Oh No!.....The Refrigerator Died!

I have been thinking that the things in the refrigerator just didn't seem real cold. I tried turning it up but it just wasn't getting any colder. We replaced our old avocado one before Jimmy retired...it had been so faithful for 30 years! Sadly, it's replacement only lasted 6 years!

So, we went to Lowe's today and picked out a new one. It's a good thing Jimmy had a great show...lol. You sure don't have much to choose from if you want a white appliance. Nothing fancy,  just a basic fridge! It will be delivered on Thursday...yeah.

Sunday Thoughts

It's winter in Oregon and that means lots of rain. I love the gentleness of this verse.
This week I am going to let God's words pour over me and just let them soak in.

Clark County Show and More Smashed Pennies!

Yesterday was set up day and early bird buying at the Clark County Antique and Collectible show in WA. It's about a 45 minute drive across the Columbia River from Oregon to Washington. We do this show there once a year, in January. It's a bit smaller than the Expo show but it is one of our best selling shows. The people are really nice and fun at this show. Jimmy is looking pretty happy at the end of the day.

I do his displays for him and it's fun for this old retail shoppe owner. We had retails stores most of our married lives...pharmacies and gift shoppes. This retirement hobby is fun for us both.

Enjoy some photos of our booth. Unfortunately, I didn't snap pictures until the end of the day, so a lot of our goodies are missing from the photos....but then, I am not complaining. I am thankful for such a wonderful day of sales!

You get to know a lot of people in the trade. There's a man who does Estate sales and the shows who knows I collect smashed pennies.  He brings me pennies at each show...isn't that nice? I got 3 yesterday. I did a blog post earlier on my collection, but wanted to share a bit more about the pennies.

According to Wikipedia, this is the definition of these pennies which are also called elongated pennies.

"Elongated coins are coins that have been elongated (flattened ore stretched) and embossed with a new design with the purpose of creating a commemorative or souvenir  token.  The collecting of elongated coins is a branch of numismatics. Elongated coins are categorized as exonumia."

This is my very first smashed penny that was given to me by my Uncle Rich when I was just a girl. I always loved it and saved it. It's the Lord's Prayer.

This is my Penny Passport~the keeper of my collection.

I have started a second book now. It's a great way to keep these together and enjoy them. My granddaughter Ava likes them too, so I got her a book.

These are the new ones I received yesterday...the Golden Gate Bridge, A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, featuring Santa, and the 10 Commandments. Really cool!

I did a little research and the first smashed penny was done in 1893 for the Columbia Exposition in Chicago.

Today, most machines look like this. I like this kind as I can crank the wheel and watch the operation. Some machines just pump them out and you don't do anything. You can find them at museums, historical places, souvenir shoppes and amusement parks.

They are divided into 3 groups....

1. OLDIES...1893-1965

2. Modern Elongateds...1965-1985 or so

3. Contemporary Elongateds...1988 to the present

As with all collecting, it gets detailed. If you are interested in more information, there's a lot of information on the internet.

One last bit of information. If you have an iPhone, there is an app to find locations to get smashed pennies! It's called PENNY FINDER. I did download it on my phone for fun. It will give you local locations, locations by states and even international locations. FUN FUN FUN!

Tea Time Thursday #97

I was surprised when I looked at my blog that I hadn't done a TEA TIME THURSDAY blog post for quite awhile. I am happy to be getting back to my weekly posts this New Year. My quilting friend Nancy, gifted me with these two wonderful tea towels that she made for me. She does lovely embroidery work...done by hand. I was just thrilled.

Don't you just love them? I do. She is working on a set of towels for her two daughter-in-laws. She is doing one for each month, seasonal towels, and they are adorable. She said she really had fun making these two for me.

 Last week I put my red transferware dishes in my hutch after Christmas. I have only been collecting it for a few years...nothing matches but then hunt is fun.

This is my most recent addition. I found it last summer at a sale. It is called Harvest and is marked USA. It's nothing special, but I like trio sets and it was only $1 for the set.

I enjoyed this tea sent from my friend Melinda who lives in Vermont. YUMMY! I am so blessed by friends who know how much I love tea and all the goodies that go with it.

My hubby renewed my subscription to TEA TIME as a Christmas gift. I think I'll enjoy that cup of tea and read my magazine. It's been a busy day. Tomorrow I will be setting up the displays for Jim's antique and collectible show, so I need a little R&R tonight.

TUESDAY TREASURE~Little Red Riding Hood

Oh it is a nasty winter day here in Oregon! No snow or ice but wind and cold and wet rain! I helped Jimmy set up the last display for the upcoming Antique and Collectible show in Clark County this weekend. I actually had a bit of time to catch up on paper work and made a big pot of veggie soup for dinner.

I get to go to so many Estate Sales and am blessed with lots of treasures for my Etsy shoppe and there's always a treasure or two for Linda Lou. I decided it might be fun to share a goodie or two on Tuesdays, when possible. I am trying to work my way back into blogging, so this can be a fun adventure for me.

