Wednesday, June 19, 2019

Spotlight on Grandma's Postcards - "Greetings From Fannie Sullivan"

Last week's post focused on a few of Grandma's postcards that featured forget-me-not...a popular flower at the time that signified true love and remembrance.

"Greetings from Fannie Sullivan"
This week I want to focus on one card in particular. It is a card from my grandmother's girlhood friend, Fannie Sullivan. 



As you can see, the postcard was postmarked on October 25, 1910 at 7:00 p.m.


At the time, Fannie Sullivan lived in Odessa, Missouri and my grandmother lived in McPherson, Kansas. My grandmother would have been 15 years old and, my guess is, that Fannie was about the same age. I remember Grandma talking about Fannie and, if memory serves me correctly, they went to school together at Odessa before my grandmother's family moved to McPherson.



The message is short and simple and it talks about things that are near and dear to a young girl's heart. 

Fannie says...

"Dear Maude - How are you? I am all OK. What do you think of my cards with my name on them? I went to school today. Have you got your new hat yet this winter? I have. I have been going to church every night. Answer soon. Fannie Sullivan"

I know that Grandma and Fannie were in touch throughout the years and there are many postcards from Fannie in Grandma's collection. Perhaps we will visit more of them at some point down the road.

Grandma's friendship with Fannie Sullivan was special. What childhood friends were special to you and how many of them have you maintained over the years?

Until next time...
~Rebecca

Monday, June 17, 2019

Happy Homemaker Monday - June 17, 2019

Greetings, Dear Ladies! 

I hope that each of you had a great week and a wonderful Father's Day weekend! I also hope that, this morning, you're ready to tackle the week ahead full-on and with great joy and determination! HAPPY MONDAY! 💗

We had a nice weekend here and, to be honest, this past week has been the most productive of any here lately. I had several days off in the middle of the week and I didn't have to be ANY where outside of town...which is highly unusual. As a result I was able to dig and tackle several things here at home that have needed doing for a long, but had not had the time and/or energy to work on at the same time.

The first thing that I needed to tackle was the areas that Stripes occupied while still among the living...namely his feeding station, sleeping quarters, and bathroom area. 

The feeding station and bathroom areas were easy. I threw away what needed to be thrown away (litter box, pooper scooper, etc.) and passed on what was usable (dry food, canned food, litter, cat shampoo, etc.) to a family member that has an indoor cat. But the sleeping quarters? THAT was a whole 'nother matter! 

Stripes chose to sleep in first one chair in the livingroom, then another (I've always kept towels over the chairs and washed them once a week), but he also had a blanket in an area that he sometimes preferred to sleep on up high in a corner of the sun-porch (which adjoins to the livingroom). Even though I washed the blanket regularly, the area that it resided in was nasty! Cleaning it, led to a full-fledge, deep-cleaning of the sun-porch...which was GREAT! 😁

I spent most of day Tuesday cleaning the sun-porch. In the process, the insulated winter curtains came down and my lace curtains went up (at some point I want to get new ones, but, for now, the ones from the old house will do). I installed pull shades on two of the four south-facing windows (the two on each end) and ordered static-cling window film to go on the two middle sections. (I ordered it from Amazon on Tuesday and it arrived on Thursday). I also rearranged the bookshelves and cleaned up the houseplants (took off dead leaves, dusted the plants, repotted those that needed it, etc. and rearranged them). When I got done, everything was so pretty and light and airy, and it gives the whole livingroom a totally different feel! 💗

Lace Curtains On the South-facing Windows

Static-Cling Window Film
Wednesday was spent working on clearing out the car port of stuff moved over from the other house...over THREE years ago! (deep sigh) I spent most of the day sorting and tossing. I filled two huge trash bins full of stuff and there's more to come. I think one more good day out there...maybe two...and that mess should finally be behind me!

Thursday I continued to work on odds and ends on the home front and Friday and Saturday I worked at Prairie. 

Saturday night we attended a surprise birthday party for a friend and Sunday, of course, was church and Father's Day. I made John's favorite meal for lunch, then we headed to Pittsburg to do some shopping. When we got home we watched a few episodes of Jeremy Wade's Dark WatersJohn heard from all the children through the course of the day and, I think, had a really nice Father's Day. 

Okay...enough about last week. Let's get on into this week's post...shall we? Please, join me as, I link up with Sandra of Diary of a Stay At Home Mom on Happy Homemaker Monday. 💗



Right now I am...

... finishing up breakfast and enjoying a cup of hot tea while I work on this post. I am also watching the rain drip from the eaves of the roof and a house wren flit around our front porch.

