We Ate Some Turkey and then a Football Game Broke Out!

Odom Family football game - Thanksgiving 2007 - Jasper, AL.

Odom Family football game – Thanksgiving 2007 – Jasper, AL.

My in-laws used to live in Jasper, AL and had a rather large piece of property behind their house. I remember there was always a sign inside the back porch that said “Odom’s Farm.” It always felt like the perfect place for kids to run around and play and make up games and just get outside instead of sitting in front of the television set.

The Sunday before Thanksgiving in 2007 was a cool crisp afternoon. We had just finished eating turkey and all the extras when one of the kids (the cousins) pulled out a football. Before you knew it, all the cousins – young and old – were outside in the huge backyard and tossing the ball around. First it was just the guys tossing and running after each other. But the Odom girls are pretty darn competitive and quickly joined in! It was one of those spontaneous times in families…we couldn’t have planned it if we had tried and it was the perfect Thanksgiving afternoon. Even Bentley, the dog, got into the act!

Bentley decides football is fun!

Bentley decides football is fun!

Here are a few of the photos I took that day in a slideshow…when I see these, I feel like it’s happening all over again!  Oh, and another thing you’ll notice…there is only one cell phone in the picture….those were the days!

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Family Traditions

Odom cousins - Thanksgiving 2014 - on Mimi's swing in Jasper, AL.

Odom cousins – Thanksgiving 2014 – on Mimi’s swing in Jasper, AL.

Family…like branches on a tree, we all grow in different directions, yet our roots remain as one.  I love this quote…

This time of year, I start thinking a lot about family traditions.  I’ve often thought that some day I would write them all down from what I remember doing as a child and add all things we did when my own children were little.  The one constant though all this is family.  Whether the tradition remains today or has morphed into something different…we do these things because we want to connect as a family and make it a part of our story.

Family traditions can bring you comfort and strengthen the bond you have with your family.  They teach you the value of immediate and extended family and how to take the time to be together.  Creating and maintaining traditions is easier when your children are young.  It becomes a little more challenging when they get older and get married or move away.  It definitely becomes a juggling act at that point!  Some traditions run their course…like breakfast with Santa and going to the annual lighting ceremony at the local mall.  These traditions are driven by age.  Others change because the dynamics of your family change.

For my Zuniga family, Thanksgiving has always been the major holiday to celebrate.  Before my parents moved to Alabama, I would make the  trip to Chicago every Thanksgiving to spend the week with my sisters and parents and do so many of the things we always did together over the 10 years that I lived there.  Traditional activities ranged from shopping at Oak Brook Mall and hoping there would be a little snow, getting up to watch the Macy’s Day Parade while the turkey was still cooking, then fighting to get the first taste of stuffing from the turkey.  This was always a battle with my youngest sister.  I would sneak into the oven with a spoon and sample the dressing when no one was looking – beating my sister to the punch – although I’m sure my mother knew!  At some point during the visit, we would watch WGN’s family classic movies.  Those movies were the staple of every Sunday afternoon in the Zuniga household when I was in high school.  Certain sounds and smells bring it all back.  Certain music does too as we would gather around the piano and play and sing along.  All the Zuniga sisters were in choir and we all knew the same music.  My grandmother used to say we could have been the Lennon Sisters – she and my grandfather loved Lawrence Welk!

My husband (Eddie) has always been adamant about attending the traditional Odom family Christmas lunch each year.  It was the one time of the year we got to see his father’s extended family all at once.  The lunch was originally pulled together for his grandmother (Mama Odom), and when she passed away, the Aunts decided to continue the tradition.  Eddie made sure we were represented each year.  If one of the kids had a conflict due to sports or scouting activities, he would take the kids available and make the trip to the lunch and see everyone.  Now so many of the children are married with children of their own – a whole new generation of Odoms are enjoying the gathering.  I do hope it continues…

My sister Kanista with my girls, Emily and Anna Marie – Thanksgiving 2004 in Birmingham, AL – having a girls lunch at Cantina at Pepper Place.

