Baptist vs Lutheran

This hand written joke is one of my favorites. We read this together out loud upon finding the black book it resides in. My Grandmother was a proud Lutheran and was never afraid to poke fun at herself and knew a good joke was just that, a joke. I am not sure who told her this or where she got it from, but it was a keeper in her mind. 

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A certain Baptist preacher has been compelled to move so many times. His children were young so they adjusted quickly but as they got older adjusting became more difficult. The Baptist preacher and family moved to a new town, a new church. The children became so unhappy. They were irritable, fussy, and frumpy. Nothing pleased them.

One morning the preacher noticed a sign as he was going to the church office. The sign read "beautiful kittens for free." On the way back home the Baptist preacher had an idea when he saw free kittins. He said "I'll get the children a kitten. That will occupy their time and they will be happy again."

When he brought the kitten home the children were simply elated. But right soon the phone rang and the preacher had to leave immediately.

Being brought up in the Baptist faith the children decided the kitten must be baptized. They got a tub, filled it with water and grabbed a towel to dry it with. So they got the kitten and tried to immerse it in the tub but the kitten's hair began to bristled up, it scratched and clawed them.  Frustrated the oldest child said "ah heck, let's just splash some water on it like the Lutherans do and let it go to hell."

Rooster, Pullet, Hen ...What's That Called?

Vintage Concrete Chicken Statue in Garden

My Mom always does this little game with the children that makes them laugh each time. She touches the forehead and says rooster, then touches the nose and says pullet, and last touches the chin and says hen. Then she point's to the child's nose and says "What's that called?" They know they have to answer "pullet" and then she does just that!

These same little children have given a new name to a very old chicken. We would like to introduce everyone in the Midwest to Rocksie. She used to live in my Grandmother's front yard and before that she lived in my Great Grandma's yard. I've loved her for years so she came on the moving van (along with a whole mess of furniture) to stay with me for a while. I am pretty sure that my Great Grandmother didn't intend on this becoming a family heirloom when she purchased it over 80 years ago. The china, yes, the silver, yes, the mahogany display cabinet, yes ... but a concrete yard ornament?! For some reason I think she's great. Since I can't have a real chicken, Rocksie will just have to do for now.


I decided that she would be happiest and safest in my raised bed garden. Particularly my herb garden. The lavender plant died making a perfect spot for her to stand. There are some other fun rocks in the garden as well. I thought a post on garden decorations would give some of you antique junkies inspiration on ways to use vintage concrete yard figures. The children and I made garden markers this spring by painting rocks we found on a hike in the woods. I could use a few more as we grew some heirloom items this year like the spotted romaine pictured below and didn't have the appropriate markers. I love searching for garden marker ideas. There are many creative ones out there. Please do share! Oh and just so you know, a pullet is a female chicken that is younger that one year old. Rocksie is no pullet.

Raised Herb Garden

Use Painted Rocks as Garden Markers

Soul Food

July 1950 at the beach

I guess there will be three time I miss her the most: Christmas, July, and in the kitchen (so this means macaroni pie on Christmas Eve will really do a number on me). I finally cracked open my first box of treasure that I brought home from her house featuring my most favorite finds. All of the pictures from the early 1900s, recipes, and her joke book. The smells, the hand writing, the smiles in the photographs .... ahhh inhale and exhale both breath and memories.

I am in a state of abundance because within the mini cookbook she made her sorority sisters, were hand written recipes as well as hand written prayers. Anyone with good sense would know that a true soul food cookbook needs two things: good food and good heart. I guess both of those categories are subjective so I understand if one or both don't float your boat. However, give them both a try at the same time and wow I think we have a winner here.

There is nothing like eating good peaches in July. I try to find quality ones up here, but nothing quite compares to the sweet juicy flavorful fruit grown down South. My Grandmother used to make peach ice cream (still searching for that recipe) and a wonderful peach cobbler. When ever we came to her house in the summer she would serve peaches and then send us home with some more. I was lucky enough to have a dear friend bring me some peaches from Columbia the other day, which inspired me to pull out this old recipe. Now, BB might have you fooled. The recipe was actually given to her by a friend so I have to give credit where credit is due. Thank you Loretta for sharing your kitchen secrets with the public!

