You Can't Get Rid of That! I'll just take it home with me.

Last year my folks decided it was time to downsize. So the process began – and I do mean process! During the course of sixty-seven years of marriage you are bound to have quiet a collection of things. And believe me when I tell you my folks had a lot. The storage room shelves were filled with gadgets – some given by us kids at Christmas time as the latest and greatest new thing. Great if you can figure out how to use it! Ha ha! There was an array of cookware used only during the holiday – after all how often does one use a casserole bowl big enough for a 20 pound turkey or a salad bowl big enough to hold 6 heads of lettuce? But, when you need it, that stuff comes in real handy. Then there was the shelves filled with beautiful Christmas decorations and craft supplies. Oh my – what to keep? What to surrender?

Then there was my Dad's office where every drawer was filled with supplies. I'm telling you – enough to open his own office supply store. Boxes and boxes of pencils of all types, index cards and paper clips – oh my. I won't even try to tell you about his supply of tools – but does anyone need an electrical current detector manufactured somewhere around 1940?

Upstairs there were blankets and linens galore. Towels that I remember using when I lived at home 40 years ago – but, really still in good condition. Did I mention that my Mom is meticulous? I think it comes from being raised during the depression when what you had was so hard to come by – so it was treated very carefully. If something had a small tear it was repaired before it was ruined completely. Because you may not be able to get another.

Well Mom spent literally months sorting things. The things she wanted to keep were packed and the things that she intended to get rid of were sorted into various piles. Craft supplies to the Church, and some for friends that could use them in one pile. Blankets, towels and cookware to be donated to charity in another pile.

As the move to their new town home grew closer I started going over to help her pack. And that's when it happened. One look at the “get rid of piles” and my attitude of - “You can't get rid of that – I'll just take it home” kicked in. It all went kind of like this:

“Mom – you can't get rid of that pan! After all it's the pan you've made our traditional Christmas cookies in for the last 50 some years”. Oh I can just taste them now – a delectable maraschino cherry cookie bar with coconut – I'm telling you – just to die for. I remember my brother would find the jar of maraschino cherries in the fridge and scarf them all down, so she would have to hide them. The cookies are one of those things that unless you have them at Christmas time – well, it's just not Christmas! She kept the pan.

Then there were the blankets. “Mom – some of these blankets are brand new – and aren't those over there ones that are hand made?” And she would answer - “Yes, Terri, but I don't need them and I have no use for them.” To which I would respond - “Well we can't get rid of those – I'll just take them home with me. After all some of the hand made quilts have pieces of our pajamas in them – you know the ones – flannel with cowboys or ballerina's on them. Not only that but they were made by my Grandma – that makes it a heirloom. Towels? - Oh don't get rid

of all of those old towels – we can always use those when we wash the car. I'll just take those home with me. That big pile of throw rugs – well I could use some rugs – I'll just take those home with me. The boxes of mechanical pencils and other office supplies – Yep you guessed it – I took those home too!

Do you see the pattern that is emerging here? Every time I would bring another load of things home, my understanding hubby, would just shake his head and ask - “Now where are you going to put that? I really hadn't thought that far. My own store room is already bursting at the seams with stuff. There are boxes in there that I don't even remember having – but there's always the possibility that I will want to use again. Right? Come on, agree with me! Right? In 20 years or so the grand-kids will probably need it for their first place. Well – maybe?!

I also brought home a box full of special............

To be continued...

Saturday Night Fun with Randy - Trading Cards

It's Saturday Night - time for some Genealogy Fun! Each week, a number of devoted Genea-Musings readers accept a Mission Possible - if they choose to. We have had over 60 entries some weeks!For this weeks challenge, please go read Sheri Fenley's blog (The Educated Genealogist) post Trading Cards, Get Your Trading Cards and then:1) Make your own Trading Card(s) on http://bighugelabs.com/deck.php . It's easy to do, but you need a head shot photo of your subject.2) Post your Trading Card on your web site, your blog, or on your Facebook account (or some other account where you can upload a JPG file). 3) Can you think of other uses for these trading cards?

This was great fun!

Traditional Irish Blessing - E-Water

Traditional Irish Blessing - E-Water

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Willow Valley

Traveling on a gravel road always gives me a sense of home. I think the feeling comes from my youth when the sound of the gravel hitting the underside of the car meant we were close to Grandma's house. On a recent visit to Minnesota my husband and I traveled down a similar road to visit the graves of his grandparents, Victor and Lizzie Paavola. Just a short distance from the intersection of Township Highway and the old Chisholm Road in Willow Valley is where you will find The Willow Valley Cemetery. Nestled in the woods it's a quiet and peaceful place. There are no large statues or marble monuments, just the simple headstones of those that rest there.


As we walked towards Victor and Lizzie's graves I noticed some very unusual mushrooms. Living in a dry climate we only see your basic brown or beige colored variety. These mushrooms reminded me of something you would see in a fairy tale. In fact, when we got home and I downloaded my photo's something totally unexpected appeared. There under a mushroom, that reminded me of an umbrella, was an angel praying.

(OK – I know you don't believe me – and yes I did manipulate the photo.)

