Patricia Lou Crawford
April 1, 1958
I weighed 5 pounds at birth
Mother was age 31
Father was age 38
Larry was age 15
Barb was age 9
Donna was age 4
Mother: Hazel Lucille Mutzner Crawford - 1927-1991
Father: Lonzie Crawford - 1920-1991
Brother: Larry Keith - 1944-1994
Sister: Joyce Jean - 1946-1946
Sister: Barbara Louise - 1948
Sister: Donna Fay - 1954
Brother: Christopher Beal - 1960
My Story
21 S. Williams Street was my home from birth until I moved out
when I was 18. My older siblings were Larry, Barb, and Donna. Mom told me I
only wanted her and would not let anyone else help. Mom asked Dad what they
should name me and he suggested Ethel or Patricia. Since he had never offered
ideas for naming any of my siblings, mom said she felt she had to choose one. She
didn’t like Ethel so Patricia it was. My middle name Lou came from my Grandma Mutzner’s
middle name LuLu.
 |
| Our house before we "added three rooms" and re-sided it. |
 |
| Our home after rooms and siding were added. The Santa Claus on the door was used for many years. |
When I was two Chris was born. My dad worked shiftwork at Laclede
Steel Mill and my mother took care of us children until Chris started school.
Then Chris and I had a babysitter who lived down the street.
 |
| 1961 circa Chris and me. |
 |
| 1961 circa Could be Helen, Lylah, mom, dad, me, and Randy (cousin). |
When I was very
young, our house had two bedrooms. One for mom and dad and one for me, Barb,
Donna, and Chris. Larry slept in the breezeway or utility room. There were two
sets of bunk beds, Barb and Donna shared one set and Chris and I shared the
other. It had one tiny closet. When I was about nine, we added two bedrooms and
a family room to the house. Barb and Donna each had their own bedrooms. When Barb
left and I moved into one of the new bedrooms.
We could paint our
rooms any color we wanted. I painted mine bright canary yellow with lime green
trim. Chris’ room was painted dark purple to use with his night light and
posters.
 |
| 1962 circa - I'm thinking Larry wore those shoes 15 years before I did. |
We had huge jars
of Vaseline around the house. When I was maybe four, I smeared handfuls
of it into my hair. I couldn’t leave my baby brother out of this marvelous
experiment. I then smeared it all over his head too. After my mom finally
washed it all out, she said my golden locks were beautiful and shiny. I'm
surprised I had any hair left!
 |
| 1962 circa |
There was an
aluminum bowl with a lid stored on top of the refrigerator. I knew it held
mysterious treasures. I saw mom get what I thought was a chocolate bar out of
it one time. It was really a laxative. I wanted that chocolate bar
really bad. I climbed on a chair, retrieved it, and enjoyed what I thought was
a very rare treat. Of course, I shared it with my baby brother. I'm sure it was
yummy. Yikes!
On cold mornings, mom would turn on the oven and open the door to warm the kitchen. She must have learned that from her grandmother who did that to warm her aching legs when she was little. I learned to do it for myself. I also sat by the heat register that was in the corner of the living room behind a chair. I did this many mornings before dressing for school.
Barb learned in social studies in school that people in other countries
ate different things; like bugs. One day she told Chris and I to take a
nap. We were too old for naps, but we did as we were told. We heard a lot of commotion
and giggling coming from the kitchen. It was just too intriguing not to check
it out. I went to the kitchen and found Barb, Donna, and Barb’s friends trying
to fry grasshoppers in a pan. Every time they took the lid off, the
grasshoppers would jump out and they’d scream and laugh. She tried to get me to
taste one, but I was too smart for that!
 |
| Aluminum jar that was kept on top of the refrigerator. |
 |
| 1964 In the back yard. |
At the end of
our street was a VFW building and park with a road circling the building. On
the way to the VFW was a very steep hill. At the bottom of the hill were
railroad tracks. On each side of the tracks were ditches with frogs, tadpoles,
and crawdads. Chris and I would walk up and down the tracks catching
critters and entertaining ourselves for hours. There was a field in the back of our house. Through the field and to the right was a hill with a wooded drop-off to the railroad tracks. We built a little shelter with pieces of wood and trash. It as our secret hideout.
 |
| 1964 circa Chris and me. |
Both Donna and
Barb told me they went sledding, but I was too small to go. They said
our brother Larry would turn an old car hood upside down and tie it to a car
and pull them around the circle road in the VFW park. Our neighbors would tie
sleds up to a car and pull all the neighborhood kids around the park.
 |
| 1962 I'm guessing that's Donna and Chris in the background. |
When we didn’t
have snow boots, mom taught me to wrap our shoes with plastic “Bunny
Bread” sacks and secure them with rubber bands around our ankles. I remember
using socks for gloves too.
I walked about
half a mile to the Cottage Hills Grade school. In first grade I went to speech
class. I think they decided that I didn't have a problem with speech, I was
just too shy to talk. I was always self-conscious and shy. I had friends but I didn't
like school. I remember that I only knew two colors in kindergarten, and I was
the only one with only two Indian feathers in my headdress. I was elected
Butterfly Queen and was crowned at the annual school festival/play a couple of
times. Chris got elected King a couple of times too.
 |
| 1963 Butterfly Queen |
When we were
little, we had numerous pets at different times; rabbits, a parakeet,
and numerous dogs. One dog was a black beagle named Black Jack. He could be
vicious at times. When I fed him, I'd sometimes get so scared I’d just drop the
bowl and run, spilling everything. Later we got another beagle. This one was
sweet. We named her White Jack. When I was older, I had a black poodle mix
named Charcoal. I loved that dog. Mom loved it too. She fed it and taught it
tricks. In high school I had a dog named Peppy.
 |
| 1964 Rabbits outside the breeze-way |
 |
| 1962 Bambi and me |
 |
| 1963 Bambi and me |
One time Chris
was bit by a dog while walking home from school. Mom was at work and I
was watching Chris. It was a nasty looking bite and nearly made me faint. I was
so distraught that I called mom at work. That was the only time I ever called
her at work. She calmly told me to wash it off with a cool washcloth and put a
bandage on it. It would be ok. She calmed me down and I did as she instructed.
 |
| 1960 |
I got my first
Barbie doll when I was ten. It was a Stacy Doll with red hair and her legs were
bendable. I loved her! I sewed a lot of clothes for her. I don't
remember my mom teaching me to sew, but she must have. She taught me to
embroidery and crochet. In the fifth grade, a fellow student asked me if I knew
how to use a sewing machine and if I could teach her. I agreed to go to her
house. She lived farther down highway 140 than I had ever walked, but mom gave
me permission to go. I gave her some instructions and that was it.
 |
| 1960 Chris and me |
Halloween was great fun.
