. peppers here. i've seen them in vending machines. but they aren't common and they definitely aren't at the little corner markets or stores. boooo.

and also! my blog now has a facebook page.. i've told myself i never needed one or wanted one, but i know my friends & family sometimes get bored of my shares that i'm sometimes required to post. so i transitioned. like a boss! ha jk.. will you help me not look like a loser and go LIKE my fb bloggy page? i'll forever owe you. thanks lovers.

i'm thankful.

(totally random pictures, i know)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Anyone going Black Friday shopping?

Our week in photo's.

Ty has a game tomorrow afternoon, which is Sunday for us.. 

So while you guys are waking on this Saturday morning, we are saying goodnight to it.

I'll keep you posted, wish him luck!

That street life view.

Waiting for a bus. NBD.. 

My favorite store haha.. no seriously. It's a $1 store. Holler.

Jumping off the "pig whale" as Dreydan calls it.

This is our neighborhood park. 

Late night walk.. view from the cross walk bridge. 

Vending machines everywhere. Every corner, every kind.

These are the most common. 

Shameless selfie. Hello. 

No rubbish, guys. 

 We walk around a lot.. it's the cheapest form of transportation unless you're going a far distance.

A bike would be a little more convenient but you need to have your bike licensed, just like a car.

Fun fact: gas prices are about $8/gallon. so next time you want to complain, think of that.

Oh these rainy days.

We leave for our annual family vaycay to Lake Powell this week.

This year will be our biggest group yet! So we've been doing early food prep.

Today my mom & I were prepping meals (cooking, freezing, etc..) and the power goes out!

Not even an hour earlier I was saying "I'm really glad it's rainy & gloomy today so I don't feel bad

about not being outside..." Yep, chewed up and swallowed those words didn't I.

While waiting for the power to come back on & before lightning started striking close by, Drey

wanted to go outside and play in puddles, find fossils, swing, get dirty...

Then after calling the city hall and finding out the power won't be back on for awhile, 

we ditched town for some Cafe Rio dinner & shopping. Holler.

~~~~~~~~~

and then the poor dude didn't even make it to dinner haha

C A N C U N bound!

As you're reading this I'm already half way to my beach paradise.

I don't even feel bad bragging about it.

I've probably already IG'd it by now too.

A couple things I'd like to throw out...

one. I'm having a few guest posts this week, show them some love! They're awesome bloggers, 

I love them, & I want you to love them too! Give them your sugar.

two. I'm going to miss you guys. So when you step outside and the sun hits your face, just think of me.

three. Lata sucka's!

Here's a bone & I'm pickin' it.

Listen, bitches.

I'm mad at you.. all of you.

At the end of my Cancun post I asked for some peeps to email me if they were interested

in guest posting while I was away living the life while you sorry asses were all working... 

....you know what I got? Not shit. Not. Shit.

Okay I did get some shit but they don't count. Don't worry about that shit.

You guys are mean! You embarrassed me in front of all my friends!

I hope you burn yourself on the metal part of your seat belt.

I hope there is a hair in your lunch today.

I hope someone cuts you.

My time spent mostly.

If you remember, this was my grandparents home. After they passed, my mom bought it

& turned it into a vacation rental. The firsts guests arrived last summer & they haven't stopped!

I spend a lot of time here. Not only is it one of my favorite places to be, but I guess you could say

I'm like master housekeeper. I can flip this place like she's my beotch. And no, I'm not for hire...

So I have a mini confession - one of the last groups that came, one of the ladies grew up across the street

and had my grandma & grandpa as neighbors. She wrote in our guest book how much she loved staying &

how many memories came back to her from when she'd come over and visit with them.

You guys, it made me bawl. I just couldn't.. I really miss them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

But if I'm NOT there, I'm either out thrifting with my mom, at the pool with my boo's or laying on my 

blanket in the backyard catching those UV's while reading my books. A girl needs her books & sun.

Where has your time spent mostly in summer thus far?