Books, Books, and More Books

For show and tell Friday hosted by Kelli at There's no Place Like Home, I chose to show you some of my old books I have collected.

Here is an old booklet that in the close up of the second picture
you can see it is bound by string.

It is about a dedication of a civil war monument.

Notice the string down the middle.
It is dated 1865.

Next is a collection of poetry books.
The Children's First Book of Poetry - 1915 A Child's Garden of Verses - 1906
American Poetry - 1923
I love old poetry.

I bet The Big Show brings back memories to some of you.
The Ray's Mathematical Book - 1880 - probably doesn't
Adventures in Color isn't that old - 1930 - but it was published by Milton Bradley and has beautiful pictures throughout

I love this box of Children's books that I saved from a dumpster!
The Animal Story Library is filled with books which are dated 1939 and 1940.
I think I found a treasure box of goodies that day.

In the middle Raggedy Ann and the Deep Deep Woods - 1930 - is another one I saved that day.
Can you imagine anyone throwing these away?
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner - 1895 - and The Littlest Rebel - 1911 - which was dedicated to the memory of General Robert E. Lee

Four more old books
Camp Fires of Napoleon is dated 1854

This is an interesting book - 1893 - about the Chicago World's Fair

I know these books aren't worth much.
But I love old books!
I have many more, but I picked out these to share with you today.
Enjoy

A Snowy Day Inside

I can't believe I didn't take any pictures of our snow.

Charley spent most of the day shoveling and I put seeds in the bird feeders. We had beautiful cardinals, blue jays, juncos, and tufted titmouses eating all day.

We had around 6" of snow with ice underneath. Schools were closed, and finally about an hour before my son David's college class was to begin, his professor called and said class was canceled.

Here are a couple of night time photos of what's currently outside. It is 32 degrees and what looks like a mixture of ice and rain is coming down.

This is where Charley piled up the snow when he shoveled the driveway.

It's a little dark, but I thought the snow on the picnic table looked kind of neat.

and look at this icy bird feeder!

So what did I do today?

I used this...

and this...

to make these...

Only 30 more to go!

When I got married they threw rice at the bride and groom. Now a days they throw bird seed!
But I think that's a good idea, especially this time of year.

Appalachian A B C's

This post is about Appalachian English or Mountain Speech, whichever you want to call it.

People often make fun of the language of the mountain folk of the Appalachians.

But I don't regard the speech of these old folks and mountaineers as bad or poor English.
I regard it as colorful and beautiful .

These mountain people lived in partial isolation and their customs, speech and traditions were passed down through the generations.

Many words are still used today, but unfortunately, this colorful language is on the way out, forgotten and vanishing.

They favored r's, liked to add a to the beginning of a word, put un on the end of a word and took the 'g' out of words ending in 'ing'.


Here are a few for you to enjoy.

A is for All-git-out. He was as big as all-git-out!

B is for Book Read. Well informed, well educated.
is for Beholdin'. I'd be beholdin' to you if you could do that for me.

C is for Crick. A stiffness. I got a crick in my neck.

D is for Druthers.
is for Directly. Later. I'll get to that directly.

E is for (help me here, I can't believe I can't think of an E word)

F is for Fell-off. Lose weight.
is for Fetch. Fetch me a piece of cake.

G is for Gully Washer. Very hard rain. It came a gully washer last night.
is for Guam. a mess

H is for Hesh up. Quiet down.
is for Hankering. I have a hankering for a piece of pie.

I is for If'n. If. I'll go with you if'n it's all right.

J is for Jinly. Generally; usually.

K is for Kiver. Quilt, blanket, etc.

L is for Layin' off. Postponing. I've been layin' off to get the roof fixed.

M is for Mater. A red thing that grows on a vine.

N is for Nary. Not any. I ain't got nary a one.

O is for Order. Ought to. He order go home now.

P is for Peaked. Thin, pale or sickly looking.
is for Peert. Lively, sprightly, pert. You look right peert today.
is for Plum or Plumb. completely. I'm plum tuckered out.
is for Ponm'onor. upon my honor
is for Piece. distance
is for Poke. brown paper bag

Q is for Quair. Strange, eccentric

R is for Rat cheer. Right here. She sat rat cheer.
is for Reckon. I reckon I can do that.
is for Right Smart. A long ways. It's a right smart piece down the road.

