June 19, 2007

History

I've been very fortunate to be on the receiving end of many things from my Grandmother's home, her piano, countless silver and crystal pieces, old gloves, hats & pins. I even have her wedding dress, but the items that mean the most to me are from her kitchen. Items she used in her every day life like her pedestal cake plate, mixing bowls, one handled rolling pin and cast iron skillet, give me a connection with her as a woman. I use these pieces daily and smile as I do. I love the sense of history I feel whenever I am in the kitchen using these heirlooms. I'm sure to most these items, with their lack of monetary worth, would not be given a second thought, but to me they are priceless. I make pancakes most every Sunday morning using her bowls and yeast rolls most Sunday nights using her rolling pin. The older I get the more value I give to things that have a sense of history. I become more aware that there was an entire world that came before me and that these bygone times are worth celebrating and remembering. I do this most days in ways that are small but meaningful to me. I'm trying to make it a point to teach my girls an appreciation for those that came before us and what their lives were like, to teach them of their history so they can better understand who they are.

33 comments:

  1. What a beautiful post and a beautiful way of thinking. I'm sure your grandmother would be proud.

    That cake stand is so beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love what you said about the history. I have tried to do the same with my daughter. She really appreciates family and the items we have from the past.
    My daughter now has that same cake plate from her grandmother.
    Have a great day!
    Rosemary

    ReplyDelete
  3. Jen, I feel the same way. I have a big blue bowl that my great-grandmother mixed yeast biscuits in daily. My grandmother's rolling pin and two dime store serving bowls. And I just discovered that my grandmother has two quilts and a quilt top that were made by her mother and aunt. She has told me I may have them. I'm thrilled beyond measure. None of these things in particularly note-worthy, but they have the mark of the people who used them everyday or put countless hours into making them.

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a beautiful post Jen. I feel the very same way. My kids are so fortunate that they both have baby quilts quilted by my grandma. I think as they get older they will appreciate them even more than they do now.

    Love the Jadeite bowls!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jen...I've been blessed, too...we have my Grandmother's dining room table & corner cupboard..various dishes & silver...in fact...we're fortunate enough to now, live in the house that my Grandparents built...every Sunday we have our kids/Grandkids for supper & we sit @ that table.. of her former dining room....& make our own history!!!..thanks for reminding me of how precious those 'things' really are....Lacy

    ReplyDelete
  6. I, too, love old things - knowing that they were used before me is such a thrill. I wonder who the previous owners were...did they love the object as much as I do? History is a wonderful thing when it comes to our treasures.

    Linda

    ReplyDelete
  7. That's great, Jen! I don't have anything like that passed down to me. My mom still uses all her neat-o cooking things, so maybe one day I'll get a few of them. She has all the iron skillets in every size...all seasoned & ready to go.

    Rhoda

    ReplyDelete
  8. I agree, so agree! I have so many of my grandmother's worn and well-used things, and I'm sure my eyes see them differently than a stranger's, with their scratches and dings.
    I think the things in your photo are so beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  9. It is so special that you have those things and wonderful that you appreciate how important they are. I imagine that it helps that they are so pretty!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Beautiful post & photos of your kitchen treasures. What a wonderful sense of history they bring along with sweet memories that you are able to share with your own children.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love this post, Jen. I am so happy to see that you use these wonderful things that were your grandmother's! They are absolutely priceless!

    Pat
    Back Porch Musings

    ReplyDelete
  12. Funny, I was just thinking about this very topic today. Don't you find that as you get older you can relate to so much more of what you remember about your grandmother, as well as your mother? Especially true (for me) with regard to being a mother myself. So many times I find myself wondering how my grandmother/mother would have reacted in the same situation.

    Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  13. What a beautiful post, Jen, it is so touching. I think your Grandmother would be so pleased that you are using her things, and thinking of her when you do.

    It is so important to pass that love for family and history down to your children.
    Lidy

    ReplyDelete
  14. Jen, this was such a sweet post. I love how you appreciate your family treasures, and also are teaching your children to do the same. And your treasures are lovely, in so many ways~

    xo,

    Andrea

    ReplyDelete
  15. I love this sweet post as it is such a reflection of your sweet soul. I, too, feel the same way about the few things of my grandmother's that I have. I loved your photo too.
    xo,
    Kim

    ReplyDelete
  16. i love this post...the best part is that you are using the items (not just storing them away)

    ReplyDelete
  17. I am 100% with you...I hope that I can help Hope appreciate a love of old things & history as my mother did for me.

