A Day in HOTLanta!

Larry and I drove up to Atlanta this morning to go to Scott Antique Market.  We'd been wanting to get up there for years and we finally made time and went!  We had the best time!  That place is huge.  So huge that they have shuttle buses to take you from the North building to the South building and then back again.  

Before we went to the antique market, though, we hit an estate sale over in the Virginia-Highland neighborhood, in a tiny little 1,200 square foot bungalow, built in 1935, in desperate need of some TLC, but is STILL selling for $555,000!  Location, location, location, I reckon.  I'm guessing by my HGTV-watching experience, that it'll take about $50,000 to fix it up and that's just the cosmetic stuff that I can see.  I have no idea what's behind the walls and under the floor.  Anyway, it was an adorable little house and we got some cool stuff there.  We got a whole basket full of stuff for FREE because Larry climbed up into the attic and pulled down an old WWII footlocker for them.  In that basket were 43 Keurig coffee, tea and hot chocolate cups, some diabetic testing strips, a bottle of Sun-Ripened Raspberry shower gel from Bath and Body Works, a 1981 kitchen tea towel calendar (I love those!), a small Pyrex flamingo pink casserole dish with the lid (!!) and a cute little striped glass pitcher just perfect for lemonade.  I got all that and Larry picked up a vintage Navy peacoat, an old Georgia flag and an old Army/Navy helmet.  Oh!  And we found an old General Electric clock radio, one like I've wanted forever.  That sale was definitely worth the stop!  The neighborhood was beautiful, everybody was walking their dogs and babies and there were little shops everywhere.  We joked that we need to live in a neighborhood like that, if for nothing else but the diversity.  $600-$700K houses, though?  Naaaah.

Here are all those Keurig cups!  It's really funny how God works sometimes.  I had JUST YESTERDAY said I was going to get some coffee cups and bring them to work for our Keurig in the office and then, boom, the Lord brings me to these. 43 for FREE. 

This is the peacoat.  Oh, Larry looks sooooo handsome in it.  It fits him perfectly and there were even two other ladies there eyeing him at the estate sale when he tried it on.  Down, girls.

How amazing is this old clock???  And it works!

 

Here's the helmet and Santana's very first album.  We picked it up at Scott's for $2.

We got to Scott's about noon and we went to the North building first, not knowing any better, bless our hearts.  Don't go to the North building.  It's full of expensive carpets and expensive art and stuff you can't afford.  It's all pretty to look at but you'll leave it there.  I promise. 

See, pretty to look at.  $2,500 to $4,000.  We left 'em there.

 Freddy-the-Frog Mercury, as Larry called him.  $395

We're always looking for globes for Ami.  We looked at this one.  

 

I really did LOVE this vintage counter and stool set, though!!  $4,800 and they coulda been MINE.  Sigh.  We don't have anywhere to put it anyway.  Sigh.

 

Thanks to my good buddy, Erika, who on Facebook told me to get the heck outta there and get down to the South building, we hopped a ride on the shuttle bus and went down there.

MUCH more our speed! 

We walked around outside until we were about to burn slap up (oh, Lordy, it was HOTTTTT) and then we walked around inside, where it was nice and air-conditioned and they had fried catfish.  I found a Pyrex Daisy bowl, some political pins and oh my goodness, two sets of clackers!!!  I've been looking for clackers everywhere.  I found 'em outside, in a box, just sitting there waiting for me.  The whole clacking thing came back to me immediately and I'm proud to say that I remain the reigning clacking queen!  Larry was quite impressed.  Kinda like he is when I recite the Preamble to the Constitution to him.  What can I say?  I am a child of the 70's and I loved me some Schoolhouse Rock.

Here are the three pins I got.  Michael Dukakis was the very first person I ever voted for, in 1988, when I was 21.  I was so proud.  Been votin' Democrat ever since.

Larry actually found a lot of stuff he liked today!  Patches and pins and helmets and peacoats.  He racked up!

Here are my Pyrex bowls and that sweet little pitcher. I already had the largest Daisy mixing bowl but not the one that's this size.  Larry said I was not leaving Scott's without a piece of Pyrex.  So I didn't.

