Tag Archives: Family Memories

Let’s Eat-Part 1

16 Jun

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

Credit ChurchArt

I think most of us have a “favorite place” where we like to eat.  For some, it’s at home with all the home-made cooking we like to do, or like Mom used to make.  I’m from the generation that came from that.

My family – Thanksgiving 1956

To eat “out” was a rare and precious privilege.  There wasn’t a lot of money to throw around in my parent’s house, so we only ate out at special times.  That got better as time went on, and going to the local Furr’s Cafeteria for lunch after church services became the norm.  And we loved it.

Furr’s was known as the best grocery store in Albuquerque at the time, so when they added a cafeteria, we were ecstatic.  And the food was good.  We’ve eaten in many a “cafeteria” in past years where the food was only passable – and they didn’t last too long.  But Furr’s was an exception.  I’ve just checked online and found that it is now located in cities and states other than Albuquerque and New Mexico (Colorado, Texas), but it is still in existence – now known at Furr’s Fresh Buffett.

Credit Google Search and Furr’s website

My family also loved to eat Mexican food, and Albuquerque was loaded with just such places.  Some of our favorite Mexican restaurants were in Old Town – either La Placita 

Credit Google search and explorall50.com

Credit Google search and Pinterest

La Placita was known for the trees growing inside some of the rooms or La Hacienda.

Credit Google Search and Pinterest

They were practically next door to each other in Old Town, and only a few minutes from our church, so that was also an after-church place to eat.  Of course, those were highly “touristy” restaurants, and they seemed to take turns having “good” food and “not so good” food.  When one wasn’t too good, the other one was.  And then it would take a change and we had to guess which one to go to that next time.

But then a really good Mexican restaurant opened its doors, called El Pinto.

Credit Google Search and b.zmtcdn.com

It opened after Fred and I married and moved away (1961), but Mother kept telling us it was her favorite place to eat.  So we always went there when we visited Albuquerque.  It lived up to Mother’s reviews.  I just checked online and found it still in business with many glowing reviews. 

We lived in a house just two doors down from a main auto artery, Lomas Blvd.  If I walked to Lomas, and turned right, there was a little strip center there, with a small hamburger joint on the end of it.  I don’t remember the name of it, but they made the BEST hamburgers there!  They put chopped onions and mustard on their burgers, and wrapped them in wax paper, creating an aroma that I’ve never found since then.  I think the nearest aroma to that I’ve found is when we were in Texas and ate Whataburgers.  They are the best!  And their burgers come the closest to that little burgers shop I’ve ever found.  I really loved that place.

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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My Big Brother

10 Mar

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

Repost

Today is a special day in my family’s life – it is my big brother’s (Bill Lites) 86th birthday!  In honor of him, I would like to repost this that I wrote about him in 2013:

There’s a lot I don’t remember about growing up in New Mexico.  I remember my best girlfriend (down the street….through the neighbors yard….down the alley to her back yard) and some of the good times we had.  She now lives just an hour-and-a-half away from me, and we see each other occasionally.  She tells me that she probably wouldn’t be a believer today if it weren’t for my parents picking her up every Sunday morning to take her to church with us.  I have no memory of her in our car.  I remember her at the church and at the functions we did together.  But not picking her up.  Very selective brain I have, don’t I?

Photo credit – Google search

I do remember that Bill and I used to fight like the proverbial cats and dogs.  Nearly drove our mother to distraction sometimes.  I’m sure he didn’t care to have his bratty little sister trying to tag along very often.

Of course, all that changed when he grew into the age that – all of a sudden, GIRLS were a VERY interesting phenomenon to him!  He would ask me what I knew or had heard about that particular girl.  And what about this particular girl – what do I know or have heard about her.  I really don’t remember many of his “girlfriends” until DiVoran came along.  But that’s another story unto itself.

Thanksgiving 1956 – Bill and DiVoran – photo credit Jessie King

I have a couple of pictures that still make me chuckle every time I see them.  We were both a couple of cut-ups in our day, and these pictures prove it.  Weren’t we cute?  I came upon these pictures many years ago, and had them blown up and sent them to Bill as a Christmas present one year.  I think I heard him laughing all the way from Florida to Virginia!