We'd dress up in something, mostly from around the house. We’d join
neighborhood kids and trick or treat. We’d fill pillowcases completely full of
candy. We walked for miles on both sides of highway 140. When I was probably 12,
I made paper mache heads of Snoopy and Charlie Brown. I layered newspaper and paste
made of flour and water on a big Hoppity Hop ball. They were huge! To get them
to stay on, I cut notches for shoulders on each side. They were really cool! I
also made dummies and ghosts to hang in our front yard tree.
 |
| 1962 Halloween Barb and me |
 |
| 1970 circa Halloween, Snoopy costume I made out of paper mache. |
 |
| 1970 Halloween costumes. Chis is Snoopy and I'm Charlie Brown. I made our two costumes. The other two are neighborhood friends from behind our house. |
Mom always
dressed us kids up for Easter. I loved Easter because I loved the
chocolate Bunny and candy!
 |
| 1962 Easter |
Mom loved Christmas.
She may not have had much money, but she made it special. We always had a
Christmas tablecloth and sometimes candles. Mom made a turkey, dressing, and
all the extras. She even made Christmas curtains for the kitchen out of plastic
Christmas tablecloths. When we were little Aunt Honey would come over with her
kids.
 |
| 1964 |
 |
| 1964 I think that might be a record player on the top left. |
 |
| 1962 |
 |
| 1964 Christmas Chaos! Look at all the wrapping paper and Chris' pants. |
 |
| 1966 It was dad's job to hand the gifts out. Oh, boy, it was so much fun. |
 |
| 1968 |
 |
| 1969 For a time we had huge, real Christmas trees. This looks like the cannister set we made for mom out of shelf paper and coffee cans. |
I remember
helping mom make the stuffing. Several days before Christmas we’d rip bread
into pieces and store it in the garage to dry out. On Christmas eve we’d cut up
vegetables and add seasoning. I loved this tradition.
 |
| Mom always had a nice Christmas dinner. |
We never had new
wrapping paper. After the gifts were opened, we would straighten out the paper
and save it flat in a box in the garage. One time we made mom a set of
canisters out of coffee cans covered with sticky shelf paper. We had a big
plastic door cover with a Santa on it that we put on our front door every year.
I loved it. We decorated a cardboard fireplace. When Barb was married, Donna drove
us to Breeze and we all worked on a fake fireplace as a surprise for mom. It even
had electric logs that looked like fire. Fancy. As we grew older, we played
cards or board games on Christmas.
 |
| 1964 Daniel Boone aka Chris. |
One year I got
up in the middle of the night to see if Santa had delivered our presents, I saw
a huge and beautiful doll. I knew it had to be mine. It was not in a box
and I don't think it was new. It was a magical vision though. In later years I
Googled it and discovered the doll was a Patty PlayPal 35” doll. I’ve always
tried to make the vision of the tree and presents on Christmas morning special
for you. That came from my mom.
There are two smells that still bring back memories of Christmas. The smell of rubber from a new doll and the smell of oranges.
 |
| 1963 circa. Calm before the storm! |
Dad brought Barb
a surprise doll once. Barb remembered he stayed late at a bar on Christmas Eve.
When he finally came home, he brought her a doll that he’d bought at the bar.
She was mad at him for not coming home therefore she didn't like the doll.
Donna remembers she was hurt that she didn't get one. I too wished I could have
one. I thought it was incredibly beautiful! A white snow angle doll with a fur
skirt, halo, and wings. It was a music box.
 |
| Barb's Christmas Doll looked like this. |
One year when I
was in high school, mom and I were home alone on Christmas eve. We were setting
out the gifts and candy. We always put out a big box of Whitman's chocolates. I
had stopped in the living room and was sitting on the couch making my chocolate
selections. I heard an eerie strange sound like a ghost. I heard it in
intervals. Finally, I decided it was coming from outside. Mom and I took turns
sticking our head out the door far enough to hear it. We finally opened the
garage door and there was dad. He had fallen in the icy snowy driveway. We got him inside and warmed him up. He was fine.
 |
| 1964 Looks like I got a sailor dress and someone got a hair drier in a case. |
Mom didn’t drive.
When one of us needed to go to the doctor, we walked to Bethalto. I
didn't like walking along the highway. One time the doctor gave mom a case of
iron samples for me.
When Barb was
probably 18, she’d sometimes get home so late from a date that Dad would be up
for the day. She’d have to climb in Donna’s window. There was a little
step outside Donna’s window that was essential.
 |
| 1965 circa Donna. Oh, the adventures she must have had on that bike. |
 |
| 1965 circa Patti in field behind house. I had friends behind the two buildings in the back ground and cut across the field many times to play with them. |
 |
| 1965 circa. This looks like it's the side of our house by the garage (by Grables). |
 |
| 1964 circa We watched cartoons on that black and white TV every weekend morning. |
Occasionally mom
would send us to the bar to get dad. Usually, it was just down the street at
the VFW. None of us wanted to go inside to get him. It was dark, smelled sour,
and was smoky. He'd get us a Yoo Hoo, then he could stay longer while we
drank it. Oh man, that was special. Sometimes, he wasn't at the VFW. Then we
had to walk down highway 140 to the New Moon bar.
 |
| 1966 circa side of our house. We had irises that grew along the side of the house. |
In Girl
Scouts I earned several badges. We went on a camping trip where I had my
first smores. Another time we went to a camp and stayed in cabins. We wrote our
own skits and preformed them later.
 |
| 1969 Age 11 |
Donna was four years
older than me, tall, thin, gorgeous, and smart. She was everything I wanted to be. She
got straight A's. When she was still in high school, she took an aviation class
and learned to fly a plane at the St. Louis Regional Airport in Bethalto. How
cool is that!
 |
| Donna and Chris. We had a piano, but no one played it although it looks like there are music sheets on it. Looks like Chris got a watch and Donna got a purse and Polaroid camera. |
 |
| Donna by her new car - Duster. The building on the left is a little store, Brownies, that was on Hwy 140. It was a restaurant after Brownies and possibly torn down. The Building on the right belonged to the neighbors, the Grables. |
My mom’s father, Christian Mutzner, seemed like a quiet, kind man. I only remember seeing him a few times. The only time I remember seeing my Grandpa Mutzner at our house, he came in the back door and brought a big pot of something. He didn't stay. Chili or soup maybe. It could have been when dad was laid off. It's possible that he left a pot of food and I didn't actually see him, maybe I only remember the story and conjured up the visuals. He gave us several nice paint by number paintings. They hung on our walls for years. He took Barb berry picking once, made Donna a beautiful bookcase. She loved to read and read all the Nancy Drew books.
One time Grandpa Mutzner took Chris and me to Horseshoe Lake fishing. I don't remember him picking us up or dropping us off. We had never been fishing before. He cleaned them before we left the lake and gave us both what I believe was fish lungs. We walked around the back yard with our trophy lungs until they deflated.
