American Pickers' Gift...

American Pickers Metal Tile

Dear friends came to visit us at Hickory Hill Farm yesterday, and they brought gifts. Some for the farm, and some for me.

Linda and I have been friends for forty one years. We met in 1976, when I moved across the state to Portage, Wisconsin. I had worked all the way through high school as a cashier in a grocery store, so I naturally looked for a job as a cashier when I moved to a new city. I quickly found work, and met Linda at my new job. We immediately hit it off, and our friendship has endured all these years.

She and her husband had three children, and their daughter, Marie, Linda and I used to sew together every evening after work. I had a new outfit to wear every week. In fact, I became so accustomed to sewing with the two of them over the years that when I first moved back to my hometown, I couldn't sew for years. I didn't like sewing alone anymore! (You know that I've since overcome that.)

When Marie and her fiance' Tim were married, I was one of her bridesmaids, and I've watched their family grow with four children of their own, and now they, too, have beautiful grandchildren.

Marie and Tim brought a beautiful, old tin tile for me, and Linda brought two acorn gifts. One was a tea strainer painted to resemble an acorn. The other is a hanging ornament featuring a real painted acorn with fabric leaves. (They're wonderful!)

American Picker's Tile Source

Marie and Tim took a trip to visit the home base of American Pickers and they purchased three of these green tin tiles. They were actually "picked" from a Wisconsin location.

Marie's suggestion was to attach one to a piece of barn board, and add hooks or something interesting to create a wall hanging. She gave one of the tiles to me. I'm going to think on this for a while to create something useful for the farmhouse.

Crocheted Shawl from Linda

 

Linda also crocheted a gorgeous shawl for me in my favorite shades of blue and purple. She does lovely work, and this is already a treasured gift.

We spent a wonderful afternoon together, and caught up on so much lost time. I promised a trip to see them again yet this fall, and I sent them home with gifts from our kitchen...homemade banana nut bread and Cornish saffron bread. I'm looking forward to our next visit.

Before I close for today, I wanted to let you know that our younger son and our granddaughters visited on Saturday. We were able to give the girls their Birthday gifts, and they were a big hit! I took pictures, which I shared on the Brynwood FaceBook page.

Today will be a homekeeping day. The garden needs weeding and laundry awaits. Once those chores are done, I'll be working on custom orders until I'm caught up. It's going to be a wonderfully busy week.