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This week I attended a memorial service honoring a fellow club member and friend of my mother’s. As her obituary was read, it was said she was a member of the Young Matron’s Club. Chuckles went up from those in attendance as a remark was made about the club continuing on for years. Why did they never change the name of the club as the members aged? I believe this honored woman was probably the last member of the Young Matron’s Club. My mother was one of the original members of the Young Matron’s Club as I believe the honored one was also on...
It was an unusual 76 degree day Monday and my hubby and I decided to head to the farmstead I grew up on. My cousin had called me earlier in the day and said we needed to come to the home pasture to see the new calves and the first calf heifers when we had the time. I was eager to go. That is one of the things I miss doing since my hubby retired from farming. We used to go out at least once a week to the pastures to check on the cattle. It was extra fun in the fall when the calves would arrive. I enjoyed those cattle and calves checking times....
Currently politics is front and center in many people’s thoughts as this country prepares for the upcoming Presidential election. It seems that over the years, politics and the elections have become more torrid, verbal and targeted. It wasn’t always that way. Growing up in a Republican family, my Granddad and Granny Boyles did not back away from their political views. It seemed my parents followed suit. Granddad and Granny thought highly of President Dwight D. Eisenhower partly because he was a Kansas guy, second was he was a successful general...
Volunteers Wanted! This is a request that seems to be always floating around here and other places. Recently I noted on a social media site volunteers were needed to help with some of the interior construction on the new Jewell County Community Wellness Center. In the local newspaper, a request was made that more volunteers are need to help in the operation of the Ute movie theater, as is the case with a lot of the movie theaters in the area in order to keep the doors open. A recent email gave a shout from the Salina Community Theater that...
John Tucker, Burr Oak, has collected crocks for almost 30 years. His collection now totals 70 and more are expected to be added. John has all of his treasured finds displayed on shelving he constructed in the basement of his and wife Sue's home. As for why he decided to collect this crock-stoneware, he said, "because I became interested in them and like the sight of them." Among his collection are big and little crocks, jugs of all sizes, poultry waterers and even butter churns. The items in his...
I am so fond of the month of February. While officially it’s still not spring, I’m happy with it. My reasoning is simple. There are February dates that are special to me and hold memories of loved ones past and present. I became a mother for the first time on Feb. 4, 1968, when our son was born in the Salina hospital. My husband was on his last semester at Vo-Tech Drafting School at Salina. We were nervous and though we only lived five blocks from the hospital, we practiced several times driving to the hospital. Three sisters-in-law of min...
No mail Monday. No banks open Monday. It was Presidents’ Day! I can remember when President George Washington and President Abraham Lincoln each had their birthdays observed this month. Then they were lumped together to create Presidents’ Day. I guess I’m thankful that Washington and Lincoln still have their birthdays observed in some matter, but their names are not included on most calendars. Recently a media broadcaster went out into the public to ask questions, testing the history knowledge of the younger generation. It did not go well. One...
Happy Valentine’s Day! There are red and pink hearts displayed this time of year. There are those special Valentine’s cards sent and received and welcomed. Beautiful flowers are delivered and gifted to those special Valentines. Then there are the Valentine gifts that can be sentimental or lavish that are treasured. It can be a special time when that important romantic question is often popped. It’s a time when children prepare Valentine boxes and the friendly Valentine cards that sometimes contain candy are delivered secretly. Maybe, inste...
For years parents, grandparents, teachers and day care providers, have been encouraged to read books, stories and poems to children. My mother often read to me and sometimes when my father had time, he too would do so. I loved hearing all those stories but mostly for some reason I was drawn to the nursery rhymes. I don’t even know if those nursery rhymes are read today to children as I suppose some of them and their wordings are considered unacceptable for children’s ears, but for me and those children growing up a few years back, they hol...
Currently our country roads are sloppy, mushy and rutty making it difficult to travel on. All the rain followed by snow, then freezing temperatures and now receiving warmer temperatures have the roads thawing, snow melting and for the next few days will make driving on them difficult. Even with a four-wheel drive vehicle, getting through the roads is questionable. Hopefully with the predicted temperatures getting up into the 50s and maybe even 60s, it will dry out the roads. That’s the way it is living in the country. Usually our native rock r...
Sunday morning did not work out as planned. My farmer husband had gone another direction than I was wanting to go. I prepared to attend church up north. Since church had been called off last Sunday because of the weather, I was looking forward to attending but when I went out to start our car in the freezing weather, it refused to start! So no church attendance for me. I was a little down considering the weather and not able to have fellowship time and worship with friends. By late afternoon, my spirits seemed to pick up as it was time to...
This week there seems to be three main subjects being considered. They are the results of the Iowa Caucus, who will the Chiefs be playing in the next division game, and snow...when will it quit, when will school be held again, and if the country roads will ever get fully open. Snow is one of the topics perhaps because we haven’t seen this much snow on the ground in a few years. But for many, being home bound in the last three or four days is stressful. We are ready for a break in the weather. We have seen lots of snowy pictures and perhaps h...
Monday, looking out the window, there was snow covering everything, even the country roads. It was a much needed wet snow and floating down were the biggest snowflakes. The limbs of the trees were covered, the roofs of the farm outbuildings were glistening with snow. Even the cattle in the lot near the barn had snow covering their backs but it didn’t seem to bother them as they munched away on a bale of grass. It was hard to tell the boundaries of where the sky ended and the land began as clouds and snow seemed to combine the lines. In the c...