1949 – Albuquerque, New Mexico – photo credit Agnes Lites

1949 – Albuquerque, New Mexico – photo credit Agnes Lites

I have a couple of pictures taken at Bill’s 10th birthday party – and once again, I wormed my way into the festivities.  Looks like none of the boys were paying any attention to me.  But then, what 10-year-old boy pays attention to a 6-year-old girl?  Some of these boys were neighborhood friends, some were school friends, and some were church friends.  And Bill still keeps in touch with some of these boys.  Those life-time friendships are treasured.

March 10, 1948 – Albuquerque, New Mexico – Daddy inside the front porch – photo credit Agnes Lites

March 10, 1948 – Albuquerque, New Mexico – photo credit Agnes Lites

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BIG BROTHER!  I LOVE YOU!!

From your (formerly) bratty little sister

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Christmas is Coming-Part 6

7 Jan

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Even though Christmas has come and gone – as has the New Year celebration – I would like to continue describing my Christmas decorations – around the house, the neighborhood and our church building.

Therefore:

Here is the kitchen counter, and the decorations I have there.  I have taken to attaching the Christmas cards we receive to the top counter.  We receive about 100 cards, and it’s difficult to find other places to put them.  I usually have a candle in either this snowflake holder or a swirl – either a red or green candle.  As for the “gingerbread” man – It was full of some kind of candy when given to us years ago, but now I have it full of red-hearts (hot cinnamon candies).  I think it makes a cute decoration.  

As for the white candle, it was made by a very good friend, and given to us one Christmas as a present.  Since our grandchildren (now adults) used to come to visit us at Christmas time, that white candle, wrapped in greenery, was always out.  And so our granddaughter came to associate Christmas at Granny and Grandpa’s house with that candle.

One year, I decided to just place the greenery around what I usually have in that spot.  When our granddaughter came in and saw that, she exclaimed:  “that’s just not right!  Where’s the white candle???”  So I put away the other item and got out the white candle.  And it’s been on the counter every Christmas since.

I guess the main item in the family room is the entertainment center.  Here’s a picture of the top of it, which is the only part of it decorated.

As you can see, I have used the gold tinsel garland to top it off.  The two trumpeting angels I purchased  a few years ago, and delight in them each year.  The center multi-colored pyramid I purchased while we were in Germany.  Many of the glass balls have broken through the years, and I have purchased others to take their place.  

On either side of the entertainment center are our two stereo speakers.  We purchased some candle holders while in Germany, which I treasure.  We put them out – with candles – every year.

Next to the entertainment center, is a bakers rack that I call a “birdcage” – don’t know why I call it that, just seems like one to me.  

In previous years, I wrapped greenery around it, but like this “candy cane” look much better.  The top shelf supports a Disney count-down “calendar” that we purchased from the Christmas store at Disney Springs a few years ago.  I try to change it out each morning.  The second shelf supports a figurine from the same place – just because I liked it.  the two Disney plates I purchased from a lady here in Hunter’s Creek who was selling them.  One is from 1997 and one from 1998.

Going down the hallway is this little gem.

Some years ago, when our daughter Janet was working for Disney, she gave us this set of Disney characters.  I always wanted some way to display them.  A man in our church is a master of wood working, and he made this shadow-box for me.  The figurine on top is of Mickey perched on top of his “house” as it was in Magic Kingdom years before, and was given to us by a good friend who worked with Disney.  Just a short garland on this one.

This little decoration tickles my fancy when I put it up.  I saw it in a magazine many years ago, and purchased it.  “Up On The Rooftop” comes out every Christmas, and I get a kick out of seeing it every year.

Next time I will post the decorations around our neighborhood.

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Christmas is Coming-Part 5

31 Dec

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

Well, Christmas is behind us, but the decorations are still up.  Fred likes to leave them up until January 6, or The Three Kings Day.  I don’t mind – it’s only one month each year, and we like the decorations.

Back to our living room/dining room…early on in our marriage, when we were poor, and I didn’t know how to decorate very well (not sure I do even now!), I went for “simple,” and would just lay or drape gold garlands across some of the furniture – like I’ve done here with our teak-wood sideboard:

and other places around the house, as will be shown in other pictures.

