I’ve been collecting plastic pumpkins from the Goodwill all year – and here’s how I finally put them to use.

It was a beautiful day in Bloomington…with temperatures barely reaching into the 80s and pleasant breeze blowing throughout the day. As I was running errands around town, I decided to stop in to a few garage sales to see what kinds of treasures I could find.  I was delighted to find this vintage children’s book for only $3!  There’s no publication date, but online estimates put it between 1907 and 1920.

I also found this set of cards–a fun throw back to the 70s.  Sadly it turned out to be missing one card, but for only ten cents, it was well worth the risk and still provided a fun trip down memory lane.

I also got a Spanish language CD set for only 50 cents, but the first disc was missing…which made me think of a cassette set I’d gotten a few months back, which was also missing the first tape. Its perhaps too soon to call it a trend, but it seems like a lot of would-be Spanish Language-learners don’t make it past the first set of lessons.  I might give it a go and try diving into disc two.

I also want to give a shout out to Chrissy and the kids–we hosted our annual garage sale last weekend. Didn’t make a lot, but we had some fun.  This year’s theme was a Carnival/Circus of Savings.

I had a short break in the action yesterday and decided to hit a few thrift stores in West LA after seeing a sign that said “bargains this way.” I found a Goodwill and a local charity shop that benefited stray cats.  The Goodwill cart in LA was much smaller than it is back in the Midwest, but they made an awesome announcement when they were rolling a new cart of items out onto the floor – they asked that everyone kindly refrain from shopping until it had come to rest. I guess the excitement about a new cart-full of treasures is the same everywhere! I also found a cool vintage puzzle at the cat thrift store and a fun marble maze.  Not bad for an hour’s worth of thrifting in tinsel town!

Another weekend, another massive Goodwill Hunting Spree in Indy (two in Carmel and one in Westfield).  I found a great set of IKEA floating shelves that will look perfect in my craft room – and are very much needed since we moved a lot of our boardgames up from the living room.

Chrissy’s newest Goodwill obsession are the t-shirts – because they make her laugh.  Think of it like funny jokes or memes on Facebook and Pinterest – only in a textile format.  I have to agree, she found some good ones this time around.

I also found some great puzzles (yes, I know I said that I was cutting back but I couldn’t resist). The Map puzzle not only turned out to have all the pieces and be two-sided, but it dated to the 30’s based on the countries that were found on the world map.  My guess would still be a little later based on the colors, but it definitely has a vintage look and feel, and a pleasant vintage scent.

As always, I had fun finding funky things to try out with Anna.  Including an organ, a scale a time-out chair and a water bottle belt for marathon running (or goodwill shopping).

Other odds and ends…