Every Grandma Should Take Their Family To See "Coco"

They say that the Disney movie Coco makes you want to visit your grandmother and give her a big hug.  Well my Mom did it just right.  She bought tickets for the whole family to go see Coco together this morning.  And we all came out very grateful for her.

I had high expectations for the movie and I wasn't disappointed.  As I've written about before, I love Dia de Los Muertos.  It is a day for honoring your ancestors and remembering them.  What could be better than that?  And Disney has done a great job of that lately with Moana and now with Coco.

Kim and I were in Disneyland a couple of months ago and we had a great time looking around the Coco displays they had up.  It got me really excited for the movie. I love anything that will help you teach children about the value of family history. Even at Disneyland no less. Here are some photos from our trip:  

 

While we were there, a band and some dancers came out and sang the song "Remember Me"  And I just melted.  Such beautiful lyrics about our ancestors.  Love it Love it!

They had a tree of life display and everyone was able to add a remembrance of a family member.  I wrote about my Grandparents and the times we had at Disneyland together.  So many wonderful memories.  I can't go there without missing them.  

What a beautiful simple way to help so many people remember their ancestors.  

Some of the things I loved about the movie were 1) that all families have problems.  I love that they didn't gloss over some of the hard things families deal with.  2) that Family History heals the present.  Family History always helps the problems we have in the present.  Always.  3) That we should keep photos up of our family members and remember them.  That's why we love what we do at Family ChartMasters so much.  We're honored to help people keep their ancestors memories alive and in front of them every day.  And 4) I loved the music, the flowers and just the beauty of the movie.  

Highly recommended.  Take some family members.  And then spend some time together honoring your ancestors.  Good stuff!

Time Capsules

When the family gets together at the holidays, a fun activity can be creating a time capsule.  My kids and I have created time capsules at the end of the year for short term storage and then packed them away with the Christmas decorations.  We include goals for the year and reflections on the year past. It's fun to open them next Thanksgiving weekend when we get the decorations out. 

A time capsule is “a historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a method of communication with future people” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_capsule). They are a great way to capture this moment in time for the future. Creating a time capsule can cause your family to pause now and reflect about what is important to them and what brought them to the point they are now. The creation of a time capsule can spark some good discussions in your family about what is important to you.
You can ask everyone in the family to contribute to a time capsule. They might want to contribute a tangible item, but also encourage them to add something that will really tell about their lives now. A personal note, pictures, or a schedule of what daily life is like could be really interesting down the road. The capsule can be any container as long as it is labeled and kept sealed in a safe place. And it needn’t be sealed for long. One year, five years, or ten years, can give the observer great perspective on life.

If you want a really safe time capsule container that will last a long time, check out:
https://www.futurepkg.com/
http://www.amalco.com/time-capsules.html

And for complete instructions on creating long term archival time capsules check out the Smithsonian Institutions ideas at:
https://www.si.edu/mci/english/learn_more/taking_care/timecaps.html

Good luck.  I'm sure it will cause lots of reflection for your family and give them a broader perspective on life--one of the best benefits of family history.  

Family History Research Meme

Traditions of Gratitude

It's that time of year.  The chill has finally settled in my part of the country and I think it might actually stay this time.  The vibrant colors of the foliage on the mountains and in the valley has been replaced with a dusting of snow and a crunching of crackly leaves under my feet.  Frost settles each morning over the landscape and my heart warms up just a hitch.  Not because of the cold but because of the season.  November has arrived, and with it, a resolve to not get lost in the glitzy and gaudy displays of commercial Christmas that has already invaded every inch of every store I walk into these past few days.  I love Christmas, don't get me wrong.  But I can't help but feel we're doing ourselves a great disservice if we rush right into it without pausing to embrace Thanksgiving first.  And so, I am making it a sticking point around here for the next few weeks to really focus on thinking and talking about Thanksgiving.  And the first point I'd like to discuss has to do with traditions.

What are your traditions when this time of year comes?  We all have some, even if we don't realize they are traditions.  Sometimes we just think, "Well, that's just what you do this time of year."  But have you paused to ask your family what "traditions" they remember from growing up, or that they look forward to each year, when it comes to Thanksgiving?  It's easy to pin point Christmas or Hanukkah traditions, but what (besides turkey and football) do you and your family do for Thanksgiving?

