When my sister and I were little, several summers during the 1950s, we farm girls spent a week with Grandma Leora Wilson in Guthrie Center. Grandma would have been in her sixties.
Great Grandmother Goff, Leora’s mother, was still living then, maybe visiting her Omaha sons and their families because Gloria and I both remember sleeping in Great Grandmother’s room.
The house at 505 North 4th Street had only two bedrooms. There was also a bed in the open basement, but we children never slept down there.
One year when Mom and Dad came after us, I decided I wanted to stay another week. Oh, I wish Grandma had kept a diary in those days because I don’t remember how she kept me busy. I was crocheting by then, so I bet she helped me make a doily or other project. She had plenty of doilies and antimacassars in the living room.
Grandma never learned to drive so I suppose we walked downtown for her many errands. We probably visited Blanche Fell next door, or Lena Rumelhart, whose name was fun to say, the way it rolled around in my mouth.
I do know that one morning Grandma made me a waffle, all of my own. Mom made waffles at home in a big square waffle iron. They broke into four smaller ones. But Grandma’s waffle baker was round. The delicacy just fit my plate and I got to eat the whole thing. Not only that, but her syrup was in the cutest Log Cabin tin. Even better, I used a small red-handled fork to eat it with. Talk about feeling special!
I still have those little red-handled utensils, two forks and two spoons.
Do you have memories from childhood, one on one, with one of your grandparents?
Wonderful memories of a wonderful person, Joy.
People today don’t understand how we entertained ourselves without all the modern technology of today. Imagination is lost.
I rarely had one on one time with her, so this is a precious memory. Thank you, GP!
It’s amazing what details we remember from childhood–yet we can’t remember important things in the present! (But I’m certainly glad for the memories of those little details!)
But that’s what makes us older folks more valuable! Thank you, Dennis!
I love your round-waffle-memories, Joy and the fact that you still have those sweet red-handled utensils. Love it! Having bits and pieces of everyday items from generations past – artwork, photos, bowls, afghans, a crazy quilt – makes me feel grounded and more “at home”. Thank you for sharing! My new favorite post from you! 🥰🥰🥰
I went with Mom and her sister one day when they sorted at Grandma’s. As soon as I spotted the little forks and spoons, the waffle day showed up from the past! Thank you, Vicki. Havin’ fun with these!
So good! So many stories and beautiful memories waiting to be shared. Everyday objects are magical! 🥰
Round waffles and a tin of Log Cabin. Such memories.
Doesn’t take much, does it, Don!
I wasn’t blessed with living grandparents. I am a first-generation Canadian. Both parents left their homes in central Europe at young ages and likely lost their parents during WWII. I love reading your stories. They sort of make up for the hole in my history.❤️❤️
Oh Gail, my heart goes out to you. I prayed that my little stories would bless someone, but I didn’t know what that would look like. You have blessed me with your lovely note.
Loved those weeks with my grandmother, too. Special times.
Alas, we grew out of those days quickly after joining 4-H, with projects to ready for the county fair.
I used my grandmother’s waffle iron for nearly 45 years after she passed!.
Oh Annette, how dear!
What happy family memories!
Thank you, Liz. I rarely spend time with her one on one, so maybe that was a big part of it. When we were together, it was always with mom, so always three generations, or four while Great Grandmother Laura Goff was still living!
You’re welcome, Joy.
Totally cool. I remember those Log Cabin Syrup tins. My dad was fixing fence at an old ranch once, and they had an open pit trash pit. There were dozens, if not hundreds of those tins in various states of repair. I collected about a dozen, repainted them, and used them for houses on my model railroad.
Oh, don’t you wish you had a photo of that! Thanks for such a great memory, Rich!
Oh, the thought of Grandma Leora’s waffles with Log Cabin syrup is making my mouth water. 🙂
When I first wrote it, I did just that! I can’t eat gluten anymore, so it’s trickier, but they had pumpkin in them. Yes, I have a round waffle iron!
I can’t eat gluten either, so I make pancakes with a nut four mix. My grandchildren love them. I don’t have a waffle iron.
Aha, I’ll check into that. I use oat flour for about everything.
Certainly the small round waffles resonate with me. My grandmother fixed those and she had a little carousel with flask-type bottles containing a variety of syrups: blueberry, maple, strawberry, honey perhaps. Yum! I also remember them giving me and my brothers Zebco fishing rods for Christmas when I was about 5. Grandpa took us fishing for bluegill at the Little Rock Capitol. There used to be a lake out front (long gone). Grandpa also filmed us playing in the kiddie pool and shower sprinkler in their yard. We loved to watch the film in reverse as the splashes fell into the pool and kids jumped out backwards!🤣
What delightful details, Eilene, even the brand of fishing rods. I wonder whether your grandpa’s film still exists!
My cousin may have them, but he’s not communicating with family anymore.
Sad, isn’t it. . . .
Yes, indeed.
Those are wonderful, heart warming memories, Joy. ❤️
Thank you, Tim. Finding the little spoon and fork did it!
[…] Waffles with Grandma Leora by Joy on Joy Neal Kidney […]
Joy, a delightful post in celebration of those special moments with our grandparents and the treasures of keepsakes. Your waffle sounds delicious and love that you still have the cutlery. I have so many memories of my grandparents but a one on one with my grandmother is me joining her in the cellar as she baked. The oven was in the wall and she made a special round bread which is now sold all over Sweden. I sat and watched her in awe, hands flying, flour added en masse, no measurements, the heat unbearable on the hot summer’s day yet she barely seemed to notice. I was shaking in anticipation as the bread came out of the oven and allowed to eat one – yummy!
Oh, Annika, thank you so much for your delightful memory of your grandmother!
This is fascinating, Joy. Waffles were unknown to my as a child in the UK. And I only remember my maternal grandmother who was a formidable woman, very uncommunicative. But she had a lot to deal with; my grandfather was gassed in the first world war and she looked after him. I wrote this some years ago: https://tinyurl.com/2ajjtms8
Oh my, Judith, how poignant.
Lena Rumelhart was my grandma!
Oh, what fun! She was a good neighbor of Grandma Leora’s! Did you know who Leora was? She lived at 505 N. 4th Street for four decades!
I’m not sure. The name sounds familiar. Your blog and books sound very interesting! I am going to read through everything! I’m always interested in reading about my hometown! Shared with my cousin too. He enjoyed the mention of our grandma!
What fun! Grandma Leora lived in the little white house across the street to the NW of your grandmother’s. The people who bought it also bought the tiny house on the corner, took it down, and expanded Grandma’s house til you wouldn’t recognize it anymore! https://joynealkidney.com/2024/05/30/youd-never-recognize-grandma-leoras-small-white-house/
Loved this! I have fond memories of staying g with my grandma in Redfield and she would make waffles for us for breakfast! Such a treat!
Thanks, Deb. A wonderful memory!