Circle of Life | Bead Happily Ever After

A License to Borrow

Posted on March 24, 2009 by crystal

Do you remember getting your first library card?

It’s such a milestone in a kid’s life.

When I was in the third grade, my mother gave me permission to hop on the bus (all by myself! 😉 ) and go to our local library. You can see the building on this old post card.

It was here that I applied for my first library card. I remember standing wide-eyed at the librarian’s desk while she filled out all the forms in an elegant flowing script. When she was finished and finally handed that little card to me, I felt so grown up!

Recently, I was reminded of all of this, when I read a delightful article about a boy named Cory, who has been collecting library cards ever since he was 6 years old. He’s 15 now, and has accumulated over 3000 library cards from all 50 states and 74 countries!

On his website, you’ll find his story and pictures of his collection. It’s still a work in progress, as scanning the cards is time consuming, but there’s lots to see!

The cards are listed by state and they’re just amazing! I couldn’t believe the variety within each state. Some are plain; some are fancy. Others are high tech, and still others are old-fashioned. This collection is a wonderful slice of Americana.

You can visit Cory’s website by clicking here. When you get there, click on the “Table of Contents” to view cards from Northern California, Southern California and the Western United States!

I think youll be charmed!

Friday Favorites – Memories!

Posted on March 20, 2009 by crystal

This week’s Friday Favorites features either a “blast from the past”, or an ancient history lesson, depending on how old you are!

Here are the original customer loyalty cards.

S&H Green Stamps were given to customers by grocery stores and gas stations to encourage repeat business. They were collected, pasted in books, and could eventually be traded for a wide selection of merchandise, depending on how many stamps you were redeeming. Families enthusiastically poured over glossy catalogs in search of the perfect prize. Once a selection was made, it could easily be retrieved at a local redemption center.

An automatic washer!
OK, semi-automatic. I can remember my mother having to feed each article of clothing through that scary-looking wringer. We had heard tales of women who had caught their hands in it! The clothes were pretty well wrung out after the laborious process, but it was definitely a slosh-y mess while it was going on. Next stop, the clothesline – nobody had a dryer.

It’s a wonder that we have any teeth!

This is a paper chain made with gum wrappers – LOTS of gum wrappers. Kids had a ball making these. It was a challenge to see who could make the longest chain! Some of us also made belts, purses, and even hats! Of course this was before sugar-free gum. We were blissfully unaware that future dentists would be cringing at the thought of kids chewing as much gum as possible in a race to lengthen their paper chains. It sure was fun to make them, though. 🙂

A little out of season, but my favorite of the bunch!

There was nothing more magical than to lounge on the floor in the semi-darkness, and watch the revolving color wheel as it cast a rainbow of colors on the sparkling silver tree!
Talk about high tech!! lol

Happy Spring, Everyone! 🙂

See you Monday with the new questions!

Her Irish Eyes Were Smiling

Posted on March 17, 2009 by crystal

My grandmother was born and grew up in Ireland. Every year around St. Patrick’s Day, there’s something I like to do to remember “Nana”, and also to help get into the spirit of the holiday!

“Make paper garlands of shamrocks?” (You ask.)

No . . . ( I answer.)

“Go to a St Patrick’s Day parade?” (You guess.)

Nope! ( I smile.)

“C’mon Crystal – just say it!” (You sigh. 😉 )

Well . . . although I also do this at other times of the year, I especially like to do it for St Patrick’s Day.

First, I gather my supplies.

After mixing, kneading, and baking, I have this.

If you have never tasted homemade Irish Bread, you must try it sometime! I do mean homemade though, because the stuff they sell in stores is nothing like real Irish Bread!

Labeling the store version as “Irish Bread” is like comparing a loaf of generic, air-filled, white sandwich bread in a plastic bag to a mouth-watering, home-baked, crusty, loaf of yeast bread.

Here – let me give you some to try, along with a little butter and nice hot cup of tea!

Whenever my grandmother prepared this snack for me, her Irish eyes were smiling. If you are not familiar with it, think of a combination of cake and bread – sweet but with a heavier texture than cake would have, and liberally sprinkled with regular raisins, golden raisins, and caraway seeds. A recipe can be found here.

A wish for you on this St. Patrick’s Day . . .

May your mornings bring joy,

and your evenings bring peace . . .

May your troubles grow less

as your blessings increase!

Barbie and me . . .

Posted on March 10, 2009 by crystal

So Barbie is 50. Can you imagine?

