Gobble Til You Wobble!

It's Thanksgiving!  I can't believe it is here already!  It was actually still pretty hot here last week - into the 80's, so it still felt like summer.  But, then it cooled down and today it was all gloomy and cold out side.  My kinda day!  (I'm crazy, I know).  I get to have Thanksgiving with my family here at my house this year.  We always do a meal here, but never on the actual holiday.  So, it's nice to be like everyone else that day.  

The Pilgrims, Indians and Turkeys are out, but they will be in their bins faster than you can say "GOBBLE GOBBLE" so I can bring on the Christmas.  Yea!  So, before they disappear - here's a quick tour.  

I have a lot of squirrel things in my Fall decor, so I made a squirrel area.  

This squirrel wearing a giant acorn cap makes me laugh.  I think he needs a shotgun to complete his look!

I've had a pretty good collection of turkeys going, but this year I found enough to double my collection.  I bought the new ones for resell. but well, you know how that goes.

I am not a collector or lover of honeycomb.  But I do love me some honeycomb turkeys.  They made a statement but take up little room for storage.  Since this photo was taken, a friend gave me a giant honeycomb turkey that I added in.  It is three feet across!  HUGE!

Yes, that's a Christmas tree.  I have no restraint.

 

More turkeys and things.

And my FAVORITE Thanksgiving thing.  My Mom by the Thanksgiving turkey.  Look how happy she is!  I love this photo so much.

I hope you all have a very safe and Happy Thanksgiving.  

Gobble til ya wobble!  

Let's Dig in the Photo Box

When we were cleaning out my Grandmother's house, I found a big box of family mementos out in her shed.  Mice had chewed away at a few things and I had to throw some stuff away.  But, we were shocked at what we found in that box.  You see, my grandmother was not a sentimental person.  She never talked about her my Mom's dad who died when my Mom was only 16.  She was always mad at him for dying and leaving her with four kids to raise.  As if that was his plan.  She never talked about the kids when they were little.  Once, when everyone was a school, she had a dumpster delivered to the house and had it placed just under the attic windowsill.  She opened the window and every single item in the attic was thrown down into the dumpster.  My Mom's dad was a military doctor and traveled the world.  He had brought her home a doll from every place he visited.  Every last one of them went into the dumpster.  All their old toys, clothes, mementos, everything.  Gone.  So, finding that box in the shed was a real surprise.  My Uncle cried when he saw his report cards and old artwork.  It wasn't that she had saved it that made him cry, it was that she had it all those years and never shared that she had memories or cared about anything.

You're all familiar what this photo of my Great Grandparents.  It's my blog header, on my business cards and anywhere that I need to represent as MY domain.  This was my grandmother's parents. Great Grandma Lora (who I called Grandma) hosted all the holiday functions.  I have fond memories of her (Ray died before I was born, so I never knew him) and her festive party hats she made for each occasion.  She had all the LuRay and Fiesta dishes in every color for every occasion, figural funny salt and pepper shakers and freshly made coordinating crepe paper party hats on each plate.  She was the original Martha Stewart.  She died when I was five, but she is still the only real Grandma I remember having in terms of doing Grandma-like things.  

Here is a family party well before I came into the picture.  That;s my Mom down on the far right peeking out from behind her brother, Bob.  And my cute Uncle Brad in the center on the left.  See the party hats on each place setting?

Same party but with Lora bringing in the food and Ray at the head of the table waiting for his dinner.  

Ray was the Superintendent of the Kansas Schools and wrote many of the old readers.  Isn't that odd that the Superintendent wrote the textbooks?  Lora was a teacher in a one room schoolhouse when the older Superintendent stopped by the school one day.  I think when they ended up together it was a bit scandalous.  Scandalous for 1924 at any rate.  After that, he became a Minister and they traveled around to small schools and churches teaching and preaching.  They were both always dressed very nicely in dark colors.  After he died, she went and bought ALL THE COLORS.  Head to toe pink including shoes, undies, bra, slip and jewelry one day, then red the next and purple the day after that. She even bought a lime green car.  She made her own costume jewelry - she had dressers full of jewelry all in color coded drawers.  Rumor has it that after she died, the family sold off her jewelry in huge paper grocery bags for $1.00.  I really still cannot think about that.  I do have a lot of her jewelry and I wear her diamond every day.  

Hey lookie at me would ya!  I got one of those crepe paper party hats on my head too.  This was my 2nd birthday and I was the only grandchild.  My Dad's ascot makes me chuckle.  My Mom looks pretty.