Here's a story that involved my Grandpa Mutzner. This took place possibly in 1965 when mom applied for her first job in the laundry at Alton Memoria Hospital, she did not know how to drive and did not have a car. Her dad gave her a ride to apply for the job. She had no idea how she would get to work if they hired her. She got the job and I'm guessing her dad gave her rides for a while. I do know that she had a ride from co-workers for years before she could drive herself. Barb taught her to drive.
 |
| Christian Philipp Mutzner - Grandpa |
I saw my dad’s father, Rueben Crawford a few times when we visited Georgia. I don’t remember my dad’s mother, Lessie at all.
 |
| Rueben Beal Crawford. He was quiet, smoked a pipe, and drank Coke. |
 |
| Helen Mutzner Buford |
 |
| 1964 circa Grants Farm with Beverly?, Donna, Chris, Jill, and me. |
Mom’s sister, Aunt
Lylah, was married to Willy Hock. They had two children, Beverly
and Randy who were both older than me. Aunt Lylah stayed with us for a few days one time. She had a motorcycle
delivered to our house. The guy gave her a few instructions. She got on the
bike and drove it right into the side of our house. She was not hurt very bad,
but she did fly off of it. She never got back on it. She had an awesome rock collection from her travels. She asked
you to pick one out to take home. After way too much thought you finally
selected the one you liked, but she just couldn't part with it and you selected
a couple more before you found one she could part with.
 |
| Barb, Patti, Chris, Lylah, Beverly |
My mom’s oldest sister
Aunt Loretta was married to Jim Sayler. She moved to Kankakee, Illinois
and went to college. After her four children were born, she had a physical to
go back to college. Breast cancer was identified during that physical. The
summer Barb was 10 years old mom sent her to help Aunt Loretta. She took a train
to Kankakee by herself. Barb was very good with babies. She had never met Aunt
Lorretta, but mom must have thought that was the only thing she had to offer that
would help her sister. Aunt Loretta died in 1964 when she was 38.
 |
| Loretta Mutzner Sayler |
Barb, Donna, and
I always helped cook meals. Dad liked meat, potatoes, and gravy.
We'd get 100
loaves of old bread cheap from the Bunny Bread Store. They would fill the back of our car. Then take them home to store in our big deep freezer.
Mom pierced my
ears with a sewing needle and thread. It worked great!
 |
| 1971 circa. Donna and Patti. I'm wearing a school colors top I made for pep club. Go Royals! |
When I was in
junior high, I went to a Pentecostal church with my friends. We just went for a few months. We went to their church camp for one or
two nights with a youth group.
 |
| 1969, Nov. 8. Barb's wedding. The dresses and hats were homemade. We cut out cardboard to make the hats stiff. The girl next to me is Barbara Jean (Larry C.'s wife) and Jill Buford (cousin) was the flower girl. |
 |
| 1970 circa. Eating the last piece of bologna. The head hanging by the window was filled with curlers. |
Once when I was
14, I was getting into the front seat of a car with my friends. Someone closed
the door on my hand. As I looked through the windshield, I could see my fingers
moving outside the window. The girls put my hand in ice water. It was fine in
the morning, but it sure did throb all night.
 |
| 1971 circa Chris, Donna, Patti, neighbor playing Monopoly. Notice the RC Cola bottles. |
In junior high I had just started going steady with a boy. We weren't old enough to drive and didn't date yet. He told me about a haunted house he wanted to show me. He suggested my friend Jane and her boyfriend John should come too. John went to school in Alton and my boyfriend had never met him. John couldn't go. Jane, June, and I conceived a plan for June to dress up as a boy and pose as John. We put a short haired wig on her and dressed her in boyish looking clothes. Donna gave us a ride. The adventure kicked up a notch when police arrived with a bull horn and shined lights into the old house. We ran out the back and through a corn field, then walked to my boy friend's house. We called Donna to pick us up. That was one crazy, silly lark for sure!
 |
| 1971 circa. Jill Buford, Barb, Patti, Chris and Uncle Elvin in the background. |
I fainted easily
as a child and even as a young adult. I fainted once in science class. We
were watching a medical film. I fainted and fell out of my chair and onto the
projector cord stopping the movie. One time I fainted in chorus. Another time
we were on a Future Nurses of America field trip to a medical museum in St.
Louis. The ancient medical contraptions seemed so horrific that I fainted in
the museum. I was president of the club, some future nurse I made. I'm not making these stories up. They really happened and my old class mates would be more than happy to verify.
 |
| Mom with Charcoal |
One of our cars
was a huge square, white tank. One of the doors wouldn't latch so we had a rope
stretched from the front passenger side to the back seat door to hold it
closed. Years later we had a smaller car that would die after a stop. It was
important to be prepared for this when exiting our street onto highway 140. It
would die every time.
 |
| 1978 circa Hazel and Lonzie |
 |
| Goofing off with a friend in my room. |
 |
| 1973 circa vacation dad, Chris, and me. |
 |
| 1974 circa Chris, Larry K, Jill, and me. Barb and Larry had a boat and took us boating on Lake Carlyle. |
 |
| 1974 circa Mom and me decorating a cotton Christmas tree. I wrapped cotton batting around a dead tree limb. Ta Da! |
In the summer we
had a metal water trough we'd fill with water for swimming. Donna and I would
lather ourselves up with baby oil and sunbathe in the back yard. I'd put Sun-In
or Lemon juice in my hair to give it blond streaks.
 |
| 1973 circa Maybe this was Mom's birthday or Mom and Dad's anniversary. Grandpa Mutzner painted the snowy picture that's on the wall. |
One of the
first, dates I remember was when I was 16. Miniskirts were in style, but there
was a new fashion trend, “Sizzlers”. Sizzlers were insanely short
dresses with panties to match. Like ice skating skirts. I had just gotten one
for my birthday. I thought I was hot stuff. We went to the drive-in show with
Donna and Don.
 |
| 16th Birthday wearing Sizzler dress |
I loved the
activities and friendships in Junior High school. I rode the bus with
the Pep Club to games. I was a candy striper at Wood River Hospital, and
I volunteered one summer to work with DD children in the Special School
District. I dated a couple of guys in my class. My best friends were Jane from
school and June from down my street. June and I walked to the bus stop together.
