At Last !!!

It has been a very, VERY long time since I have posted anything about anything on my blog.  Life has led me in so many different directions the last couple of years -- I hope to be diligent about adding remembrances of this "wild rose" once again in this form of "letters to my daughter".  After my recent move from the two story town home to a single level house, I am finding things that have a story to tell --forgotten "things", but, nice memories.

A new addition to my "new" home is a dress form - something I have wanted ever since I found this beautiful beaded lace dress at a local antique mall.  The dress is off white and lined -- the print fabric on the form shows through slightly, but, not nearly as much in real life as it does in the photo.  I rummaged through my costume jewelry and found several strands of pearls, all of which I have draped around the neck.  The two longest strands were made by your Dad's paternal grandmother Lottie, sometime in the late 60's or early 70's.  Whatever the latest craft fad was, we could always expect her to be trying her hand at it.  Also, around the neck of the form, I have placed the small "band hat" I wore on my wedding day.  The dress I wore that day was a simple white street dress, given away years ago, so, I like to call this beauty "my wedding dress" !!

  

Flower Girls

These two photos are of me as a flower girl in weddings of an aunt and an uncle in late 1944 and early 1945. My dresses were in that tub of mementos. I took them to the dry cleaners, but there are a few spots they were unable to remove. Again, I wonder why some things are kept forever and now, what should I do with them ?? Mom made both of these dresses to the specifications of the bride, and of course, they are beautifully put together. The photo of me alone was at the wedding of my Dad's brother, Lehman. The dress is pale blue, the crepe paper carnations in the basket were blue and pink. Oh, how I wish I had that antique wicker basket !! My Dad's sister, Elda, had the two flower girls, me from her side of the family, and the other little gal from the groom's side -- I don't remember her name. We wore little gold lockets, a gift from the bride and this time, the basket held real flowers !! Our dresses were yellow with blue ribbon trim -- somewhere, there is a photo of you trying on this dress at your Grandma's house !! Being a flower girl in a wedding was an honor -- I wish I had more memory of the occasions !!

A June Bride

June 5, 1954, before I knew your Dad, his sister, your Aunt Joan, married LaVerne. That is your Dad on the far right. I look at this photo and wonder if Joan was allowed to help pick out her wedding gown. Knowing what she has told me about her mother picking out all of her apparel when she was growing up, I think I will have to ask her about this !! At the time I started dating your Dad in high school, Joan and Verne had two little girls and I was called on to babysit quite often. I guess being Dad's girlfriend was good enough reference !!

A Wedding Gift

This silver plated set of salt and pepper shakers were a wedding gift to us back in 1958. They once looked quite fancy and regal sitting on the table with the "melmac" dinnerware !! The salt slightly corroded the finish on the one and I haven't used them since those early years. I have very few things left that came to us as gifts that year. I keep them because they commemorate a special day in my life.

Another Wedding Photo

This vintage wedding photo is my Mom's older sister, Bertha and her new husband, Lyle Strand. I don't have a date for this marriage, but, I believe it would have been in the late 1930's. Mom and Dad were married in 1933 and Mom was the first of the children in the Hanle family to tie the knot and leave home. G'ma and G'pa moved from South Dakota during the depression, with G'pa going to work in coal mines and later on building and owning a mobile home "court". Lyle was a teacher and I remember he and Bertha were in various self-owned businesses. They made and sold ceramic salt and pepper shakers of various designs for collectors. I think Mom had every different style set they had. Later on, there was some kind of hand puppet business. It was fun to stay with them when we made the trip to Ohio. There was a wonderful hill on the back of their property for sledding in the winter. Our cousin, Ivan, had every toy imaginable and a pony !! Mom said he was a spoiled "only child" -- we thought he was fortunate and lucky, as children will !!!

