Sunday, July 7, 2013

Journey for Dishes......

Hello Lovely Friends......

I have a sweet story to tell and I hope it will Bless you in someway!

.................................... Let me back up a few years.

My maternal grandmother was the young age of 44 when she passed away!  I was 3 years old at time, which means that I really was not old enough to remember her very well.     My mom had two younger brothers that were a lot younger than here  (one being 6 years old and the other being about 9 or 10.)   My youngest uncle on my moms side.....is only 2 months older, than my older sister.  Note  *this sister, my only sister, died almost 35 years ago.      

 My mom and her mom were expecting at the same time!!  How cool would that be?  Guess it would depend on the age....My grandmother was 38 when my uncle was born... My mom was 18 when my sister was born.   38  hmmmmm.   18 not so bad!

My Grandfather re-married after the death of my grandmother.   To shorten this story......let me tell you......My grandmother's dishes did not get passed down to my mom...UNTIL......some 40 years later.  By this time, most of dishes had been used and many of them had been broken.    In reality, my mom ended up with very few pieces.

My mom died 8 years ago, but about a year or so before she passed away, she gave me the dishes that were once her mom's.   I was very honored to have each piece that was left.


The dishes were:  Homer Laughlin........Virginia Rose pattern.

I'm sure they were not expensive, but that doesn't matter.   What mattered to me was that my grandmother liked them, which made me want them more.

Homer Laughlin made several different patterns of dishes and some of them are very, very close in their patterns.


sorry for the blur...........

For the past 8 years, I have shopped many antique shops.....in hopes of finding a set of these dishes.    Not much luck at all.     I found a dish at one shop a few years ago, and this past year, I have found a bowl, a creamer, and a plate.    That has been it!!

Until:     This past week!!

My sweet Sam realizes how important this is to me, and for this reason, he is always checking out some web-sites in hopes of finding these dishes.

This past week, he was browsing on Craig's List and he found where a lady had posted some "Virginia Rose Dishes"  

Sam never said anything to me, until after he had made a deal with the lady.   She was wanting to sell about 45 pieces of Virginia Rose dishes.  She and Sam sent messages back and forth, and she also sent pictures for him to see what pieces she had.  He made the deal and then he wanted to know if I would like to take about a two hour drive with him?  Said he needed to pick something up.

A few minutes later, he gets a call and it was the lady selling the dishes. She said that she would be coming to Tyler the next day and that if he wanted her to, she would deliver the dishes.  And so she did!!


I now own.......45 more pieces of the pattern of dishes that my 
grandmother loved.

I still have quite a ways to go before having a complete set, plus the side dishes......but I am convinced that I will be able to complete my set of dishes before long.

Now listen to this......

The lady told my husband that she had Prayed all day that someone would answer her ad in order to sell her dishes.     Her family was having some financial problems and desperately needed to make some money in order for them to survive the week!!

Our purchase was bittersweet for me.......I WANTED the dishes, but I'm sad that this lady had to sell her dishes in order to have money for her family.

Anyways.......I'm thankful and I can assure you that I will continue to be on a journey......shopping for "Virginia Rose" dishes...

If any of you ever see ANY of these dishes.....Please let me know!!

Hugs, 

Shug

7 comments:

  1. Oh, I love this story and as bittersweet as it was, I'm just sure the lady was thrilled too death that someone bought them that really wanted them. I bet you will be able to get them all eventually.

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  2. What a neat story--and your Sam is just awesome... Glad you got more to add to your china collection --and I hope you find even more and more...

    SO neat to have your grandmother's china--which she loved I'm sure...

    Thanks for such a great story.
    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  3. What a story, Shug!!!! Sam deserves a big reward of some kind, he is the best!! I do feel sorry for this poor lady though.

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  4. Shug, your Sam is a sweetheart, and the find is touching, since you dearly want the dishes and the lady needed to sell and had been praying for a buyer. She knows you will take special care of them.

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  5. I love this story, Shug. Sam's hunt was an answer to that lady's prayers. He is a doll for finding those for you. I will keep an eye out for Virginia Roses, too. hugs ~ tanna

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  6. HiShug!

    What a beautiful story - I love the pattern on these dishes! I don't think it was a coincidence that Sam found her...you were an answer to a prayer...you were both blessed!

    Hugs,
    Barb

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  7. I'm so happy for you. I have so few things from my family; I can only imagine how precious this is. What a wonderful husband you have!!! That is a beautiful pattern and I don't believe I've seen it. Similar story: my mom pregnant with me at the same time my older 2 sisters were expecting their first and second kids. Of course they were 19 and 21, and my mom was 40. I was raised with my nieces and nephews!
    Debbie

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Thank you for Blessing me today with your comments...

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