And, my 4th birthday party complete with a CLOWN cake.  Eieeee!  See Grandma in her blue? That's my Uncle Bob smiling at me on the end.  I think my Dad still has that shirt in his closet.  Honestly!

This weekend we drug out the box of photos while my Uncle Brad was in town.  We hadn't looked at them since I found them in the shed six years ago.  It was fun to sort through them and have some laughs and her old stories.  I found this photo,which I had never seen before - my Grandma Lora in a GINGHAM chicken scratch apron.  

Hey!  I collect Gingham chicken scratch aprons!  

It's my new favorite.  I think it will make excellent business cards.  

Thanks for digging in the photo box with me.  

I hope you enjoyed it, because there are a LOT more!

The Week in Junk: Trailer House Sale #3

I went back to the sale AGAIN.  Wouldn't you?  This time they had a whole lot of the same things. And by that I mean the exact things I have already bought like Dressy Bessy.  I have three from there now.  All alike.  Exactly.  One each week.  Another Fisher Price Lolly Rattle doll.  That's two now. More handmade dolls.  I don't know - just a lot of the same things.  I still had fun hunting and gathering up a few tote bags full of goodies.  The lady having the sale came running to me - "I found a doll shoe that you left last week!"  Which was pretty sweet considering the sheer volume of stuff they are dealing with and all the customers they have - she remembered me and that I bought the doll clothes.  Very nice.  She took my name and number too so she can call me when they have their next sale.  It will be in January and it will be ALL JEWELRY.  Crazy.  

I did get a ton of new squeaks.  Well, old squeaks.  Over twenty of them.

And this Fisher Price A Frame house which turned out to be very popular on Instagram.  I bought a Fisher Price Barn and a Dollhouse too.  I left one behind and now I am wondering WHY.

I also hit one more sale and rounded up a bunch of vintage Christmas.  Nothing fantastic, but I like to rescue all the vintage I can find.  

One lone Gurley was worth the stop alone.

Friday afternoon I saw a sign that said, "CHRISTMAS SALE on GRANDMA STREET" with an arrow pointing down a side street.  I swerved quickly and I may have been on two wheels.  No one knows for sure.  It turned out that is was a garage sale full of nothing but Christmas!  Nothing but CHRISTMAS!!!!!  (Also, it was on Graham Street - but how cool would Grandma Street be?) Things weren't cheap or giveaway prices, but they were good enough that I was able to buy everything that was my sort of thing.  That doesn't happen very often!  

Two Santa Squeaks!

Rosbro candy containers and a lollipop holder.  There were actually two of each - I am keeping one lollipop holder.  This is my ebay photo for the others.

Two Putz houses.  I NEVER find these.  Oh, sure, they need some TLC, but to have found them even in this shape was good for me!

Santa Salt and Pepper shakers (full of old pepper which made me achoooo!)

Pardon the crappy cellphone screen shot photos.

And my best and most favorite find......

A Rosbro Fire Truck candy container.  I have never seen one of these and I had no idea they existed.  So.......

To find TWO at one time was crazy fun!  

As much as I love them, I have them listed on ebay.  Money talks sometimes.  I had a BIN offer within an hour on one, but I am going to let the auctions run and see what happens.  And, heck, if they don't sell.....I will keep them after all.  

The Week in Junk: Trailer House Take Two

I went to the Trailer House sale again this weekend.  I spotted the big "X" in the sky just as I drove up.  A good sign, I think. They always have a ton of stuff, so I never worry about being first in line or fighting the crowds.  I always find good stuff and the later it is - the cheaper it gets.  Yesterday I had a conversation with the lady having the sale that I NEVER thought I would EVER have with anyone conducting a sale. I told her that I resell most of what I buy.  That's the first rule in yard saling for profit - never tell anyone you resell!  I had been visiting with the lady - she had greeted me at the fence saying, "I wondered when you would be here!" and even handing me an Annalee she had found in a box.  After I paid, I had two tote bags, a cardboard box full and.....wait for it.....a huge trash bag with about 40 pounds of vintage baby and doll clothes in it.  I really wanted her to know that I was not taking all this home and adding to my own hoarder pile.  She said, "Oh I know you part it out and disperse it.  That's why I give you better prices!"  She liked that I do more work to get it into the right hands.  So, I can keep buying and she won't report me to "Hoarders" for their next season.  :D

