FAMILY TRADITIONS

Every Sunday my Mum, her best friend and my beautiful Aunty set out at 5am to go shopping.  They start with a local market that has local produce and 2^nd hand gear.  My mum takes her time to make sure she doesn’t miss anything good, so she never makes it from the 2^nd hand bit to the fruit & veg bit before her partner’s in crime hunt her down and tell her it is time to move on to the next activity. 

The next activity is garage saleing.  It is a very carefully planned event where mum’s friend, Carole, sits down the night before to plan out what is the most logical order to hit them and puts big stars on the ‘best’ ones (no bric-a-brac – very bad word!).  Before the days of the GPS, she would also look up the UBD to get all the navigation from one to the next as write it all down as well.  Now there is a GPS, they take great pride in going different ways to the poor navigator and listening to her say “wrong way, do a u-turn, GO BACK”.  In addition to completely ignoring the navigator, they usually debate over the best way to get to the next destination.  On the way home, they hit any fete’s that might be on, which usually results in a couple of yummy home made cakes or biscuits.  I know all this because I used to go, before the kids and before the sewing, but now I get to sleep in til 6am instead!  I could usually be found in the backseat of the car with a sandpit, matress, trampoline or similar on my head.

You would think that all sounded like a pretty big day, but when they get home, the real party starts.  Mum and Dad’s place is a hive of activity on a Sunday.  The extended family and friends all come for a visit to see what garage sale find they can fight over.  Dad cooks up a Sunday brunch of scrambled eggs, pizza, frittatas or sausages on the BBQ for all to enjoy.  There can be anywhere between 5 and 35 people show up throughout the day.  I take the kids and give my husband some ‘alone time’ and usually take any sewing I have got done that week to show off before it gets listed and sent off to new homes.

Sadly this week, Mum and Dad are on holiday’s, which is very inconsiderate of them, there was no Sunday get together and everyone was responsible for arranging their own breakfast... oh well, there is always next week!