Random MondayMemories

Christmas Day 1985

I love those random memories that make me smile no matter what is going on in life right now. 

Joe - 6, Katie - 4, Amanda - 2, and Kevin - 8.

Random Monday Memory - Revisited

I originally shared this post back in October of 2008..the very first year I was blogging.

Since Thanksgiving is just days away I thought it would be fun to share it again.

Beside the fact that I'm out of new blog material right now, and

I've been busy making things for a craft show that's about three weeks away!

******************

Who: Three of my children

What: Eating dinner with bags on their heads

When: Thanksgiving Day 2003

Where: My dining room

Why: I don't know

This was the first Thanksgiving that all four of my children weren't home for dinner. Joe was with his wife (then his fiancee) and her family at their house. Kevin, Katie and Amanda were so sad at not having Joe at the table with them ~ obviously it was more than they could face! Soon to be son-in-law Mark was also at the table. He wore no bag and was probably wondering exactly what he'd gotten himself into! 

But it's all good ~ he fits in quite nicely!

Just in case you're wondering about the British phone booth in the background ~ Katie and Mark's wedding was the following January and the phone booth was part of the reception decor ~ that, however, is for another Monday!

Have a joy-filled day!

Party Time!

Earlier this month we celebrated Caleb's birthday...bet you can't guess how old he is!  Those balloons stayed on the window for about three minutes!!

 

 

The party was at our house...we had a house full of littles!! Eleven to be exact. So many cute faces.  It was hard catching some of them "not in motion"...at least until the food was served!

 

Caleb and Charlotte sharing a seat at the picnic table I recently "picked" from a neighbor's trash!!

Mr. Elijah's new haircut has aged him...he looks at least 7 in this photo!!

Fletcher is reading some real estate literature.

 

Lulu was watching everything going on around her...all

the while hanging onto those balloon strings!

Penelope's expression seems to say, "Gramma, you sure do take a lot of pictures"!

Here are some extra littles...Caleb's party guests!
 

 

Fun times...memories made...and a happy birthday boy!

Mission accomplished!!

Like Father, Like Son.

Elijah has been going to day camp this week.....he's been very busy, and he's been enjoying every minute! 

Today he put his whole face in the water....great job Elijah!! 

He had a busy, exciting day and all he wanted to do was relax with a good book.  Plus he wasn't feeling 100%, so a little down time was needed. 

 

Poor little guy...he was so worn-out. He fell asleep sitting up AND reading!  How sweet is this!!
(photos of Elijah borrowed from Joe & Jo's Facebook)

These photos of Elijah reminded me of photos of Joe that I've shared before.  

Here he is with Kevin. This is right after bath time, and during snack time.  Kevin's grinning because Joe fell asleep without finishing his snack bar.  Kevin is almost done with his (notice it in his left hand). 

He knows he'll get to eat Joe's!

 

This is Joe in time-out ~ complete with timer.   He was sitting there while I was in the kitchen.  When the timer went off, this is what I found.  I have a side view of this photo somewhere...it shows that there's about a 12 inch gap between the trunk and the couch.  He was just "hanging out".....sound asleep!

 



Disney Trip 2013

Then and Now (and Then)

 

The first time my dear family of six went to Walt Disney World was in April of 1987.

Here's a photo of my four children back then. 

Clockwise starting with Mickey: Joe, Kevin, Katie, and Mandy.

 

Each of them has returned to WDW at least once since then.

In February of this year...for the first time in 26 years...all four of them were there again.

I have good kids...the four of them agreed to pose with Mickey once more.

 

 

Oh my goodness.....where has the time gone?   Such sweet memories!

 

 

 





Happy Birthday Joe!!!

Today Joe is 34 years old...we've racked up a lot of memories

in those 34 years.

Here's a few of them.

 

HERE

 

HERE

 

AND HERE

 

Elijah, Joe, Johanna, and Caleb

Joe and his sandwich.

Happy Birthday to You!

I love you Joe!

Hope you're having at GREAT day!

 



Random Monday Memories...Revisited

I have some gift making to work on this week, so I think I'm going to do a bit of re-posting.  I'd like to share (again) some Random Monday Memories.  I first posted this one on 11/30/2009. 

I hope you enjoy reading it....perhaps again!

