Barbara C Hoag.com

When I was about 10 or 11  the girls in our Church group were taught how to do a little knitting project and some crocheting. I mostly remember it as being confusing and what ever it was that we were supposed to make did not turn out the way the teachers did. My Mother did not have these skills and was not much help. I did not know anyone else who did these things. As a result I did not pursue these skills. My Mother did do some embroidery as did my sisters and my Aunt Inez. We were given pillow cases to embroider and as we successfully completed them Aunt Inez gave us quilt tops to embroider. Mine had Lilacs on it. Lots of Lilacs, I tried to do them all I really thought it was going to be a wonderful quilt some day. I still have that quilt top half done. Sometimes I can hear it calling to me. I just keep pushing it deep and away.

As I grew older, school and other activities took precedence over hand work. I had also learned to sew my own cloths. I loved Home Economics in Jr. High and High School. My Mother was an excellent cook and seamstress. She had always sewn beautiful dresses for us as we were growing up. Because I wanted to sew as well as my Mother I really worked at perfecting my skills.  As I was about ready to graduate from Jr. High, one day during Home Economics the Principle Mr. Miles came into our room and called me to the front and presented me with an award. “The Outstanding Student in Home Economics”, an award sponsored by the company, Crisco. I guess my teacher must have nominated me for that award. I was very surprised and pleased. I had never won an award before.  At that point in time I thought I would like to be a Home Economics teacher, I felt like that was one area that I could succeed in.

On to High School and other interests, I became interested in Drama and had one of the lead roles in the School Play, “George Washington Slept Here”. In the Spring we did “Oklahoma” I played Aunt Eller. That summer I was also in the Utah Shakespeare Festival. As Senior We did the musical “Brigadoon” I was in the chorus and acted as the assistant director.  Then that Summer after Graduation I was once again in the Utah Shakespeare Festival. Knitting and Crocheting were very far from my mind.

Years went by I eventually ended up in Marysville, Washington, married with a baby and one on the way. My neighbor was a knitter and since I had convinced my self that I could not knit I decided to try crocheting again. One day in a Relief Society work meeting one of the sisters was demonstrating how to crochet.  Suddenly it all made sense. I started doing simple projects. My neighbor was a wonderful knitter but I was afraid to try.

Life continued on it’s perilous path. My husband of three years was killed in an automobile accident and I moved back to Cedar City, Utah with my two young children. I continued to crochet and was pleased with the projects I was able to complete. Several years later I moved to Provo, Utah and there I met Theodore Bennion. We were married and three more children were added to our family.

Life was not smooth but hard and bumpy. I ended up divorcing Mr. Bennion and once again I was a single parent. My crocheting slowed down. I was busy trying to figure out how to work and be a parent. One day I was at my Mothers and she showed me a dish cloth that she really liked and wanted to know if I could make her some more. I told her I would try. I looked for crochet patterns that looked like the cloth with no success. One day I was in the yarn store and there was a sample of that same dish cloth. The sales lady told me that they taught children how to knit that cloth and I could do it also. She gave me a pattern and a quick lesson and sent me on my way.

That first project did not work out so well. I went back and she showed me what I had done wrong. Back to the drawing board. I got a booklet that had lots of different knitting patterns. I used it to try to learn different patterns. More dish cloths. My Sister showed me how to do cables. I was having a lot of fun trying different patterns and making dish cloths. Then I met Mr. James Hoag and we decided that it was time to get married. He encouraged me to continue. I took a class at the yarn shop on how to knit socks. The whole world opened up. I soon found my self carrying my knitting with me everywhere. Riding in the car, sitting in meetings, on breaks at work, waiting for a concert to start, watching TV in the evening. I had officially become a passionate knitter.

Today I am still knitting socks and have expanded into scarves, hats, gloves, some blankets and sweaters for grandkids even dog sweaters. I continue to test my abilities. I like trying new techniques and interesting designs.

I am happy to say that I Love to Knit.

The year I turned 17 I was a Junior in High School.  I think these last two years were my best years of school.

Changes were coming to Cedar City and our family. A  new High School was under construction on the south side of town. My sister had just gotten married. My older brother was in College and getting ready to go on a mission. Fred Adams The founder of The Utah Shakespearean Festival,  had already had one summer of Shakespeare. The College had changed their name from Branch Agricultural College to College of Southern Utah. They were now a four year school and could award Bachelors Degrees.