When she first appeared on the scene in 1959, I was still young enough to be playing with dolls on a daily basis. My best friend got one right away, so naturally I wanted one too.

But, there were six kids in my family, and I was realistic enough to understand that my every whim could not be granted. That didn’t stop me from wishing, however. 🙂

For my birthday that year, I received what would probably be called a “generic” Barbie in today’s terms. After an initial twinge of disappointment, I noticed how pretty she was and that she actually looked quite a lot like Barbie. Within a few minutes I decided that she would be “Barbie” to me.

What fun my friend and I had “sewing” clothes for the dolls. You would have thought we were couturiers from a Paris fashion house! Snips of lace and silk and chiffon were draped and re-draped to create the most glamorous creations imaginable – well at least WE thought so! 😉

That Christmas, there was a very special surprise waiting for me under the tree. My mother had crocheted two outfits for my doll – a coat with matching hat, and a skirt with jacket. She must have had to work on them while I was at school, or late at night after I’d gone to bed.

Today, I read that a 1959 mint-condition Barbie can sell for up to $10,000. I still have my “generic Barbie” and the pretty outfits that my Mum made for her. They’re not the official Barbie brand, and they’re not in mint condition, but I wouldn’t part with them for any price!

Cookie Lady

Posted on February 24, 2009 by crystal

Have you ever known a cookie lady?

I’m talking about someone who not only loves to bake cookies, but also loves to share them with others!

Maybe you had an aunt or grandmother who always had a plate of cookies waiting when you went to visit, or a neighbor who would make cookies for holiday gifts every year. Perhaps it’s your best friend . . . or could it be you, yourself, who likes to keep the cookie jar filled with delicious homemade cookies?

“Cookie Ladies” are especially precious these days because there aren’t so many of them around anymore. Life is so hectic now; most people don’t have the time.

I believe that cookie ladies are actually born that way. You either are, or you are not, a cookie lady! It takes a special kind of personality to have the patience for making cookies. It’s so different than baking a cake. A cookie lady joyfully takes on the time-consuming tasks of mixing, shaping, rolling, and often decorating large amounts of cookie dough, and then she needs even more patience to stay near the oven to literally “babysit” trays and trays of cookies. It’s an art and a science, but mostly it’s a labor of love. The world is a better place for having cookie ladies!!!

In my life, the Cookie Lady was my husband’s Mom. I met her shortly after I began dating her son, and on that first visit, she presented me with a little tin of two kinds of her homemade cookies – applesauce raisin and chocolate chip. I was so touched by her thoughtfulness. They were absolutely the most delicious cookies I’d ever had. As the years went by, she always had cookies waiting for my husband and me, and eventually for our daughters – her grandchildren! She had about 6-7 different kinds that she liked to make and none of us could ever choose a favorite. They were all “the best!” She’s gone now but the love she served with those cookies remains in our hearts.

I hope you have known a cookie lady, or will know one in the future. They are the warmest of people.

I thought you might like the recipe for those Applesauce Raisin Cookies. I’ll include it here and also put it in the Bead Happily Ever After Recipe Box. 🙂

Edited to add: You’ve got to see my P.S. at the end of this recipe!!!

Ida’s Applesauce Raisin Cookies

1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup sugar
½ cup butter
1 egg
2 cups flour
1 cup of chopped or whole raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. cloves
¼ tsp salt

Sift flour with baking powder, soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt.
Combine butter with sugar until creamy, then add the egg.
Next add flour mixture and applesauce alternately.
Add raisins and nuts.
Drop from a teaspoon onto a greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 375º for 8-10 minutes.

P.S. Now here’s the incredible part of this post . . .

I’ve had the idea that I would write about this topic for several weeks now. I keep a little list of things that I’d eventually like to use for blog posts. Why I chose today to talk about “cookie ladies” and my sweet mother-in law, I’ll never really know.

I just looked at my list and grabbed one of the topics. I could have written about it weeks ago, or I could have chosen any other topic from that list for today.

The irony is that as soon as I finished this post and told you about our family’s cookie lady and her recipe – it hit me!

Today is her birthday! She’s been gone for 12 years, but she would have been 100 years old today! I hadn’t remembered that until this very second!!!

It seems so appropriate and also an amazing coincidence that I would write about her today! I think she must have somehow “wanted” me to share her recipe! 😉

Blog Readers Discount!
SALE ends soon!
20% off on our website thru Feb 28th.
Enter the code “snow” at checkout.