Happy Thanksgiving!

Over the river and through the woods.... I don't know how many kids from my generation actually took that route to grandmother's house. I know MY kids didn't take that route to grandmother's house, nor do MY GRANDchildren take that route to my house, yet this remains a favorite song; symbolic of Thanksgiving, family tradition and the beginning of the holiday season.

Grandma Hill's house
415 North Ave; Aurora, Illinois

For us, when I was little, it was 3 blocks to the north, half a block to the east... (Go ahead... try it. It fits pretty well to the tune...) We typically spent Thanksgiving with my mother's family since we were the only children on that side and then we'd take a short trip to Oswego, Illinois to visit with the Zielke grandparents, aunts, uncles & cousins who were there.

Mom's Family
Sister Dorothy, Father Ed & Mother Pearl

Thanksgiving with the Hills was pretty typical Thanksgiving. Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes with gravy, dinner rolls and my brother Bill's favorite jello salad that DeeDee made every year, especially for him. (I think it was similar to the Sloan family "pink gravy," except this one was orange. It either had mandarin oranges or fruit cocktail in it, must have had whipped cream in it and was topped with multi-color mini marshmallows.)

After Grandma Hill passed away, Thanksgiving fell to my folks. Fitting since Al & Bill were both married a little more than a year after. I don't know that I've ever mentioned though, that my mom was NOT into cooking and LOVED all the instant products that were being developed at the time: instant potatoes, cake mixes, frozen pies and brown-n-serve dinner rolls. That's pretty much what Thanksgiving dinner became. The turkey was traditional and my mom made the gravy from the drippings. My dad made his favorite apple stuffing and DeeDee still made the jello salad. Beyond that, it was shortcut method all the way!

My older brothers may have more traditional memories of Thanksgiving dinners, but that's what they were for me and it wasn't until I began dating Randy that I learned REAL Thanksgiving family traditions. Instead of icky apple stuffing, it became sage dressing and oyster dressing; "real" mashed potatoes were topped with homemade noodles (cooked in turkey drippings), the pumpkin pie became homemade, using "Big Grandma" DeFore's recipe and the Jello salad was now "Pink Gravy," (strawberry Jello with bananas, whipped cream & mini marshmallows). Oh! And don't forget the holiday punch! A blend of fruit punch, orange juice, apple juice, grape juice, pineapple juice and peach juice made from concentrate with about 2/3 the water and given some zip with ginger ale!

These were the traditions that carried over into my own family. While ever so much extra work, the anticipation and appreciation of the meal made it worth it every year! As I began to prepare more of the Sloan family holiday dinners, Grandma passed on to me her fabulous turkey roasting pan; just the right size for our 20+ pound bird each year. 

But even more important than the meal, came the Sloan family tradition of Pinochle for hours and hours, while munching on "Pop's" homemade Fantasy Fudge, sipping more punch AND then digging into the leftovers! Kids in the family were entitled to learn to play after the age of eight and all but Brookie still enjoy playing together whenever they can. I'm glad that they've all had the opportunity to play with their Grandpa Sloan to have the full Sloan experience!

It became even better as each year I began to be able to hand over different responsibilities to my children. The twins had to break the bread for stuffing, unroll the homemade noodles and perfect the punch. Brooks laid out the morning appetizers (to be eaten while watching the Thanksgiving parade in the morning) symmetrically for eye appeal on the silver serving trays and folded the linen napkins for our elegant dinner table with the good china and crystal. Samantha took on the more complex challenges; beginning with onion dip for the chips, moving into the pink gravy prep and finally the pumpkin pie filling. Megan got an overall feel for how to do everything. She learned how to do it all, as has been proven over the years as she's cooked or provided different parts of the meal in Kentucky with her dad, but the thing everyone remembers the most about Meg with Thanksgiving meal prep is her sneaking bits of the uncooked pie crust as I was rolling it and putting it in the pans! (I always told her she got that from my mom...)