Loretta's Peach Cobbler 


Mix Together and set aside:


3 Cups ripe sliced peaches
3/4 Cup sugar


Heat oven to 350 degrees: chop 1 stick of butter into oblong baking dish and set in oven to melt. Stir batter of:


1/2 Cup sugar
Pinch salt
3/4 Cup self-rising flour (add 2 tsp baking powder if using plain flour)
3/4 Cup milk (2% or whole)


Pour batter over melted butter in pan, do not stir. Place sugared peaches on top, do not stir. Bake at 350F for 45 minutes. Batter will rise and brown. Serve with ice cream. 



When done, read this card and then eat. Feel free to repeat until full.


BB's Prayer Card

Our Heavenly Father, we thank you for the privilege of gathering tonight in this home. We realize always and everywhere we need you.

In our weakness to sustain us.
In our despair to encourage us.
In our strength to discipline us.

May the teaching of the Blessed Lord be our conscience as we strive to make wise decisions and that these decisions be pleasing to you. And now, bless this food as a supplement to the needs and nourishment of our bodies according to your rich graces.

Every Letter Makes a Sound .... L Says Love

Knowing me means knowing I love my family. I am lucky enough to have some pretty talented and creative family members that keep me on my toes. One in particular, my partner in crime Tiffany, has a delicate and intentional ability to coordinate color and texture. She has displayed her work in fashion design shows, children's apparel boutiques, and most recently home decoration. I am always amazed at her knowledge base (well I shouldn't be surprised because she received her degree from VT) and technical skill.


Therefore, I was insanely happy to receive a beautifully wrapped gift from her. She usually doesn't miss the mark. I couldn't have realized how touching this particular surprise would be. She created adorable handmade letters that represented each of my children's first names. I was excited to display these in their bedrooms. I thought the paper she used was so charming and well selected. What I didn't realize was she used pages from children's books that belonged to our Grandmother Helen to cover the letters. Not only will these be beautiful on our walls but will be good for our hearts as well. Every time I pass the letters I think of the connection I have to past generations and how my children will have a connection through me. Although my grandparents and great grandparents are not here in physical form, their love, wisdom, and sacrifice is handed down with each hug, story, and choice I give to my children.

The possibilities for these letters (or numbers) are numerous. Tiffany creates large fabric covered letters for decoration in rooms of a house or business. You can purchase many and spell an entire name. I am going to create walls of pictures for my children and hang the letter on the wall dedicated to the child. You could also use the letters as a photo prop. I think it would be so cute to have numbers and every year have your child's photo taken holding the age they are. What memories! What ideas do you have? I think the more personal you get with the material you use the better (think grandparent's books, dresses, ties, maps, copies of pictures, you get the drift).


Now, how to get your hands on these bad boys?! Well you can order through Tiffany on her ETSY shop or you can take a stab at making yourself. I would personally go with the first choice as her attention to detail is impeccable and you are guaranteed a home run. To learn more contact her at laneybluedesigns@gmail.com. Let me know what you think!

She asked me to write the Eulogy...

Houston, Texas 1982

A while back, my Grandma asked me to do the eulogy at her funeral. "Ya, sure" I said not really thinking about what this would entail. I mean how do you go there mentally and emotionally until you have to? Well I didn't think more about it and then last Sat, on May 5, my wonderful 97 year old Grandmother passed away. You can read her obituary that my Mom worked so hard on at the following link: http://www.thompsonsfuneral.com/obituaries/bernice-boozer-hill. She was an amazing woman. Built and lived her life almost entirely on her own. She never stopped living until the day she passed. She will be forever missed. This is the eulogy that I gave at her memorial service. I actually got through it but with many pauses. I tried that trick of imagining people in their underwear to keep myself calm but the average age in the room was probably 85 so that actually had a reverse effect. So I just kept thinking of my Grandma singing with the heavenly choir of angels and sitting at the Lord's feet with no more pain, sadness, or struggles and I felt peace.

