More Christmas goodwill

A quick December update today!  Almost two weeks ago we drove to the Atlanta airport to pick up our visiting foster child from Colombia for the holidays.  We've had a very busy and interesting two weeks.  I thought I would share a few highlights of our activities.

A week after her arrival, we took our foster child, Yara (not her real name, but Colombia does not allow the children's real names to be posted online), to a really amazing event at our church.  Our church has a really unique (and huge) ministry to foster families in the area; in fact, that was how we discovered our church in the first place.

Anyway, once a year the church sponsors an event for Christmas, where the church collects donations of new items for foster families.  The foster parents are allowed to make a wish list for each foster child, with one large (read: expensive) gift requested, then a list of the child's interests, so items can be purchased in line with those.  Then the youth group goes shopping for all the items on the list.  We heard two hundred kids (and adults) from the youth program showed up at Walmart one evening to shop.  What Walmart didn't have from the kid's lists, was ordered through Amazon.

The end result?  We were able to take Yara on event day - called "Fostering Hope" - to receive the large gift we chose for her.  Then she was able to navigate a room full of tables overflowing with gifts, with her own personal shopper, selecting things she wanted from each table.  I told you it was amazing!

This helps foster parents so much, with not only financial support, but emotional support too.  Every foster parent makes a stop in the church prayer room, where volunteers pray over the foster kids and families.  And gifts are not only for the foster kids; the church also gives to the biological kids in each family; their way of recognizing that biological kids are serving and sacrificing as well as being part of a foster family unit.  As we were leaving the event, someone gave a $100 Amazon gift card to my son "just for being amazing." 💗 (He is!)

Tavo helping Yara pick out new pajamas.  Her "personal shopper" has a new scarf for her on the right.

My husband and Yara, the decision of what to choose from the art supply table was difficult!

She loves art.

(Note that the clothes she is wearing all came from the church.  The church has a year-round "closet" available of new and used donations that foster families can "shop" in whenever they have a need.  (It's all free for the families.)  It's a huge help when a family gets a sudden placement of kids who arrive with nothing.  Yara came to us with just a backpack.

Our temporary foster family.  What a fun day!

Here's a pic at the end of Yara with all her new stuff.  There is even a team of people who wraps everything for you!  Most of the foster parents go without the kids, so the gifts will be a surprise, but since we didn't know her tastes, we asked permission to take her with us to choose what she wanted.  She just has to wait till Christmas for most of the gifts.

We had no idea what big gift to ask for her (we had to submit the request in October), but we thought a bike might be fun, even if it's just for three weeks.  We have a tradition each year (because Tennessee has enough warm nights in December) of going out several evenings riding bikes together around the neighborhoods to look at Christmas lights.  But we didn't have a bike for Yara.

So it was a huge surprise to discover that she didn't know how to ride a bike!

My husband had to walk alongside her, holding it up while she wobbled the first afternoon out.  But by the end of the second day she was a pro. 🙂

Here we are in front of a random house looking at lights.

It's always fun!!

A few other highlights:

Yara wanted to bring bunuelos, a Colombian pastry, to Greg's family Christmas party.

Now Tavo knows how to make them too!

I ordered three of the same "Woobles" kits, so we could all make a crochet project together.  Our Felix the Foxes are a work in progress!

It's been the perfect project for three people who like creating.

Not sure how Tavo's came out the best (since he has zero experience), but he helped Yara redo hers...there's a learning curve!

We had our Colombian friends over for dinner and games.  Fun times!

To be honest, it has not been ALL fun times.  We've had our ups and downs, even in just two weeks.  We're still not sure where this is going, or how it's going to end yet.

At the end of the day, we focus on the positives.  Tavo, our son, was in Yara's shoes six years ago when he was a host child.  He keeps telling me how much she reminds him of himself then.  (Read: extremely quiet and guarded emotionally.)

But I have found something I've been looking for ever since our foster child placement left us just over two years ago: a greater sense of purpose.  Our two years of foster care were the hardest of my life, but I also woke up each morning with a sense of satisfaction greater than I've felt at any other time in my life, knowing the majority of the minutes in my day were serving someone with great needs, someone I was not related to in any way.  I've been looking for that feeling ever since.

My son gets up every morning and makes chocolate and breakfast for Yara.  He has come full circle; where once he was the receiver, now he's the giver.  And he tells me he wants to adopt from Colombia himself one day because he understands the kids.  (See?  He IS amazing!)  Seeing God transform his life gives me hope for us all.

If that's not the spirit of Christmas, I don't know what is.

