Magpie Monday - Old Friends

Every now & then I figure I should write a Magpie Monday post that's not JUST made up of toddler clothes.  (Spoiler... there are still toddler clothes in this post, but not yet).  This is that post.

When Squeaky was a tiny little Squeak, I had a Poinsettia plant in the window, I'd bought it just before Christmas when I was huge & pregnant & thought it would brighten the place up a bit.  Didn't expect it to last a week, I've got a notorious black thumb. However, somehow this brave little poinsettia made it all the way til May!  Squeaky loved it, as much as a newborn can, and spent a fair number of her waking hours staring at it, and squeaking occasionally.  Fast forward 2 years (OMG, it really is that long), and I spotted out friend Plant in the supermarket. Decided to see if I could make this one last a month, and brought it home to sit in the same place as its predecessor. Then I realised it was just sitting in its cheapy plastic pot & looked a bit rubbish.

Off to the charity shops go I, with a mission, for once.  A pretty plant pot.  And there, in the Salvation Army shop (my least favourite, usually just full of smelly men, school uniforms and bobbly cardigans), was the perfect pot.  Right size, suitable balance of bling and restraint, and all for 50p, when the lady on the till could bring herself to stop gossiping and serve me.  (Please ignore my horrible blinds. I know, believe me, I know.)

Admittedly, the pot now has a length of green tinsel wrapped round it, but I couldn't have found a better home for Squeaky's friend Plant if I'd tried.

So, after my success in finding a plant pot, I thought I'd have a quick look at what the other shops had to offer - hoping I'd find some granny blankets to chop up & turn into ponchos, or generally some crafting talent, because mine ran out a good few years back.  Sadly they were all out of talent, and granny blankets (even the PDSA shop!), and my travels led me to the nice new Marie Curie shop - which reminds me of something I found in there the other week, but haven't taken photos of yet.

They've made a good job of the shop, nicely colour co-ordinated, and volunteers that actually do stuff.  That's more than can be said for a lot of our local charity shops, so as a result I took them in a big bag of stuff earlier in the week.  Well, I had to see what they'd got now, right?  And there, on the children's rail, was a treat.  Squeaky doesn't believe in coats at the moment. Zips are no challenge to her, normal buttons only slow her briefly.  Surely though, the combination of a zip and loop buttons will be beyond her for a week or two?

And better yet, look who's peeking out of the pocket!  It's Upsy Daisy!  You've heard about her Upsy Daisy obsession, right?  And not just one Upsy Daisy on the pocket, but three of them dancing across the back.  In Squeaky World this is nothing short of a miracle.  There's a couple of velcro patches inside the arms, so I think there were originally gloves, but they weren't with it, and I couldn't see a rummage bin to nose through for matching gloves, so we'll have to do without.

Honestly people.  I can't begin to explain how excited Squeaky was to see this coat.  I'll try to transcribe.  "Daisy, Daisy, Daisy, Daisy, Mummy, Daisy! Daddy, Daisy! One, Two, Three, Four! Daisy!"  I put it through the wash (as is my usual way with charity shop clothes), and she spotted a corner of the fabric in the machine this morning.  Not an Upsy Daisy, just a little pink flower.  And stood in front of the washer shouting DAISY until I opened it, and then she dragged a damp coat around with a big grin on her face until I distracted her with toast.  Such are the excitements of life in our house. Toast & Daisy.

Pop along to Lizzie's place & see who else has been shopping this week!