| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| wildflower17 |
Posted - Feb 06 2010 : 8:19:30 PM
Growing up, I had the sweetest grandmother who lived with me and my family most of my young life until I was in my early 20's. Known as "Ma" to all who loved her and being born in 1899 she saw many things that most of us could never imagine...surviving "hard times" as she called it. Losing my grandfather in the mid 50's was a very difficult time for her. However, she never let the rough times get her down and was such an inspiration to everyone, especially all of her children and grandchildren. As I have been reading this months issue of MJF, it just brought back all the wonderful memories of her. I can still smell all the "yummy country vittles" that she, my mother and my sister used to cook. There was nothing that smelled better than fried country ham, sausage, and all the "fixins" of a country breakfast, a kettle of pinto beans, saurkraut, weiners, and cornbread, or a Sunday dinner with chicken-n-dumplings,homemade cornbread dressing and peas. There was always a wonderful dessert on Sunday's such as homemade yellow cake and fresh strawberries, a fresh blackberry cobbler or homemade german chocolate cake for Christmas or Thanksgiving. She worked so hard helping my mother take care of our family. My brother, sister and I were so blessed to have her live with us. She loved my father as if he were her own son and was such a inspiration to our family. Living til her mid 90's she lived a very rewarding and fulfilling life despite the rough times she encountered. I will forever treasure the times that I spent with her as she quilted, gardened, canned fresh vegetables and especially the times that we used to sit on the front porch in our swing or sit by her as she sat in her favorite rocking chair. If you have sweet memories of your grandmother, please share them with all of us here at the FGC. "Country Girl at Heart"... |
| 25 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| suny58 |
Posted - Jul 19 2019 : 08:34:49 AM
Mary Ellen, your grandmother is a doll! I strive to be this kind of 'granny' for my grandchildren as well! God bless her!!
Farmgirl #7103
FGOTM January 2018
Dianna
"Blessed are they that see beautiful things in humble places, where other people see nothing." Pissarro |
| margie38572 |
Posted - Jul 18 2019 : 10:52:55 PM
Minnie Smith Buckley, my mother's mother, lived near us in her own apartment that she shared with my uncle. She passed away when I was seven years old. We spent much time at her apartment poking around and looking at her old stuff while she and Mom visited. She had no fireplace but she kept a set of fireplace utensils near where the heating grate was located low on a wall in the living room. She had a set of plastic figurines that I played with any chance I could. Each figure was of a different country and I dreamed up little stories about these little figures meeting and trying to communicate with each other using their own languages. Grandmom had long greyish black hair that Mom would brush and roll up into a bun. Once when Mom was brushing my hair, every time she encountered a knot or tangle, not only did I squeal with pain but so did Grandmom. I remember hearing her to this day, "Now Carrie, don't hurt the little dearie!" Grandmom wore an old timey type of hearing aid with the volume box dropped down the front of her dress. Once she was in a heated argument with my uncle. When she had heard enough of him, she pulled out the volume box and with a flourish she turned the knob to "Off." I wish my grandmom lived longer than she did but I did enjoy having her live just a few blocks away and I may not have a bunch of photos of her, in fact I just have one, but I have a ton of memories, memories that I need to get down on paper or on my computer journal so I can share them with my grandkids.
Margie
Farmgirl #7915 |
| loribeck |
Posted - Jul 18 2019 : 6:18:23 PM
Mary Ellen, your grandmother is absolutely gorgeous. I can't believe she is 89. She looks young for her age.
Lori Beck |
| Dreamer42 |
Posted - Jul 18 2019 : 08:47:24 AM
I remember my grandmother playing her piano, while all of us grandchildren would stand around her and sing the songs she would play! Those are such precious memories, my favorite was always: When the saints go marching in! You don't hear that song much anymore, but when I do, I think of her every time! My grandmother also made our birthday cakes each year when we were children... I remember my favorite one she made me was a doll cake in a beautiful frosting gown!
My grandfather always had his special candy dish full and every time we would visit, he would offer one of his special candies from his special candy dish, oh, we felt so special being able to share such a special candy from his special candy dish! My grandfather also taught this gal to spit off his front porch! Not a very lady like thing to do, but a gal has to hold her own when there were more boys in our family than girls growing up!! I do cherish that memory! Grandparents are so very special and create some of the most special memories! I'm grateful for the memories I have! Thank you for allowing us to remininsce and share!
