I can't believe how long it's been since I last posted here. I have been so busy! But I will give you all a quick update.
Mom has been doing" pretty good for the shape she is in! " :) Quote from Grandma Kropf. I still remember Grandma's classic expressions. After she took the walk to the bathroom and back to her chair she would always breathe a huge sigh of relief and say," Whew!, That's work." Another saying was, "This old lady ain't what she used to be."
But back to Mom now...... She has a good attitude. Usually is happy unless she senses that someone, (like my Dad) is sad and then she gets concerned and sad too. But generally speaking, she seems content except for the times she gets in her head that she needs to go somewhere.
LaRita stayed with Mom while the rest of us went to Dolan's and Dominique's wedding. I still need to get a report from her on how that went.
So just want you all to know, we are still here very much alive. To Uncle Earl, I took your cd to Mom now. She seemed to enjoy the music, but I couldn't tell if she recognized it. I told some of you that I don't know if Mom knows me from anyone else, she did however try to say my name on Monday when we were there and nodded her head when I asked her if LaRita stayed with her the Saturday before. So, you never know......
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
Thursday, September 17, 2015
Still Here
I know I'm very overdue to post again. August was very busy for us getting ready for Marc and Hannah's wedding. So basically Mom got her shower twice a week and we filled in with meals here and there for the freezer.
So even though things got done my mind has been really tied up with other things. The wedding is over and they are on their honeymoon enjoying life.....Marc told us to leave them alone and said he planned to throw his phone in the ocean. So, in spite of the fact that home seems very empty with life busy as it is I managed to keep my nose out of their business, until last night I thought surely we should know they are still alive so I sent him a private message on FB. Just a smile with a question mark. I got a thumbs up back so now I'm happy :)
I have been up to my ears in canning as well. 30 qt. of Green Beans on Tues. plus 17 jars of Salsa. Today we did 24 jars of Salsa and tomorrow we will do sauce for Anna and I both. I love fall when it comes to rain with the perfect cool temperature and then I love the Pumpkin Pies, Pumpkin Cheesecake Bread and Apple Pies and COFFEE!
Fall is beautiful. But I really don't like October anymore. The sun shines warm on the South side of the house in the afternoon and the Box Elder bugs, Asian Beetles and Wasps come out in droves and congregate there. So while I love September I dread October. It seems like Summer takes it's last breath and tries hard to stay, and calls all the bugs for their last rendezvous before they die.
Aunt Sue emailed a few pics of Mom and her brothers I want to share with you all.
Mom sorting through Grandma Kropf's things after she passed away.
Uncle Earl, Uncle Les and Mom
Angie and I went to the folks this morning to give Mom her shower. Pop told us then that Mom had a bad night again last night. She didn't sleep well and he was awake quite a bit but fell asleep and when he woke up she was missing. He found her outside on the porch. She had fallen and couldn't get back up.
After her shower Angie got her all dressed up in one of her best dresses. Trying to make her look like she used to. I tried very hard to comb her hair like she always did. She did look very good. But then it was hard on my Dad to see her looking "normal" when she isn't. EllaMae came down and took a picture of Mom all dressed up so as soon as she gets that emailed to me I will post it for you.
After a talk with Darwin, we decided for a quick fix for Mom's wandering, we could just scoot their heavy couch in front of the living room door so that Mom can't get out that way. The other door is secure. That way Pop can at least get a good nights rest knowing that she cannot get out of the house. So this evening my boys and I ran over and took care of that. All doors secure. It's a good feeling. I am concerned about my Dad and how long he can hold up with the stress of caring for Mom.
So even though things got done my mind has been really tied up with other things. The wedding is over and they are on their honeymoon enjoying life.....Marc told us to leave them alone and said he planned to throw his phone in the ocean. So, in spite of the fact that home seems very empty with life busy as it is I managed to keep my nose out of their business, until last night I thought surely we should know they are still alive so I sent him a private message on FB. Just a smile with a question mark. I got a thumbs up back so now I'm happy :)
I have been up to my ears in canning as well. 30 qt. of Green Beans on Tues. plus 17 jars of Salsa. Today we did 24 jars of Salsa and tomorrow we will do sauce for Anna and I both. I love fall when it comes to rain with the perfect cool temperature and then I love the Pumpkin Pies, Pumpkin Cheesecake Bread and Apple Pies and COFFEE!
