FIRST TRY AT CAMPING!

My sister and her husband decided that they wanted to go camping. The thought of this seemed to be rather foreign to me and I thought I wouldn't like this kind of vacation very much. We were driving at a State Park close to our home and it was raining. I mentioned about trying to find firewood in the rain wasn't too appealing. They said that I didn't get the concept of camping very well. They promised to take us camping when they got all of their equipment together.

The very next thing, they had taken us to a State Park in an adjoining state. They had two tents, one for them and one for their two boys. We got to use the boys tent and the kids slept in our cars that particular weekend. During the night it started raining a bit. My brother-in-law got his shovel out and made a trench around our tents. He always knew that in this part of the country, when it rains--it pours down! It didn't rain that much during the night, but at breakfast we cooked breakfast in a misty rain.

The smell of fried bacon and eggs out in the fresh air, literally hooked me on camping. I LOVED IT!!!! My sister said that if I liked it in the rain, I would really like it in good weather. We were hooked on camping from that time on. We got our equipment, like tent, sleeping bags, nestled pots and pans, camp stove, camp lantern. We were ready to try it for ourselves. Both of our girls loved camping as well. We weren't seasoned campers yet, by no means.

Our first camping trip we hadn't got the hang of putting up the tent and it leaked the first night out. We had pans at all four corners catching the water from the leaking roof. It didn't take us long to get it right, after that cloud burst of rain.

Our first big camping trip we went to Yellowstone National Park and had so much fun. The girls were about 3 1/2 and 6 1/2 on that trip. We traveled to many a states while the girls were growing up.

To this day, I get nostalgia when I see campers and or firewood burning. We took our latest vacation to Florida at 5 star condos. Camping is just as much fun, but more work involved
in getting packed. Our ages now, prohibits us camping only in the best of weather.

As I recall there was only one time that we were rather frightened. We were traveling in the western states and pitched or tent on a roadside campground (it was hard to find campgrounds early on and especially out West). During the night, someone was feeling around in the back of our tent (through the canvas). My sister and husband were camped next to us, but had a different license plate on their car. They didn't know we were together. I called out to my sister and husband and whoever was outside our tent, left us alone after that. We learned our lesson to never camp at roadside camping spots, only go to National Parks or State Parks or private campgrounds. These are much safer.

Wisdom--We never had anything stolen (beside a soda can). This was probably from some kid
walking beside out site and was thirsty. We were able to go with family, friends and spend many a memorable weekend and fun trips. We were able to enjoy God's Country close up as we gazed out of our tent. One thing I think it did for us as a family, it helped teach the girls teamwork. We all pitched in and had jobs to do, and then we all had "fun" together when the work was done. I personally think it was as much fun as any vacations we have taken.

LIFE IS FULL OF SURPRISES!

As I recall some of the things the girls did when they were quite small, it brings a smile to my face yet.

My older daughter did not like me to talk on the phone. The minute the telephone rang she would run to the buffet and hand me dish after dish until I stopped talking. She didn't do this any other time. No dishes were ever broken and I guess I didn't quite know how to cure this little habit she got herself into. It still brings back fond memories of those days.

One summer we were refinishing our bedroom's floor and putting in updated closet doors in the bedroom. We had all the furniture out of our room and into the girls room. This made it wall to wall furniture in their room for a few weeks. One afternoon, I put our younger daughter in the crib and our older daughter on our bed in their bedroom for an afternoon nap. I was busy working on the floor in our bedroom, when all of a sudden I heard a THUMP. I immediately thought that our older daughter had fallen out of bed while asleep. I hurriedly went in and found her covered with Vick's from head to toe. She didn't fall out of bed, she slid out of bed. She couldn't stand up because of her soles of her feet was covered with this stuff. I had a hard time not laughing out loud, since the scene was "hilarious".

My husband had broken his nose as a 3 year old child on a tricycle over an embankment. Since that time he always put Vicks in his nose to help him breath. So she had gotten in the Vicks that hot afternoon and was really having a rub-a-dub dub party all her own. So Cute!!!