Bits from Me:

My Grandmother would be so thrilled to see this celebration today. She really would. Thank you everyone for being here to support our family and commemorate her joyful life.

There are so many things that I want to share with you to celebrate this wonderful life. But where do I begin?! Ninety seven years worth of material, how do I pick what stories to share, what words to say, and what memories to particularly cherish? Well we all have our own. Each of them very unique memories of times with my grandmother. But I have to guess, that although different, there are some similarities between the threads that weave us together here in this room today.

I think you might agree with me when I say I am ONLY better for knowing her. What more could I ask for in a grandmother? The truth is we can never plan who God puts in our lives or even know why sometimes. But when we trust in Him and know he does have a plan, a good plan, we can then see the goodness in His design. I really only had one grandparent growing up, and boy did I win the lottery with this one. As she would say, we didn’t spend a dime during our time together but we had a million dollars worth of fun.

I think it is safe to say that all of you know her lifelong profession was teaching, specifically music and the 4^th grade. I would like to think of this as her last lesson: a lesson on life to all of her cherished students here on Earth.

·     1.  She would tell you to spend less money and save more. You really don’t need all the “stuff” in your life to keep you happy. In fact, she and her husband bought a second home in the 40s for investment purposes because her Daddy told her it was a good idea. She was making 75$ a month at the time.

·      2. She would tell you to age gracefully. Do this by not getting too much sun on your face, hang out with young people, and most importantly by living a simpler life. There is comfort in simplicity.

4.    3. She would tell you to  be cautious regarding promises of convenience. Sometimes convenience is replaced with consequence. For 97 years, she survived without owning a microwave or cell phone.

·      4. She would tell you that the best part of the country is the South and ultimately South Carolina is the best state. No questions here please. Authority rules.

·      5. She would tell you to raise your children with grateful hearts. A long life of splendor can only be awarded to those with minimal expectations.

·      6. She would tell you to be careful getting too serious in anything. Remember to have fun and keep you spirits up even through the trials and tribulations life brings. Life is for the living and it won’t do anyone any good, including you, to sit around not enjoying it. Enjoy responsibly.

·      7. She would tell you to be a part of a community. She was relentless with me during our phone calls in our early marriage asking if we had established a church. I get it now. We need each other. Whether you are family, friends, neighbors, pew buddies or even strangers passing by, we need each other to be the hands and feet of the Lord. I get it now, community gives us opportunity to connect.

·      8. She would tell you to love your neighbor as yourself. There is no sense in going into detail on this one. Regardless of if you like, dislike, agree, or disagree with, love them. This includes yankee republicans.

·      9. Last but not least, God is good. Trust His Love. This can be hard, but try. It will pay off in the end.

  

    Conclusions: So every time you see the trees and bushes in full bloom, hear an old classic on the radio like Side By Side, or cross over the South Carolina state line, think of her and smile. 

Trip To Columbia

I had the privilege of making a trip with my family to Columbia, South Carolina last week. I made a pitt stop to see my wonderful friend and college roommate, Mary Beth. We are kindred souls and always have a fabulous time together like no time has ever separated us. Next, I headed down to Cayce with the children in tow. I love the South! Spring was in full bloom and people were even starting to plant their gardens. In the city, there were farmers markets open for business along the streets with fresh produce. Off the country roads the red clay dirt peaked through fields of yellow wild flowers. I was as glad to be there, glad to be back, but wishing it were on different terms.  

Some of you know that a few weeks ago my Grandmother was placed in hospice care. Upon hearing this news I knew I had to get back and see her while she was well. I also wanted my kids to remember her house with her in it. Facing this part of life is not easy for any of us, especially the person going through it. However, she has shown so much grace and strength and remains the strong woman she has always been. After I was able to get over my apprehension, I was able to enjoy myself. What fun we had! I think I almost killed her by taking her to the zoo. Yes, that's right, we carried B.B. to the zoo (I was able to get her to use the wheel chair but oxygen tank .... NO thank you mam!) I captured many photos of her with the great grandkids and still can't believe she pulled off that trip. It just goes to prove her full-of-life personality is in full effect. 

