Homemade bread  (check out the recipe...)
Cash on hand  ($28.00 +)
Price of gasoline  ( could that actually be for five gallons???)
 
I've been searching through 'old stuff' and included some photos.  I have my Dad's report cards all through school.  He kept a perfect ledger of every nickel spent and brought in.  Usually my mother just put stuff together when she baked or cooked but I have several hand written recipes she saved. Old greeting cards.  An engagement announcement.  Photos too numerous to count. 

Memories. Where does one begin to keep a story of our heritage?  What is our daughter going to do with all the things I have kept from my mother?  Will she recognize herself as a Scandinavian?  After several generations I can still notice characteristics that describe my Scandinavian heritage.  

I was on FaceBook for a short time and during that time one of the most interesting things was the connection between family members - some I hadn't known previously.  Sharing stories and photos.  Sharing memories.  

Remember when...  

Some friends and I were discussing all the stuff we have collected from our respective families over the years.  What are we going to do with the beautiful china?  Who will even know the people in the old black and white photos?  So...we decided...we might as well use the china.  I decided that I would take out some of those 'everyday' serving bowls that now look very special and use them for 'ordinary' meals.  I am going to sort through the old photos and send them to family members who are going to appreciate them.  And the old recipes...maybe I will take time to bake bread one day!!

My mother was a pretty basic farm housewife.  She worked hard and her house was spotless...not elegant, but most certainly clean.  Her garden could have been featured in any current magazine. Do you have any idea how many things can be made from rhubarb?  No one baked better bread! But she worked hard.  A visit to our basement was like going to the grocery store.  Most everything we ate came from her hand on the farm.  

Most things were done on specific days of the week.  Monday was always wash day.  I remember the old wringer washing machine...the cleanest clothes were washed first and progressively, everything got washed.  In the same water.  And once the laundry was done, that water was carried outside to water some certain growing thing.  The soap didn't seem to cause the plants any problem.  The other comical thing about the laundry was that we ( my mother and I) would wring the clothes dry, carry them outside in the laundry basket, hang the clothes on the line...and when they were dry we could carry them back downstairs and then....sprinkle them damp so that they could be ironed!!  What a process!! 

Remember when...    It's difficult to even imagine doing such things today.  I was thinking that maybe I would make bread with our little grandson when he comes on Thursday.  And maybe I could set a nice table with my 'really special' china once a month.  I could think of doing the dishes by hand as a 'meditative experience' !!!  And maybe I could...no, there is no way I am going to hang my laundry outdoors!!

It seems important to keep our stories alive for family who will follow.  I can imagine our daughter showing our grandson photos of his great grandfather driving a team of horses pulling a sleigh with a load of hay for the cattle, through the Minnesota snow...and there is Grandma as a little girl bundled up riding on the sleigh with her dad.  

Memories.  How many times have we all said, "Do you remember when...?"  I think I have told you that I am writing, putting these stories in a journal.  Not for anything would I want to go back to those days but it is important to remember where we have been.  Or at least, where previous family members have been.  I have a second cousin in Sweden and we share almost the same birthdays.  I think it might be a good time to find some special photos to frame as a memory to send to her.  A reminder of the family roots we share. 

It's March and spring is on the way.  I just heard weather warnings for our area...six to nine inches of snow with blowing winds. (Does that sound like spring??)  I know that isn't Minnesota weather but for Ohio...it's winter!  I might wish I had some of my mother's grocery stash in my basement!!  And it just might be a good day to think about doing some baking.

I wonder what our kids will say when they look back and say, 
"Remember when... "