Small treasures...

These are just a few of the little things I bought while rummaging through the 7 mile yard sale, I promised I'd show you...

• A couple of cigar boxes {I love pretty storage!}
• A small rose plate
• A footed coffee cup {I have someone in mind for this one!}

• Some bits and pieces of silverware

Look at the close up of the handle of the small fork...so cute!

• A deck of cards by Hallmark...

I love the old look of the face cards and especially the Jokers!!!

• And some old books...

Including a Chinese? Japanese? book which I have no idea what it says, oh my. I just like the look of it...maybe I could collage with it as long as it's nothing nasty!!! haha 

And an old Webster's Dictionary from 1958.

There's a few more little things that I have already saved which I did not photograph such as 2 demitasse cups {Lefton} and an old cotton table cloth.

So I am back from Texas and I had a VERY good time...more on that later. I didn't take a whole bunch of pictures but maybe I can sneak the latest picture of Ella Jane soon!

Hope you are having a great week so far and don't forget that tomorrow is April Fool's Day!!!!

It's Swap Time Again!!!

Come join us in Sarah's swap!

Deadline for entering is April 4th. Click HERE to read all of the details & follow Sarah's instructions...it will be fun! I'm IN!

Texas Bound...

I hope everyone has a great weekend. I will be out the door shortly...hopping one state over with both of my sisters. We are going to see our little niece Ella Jane...she's already almost 7 months old now! I haven't seen her since Christmas!

                    

I will be only 2 hours from Warrenton where Round Top is just kicking off this weekend. But I know that when I see this little face above...there will be no way I could tear myself away from her! hmmm, I wonder if little Ella Jane loves antiques like her Aunty?? Maybe so but her Mom probably won't let her out of her sight either!

I hope you all have a great weekend. There is still so much stuff I need to post about but there is never enough time in the day!

Signing out...I'm Texas bound!

Mr. Postman: I love U...

Instead of leaving me bills today, my wonderful sweet postman left me a box filled with sweets...

If you are a fan any publication by Somerset, my tip for you today is: log in to Stampington & Company and subscribe to Post Script. It's a free newsletter that will be emailed to you with lots of great ideas, new products and discount publications...that's right, I said discount!!!! When you pre-order an upcoming issue (before the deadline), they offer $2.00 off and free shipping and no tax! So you are getting a $14.99 (plus tax & gas & headache) publication for ONLY $12.99 shipped right to your door on or before it hits the news stands!!!!! When a new publication comes out (such as Marie), it's so worth it to do this. While everyone else is patiently waiting for April 1st...I'll be relaxing tonight reading mine. 

Remember, anyone can pre-order a publication before the deadline and get free shipping but you have to subscribe to Post Script to get the $2.00 discount!!!

ps...do ya see what's behind the mags? That's a sneak peak of my bark cloth I found at the yard sale this past weekend!!!

I'll post more on that later...I've got some reading to do!

Please don't hate me because I'm smart & I have bark cloth...

;)

Some of my favorite places...

To some, cemeteries may be creepy but not to me. I view a cemetery as a novel that leaves my imagination wondering about the ending...

After indulging myself at the 7-mile yard sale from Grand Coteau to Arnaudville last weekend, I decided that I would travel back to historic Grand Coteau and take a late afternoon walk through the old St. Charles Cemetery.

With the leaves crackling under my feet and the sounds of the church bells ringing in the air, I strolled along for the first time through this historic cemetery...

There was so much beauty under those majestic moss covered oaks, I could have stayed here for hours...and I did.

I loved seeing the almost forgotten seemingly lost grave sites between the newer bold granite ones.  Strategically placed so that someone like me would notice them  and acknowledge their once known existence marked by faded flowers and a rusty old cross.

But surrounded by angels...

               

the possibly forgotten have no fear...

because of the sheer fact that new generations will also come to see their beloved, stumble across them and the cycle never ends.

As I stood above this lovely white marble granite and read these words, I made a wish that one day I would be remembered with as much love when I am gone.

This one below really caught my eye. The ornate shape of the headstone that leaned backwards, almost touching the ground struck my curiosity. As I walked closer, this is what I saw...

Mary Ann Smith born on my birthday, October 1 but in 1833. Mary Clemence Smith (possibly her sister) born July ?, 1839. I can't help but wonder if  she made it to her 6th birthday as they both died on July 12, 1845. How could two precious girls loose their lives at such a young age?

The novel continues...

leaves are falling around me and yet, the church bells ring again.

It's getting late and the sun is starting to set.

They will soon lock the old wrought iron gates behind me as I leave.

I took one last look as I left this beautiful peaceful place and I was comforted knowing there is peace on the other side for those who believe...

Note: I was working on this post since I got back from Grand Coteau hoping to publish it today. This morning before work, I went to one of my favorite blogs The Victorian Parlor and little did I know that she would also be posting about her beloved town cemetery~I guess great minds think alike!

Beautiful Morning part deux (2)...

 

Whew! That camera gets heavy after hauling it around for hours but I'm okay now so let's continue our yard sale journey from the previous post.

It's a little after 11a by now and we are still cruising along highway 93. The temperature outside is about 75. A perfect Louisiana day.

Traveling down the highway from our last stop, it was sights like this...

and this...

on BOTH sides of the roads that motivated us to stop and dig. I swear we must have gotten in and out of my vehicle at least 50 times because I was determined NOT to miss a one yard sale!

