Wrapping Presents

the presents around our tree this year

WRAPPING PRESENTS IN OUR FAMILY

It’s almost that time! Christmas is just a few days away! The presents are all wrapped and under the tree—see the picture above.

In years past, Christmas presents in our family have been wrapped in everything from the colored comics from the newspaper to brown paper to Christmas wrapping paper bought at the last minute to Christmas paper bought the year before at half-price after Christmas. This year it is different.

I have never liked the paper bags (with tissue) for presents that I put under the tree. But several years ago, Discover Card ran a special for their cardholders who shopped at Amazon—they offer free gift-wrapping for items bought at Amazon. I thought why not and ordered all my presents to be gift-wrapped—I saved $146 in gift-wrapping with that special! When I got my gifts, I was amazed. While some of the gifts were in folding cardboard boxes with wide ribbon, a number of them were in beautiful fabric gift bags. One of them was a large wedge pillow and it came in a huge velour-type drawstring bag. There was no way we were going to throw away these beautiful bags, like we always had paper bags and wrapping paper.

Through the years, my kids always ordered from Amazon for birthdays, Mother’s/Father’s Days, and Christmas, and many of them were ordered gift-wrapped. They left those beautiful gift bags at our house (they live in apartments and didn’t have room to store them). Not thinking, I stuck those bags in different places. But last year, I gathered them together and packed them away in our Christmas decoration tubs.

Wrapping presents this year was so easy. Other than my granddaughter’s presents (little ones NEED to rip the paper off their presents—that’s half the fun of it), all the presents I “wrapped” went into those fabric bags. It took me about five minutes to wrap everyone’s gifts.

Well, I need to start my Christmas baking, so I’ll wish you a Merry Christmas!

Christmas Dinner 140 Years Apart

my great-grandmother and grandfather

CHRISTMAS DINNER 140 YEARS APART

Well, it’s almost that time of the year again—CHRISTMAS DINNER! Or rather, buying and planning the prep of things for that family dinner. I bought a rump roast and put it in the freezer (it is only Dec. 10^th but it was on sale and just what I wanted). I put it in the freezer so that Christmas Eve night I can put it in the oven (frozen, but with enough water in the covered graniteware roaster so that it won’t cook dry) and let it slowly thaw/cook/braise until 7 AM the next morning. The house will smell wonderful, the broth will be just right to make gravy, and it will have time to do whatever meat has to do before cutting it with an electric knife in nice thin slices. My daughter is making the mashed potatoes this year (they have allergies, so it’s best she makes these). About an hour before mealtime, I slide the poppers and stuffed mushrooms (which I prepped the day before Christmas Eve), along with the potatoes au gratin (made from a mix, of course) into the oven. By the way, I have a large oven. When those come out, I will heat the garlic knots and Hawaiian sweet rolls while I get out the different soft drinks everyone wants. As everyone sits down at the table, I take out the bread and put in the Marie Callendar’s Crumb-topped Apple Pie. Yep, Christmas dinner will be a breeze and leave me lots of time to visit with family.

The other day, I came across a Christmas Dinner menu from a book titled Fifteen Cent Dinners, published in 1877—my great-grandparents would have been married for about two years when the book came out. Here is the way they could have done it WA-A-A-Y back then:

A DOLLAR CHRISTMAS DINNER.

IN buying poultry for Christmas-tide I have found that it is better to go market at least three days before that holiday. The prices are very much lower, and the weather is generally cold enough for you to keep your bird fresh until you want to use it. In estimating the cost of this dinner I shall suppose that you buy your turkey in advance at a shilling a pound, instead of waiting till Christmas eve, and paying at least twenty cents for it. If you are obliged to Wait you must add the difference in price to my figures. The following is our bill of fare:
ROAST TURKEY,

BAKED POTATOES,

APPLE SAUCE,

PLUM PUDDING WITH CREAM SAUCE.