On the Zuniga side, when all my sisters used to travel to Alabama for Thanksgiving with their young children, we would spend Wednesday before Thanksgiving having lunch and shopping and then come home to get things ready for our big dinner.  The husbands would take the kids to a movie and spend the day with them and give he moms a break.  As the nieces and nephews got older my sisters began staying home – they all live out-of-state.  Soon it was just me, my mother and my aunt (mom’s sis) and my girls having lunch and doing a little shopping.  When my Aunt passed away, we just stopped going.  It just didn’t feel the same.  In recent years, my mother has mentioned missing the “old days” when we all used to spend that day together.  I understand her longing for something that held such great memories.  It’s hard to move on sometimes, especially when something was so enjoyable.  We resurrected the tradition a bit these past few years with mom and my girls and added something new.  We’d come back to my house and get turkey preparing lessons from mom.  It’s been fun for my girls and I know my mother has been thrilled to pass along her turkey making expertise to all of us!

Making Thanksgiving turkey with Nana! My girls learn how to make stuffing!

Making Thanksgiving turkey with Nana! My girls learn how to make stuffing!

One of the first Mimi Swing Photos I took of the Odom cousins...

One of the first Mimi Swing Photos I took of the Odom cousins…

When my youngest child Emily was just a year old,  a major tradition emerged with the Odom children.  I began taking pictures of my three children (Charlie, Anna Marie and Emily) and my twin nieces (Kate and TJ) on their grandmother’s outside swing.  We would take “the Mimi’s swing” picture at Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas – any holiday when we’d all get together.  But for some reason, Thanksgiving was the one holiday that really stuck.  Over the years, we’ve added the older Odom grandchildren, great-grandchildren and significant others to the photos.  This year at Easter, we even added my niece TJ via iPad when she couldn’t make it home.  It was that important for the kids to have everyone present and accounted for on the swing no matter what the holiday.  I love this swing tradition so much and especially at Thanksgiving!  Seeing the way the family has changed and grown over the past 21 years is priceless to me and I know it is to my brothers-in-law too, as we all get older and look back.

The Odom cousins in Mimi's swing - Thanksgiving 2014 - TJ, Kate, Anna Marie and Emily - Charlie always standing in the back!

The Odom cousins in Mimi’s swing – Thanksgiving 2014 – TJ, Kate, Anna Marie and Emily – Charlie always standing in the back!

One thing is for sure, family traditions evolve and change, that is a given.  But I have a feeling we will always be taking a swing picture of the Odom kids at Thanksgiving.  And for that, I will always be thankful…

Ten years of swing photos - I had this framed for my mother-in-law (Mimi) and it hung into her house until she passed away in 2011.

Ten years of swing photos – I had this framed for my mother-in-law (Mimi) and it hung into her house until she passed away in 2011.

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Leaning how to make mom’s Thanksgiving turkey with my girls in 2013. Mom and I had just finished stuffing the turkey!

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Thanksgiving turkey making shenanigans with Nana…although I don’t think my mom knew what they were doing in the background!

Getting Organized…

My to-do list this weekend was rather long.  My main goal was to get my daughter’s room organized.  Since she got married in April, I’ve been slowly moving things it her room so I can use it for a photography room.  Unfortunately, I didn’t even step into the room this weekend!

Our Thanksgiving table is set!

Our Thanksgiving table is set!

Instead, I worked downstairs in the family room, kitchen and dining room.  It’s been awhile since I’ve pulled everything out of the cabinets and closets and reorganized!  In the process, I packed 5 boxes of “stuff” to drop off at The Salvation Army.  It just felt so good to reorganize so I kept going this afternoon.  I got all my Day of the Dead items returned to their storage spot in the basement and decided to pull all the Thanksgiving décor out.  I always love going through my decorations every year.  For Thanksgiving, I have a few special items I like to use every year.  In particular, there is a candle that my son Charlie made in Kindergarten that we put on the buffet every year.  There is also a prayer “cut-out” that my daughter Anna Marie put together one year.  There is a pilgrim couple and an Indian couple that my mother used to use every year when we lived in Chicago.  I’ve added those to my décor each year.  I still need to add the Thanksgiving tree.  It’s something we started several years ago where family members write what they are thankful for and put it on the tree.  I’ll explain more about this in a separate post.