I was in the High School Concert Choir and I had one of the lead roles in the school play, ‘George Washington Slept Here’. This play had been made into  a  Movie in 1942 starring Jack Benny and Ann Sheridan. The part I had was essentially the part that Jack Benny played. They reversed the roles for the movie. We also did the musical “Oklahoma” I played the part of Aunt Eller. In the play there are some solo parts that Aunt Eller has to sing. I was  not confident enough to  sing those parts in-tune. The director finally told me to just speak the lines in time to the music. That seemed to work and we got through the songs.

Even though I was involved in many of the extra curricular activities I still felt like I really was not one of the “popular” kids. I did not get invited to dances or parties. I helped decorate for the Junior Prom but was not invited to go to the dance.

As summer approached Fred Adams was a member of our ward and he told me one day that I should try out for the Shakespeare plays. So I did, and he cast me as a hand maiden to Cleopatra in the play “Anthony and Cleopatra”. He cast a local woman to play the role of Cleopatra, she was a native American. She was a beautiful woman and it seemed like she could be a wonderful Cleopatra. The problem was she couldn’t remember her lines and she was always late for rehearsals or didn’t show up at all. Finally about two weeks before opening night he recast another actress. We had a bunch of extra rehearsals and it was do or die. The show must go on.

At that point in time the Shakespeare Festival was only four weeks. There were three plays  on a rotating basis. The out door stage was constructed each year. A stage was also set up in the Auditorium in case of rain. In addition to Anthony and Cleopatra I had a walk on part as part of a crowd in one of the other plays. I also was part of the pre-show activities on the nights Cleopatra wasn’t playing.  I sang with the madrigal singers and sold candy and tarts. It was a wonderful experience. One of the actresses that summer was Carol Lynn Pearson who later became noted for a few poetry books she authored. In later years when I moved to Provo as a single mother she was the Relief Society President of my ward.

The school year of 1963 – 1964 was about ready to start. I had been accepted into the High School Pep Club. I felt like I was finally in the “in crowd”. I was still in the Concert Choir and we tried to start a Thespians club.

November 22, 1963, I was at the College for a Choir workshop. We had just dismissed for lunch and I was exiting the building when I saw some of the kids I had worked with in Festival. I stopped to say Hi they looked upset,

“Whats the matter?”

“President Kennedy has been shot.”

I was in shock. I was not a fan of President Kennedy but I knew this was not a good thing. They told me that they had actually met him at the White House the year before when they went back east with the Drama Club. They were very sad. I headed for home. My Dad and Aunt Inez were on their way home for lunch and stopped and picked me up. They had the car radio on. Just then the announcer said that it was confirmed that President Kennedy was dead. We were silent. Nothing to say. We ate lunch in front of the TV. I went back to the College. I didn’t know what else to do. Our director said that we should just continue with our schedule. The rest of the afternoon is just a blur. Then it was the Thanksgiving Holiday. We went back to school on Monday and everyone was solemn. The day of the funeral, school was dismissed. We were glued to our TV sets. A few weeks later the school held a memorial service. The choir sang a Carl Sandburg poem, “Oh Captain, My Captain,” I don’t remember the rest of the program.

When we went back to school at the first of the new year 1964 we entered our new High School. Everything was brand new. We had a wonderful new building, a new choir room, an Auditorium with a lighting and sound system and room back stage for dressing rooms, and prop work rooms and all the classes were under the same roof. No more having to walk from the High School Building to the Jr. High Building for Choir or to the Auditorium. We had our own basketball court,  no more having to play our games at the college. As the second half of the school year started plans were made to put on a new musical. We decided to do “Brigadoon”  I was in the chorus and worked on making the props.

In the spring the school district sponsored a speech and story telling contest. The year before I had entered and received a superior rating at the district level. I entered again and this time I received another superior rating and an invitation to go to the state contest. No one else from our school was going and my teacher told me I could go if I could get someone to take me. I talked my Dad into taking me to Provo to BYU. I had no idea of what to expect. I was alone, my Dad just dropped me off and left me for the day. I managed to find my way around and at the awards ceremony I got an honorable mention. I was kind of disappointed. I guess out of the whole state that was pretty good. I can’t  help but think that if my teacher had taken more of an interest and encouraged me and helped me to understand just what was expected I would have done better.