As the kids all moved out and began preparing their own Thanksgiving meals, every year I would get a series of phone calls, usually involving the noodles, pumpkin pie or pink gravy. The panicked preparation calls have dwindled though and this morning? Not a single one! They've all become experts in their own right and they make a mama proud.

Of course, through the years, there were the occasional boo-boos of the meal: Forgetting to add the powdered sugar to the whipping cream; letting the Jello set too much before adding the whipped cream, bananas and marshmallows; putting the turkey roaster in the extra garage to keep it cool and then forgetting to "pick the bones" of the turkey until the next year when looking for the pan to cook the next bird... All of these just provided additional memories that everyone can laugh about now!

Since the kids are all gone and I've become an empty nester, well meaning friends from church and work are always inviting me to join them and their families for Thanksgiving. I tried a couple of times, but found that it only makes me feel worse. Watching others with their traditions only makes me miss ours more. It's hard to explain to people, but I only had to turn down one invitation this year and it's been good. For once I haven't been in tears most of the day and I even created my own Thanksgiving feast with smaller portions of potatoes, noodles & stuffing to go with my turkey breast!

One final tradition of Thanksgiving Day, if it was just our family for the day, after much prodding and pleading, the kids could convince me to put up the tree. I had a few requirements for putting up the tree, however: 1) I put on the lights and NO ONE was allowed to touch it until I had them on right. 2) My favorite "Thumper" ornament had to be front, center of the tree about a foot from the top and NO ONE touched Thumper but me. 3) The Lennon Sisters' Christmas album was to be played in its entirety as soon as we began to decorate and, finally, 4) My Elvis Christmas albums were played for the rest of the tree decorating. (Everyone complained, but secretly, I think they enjoyed it if for no other reason than being able to complain about it!)

I've talked and texted with kids and grandkids and had a most enjoyable, relaxing day. I hope all my friends and loved ones have had similar experiences and I wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving and a joyous Christmas season!

WC #14: The Day Kennedy was Shot

Where were you when you heard the news that President Kennedy had been shot? That's a question that we've all heard over and over since that day, fifty years ago today: November 22, 1963.

My parents didn't vote for John F. Kennedy in the 1960 election. Even though I was only five-years-old at the time of the election, I remember my parents talking with other adults about his flaws and the rumors of Kennedy immorality with Hollywood starlets. I didn't understand all of that, but learned a healthy respect for the office of President of the United States in the years to follow his election.

In second grade, under Pres. Kennedy's desire for physical fitness for American children, I was first introduced to Physical Education in a way that required annual fitness exams to measure our speed at running, distance for jumping and strength in climbing. I learned about space exploration and watched the space program grow under his plan for the U.S. to land the first man on the moon. It began with John Glenn as the first man in space to circle the globe.

Astronaut John Glenn with
President Kennedy

President Kennedy's time in the White House brought a feel of family life to the public eye. Jackie Kennedy brought the people into the White House with a first ever televised tour of the White House. Pictures of the Kennedy children in the Oval Office with their father helped kids to see him as a man; a father who loved his children.

Caroline & John, Jr. dancing as their dad claps.

John John frequently "hid" in the office while his father worked.

I wanted a pony like Caroline Kennedy and had a set of Caroline & Jackie Kennedy paper dolls. Even though they were wealthy, the Kennedy family created a feeling of "real people." Because of the openness with their family, the nation felt their pain when baby Patrick was born prematurely in August of '63 and died two days later.

Three months later, President Kennedy & Jackie went to Dallas, Texas. Seated in an open convertible, against the advice of the Secret Service, they waved to the crowds of people lining the streets as the motorcade passed.