Anna Marie's made this cut out craft prayer one year in grade school.

Anna Marie’s made this cut out craft prayer one year in grade school.

So, now the dining room table is set and decorated for Thanksgiving, although I’m not sure if we will be enjoying the table this year.  We are heading to my brother-in-law’s house in Jasper this coming weekend for the Odom family Thanksgiving celebration.  It’s a big transition year for our family with my daughter Anna Marie getting married in April and my niece Kate getting married in May.  My niece TJ also moved to Florida for a job opportunity.  So much transition in one year.  It’s exciting for these young people but also means we need to adjust our traditions to accommodate the newlyweds and everyone who has moved away.  Bittersweet is the word that keeps coming to mind…

Charlie made this Thanksgiving candle in kindergarten.

Charlie made this Thanksgiving candle in kindergarten.

On the bright side of reorganizing, I took our former computer cabinet and turned it into a bourbon bar for my husband!  I remember when we bought this piece of furniture…it’s a large and heavy piece and I loved the dark wood and storage it provided.  When we got rid of our desktop computer, it became a dumping ground for odds and ends.  It was driving me crazy so cleaning it out this weekend was liberating.  My husband sent a photo of it to a consignment store to see if we could sell it but meanwhile, I thought – wouldn’t this be a cool bar for his bourbon collection?!  I mentioned it and he loved the idea…so voila!  It’s now a bourbon bar!

Eddie's new bourbon bar created from our old compute cabinet!

Eddie’s new bourbon bar created from our old compute cabinet!

I’m looking forward to Thanksgiving week when I’ll be off work and can really get some organizing done.  And Christmas decorating for me begins the weekend following turkey day!  Just in time for my annual Cookie Exchange party…more on that later!

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Prayers for Paris

Image of Eiffel Tower from Lovelyplanet.com

Image of Eiffel Tower from Lovelyplanet.com

Friday night I was watching the coverage of the terrorist attacks in Paris, France.  Trying to get make some sort of sense out of what was happening.  But seriously, how do you make sense out of terrorist attacks?  So senseless and so heartbreaking…

I was feeling so helpless watching all this.  Then a story emerged about the soccer match between Germany and France and how as the stadium was being evacuated, the fans began singing the French national anthem – La Marseillaise” – (click here for the video.)

It’s interesting…I heard that song and immediately began singing along.  All the words and the melody came back to me immediately.  I was in 3rd grade attending a private school called Cupeyville Elementary in Puerto Rico.  As a 3rd grader, I was learning Spanish as a first language, English as a second and French as a third.  One of the things we learned in French class – the French national anthem.

So…Friday night after the news coverage…I found the anthem on YouTube and decided to sing along – in solidarity with the French and offering prayers for healing.

Vive la France!

Sojourns Fair Trade Store

IMG_0007This afternoon I stopped by Sojourns Fair Trade Store in downtown Birmingham.  This place is such a treasure!  I mean,  I seriously never leave this store without dropping a chunk of change but I just can’t resist all the beautiful things!  From jewelry and clothing to lovely pieces of art from all over the world…if you are looking for unique gifts, this is the place!

When I arrived, Melissa Kendrick, my friend and owner, was busy getting new clothing merchandise ready to display for sale.  She greeted me with a big hug and began telling me about the clothing and a pop-up shop she is preparing to open in Montgomery.  I still remember the first time I met Melissa.  It was at her first location just down the street from her current location – 2017 Third Avenue North.  I went in at the recommendation of two friends who worked nearby and immediately fell in love with the place!  I remember having the nicest conversation with Melissa and thinking how wonderful to have a store like this in Birmingham!

