Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day Mom!

My Mom occasionally made "Mother-Daughter" outfits for us to wear.

I still remember wearing this outfit; it was a deep rose colored corduroy jacket and skirt set.
The texture of the soft cotton fabric fascinated me, and I remember thinking that it was the kind of fabric I usually had for pants.

I also remember thinking that I wished it was a lighter shade of pink, that my Mom looked wonderful in that rose shade but that it was too grown up of a shade of pink for me to wear.

I don't recall the hat for some reason. I do remember the purse, and looking at the picture I wonder why those gloves were so big?
I know the picture was taken after church, and I was probably around age 3 or early 4.

For many years Mother's Day was a pretty straightforward event; flowers, a card, church, maybe a corsage. Maybe time with my mom's mother who also lived in town.
The tricky part was figuring out a Mother's Day gift, and then a birthday gift to be given less than thirty days later! In elementary school we usually had an art project we could give as a gift. I remember really trying hard to make those cards and gifts special!

My mom was a 50's mom; stay at home, keeping house, getting dinner on the table, and going to church on Sunday. Being a den mother, a Camp Fire Girl leader, a Sunday School teacher, a PTA (in our case, a "Family and Faculty Club") member, a Bible Study attendee, a cooking class member, a swimming instructor...all those things that women did in the 50's and 60's because their role in life was to nurture a family.

All that Mom did for our family has a dollar value that is currently estimated at being worth $138,095 a year.

And I'm not sure the community involvement is figured into that sum.

I know that is low ball estimate.

But it is a figure to think about.
(Bernie and I did think about this when our children were little.We insured me so our children could be cared for should I have been unable to do what I did as a full time mom.)

The matching outfits were so fun. It was so special to be dressed like my mom, who was (AND STILL IS) well liked by all who knew her. The outfits let everyone know I was her daughter! What a special thing that was.

What a special thing that still is today.
I'm proud to be my mom's daughter.

I'm proud of all my moms. I had one Mom and two grandmothers for 22 years, and then I married and suddenly I had SIX women with some form of "mother" status in my life.

This four generation photo was taken in February 1979, when Laura was seven months old.

She was fortunent enought to have memories of all her great grandmonthers; the first one passing away when she was five, and the last when she was 27 years old.

My mom is in the greenish dress, and next to her in the solid beige dress is Bernie's mom.

Both our mom's are quiet, gentle family oriented women.

Now the other four "grandmothers"....um, not so much.

The red head next to me in the dark blue and stripes is my Mom's mom Vida.

Feisty.

The lady above me in the patterned grey dress and glasses is my father-in-law's mother, Bessie.

Feisty.

The lady in the solid light blue dress is my mother-in-law's mother, Evelyn.

She was the last of the grandmother's to pass away, just last year.

Feisty doesn't even begin to cover it.

The lady in the dark blue is my dad's step mom. She joined the family after my dad was an adult, but I knew her as "Mama Fay." She never had children of her own, and as "The Belle of Memphis", I rarely saw her, but when I did, I knew to really mind my manners.

She: Not feisty. Think "Steel Magnolia."

The four grandmother's were headstrong (including my dad's biological mother Madeline), opinionated, and not to be taken lightly.

Daughter Laura is a lot like all of them!

Someday I hope I will have a granddaughter that will take after her great grandmothers.

Quiet, gentle, kind, and soft spoken.

Whew. That sounds really relaxing!

Now I must go figure out if I'm like MY great grandmothers!

Like Mother, like Daughter.

Or grand daughter.

or great granddaughter!