The year was winding down we were all anxious to get graduation over with and get on with our lives. Once again Fred Adams wanted me to try out for the Shakespeare Festival. He cast me as Helena in “A Midsummer’s Night Dream.”

I was finally out of High School, one of my sisters was married and had a new baby, my older Brother was on a mission in Australia, my oldest Sister was at  Utah State University in Logan, my younger Brother would start High School in the fall. Festival was scheduled to run one more week longer that summer.

That is another story for another day.

New shiny shoes for Christmas.

Rollerskating on a smooth sidewalk.

Hot air.

Skate key swinging back and forth on the string around your neck.

Arms and legs in perfect rhythm.

The steel wheels adding to the sound in your head as they hit the concrete sidewalk.

Feeling so free and you could skate to the moon and back.

Playing jacks on the hallway floor.

you could pick up the jacks in the right order and not miss once.

Being alone in our bedroom.

Playing with your paper dolls.

Listening to the radio.

Carefully putting on the dolls cloths and not tearing off the little paper tags.

A new dress for Christmas.

Not knowing Mother spent hours cutting and sewing not only for you but your sisters also.

New cloths for school.

Mother took much care to see that they were sturdy and beautiful.

Always a new Easter dress for each of the three sisters.

Even spring hats and gloves and little spring purses.

Learning  to ride a bicycle.

No one to help.

Falling, wobbly, couldn’t get the balance just right.

But soon you were riding with the wind.

Freedom, now the town was yours to explore.

The pain and agony of trying to learn to read.

Finally a kind teacher takes you under his wing and patiently gives you the courage and desire to find the Joy of Reading.

Playing Fox and Geese with your family on snowshoes up on the Mountain.

Not wanting to stop.

Finally it gets so dark and cold you are all ready to go home to hot chocolate and Mom’s home made chili.

Riding with Dad in his red pickup truck alone in the summer as he make his rounds to the farms and ranches to read their meters.

Listening to his poems and stories.

Singing his story songs.

Leaning against his strong body.

Drifting off to sleep in the hot dusty truck.

Seeing your Father bless your first child.

Knowing he has the authority.

Being so kind and loving.

Wearing the new dress you sewed yourself and getting an “A” from the Home Ec. teacher.

When my Grandparents built their home in Cedar City, Utah they were on the south western side of town. They had moved from Hamilton’s Fort about 15 miles south of Cedar City. They had four children, two boys and two girls, my father being the youngest; he was about 11 or 12. They lived in a sheep wagon and a tent until they were able to build their home. My Grandfather was a laborer and one of his skills was in carpentry.When the railroad came into town several of the buildings on the lots the railroad needed were demolished. My Grandfather got the contract to tear down several of these buildings if he could keep the bricks and usable materials as part of his pay. They used these materials to build their home. They moved into their new home in December 1925. That was the beginning of 9th west.

My Dad and his brother Reid learned to do carpentry as they worked along side their father and uncles. It was their intention to work cooperatively together to build a home for each other. Aunt Inez was to keep the family home and the other three would have a building lot and by working cooperatively together they would all have a home.

Grandpa Cox was not a well man and he passed away when my Father was a teenager, his Mother was also bed ridden and she passed away just a few years later. Aunt Inez being the oldest was already working full time as a secretary for the Power Company. She became the supporter of the family. Uncle Reid and Aunt Mary also did what they could for the support of the family. Aunt Mary and her husband lived in a small apartment in the basement until their home could be build. Then uncle Reid married Wanda Steele and the boys built them a home next to the family home.  Another small home across the street was provided for Aunt Mima, my Grandmothers sister who never married. Our little street was almost done.

By the time I came along in 1946, 9th west was still basically on the edge of the town. There was a large field of alfalfa, owned by the College, on the north end of our street, running the length of the block to 100 south. On the South was another large field where the Thorley family used to hold their sheep. On the next block to the East the College also had another large field they used to hold cattle.  We would sometimes cut through this field on our way home from school. You had to be careful and not step in any cow pies. I don’t remember when the College finally got out of the cattle business. I think they were using them for their agricultural programs. The City probably passed an ordinance to get rid of animals in the City limits. Our neighbors on the west of us also had a few animals. They had horses and a few milk cows and some chickens.