There is a “runner” on the sideboard above – we purchased that from a vendor in Rothenberg, Germany, on our Viking River Cruise in 2015.  She had a lovely little shop along the main street, and I liked this one.  We remember that shop and owner every Christmas when we put it out.

The next thing to see is our teak-wood dining room table.  I purchased the runners through the mail when we were living in Heidelberg, Germany in the early 1980’s.  They have held up nicely, and I use them every Christmas.  The pinecone wreath I purchased while we were living in Wiesbaden, and have used it ever since.  I really enjoy it.

This is how the room(s) look from the kitchen doorway:

In the short hallway between the living room/dining room and the kitchen is a short wall, where I hang a Disney Advent Calendar (regular calendar the rest of the year).

On the opposite wall, I hang these Christmas stockings (regularly baskets and greenery).

And now into the kitchen/family room/den area.

There is a short wall between the kitchen and the living room, where I hang this Santa figurine (usually German bells).

Opposite that wall, I have what I call a “green bakers rack.”   As you can see, I’ve added some gold garlands to each of the shelves.  The candle in the middle of the top shelf we purchased in Wiesbaden.  It has a topper that holds a wick that comes off and allows you to place a candle inside that can burn.

The middle shelf holds a figurine of the gate to Heidelberg, Germany.  Our daughter, Karen gave that to us many years ago, and we love it, since we lived in Heidelberg for three years.  There is a small electric bulb inside that I have kept lit all those years – and it has never burned out!

The lowest shelf holds a Lennox cathedral, given to us by my best friend quite a few years ago.  It also has a small electric bulb in it, but I only burn it during the evening hours.  The “angels” I purchased some time ago, and are “Hope” “Faith” and “Love.”

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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Christmas is Coming-Part 2

10 Dec

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

I mentioned last time that I would like to describe Christmas decorations – both around the neighborhood, in our house (and others houses we’ve visited), and some of the decorations from years past at our growing-up house and our Aunt Jessie’s house in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and the decorations that our church does each year.

I started last week with the decorations my Mother did around our house, and then what our Aunt Jessie did at her house.

This week I would like to share some of the decorating I did for our house(s) that we’ve lived in.

The first four years of our marriage I don’t think I decorated at all – probably didn’t have either the funds for purchasing anything, or knowledge of how to apply what I saw in the stores and around the area.  Seems like I remember taking a small magazine – Readers Digest size – and folding each page a couple of times in a certain way (I’ve forgotten now how I did it) to make it stand upright, then spray painting the whole thing green. I would then add very small ornaments on it, and call it a Christmas tree!  Unfortunately, I have no pictures of that – only the memory.

So the first pictures I have of anything we did for decorations was when we were in Wiesbaden, West Germany.  The building we lived in had a “competition” with other government buildings for decorations.  This is our building in 1968 – everyone in our building had the same “form” and we added what we wanted in the middle.  I made “Silver Bells” – cardboard bell shapes wrapped in aluminum foil.  Kinda cute.  Our apartment was the top left – at the end of the building.

This second picture is also in Wiesbaden, the following year, 1969 – our last Christmas in Wiesbaden.  It’s a bit difficult to make out the window decoration, but it was a very simple design – sort of a star burst.  I think the center was a paper doily, with “spokes” emanating from the center, with another paper doily at the end of each spoke and some “diamonds” between.  Simple, but we liked it.

Here are another couple of pictures of Christmas morning in our apartment in 1969.  Karen was just three years old here.  You will see our little tree in the background on an end-table.  And then another picture of the small gingerbread house we had.  I don’t remember whether or not I made it or we bought it.  But Karen thought it was a delight!

I don’t seem to have any pictures of decorations until 10 years later – 1979 – when we were in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.  I only have a few from there, but here they are.  The six-plex we lived in was built on a hill, so we have a true “split level” house – lots of stairs, three bedrooms, two and one-half baths.  Not too bad, but they were built very cheaply and were quite noisy and cold.  In any case, here are some of the decorations we did there.

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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The Seamstresses in My House-Part 3

20 Mar

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

While I lived a lot of my growing-up years in fiesta dresses, that was not the only type of clothing I wore.  I have pictures of myself in many dresses and outfits other than the fiesta dresses, but have no memory of whether they were store-bought, or made by my grandmother or mother.  Many of the play clothes I wore, I am sure were made from cotton.  Since sun dresses for a small girl’s body were fairly simple to make, I’m convinced they were home-made. 

