Now that's a good yard sale day!!

A car so full there’s no place to sit!  Now that’s what I call a good yard sale day!  Saturday was awesome…lots of good sales, beautiful weather, & we all came away with affordable treasures!  Aunt Nancy was on a roll…no sooner than she said that she needed something for her new apartment and Wallah!  There it was at the next yard sale….Example….she said she wanted to decorate her guest bathroom with Jimmy Buffet stuff….next yard sale – tropical shower curtain& rings plus toothbrush holder for $3!  She needed shelving for her pantry closet & we found a set that fit perfectly…for just $5! 

Pet peeve of the week:  Signs that say “Huge Yard Sale” and then you get there, and there are just 1 or 2 tables set up with a bunch of junk (that would be COT – Crap on Tables!) or worse yet COG – Crap on Ground!  Yard Sales Hosts…..you need a lesson on the definition of Huge!!  Please….don’t disappoint us…if you say HUGE….have LOTS of good stuff!!

The event of the year....My Royal Wedding Party!

Umm…Wanda….I think you have the wrong date on your invitation…and you DEFINITELY have the wrong time!  A wedding on a Friday @ 4 AM...don’t you mean Saturday @ 4 PM??!!   This was the response I got from many of my friends when they received their invitation to my Royal Wedding celebration!   UHHH…I have a lot of pull, but I DID NOT set the date & time of the Royal Wedding!  However, it was certainly a good reason to celebrate & have a unique party!!  I sent out invitations fashioned after THE Royal Wedding invitation,

& 18 of my friends & family graciously accepted & joyfully participated!!  All were invited to show up @ 4 AM (when the televised festivities began) in their pjs, hats, & gloves.  All showed up in either their pjs or other royal finery, and we had an array of beautiful hats!  My guests were greeted by 2 valets – 1 parked their cars and the other escorted them up my sidewalk covered by a candle-lit white runner. 

Every guest was introduced with their royal name, such as Empress, Duchess, Lady, Princess…even Her Majesty the Queen and Queen Mum! 

Our wedding party was complete with wedding programs, wedding favors (bagged mints, engraved mugs with Prince William & Kate’s wedding date info, & a list of favorite British lingo rolled & tied with a ribbon!), & even a wedding cake!  We dined on a breakfast feast of tea & scones, quiche, breakfast potatoes, & orange blossoms.   We also extended our best wishes to the newly married couple on the mat of a photo frame!

We all oohed & ahhhed over Prince William & Prince Henry arriving at the Abbey, admired some & laughed at many of the hats, and were absolutely captivated by Kate as she arrived with her father.  Her dress was fabulous, and she looked absolutely radiant.  It was so fun to watch a wedding together with all my girlfriends…we didn’t have to keep quiet, we could talk about everyone, we could eat during the wedding, & we could do it all from the comfort of my living room in our pjs!!

Weddings are always memorable occasions and always a good reason for a celebration!  Even though we don’t personally know Prince William and Princess Catherine, I’m sure we will always treasure our memory of “attending” the Royal Wedding together.   Just another reason to celebrate!

A day for the record books...The Christmas hoarder didn't buy any Christmas decorations!

A day to go down in infamy…can you believe it?!!  I went yard sailing & bought NO Christmas decorations!  And there were even temptations thrown in front of me…and I overcame!  It about killed me, but I actually said no & walked away!  We really thought we were going to take a yard sale photo with all of us having empty hands & sad faces, but the day was not a total loss.  I got some really cute pillows for Krystle’s sofa (only $2 for all!!)

and a night stand that matches her bed perfectly (just $10!).  I also got Kristin an awesome owl creamer which she said she will display proudly with her “fine china”!  Our yard sale day ended early, so Krystle & I headed to City Stadium to watch Ryan (aka Cody Gray) participate in the Home Run Derby for the HIllcats’ Open House. 

Ryan made us proud by taking 1^st place in the 1^st round with 23 homeruns!  And it was so exciting to see his name in lights on the Hillcats Billboard!  Yard sales & baseball all in one day…who could ask for more?!!

Baby, it's cold outside!