By this time our street consisted of seven homes. Three on one side and four on the other. We shared our home with my Dad’s oldest sister. She never married and she lived in the basement of our home. She was actually the owner of the home but since we had seven in our family she had us use the upstairs. There were three bedrooms, one bathroom, a large kitchen and a living room. Just north of us was my Dad’s brother, Uncle Reid and his family, They had three girls and one boy. Then next to them was Uncle Morris and his family, They had two boys and three girls. Across the street, lived the Dover’s, two brothers and their family’s, then our Aunt Mima. Then next to her was the Greens. Next to the Green’s was a vacant lot. The Greens and the Dover’s were related to each other but not to us. But all the adults were Aunts and Uncles to all the kids that lived on the street.

There was a wide range of ages for the kids on the street, some were five or six years older than me. There were some kids that were close to my age within one or two years each way. Then there were some that were five or six years younger. There was always someone to either play with or fight with. There were street games, kick the can, hid and go seek, baseball games in the street. We had big lawns that were great for mass sleeping out parties in the summer. Sometimes Uncle Dick Dover would set up a screen out on the lawn and show outdoor movies in the summer. It was always a favorite. He would show home movies and sometimes he would get some cartoons. So much fun; especially when he would run the movie backwards.

The middle of the street was paved but not the sides. We did have sidewalks on both sides. Eventually the city paved the entire street. No more muddy shoes when it rained.

When I was about nine years old my Dad started to build our own home on the vacant lot.   He did a lot of the work himself. He knew carpentry and how to run electricity. There were a few things he had to get others to help with but he and Uncle Reid did a large majority of the work.

On Thanksgiving the Cox family’s always had dinner together. Each family had an assignment. The tables would be set up at Uncle Reid’s. The kids were put to work making place cards out of marshmallows, gum drops and tooth picks to look like turkeys. I was very glad when I finally got to sit at the big table and not the kids table. One year after the roof and walls and windows were up in our new house we had Thanksgiving at our house. It was kind of cold but there was lots of room and it was really fun.

We finally moved into our new house. It was great to have three bathrooms and a room for my Mother to use for her sewing. Imagine, the sewing could be done without having to put everything away when we wanted to eat dinner.  A large bedroom that I still shared with my sisters but we had so much more room. My Brothers shared a room downstairs. Also down stairs my father had a work room for his hobbies, he hand tied fishing flies and repaired rifles. There was a garage for the car. No more having to scrap the windows during the winter. We were living large. There was room in the kitchen for a table were most of our meals were served. But we also had a “Dining Room”.  Sunday dinners were served in the Dining Room and of course if we had company.

I graduated from high school in 1964. Both my sisters were married, my oldest brother was about ready to go on his mission and my younger brother was ready to start high school. Our family was getting smaller. The other families on the street were going through the same transitions.

The next  biggest change to our street for many years came when the fields to the south of us were developed and a new street was added. A new ward house was built on that property and several homes began to appear. Around 1967 my Dad and Mother started to build a new home across the street from the new ward house.

Sometime in the  1980’s the College bought our street and several of the blocks around our street. They built their big Centrum sports arena and our street became a parking lot.  So now when I go to Cedar to attend some function at the Centrum I get to park where my house used to be.

We settled into our routine in Cedar City. I soon became active in the Single Adult activities.  There were single adult dances in St George at least once a month. I started going to them. I did a lot of holding up the wall. Things had not changed. I was still the wall flower. Attractive single men were few and far between.

I had started putting on weight in Washington and being home did not help. Not only was I still gaining but I had my Mother monitoring every bit of food I put in my mouth. “No one will be interested in you if you are fat.” She talked me into joining Weight Watchers. I threw myself into it. I did not want to be heavy. But it seemed like with every breath I took I gained a pound.

I enrolled in The College of Southern Utah. I tried to take practical business classes that would help me to establish a career so that I could support myself and my children.

I made friends with a girl that lived on our old street. She was divorced and she had a couple of kids. She was about four years older than me. We went to single adult activities together and the dances in St. George.

I was assigned to be our wards single adult representative. It was very interesting to go to Stake Single Adult activities along with the Principles of my Jr. High and High School and my Dad’s oldest Sister, Aunt Inez. Of course Bro. Miles and Bro. Bethers were much older that me, but those old ladies sure did like them. As for as single men my age or even a few years older, there were none in Cedar City at least none that came to Church and Single Adult activities. I also came to the conclusion that it was better to be a widow than to be divorced. I had a steady income and I was not dependent on an ex-husband to send me money every month. It all boiled down to money.