Begin your preparations by making your pudding as follows:--

Plum Pudding.^—Mix. well together, half a pound of flour, (cost two cents.) four ounces of raisins, stoned and chopped, (cost four cents) four ounces of currants, well washed, (cost four cents,) four ounces of chopped suet, (cost two cents,) three tablespoonfuls of molasses, one teaspoonful of ground spice, (cost one cent,) and one gill of cold water; put in a floured cloth, or a greased and floured mould, or tin pail, and steam until yon are ready to put it on the table. It will cost you thirteen cents, Next, peel one quart of potatoes, and lay them in cold water while you get the turkey ready.

Roast Turkey.—Draw a five pound turkey, (cost five shillings,) carefully enough not to break the entrails, so that you will not have to spoil its flavor by washing it; singe it, and wipe it with a clean, damp cloth, stuff it with about a pound of stale bread, seasoned with salt, pepper and herbs, (cost about three cents,) sew it up, tie it in shape, lay it in a baking pan with one quart of peeled potatoes, (cost five tents,) and put it into a hot oven; as soon as it begins to brown nicely, take it Out, season it With pepper and salt, baste it with the drippings from it; and put it back in the oven; baste it every fifteen minutes until it is done, which will be in about an hour and. a quarter. Then put it on a dish, with the potatoes around it, and set it in the mouth of the oven to keep it hot while you make the gravy; do this by pour ing a pint of boiling water into the dripping pan, letting it come to a boil, and stirring into it a tablespoonful of flour mixed smoothly in half a teacupful of cold water; season it to taste with salt and pepper, and dish in a bowl.

Apple Sauce.—As soon as you get the turkey in the oven, make the  apple sauce as follows. Pare, core, and slice two quarts, or five cents worth of cooking apples, put them over the fire with a half cup water and stew them until soft: then stir in four ounces of sugar, (cost three cents,) and one ounce of butter, (cost two cents,) and cool it, or keep it warm, as you like. It will cost ten cents. Next make the pudding sauce.

Cream sauce—Stir together over the fire one ounce of butter, one ounce of flour, and a little spice, (all of which will cost about two cents), put a little mill; into a pint of boiling watt;, and stir t gradually in the flour and but, when it is quite smooth stir in two ounces of sugar, (cost two cents,) and let it boil up once; then set the sauce-pan you have made it in into another containing a little hot water, so as to keep the sauce hot until you want it, without thickening or burning it. It will cost about five cents, and be good enough for the nicest of plum puddings.After you have done with the sauce the rest of the dinner will probably be nearly cooked, and you can get it ready for the table.

I really like my menu better, but then I live in a different time and place. But whatever you have for Christmas Dinner, I hope you have a wonderful day.

Memory Monday: Another Generation Learns

my granddaughter and the nativity

ANOTHER GENERATION LEARNS

It started the day after Thanksgiving. We hauled in lots of boxes (actually they are plastic cat litter tubs with lids) and our artificial tree. We put up the tree and wrapped it in lots and lots of lights, then I put on tubs of ornaments. After that, I set out the rest of the decorations.

The one thing I don’t do is to set out the nativity. Years ago, when my children were young, I hosted some kind of home decorating party. One of the things I “won” was a nativity of cutesy people and animals. I don’t remember how it worked out this way, but the tradition started that my daughter would be the one that arranged all the items in the stable. For years, my daughter set it up the “normal” way, but then she started putting the wise men figures some distance away. She would say the wise men weren’t at the stable when the shepherds were. The wise men came later. Which is true—smart kid.

My daughter now has a three-year-old daughter. While I am not ready to pass the nativity set down to my daughter, I did want it set up (and she’s the only one that does it—tradition, you know). So, the Monday after Thanksgiving when my daughter came to pick up her little one from our house (we pick up our granddaughter after pre-school and keep her until her mommy gets off of work), I had her arrange the people and animals. She told her daughter who each person was and then set the wise men of a small table a foot or two away from the stable. When my granddaughter came to our house on Tuesday, and every day since then, she gathered up all the people and animals, then set them up again, always saying how the wise men were far away—quick learner, smart kid.

I love this time of the year. I love traditions. I love my family.

I thank God that He sent Jesus and that we can pass the story of His birth down to the next generation.