Our bus stop location was the Matador Lounge on 140. That was a really rough
bar. I guess it didn’t matter since the bar wasn’t open at 7 am. One time there
was a passed-out patron outside the door. What in the world were the school
officials thinking?
 |
| 1972 circa. Donna, Kyle, and me on my birthday. The faux fire place Barb and Larry K helped us make for Mom is on the right. |
The first time
Barb came to visit with her new baby girl, Jill, I was so excited and
couldn't wait for school to end so I could see her. I rushed outside and the
buses were all gone. I was frantic and upset thinking I had missed the bus. I
ran most of the way home just to find out that school had not ended yet!
 |
| 1974 circa Look we found a bunny! Jill, mom, me, Donna, and Chris. Looks like we sewed a little extra at the bottom of his jeans. |
 |
| 1972 circa Chris, Jill, and Larry K. vroom, vroom! |
 |
| 1973 circa Larry K., Jill, Barb, and Kyle. |
 |
| 1975 circa Jill, mom, and me goofing off. Those are mom's legs. Note: this used to be Chris' bedroom, it was painted dark purple. |
 |
| 1975 circa Jill and Kyle with my friend from down the street. This is the tree that Dad hung milk jugs in. |
 |
| Kyle and Jill. She's wearing my present costume. |
 |
| 1975 circa Mom and Jill goofing off. |
In 1973 Barb drove
Donna, me, and friends to the theater to see the Exorcist. They wouldn’t let me
in without an adult, so I had to wait to see it.
 |
| 1975 circa My friend in the family room. You can see mom's Christmas curtains. |
Once friends and I snuck out of the house, walked in the dark down highway 140 to the
Matador lounge just to see what was going on in that crazy place. They
let us in. It was full of very scary
biker dudes.
 |
| 1974 circa Donna and me probably at Carlyle Lake. |
One time
my friend's big brother had a party and her mom insisted that he allow us younger
girls attend too. My friend's brother excluded; the older boys loved us. They
shared their slow gin with us and played the song Long Cool Woman by the
Holly's. I still love that song.
Once a friend and
I rode a train to Mount Vernon all by ourselves. We were thrilled and
scared. Her parents had friends there. We were supposed to keep the oldest
child company while she watched the little ones so her parents could
go away for the weekend. When the kids went to bed, the older girl had the entertainment
lined up. Of course, it involved driving around with boys and drinking. She
said, “I do this all the time, it's fine.” And luckily it was, we made it home and
the kids were all snug in their beds.
 |
| 1974 circa Chris |
One time a friend and I went swimming in a pond out in the country. We found out later it was
a sewer pond for farm animals. A friend's brother taught us to shoot his guns
at their property in Mount Pleasant.
 |
| 1974 Donna and Don's wedding. Me, Donna, Don, Jack, Jill, and cousin Jon. I made my dress. |
We didn't have
money to go to the Dentist. When Chris had a problem and needed a
dentist, mom signed us both up to go to the SIU Dental School in Alton. Years
later they reached my name on the list. I was in high school and had never been
to a Dentist (at least that I remember). The dental school filled a lot of my
teeth. I don't know if they took advantage of me or not but every Dentist I've
had since then has commented on all my fillings and how very large they are.
 |
| Freshman dance |
I had two birthday
parties. I had a slumber party in fifth grade after our house was
“built-on”. Later in junior high school, my friends had a birthday party for me
at Jane's house. They made a big cardboard cake and one of the boys jumped out
of it! They made a fish cake and a duck cake. I was nicknamed Fish
because I made a fish face and a friend's nick name was Ducky.
 |
| 1973 circa birthday party for me and others in a friend's basement. |
 |
| 1973 circa A friend jumping out of a cake at the birthday party. |
 |
| 1973 birthday party duck and fish cakes |
I was in the Drama
Club in high school and loved it. I was a costume mistress or had very
small parts in plays. Once our drama club volunteered to dress up as presents
and toys and walk around a grade school’s Christmas celebration. In my senior
year I was selected to be a Thespian and for the initiation I had to sing Hound
Dog by Elvis, dress like a clown, and wear playing cards on myself. I really
loved every minute of it.
 |
| Thespian club initiation. |
 |
| 1976 Art class made this school mascot, Go Eagles! |
 |
| 1974 circa I'm Kyle's God Mother. I'm wearing Donna's dress. Loved that dress. |
Donna and Don
drove me and a friend to see Donny Osmond one time. In high school I went to
several Mississippi River Festival concerts. It was an outdoor concert
venue at SIUE.
 |
| 1975 working on a ceramic boot for art class. |
 |
| 1975 We dressed up like toys and presents to entertain the grade school kiddos. |
 |
| Sophomore report card. I'm just not interested in science. |
 |
| Junior year report card. I didn't get algebra. When I took it at a Junior College in Sedalia, it all made sense. |
I hated all sports.
Especially anything that involved a ball. I was and still am, scared of balls.
Ha, ha. Neighborhood kids would play softball in the empty field by our house.
No one wanted me on their team. Which was fine, I didn't want to play. I hated
PE, dreaded it. I loved art class though. When I was very young, I played
A-Tisket-A-Tasket with neighborhood kids.
 |
| 1975 Pom Pom girl. We made our own jumpers. |
 |
| 1975 Prom Committee making decorations for Prom outside our garage. |
When I was in
high school my boyfriend had a boat and we went water skiing a lot. I was
pretty good at it. I'd kick one ski off and slalom on one ski. I really enjoyed
this. I rode on his motorcycle without my parents’ knowledge. He also was an
airplane pilot. He once flew me to see a friend at Eastern University and home.
That was pretty cool.
 |
| 1975 circa stopped on a beach on the Mississippi River while boating. |
Dad started
collecting plastic gallon milk jugs. He would string them up with really
long ropes and tie them in the tree in the back yard. There were hundreds of
them. Three long strings about 12 feet long full of milk jugs. At least it
wasn't the front yard.
I loved high
school. I went to the school proms and coronations and made all my dresses except
my Freshman dance dress. I was a Pom Pom girl for two years.
 |
| 1974 Prom. I made this dress out of pale blue velvet. |
 |
| 1974 Coronation. This dress was Donna's dress originally. I added sleeves, the white ruffles at the bottom, and added a hoop. |
 |
| 1975 I made this dress and the parasol. I used the pattern from the dress I wore in Donna's wedding. |
 |
| 1975 I made this dress too, same pattern. |
 |
| 1976 Pumpkin dress. I made this dress too. I'm getting really bold with colors. |
 |
| 1976 I made this dress and parasol. |
 |
| 1976 |
My friends
wanted me to join Chorus so I could go on Band Tour with them. I can’t sing at
all, but I found the nerve to try out and by some miracle the teacher let me
in. We did have lots of fun on band tour.
 |
| 1976 My room. Painted yellow with lime green trim. I made the large stuffed 7 UP bottle for a "Pop Art" project for school. |
 |
| 1976 Band Tour Hotel Lobby |
 |
| 1976 Band Tour Hotel Lobby. |
When I was 18,
the legal limit for drinking in Illinois changed to 18. After high school I
went out with my girlfriends to night clubs. We went to Night Gallery in Wood
River, Stonehenge in Belleville, The Grainery, The Admiral boat in St. Louis, etc.
We took turns driving. When it was my turn, I drove my mom’s car. We had lots
of fun.
 |
| 1976 Homecoming game. |
 |
| 1976 Homecoming game. |
Every year a
friend would have New Year's Eve parties. They were legendary! Her parents left
for the night. It was tradition to play “Thumper” a drinking game.