In doing some preparation for one of my upcoming Rootstech presentations, I have been doing a lot of reading about the science behind family history and family narratives.  There is a great deal of power behind both.  One of the sources I am studying is The Secrets of Happy Families by Bruce Feiler.  It's a really fascinating read but one section really caught my eye recently as I reread a section and it talked about the author's experience with Emory Psychology professor, Marshall Duke.  The author had a chance to gather with Duke's family for a Shabbat dinner, one Friday evening, to discuss the power of family narratives.  Duke discussed the work that he and colleague Robyn Fivush have spent a great portion of their careers in studying children's resilience.  They have pioneered the field and determined that those children, and later adults, who are the most balanced and resilient in their lives are those who have a strong "intergenerational self."  In other words, they know they belong to something bigger than themselves (their families).  They know this because of involvement in family narratives and personal family history.  Narratives are huge and it turns out that Grandma's are key in the passing on of narratives.  Go figure, right?

Back to the Shabbat dinner Feiler spent with Duke's family, though.  Dinner time is key in the Duke home to the sharing of narratives but Duke insisted that traditions and narratives can be shared any time, not just at dinner.  But seeing as how it was a meal time, Feiler decided to ask Duke's children about their favorite traditions and narratives.  The Thanksgiving tradition stuck out the most to Feiler --it's hilarious!  It appears, in the Duke family, that Thanksgiving is a four day extravaganza of obscure and downright odd traditions.  It all kicks off the Tuesday before Thanksgiving when the family eats turkey sandwiches for dinner.  Then on Wednesday, they all eat spaghetti for dinner and paint mustaches on each other.  On Thursday they hide cans of pumpkin sauce, bags of green beans, and a frozen Turkey so the family can all "hunt" for their food like the Pilgrims.  Finally on Friday, they eat their Thanksgiving meal as a family.  And if all of that isn't quirky enough, the family has color coded teams and they compete all weekend long for points.  The winning team claims a plastic duck.  The Dukes have been doing this for over thirty years and no one really had a specific reason for why any of those traditions started or carried through.  They just did it that way one time and it all stuck.  And not just the traditions, as odd as they may seem to some (okay, me), but the memories attached to them.  The traditions just "become part of your family," Duke said.  And it's what the Duke children loved telling Feiler about.  It's what made their family theirs.  

And so it is.  Something silly or obscure happens and it's what sticks.  And before you know it, you don't know why or how, but it is your family's and this time of year just wouldn't be the same without it.  We've all got something right?  Specific recipes that have to be on the Thanksgiving table.  Watching the parade in the morning.  Special china and crystal used for the meal.  In my family it is open faced turkey sandwiches with cheese melted all over them the day after.  Sharing our thoughts of gratitude while gathered around the table or a prayer of thanksgiving while we hold hands.  Or painting on mustaches and competing for a plastic duck.  Each family has something unique that makes their Thanksgiving only theirs.  What can you pin down as something you do each year that makes Thanksgiving yours?  And how do your children and grandchildren play into that?  Do they even know that it is a tradition for your family?  If not, can you find a way this year to instill in them that what you do as a family, you do for a reason?  Can this be the year that you make a point of being the bridge from your family's past to your family's future by sharing, teaching, and encouraging the continuation of traditions?

It's easier than we think because it all starts with a conversation.  A few questions like "Do you know why I make the cranberry sauce from scratch each year?" or "Do you know why we use the china each year for our Thanksgiving meal?"  You may be surprised to know that your children and grandchildren already know.  But you may also find an amazing opportunity to share a story or experience that will have lasting impact.  The more our children and grandchildren know about their family and their history, the stronger they will be and the more likely they will be to pass along the narrative.  If you show that it matters to you, it will matter to your posterity.  So as we approach the weekend of feasting and frenetic sale shopping, I'd like to challenge you to take a moment and think of ways that you can single out and record (in a journal or in pictures) traditions for future recollection.  And I'd also like to challenge you to include the youth in your family in the execution of these traditions.  (If they feel like they own a part of it, they will be more likely to continue it in the future.)  And then sit back and watch them fly.  They may have a twist on a given tradition that you never thought of that actually makes it better.  Share the opportunities in your family and watch something amazing happen--the linking of generations and the strengthening of familial bonds.  You'll be grateful for that much more this year if you do.

