Pumpkins and Great Grandchildren

 

September 24, 2023

Dear Family:

I actually had a couple inquiries last week about “I missed your weekly letter.”  I guess that means that someone is reading my letters.  Actually I know you do, but I thought I’d start off with a funny.

I apologize for missing, but we had such a great brunch, visit with Brad, Sheri, Riley, Corbin, Cole, Taylor, Kelsy, Cooper, McKay, Enzo, Amy, Mike Conner and me, that I got a little tired.  It was such a rush and I had so much fun. After everyone left I sat down for a bit, I realized I was exhausted so I went to bed.  I got up at 6 and went back to bed at 8.  But I recovered by the next day.  I worry that one of these days, I’ll stay tired – then what will I do?

Actually I wanted to brag about Cooper and McKay last Sunday.  As you know, I had made a “Fall” tea towel for all my girls and I had grown pumpkins in my yard for the grandchildren.  When everyone was getting ready to go home, I had Cooper and McKay go out to my porch and pick their pumpkins.  They were so excited and Cole even seemed to like them, but he couldn’t take one on the plane.  (Amy did get the tea towel to Haley and pumpkin to Claire – because Tanner and Family were teaching Sunday School and couldn’t come.)

But I want you to see how Cooper and McKay were preparing the pumpkins for travel home.  It warmed my heart.

 

They are wrapping them in Toilet paper that they found in Dad's car to keep the pumpkins safe

If you didn’t see a rare FB post from me Friday, my band had a gig at a posh retirement home (Booneridge) in Salem.  Fancy is the word.  They had an outdoor dinner/dance on the patio for their residents (who couldn’t dance).  But the thought was good.  It was lovely, the people loved my old music and we were actually invited into the restaurant afterwards for steak and shrimp and all the trimmings.  It was a real treat as musicians.  We usually aren’t treated so well.

9/22/23 Salem Oregon

Now a word about passing down traditions, talents, skills learned etc.

One of the reasons that I give gifts that I make to the ones that I love (especially my grandchildren) is as an example.  (Such as the tea towels)  It is in a hope that they will be inspired to carry on some of the domestic arts that their grandmother (me); their great grandmother (my mom); and their great great grandmother (my grandmothers Mary Bankhead Glenn Leishman and Myrtle Campbell Short) loved.  They were an example to me, taught me and inspired me to create things that they loved and that remind me of them.

My grandmother Mary Leishman taught me to crochet, knit and embroider.  She loved embroidered pillow cases and hankies with hand crocheted lace -  and Judy and I decided to love them also.  Mom helped Judy and me embroider and taught us the fine points after grandma Mary got us interested. Grandma Myrtle was a quilter and I have one of her quilts. She gave quilts to Judy and me – one of which was a “Sunbonnet Girl” quilt when we were little.  (That’s why I love sunbonnet girl quilts).  Grandma Mary had two braided rugs in her living room that I always paid close attention to.  I asked her who made them and what they were made of.  I actually have one of them now.  She is the one who inspired me to make two wool hand braided rugs.  Judy gave me the fabric that she got from her mother in law and I went to town.  I used the knitting that grandma taught me to make sweaters for my grandchildren when they were young.  I used the inspiration from Grandma Myrtle to start making quilts.  My mom really taught me to sew after I took a sewing class as a Freshman in high school.  She helped me read patterns and showed me how to make blind hems.  Cleora Summers taught me advanced skills in sewing and between Mom and Cleora I have loved to sew ever since I was a teenager.

So my dear daughter, daughters-in-law, granddaughters, and granddaughters-in-law don’t forget the domestic arts.  It is a foregone conclusion that they are fading away.  You can buy anything now days.  But the wonderful sense of accomplishment is hard to describe. It is a high for me.  It isn’t for everyone.  I’ve run into women who hate to sew.  It made them nervous and mad.  Some people have other talents, like my sister Glennda.  She is an accomplished artist.  Sewing isn’t for her.  But there might be one of you who will decide that the domestic arts are a gratifying, fulfilling and worthwhile endeavor.  I feel hope when I see young women on youtube or tv who have taken it to heart -  quilters, knitters, etc. 

