Changing Season

 It's a rainy Monday here in Ringle, Wisconsin.  It is really starting to feel like Fall.  I do like all the seasons, we enjoy each one here in Wisconsin.  I am partial to Fall just because I like the colors, crisp mornings, sunny and not too hot days, apples, pumpkins, soups, harvesting my garden and all the "things."

I did enjoy this past Summer.  I started out strong in the garden, weed free up until about August....

I did enjoy sitting here and plan to make a bigger "rest" area next year.  Maybe plant some flowers too.  My garden to too big now for just veggies for Al and I anyway.  The artist in me, likes the gardening process because that patch of dirt is a clean canvas for my creating something I enjoy.  

Alas, as nature winds down, giving us one last show of colorful beauty, I will be doing the same.  We have 1 more HUGE estate sale and then the Ringle Harvest Day to complete and round out our selling "season."  I will take a tiny break....hahaha.

Do you enjoy the changing seasons?  What is your favorite?

Blessings from Ringle, Wisconsin.  

Country Living

 

For 28 years we have called this place our home.  I always wanted to live in the country and have a hobby farm.  We have put much sweat, blood, tears, money, love and living in this old place and these 39 acres.  The original owner's name was Netzinger.  Several years ago, a man stopped and asked if he could look in our barn and told me those hand prints in the cement belonged to him.  Our neighbor told us stories of how this husband and wife, Nick and Anna, each had their own dairy cows - they kept it all separate.  I've heard many stories of different people who remember making hay or working here for them.  I wish I had some old photos from back then.

As you look at this picture, you do not see what I see.  I see the horses in the front of the barn with the girls riding them in the arena area, I see the goats at the other end of the barn, Mickey (our buck) on top of the roof of his shed, I see the multiple fair pigs over by the shade of that big old maple tree, I see Anna's grand champion Suffolk ewe Dotty, peeking her head from under the fence, I see a huge circus tent with dozens of vendors and hundreds of customers in our yard for the 10 years we had Ringle Harvest Day here, I see Skippy, Champ, Minnie, Dori and Dolly our faithful farm dogs, all still buried here in our little pet cemetery, I see our old barn cats and liters of kittens in baskets carried around by the girls and Midnight and Pumpkin hiding them in the bales of hay, I see monthly markets here I hosted, folk art classes I taught, gardens here, gardens there, flower beds here, flower beds there....lots of work for a hobby.  You also don't see the incredible feeling of thanfulness for all that I just mentioned.  

I can't help but think of this passage of scripture from Psalms 37: 3-4

"Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.  Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart."

Blessings from Ringle, Wisconsin.  

Hops Plant

 Probably almost 20 years ago, my friend Jackie gave me a shoot from her hops plant.  I planted over by my garden, near an old rusty dump rake.  I love how it looks hanging over the rusty tings.  It has grown into a huge plant with vines stretching several feet away.  This year, they grew over the top of my honeysuckle bush?  I'm not even sure that is what it is...but, I like it and so do the birds and bees.  The vines are filled with hops this year.  Sometimes, I miss cutting the vines for decorations until after they start to turn brown.  This year, I remembered before many turned that way.  

The only bad part was the nettles.  They were growing under that bush too.  I didn't know until I unwound some of the vines from it....sting...burn...

I pulled little bunches and tied them together to dry.  I plan to sell these at the Ringle Harvest Day for a few dollars.  

I had some beautiful gladiolus this year.  I was going to cut this one for a bouquet, but it snapped off....ughhh...

Overall, my 2022 garden hasn't been very good.  Partly due to my lack of pulling volunteer plants....they were tiny little tomatoes and I thought "oh those are cute, I can't pull them."  Now....it's a jungle of cherry tomato vines....not a one producing.  It had my thinking that there must be a blog post in this.  

You know when you know you shouldn't do something, but you think, "it's only a little (fill in the blank)" what harm can it do or be.  Well, little things grown into big things.  Often times taking over the good things and hindering all productivity or progress.  I can't help but think of cookies.  Sure, I like to bake them, "one isn't going to hurt" then around 8 pm I've eaten a half dozen.   I'm sure you can think of this example and some relaventcy in your own life.  

Last year, I had an amazing garden and I kept notes and hints for this year.  Like, don't just wait for sunflowers to go to seed, cut some and enjoy them.   I guess, I will add to it from this year, don't let the "cute little volunteers" grow, they will take over and you'll regret it.  

Blessings from Ringle, Wisconsin.  

Going to Step out on Faith

 

Well, I guess I'm going to do it.  Al gave me a great idea, we found the perfect spot, now all that is left is to sign the lease and pick up the key.  As of September 1, Town Hall Trinkets Online Estate Sales will have an official drop off and pick up storefront.   I'll share more when I know the "for sures" of it all.  

I will also use this space to hopefully host at least 1 needle felting class a month and have felting supplies available for purchase.  

I know, I know...."you have a cute building on your farm."  Well, that cute building has become the storage unit for all the things I sell.  I still plan to do sales at my farm, once I sell some of that out of there.  Also, "we" like our privacy...."we" as in Al....ahahah.  So, this will be a good "fix" for now.  Who knows how it all will go...that's the step of faith.  I just know, I can't keep storing things here anymore.  