Are you still with me? Because it's getting to be about lunch time and this chick needs to eat so pick up the pace a little bit!

STOP! STOP! STOP! Look at THIS find...

No silly, not the mirror nor the dresser or certainly not the mattresses. It's the truck! I mean, it's our truck! I mean, No, it's not our truck anymore as we sold it last year but it's our old truck! That was the truck my son learned to drive with and used it all through high school. See the damage in the extended cab part? Well, we bought him a new vehicle for graduation. About 2 months later, he was leaving one morning and he backed up straight into the old truck! errr!!!! What a sight for sore eyes I tell ya!  I thought looking at old stuff struck some memories but geez...this did too! I miss that ole truck! Good (& bad) memories!

Okay. Now that I have that off of my chest, let's carry on. Thanks for letting me tell ya my story. Back to the pretties...

This is such a cute vignette below...who'd have thought balls could be this appealing?

Even these balls are looking good...

No I don't have a ball fetish if you are wondering! It's getting heavy now...I mean the traffiic!!!!

We are entering Arnaudville...

the last leg of the 7 miles. You seem to be holding up fine but at this time, this is a good example of how I'm feeling...

But I get a second wind when I see goodies such as these...

I absolutely LOVE old books. Looking through them reminded me of Second Chance with Sandy & Pam as we spent seemingly hours deciding and helping each other on which books we should buy!

I fell deeply in love this hard-cover girl above. But I left her. The owner also was deeply in love with her too as he was asking $10. Couldn't do it. A picture is all that remains of our short lived affair.

And playfully arranged along the bob-wired fence, these cheered me up. A reminder of Spring and long Southern Louisiana days...

Green always makes a beautiful table. This woman was selling her grandmother's collection...eeek! How could she get rid of these beautiful pieces separately???

And all of this silver...yummy!

Which makes me think of scooping up this...

While listening to this...

A mix of Cajun Zydeco playing as we walked and shopped and tasted a day along the bayou...

Oh by the way Sandy, are you looking for this plaid metal lunch box???? Meet Barbara, she's the one who found it for you!!!

She's got a good eye! Also my other BFF Janet (not pictured) found your metal jacks so I will be shipping them to you shortly!!!

Enough excitement for me in one day but I hope you enjoyed yard sale shopping with me!!!

I will take pictures of MY goodies and post them later in the week. I have some cleaning and ironing to do to them first!

Thanks for coming along with me, what did you buy???

It's a Beautiful Morning for a Sale...

 

With a morning temperature of about 63, you and I will comfortably stroll along a 7-mile stretch of highway 93 in Southern Louisiana, starting in the historic town of Grand Coteau.

It's almost 7a right now and the sun has not quite peaked over the beautiful moss covered oaks yet.  The birds are chirping early this morning so we'll just stroll along the quaint shops and take in the blooming scenery until we arrive at our first yard sale.

Even though it's a morning that attracts thousands of people from all over for this one day event, Grand Coteau is a sleepy little town and will absolutely force everyone to slow down and just enjoy the beauty it has to offer, Louisiana style.

Oooo this looks so inviting, let's enter here and see what's inside...

Her yard was so beautiful and the sound of the fountain in the center of the courtyard was so relaxing. I know you want to sit and sip coffee but get up...we need to look at her goodies before they are all gone!

These old metal ice trays remind me of Pam @ Frippery. She had just posted about some that her husband picked up at a little shop they both discovered recently.

Oh my, do you have any idea of what this is? It's shaped like a purse but it's  so fluffy and padded inside. The lady was so busy selling her stuff that I never got a chance to ask her. If you know, please tell me. I'm sure it's something very interesting, yet so lovely!

I wonder how many faces this old celluloid mirror reflected in it's lifetime. I loved the boot & shoe polish tins. I couldn't help myself to pick them up and shake them to see if any polish was left.  They were both  dried up and  it sounded like little rocks were in them.

You had one of these when you were little? Really? I don't remember those but it sure looked like fun!

Wow, who would have kept these beautiful aqua colored glasses in the original packaging for this long???

I bet the pages in these old books would be great to use in collage or paper arts...one dollar each.

Wow, we must have lost track of time in that yard. We need to move on...we still have 6.9 miles to go!

Never would I have thought that I would be most happy with just strolling around snapping pictures instead of digging through boxes and trying to find that little "need to have" treasure.

And never would I have realized that I enjoyed being out early and watching the sun greet us on such a beautiful day.

Surprises in the grass along the way...

And some still unloading goodies...Let's stop shall we?

Yes, I do remember those glasses! Those were hidden in the oatmeal boxes when I was little! I remember my grandmother having a collection of them. At 50 cents a piece today, you should pick one up to put sink side in the bathroom.

I wonder where those suitcases have been. Interesting thought.

I should pick one up and collage it like the Texas Woman did here with some of her yard sale suitcases...

Well, it looks like everyone is waking up and moving about now.  More cars are on the highway so let's make sure we look twice before we cross the road.

Now shame on those parents above for taking that little boy out so early on a Saturday morning...he's still sucking his thumb!

Okay now...I hate to do this to you, but I really need a break from picture taking right now. I want to go back and pick up a few goodies I saw down the road before they are gone.

It's early and we still have so much more to see. After my break I promise we will resume our stroll down highway 93. Until then, don't spend too much money and save some for this afternoon!!!!