Sunday, April 25, 2010

Has it Really Been a Year?

I just noticed that Toronto Yard Sale Snoop has been chugging along for a year. Thank you to all my blogging buddies who visit a little and a lot. This blog is by far my most favourite distraction.

Yesterday I went to two small yard sales and one big school yard sale at Cosburn Middle School. It was a real East Yorky affair. I love my neighbourhood! It was at the first yard sale that I had a feeling of deja vu. Was this the first yard sale I had documented for this here blog?
I asked the man if he had a garage sale last year that included an inflatable trampoline that he insisted on inflating and letting Duncan bounce upon. Turns out it was (see picture below). The man's sister told me her brother is a notorious hoarder, yet he hoards so well, nobody in the family knows where he stashes his junk until it gets hauled out for yard sales.

Duncan bouncing on the musty trampoline a year ago.

Here's junior in our driveway circa now. I bought the easel for my class next year. The erstwhile trampoline salesman asked $5.00 for the easel. It's got a white board on the other side. Duncan is clearly thinking to himself, "Man, the neighbours are going to think Mom's a whack job taking pictures of random stuff in the drive."
Alright. I didn't buy funky vintage stuff yesterday. I did get something pretty at Value Village today, which I'll try to photograph tomorrow, if the sun decides to pop out. Above is my stash of goodies from Cosburn Middle School. They wanted $17.00, but I gave them $20.00 as a donation to the school. The people were down homey and cool.
Wooden construction machine cars. It was supposed to be a set of four, but for some reason, six pieces were in the box.
Duncan's still in that fruitful lining everything up stage. Here he shows off his new car collection, including a vintage Porsche.
Inside this $2.00 nature bag were...
Two cute birdhouse kits, two baggies of bird seed, and wood glue. How comprehensive. Craft time, here we come!
Gumdrop tree. My mom always had these around the house at Christmas. I'm going to put in out at the Boy's Reading Club this week. They should get a kick out of it. It cost five cents!
A "Not for resale" tool box kit from those kiddie Saturday workshops at Home Depot. I had to buy it for Duncan. Cost: one loonie!
A book on pulleys and gears. I'll end up teaching this again, I'm sure.
Huge magnetic animal puzzle. They included a unicorn in it, just to drive parents nuts. "But there was a unicorn in the animal puzzle. They do exist!" I also got a flag bag, for no apparent reason, other than the fact it was dirt cheap. I think I'll store something else in it. Also pictured is a skull pencil case and felt board cut-outs. Felt boards were big when I was a kid. I'm on a mission to bring them back. The original price sticker was on the felt set. It cost $8.99 at Winners and was unused. I think I paid .50 for it.
Bunnies, bulldozers, Arthur, and dinosaurs. It's a four-year-old boy's life. I've tried to be gender neutral: "You can play with dolls." Duncan won't hear any of it.
See...
This book pops with awesome 3-D scenes.
Assorted books including Math-terpieces, Greek mythology, a nature book by David Suzuki, and a book that teaches kids how to draw the Titanic.

I also bought several board games and puzzles. It was a fun sale. Sorry that there's no Pyrex or elegant things for the house. Sometimes we thrift for practical stuff too.

Here's my song of the week. It's jangly girly Scottish pop par excellence. Bye for now,
Erin



6 comments:

  1. You got very cool stuff even if there wasn't any Pyrex or vintage kitchen stuff.

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  2. Happy One Year Anniversary of bringing delightful blogs to your "adoring fans"!! Tell adorable Duncan he has some really neat cars and trucks there!

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  3. Ah, thanks! I he digs it when I take an interest in his stuff.
    All the best,
    Erin
    (Hi Linda!)

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  4. Well, well, well, a whole year old! You're such a pro, that I assumed you'd been at this blogging stuff for ages.

    You had a great "kid sale" day! It's great that you got into the kid groove, because you know if you're looking for good kid stuff it will not be there.

    We homeschooled our boys, and I'm reliving lots of the fun we had with today's post. Before we had children I "knew" that everything kids did was learned, boy did I have a LOT to learn. Even though our boys had baby dolls that they adored, they still came out of the womb making engine noises. How is that?! (BTW my Hubby is a computer geek not a grease monkey.)

    I don't believe I've met "Boy Wonder" before. He's quite the fellow. Must be a charmer too. Have you ever had someone offer to blow up a jumping mat for you? Me neither.

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  5. Mom Wald - you're amazing. I love hearing these stories because we sort of know each other by our thrifty vintage interests, not the whole person as it were. Home schooling would not be easy, but I'm sure it was rewarding. When I was six, we lived in Australia for six months and my school teacher mother tried to home school all four of us. We were so caught up in playing outdoors and experiencing new things that Mom didn't get too far with reading, etc. When I came back, I had to go to a "slow learners" room for a few months until I caught up. I'm sure they'd call it something more correct these days. I guess the moral of the story is that I remember Australia more than I remember learning how to subtract when we returned. I saw strange and amazing animals, held precious stones that my amateur geologist uncle had mined, tried new food, and met my grandmother for the first time. How do you beat that?
    As I teach and as I raise our son, I'm always trying to remember that tactile experiences are important. Life is short.
    Thanks for your kind remarks as always. If we lived near each other, we could drink tea and go African violet shopping.
    All the best,
    Erin

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  6. Happy Blogoversary!!! I've really enjoyed reading over the last year and looking forward to many more of your funny, interesting posts!

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About Me

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I'm a slightly off-beat Toronto-area teacher who enjoys writing and photography. I come from a family of collectors and now I'm dragging my own family around to yard sales. It's just a bit of fun. Enjoy the scenes.