Christmas goodwill

This is not a post about thrifting, or antiques or other cool old stuff.  But since the blog is called "The House of Goodwill" I'm probably not too off-topic.

This post is an update on the lives of my family and me.  And it will be brief.  (I've got lots to do today!)

I spent the greater part of the last two years working on (and finishing - more or less) The House of Goodwill; work that mostly consisted of painting and furnishing the house.  Before that, I was a full-time foster parent for almost two years.

I've spent the last year praying about what God has next for me.  How can I serve?  What can I do?  How best to fulfill the purpose of my life by helping someone else?

I couldn't help but think about my son - who is adopted - and the amazing way I observed him come to know God and give his life to Him.  And I wonder sometimes where he would be if he wasn't here with us.  I know God used us in his life.  If he could do it once, he can do it again.

And while nothing we do in life is guaranteed a result we hope for, we don't love and serve others for results.  We do it because it's the right thing to do.  It's what God wants us to do.

I saw enough adoption profiles before finding our son to know there are a million other kids out there just waiting; hoping and praying for the family they were denied.  I felt a stronger and stronger sense that this is what God has for us once more.

So, all that lead to this: tomorrow, we will be driving to the Atlanta airport to pick up a thirteen-year-old girl, from a Colombian foster home, to spend the holiday with us.  She will be with our family for three weeks, leaving on the 28th.  She will come to us from a program called Kidsave, that finds adoptive homes for older kids in foster care (in this case, from the country of Colombia).  It is the program through which we found our son.

We are so very excited to share the holiday with her; considering her life so far has mainly consisted of losses, hopefully we can bless her a lot.

Here is her profile:

Isn't she beautiful?

Whether she wants to be adopted by us is yet to be seen.  (The program in part is to help families and potential adoptees see if they feel they are a match.)  But we have made the decision to adopt again regardless.

(And I would just like to take a moment to point out - if it isn't clear - that we are not planning to adopt solely as an act of charity.  While I understand that in a sense it is, when we adopt it will be to have another son or daughter.  Several people implied to me in the past that the adoption of our son was some form of charity or good work we did; this only helps me realize some people have no idea what adoption truly is.  Yes, it's a good work.  But I'm sure no one knows the incredible blessing that my son has been in our lives, or the joy he's brought.)

We hope to bless her.  I know she will bless us.  I'll try to post but I know we'll be busy...so just in case I'm not online much this month I'll just say it now:

Merry Christmas!  May peace, love and goodwill fill your holidays and your hearts. 💗🎄

a Thanksgiving weekend day out

I kind of started a tradition a few years ago; on Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend I like to go antiquing somewhere nearby.  This year I went to Shelbyville, Tennessee, an hour from my house.  There's a place there I love; it always has beautiful things.

One of my favorite things about this store is it's outdoor space.  It has a HUGE fenced-in area full of vintage outdoor furniture and decor.  

I love all the potential fun projects here.

I'm always gardening in my head, and I imagine all these statues and planters in beautiful spaces.

I wasn't planning to buy anything, but I saw this great fountain, and well, I've always wanted a fountain but never found the right one at the right price.

She needs to be cleaned but I thought she was lovely, with the double basin.

I just need to add the fountain parts.  It will be a fun project!

And when I saw this iron cart, that was in really good shape, and really solid, it had a great price too.  $110.  Usually iron outdoor anything is quite expensive.

I could fit a lot of plants on this!

It just needs a little sanding and a fresh coat of paint.

I also really liked this urn:

Something tall and something trailing need to go in this.

It will be so pretty!

And finally:

I liked the style of these vintage Halloween yard decorations.

Again, a little fresh paint and they'll be perfect.

I also found a few gardening books I liked (my favorite title - "The Facts of Light" - about houseplants).  I had so many outdoor things I thought the owners might give me a discount, and they did.  It never hurts to ask...

There was so much great stuff, though.  Here a couple of things I didn't buy:

There were some interesting-shaped pieces of driftwood for sale.

I thought this would be cool on a wall somewhere with a small owl inside the hole.

I've always loved vintage deer statues like this!

I'd love to put him in the yard somewhere at The House of Goodwill - the deer are everywhere there.

Well, I did my part for Shop Local Saturday!  As I was checking out, I was telling the owners how much I like many of the beautiful old historic homes in Shelbyville.  "There should be a lot more.  The biggest and most beautiful one isn't here anymore," they informed me.  "It had terracotta columns in front and was the showplace of town."  Apparently, a developer bought it and tore it down at 4am in the morning and replaced it with a bank and a parking lot. 🙄😠

Was there really nowhere else to put a bank?  Stories like this make me so sad!