Source: The Secrets of Happy Families: Improve Your Mornings, Rethink Family Dinner, Fight Smarter, Go Out and Play, and Much More by Bruce Feiler (pgs 40-43),  HarperCollins copyright 2013

This Way Be Treasure… Arrr!

Look at this great idea I just found the other day and pinned to my Youth and Genealogy Pinterest Board. A Family History Treasure Hunt from Homemaking With Heart. I love this! The idea is that the next time you go to spend time with an older relative, create a treasure hunt for the children to complete while they visit. You may want to call ahead and arrange this with whomever you may be visiting, just to make sure everyone agrees to having the homestead looked over. Some of the ideas she gives for searchable items are really amazing and they have the potential to create fun story-telling opportunities. She lists things above and beyond the typical family photos, such as: quilts and old clothing, letters/correspondence, family bibles, trophies, old toys, and the list goes on. Can you imagine the fun children could have with a grandparent’s old yearbook?

 You could even take this treasure hunt one step further by introducing it at a family reunion. I once heard of a family who split everyone up into teams (every age group represented on every team). Each team was given a list and a digital camera and sent off with a time limit. The goal was to record digitally as many things as possible on the teams’ cameras. I heard this family travelled to gravesides and old homesteads local to the reunion. It was a highlight of the reunion for the family that year.

Our extended families are a treasure trove to our past. By learning more about them, we will learn more about ourselves. Creating a game for the discovery is a brilliant idea to draw children into family history without them even realizing it. All the children will know is that they’re having fun and discovering treasures from long-ago. Dressing up and speaking like pirates is optional, but the fun will be guaranteed. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Great Ideas from our readers

Yikes.  Where did the month go?  Life seems to be speeding up faster than I can keep up.  But it is good to be busy.  And I've got lots of new ideas to share with you.  So slow as they might be, keep your eyes peeled and I'll keep them coming. 

RootsTech was wonderful.  I've got several things to share with you about that.  But to start with, it was so great to meet with people who have been using our Zap The Grandma Gap resources and hear about the successes they are having in their families.  Here are a couple of great ideas we heard in the vendors hall:

One lady talked to me about having a contest on facebook to garner interest for the upcoming family reunion.  She had created a family facebook page and was going to ask one question a week.  The person with the most answers would win a prize at the family reunion.  I think you could also do this with a small prize every week.  I know I've seen situations where it amazes me what people will do for a package of M&Ms or a candy bar.  And the price of candy bar and shipping would be much once a week or once a month. 

Someone else talked about how she was going to start telling family history stories at bed time to her 1 year old son.  I think that is a wonderful way to start them young.  Kudos!

And another lady came up and told us that her 11 year old had decided to form a family history club with her friends on Saturday mornings.  They get together and bring pictures, make family recipes and learn about their ancestors.  Brilliant!  She wouldn't let mom help either.  That is excellent ownership. 

We passed out copies of the paper dolls from our new activity books.  And as we were passing them out, we reminded everyone that paper dolls is not only a great way to tell stories about your family, but they needed to utilize the time while they are coloring and cutting them out to tell stories as well.  Drawing pictures, or any kind of creative activity together is great story telling time.

Hope some of these ideas provide inspiration to you about activities to do with your family.  They sure do to me.  

Another even easier summer project--Family History Tablecloth

I've been keeping the kids quite busy this summer with family history projects.  They have been trying out activities that might work in your family and some of them have turned out really great.  This one was particularly easy and really useful--our family history tablecloth. 

It has given us lots to talk about when we have dinner together.  You could do all sorts of twists on this.  I have a collection of letters from my grandfather-in-law to my grandmother-in-law that I'm going to swap out in this tablecloth later.  The family dinner table is such a center to the home.  I find myself looking at it all day long.  What would work for a project like this in your home?  Let me know or send me a picture.  I can't wait to see how yours turns out. 

Subscribe to our YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/janethovorka and you'll know when we have the next video done.  We're cooking up all sorts of good ideas.  Can't wait to show you.

Great ideas from SCGS--Secrets and Scoundrels

Sometimes the synergy when you get a bunch of genealogists together brings up great new ideas that you hadn't thought of.  That's why I love genealogy conferences so much.  A couple of weeks ago we got to attend the Southern California Genealogical Society Conference where they put on a great event. 