1943 – Bill (5) and Judy (2) in Granny’s backyard, San Antonio, Texas

1945 – we had just moved to Albuquerque – I was nearly 4 years old

Since polyester had not been perfected yet as a type of fabric, I’m sure cotton was the way to go.  Here are a few examples. 

1949 – Albuquerque – Bill (11) and Judy (8) – clowning around

1950 – Albuquerque – Judy (9) and my best friend Shirley (9)

1950 – Albuquerque – Judy (9) holding Boots

Again, I’m not sure whether they were store-bought, or whether my grandmother or mother made them.  Most of these were before I had learned to handle the sewing machine.

Here is a white velvet dress that was made for me.  Apparently I was to be a “Junior Bride” in a wedding, and my dress mirrored the bride’s dress.  I was five years old at the time.

1946 – Albuquerque

One reason I think more of my clothes were store-bought, is the ruffles and trim that I see on some of these dresses.  I know, from experience, that those “touches” are not easy to put on a garment.  I remember making dresses for our Karen when she was just a small child.  First of all, she was not happy having to “model” the dress/outfit as I was making it.  Second, I found I could purchase adorable outfits for her from J.C. Penney’s or Sears, with all the trim and ruffles, for less cost than if I purchased the fabric and spent my time attempting to make the garment.

1970 – Wiesbaden, Germany – Karen is 2½

1970 – Albuquerque – Karen (2½) with Oma

As I grew older, many of my more dressy clothes were made from other-than-cotton fabrics.  I’m not exactly sure just what type of fabric was used.  I do know that, like in this picture, it was perhaps a taffeta-type of fabric.  It was a shiny fabric, for sure.  

1950 – Albuquerque – Judy at the old upright piano

1952 – Some kind of iridescent fabric, but softer than taffeta 

I’m not sure just what the occasion was for me to be wearing this dress and holding a candle – perhaps I was in a wedding, and would be lighting the candles?  I seem to be awfully young for handling a lit candle, however.  Not sure what fabric the dress was made of.  I was 11 years old at the time.

1952 – Albuquerque

I actually remember the vest I have on in this picture.  I believe it was a heavier weight cotton, perhaps twill,  and I would wear it most seasons of the year.  It was quite comfortable over a sweater, or over a cotton shirt.  I believe my mother made it for me.

1953 – Albuquerque – the Lites family

I remember that the “Poodle skirt” was the “in” thing at that time.

Credit Google Search and Grace Opulanza

I remember coming home from school one day, and finding that my Mother had made me one – it was draped across the second twin bed in my room! 

1955 – Albuquerque – the “Poodle Skirt”