It was a rainy day in Watertown, Wisconsin when we heard that President Kennedy had been shot and a short time later the principal came into our third grade classroom and whispered to our teacher. As he left, Miss Keyes turned to us and in a shaky voice, announced that the president had died. The class went silent. I remember turning and looking out the window on the gloomy afternoon and wondering what that meant. What would happen to us now? I didn't remember anything about a president before him and couldn't imagine our world without him.

Jackie & Caroline kneeling at the casket
Capitol Rotunda

We watched the drama unfold throughout that weekend. Total news coverage took us inside the Capitol Rotunda as thousands of people from around the world filed past the casket to pay their final respects. We learned about military traditions as we saw the four matching "grays" pull the caisson on which his casket rested and the solid black stallion with a pair of boots, backward in the stirrups, to signify the fallen leader.

But there wasn't a moment of that weekend that was more memorable or heart-wrenching than the sight of young John F. Kennedy, Jr., on his third birthday, saluting his father's casket as it passed him. I remember crying at the sight. Even though I was young myself, I recognized the fact that Caroline & John John were never going to see their dad again and my young heart broke for them; unable to imagine what that would be like.

Edward "Ted" Kennedy, Jackie, Robert F. Kennedy
Caroline & John John

Not the only president to be assassinated since Abraham Lincoln, his was the first in a traumatic trio of assassinations, followed by Martin Luther King, Jr. in April, 1968 and his own brother, Robert F. Kennedy, who was expected to win the nomination for Democratic presidential candidate in 1968, just two months later, after winning the California primary.The song "Abraham, Martin & John" still brings tears to my eyes, when I think about all that we lost in those few years and wonder why the world has to be so cruel and selfish as opposed to loving and giving, but then again, I guess that's what makes us yearn to return home; to Heaven and a loving Heavenly Father.

Over spring break when I was in 9th grade, I had the opportunity to go to Washington D.C. on a class trip. One of the highlights of my school years, I remember the reverence and serenity as I watched the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The same feelings were duplicated as we moved through Arlington National Cemetery and approached the grave of the President and looked on the eternal flame; a symbol of his dream living on.

The dream of an America under President Kennedy is often referred to as "Camelot." The King Arthur of Camelot is sometimes seen as being weak, but as one of my favorite musicals, I see Arthur as an idealist; loving, fun, imaginative and brave. A man who didn't falter in the "whys," but rather motivated by the "why nots?"

LN #6: Tell proud moments of being a Grandmother - Part 9

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SONI!!!

Soni with her remote control Barbie Car!
November 18, 2013

I got the greatest phone call as I was leaving work last night! Grandbaby #9 (Granddaughter #4) called me, so excited I could barely understand what she was saying! She had just opened her Barbie Remote Control car that she asked me for, for her birthday. Grandma hit a home run with that one!

Addison Samera Carter was born November 19, 2007 in Dallas, Texas. (Samera is a combination of her parents' names: Samantha & Cameron.)

Soni is unique among the Carter children in that she's the only one who had a natural birth! Because of Sami's heart condition, her three previous deliveries were all planned and Sami didn't go into labor on her own. Apparently, Soni decided she wanted to be one-of-a-kind and she came as a bit of a surprise... like most babies! Soni evened the family out: 3 boys & 3 girls (counting Mom & Dad, of course) AND she completed the "Brother Sandwich," with her big sister, Andi.

Sami & her Girls
August, 2008

From day one, Soni has been the spitting image of her paternal grand- mother, Lorene (Luthe) Carter. While it's never surprising when someone's child looks just like them, it's been amazing how closely Soni resembles her grandma.

Soni is a little mother and enjoys playing with dolls. Last year the big excitement was the American Girl doll that she was getting for her birthday. Princesses are popular too.

She's a bit mischievous and gets this shy twinkle in her eye when she's up to no good; especially if she thinks she might get the better of one of her siblings.

Soni might be just a little bit spoiled. Being the last baby that Sami knew she would have, Soni may have been catered to just a bit more than the older three. While Sami adored all of her babies, I know it's been the hardest for her to watch Soni grow up. 