And the best part about our day??

Atlanta has NO gnats.

Li'l Bit

Our baby bird saga continues...

Yesterday a fledgling fell out of its nest and Tabbie Hoffman made a playmate out of him.  Luckily, I was able to separate the two before Tabbie killed the poor thing but by then, the little birdie had blood on his leg and wasn't flying.  He may not have been flying well to begin with and Tabbie just made things worse. He just hopped around in the grass, flapping his wings.  I freaked out, crying because it was misting rain and we couldn't find the nest and he was going to drown OMG and Larry, being the sane one in our household, gently picked him up and put him in the pretty gourd birdhouse we got at the Cherry Blossom Festival three years ago.  Just as the bottom FELL OUT.

We put a little water in there and some mealworms and hoped for the best.

Today he was still alive!  And kicking!  And not bleeding!  He just wasn't flying very well, just kinda flailing.  So we brought him inside and put him in a box.  Larry took some chicken wire and made a top for the box and he's in our mudroom, with more mealworms and a little water.  And a nice soft table napkin to lay on.  He's not bleeding at all anymore and he's pooped already so I think he just needs a few days' rest and quiet.  He had quite a traumatic encounter with Mr. Hoffman!  We're going to take him out every morning and the first morning he flies out of the box and into the trees, he's a free bird!

But until then, ain't he sweet??

I've had my heart broken already this spring with a nest full of eggs that fell in a rainstorm so I am so happy to have found this little one.  Somehow he grew in a nest in our yard that I knew nothing about. 

We're calling him Li'l Bit.  :)
  
***Update:  MORE heartbreak.  Li'l Bit died that night.  Larry buried him in a flower bed the next morning after I left for work.  I was very, very sad.

It's JUNE!!!

And my birthday month!!!  And I'll be FIFTY!!!  

Whoa.  I'll be FIFTY  BOLD UNDERLINE ITALIC

Most days, I don't feel anywhere near 50 and I'm still getting told that I don't look 50 but there were a few days in the past two weeks that I felt every day of it and then some.

First, I had a nerve die in a top molar on the weekend and couldn't get in to see my dentist until Monday.  She did call me in some medication and I got through it.  I had a root canal that next week and toofie is fine and dandy now.  I still have to get the crown and yet another crown on another tooth, but that's another day.  

As soon as I was over the root canal, I was vacuuming last Sunday and I hurt my back some kind of way.  I was in horrible pain until Tuesday when I saw the doctor.  Larry and I had planned to go back to Andersonville to visit Gus but I just couldn't do it.  I stayed in bed for three days.  I couldn't sit up, I couldn't lay down, I couldn't stand up and couldn't walk.  It was misery.  Poor Larry, he did all he could for me, to include not even sleeping so he could watch over me.  He did all the housework and laundry and took care of Banjo and Tabbie, too. I've said it before, he's a keeper.  And I'm keepin' him!  I got some steroids and muscle relaxers Tuesday and by yesterday, I was SO MUCH BETTER OMG.  Today, I'm nearly back to normal. 

I went to an estate sale after work today over in the Eagle Springs neighborhood (we love 'em over there!  $300,000+ houses and they get rid of the best stuff!!) and I saw a few things that caught my eye and then jumped into my bag.

I couldn't leave this pretty little milk glass bottle behind.  I added a hydrangea from our yard and I think it's perfect.

I have a plan to have my own "summer reading club" and read this summer.  More books, less Facebook!  Facebook is driving me crazy lately.  Anyway, so I've been collecting Lewis Grizzard hardbacks whenever I can find them.  I got this one today.  My plan is to read as many of his books this summer as I can and remind myself of a time when the world made sense to me.  I adored Lewis and I think it'll do me good to get reacquainted with him.

Speaking of the world not making sense to me, I also found this book.  Ha!

At least in 1964, it was a no-no to be friends with the (Communist) enemy.  These days, it's no big deal.  But it is.  It's still a big deal and these folks in control in Washington are going to pay for the wrong they've done.  The lies, the "fake news" they've created or allowed to be created, the outright corruptness of it all.  There will come a Judgement Day for them.  I'll call it.  I'll call it treason and I believe our Lady Liberty will, too.

