Poor Little Weirdos

Last night while at bible study this happened:

These would be my *new* glasses.  I've had them for 5 days.  My frames were hand me downs from my sweet friend who was trying to help me save money.  The right arm had been loose since I got them filled.  I was told that the spring in the hinge was broken but that it would be an easy repair if I wanted to mess with it.  Apparently, that is not what was wrong.  A screw was broken within the arm and it was only a matter of time before the arm fell off.

My total investment in these frames is $100 for lenses and $13 for a pair of sunglasses that fit perfectly on the front (yes clip-ons, but they're not flip.  These are totally cool and not dorky at all).

I loaded up my kids this morning and headed to Oak Park mall to LensCrafters to see if they could be salvaged. 

**A quick side note.  I loaded up the kids after I got up extra early and went to work for an 8am appointment who did not show up or call...awesome**

I first went into EyeMasters since they were right inside the entrance of the mall.  They said there was no way to repair the frames and I couldn't move the lenses to another pair.  My only hope was to find another pair of the exact frames.  I already looked online and couldn't find them anywhere.  Plus they're BCBG and very pricey.  Not a great solution.  I headed up to LensCrafters.

They also said they were not repairable and seemed really sad for me, but their sadness didn't fix them.

I wandered around the mall with the kids.  They acted as if I took them to Disney World for the first time.  They had a ball wandering around, looking down from the top level to the lower level, riding the escalator and going up and down in the elevator.  It was amazing :)

Feeling defeated and praying, I examined the glasses and realized both pieces were metal.  Maybe my friends at the Jewelry Doctor could solder them.  I've taken things there a few times for sizing, repair, and engraving.

I told them my sob story and they said they could likely fix them, "but it won't be pretty."  The frames are plastic and the heat would likely "wrinkle" them.  I didn't really care about aesthetics at this point so I went ahead.  It took over a hour.

In the mean time I fed the kids at the food court:

$5, $5 foot longs...

I went to the BareMinerals store and had them do my makeup.  I've used their makeup for a while but never been in the store.  I buy it online.  The kids were extremely well behaved.  It only took 15 minutes and now I have a list of things to start watching for on eBay :)

After being at the mall for close to 3 hours I realized a couple things:

1.  My kids really need to get out more.  As we were leaving they kept saying, "This was the best day ever mom!!"

2.  Sometimes trying to be frugal can back fire, but on the whole, I usually come out smelling like roses.  This was unfortunate, but it won't detour me from doing it again.  My last pair of glasses I purchased at the MOPS auction for $5 and they served me well for 2 1/2 years. 

3.  Sis really likes samples:

 4.  And lastly, I still really like these frames.  Praise God they're fixed, and the damage to the arm is minimal.  No one will ever be the wiser :)

***please forgive the fuzzy photos.  They were all taken with my camera phone.