So that and working on an estate sale in Stevens Point area are on my agenda this week.  Have a great Monday!

Blessings from Ringle, Wisconsin.  

Baby Dicky Bird

 

My brother found my hospital baby picture.  I've never seen this before.  Or, if I had, I don't remember it.  If I never knew who this baby was, I would know it was a "Ritchie" baby by the eyes and mouth.   From that to this....

Lots of living between these 2 photos.  Love, life, loss, lessons...things that still bring me to tears of joy and sorrow are lost somewhere between the gift of that time.    

As summer rounds out, I am so thankful for the season I'm in.  I have had a fun summer and look forward to an "eventful" fall.

Blessings from Ringle, Wisconsin.  

I Will Monday - Find the True Story

 The garden gave me an object lesson reminder.  

Look at these gorgeous peppers!  Wow are they nice!  To look at them from this side, you see their size and beauty.  But, if you turn them around, you see the real story.

You know, that is how lots of things in life are.  It's how you take the picture that tells the truth.  I am pretty open with my issues, not just here on my blog, but in life really.  I have always let myself be vulnerable in telling the truth on myself.  In doing this I can be free to let go of the "pretty" side of my story and work on the "ugly" side without any facade or fakeness.  

I posted something on my business facebook page:  Town Hall Trinkets, LLC:  

I was laughing this morning thinking about this ….. doing an estate sale like this one was like pregnancy. First you’re excited, finding good stuff, staging making it look good, but then you hit pricing and oh boy will this ever end. Restless nights, will I get everything done, will people come, will they laugh at our prices (cuz this has happened), let’s retire talk, we’re too old for this even. Then you open the gate to the sale, have huge crowd, holding area full, some complaints but overwhelmingly more compliments. As we drove home last night Lisa said “we did it” and then you think, well that wasn’t so bad, let’s do that again. . Truthfully, we started just last week and the past 2 weeks felt like 9 months.

Come see us today 8-7 ….

While at the sale that day, a customer came and shared something with me about this post. I didn't know they felt this way about themselves, so I had to speak truth. I then shared that, yes, marking items is hard! We want to make money for the client, so we can make money for "bustin' our butts" yet keep enough "wiggle room" for the buyer to feel like they got a good deal or could resell it. I know, in 1995 a picker could pick things for $1, however, this is 2022 and the world ain't the same. On ALL levels! Anyway, I said "we see dealer friends pick up the tags and roll their eyes" but, we still SELL it. Truthfully, some of the items we have let pass through our hands this past year, we could have bought and sold ourselves.

I had to tell this person, that "yes, this business is tough" and something I was told decades ago, "there ain't no friends at the auction" (estate sales too). Flipping shows, American Pickers, Storage Wars, shows like that make all "this" look easy and many are picking it up as a hobby and that is great!

Just keep in mind, just like this pepper, not everything you see is "all that" flip it over and see the real story. Even the pictures of this sale showed staged items, it didn't show the dusty, hot, dirty, droppings, sweat equity that came with it.

Those 2 peppers from my garden, I cut off the black part and still ate it. That is what we can learn from this. Cut out the bad and move on to making something good from the rest.

Blessings from Ringle, Wisconsin.

June to July 2022 Happenings

 

This past spring, Al and I decided to plant the old horse pasture in wildfower seeds.  We went on a tour of a lavender and wildflower farm last summer and loved the look.  Anna's neighbor has a small field of them too - so pretty!  It is happening!  Baby flowers are starting to grow.  We planted a perennial blend with self seeding annual seeds.  I have high hopes, but truthfully, this is an old horse pasture and I hope quack don't choke out the flowers.  It is our intention to put our bee hive out there next year.  Cosmos are a bright show of color.

I've been working on creating a cute space in and around my greenhouse.  It is my favorite spot now.  This little oak, spoon carved dresser was only $20 at a backroads farm sale.  I took a wrong turn while traveling and had no idea of this sale.  It may have been wrong but ended up being right for me.  I bought several things.  I was going to sell this, but I like it here.  The drawers hold my pots and supplies.  

June just flew and now July is here.  I purposefully tried to keep June open for me.  I wrote in my journal last June - "do not do any sales" and "you want to have fun gardening and enjoying your yard."  I did keep to that too.  Well, with the exception of picking up almost 2000 salt & pepper shakers from a client.  We are setting up a "pop up" at the Ringle town hall tomorrow afternoon.  We were listing some on the group, but we need to "weed" out some first.  

As far as my business goes, we did look at and talk with several families with more appointments this next 2 weeks.  I think we will be booked until December with sales.  We have some amazing pieces of furniture and unusual smalls coming up for sale.  

Well, Al is raking hay and should have wagons to unload tomorrow when the kids can help.  Hay will be on the agenda for next week as well - should weather hold out.  

I hope you have a great weekend.  Do you have a special space you enjoy?  If so, let me know about it.  

Blessings from Ringle, Wisconsin