Throwback Thursday - Vacation, Misquamicut 1966

My family didn't go on vacations much.  We used to visit my Aunt Ettie and Uncle Bob.  He was a pastor and they moved around a lot, so most of our "vacations" were going to visit them.  I only remember two real vacations.  One was Lake Wyola in Shutesbury, MA, and the other was Misquamicut Beach in Rhode Island.

It was in August 1966; I was almost 16. We rented a cottage on Lawton Street with my Aunt Ettie and my cousins, Lynda, Bobby, and Donny.  I don't remember my Uncle Bob being there.  I'm not sure why.  The cottage was close enough to the beach that we could walk to it.     

Paul and I drove by it a few years ago and it basically looks the same, except that it used to be white. I can't believe we didn't take any pictures of the inside.  

I can remember going to church the first Sunday that we were there.  We found a little church not too far from the beach.  We always went to church, no matter what.

Our days were spent at the beach and then back to the cottage for dinner.  I don't remember my grandmother going to the beach.  She stayed at the cottage.  She was probably glad for a few hours of peace and quiet, lol.  

My cousin Donny was obsessed with my transistor radio.  There was a song that was popular at the time, Wild Thing by The Troggs;  Wild Thing, you make my heart sing, you make everything groovy. My Aunt Ettie used to try to sing the song and we would get such a kick out of it.

After dinner we would go back to the beach.  I don't really remember too much about that vacation, except one of Dot's friends from work, Joe Zannoli and his family were there for the week too.  I remember having kind of a crush on one of his sons, Robbie.  Nothing ever came of it but it was kind of fun watching for him.  

Towards the end of the week, the Lockerbys came for a visit.  They were close family friends of ours.  

Left to right - Sonny Lockerby, Nan, Jennie Lockerby, Ettie

Their daughter Maureen was getting married that Saturday.  Her fiancé Don Gould was with them, along with Linda's boyfriend Dale Berkey.  We had a big cookout that night.

I'm so glad Dot took these pictures because I'm sure that is why I remember as much as I do.  Pictures are important!!!

Throwback Thursday - My Cousin Lynda and her Kitchen Set

This is my cousin Lynda Lundstrom Brouillette.  It was Christmas 1957.  She was almost 4 years old.

These pictures are from my aunt Dot's slides.  Every time we used to look at them in later years my cousin would say, look at my hair!!  Bobby pins made quite a curl, or maybe that was a perm!

We spent Christmas day that year at my aunt Ettie and Uncle Bob's house in Norwich, CT where he was a pastor of the Norwich Assembly of God church.

Lynda got that kitchen set for Christmas.  I remember being so jealous that she had that kitchen set.  It was made of cardboard and I thought it was the best thing ever!!  She also got kitchen accessories, dishes, food, pans!  Wow!

My cousin Lynda has been having a hard time for the past year.  Her mom has been in an assisted living center/nursing home and is now in Florida near Lynda's brother Donald.  This has been very hard on Lynda.  I'm hoping things get better for her.

****Update - The same day as this post, later in the afternoon, I got a call from my cousin Lynda telling me that her mom, my Aunt Ettie passed away.  The funeral is next Wednesday in Delaware.  So sad, but I know that she is in a better place, by far.

New York World's Fair, and why it's important to take pictures!

Tonight I watched a TV Special on the 1964-1965 World's Fair.  I thought, wow, I'm going to see a lot of things that I remember.

I couldn't believe it.  I didn't remember much of anything!

My aunt Ettie lived in Ossining, NY at the time, not far from the fair.  We stayed at her house for the weekend and went to the fair at least two times.

These are the things I remember about the fair.

- One of the times that we went we brought one of Dot's friends, Stevie Gorski.  I remember Dot being a little upset with her; I don't remember about what.  I think maybe Stevie didn't want to do too much, but I'm really not sure.

- I also remember getting lost going back to Ettie's house and Dot stopping to call her (how much easier it would have been if we had GPS and cell phones back then!).

- I remember standing next to the fountains with my cousin Lynda because of this picture:

This was the ONLY picture that I have of the World's Fair.  Now mind you, my aunt Dot took a lot of pictures.  Not like nowadays with digital cameras and phones, but a lot of pictures for her day, and this is the only picture she took of the fair?  It seems incredible.  In her later years Dot culled a lot of her slides.  Maybe she got rid of some pictures of the fair, but I don't remember seeing any others.

