A Fun Discovery

As you may or may not know, Kristen and Matt and their five children live in Brigham City. Matt had to meet with his Bishop on Sunday evening in Bishop Kennedy's home. Matt walked into their home, saw the lamp and asked how they came to have it. The story goes as follows: Bishop Kennedy's family lived in Lovell, and had bought furniture from what will possibly prove to be the Shoshone Furniture Company in Cody in the very early 1950's or late 1940's. The furniture and lamp have always been referred to by the Kennedy family as their Cody furniture. When Bishop Kennedy's parent's passed away (I think I am getting this right, but if not, hopefully Kristen will help me out), the furniture and lamp were among the family heirlooms that the children felt very emotionally attached to, and so names were drawn to see who would get what pieces. Bishop Kennedy ended up with the chairs (can't remember if Kristen said they have a couch as well) and the lamp. When Matt saw the lamp, he was sure it was Kristen's Grandfather who made it. Kristen goes visiting teaching with Bishop Kennedy's wife, and so today she was able to take some pictures and now we can enjoy them. It was particularly fun to see Dad's stamp from inside the lampshade. The family still has the original receipt and as soon as Kristen can get a copy of it, I will post that as well. It will tell us how much was paid for these treasures.

Steve will be able to fill us in on the history of the furniture and the lamp. When I talked with him, he told me all kinds of things I didn't know about this world Dad and Mom lived in during the Molesworth years.

Wouldn't Dad have been in awe to think that there are people out in the world who treasure his work to the extent that it is considered a treasure for them. I think this is just another tribute to our Father who never really knew how beautiful his work was, and to Mother who encouraged and supported him in doing something he loved to do.

Velna in the blue suit

Would this be the blue suit?

The Mystery!

Upon my grand arrival home from my unplanned week away, this was waiting for me at the back door. How classy! The attached note stated that the "lost" had been "found".

Lost refers to Mother's hand pushed cultivator which Ann, Steve and I appropriated to use for imaginary transportation for cats and dolls, via train, car or pony. Since it was a favorite, there were occasional squabbles and some coveting when someone else had it.

One day Mother was canning beets and her hands were stained with juice. Steve had the cultivator, I wanted it. I took it and hid it behind the garage door and he told Mother. I reported to her that I didn't take it and Ann said she didn't take it. I was more convincing at lieing than Ann was at telling the truth. Ann got spanked with beet stained hands.

I did confess to Mother much later and I have often felt that I owed Ann for the pain she endured. And now I feel that I owe Steve his lost turn to play with my new cultivator.

In the meantime, it will reign in my garden and each time I see it, I will think of each of you and how you have loved me........but not more than I love you.

Thank you to all who have made this reunion possible.

Fiesta Dishes

I think most of us have at least one piece of the original Fiesta dishes from Mother and Dad's collection. Please give me the background on how we came to have these dishes.

A Few Fun Judy Pictures

The big dance! This picture was taken the night Bob asked Judy to marry him. She loaned this dress to me for the Senior Prom. Note the "glass" slippers.

This picture is fun - it shows a little corner of the Penrose house kitchen, and Judy, very carefully studying something. I believe this picture was taken the summer of 1959.

Summer of 1959. Judy and I had made these "cute" outfits - shorts and a nifty top. These were made with Mother's permission. The shorts were true shorts, as opposed to knee length shorts. Judy led the way in this project and I was a willing follower. This is another fun picture of Judy, as well as the Penrose kitchen, modernized (i.e. electric stove and running water).
I always loved this picture of Dad with Judy and me. Judy set such a great example for me - she has always been a neat dresser and worked really hard to help me understand how to follow her lead. Her dress is one she had made, my gorgeous blue suit is one that Velna passed on to me. I felt very grown up in it.

Whew! It was so good to have a "Judy" sighting last night. Even though she sounded tired and seemed to be looking forward to getting some good sleep, it was reassuring to hear her voice. I couldn't find any appropriate flower pictures to send to her, but I had a few minutes this morning and went on a hunt for a couple of Judy pictures that would be fun to share. Welcome home Judy!

More Ice In the River

Two more wonderful shots of the great river from this winter. The ice is daunting, but doesn't nature have the most pleasing color schemes? And what is that house doing in the background?

Just Words

As I am going through more "stuff", I ran across a book titled "Golden Treasury of Songs and Lyrics". On the inside cover it is stamped "Big Horn Academy Library" and was published in 1915. It is an amazing collection of poems, etc., especially knowing what things were considered appropriate to discuss in her home during Mother's growing up years. When whistling was considered inappropriate, this little book certainly seems to indicate that literature was quite another matter. As I glanced through the different poems I wondered which ones caught Mother's eye as she did her homework. I also wondered if Grandma knew what Mother was reading - so many of the poems are of love lost, passion, and all kinds of emotions that were perhaps ok to read about, as long as they were written by people like Shakespear, Wordsworth, Burns, Lindsay (who?), Moore, Shelley, Keats, to name just a few of the better known authors, whose works are included. One of the poems is titled "A Ditty". How many times did we hear that word?
I wanted to share just one of them with you, and you can wonder, with me, if this is one that Mother read with a twinkle in her eye. For any man who may read this, I mean no disrespect, but because you knew Mother and Dad you probably will appreciate this a little more.

ADVICE TO A GIRL

Never love unless you can
Bear with all the faults of man!
Men sometimes will jealous be
Though but little cause they see,
And hang the head as discontent,
And speak what straight they will repent.

Men, that but one Saint adore,
Make a show of love to more;
Beauty must be scorn'd in none,
Though but truly served in one:
For what is courtship but disguise?
True hearts may have dissembling eyes.

Men, when their affairs require,
Must awhile themselves retire;
Sometimes hunt, and sometimes hawk,
And not ever sit and talk:-
If these and such-like you can bear,
Then like, and love, and never fear!
(By T. Campion)

More Treasures

In an attempt to put together a little bit of history behind some of the things I have in my "treasure cabinet", I need some help. If you know any of the story behind these two treasures, will you please come to my rescue. Anything you can tell me about the bowl or the salt and pepper shakers would be appreciated. And if we end up with more than one story about either or both items, that will just make them a little more intriguing. Thanks a bunch!

University of Wyoming Normal Training Diploma - 1929

Click on this to see the date and signatures. It is interesting that 146 personnel from the University of Wyoming faculty and administration signed this diploma. Among those signatures are: Arthur Griswold Crane, Ph.D. (was he the President, Dwight?), A.P.Vass, Agronomy, S.H. Knight, Geology, O. C. Schwiering, M.A. in Education, who later became an artist in Jackson Hole, S.S. Nussbaum, HIstory, and Clara Bowman, Education. Dr's. Vass, Knight, and Nussbaum were still at the University when I attended 1953-55. (I knew Dr. Vass because I edited his writings - I had geology from Dr. Knight, and ancient history from Dr. Nussbaum. The name Bowman is one that we heard from Mother - she lived at the Bowman home, and earned her board and room by being a "maid" of sorts. (The experience was not one that she was fond of recalling.)

A Very Icy River

This is a 2009 version of our old river of where we called home.