Then there was another time that I was working in Bible School that week and had the girls all ready to go on the gated front porch. I had a few minutes to spare before my friend was to pick us up, so I went into the kitchen to do last minute sprucing up. I became quite aware of a virtual silence from the front porch. Now when 2 children are playing, and then it becomes very silent, it is time to check things out. Well, it was a good thing that I did, since my older daughter was a budding beautician and was giving our younger daughter a nice gorgeous hair cut. Our younger daughter was enjoying her new locks as much as the older one was enjoying her new talent.
Mom wasn't quite as enthusiastic over the results as those two were. We were going on vacation right after Bible School was through that year. At least, it was something that could grow and all was well and no permanent damage done.

Thought--Having children is so much fun! Each day brings new challenges and funny incidences that with time, those are cherished memories. I wouldn't exchange those memories for a million dollars! What joy and enrichment those two girls brought to our lives down through the years. I will tell you some more of these memories another day.

TWICE THE AMOUNT OF WORK!!!

I was so busy with the first child, I thought how could I get any busier!! There wasn't enough time in the day for twice the amount of work.

You know what--I wasn't any busier with two than I was with one. Either I was more organized or our first child was so helpful, that it really all fell into place. Our first child was 3 years 4 months old when the 2ND came and she was so enthralled with the new little one, that she acted like a little mother to the new addition. She would run and get a diaper and dispose of the used diaper in the proper place. She was an extra pair of hands and feet.

In those days, I sewed almost everything the girls wore and I would no more be caught up with my sewing, and then they had grown out of that size. My sewing machine was always buzzing with new garments.

Back then, I don't remember ever hearing about and going to garage sales. Today, one can get so many clothes (good used clothing) at a garage sale that cost about what you would pay for tax on the item if you purchased it new. One washing of a new garment looks no different than what you can find at garage sales today. We live in a quite affluent area and you can't imagine the beautiful clothes you can pick up for a song, if you consistently go out looking.

Our granddaughter mentioned that her son is exploring the world and loves rocks, plants, and she wondered why one has so many bought toys when a pan or cardboard box, rocks can enthrall a child just as much.

Wisdom--With college looming ahead and cost of living going up rapidly, one needs to economize when the children are young. Peer pressure doesn't affect babies and small children. There is a whole world out there that they need to explore!! They soon grow up, so enjoy every minute while you can!!!

NOW WE WERE FOUR!

After my recent vacation, I will try to get back in time when our children were little.

The year was 1954 and our 2ND child was yet to be born. In the fall of 1954 (one month before she was born), my father passed away. I spoke about this in "The Wake" article.

Now it was time for God to bless us with a new baby. It was in November and since I had fallen down those stairs a few days before our first child was born, I did not want to chance another fall on the ice, so I walked in our basement a lot the last few days.

It was a Sunday morning and a few days after my due date. I thought I would go to church, but wasn't sure that I should. The decision was made for me, as I knew it was time to head for the hospital.

In those days the father could only be in the labor room, but not in the delivery room. I was admitted and my husband was in the labor room with me about five minutes and the staff chased him out, as they needed to prep me. They left me unattended and my pains started to rapidly increase. I recalled how it took quite a few minutes before any nurse came on the scene, so I decided to turn on the light for a nurse. Well - - - - - - -immediately, not only one nurse came in but I think the whole staff came in and asked, "What's the matter?" I wasn't expecting that response but I said, "I just didn't want to have this baby by myself!" They quickly checked me and said, Tell the nurse not to give me an enema as I would have the baby on the bedpan. They quickly ushered me off to the delivery room. I was racing another lady (her 5th-6th child) to see who my doctor would attend to first. I think I must have won, as I had a sweet baby girl weighing in at 8# 1 oz. This was 2 hours after my first pain. It is a good thing that I didn't have a third baby, as it only took 4 hours the first time, 2 hours the 2ND time and had I had a third, I might have had no warning whatsoever if the pattern continued.

No complications and we took our baby home about a week later. What a blessing! Now our family was a total of four.

