Out with the new, in with the old

This past weekend my parents went to Tyler to help pack up my great uncle Ray and great aunt Ann's apartment.  I won't give all the details, but they have had to move to an assisted living place in Tyler, and aren't able to take many of their things with them.  They never had any children, so their nieces were like children to them, and great nieces and nephews are like grandchildren.  These are two amazing people who have lived a very interesting life.  I had asked my mom to try and bring something of theirs back for me to have in the house.  Well, they stopped by Saturday night on their way back into town and surprised Clay and I both with what they brought.  No one even knew that Ray played guitar, but they found this guitar in the back of a closet...we're guessing it's from the early 60s. 

Clay cleaned it up and put some new strings on it and it plays great.  It has a much different sound than his other guitars so that has been fun.

And then the best part for me was seeing this -

I can't really explain how special this is.  When I think of my great aunt Ann I think of the amazing talent God gave her for sewing - clothing, crochet, tatting, knitting, quilting - she could do anything and do it beautifully.  This is a 1953 Singer machine, and it still works great.  She took such good care of her things, and I love just looking at it and thinking of the thousands of hours she sat making this thing sing.  Not only did I get the machine, but the table and all of its contents as well.  The contents alone would be an ebay-ers dream -

This is just a small sampling of what was inside.  Every single attachment is in the original box with the instruction manual and her little notes.  There are wooden bobbins, zippers in little cases, needle matchboxes, and lots of other goodies.  Now I just need to find the right place in the house to display it all.  If you have any ideas out there, send them my way. 

And one other thing we received was their old desk.  I have been looking for a piece of furniture for about a year now to put in our breakfast room.  Good thing I kept waiting!

I obviously love the sentimental value it holds, but I also love that it's unique and it's green!  Again, it's in great condition - the drawers don't even stick.  I don't have many pictures of Ray & Ann from when I was growing up, so I will always treasure these things that meant something to them and had a place in their lives.