Frittering the day away ~

Today was one of those rare days when I have done nothing productive, as in physically accomplishing anything, but it has been a good day. I will just have to hustle tomorrow to get some things done before the work week starts once again.

I started the day by sleeping in. Oh, that felt good. Then it was the typical personal morning routine, feeding and walking Loocie and Marvin, and then off to an outdoor fall antique/craft show. It was the 40th year for the show held in Birmingham, Ohio, and from what a dealer/acquaintance told me, the largest to date with 178 vendors. The weather was chilly, overcast and threatening rain. Thankfully the rain held off and even the threat of a storm did not deter people. Several of the vendors that I knew said even though the crowd was heavy, sales were not too good.

My big purchase of the day was this sled. I think I will be using it on the dining room table during the holidays. I don't know from when it dates, but I know it has "age". Does anyone have a clue to its age? My guess would be early 1900's.

This is my bargain of the day. I have a large number of cookie cutters ~ somewhere in the attic ~ but I could not resist this one for $1.00.
I bought some gourds and mini pumpkins. I was really bummed because I bought 3 gourds that were long and thin like a banana and would have looked really cool once dried, and somehow I lost them. I'm thinking on the way to the car I must have dropped the bag. Darn :(
The gourds and pumpkins are in this carrier with the most wonderful patina and a heart cut-out that I purchased in eastern Pennsylvania about 25 years ago. The ghost and pumpkin is an import that I purchased at the craft store today. They also had some big ones that I loved, but I didn't have fifty or a hundred dollars to spare on a Halloween decoration...teehee.

A close-up of the heart.

Here's Loocie (fawn), my "personal pug" and Marvin (black), my foster. This is the first time I have seen them lay together and luckily the camera was handy. (Don't you just love my green floor??? There is hardwood underneath several layers of linoleum that one day I will expose.)

After coming home from the show, my grandson Jake came over and we had some quality time. I planned on having him home by 6 so I could get something done, but by the time we played pirate, policeman (he loves to handcuff me!), played with his Geo-Trax train, visited great-grandma, and ate, it was 8 by the time I got home. (If you need a gift for a young boy, Geo-Trax is THE BEST ~ this has been a favorite of his for 2+ years. You can buy it on sale and have a coupon from Kohl's and it is very reasonably priced.)

Have you ever wondered what people put on dried gourds to give it that very mellow, opaque type color? I thought maybe it was shoe polish, but what gives it that really great color is leather dye from Tandy. Now I'm not sure where to purchase it, but I'm sure it can be found online if I ever have the inclination to finish off all the dried gourds that I have.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Pug hugs :)

Lauren