Wisdom--No matter how many children God blesses one with, each one is a miracle!! All the little fingers, toes, and everything in place. I was quite aware that this sometimes this isn't the case, and one doesn't always have a healthy baby. I read about others that this wasn't the case, and the gender wasn't important, I was praying for a healthy child and not that I had a boy or girl.

MURPHYS LAW OR IS IT?

First of all, we have been on vacation and just arrived home yesterday from a Florida trip. We arrived home 2 hours on the plane after takeoff. Way to travel I must say!

Murphy's law seemed to prevail the first few days of our trip, however. The nonstop flight we were to take was cancelled and they rescheduled a flight through Atlanta and then down to Orlando.

This was not as planned and we were to meet up with my cousin from Minnesota (the same cousin that took me to see Cook County Morgue). We couldn't get in touch with her to inform her of the flight change (as she had already taken off). Originally, we were to get in an hour before her and then go to her baggage pickup to meet up with her. The way it turned out, she came in a couple hours before we arrived. She stayed "put" to where we were to meet and all was well.

Our daughter was going to volunteer her services a couple days at Wycliffe Bible translation headquarters. She went and when she was to leave, she found her rental car had a flat tire. The car had to be taken back for another car and then the next day she went out to the Van and she couldn't get it started. Then my cousin thought she lost her ticket to go back home, but she never received the ticket in the first place.

We really did have a good time and my "best friend" in high school was able to come out to the condo a couple of times with her husband and one of her daughters. They have been and are just like family to our family, so we really enjoyed catching up on our lives. This is the same couple that years before we had almost gotten in a wreck coming home from State Fair. (See a Inch is as good as a mile). Their daughter is just priceless and so easy to get to know. My cousin said that even though she just met her, she felt like she knew her forever. I told my cousin that she would just love Nancy, and Nancy lived up to everything I told Pauline about her!

We were able to rest and unwind for a couple of weeks. This was really needed for all of us that went. We got to go to the ocean a day and our 2ND week down there it was quite rainy, so we just chilled out in the condo. We didn't have a car since our daughter had only a week to stay.

Thought--I titled this Murphy's Law or is it? I personally believe the scripture in Romans 8:28, "And all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." If this is true, then there are no coincidences with God, no mistakes or foul ups, that God can't turn around for GOOD and will turn it around for GOOD, for us who trust and follow Christ. He certainly has proven this to be the case for our trip to Florida this year. Time after time, it seemed that God was providing each step as we needed it. Our friends came out and brought a Styrofoam cooler with food to share with us. That cooler was so useful since we had to be out of one condo after a week and move to another condo. We had food that would spoil before we were able to get situated into our new place if it was not for this cooler.

Also, our daughter was able to help in our travel arrangements and console Pauline as she thought she lost her ticket for the return trip. God placed two people together that he wanted for them to meet, for a specific ministry. Coincidence? No way!!!!! Nancy took us back to the airport and helped so much in our return flight. She certainly is a "Jewel"!

We came back refreshed, encouraged, and renewed in our "spiritual journey with God". It was good to come home and that is what a vacation is all about.

MOTHER'S DAY!!!

Mother's day brings back a number of emotions. One being, that I was married on Mother's day 59 years ago (That year it was Mother's day). The other being, thanking God for my own mother and mother-in-law and their important role in my life.

I want to focus on what I think of being a mother myself. Without a doubt, it is the one thing that surpasses all other jobs, positions that one could possibly have. Being a mother has given me more fulfilment and joy than you can ever imagine. I can't imagine not experiencing this "wonderment" in my life!

Now I am getting to enjoy the fruit, as we have grandchildren and now great-grandchildren coming on. We have been blessed and our cup is full and running over!!! We have two daughters and we are so proud of them because of who they are and what they became!

Of course, it was a lot of work, diapers to change and boring jobs that needed to be done, but this all pales when compared to the rewards one receives!

THOUGHT--One thing about being a mother and raising your children, you only get one chance to get it right. I learned though you can make a multitude of mistakes but if your children see "love" as your motive and God as your helper, you will get it RIGHT! I certainly can't imagine how empty my life would be without our daughters and their families and then the families that those families have. It is like a river, it goes on and on!! HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!!!