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Sojourns was the first wholly fair trade store in Alabama.  They offer unique items produced under fair trade standards from 57 countries.  For more about what fair trade is, visit the Fair Trade Federation website.  A sign in the store shares that fair trade wages are designed to provide fair compensation based on the true cost of production and are not based on any developed world wage standards.  Fair wages are determined by a number of factors including the amount of time, skill and effort involved in production, living wages where products are made, the purchasing power in a community or area and other costs of living in the local context.

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Over the years I’ve purchased quite a number of items for my home and as gifts.  A few years ago, I took my daughters with me and I was oohing and aahing over a wooden salad bowl set and they surprised me with it for Christmas!  I was recently in the store with my mother and bought quite a few Day of the Dead items to add to my growing collection.  I have a collection nativity retablos too.  Today I was looking for a few more nativities and there were quite a few from all over the world.  It was hard to decide!

One of the Day of the Dead items I bought recently at Sojourns.

One of the Day of the Dead items I bought recently at Sojourns.

Melissa told me today that she wants to maintain a Day of the Dead section in her store as well as a Christmas section too.  She is expecting quite a few large shipments just in time for Christmas.  If you are looking for something different and something that you can feel good about purchasing, stop by Sojourns and take a look around.  I guarantee that you won’t leave the store without an item or two!  Here are a few photos of the store from my recent visits in a slide show.  Seriously…go visit Melissa at Sojourns soon!

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Meeting the Janes…

IMG_9879A few weeks ago I wrote about Scott Dinsmore and how his website and a workbook he published helped lead me into the direction of becoming a blogger.  Part of this planning process involved doing some research and finding people and information on how to do this.

During my research I discovered something wonderful…I discovered See Jane Write. I had heard about this network – and The Janes – through my friend Nicole Thurston (Destination Unknown) a few years ago.  She is a blogger and attended one of the See Jane Write conferences and wrote about it.  I remember tucking that bit of information into the back of my mind for some reason.  Now I know why I did that.

After the self-assessment I did with Scott’s workbook, I went online and looked up See Jane Write and started reading.  I also noted that there was a mini-blog conference coming up at Homewood library.  I couldn’t wait to sign up for this conference!  I signed up and anxiously awaited that Saturday in July 2014…I was ready to meet The Janes and see what I could learn from them!

As I began gathering information about the conference and who the panelist and speakers would be, I dug a little deeper.  I looked up their blogs, took note of their blog design, read through some of their stories/posts. I really wanted to get a feel for what they were saying and how they were saying it. I didn’t know at that point if there was really a specific way to go about blogging. I also found all these bloggers on Instagram. Since I love photography, you know I LOVE Instagram! So I began following the panelist and looking through some of their photos to get a feel for their personalities and their lifestyles.

Then the night before the conference, a photo popped up from panelist – Chic in Academia (aka Bertha Hidalgo) and I commented on it.  She mentioned how excited she was to be a panelist at the conference.  Now, how many times have you commented on an IG photo of someone who has thousands of followers and you get a reply right back? That had never happened to me but it did with Bertha!  I commented that I would be attending and she immediately followed up and said to come see her and say hello!  Wow!  I was fascinated!

So….I did!  I got to the conference fairly early – I’m always an early bird and I quickly took a seat on the front row.  Can you tell I was eager?  I was excited to see Chanda Temple (Chanda Temple Writes) there and we sat next to one another on the front row.  I took a walk around the room a little bit later to explore, checked out the vendor tables and hen there she was…Bertha was sitting with two other panelist.  As I remember it, we made eye contact and it’s as if we already knew one another.  She jumped up and hugged me and I tell you, it made me feel wonderful!  We chatted for a bit, she  asked me about my blog – which I hadn’t launched yet – and I told her my ideas and what I hoped to accomplish.  She was so encouraging to me that day and continues to be as I take this journey.