Fall is beautiful. But I really don't like October anymore. The sun shines warm on the South side of the house in the afternoon and the Box Elder bugs, Asian Beetles and Wasps come out in droves and congregate there. So while I love September I dread October. It seems like Summer takes it's last breath and tries hard to stay, and calls all the bugs for their last rendezvous before they die.
Aunt Sue emailed a few pics of Mom and her brothers I want to share with you all.
Angie and I went to the folks this morning to give Mom her shower. Pop told us then that Mom had a bad night again last night. She didn't sleep well and he was awake quite a bit but fell asleep and when he woke up she was missing. He found her outside on the porch. She had fallen and couldn't get back up.
After her shower Angie got her all dressed up in one of her best dresses. Trying to make her look like she used to. I tried very hard to comb her hair like she always did. She did look very good. But then it was hard on my Dad to see her looking "normal" when she isn't. EllaMae came down and took a picture of Mom all dressed up so as soon as she gets that emailed to me I will post it for you.
After a talk with Darwin, we decided for a quick fix for Mom's wandering, we could just scoot their heavy couch in front of the living room door so that Mom can't get out that way. The other door is secure. That way Pop can at least get a good nights rest knowing that she cannot get out of the house. So this evening my boys and I ran over and took care of that. All doors secure. It's a good feeling. I am concerned about my Dad and how long he can hold up with the stress of caring for Mom.
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Grandma's Diary
Today was my day to stay with Mom. I was supposed to be there at 9:55 this morning so Pop could be at work by 10:00. He called me before I got left to tell me to bring Steve along because Mom had fallen and he needed help to get her up.
She had gotten out of bed and tried to head out the door before she was dressed this morning. He called to her to stop and he must have startled her because she sat right down on the floor and couldn't get back up again without help. So when we got there he had her all ready with his easy up method and we got her up with no problems.
She sat in her chair without resisting and I gave her something to eat and then she promptly fell asleep in her chair. While she slept I threw in a load of laundry and got busy making some freezer meals.
At some point I remembered that I had found a couple old diaries of Grandma Kropf's written in 1936 & 1956. I wanted to read them and find out how Grandma ran her life. I always admired how Grandma managed to get so much done and always had a clean orderly home. I opted to read the one from 1956 because the earlier one is written in pencil and since I already was having a headache I decided to spare my eyes today.
I found out that my Grandma was a very busy women. She managed to get so much done in a day and they went to town so often I couldn't believe it! And everyday she would say it's been a very nice day. I assume she was refering to the weather but then again...maybe not.
She painted almost every room in her house that year in the Spring of 1956. They had 44 lambs and lost 4 of them. They raised 154 broilers. Some they sold as fryers and some they kept for eggs. They took the eggs to town to sell. She mentioned going to town to do their trading.....not sure what that meant. It was fun to read about the cows that had calves and the cows all had names but the only one I remember now was Daisy. She mentioned the horse that had a colt and Uncle Lester's cow that had a calf.
Barbara made a Rag Doll. I wonder which one that was. I always loved Grandma's dolls. Grandma always did laundry on Monday and Barbara ironed. They did Friday work and Saturday work. She didn't give a lot of detail of what that consisted of, but she scrubbed and waxed floors a lot more than I do. She mentioned making Potato Salad, Pies, Cookies and Cakes.
Uncle Earl turned 5 years old that summer. Several times she mentioned someone who came to play with him I think one of them was named Paul but not sure if I'm remembering right. They had a lot of friends who dropped by and they went visiting often. I envy them all of their friends, it sounds like fun to have friends drop by like that. These visits often included Ice Cream and Popcorn.
Grandpa had trouble with his back that Spring and so my parents came and my Dad planted his corn for him. He had a bad flu that year too and the kids all had the Mumps. Including Barbara and Earl. But Earl only had them on one side. She took the Doctor 6 dressed chickens. Not sure if that was appreciation or payment.
I don't keep Diaries like Grandma did. I get way too bored with mundane everyday details. But I wondered how would my diary look if I did? So let's see...What did I do today? If I was Grandma it would look like this.......