Time in My Family

my grandfather in his shoe repair shop

TIME IN MY FAMILY

Well, that title might be a bit misleading. I’m really talking about the watches we have had in our family. After my mother passed away, I found a zip-lock bag in her things. It contained a pocket watch with a strap attached. Mother had left a hand-written note in the bag . It said that the watch had belonged to her father and she remembered always seeing it tacked to the wall in his shoe repair shop. She said that she wanted the watch to go to my son—she thought it would look good with his suits when he was a lawyer.

There is another pocket watch that I have and it also involves my son. Years ago—after my paternal grandparents passed away, I was looking at some of the things that had been theirs. There was a box of old pocket watches, most of them were in silver (silver-tone) cases, but the case of one was different. It has a pinkish gold tone to it, not yellowish brass. It didn’t work but my father took it to the jeweler and had it repaired. Unfortunately, the jeweler replaced the button on the winding stem with a yellowish brass one—not really noticeable, but I knew. The watch was the style that had a covering that opened on the front and the back. When my son was little and watched some children’s show on TV where the characters had a “magic” something (I don’t remember exactly what the thing was—I’m just too old to recall something like that), he asked if he could use my pocket watch to play like the characters on the show. I let him and he had a lot of fun with it. By the way, that watch is safely back in my jewelry box.

Another watch that has seen multi-generation use in our family is my daughter’s Mickey Mouse watch. When she was younger (much younger), she got that particular watch for Christmas one year. She has asked for it and wore for some time, then set it aside (actually, she said I could have it, if I wanted it). Once again, I put a watch in my jewelry box (yes, it is a large jewelry box). Three or four months back, I came across the watch and had the battery replaced. I showed it to my granddaughter and told her how her mommy used to wear it. My granddaughter was fascinated by it, not because she could tell time or because it had belonged to her mommy (remember, she’s only three). No, what she really interested her about the watch was the two buttons on the left side of the watch. When you press one of the buttons the song It’s a small World After All plays and when the other button was pressed it plays The Mickey Mouse Song—you know M-I-C-K-E-Y-M-O-U-S-E. Mickey was on the watch face and his arms were the minute and hour hands. When the music played the hands moved faster and in time. When the song ended, the hands reversed and went back to the correct time. My granddaughter played both songs over and over and over and over. Fortunately, the volume on the watch wasn’t very loud.

This are other watches in my jewelry box, but those are the most interesting—at least, to me. Who knows, maybe if I think hard enough (remember, I getting older), I’ll remember more stories about those watches that are just sitting in that dark vastness known as my JEWELRY BOX.

Thanksgiving and Popcorn

my sweet granddaughter

THANKSGIVING AND POPCORN

Thanksgiving is this week and I am so excited!!! I love this time of the year with all its get-togethers, food-eating, and food-preparing. It’s not just excitement about all the “busy things,” no, it’s just that each of those things makes me remember what I’m truly thankful for.

The get-together means that I have family to love and who love me, especially my sweet granddaughter. Last year, she was still getting used to being her with her new family. But this year, she “knows” us—she grins and runs to me when she sees me, she has started bringing books for me to read to her in my office/library, and she even had her pre-school teacher write my name (chest puffing out in pride) on a strip on her “Thankful pumpkin”—in all reality, I probably got a whole strip to myself because nothing else would fit after the teacher printed “Grandmommy.” The pumpkin wasn’t huge, after all. Also, this is the fifth anniversary of my husband’s liver transplant. He’s strong and hearty—well, he’s strong and hearty enough to keep house and do the laundry (seriously, a writer’s got to have time to write, and I am a writer).

The food-eating makes me thankful that God has generously poured out His blessings on us all year long—not only our food, but our home, our marriage, our family, our friends, and so many more blessings. And most especially Jesus and His sacrifice.

The food-preparing means that I’m healthy enough to do the things I love to do. Even though I have RA, diabetes, and a few other thing going on in my body, I can cook (which I love to do), I can write, and I can play with my granddaughter. Being able to do all of those things is due in large part because of the blessing of having wonderful doctors who take care of me.

