Shopping in Wilmington, North Carolina

So who goes on vacation and doesn't shop?? NOT ME! ha! I found a few things that I brought
along home with me.

I LOVED the shop that was filled with pillows like the one above. I mean this lady had
hundreds of pillows with beaches, towns and coordinates. She told me that she ships them to
 Michigan, Florida etc. and had just shipped out 200! Wow! That is dedication!

I LOVE this pillow. She didn't have it in black so I ordered one and she sent it to my home.
It is made out of canvas with an envelope back so you can insert a pillow form.
She sent the form along home with me so she wouldn't have to mess with mailing that.
I am thinking of ordering another one that has Wilmington, North Carolina and the
coordinates. Isn't it so cool?? 

I fell in love with this french grain tote and did NOT purchase it when I was there. I tend to
think about things for awhile. Well, you might know as soon as I got home I decided that
I should have purchased it. So I ran down the store online {quite a feat in itself} and asked
if they would ship to me. It was my lucky day.

I purchased this lovely coastal bracelet and have worn it almost every day since being home.
I miss North Carolina. Wilmington is such a BEAUTIFUL place.
We also picked up these shells at the beach.

This is on the of the stores that I did not purchase anything in , but I took a few photos.

Taking a photo break...SMILE!

I told hubby that I want to eat here next time. Too many places to eat and shop.
Oh my, what is a girl to do?? ha~

I mean...doesn't this just draw you in? It is right along the riverfront.

Okay...this store was GORGEOUS...beyond GORGEOUS, but I forgot to take in my camera
so the only shot I got was of the outside. ugh! This is the store that I purchased the french
grain tote from.

This place is called
THE SHOP OF SEAGATE.

The next few pictures are from here.

The COASTAL VIBE store is where I purchased my bracelet and I also purchased a
beautiful white scarf. {forgot to take a photo of that to show you}

Just plain yummy-ness!! ha!

IF you click here you will find out all about THE COTTON EXCHANGE.
It still has an old wagon right inside the door that holds a huge bale of cotton.
That was neat to see and the building is beautiful! If you click the link be sure
to then click on  Cotton Exchange History.

It is filled with several shops that are fun to peruse at your leisure.

This is where I left my Canon camera!! Can you believe it? Hubby had already drowned one in the
ocean and I forgot my other $400 camera in here on a bench. ugh!! THANKFULLY a lady who owned one
 of the stores found it quickly and held it for me. I will be honest, I was in TEARS when I got back to my
son's apartment and found out I didn't have it. I thought I would never see it again.
Thank GOD for honest people!!!

Little Ms Ainsley had to have her photo taken here. She is so funny. WHO is she looking at?
haha!

I think this is the place where we booked a boat tour. Hope to share that soon also.

This shopping place was called Chandler's Wharf. I had to take some photos because my nephew's
name is Chandler. Too fun!!

We really did have a wonderful time and can't wait to go back!!
If waiting 26 years for a vacation takes me to places like this , it was well worth the wait.

Where are you going on vacation this year? I would love to hear about it!

Blessings~

Marie Antionette, Finds and FUN ~

Have you ever anticipated a day that you just know

is going to be filled with laughter and fun?

Your heart longs for that day and when it arrives

you are just as excited as a kid at Christmas.

Lucky me...

I had that kind of day yesterday~

My dearest friend Peggy and I had a wonderful day out

and I enjoyed it so much. We used to get together

quite often, but now not so much so it was

wonderful to be in her company

and just talk, laugh and enjoy the day!

We went to Shipshewana, Indiana to the big world wide renowned

flea market and auction. If you have never been

to this auction it is something to behold!

It starts promptly at 9 am

when they ring a loud bell and

THEN

Oh my...the fun begins.

There are several auctioneers that start right off

all at once. You can roam around and pick one group

for awhile and then go on to the next.

It is utter chaos , but oh so fun!!

We were at the auction for about four hours and this Marie box

is the item I purchased! I could not believe that

I actually got it for the price I did.

I thought it might go sky high.

Not very long afterwards

someone came up to me and wanted

to know what I paid for it. I told her

and she asked me if I would sell it.

It is good she wasn't around when I was bidding. lol

It has a glass top with the Marie photo underneath and when I opened the lid...~

I found these old letters. I can't wait to check them out ~

From the auction we went into the flea market to a few places

and I puchased this basket from Sweet Annies ~

Loved the uniqueness of it...it appears

flat on the back in this photo, but it isn't.

It has a neat shape~

Back to the auction barn...after the man was all done

selling his items where I purchased my Marie box

there were a few items left that no one had bid on.

These teacups and saucers were in the pile.

I picked them up and were

looking them over and the kind gentleman

shoved them towards me and said,

"Just take them...please...take them! "

I thanked him profusely and scooped them up.

As if I didn't already have enough fun...next we went to

some of the shops uptown.

We were like giddy schoolgirls when we both decided to purchase

matching shirts. Well kinda matching. I bought this

Paris shirt

and my friend purchased a Italy shirt.

We also bought matching

neckscarves for the winter that are so beautiful!! {I will share them at a later time}

This beautiful vintage light also came home with me

...purchased it for a song too.

It needs a little cleaning and I need to have

hubby to actually get it working

and hang it up. I may turn it into a candleholder...

still trying to decide.

Thank you my dear friend PEGGY for a wonderful

fun filled day that I will always cherish!

Blessings~