It was a balmy summer day. The kind with puffy white clouds and cheerful, dappling sunshine. Toting our babies and baskets of goods, we gathered beneath the stately maples in Karla’s front yard. The weather was epic! Not hot or windy- definite blessings for the Nebraska plains. 

We placed our wares on gingham covered tables, browsing, and delighting over the creative options.

The invitation came from Karla several weeks ago, who graciously offered to host us church ladies for a friends farmer’s market. The old fashioned sort where vendors swapped their goods. And so it was, twenty some ladies found themselves in her front yard on that summery Wednesday morning, bringing their handcrafted items.

Our host had sewn colorful cloth bags, placed  at the beginning of the line, ready for us to fill. After the goods were arranged, we filed past the tables collecting our treasures. Many of the crafts and foods were embellished or labeled. It was just good, old fashioned fun!

Here’s a list of the items that were brought. We had around 20 vendors, so each one brought that many items. Everything was handcrafted or homemade.

• Maple pecan butter
• Honey butter
• Mini banana and lemon poppyseed bread
• Strawberry and blueberry preserves
• Mini bread loaves
• Protein balls
• Mini layer cakes
• Alfajor cookies
• Hummus
• Granola
• Party mix
• Vanilla extract
• Tea bags and mini jars of honey
• Dill dip mix
• Cloth bags
• Mini bouquets
• Handmade cards
• Hand soap
• Potholders
• Clothespin bags
• Lisianthus flowers

Karla served us a tasty charcuterie style salad bar- a feast for the eyes and mouth both. 

The towering maples spread their shady limbs over our gathering. We chatted with friends and held tiny, slumbering humans. A quilt for toddlers to play on and soft grass for mini bare feet. The day reminded me of the sort you read in books of yore. When life was slow and a social like this would be discussed and remembered for days to come. And so we will! One day we’ll look back at our babies and brim with tears for those sweet young tots. We’ll exclaim over our youthful faces and oh, the way our dresses were made back then! When we look on bygone days, we tend to remember the good and forget the hard. But in our day to day living, it’s easy to forget the good and see the hard.

Don’t overlook the gold in today’s moments. Of course there are things we wish were different. But remember, each moment is an opportunity to create good old days.

Find yourself a bevy of friends, craft your items and gather for a taste of nostalgia.