The first thing I do when I’m on vacation in a new city is scope out all of the local thrift stores and resale shops. It was raining yesterday, so the kids couldn’t do some of the things they had planned, so we hit the thrift stores. The first one had some cool stuff, but way higher prices than what I’m used to. The second store was a combo resale-thrift store. I found a great t-shirt there, but they only take cash. Of course I didn’t have any cash with me. The boys found a treasure here, something I had when I was their age, but I said no impulse buys. If they wanted it, they were going to have to return the next day to get it. I was going back, after a bank run, to get my t-shirt.

The third thrift store didn’t have much that peaked my interest, that is until I turned the corner and found this little gem for $2. A vintage Polaroid 600 camera. Now that there’s a company making film for these, they’re not as easy to find. These are selling on eBay from $10 to $50. Replicas are going for up to $150. This little beauty was only $2, an expenditure that was not part of the $16 hours of fun that I’m about to share with you. I’ll have to order the film for this. Did I need this? No. My kids and I will have some fun with it, then probably turn around and sell it.

My kids were talking the entire time about the vintage toy back at the second shop. Honestly, I knew they would appreciate it and it was a cool flashback for me. When we returned, the nice lady working there greeted us with a big smile and said, “You’re back!” We bought the vintage toy…

Meet Rex, a 70’s vintage string puppet named after our favorite restaurant in Steamboat Springs, CO. He cost $16, a price that seemed fair for a real vintage toy. My boys have a great appreciation for vintage things, as they love our 12 rotary dial phones as much as I do. We decided to take Rex out on the town!

Rex really enjoyed his day, but probably not more than Joe did. Joe could have easily put a can in front of them and people would have been throwing money at him left and right. And let’s not forget about Joe in the candy store with Rex, talking to all the girls his age, explaining how cool it was to have a vintage puppet. Yes, he’s 10 years old. I will have my work cut out for me. I’m quite sure we could have sold Rex and made a huge profit, as several people wanted to know where we got him and if there were anymore of them. We’ll probably take him out again today if it’s not raining. He doesn’t like his fur to get wet. My kids (and I) were entertained for hours with this little guy! So were our friends. And so were the people on the street. Here’s a few photos from yesterday. The $16 fun will continue today, once Rex and the boys wake up.