Eileen's Blog

Last week, my partner in crime, Denise Holguin, and I played hookie and went to First Monday in Canton, TX. If you've never been or never heard, First Monday Trade Days is America's biggest flea market. And it happens once a month, starting on the Thursday preceding the first Monday of the month. Confused? Me too! But I found it was worth the trip, worth figuring out and worth walking and carting all the goods! We picked a beautiful Texas day - a balmy 78 degrees, blue skies with a gentle breeze. This is one of the reasons why I live in Texas - February never sounded so good to this Jersey girl!

But back to First Monday. We were on the look out for 'Texas stuff' for our big event coming up - the Texas Sew Down, April 3-4 in Grapevine, TX. Our plan is to make all our visitors feel like they've come home to the ranch when they spend a few days with us. And how better to set the scene than with well, Texas stuff! If the Texas Sew Down marks your first trip to Texas, you'll know what I mean when you get here. Only in Texas is the state flag as visible as the US flag. Only in Texas do they carve 5-pointed stars in the concrete along the highway and maybe on your neighbor's front porch. Only in Texas is rusty metal considered a national treasure. And if you're looking for that type of treasure, then First Monday is the national mint.

We found horseshoes ($.50 each!), decorative centerpieces for the VIP luncheon, a dandy dressform and vintage aprons (one made from hankies).

We met lots of nice folks (most of whom had trouble understanding the Jersey girl's questions) and treated ourselves to First Monday's finest cuisine - funnel cake, tornado potatoes and corn dogs. Geesh, at my age, you'd think I'd know better! But the fun we had and the sights we saw! Denise and I haven't laughed that hard in ages. Good thing we were smiling because we made three trips to the car and the last one was the killer.

Denise was loaded down with the bulk of the haul but we managed to make it across the grounds and the highway to the safety and comfort of our car. All this effort for prop-shopping for the Texas Sew Down! But it was worth it because we want to make sure we give our visitors a great big Texas Welcome on April 3. If you're heading to Grapevine on April 3 you can mosey over to First Monday on Sunday the 5th and see America's largest flea market for yourself.