HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM

Our Mother out in the garden with her pole beans. When we were growing up, I can remember every February, the Burpee seed catalogs and others coming in the mail. They were laid out on the dining room table where she made notes, marked pages, and wrote her seed orders for spring planting. She could tell you all the names of the flowers and shrubs and instilled in us an appreciation for the outdoors, the love of birds and nature, the mountains and the trees.

Below: she's the tall one in the back. Was this a photo for a vintage edition of Sports Illustrated?

Happy Birthday, Mom. Today would have been our Mother's 90th birthday. She loved life, gardening, and little children. She revered nature, lived her religious beliefs, and celebrated her family. Today honors and celebrates her life.....................

Our Mother posing with her Mother, Grandma Still, out on their property. Grandma Still owned many acres.......great place for kids to run and hide and play, lots of trees to climb. Must be spring time.

1938

I don't remember what this occasion was.................hope it wasn't her wedding dress! When I saw this photo, all I could think of is how she always told me, "Don't forget to dance! And put rosemary in your hair."

My Aunt Faith, Mother, and Aunt Vivian 1938

Aunt Faith, Mother, Pa, and Aunt Vivian 1938

Our Dad in Hawaii

This is one of my favorite photos of her being playful and coy. Below is the handsome Italian she fell in love with. She didn't want to fall in love but.................

Grandma and Grandpa Still

Grandma and Grandpa Still, again. We never had a chance to know him because he died when our Mother was 18. They're not that old in this picture but I guess that's what having 12 children will do to you!

Mother and her sister Faith.

I had these photos in a different order but accidentally deleted some as I was editing so this is the way it ended up. With her birthday approaching, yesterday was a very emotionally difficult day for me. Many hours were spent with her through the handwritten letters that I saved over the 28 years I lived in FL. But as I sat and went through these old picture, I knew she wanted a celebration of her life, not sad memories. This time of year, Mom and Dad would have been harvesting their vegetables and the basement would be full of stewed tomatoes, stored potatoes and winter squash, and frozen veggies to carry us through the cold winter months. She spent hours making the greatest zucchini relishes, jams, and breads. These not only fed her family, but were given as gifts and shared with others. The pride that she must have felt in feeding her family from their land. Since I retired and we moved to NC, I'm going to attempt to bake breads this winter but don't hold your breath. Years ago in MA when my children were little and I tried making bread, it came out so hard even the starving winter birds refused it! Today is for you, Mom. Happy Birthday!