I was ecstatic!  It was cotton, of course, and made in “gores.”  While it wasn’t exactly that current “type” of poodle skirt, I really liked mine.  I think the design (poodles) was pre-printed on the fabric:  just cut it out and stitch it up.  We made up the blouse to match the color, and I wore a scarf around my neck along with the outfit.  That was a fun thing to wear, for sure!

~~~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~~~

Judy is living in Central Florida with her retired U.S. Air Force husband of 50+ years. Born in Dallas, Texas, she grew up in the Southwestern United States.She met her husband at their church, where he was attending the university in her town. After college and seminary, he entered the Air Force, and their adventures began.They lived in eight of our United States, and spent six years in Europe, where their oldest daughter was born. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years .

  Judy has always been involved with music, both playing the piano and singing. Always interested in exercise, she was an aerobic dancing instructor, as well as a piano teacher for many years, and continues to faithfully exercise at home.

After moving to Central Florida, she served as a church secretary for nearly nine years.Her main hobby at this point in time is scanning pictures and 35mm slides into the computer. She also enjoys scrapbooking.She and her husband have two married daughters and four grandchildren, including grandtwins as well as a great-grandson and a great-granddaughter. She and her husband enjoy the Disney parks as often as possible.

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A Hunting Trip with My Dad-Part 2

9 Feb

A Slice of Life

Bill Lites

In this particular year, the pastor who invited us to stay at his home for the “Special Deer Hunt”, raised his own goats and processed their milk into some of the most delicious cheeses.  It was a small family operation, so I was able to watch the many intriguing stages the milk went through to become cheese.  Of course, I had to try at least one sample (maybe more) of cheese at each stage, to know how it tasted.  I believe I may have acquired my love of all types of cheeses from that experience, which has stayed with me to this day.

Photo Credit: https://www.seriouseats.com/goat/cheese/

As I remember it, the hunt that year went well, and the hunting area was close to where were staying.  My dad and I came across a small herd of white-tail doe on the third day out, and we each bagged our deer.  After we got our deer cleaned and transported back to the pastor’s house, we lashed them to the finders of our 1950 Buick, thanked the pastor for his hospitality, and headed home.

Photo Credit: https://gf.nd.gov/magazine/nov/deer-hunting/

 (This was a very familiar scene during hunting season) 

Our problem started as we were making our way out of the mountains.  We had no idea that it had snowed so heavily on the south side of the mountains the night before, and our big 1950 Buick sedan got stuck.  Guess who got the job of putting the chains on, in all that snow and cold weather?  You guessed it.  It took both of us to get the job done, and when we finally got the chains in place, we were both muddy, soaked, and freezing.  With some very careful driving, we finally made it home, and the deer processing procedures began.

Photo Credit: Ages Lites

My dad had a special arrangement with the local butcher, at our neighborhood grocery store.  The butcher would cut our deer meat into every type of cut we wanted, then wrap, and mark each package.  For this service the butcher would receive a small percentage of the meat.  My dad also maintained a large walk-in freezer, at the meat packing plant downtown, where we kept all of our meat products.  As you might guess, we bought very little beef, and pretty much lived on venison during my growing up years at home.

Photo Credit: https://www.masterfile.com/vintage+butcher/

My mom was an excellent cook, and could prepare the most delicious venison steaks, roast, meatloaf, chili, stew, and hamburgers.  I don’t know about the rest of the family, but I never got tired of venison in any form.  Growing up in the Southwest, deer, elk, antelope, and bear meat were pretty much the common item seen on the dining table for hunting families.  Nowadays, the only “wild” meat available in stores (at least in the south) is the occasional listing for Buffalo Burgers or Alligator Tail.

Photo Credit: http://clipart-library.com/mom-cooking-cliparts.html/

I never got the chance to go Antelope, Elk, or Wild Turkey hunting with my dad, but he went every chance he got.  I remember how pleased he was the year he went Elk hunting (I’m not sure where he went for that hunt). We were all happy for him, when he brought home that large 10-point Bull Elk for us to process.  

Photo Credit: Bill Lites

The thing was huge.  Along with a 10-point white-tail deer head, that elk head was one of only two trophy heads my dad ever had mounted.  The whole family took turns having our picture taken with that massive elk head in our back yard.  

Photo Credit: Judy Lites

All the guys I hung out with at the time came over to take a look at the elk and get their picture taken with that massive elk head.  And, my younger sister, Judy, not wanting to get left out, even got in on that photo shoot.

Photo Credit: Bill Lites