This is why I think it is so important to take pictures; it is a big way that we remember things.

I have a slideshow going on my 27 inch iMac all the time in my family room.  So many times the kids and grandkids go to the computer to look at a certain picture; when and where it was taken and we are able to recall that memory (never mind the grandkids scrapbooks, yearly Project Life, and my blog).  I try to document all of the things that I wish I could remember about my life back when I was a child.

There are two other things that I remember about the fair.  They are the Carousel of Progress and Small World.  These were made by Disney and are now at Disney World.  When we went there the first time in 1980 I remembered seeing them at the Fair.

I know that if my aunt Dot had taken more pictures at the World's Fair I would remember more.

Happy Birthday Ettie!

Today is my Aunt Ettie's birthday.

This is one of my favorite memories of her.  It was the summer of 1966 and we had rented a cottage at Misquamicut for a week.  I had a transistor radio, and the song "Wild Thing" played on the radio a lot.  My cousins, Donny and Bobby loved that song and Ettie used to sing the beginning of it, "Wild thing, you make my heart sing, you make everything groovy."  We all used to love it when she did that.  She was so much fun!

Throwback Thursday - Wait Family in the 1950's

My grandparents, my dad, my aunt Dot, and my aunt Ettie.  We were at Ettie and Bob Lundstrom's home in Norwich, CT for Christmas.

(Note:  my Aunt Dot painted that picture for Ettie).

Throwback Thursday - Thanksgiving in the '50's

Oh my, how times have changed.

How many men eat Thanksgiving dinner in a dress shirt and tie anymore, especially in their own house?

My grandfather is on the far right.  I remember him as a t-shirt and flannel shirt kind of guy.  Not on Thanksgiving, I guess. The guy next to my grandfather is my Uncle Bob, and then my aunt Ettie.  The couple next to them were friends of my aunt and uncle.  I can't remember their names.

I'm so thankful to have these old pictures; slides that my aunt Dot took.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Throwback Thursday - Pumpkin Pie or Squash Pie?

Having this pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving reminded me of past Thanksgivings at my grandmother's house. 

If you follow my blog at all, you've heard me talk of my Aunt Dot's friend Steph.  Well, Steph and her family used to come over on Thanksgiving afternoon for dessert. 

These are pictures from Thanksgiving 1966.


Ettie, Dot, Steph

These are the guys, in the living room, most likely watching football.  The women and kids were either in the kitchen or in the dining room. 

Steph's husband Ray, my Dad, and Ettie's husband Bob

The pumpkin pie that we had this Thanksgiving reminded me of a funny story about Steph and pumpkin pie.  Steph came from New Jersey where no one had ever heard of a squash pie.  Every year my grandmother would make either a squash pie, pumpkin pie or both.  Steph always asked which one it was before she ate it because she loved pumpkin pie but wouldn't touch squash pie.  One year my family decided to play a trick on Steph.  They told her she was having pumpkin pie and when she finished they asked her how it was.  "Delicious" she said.  They all had a great laugh when they told her she had just eaten squash pie!

This year, the day after Thanksgiving, my Aunt Ettie and cousin Lynda came for a visit.  We picked up my Aunt Dot and went to visit Steph.

Steph, Dot, Ettie

 We had a wonderful visit, talking alot about old times.  I brought up the pumpkin pie vs the squash pie and Steph told the story again.  We all had a good laugh! 

Good memories.

Throwback Thursday - Salem, NJ

On the way home from my uncle's funeral in Delaware, we took a side trip to Salem, New Jersey. This was Uncle Bob's second pastorate, and then, again, his last pastorate at the same church, First Assembly of God.

Last year, Paul and I took rides by three out of his four churches. I blogged about Norwich, CT here; Ossining, NY here; and Abington, MA here. The only one I haven't blogged about is Salem, which is probably my favorite.

This is the first church he had in Salem, NJ.



Of course, the front wasn't purple when he had it; it was white. They moved there around in March,  1958. I remember my cousin Lynda saying the first time she stayed at my house for part of the summer was when she was 7, which would have been 1961. We would split the summer up, staying at each other's house. I have so many good memories of that church. We used to walk up the street to where the main street of Salem was and go to the 5 and 10 cent store and come home with all sorts of girl stuff, nail polish, etc. and also paper dolls. I loved the people of the church and they all seemed to love me.

