I just returned from a wonderful week in Idaho with my family.
"Families," rather.
One blood related, the other "I think we met in the cosmos and sought each other out when we landed here" soul brothers and sisters.
And although the trip was filled with debauchery, giggling and mischief-making, I must say the highlight was the full day I spent with my Grammy---who just turned 91 on Friday.
I cherish every moment spent with her.
We had lunch in the cafeteria at the assisted living center (she moved there with my step-grandad about a year ago), and I got to sit at a table with 6 other 90+ folks.
It was neat to say "How do you do?" and hear it in return.
(I rarely get to practice my etiquette.)
She is still sharp as a tack, and has an infectious loud laugh, which her three daughters and myself inherited.
When we all get together it is a riot.
One time, the squawking and howling got so loud her husband ran around with a basket and checked under our chairs to see if we'd laid eggs.
After lunch, we looked thru photos in her apartment. I later snagged a bunch from my mother, who had some copies.
There she is.
What a looker.
Seriously.
That was taken when she was about 13 in the early 1930's.
One blood related, the other "I think we met in the cosmos and sought each other out when we landed here" soul brothers and sisters.
And although the trip was filled with debauchery, giggling and mischief-making, I must say the highlight was the full day I spent with my Grammy---who just turned 91 on Friday.
I cherish every moment spent with her.
We had lunch in the cafeteria at the assisted living center (she moved there with my step-grandad about a year ago), and I got to sit at a table with 6 other 90+ folks.
It was neat to say "How do you do?" and hear it in return.
(I rarely get to practice my etiquette.)
She is still sharp as a tack, and has an infectious loud laugh, which her three daughters and myself inherited.
When we all get together it is a riot.
One time, the squawking and howling got so loud her husband ran around with a basket and checked under our chairs to see if we'd laid eggs.
After lunch, we looked thru photos in her apartment. I later snagged a bunch from my mother, who had some copies.
There she is.
What a looker.
Seriously.
That was taken when she was about 13 in the early 1930's.
These are a couple from the late 30s:
As a tall, raven-haired beauty, she was very popular with the boys in college....they were always asking for dates.
She plays this down alot when people talk about it, but evidently she was quite the catch.
She met my Grandad when she was in nursing school.
He's the dashing one on the left.
This is from 1944 in Silverton....my great uncle Tom, my Grammy, and my Grampa.
In the mid 40's my Grammy and Grampa lived in the backwoods of Alaska.
He was an air traffic controller.
Looking thru these photos, it astounds me that her hair was always coiffed.
How on earth did she manage that? While raising three kids in places like Nome without indoor plumbing?
This is later (maybe in Anchorage by this time) in the mid 50's with her daughters.
My mom is on the far right.
When I told her there is a whole society of women out there who love this kind of vintage fashion, she looked at me like I was nuts.
"Why??" she asked. "Are you all putting on a play or something?"
She used to frost angel food cakes with buttercream frosting mixed with orange and lemon zest. I had totally forgotten about this until she brought it up in conversation yesterday.
So that is what we are having for dessert this evening.
As a tall, raven-haired beauty, she was very popular with the boys in college....they were always asking for dates.
She plays this down alot when people talk about it, but evidently she was quite the catch.
She met my Grandad when she was in nursing school.
He's the dashing one on the left.
This is from 1944 in Silverton....my great uncle Tom, my Grammy, and my Grampa.
In the mid 40's my Grammy and Grampa lived in the backwoods of Alaska.
He was an air traffic controller.
Looking thru these photos, it astounds me that her hair was always coiffed.
How on earth did she manage that? While raising three kids in places like Nome without indoor plumbing?
This is later (maybe in Anchorage by this time) in the mid 50's with her daughters.
My mom is on the far right.
When I told her there is a whole society of women out there who love this kind of vintage fashion, she looked at me like I was nuts.
"Why??" she asked. "Are you all putting on a play or something?"
She used to frost angel food cakes with buttercream frosting mixed with orange and lemon zest. I had totally forgotten about this until she brought it up in conversation yesterday.
So that is what we are having for dessert this evening.
7 comments:
what a wonderful post! i love these photographs. and what a looker indeed :) i cannot imagine keeping up a hair regime in the midst of Alaska! and now i want buttercream frosting...
Beautiful! Oh, how I miss my grandmother. Cherish yours always. (I think you will.) Hint: Ask as many questions as you can. Ask your grandma to explain in detail and write down the answers.
At this moment I am 45 miles from McCall. It is so hot here, I'd love to be wading in that ice cold lake right now.
What wonderful photos! And how lucky you are that your grandma is still with you and still sharp. Do, DO ask her as many questions as you can... all my grandparents are gone, and I had SO many questions for them. I totally love the shot of the fur-trimmed parka. What a fashion plate!
What a wonderful post! Thank you for sharing.
Your grandmother sounds truly delightful. Thank you for sharing the photos of her. She is very beautiful.
Just unbelivable what gorgeous pictures you have here. They are like scenes from a hollywood movie. Such good looking, strong people. That you have your granny still is a miracle in itself. Thanks for posting these treasures, I really enjoyed looking at them.
Fantastic post! Grandmother's are wonderful and congratulations for having such a great one! I'll be following your blog from now on :-) Cheers!
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