Easter Memories Past and Present with Pictures

Larry, Bobby, Carl Williams, Gary
Larry, Bobby, Carl Williams, Gary
Gary, Carl Williams, Bobby, Martha, Vickie – Easter 1960 (I used to love making clothes for the girls.  Here they are in blue coats I made in 1960 – Linkhart house.)
Vickie, Myrtle, Martha - Easter 1965
Vickie, Myrtle, Martha – 1965, in their Easter clothes made by Myrtle.
Martha, Jeff, Myrtle, Vickie – 1966

Martha, Jeff, Myrtle, Vickie - 1966

(Here is that white dress I originally made for me and passed to Vickie when she got to wear hose instead of anklets.  I don’t remember that issue, but I remember the dress and there is little Jeff – so cute in his little plaid jacket and knee socks. I think this was at the Ferguson house.)

 Hope everyone really did have a memorable Easter 2009.  Yes, the memories are good.  I remember as a young girl always helping Mommy make Easter baskets for the kids.  We built them from scratch.  We would, of course, color eggs with the kids.  Every kid had their own egg or eggs they had colored with their own name on it.  Then Mommy would buy a few bags of jelly beans, yellow chicks, chocolate eggs, and some candy kisses, and usually a little bigger chocolate bunny for each basket.  Then after the kids went to bed we would put the eggs with the names into the baskets and add the goodies.  After all the baskets were put together we would hide them someplace in the house. 

Then, on Easter morning the kids went looking for their basket.  Then most of us kids got all dressed up and went to church.  There was always an Easter Egg hunt at church.  I remember most of these were related to the Fairborn Enterprise Baptist Church.  Someplace I do have pictures of Martha and Vickie and Mrs. Jean Bates, a Sunday School teacher and family friend, out in the field looking for eggs.  I must find those pictures and add them later. 

Then after the whole Church thing, we would go back home for one of those big Sunday dinners, pretty much as Carla Jo describes.  We usually had another egg hunt.  Daddy found great pleasure in hiding those eggs so those kids would have to work to find them.  That was a lot of fun. 

This year, 2009, I did a couple of Easter activities just because my Mother-in-law is with us.  Usually the Italians make special things at Easter.  Pat and I took Mrs. Sorge over to John and Nancy’s where there were about 20 people gathered to watch Johnny, Donny and Cheryl make the Easter Ham Pies.  They made 10 of them so every family took one home.  We talked and ate.  It was fun – but oh what a heart attack waiting to happen – eggs, cheese, and more cheese in those pies. 

Then I helped Mrs. Sorge make what they call Easter Spinach pies.  Basically, it is a delicious spinach mixture of cured olives, garlic and spinach in a pie dough piece folded over.  That really is good and not too bad for the heart.  Then we made these orange ricotta cheese pies which are more of a dessert.  Again, very good but oh so bad for the heart.

Then on Easter, we went to Pat’s cousin Dickie, the judge’s house for Easter Brunch which is more eggs, sausage, etc.  Then later in the day, we went to Barbara Fratto’s for Easter dinner which was more of the same with some added on ham, shells, meatballs, salads, etc.  I would venture to guess this would not be a good week to check cholesterol levels.

Well, I have so many more old memories to write too, but I must get going.  Easter is a little sad for me because I would love to be home when Kim and Martha and Shirley and whoever else gets together to color the eggs.

Jayden, Daphne, Madelyn 2009

Jayden, Daphne, Madelyn Easter 2009

Abbie Easter 2009

Abbie Easter 2009

TRADITIONS and LIFE CHANGES and Easter too!

As the years go by, it’s kind of funny the things you do all alone with the thoughts of those you love around you.  When I lived in Xenia I would do Christmas tree decorating w/Martha and Ricky and the “little ones”.  I’d spend time decorating cookies and the tree.  Now I place a string of lights around my big sofa picture and say “Merry Christmas”.   I still go to Shirley’s (Mom) for the actual holiday, but it is so different now. 

It’s Easter now and what do I do every year…boil eggs and color/decorate them.  Here I am 55 years old, I have no kids and no grandchildren, but I still decorate/color eggs (just a bakers dozen, but I still do it.)  I’ve always “named” my eggs w/Mom and Myrtle and me and Michael, but this year I was inspired to name each of them for Robert/Goldie Cox and their kids including Carl and Bobby (they are still here in our minds and hearts), so there were 2 eggs remaining.  One I just wrote “Happy Easter” and the other “Love and appreciation for Myrtle”.)  I thought she deserved a special egg because she’s had a “bit” of extra aggravation over the past year or two.   