On the breakfast plate...

... French toast with sugar-free syrup and hot tea

The weather...

... at the moment it's 67 degrees and is raining lightly. The high today is supposed to reach 79, but the rest of the week promises to be much warmer and the chances for rain stick around all week.



On my reading pile...

Finally finished Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder, but am still working on The Great Buffalo Hunt by Wayne Gard (which I brought home from work) and Mother Culture by Karen Andreola. I am making great progress on both. 


On the menu this week...

Monday - Italian stuffed peppers with meatballs, mushrooms, and salad
Tuesday - Fish sandwiches with oven fries and oven roasted carrots
Wednesday - Breakfast for supper
Thursday - Italian sausage and oven roasted potatoes with green beans
Friday - Grilled turkey burgers with chips and homemade ice cream
Saturday - Broiled salmon, baked sweet potatoes, and steamed broccoli
Sunday - Leftovers

On my 'to do' list...

- Monday - HHM post, plan the week ahead, home blessing, laundry
- Tuesday - Run errands, work on projects around the house
- Wednesday - Library programs @ 11:15 and 3:15 - AQUA CHARADES
- Thursday - Take a friend to her hair appointment
- Friday - Work; celebrate first day of summer
- Saturday - Work - Hug-A-Herp Day
- Sunday - Church

In the craft basket...


Am still waiting my yarn to arrive (should be later today). Once it gets here I can get caught up on my afghan.

In the meantime, I have started making toad homes out of small terracotta pots and broken ceramic, pottery, and ironstone pieces. 


Image may contain: outdoor and nature
A Toad Home
Looking forward to this week...

The first day of summer! 🌞🍉🎆🍦🌻🏊 (Which is really unusual for me!) 😳 (Thanks, Jean!) 😊

Something I watched this week...

...have a pair of house wrens nesting in the half-moon birdhouse that hangs on our front porch. I made the birdhouse at a local pottery shop several years ago, but this is the first time anything has chosen to nest in it and we are thrilled! 💗

Half-Moon Birdhouse
We've had more fun watching this lively little pair and greatly enjoy listening to their song!

Photo Credit
From the camera...


A Regal Fritillary Butterfly on Butterfly Weed
Scripture passage...

Image result for kjv bible verses butterflies


Well, Ladies, that's it for this week! I pray that each and every one of you have a blessed and beautiful week ahead! And I'll see you next week! 💗

Until Next Time...
~Rebecca

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Spotlight on Grandma's Postcards - Forget-Me-Not



Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Spotlight on Grandma's Postcards - Forget-Me-Nots

Last week I introduced you to my Grandmother Maudie and her vintage postcard collection; this week I want to start shining a spotlight on specific cards or themes within the collection.



Although there are more cards in my grandmother's collection than I could possibly share in one post that do this, this week I have selected cards that feature forget-me-not.


In the language of flowers forget-me-not represented true love and remembrance.

I don't ever recall seeing forget-me-not in person, but here is a photo of it that I ran across online. Look at how delicate and lovely it is! 



This postcard in my grandmother's collection particularly caught my eye...


While it's not outstandingly beautiful or anything, do you notice the writing in the bottom, left corner?


It says, "Greeting from gramma R A Stephenson. April the 5 is your birthday."


On the back it says, "This is for Maudie McCann. Many happy birthdays" and it is dated 1911.


Grandma Maudie was born in 1895. This card was given to her by her grandmother, Rebecca Ann Stephenson, on her 16th birthday. 

A quick side note for my children and grandchildren - 

Rebecca Ann Rankin was married to William Franklin Stephenson. This was Annie Lee Stephenson's parents. Annie Lee married James Monroe McCann and they are Maudie's parents. Grandma Maudie, of course, is Grandpa's (James C. Brown's) mother. Rebecca Ann Stephenson would have been my great-great grandmother...your third and fourth great-grandmother! Amazing! It's pretty cool to be able to see her handwriting...huh???



I love the postcards in my grandmother's collection...especially the ones that feature the forget-me-not. They're so pretty!



Here's another picture of the real deal...so delicate! So beautiful! And so incredibly blue! 


The forget-me-not...a symbol of true love and remembrance. A symbol that continues to reverberate throughout the generations!

Grandma Maudie

Tuesday, June 11, 2019

Thrift and Savings - Post #6 - Flooding and the Anticipation of Rising Grocery Prices

The Midwest has been hit hard with tornadoes, heavy rains, and flooding this year and, with the release of water from dams further upstream, waters from the Missouri River are expected to remain high throughout the summer and fall into November. 


