Fonda's Fabulous Funday Finds #7

We found these things in the CIS (Communities in Schools) thrift near Sunset Beach:

5 picture frames.

Book.

There wasn't much there that we needed here, but we always have fun seeing what we can. This particular store is mostly clothing and accessories with small areas of books and housewares.

These next items were purchased at my friendly neighborhood Family Thrift. 

Wooden hangers, books, alphabet beads, die cut cards, zipper and a frame.

The following were purchased at the CIS thrift in Southport:

Katie books, paper bead necklace and seahorse earrings.

 

Close-up of the seahorse earrings.

90-minute cassette tapes.

You don't see these too often any more. I hope to put them on eBay. I'll have to do a little research first.

 

Hanging lamp.

Get a load of this hanging lamp. I'm assuming it Mid-Century Modern. It has a long wire that plugs in. The wire is threaded through chain. The off/on switch is about 5 feet from the floor. In other words, it hangs from the ceiling but plugs into a receptacle near the floor.

Bird pictures.

 I think these bird pictures will be going into the guest room.

 

OpticFilm 7200.

Katie's mom had taken many photos, and most of them are on slides, so we are hoping to view them and make them into pictures if it's something Katie wants to do. I have to go through my family photos, too. We want to use some in the hallway to the bedrooms.

Showing off at:
Vintage Charm Party #130 
Talk of the Town #120 
Create, Bake, Grow & Gather Party #312 

From alphabet beads to a zipper...and everything in between...

A Vacation After a Vacation

Well, we no sooner got back from vacation and went out on another, albeit only an overnight excursion.

Katie had a conference at the Central Carolina Community College in Lillington, NC, which is about a 2.5-hour drive from home. We left on Thursday, 4/12 and returned home the next day. We didn't leave for our destination until Katie got home from work, and we were on the road 15 minutes later, or 4:30 p.m. I drove, and Katie navigated. She's good at that. Me? Not so much. We followed the instructions from Google Maps. (I neglected to print the ones for our return trip, but we did fine by following everything "south" rather than "north". We almost missed one turn, but Katie caught it.)

We got to the hotel, and, although the room was tiny, it had everything we needed. No wonder they call it Microtel. One queen bed. We don't usually share blankets so that was difficult, and there was something about the sheets or the mattress that didn't allow us to turn over easily. Weird. So, I couldn't get to sleep, let alone stay asleep. I kept getting up to read until I was too tired to do anything else BUT to go to sleep. 

Katie made plans with a friend for him to meet us for breakfast at the hotel the next morning at 7. Katie got me up after her shower, so we dressed and went to eat. We had some nice conversation, and I listened while they talked about the group they were going to facilitate. Then, they left for the venue, and I went back to the room. 

Soon, I got a phone call. It was Katie telling me that they were at the wrong campus and had to go to the other one. That put my plan to pick her up out of whack. I didn't know my way around, so I was happy her cohort would bring her back to the other campus. Whew! After that conversation, I called the front desk for a 10:15 wake-up call and went back to sleep. I checked out about 10:45, had more breakfast and went out into the world where there were some thrift stores we had scoped out the night before.

Either my needs have changed or the thrift stores were lacking. I probably would have been more entertained in an antique mall. Anyway... I don't remember which picture goes with which thrift store, and I don't remember all their names. But, the one name that stands out is Junk and Disorderly, which wasn't open. What a hoot! Love that name! Other names were Lillington Beacon Thrift, This and That and Hidden Treasures. I was just looking at my notes, and I missed the Thrift Mall altogether. I guess I didn't look at my notes at the time! Rats! Maybe that would have been the best one. I'll never know, but we never know if we might go back or not.

Here are the goodies I found:

Suze Orman book, black and white ribbon and a U.S. flag patch.

Book.

Decorative garden balls - not sure if they are for outside or not. They kind of look like concrete, but they aren't heavy enough. I might coat with them with something so I can put them outside.

Small McCoy planter. At $15, I may have paid too much, but I liked the color and design. This was found in a really junky store. I could hardly get around the store, but it was in a case. I was told it is from the 30s or 40s. I would have to research that, but I'm not inclined to do so at this point.

And, because I spent a certain amount on the planter, I could choose something free from the box. I got this respirator, because there is some sanding in my future. Gotta love free stuff!