S is for Sair. Not sweet. That dill pickle is sair.
is for Swan. Declare to be true.

T is for Tuckered Out. Tired. I'm all tuckered out.
is for Tolerable. How are you feeling Grandma? Oh, tolerable.

U is for ( help me out here, too. Give me some U words)

V is for Vittles. Food.

W is for Warsh. Wash. To clean.
is for Wooden. I'd rather live in West Virginia than anywhere else, wooden you?

X is for (any X words?)

Y is for Yonder. there Our house is over yonder.
is for Young'un. a young child You young'uns are driving me crazy.

Z is for Zackly. Exactly.


How many more can you add to the list? A right smart I'd say.
Let me hear your words, if'n you have any.
I'm all tuckered out and got a crick in my neck.

Milk Glass Collection

For show and tell Friday hosted by Kelli at There's no Place Like Home, I decided to show pictures of some of my milk glass. Go to Kelli's place and see what everyone else is posting for Show and Tell Friday.

Milk glass has been around for a long time. But I'm sure we are more familiar with the milk glass of the 20th century. Some of the many makers of it are Westmoreland, Indiana Glass, Anchor Hocking, Federal Glass, Hazel Atlas, Fostoria, and of course my favorite is Fenton. These companies produced hundreds of thousands of pieces and sold them in bulk in the five and dime stores that were in every small town and village across America.

You could obtain milk glass by saving S & H Greenstamps, which is probably how a lot of our families obtained their pieces. Milk glass was very popular in the 50s and 60s.

I really don't collect milk glass. When I see pieces at yard sales and thrift stores, if I like it, I'll buy it. I have also bought new Fenton milk glass.

On top of my fridge.

In the back is a large Fenton hobnail bowl, in front of it is a Fenton hobnail candle bowl and two made in Japan salt and pepper shakers.

I got all of these at yard sales.

In the back is my punch bowl (I believe it is made by Anchor Hocking), two small vases, a Fenton hobnail sugar and creamer, and a tall candy dish on the left. Does anyone know who made the candy dish? I really like it, but don't know anything about it. All of these items were also obtained at yard sales.

My pedestal cake plate is on the left, a small hobnail vase beside of it, two duplicate covered candy dishes to the right of them (these are the candy dishes I remember from my childhood, everyone seemed to have one. I think they were made by Anchor Hocking) and behind the punch bowl are two tall vases.

Here is a Fenton Silver Crest candy dish, salt and pepper shakers and toothpick holder. All were obtained at yard sales.

A hobnail vase filled with flowers.

My corner bedroom shelf with a Fenton cardinal bell, a Christmas Fenton candle holder, and a Fenton top hat. (I have 2 of these top hats, at yard sale prices I can't pass them up) I love the bell and it only cost me $5.

My Fenton hobnail lamp (we purchased for our anniversary last year - I love it!) small Fenton hobnail vase, Fenton hobnail candle holder (molded inside to hold fat candles or tapers) and Fenton hobnail nut dish.

All but the lamp were found at yard sales. Too bad I couldn't find the lamp at a yard sale.

My cute Fenton St. Patrick's Day angel.

As you can see, I have quite a few milk glass pieces. Most were obtained at yard sales. Milk glass is plentiful in our area and is usually easy to find at yard sales and thrift stores. You can start your collection without putting out too much money.

They are so pretty!
White goes with anything!
They are easy to find and at a small price!
So go ahead and start your own collection!

Uh - Oh

Another list where West Virginia ranks #1.

Are you ready for this?

Of course, if you live in WV, this ranking may not come as a surprise to you.

According to State Farm Insurance, if you live here you have the worst odds on hitting deer.

They calculated this by comparing the number of motor vehicle registrations in each state with deer collision claims.

· 1. West Virginia 1/45

· 2. Michigan 1/78

· 3. Pennsylvania 1/97

· 4. Iowa 1/105

· 5. Arkansas 1/108

The states at the bottom of the list are:

· 47. Nevada 1/1,142

· 48. California 1/1,343

· 49. Florida 1/1,198

· 50. Arizona 1/1,733

· 51. Hawaii 1/10,962

Around here deer are plentiful. At times you can see herds in the fields beside of the road. It is especially dangerous during dusk and dawn hours. We always reduce our speed in certain areas where they are known to accumulate and run toward you, seemingly out of nowhere.