PNEUMONIA!

I had mentioned that my older daughter would get colds and they would invariably settle in her chest. We took her to the doctor on many occasions because of a growing concern.

At 21 months old she had just such a cold. Since we couldn't evaluate the cold ourselves, we would take her to the doctor. This time, she said she had pneumonia and we needed to take her to the hospital. She was in the hospital a week.

During that week, they put her in a steam tent and she was improving. I had her toilet trained during the daytime hours, but I had to do it all over again after returning, since the nurses kept her in diapers during her hospital stay. She had a private room and I was able to stay with her in a bed that was in the room.

I had gone down to get a supply of diapers and came across a Mother and Father literally holding each other up, from the news that was given them. Their 21 month old child had just died of pneumonia! The child was just admitted moments before. This was the exact age of our daughter and I could not imagine the agony these parents were going through.

When the doctor came in to see our child, I asked her whether this was neglect or why that child died so rapidly. She said, "No, a child can take pneumonia and die that quickly". I was always glad that we took her for her checkups when she was sick. As I had stated before, she would never give her antibiotics unless she thought it was absolutely necessary. I trusted her judgment!

Wisdom--When in doubt, always error on the safety side! I still have a vivid memory of this couple and their plight that day.

GOT THE HANG OF IT--OR DO I???

Things were going along very smoothly after I got adjusted to having a new arrival in the house and I thought it was pretty much a "piece of cake". Well, that is what I thought up until this happened.--

One afternoon I laid my then 6 month old down for a nap. In those days it was told that they sleep better on their stomach, so this was the custom. Now they don't want you to lay the baby down for naps on the tummy.

Later on I heard our baby arouse and I went in to see her. She was burning up with fever and acting very strangely. I quickly took her temperature and it was sky high. I hadn't left it in very long and I was so frightened. I rushed to the phone to call the doctor up immediately. They proceeded to walk me through what to do. Number 1 they told me to take rubbing alcohol and water (equal parts) and rub her down with a washcloth to get the fever down.

I went back to the crib and in my rush to call the doctor, I hadn't turned her over on her back and her face was buried into the sheet. I was so scared that she had smothered, I grabbed her and she let out the weakest little cry. This was the first sickness she had since she was born and I totally wasn't prepared for this.

I don't know whether she had the flu or a cold, but I took her to the doctor and she was one SUPER GOOD PEDIATRIC DOCTOR. I knew I could count on her whenever I needed her. She always told me that she would never give children antibiotics, unless she thought not giving antibiotics would be taking a gamble. She explained that when the child might need them the most, if you give them too often, they then aren't as effective. She was really a good doctor and her office was filled with children.

So when I thought I had the hang of taking care of a baby, I still needed a lot to learn and believe me there were more learning for me yet.

Wisdom--Some babies get head colds and others get colds and immediately go to their chest. My first child was the kind that whenever she got a cold, it would settle in the chest. So I was really careful about her catching colds.

IN A ROUTINE OF THINGS!

Well, I finally got over my jitters of knowing what to do when our baby cried and settling in a routine. All mothers systems have to get back to normal and yes, I finally settled down to ordinary living.

One thing I want to emphasis is that getting a baby in a routine is so important! Children thrive when they know ahead of time what to expect. Eating at a regular time, taking naps and going to bed at a certain time helps the child and also, is a big help to the mother. At the end of the day, mothers have had a busy all consuming day taking care of the little ones, and they need a time that they can call their own, so having a scheduled bedtime is good for the children and especially good for the mother.

My husband was very helpful with caring for our baby and helping anyway he could to make things run smoothly. All dads needs to get involved in the rearing of the children, and this should be from the very day they come home. It is their baby also, and so they should have hands on participation. Good for the welfare of the family, good for the marriage as well it makes home life run smoothly!! When things run smoothly everyone benefits.