Meeting Chic in Academia - Bertha Hidalgo - at the See Jane Write Mini-Conference.

Meeting Chic in Academia – Bertha Hidalgo – at the See Jane Write Mini-Conference.

As I met and spoke to other bloggers that day and shared my vision for Southern Senora, they were all so encouraging and liked my blog concept saying there really wasn’t anything like that “out there.”  I still had work to do to narrow things down but it made me feel good that everyone was so willing to share their experiences and offer advice.  I had come to the right place, for sure!

Morning panelist...

Morning panelist…

That day I learned so much and the mini-con also confirmed a lot of things that I had researched and discovered about blogging and myself in the process.  In addition to hearing from Bertha, I loved hearing from panelists Erica Bunker (Erica B’s DIY Style), Vanessa Culpepper (Budding Fashionista) and Heather Brown (My Life Well Loved).  Later in the day a great panel discussion took place featuring Carla Jean Whitley of Birmingham magazine, Tanya Sylvan of All in Stride, Williesha Morris of My Freelance Life, and Alexis Barton of Same Chic Different Day.  Alexis also gave the opening keynote speech and then Megan LaRussa Chenoweth of Southern Femme closed the conference out by sharing her success story.  What a day!

Afternoon panelist

Afternoon panelist

And all this was possible because of the vision of one woman – Javacia Harris Browser – founder of See Jane Write.  Javacia is quite simply a rock star!  I am forever grateful to her for creating this organization that has given me access to such wonderful and encouraging people.  Thank you, Javacia!

Meeting the Janes has been a highlight in my blogging journey…

 

The Fabulous Zuniga Men

Photos of my dad (center) and his two brothers - Lorenzo and Felix - from my Day of the Dead altar.

Photos of my dad (center) and his two brothers – Lorenzo and Felix – from my Day of the Dead altar.

Today is Veterans Day.

It’s a work holiday for my office.  I decided to stay at home today and take down my Day of the Dead altars.   While I was dismantling and gathering all the photos, I put aside the ones of my dad and his brothers in their military uniforms.

The Zuniga Brothers…Praxedis, Lorenzo and Felix….

All the Zuniga men were Veterans.  All so handsome.  All so ready to serve in some capacity.  Today I reflected on these photos and those that my extended Zuniga family posted on social media.  Today I took some time to reflect upon their sacrifice for our freedom.

Thank you dad, Uncle Lencho and Uncle Felix…so proud of you all.

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My dad…Praxedis Sotelo Zuniga

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Uncle Lorenzo Zuniga

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Uncle Felix Zuniga

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Uncle Lencho and my dad – Praxedis Zuniga

 

Christmas Music in November?

My large collection of Christmas music at home...I like adding a few new cds each year!

My large collection of Christmas music at home…I like adding a few new cds each year!

Every year in early November, the Christmas music begins on a local radio station.  Now, I love Christmas music, but listening to it in November…that’s a bit too early for me.  I mean, hello?  Remember Thanksgiving??!!!

It does prompt me to begin researching new Christmas albums about to be released for the year.  I have a rather large collection of Christmas cds and I really enjoy adding to it every year.  Of course, some years are better than others.  If I buy a new cd or two, they go directly into my car so I can listen on my way to work and back the month of December.

This past weekend I was at Michaels and stumbled upon some Christmas cds in the midst of all the crafting items and Christmas decorations.  (Honestly, trying to find Thanksgiving decor was difficult…)  My sister, Kanista and I had been talking about the group Pentatonix a few months ago.  She had just discovered them and went absolutely head over heels for their music.  They released their last Christmas cd – That’s Christmas to Me – in 2014 and somehow I missed getting it last year.  I spotted it in the array of Christmas cds at Michaels and so I bought one cd for Kanista and one for myself.  On my way home, I broke my own rule about “no Christmas music before Thanksgiving” to give the cd a listen…it is FABULOUS!!!

