THE PROBLEM WITH SOME YARD SALES or CRAP FOR SALE!

Yard sales......I love them and I go to them regularly. You will find me bleary-eyed and (how can I say this?)....without the benefit of a shower at the crack of dawn at a yard sale on Friday, Saturday, or sometimes even Sunday mornings. I'm addicted and I cruise Craig's List religiously so I can make notes and plan my attacks accordingly. Well lately I've been annoyed at the stupidity of some people holding these yard sales. Here is an example of what I'm talking about.........
***I sometimes spot a sign for a sale (not on my list) and follow it to NOWHERE!!! I don't understand this. Some of us weren't born with ESP and I don't have a tracking device in my car. Get a clue people. If the sign is for an old sale, please have the courtesy to take it down.
***Some signs are too small and by the time I see them, I'm slamming on my brakes causing a 32-car pile-up. Get BIGGER signs and put them in prominent places with clearly marked arrows that point in one direction. I've seen cardboard signs marked with pencil and pens. I also haven't been blessed with X-ray or telescopic vision which makes reading these signs just about impossible.
***If you have a neon-colored sign (you know the bright pink, green, yellow, etc. ones) stick with one color for directions to the sale. Don't start out with a nice orange sign and change to another color before I find the sale. This is confusing because I think I'm going to a different sale than the one I started out for.
***Price your items accordingly. I went to one yard sale that had everything priced as if it were an estate sale. I picked up one vintage hat and I was told that it was $10.00!!! What? The lady wanted at least $5.00 for little knick-knacks and a fortune for some purses and dresses. Time to go home.
***If you advertise certain things at a sale, please have them available. One lady advertised some clothes but, when I got to her sale, I couldn't find a piece of thread let alone a shirt! She had a few tables out with every item overpriced but not one stitch of clothing anywhere. I asked her about the advertised clothing and she said that it was too nice to put out and maybe I could step into her house to look at the clothes. I could do all of this after her other customers left of course. I live in Arizona and it gets hot even early in the morning so I declined her offer to get skin cancer so I could see her precious clothing. Needless to say I was mumbling things when I left this sale.
***Don't hype up your sale on Craig's List only to disappoint people when they arrive. I've anxiously driven to sales knowing that I would find just what I was looking for because I read the lengthy ad only to be sorely disappointed at what is on the driveway. Gas is much too expensive to lie to people just to get them to your sale.
I could go on and on about yard sale problems but I won't. I have attended some wonderful sales and met some great people and that more then makes up for the duds and the Dudleys who have them.

My answer to the Hormone Replacement Therapy dilemma.
This picture will be posted to the Shades of Inspiration group when the color is brown.

SHADES OF INSPIRATION (BLUE)

In keeping with the SHADES OF INSPIRATION, this week's color is BLUE.
Here is the flag that was on my Father's coffin when he passed away in 1999.
He served his country well during WWII and he was a proud veteran.

Here is a picture of my 1966 Ford Mustang. My parents bought this for me in 1968 and I
drove it while I was in college and many years of teaching school.

I really like this round hankie from my collection.









Baby Brandt sleeping after eating a full meal.

Brandt loves to play with the hose.

SHADES OF INSPIRATION (WHITE/CREAM)

I wore these shoes in 1948, my daughter in 1980, and my grandson in 2007 for our Baptisms.

This Baptismal gown has been worn by my mother in 1914, me in 1948, my daughter in 1980, and my grandson in 2007.

SHADES OF INSPIRATION (WHITE/CREAM)

Here are 4 different bride dolls with a variation of the same cream-colored dress. This first picture is of "Beth" in a 1960 version of the dress. My parent's 1943 wedding photo is next to this bride.


The next photo is of "Elizabeth" in a 1900 version of the dress. My husband's grandparents are in the photo next to this bride.









This bride is "Betty" and she is in a 1930 style of the same dress. My grandparent's 1913 wedding picture is next to Betty along with a picture of my mother as a bridesmaid.












This is "Lisa" and she has on a 1990 version of the dress. My mom's First Holy Communion picture from 1921 is next to Lisa in this photo.

SHADES OF INSPIRATION (WHITE/CREAM)

The bodice from my mother's 1943 wedding gown. Part of the veil is at the top of the picture.

SHADES OF INSPIRATION (WHITE/CREAM)

This is part of the Sadie Olive Shades of Inspiration (white/cream) week.
A sassy jewelry holder with vintage jewelry on it.

SHADES OF INSPIRATION (GREEN)
My mother made this alligator which happens to be the mascot of the high school both my daughter and I went to. We attended Xavier College Preparatory in Phoenix, AZ, and my daughter graduated 32 years after I did!!!! This week's SHADES OF INSPIRATION (GREEN) is drawing to a close. Next week we celebrate white and cream.