I remember when our oldest granddaughter was having a hard time getting up out of her bed when tucked in at night (right after she got her big girl bed). Our younger daughter didn't quite know what to do. Some wise individual from their friends told her to close the door and let her cry. This was really hard for her and her husband to do, but they both stayed on the other side of the door and held the door closed so she couldn't open the door. She was crying and crying and when she saw that it wasn't working, she proceeded to go back to her bed, crawled into it and went to sleep. Battle was over!!! Victory won!!!! From that day on they were able to lay her down and off to sleep she went. No more problems. Their 2ND child they did the same and it worked!!! Consistency is the key!!

Words of wisdom--You'll never have a better time to bond and connect with your little one, then when you tuck them in at night. Prepare them for bedtime by bath, getting PJ's on and reading a story and praying with them! Precious time for both mom and dad as well. Don't miss this opportunity because they soon grow up.

WHAT--NO INSTRUCTION BOOK!

When we brought out first born home from the hospital, the baby didn't come with an instruction book. Now what am I to do, I didn't know anything about babies! Also, a new mother is rather fragile at first in her emotions.

I remember one day, it was about 5-6 weeks after our first baby arrived, she started crying, and crying. Well, let me clarify that a bit more. It was more like she was screaming in pain. Well, since I was new at this, I checked all the normal places, diapers, hunger, pin sticking her. Nothing worked!!! I was beside myself in knowing what to do next. It must have been on a Saturday, as my husband was out clipping hedge. I wondered why he hadn't come in to see what her problem was. This went on quite awhile and I was frantic. Finally I got her to sleep. By that time, my husband entered the house and asked me "What is the matter?" I guess he could detect I was totally upset. I said, "NOTHING!!!" Now when a wife says nothing after a question like that--one better know there is SOMETHING THE MATTER!!! The windows were closed because of the September cool spell, and he couldn't hear his daughter screaming her head off. I was too stubborn to tell him she was crying, because I thought the whole neighborhood could hear her and why wasn't he concerned!

After all of that, I looked down and my legs were completely broken out with big red splotches!
I started worrying that I had something that our new baby would catch. Off to the doctor I went to see what was wrong with me. He said that I had a good case of the HIVES! He said, "Your baby surely must have been really crying loudly!!!

It reminds me of about 4 years ago when my grandson's wife brought home their first born from the hospital. I asked who was going to help her with the newborn when she came home. She said, "My husband"! Well, I THOUGHT WHAT DOES HE KNOW ABOUT NEWBORN BABIES!! I don't know whether I said that out loud or was just thinking that. Then I got to thinking, "WHAT DID I KNOW ABOUT NEWBORNS WHEN WE BROUGHT OUR FIRSTBORN HOME"!!! Absolutely, nothing, but I learned. Then I thought, well he is smart young man, he will learn like I did and BOND with her while learning. His wife is one SHARP COOKIE!!! That was the WISEST DECISION anyone could make.

Reminiscing--Time flies past so fast, our first newborn is now a grandmother to a sweet new baby that I wrote about yesterday, also, grandmother to the above child (4 years old now). Relish the growing up years, as they slip by so quickly.

SLIGHTLY OFF-BALANCE!!!

First of all, we have a great-granddaughter born today and weighed in at 5# 4 oz., 17 inches long. She is 3 weeks early, but mother and daughter are doing fine!

This so reminds me of when I was carrying our first born. It was in July and my feet were rather swelled up, but it was hard to see them, because I was kinda top heavy. A few days prior to the birth, I was going down the steps to the basement and lost my balance. I toppled down 1/2 flight of stairs. Not a very good thing to happen to you, but there I was flat on the floor. Thank heavens, it was just half way down, as there was a landing to go out into the garage, otherwise, it would have been straight down.

I was told that walking a lot helped with the delivery. So I thought I had better do some walking. I walked uptown and back that morning and then we walked to a friends house in the evening and back (altogether it was about 6 miles). In the middle of the night, which happens often, I knew it was time to head off to the hospital. I had a sweet baby girl four hours after my first pain. Not a long time for my first child. She weighed in at 7# 6-3/4 oz.

After the birth, I looked down at my feet and couldn't believe what I saw. For one thing, I was able to see my feet and for another thing, they were normal size feet. I thought this couldn't be my feet, but I was able to move my toes, so they were!!! Summer time always makes one's feet
want to swell. Those days we stayed in the hospital about 5-6 days.