Of course, you always have people tailgating you. We try to ignore them.

Why am I telling you about our state's claim to fame?

Our son just added his car to the statistics. He is doing his part to help West Virginia stay on top of the list.

Is your state in the top five?

How many deer have you or your family members hit? I bet you could tell me some stories.

I think everyone in my family (except for me and Davy) have hit deer at least twice.

They sure are pretty, but they can cause a lot of damage.

Games, Fun, Food, Presents and Friendship

What do you get when you put all the above together in the same room?

A Bridal Shower for Charley and Jennifer.

After playing games, we ate.

Beautifully wrapped presents piled high on the table. Or is it a table? We'll find out below.
The bride centerpiece on the coffee table is the same one I placed on my gift table at my wedding reception when I was married. I found it folded up in my cedar chest. A keepsake from the past.

A throw I made for the couple with their picture ironed on a top square.

The unveiling of the special present my son Andrew made for his brother and Jennifer. It was hid under a quilt with presents piled on it.

A beautiful cedar chest made from Jackson County cedar trees Andrew cut down himself. The corners are dove tailed and a name plaque is on the front with their names and the date of their marriage engraved on it. Andrew branded his initials on the inside.



The future bride and groom.

We all had a wonderful time, wish you could have been there. The wedding is in two weeks.

Made With Love

For show and tell Friday hosted by Kelli at There's no Place Like Home, I decided to show pictures of some of the items my son Andrew has crafted for me down through the years.

He not only makes items for me, but for other people as well. He doesn't have the time to woodwork like he used to. But whenever possible, he loves to go to his shop, get his tools out, and work with his hands.

Here are just a few of my favorites:

Bowls, balls and spoons

A jewelry box that I love. There's even a secret compartment in it.

A little turned bowl with lid

A jelly cabinet made from cherry wood.

A beautifully scrolled knick knack shelf

A wall mount quilt rack for my bedroom wall

A spice rack and towel holder for my kitchen wall

A gun rack he made long ago. It now holds Japanese swords my dad brought back from Japan after WWII

His guns are now held in this gun case he made from over 100 year old red oak. It is beautiful. He couldn't decide what to make with the wood. I said "Andrew, make something for yourself for a change." So he did.

I wanted a glider for my front porch. He said, "Mom, I'll make you one." I couldn't have bought a better built one. He even routed our name on it. It's made out of red oak. We love to sit out there in the summer and watch the world go by.

Hope you enjoyed my collection of some of the things my son crafted with love....and skill.

Come visit my sight on Saturday and see what he made especially for his brother and his girlfriend. We are having their bridal shower on Saturday and I don't want to post the picture until then. It's beautiful.

Joy is Contagious!

They say a picture is worth a thousand words! Here is my picture for the day.

Seems like intestinal viruses, colds, the flu and the blues are being passed around this winter season from one person to another.

Well, this is one thing people won't mind catching from you.

It could be as simple as a smile when you pass someone in the store or in the office at work.

Have you ever tried it? They will usually smile back.
So you've started a chain reaction of smiles.
It's contagious!

Go spread some Joy. It'll make everyone feel better.

I owe this blog post to Dove chocolates and their little words of wisdom in every bite.

Pink and White Boas!

How would you like to have a boa around your neck?

They are just the thing to keep you warm on a cold winter day.

Pick your favorite colors, I just happen to have a pink and white one.

I made these in pink and white and blue and white last fall to sell at a craft show. The blue and white sold because they are the colors of our local Ripley Viking High School. The kids usually snatch these right up!

They are super easy to make.

Buy the thick fleece wherever they sell material. Our local Wal Mart still sells material. You can get it in a variety of colors and patterns. You can even buy it in camo. I always use 2 different colors, it makes it really pretty. If I'm not mistaken fleece usually comes in 60" width, so you could make 2 boas from a yard of material.

Cut 3 strips - each 6 inches wide. You can cut it any length you want, I think mine are around 60" long. For young children make them shorter. Layer the strips one on top of the other and sew down the middle.

Here is a picture showing the 3 different layers.

My old Teddy even looks good wearing one!

They are beautiful and cozy. And did I mention they are very easy to make.

So choose your school colors or choose your favorite colors. Make one for you and a friend. Your grandchildren and children would love one.

Hoped you liked this easy and fun project.