Object: Collect the Biggest Bargain

I had an excellent time at Savers last night! There was a definite moment where my thrifty heart skipped a couple beats. I had to check over my shoulder a few times for any lurkers- then I snatched this:

A vintage Pyrex Instant Coffeemaker!

It even came with the original pamphlet! Score! (Oh yeah, and it was only $3.99!)

I also found:

A nice retro Diane Von Furstenberg button down shirt (I WILL be removing the shoulder pads!)

Milton Bradley "Park and Shop" board game circa 1970

Could this be any more perfect?? I will school anyone who wants to challenge me at this game!

Lastly, these were very much out of my norm:

Never picked up a knitting needle in my life...but these adorable stocking kits sure make me want to learn how to knit (LOVE the kitty cat one)! Alternately, they also made me think of Etsy. Definitely don't have my own shop...yet. Are these the kinds of things Etsy crafters are looking for?

Books and Thrifty Finds

To begin, I can FINALLY check something off of my to-do list. I finished reading On the Road! Kerouac's writing style was a bit difficult to get into...but in the end I really did love it. I'm sure the movie adaptation that's currently in the works will completely ruin it :(

I've been looking forward to going to my library to choose my next read...

I picked Lolita.

Speaking of books...look what finally came in the mail:

Yay! Over 100 glossy pages of Pyrex for me to pour over!

And on to my thrifty finds from late last week/over the weekend:

Here's the lot

Betty Crocker Outdoor Cookbook circa 1961

Tally Ho board game circa 1961. I couldn't resist the graphics and it had all the original pieces.

Those are Pumpkin Spice Kisses sitting in the scarecrow decoration. Too good to be true!

And last but certainly not least:

The CUTEST owl lamp!

So he wasn't thrifted, but he was sitting all lonely-like on a clearance shelf. Only $12!!

IN LOVE!

It's a Wonderful Life

What a wonderful weekend! Good company and great wine at the Wet Whistle Fest in Algoma, WI. Just a quick "36-hour road trip" with my sister, parents, and family friends. Didn't want it to end! But alas, back to the daily grind. Countdown to next weekend is on!

Started the weekend by making guacamole in my Butterfly Gold bowl (I don't think guacamole photographs well !!!) 

The oldest lighthouse in Wisconsin. I love how shabby it looks!

Mom's cork collection!

An abandoned bottle of "Naughty Girl" Delicious!

Found a neat antique store...The owner knew Mike and Frank from American Pickers! 

No antique store is complete without Pyrex. But seriously, between $65-$85 for these sets of four!!! I'd rather thrift!

Had to pass on this set of Primary bowls too $$$!

I love rusty bicycles!

Putting Pyrex to Use

My humble Pyrex collection keeps growing and growing! I've practically run out of extra space in my (apartment) kitchen cabinets to store all of the lovelies! Time to start putting Pyrex to use. Sure I've used some of my bowls to mix things, and I even made a delish spaghetti bake in a Butterprint dish (!!!).... I know these things are durable, it just usually makes me nervous to use them for their intended purposes. Anyway, I've been thinking about how nice my Autumn Harvest bowl would compliment the new fall season. So I put her on display!

So what's inside??? Vintage Cookbooks (all thrifted of course)!!!

"New Recipes for Good Eating" circa 1951

"Betty Crocker's Dinner for Two" circa 1958

And my personal favorite, the iconic "Fireside Cookbook" circa 1949. It's worth flipping through for the adorable illustrations alone. And the recipes are practically from another planet! Can someone tell me why there are eggs in all of the mixed drinks?!?

Weekend and Owl Mugs

This weekend was quite spectacular. Spent Saturday with Dad getting lunch at a hole in the wall tavern, followed by a trip to the brewery.  Today I went to Goodwill (see thrifted goods below!), quickly bopped into the library and made a much needed pit stop at the iconic Union Dairy. Spent this evening with Kenny Ray at Vintage Madison- a neat little event that included $3 Old Fashinoneds, a vintage clothing sidewalk sale of sorts, followed by a vintage clothing fashion show. Styles ranging from the 1940's to the 1970's. I was in retro heaven. Here's to hoping next weekend is the "cat's pajamas" too!

I've been waiting to leaf thru this book forever! Finally found a copy at my hometown library. Plan on ordering my copy next week...will help to justify my growing collection. 

A little hometown history. 

This ice cream parlor has been around forever. Try a scoop of Monster Cookie Dough when you're in town!

My one thrifty find at Goodwill. I'll collect nearly anything owl related. Didn't really realize I had a mug collection going until this afternoon...

Tada! Aren't they cute. Makes me want to brew a spot of tea!

Oh Madison! Lovely Madison!

4 Simple Goals (before 2011)

 I haven't been reading blogs, let alone blogging myself, for very long at all. I stumbled upon A Beautiful Mess about a month ago. One of the very first posts I read was about setting four simple goals for yourself before the end of the year. Since I'm typically the type that has the best of intentions for things, but can never seem to follow through (flute lessons, guitar lessons, and tap dance specifically come to mind) this particular blog post really got me thinking. So before I started this little blog of my own, I jotted down the goals I would like to accomplish. So here goes nothing. Feel free to hold be accountable for each and every one of these things. I'll keep ya updated!

1. Start and maintain a blog- Yay! The first part is done. Now if I can just post on a relatively regular basis (which, at this point, I am really looking forward to doing) I will be beyond thrilled!

2. Read daily. Even if only a few pages- I majored in English. Truly do love to read, but have found myself trying to finish the same book for months on end. Right now I'm reading On the Road, and I think I started it at the beginning of the summer. Well it's now fall, and I'm in the home stretch. It's a really excellent book, I just need to commit more time to this particular hobby- before I forget everything I went to college for...

3. Make it to the gym more than once a week- I joined the gym about a year ago. Started off strong, running on the treadmills or ellipitcals about 3 times a week. I have seriously not been getting my moneys worth recently (and it ain't cheap). Lately I've been attending yoga on Mondays (which I love) but am having trouble finding the motivation to go and do anything else. Even if I can commit to going to at least one more class I'll feel that much more accomplished. 

4. Take more pictures (iPhone doesn't count!!)- This one should be easy enough. I have my blog set up, and if its going to be even half way interesting/entertaining, photos will have to accompany my posts. I turned on my digital camera to take pictures last weekend, and I kid you not, the last things on my memory card were nearly a year old.

Best of luck to me!!

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The Lemon Tree

Starting this blog has been on my to-do list for months. Since fall is fast approaching, I have decided to turn over a new leaf (!!) and get this thing up and running once and for all. 

"The Lemon Tree," inspired by a Josh Rouse song of the same name, is my new daydream. A place for my mind to retreat. Ideally, I'd like this blog to have the same feel. A place to go to remember the simpler things is life. No complaining about work and the daily grind. Bring on the thrift store and book sale finds!!

This past weekend really got me jazzed for the change of seasons. A quick stop at an apple orchard followed by  a picnic at the winery with my sis and Kenny Ray...pure bliss!