 

~~~::~~~

 

We lived in Wisconsin for eight years and for six of those years we were blessed to be able to participate in a local Christmas program that allowed us to "adopt" a family for Christmas...I have such wonderful memories from that time.  The organization we worked with, matched us with a family and we contacted the family and asked about any specific needs or wants. 

One year, as I delivered bags of gifts and boxes of groceries, I saw a little boy watching me from an apartment's second floor window. Turns out he was one of the children in the family I was delivering to. I went in and out from my car to their apartment three times and he just kept watching me...never saying a word. I said hello to him...but he just watched me. At 7 years he was the oldest of three. He lived with his mom and two little sisters.

 

First I carried up the box of groceries, then a fresh cut Christmas tree with lights and finally the bags of colorfully wrapped packages containing toys, clothing and other goodies. As I put the bags of packages down I talked with his mom and played for a moment or two with his little sisters (ages 5 & 2).

When I was ready to leave I tried once more to get him to talk to me ~ I had some candy canes in my pocket and I wasn't above trying bribery to get a smile out of him. He came to me and took the candy canes and I turned to leave. But I stopped because he asked me, "Are you like a Santa Claus?" I told him I was just a friend who wanted to help him have a Merry Christmas. He asked me if there were any toys in those bags....for his sisters. I told him there were and that there were some for him too. He said "Is there something for my mother?" ~ I told him yes.

He smiled and then he said "I'm happy you brought a tree". He proceeded to show me the red & green paper chain that he made in school, the paper snowflakes his mom cut out of white paper and a box of twelve "not so shiny" red ornaments. He told me that all of it would look nice on the tree I brought and that he thought the presents would look really nice under the tree.

I was there at least another fifteen minutes because he wanted to tell me what his sisters wanted for Christmas, he wanted to know if there gloves for his mother (there were) and what kind of food was in the boxes. He didn't like green beans...oops! He talked about making chocolate chip cookies later that day and going to church on Christmas Eve. Finally I couldn't stand it....I said "what do YOU want for Christmas?" (Of course, I already knew because his mother had shared his wish list with me earlier.) He said, "a paint set and ear muffs and...oh, that's all." I asked if that was what he wanted the very most and he said what he really wanted was a Matchbox Car Wash and some cars to go with it. But his mom told him to be happy with what he got ~ so he would be happy with a paint set and ear muffs and he would be happy if his mom got some new gloves.

Of course I'm fighting tears at this point. I told him I had to leave and that I hoped that he had a very Merry Christmas. His mom thanked me and his little sisters bounced around waving at me and giggling. He told me thank you and walked me to the door and shut it behind me. As I got into my car I turned and looked up at the window ~ you guessed it ~ he was there watching me! I smiled and waved and he smiled back and...blew me a kiss! I cried all the way home.

The organization we worked with sent me a thank you note from the family. Mom loved her gloves, the little girls loved their dolls and dishes and he played with his car wash and cars all day long. (He got a paint set and ear muffs too!)

This day is one of my most treasured Christmas memories.

 

Random Monday Memories

When I lived in Wisconsin I used to go to a lot of yard sales. My children were little and it was one of their favorite things to do.  Most of the items I bought were for them...clothes, toys and books.  Every now and again I would find a treasure just for me.  A treasure like these pitchers.  I found these at a neighborhood yard sale during the late 1980s.  I paid $5.00 for the 5 inch pitcher and $6.00 for the 6 inch one.  "One dollar an inch"  the man at the yard sale said.  According to an antiques dealer that I showed them too about ten years ago they were made in the late 18th century...that makes them well over 100 years old.  Each one has a tiny chip near the spout...otherwise they're in excellent shape!  I'm just over half their age.  I wish I could claim the same!!

I know very little about these pitchers ~ I haven't been able to find much at all on the internet.  They might be from Robinson Ransbottom Pottery.  This website shows pictures of pitchers almost identical to these.  It suggests they might be Roseville pottery.  But it doesn't matter what they are because I love them  exactly as they are.....nameless!   

Of course if anyone out in blogland knows anything about them, I'd be happy to hear from you!

Random Monday Memories

Who remembers String Art? 

It was a popular craft back in the seventies and eighties. I must admit that during the late seventies I had at least a couple pieces of it hanging around my home.  There was a large ship and a piece like the blue & white circle design below.

Here's a few kits I found for sale on Ebay.  The ship is vey similar to the one I had. As I looked at samples on the internet I noticed that owls were very popular subjects for string art.  My favorite piece was the hummingbird ~ and I even found it on Ebay.  But I think I'll have to pass on bidding on it.  I think string art is destined to remain a "random memory" for me! 

schooner

owl

sunburst

Here's a photo of Bill and his Dad taken in 2005. It was in my father-in-law's mobile home down in Florida.  In the background you can see a peek of one of the two very large string art pieces that my in-laws had in their living room.  They were each about 3 x 5 feet and they were geometric patterns designed and built by my father-in-law in 1970 while General Motors (he worked for them as an electrician) was on strike.  

