Flashback Friday...Comfort Food

Around the the table

(at Uncle Roy and Aunt Helen Hutchens, 1964)

For those of you who were at Sunday Dinner for "Remember Helen day," I don't know about you but I had a lot of fun. For those of you who couldn't make it, I thought I'd give you a "food review" and share some of the pics.

Thanks goes to the "outlaws" who put up with us Vandercars and our walk down our version of comfort food lane. Of all the in-laws, Jerry seemed the most accepting and willing to try everything on the menu, yet he's the one that ended up in the hospital the next day! We were hoping the doctor wouldn't make him list all the things he had to eat in the last 24 hours.

Anyway, thanks to my sisters,
I learned to make the carmel frosting for the chocolate
cake and the cheese that goes on
the toast for Mom's toast and cheese.

So in honor of Mom, who served up supper for 6 kids every night and Dad who worked night and day to make the money for those suppers, step right up and take the food tour (another nod to Dad) of Vandercar comfort food:

bread and beans

hard boiled eggs and vinegar

salmon bones
(that's right, not really the salmon, but the bones which here, are already picked out and eaten).

jello salad with carrots
(much to Sandy's continued bewilderment)
red jello squares
(a grandchild favorite)
just don't put it in the freezer...sorry no pic.

blonde brownies

chocolate cake with carmel icing

oatmeal raisin cookies

sliced tomatoes
(with sugar on top)

and in my opinion, the Holy Grail of Helen Vandercar's kitchen:
toast and cheese

And Sister Susie made sure our drinks tasted just the way we remembered them in our aluminium cups.Around the table
Maybe at Uncle Wayne's, 1954
check out the cups

At one point I think it was Alene, who was busy peeling hard boiled eggs for us, asked

"So, was there any "normal" meals that your mom made?"
I think Sandy chimed in, "like a traditional meal?"

At least all 4 of us girls were there eating eggs and nobody said anything, except "yeah, um....." then, silence. It all seemed normal to us.
I'm not quite sure what she was getting at, but I guess the more I think about it, I'm starting to realize that the food we ate might not have been traditional and I've started to wonder about some of the origins. Like what was bruised and on the way out at the fruit stand dictated what dessert we might have or what canning project might be going on in the kitchen. I think I learned the reason behind why mom always served cocoa with grilled cheese and I've tracked down Oyster Stew on Christmas eve as being a Bryant tradition, but what about things like eggs and vinegar, toast and cheese, etc. Does anybody know if these things were passed down? Anybody have any input?

Speaking of passing the tradition down. I loved seeing these big Grand kids...licking the toast and cheese plate clean just like they used to at their Grandma and Grandpas.

And I really loved seeing the next generation of Great Grand kids enjoy their Great Grandma's recipe.
And I am sure she had as big of smile on her face as I did and laughed out loud along with me when Conner and Zach asked for toast and cheese for breakfast the next day!

We also enjoyed looking at old picturesand a scrapbook that mom had made when she was in high school

and of course, the this is your life scrapbooks she made for her grand kids.And we ended the night with the video that I posted a few weeks ago. I had heard the song several years ago and knew right then that I would use it to make a movie of how we felt about growing up between the two of them.Around the table
at the Hayden's, 80's.

Directions to here:
Let me know if you have any answers to my food questions.
In the meantime I've been thinking about more things we could have added to the menu, like:

ginger bread with the very thin almost translucent frosting, chocolate pudding, grilled cheese and cocoa, baked apples, fried zucchini, dried corn, milk toast, pork and beans with sugar on top, Lima beans with sugar on top, watermelon and cantaloupe with salt, cut up fried potatoes, rhubarb butter and sugar cookies made with a fork imprint.

and from Grandma Fern's kitchen:

potato man donuts with powdered sugar, sugar sandwiches, homemade noodles, sugared popcorn, popcorn balls and homemade dinner rolls with butter and brown sugar

and station favorites like:
jays potato chips, bulls eye penny candy, luden's cough drops and coke in a bottle buried in a snowbank to make it ice cold....

but alas, Grandma Fern's and station food are two whole other Flashback Fridays!

Picture Roulette # 7

Member of the
F.F.A.

Future Farmer of America

Happy Birthday Kelly!

Then

and now!

Directions to here:
th..thi...thir...thirt...thirty!!!!
Have fun at the ranch!

Picture Roulette #6

Moore is Moore

Sorry Darold. The camera doesn't lie.

A Letter to You...

After Mom's Funeral, I sent out over 300 of those letters about mom.

At the time, I was with Campus Crusade and sending out a monthly newsletter. I sent them to friends and family and to my support team. I wrote a note on each of them. To those who knew her, I reminded them what they meant to my mom and thanked them for their kindness to her. For those who did not know her, I thanked them for their prayers for her and our family.

I meant to send one to each and everyone of you,
my brothers and sisters,
nieces and nephews.
But every time I sat down to do it, I couldn't get past the tears.

