Friday, February 13, 2009

Grandma's Apron

Guaranteed to bring back memories


The History of APRONS





I don't think our kids know what an apron is.


The principal use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath because she only had a few. It was easier to wash aprons than dresses and they used less material, but along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.


It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.


From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.


When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids.


And when the weather was cold, grandma wrapped it around her arms.


Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.


Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.


From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.


In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.


When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.


When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.


It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes.



REMEMBER:

Grandma used to set her hot baked apple pies on the window sill to cool.


Her granddaughters set theirs on the window sill to thaw.


They would go crazy now trying to figure out how many germs were on that apron,

but I don't think I ever caught anything from it.


Thursday, February 12, 2009

Funny Follow-Up to An Anniversary Remembrance

(Somehow I feel my dad had something to do with this. He was a teaser and a joker, and I'm sure he was chuckling in Heaven if he happened to be peeking in on Mom this morning. If you haven't read the previous post, take a second to do that before reading on).

Mom had a doctor's appointment this morning. The doctor feels her gall bladder might be the cause of Mom's stomach pains lately, so he decided an ultra-sound is the next step. Mom was a little taken back at the thought of a possible surgery and asked Dr. J if "they would cut on her at her age." Dr. J quickly told her yes, if her gall bladder was bad. Afterward Mom needed a prescription refilled, so off to Rite Aid she went. It was a long wait at the Pharmacy, and Mom and the clerk made small talk to pass the time.

"Today would be my 63rd Anniversary if my husband were still alive," Mom proudly proclaimed.

"Are you going to see him today?" asked the young clerk nonchalantly.

Thinking the clerk may have misunderstood, Mom firmly stated, "NO, he passed away twelve years ago!"

To Mom's amazement, the clerk questioned once more, "Are you going to see him today?"

Whether she realized why there was such a shocked look on my 85-year old mother's face we'll never know, but her question soon made sense when the clerk continued,
"My mom always goes to visit my dad's grave on their anniversary."

Mom and I had a good laugh over that one. ;-D


My dad and mom a few short months before Dad went to Heaven.




Sixty-three years ago. . .

February 12, 1946 was my mother and father's wedding day.


Dad has been gone for 12 1/2 years, but I know this day is still a special one for Mom. I remember their last anniversary together - Feb. 12, 1996. It was Mom and Dad's 50th anniversary. Dad had just been diagnosed the month before with adrenal gland cancer, a metastasis from colon cancer five years before. We had planned a surprise party at my house with 40-50 friends and family members coming to celebrate with them. Many cards and notes had been sent from out-of-town relatives. Sadly, Dad was just too sick that day, and we had to cancel the party at the last minute. I had made an album of the cards, and I'm sure Mom and Dad both enjoyed reading the sentiments of their loved ones during the next difficult months. Dad passed away that October,
50 1/2 years after marrying his sweetheart.

Happy Anniversary, Mom!

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

The Girls from the Class of '72

(L to R) Ginni, Me, Kathy, Pat, and Chris

How fast do 37 years fly by? Pretty fast, but five classmates from Green High School Class of '72 did their best to catch up in two hours at Panera Bread this morning.
I'm LOVING finding old friends on Facebook!!
It didn't take long for us to arrange to meet for coffee once we started finding each other. What a nice surprise to find Chris at the last minute and have her join us! She's still as beautiful as she was as the homecoming queen our Senior year. She is a retired teacher and proud to be nearing the 5-yr. mark as a breast cancer survivor. Three of us our grandmas. Ginni is a school bus driver and amateur photographer. Kathy is a photographer for Babies 'R Us. Pat is the Communications/Outreach Coordinator at a Christian elementary school, and I am a self-employed business owner. Our lives have all gone different directions, but we were amazed how much we have in common and how much we didn't know about each other in school. We laughed SO-O much as we shared our experience in marriages, parenting, grandparenting, hot flashes, ex's, as well as some heartfelt childhood experiences. We vowed that today will be the first of many get-togethers for the girls from Green. And we're all on the search for other friends with whom to reconnect. Today was a happy day. :-)

p.s. Pat is such a talented, creative lady. She amazes me that she could create something so beautiful in just a matter of minutes. Here is the poem she just sent to us girls:
New Old Friends

I met some new old friends today –
Found treasures from the past;
Our lives had traveled o’er the years
Down many diff’rent paths.
The dreams of youth – some realized,
Some worn and cracked with age,
Were shared with hearts of tenderness,
As one by one each page
Was turned to tell the story
Once hidden by the days
When children, seen but never heard,
Lived life in shades of grey;
While others, so oblivious,
Secure in warmth and love
Could never really comprehend
How push would come to shove.
Each life became a rainbow –
The hues intense and bold,
For every up and every down
Would turn, somehow, to gold.
The Lord can mend the brokenness
In ways we can’t predict –
He orchestrates the perfect times
When something simply “clicks”.
The minutes turned to hours –
This meeting soon would end;
But as it did, we understood
We’d rediscovered friends.
- P. Burk