A view of Missouri River flooding in Platte County on March 22, 2019. 
Photo Credit

Because of historic flooding, many barges, trucks, and trains have been stalled in port and cannot move goods from one part of our country to another. 


Photo Credit
It is not business as usual out there and common sense tells me that, with as much flooding as there has been, along with the damage that has been caused to roadways and railways, coupled with the fact that crops may not make this year, food may be in short supply come winter. 

At the very least, prices will skyrocket as the reality of what's happening in the Midwest hits the rest of the country. All of this has me thinking that it's time to be smart in our spending and pay attention to what we're doing.

There's no need to fear, but I do believe that the Bible is very clear about using wisdom in our finances and, as of late, we've not been as diligent in that area as we might have been in the past. It's time to get a handle on it!



Now...it's been a long time since I've posted a "My Thrifty Week" post and, since I'm not good about posting those on a weekly basis, I've decided to rename that particular column "Thrift and Savings." I will continue to post in a numerical sequence from where I last left off to make them easier to find, but feel that it's really time to refocus my efforts in becoming financially aware. 

Here are a few things that we've done (or has happened) recently to cut expenses and save extra money that, otherwise, could be being spent frivolously or without need...

- Have stopped buying the laundry detergent that we've been using for the past few years and have switched to Arm & Hammer. It smells great and cost about half as much as what we've been using. 

- Have stopped buying pre-dampened lens cleaner cloths to clean our glasses and are using the little cleaning cloths that came with new glasses. 

- Have always done a fair amount of our grocery shopping at Aldi's, but am doing more and more of it there all the time. We are deliberating seeking out more like-items at Aldi's that we would normally buy at Walmart. Favorite products at Aldi's include ground turkey, boneless, skinless salmon fillets, organic eggs, Kerrygold butter, canned chili beans, black beans, and tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato paste (no dyes and BPA-free), cheeses (mozzarella, cheddar, Parmesan, and Romano), and Willow Brand 1000 sheet toilet paper (love it!). 

- Have stopped buying the more expensive teas (Twining's) and have returned to Benner's (Aldi's). It tastes great, saves big bucks, and isn't on the list of teas that contain toxic amounts of pesticides, which is a big plus!

- When passing through Nevada, Missouri (28 miles northeast of us), I make a point of stopping in at Wood's grocery store and shop the weekly sale ad. I have come across some great bargains...especially in the line of meats, cheeses, fresh fruits, and vegetables. When I hit the jackpot, I stock up! 

- I am working on a self-imposed, online spending-freeze. I love Amazon and, being 20 miles from the nearest town, shopping online saves me a LOT of time, trouble, and money...BUT...even at that, I am still trying to really think purchases out before spending hard-earned dollars on things that aren't necessary. 

- And, last, but not least, (and I hope that posting this isn't in bad taste) our 19-year-old cat passed away recently. While we miss him terribly and wish that he was still with us in the health and vitality of his younger years, with his passing came a several hundred dollars a year savings. Just in food, litter, and flea and tick control alone, we figure that's an immediate $350.00 a year in savings. That's more than a two week paycheck for me from my part-time job. That's HUGE! (Or it could be in an emergency.) 

These are a few of the things that we have focused on or have happen lately to save us money. What are some ways that you are saving money in your home?

Until next time...
~Rebecca

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Happy Homemaker Monday - June 10, 2019



My Thrifty Week - Post #5



Monday, June 10, 2019

Happy Homemaker Monday - June 10, 2019

Greetings, Dear Ladies! HAPPY MONDAY! 💗

I hope you all had a great week and weekend and are ready to face the challenges of a new week head-on and with gusto. 

It was wild and busy week here last week, to say the least, but, praise God, His mercy is great..His love never failing!

On Tuesday, daughter-in-law, Angie, and I enjoyed a day out touring the Butler/Rich Hill area and had a ball going to Mennonite and Amish stores, a thrift store, a few historical sites, and having lunch out. We witnessed some flood water while we were out and about, which was a bit unsettling.


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This looks like a lake, but this is actually a Missouri crop field.