In addition to finding activities to keep the kids happy, we took a self-guided tour of Swansea, SC. Swansea was where it all began for my Grandma. Her family moved to Swansea from Prosperity (roughly 1912?) and this small town would be where she grew up and started her own family.  I was with a living legend and asked her if anyone would know her. She honestly commented that most everyone that knew her from Swansea was dead or moved out. That's one bad part about living so long...you have to say goodbye to many friends and family and sort of make new because the rest are gone. It was a short drive through the town but I got to see my Mom's house growing up, my Grandma's house growing up, many family homes, the Boozer General Store front, and Grover's filling station. Basically my Grandma was born, raised, and started her own family in about a 5 mile radius! 

One afternoon, after some sweet tea and coconut cake, I pulled an old book out from her dining room buffet. The thing was massive in size (roughly size of a sheet of legal paper but five or six inches thick). The pages were tan brown and starting to crumble. On the first page was a newspaper cutout of a bride standing alone with a headline I couldn't stomach ....something like the town's pretties girl. Wasn't my Grandma folks, and I'm glad about that for a few reasons! I was so curious what else was inside. As I quietly skimmed through the book I saw notes and photos that were priceless and oh so story worthy! One in particular was of a handsome sailor with a sweet goodbye sentiment written underneath. He was headed off to the big world war and had to say one last farewell to his main squeeze. I hadn't heard these stories before. Time to start talking B.B.! I felt like I had just struck gold.

When I showed it to her, she asked me where I got it from and wasn't really sure what it was. I told her it looked like a young woman's scrap book and began reading some of the notes and describing some of the pictures (she has poor vision so could not really make it out herself). Turns out, it was her personal scrap book from college up until her marriage. I can't even begin to explain how charming and obviously throw-back some of these stories were. I can't wait to write about them! 

The photo I am using tonight will have to do until I get my hands on copied images from the book and the new photos I took on my mom's camera. See, I am desperate for someone else to teach my Mom how to get the images off her memory card. She just keeps buying more cards or waiting for a patient friend to help. I keep showing her how to do it, but you know those retirees, they just have to learn the hard way. Stay tuned for more. I have some fun plans ahead and am hoping time permits them.

When doing some research on Swansea, I came up with memoirs from John Joseph Howell. As I read through it, the Boozer General Store was mentioned as well as Mrs. Hill as a memorable teacher. I think I'll read his memories to Grandma and see if it sparks any memories of her own!

Rumble Seat Reminiscing

I might be a few days late and a dollar short but this post is extra special and worth the urgency. My lovely Grandmother turned 97 on Feb 9, 2012! I was privileged to speak with her on the phone while driving home in the evening and she seemed to be in wonderful spirits thanks to all the calls, cards, and special deliveries. Thanks to everyone who helped make her big day extra special. We got to talking about her past birthdays, taking time to talk about the special ones. My parents like to throw her a big birthday party every five years. Her 90th was the biggest and best in her opinion and in mine. My brother created a cd for her as a gift and distributed copies to everyone as a party favor. Since I am all about repurposing, I thought it would be a wonderful idea to share with you the song list he chose as it was carefully created to represent the soundtrack of her life. 

I pulled out the cd cover and scanned it into the computer. Then I realized there was no information about when and where this photo was taken. It is one of my favorites because she is so young and looks so confident, a virtue I wish all young ladies could have. She also looks a little like my Mom in this picture and I usually don't notice a resemblance between the two. Grandma had a lot to say about this one picture and I found it quite interesting.

Bits from B.B. Hill: 

That picture there is of me in front of the high school. I reckon I was a sophomore, so the year would have been 1932. I loved that car and was proud of it. The car belonged to Papa and was one of the few cars in town. See back then not just everyone had a car. I believe it was a Ford Coupe and I can vividly remember the rumble seat. You know, those rumble seats weren't the safest thing. I suppose Papa bought the car that way because it was less money. The car only had two doors and you had to step on the fender in order to get in the back. Girls didn't wear pants back then, only dresses, so you had to be real careful about how you stepped to get in to the rumble seat. I have good memories of going on double dates and I would sit in the rumble seat with my date while the other couple drove. You know, you can smooch or do whatever you like in that back seat. I may be old now, but I surely don't forget those  memories!