It was August when we arrived back in Cedar City so it soon started getting colder. Winter set in. I started planning for Christmas. I tried to just get a few things for my kids. Just a couple of things here and a couple of things there. By the time Christmas rolled around and I started gathering it all together we had quite a pile. My Uncle Reid made two little chairs for David and Patti. They became cherished possessions.

This is an exercise for my Personal History writing class.

I grew up in Cedar City, Utah surrounded by Aunts, Uncles, cousins and friends. Elementary, Jr High and High School were all on the same block. We went to school en-mass, all walking together. Rain, snow, wind or shine you went to school. Rarely was a ride offered or expected. We went home for lunch and then back to school. 9am to 3pm no half days, no teacher prep days, just school. We sang Christmas Carols around the School Christmas Tree. Songs about Santa Clause and Jesus,  Angles and the Manger. It was Christmas.

In High School I was in a couple of plays and musicals. It was while I was in Jr High that a man named Fred Adams came to Cedar City to teach at the College. He would have a very large impact on our little town and college. He had a dream of starting a Shakespearean Festival, he had some experience in New York and Broadway and he loved Shakespeare. I was in High School when the first summer plays were presented. They only ran a couple of weeks that first summer, the next summer he invited some of the high school kids to try out so I did. I was cast as a handmaiden to Queen Cleopatra in the play “Anthony and Cleopatra, ” I got to die on stage. The next summer he cast me in the play “A Mid-Summers Nights Dream” I played the part of Helena. This time I got to give some really good speeches a fight on stage with my friend and then have everything work out wonderfully and get married all on stage. But it only lasted four weeks. Then I went to work at Grand Canyon, North Rim until College started at the end of August.

My friend Tauna Lyman and I decided we were wasting our time in College and we wanted some adventure. So we saved our money and moved to California. We hardly knew anyone there and we had no where to live but we were young and had our heads in the clouds. Everything would work out. The short story is: She got married and I came home after about eighteen months.

Then back to Grand Canyon, North Rim and then to Yellowstone National Park the winter of 1968-69. There I met Francis Mack, we got married August 2, 1969 and we moved to Everett, Washington. There we welcomed two children into our family a boy David and a girl Patricia. Eleven months after Patricia was born Frank was killed in an automobile accident and I moved back to Cedar City.

Another try at College just felt like I was spinning my wheels. My Parents moved to Kanab, Utah were my Dad was the manager of the small branch office of the Power Company. I decided to move to Provo, Utah.

In Provo, I started to sell Tupperware and worked my way up to be a manager. David and Patti were growing and starting school. In 1979 I met Theadore Bennion, he was a widower with eleven children, most of them were adults, two of his girls were still in High School, he was 20 years older than me but he said he loved me and it seemed like he could offer stability and security to me and my children. He also offered a Temple Marriage, something that I was longing for. We were married June 1st, 1979.

July 1, 1980 Rebecca was born, May 27, 1981 Lydia was born, Sept. 15, 1982 Edwin was born. By 1988 I was divorced, broke and depressed.

My life seems like one disaster after an other, sometimes it is hard to see the good times because of all the dark forest surrounding most of my life. The sun finally started to shine when I got a job at Novell in 1991. I was making a decent wage for the first time in my life, I had medical, dental and vision insurance for the first time. I could take my kids to the doctor and not have to worry  if I could afford it. We could have our teeth cleaned and fixed. Then Ted died and the kids started getting Dependent Social Security, We finally had our heads above water.

I went back to School again, this time the University of Phoenix, I earned my BA in Business Administration. I finally had a College degree. It proved to be more for bragging rights than anything. It did help me keep my job.

So a quick recap, 70’s mostly single Mom, 80’s mostly a black hole, 90’s single again but mostly sunny with a few clouds here and there. In the fall of 1999  I was introduced to the man who was to become the one I had been looking for ever since I realized that a woman should be married to the one she loves and the one that would love her.

James Lewis Hoag came into my life. An unlikely match but a match made in Heaven. Why Heavenly Father reserved him for me until so late in our lives I don’t know but I bless every day we have together.

“A good love is delicious because you can never get enough.”

