One of the most daunting things for me in preparing for my first year is that, as a family, we’re also preparing for my husband’s first year! Finding things for our classroom — books, manipulatives, materials, furniture — on the cheap isn’t just a sport (it totally is for me!) it’s a necessity. Luckily, we have a good track record with the Goodwill (and love their 20%-off coupons) and our Target Dollar Spot is well-stocked!

Earlier in the week we stopped by the Goodwill to peruse their bookshelves for some more books for our classroom libraries, and spied something in the middle of all of the furniture they were selling. It looked like an easel, but wasn’t unfolded and had crayon and tape all over it. I saw the price tag of $9.99 and decided that for $10, I could put some elbow grease into it and fix it up!

We got it home (thanks to some creative placement in the car), cleaned it up, and there she is, in all her glory:

I looked her up and she retails for around $100, so not bad at all. This will go in my classroom to anchor our meeting area, so I’m debating about whether to leave her as-is, or paint her. I spied some ruby-slipper spray paint in Hobby Lobby the other day, so I’m tempted. Very, very tempted.

Today on our grocery run to Target I spotted a cart in front of us with bins that looked suspiciously sturdy and rainbow-y. I asked the very nice woman where she saw them, and I must have asked a little too excitedly because she smiles and says, “Teacher, huh?” Yes. Where, oh where did you find them?

The Dollar Spot (though only the buckets were $1; the bins and caddies were $2.50 each). Usually that’s our first stop, but it was too close to the Lego aisle to brave today before naptime. I high-tailed it over there and scored these:

During our last trip to Target I noticed they were taking down the seasonal section and prepping it for what looked like Back-to-School and I was totally right. Of course I couldn’t help but check there too, and sure enough, there were some goodies to behold! My favorite?

And then… there was this (my heart may or may not have stopped).

My husband brought it to my attention, which I’m sure he now regrets as I’m plotting a way to justify buying a pack or two of each. These are 8-packs of “themed” crayons… perfect, right? I was standing in front of it and literally felt a TPT unit incorporating these flash before my eyes. Pirate crayon pack? Check. Dinosaur crayon pack? Double check. Cupcake crayon pack? Triple check.

I somehow managed to only leave with the “Glitterati” crayons, despite Crayola trying to trick me into buying an 8-pack of primary colors with their Oz-marketing. Like I said, school supplies = kryptonite.

Everything, all-told, was under $50. Phew. I’m slowly but surely putting everything together to create Oz on a budget I can live with. There are some other things I’ll need, but I need to get into my classroom and assess it before I make any bigger purchases. (Please let there be a rug. Please let there be a rug. Please let there be a rug. Oh, and a kidney table.)

I’ll leave you with my “currently” — my first linky party! Ahhhhhh, finally I get to join in instead of just scrolling through and reading everyone else’s!