As for those baby clothes.  They were in boxes and spread out on tarps.  I could see lots of Barbie clothes plus doll clothes and then there were baby clothes mixed in.  You could fill a bag for $1.00, so I did that, but it was taking forever.  Plus, I would find the bottoms to the top that I already had in a bag as I was filling another bag.  I decided I needed all of it.  I could sort it at home at my leisure.  As I put it into big boxes, I estimated that there were 8-10 more bags full, maybe even 12.  When I told her it was about $8-12, she said, "Well, how about $3.00?"  Heck yeah.  Last night I did a quick sort through and got rid of about half of it bulkwise. Today I sorted it out again, getting rid of more and pulling out the doll clothes from the baby clothes.  I thinned it down to two tote bags full, so that's not bad at all.  I found two original Skipper outfits which sell for about $25 each, so I think I will do okay.  Plus, how easy will it be to photograph and cheap to mail?  Bonus!

I found this wonderful little handmade doll dress.

This orange polyester number made me think of Cindy Brady.  Speaking of which, Susan Olsen (she played Cindy Brady), is a friend of my cousin.  They get into the huge political fights on Facebook and she drops the F bomb.  A lot.  Whenever I see these posts, I picture cute little Cindy Brady with her lisp in one of those short, short polyester dresses with her curls sproinging up and down as she saying, "F*ck you".  

A purple dress with turtles.  Need I say more?

Gingham baby dude outfit.  Cute!

There was a lot of Christmas on those shelves this time.  Lots of newer dollar store stuff that I am not interested in - but you and I both know to look at every item, under every item and behind every item. You just never know what you will find.  So,m I dug in, around and behind and made myself a nice little box of vintage goodies.

I have never found one of those spinning lantern ornaments!  I got very excited, but it was the only one.  That doesn't mean I won't find more at the next sale (next weekend again!  Woot!).  Love the angel tree toppers.  It's all good booth and/or Junk Ranch fodder.  (***I am having serous remorse about not having that second booth right now for all my vintage Christmas in the shed.  I have an entire booth's worth of inventory just sitting there.  Never mind that I never sold much of anything in that booth last Christmas.  It still had a better chance of selling there than in my shed.  But, still, I made the right decision.  I know.)

I saw a box full of old Thermos stoppers and the plastic cups that go on top.  I collect Thermos - (Thermoses - Thermos's?)  Whatever.  Anyway, I have a collection and some are missing the stoppers and some are missing their cups.  So, I asked "How much for them all?"  The answer was a good one, so......

Here they are in my sink getting a soak.  I was able to replace all my missing cups and stoppers which was fun.  Plus, I have a ton left.  I'm thinking they will be good at The Junk Ranch for people that have just purchased a "topless" Thermos.

 

 

I bought a few more dolls including Fisher Price Lolly Doll, a Dressy Bessy and a few more handmade toys and dolls.  I am a sucker for quirky handmade toys.  All the puppets were 25¢ impulse buys, but they all seem to sell well on ebay.  That's always a bonus.  

Last Spring I had purchased a handmade cat doll wearing a pink shirt and a bow tie.  I bought him to sell, but he's been sitting beside me on the couch every night.  So, I have developed a bit of a crush on him.  

Yesterday as I was digging in the piles of toys I found.....his WIFE.  

Now they have been reunited after all this time, so I have to keep them.  (I'm pretty sure he had a pair of yellow pants on once upon a time)

This old Humpy Dumpty was in the piles of baby clothes.  I'm not sure if it's a pillow case, a PJ bag or a laundry bag.  It could even be a clothespin bag.  In any case, it's adorable.  

I spotted a box that said SUPER TOE and looked inside to find these football players.  Actually, there were three in the box.  I have never heard of this game in my life.  But for a quarter, I bought it. When I unloaded it from the car, The Breadman yelled, "SUPER TOE!"  and actually got on the ground in the driveway to play with this silly thing.  He told me about kicking it down the hallway at his Dad.  This was a surprise to me because he has nothing from his childhood and never had many toys as a kid.  I offered to let him keep it, but he said no, so off to ebay they will go. 

There's another sale this weekend and I am hoping that I don't drag home any more toys!  I have had quite a run on toys lately.  But, then again, if they sell then why the heck not?  Winter is coming and there won't be any sales and I will be happy to have big bags of toys to sort and price and list. RIGHT?  :)

***I posted my Halloween decorations late last night if you missed it down below.