One thing I’m going to TRY and do again this year is something we had done years ago when my children were younger—tell the story of the three grains of corn. I had read that the Pilgrims had a very hard time in the New World. At one point, their daily ration of food was three grains of corn (now, I don’t know if this is really true, but it led to a way of showing what we are thankful for today). I would put three grains of unpopped popcorn on everyone’s plate and before we ate, I would pass a small dish around and everyone would put their popcorn in, telling three things they were thankful for. I love hearing the things. The kids hated doing it. We finally stopped doing it when the kids BEGGED me to stop making them it. But we have added a new generation to our family, SO-O-O-O, I think it’s time to try it again. After all, our granddaughter needs to be reminded to be thankful and needs to hear what others are thankful for. Do you think it will go over any better this time than last? Who knows, but a mother/grandmommy has to try.

Memory Monday: Halloween Through the Years in Our Family

my son as a gorilla

HALLOWEEN THROUGH THE YEARS IN OUR FAMILY

Growing up, I don’t remember doing a lot for Halloween, but then we lived in the country for a lot of those years. I know that when we did live in town, there was a lot of Trick-or-Treating going. During the early years of our marriage and children, we had lots of kids coming to our door for their treats. But that has changed now. No one comes door-to-door anymore, at least not in our neighborhood. They all go to community activities or church Trunk or Treats. If you aren’t familiar with Trunk or Treat, it’s when the adults gather in the parking lot, decorate the open trunks of their cars, and wait for the little ones—all dressed up, of course—to come by so they can get their treats.

Costumes have changed, too. I have an old black and white picture of my older sister and brother with me. They were wearing scary masks and I was crying (I was only 2 or 3 at the time). Those masks were the thin plastic kind, with a rubber band stapled on each side to hold it on. When the rubber band broke or slipped out from the staples, well, the mask was useless—unless you wanted to hold it up to your face all the time, and who wants to do that. My children dressed up when they were little—usually in “creative” costumes. We never went out and bought full outfits for them. These days, my son buys his own costume. The first one he bought was a gorilla. That’s him pictured above. This year, he got a T-rex inflatable costume which is almost 7-feet tall. He wore that to the church Trunk or Treat and let the little ones hunt for mini-dinosaurs in a portable sandbox (our granddaughter doesn’t know that her sandbox isn’t in our backyard right now).

my son's costume

Speaking of my granddaughter, she went to school as Anna from Frozen. Of course, she was adorable—See how adorable below (naturally, all grandmas think their granddaughters are adorable, no matter what the situation):

she'd rather be playing with cars

What are your memories of Halloween? What was your favorite candy to get? Do little ones still come to your house Trick or Treating?

Memory Monday: Identifying Family in Old Photos

IDENTIFYING FAMILY IN OLD PHOTOS

Sometimes, I have a hard time looking at an old photo and recognizing who someone is. Other times, it is fairly easy to identify someone, even though the person has aged through the decades. I came across the picture above in a file of my husband’s family. These are three siblings—a brother and his sisters. Their names are Oval, Ira, and Vera. Obviously, I know which one is Oval, since he is the brother. The sisters are twins named Ira and Vera (and one of them was my husband’s grandmother). But who is who? I knew they weren’t identical twins. Both of these women have passed, so I can’t ask them. When I looked at a more recent picture of the two:

I know that the sister in red is my husband’s grandmother. The other one is her sister. When I look at the “old” photo, I can see the difference in the two women. Look at their chins in each picture, one has a more rounded chin, the other one has a more squared chin. Now, I know that the lady sitting in the black and white pic is my husband’s grandmother.

Then like I said earlier, I an old family photo of someone and can’t identify him in a second photo.

Here is a picture of my great-grandfather in his later years:

And here is a school picture of him:

Now, can you pick out which of these boys would be my great-grandfather? I can’t, so I just say this is a picture of him when he was in school in the 1860s—he was born in 1851.

How have you identified people in old photos? Have you ever been wrong? How did you go about figuring out who was who?