BRRRR…Baby, it was cold outside!  It was a cold day for yard sales, but that still didn’t stop us!  Aunt Nancy & I trudged through the cold & found a few treasures…better than staying at home!!  I picked up a few more Christmas decorations to feed my Christmas hoarding addiction and found an awesome Phil Vassar bobble head doll for my son, Ryan, who is an avid fan. 

Got a cute lamp for $2 for Krystle’s new apartment and some tea light Easter eggs for 50 cents each just in time to decorate my holiday table!  Woo Hoo!  The weather doesn’t look promising for this weekend either…but like good soldiers…we will march on!  Bundle up, girls!  There are treasures out there waiting for us!

Saturday's Yard Sales rated almost a 0!

Saturday was not a good day for yard sales!  Two of the yard sales had advertisements, but when we went to the addresses, no one was there…we even knocked on the door at one & no one came!  We are going to start issuing Yard Sale Violation citations!  The other yard sales were very disappointing..just a bunch of COG (again, Crap On Ground) and COT (Crap on Tables!).  Robin did pick up a cute basket for her niece’s wedding in June & I got some awesome seat covers for my VW bug…brand new for $5!!   So, of course I was VERY happy.  We decided to hit the Community Market for a good, greasy breakfast (always a mood lifter!), & I picked up a really cool photo display made into words…the photographer takes local photographs of objects that are the shape of letters & she makes words out of them…like “Welcome”, “Family”, “Dream”, etc.  I bought “Praise” and those objects were photographed in the Old City Cemetery…really cool!  We had a first for our yard sale excursion…Krystle brought a friend’s dog…she was a real trooper, but of course, she couldn’t join us for breakfast or shopping at the Community Market!  Still had a fun day in spite of the disappointing yard sales…life is always an adventure when you travel with our group!

Just another day in Paradise!

Abuckapiece….that’s our yard sale word of the week!  Aunt Nancy got 16 treasures…at various yard sales…and they were all a buck a piece (Abuckapiece!).  This week, our group consisted of Aunt Nancy, Kristin, Krystle, & me….followed (or stalked!) by our good friends, Vicki & Nikky!  Our first stop was at a friend’s yard sale….they had excellent signage & great stuff!  Way to go Nikki & Patty!  We all had a good day & picked up a few bargains…nothing spectacular…we just had a good time searching for treasures & laughing with friends…just another day in paradise!  We missed you Robin!  Check out Kristin’s lamp that she got last week for $1 (or abuckapiece!)….she painted it, put in new wiring, a new shade, added some bling…and WALLAH!  A masterpiece!  She’s willing to sell it…if you’re interested let me know! 

Ladies....Buckle Your Fanny Packs...It's Opening Day!! AND WE'RE OFF!

I woke up before the alarm clock this morning…Woo Hoo!  It’s Opening Day!  It was everything I’d hoped for….and MORE!  Did I find a good deal?  NOPE!  I didn’t buy one thing!  But that’s not what it’s all about…the stories we share, the people we see, the junk we leave behind, the fun we have…you just can’t put a price tag on it!

Opening Day started out at Sheetz where we agreed to meet & car pool.  Aunt Nancy set the tone by walking up to the wrong car (it did look just like Robin’s!) and singing “Good Morning!  Good Morning!” to some lady who in turn looked at her like she was crazy.  Well, it doesn’t take a stranger to figure that one out!

Kristin gave us another almost-pee-your-pants moment when she shared that she had been telling her customers (she is a hair dresser) all week about Opening Day…our sweet, naïve Kristin thought that this was a national event…she didn’t realize that this was just a phrase that Robin & I made up just for us…it was a “You had to be there” moment…really funny!

There were an unbelievable amount of people out yard sailing today…evidently word has spread from my blog (HA! Yeah right!) and from Kristin’s customers about Opening Day.  There were about 20 cars at the first 2 sales...a few less at the nursing home yard sale, & even less at the parking lot sale where there was nothing but junk & COG (Crap On Ground!)…see photo below!  Also….keep watching for more “yard sale lingo”….COG is just the beginning!

At our first yard sale, 2 of my friends remarked about how nice Aunt Nancy was dressed for yard sailing.  They said she must be looking for a man at the yard sales.  Hmmmm….we’ve found a lot of things at a yard sale…but never a man!  Well, on our way home to drop off our few treasures, we came across a guy in my neighborhood who was walking down the road carrying a case of beer with no shirt on…and it was only in the 50s!  What luck!  We’d found a man for Aunt Nancy!!  (see photo below!)

