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Posts from April 2014

In Our Easter Bonnets

04/19/2014
HouseGirlsEaster1967
My sisters & me, Easter morning 1967...me (9), Barb (7), & Maria (5)

originally posted April 3, 2010

Easter was a huge deal when I was a little girl growing up with my sisters on the County Line.  So many reasons to get excited about Easter ...celebrating Christ's resurrection at church, marking the beginning of spring and warmer weather, coloring Easter eggs, anticipating the Easter Bunny's visit, going to Grandma's house after church for dinner and her famous Easter Egg hunt.
 
But every bit as monumental as all the other reasons, it was the day we all got our matching Easter dresses, new patent leather church shoes, and Easter bonnets!
 
Mama started right after Christmas, planning how she would dress her three daughters for the big Easter holiday. She has always been an amazing seamstress, and she pulled out all the stops when it came to designing and creating our Easter finery.
 
Each year was different, and special in its own way.  One year she even made matching drawstring purses for us to carry with our handmade pink dresses with the little squirrel-shaped buttons.  I sure felt beautiful and special wearing that little number to our country church on Easter Sunday!
 
When she had her plan in place and the dress fabric purchased, Mama worked on the dresses non-stop, often hemming them just in the nick of time on Easter Eve.  And the week before Easter, she would take us shopping for our new patent leather shoes and the ultimate accessory to our Easter outfit, our Easter bonnet.
 
Choosing our bonnet was no small task.  Of course, they all had to be different and it was a critical decision not to be taken lightly.  As I think back upon it now, I'm sure Mama was at her wit's end by the time that shopping trip was over...finding bonnets to please all three of us must have been a challenge, as each one of us was quite opinionated in what we wanted.  And then she had to find 3 pairs of reasonably-priced shoes that we liked and that fit us well enough to last the entire summer. 
 
Those were the days before shopping malls and the huge selection of stores we have to choose from today.  We always did our shopping in Richmond or New Castle, limited to the few department stores along their downtown streets.  Money was tight and we certainly could not afford some of the ritzier stores, so that further narrowed down our options.  I wonder if Mama looked forward to those shopping trips or dreaded them...probably a little of both.  The excitement and anticipation only happened once a year, but I'm sure the reality of shopping with three energetic little girls was frustrating and exhausting.
 
But, wow, did we look smashing on Easter morning!!!
 
In the photo above, Mama had even done hand-smocking on the bodices of those three matching dresses.  Talk about a lot of time and work!  I don't think we realized then what a talented mother we had and what treasures those dresses were.  And I have to say...Barb was always the flashy one of the three of us, with her red shoes and matching purse!  Some things never change...
 
My brother Mark came along in December after this Easter photo was taken.  After Mark was born, life got crazy for all of us, and some things gradually and naturally began to change.  I was out-growing the whole "matching-dresses" thing and Mama had her hands full with a bouncing baby boy along with 3 school-age daughters.  Mama always made sure we had a nice new dress and shoes for Easter, but as we grew up the bonnets and three matching dresses went by the wayside.
 
Those were special times and I have very fond memories of our lovingly hand-sewn Easter outfits...which looked extra-beautiful when they were topped off with a spectacular Easter bonnet!
 

 

Posted at 11:00 AM in Family, Holidays, Ramblings | | Comments (0)

Newborn No Longer

04/18/2014

Krew-19This is why you've gotta get those newborn pictures taken right away.

Newborns don't stay tiny very long.

Our grandson Krew is GROWING so fast!  At 2 1/2 months old already (my, that time sure flew by!), he's become an expressive baby with lots of personality.

And he's just stinkin' adorable too!!!

Every time we see Krew, we can hardly believe how he's changing every day, right before our very eyes.  At his 2-month check-up he weighed 13 lbs. 8 oz. (86%ile) and his height at 25+ inches is off the chart.  Our baby boy has been busy GROWING!

 

Continue reading "Newborn No Longer" »

Posted at 03:36 PM in Grandchildren | | Comments (0)

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