Soni-First Day of Kindergarten
August, 2013

This fall, Soni started Kindergarten and although I know it was a little hard for her, Sami pulled it together and enjoys spending time at the school as the PTO president and room mother.

Everyone Goes to School!
2013

I'm afraid Soni is another one of my grandbabies that I don't know very well because I haven't gotten to spend too much time with her. I do know that she's a beautiful young lady who's a little shy and full of a lot of love. I also know that I love HER and I'm so excited to watch her as she grows to see what wonderful talents she'll bring to the family and what she'll do with her life. Be happy Soni and....

HAVE A WONDERFUL BIRTHDAY!

LN #6: Tell proud moments of being a grandmother Part 14!!!

This evening, I'm sending belated birthday greetings to my youngest grandson, grandbaby #14, Bennett Hoyt Sloan!

Gray, Bennett & Krew with Grandma
Thanksgiving, 2011

It's a bit belated, due to a Grandma who completely lost the month of October, but it's still hard to believe that Bennett celebrated his second birthday on November 3rd!!! I guess he started as a surprise... Brandon & Diedre's third son in three and a half years... and he's just going to keep on surprising me!

Probably the best part of Bennett's November birth day, was that it gave the whole family an excuse to get together for Thanksgiving in 2011 so that we could have 3 celebrations in one! We began with Thanksgiving, moved right into Black Friday and Christmas with all fourteen grandkids:

 And then moved right into Bennett's blessing!

I'm sad to admit that I don't know Bennett very well and even sadder to say that he knows even less of me. Since he's lived in Mississippi his whole life and I've lived in Seattle his whole life, time together has been VERY limited.

All I can say is thank heavens for his beautiful mother and the blogs she writes with photos to help keep me informed of the goings on in his young life!

Bennett at 12 months
2012

When I last saw Bennett, we were in Kentucky for Uncle Bart's dental school graduation. He really didn't know what to think of me, poor little guy. He'd dutifully come to me or sit by me as his parents told him to, but my heart ached for him whenever he did. I could tell he didn't want to be there, but he was trusting his parents to not put him in a bad situation. Although this picture wasn't taken at that time, this is one of my favorite Bennett looks:

Bennett's on the far right!

He hasn't spoken too much around me, but his face is SO expressive; you can read the happiness, excitement, caution, sadness or sheer joy on his cute little face.

And if his big brothers are doing something, you can bet Bennett will soon be doing it too! I'm glad Brandon suggested I get him a tricycle for his birthday so that he can now ride a bike with Dad, Krew & Gray instead of being pushed around in the stroller by Mom while everyone else rides their bikes!

I was thrilled too when Brandon and Diedre waited to have him open his tricycle 'til I could be on Skype with them to watch him open his gift. The great thing was watching Krew & Gray be as excited for Bennett as he was himself as they helped him "ride" in the living room! What close knit, sweet boys!

I found out recently that Bennett loves the "Jake & the Neverland Pirates" crocodile that I gave him last year for Christmas and think it's fun that for Halloween, Bennett was none other than Cap'n Hook! Sure hope his croc wasn't the cause of his hook....

Bennett Hook
Halloween 2013

Like I said earlier, I really don't know Bennett very well so, mostly for this second birthday, what I want to say to Bennett is that I can't wait to get to know you better. To know who you REALLY are and see the young man that you will become. I can't wait to see your talents begin to emerge and watch your sense of humor develop.

I hope you had a FABULOUS BIRTHDAY, Bennett!

I love you!

Traditions

It's 5:24 on a Saturday morning and I'm wide awake. I could have slept two more hours before getting up to go work my Saturday shift at the LDS temple, but here I am awake and blogging! Why?

Shortly before 5:00, I was awakened to the Mama Mia ringtone on my phone, meaning it was one of my children. Knowing it wasn't my birthday or any other significant holiday, I jumped to the conclusion that there was something wrong. After I answered, I heard my daughter say, "Hold on a minute. We've got something special for you."