I actually used and honed these arts when I was raising my children to make them clothes, and to feel personal accomplishment while I was raising children.  It made me feel good.  And a side benefit:  Brian learned to sew and he made a Frostline Jacket from a kit; Amy learned to sew and it was all because she saw me sewing and wanted to sew as well;  I believe that Brad even made a Frostline jacket from a kit.

Well enough about the domestic arts.  I love you all and pray for each of you every night.

Have a wonderful week.  I have an Oktoberfest gig tomorrow at “The Stafford of Lake Oswego” tomorrow afternoon. I'll try to remember to take a photo.

Love Mom, Grandma, Great Grandma, Sister and Aunt Suzanne

 

 

September 10, 2023

Dear Family:  We do have one birthday this coming Saturday; Laura Schnell.

I can’t wait to tell you all about my fun weekend.  I was invited down to Long Beach, WA., by my brother Jay and sister-in-law Alena.  Jay has mentioned this weekend after Labor Day to me before and this year he mentioned it a few times.  I am so glad that I finally accepted the invitation.

It was the ROD RUN.  The BEACH BARONS car club in Long Beach for 39  years has sponsored this.  I don’t know what I expected but I was blown away. 

I had a gig at Touchmark in the West Hills  Friday from 11-1pm and I left a bit after and got down there about 5:30.  After dinner we drove to downtown Long Beach and there were a lot of hot rods, restored classic cars, and things that looked like they were a mix of something just driving around – dragging the main street.  

My first car was just like this but light green where the pink is.  55 Chevy (with a post) not a hardtop.

Here is a better photos of a 55 Chevy.

This 55 Chevy is a hard top.  They were much more desirable.

We watched them for a while and then drove on the beach and caught a gorgeous sunset.

The next morning we drove north to a huge field that had been donated to the club by a deceased club member.  The field was huge.  I would guess about 30-40 acres.  There were a few permanent buildings; ticket booth, t-shirt and sweatshirt sales building and probably a cub house for the car club.  At the total back of the field food vendors were set up, but there were rows and rows and rows of restored classic cars, altered hot rods, cars that looked classic but had noisy engines and had lots of things done to them and cars that were all mixed up.  There were even cars and trucks that looked like they had taken off the wheels and they were sitting on the ground.  But Jay told me that they had some kind of hydraulic thing that lifted them up to drive.  There were cars of every shape size and description.  All day long while we were walking the field I kept thinking how Judy would have loved to see this.  She and I were experts on 50’s Fords and Chevys.  We knew everyone and some 60’s ones too.  There were even cars that looked rusty like they needed a paint job, but they were intentionally made that way.  I would guess that there were at least 1000 cars there maybe more. They also had a swap meet on one end of the field for old car parts.  I thought about Brad and his cars and Rich and his car some.  It would have been a lot of fun to see them showing off their cars. This wasn’t a car sale like Barrett Jackson.  It was a place for guys (lots of old guys) to show off what they had done to their favorite car from their youth and how they had modified or restored it.   We walked and stayed for about 2 hours. We didn’t even see half the cars in two hours. Then we went home to rest.

At 4pm we went to the Corral Burger (the only burger place for years on the peninsula until McDonald came 15 or 20 years ago).  We set up chairs on the opposite side of the street.  Jay ordered our food and we waited for about an hour for the food.  But in the meantime and for hours after -  it was entertainment central.  I had a great time watching the cruise of cars – thousands of cars.  I began to think how nice it was that these people are interested in something worthwhile and enjoyable to themselves and others and not criminal activities that we hear about on the news everyday.  These folks have poured their hearts into these cars and have kept busy – many for years and years working on them. The town was jammed with people, cars, RV’s, campers, motorhomes, tents, tables, chairs.  The traffic on the Cruise on Saturday was very slow, like 2 miles an hour and there were regular cars mixed in so they could get a feel for the overall experience. It went on all afternoon and evening probably til midnight.  Sometimes you’d see a particular car again, with the grandpa in the back seat and the grandsons driving this time.  With the price of gas $5.75 a gallon on the peninsula I couldn’t hardly guess the amount of money that was poured into just fuel.  It was like we were in another world for a couple of days. 