I came across a few brilliant ideas for getting youth involved in family history from some equally brilliant people and they agreed that I could share them with you here. 

First, Elyse Doerflinger told me what got her involved in genealogy.  I love Elyse because she is so passionate about family history.  Her YouTube channel has some great ideas.   You can see her work at Elyse's Genealogy Blog. 

Elyse said that the best way to get youth involved in family history is to tell them that there is a family secret and that you won't tell them what it is.  Brilliant!  She says that is what happened to her and she had to research her family's past to find out what the secret was.  I know that works with lots of teenagers--tell them they can't do something and that's exactly what they will do. 

Then I had a great conversation with Kim Cotton.  She writes about family history at http://www.walkingyourtree.com.  She is an important part of the California genealogy scene and serves on the board of directors for the California Genealogical Society. 

We talked again about Kim's idea we discussed at RootsTech.  She has found great traction with her nephews by telling them about the scandals and scoundrels in the family history.  She thinks she may have connected back to Pancho Villa.  She said every time she sees them, they want to hear more about what she has been researching now.  It's all in how you tell the story, and if you know Kim, she can tell a good story. 

Elyse and Michael Melendez were in the back of my lecture on genealogy societies.  As we were answering questions at the end, someone asked about youth and societies.  When I answered the question and asserted that youth today need the connections that family history brings more than ever because they are so "disconnected" on social media all the time, I was happy when they both agreed.  I really think the upcoming generation is reaching for real live connections more than any generation ever has because social networking has so disconnected them from reality.

And finally, there was a lady in my demo about the books who made a great suggestion about antique quilts.  I told the group about my grandmother's quilt that I inherited and how that felt like a bullet proof vest to me.  A lady raised her hand (I'm sorry I didn't catch her name) and suggested that I create a fabric transfer of a picture of my grandmother, and another of the story of the quilt and baste them onto the back of the quilt.  Brilliant again!  That way future generations will understand the importance of the quilt and where it came from.  It is always good to keep an artifact and the story as connected as possible going into the next generations.  This is a great way to make sure the quilt is treasured in generations to come. 

So there you go.  Lots of great ideas.  If you have one, I'd love to hear it and be able to share it here with others who are trying to strengthen their families.  Email me at janet<at>zapthegrandmagap.com

Treat Review

Joan Elder sent me a follow up to her tea parties idea.  I'm so excited to share it with you.  She sent some pictures of the activities she's done and this addition:

Joan writes, "We did story telling for Memorial Day with about 20 of us. The key seems to be keeping the children focused so the adults will be focused. So I did 5 min stories. I found an item that would 'remind me' about that story. I told the children that whoever was sitting quietly, and listening well, would get to pick the next item in my bag. I had done this two years ago with three of these chidren, and the other ones followed their lead. The big eyes looking back at me told me that they were captivated (aged 3-9). The parents sat further away on the sofas, while the children all made a half circle around me on the floor. I was animated and dramatic. It was so fun!  I told the adults that it was going to be about 30 minutes of story telling, but after the adults started joining in, and adding to the story, it went well over an hour. I quit before the enthusiasm wained. We had an audio recorder going to help me get the 'rest of the story' from the adults, so I can add that to the written story.

Afterwards, I talked to one of the dad's, and told him I planned on writing these all up along with pictures. He got really excited, and gave me his email. But I am going to have them printed, and put in page protectors, and in a nice three ring binder, with a picture of the kids and I on the front. I'll name it something like: Aunt Joan's Family Stories (or Bedtime Stories, but some of them were quite frightening). Then give one to each family to re-read with their children.

We all live some distance from each other. So I choose people living and dead, so they could get to know something about all of us.

I have attached 2 pictures from the first story time I did with the kids. I don't know if it can help you, but you are welcome to use any of them you want. I love the captivated faces.

The other fun part about this is, I am getting my histories done, one story at a time as I prepare for these story telling events." 


Then Joan sent some more ideas on how she works with the kids to make sure they retain what they've learned.  I love her ideas here because she knows that everything works better with food :) and that when you pull the kids in, it often works on other members of the family too.  Great job Joan.  I hope these ideas work for your family too. 