Image may contain: tree, sky, plant, outdoor, nature and water
Here the road goes right down into the water. There were no 'road
closed' signs or anything. It was quite scary and pretty freaky. 😲
Tuesday evening, our grandson, Silas, fell and fractured his leg. He was taken to the emergency room at an area hospital, but, since they were not equipped to handle his specific needs, they referred him to the fracture clinic at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City; they could not get him in until Friday. You can read more about that on Silas's Caringbridge site by clicking HERE

The good news is, Silas has had no pain (and no pain medication) since Saturday and he's doing GREAT!!! All I can say is...God is good and prayer works...absolutely...100%...without a doubt!!! Thank You, Lord! 💗

On Thursday, John had another eye appointment and everything is progressing well with his left eye. At the end of the month he'll be ready to be tested and fit for new glasses.😎

Thursday evening, our cat, Stripes, passed away. He has been a good friend, a great companion, and loyal pet these nineteen years past. He was much loved and will be greatly missed. 🐱💘😢

Stripes
I worked Friday and was off on Saturday. The boss and I are trying to fix it so that we each have a Saturday off once a month and it's nice! We spend the day working around the house and relaxing.

I worked again Sunday afternoon, then, went to son and daughter-in-law's for supper. We had a delicious meal and a great visit going through old photos and videos with them and the grandgirls. It was a lot of fun! 💗

Okay...enough about last week. Let's get on into this week's post...shall we? Please, join me as, I link up with Sandra of Diary of a Stay At Home Mom on Happy Homemaker Monday. 💗



Right now I am...

...finishing up a cup of hot tea and trying to figure out what kind of bird I've got singing outside my office window while working on this post. 

On the breakfast plate...

...cottage cheese on toast, two Mandarin oranges, and a cup of hot tea

The weather...

...PERFECT!!! It is 72 degrees and sunny at the moment and the next few days promise to be really nice temperature-wise! In fact, we were able to shut the air-conditioner off last night again and it looks like it will remain off over the next ten days or so. Makes me happy! 😊 (Ding! Ding! Ding! That's the sound of all those $$$ stacking up in the piggy bank!) 💰🐖😄



On my reading pile...

The Great Buffalo Hunt by Wayne Gard, Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder, and Mother Culture by Karen Andreola.


On the menu this week...

Monday - Taco salad
Tuesday - Oven-roasted chicken breasts, seasoned brown rice, and brussel sprouts
Wednesday - Fish sandwiches and oven roasted carrots
Thursday - Turkey enchiladas and salad
Friday - Broiled salmon, baked sweet potatoes, and steamed broccoli
Saturday - Breakfast for supper
Sunday - Pasta, sauce, meatballs, and homemade French bread

On my 'to do' list...

- Monday - HHM post, plan the week ahead, home blessing, laundry
- Tuesday - Work on projects around the house
- Wednesday - Run errands
- Thursday - Work on projects around the house
- Friday - Work
- Saturday - Work
- Sunday - Church; celebrate Father's Day with dh

In the craft basket...

I ran into a bit of a dilemma this week. I thought I had another skein of pumpkin colored yard, but, turns out, as I was nearing the end of the skein I was on, I didn't. I thought I would just go online and order more like I've always done. Didn't happen. 

I don't know if Lion Brand has stopped making the pumpkin in their regular Wool Ease yarn or what (not the Thick & Quick), but I couldn't find it anywhere...not even in the Lion Brand store online. I looked for hours and couldn't come up with a single skein. Every listing said "sold out," "out of stock," or "product unavailable." I was devastated and wondered what in the world I was going to do. 

I started looking for a substitute of similar weight and fiber, but to no avail. In the process, I stumbled across a gal on Etsy that had two skeins of what I was looking, so I ordered it. The order went through, then, a few minutes later, I got a note saying that my money was being refunded because someone else had already gotten there right before me. 😖

Saturday night I decided to try one more time. I typed in the name and product number of the yarn I was looking for and all the same ol' listings came up with "sold out," "out of stock," or "product unavailable." I went to the second page of listings and there was an active E-bay listing with just what I was looking for! There were several people keeping an eye on the bidding, but there was a "buy now" option and I took it! I got a lot of six, brand new, pumpkin-colored, Lion Brand, Wool Ease yarn for $12.50 plus shipping! I was ecstatic!!! 



I have come to a standstill on the temperature afghan, but will resume and catch up as soon the new yarn arrives, which should be sometime between now and next Monday. Here is the progress I have made thus far...


Temperature Afghan

Looking forward to this week...

...being able to focus on a few projects around the house.

Something I watched this week...

...still binge watching Counting On. Am in Season 9 now and am almost caught up

From the camera...


Just now took this photo of a butterfly on coneflower in the front yard.

Scripture passage...


Well, Ladies, that's it for this week! I pray that each and every one of you have a blessed and beautiful week ahead! And I'll see you next week! 💗

Until Next Time...
~Rebecca

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Spotlight On Grandma's Vintage Postcards - An Introduction