Happy Memorial Day!

Best wishes for a happy and enjoyable Memorial Day weekend! 

Good Luck and Congratulations

Tis the time of year for graduation cards and monetary rewards!  This money holder card was sent to me by an aunt & uncle (& cousins) for my high school graduation in 1978.  What a milestone!  She writes inside "We are really proud of you, now you will be getting ready for college."  Yes indeed ... spent many hours during that summer buying bedspread, sheets, lamp, laundry basket, all the necessities for dorm living.  I enjoyed that part of college life!  :) 

Me - mid 1960s

Clematis - April 2012



For your graduation

The only thing better than receiving a greeting card in the mail is receiving a money holder card in the mail!  This yellow rosed beauty was sent to me in 1978 when I graduated from high school and I have absolutely no idea how much cash was in it.  It was sent by my Great Uncle Paul & Aunt Marian.  She writes on the back:

 "Both Uncle Paul and I want to send congratulations and best wishes for your graduation and for the future whatever it might be.  Sorry we could not be there but we will be thinking of you.  Again best wishes and God Bless and guide you."

Paul was my grandmother's "little" brother and he and Marian lived in Allentown near her.  They've both since passed away.  I guarantee you, the money was appreciated as well as the sentiment!

Peanut Butter Candy

The Colonel as a pup - 1995

Lily - April 2012

Lily and a rosebush just as it was beginning to show signs of life this spring!  It's a beautiful bush with pink roses and I wish it had been blooming when I took this photo.  Oh well, it's still a nice shot of Lily!

Flower Garden Faeries

Adorable little garden faeries although the one in the harlequin outfit seems distressed!  Possibly an overdose of pollen ... yes, that's it!  Beautiful graphic and I have no idea from whence it came ... possibly the front of a greeting card at some point in time?  I don't know for sure but I liked it enough to keep it!

Hi, Graduate!

This bright red & cheerful graduation card was sent to me in 1978 by Larry & Janet who lived down the road from us at that time.  They were nice neighbors and when I was little, I used to love to take their little beagle for a walk around the block.  I can't remember her name but it'll come to me when I'm not thinking about it.  The card is so adorable with the perky white kitty and flowers!

So True!

The world's favorite season is spring.

All things seem possible in May.

Edwin Way Teale

Shoo Fly Cake (Pie)

This recipe is noted as a cake but it's what I would call a pie.  It looks like someone gave the recipe to my grandmother and she then re-copied it on the back of the same notecard with her own version!  I love shoo fly pie!!

Dad - early 1950s

This photo of my Dad was taken in a photo booth in the early 1950s.  He kept it in his wallet for years and there are marks on it left by the plastic wallet sleeves.  It's not his best photo by a long shot but it's still a snapshot in time.

Pansy Cross Stitch

So True!

Animal crackers and cocoa to drink, that is the finest of suppers, I think;

when I am grown up and can have what I please, I think I shall always insist upon these.

Christopher Morley

Congratulations!

Although it doesn't specifically say so, this pretty red rose card was intended to congratulate me on my college graduation.  It was sent by my grandmother's good friend Tess in 1982.  They became friends in their old age when they both worked as volunteers at a church thrift shop.  Tess has since passed away as has my grandmother.  Inside she signs it "Much Good Luck, Tess". 

Grandma's Green Vegetable Salad

Wild Violet - 2012

Apple Blossoms

The Mighty Petunia

Happy Easter

Best Wishes for a Happy Easter!!

Spring Flowers

You'll never know what I've been through ...

When this card is opened, a banner pops up wishing me a Happy Easter from my college roommate's parents!  It would have been sent sometime in the late 1970s or early 1980s and probably received a day or two before leaving on Spring break holiday.  Spring break then wasn't quite the experience spring break is for college students today ... or maybe it was just me!  Anyway, nice card and I appreciated it!  I wish I had kept the envelopes for these cards as well as the cards themselves as it would help me pinpoint some of the dates but at least I can get within a decade! 

Garden Potato Salad

Bunnies Rule!

Nothing says "Spring" like bunnies, kitties and little wild flowers!  Oh and fluffy clouds too! 

Happy Easter!

Such a cheerful face!  This bright and colorful Easter card was sent to me in the late 1970s while at college and is from my step-grandmother Mildred.  Knowing Mildred, I'm sure a goodie box followed suit, complete with some yummy petit-fours!  I love the spring colors in this card and the brightness in general.

Rita Hayworth is Stayin' Alive

So True!

Think what a better world it would be if we all, the whole world, had cookies and milk about three o'clock every afternoon and then lay down on our blankets for a nap.

Barbara Jordan

Peach Blossoms

Bradford Pear Blossoms

Gracie - 2012

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!!

While You're Ill!

This get well card from 1974 has it all ... cute kitten, colorful flowers and a bright butterfly!  What's not to like?  Our family friend Minnie sent it to me when I was in the hospital and inside she typed "Hurry back to Petersburg.  Always, Minnie"  She was a very nice older woman and I loved spending time with her when I was growing up.  She had a little chihuahua named Mike and when he did something wrong, she'd call him "Michael". The things we remember!  The card is Olympicard brand and I still see those around!  

Eileen Brennan's Scalloped Potatoes

This recipe from Grandma's recipe box sounds delicious to me!  It's a newspaper clipping and I can't tell how old it is but I'd guess maybe 1980s thereabouts.  Her local newspaper must have had a feature on celebrities'  recipes and this is Eileen Brennan's.  Yum!  I haven't seen her in a film for a while so I did a search to see what she's been up to ~~~~~>

1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eileen_Brennan

2) http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0107281/

I want to eat at Eileen Brennan's house!