I found this adorable little cup and saucer at a sale. It's child sized or demitasse sized and I love it because it is pink. There are no markings on the cup or saucer, but it has a great image of Little Red Riding Hood and the wolf in granny's bed!

Some Fairy Tales can be scary! I did a bit of research and found that this story comes from Europe. It was first published by Charles Perrault in France. Of course the story was also published by the brothers Grimm in Germany, The stories morph and change a bit over the years, but basically, the sweet Little Red Riding Hood is off to take bread and cakes to her ill grandmother. Her mother warns her to go right to her grandma's house and to stay on the path. Of course, she talks to the foxy wolf and delays her trip to pick flowers. The wolf is able to get to grandma's house first and he gobbles her up. Then he hops in her bed and pretends to be Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother! When she arrives, the clever wolf tricks her and gobble her up too! Luckily, a woodsman comes along and rescues the two from the wolf's tummy and they fill him with rocks and he dies. The woodsman (or sometimes a hunter) skins the wolf. Little Red Riding Hood learns her lesson and all is well.

Being a Tasha Tudor fan, I remembered that of course she had published a Fairy Tale book. This is the edition that I own.

There are many wonderful vintage images to be found. I adore children's literature and especially enjoy vintage images. Here are just a few to enjoy.

As you can imagine, there are many Little Red Riding dolls. I really love this topsy turvy doll from 1890. I would love to own her!

I hope you enjoyed my little exit from the real world into fairy tale land for a bit. My mom was so good about reading to us when I was growing up. I think I owe my love of stories and books to my mom. Stay warm, grab a cup of tea and read something fun.

My blogger friend BERNIDEEN has added a blog party on Mondays. Do pop over to see her fun and beautiful blog...join in on the fun. 

Sunday Thoughts...Prayer

A dear friend of mine gifted me with this wonderful coffee mug for Christmas. I just love it and it has caused me to think about prayer. It has been one of those seasons where my own family has needed prayer. God has been good to answer prayers for my dad. I am so thankful for all who remembered him and my family.

Praise time! Dad was cleared by the doctor on Wednesday to be able to live on his own again without the extra help from Senior Helpers. My sister and I met with the management of his retirement home on Friday. They too released my dad! He was so happy when we gave him the happy news. I have been feeling so thankful and so relieved and very blessed.

Long ago, I made a promise to myself that if I told someone I was going to pray for them, I was going to follow through. I decided with the New Year that I wanted to write down names and how I will be praying for those who need prayer.

So why do I pray? God has asked me to pray. One of my favorite verses is " Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Philippians 4:6. Prayer lets me draw closer to my God, to communicate with Him~to spend time with my Lord. It gives me the opportunity to hold up my friends and their loved ones. I want to share their joy and be there to comfort them and praying for them opens the door to be able to do that. I become part of my community when I pray and that helps to be thankful for all of my many blessings.

I hope you have a good week ahead filled with blessings and opportunities to show those around you the love of Christ.

Freezing Rain and Ice!

 The beautiful snow of yesterday, turned to freezing rain and ice all though the night. Schools were closed and the people of Portland and the suburbs were asked to stay home. I was glad to do just that! I was supposed to help my dad pack up his Christmas, however, I didn't want to drive. We live in an area that has a lot of wind that keeps the temperatures down, so it takes longer to thaw out. I live about 22 miles from downtown Portland. Portland is a city of lots of hills and the town is split by the Willamette River. That means lots of bridges and which equals lots of traffic problems when the ice hits. Jim got out late this afternoon to take my Etsy orders to our local post office. We have another threat of freezing rain tonight...not as much moisture...but still more ice! UGH.

I have to say, it sure is nice being retired. Jim ALWAYS had to go to work no matter what the weather was. He was a pharmacist and everyone NEEDED their meds. My retail shoppe also had a contract postal station with PO boxes, so I always had to open the store for the mail.  My shoppe was about 17 miles away and I remember a few snowy days that took over two hours to get to work. Yes, I had to cross one of those bridges and often big semi trucks just couldn't make it and would block the freeway. I don't miss those days at all!

Since we were stuck at home, we decided it was time to take down our Christmas trees and decorations. We made a good dent in it. We had a nice tea time treat this afternoon. We were gifted a box of Walkers mince pies. What a yummy treat. I just zapped them in the microwave for about 20 seconds and they were perfect.

I love the snowflake design on the top of the little pies...perfect. That shine on the plate was from the sunshine that did peak through the window this afternoon.

Another chilly wintery night. I am so thankful for our wood stove. It sure keeps us warm. I am hoping that I get over to dad's tomorrow. I will be babysitting on Wednesday and back to bible study on Thursday. I am going to be patient and just finish up my home as time allows. My goal is to be all done by the weekend.