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I also bought another new cd – a group called Straight No Chaser.  I don’t event remember how I discovered this group several years ago.  Their cd – Under the Influence – was released in 2013.  I remember thinking I would pick it up two years ago and then never did.  I can’ wait to give this one a listen in December!  (Yes!  I’m waiting to open this one up!)

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Each year the week of Thanksgiving, I go through and select a few older cds that I’ll listen to in December.  There are always a handful that make the cut every year – no matter what!  There’s The Andy Williams Christmas Album for one.  This one brings me back to when we were living in Puerto Rico and my mother would play the vinyl album on our Magnavox combo tv/record player/radio unit.  There are certain songs that make it Christmas for me and one of those is hearing Andy sing “It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year.”  I also sang  this song with my show choir group in high school so I’m always singing along in the choral version.  I just love it…so many great memories with that song!

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Christmas with Dino was a recent purchase but again, these song by Dean Martin are oldies but goodies!  I have always LOVED Dean Martin – he reminded me of my dad in a lot of ways…at least the person I saw on TV when I was growing up.  Dino makes the cut every year.  I’ve grown tired of the many renditions of the song “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” but not when Dean Martin sings it!  Makes me wish I had been around during the Rat Pack Days!

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The Carpenters Christmas Collection – what more can I say.  I am always blown away by Richard Carpenter’s musical arrangements.  Karen Carpenter’s voice is a given – it’s timeless to me.  I mean, didn’t we ALL want to BE Karen Carpenter when we were growing up?  That voice!  Merry Christmas Darling” always gives me goosebumps.  Incredible to think that the lyrics to this song were written in 1946 by Richard and Karen’s choir director and twenty years later – when Richard was his student – the director gave the lyrics to Richard and he composed  the melody!  There is one other song on this two cd set that isn’t well-known – Little Altar Boy – that is simply gorgeous.  If you haven’t heard it I strongly encourage you to give it a listen.

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Ottmar Liebert is a German guitarist, songwriter and producer and is best known for his Spanish influenced music.  You would find him in the new age/jazz section if you were looking for a cd.  I was first introduced to him in 2001 by my cousin Nelinda when my sister and I were visiting her in New Mexico.  She had one of his cds playing in the background as we enjoyed a meal and chatted.  Perfect “set the scene” type music and Ottmar quickly became a favorite of mine.  His cd called “Christmas Santa Fe” is one that I used to always play on Christmas Eve when my family was larger and we would gather at my house to enjoy my mother’s enchiladas, rice and beans, salsa and margaritas!

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Last but certainly not least…I found a compilation cd set called La Parranda by Fania records.  The album describes itself as representing “the essence of Latin American music.”  Fania was a New York based record label that became known for promoting salsa music.  It features music by Hector Levoe , a well-known Puerto Rican salsa singer, and Willie Colon, a salsa musician.  This music always takes me back to Christmases in Puerto Rico.  I have always liked this cd title because Parrandas are a Puerto Rican tradition where a group of friends or family members, go unannounced over to a neighbor’s house very late at night to sing traditional Puerto Rican Christmas carols. The songs are called “aguinaldos” or gifts. I remember doing this as a child and bringing maracas and  “guiros” to accompany the songs.  A guiro is a Latin percussion instrument made of a hollowed out gourd that has parallel notches cut in the side.  It is played by rubbing a stick or tines along the notches to produce the sound.  I remember everyone would argue over who got to play the guiro.  It was always the coveted instrument!  Great memories but doesn’t music do that to us?  It takes us back in time and lets us relive our precious memories…

Meanwhile…I’m getting these cds ready to load in my car so I can enjoy the sounds of the holidays, my way…  What Christmas music makes your holiday special?  Let me know!

