Take a Trip to Ed Lester Farms and A Random Antique Stop

Ed Lester Farms in Coushatta is officially open for the season and we have made our first pilgrimage to stock up on fresh veggies.  Pickings were light today because it's still early yet, but we did make off with some sweet Armistead onions, some purple onions, fresh yellow squash, a handful of peaches, some blue lake snap beans and a big bag full of new potatoes.  For dinner I've got green beans and new potatoes already going on the stove!

They had some of the biggest collards you've ever seen, leeks, and bushels of pinto beans but I passed on those.

We'll go back down in a couple of weeks and they'll have some tomatoes ready and loads of other things.  From Shreveport it's only about a 35 minute drive.  Of course, it took us a little longer because we stopped to pick up some railroad spikes!

Long time readers will remember this post from last summer where we stopped on the way to Lester's and poked around the Galilee Baptist Church and the old Hutchinson store.  We discovered it's also a prime spot to pick up railroad spikes.  I drive them into the ground around my hydrangea bushes and they make the hydrangeas turn dark blue. 

Once our mission at Lester's was complete, we headed on into Coushatta to Bailey's Sandwich Shop which has, without a doubt, the best hamburgers ever.  While Steve placed our order and we waited, I wandered up and down the street.  Pretty much all that is in old downtown Coushatta is the Council on Aging at the old railroad depot.  Restaurants are shut down...

...as was most everything else.  Bailey's is open though, and does a steady business!  EVERYthing they have there is good.

I was taken by this stray dog that walked up.  I thought she was a beautiful dog, but she was terribly skittish and wouldn't come up to me.

I did end up sharing most of my burger and fries with her because she was so obviously hungry.  I'd toss a bit out to her and she stayed and ate with us, but when we were finished she returned to her scavenging.

I wish I could save every dog like that I find.  I'd have loved to bring her home and give her the love she needs, but I know my dogs wouldn't stand for it, and she, hopefully, belongs to someone around there.

We then embarked on a sort of "picking" mission for Milly and decided to check out Frankie and Johnny's Antiques in Coushatta.  My new glassware obsession was stoked by all the things I saw in there, but what they really had that I loved was furniture.  The fellow minding the store was very helpful and friendly; he told us that the owners are retiring and trying to close out the store by the end of July so lots of great deals were there to be had.

I fell in love with this old secretary - not a single nail in the whole piece:

This is what it looks like closed up:

There's a coffee table that matches it.  Lovely piece.

He was especially proud of this Johnson Brothers Friendly Village china:

Pretty glassware:

and depression glass:

and stemware:

I thought these pictures were neat:

How about green velvet chairs?

More glassware:

And even more glassware:

And more interesting furniture:

I fell in love with this piece:

And I thought this wooden bowl was interesting.  It's huge:

They had several pieces similar to this in various sizes and styles:

I liked the shop but there were no Boston Terrier shop dogs there was no Milly Rose to sing to us or regale us with crazy stories!  There was only one floor and not four, but did see some beautiful things and met some nice people.

We'll head back down to Coushatta in a couple of weeks to check out Lester's again.  This is what they are promising in the days ahead:

I can't wait!

Now, what am I going to do with all these railroad spikes?