Thought--What joy my husband and I had that day!!! Whenever I see new parents, I know just how they feel!!! It is indescribable to look into a small baby and see everything in place (only tiny). What joy!!! I really like the picture that our grandson and his wife has over the baby's bed that states, "A PERSON IS A PERSON, NO MATTER HOW SMALL THEY ARE". This starts from conception!!!

FINDING OUR FIRST HOME!

Back when I was working, nobody worked too long after they started showing, so we had time to shop around for house to live in. We thought it best to move into our first home.

Since we paid cash for our furniture, I wondered how we could afford to purchase a home. I figured we didn't have anything left and here we were facing a BIG purchase. Well at least it seemed huge to me. In todays housing market it would be very small in cost. The dollar went further back then, but you didn't make as much per week either. The ratio to what the home cost and what your weekly paycheck brought in, it was probably about what it is today.

I started to worry about how we were going to have money for this beside the cost of a newborn.
My husband told me that he had the money to put down on the house and not to worry. He was keeping a few dollars back for just such an event!! Thank heavens, because it sure came in handy. When he was in the service, there wasn't much for the guys to spend their money on, so he squirrelled his paycheck away. Remember he was over in England for 2 1/1 years in WWII
and all together in the service over three years. We were extremely fortunate, as we had the house paid off within a few months after we moved in.

We ended up with a smaller brick bungalow on a quiet street. It had a kitchen, dining room, living room, bath, 2 bedrooms and full basement, attached single garage, with a fenced in back yard. This was big enough for the three of us and we moved just about a month before the baby was due.

Now we had only a few weeks left to get the house in order, and the nursery fixed up. We didn't have an elaborate plan for the nursery, just the essentials. As far as curtains, our daughters wouldn't be caught dead with the curtains we ended up with in our first home. They were plastic drapes. Not very exciting, but they were drapes and we were all set for the new arrival!!

Thought--We finally put all the assets in joint tenancy, which one needs to think about early on in their marriage.

OUR FIRST CHRISTMAS SEASON!

It was very close to our first Christmas together that my sister, husband and year old son came to visit us. They hadn't seen our apartment and us since we had gotten married. So this was a special Christmas season.

We had gone to church that evening and stopped by to pick up some bakery doughnuts to eat with coffee. While preparing the coffee and setting the table for the evening snack, I took a look at the doughnuts and felt strangely sick at my stomach. This was really unusual for me, since I had a cast iron stomach and doughnuts were one of my favorite snack food. I couldn't quite figure it out, but my sister seemed to be wiser and thought perhaps she knew what was wrong.

Yep!!! You have that same wise streak that she had that day, I can tell!!!!!

Her guess was--that I was pregnant! Well, this wasn't quite a scheduled event, so I dismissed it
as a "bug" I picked up. Well that "bug" didn't go away and sure enough when I went to the doctor he informed me that we would have a child the last of July of the next year.

We had wanted a child, but wanted to be married at least a year and then try. Well, our first child was born 1 year, 2 months after we were married.

I was working and we were living in a one bedroom apartment, and we thought it wise to look for a house to purchase.

I continued to work a few months into the new year, until I was definitely showing. I quit my job to get ready for the new arrival. General Motors wanted me to take a leave of absence and come back after the child was born, but I opted to stay home and be a stay-at-home mother.

This decision was one that I have never regretted. I don't have any problems with other mothers working, but I knew it was right for me. (Later in my writings, I will tell you how I came back into the work force after many a year passed by).

Now this was quite a new experience, as I had not been really around small children much. Remember that I was about the youngest one in our community growing up, so didn't have much experience. I did a little babysitting before I was married, but they had the babies always in bed before they took off for the evening.

It seemed that I never quite got over morning sickness. My complete diet seemed to change. What food I liked prior, I didn't like anymore. I weighed a few pounds less going into the hospital than my normal weight. Go figure!!! My choice of diet had completely reversed. The doctor wasn't alarmed about it, so I wasn't either.

Wisdom--In Psalm 139:13-16 it says--"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfuly and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."