Something Old, Something New

Your wedding day, December 11, 1976, seems like yesterday to me !! Did we ask you if you wanted the money versus all the wedding expenses ?? But, when I look back at the cash that was spent, it was really quite a modest amount. My favorite memory of the planning was the day we found your gown. I can still picture you coming from the dressing room and the "aha" moment of "this is the one" !! As in all beginnings, do any of us have any idea where the years will take us ?? Or, what surprises those years will bring ??

Elda and Elmer

This wedding portrait of my Dad's only sister, Elda, was taken in 1946 when she married the love of her life, Elmer. I was again a flower girl, along with a niece of Elmer's. We were dressed in yellow and shared a basket of yellow and white carnations with baby blue ribbon trim. This time, the flowers were real !! It's really strange that I don't have as vivid of memories of this wedding as the one a year earlier. The only other person in this photo I can name is the man on the far right -- Delbert -- a brother to my Dad. Elda and Elmer spent their life together as dairy farmers in South Dakota. They raised 3 sons, one of who now manages that same farm. I don't do well with keeping in touch with "far away" relatives. Mom always kept me updated and now my brother does a pretty good job at it !! Your Aunt Shirley is probably our best family historian, though.

Lehman and Irene

This wedding portrait, dated 1945, is of my Dad's first brother, Lehman and his new wife, Irene. I was the flower girl, dressed in blue and carrying a basket of blue and pink crepe paper carnations. On the far left is the best man, Lloyd, another of Dad's brothers. The woman on the right is Dad's sister, Elda, who a year later, married Elmer, the man next to her. The maid of honor was Irene's sister whose name I do not remember. After the wedding at the country church, there was a reception at the Schultz farmstead. The party went on into the wee hours, even after the bride and groom had disappeared. Kids were allowed to stay up as long as they wanted (or as long as they could keep their eyes open). A fun time was had by all !! I love these old photos in their "cardboard" frames.

Emil and Emma

Here is one more old family wedding portrait - your paternal great grandparents, Emma Moege and Emil Schultz, on August 7, 1911. The vintage wedding gowns and veils are just absolutely gorgeous and unique. It was my understanding that the Moege family were quite "well-to-do" and gave this couple their farm and home as a wedding present. I like to look at the facial expressions and imagine what the couple might have been thinking at the time the photo was taken. G'pa looks somewhat scared and G'ma looks like she has everything "in her control". According to my Dad, she did "rule the roost". They raised a family of seven sons and one daughter on that farm in South Dakota. Four of the boys remained bachelors and helped on the family farm until they were in their late 30's. I'm sure G'ma and G'pa had their hands full with all those children !!

Elton and Esther

On October 2, 1933, my Mom and Dad kind of eloped. It was the time of the great depression, Dad was "riding the rails" back and forth from South Dakota to Iowa to work for a farmer. It was harvest time and days were filled with picking corn. In those days, corn was picked by hand and the more bushels you could pick, the more money you made. Dad made a fast trip home one week end -- he and Mom had conspired to get married. Neither of their parents approved of the other, so being they were in love with each other, they made their own plans. It was fast and quick and Dad was on his way back to Iowa. It was three weeks before they saw each other again. Dad went back for Mom, they took off for Iowa together and their life as a married couple began. Dad told me this story at their 60th anniversary dinner. All the years while growing up, I knew their parents were against the marriage and sometimes made life difficult for them, but, they survived. Love conquers all !!!

Paul and Ruth

August 18, 1934, your paternal grandparents wedding day !! Before they knew it, they were celebrating their 50th anniversary. We were in New Hampshire that year with your Dad's job. For their gift from their 3 children, airline tickets were purchased for them to come visit us. They waited until October for the fall foliage season to make the trip. We had a wonderful time driving around through the country side and into Vermont and Maine during their stay. Autumn in the northeast area of the U.S.A. is definitely a sight to behold !! A sight-seeing day trip to Boston was also on the agenda, plus, of course, a Maine lobster cook out !! It was the best of times !!!