Arizona blooms in June.

A yard sale find.....a fish called Wanda....priceless!

SHADES OF INSPIRATION (GREEN)

This is a picture of my mother at age 16 in 1930. She hated this bridesmaid dress and called it the "fish-shark" dress. I added the flowers a few years ago to give the frame some pizzazz.

SHADES OF INSPIRATION (GREEN)

My mother is 93 years old and she used to knit and crochet when she was younger. Two of her "green" creations are here. Since her eyesight has been failing, she put down her crafting needles to enjoy a quiet life with our family.

SHADES OF INSPIRATION (GREEN)
A whispered greeting from a friend.

SHADES OF INSPIRATION (GREEN)
A pretty armoire from an estate sale

Shades of Inspiration (Green)
The stained glass window in our
bathroom.

The end of a wonderful week of RED. Thanks, Sara, at Sadie Olive.

What better way to end the I SAW RED challenge but with a nice big plate of pasta and sugo! Once again the red in this picture has meaning since I'm Sicilian and pasta and sugo (sauce) was a staple on our plates every Sunday.
I couldn't help but include this doll and all her RED finery in the I SAW RED challenge. I think that Shirley's curls need a touch-up!
I was in 7th. grade when I made this apron for my mother. I went to St. Anthony's School in Rockford , Illinois, and I have delightfully fond memories of my childhood in Rockford.

I saw RED on Saturday with this picture of a Jim Shore
angel that has "Peace on Earth" written at the bottom.
I proudly display my angels throughout the year, and I feel
so comforted by their presence.

I saw RED on Saturday with this picture of a large, wooden strawberry that I bought at a yard sale recently. It will be part of our home decor in the patio home that we purchased in Tucson to be closer to my daughter and her family.

Our school secretary liked to cut out,
paint, and decorate different wooden
pieces to give away as gifts. She would
invite several teachers to her house to
work on seasonal decorations, and we
would have so much fun while working
on our masterpieces. She would call it
"our get-togethers" and I would call it our
"therapy". During one of our creative sessions, I made these RED pieces of watermelon complete with an "ant" that enjoyed his/her sampling of the delicious fruit!

When I was teaching school, all the teachers received "apples" with our names on them to hang outside our classroom doors. I proudly display my "apple" in my "Foo, foo, whimsical country room" (my husband calls it that) alongside the watermelon decoration that I made. I taught school for 31 years and I retired 5 years ago.

I saw RED.......Thursday

This is a framed picture of my Mom and Dad taken before their 50th Wedding Anniversary. My mother is almost 94 years old now and she lives with us. My father passed away 9 years ago. He served in WWII, hence the patriotic picture frame.

This red lampshade is in our great room and it compliments
a chair and the pillows that are on our couches. I think that
I bought it at Ross or TJ Maxx about 4 years ago at a rather inexpensive price.

Here is my Red Wednesday picture for the "I saw RED" challenge on Sara's blog at Sadie Olive. I'm having so much fun doing this, I can't believe it! I've NEVER done anything like this before and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. The picture I'm including for today is a vintage pair of Little Red Riding Hood (love their sweet and delicate faces) salt and pepper shakers that my mother had when I was a child. She saved them and now I have them on display (safely behind a glass panel) in my kitchen. She also had a cookie jar to match the shakers, but she doesn't remember what happened to it! As I've stated before, I'm not crazy about the color RED, but this challenge has given me a chance to really see and appreciate the various colors around me. Thanks, Sara, for the challenge~~~hence, nudging me to stop and take in the colorful beauty I usually take for granted every day.

RUBY TUESDAY
Necessity is the Mother of Invention....And I'm Very Needy!
Thank you Sprint~~~~
Thank you Nicole by O P I for Stolen Kisses and I'm Not Really a Waitress~~~~

This is the first official day of Sara's RED challenge and I must say that I've come across several things around my house that are red. I'm not overly fond of the color RED, and I really don't have a whole lot that is RED, but what I do have has special meaning to me. The cute vintage teenage girls and record player were put on several birthday cakes as I was growing up. My mom rarely threw anything away, so I came across these darling pieces to include in my challenge. The "Happy Birthday" bag is a current item and I thought that I would include it because of its RED color. The following picture and post were included Sunday night when I first read about the challenge.

This is my first post for the "I saw RED" challenge on Sara's blog Sadie Olive. This is an adorable picture of my 15 month old grandson, Brandt, eating RED watermelon in a RED shirt.