Joan says, "Well after I have done these fun tea parties, and Mother's Day stories (and I have ones already planned for Father's Day),
I don't want those sweet kids to forget!  On Mother's Day, we only spent 15-20 minutes. That's not alot of time to tell of someone's life, or several.
So I have decided to keep on hand the treats from one of those people. Just so happens to be that it is orange sherbet and french bread (toasted).
So I bag up and hide the sherbet from my husband and teenage son (myself too), and buy the french bread on sale, cut it in slices, and freeze in the portions of one little family coming over. So I am 'prepared'!

So when the grandkids drop in unexpectedly, I ask mom and dad if it is okay for some orange sherbet, and then go dish up a scoop in cute bowls. When I bring the tray out, I have some very excited children. 'To get served', they must answer my questions about the grandma that used to serve this treat to their Uncle Ken and I when we were kids. Questions like:

What is her name?  What is her last name?
What did she say when she got excited? (Oh My Stars!)

Now those are about all the things they learned on Mother's Day, so depending on how well they did, I add a little more to it:

And what did her dad do for a living? (mail carrier with a wagon and horses)
And what happened sometimes in the winter? ('The wolves chasing his mail wagon ' story)
And what was his name?  (Chris Lillethun)

Then I distribute the sherbet, and while we are eating it together, I share a little more about that ancestor and thier family (these are generally things they don't know)

And who in our family was named after him? (Your Uncle Chris)
And do you know why Chris Lillethun was such a wonderful dad? (He had 8 girls, and when his wife died, the youngest was only 2 years old, and he took really good care of them. He stayed home every night, would rassle and play on the floor with them...)

What is very cool, is this is when the parents get involved, and start making comments, and ask some questions.  I am hearing things like "I never knew that" "and "I didn't know that."  What had started out for the parents as a nice thing for grandma to do to teach their children some family history, is turning out that they are learning too.

I am writing the stories down and putting them in a notebook for each family, and calling it "Grandma Joan's Bedtime Stories." I've attached a picture of my outside cover for the notebook (me with all my grandkids). I always have several color pictures with each story. One or more are of the people in the story, and some from the internet as I go under 'Google Images'. (note from Janet: make sure you look for images that are licensed for public use.  The notebook has been a hit too. It is helping me get my life story written, and the activites I am doing with the kids bring the stories to life.


And when I go visit the grandkids in another state for a week, what am I going to do? Bring all my tea party items, and stories of course!

Have fun with your familes!"

Thanks Joan!

A Grandmother Tea Party

Joan Elder was gracious enough to send me a wonderful idea recently that I'm so excited to share with you.  She had a Tea Party with her granddaughters and taught them about her grandmother.  You can tell she is a great storyteller and when you add food, you can tell she had a winning combination.  

Here is what she wrote:

This is the idea I was telling you about. It was so fun!!!  This sit down type activity works better for me than trying to do some physical activity where I am trying to keep up with my active grandchildren. I am going to adapt it to different ancestors. It could be a picnic lunch, or a day of fishing, or...but pulling out the items that go with the person works well...especially when some of them are treats! I did the tea party with my 9, 7, 5, and 2 year old grandchildren all together. I was able to captivate their attention for over an hour. Food will do it. (and pictures and stories). I sent one of them home with a picture of them, myself, and the ancestor in wallet sized photos in a $.99 double frame from WalMart. Going to make scrapbook pages of it as well (hopefully), and continue doing it for the rest of my 22 grandchildren.

[She wrote out a whole lesson plan for it.  (I especially love the pink foam roller story.  What grandchild wouldn't?)]

Bertha Marie Tea Party

(a tradition that began March 4, 2013)

Set out mom’s china

A picture of Bertha Marie

Pretty Bowl with cards in them

Introduction:

Pointing to Bertha Marie’s picture in the center of the table, talk about how we wouldn’t all be here if it wasn’t for her. This is my ___. Because she had Joan, who had ___, who had you. She is how we all got here. We owe her a lot just for that. Do you know her name? Do you know who she is to you? (g grandmother).

   These dishes you are eating off of are hers. She liked nice things. Let me tell you a story about them.