Burt and Lottie

Burt Johnson, your paternal great grandfather, married Lottie McCullom on August 21, 1912. Look at Burt's hair and eyes -- is that not your Dad ?? Especially the hair !! According to your Dad, G'pa Burt's hair was totally gray by the time he was 30 years of age. I never had the privilege of meeting him as he died before I knew your Dad. Burt and Lottie moved off the farm and into a house in town after their only son, your G'pa Paul, married. As a young boy and teenager, your Dad loved to spend the weekends in town at his G'ma and G'pa's house. And, it was always a place to go after school when there was an evening activity to attend.

C.J. and Minnie

C. J. Rose married Minnie Trealor, your maternal great grandmother, on March 22, 1905. I don't have a lot of information about the Rose side of the family. I believe one of your second cousins, Steve Rose, has been doing some genealogy search, though. They were a handsome couple in this photo. Your G'ma Ruth was only 4 months old when the marriage broke apart and never knew her father until she was in her 50's. Her oldest brother, Paul, had kept in touch with his father all of his life. He finally talked your G'ma into going to meet him. Clarence, or CJ, as everyone knew him, had left and settled in New Orleans with a new wife. Your Dad wanted to meet CJ, too, plus, we had never been to New Orleans. Sometime in the early 60's, ( faded memories as to exactly when ), we made the trip and found CJ and Edith to be living in and managing apartments in a beautiful rehabbed Southern Mansion. They were a most congenial couple, showing us around to some of the highlights of the city. As I search memories, I know now, why your G'ma Ruth thought I should be keeping a journal. I could look back and have more exact details and dates -- but, then, would it really matter that much ?? Just remembering that we actually did the things we did is enough for me.

May 20, 1958

Being tagged by my blog friend at http://junesartyretreat/, shortened my decision making time on what to post today. The rule was to go to your photo albums on your pc, open the 6th album, choose the 6th picture and explain, then tag five others. I had already posted that particular photo, so chose the next one. I have always regretted not having formal portraits of our wedding day. My sister's husband fancied himself a photographer and took many shots at the ceremony and at the reception. At the end of the evening, he found that he had forgotten to take the cover off the lens of his camera. Fortunately, there were other people taking shots with their Kodaks and all of the best moments were captured. We were so young and so happy-- ( tagging five is a difficult task for me -- check the blogs I follow for some wonderfully creative artists)

Wedding Cake

While on the subject of my wedding day, I remembered I had our wedding cake topper stored away on a bottom shelf of the china cabinet. It is plastic, the ribbons and flowers very discolored after more than 50 years of being stored away, not really special in looks, but still, a memento that I can't bear to throw away !! Mom placed a couple of slices of our wedding cake in the deep freezer - somewhere, she had read or heard that the wedding couple should share a slice of their cake a year after the marriage. We did eat that piece of cake, although, it was more than a year later. With your Dad being in the U.S. Navy, our early years together involved many moves. The timing of one year for "cake eating" was an impossibility, but, on one of our trips home to Iowa, Mom thawed it out and it was shared.

Red Roses

My wedding corsage, sat and dried in it's original box for many, MANY years. Too soon, May of 1976, bicentennial year, rolled around and you were graduating from high school. Someone sent you red, white and blue flowers in this glass "liberty bell" container. Those flowers withered and were thrown away, but the bell was put up on a shelf, saved, and mainly forgotten. Some years ago, I don't remember exactly when, the dried flower corsage found the "bell" to be a perfect home. Keeping a flower from a bouquet as a memento of weddings, funerals and other special occasions was something my Mom always did. We have all done it at some time or other, I suppose. Mom would place her flower between waxpaper and lay it between the pages of a heavy book to dry. Eventually, it would be put into an envelope and labeled. I suppose this corsage may disintegrate, given another 50 years, but today, it is mainly intact, with memories of my wedding day coming to mind each time I look at it. Its home is the curio end table in the guest bedroom. I wonder what became of Mom's mementos ??