So I thought, I'll do it on the one year anniversary, maybe it will be easier then.

Then the second, the fifth and now here it is, the tenth.

And even now, on the "remembering Helen" Sunday nite, before I played the new show,
Susie said "are you going to say something?"
And I couldn't.
I wanted to, but I just couldn't hold back the tears.

So as Susie said on her blog on the 9th, "Here's what I wanted to say last night."

Well, here's what I wanted to say 10 years ago. 5 years ago. Sunday nite.

Mostly, I just wanted to remind you of how much she loved each and every one of you.

Being the baby and the last to show up and the last to leave home,
I may not have the same memories as you.

I'll never know what it was like to have 5 siblings under ten years old, in the house at the same time, but I do have memories.
Different memories.
Memories of seeing you move out and start your own lives, your own marriages and your own families. And I have the memory of how happy she was for you and how proud you all made her. I got to see how her face lit up when you pulled in the driveway, or how her voice rose in pitch when she was on the phone with you. I got to be there when she worried over your job change or your sick child. I got to watch her plan out her Halloween and Christmas gifts and put them together with love and care. I knew there would be a Valentine in your mailbox in February. I got to see her hold you, her grandchild, for the first time or smile and laugh at you when you learned to crawl, walk, and talk. I got to see her clip your name out of the paper, highlight it and file it away for the future. I heard the conversations about how there was no way she was ever going to go to Florida before Christmas or stay past May and I knew it was because of you.
Later after I moved away, no matter where I was living or how long it had been since I talked to you, I got to hear over the phone, a detailed weekly update on each one of you, distilled with the care and concern and joy she felt over your latest news.
I understood and was privileged to see how very much she loved you. And it grounded me and blessed my life.

And I got to see how much you loved her. I got to see how your love gave her strength. I got to see how knowing you loved and needed her, gave her the will to hold on and to bear all that came her way. And in the end, I knew how hard it was for her to go for our sakes, but even then I knew she was ready and willing to go when He took her hand.

I'm so glad I know her story.
Their story.
And I count it a privilege to be able to tell their story and now our story.

And best of all, as our family grows...as your family grows, I get to see their story repeated. As I watch you, their children, step into the same role they played in our lives;
you now play that same role in your children's lives and in your grand children's lives.
You, just like them, are living out and creating your own stories and as you do,
the circle continues.

Is there anything more beautiful?
Is there anything more descriptive of that circle of strength and love that we all believe in so dearly?

I love to tell the story!

Valen...times.

Happy Anniversary

Patty & Jeff !

Directions to here:
Thanks for the stolen pic...I thought it was a good one!

More Flashback Friday...The Letter

This is the letter to friends, family and minstry partners I sent out after Mom died.
This is from the funeral service:

"My favorite verse in the Bible says:

"Let us therefore, draw near with confidence to the throne of grace,
that we may receive mercy and my find grace to help in time of need."

There is a story that Corrie Ten Boom, a survivor of the holocaust, tells about a lesson she learned from her father. She was a small child and was frightened at the idea of someone in her family dying. She could not imagine being able to endure the pain and the sorrow. She spoke to her father about her fear and he asked her, "Corrie, when we take the train to Amsterdam, when do I give you your ticket? Is it before we leave the house?" "No," Corrie answered. "Is it before we get on the train?" "No." "When do I give it to you?" She answered, "you give it to me when I need it, when the conductor comes and I need it." Her father said, "Exactly. And when the time comes when one of us must die, you will get your ticket, it will be there, just when you need it."

Our mom taught us many things. She always was ready to remind us and demonstrated to us, that God will not give us more than we can handle. And by watching my mom live her life, I came to believe it.

From my mom, I learned about two faces:

I learned what the face of pain looks like
and I learned what the face of grace looks like.

For I have seen the face of pain, not on my mom's face, mind you, for even when the pain from arthritis and later, dialysis was too much to bear, I never failed to see her smile. But I have seen the face of pain, etched across her hands and at times on her face, which might cause a grimace in pain for a second, but always turned into a smile.

I've seen the face of pain in her determination to face a flight of stairs or steps, simply by taking a hold of my hand and saying "make an arm" to help her climb them one by one.
I've seen the face of pain, in her desire to pick up a child and hold them so tightly, but only being able to hug them gently.
I've seen the face of pain as she lost loved ones along the way, but she always found hope in celebrating their life and honoring their memory.

But this face of pain was not in vain.

For every time I say pain, I also saw the face of grace.
I learned the meaning of grace by watching my mom live.

I saw the face of grace in each way she learned to make do...from her own way of opening dishes...to finding the will to smile in the midst of horrible pain that would make even the strongest of us faint.
I heard the face of grace in the words of songs she held so dear and hummed in the midst of trouble.
I saw the face of grace in the strength she drew from her family, her parents, her sisters, and the way she passed that strength onto her own children. I've seen the face of grace in her ability to laugh with others and cry with others, always putting others before herself.
And I've seen the face of grace in her sheer determination in her will to fight to live.