I spent about half an hour trying to find a sale a woman tried to tell me about. She wasn't real clear, even though she knew I was not from the area. I found the college she was talking about, but it was big enough that I couldn't find the sale. It was a nice-looking college, and the drive was nice, so that was a good way to kill some time. So that was my thrifting for the day. Then, I got some lunch and parked myself to wait for Katie. Luckily, I brought a book and the breeze coming through the car kept me awake in the warm weather. The wait was about 1.5 hours. The trip was pretty much a dud for me, but very good for Katie.

We were on the road for about half and hour and Katie noticed a quilt store. She said, "Wanna stop?" "Sure", I said. This was not one of those times when one of us was the Voice Of Reason.

I collect black and white, white and black.

This is Tim Holtz fabric...on the grunge side.

And, was Katie making me feel bad? These two are hers.

We shopped past the time the store, Loving Stitches Quilt Shop, was normally open to the public. Thank goodness, there was a sewing night going on!

After our shopping, we skipped merrily home and made it there before dark!

Our kitties were happy to see us, and after us leaving them scads more food than normal, they expected us to feed them as we walked in the door! 

Katie is back to grading exams, and we are back to normal — as normal as we can get!

Thank you for stopping by and spending some time with me.

Showing off at:

Share Your Style #166 

Vintage Charm Party #129 

Talk of the Town #119 

Create, Bake, Grow & Gather Party #311 

From conferences to thrift stores...and everything in between... 

What we did on our Spring Break vacation... Continued

Last week, I left you at the point where we were on our way home. We met my mother and her friend, Jerry, for breakfast at Bob Evans. We were packed and ready to go as soon as we were finished. 

Instead of going straight to Wytheville, VA where we had a motel room waiting for us, we had a detour to make, so our first destination was the South Charleston Antique Mall to meet Rita C. of Panopoly.

On her blog post of January 22, 2018, Rita made a loose proposal about a Lenten giveaway in the form of 40 boxes in 40 weeks which is usually done as giving away 40 bags in 40 days. You can read about it here. 

As the plans progressed, and Rita and I talked back and forth, I came up with a general list of things I like and like to collect. 

Then, things got really interesting when I realized we were going right by the town where Rita has several booths in an antique mall. So, our conversation turned to discussing a visit. We decided that the best time for us would be on our trip home, and Rita was free to meet then, too. We kept in contact during our trip south, so Rita knew our estimated arrival time, and we were right about on time!

The mall looked very interesting, so Katie and I started looking right away. Soon, Rita found us. She walked and talked with us and told us about some of the booths as we looked. She looked right along with us. She left us to look around on our own at times, and one time Katie sent her a phone message with a photo of a majolica piece that Rita had just finished telling us that she liked to collect. Rita came running down the stairs and was enamored with the piece. {Hey! Katie should have collected a finder's fee!} Soon, the piece was whisked away, and Rita had a happy smile on her face!

We collected a few things:

A collapsible ruler.

Iris Lace

Vintage lace, buttons, and a set of fish postcards.

Ceramic Wade figures.

 We made plans to go to a restaurant called Happy Days. It was a diner that was across the street. I had an excellent chicken salad sandwich, and Katie had a very tasty cheese steak sandwich. Rita had a small salad. We learned more about each other as we ate. We had a great time. Too soon, we had to leave to get to our half-way-home point in Wytheville, VA.

But wait!!! I forgot something!!!

Rita brought my package that she put together for the 40 boxes, 40 weeks giveaway. Once we got to our hotel, we opened the boxes. The first box contained a rather large bird nest. I think that was the first thing on my list. 

The other box contained all of these treasures:

This frog has an unusual texture.

This is a donkey bottle opener.

This is a table runner. We are cat lovers!

A collapsible ruler. I love them!

 

Rita included this specifically for Katie, as she collects Madonnas.

We had some happy smiles after opening those boxes. A very special thank you goes to Rita C. from Panopoly for thinking of us!

So, we went to sleep knowing we had a long drive in the morning. At about 5 am, I woke up, and so did Katie. After a short discussion, we decided to hit the road and grab some breakfast down the way later. After packing everything into the car, we were heading south at about 5:30 am. We arrived at home before noon. We unloaded, and Katie went to pick up Tan-G at the vet where he had to be boarded. I took a much-needed nap. Vacations do that to me!

Showing off here:
Share Your Cup #288  

From north to south, from family to friends ...and everything in between.

What we did on our Spring Break vacation...