I have one request for when I die. For my funeral if there is one and anyone is there, please have everyone sing, “There is Sunshine in My Soul Today.” Because I will be in that glorious place with the ones I love who have gone before, it will be a wonderful reunion and the sun will be shining.

After Dad and I finally arrived in Utah, we stopped at Kathryn’s home and spent the night. Mom had gone on home to Cedar with Pattie and left David with Kathy and Jim. They had a good time with him and Kathy told me they wanted to keep him. I was very glad to see my darling boy again. I was also very glad to sleep in a bed and have a shower. Kathy washed my clothes for me and we were refreshed and ready to head back on the road to continue our journey to Cedar City; about 250 miles more to drive.

Mom and Dad opened up their home to us. As I look back on it there seemed to be no question as to what I should do. I should go home to Cedar City. There was really no reason to stay in Washington. Back in Cedar I would have my parents to help with the kids. I would be in familiar territory. I thought I could go back to school to finish my degree. It just seemed like the best place to be.

My parent’s home was fairly new. There were two bedrooms upstairs. The basement was unfinished. The kids and I set up our space in the one single room. We had a double bed that David and I shared and a crib for Pattie.

Mother was still working  as a cook in the hospital kitchen and Dad still worked for the Power Company.

There was not much for me to do but take care of the kids and try to figure out my future.

I did not have a car so I had to use Mom’s car if I wanted to go anywhere. I was surprised how quickly the Social Security checks started to come. We got three checks, one for each of the children and one for me. Jim, my brother-in-law, advised me that I should take any insurance in full payment. It took a little while but they finally came through. I was able to take some money and buy a new car. I tried several models and then I settled on a 1973 blue Oldsmobile Cutlass.  I put most of the money in some savings accounts that my Dad advised that would gather interest. We maintained these accounts for many years. I was able to use some of the interest to help build an apartment in Mom and Dad’s basement so we would have some space of our own. Uncle Reid build the kitchen cabinets for us.

As I was growing up we had a piano but Mom had given it to Sandra. I really missed not having a piano so I purchased a small upright and the store offered me piano lessons. I really enjoyed having a piano again.

We were able to get back to regular church attendance. Our ward house was just across the street. It was the same building that as a young girl we spent many hours raising money to build.

I was soon given a job. I was asked to teach the 11 year old boys in Primary. Why did they think I knew anything about teaching 11 year old boys? It also included doing scouting stuff. I hung in there. I never felt comfortable. We were just bidding our time. I don’t think the boys ever thought they were gaining anything from me. They were there because their parents made them come. I was there because I had been given that assignment. I accepted it and I did try but I never felt like I made any progress.

I registered to return to school. I decided that I should take business classes with the idea that I could be a secretary. I took some drama classes also.

Frank came home from work one day and announced he had been lay-ed off. We didn’t know what to do. He had made friends with a guy who wanted to start a Bail Bond Business. Frank thought that would be interesting to chase down bail jumpers. He got a concealed gun permit and they put their names up in jails for Bail Bonds. In the mean time he started working for a man who had a security company and he would go to work around 9 or 10 at night and ride around checking on business over night. Since he was away at night they gave our phone number as a number to call for the bail bonds. I would get calls at all hours of the night. They had not really told me what to do beside take a message. I did not like having to answer the phone from drunks needing bails. Then Frank was not able to get bonded so he could not participate in the business. Yeah, I didn’t have to answer the phone anymore.

We learned that we could get a really good loan to buy a house. We found a place in the county just outside of Marysville, Washington. Marysville is a small town north of Everett about ten minutes away. The house was new and had never been lived in. It was a ranch style house. Three bedrooms, one bath, a car port and quite a large yard. It sat up on a little hill above the street. A slopping front yard and the back yard ran into a line of trees and underbrush. Our kitty loved the freedom. We had a couple of neighbors but I didn’t get to know them very well.

There were hardwood floors through out the home, except in the kitchen and bathroom. We had very little furniture and so we slowly purchased things as we were able. We purchased a washer and dryer. What a relief to not have to go to the laundromat.

We had purchased a Ford Mustang after we got to Washington and Frank decided that it was not the right kind of car to have with a baby so he traded it in on a Truck. How is that better than a Mustang? He said the payments were less. I guess. But I liked the Mustang.