When I was a teenager (1963), they built this church which was a little ways out of the city, in Mannington Township, which was mostly farm country.



By then we were noticing boys. They had a boy's/men's softball team that had their games right behind the parsonage. Those were fun times!

I was really sad when they moved from Salem and every time I visit my cousin where she lives now in Delaware, I try to go into Salem on the way home. This time when we drove by, I was so surprised to see that the first church was basically demolished except for the front and back ends of the building. I couldn't believe it!



When I got home, I found an article on the Internet that said in September 2011 one of the walls caved in so they had to knock down the other wall. They weren't sure if the wind and rain from Hurricane Irene played a role in causing part of the church to collapse.

These are two pictures taken in front of the old parsonage. I think they were both taken on Easter.

This was in 1958, left to right me, my cousin Bobby, and my cousin Lynda.



This was in 1961, left to right, Lynda, Bobby, Donny, and my Aunt Ettie.



Such good memories!

Uncle Bob's Coronation Service

Last Thursday Paul and I went to Delaware for my Uncle Bob's funeral.  It was a wonderful tribute to his life. Many memories were shared along with laughter and tears. He really was one of a kind.

Someone set up a website at Zion Bible College for his former students to share their "Memories of Dr. Lundstrom." They are in the process of being printed off; several of them were brought to the funeral. They eventually will all be contained in a notebook and given to my aunt. So many funny and wonderful stories.

It was good to see family again. I know seeing family and friends made the day a little bit easier for my Aunt Ettie.

Throwback Thursday - Uncle Bob

Uncle Bob and Ettie, Christmas 1958, in their first pastorate, Norwich, CT

This past Sunday, July 22, 2012, my Uncle Bob Lundstrom went to be with the Lord. He was 80 years old. He was married to my Aunt Esther (Ettie).

We will be going to Delaware on Thursday for his funeral. He was a unique individual, one of a kind. I will always remember him for his total devotion to and focus on his service to God. It was his life.

I'm sure on Sunday he heard, "Well done, good and faithful servant; thou has been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord." Mt. 25:23.

Throwback Thursday - Yardstick Bubblegum

When I was a kid, my cousin Lynda and I used to take turns visiting at the other's house for the summer. They lived, at the time of my story, in New Jersey and I thought it was such a long trip. My uncle Bob, who was a minister, used to have contests for kids at his church. I'm not sure if it was Vacation Bible School, or a promotion for Sunday school, but he used to have these prizes that he would promote throughout the contest. One of these prizes was a yardstick of bubble gum. I'm sure I never won it, but I always thought it was the greatest thing!

So you remember that Lyn?

Fast forward a million years, and while we were on vacation this year we went to Smoky Mountain Knifeworks, and there it was - the yardstick of bubble gum. I couldn't believe it. I hadn't thought of that in years and years.

I looked at it for awhile and we actually left the store, got out to the parking lot, and I just had to have it.

After I took some pictures of it, I gave it to Marley. Here are a few pictures of it.







Isn't it amazing, when you least expect it, memories come flooding back and it's almost like you were there again. I hope I never lose my memory!

Throwback Thursday - Easter Memory 1950's

In keeping with the Easter theme this week, this is a picture taken Easter 1956.  I was 5 and my cousin Lynda was 2.

My aunt Dot was always trying to find pretty places to take our pictures. I remember her setting us up in front of this flower garden. This garden used to fascinate me because I was told it used to be a fish pond. I always wished we could make it a fish pond again, instead of having just flowers in it. It never happened.

Throwback Thursday - Abington, MA

Last week we took a ride to Abington, MA. I have been on a roll going to all of my Uncle Bob's pastorates.

I think they went there in 1965. I have to get dates from either my cousin Lynda or my uncle.  But I found this information out from my aunt Ettie. They started out in a very old house, 124 Bank St. There was a bank on the main street, Washington St., and the house was on a side street behind the bank. The church was behind the house, Centre St., kind of like a square. Later on in their pastorate they move to a different house at 314 Groveland St, same church. After they left and went back to Salem, NJ, the new pastor of the Abington church built a new church (the bank wanted the property of the church and old parsonage) at 422 Summer St. Then he got out of the Assemblies of God denomination and went independent. He eventually sold the building to the Senior Center. There is no Assemblies church in Abington now.