Victor, who was born in 1877, emigrated to the US from Finland with his wife, Lizzie. They raised 11 children in a two room house in the back woods of Willow Valley. They never had electricity running water or indoor plumbing. What a challenge it must have been to clear out the timber that was so thick you could barely swing and ax without hitting another tree. Not to mention dealing with bugs so thick you couldn't help but breath them in. And winters of 40º below 0 with only the wood you chopped to keep your babies warm. It certainly makes you wonder what on earth would make them want to live in such wilderness. But, they owned their land and like most immigrants that was everything to them. During the depression Victor went to work for the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) digging ditches along the roads . Sleeping in the ditches at night in the damp and cold ended up crippling him to where he had to use two canes to get around. Neither of them ever learned English, but, living in a Finish community they never really had to. Victor and Lizzie had 40 grandchildren and they called them “gimpy-fadde” (crippled old man) and MuMu (old lady). Of their 11 children 5 were boys. All of their sons enlisted in the service and fought in the European theater during WWII. All five sons returned home safe and unharmed.

Returning Mid-August

The Ties That Bind blog will be returning mid-August. I miss all my geneablogger friends and hope that you will again join me as I share my adventures. I will have some surprising and exciting up-dates to share with you when I return.

Happy 4th of July!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!!

"We hold these truths to be self- evident,

that all men are created equal,

that they are endowed by their Creator

with certain unalienable Rights,

that among these are

Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Can you imagine the excitement in the air on July 8, 1776, when our newly formed country celebrated the signing of the "Declaration of Independence", on July 4, 1776?! It really must have been something to witness! The church bells all over town were ringing, canons and guns were being fired into the air, people were singing and hugging in the streets. But, it wouldn't be until 1783 that Great Britain would recognized the United States as an independent nation. The Revolutionary War lasted 8 long years (1775-1783). The American military death toll was around 25,000 men, with an additional estimated 25,000 men that had been wounded or seriously injured.

So please, when your eating your hot dog and shooting off your fireworks - take a moment to remember those who fought for your Independence and the freedom that we enjoy today. And all those who have fought since.

Celebrate Freedom!

Early 1900's - July 4th Celebration - Hildreth, Nebraska.

The car pictured here belonged to my great grandfather, Rolf Habben, and was decorated for the fourth of July parade. I'm sure his daughters played a big part in all the decorations - I don't think they missed a spot to decorate! It must have been a great day, with everyone gathering in town. If you look in the background of the photograph you can see the big tent and picnic tables. I'm sure all the wives were busy cooking that day.

(photograph is privately held - do not copy without permission)

The Old School Aint What It Used To Be

“School days, school days,
Dear old golden rule days.
O'read'n and o'rit'n and o'rithmatic
taught to the tune of a
hickory stick.
You were my queen in calico
I was your barefoot bashful beau.
And you wrote on my slate
I love you so, o'love you so
When we were a couple of kids.”

This old familiar school song was written by Will D. Cobb

with music by Guss Williams in 1907.

Last year, I had an opportunity to visit and take some photographs of Forest Valley School, a one room school house, where my mom and her siblings learned their 3-R's, read'n, rit'n and 'rithmatic, back in the '30's and '40's. Forest Valley School, District 51, is located in Lincoln Township just southeast of Wilcox, Nebraska. This rural school house was built in 1880 and continued to operate until 1946.

The old school house ain't what it used to be! Forest Valley School stands in a grove of trees that once covered about 3 acres of land before it was cleared for farming. Today, Mother Nature is trying to reclaim the property. The weathered boards that once kept the cold out are slowly decaying. Most of the roof that covered the school entry, where the children kept their coats and lunch pails, is all but gone now. The school furnishings, that cost all of $13.25 back in 1908, are all gone. Vines and weeds are growing from the rooftop and putting their roots into the cracks. Three foot high grass surrounds it. And the trees are beginning to hide the building completely. The mosquito's were so thick in the grass, that I feared for my life, so I did not venture too close to the building.

The school has been closed since 1946. But, if you close your eyes and listen carefully, you can still hear the giggles of children hiding in the trees.

(photograph of Forest Valley School is privately held,

do not use without permission).

Blogger Problems Need Help

Help! I'm wondering if any one else is having difficulty getting into their blog. I have searched and searched for answers on why I'm experiencing so many difficulties accessing my blog. Here is my problem: Every time I open my blog I get a message "Internet Explorer cannot open" - then when I check the error message it tells me there is a DNS error (domain name). I also experience this problem when opening a few other blog sites (but not all). Does any one have a suggestion or know how to correct my problem. My Internet provider has no idea, nor does Hewlett Packard - surely someone knows how to fix this..........??????????? Once in a blue moon I can get into my site -

Smile For the Camera - 14th Edition - Wedding Belles

The word prompt for the 14th Edition of Smile For The Camera is Wedding Belles. Historically, couples married in the month of June to honor Juno, the Roman goddess of marriage. Others did it to time conception so births wouldn't interfere with harvest work. And brides in the 15th century chose to marry in June because it coincided with their "annual bath" - that's right - ensuring a relatively sweet-smelling honeymoon. Show us a photograph of a wedding, a wedding party, a bride, a groom, the reception, or even the honeymoon. Bring them to the carnival and share. Admission is free with every photograph!

One of my favorite photo restorations was of a distant cousin of mine that I did for my family history book - "Searching - The Habben/Ufkes Families".

Julius Mietzner & Lena Habben -August 10, 1909

(do not use restored photo's without permission)

Returning Soon

I hope to be returning soon to my blog as you may have noticed I have not written anything new for a while now.

Through the grace of God who answered those who so vigilantly prayed for my husbands recovery during the last 45 days - I thank you! He continues to improve daily and was able to return home last week. It is wonderful just to have him home and as he continues healing I will again have time to continue my research and share it with you.

I want to thank those who have given me the wonderful awards during my absence. I will acknowledge them over the next few days.

Terri at The Ties That Bind