As I Look back on those days now; what great memories.  I must admit that those were some of the best days of my teenage years.  Because of his traveling, I didn’t get to spend much time with my dad during those years, but the few experiences I had, fishing and hunting with him were great.  As I remember, it was a good thing that the hunting seasons were in the colder months of the year, since those hunting procedures took some time to complete, and the low temperatures preserved the deer, antelope, or elk until we could get them home, hung-up, skinned, processed, and over to the butcher.  And of course, I didn’t mind getting out of school for a week!

Photo Credit: Bill Lites

Did you happen to notice my 1955 Harley Davidson Sportster in the background in the picture above?  No, we didn’t take my motorcycle on hunting trips (TOO COLD!) and there was no place to carry the deer.  I just stored it, out of the weather, in our garage, which as you can see was used for other things as well.

Photo Credit: Bill Lites

My Dad Loved To Hunt

—–The End—–

Bill is a retired Mechanical engineer living with his wonderful artist/writer wife, DiVoran, of 64 years in Titusville, Florida. He was born and raised in the Southwest, did a tour of duty with the U.S. Navy, attended Northrop University in Southern California and ended up working on America’s Manned Space Program for 35 years. He currently is retired and spends most of his time building and flying R/C model airplanes, traveling, writing blogs about his travels for Word Press and supporting his wife’s hobbies with framing, editing and marketing.  He also volunteers with a local church Car Care Ministry and as a tour guide at the Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum there in Titusville.  Bill has two wonderful children, two outstanding grandchildren, and a loving sister and her husband, all of whom also live in Central Florida, so he and DiVoran are rewarded by having family close to spend lots of quality time with.

One of Bill’s favorite Scriptures is:  John 10:10

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Letters from Mother Part 16

13 Sep

My Take

DiVoran Lites

September 21, 1983

Last week we went to Dave’s on Wednesday to get the boat and motor on its way home. Lowell and Helen came here on Saturday and spent the weekend with us. She is a nice lady, and we enjoyed her. I was kind of tired, though. It seems like we had been with folks and doing things for a long time.

Ivan and Lowell, Brothers as young men 

Helen has been a widow for twenty-two years, making her living and socializing with other businesswomen. She says this is a whole new life for her. She’s trying hard to please Lowell, waits on him, worries about him, and even hopes to make him look better with a diet. She would marry him in a minute, I think, but he’s running scared and peeks out like a little rabbit, as Dad says. My neighbor, Ruth, said they should live together for a year because people change after six months of living together. Ruth is divorced, while Lowell lost his wife to cancer. 

I hope he goes slow. They both have a lot of adjusting to do. 

Baking a Cake-Photo credit Pixabay

                                                                                            

I’ve gotten myself in trouble a couple of times lately. Ruth brought me a gift-it was a chain cake-I think that’s what it is called. You take some sourdough or raised dough starter, something like that, in a bowl and the recipe and give it to a friend. It rises for seven days, during which time you add sugar and stuff. On the last day, you bake it for forty-five minutes in a Bundt pan, and it’s like a fruit cake. I told her I didn’t want it because I couldn’t remember to do all that stuff for seven days. (Besides, what if I got a cake from everyone? Ha! Ha!). She was surprised at my refusal, but we’re still friends.

Photo credit Pixabay

                                                                    

Then yesterday, I helped with the opportunity table at the Church Woman’s Association luncheon, and when I saw two idols on the table, bells went off in my head; I got goosebumps and went to the leader I was working with. I said, “Those idols have got to go; we can’t have them for sale at a church bazaar. Who do you suppose brought them in?”

 Well, she whisked them into a shoebox and placed it face down on a bench. It seems her husband had brought them to her from Korea years ago, and she had wanted to get rid of them ever since. That’s the way it is with Christians because our guide, the Bible, says not to worship idols, and we take that to mean not to have them around.  The devil loves them. We don’t.  

Last week, when we went to David’s to get the boat and trailer, it had fallen, and it took the men twenty-two hours of labor and one hundred dollars worth of parts to get the boat and motor on its way home. 


That’s all for now, folks.

Love,

Mom

DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn.  She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”

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Letters from Mother 14

30 Aug

My Take

DiVoran Lites

September 12, 1983

Dear ones,

We’re sitting in the master bedroom where the air conditioner is. I’ve been paying bills, and that once lovely balance is beginning to look like a grain silo with a slow leak. We have our tax estimates to pay and car insurance. No problem, it’s done. Just that we did well by renting out the house while we traveled, now it’s time to catch up.

 I’m including a photo of the four pictures that I painted up in Washington State. The two on the right were from Elsie Delp, the teacher in Hadlock. The two on the left came from Liz Duval’s workshops. She has taught for 25 years. (Pictures lost.)