Memory Monday: Dirty Diapers in Our Family

four generations of our family

DIRTY DIAPERS IN OUR FAMILY

Several years ago, my mother noticed that (at church) many of the fathers were the ones who took their little ones out of the service because the child was acting up, crying, or (if the dad was carrying a diaper bag) to change the baby’s diaper. That observation really amazed her. But when you think back about when she raised her children (starting in the late 1940s), most women were “stay-at-home” moms and care of the children was just part of what they were responsible for.

I don’t think my dad ever changed a diaper—wet or dirty--in his life. Now move forward to when my husband and I had children. He will tell you that he changed a couple of wet diapers, but never a dirty one. I got all that “fun.” But then, like my mother, I was a full-time at-home mom. Last year while we watched our new granddaughter during the day while both of her parents worked, my husband didn’t want me to go anywhere and leave him alone with our granddaughter for fear that she might have a dirty diaper. Now that she is potty-trained, he’s fine with me going on a few errands and leaving him alone with her.

The other day, my daughter and I were talking. She mentioned that the father of one of their friends wouldn’t change his grandchild’s dirty diaper. I told her about her father’s aversion to the same thing last year. She shook her head and said, “Men of my generation are different from that.” And I agree with her. I’ve seen her husband change his daughter’s dirty diapers.

All I can say is that my husband is happy that our granddaughter has passed the dirty diaper stage and hasn’t reached the “boy” stage yet.

Memory Monday: The Beginning of Another Generation Passing

THE BEGINNING OF ANOTHER GENERATION PASSING

For both my husband and me, all of our grandparents (Grandma, Grandpa, Papaw, Mamaw, Mawmaw, Granddaddy, Grandmother, and a grandfather who died before my husband was born) have passed away. We have precious memories of time spent in their homes. Our children knew some of their grandparents (Grandma, Granddaddy, PawPaw who passed away before our son was born, and Granny who passed away before we had children). Fortunately, our children were old enough when my husband’s father and my mother passed that they also have a wealth of memories of them.

But life moves on. Our granddaughter has lost her first grandparent. Appa (her paternal grandfather) passed away over the weekend. At three, she may not have formed many of those precious memories that we have of our grandparents. But maybe, as we (and our family) did with our children, she will learn about him from those who are still here.

Throwback Thursday: Woman with an Infant and a Buggy

LADY WALKING WITH BABY—“Wonder whose buggy this is? Hope they don’t mind that I borrow it.”

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Memory Monday: What Would You Save?

my husband, his grandmother, and our daughter

WHAT WOULD YOU SAVE?

The other evening, my husband and I were watching a movie on TV. A question was asked during that move that has had me thinking ever since—If your house were burning down and you could grab one thing to save, what would it be?

Now you notice, the question didn’t ask who would you save, so I guess that I’m the only one in the house. So what one THING would I grab? We don’t have any expensive artwork or anything like. There are lots of family “treasures” in our home. But for the most part, those things are only treasures because I have personal memories of them. As I have said before, most of those things aren’t things my children will want. Then there are lots and lots of photo albums, but I can only take ONE item. Which one of those books of pictures, would I choose—the one of our wedding, the one containing pictures of our daughter’s first year, our son’s? Or one of the several others that contain photos of our families (my husband’s and mine) through the years?

I have decided what the one thing is that I would grab—my external hard drive. It contains all of the stories I have ever written (some of which I might revise and publish one day), as well as much documentation for different things. It also contains a lot of our family pictures—especially those from several generations back. I know I need to scan more photos into that drive (from all those photo albums), but what I have now would be a good selection to pass down to our children.

If you had to choose ONE ITEM to grab from your burning house (and yes, assuming you had the time), what would it be?

Throwback Thursday: Two Children on a Carpet

Child without hat—“Is this the eclipse they were talking about?”

