Sherri's Awesome Greenery

Kristin and I have been quite busy, working out details, making plans, getting the word out about the Vintage Winter Gathering at the Church. We're getting pretty excited and can't wait to start decorating. I think we're going to possibly be able to do a little early, because........Sherri's coming from Flowers & Fluff in Clatskanie with some really nice greenery, and some of her candles. This is going to smell soooooo wonderful and look so festive. We were thinking we'd be going out, picking greens, making swags, etc, but she does an incredible job with her designs and we are excited that she is joining us!
I wish she had a blog, so I could show you some of her neat stuff in her shop, Flowers & Fluff. I told her as soon as she starts getting some stuff done, let me know & I'll take pictures to show you. She's doing some special stuff that same weekend; in fact, all of Clatskanie starts the "Spirit of Clatskanie" around the 15th of November. I'll let you know more of what Sherri is doing when I hear about it. The more the merrier, and that's not all.
Some other friends in Clatskanie are doing some special stuff, but I need to get the details on that before I go blabbing too much!
Now, if you do go through Clatskanie, you'll pass right by Sherri's shop, so.... stop in and say hi, tell her Karen sent you, get an espresso and enjoy all her wonderful finds!

Some fun things I've recently found

I know I posted once today, but I thought I'd show you some neat stuff I found lately at sales.

I keep looking for stuff to do collage charms that Natalie showed Chantel and I how to make. Natalie, my room is getting stacked with too many
books, photos, etc LOL. This is addictive! I was with my mom the other day at an estate sale and she asked "what are you looking at?"
"Well, someone's junk drawer....." was my reply. I'm positive that mom does NOT understand me at times. It's so interesting thing what you find in people's junk drawers!




Now, this old tryke would defintely not be found in a junk drawer, but I sure thought it was cute. It reminds me of the one I had. I would ride around on it, holding a straw between my fingers, pretending it was a cigarette, very prissy-like. Where did I get that from? My parents didn't smoke! I think, looking back, it was from movies. The movies from the late 50s and 60s seemed to glamorize smoking a lot, and I guess I thought that would be cool. Glad I didn't continue that habit!






I found these suitcases at the same sale. It felt funny carrying them up to the table all together. I just told the lady "I'm leaving home!".

I don't decorate with Santa really for Christmas, although I do have a beloved little collection of Napco figurines from the 1950s.

I thought these were really special photos though. Don't they look like a more European realistic Santa?? I didn't get a great photo of them, so I hope you can imagine how cute they are beyond my photography skills!

Loving this Weather!!

The weather here in Oregon has been totally amazing!! It almost felt like summer yesterday; I did a little weedeating and gosh, it got really hot under those goggles, earmuffs, sweats, etc. It was one of those days when you just COULDN'T stay inside! I wish it wasn't wishful thinking to want it to stay like this, but, I need to be grateful for each day the Lord sends, right?
I'm getting really excited for the Vintage Gathering, and have been gathering my own things up. Also working on a few projects, etc, but mostly my thoughts are on the planning. Lots and lots to do and time flies quickly. I'm excited to see what kinds of things Natalie aka The Vintage Sparrow, brings us, as well as Lori, Linda, and a few others who I can't show you b/c they don't have blogs. Suffice it to say, I think it's going to be a lot of fun working with everyone on this. I can't wait to see the church lit up with lights, Christmas trees, greens along the windows, etc. It will be a very festive affair!
I love this time of year and all the business it brings. I know that by the end of December I will probably say, like always, "I don't want to look at another loaf of cardamom bread", but for now, I am very anxious for the season to come. Speaking of cardamom bread, I was thinking the other day of how many people I've come to know selling my bread. Some have been very old ladies who used to bake the bread themselves but no long have the energy. Some are not even still alive, who I used to look forward to seeing at the sales. I miss those sweet ladies!
Well, I didn't take the gorgeous sunset photo like I should have and I can't stand not having a picture, so enjoy this one!! I got her from a cd I bought a few years ago, from a friend, Kathy, I believe????

Riding the Ferry and Trip to Seaside

Last Sunday, after the early morning trip Saturday getting up to Barnhouse, it was time for a break, just a relaxing Sunday drive. We took the Ferry at Westport over to Cathlamet, (Puget Island) which is always kinda fun. If you ever are on your way to Long Beach or just want to take the kids on an outing, the Ferry is fun, I think it only cost $3. Cathlamet is a cute little town, too, kinda sleepy, cozy little fishing town.
We took the highway toward Long Beach, the fall leaves were just gorgeous with the bright sun shining on them. I was soooooo tempted to get lulled to sleep, but I was afraid Randy would say if I wanted a nap, I could have gone home for one LOL. I don't know why it's so comfortable to fall asleep in a car, and I can only do that when I really trust the driver.
We crossed over the Astoria bridge and went on to Seaside. I confess I always have this ulterior motive to be on the lookout for something to add to my stash of finds, but I wasn't concerned about it too much that day. We walked along the sidewalks, looking at the shops, took the boys to ride the bumper cars (I'm glad they still have bumper cars in this day and age), then walked along the promenade. Just a really pretty day and I'm afraid that soon those beautiful fall days will be gone. So I am resolved to make the very most of each fall day, finding time to go out and enjoy it!! Well, now it's off to rake and gather maple leaves!