I’m going to include a bunch of photos.  I would have been snapping photos for hours, but I had to narrow it down to my favorites and ones that were especially interesting.  So I included cars from my youth, early marriage, Scott’s GTO and lots of beautiful cars.  My favorite at the field was a Volkswagen bus that was part pickup but was restored by experts and had windows in the front that opened out, two banks of seats and the back sides of the pickup part dropped down, not just the rear like a pickup.  It was painted a gorgeous pale green. I forgot to take a photo of it.  Jay knew the make and model and I’ve forgotten, maybe he’ll reply and tell us the model – safari comes to mind, but I don’t think that’s it.  Jay said it won the favorite car at last year’s show.  I voted for it this year.  Tons of money was poured into it I’m sure.

My personal favorite of all the ones I saw was a 55 Chevy (not a hard top) that was painted pink and white. This was the exact same model car as my very first car that I bought when I was about 18 or 19.   You’ll see it.  I almost missed the photo.  I think my car payment was either $37 or $67 for about a year.  I can’t remember for sure.  One thing was kind of funny.  Lots of Corvette’s cruised.  Every single one (except one) had an old gray haired guy driving it.  I guess when they retired they decided to buy their fantasy car and relive their youth.

Enjoy:

What is this?  A woody.....

This had a rumble seat - I dont' know the model

A newer Corvette - ugly

Look how close to the ground this Chevy pickup is

57 Chevy Nomad

I have no idea what this is

Is this a Willys woody?

I loved the paint color

Is this a Mercury? or what

NOW THIS ONE IS A GTO.  Scott Field had one but it was gold.  They sold it for $2000 and now it's worth $95000 restored.

This is a 65 Ford Falcon Sprint.  We sold my Chevy after we had one or two children and Rich wanted to buy this from his sister Chris.  We had it a long time.  But ours was blue.

57 Chevy (not a hardtop)  Not yellow!!!

Better of the 57 Chevy Nomad

This is a 53 Chevy.  Mom's was green and I drove it my Junior and Senior year to school sometimes and to work on Saturday's a Schnapp Jewelry Store in Gresham.

I liked this photo of the 50 Ford in the back.  It's modified but I remember those.

 

This is a Ford hardtop 55 or 56 I think.  I didn't see the tail lights.

I couldn’t help but think of all the years of car talking that went on in our family.  I knew all the 50’s cars and Jay knew all the rest.  It was a really fun weekend and I’ll always remember it.  I hope I get to go again. 

I’m looking forward to next weekend.  Brad, Sheri, Riley, Corbin and Cole are coming to town.  We’ll have a brunch Sunday at 11 ish.  Then they’ll all depart.  But before they do, I’ve raised pumpkins for my great grandchildren and I can’t wait to give them out.

Have a wonderful week.  (And thank you Kenlee, Laura, Haley, Kelsy for posting photos of the kiddos on FB and Instagram.   I love it.)

Enjoy Long Beach at Sunset.

9/8/23 about 8 pm - Longbeach Washington

Love Mom, Grandma, Great Grandma, Sister and Aunt Suzanne

Thunder and Lightning and 1955

 

Saturday night - September 2 2023 - 9:45pm

Dear Family:

It is Saturday night and I was sitting in my soft chair in my bedroom listening to an audio book that Megan recommended to me.  All of a sudden thunder, lightning, hail and rain started making all kinds of noise.  I went to the front door and watched for a moment.  Then all of a sudden a memory flashed into my mind and it was 1955 and I was babysitting my 3 little sisters in our old house in Vale Oregon.  

It was1955 and Mom and Dad were in Nyssa or Ontario at their church meetings.  Mom was in the stake Primary presidency and I don’t remember what Dad was.  But we were having a thunder, lightening and rain storm just like the one tonight.  The lights went out and Judy and Glennda were crying.  Mary was a baby and she started crying too.  I tried to be brave and comfort my sisters.  After a long while I ran across the street and up about 50 feet to the neighbors and asked what I should do.  They said that the phone still worked and that I should call someone to help me. 

I don’t know what I did after that, except that I ran back to the house and held my little sisters until they stopped crying.  I told them that Mom and Dad would be home soon and that everything would be alright.

We lived in a one room house about 12' by 20' (living room and kitchen) with two granaries which were pulled up to the back of the house and attached to form two bedrooms.  We lived there from the time I was 9 until I was 12.  Granaries were little buildings that held harvested wheat until it could be used or sold.  It was about 10x10’ with no windows. One was bigger than the other.  Mom and dad slept in the small one and we girls slept in the big one.)