 

A Look Back at Birmingham’s Day of the Dead Festival

Candles light one of the altars at Day of the Dead #13

Candles light one of the altars at Day of the Dead #13

Every year I look forward to Birmingham’s Day of the Dead Festival.  This was year 13 for the festival and while it was a rainy day, the rain stopped right before the event was set to start and people made their way downtown.  As I’ve always said, DOD is a photographer’s mecca!  For a week after the event, it’s fun to see all the social media posts and photos of everyone dressed out in sugar skulls.  Photographers J. C. Bravo and Larry O.Gay are always on hand and capture incredible shots of the people .  In my opinion, their photos are breathtaking and really showcase the beauty of Day of the Dead.  Check J.C. and Larry out on Facebook when you get a chance and you’ll see what I mean…

Photo taken by photographer Larry O. Gay with my camera. Thanks Larry!

Photo taken by photographer Larry O. Gay with my camera. Thanks Larry!

At one point early in the evening, Larry grabbed my camera and took a photo of me with my husband, and my friend Theresa Deleon and her daughter.  So I now have an “original” Larry Gay photo on my very own camera!  Thanks Larry!

Meanwhile, instead of talking about the event, I’ll just let my own photos tell the story…

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A Quick Stop at the Thrift Store…

Grab bag of ornaments from New Mexico - plus one Hallmark ornament from the thrift store!

Grab bag of ornaments from New Mexico – plus one Hallmark ornament from the thrift store!

Just like the title of this post…every time I make a “quick” stop at a thrift store, I always come away with some fabulous finds!

My baby sister, Kanista, is to blame for my obsession with thrift store shopping.  She lives in North Carolina and has a Saturday routine of breakfast and then waiting at her favorite thrift store for the doors to open.  I went with her a few years ago and saw very quickly that she had a definite system for going through the racks of clothes and the shelves of tchotchkes.  We left that store with two large bags of great finds!  I was officially OBSESSED!

Back in Alabama, I developed my own “system” when stopping by certain thrift stores that I now frequent.  A few of my favorites include the Salvation Army stores – both in Hoover and on Green Springs highway, Lovelady Thrift and 55th Place in Woodlawn.  Alabama Thrift in Alabaster is another good one but I don’t get out there as often.

This past Saturday though, I decided to make the trip to Alabaster and see what I could find.  I was running errands in the area so I allotted about 30 minutes before I needed to get back to Hoover.  First I started through the knickknacks.  They had SO much Christmas stuff out already and Christmas music was blaring through the store.  Honestly, I was a little annoyed and not quite wanting to hear Christmas music yet.  I walked through the dishes and platters and low and behold, I found a Mexican pottery dish in green and bright yellow!  Beautiful!  And it was sectioned like a lazy susan.  I turned it over and the price was $3.99.  Score!

Mexican pottery piece found at Alabama Thrift store for $3.99!

Mexican pottery piece found at Alabama Thrift store for $3.99!

I next went through the clothes and found an Anne Klein pea-coat for $4.99 and an Eileen Fisher Italian yarn pink sweater for $4.99.  Not bad!  I was running out of time so I went through the knickknacks one more time and as I was rounding one of the aisles saw a bunch of “grab bag” Christmas items.  Now, these grab bags don’t generally get my attention.  Usually they are “like” items bunched together for a quick sale.  But one of the bags got my attention…

I saw a round clay ornament with the words – New Mexico – on it.  I picked up the bag and noticed several other clay ornaments – a kokopelli, a lizard, prairie dog, mission church and two tepees.  There was also a 1997 Hallmark ornament – a mouse in a Mexican sombrero!  Now, I have collected Hallmark ornaments since they first came out in the 1970s so this was right up my alley!  The price tag for all of these items… $2.99!!!  Cannot WAIT to add these to my Mexican Christmas tree this year!  They are going to be perfect!  (Stay tuned to a future post!)

Hallmark "Feliz Navidad" ornament from 1997 - part of the grab bag items.

Hallmark “Feliz Navidad” ornament from 1997 – part of the grab bag items.

So I walked away from Alabama Thrift with all these items just under $20!  I DO love a bargain!!!

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