Went to take care of Mom today. Did some laundry and made meals for the freezer (only she would call it a Locker) I made Chicken and Rice, Meatloaf and Corn, Chickenetti and mixed veggies, and some cornmeal Muffins using a White cakemix and a Cornbread mix. They were very good. Pop came back home at 2:00pm. Steve came and picked me up and then we and the kids ran to Richland Center (opps! I go to town too!) Went to Goodwill to look for a vest for Steve but ended up getting belts for the boys instead. When I got back home I took a nap.( Grandma never recorded doing that, She was a wonder woman :) ) Jay Kauffman came over to help Steve look at what's wrong with the Lawn Mower. It will need a new part. Then Steve and Jay had coffee. the kids and I cleaned up the house and then I cooked up the Tomatoes that had to be done.After supper of PBJ's and some Greek Yogurt I headed back to Mom's to help with her shower. Now I cleaned the kitchen and canned the Tomatos and wrote a blog post.
If any of you family can add info to what you remember about 1956....please remember you can comment on these posts. I would love to hear your memories!
She had gotten out of bed and tried to head out the door before she was dressed this morning. He called to her to stop and he must have startled her because she sat right down on the floor and couldn't get back up again without help. So when we got there he had her all ready with his easy up method and we got her up with no problems.
She sat in her chair without resisting and I gave her something to eat and then she promptly fell asleep in her chair. While she slept I threw in a load of laundry and got busy making some freezer meals.
At some point I remembered that I had found a couple old diaries of Grandma Kropf's written in 1936 & 1956. I wanted to read them and find out how Grandma ran her life. I always admired how Grandma managed to get so much done and always had a clean orderly home. I opted to read the one from 1956 because the earlier one is written in pencil and since I already was having a headache I decided to spare my eyes today.
I found out that my Grandma was a very busy women. She managed to get so much done in a day and they went to town so often I couldn't believe it! And everyday she would say it's been a very nice day. I assume she was refering to the weather but then again...maybe not.
She painted almost every room in her house that year in the Spring of 1956. They had 44 lambs and lost 4 of them. They raised 154 broilers. Some they sold as fryers and some they kept for eggs. They took the eggs to town to sell. She mentioned going to town to do their trading.....not sure what that meant. It was fun to read about the cows that had calves and the cows all had names but the only one I remember now was Daisy. She mentioned the horse that had a colt and Uncle Lester's cow that had a calf.
Barbara made a Rag Doll. I wonder which one that was. I always loved Grandma's dolls. Grandma always did laundry on Monday and Barbara ironed. They did Friday work and Saturday work. She didn't give a lot of detail of what that consisted of, but she scrubbed and waxed floors a lot more than I do. She mentioned making Potato Salad, Pies, Cookies and Cakes.
Uncle Earl turned 5 years old that summer. Several times she mentioned someone who came to play with him I think one of them was named Paul but not sure if I'm remembering right. They had a lot of friends who dropped by and they went visiting often. I envy them all of their friends, it sounds like fun to have friends drop by like that. These visits often included Ice Cream and Popcorn.
Grandpa had trouble with his back that Spring and so my parents came and my Dad planted his corn for him. He had a bad flu that year too and the kids all had the Mumps. Including Barbara and Earl. But Earl only had them on one side. She took the Doctor 6 dressed chickens. Not sure if that was appreciation or payment.
I don't keep Diaries like Grandma did. I get way too bored with mundane everyday details. But I wondered how would my diary look if I did? So let's see...What did I do today? If I was Grandma it would look like this.......
Went to take care of Mom today. Did some laundry and made meals for the freezer (only she would call it a Locker) I made Chicken and Rice, Meatloaf and Corn, Chickenetti and mixed veggies, and some cornmeal Muffins using a White cakemix and a Cornbread mix. They were very good. Pop came back home at 2:00pm. Steve came and picked me up and then we and the kids ran to Richland Center (opps! I go to town too!) Went to Goodwill to look for a vest for Steve but ended up getting belts for the boys instead. When I got back home I took a nap.( Grandma never recorded doing that, She was a wonder woman :) ) Jay Kauffman came over to help Steve look at what's wrong with the Lawn Mower. It will need a new part. Then Steve and Jay had coffee. the kids and I cleaned up the house and then I cooked up the Tomatoes that had to be done.After supper of PBJ's and some Greek Yogurt I headed back to Mom's to help with her shower. Now I cleaned the kitchen and canned the Tomatos and wrote a blog post.
If any of you family can add info to what you remember about 1956....please remember you can comment on these posts. I would love to hear your memories!
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