I graduated
in 1976. There were about 238 students in our graduating class. Mom and my
sisters went to the ceremony. I had been skiing all day and rushed home to put
on my cap and gown.
 |
| 1976 Graduation. I was water skiing all day and had to rush home and change into my gown. |
 |
| 1976 Graduation. Love my sisters! |
I had sporadic
babysitting jobs when I was younger. I worked at different places
starting when I was 16. They included: Pizza Hut in Bethalto, Hardee's in
Alton, and Dairy Palace in Bethalto. I didn't have a car, but I drove my mom's
car.
 |
| 1975 circa The gang's all here. |
 |
| 1974-75 circa Before Chris went into the service. |
After high
school I worked at Schnucks in Bethalto, but not for long. Mom and dad
paid for me to go to Benton's School of Beauty, in Alton to be a hair stylist.
They offered it to me and didn’t ask me to pay them back. I don't remember ever
being that interested in hair. I did feel it was artistic work and that maybe
I'd be good at it. Since college was not in the picture, and this was offered,
I took it. I had a great time in Beauty School. It was a new set of friends and
we went out together on weekends. I was a bridesmaid in one of their weddings.
 |
| 1977 Student of Benton's School of Cosmetology. With my case of rollers and books. I had to wait two months to take the test. I passed and was a licensed cosmetologist. |
 |
| 1977 Chis home on leave. |
 |
| 1977 circa This was the house I rented in Alton with a friend from beauty school. I wasn't there very long. I moved to Brookfield shortly after that. |
After Beauty School, I needed to pass a state test to be licensed in the State of Illinois. I had to wait two months to take the test in Springfield, Illinois. I got a job working at A Kut Above in Godfrey as a receptionist. I moved in with a friend from beauty school. It was a cool old house she rented in Alton. Then Donna asked me to come live with her and Don in Brookfield, Missouri while I was waiting to take my test. I did eventually take my Illinois State test and was a licensed Cosmetologist. Although I never worked as one. I quit my job and moved to Brookfield. Oh, boy was that fun! Donna, Don, and I were like the three musketeers. We called each other, Big Buddy, Buddy, and Little Buddy. Don was working as a Golf Course Manager and they lived in a house that was provided for them by the Golf Course. It was at the top of a high hill overlooking the golf course. There were barns for the equipment and a little lake with a sandy beach and a concession stand. I got a job correcting mistakes in the text of yearbooks at Walsworth Publishing, in Marceline. I loved the job. Donna also got a job there and we rode to work together. Mary Ann came to visit us a couple of times. We’d party on the weekends. There were field and barn parties. In the mornings, I'd jog down to number nine (the ninth hole on the golf course) and back in my curlers. I saved my money and with $1,000, I bought a baby-poo brown Ford Pinto from a friend at work. It was a stick shift. I had never driven a stick before. Yikes. My friend taught me quickly in a field. I made it to our house at the top of a steep hill. I went inside to have dinner. The three of us were sitting at the table and we heard a big bang. We looked out and my baby-poo Pinto had rolled down the hill toward the barn and hit the “club” truck. It was sort of stuck under the truck. The truck wasn’t hurt, but the car was smashed up. While it was being repaired, Mom let me use her car. Mom to the rescue!
 |
| Donna wrote this about our summer of 78. |
 |
| 1977 circa |
 |
| 1979 circa My first car, baby-poo brown Ford Pinto. Mom and Dad's back yard. |
 |
| 1977 Night before a snow ski trip with Donna, Donn, Barb, and Larry. |
 |
| 1977 Snow skiing with Barb. |
 |
| 1978 Brookfield MO with Donna. |
 |
| 1979 circa Donna's baby shower. |
 |
| 1980 circa Girls just wanna have fun! |
Donna and Don moved to Sedalia Missouri and I went with them. The fun continued. I got a job at Waterloo, Industries. It was a factory that made toolboxes. I worked on the assembly line. I made enough to move into my own place, a converted garage. It was just maybe five feet or so from railroad tracks and of course it was in the owner's yard. I didn’t have a kitchen table and ate on the floor. It had roaches and shook like crazy when a train went by. The train tracks are now the Katy Trail and the garage house is no longer there. I used a coat hanger to tie my car’s muffler up. It would fall down every time I went home and drove over the railroad tracks. I'd stop the car, get out, and put the muffler back up. Then off I'd go. I bought a waterbed. I made myself a comforter out of sheets. I loved that place. I went to antique stores and bought old wine glasses. None of them matched, but I loved them. During this time Mary Ann came to visit a few weekends. At Waterloo, there was a group of young single girls that went out together. One day they asked me to come along to a disco bar named Flumdungeons. At the bar, your dad came up to our table. He had a long blond perm and fit right in at the Disco. He asked me to dance. We had a good time and he offered me a ride home. We drove to my little garage house. We talked and I proceeded to dance around. I continued the dance outside to the hood of my car. He was worried someone in the big house would see and he coaxed me down and back into the house. He went home and told his roommate that he was going to marry me. We became close and had lots of fun. Other bars we went to were the Red Apple, The Wolf’s Den, and Crouches. Here's something unique about Flumdungeons. Years later when we were working at Bellefontaine Habilitation Center, we met a couple that also went to Flumdungeons. Small world.
I moved into a duplex, then into a big old house with a work friend, then I moved in with your dad. He was living in a house that his dad owned. His dad had lived in Sedalia but moved to Washington State. Your dad was going to college in Warrensburg, MO and worked at Radio Shack when I met him. Later he worked as a bartender at a bar, then the Hotel Bothwell. We had some good times at his dad's house! The Missouri State Fair is held in Sedalia. I went once. It caused traffic jams.
 |
| Halloween costume I made for Kyle. |
 |
| 1978 costume I made for Jill while living with Donna in Brookfield. |
I fell asleep on
the way to work one day and wrecked my Pinto. I hit the steering wheel
and my front bottom teeth went through my face between my chin and bottom lip.
While the car was being repaired, my wonderful mother let me use her car to get
to work.
 |
| 1980 circa |
 |
| 1978 circa Donna's house in the country in Sedalia. |
 |
| 1978 circa Barb and Larry visit Donna, Don, and me in Sedalia. I think they were supposed to pout, but Kyle didn't going along with it. |
 |
| 1979 circa Bill in my water bed in my garage house in Sedalia, MO. |
 |
| 1979 circa Bill eating in my garage house in Sedalia, MO. |
 |
| 1978 circa In my garage house. It was right next to a railroad tracks. When trains came by the house would shake. |
 |
| 1978 circa Donna and Don in my garage house. That is an antique trunk I revamped. |
 |
| 1980 Christmas time. |
 |
| 1980 circa |
 |
| 1979 circa Bill |
 |
| 1980 circa New Years eve. |
 |
| 1980 Cotton Christmas tree. Bill and I had a trailer in Sedalia, MO. I made the macrame lion and elephant on the wall. |
 |
| 1979 Bill and me in my Duplex. |
 |
| 1979 circa I met Bill's family. Maxine, Pam, Carolyn, Kathy, Ma, and Bill. |
 |
| 1980 My wedding shower. |
I saw a picture of a wedding dress in a Brides magazine and I made my wedding dress like the one in the picture. It was a very difficult design. I can't believe I had the nerve to try it. Mom gave me $80 to get the fabric. I didn't have a pattern for the exact design but I just made adjustments. Jill was the flower girl and Donna made her a dress to match mine. A little mini wedding dress for little Jill! Donna is amazing. Both dresses were gorgeous.