From 1970 until just before my mother-in-law passed away in 1991 my father-in-law re-strung these pieces (to match her decor) two more times.  The piece up above is done in mauve, green and cream...it's final color scheme. She liked everything to be nicely coordinated and he would do anything for her ~ his Margie.

When he sold his mobile home and came to live with us 2 1/2 years ago, he left the string art behind.  I wish we had some good photos of both pieces ~ there was so much of him and her in each one.

Re-post - August 31, 2008

I was going through some old posts and I thought I would share this one again.  The "good old days" reminder is a timely one for me.

The Good Old Days

I got to spend some time cleaning and sorting in my craft room this weekend ~ some day it will be cleaned and sorted enough to earn the name studio ~ for right now craft room is probably a stretch. Storage room would be more accurate.
But, I'm working on it...and I'm rambling.  (UPDATE - Yes, 22 months later and I'm still working on this room ~ sad but true!)

While working I came across this old Good Housekeeping magazine. It's from November of 1948 and the cost of it was ~ 35 cents! Of course the sorting and cleaning stopped because I had to browse through the magazine. Great stuff!! Did you know that "DUZ does EVERYTHING"? and that you should "use SPRY with cake-improver". (future posts may tell you more about DUZ & SPRY and who knows what else)!

This magazine is full of the neatest, sweetest ads, wonderful stories and all kinds of fun images. The little bits I had time to read had me thinking about the good old days, a simpler life, a slower pace, a time when you got free glasses or dish towels in your box of detergent!
Those were the days...those were the good old days!!

I finally got back to the task at hand and after a bit I came across an article I wrote for the newsletter at my church. I wrote it in 1995, at a time in my life when circumstances drove me straight to God and right down to my knees.
He was who I thought of first and who I needed more than anything else.
As I read over the article I again began to think about the good old days, but in a totally different way.

In the book of Revelations (2:4) Christ shows His displeasure for those believers who've lost that fervent desire they once had for all things God. The excitement wasn't there, they became complacent and indifferent. They did things out of duty rather than out of love for the Lord. They had lost their first love. I think that must happen to a lot of us. Probably more than once or twice. Sometimes we may not even realize it. But more times than not I think we know.
I think we begin to experience that longing for a time when each day had joy because each day had Jesus.

Well, I certainly can't go back to 1948 ~ especially since I wasn't born until 1955. I can't get back that kind of simple life or slower pace. However, there is nothing stopping me from returning to the good old days with Jesus Christ. There's nothing stopping me from thinking of Him first and needing Him most and loving Him with all that is in me. Except for desire on my part.
My desire is to follow Him ~ I don't want Him to have anything against me.

"Nevertheless I have this against you,

that you have left your first love."

Revelations 2:4 NKJV

Random Monday Memories

Art Linkletter recently passed away. I used to watch his TV show, "House Party". Included in the show was a segment called "Kids Say The Darndest Things". Art Linkletter interviewed schoolchildren between the ages of five and ten....oh oh, look out, no telling what their answer will be. Of course that was the whole reason for the interview!

During the 27-year run, Art Linkletter interviewed more than 23,000 children.

***

What are you learning at school that you can tell us about?

They teach you not to fight with your friends.

How do they do that?

They read from the Bible, where Jesus says, "Thou shalt not kill."

I'm happy to learn that they've stopped the killings on the playground this way.
But tell me, have you been punished lately?

Yes.

What for?

Hitting a kid in the face with a cupcake.

Why did you do that?

It's not in the Bible.

"Kids Say The Darndest Things"
page 115

written by Art Linkletter 

***

The popularity of this segment led to a TV series by the same name hosted by Bill Cosby. It ran from January 1998 to June 2000. I found this clip from the series on YouTube ~ Art Linkletter was the special guest ~ what a great surprise they had for him!!

There's also been a series of books called
"Kids Say The Darndest Things".

I'm lucky enough to own a copy.
It's written by Art Linkletter with an introduction by Walt Disney and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz!

It's a great book ~ sorry I have no photo of it, I'm still camera-less.
The back cover has reviews of the book on it.
Reviews by Bob Hope, Jack Benny, Bob Cummings and Lucille Ball & Desi Arnez!

Now there's a blast from the past!

"Things work out best for the people
who make the best of the way things work out.”

Art Linkletter

Random Monday Memories

I was doing some laundry last night ~ seems like I never get caught up with it. I get so tired of the never ending loads of laundry. But then I got to thinking about my mother. She had a wringer washer when I was a child. It was a lot of work. Loading the machine ~ running everything through the wringer ~ hanging up a lot of things and putting the rest into the dryer ~ folding clothes and putting things away. Took a whole lot more time to do the laundry back then ~ but I never heard my Mom complain.

Although I must say I don't remember seeing her gaze lovingly into the wringer washer ~ not even once!

Then in addition to the washing and drying, etc. there was a whole lot of ironing going on too! I remember seeing one of these ~ and an empty soda bottle too! Who remembers this nifty little invention?

Hmmmmm ~ the good old days!?

Random Monday Memories

Who: Me

What: Dancing

When: The Sixties

Where: Grade School

Fridays in Gym class ~ oh what fun! We learned to dance on Fridays. We also picked partners....one by one. Talk about trauma! Usually the boys picked ~ once a month the girls got to pick. Talk about drama! I did not look forward to Friday dance classes at all! It would have been better if partners were chosen by luck of the draw or something like that.