I am thankful for all the old places that still stand. 💗

Some fun finds in Florida: a thrifting report

I just returned from a six day trip visiting my parents in Florida.  I went to help them do their Christmas shopping for the family, wrap the presents and start decorating their house.  We were busy!  But I did manage to take an afternoon for one of my favorite hobbies. I 💓 thrifting in Florida!  There seems to be an endless number of antique stores, flea markets and thrift stores within 30 minutes of my parent's house.

I was short on time, so I just picked three places: Angels in the Attic, a church thrift store three miles from my parent's house (an old favorite that I visit every time I'm there), an antique mall (which was enormous), and a Goodwill just down the road from where they live.

Here are some of the interesting things I saw:

One thing I love about antique malls is that every item is different, and there's not usually more than one.  I am always seeing something I've never seen before, and there are a lot of one-of-a-kind things that you're not going to find at your local Target.

For example, this carved sea horse.  This is great, and didn't come from a factory in China.

This booth had some beautifully carved items.

I have a soft spot for vintage milk glass mugs that remind me of my childhood, like these Raggedy Ann and Annie cups from the '80s.

I often wonder if they can be microwaved?  I've googled the question, but haven't found a clear answer.

I think they can be...(?)

It would be a lot more fun to have them if they could be practically used!

Like I said, I love to see something I've never seen before.  I was fascinated by this enormous driftwood (vase?) that was about 4' high.  It had three blown glass (vases? bowls?) that had been form-fitted to fit on the driftwood solidly.  (You could remove them easily, but they weren't easy to tip or knock over.)

I think it was around $350.

On the table next to the huge driftwood piece, were four smaller versions.

I thought these were the most amazing vases; pieces of art that in the right setting would look amazing.

I bought the one on the right (with the clear glass); it was marked down from $100 to $65.

I love a great vase that can be filled with just two or three stems!

The glass was really thick and solid, and like I said, the vases down wobble on the wood at all.

Where would I ever see this again?

Angels in the Attic, the church thrift store, has the best book room!  Everything is cheap, clean and well-organized.  I also love that they sell used magazines I like for a quarter.

My dad (above) and I have spent a lot of time in this room over the years.

And finally, Goodwill.  This (obviously new) Goodwill is the most modern Goodwill building I've ever seen.  It was really beautiful, and it had a lot of great stuff, but it was also expensive.

There were some great coffee cups.  I'm always looking for good ones to add to the cabinets at The House of Goodwill.

Very true!

Almost bought this one!

I'll say it again...you're not going to see this stuff at Target!

I thought these two wooden lamps with a Revolutionary War theme were interesting.

Both of the characters on the lamps were holding lanterns, that you could stick a smaller bulb in for mood lighting.

Like lots of cool vintage stuff, in the right setting I think they'd be so great.

And finally....

Ok, so I am less afraid of used stuff than almost anyone I know.

But even I have my limits.

I think I just found one.

I'll pay the extra few dollars for a new one, should I need it.

I just wish I had more time!  I paid the price for my thrift store visits: on the way home the backpack I had brought was WAY heavier to haul around the airport; it was full of books I'd bought.

Worth it, though.

And amongst my "fun finds" was the discovery that I do have some boundaries.  Who knew?

Some mid-century magnificence

I've been working at the zoo the second half of this month, and haven't had (and won't have) too much time to post, due to a million things going on.  I have some longer blog posts in my head I've yet to write, and don't have time to just yet, so I thought I'd share some pics from a book I bought at a thrift store in Wisconsin:

I have a couple of versions of this book, which was republished every few years.

This one is from the 1950's.

(The book is in great shape, too!)

Note: I am an old house lover, and I love ALL old houses: farm houses, victorians, colonials, antebellums, etc.  The House of Goodwill was built in 1974, and I love it's architecture!  This book showcases mid-century style, which I also distinctive and fastastic.

These books are filled with photos; at the end of the day, I love to make some tea and sit and look through books like this.

Click on the photo to make it bigger.

I love the modern wood stove here!

It's interesting how many things here look current, like the patterned wallpaper, the monochromatic dishes and the half painted cabinet.  It really is true how styles always come back, just in slightly different forms.

Maybe in another ten years, paneling will make a comeback, or the crocheted rug.

(And don't say no way - everything seems to come back into style eventually!)

I love to see a perfect time capsule.