 |
| The design I didn't choose for my wedding dress. |
 |
| The design for my wedding dress. |
I was living with your dad before we got married. I didn't want my parents to know. The weekend of our wedding I moved some stuff into Donna and Don's house and told them that I lived with Donna. Mom, dad, Chris, Barb, Larry, Jill and Kyle were at Donna’s house. Aunt Honey came to the wedding too.
 |
| 1980 Wedding rehearsal dinner. |
Your dad and I planned to meet at the courthouse the day before the wedding to get the marriage license. Your dad didn't show up. I waited and then looked in every bar in town. I couldn’t find him. I went back to the courthouse and waited until they closed at 3:30pm. By this time I was really distraught. The lady behind the counter said she had something to do in the other room and that if he came in, to have him sign the paper. She placed the paper in front of me and left the room. Pretty soon she came back into the room. She looked right at me and said, “I would never know if he was here or not. I just need his signature. I don’t have to see him sign it”. Wow, this was a legal document, in an official office of the State. It seemed she was giving me approval and the opportunity to sign his name. So, I did. She came back, I gave her the paper and left. I sat on your dad's front porch and waited for him. He had been at Pizza Hut drinking and playing liars poker. He completely forgot about the appointment to sign the marriage license. He wasn’t backing out, yay!
 |
| 1980 Getting ready at Donna's house. |
 |
| 1980. OK, we're ready, let's do this thing! |
 |
| 1980 Mr. and Mrs. Jewell |
 |
| 1980 Wedding day. I made the dress and parasol. Barb fixed my hair. |
 |
| 1980 Wedding. Donna made Jill's dress to match mine. I made my dress. |
 |
| 1980 Bill and Kyle |
 |
| Chris, Don, Andy, Bill Bayless, Kyle, Bill, me, Jill, Donna, Mary Ann, Mary K, Robin, Ginny |
 |
| Cake with bright flowers |
 |
| Maybe this is why Bill wanted to wash the car. |
 |
| 1980 Pam, Carolyn, and Kathy at our wedding. |
 |
| 1980 walking down the aisle with dad. The couple in the background is Rick and Karen Ream. I lived with Karen for about a month before moving in with Bill. |
Our reception was held in the back of a restaurant. There was no music or dancing, but there was a cash bar. It was a nice reception.
 |
| 1980 We did it! |
 |
| Ma, Maxine, me, and Billy. |
 |
| High school friends at the reception. |
 |
| 1980 Honeymoon |
 |
| 1980 Honeymoon. I bought this tent at a garage sale for $5. We had never put it together. |
 |
After we got married, I went to work for K-Mart in Sedalia in the restaurant. They had a full-service restaurant with a separate door. I was a cook. Yep. I made meat loaf, strawberry short cake, cleaned the fryers, etc.
 |
| 1980 circa Bill and Jenny with our trailer in the background. |
 |
| 1980 circa Our trailer in Sedalia, MO. I was into macrame for a while. I made the lion, elephant, hanging table (right), and plant hanger (left). |
 |
| 1983 Godparents to baby Erin Cherry. Erin was such a sweet baby, she made us decide that we could be parents too. |
 |
| 1981 circa Skiing at Copper Mountain in Colorado. I had altitude sickness and passed out while standing in a long line for the lift. Darn it. I did feel better later and was able to ski. |
At first we lived in your dad's father's house. The house sold and we moved to a trailer. Then Donna moved to Illinois and put her Sedalia house up for sale. We moved into her empty house.
After your dad graduated with a Business Degree from Central Missouri State University, he got a job working in HR for the State of Missouri at Bellefontaine Habilitation Center in Florissant, Missouri. We moved to Florissant, then bought an adorable little white house on Albers Lane in Bethalto Illinois. I got a transfer to the Florissant K-Mart and later transferred to the Alton K-Mart.
When you were two, I started working for the State as a part-time third shift switchboard operator at Bellefontaine Habilitation Center. Soon I worked full time. Donna helped me pass the state typing test. I will forever be grateful to her. I got promoted to a clerical position in the Quality Assurance Office. I also worked in Purchasing, Staff Development, and the Assistant Superintendent's office.
 |
| 2001 circa My office at Bellefontaine Habilitation Center. I worked there from 1986 to 2002. Then left to work at Fleishman Hillard 2002-2006. Then came back to BHC from 2006-2013. |
We moved from Florissant apartments to our first home. It was an adorable little white house on Albers Lane in
Bethalto.
 |
| 1979 Our first house on Albers Lane. We loved that house! |
 |
| 1979 Our first house. The back yard. We turned the back porch into a bedroom. |
 |
| 1982 circa |
 |
| 1983 in our first house on Albers Lane. I re-sewed some of your dad's shirts to be maternity tops. I made the macrame curtain on the left. |
 |
| 1984 the morning you were born. Kathy and Pam were visiting and left for home the same morning that I went into labor. |
Laura MacKenzie
Jewell
June 13, 1984
11:27 am
The morning I
went into labor, June 13, 1984, your dad’s sisters, Kathy and Pam were
visiting from Ft. Dodge. They had to leave to go home the same morning your dad
and I left to go to the hospital. The placenta pulled loose, and I had an
emergency cesarean. When I held you in my arms, I could not believe how
beautiful you were! My heart skipped a beat for sure. I was in awe and
instantly madly in love with this beautiful creature. I thought you would have
blond hair or be bald, but you had lots of brown hair. Surprise, surprise.
 |
| 1984 Our precious baby girl! |
You were born at
11:27 am at Alton Memorial Hospital.
Your dad liked the name Nichole and I liked the name Sarah. We both liked Laura. Your middle name MacKenzie is your father’s middle name.
 |
| 1984 Laura Jewell. You slept in a crib in the dining room until your dad turned the back porch into a bedroom for us. Then you had your own room. I made this quilt and pillows. Mom may have crocheted the little animals. Awe, you're so sweet! |
 |
| 1984 Bill, Laurie, Duke, and me. We're a family! |
The doctor told
me that after surgery I needed blood, but it was not worth the risk to give it
to me. Years later I realized it was the start of the spread of AIDS. Blood
wasn't yet screened for it.