Vintage Winter Gathering at the Church

We are having a blast planning for our Vintage Winter Gathering; we have some great vendors bringing some really wonderful things. We'll update occasionally to let you know more of what's going on, but we're really excited to get to do this in the little old 1890s church down the road in it's country setting. I cannot wait to see the building decked out for Christmas and the lights all lit. Check back for more updates later!



Directions: In Clatskanie, head north on Nehalem St.. Turn left onto NW 5th, going out of town (street becomes Beaver Falls Rd.)Go approx. 3 miles, turn left onto Quincy-Mayger Rd. at the 'Y' intersection. Go approx. .5 mile to “Y” which intersects Quincy Mayger Rd with Rutters Rd. Turn Right on Rutters Rd, go approx. ½ mile to intersection of Rutters Rd and Shepard Rd and you’re there!

Raggedy Anne Truama

Kristin and I had a really buncha lotta fun this weekend, first going to Barnhouse, then hitting the other sales between there and home. I got my Finnish cardamom bread and my marionberry and raspberry coffee cakes done late Friday night, to take up to Joe & Jermonne (Barn House), then needed to get some things done on my computer, with my printer, before we went. I was so frustrated, my computer couldn't recognize the printer, etc, we worked on it untill late, then Kristin ended up taking the work home to her own computer. After re-starting mine (????why didn't I think of that earlier) it finally worked. So, we ended up with 2 hours of sleep that night, because I needed to get the bread and cakes there by 7 am.
After we got there, I could finally relax. I wish I could say I got tons of pics from Barn House, but there were so many people everywhere, it was crazy trying to just SEE it, let alone photograph it. As usual, though, lots of neat stuff. They went all out with everything, including literally, a brunch!
Although I didn't get photos, check out their blog, soon I'm sure the photos will be there.

We hit a few other sales down the road, and when we got to "Out on a Limb", this is where my Raggedy Anne story came back to "haunt" me. When I was about 9, I wanted a Raggedy Anne doll soooooo bad. I begged for her. Christmas came, and yep, I got her! Heaven!! Christmas Day, on the news, a story came up about the most dangerous toys of that Christmas season. Do you know, they said Raggedy Anne was one of the most dangerous toys?? Can you imagine? They said it was because she was flamable! Well, I wasn't sure what flamable was, but I thought it meant she might just randomly "catch on fire"! The guilt I suffered, because my parents didn't hear this news story, they didn't know she could blow up and that she was dangerous, and I wouldn't tell. I wanted her too much! I remember going to bed that night, afraid for her life. I was selfless enough not to care about my own life, wouldn't you say? Well, I had many, many wonderful times playing with her. I took her everwhere. Yes, I still had the nagging guilt about the "secret" that she could catch on fire, but other than that, we went on with life.
One day, I took her to "work" with me. Yes, I did do child labor, seriously! When I got off the schoolbus, my parents were waiting for us (my sister and I) to go screen rock. You see, dad owns a rock pit, he would use his loader to scoop the rock, haul it to a shoot that dropped the rock onto a conveyor, that sprayed water on it, and cleaned and screened it. My dad would sell the rock, which was how he earned a living. My sister and I had the job of taking sticks and poking the rock, to make sure it went down the shoot. On days when other children played, we were working the mines LOL!
So, I took Raggedy Anne to work with me, you see, and when I got my break, we went off running and jumping over mud puddles. Imagine my horror when I dropped my precious Annie in the mud puddle! I tried as hard as I could to clean her up, my mom did wash her, but from that day on, she has had a "birthmark" on her face. Not real dark, but a reminder none-the-less, of the experiences she and I shared.
Well, the reason this all came back to me two days ago at "Out on a Limb", was these two Raggedy Anne dolls. Kristin spotted them first, and she LAUGHED, saying it looked like the same thing happened to these dolls. You know, I still have this doll, she still has her faint birthmark, and I have since confessed to my mama that she was flameable. I also now realize what flameable means and I feel good that she lives here still and she isn't going to blow up or start on fire.

A Bit of Baking....For Barnhouse Season Finale!!