Again, the monochromatic wall and paneling look really modern.  So does the painting over the fireplace.

I love the shape of midcentury sofas, and these chairs are perfect.  They look comfortable, but they aren't enormous and poufy like so much furniture now.

Check out this cool ceiling-high "railing!"

Kind of looks like the paintings on the wall are in prison.

I'm not sure I *love* it, but it just makes such a strong period-stylized statement, that it kind of *does* make me love it.  I mean, this is different!

There's a lot going on here: super modern "railing," reddish tile floor (love!), grandfather clock...

It's just fun to look at!

Oh, to have a sunroom like this!!  This would be a dream. 🙂

When I glance at this photo, I always think at first I'm looking at a small swimming pool, not a rug.

I want to eat lunch at this table!

This patio!

Mid-century patio furniture had great style.  It's so collectable; whenever I see iron patio furniture from this era that has survived well, it's always expensive.

I'd love to have a glider from the '50's some day - but unless I had a covered porch or sunroom for it, I'd never buy one if I could.  If it's survived this long, it would be a shame to kill by putting it outside.

I just want to lie on this lounge chair and sip some wine and look at the stars.

This room - with it's matching bed linens and formal window treatments - reminds me of my grandmother's house.  Maybe that's partly why I love this mid-century look.

A lot of 1950's style was combining older, antique furniture with modern style like this.

It just looks cozy to me.

This is the back cover of the book, but there is so much more good stuff inside!

I wish I could be a time traveler, but if I could just pick one era to go back and explore, I have no idea which one I would choose...

It sure is fun to think about!

The Portsmouth Ghost

I've been enjoying a couple of my favorite thrifting finds this month; I've found some great vintage Halloween items over the years.

I absolutely love this pair of ghosts!

The first one I found at an antique store in Ohio.  We were visiting my aunt a few years ago, and the day we left, we went into town to see some beautiful river murals.  Next to the river was a great little antique store.  I had to see it, of course.  It was October, and while looking around I saw this great little ghost.

This little guy was $9.

I thought he was so cute.  While obviously not an antique, I had no idea who made him or where he came from.  I call him "The Portsmouth Ghost" since I found him in Portsmouth, Ohio.

I think the reason that thrifting is so fun is because of the occasional and unexpected great finds.  I loved this little ghost so much, imagine how excited I felt later that year when I came across this in my local Goodwill:

It was another ghost - clearly by the same maker - in the same style but a different design, in the original box!

 Only $5.99!

And now I know they were made by JCPenney, about 25 years ago.

The original price on the box then was $19.99.

The details in these pumpkins are so delicate.

I just love these ghosts!

And finally, two days ago we got our first below-freezing temperatures of the year.  I went out to the garden and cut the last two flowers remaining.  (Not counting the knockout roses, which the cold temperatures didn't seem to impact.)

One balloon flower and one pink hydrangea.

The last of summer!

This amber candleholder was under $10 at an antique store, and the little amber bottle was $2 at Goodwill.  I love using amber glass in the fall.

I've been working every night at a trick-or-treating event at the zoo.  I love coming home and finding my husband in front of the tv with the ghosts lit up.  (He attached all the lights to a remote control for me, which I love!)

It's always nice to know I'm not the only one who enjoys them!

The lower level: before and after

Continuing with more before-and-after pics!  So, I never know exactly what to call this part of The House of Goodwill.  I used to call it the basement, but it's nothing like the basement in the house I grew up in.  This house is built on a hill, so the front door opens up to the second story of the house; when you go downstairs you can walk outside at ground level to the backyard or the driveway.

So the main living area is on the second story.  Anyway, all that said, here is the lower level of the house or "the downstairs apartment" as we sometimes refer to it.

Here are two pics of it from the day we bought the house: 

The door on the left is a bathroom, the door on the right leads to the garage.

While the upstairs has a wood burning fireplace, this one below is gas with an on/off switch.

I kind of like having one of each.

The wall not in this pic, to the right of the fireplace, is a wall of floor-to-ceiling glass with a sliding glass door.

When we first bought the house I loved this room, because it was the only light-filled, bright room in the whole house.

Here is the kitchen in the lower level.  The back wall is painted dark olive green (always with the dark colors!) and has the original dark walnut-stained cabinets.

The room has a wonderful tile floor.

The bathroom aside, the lower level is one large room.  It only lacks a bedroom to be a complete apartment.  We put a sofa bed in it in case a large family rents it and someone(s) want to stay downstairs.