We had fun finding all of this out. Unfortunately, as the old church and parsonage have been torn down, I wasn't able to get a picture of the church or the old parsonage, but we did find the new parsonage. We had the address (my aunt Ettie was one number off which threw us off for awhile) and I had a picture from the last time we were there - Thanksgiving 1972. This is my grandmother and my two aunts on the front steps of the house.



This is the house in 1972.



Today.



Then we went to Hingham to try and visit Paul's aunt Eleanor McInnes (Big Baba's sister). She lives in an assisted living place. We found her apartment but she wasn't home. It was around 4:00 and we found out later that she goes to dinner at that time.

Then we drove to N. Quincy where Paul's grandparents lived. We found the church that they used to go to, took pictures of that, and then drove by the old house.

This picture is at the end of the street that they lived on, Billings St. It comes out to Wollaston Beach. It must have been nice for Big Baba to be able to walk to the end of his street (although it is a pretty long street) and be at the beach!





After that we drove to Natick and had dinner at Kelly's. We took the old road home until Sturbridge and then got on the Mass Pike.

What a fun day. I love days like this, looking for things that we once knew!

Paul says our next adventure can be Flushing Meadow where the 1964/65 World's Fair was that I went to with my aunts and cousin. Can't wait for that.

****Another Post Office - Weymouth, MA

Scallops, the Beach, and Nancy Drew

Our goal today was to go to The Book Barn in Niantic, CT to look for Nancy Drew books, but to also go to Lenny and Joes, a seafood restaurant that my friend Joanie had told us about the last time we went to this area.

We went there for lunch, which was absolutely delicious.

Then we drove around Hammonasset Beach for awhile. We got out to see the beach but it was freezing and very windy so that didn't last long.







Then we drove down Rt 1 to the Book Barn. This place was huge. My friend Dora at my old job told me about it awhile ago. There are three locations in Niantic. One was, I think, the main one that looked like an old mill. There was Book Barn Downtown, and Book Barn Midtown.

All of the Nancy Drew books were $1 and they were having a sale so we got them for .70, all 58 of them! That should take me awhile. I'll be starting #12 in a day or so. Only 164 to go!



What a fun day.

****Another Post Office - Westbrook, CT


P.S. Today is my cousin Lynda's birthday. I sent her a card with this picture on it. It is of us at the 1965 World's Fair in New York. Good memories. Happy birthday Lyn!

Throwback Thursday - Norwich, CT and Misquamicut Beach

Another ride to see another one of my uncle's churches. This one was in Norwich, CT. He actually pastored there twice. The first time was in the 1950's. At that time the church was in an old farmhouse, which they also lived in.  Ettie told me that while she was up in Massachusetts having one of her children, I think one of the boys, the first house they lived in there, which housed the church, burned down.  

These are pictures of me and my cousin Lynda at the old farm house house.





After we found the church, while we were in the parking lot, I called my aunt Ettie because nothing really looked familiar to me. I remembered a nursery school at the church which wasn't there and I couldn't remember where the parsonage was. She told me that they lived in back of the church.



She reminded me of a funny story. She used to get migraine headaches a lot, and this particular day she was in bed with the shades drawn. My cousin Lynda was bugging me to cut her bangs. I told her that I didn't know how to cut bangs (we were probably early teens). She bugged me so much and went upstairs to ask her mother if I could cut her bangs. Ettie said it was up to her. I finally cut her bangs and they came out horrible, short and crooked. Lynda went up to show her mother, and Ettie said she would just have to live with it. I warned her but she just kept bugging me. I wonder if Lynda remembers that!

My aunt also told me that the nursery school was in the basement of the church. This is the door that lead to the nursery school.



The nursery school playground that I remembered is now more parking lot.



One thing that I remember about the old house from the 1950's was a huge rock hillside in the back yard. That was obviously still there, although it didn't seem quite so huge to me!



I asked my aunt to, someday, write down the dates of all their different pastorates.

It has been fun tracking them down.

It was such a beautiful day that we decided to drive down to Misquamicut Beach.



***More Post offices.....

Willimantic, CT



N. Franklin CT



Norwich, CT


Another fun day!