3/10/2018: We are getting anxious and want to start packing, but it's way too early for that. We're sending a message to our cat sitter/house cleaner to make sure she remembers and to give her second-to-the-last-minute instructions as we speak. She says she'll be here with bells on. It's too bad we won't be here to see THAT.

The reason I didn't mention our trip earlier is so I won't alert any creeps that we're on vacation. We'll be gone for a week, and we don't want anyone moving in while we're gone.

3/16/2018: My brother, who was with my mother at the time, called to ask what time we would be in Columbus. Mom thought we were on our way. She got the time confused. (She has dementia.) So sad. So, now my brother knows the time schedule. My other brother had contacted me through Facebook to verify our itinerary so he could make sure the accommodations would be in place for our stay. The retirement community where my mom lives has a place where visiting family members can stay. That's a great amenity!

3/22/2018: Counting down the hours...

Tangy-cat was favoring his right eye, so I felt before we went on vacation we should have it looked at. Dr. Anna said that there was nothing in the eye now and there wasn't an ulcer, he had conjunctivitis. Poor kittie. Since we are going away, and there is no one to give him eye drops, we are boarding him...such an expensive endeavor, but we know he will be cared for, and someone will be able to give him his eye drops. He is a little on the feral side, so a vet tech will be able to deal with it.

Katie just pulled in the driveway, and I should have had dinner started. So, I'll start that, and we will start gathering. Oh...I stopped at Big Lots and got some things for our trip...Wheat Thins and some protein bars. And, just maybe I purchased some "travel food" in the form of $100,000 bars. And, I just might have ordered doughnuts for the road.

Well...time to fold some clothing I want to pack and get dinner in the oven. 

3/23/2018: on the road and on our way at 10 am. We spend the night at our halfway point in Wytheville, VA. We were there early enough to go to the fabric store, Batiks Etcetera & Sew What Fabrics where Katie picked up her mystery quilt package. We also did some shopping...lots of shopping. I got a pile of black and whites and white and blacks for my collection. Katie got some other pretty fabrics.

The fabric for Katie's mystery quilt.

Cats and mice at the library.

Misc. cuts.

Two precut "nickels" (5" squares) and some scraps.

Misc. cuts.

 I collect the black and whites and white and blacks. Some day, I'll use them!!! lol

Fat quarter bundle.

Fat quarter rolls.

Large yardage cuts.

Straight quarter cuts.

Then, we checked into our hotel.

3/24/2018: packed back into the car and had breakfast at Bob Evans, which is next door to the hotel. On the road at 10 am, starting with snow flurries. After we got over/through the next mountain, there was no snow, so we were quite happy that we didn't have to drive in it. We drove for a long time, making the necessary stops. Once we got into Columbus, we stopped to see my daughter at her old house she is fixing up to sell. Her husband, Jerry, was there, too. We talked for a little while, then went toward our destination. We got to my mom's place (Wesley Glen, which is a retirement community that ranges from independent to dependent living care) around 4 pm. She was so happy to see us. We got the key to a rental we could use while we were visiting, and everyone had to come and see what it looked like.

We stayed in the right half, and that door is where we entered.

The front door.

Fireplace and mirror just inside the front door.

The door chime nook.

From sun room looking into the living room.

Arched nook above the TV.

Panorama of the kitchen. Notice the pull-out table in the center. The sun room is in the back there.

The vanity mirror in the tiny bathroom.

The vanity "table" right below the mirror. Couldn't get back far enough to take a photo of it all.

The one half of the sun room with twin bed. The other bedroom wasn't worthy of a photo.

Many of the heat registers were back to back and heated two rooms at once.

 

Two old ceiling light fixtures that were probably original to the house.

My mother lives in the tall building to the left of the tree on the top floor. This tree blocks her view of the front door of the house where we stayed. All of what you see here are various buildings that belong to Wesley Glen, a retirement community that has various levels of care.

This house is a cute little one-bedroom duplex. I assume the room with the twin bed is the sun room. I would have loved to have seen the other side! This house is only available to people visiting someone at Wesley Glen. There is a fee, but I don't know what it was.

Most of the time, we ate at the cafeteria in Wesley Glen. They have a great buffet, but I could have also ordered from a menu. The waitstaff came around for drink, omelet, ice cream, etc. orders and served those items. It seemed like they were always short staffed, so we were patient and enjoyed some conversation.