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Memory Monday: Treasures to Trash through the Generations

My grandfather and step-grandmother

TREASURES TO TRASH THROUGH THE GENERATIONS

My paternal grandfather lived in his house from the early 1910s until he moved into a nursing home in the late 1970s. There were so many “treasures” in that house, and I inherited three of them— the crystal stemware with matching plates, a bedroom suite, and a gold-upholstered chair. I used to stand next to the china cabinet at my grandparents’ house and make up stories about those dishes (with a family containing five small children, we never had crystal stemware). I was never allowed to open the cabinet and touch anything inside, but I loved it. After my step-grandmother passed away and my grandfather moved in with my parents, my grandfather gave me the crystal. The bedroom suite was always in my grandparents’ bedroom, although it was really the “everything” room since that was where everyone gathered to visit. Kitchen hairs were brought in so the adults had a place to sit while the children sat on the floor or played outside. The bed had tall, slender posts on the corners and all the grandkids swung on them. The dresser was one of those old-fashioned kind (as far as today goes) with the center lower than the drawers on the sides. It had three arched mirrors at the back—two of them hinged to the center one. After my grandfather passed away, my father said I could have that bedroom suite one day.  There was a wing-backed chair in the parlor of my grandparents’ house and my younger sister and I would take turns playing princess with that chair and the sit-down dresser in the front (guest) bedroom. It made for a lot of fun memories.

The years have moved on. The crystal is in its own special cabinet in my kitchen and I will hand it down to my daughter when she get a house. The bedroom suite stayed with my mother after my father died. When she passed, it came to me. My daughter has some memories of it in my mother’s house—she slept in it when she would spend the night there. She wants it for her daughter when she gets old enough to sleep in a full-size bed. That gold “princess” chair was willed to my older sister, but she didn’t care for it, so it stayed at my house. Neither one of my children want it, so I’m not sure what will happen to it after I’m gone.

The lesson I’ve learned from all this is that family “treasures” might only be treasures if there are memories connected to them. I can’t pass my memories to my children, so I can’t expect them to love the things I treasured. But that is only as it should be. They will create new memories and will treasure other things. Hopefully, the things they don’t want will become treasures to others who will create memories of their own and those things will become treasures again in another family.

Memory Monday: Sometimes Things from the Past Are the Best

SOMETIMES THINGS FROM THE PAST ARE THE BEST

Lately when my husband and I babysit our granddaughter, we’ve noticed that she loves to play with a certain toy—a plush tomato from Veggie Tales. It was our daughter’s when she was much younger. I understand my granddaughter being attracted to that certain toy because she has started eating tomatoes, but only the small, yellow ones. Still, they are tomatoes, or “tatoes” as she calls them. By the way, this can get a little confusing—I’m not sure if she is asking for tomatoes or potatoes.

But I am most surprised by the TV show that she asks to see. We have cable, Netflix, and Amazon Prime, but the show she wants to see the most is from 1956—GUMBY. There is only one season on Amazon, so we have watched it and re-watched it. When other shows come on, she plays with her toys as she watches Little Einsteins, Paw Patrol, Sesame Street, or Thomas the Train. But with Gumby, she pulls up a chair and sits there fascinated by the show.

So, that’s something from my daughter’s childhood that she loves and one thing from my childhood. And as a very loving (but never an indulgent) Grandmommy, I ordered our granddaughter poseable Gumby and Pokey figures from Amazon this morning. They should be here the day after tomorrow—just in time for her to play with them for one day before she starts her first day of Preschool Three. Who knows, maybe those dolls will be passed down to the next generation to be played with as my great-grandchild watches Gumby on whatever will be used to show ancient shows to children.

Memory Monday: Children and Their Hair

my daughter in a bonnet that hid her almost bald head

CHILDREN AND THEIR HAIR

From the time our daughter was born until she was in elementary school, she never had her hair cut. It wasn’t because we were against getting her hair cut (although my husband loved long hair on girls). When she was born, she had a nice covering of brown hair. Everything changed when she was about five months old. We had stopped at the grocery store for an item or two—not enough to get a cart or anything. While the checker rang up my purchase, I laid my daughter on the end of the counter and pulled back her blanket so she wouldn’t get too hot. I was shocked when I pulled the sides of that blanket away from her head—most of the hair from the sides of her head stayed with the blanket. Basically, all she had left was the strip on top of her head and to long tufts above each ear. I was able to twist the two tufts above her ears into pin curls which held those plastic blow clips. And I loved dresses that had matching bonnets, like the one in the picture above. Her hair grew back slowly and when her hair was long enough, I put her hair up in pigtails—so no need for a haircut for years.

