Cookies & Candies: Online shopping

My cantakerous mailman was even more grouchy than usual after staggering up the stairs with arms piled high with packages. One in particular, contained 8 hardcover books. When I opened the door, I received a glare and an electronic device was shoved at my face. He uttered only one word - SIGN, dumped the packages and stomped off. I was so relieved to receive the packages that his PMS-like behavior didn't faze me at all.

I've been doing more online shopping than usual. There's Little L's birthday followed by 5 other friends'. Furthermore, she had a growth spurt which meant shoes and clothes were bursting at seams. I didn't realize how difficult it was trying to find what I call, an in between season coat. Her thick puffy coat still fits but she's roasting in it. The remaining spring and summer coats from previous year are too thin that she's complaining of being cold.

After giving a bag of clothes to my niece and selling off or donating the rest of her old clothes, we're left with two half empty drawers. Now that she's in school uniform for most of the week, I'm reluctant to shell out too much money for clothes. Some of the dresses still have tags on them. After scouring around for a coat, I found one that hopefully, fits the bill.

Barbour Navy Quilted Coat from Childrensalon.com £37.95

Little L's tights are so ill-fitting that they slip down her butt as she walk. Wouldn't it be great if there's a device that could give a pre-warning alarm - your child will be having a growth spurt on xx/xx/xx. Please ensure you buy the next size up. I found these fantastic Falke tights for only £3.50 at miniwardrobe.com instead of their usual £11.50.

Photo credit: miniwardrobe.com

A few friends looked startled but most, if not all were very encouraging when I announced last year, that Little L must earn her toys. She has 8 medium sized Ikea Trofast containers in her room for her toys. ALL her toys must fit into them or else they had to go.

Photo credit: Ikea.co.uk

She had decided that she'd like pink Lego. I agreed as she has outgrown her Lego Duplos. However, there's only one caveat, she must sell her Duplos in order to purchase her new pink set. She readily agreed and we did just that. It took 2 weeks to offload it on eBay but when her new Lego set arrived, she was beyond thrilled and hasn't stopped playing with it since. She has accepted that deferring gratification is a done deal in her household.

I believe financial literacy is one of life's most important lessons. Deferred gratification is equally important as these days credit card debt is virulent in our society. I remembered studying about the Standford Marshmallow experiment in my university days which is one of the few things that I can recall from my otherwise useless degree.

I've decided that this year, I will purchase books instead of gifts for birthday presents instead. Correct me if I'm wrong but kids these days have more toys than they actually need. Little L and her friends have toys stuffed into every corner and nook of their homes. In fact, if kids were left with little or no toys, they become extremely creative and are able to make do with what they can find. A perfect example would be at Little L's birthday party when they were allowed to play at the manor's grounds. There were no toys, just plain ol' grass and trees yet they had the time of their lives. I've just discovered these marvellous Usborne books which I adore. Since we'll be heading off to Turkey soon, I thought this book "See Inside Famous Buildings" will be relevant. We plan to visit the Blue Mosque in Istanbul but a prior background study will make the place more interesting when we get there.


Photo credit: Amazon

I admit I got a little carried away. I've always loved history. I think my goddaughter and Little L are old enough to appreciate it too and the pretty illustration makes it even more fascinating.