Hand-me-downs make a pretty Easter table

As you'll no doubt see, despite the fact that I am kind of a dishware freak with way more sets of dishes than most people would consider reasonable...I don't really do tablescapes. The reason being that with my two guys plus my crazy schedule, I am lucky if I even get the table set at all before everyone sits down and digs in. And, the guys just do not care. My husband recently tried to serve lobster and filet mignon on the everyday Corningware. (I said, "Are you kidding me! We have *three sets* of china!")

All the same, I like being festive despite the guys' lack of interest, and I had a good reason to set a pretty table for Easter, because for the first time I actually own good silver---my mom gave me my grandma's silver set when I was her visiting earlier this month. Here are a few pics I took before I polished it up.

So, after a morning spent singing our hearts out in celebration at church (DH sang in choir while I sat with the little fella until we sneaked up the choir loft at the end so I could put in my high notes on the Hallelujah Chorus), here is my attempt at pastel Easter jollity, featuring the new additions. Mom gave me the china as well---I am ashamed to say I can't remember who it belonged to, although do cut me a little slack---her dad was married five times and she's been married three, so I have a lot of steps to say the least(!)

If you're wondering what we had, we went full-out Southern, with congealed salad, baby lima beans...

...corn, mashed potatoes...

...turkey (notice the hubby has brought two ugly forks to the table despite the fact that I have a silver fork laid out---haha! see what I mean?)...

...and last but not least, gravy and dinner rolls.

And I just had to share this picture of the little man relaxing after dinner out on the deck with a good book on the hammock.

I'm posting this to Nifty Thrifty Tuesday, because there's nothing so thrifty as family hand-me-downs. Hoping to have some more good thrift stuff next week, as I am in charge of the autism support group's booth at the county yard sale this Saturday---and you just know I will do a little shopping myself!

Trip to North Carolina, Part 1

We took so many pictures this week I will have to just share some of them with you over the next couple of posts, I guess (which is good, since Clint is going into rehearsal for the musical Rent next week, so I will be busy.) So, I'll start with some vintage thingies from my mom's house, because if anybody has more vintage thingies than me, it's my mom (and if anybody has more vintage thingies than her, it's Clint's mom---but that's a story for another time!) Not sure which branch of the family it was, but someone owned an appliance store (Mom also has an old Norge neon sign which is hanging in the laundry room.) Here are some advertising stamps from the store:

Here are a few of her cool old cast-iron motorcycle toys.

Here is a neat old antique compass. My mom's parents did a lot of boating, so it may have come off one of their boats.

Here are some vintage kitchen thingies: a brown Corningware bowl, a mixing bowl that (I think) was her grandmother's biscuit bowl, and I love this old nut chopper.

Finally, here is an old phone. Isn't that fun? I guess you had a party line back then, so you just rang the operator.

I'm posting this to Vintage Thingie Thursday.