And to fund my habit...

I did a major clean out of nooks and crannies around my house last weekend and took a bunch of really good stuff to my sad little booth at the flea market. These are mostly things I like but that never really found a home at my house.

I made the little pinboard from a thrift store frame and a sweet postcard. I also raided my fabric stash in the craft room and got rid of some pretty pieces that weren't ever going to materialize into anything around here.

So I figured I would usher out some items to make room for the new goodies I might find this weekend at the Greater Springfield Garage Sale & Marketplace at the fairgrounds E-plex. That is, if I make it. We're bracing for a major winter storm to roll in late tonight, which means tomorrow will probably be a snowday (hooray) but would also mean my mom and dad can't come up for the sale (boohoo). We'll see how it all pans out. Regardless, it was nice to do some purging. I feel lighter. And my little booth is more happy than sad now.

Treasure trove

I went to Billings on MLK Day on my way to meet my mom and get Macauley back. As usual, I was not disappointed by the chippy goodness to be found at excellent prices. I didn't buy everything I saw, but I liked so many things, including this cubby. I did buy the rolling pin with the black handles...I've been needing one.

A cool black railroad cart...and several chippy white medicine cabinets I could have added to my collection...

I'm mulling over a big redo of my laundry room, so I went ahead and got this cool old wringer to hang on the wall. The other side actually has more writing and I will definitely face it out when I put it up.

This little cabinet could factor into the redo as well if it's still there when I figure it all out.

I'm in love with the top of this old possum belly cabinet. The dealer had it priced at $550. I somehow doubt he/she would split the set and just sell me the top.

I also fell in love with this little puppy who was working with her owner at the store. How could you not? She's a "silky," which I think her owner said is a yorkie and something Australian mix? Eight months old, so little and so adorable...

I should have bought this old cash drawer for $5. If I see it again I will.

I went looking for a pine door to use as a countertop in this still evolving laundry room idea, and I found not one but two. I bought the smaller one to use for that purpose, and I had to get the big one because I just loved it and don't see many like that. Wouldn't it make a great king size headboard if I ever get a king size bed? I need to go back and pick them up in Ryan's truck.

I thought this little chippy pink bench would make a good coffee table for my shabby chic friend Shannon...

I bought this great tin piece (only $24!) to use as a backsplash in the laundry room.

I've always wanted one of these coops...I think that's a good one and so "in" with the galvanized trend these days. Someone needs to snap up this cool wooden box, too, for only $25.

I did a drive by on the way down at a junky place in Marionville I always see from the highway. I don't guess it's an operational business, but I wish it was. Looks like lots of good stuff just rotting away.

Note the "cat crossing" sign...there were several cute kitties running around.

I met my mom at the V.B. Hall Antique Mall in Monett, where we had fun looking but didn't really find anything. I did come home with some good stuff, though, and I always enjoy shopping in itty bitty Billings, Mo.

Closure

I guess it was July of 2008 when I took this picture, the day we first put our little French Country cottage on the market in hopes of buying our current home. It's been a long, long, difficult road with many twists and turns (including a 6 month lease to buy contract that fell through and a flooding of the house by City Utilities among others), but we finally closed on the house today and that chapter of our lives has concluded. The new owners seem excited to love it the way we did and even though the market just squished us, we're happy to be moving on. I think we might go out for dinner tonight to celebrate! Best wishes, little cottage...You're a sweet one.

Enjoying cozy

The snow is still here, which means so are my outdoor Christmas lights. Way too cold to deal with that right now. The neighbors across the street still have theirs up, so I'm feeling okay about it. I got my wish last week and we finally had snow days on Thursday and Friday. I didn't leave the house for a couple of days, preferring to putter and nest and nap and watch a lot of TV. Ryan has had our pellet stove running this winter, and it's such a cozy feeling to snuggle down on the couch with Booker T. and tune in the flat screen. We've stayed cozy, toasty, snug and warm.

But alas, we finally emerged. Last night we had dinner at La Puente with the Rhoads then Macauley and I made a Marshall's run (nothing much to note there) and an impulse shop at Borders. Today he was invited to his cousin's birthday party at the community center pool in Ozark, so I dropped him and Ryan off there and browsed at Riverview for a while on my own.

I don't know if I captured its dimunitive size with this picture, but this adorable little camera is just tiny. I bought the ironstone soap dish behind it, too.

I am not a bit musical, and I should probably gift this old (empty) violin case to my dear friend Barb, but I'm sure liking the height it adds to this bench in my entryway.

The tag on this round black piece said "foundry mold." It might end up all sorts of places, but for now I added some burlap ribbon and put it up as a wreath on my front door. I never know quite how to decorate the entry for winter...Christmas is over so those wreaths come down... This is kind of stark and plain and there's nothing else out there, but I think I like it. Better than nothing.

And I found a chippy white architectural piece that I couldn't pass up. I never can.

I bought a couple of magazines at Borders, and the Country Gardens came today. I plant flowerbeds, but I really have no business having a subscription to a gardening magazine. I do think my subdivision yard could be so, so much more, but I can't even wrap my brain around most of the plots featured in CG. I am always a sucker for the "featured selection" right in the front of the store at Borders. You know--the "staff recommends" and so forth. I don't know a single person who works at our Borders, but I picked up their recommendation after a quick sweep of the blurb on the back. I'll let you know. I'm still ensconced in the Knitting Club book at the moment.

I did manage to make a few pages for the scrapbook. Not sure it's my best work, but it's something. (Don't worry, ScrapBuddy Nicole--I am capable of so much more and will put more heart and soul into your Valentine! :) ).

I've taken to saving interesting tags that come off clothes I buy for a while now. I used a couple on these pages. The "original" tag is from a pair of Macauley's GAP jeans.

The "fishy face" tag is from a shirt I bought recently at Fossil.

A lot of what I did was pretty simple, like the "love sick" page. Poor Macauley got really sick last Valentine's Day night and was burning up with fever. The "love you" page features a picture from last Labor Day weekend, I think, at the Branson Landing, the day Macauley bought Bolt and Mittens from the Disney Store.

I always think I'll get more done when I'm home for several days, but the relaxation often sets in and I figure life's too short to always be busy, so I take the chance to lounge when I can. One more day then it's back to school for a 4-day finals week, then a long weekend, then a new semester and new classes for me. And it's supposed to finally warm back up to decent temperatures. We'll see...