And then I heard a chorus of children's voices singing along to this:

I had to laugh. Somehow, I think my daughter, Meg, got a little perverse pleasure out of waking me to this at five in the morning....

Even before I ended up with my aunt's old victrola (an old wind up record player), I was in possession of my family's old 78rpm record of Rosemary Clooney's famous "Suzy Snowflake" and every year of my children's lives, when they lived at home, they would wake up to the sound of "Suzy" the morning of the first snowfall every year.

Nothing got them out of bed quicker! In their really young years, it was the excitement of whether there was indeed enough snow to go sledding. In the later years the excitement was all about hoping there was enough snow to cancel school. At any rate, hearing "Suzy Snowflake" on the morn of the first snowfall of the year has been a Sloan family tradition for over thirty years.

Jonas, Sarai & Cari
2012 (?)

So, it was Meg & her kids singing along to their recording of "Suzy Snowflake" this morning. The family tradition has continued...

I didn't really realize I had created such a tradition at the time. When Meg & Sami were really little, I began playing it, just to teach them the excitement and beauty of the first snowfall. Then I learned it was a good way to get five, sleepy-eyed children up and moving without a lot of reminders... until October of 1997.

That was Meg's freshman year at Ricks College (now BYU-Idaho). I received a wake-up call from Meg that morning as well, but that morning she was in tears. So much so, I could hardly understand what she was saying. When I finally understood that she was saying "It's snowing," I panicked. Was she hurt? Had she been in an accident? Finally, she calmed down enough to get it through my thick head that it had snowed in Rexburg, Idaho and she was feeling her first bit of homesickness (probably the only time she ever felt it in her life...) because she was witnessing the first snowfall of the season and she couldn't hear Suzy Snowflake!

Meg's college graduation
2001

Of course, being the dutiful mother I am (and a little pleased that my almost adult daughter did still needed me for something), I wound up the victrola, put on "Suzy Snowflake" and held the phone to the speaker. It resulted in some other confused children (excuse me, teenagers), waking up and wondering if I'd gone nuts because they were listening to "Suzy" and there wasn't a lick of snow outside their windows! It made Meg feel better though and she was able to get on with her day, but I then understood how real and deep even the smallest, simplest family traditions can mean to our children!

Sami with Dylan, Andi,
Peyton & Soni
2008

My second daughter, Samantha, was especially fond of our family Christmas tree decorating tradition of listening to an old Lennon Sisters Christmas album. Probably because it was HER annual tradition to put on the tree skirt and dance a hula to the song "Christmas Island." 

At any rate, because this was an important family tradition for her, she got her husband to locate not only the Lennon Sisters, but also "Suzy Snowflake" on the Internet and make a recording for not only her, but each of her siblings. So now they all have their own copies and have been able to carry on the tradition with their children.

Traditions are marvelous things! They help us feel grounded and feel like we belong somewhere. They're like comfort food without the calories! I'm always amazed at things my kids talk about that they see as "tradition" when to me, they were just things we did, because they were fun, or they worked. But as we approach this holiday season, when traditions abound, I hope you'll take a minute to think about YOUR traditions and why they're important to you or who made them special.

"Suzy Snowflake" wasn't a snowy morning tradition for me growing up. For me, she was a video on the old Chicago favorite kids' show, "Garfield Goose." But even more than "Suzy," I always looked favorite to another one they used to play on the show this time of year. I can still hear my best friend Lanie singin' it.... Here's Hardrock... Here's Coco... Here's Joooooe!

Enjoy your traditions everyone! And happy first snowfall of the year to northern Kentucky! May your snowmen be happy and your snow angels pretty!

