Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Thinking about Grandma Wahl

I had this Grandma who taught me how to knit and crochet and had this room so full of "stuff" for crafting that you could barely get the door open to squeeze into it....which would mean I would have to go into her bedroom, around the feather bed and through the closet into the "craft room" to get whatever it was she needed at that time.  (She did teach me the fine art of crafty hoarding after all)  

In 2005 I had gone down to Arizona to be with my mother who was undergoing radiation and chemotherapy for Carcinoma and she gave me some photo albums that had a million pictures of my Grandma teaching quilting classes at her local church. (My grandmother succumbed to cancer in 1979 and my mother in 2009) I looked through those albums several times and marveled at how little I really knew my Grandma Wahl.  I am so very proud of her accomplishments!

The reason I have been thinking of her, my Grandma, so much lately  is because of Friday Night With Friends.  Reading the blogs and looking at all of the pretty quilting and sewing projects just really put her in the forefront of my mind. She was an applique kind of quilter, and would probably LOVE everything I have seen these wonderful women of Aus and around the world create. 

This is one of those moments where I sit here and honestly say, "I wish she were here to see what I've been doing".  She would probably be the first person digging through my stash or insisting I didn't have enough of something and she would probably be right!   

I have her crochet needles that I use, and every time I say "thank you", and at my mother's house in Arizona, where my step-father still resides, is a box that has the quilt she made for me...it's old and in pieces but I'm confident I can fix it now that I am OLD and have the skills to do so.

So, here is my Thank You to all of you who quilt, knit, crochet and cross stitch and share what you have created.  Our continuity helps keep our loved ones well remembered and loved.

Great Grandma Josephine, my mother Bobbie, Grandma Betty Jo Wahl, and Little Ol' me in 1971
      
Until Next time my sweeties.....              

12 comments:

  1. Oh my - the Valhalla of craft stashes! You have some lovely memories of your Grandma, I don't really remember much of mine, was not in contact with her for very long. I do remember walking to Great Grandma though - she always made us chicken pie.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That room was an incredible plethora of awesome! Mmmmm, chicken pie at GG's...that was probably worth the walk to her house!

      Delete
  2. Your grandma sounds like a wonderful lasy, and I'm sure she would be very proud of you and all your crafty achievements :)
    Also, that picture is "living" proof that you come from a line of very beautiful ladies - no wonder Emily turned out so pretty :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! I have to agree about those women being beautiful. (Not sure what happened to me but the "pretty" gene did NOT quite take ha ha) ALL of them were hard working and so smart! My Great Grandmother lived to be 87 I think, and I was lucky to visit her in 1989 which was the last time. Emily IS so very pretty and super smart. I feel very fortunate to have had them all in my life :D

      Delete
  3. Carla, what beautiful memories, thank you so much for sharing them. The more I read through your blogs, see you at work and just talk with you the more I get to see what an amazing woman you are!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. STAHP!!! You will make me cry! YOU are so amazing yourself and to think your life is JUST beginning!

      Delete
  4. I wish my grandmother was still alive as well. She was a very accomplished knitter and embroiderer. I could have learned so much from her if I was crafting when she was still here.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Right??!! I have to stop myself when I think about all the questions I want to ask...and then I think "well, there are some grandmothers who have made videos on You Tube so I'll just go borrow them for a bit" :D It works out very nicely and I get to leave lovely comments for them after they teach me something <3

      Delete
  5. What a wonderful post, thank you for sharing. I'm glad you still have the needles and quilts.
    I never knew my maternal family, and my Grandma (paternal, of course) passed away a few years ago. I hadn't realized that she'd taken my mother's knitting needles and crochet hooks from my father for me (my mother died when I was little), and I found them when we cleaned out her house (my cousin and aunt were very "duh, you didn't know she made sure to get these for you?!"). My mother was an accomplished yarn-user and needlepointer - I still have one of her Wysocki needlepoints finished into a pillow. I think it illustrates how important crafting can be, when a mother dies and the first thing the grandmother does is grab the tools a future generation will need, to make sure they're not lost. I think it is amazing how crafting gifts us with such great memories.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Doesn't it? It's a beautiful thing! I hope you scream out a thank you every time you use your mother's tools :D Kind of feels like they are here with us as we struggle along.

      Delete
  6. What lovely memories and it's fun to see where your craft hoarding comes from. I never new either of my grandmother's, but dad had a friend that stood in their place (her son was Dad's best man) May didn't teach me to knit or anything crafty, she did teach me how to play the slots in Vegas, but she herself was a beserker knitter, I think everyone she knew had an afghan from May, including me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. She sounds like a lovely woman! Everyone should have a "May" if they cannot have the real thing. Now I have you and Krystal and J and Ashley and Leonore and it is really comforting to know the five of you are here for me always :D

      Delete