Dreamer42
Farmgirl Sister #7038 |
| loribeck |
Posted - Jul 17 2019 : 6:55:38 PM
My grandma was a corker. I just loved being with her though. She had an abundance of energy and knew how to use it to create an exciting time for grandkids. After grandpa died, my grandma bought a house trailer and moved it out on the farm where we all lived. My parents had cows, pigs, chickens, turkeys, and one milk cow. My grandma would always come out to the barn with me to help me do chores. Our milk cow was a cantankerous thing and we always had to catch her so we could milk her. One day we were both running toward old Bossy and ended up running into each other. We both went flying backwards and landed on our backsides. We had smacked into each others heads so we were both rubbing our heads and looking at each other. All of a sudden we both just busted out laughing. We laughed so hard our sides we aching. We talked about that for years to come. Every time we would bring the subject up, we would start laughing again. She has been gone for 21 years now and I still laugh when I think about that.
Lori Beck |
| wildflower17 |
Posted - Aug 04 2018 : 1:01:51 PM
Barbara...I just have country running through my blood...City life would never be for me...Even though I don't have farm animals right now...that kind of life will always be in my heart as that is what I was surrounded with as I grew up...Nothing like farm and country life...
Hugs!
Judy
"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened"...
"Country Girl at Heart...Blessed Beyond Measure"!!!
Farm Girl #5440
Farm Girl of The Month September 2013 |
| HollerGirl56 |
Posted - Aug 03 2018 : 08:34:47 AM
My grandma was a pill---contrary as could be. But I still loved her and I miss her. I did learn about growing flowers from her and lots of other country things. She didn't much like farm life---wanted to live in town and do social things. My grandfather was the exact opposite---he liked to be alone and didn't much like to talk to people. He never took her anywhere and she often felt lonesome and wasn't very happy. I am turned like my grandfather and my husband is too, so we love our farm/woods life.
Old Age Ain't No Place For Sissies!------Bette Davis |
| wildflower17 |
Posted - Aug 01 2018 : 3:16:44 PM
I began this topic in February 2010...So happy you ladies are still sharing memories of your grandmothers...I think of mine often...especially this time of year when life was so busy with canning and preparing garden vegetables for the upcoming Winter...Sure wished things were like they were when I was young and growing up...Most children will ever understand the valuable lessons that we learned from our grandmothers about things on the farm...
Hugs!
Judy
"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened"...
"Country Girl at Heart...Blessed Beyond Measure"!!!
Farm Girl #5440
Farm Girl of The Month September 2013 |
| MBitious |
Posted - Jan 29 2018 : 4:16:02 PM
I have been blessed with many grandmothers. I am named for two of my father's grandmothers; Mabel and Bernice. Mabel died before I was born but she raised my dad with love and strength. Bernice was called Cookie and she passed away when I was 16. She was tough as nails farm girl, raised on a Wisconsin dairy farm. My mother's mother, Nana, loved to garden but that was about as farmy as it got. She was funny, charming, and pretty. My dad had two mothers, Joann and Janet. Joann died when Dad was seven and I know nothing about her. Janet took Dad in off the street when he was 17, she's Cookie's daughter and she's also a farmgirl and the best shot in the county. |
| levisgrammy |
Posted - Jan 23 2018 : 07:24:35 AM
How wonderful you have been able to celebrate your grandma. I was very young when my paternal grandma passed and not much older when my maternal grandma passed. I knew my mother's mom a bit but would love to have known my dad's mom more. I do remember them both and I have gotten to know my dad's mom through her journal. My cousin was very gracious to share it when my aunt passed away. It was wonderful reading things from her life each day.
~Denise~
Farmgirl Sister #43
"Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." Psalm 119:105
http://www.ladybugsandlilacs.blogspot.com/
http://www.torisgram.etsy.com |
| Red Tractor Girl |
Posted - Jan 21 2018 : 2:43:54 PM
Karla, what a fantastic celebration you had with your Grandmother!! It is wonderful that she is doing so well and that you can continue to enjoy her in your life.
My Grandmother has been gone over 50 years and there have been so many times that I wish I could just sit with her and ask her about my Mom and the life they all lived during the years from 1905 - 1962.
Winnie #3109
Red Tractor Girl
Farm Sister of the Year 2014-2015 |
| HodgeLodge |
Posted - Jan 19 2018 : 11:31:36 AM
Wow what a fabulous topic. I adored my grandmother. One of my earliest memories of her was sitting on her kitchen table crying my eyes out and telling her" you broke my heart". Little did I know i was breaking her heart by having to move away. (service brat), and I guess I told her cause she wouldn't keep me. We moved back to her many times. She was my heart and my soul. In later years she knew she had alzheimers and told me before she was bad that she couldn't take me with her. Again my heart broke in a million pieces. She did take me with her in my heart. I can only hope that my grandaughter and I have that same relation. Even after almost 20 years it brings tears to my eyes just thinking about her.