Choosing one by one was like being the last one picked for the baseball team. Actually it was worse ~ you didn't get picked for the ball team because you lacked ball playing skills. You didn't get picked to dance because you weren't cool! I wasn't cool. But I survived.

I also learned how to do the Polka. That was the very best part of the dreaded Friday dance class!

In the USA on May 3, 1939 the "Beer Barrel Polka" was recorded by The Andrews Sisters. The song, also known as "Roll Out the Barrel" became a popular standard during World War II and became a favorite of music lovers around the world.

Random Monday Memories

 
This is a photo from a scrapbook that my Mom made for me several years ago. She actually made four identical albums. One for me and one for each of my siblings. John, Emily and I are pictured in this photo ~ given our ages I'm pretty sure my Mom was pregnant with Steve this particular Easter ~ 1963. That's me in the suit. It was gray and I thought I was really something in this suit. The blouse was "silky" and the handbag was quite possibly my first grown-up kind of bag. It probably had some tissue and a comb in it....it looks pretty flat. It might even be empty! : )

I look at pictures of me as I child and I totally understand why I have problems with dark circles under my eyes now ~ I've had them forever!!

I got to thinking about the Easter baskets I received as a child. Always jelly beans, marshmallow egg candies and one hard-boiled egg with our name written on it ~ so we'd know which basket was ours! And very often we'd find some of this stuff.
Silly Putty!!!
 

It bounced, it crackled, it stretched and (my favorite) it copied newsprint. I especially liked to copy the Sunday comics with it. My children also received Silly Putty in their Easter Baskets and I plan on making sure my grandbabies get to experience the simple fun of Silly Putty.



What did you used to get in your Easter Basket?

 

Random Monday Memories

I need tissue!

Not much in the way of memory today. The head cold that my daughters and granddaughters are just getting over has found it's way to me. Sore throat, sneezing, runny nose and just plain worn out. It amazes me how quickly the symptoms develop. I felt fine Sunday morning. I got up, went to church (let me apologize now to all the folks I shook hands with) and then to lunch with Mandy.

By mid-afternoon I was wiped out.

I thought I'd take the easy way out today and share a memory from a previous post. It's all about Vicks.

Red, Red Robin

I found this little Robin at a Spring Art & Craft show I recently went to. It reminds me of my childhood ~ growing up in Michigan. The Robin is Michigan's state bird. I remember pictures of robins, their blue eggs and sweet nests decorating the classrooms in my school.

As I was "googling" to read and see more about Michigan's State Bird I came across a photo set on Flickr. The photos tell a picture story about a Robin's nest. Empty to full to empty again. There's also a link to a "word" story about the nest. It's such a nice story. You should read it if you get a chance to.

nest

"For You have been a shelter for me,

A strong tower from the enemy.

I will abide in Your tabernacle forever;

I will trust in the shelter of Your wings."

Psalm 61:3-4

Random Monday Memories

Mandy, Katie, Mark and four friends went to Michigan a couple weekends ago. They went to see a Red Wings hockey game and they visited my mother. They also ate...at Cracker Barrel, National Coney Island (hot dogs) and Sonic...twice! When I spoke with Mandy during their drive home she said, "I really had fun!" Mandy always "really has fun". Here she is during another visit to see my mom some sixteen years ago.

She's wearing an oversized nightgown and she's standing over the heat vent in the kitchen floor of my Mom's old mobile home. When the heat (and fan) came on it inflated her!

I love this picture!

Random Monday Memories

I watched Charlotte this weekend while her parents were away. She had a little bit of a cold so I tried to spend most of my time at her house because I knew she'd sleep and play better there. I figured I could use Katie's computer or watch television to amuse myself when she was sleeping. I probably should have just slept while she was ~ it's amazing how busy a 22 month can be ~ but I didn't. I actually typed this up while at her house ~ but it didn't take long. My neck has been bothering me a lot, and being on the computer isn't the best position for it, so I decided some magazines and TV would be the entertainment of choice.

However there really isn't anything on TV that I care to watch. I was thinking about what I used to watch when I was younger and one of those random memories" popped into my head.

Anyone remember The King Sisters or The King Family or The King Cousins. The King Family had their own TV show in 1965 -66. I loved watching it. You can visit their official website to read how it all started. Their home page has a letter sharing the news that Yvonne (lower right in the picture below) passed away in December of 2009. Sister Marilyn (lower center) is the only sister still alive.

The TV series included the whole family, right down to the King Kiddies. It was wholesome, funny and just plain entertaining. I loved when the King Cousins would sing in their outfits that had their names on them. I considered it a personal challenge to figure out who was married to who and which children belonged to which sister. Tina Cole (one of Yvonne's daughters) starred as Katie Douglas in My Three Sons ~ another show I loved to watch.
Life has changed so much ~ so of course TV has too! I guess it will have to be enough to be able to find bits and pieces of memories on the Internet (I am grateful for this change) and reminisce. Those really were the good old days.

The King Family in their first color TV special appearance.

For lots more King Family videos click here.

~~::~~

Just for fun ~ My Three Sons!

Random Monday Memories

UPDATE: The key pictured below is (sadly) not mine. I had this link underneath it but somehow managed to delete it in the original post.