Kristin found some really ugly lamps at a nursing home yard sale…they were $1 each…complete with blue suede lampshades.  She is going to paint the lamps & give one as a birthday gift to her best friend for her 30^th birthday..she’s gonna keep the other for herself…that way she & her best friend will be bonded for life by the matching lamps…what a perfect gift!!  And the blue suede lamp shades…perfect for the birthday party after a few drinks for dancing around the house with a cool lampshade on your head!

Although we didn’t find much at today’s yard sales, we did pick up a couple of bargains at the consignment shops…and the owner of Shopaholic was gracious enough to take our photo with our treasures. 

Of course, Robin & I made our annual trip to the shoe store and bought each other a pair of sassy sandals in honor of Pig Day!  Our little piggies were so happy as they wee wee weed all the way home!

All in all, Opening Day was a huge success and we’ve had a perfect start to our “Yard Sale Season”.  Can’t wait ‘til next Saturday!

IT'S 6 AM! TIME FOR YARD SALES!

IT’S 6 AM!  TIME FOR YARD SALES!  Are you kidding me?!!  Who gets up @ 6 AM to go yard sale-ing (from here on out….it’s yard sailing!)…that’s what I said 15 years ago when my Aunt Nancy called Robin & me to arise from our sound slumber during our weekend “vacation”.  I quickly found out that it was worth the lack of sleep to rise early & hit the yard sale trail!

Starting in 1996, every summer Robin & I would visit my Aunt Nancy in Pennsylvania for a long weekend…which soon became totally focused on finding yard sale treasures.  We would spend all day Friday & Saturday yard sailing…days filled with treasure hunting, lots of laughter, a few “potty” accidents, treats from Rosencrans Bakery & DeSanto’s Sub Shop, and of course, lots of priceless memories!  On Saturday evenings, we would proudly display all of our yard sale finds in what we called “The Show”.  Over the years, several of my aunt’s friends would even come to see our “Show”…to see our treasures & hear the hilarious stories of how we found them.

A few years ago, our trips to Pennsylvania came to an end….however, our yard sale adventures did not!  Robin & I started yard sailing every Saturday here in the Lynchburg area.  We have literally furnished our homes, our kids’ homes, & have found many priceless treasures for our friends & families.  Some treasures have great value, many are the perfect find for one of our homes, and a few are great jokes for people in our lives. 

Aunt Nancy now also lives in the Lynchburg area, so she has been able to join us on our turf for our yard sale excursions every Saturday.  We’ve also had many friends & family members join us for an occasional treasure hunt…my new daughter-in-law, Kristin,  has also caught the bug & is an “official” yard saler too!

We’re a little older now, a little pickier about our finds, and a little more tired….so now we meet a little later to start our day…grab a cup of coffee @ Joe Beans & we’re on our way!  What a perfect way to spend our Saturday!

IT’S 6 AM!  TIME FOR YARD SALES!  AHHHH…..Music to my ears!

***Be sure to scroll to the bottom to see some photos of our "SHOWS!"

Pig Day....A Reason to Celebrate!!

I love celebrating life.  I love all the normal holidays…Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays, etc.  But I also love celebrating occasions that most people don’t know about.  Today (March 1^st) is Pig Day…now I wonder who thought of that!!  About 15 years ago, I was an avid collector of pig paraphernalia…so when I discovered that there was an actual Pig Day, my friend, Robin & I decided to celebrate.  Because of our love for shoes and our fear of answering to our then-husbands, we decided to buy each other a pair of shoes to celebrate the day.  That way, when our husbands said “What!  You bought another pair of shoes??!!”, we could honestly say….”Oh no, Robin bought these for me!”  I know…that’s deceitful…believe me, I still feel bad about it!  But I have some great shoes to con"sole" me!!

Any way....15 years later, we still love shoes, and the husbands....well, that story is way too long....Robin & I still celebrate Pig Day and we're meeting Saturday to buy each other a pair of shoes.  Just another way to celebrate life...now I need to think of a holiday where we buy each other a purse!!