One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

I don't think we spend a lot of money on plain ol' shopping, but somehow we accumulate so much! For the longest time, I've been whittling away at our overabundance of stuff and hauling small batches to the thrift store.

However, I also like shopping at the thrift store and find all sorts of things I want. And, since it's so inexpensive, it's like guilt-free. But this again adds to the clutter, especially if the recipient has no desire to pick anything up off the floor once it's been dropped there.

On one such trip to the nearby thrift store, I brought the girls with. It was a bit before Christmas. Just inside the door was a huge soft-sided container with items marked free. My girls migrated to it instantly!

I wandered around the store in search of other treasures with which to clutter our home. About 10 minutes later, Lauren cornered me. She had found a ceramic figurine of an Amish girl holding a quilt. It was a simple piece done in navy blue and a ruby rose color for accent. Being Amish, the doll had no detailing on the face.

"Mama, can I please take this home? It's beautiful! It's free!"

Ah, the sweet irony. This was a piece I had painted at Green Lake Conference Center many summers ago and had donated in an attempt to clean out my home. But my daughter had just called a piece of my work beautiful! I couldn't turn that down. So now the same doll I donated just a few months before now sits on a shelf in our living room on display. Yup, one step forward...