After Christmas thoughts turned to remembering special Christmas gifts from the past, including childhood years. It was during the week after Christmas while still on school vacation, that children got the chance to enjoy and play with their new Christmas gifts. I remember some of my special childhood Christmas gifts. Of course, my sisters and I mostly received dolls. My dolls were nothing like the girls receive today as they didn’t talk, didn’t drink from a bottle and then had to have their diapers changed. They didn’t look like thin model...
A nonfictional book, Sod and Stubble, written more than 90 years ago about a local family's pioneer history in Osborne County, Kansas, is being brought to life in a new film. The book was first published in the 1930s by Professor John Ise, telling the true story of his parents, Henry and Rosa Ise, pioneer settlers, on their homestead two miles west and a mile north of the present town of Downs. The Ises would raise their 12 children on their farm. Professor John Ise, taught at Kansas...
It’s time to change the calendar and begin a new year. 2023 offered some challenging times for our family but it also offered some rewards. We had a granddaughter graduate from high school and head off for college at K-State. Another granddaughter was married and we finally gained a grandson. Recently another granddaughter graduated from Fort Hays University and went right into a teaching job. Who knows what 2024 will hold? It looks like at least two wars will continue. Iceland is having some nasty volcanoes and the conflicts will go on a...
This bit of information was recently noted and thought it should be shared, “Time is precious. Memories remind us that nothing lasts forever. Enjoy life and remember, don’t count the days. Make the days count.” This sounded like something we all need to be thinking on especially during the holiday seasons. We take so much for granted these days. We need to enjoy times with the grandparents, the parents, the aunts and uncles. Children may be wishing they could hurry up and learn to walk, talk, get through school, but time does fly and all too so...
A lot is being added to the list and every time you think all the “need to do” things are covered, one or two things pop into your mind. Christmas cards are all addressed and ready but then you remember one or two others that didn’t get included, so the Christmas cards are once again gotten out. The list of Christmas gifts is reviewed. A loved one’s gift has not arrived yet and so the worrying begins...Will it get here in time or should a substitute gift be purchased? The gift wrapping paper is strung all over the kitchen counters and just wh...
A classmate, friend, and neighbor has left us. A trooper to the end, in recent days she lost her battle with cancer. She will be missed by all that knew her. I was her classmate from 8th grade through high school graduation. In school, she was good at the few sports then available for girls. Our senior year, in home economics, we took our Betty Crocker tests to see what would make a good career for each of us. When we shared out results from this test most showed we’d make a good teacher, homemaker, secretary, business owner, etc. but this spec...
There was a statement recently shared about grandchildren, “some of the greatest blessings call us Grandma and Grandpa.” Grandparents certainly appreciate and agree with that statement. I know I do. Over Thanksgiving weekend, families and friends came together. That included grandparents with their grandchildren. It brought back precious grandparent memories of our past family times together. Thoughts came to mind of the joy on my grandmother’s face when a new grandchild was placed in her arms as she would rock back and forth, cuddling the l...
Whether you travel over the country roads, city roads, go short or long distances, or even if you remain at home hosting the family dinner, it is hoped you have a happy and thankful Thanksgiving Day. Thanksgiving Day may be extra special as family and friends get together, while watching the annual Thanksgiving Day Parade on television, or preparing to take in a great football game. The Thanksgiving meal is a special one and the cook sometimes is the least recognized as several trips are made to the grocery store collecting needed items and the...
A cousin left our family recently and though he died, the memories of him remain in our hearts. I am blessed to have so many cousins because both sides of the family had numerous children and from them came a lot of offspring. Dr. Suess said it best, “Sometimes you never will know the value of a moment, until it becomes a memory.” I’ve found as I age, I’ve had parents, aunts, uncles and now cousins die. Oh, I always knew they were important to me and other family members but we think we will always have them around to talk to, to give us hugs,...
The country roadways in most areas locally have become bumpy and are now rough for traveling. A driver has to watch out for pot holes filled with nothing but rock dust along the roads. I’ve been told, the rock road conditions were brought on by a really dry year, and recently from harvest trucks hauling grain into the elevators. It is hoped the road conditions will improve. Regardless of the native rock country roadway conditions, my husband and I decided to take a route homeward from Superior that I hadn’t traveled for some time. It brought ba...
It’s soup weather! With this week’s cold snap, it’s time to create one of my favorite and easy meals. To top things off, delicious soups make my husband and family happy this time of year. Soup may be made in a crock pot in the morning and enjoyed for supper. A big pot of tasty soup or stew can also be made on top of the stove. A pot of soup can last for two to three meals. I’ve heard it said that soup tastes even better the second or third time around. I’ll share some of my favorite soup recipes and some that have been passed down to me fro...
Shopping on a Saturday afternoon is nothing like it used to be. A drive down the main street shows only a few vehicles parked and in some towns, the main street is bare on Saturday afternoons. Several of the stores display closed signs and advertise they now close at noon, or mid afternoon. Thank goodness the grocery stores are open. Even during week days, unless a person knows for sure, phone calls may be needed to be made before making a trip into town. It is not certain some stores or eating places are open that day. These stores or eating...
