Can a plate make you happy???

I am truly passionate about supporting women in business for themselves and, whenever possible, give my business to women I know before I spend a dime at a "big box retailer." Home decor, jewelry, candles, make-up, herbs, craft supplies, the list goes on. And I spend a lot of dimes!
Do you hear the "but" coming? :)
BUT...I am also a bargain shopper and I love a good deal on something I need or love. And because I am familiar with the prices of the items I buy most, I know a good deal when I see it. And it's often on an end-of-aisle clearance shelf at Target. Such was the case tonight. We have somewhat of a mis-mash of plates, cups and bowls. Some Drew had, some we got when we got married...but you know how it goes. A bowl goes missing, a mug gets cracked, your brother-in-law breaks a plate when he drops his gun during a demonstration at Christmas dinner...it's not uncommon. But...a dinnerware purchase hasn't been at the top of my "to-buy list" and I don't typically look for them, either.
However, when cruising through Target this evening while my boys were napping, I wandered into the housewares section and a certain polka-dot plate caught my eye. On an end-of-aisle clearance shelf! The sign said 30% off, but...can it be?? Less than $4 for four really cute polka-dot dinner plates??
Why, these would be perfect for the eighteen different birthday dinners coming up between now and the end of the year! That makes them less than a dollar each!!
And so it was that four new polka-dot plates came home with me tonight. So I promptly baked a batch of "the world's easiest peanut butter cookies" and put them on one of those plates!! And I felt very, very happy. Call me materialistic...but it wouldn't be the first time.
In double-checking that my eyes did not deceive me, I also spotted a set of four beige dinner plates and matching salad plates, perfect to mix-and-match with what we already have, including my orange plates that I'm dying to use for fall. They have that sort of "hand rubbed" finish that I love and a neat braided edge. The clearance price for the set of eight, you ask?? Why, a mere $9 total! Amazing, huh??
So, naturally, I took pictures. And I said to myself, "Put that on your blog. Tell them when you're at Target, cruise along the backs of your favorite aisles. You never know what bargain you'll find." And even if it only says 30% off, there may be items marked down even more than that! I think the plates were all at least 75% off. That's also where we found an entire matched set of bedding for, like, $10 when we did Andrew's new room. It's like they're paying you to take it off their hands. Aren't my new plates purty with my fall stuff?? Fabulous!