Mom - 1960s

This is my mother pouring herself a morning cup of coffee in the early 1960s!  I have so many fond memories of growing up in that little gray house.  I can see the coffee pot clearly in my mind but I don't know what type it was ... it had two pieces to it and was put on the stove top.  I'll have to ask her about it!  Red counter tops, metal cabinets ... very retro!  I'm sure she was thrilled for my father to take her picture first thing in the morning!  He loved his camera!

Bill Deal and the Rhondels

So true!

If you can't make it better, you can laugh at it.

Erma Bombeck

Why don't you hang out the window like other dogs?

What dog owner can't relate to this cartoon?  I cut this out of a magazine back in the 1980s.  The cartoonist is Gallagher and it was published in a book called "Animals, Animals, Animals".  I'm not sure which magazine this was clipped from but the back of the cartoon has the title of an article called "The Children Nobody Wants".  Sounds cheerful & uplifting!  I'll stick with the cartoon!

So true!

In the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things, the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.

 

Kahlil Gibran

So glad you're feeling better!

And speaking of raspberries, these look so pretty next to the pink border!  The card design reminds me of spring yet to come and I'm looking forward to it.  This was sent to me in the 1970s by someone named Eileen who added the notation that she is "a friend of your Grandma Virginia".  My grandmother had everyone under the sun sending me cards ... so many of them from total strangers to me but I loved receiving them!  There's no indication on the back of who made the card but it's a definitely a beaut! 

Raspberry Pinwheels

From Grandma's recipe box ... these are bound to be delicious!

So true!

The fireside is the tulip bed

of a winter day.

Persian Proverb

You're the apple of my eye

I hope this adorable cross-stitch elephant on roller skates isn't too late for Valentine's Day!  Even the skate wheels are apples ... they must be sturdy apples indeed!

Try to keep your foot from tapping ... It can't be done!

Whitey's Lindy Hoppers from "Hellzapoppin

Sick?

I have to admit I'm not wild about the graphics of this card although I do get a kick out of her anchor tattoo!  My grandmother sent me this card in 1974 while I was in the hospital and she writes on the back "I am sure this doesn't look like you or your nurses but it is cute.  I hope you are trying to help yourself get better so you can get out of there.  Are your arms & legs moving any better?  I hope you are getting lots of cards.  Love, Grandma"  Yes, I did get lots of cards, she made sure of that!  

The card is a Fan Fare Custom Contemporaries card by United Card Company which I don't think I've ever heard of before.  I guess she's right, it is cute in an amusing kinda way!

Fast 'n' Easy Beef Stew

Today's recipe from Grandma's recipe box isn't a vintage one but instead looks like something she clipped from a magazine sometime in the 1980s or 1990s.  It looks easy enough and I'm sure it's delicious and filling.  Today is chilly and dreary and it would it definitely fit the bill!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

So True!

There's nothing better than a good friend,

except a good friend with chocolate.

Linda Grayson

Mom - Early 1960s

I love this photo of my mother in the early 1960s!  Love the purse, love the scarf, love the pants although I do question her choice of footwear in the snowy weather!

What does your candy heart say? Mine says "Hug me"

Your Candy Heart Says "Hug Me"

A total sweetheart, you always have a lot of love to give out. Your heart is open to where ever love takes you! Your ideal Valentine's Day date: a surprise romantic evening that you've planned out Your flirting style: lots of listening and talking What turns you off: fighting and conflict Why you're hot: you're fearless about falling in love

What Does Your Candy Heart Say?

Blogthings: Learn Something Surprising About Yourself

I love you

This adorable figure was cut out of a magazine but I'm drawing a blank over its origins!  These little featureless characters were immensely popular back in the 1970s & 1980s and I had to think hard to remember the artist's name but it finally came to me ... Joan Walsh Anglund.  I don't know where I got this little paperdoll from but I know it wasn't cut by my hand ... I wouldn't have been as precise with the scissors!  Do women's magazines even feature things like this any more?  The world needs more whimsy!

Especially for you ...

This fold-out Valentine's Day card was sent to me in 1978 by Chris P., a young woman that worked with my mother.  I remember her accompanying my mother on a visit to Longwood's Octoberfest during my first year there.  My mother still has some of the photos taken during that visit on display in her house and it's always fun to see them.  We lost touch with Chris as often happens over time but my mother seems to remember seeing in the newspaper that she was married back in the 1980s.  

The Gibson verse inside the card:  Especially for you ... here's a Valentine greeting that brings you a wish it's a pleasure repeating ... Be happy and spend it your favorite way ~~ This warm, friendly time we call Valentine's Day!  

Chris wrote inside:  "Greetings from Petersburg.  Hope school is going smoothly and that you haven't lost weight.  Love, Chris"

I had problems keeping weight on because I despised the dining hall!  Too chaotic for me and I'd avoid it by not eating there ... possibly not the smartest tactic since it was already paid for as part of the tuition.  Ah well!

Press Cookies

Found in Grandma's recipe box, I think this is the basic recipe used for so many of her Christmas cookies.  She had a press and I remember changing the end with the various designs.  Even undecorated, these plain cookies are delicious with a simple sweet flavor.  She noted in pencil the amounts halved ... even at that, 2 sticks of butter seems like a lot these days but yet this woman had no health issues and lived a long life so maybe fresh butter isn't as bad as we think.  I love butter so I'm partial to that conclusion!