I was wondering what to write for my next post and asked my hubby what he thought would be something good to jump back in with! Without any hesitation he said, “The Last Yard Sale…tell them you’ve said it before, but now you REALLY mean it!” I thought for about 2 seconds and said, “you’re right!” That was my last yard sale… nothing like going out with a bang in 98 degree weather. It was SO hot Saturday, and the heat index was 110! I’m glad I didn’t know that until we were packing up and heading to the Goodwill.
We had a bit of a mix up before we even got started… Rebecca and I were up and ready to go over to my mom’s house at 5:30 a.m. Saturday morning but my hubby was being a little “pokey like” and kind of joking saying he’d see us at 8:00… I said, “you better not show up then!” He was in charge of putting up the signs down by the roads!! Well, not to add too much to the drama of the day…my hubby said he knew he heard me tell him the yard sale started at 8:00, when in actuality it was supposed to start at 7:00 a.m. So, he showed up at 7:00 but people had already been there…(from the ad on Craigslist) so he hurried and got the signs up. Other than that slight mix up and the dreadful heat, the rest of the day went pretty smoothly.
We had lots of buyers and gave them lots of bargains! We had a Free pile and that seemed to be the biggest hit. My hubby was cleaning out the closet in my mom’s garage and the men were standing around and I was asked several times, “Is he going to bring more free stuff out?” Yes, he did…and we got rid of so much. Here’s what it looked like when I snapped this picture…
If you happen to want to see a close up of the junk…click on them. :o)
…and here it was a little while later…
One of my mom’s neighbors came by and wanted to buy something of my mom’s so she bought some glasses and her compost bin. Another young girl bought a mug to remember my mom. One lady took some free wood and said she was going to use it to build onto her chicken coop. One man bought the glass ducks my mom had brought over from when we were stationed in Italy, and a friend of mine bought the large slab of marble from Italy that we brought back. A young girl bought the encyclopedia entitled “Fun and Games” that we spent many hours looking up magic tricks and word puzzles and mazes. I think it was Volume 14! A young Amish couple bought the desk that was in my mom’s bedroom. We had it marked $20 but hadn’t had any “lookers” on it…so when they decided to buy it we told them we would only sell it to them if they would pay us $10 for it… they looked like they had won the lottery!
Here are a few random pictures of the stuff we had…(actually it was a picture of some of the stuff LEFT…) most everything on that table that you saw earlier sold. The garage and out about 20 feet in the driveway was filled up with stuff!!!
My mom had some of those plastic pump sprayers in her closet, filled with stuff that we didn’t know about. We found them back in the corners of her shed. My hubby put them out in the Free pile, knowing full well, we were going to have to take care of them as they were probably hazardous. Well, fortunately, some man took all 3 of them and said he’d figure out what it was inside and use them.
You should have seen the man and wife who bought the green metal glider that my mom had on her back porch. They paid $3.00 for it and said they’d have to figure out some way to get it in their car. I watched them carry it up the driveway, but someone asked me a question and I never saw how they managed to haul it away.
There were stories like that all day long… people looking through my mom’s stuff and us wondering how it would look in their homes…
When it was time to call it quits…about 2:00, we had all made money.. momma, us and Rebecca. The best part was just getting rid of things we didn’t need anymore and blessing others! We didn’t get rich but we made almost $350 between the three of us. We bagged all the leftovers up and put them in the back of Rebecca’s blazer and one piece of furniture and a large Christmas tree in my hubby’s truck and took them to Goodwill.
Then we had to come back and take care of all the stuff that was in the Free pile… (mostly junk and trash) and haul the tables back to our neighbor. It was good to get rid of so much “unnecessary” stuff, and lots of people went home very happy… like the family that bought the queen size bed, box spring, and a full matching comforter set for $10.00. Or the lady who bought momma’s old rickety ladder and falling apart wood table…for her daughter, because she “liked things like that!” I only ended up bringing home one thing… a CD that my mom had! I was pretty proud of myself!
Here are a few other yard sales I’ve “participated” in… Yard sale in 2016
This on from our church… Have you ever been to a Ginormous yard sale?
Here is another church yard sale I helped with… Church Yard Sale in 2015
See you soon,
Blessings, Jeanne
Wow, Jeanne, what a relief it must be for all of you to have that over with!!
