Monday, June 18, 2012

Picking new places to visit

We've just returned from nine days on the road, so I thought I'd share a few photos of sights we saw along the way! Recognize this place?

If you're a fan of History Channel's "American Pickers," you do. It's the famous Antique Archaeology in LeClaire, Iowa, which my husband, a great fan of the show, decided he wanted to visit while also checking Iowa off of his list of States I Have Visited.

If you're a regular viewer of the show, you might recognize some of these goodies, such as the Laurel and Hardy masks.

Here's a giant advertising character that greets you upon entering the shop.

Some items for sale. (No teawares that I could find!) And, alas, no Mike, Frank or Danielle, although it was still nice to see where they do business.

Here's the iconic car that is featured in lots of shots, with the Mississippi River in the background.

LeClaire was quite a pretty little town, and we were able to enjoy lunch and a bit of sightseeing afterwards. I loved this great store, Grasshoppers.

I bought some jewelry pieces there and a cute little folder of "Gardener's Tea."

At LeClaire Antiques and Appraisals, an antique shop along the main street there in town, I found my official souvenir of LeClaire, this pretty floral teacup. It was an $8 find made by Old Royal Bone China in England.

Now, the real reason we were in Iowa was that we were headed up to Wisconsin to see a new grandson, sweet little Andrew ...

... and his big brother Michael! Michael, we learned, is adapting well to the family addition, except for when Andrew cries during his favorite cartoon, "Bubble Guppies," which earned Andrew a wee little whack from his brother one morning!

And here Alex and I are with both boys! We enjoyed a great visit with their parents, Heather and Brad, and hopefully provided a little help during their first week at home with the new baby. (And we did manage a little shopping excursion one afternoon, so tomorrow I'll share the bargains I found.)

19 comments:

  1. Aww, your grands are cuties! And it looks like you picked a picteresque little town to stop by. I've watched the show a couple of times. Usually they are talking about car and motorcycle parts though. I think someone should have a show about finding teacups. ;-)

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  2. Looks like you had a great time !!!! Happy for You.

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  3. Welcome home, Angela! Thanks for sharing a bit of your Iowa/Wisconsin travels with us. Your grand darlings are precious!

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  4. How sweet are your grands?!? I'm sure you enjoyed your time with them immensely! :)

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  5. Such sweet little guys! Looks like you had a wonderful trip, and I love your new teacup! Looking forward to seeing your other purchases.

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  6. That town looks like a little gem..and congrats on your beautiful new grandson..
    Devon

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  7. Congrats on the new grandson - he is precious, and his big brother is a cutie, too. And if I ever get to Iowa, that store is a must-see, because I do enjoy the show. Will look forward to seeing the rest of your finds.

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  8. By the way, that teacup and saucer is GORGEOUS. Great find!

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  9. You and your family are lovely. That is a very pretty picture of you!

    And what a neat opportunity to see the places you visited! Thanks for sharing!

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  10. Very sweet grand babies with two lucky people visiting! It was fun to see your stops on the way. Rest up so you can take another trip to see both little guys-'cuz that is what grandparents want to do.♥♫

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  11. What little cuties! What a fun trip! My DH is an Am Pickers fan~ he would've loved to stop there too. Have a happy day!

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  12. Congratulations on the new grandbaby!

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  13. Beautiful bargain teacup and saucer! Adorable boys! Looks like a lot of family fun time here!

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  14. What a lovely reason for a trip. How special too that your husband was able to check another dream off the list. We loved visiting that part of the country recently.

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  15. Looks like a delightful trip with treasure-hunting and family treasures.

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  16. Congratulations on your new grandbaby. Such happy blessings little boys are!

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  17. Hello Angela, what a lovely post today, filled with so many treasures!
    The grandchildren are so cute, you look like the proud grandparents that you are!

    My husband is also a fan of "American Pickers." I will have to share this with him. I also love the floral teacup, so pretty!
    Thanks for sharing your vacation with us, Joanie

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