Saturday evening: Met with mom and her friend Jerry, my brother, Aaron and his wife, Amanda, at Wesley Glen (WG) for dinner. It was so good to see them.

Sunday brunch: Met with mom, her friend, Jerry, and brother, Mitchell, at WG. Went to mom's room to visit and show her and Jerry the blog photos of our library. They enjoyed seeing part of our house. Mitchell was shopping for items mom needed. He is also the one to take her to church every Sunday.

Sunday dinner: Katie and I picked up mom and Jerry to meet Aaron and Amanda at Villa Nova. We waited a long time to be seated, but it's really good, and there's not much in the way of those kinds of restaurants in the neighborhood. Anyway, we finally got seated. Good food. Good family. Good conversation.

People: mom, Aaron, Amanda. Somehow, Villa Nova started collecting copper tea pots. You can see some in the background as well as Mona Lisa's eyes! Amanda was the happy receiver of our leftovers.

After dinner, we dropped off mom and Jerry. Katie and I drove down High Street to see how things have changed, and they sure had. I was overwhelmed by it all. Then, Katie drove over to Grandview. It's where her parents and she had lived. When we were done, we called mom and Jerry down for ice cream at the famous and wonderful Graeter's. My mom enjoys this ice cream so much she had two cones. She could use the weight, too! On our second round, Katie and I shared! Here's mom enjoying her Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip in a waffle cone:

Pay no attention to the ice cream on her lips. She finally used her napkin!

Monday lunch at WG with mom and Jerry.

After lunch, Katie and I ran errands. We found out Simon Says Stamps is a warehouse and not open to the public. Rats! The people at JoAnn's have a huge store and no one cares to help. Rats! Picked up much-needed envelopes to go with our handmade cards. Very helpful! And, picked up some spices at Penzy's. Sweet!

Monday dinner: Dantes pizza. Picked up mom and Jerry to meet brother Mitchell and his family: Niece Erin, her husband, Dorset, and their three children, Erion, Janielle and Catherine (named for my mother). Brother Aaron and Amanda came by motorcycle. We ate pizza until we were stuffed and had some great conversation. No leftovers here!

Tuesday: Brugger's Bagels for their morning sandwiches, coffee for Katie, breakfast cookie dessert, hot chocolate for me with a side of Wi-Fi!!! I needed to whittle away some email that I didn't need to address when I got home. After that, we went to the southwest side of town to see our granddaughter, Baela, to get Katie's hair done. Katie gave Baela carte blanche to do whatever she wanted to do. So, Katie's hair is now reddish/purplish and cut short, which is how she normally wears it. 

By the time we were done, it was time to grab some White Castles and meet my daughter, Jawnna, at her house so we could go to the thrift store. 

Here are the goodies we found:

Rubbermaid containers and toothpicks, the latter going to school with Katie.

Pet watering fountain. The cats will love it. They are expensive at the regular store.

Books.

Afterwards, we had a brownie that my granddaughter, Nicole, made with some milk. Grandson, Mason, and Katie colored while we all talked. Mason's little tongue moved around and around while he colored. So funny!

After awhile, Jawnna gave us a taste of blackberry and apple blossom honeys. Tasty!

We talked ourselves out, then went to the rental, watched mindless TV and went to bed.

Wednesday: Today was the day to meet Aaron and Amanda at a restaurant in Mechanicsburg called Mixin's and Fixin's. This is on the way to A and A's property and their tire house out in Cable, OH. The house is really coming along. Aaron is doing most of the work himself. Sometimes when he needs help, he calls Mitchell. At other times, it is work that requires professionals with big machines, but I think that's all over. Aaron is working on the inside now. He's working on a hearth, which is a passive heating system. It's amazing all that he and his wife have accomplished. 

When we got back to the rental, we started gathering stuffs and putting things we didn't need into the car so we wouldn't have to pack it the next morning.

We met mom and Jerry in the cafeteria. After dinner, we made the trek back to Graeter's. There were kids screaming and running amok. Their parents let them do it. They were touching everything and running around the store. So, we had to endure that if we wanted ice cream. They left shortly before we were finished. That wasn't any fun at all!

Thursday: Met mom and Jerry at Bob Evans for breakfast after we packed the car and turned in the key. 

To be continued next week, because I'm too bushed to go on. Vacation does that to me! lol

Showing off with:
Share Your Cup #287 

From meeting and eating to walking and talking ...and everything in between...