Spoiler
This morning, my mum said to me, "I was walking past the charity shop before it was open and I think I saw a baby pony nursery outside." !!!! My girlfriend and I found a picture to show her, and she confirmed it was indeed the Lullaby Nursery (something my gf has wanted since she was 4, by the way, but which what with one thing and another we never got around to buying). Mum said she was going that way later and would go in and see if it was still there.
We were on tenterhooks, but it was even worse for Mum, who later said she'd spent the morning on a rollercoaster of emotions :lol: . She went into the shop and could not see it anywhere, so asked what had happened to the "little house" that was outside that morning. They seemed to have no idea what she was talking about. In a moment of inspiration, she produced her phone and showed them a picture.
"Oh, that," said the manager, "We had to throw that out. It was damaged so we aren't allowed to sell it." Just as Mum was thinking noooo, she added, "If you really want it, you can get it out of the skip out the back."
Thus was the Lullaby Nursery rescued! The manager wouldn't take any money for it, so Mum just made a donation.
It turns out the reason it was thrown away was because it has a mark on the side and is missing part of one of its stickers (you know, the sort of damage you might expect to see on a 30-year-old toy), and they have very strict rules about not selling anything 'damaged'. It makes me mourn for my childhood, when rules were less strict and we were always picking up dilapidated toys at low prices!
Anyway, the Nursery is now home and has been admired and exclaimed over. My girlfriend was hugging it earlier and saying, "I have waited 21 years to own one of these!!" It is rather dirty (which actually makes me happy, as I love a restoration project). But! There's more to come! It was taped shut with Sellotape and rattled enticingly....opening it up, we found it was full of accessories!!!! I think the only things missing are the bath, the towel, the teddy bear and a plate. Oh, and Baby Tiddly Winks wasn't there, but that's okay as we already own her. We got the swing, the rocker, the rattle, bottles, the little dinky mobile, the crib....there was even a little handmade blanket for the crib, with the name Natasha written on it. Natasha, we don't know who you are, but thank you for sending your nursery to the charity shop!
This all seems especially awesome as we have had a bit of a tough time recently, and my girlfriend is currently suffering from sinusitis (which she is prone to, especially in times of stress), so we have been going about feeling a bit annoyed with life. Then suddenly the Powers That Be smiled on us and sent us a nursery!
We have now managed to make room for it on our shelves, and are much looking forward to attacking its layers of grime with a damp cloth (being careful around all the stickers of course!). Also, since it was essentially free, it bears the distinction of being our biggest ever pony bargain!
The Pony Gods have smiled on us. Amen :lol: .