Example of the 1932 Ford Coupe with Rumble Seat

Papa let me drive the car to school one day and what happened on the way home I'll never forget. The car was full of girls and I was driving. I couldn't have been older than 15. It was raining hard that afternoon. I revved up the engine as I approached the big hill on the red dirt road. The car started slipping and sliding and eventually flipped. All of us girls were screaming, but thankfully no one was hurt and even more importantly, Papa never found out. He would have killed me, but hey, I was young and dangerous back then!

Growing up we didn't have birthdays back then. It just wasn't a priority. Momma and Papa were busy making a living so I don't have memories of turning a certain age growing up. After I got married, Grover always remembered my birthday and got me a card or we would go to Columbia on a date. We were living in Swansea and at that time didn't have lots of restaurants or movie theaters. When Janice was born we did celebrate her first birthday with a small party. I had a cake with a numeral one candle. A friend of mine threw her a 16th birthday. That was about it. When I turned 75 I planned a birthday party for myself. I rented a trolley car that took 28 ladies and I to the zoo. However, Janice surprised me by coming and arriving to the party on the trolley car. There wasn't a dry eye around. My 90th was the best though. There was a four piece band, wonderful food, and the music for everyone. See, I guess things just keep getting better with age.  Maybe there is a reason the good Lord is keeping me around.


Bits From Me:


I am so glad she has been able to enjoy life and is still pleased by the kind gestures, both small and large, that people present to her. I hope I can always live with a grateful heart regardless of the situation.
What a pleasant surprise to capture this quaint story that is both insightful to her youth and also a bit informative for me (not knowing anything about old cars or rumble seats for that matter). I truly cherish the pictures of I have of her and my Mom as they are few and far between. I think we only have a few photos of my Mom with her Daddy. Almost incomprehensible for me.

I am constantly wondering what I am going to do with all these photos I have taken of my children. Where am I going to keep them, should I print them, how am I going to keep them organized physically and digitally? To be honest, it is pretty overwhelming now that I am on kid three! I love that my Grandma knew exactly what picture I was referring to when I asked her over the phone to tell me more details. There were only a handful of pictures taken of her during her childhood, so each one is precious and comes with lots of memories. I wonder if the flood of pictures our children have now will water down the importance of the photos? Or maybe I need to do a better job of sifting through the masses and only keeping the select few favorites. The old saying less is more is true, but is so hard to live by in these times of abundance. Even though the pictures are "free" and are no cost for me to take, they come with small price of time and patience. Times that by the 10,000 photos I have and you are looking at a significant cost. I wonder how many quite moments or stories read I missed being mentally occupied with my photo obsession. Hey, I am a self proclaimed Mamarazzi you know!  But on the other hand, if I don't have these pictures (and equal ratios for each kid) then I feel like I am selling my children short somehow. Like if I don't hand them their own external hard drive maxed out with photos, videos, and edited slideshows at 18 I am robbing them of a documented and well noted childhood. Oh and not to mention what if I did get rid of a photo that I might need someday... the guilt! UGHH!

Fast forward to God willing when they are 97 and their Great Granddaughter asks "Tell me about these couple thousand photos from when you were fifteen?" and I can only imagine the response. The cost is now different than my time or patience; the cost is the repercussions of indulging my children. I know that parents of the Great Depression didn't sit and ponder these types of issues. When you are busy surviving in the true sense of the meaning of the word you don't have time or money to consider other options. However, when you do have the choice, sometimes it can be more of a curse than blessing. How can we find the balance between enjoying giving to our children with happy hearts and giving too much too soon to the point of spoiling. Obviously I am talking about more than just photographs, this  discussion applies to birthday parties, holidays, wardrobes, room decor, catering to likes and dislikes, and the list goes on.  I need to be more conscious of these issues and take the time to think about how my family should make decisions and handle situations as they approach.  For me personally, I need to remember to turn to the big book to help guide my heart and mind, which it surprisingly does every time.

Playlist Anthony created for Grandma's 90th Birthday Party