Tiana ~ Farmgirl #4817
"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need."~ Marcus Tullius Cicero |
| hoosiercountry |
Posted - Jan 18 2018 : 3:35:39 PM
Very beautiful lady, thank you for sharing. Hugs Karla |
| Carolina Farm Girl |
Posted - Jan 18 2018 : 06:23:48 AM
We just celebrated my granny's 89th birthday and hope to have many more with her. I was named after her. She has been a huge influence on my life, and I love her so much.
--------------------
Mary Ellen
Farm Girl #4730 |
| wildflower17 |
Posted - Apr 11 2015 : 7:34:49 PM
Diane...Thanks for sharing your wonderful memories with us:):):)
Hugs!
Judy
"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened"...
"Country Girl at Heart...Blessed Beyond Measure"!!!
Farm Girl #5440
Farm Girl of The Month September 2013 |
| Fiddlehead Farm |
Posted - Feb 06 2015 : 7:42:23 PM
What wonderful stories and memories of your Grandmother's! I just loved reading them all. I was only two when my Paternal Grandmother died so I have no memories of her at all. I do have memories of my Maternal Grandmother though. She worked as a cook for a small restaurant while raising 8 children. Her last one was born when she was 45! She was the best cook I have ever seen. She cooked without ever having a cookbook or recipe. I remember the first time I saw peered over her kitchen counter and saw what looked like five naked dolls with no heads, feet or hands. I was horrified when I realized they were squirrels getting ready for the dutch oven! Even though she and my Grandfather lived in town they had a milk cow and chickens and also heated their home with wood that my Grandpa would cut at the golf course where he was greens keeper. They never had a car or driver's license so would walk everywhere. Not until later in my 20's did Granny tell me about her past. She was in love with a booze runner from Chicago and they were engaged to be married when he was killed in a Prohibition sting. She was heart broken. Back in the day it was common place for the brother of the departed to become the new fiance'. My Grandma married her beloved's brother and raised eight children. I could see that her heart never mended. She would read every minute that she wasn't working. I never saw as many books except in the library. Since my Grandfather never drove and didn't want to travel, Granny would come along with any one of her eight married children when they went on vacations. She was along with my family on many traveling adventures. One of my last memories of her was when I visited her in the nursing home. I was pushing her wheel chair down the hall to the front community room and starting running, heading towards the front door telling her we were going to escape and run across the country! She was laughing and squealing all the way! We never made it across country but did do a lovely journey around the parking lot. She died there, peacefully in her sleep with a book about other lands laying in her lap.
http://studiodiphotosite.shutterfly.com/
farmgirl sister #922
I am trying to be the person my dogs think I am.
I get up every morning determined to both change the world and have one hell of a good time. Sometimes this makes planning my day difficult.
- E. B. White |
| wildflower17 |
Posted - Feb 04 2015 : 6:21:42 PM
I love hearing all the stories about "Sweet Grandmothers":):):)
Hugs!
Judy
"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened"...
"Country Girl at Heart...Blessed Beyond Measure"!!!
Farm Girl #5440
Farm Girl of The Month September 2013 |
| peafarm |
Posted - Feb 03 2015 : 9:08:49 PM
The thing I remember most as Grandma and I both got older, is that any time anyone stopped she served sweets. While in her apartment, she had bit sized deserts frozen that she would pull out when visitors stopped and even after she moved to the nursing home she always had a well-stocked candy dish and continued to play hostess. I don't think I ever showed up unannounced at the nursing home to find her alone. She always had company!
Penny
www.444Farm.com |
| Calicogirl |
Posted - Jan 23 2015 : 10:57:40 PM
Judy, what a wonderful thread! Thank you gals for sharing!
Terri, good for you! That is a precious thing :)
I grew up knowing my grandmothers but when we would visit, my brothers and I were to go outside. I really wish that I had gotten to know my Meme and Nana more. I do remember my Nana at her rocking chair holding a small red can and dipping a stick into the can and then in her mouth. I asked her what it was one time and she replied 'medicine'. Little did I know that it was snuff :) I have heard things about her for example, 'she used to walk barefoot in the dew of the grass every morning (in the summer). She loved to play the piano. I remember her visiting for Easter all dressed up (wig included, she had her hair but it was thinning)in her pale blue suit (jacket and skirt) with her fox stole :) I do remember playing with that :) I wish that we had spent time talking more.
Farmgirl Sister #5392
By His Grace, For His Glory
~Sharon
http://amerryheartjournal.blogspot.com/
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| 5 acre Farmgirl |
Posted - Jan 19 2015 : 07:39:43 AM
OH all of these memories are wonderful...