Well, today will be a busy day for me with baking, doing a few things I really should have, could have, in retrospect would have.....But luckily for me, when I bake it's always best to do it as late as possible! I'm pretty honored and excited to get to be a "baker for Barnhouse", thanks so much to Joe and Jermonne, and of course Natalie, my friend! Kristin and I are excited to go to this last event of the year, which is always sooooo full of wonderful treasures. I just find it really inspiring to see how they put their heads together and come up with all the great ideas that were stuck inside each of their brains, waiting to come out!
I've been working on projects Natalie taught Chantel and I to do with soldering art, what fun that is! I've been frantically looking for a piece of wool in my huge and growing stash of wool for rug hooking. Randy says, why in the world would you start a project w/o making sure you had enough of that color????? Well.....when I do hooking, I usually am grabbing stuff, in a hurry, to take with me somewhere to work on while I'm waiting or visiting, etc. I just can hardly believe the skirt I had felted has been cut into that many strips that there is no longer a piece of it in existence!
Yesterday, Kristin and I did some errands for upcoming "Vintage Winter Gathering at the Church" Nov. 21st & 22nd. She's a pretty detailed thinker, I'm often the one that thinks something is a great idea, then she makes us do it. It's a little ways off, but we want it to be special. We're pretty excited that Natalie , The Vintage Sparrow, is going to be there, which also means we're going to get to see her even more! So, although we're excited to get to the Barn House, weighing on our minds is November 21st and 22nd at the old church.
Well, better get to baking, or I'll be one embarrassed, empty-handed guest at Barn House!

Beautiful Vintage Baby Shower at the Church

Well, I know it's two posts in one day, but I couldn't resist showing the baby shower my daughter put on for a friend. She did such a great job and the church looked so pretty with the sun shining through the windows on her vintage baby dresses.




































This is the little church we are having our first ever "Vintage Winter Gathering at the Church", which will be held November 21st AND November 22nd! Watch for more details!!

Longbeach Cranberry Harvest

We (Kristin and I) took all the boys and Talia to see the Longbeach cranberries being harvested. That is very interesting and all those fresh cranberries were so pretty. It was a beautiful day at the beach and we what a good time we had! Sometimes it's nice to just take a field trip! And look at all the wonderful primitive cranberry equipment! I want a cranberry scoop fork thingy! Did you see the cute frog we found?

40 Gallons of Fresh Cider

We must have had at least 50 people show up for our cider party. Actually another friend brought his press, too, so it went a little faster than in years before. Tons of food, great fellowship, and how wonderful that the weather actually cooperated for us! It drizzled occasionally, but no wind storm like they were predicting. We got 40 gallons, no included however many gallons we actually drank, so that was the bonus. I love doing this, opening up my home for friends. We came in later and ate again, got out our instruments, there were only 2 guitars, and autoharp, and a banjo, but we had a lot of fun. Everyone was relaxed and happy, and Randy and I love it when people say our home is comfortable. It's pretty humble, but it's a home, it's fun to enjoy company in it!

Cider Update

I thought I'd share the email going around to our church and friends, I thought it was sweet, and also.....it's getting me a little more excited for the company.

Hello all

With the weather reports going crazy, I checked with my friendly retired weather man (Dad) at Randy's Request. The weather won't be sunny, and there will be some rain but Randy has set up a couple of Gazebo's and staked em down good and tight and has "battened down the hatches"....between that and the covered area's it should be ok for staying out of the Rain. He has also informed me there will be a warm fire inside and plenty of room sit around the fire and sing. So, with that, I hope you all brave the weather and come join the fun at the Trass Residence tomorrow. With all the things going on over the next couple of weeks it would be to late for the apples to reschedule anyway. Pray for a break in the weather for some good fellowship and fun. God is good and faithful.....If you know someone who is not on the email chain and might be wondering if its still on, please give them a call and let them know or forward them this email. I will update the Web page if there are any changes.....

Getting ready for company

Whew! It's a whirlwind around here, and here I am taking a break. My husband is on the phone right now trying to figure out if we are really supposed to get a high-wind storm tomorrow, since we invited our whole church, and many other friends to our home for an "Apple cider pressing/potluck/music party". We told everyone weeks ago to plan on this, gather your apples, and your jugs, bring your lawn chairs and your musical instruments........ Then the weatherman has to try and foul it all up. We do have 3 good-sized gazebos we were putting up, but...high winds??? I am just finished steaming some grape juice from the 10 boxes of grapes Kristin and I picked in Banks 2 days ago. I have bowls of tomatoes and other veggies to get made into salsa, and here I am trying to get my house cleaned, too, b/c we're having a party! I get a little nervous b/f everyone gets here, our house really isn't fancy or anything, which, hey, that works, since it's probably going to be a huge mess after it's over! I'll try and get some pics and share how it goes this weekend. Well, better get back to work!