Tell about Proud Moments as a Grandmother; Part 5

Before I begin today's primary post, I must note that today is another one of those family days that involves more than one happy event!  That said, Brandon & Diedre... Happy Anniversary! Seven years ago today Diedre accepted our crazy family as her own when she married Brandon in the Boise, Idaho temple. Congratulations!

Brandon & Diedre Sloan

Today is also the 32nd anniversary of the day I was sealed to my parents (after doing their work and having them sealed) for eternity in the Salt Lake City Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints! What a blessing to know that although I didn't have them long in this life, I can be with them through the eternities.

Ray & Mary Ellen Zielke

Then, as I logged onto my blog and looked at my last entry, I realized I failed to write "Part 15" of my proud moments as a grandmother for Bennett's birthday last Sunday! I remembered his gift. I remembered to call him. But totally SPACED writing a blog just for him! I'm so sorry Bennett! I'll make it up this week!

But now... on to the title of this post! It's time to wish grandbaby #5 a VERY HAPPY 9th Birthday!!! 

Sarai & I at her baptism
May, 2013

Sarai Akua Aboagye, born November 10, 2004, is the only one of my grandchildren to have actually been born in the town where I lived. At the time I was living in Butte, Montana. Her parents & Cari had been living with me until a few months before Rai was born and they moved into a little house about a block away. I was SO excited to have one of my grandbabies born so close, but Sarai and I didn't hit it off too well in the beginning!

NaNa & the First Five!
3 Seven-Year Olds &
2 Eight-Year-Olds!
Black Friday Shopping 2011

Meg & Samuel both had jobs at the time that frequently required them to work third shift and I would watch the girls for them. It would have been no problem except sweet, even-tempered Sarai REFUSED to sleep in the crib at NaNa's at night!  I learned fairly quickly that the only way she WOULD sleep for me was in her car seat on the sofa in the living room with a light on! I'm a fan of letting children sleep when and where they will...so that's where she slept every night when she was with me! In fact, she frequently slept well for me in unusual positions in unusual places!

Not a very flattering shot,
but it proves my point!
Sarai asleep on her Nana in Lanie & Norm's
living room; March, 2005.

Sarai was only a couple months old when her parents decided to leave Montana to go to Kentucky with hopes of more career opportunities there. From early on, Sarai was always the one who was able to make people laugh and the more she found she could make them laugh, the more she tried! Maybe that's why she has such a special relationship with her Uncle Bart!

Rai & Uncle Bart
August, 2008

Sarai is a beautiful girl who has always had a love and flair for fashion! Meg says she looks a lot like Samuel's mother. Hopefully, when she's a little older, Sarai will have an opportunity to visit Ghana and meet her.

Sarai & baby cousin, Abigail

Sarai has a bit of a flair for story-telling. She's occasionally come up with some whoppers that have gotten her in a little bit of trouble, but that's gotten better since she's gotten a little older! Thank goodness!

Sarai & Uncle Bart
at her baptism.

Sarai is a loving sister. I think she finds it hard being in the middle sometimes. She's had to find her way with Cari being the strong-willed, responsible older sister and Jonas being the cute little brother. But she always finds ways to entertain, irritate and motivate her siblings into action. There's never a dull moment for them when she's around!

Jonas, Cari & Sarai
Summer, 2013

The important thing is that she IS finding her own way! She's received citizenship awards at school....

Sarai showing off one of her
school citizenship awards.

And recently earned a spot on the Northern Kentucky Clippers, a nationally ranked swim team! Go Rai!

Sarai sporting her medal
at a swim meet
Summer, 2013

Sarai is definitely finding her niche and I couldn't be happier for her or more proud of her, but in honor of her ability to drive big sister Cari nuts, I've chosen to add a clip from Disney Channel's Teen Beach Movie here! (Cari says she's had to watch it "a million times" because Sarai & Jonas love it so much, they keep watching it...) Somehow, this seems like it would be one of Rai's favorite songs, since she gets along so well with boys!

Happy Birthday, Sarai!

I love you!