In 1995, the nite before her first dialysis treatment, I told her the sory about Corrie Ten Boom, where she wondered about how she would get thru the hard situations in her life. We talked about grace and we talked about receiving it just in time, exactly when we need it, that the ticket would be there to sustain her, and I told her she would be okay, because I had grown up watching her live her life in this way, not just in the big things but in her day to day life, in the little things.
Little things that you and I would take for granted...like putting on our shoes, opening a cabinet, combing our hair or opening a jar. How I had constantly over and over seen her receive grace to help in her each and every time of need.

I know what grace is, because I have seen it in her life.

Yet, I, like Corrie Ten Boom, stand here today, wondering how am I going to do this? How am I going to handle the emptiness and fill the hole that she filled in my life? How?

But I know I can tell her I will be alright. We will be alright. Because she has taught us about the face of grace. I know it exists and I know God gives it and will give it, because I've seen it demonstrated so plainly and so consistently in her life. I know it will come. I know I will be okay. I know we will be okay. I know I will receive the ticket just in time, exactly when I need it, not before, not after, but just in time.

Yes, I know what the face of pain looks like:
My mom faced it everyday.
But I also know what the face of grace looks like:
My mom showed it to me.

And I know that we will receive grace and mercy to help us in our each and every time of need."

Flashback Friday...well said.

Sister Susie is my guest blogger for this Flashback Friday.

Her post on monday said it so well.

I may be back with more,

but for now go down to the

farm

for a visit

I Love To Tell The Story!

Our Story

In loving memory of our parents.

Ten Februaries

Sometimes it feels like yesterday.

Sometimes it feels like forever ago.
But one thing does not change, I still miss her
every. single. day.

Flashback Friday...For February

"I want my Mom."

(from the movie: Babe)

Directions to here:
Me, mom and the tupperware that held Jays chips.
Pure comfort.
We both look so forlorn, but I love this picture.

Picture Roulette #5

JoeBob and the girl.

Directions to here:
Sox Game August 08

Late Night Birthday Wish

Happy Birthday Cori !

Hope you got all dolled up and and had a great day!

Old Media Tuesday...a.k.a. You Oughta Know...now known as "All Consuming"

One of my New Year's Resolutions, (yes there were resolutions made and yes, I'll be sharing them) is to keep track of everything I consume.

Well, not everything.

Not like how many Pringles I eat, but in a music/movie/tv show/book/and even recipe type of way.

And in case you think I'm weird, well whatever. At least I know I'm not the only one that feels the need to keep track of things like this and to prove it you can take a look at allconsuming.net. It's a website for people like me who continue to think up ways to make lists, keep track, alpha by order and waste time. You can find me there under justagirlon66. But I have a feeling the notebook in the living room will be more up to date.

Having shared another of my many quirks...here's some items I've found worth consuming and invite you to have a look:

You oughta see:

Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport

This is a moving documentary about the Kindertransport which saved the lives of 10,000 children during WWII. It shows the stories of the children and the parents who made the sacrifice of sending their children away in order to ultimately save their lives from the horrors to come. The interviews and stories are fascinating and emotionally moving. There is so much we will never know about this time in history.

You oughta hear:

ABBA Gold

Greatest Hits

Feel what you will about ABBA and the era of music they thrived in, but no one can deny that they knew how to put out the POP. All of their songs have the same sound, yet each is very different due to the insane power riffs of the piano/keyboards and those power vocals. And if you really want to hear and see some eye candy go to youtube and watch the close up edits on the Mama Mia video esp. :035-1:10. As Muriel would say "this is as good as the Dancing Queen."

You oughta read:

Jukebox America:

Down Back Streets and Blue Highways in Search of the Country's Greatest Jukebox.

William Bunch is a soul brother. The book is a travelogue of his trek across America in search of the "Juke of the Covenant," the ultimate jukebox and collection of 45's. Although Jukeboxes haven't been on my search list, I certainly appreciate them whenever I find them and would consider them part of what I would look for on a road trip. His jukebox quest, is my Mom and Pop neon Motel or Diner quest. But there is so much more involved to his journey. As he travels across America, he realizes that he is about 10-20 years too late in his search and that is where I felt like I knew what he was going to say before I read it. He classifies himself as (listen Ed, this is what you alluded to in one of your comments) "A Rearguard Baby Boomer:" Kids who were at the end of the Boomer generation and the beginning of the Busters. For everything that made the 50's the 50's and the 60's the 60's we were always running behind, too young, missing something. I was glad to travel with him and even more glad to know that there are others like me that are driven (literally) to search for the ultimate "find" all the while contemplating the history of a place that may no longer exist, but in our minds.

Directions to here:

Stay tuned for "you oughta make." Recipes that I've made and recommend.