Memories and Musings

 This week's Generations Cafe challenge word is POWER. What's the first thing that comes to mind? For me it was CARS. I have pictures of my families cars over the years and there are stories and thoughts about a few of them. I have to say that I may not have the year and model of the old cars correct but I'll be close. Your comments are welcome! The first car in my memory bank is this 1929 Nash. I recall that my Dad and an uncle picked it up for a song and were very proud that they got it running. The car stayed in the family for many years. I remember that when I was about 10 this car got painted red, white, and blue and was in a 4th of July parade. That's my Dad and my Uncle Rick who was just 4 years older than me. This 37 Chevy was our family car for most of my childhood. It probably started out looking pretty good. I think it was gray. But over the years it started to rust so my Dad painted it primer red which is a pretty ugly color. For health reasons the car never...

 Generations Cafe Week 7: Unusual Source My interest in Genealogy probably started with my Mom's desire to keep track of her many siblings and their offspring. She was one of twelve and between them there were 28 cousins who had 46 babies. Mom religiously kept an ongoing record of births and deaths in the family. When my first grandchild was born I realized the value of knowing family history and the desire to pass on this knowledge to the next generations. Computer programs for keeping family records were becoming popular so I started using Family Tree Maker. But I have not been a consistent historian. Every couple of years I get the urge to focus on family history and get lost in the process. I typically look at census and vital records. So, to me, any other source is unusual! This morning I decided to try different sources than the ones found on the Leaf Hints on Ancestry. Newspapers.com is offering free access so I logged in and typed in my Mom's name. Anne Nehls. One of th...

 The Generations 52 week challenge prompt is Valentine. Of course my mind goes to the many, many wonderful and romantic Valentine cards and gifts from my Jim.  But Valentine Day is not always a happy one. That got me to thinking about a favorite movie, Shirley Valentine (1989) so I pulled it up from my movie stock and watched it again. Shirley Valentine-Bradshaw is having a mid-life crisis. She is talking to the wall in her kitchen because her husband and adult children are doing their own thing, taking her for granted and NOT listening to her. When her friend Jane wins a trip for two to Greece and offers the second spot to Shirley she, at first, thinks there's no way she could leave her family to follow her dream of traveling. Then it hits her. They wouldn't miss her anyway! Lessons from Shirley Valentine : Never judge a book by its cover. So true. Shirley meets up with her childhood nemesis, Marjorie Majors who always said she'd be an airline hostess and travel the worl...

  In the kitchen is where the party happens! Our house in Irvine, CA had a large kitchen that opened to a family room so we had a "great" room. The counter in the middle held all the snacks and even though there were many places to sit and visit, inside and out, people always collected in the kitchen around the counter. There were often too many cooks in the kitchen, especially at Thanksgiving. I've been known to take a wooden spoon and chase people out while trying to put the final touches on the turkey and gravy. Then I learned it's best to just give everyone a job! Mash the potatoes, stir the gravy, carve the turkey, whip the cream! Makes life much easier and creates happy memories. While there are a LOT of good cooks in our family I give credit to the 4-H program in Illinois for starting my daughters on the road to good cooking! Two recipes have withstood the tests of time - 4-H Spaghetti Sauce and 4-H Brownies. Daughter Renee has perfected the Spaghetti Sauce whi...