  Before we got back to Los Angeles, we had a hard time keeping the truck running as we drove up over the high range of mountains.  Your Dad thought it might be the high altitude affecting the carburetor. Then it was an hour and a half of bumper-to-bumper driving getting through L.A. Dad got tired, and so did I. and Susan came to the house Saturday, and Dave and Dad took the carburetor off and cleaned it, then the truck ran fine. 

Dad’s not sure it’s o. k. but he wants to go to Salton Sea to get the boat. The trailer is broken down, and Dave was to weld it. But your Dad was worried about how the truck would pull the boat over the Sierras to Salton Sea.  I think I would prefer to stay home. If it’s between 90 and 100 degrees here, it’s bound to be sweltering in the desert. 

Photo Credit Pixabay

Dave sold his dune buggy and got a 13 ft boat with a 15 H.P. motor for duck hunting in Mexico. 

Christ and Jen have an assortment of plastic, heeled shoes in various colors for school. Have you seen that kind of shoe in Florida? They look like they will wear a long time if they don’t get scratched. 

Thanks for having letters here when we got home. It sounds like you are encouraged with your writing. I pray you will have great pleasure with it and some income too. My prayer is not limited. I only ask that you might publish something like Gone with the Wind.

I saw the movie “Tammy Tell Me True”  T. V. I guess I like it as well as you like, “The Wizard of Oz.” It reminded me of a night when grandson Dab was just a little shaver, and I took him to a drive-in movie. He discovered the full moon that night. I shed a few tears, remembering.

Well, I have a chicken in the refrigerator, and someone has to cook it. Guess who? 

Love you Lots

Mother and Dad

Dave and Susan each made the same remark about my paintings. They individually said, “I’m impressed.”  

DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn.  She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”

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Letters from Mother 9

26 Jul

My Take

DiVoran Lites

August 1, 1983

Dear Ones,

Well now, I don’t know when I wrote to you last. It’s a cloudy day here after a weekend of hot sunny days. Waunita and I wear short pants and sleeveless shirts to try and stay cool. Description: Hiking, People, Sea, Relaxation, Women, Holiday, Walk

Photo credit Pixabay

We went to the beach on Saturday and Sunday. Sister Judy is here with us now. It has been a long time since she has seen our brother Smithy. He was almost grown-up when she was born. I prayed for a baby sister, and the Lord answered my prayer, but Smithy being a young man, didn’t seem to take much interest in her.

Photo credit Pixabay

The first day, we went down the trail through the trees and the ferns. The bank at the water’s edge had worn away some. As we came out to the water, we had to hold onto the smaller trees while we carefully made our way down what was left of the bank. 

Photo credit Pixabay

 We stopped at my rock, the black one about the size of a Volkswagen flattened out. It was looking smooth, warm, and clean, showing a purple-black color. We sat on it for a while. I caressed its smooth warmth.  We walked in the wet but more solid sand up to the battery at the park coming out just north of the pier. Along the way, we looked up from gathering white stones just in time to see an eagle glide by. He had a white head and tail. Shortly after that, we saw two blue herons flying over the water together. It reminded me of seeing them on the river at Mendocino.

Photo credit Pixabay
Photo credit Pixabay

The second day at the beach, we went down the same way and turned south toward East Beach. After a leisurely fifteen-minute walk, we came to a humungous old tree trunk with its roots lying on the sand. It was at least four feet around, and if you included the tree itself and the root system, you could see that it might fill a 10-foot square room. We wondered if it would be there for a while or if the tides would take it away.

Photo credit Pixabay

LDescription: Beach, Ocean, Driftwood, Sand, Nature, Paradise

As we turned back to the opening, we saw a young doe who had come out on the same trail. She froze into the background and stayed a long time as we continued to walk toward her. Then our dog Misty saw her, and she saw Misty about the same time, so she ran. I was puzzled about why she weaved so when running until I realized that she was up near the driftwood running on the soft, damp sand. Her tracks were quite deep. I hope she found her way back to the opening by supper time. The deer swim from one island to the next in search of food. The lettuce green seaweed is good for deer to snack on, but she would eventually need something other than the salty water of the straights to drink.

The park was almost full for the sunny weekend, and we enjoyed seeing children running around. They never seemed to walk. We watched an Asian group. They had a momma and poppa tent and a tent for 5 or 10 boys about nine years old. (It just looked like ten boys the way they ran around in circles.)

I went to church again yesterday. That young pastor is so happy he makes everyone else feel happy. 

I’m at Fort Flagler washing clothes. We had to shut the door to the laundromat. Even with my yellow sweater on, It’s cold. As we look out the big window, we can see that the water looks as gray as the sky moving softly. There are no ships or boats this morning. 

Photo credit Pixabay

Dad’s hand healed up fine. He’s getting ready to pull his crab traps.

Love,

Mother and Dad 

DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn.  She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”

Tags: ,

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