Funny…..what memories dart back into my mind when something triggers it – like thunder and lightning did tonight.

Now you are going to get the benefit of my research tonight.  I never knew exactly what these granaries were or where they came from until tonight.  I just remember dad telling us that we had granaries for bedrooms.

Granary

From google:  After the end of the Dust Bowl and an extended drought, 1935-45 - Mother Nature relented and the rains came. No one, especially the farmer and the grain storage industry, was prepared for the abundance of grain harvested.

All farm storage filled quickly and grain elevators overflowed. Railroad cars were scarce, scattered across the Great Plains in the northern grain belt. The big 18-wheeler grain vans of today were yet to be invented. Millions of bushels of grain were piled on the ground in long ricks (ie rows) exposed to the elements.

One of President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal policies offered temporary grain storage in the form of what were called “government granaries.” These were pre-manufactured kits, knocked down for shipment and hauled by rail. Farmers applied for and purchased the buildings through the new agricultural offices set up in each county.   Once the kit was delivered to the farm, farmers built forms and mixed and poured cement blocks on which the granaries rested. Early kit models were crude and ugly but held the surplus grain high and dry until it could be sold. Later kits improved in quality and appearance and eventually became a prairie land improvement on nearly every farm.

Our bedrooms (granaries) were about 1or 1.5 feet off the ground.  There was no insulation under the floor.  There was no door between our bedrooms.  Mother had hung a flowered drape/curtain between the rooms.  We had no indoor bathroom. 

We were dressed for Easter.  Mom had made us new dresses.  This is the front of our house.  We entered right into the living room.

Glenn

This is Easter same day Glennda age 4 on the front steps.  Nice dirt around the front steps.

I include this photo so you can see the yard.  This is the right side of the house.  The canal road is to the right and up the property to the barn that dad built in the far background.  Mary age 1

I remember that Easter hat.  It had cherries on it. Off to the left was the garden and orchard.  It looks like no trees are blooming yet. It must have been warm enough to go outside without sweaters.

This is the same day.  Mom had made our dresses and she had made herself a dress so that she could complete the requirements for her Golden Gleaner award.  She was only 32 here.  This style of dress was very typical with a belt made from the same fabric.

 It is now 11:00 and I have enjoyed learning about granaries and remembering what it was like living on an 80 acre farm on the west bench outside of Vale, Oregon.  Mom and Dad had their hands full providing food and clothes for us.  I remember an upright piano and a rose colored couch and chairs in the living room. From looking at the photos it reminds me of poor farmers in a newsreel.  But I didn't feel poor.  Maybe I was too young to understand.  I did know what I was expected to work hard.  I was tall for my age and so I guess it was natural that I was expected to be able to work from the time I was 8 or 9 years old.  

Working hard has been something that I have always done; when I was a kid; when I was a teenager; when I was a young mother and later.  Now that I'm not young anymore I still feel that I have to be productive.  

For the past couple weeks I've been trying to get Amy to take it easy and not do so much.  I told her that I think I've passed on to her this THING...............When I was younger I would wake in the morning with lots of energy and decide I could do this whole list of things.  I got away with it until lately - getting older changes things.  Now that Amy is recovering and it's supposed to take 3 months - she has my same THING..... waking with energy, thinking she can do all these things, and when she gets them done, she realizes that it was too much.  One day last week I told that I was going to take it back.  Then she said, it's too late. We chuckled over that.

 I do realize now that I have to take life a little easier.  My age is catching up with me. 

President Hinckley said: " Our lives become extremely busy.  We run from one thing to another.  We wear ourselves out in thoughtless pursuit of goals which are largely ephemeral.  We are entitled to spend some time with ourselves in introspection, in development, in thinking, in meditating, pondering things."

I think the reason that I like his quotes so much is that he was President when I was raising my family.  He helped me to see that women were valued by the church.  That we often were too busy.  I thought he knew me and that he was speaking just to me.

Alena's birthday is September 6 - next Wednesday.  Happy Birthday Alena.

Have a nice week family.  

Love Mom, Grandma, Great Grandma, Sister and Aunt Suzanne