Husband on Board

It has been a wild, wonderful couple of weeks! So busy, I have had no time to blog but I have taken the time to find some yard sales. As I mentioned in my last post, my husband Steve and I left for the Catskills area of New York on June 16th for our annual vacation at the Logan family summer house in Forestburg, NY. Well, actually the house is located in a private park called Merriewold, with dirt roads and nestled amid the woods. We love it.

So it takes a day for us to travel there from NC cause we like to stop and take breaks as well as getting off interstates when we are able. We prefer a scenic route to say the least. The following Saturday, June 24th, Steve accompanied me for the first time in YEARS in search of yard sales. I was delighted to have the company and he was hoping to find hockey gear in this northern location. We had fun but no hockey equipment was found that Saturday.

I did mention the secluded nature of the summer house, right? Well, yard sales are somewhat hard to find around there so we headed to a larger town, Middletown, in hopes of finding more sales and maybe sales in small towns along the way.

We stopped in a quaint little town called Wurtsboro and found 2 sales there. Steve found 5 movies on vhs for $1 each (I wouldn't have paid that much but...)and he was happy with his selections. I forgot to take pics of them and they were left behind in Merriewold for next year's viewing. We did watch one, Woody Allen's Hannah and her Sisters that night. Love that movie! We moved on to Middletown and found several sales there. Since there is no printer at the Merriewold house I didn't copy/paste and have a list of sales. We were "freestyling" as they call it on American Pickers.

I found these vintage 3 inch Santa face mugs for $2. I don't know why, I just think they are cute and will be fun to use decorating for the Christmas holiday.

One on the left is plastic. The other two are porcelain

At the same sale, I found this choker style necklace. I was admiring it when I opened the case when the seller came over and told me it was a freshwater seed pearl necklace and she had it for many years. I counted the strands later and there are 12 single strands. It is lovely. It was late in the morning and she was eager to unload her wares; said earlier she had been asking $25 but now would sell for $10. I didn't hesitate!! The clasp is a little discolored on the bottom but it is a sturdy clasp, the length is perfect and I like the cloth case that folds up around it. Obviously not real gold.

The picture below was taken at a different time of day, so the color is off.

With case unfolded

At the same sale I saw several silverplated flatware pieces. Among them was a bundled set of 5 knives with a $5 price tag. Steve and I have been using his mom's old silverplate flatware with mismatched pieces since last year. We brought them home from the Merriewold house since they weren't being used and Steve remembered using them growing up in NJ. The knives in his Mom's set are pretty well worn out, lots of metal showing through the worn silverplate. I had been looking online at Ebay occasionally to see if I could find some cheap but nothing leaped out. So I picked up the set for $5 and they cleaned up very well, with not much wear showing.

Before cleaning

After cleaning!

Then I found this sweet kitchen timer for 75 cents. Didn't realize until after we returned home that Monticello Racetrack and Casino is printed on it. The Merriewold house is located approximately 7 miles from Monticello and the Racetrack. I bought it for the Merriewold house kitchen so there it stays.

Cluck cluck for 75 cents

At another Middletown sale the seller was offering "everything on the blankets is 50cts and all sets are $1. So I picked up a set of 4 of these plates for $1. I was thinking of mixing them in with the Spode plates I will someday hang on the wall. These are salad/dessert size. I like the yellow. They are Saxony French make, with 22k gold. Not valuable but old and pretty. I am happy with them.

Set of 4 for $1....cute!

At the same sale, Steve picked up a huge mug for 50cts. The coffee pot is nearly depleated when he fills it. He is so happy with that mug! It stays in Merriewold for consumption there. He used it several times with great satisfaction.

I picked up these two milk glass vases for 50cents. The larger one is about 18inches tall. The smaller one is around 6inches. I like old milk glass.

The last sale we hit on the way home near Port Jervis was a moving sale. Lady was leaving for Florida and taking only what she could fit in her car. So I picked up this large slow cooker, but it didn't have a lid. She ran back in the house and came out with the top you see here. It fit! Paid $2. I will give my other large cooker to my sister Cee who has expressed a desire for the older model cooker. Poor Steve thought I was buying it to leave at the Merriewold house and was not happy to find it in the car when we packed to go home later!

It works by the way! Used it this weekend.

We stopped at an estate sale in Middletown but didn't purchase anything. Most of what I would have been interested in was too large to carry home such as this desk. It called to me and Steve and admired it on our way in. It was on the front porch. Our little Civic can only hold so much! Strapping it on top of the car was not an option!

Down the road in Middletown we admired the old Victorian homes in the older neighborhood we drove through looking for yard sales. We stopped at a sale at this house. This is a side of the house I admired because of the stained glass windows in the bay window. It was in need of repair definitely, but we enjoyed looking at the architectual details.

Here is the front of the house. The sale was located in the driveway on the other side of the screened porch. I just love this house!

And as we headed to the driveway and the sale, we were greeted with this! How cool is that! No, again, we could only admire...no room in the car!

Didn't even ask the price, but coming from Pirate country, he would have made an impact on our front porch!

They had lots of items but nothing I wanted or could use. Nice set up and perfect driveway for a sale.

I had fun with Steve on our yard sale adventure and he was a good sport about the search, the hunt, and the traveling time. Hopefully next year we won't have to go so far to find sales. We will see if he comes again.

We were due to leave Merriewold on July 1st, which was our daughter Brenna's due date. Well, Sunday, June 24th we got a call at 4pm from Brenna that Nate was on the way. We quickly packed up and got on the road but didn't make in time for Nate's arrival at 2:30am on June 25th. We had only made it to Silver Springs, Va. and had to stop at 1:30am. Traffic was heavy and a storm was coming.

We met Nate later that day in the hospital. Brenna and Nate were just fine and Steve and I resolved then and there we would never put ourselves that far away so close to a grandchild's birth. 

Below is me with Nate. I have a new love in my life!

A wonderful outcome of cutting a two week vacation short is being able to have a whole week off from work to help out with the new family! I have been able to spend the night since they came home Tuesday to help with the nighttime feedings. Well, what I could do was get Nate to sleep while Brenna and Robbie went up early to catch some extra sleep. Some nights Nate just wasn't interested in sleeping after his meal so he and I had some wee early morning chats.

I really meant to post this much earlier. However, I will get it done and hope you enjoy. Take care and happy thrifting.

Thrifty Christy

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