After you were
born your dad’s mom came to stay with us a few days. Then my mom came to stay
with us to help a night or two.
 |
| 1985 Laura MacKenzie Jewell |
 |
| 1984 You loved Duke, our dog. Your first word was Doot! |
 |
| 1985 Your dad, you, and Duke. Your first word was Doot! |
My mom worked when you were small but was crazy about you. She played games with you and would sit with you and make button necklaces.
 |
| 1980 Mom holding our baby Laurie. So precious! |
 |
| 1984 You and Grandma Crawford |
 |
| 1985 circa the three of us. |
You were a really good baby when you were home. You didn't want anyone else to hold you. Your first babysitter watched you and a baby boy for less than a year. In junior high you dated that same boy. Your next babysitter took care of you for the next three years until you started day care. She said you were happy and fine. Years later she told me that you cried continuously for the first four days. She didn't think she could stand it. Then one day you were fine. Barb watched you while your dad and I went away for the weekend when you were maybe six months old. She said she though she would go crazy with all your crying. You just liked to be home with mom and dad. You were a wiggly, fun, sweet toddler. Your first word was Doot (Duke our dog).
My dad had a
loud voice. He sounded mad even when he wasn't. All his grandchildren were
afraid of him except you. You were not the least bit intimidated. You would
climb into your Grandpa's lap. When he was sleeping with his door shut,
you would go right into his bedroom, which was very dark (it had heavy blankets
at the windows) and climb in bed with him. The two of you were close.
 |
| 1984 You and Grandpa Crawford. Mom's embroidery thread at the bottom of the picture. |
 |
| 1989 Laurie Mac and Grandpa |
 |
| 1990 circa Laurie and my dad |
 |
| 1989 circa Grandpa Jewell, Laurie Mac, Billy |
We lived in the house on Briarwood for
28 years. In 2014 we moved to St. Peters, Missouri.
 |
| 2010 My cubical in the Wainwright Building in downtown St. Louis. |
 |
| 2009 circa Wainwright Building downtown. |
 |
| 2011 circa Servers, probably in the Wainwright Building. |
 |
| 2009 circa Telephone room at the Wainwright Building. When staff moved offices, I would move their phone numbers to ring at their new location. |
 |
| 2013, October 31 My last day of work! |
*** I wrote this when I retired. ***
October 31, 2013 was my last day. I’m officially retired from the State of Missouri, Office of Administration. Wow, I thought this day would never come, but here it is. I've worked since I was 16 except for the two months I took off when Laurie was born.
Today I feel very happy and
content, yay! I’m feeling more emotional than I thought I would. I
thought I’d just walk out the door and not look back and not give it much
thought. LOL I’m not emotional because I’m sad, or don’t want to
leave, or I’m getting old, it’s more like I’m so proud of myself. I'm
sure many people who retire feel the same way. I've worked at this job for
years and have gathered zillions of details from doing the job and figuring it
out. Accumulatively it adds up to an enormous knowledge base specific to
my job and, at least to me, it's a huge accomplishment.
Then, one
day, I'm retired and all the knowledge that was so vitally important to me is
no longer important, nor of any use.
My office was located at:
North Services Center
4040 Seven Hills Drive, Suite 237
Florissant, MO 63033
I was responsible for keeping the State computers, multifunction
printers, phones, servers, routers, switches, etc. up and running
for these sites:
St. Charles Habilitation Center, 22 Marr Lane
St. Charles Regional Office, 119 Olympic Way
North Services Center, 4040 Seven Hills
Warrenton Satellite site
many WIC and Revenue License Offices throughout N. St.
Louis
Trust me, I had lots of help. On my cell phone, I have numbers for
I.T. in every expertise for the State.
I also have addresses saved in my TeleNav. It is very scary to think I traveled for a living! Yikes!
 |
| 1989 Disney World |
 |
| 1996 My favorite girl! |
 |
| 2008 My family. |
 |
| 2010 circa We took lots of vacations in Jamaica, Cancun, Ireland, etc. |
 |
| 2021 The three of us |
 |
| 1991 The boat we shared with Donna. |
 |
| 1997 Wild child on the river |
*** Through The Years ***
Through the years we've had a boat and jet skis and enjoyed
hanging out on the Mississippi River. One summer I took you and Kristen to a
Safety Boating class so you could drive the Jet Skis yourself. The first time
you drove was with another friend, Stephanie. We gave you girls tips and a
“safety talk” on the way to Grafton. After we were out on the Mississippi
River, we let you girls drive your own Jet Ski. Your dad said, “let’s race”.
You girls took off. You left us in the dust. We lost sight of you. This was the
area where there are three rivers that connect, Missouri, Illinois, and
Mississippi. If you went to one side of an island, you’d be on the Missouri,
to the other side, you’d be on the Mississippi. We were so terrified. What if you
stalled in front of a barge! We finally decided to stop. Your dad was going to
have a beer and try to decide what to do next. We discovered you girls had the
ski with the beer in it. In a few minutes you appeared and zipped right by us,
waving and laughing. Instant relief. We had failed to tell you to stay within
sight. Yikes!
We've enjoyed motorcycle rides and trips. Your dad and I
bowled on teams. We were on a Soft Ball team for several seasons.
When you were small, we took vacations to Florida and
Circus Circus in Vegas, we often brought Kristen along. We enjoyed lots of
vacations in Destin, Jamaica, Cancun, Ireland, and the US west coast. You and I
have had Mother/daughter get-a-ways in California, Chicago, Hermann, Nashville,
England and the Cotswolds, and Scotland.
I made your Halloween costumes including, an Indian, fairy
princess, Spanish dancer, black cat, elephant, and later, a vampire, Doctor
Who's Police Call Box, Doctor Who's Romana. and a Renaissance costume. Your dad
and I had fun with Halloween and Steampunk costumes including the 50's,
pirates, vampires, Slash and Axel, Pandora movie characters, witch and warlock,
etc. For several years we created a Halloween Jail in our garage on Briarwood.
We cut a hole in the bottom of a witch’s cauldron and filled it with candy, put
it on a table that pulled apart in the center and covered it with a tablecloth.
Then sat under the table, put our hand through the table and the cauldron to
grab or pop out when kids walked up. We dressed in an octopus costume and
squirted silly string out of the mouth to surprise the trick-or-treaters.
We hiked lots of places including the
Grand Canyon. We rode bicycles quite a bit. We enjoy tooling around in
convertibles. Of course, we love our doggies.
Note: Bill and Laurie will some day get their own post.