But I got me one of these just in case it takes her a while.

Kevin update!

We got our first letter from Kevin today!  He's only four so the letter was written by his daddy, his papa, but it gave us a little view into his life and what he likes.  

He said:

My name is Kevin Alejandro Resendiz Rios.  I am 4 years old.  I have one sister named Danna Sherlyn.  I really like toys that have lights and make noises.  I really like going out for a walk.  I like to play in the water and I particularly like petting animals, such as chickens and dogs.

See you soon!

And he drew and colored his little hand!  We were so excited to get it!!

Yard pretties!

Things are just bustin' out all over in our yard!  We've had a bit of a cool snap this weekend and Larry and I worked outside all day today, he, cleaning out the backyard shed and me, planting flowers and cleaning flower beds.

Here's what's growing around here! 

This is a little arrangement of begonias, petunias and ivy that I did by the front door.

 Day lilies blooming in the front yard

 The roses by the mailbox have really loved all the rain we've gotten lately!

 

I repotted my poor pot-bound aloe vera plant today.  It's much happier now!

My little garden is coming along, too.  I've had to put stakes in for the tomatoes already!

To me, this is definitely a yard pretty!  Vintage sheets that we picked up at an estate sale yesterday drying in the sunshine.

And this one.  This one is the prettiest yard pretty we have!  He LOVES being outside and would just stay out there if we'd let him.  Unless, of course, he hears neighbors talking or an airplane flying over.  He's such a joy.  Banjo, too.  We have quite a happy life, the four of us.

We had some thrasher eggs in a nest in one of our ferns and the other night before the weather got bad, Larry secured the fern's hook with wire so that the wind wouldn't blow it down.  We thought they'd be okay but the clips broke instead and the pot still fell and the eggs bounced out.  They'd been in the nest for eight days but were still nothing but yolk so they more than likely would not have hatched anyway.  We were both very sad but have hope that a mama bird will try again this spring and we'll have some babies.  I've been feeding them premium seed and suet with mealworms all year to try to help the mamas have healthy babies.  Spring is still early and I still hope!!

Chest-of-love

Larry's been working on refinishing the cutest little antique chest-of-drawers and we finally moved it into the house today!

It's solid wood, with six tiny drawers at the top and then the three large drawers.  Since we have replaced all of the drawer and cabinet knobs in the entire house with different ones (no two are alike!), he used our old kitchen knobs for this chest.  He stained it with dark walnut stain and it's just perfect!

Here's how it looked all sanded down:

 And here's how it looks today!

I found this little handmade yo-yo quilt runner somewhere along the Peaches to the Beaches route last month, I put it on the top and I think it looks beautiful there.
 

And someday when someone buys it at our estate sale, they'll find this written on the back.

Earth Day and a birthday!

I left Larry at home today on Earth Day cutting grass and replacing more of the fence and finishing up a chest-of-drawers that he's been working on and I spent some of the day down home in Montezuma for our Katie's third birthday party.  Katie loves Minnie Mouse so a Minnie party it was, complete with cake, cupcakes and pizza!  She got Minnie clothes and toys and Larry and I gave her a Minnie Mouse sofa!  She was so cute opening her stuff.  

I just love this picture of her when she saw Minnie on that little sofa.

Here she is tooting her birthday horn!

Clumsy me, I busted my camera while I was there today.  The strap came loose and I dropped my camera on the concrete step.  10 seconds earlier and it would have landed on the soft dirt and been all right.

Owwee.  Hopefully we can get it fixed.  I finished the birthday party taking pictures with it and they all turned out good so it still works, you just can't see the picture.  I probably won't forget hearing that craaaaackkk any time soon.  It sounded like my ankle felt when I broke it.  Owwee.

I came home and finally got my little garden planted.  I decided to try container gardening this year so I planted my 'maters and peppers in a pot and I planted zinnias in the middle.  In two other pots, I planted my lavender, sage and rosemary.

I still have flower seeds to plant --- wildflowers, zinnias, marigolds and mums and I even got a pack of catnip to plant in a pot for Tabbie Hoffman.

Maybe tomorrow...