~~~::~~~

When I was a little girl I had one of these magical keys. It opened up a world of information about animals for me and for anyone standing nearby when I used it. I used to take this key to the Detroit Zoo and also to the (now closed) Children's Zoo on Belle Isle in Detroit, MI.

When you put the zoo key into one of these "talking storybooks" a voice would start telling you all about the animal that lived in the exhibit that the storybook was near. It was such fun and a great adventure to go through the zoo looking for the storybooks. As far as I can tell the Detroit Zoo no longer has them but I did discover that interactive Storybooks have returned to the San Francisco Zoo. The photo below is what one of the old Talking Storybooks looked like.

I used to watch a Saturday morning TV show called Bwana Don. Bwana Don taught us about animals and he had a chimp named Bongo Bailey on the show. There were also cartoons. I don't remember the specifics, but I got my elephant key from him....what a treat it was!

What ZOO memories do you have?

Random Monday Memories

Anyone remember this little guy?

Sunday nights on CBS...that's where I watched him ~ for most of my childhood.

"Every week, America tuned into "The Ed Sullivan Show" and every week, the TV audience was charmed by the antics of the adorable mouse, Topo Gigio. Created by a highly creative troupe of puppeteers, it took four people to bring the 10" tall character to life, three to manipulate him and one to create his sweet voice.Appearing over 50 times, the little Italian mouse would appear on stage and greet Ed with a sugary "Hello Eddie!". Topo also was quite the lover, often speaking of his girlfriend "Rosie", but the enduring image is how Topo ended his weekly visits, literally crooning to Ed, "Keesa me goo'night, Eddie"."

ED SULLIVAN PRESENTS