The year after my dad died, we had an estate sale–had a group that just did estate sales come in and run it–and they later told us (we were encouraged to stay away until towards the end….) that some of the neighbors thought so much of my parents, they bought little things to remember them by. I found that incredibly touching. And I see that some of your mother’s friends and neighbors did the same.
After the estate sale, I had a couple of garage sales and then, yes, donated the balance to Goodwill or whatever. It was a lot of work, but also fun in some ways.
Mom was still alive at that time, but in an adult care home, as she had dementia and was unable to care for herself. So my brother and I (mostly I, I have to say) took care of everything.
Now….time to relax a little bit–and then start thinking about sewing again!!
I’m sure you are very thankful that it is finally OVER, Jeanne! I feel for you, working in that horrible sticky, hot, weather. We had several garage sales around here too, and the people hosting them looked miserable! It’s amazing that others want to go out in that weather and look at someone else’s junk, or stuff! You certainly did a good job, and made some money to boot, so you have to give yourself a pat on the back!
I guess you will be tying up all the lose ends of the sale, and getting ready to close on the house. Wonderful!
Today a tree man will be coming to get the neighbor’s tree out of our yard. The back yard is littered with branches and a huge tree trunk from the storm Saturday. We still have two branches on the roof that Michael can’t get to yet. Did you have a storm, or at least rain Saturday? I hope not, at least not what we had!
I guess you will again begin to start thinking about sewing that Civil War dress, and try to get back to the kitchen eventually. Your kitchen is workable now, you are using it, so it’s not as pressing as sewing, is it? 😉 Yes, relax first!
Dear Jeanne, it sounds like in spite of the hard work and heat, you had some fun. That is just what you needed.
I hope you were able to put your feet up and enjoy an ice tea afterward.
I’ve always felt bad about sales of someone’s things, but getting things into the hands of people who will love and take care of them really is a good thing. If you could have done it in 70 degree weather, that would have been nice, but you couldn’t wait around for a perfect day. Now when one comes, you can do something else in it. Today will be easier and accompanied by a great feeling of accomplishment.
I am so glad Linda’s weather missed you. We got a beautiful rain, and today weeding should be a very pleasant experience.
Thank you for sharing your great garage sale. So glad for you that it is over especially with the heat. So, did that chippy blue cabinet sell quickly? Just curious. I’m sure you and your workers will be wiped out today. I remember those garage sale days of old. And we still have to have several ourselves to achieve in the not so distant future.
We went to the annual family picnic at my cousin’s ranch yesterday. Catching up with everyone was great, and the grands had fun with their second and third cousins. Last I saw of them was in the back of a large military truck taking a tour of the ranch. I’m sure they will have fond memories. We had to rush my cousin back to catch the bus to San Francisco. We come from all over northern CA for the event as well as a second cousin and family from Idaho.
Hope that house sells quickly and you can do something in the fun department.
I’m sure you are relieved to have it all sold or given away. Glad things went well with it. Yes, as Joy said, was the blue cabinet among one of the first things to go? I’m sure people got some nice things. You never know what you will find. I have an antique barrister bookcase that my dad gave to me years ago that I store books and magazines in. I saw one just like it at a yard sale and passed it up. Now that I have a doll collection I’m actively looking for another. The neat thing about them is that they are super easy to move. Each unit comes apart from the next and the top and bottom are separate as well.
I’m also glad to saved the Moses basket, you won’t regret it. You’ll find an interim use for it.
So, Laura, I have one of those bookcases too. It was my grandmother’s. I like it because the glass door fronts lift up and slide back inside out of the way. I too would love to have one just for dolls, or for any of the other collections we seem to have in boxes around here now. I think I’ll start looking too. Great idea.
I’m so glad you got that behind you. You all must have been exhausted from the heat! Now you’ve gotten everything cleaned out and can get the house sold. One more milestone behind you. Your mom is so lucky to have your help, and I’m sure she appreciates everything you do. I hope you and your family are getting some rest!
What a huge accomplishment, Jeanne…it seems from on this end that you are accomplishing SO MUCH this year already…not tons of sewing, but necessary “life” items that have needed tending to. I do hope you’re getting sufficient rest in it all. The heat as well as all of the emotional journeys you’ve been on need time and rest to recupe. Thanks for being such an admirable friend.
Blessings.