Stuff I like:
reading, wine, travel, popcorn, being a wife & mother, chocolate, dancing, bicycling, crochet & knit, Harry Potter, Christmas trees
 |
| 1994 circa. Costume I made for Bellefontaine Habilitation Center Parade. |
 |
| 1995 circa. Costume I made for BHC Parade. I created a frame out of wood that attached to my shoulders and back to hold up the top character. |
 |
| 1996 circa. Costume I made for BHC Parade. Mardi Gras theme. |
 |
| 1989 circa Cute little witch! |
 |
| 2015 circa Wood Elf costume for my favorite daughter! |
 |
| 1992 circa. I love making costumes! These were for Ava and Bel. |
 |
| 2005 circa Vampire costume. |
 |
| 2013 circa Doctor Who costume for my favorite daughter. |
 |
| 1994 circa Indian girl costume for Laurie Mac |
 |
| 2018 Witch and broom and Warlock costumes for Witches Night Out in Hannibal. |
 |
| 2018 I made Bill's steampunk costume also. Say hello to steampunk Sheriff Billy Boy. |
 |
| 2018 Steampunk Costume. Ravenclaw Girl. I won 2nd place in Big River Steampunk Festival. |
 |
| 2009 circa Axel Rose and Slash. I made the top hat from an old leather coat. It's oversized on purpose. |
 |
| 2008 Pirate costumes arrr |
 |
| 1999 circa Mic (Jagger Jewell) and Sadie. Love my doggies! |
 |
| Lunabelle. We call her Luna or as the neighbor boy calls her balloona or as Stu calls her Lunatic |
 |
| 2001 Run with Donna and Bill in Hot Springs, AR Donna is an experienced marathon runner. |
 |
| 2001 circa. St. Patrick's day run. I loved running. Donna talked me into doing a run with her and I loved it and ran for many years until my knees couldn't take it anymore. |
 |
| 2000 10 mile run. Day after Thanksgiving annual run. Donna and I did it. |
 |
| 2019 Cornwall Walking Holiday and Harry Potter Studios in London. Love Mother/Daughter Get-A-Ways! |
 |
| 2016 Edinburgh. We saw castles, took a night cemetery tour, learned to use WiFi calling, and I accidently poured water in Laurie's whiskey thinking it was an empty glass. |
 |
| 2011 Venice Beach, CA. We went for Donna's famous Batman party. |
 |
| 2010 Navy Pier. We went to visit Kristen. |
 |
| 2003 circa. We enjoyed rides and vacations on our motorcycles! |
 |
| 2002 circa |
 |
| 2013 I painted rocks, statues, sign, and stencil on fence. |
 |
| 2012 Rock |
 |
| 2012 Sign I painted for Laurie's house |
 |
| 2014 Wine Glasses |
 |
| 2018 Wine Glasses |
 |
| 2011 Signs for friends |
 |
| 1989 circa. Cotton tree and paper mache pumpkin ornaments I made. |
**** Hiking and Walking ****
 |
| 2012 We hiking the Grand Canyon three times, twice on the Bright Angel Trail and once on the other side. Both times we went about 5 miles down and 5 miles up. |
 |
| 2019 hiked Cornwall, England with my girl! |
 |
| 2017 Star wall hanging about 4x5 feet |
 |
| 2018 New York Beauty and Jaco Bean applique. |
 |
| 2016 My first star quilt. |
 |
| Baking Christmas cookies with mom's Short Bread recipe. |
 |
| 2010 Cookie Day. We all gather at Jen's house to bake and decorate Christmas cookies. |
 |
| 2014 Cookie Day. |
 |
| 2018 Cookie Day. |
******** Sewing ********
 |
| 2020 Harry Potter and Doctor Who stockings. |
 |
| 2020 Harry Potter Stocking |
 |
| 1989 Laurie's stocking, updated 2018 with Luna Lovegood, Harry Potter and Doctor Who charms. |
 |
| 2010 circa formal dress for a friend's daughter. I made some formal dresses for Laurie, but haven't found pictures of them. |
 |
| 2001 circa Prom dress for Laurie Mac. |
 |
| 2014 Tails for all occasions. |
 |
| 2017 St. Patrick's day tails and tutu. |
 |
| 2012 Cut up tshirts |
 |
| 2015 I sold tails and cut up tshirts on Etsy. I made tie dye cut up tshirts too. Then sold a couple rocks at a craft fair. |
 |
| 2017 Waiting in line for El Monstero tickets. Pink Floyd cover band. |
I’m interested in:
Sinking Ships
World War II
Poem &
Sayings:
You will teach them to fly,
but they will not fly your
flight.
You will teach them to dream,
but they will not dream your
dream.
You will teach them to live,
but they will not live your life.
Nevertheless, in every flight,
in every life, in every dream,
the print of the way
you taught them will remain.
--Mother Teresa
Life is tough, my darling,
but so are you.
--Stephanie
Bennett Henry
Though she be but
little she is fierce.
--Shakespeare
When one door closes,
another one opens.
--Alexander
Graham Bell
There are people who will
never have what you have now.
There is a difference
between giving up
and knowing when you
have had enough.
Comparison
is the thief of joy.
It' no use going
back to yesterday
because you were
a different person then.
It is our choices that show what
we truly are,
far more than our abilities.
--Albus
Dumbledore
It does not do well
to dwell on dreams
and forget to live.
--Albus
Dumbledore
Everyone has a story.
Alcohol: because
no great story
ever started with someone
eating a salad.
Everybody has a
chapter they don't read out loud.
I solemnly swear that
I'm up to no good.
--Harry Potter
It’s important
to exercise every day!
Sometimes it turns out different
and it's better that way.
by Alice
Chase
Memories
are made of things
That happen
every day
Moments as
we live them
Things we
do or say.
Little bits
and pieces
Of laughter
mixed with tears
Paragraphs
and pages
Written
through the years.
The carefree
days of childhood
The growing
pains of youth
A few
illusions shattered
In the
endless search for truth.
The
friendships we remember
Mistakes
that we regret
The ending
of a love affair
We never
could forget.
Yes,
memories are happenings
Each one a
different kind
Each one a
separate chapter
That is
printed on the mind.
We can't
erase the sadness
Or edit out
the tears
We can't
undo the wrongs we've done
We can't
relive the years.
But since
memories keep building
Each day
can be the start
Of making
new and happy ones
To store
within the heart!
Back Home!
If I had the power to turn back the
clock,
Go back to that house at the end of the
block;
The house that was HOME when I was a
kid,
I know that I’d love it more now than I
did.
If I could be back there at my mother’s
knee,
And hear once again all the things she
told me;
I’d listen as I never listened before,
For she knew so well just what life had
in store.
And all the advice my dad used to give,
His voice I’ll remember as long as I
live;
But it didn’t seem really important then,
What I’d give just to live it all over
again.
And what I’d give for the chance I once
had,
To do so much more for my mother and
dad;
To give them more joy and a little less pain,
A little more sunshine – a little less
rain.
But the years roll on and we cannot go
back,
Whether we were born in a mansion or in
a shack;
But we can start right now – in the hour
that’s here,
To do something more for the ones we
hold dear.
And since time in it’s flight is
travelling so fast,
Let’s not spend it regretting that which
is past;
But let’s make tomorrow a happier day,
By doing our “good to others” – TODAY.
Author Unknown
Oldies Music:
Taking Care of Business
You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet
American Pie
Joy To The World
Never Been Any Reason
Hitchin' A Ride
Boogie Woogie
Flu
Oh, Girl
Long Cool Woman
In A Black Dress
Take It To The
Limit
Baby Don’t Get
Hooked On Me
Hurt So Good
What I Like
About You
Get Back
Free Ride
Heartache
Tonight
Twilight Zone
Brass In Pocket
No comments:
Post a Comment