Now, our son was a different matter. He was born with a full head of black hair and never lost any of it like his sister had. I still remember how my husband gently held down that poor screaming baby (he was only about 5 months old) and told me to trim his hair—my husband didn’t like long hair on boys. Well, I cut my son’s hair as his face turned red from screaming. But after that day, I made it a point to take a snip here and a snip there whenever I had him playing with this bath toys. I don’t think he ever caught on. But eventually that didn’t work because I wasn’t very good at shaping his hair properly. So I took him to a barber shop. Only problem was that the place scared the little three-year-old. I tried to talk him into sitting in the chair, but he cried and the female barber said that she wouldn’t cut his hair with him so upset. In defeat, we went home, but amazingly, a few minutes later as we were watching Sesame Street, the skit with the haircut song came on. We sang with the characters and I got my son to agree to go back and get his hair cut. This time the barber was able to make my baby look like a little boy.

As a new generation has come to our family, our daughter took my granddaughter to get her first haircut. At the children’s hair salon, they have a TV for the children, there is a play area, and when the hair cut was over, the hair stylist sprinkled glitter in my granddaughter’s hair and took a picture of her “first hair cut.” No fuss. No crying.

My, how things have changed! 

Throwback Thursday: A Girl with a Stuffed Animal

The latest from my "old and known" files:

Little girl “My puppy's taking me for a walk.”

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Memory Monday: My Daughter Had Another Birthday

my daughter eating her first birthday cake

MY DAUGHTER HAD ANOTHER BIRTHDAY

Years have come and gone since my daughter had her first birthday. We celebrated that one with her granddaddy and her step-grandmother at their home in Texas. My husband and I decorated the cake (I had planned it with a cupcake on top to give to her). We make a brown sugar bear on it because we had called her “Becky Bear” since the day she was born (just to let you know—we don’t call her that anymore). Here’s a picture of that cake:

After she blew out the candle—with help from her parents, we gave her the cupcake on top and let her have fun. As you can see in the first picture, we put newspaper underneath her to catch the mess. We had a lot of fun and memories from that day. As a side note, it was on her first birthday that she took her first steps by herself.

A few days ago, I was watching my granddaughter and I told her that in two days’ we would be having her mommy’s birthday. She said, “Birthday cake.” I told her that Mommy would blow out the candles. She said that she and her mommy would blow out the candles. I didn’t make a big deal out of it, after all, who would win in a fight like that with a three-year-old.

After the family dinner of manicotti, salad, and garlic bread (all my daughter’s choices), I brought out the birthday cake with candles. And as my granddaughter had said, she helped her mommy blow out the candles. By the way, my daughter’s birthday cake this year was tiramisu (again, her choice) and there were no bears anywhere around.

Throwback Thursday: Bushy Haired Baby

The latest from my "old and known" file:

Grumpy baby “Can’t you at least put a shirt on me before you take the picture?”

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Throwback Thursday: Girl Riding a "Horse" Leg

From my "old and known" file:

Little girl—"What do you mean this isn’t a real horse?"

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Memory Monday: What My Daughter Ate as a Little Girl and What She Eats Now

My Daughter Eating a "Normal" Meal

WHAT MY DAUGHTER ATE AS A LITTLE GIRL AND WHAT SHE EATS NOW

When my daughter was little she LOVED cold hot dogs. If I heated them, she refused to even touch them. They had to be cold. Everything else she ate was “normal” but not hotdogs. Well, there was that time she insisted on eating spinach right out of the can—like Pop-Eye, the sailor man (Toot, Toot), but that only took her one bite to decide that canned, cold spinach was not for her!

Well, today, she still tries new things and she loves to blog about them. Recently, she and her family tried Burmese food, then wrote about what she had on her blog, You Ate What...? The strange food adventures of a suburban girl in Oklahoma.

I would love for you to take a peek at what they ate. You can find out all about it here

You Ate What? Burmese Food (This link will open another page).

I hope you enjoy it. You might even want to try Burmese food sometime. What were some of the “unusual” foods your children insisted on eating when they were little? Do they still eat them today?