I didn't have a Grandma, so I am trying to make memories with at least 7 of my 18 Grandchildren,,,and now I hear them say ...when they hear me on the phone,,,"we want to go to Grandmas"...it just floats my boat to hear that(even though Grandpa is gone from this earth)..
Farmgirl Sister #368
~~*Terri*~~
Life is too short, it is just a vapor, live it like you wont have another minute with the ones you love......
http://thecontentedwomannow.blogspot.com/ |
| wildflower17 |
Posted - Aug 03 2014 : 12:11:06 PM
Jenny...thanks for sharing about your grandma...I like you couldn't have asked for a better role model...unfortunately...I never got to meet my paternal grandmother as she passed before I was born...I always love to hear stories about the "old days"...
Hugs!
Judy
PLANT SEEDS OF KINDNESS EVERYWHERE YOU GO!!!
Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened...
"Country Girl at Heart...Blessed Beyond Measure"!!!
Farm Girl #5440
Farm Girl of The Month September 2013 |
| auntjenny |
Posted - Aug 02 2014 : 9:18:12 PM
My maternal grandma died in 1992 and I still miss her every day. Not a day goes by that I dont use a skill or craft that she taught me. She was the oldest child in her family of 12 kids and my childhood was centered at her home. Her family came to California from Oklahoma during the depression. She always had a pot of beans on the stove and bread or cookies cooling on the counter.i couldn't have asked for a better role model. |
| wildflower17 |
Posted - Aug 02 2014 : 7:30:46 PM
It's been over 4 years since I started this thread...I still think about my sweet grandmother all the time...and have so many wonderful memories of her...this time of year was very busy for us as we always tried to can and freeze as much for the Fall and Winter as we could...I have been breaking green beans but instead of putting them outside in the sun as my mom and granny did for them to dry...I put mine in a dehydrator...as the weather doesn't always cooperate with rain or humidity being a possibility...besides canning and drying beans...freezing corn and canning or freezing tomatoes and juice was two of the main things we stored for Fall and Winter...my sister and I still follow the traditions of storing things away each year for the cooler weather...if you have sweet memories of your grandmother...please post them here...
Hugs!
Judy
PLANT SEEDS OF KINDNESS EVERYWHERE YOU GO!!!
Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened...
"Country Girl at Heart...Blessed Beyond Measure"!!!
Farm Girl #5440
Farm Girl of The Month September 2013 |
| FG-Terri |
Posted - Jul 22 2010 : 7:58:55 PM
Awesome memories!
I had an inside grandma and an outside grandma. Grandma Mac could do anything outside, lol, bring the most sickly plant back to life. She was also an amazing cook, but her passion was outside. Growing up, I lived right beside her. Now, I currently live in her house and was inspired by living here to plant my first garden this year. My other grandma, Grandma Jones could do anything inside. She passed down her love of crafts, knitting, crocheting and sewing. Those were her passions! I remember going through her button box, each button had a story. Thanks for the sweet, sweet memories! |
| Carrie W |
Posted - Jul 22 2010 : 08:41:27 AM
I didn't know my maternal grandmother very well because she lived a distance from us. My earliest memories of her was waiting for her Christmas gifts in the mail. I always loved what she sent even though it was always small, useful things like a four pack of patterned knee high socks or a notebook and colored pencils. I loved that kind of gift. It was a way that I felt loved and remembered as a kid and now I enjoy passing on those same kinds of gifts to others.
My paternal grandmother lived closer and she was a crocheter and crafter and excellent cook. She kept her hands always busy and loved her family by feeding them. She crocheted Christmas stockings for all her many grandkids and each of her children's families (she had eight kids) received a crocheted afgan from her. I copied her stocking for each of my kids. I also have many of her recipes that I still use. It's a way that she made her family feel loved and I feel that I am carrying on that kind of loving thoughtfulness, too, in her memory.
My favorite grandmother, however, is the one I married into. My husband's paternal grandmother lived very close to us when I got married. She was a gardener, excellent cook and hostess, and just always ready to lend a hand to anyone in need. She used to come to my house and leave veggies from her garden. She served our family dinner many times, no matter how many little ones we brought. She was helpful when I brought home my new wee ones. When she died, we found an apple pie in the freezer. That was just how she was.
I am proud to say that I am a compilation of all the wonderful women God has blessed my life with. I do what I do because in some way it keeps me connected to each of them. I look forward to being a grandma someday, and hope that I can pass on each of these blessed characteristics!
www.totallykadeshfarm.blogspot.com
Farmgirl Sisterhood #147
Tis better to weep at joy than to joy at weeping--Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing |
