Finding joy in the everyday

Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of desire. This also is vanity and grasping for the wind. (Ecclesiastes 6:9) If you have visited a thrift store (charity/second-hand store) lately you would have notice the amount of stuff they have in these stores. Our local charity stores have asked for no more donations in the short term because they received so much following Christmas. We are a throw-away society wanting to replace old with new at an ever increasing rate. We are never content with what we have and strive for the latest on the market. Sadly we have passed this trait onto our children who also like to have lots of news things rather than enjoying what they. When young people marry they tend to want to buy new, rather than doing what previous generations have done— enjoy the hand-me-downs until they can afford to upgrade. source I am amazed at people who replace their kitchens every 5 or so years to make sure it is "up-to-date" with th...

Books - I own far too many and don't really have any space for any more.  However, that didn't stop me from buying more on Friday.  My son and I had a lovely time at the book fair and bought an array of books and DVDs that will keep us all happy for quite some time.  " The Artist Revealed " is an interesting look at self portraits and one I am really going to enjoy - I might even do an Art Wednesday based around the book. The old cookbook is called " The Lily Wallace New American Cookbook " (1941) and full of those wonderful recipes of times long gone.  Some recipes contain a lot of shortening, very unhealthy by today's standards!! The little blue book is called " Australian Short Stories " was published in 1951 and I'm looking forward to read these stories.  Most of the stories were ones I had never heard before. " Females on the Fatal Shores " covers the lives of 12 courageous women who sailed to Australia in the early years ...

I am a sensible, logical mature woman that likes to live an organised life. However I am easily influenced by anything cute. When I went secondhand shopping with my son the other day, I just couldn't leave these two lonely ducks in the shop.  They were a bargain at $1 and therefore they just had to come home with me.  I have named them Bob (with the long neck) and Beatrice and they now grace my bookshelf and keep watch by the front door.  May they live a long and happy life in my home.   And . . . whilst out second hand shopping we also picked up this for $1.00. I've seen ladies use these in very creative ways.   As yet I keep a shell under my glass dome . . . any ideas?

It appears everything is going up in price, no matter where you look the cost has risen. This is why I was thrilled this afternoon to visit my local shopping centre to find a temporary bookstore (filling in one of the empty shops) selling books for $5 (Aus/USA) each - no book was more expensive. Not that I needed any more books, but how can a booklover (with an addiction) not buy a book when they are so cheap. And a girl really should not miss a bargain . . . as long as she buys something useful and practical!! This is a lovely book full of colour photos and easy to follow recipes - and as it says, contains 500 soup recipes.  And how about this - 11 books in this boxset for $5 - what a HUGE bargain - just check all the different tiles, I'm particularly keen to investigate the one on ice creams and "divine desserts". I might go back and see if I can find any recipes books for my son.  And I had a chuckle the other day when Jeanne from A peaceful day posted this pi...

My 19 year old son loves second-hand shopping (mother like son!) and is always looking for a bargain so he was very excited about taking me to a place he had discovered recently. Off we went yesterday to a large shed not far from a local dump - it was full of "stuff" and with a little searching we found heaps of bargains - I was as excited as he was. I could not believe the total price. For everything below we paid $30 (US/Aus). I think I will take my eldest son on our next trip as he might find some things for his house. These are tall thin mugs, not chips - really nice for hot chocolate. Rustic soup bowls - quite heavy, no chips in excellent condition. These will be great in winter with hearty soup. 3 pottery bowls - in perfect condition.  We think they are hand made. I have my garlic bulbs in one. One cute kitty (Japanese)- how could I leave her there alone.  This vintage cat is selling on eBay for $19.00 in the US! She will be much loved in my home. One st...