Holidays and all the past Easter egg hunts we’ve all enjoyed as participants and observers and all of the nice clothes we’ve dressed up in for the occassions we’ve shared, Happy Easter and Happy Holidays to everyone!  Which brings me to a past Easter memory…I was 12 years old and Myrtle made  or remade a white dress that was fitted at the bodice and waist, had poofy sleeves, and had an embroidered trim (it was very pretty.)  Based upon age, Myrtle wanted me to wear “anklet socks”  with this outfit, however, my body looked like I was 18, I was mortified!  I actually went to Mom and told her I needed to be wearing “nylons” with my dress.  Mom actually gave in and I got to wear “nylons” with my Easter dress.  It’s hard to believe, but I got my way.  (I don’t think Myrtle was thrilled, but that’s the way some things just happen.)  My Mom over ruled my “other Mom, Myrtle.)  I love you both the same!

 

Love,

Sister, Aunt, Great Aunt, Vickie 

POSTSCRIPT:  THIS BLOG NEEDS TO CONTINUE FOR ONE YEAR, SO WE HIT MEMORIES FROM EACH SEASON OF OUR LIVES…THE TIME OF YEAR MAKES YOU REMEMBER DIFFERENT THINGS ABOUT OUR LIVES…JUST A THOUGHT!

First time mowing on a riding mower!

I remember Grandpa Cox being parked in the drive way of our house when the school bus would pull up.  He would show up on Friday afternoon’s and pick me up.  He would secretly call my Dad(Carl) the night before.  He did this about every other weekend.  I would run straight over to the car, except he would be in the house,  I would then run in the door yelling, “GRANDPA ARE YOU READY TO GO”.  Mom would always make us change out of our school clothes before we did anything.  I would not only change my clothes but I would also come out of my bedroom with my packed bag.  Cara Leta would never go, and Cassie wasn’t born until 1974.  So I thought it was GREAT!!  Every weekend that I got to go Grandpa’s he would mow his yard.  He would let me ride with him.  Then he got nervy and one day he let me mow.  This was out at the Cornstalk house.  Dad would always call when he got home from work on Friday night and say that he would pick me up on Saturday.  But if Dad had to do a side job I knew I wasn’t going home until after the big family dinner that Grandma would make on Sunday.  Anyway, I thought, “OH BOY!! I get to mow”.  Of course, Grandpa’s mower had the old clutch, so I would kill it when I would take off, so he would get it going and hop off.  This was my very first time mowing by myself.  Well, I would get done mowing, park the mower up by the house and run inside.  Grandpa and I would sit down on the couch and watch roller derby.  Grandma Goldie would sit there with us.  We always ended up playing a game of Sorry.  Well, Grandpa took the cellophane off of something.  I don’t remember what, but anyway he gave it to me and told me to go throw away the trash he had in his hand.  So I took it and threw it away.  I came skipping back into the room and grandpa looked at me real funny.  I said what are you looking at?  He said did you throw that away?  I said yes that’s what you told me to do.  He just started laughing.  He said you better go look again.  So I went running back in the kitchen and looked in the trash can.  Low and behold there was a $5.00 bill laying in the trash can.  WOW!!  I GOT PAID FOR MOWING GRANDPA’S YARD.  He thought that was hilarious.  So everytime I mow even now that I am 44 years old, I think of him and smile.

Carla Jo’s Junior prom dress

I remember my dad(Carl) would drop me off at Martha’s house when he would got to work.  One day, Martha, Grandma Goldie, Richard, and I all went to the Dayton Mall.  We pushed Richard all around the mall in his stroller.  We went into Elder-Beerman’s where I saw at that time the most beautiful prom dress. It was all pink lace.  Martha made me try it on so we would know what size to tell mom.  I thought that was huge!!  Only, the next huge hurdle was mom letting me have it.  Of course, a prom dress with that slightly high price tag was my only worry.  My mom(Joyce) wasn’t worried about the price tag, she was worried about the dress having satin spaghetti straps.  Of all the things that never crossed my mind.  It still had a little lace jacket, but mom just had a fit about the straps.  Needless to say, we got the dress, but Martha had to help me out by talking my mom into getting that dress.  Thanks, Aunt Martha!!!

Martha’s Punctured Dierriere

Was Martha accident prone? 

Although I can’t think of where Martha would have been close enough to the street to run in front of a taxi, Carla Jo’s memory of Martha running in front of a taxi brought back a a memory of Martha puncturing her buttocks when she was about four years old. 

I think we were getting ready to go to some church play or special event. I vaguely remember, Martha Mae was already dressed in her church clothes when, somehow or other, she fell backwards into a closet or someplace.  Somehow or other that little butt fell right on a piece of glass or something sharp.  I think Mommy or I or someone packed that wound with a “dressing” – uh.. probably a rag and held to stop the bleeding and I think we pulled those tights or underwear right back over that dressing and took her right on to church.  Uhmmm – wonder if she has a scar on her dierriere.