    You are one lucky duck to inherhit that jadeite!!!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Fabulous to read... I have many of my grandmother's aluminum baking pans and still use them; they are so much better than the ones on the market today. The angel food cake pan is my bestest!

    ReplyDelete
  19. What a lovely post. I too have things belonging to both my Grandmothers and like you it is the kitchen things that mean the most because I use them all the time. I have a mixing bowl that belonged to my Paternal Grandma that sits in the middle of the kitchen table and I just love it so much. It's great how these everyday objects connect us with our past.

    ReplyDelete
  20. This is such a lovely post. It reminded me of exactly how I feel when I am kneading bread in my big pottery bowl. I feel linked to the past...like I am part of...history.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Your post is lovely and I totally agree with everything you posted about. That is how I raised my daughter and she is such a blessing to our family today. From reading your sweet words here, I'm sure yours will be to you too.

    ReplyDelete
  22. My mother has a couple similar jadite bowls from my grandmothers kitchen.

    Biscuits just mix up better in them. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  23. my most prized possessions are those from my grandmother. some she personally gave me, after I worked up the courage to ask for them because I loved them so much, and some I received after her passing. I have hatboxes, filled with hats & notes about which event she wore them to, the nightstand & writing desk from the "big bedroom", which was always reserved for "grown ups", countless glassware, and her baby clothers, including her christening dress. those are the things that are priceless to me.

    ReplyDelete
  24. I'm right there with ya! I love my old jadite dishes and cast iron skillets. Everything is better when there is sentiment tied to it. Sigh...I was born in the wrong era.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Jen, you've been tagged to share a little list about your time in the South (if you haven't done this one before. :)

    xo, Andrea

    ReplyDelete
  26. OH what a lovely post!! I almost felt emotional reading it. I could feel your love and warmth towards your grandmother and the joy you have using the kitchenware that you got from her. I feel the same as you do. The sence of value of things that has a history, i could picture all of it in front of me. Yesterday i received an old baking tin, i was so happy to have it. Found it on the internet and have been looking at it for ages now. And finally it came home to me. It is well used and almost black from all the baked cookies, but it couldn`t be more beautiful!! Now it is beautiful displayed in my kitcken, for joy every day :)Thank you for sharing your thoughts!! A big hug from me :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. I love each piece that both my grandmother's have passed down. My dining room table is the same table that my grandmother had when I was little. Now my family eats evening meals around it, just like we did at my grandmothers so many Thanksgivings and Christmas's all those years ago. It's so fun to have a piece of family history so close and personal like that.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I feel the same way, and that pedistal cake plate is gorgeous! I have my grandmother's china. She bought the entire set using coupons she recieved from a gas station in the 40's. Its not fine china, but it is precious to me.

    ReplyDelete
  29. What a lovely post. And that Jadite batter bowl? I'm so jealous! ~A :-)

    ReplyDelete
  30. I really do understand how you feel about the great items that belonged to your dear grandmother. I, too, feel the same about the treasures I have in my own home...looking at these items and having these things in my home keep my loved ones close to my heart! Thanks for sharing such a great post.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Wow! You're one lucky girl. How wonderful to be able to think of your grandmother each time you make pancakes on Sundays. What a wonderful tribute to her. Jadite and cake stands...doesn't get much better than that! I'm a cake stand freak myself, and use them constantly for parties and also to display stuff at shows...but unnlike you, I don't know their history. Enjoy your precious treasures. Love reading your blog!
    Laurie

    ReplyDelete
  32. I have been kicking myself for years for not buying a Fireking batter bowl at a flea market. How did I pass it up? To have your grandmother's must be very special.

    Lallee

    ReplyDelete
  33. Oh Jen, I feel the same way. I love all the wonderful things that I've received from my grandparents, and I want my daughter to know and appreciate her history. I love the bowls and the cake plate, and that great rolling pin.

    allie
    www.mycozyhome.typepad.com

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to leave me a note. It's always so appreciated.