Shortly after we moved in a couple moved into a house just behind us through the trees. David and Kay Putnam, they had two little girls. The oldest was a couple of years older than David and the youngest was just about David’s age. Kay and I became friends. She had lived a very interesting life I thought. Her father had been in Diplomatic Service and she had lived in France. I was fascinated. Her husband worked for the State Highway Department. He was part of the crews that fixed the roads and such. He was away long hours sometimes. Frank was either working at night or hanging out with his friends or sleeping so Kay and I spent a lot  of time together.

She got me interested in knitting. I tried to make a scarf. But I found crocheting easier. One day I was in a Relief Society Work meeting and one of the ladies was demonstrating how to crochet. She said that all crochet stitches are built on just three stitches. I watched her and all at once it made sense. I plunged into making crocheted doilies.

Kay and I joined the YWCA so we could do an exercise class. She introduced me to gardening. I helped her and she helped me. We cleared a path through the trees and underbrush so we could get to each others home. She taught me how to make stroganoff, and lamb curry. Her husband David was from Yakima, Washington, where a lot of fruit is grown. They took a trip that fall and brought home a lot of fruit, peaches and apples and pears. I helped Kay bottle fruit and she helped me. We made jams  and jellies. We were so domestic. It was fun. It reminded me of when I was a girl helping my Mother.

We put our babies is strollers and walked around the neighborhood. We met some of the long time residents of our little hill community. We lived up on a hill that had not been developed except for three or four  homes. These homes had been the only homes for many years. Kay was very bold in talking to these neighbors. A couple of the ladies had wonderful flower gardens and Kay was not shy in asking if they would give us cuttings from their flowers. We took them to our houses and tenderly planted and tended them.

The book mobile would come up our hill and we would check out books to read to the kids or for our own enjoyment.

That summer Franks parents and sister came to visit.

Mom and Dad came up about two weeks after David was born. We made arrangements for my Dad to bless David since Frank did not hold the Melchizedek Priesthood.

It was really something learning how to take care of a new born baby 24 hours a day. I had spent many hours babysitting but I was not really prepared to have soul responsibility for this new little life. Frank was very good at pitching in and helping when he could. But he was just as unprepared as I was. It was a relief when my Mom came. She had a calming influence and Dad kept me laughing.

They had never been to the Seattle area so we took them to the Space Needle and Pikes Market and to one our favorite steak and seafood restaurants. We rode to the top of the space needle and when we were coming down there was a really tall man in the elevator with us. I thought he looked like James Areness from the TV show “Gunsmoke.” I don’t know if it really was but he sure looked like him. Then when we went to dinner he was there again. So I always figured we had dinner with “Marshall Matt Dillon.”

Shortly after the first of the year I discovered I was expecting another baby. I was happy.

We were happy in our little home. We had good neighbors and I loved going to Church. Frank seemed to find excuses not to go. But I managed to get there. We still had two meetings on Sundays. Sunday School in the morning and Sacrament meeting in the afternoon. Then Relief Society  and Primary during the week. I usually had access to the truck during the day. Sometimes Kay would go with me to Relief Society.

I was asked to be the cub scout leader. Man I didn’t know anything about cub scouting. But I tried. David was just starting to walk and talk. Those little boys would come to my house and we would be doing something and David would come toddling in and jabber at me and I would answer him and those little boys would look at me like I was crazy.

“Can you understand what he is saying?”

“Of course, every word.”

That winter was mild I guess. I was used to snow in winter but we got mostly rain. As winter turned to spring the flowers bloomed. I loved Washington. Kay and I started planning our gardens.

As summer came I remember it as being a hot summer. Frank was still working for the Security company. He was getting into the habit of getting off work and then hanging out with his buddies instead of coming home. Then he would come home sometime in the afternoon and go to sleep. I would take David and go over to Kay’s until he was ready to get up and go to work.

A few times we went to a lake and went swimming. We would have cook outs with David and Kay. Sometimes we would play cards and other games in the evening.

Kay had found a dairy farm that sold raw milk and farm eggs and cheese. One day around the 11th of September we went to pick up some milk and I was not feeling so good. Soon after we got home I realized I was in Labor, Kay took David and Frank and I headed to the hospital. Pattie was born soon after we got to the hospital. We had a beautiful new little girl. We named her Patricia Ann.

I remember Kay brought me some fresh tomatoes while I was in the hospital. Then she bottled all my tomatoes for me.