Here are the after pics:

Quick story: I saw this awesome game table on craigslist for $200, and I thought it would be perfect for the house, but I was really busy and waited too long to contact the sellers.  Then the ad disappeared. 😟  I was SO mad at myself for losing the opportunity....UNTIL three weeks later, the ad miraculously reappeared, but now the table and chairs were only $100.  They hadn't sold, so the seller lowered the price.  Turned out they'd never even been used; they were purchased to help stage a high end home for sale, then moved into storage.  Score!

You can see the wall of windows in this pic.  I just love the light!

I bought this sectional from a lady on craigslist who was moving out of state for $300.

The tv-facing end has a recliner; the other section has a sofa bed.

This chaise lounge was around $100 (I have it written down somewhere) and is in great shape.

This is MY spot when we watch tv.

The oak side table was free from some people getting rid of furniture.

The orange container I won in a contest, I keep it full of magazines I've finished for guests to read.

This enormous shag rug was $100.

Everything in this room was in like-new condition when I bought it.

Everyone loves lying on the rug, especially my dogs!

Side story: this was the one room in the house that I really didn't have a good idea of what I wanted to both color and furniture-wise.  I started collecting stuff that seemed like it would work furniture-wise; the rug I mainly bought just because of the size.  I knew I really, really wanted to paint the kitchen cabinets orange, but the only things we knew we were keeping and not changing in the house were the window curtains (because they are a special size and custom) and the barstools at the island, which happened to be maroon.

I was really afraid everything I was collecting just wasn't going to work, and that orange cabinets would not go with anything.  (Orange was one of my theme colors for my 1970's house.)  But in the end, as we were putting the room together, we were all amazed at how well everything worked, color-wise.  Orange and maroon?  Hard to explain, but it really does look great!

I found this huge peacock wall hanging for $45 at an antique store, and I just loved it!

Birds are one of themes throughout the house, and the blue and purple (maroon?) colors in this help bring the room together.

My husband says he feels like he's in a Thai restaurant every time he walks by it.

(But he loves it.)

Another view of the room and the door to the back yard.  I let my husband and son put a huge tv down here.  (It was not allowed upstairs!)  It covers a lot of the beautiful stone on the fireplace, and it's so big it eliminates the possibility of a mantel (! 😧 !) - so we did it my way upstairs in the living room and their way down here.  That's fair, right?

And finally...

Here is my beloved orange kitchen!

Sanding and painting these cabinets was a NIGHTMARE, but we got it done.  

(We also soaked, sanded and cleaned all the hardware to remove the tarnish - it took hours and hours of work because there were so many.)

The walls are the same light green color we used throughout the house.

Honestly, it's so much brighter and cheerful now.  I really think the pictures don't do justice to how nice it looks.

I found these resin 70's fruit wall hangings at Goodwill - they were just what I wanted!

They looked like they could have come with the house.

Finding era accurate decor made me so happy!

And here are the cabinets on the other side.

The dishwasher that came with the house was broken, so I found someone giving one away on craigslist who was changing kitchen colors.  It's free and it works!

My husband taught himself how to install a dishwasher.

It was a project.

Some of my favorite little details in this room I forgot to take pics of, so I guess that'll be another post in the future.

This was a big room, but I bet we didn't spend more than $800 total - that's for all the furniture, the huge rug, the games, the dishwasher, and everything in the kitchen.  (This is a very well-stocked kitchen!)  Considering that two new pieces of furniture could cost $800 together (or more), I think I did well!

My guess is that probably 90% of the things in this house were purchased secondhand.  There are very, very few new things in the house.  (Bed sheets and towels being the main newly purchased items.)

I was sitting in the living room at my home/house yesterday, looking around and thinking how almost nothing in the room was bought new, so I didn't do The House of Goodwill this way just because it's not my main residence.  This is how I live.

I like the challenge of making things beautiful on a budget.  I like the sustainability factor.  I like not spending a lot of money unnecessarily!

And finally, I have to credit my son, who painted the entire downstairs himself.  (Including all the walls twice, because the paint company gave him two gallons of different paint, but that's another story...)  He painted all the kitchen cabinets as well.  All I did down here was sand the cabinets and help clean the hardware.  (But it definitely felt like enough!)

It wouldn't have gotten finished without him.  He learned a lot.  He's picked up a lot of simple handyman skills from this house; he's an excellent painter, and an excellent cleaner.  He's seen what's possible with hard work.  And he's observed what can be achieved when you manage money well.  He's not afraid of thrift stores!

A finished house and a kid with skills for life.  Would more could I want?