Magic China – show picture of the upside down car at Joan Marie’s wedding. Tell story how the china was in the trunk of the car, and not one piece of china was broken when the car was rolled. Joan Marie’s brother Ken was the boy driving the car on Joan’s and Russell’s wedding day. The crash happened after the wedding. Fortunately, Uncle Ken was not hurt either.

Have the following items ready, but unseen. These will be brought out as the coordinating card is drawn; Pictures, Chocolate Éclair, Butterfinger bars (one for each child is more impressive), donut for each child, the fixings for chocolate malt (vanilla ice cream, milk, chocolate syrup, powdered malt), Reinking book, (Schafer book if you have it of mom and her 4 Schafer kids).

Cards with these words on in (put them in a pretty bowl for children to draw out. I choose one that is her favorite color, then ask the kids if they know why I chose this light aqua color) –

Thrifty $$$, Hard Working, Beautiful, Kind, Fair & Honest, Funny, Talented

 ‘Beautiful’ Card

Bertha Marie’s high school picture – show other pictures of Bertha; her other high school pictures, she and her mom together, and other girls in our family; Joan Marie’s senior picture, Katie’s, Rainy’s, Krystal’s, Melinda’s and Krystal’s 4 month old baby picture. Tell how Sierra and Krystal looked exactly the same when they were 4 months old. That’s because we are all related!

   Bertha Marie was very beautiful, and us girls get some of our beauty from Bertha Marie. But she was not just pretty on the outside. Let’s find out how she was beautiful on the inside.

‘Fair & Honest’ Card

Butterfinger Candy Bars – Mom didn’t want us to eat sugar. She didn’t like it giving us cavities. We didn’t have it around the house much, only on special occasions like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Sometimes I would find a candy bar wrapper under mom’s seat in the car. She would feel embarrassed, because she was breaking one of her own rules. Her face would turn bright red. She didn’t like it that she had been not fair, so she would buy one for us. Do you know what kind of candy bar was her favorite?  Butterfinger. (Take out the Butterfingers) And she would give one to each of us! (And pass them out to each kid).

True and faithful to her husband   

‘Kind’ Card

Donuts – have Reinking book ready – show picture of donuts in Fritz’s kitchen. Tell how mom used to come in with her buddies when she was like 5, reach up above her head, and pull them off the table one by one, and pass them out to her friends.

   Story about her taking the Switzer kids in

   Story about her sending money to cousins after WWII in worn torn Germany.

   Story about her sending money to her nephew that was going to college to help      with tuition costs. She did these things quietly, without bragging or fanfare. I never knew till only recently.

Chocolate Malt Fixings – Tradition of going to Lawton Pharmacy where they had ‘fountain drinks,’ and made Chocolate malts from scratch. We all loved these as much as we did eclairs! Mom would always ask for ‘double chocolate’ and ‘double malt.’ That means she had them put extra in of the things that made it taste so good. Well, sorry to say, but us kids were so greedy when we had a chocolate malt in front of us.

‘Talents’ Card (pie, oatmeal cookies, sewing)

Reinking Book- Show picture of Singer Sewing Machine. Tell how her mother Ruby taught her how to sew. And that she sewed all of her clothes (show picture of Bertha Marie in the suit she sewed. See the page labeled ‘After the War.’

   Could tell how she made the best pies with perfectly fluted edges. And the best oatmeal cookies. I (Joan) remember hiding under the table once, and sneaking one off to eat while mom was still baking more. Bran Muffins for breakfast.

‘Funny’ Card

Funny Story – mom used to wear foam rollers (explain. They were often pink). One time, we were sleeping in a cabin on a little island in Washington, called Lopez Island. It was a cool vacation for us, because it was nearly on the beach, and we got to go play at the beach during the day. We could tell the cabin was full of mice, because when we laid down and turned the lights out to go to sleep, we could hear the mice scratching and knawing in the drawers and cupboards. Well in the middle of the night, we all woke up scared when we heard mom screaming!!! When we turned the lights on, we found her squeezing one of her pink foam rollers! Apparently, she thought there was a mouse in her hair…and SHE SQUEEZED HIM TO DEATH! But, it was just her pink roller.

‘Hard Working’ Card

Bought houses and apartment buildings, and fixed them up. When someone would move out, she would clean up all their trash and mess, and paint all their walls perfectly, and make the whole apartment like new again. She would repair fences. She worked hard.

‘Thrifty $$$’ card

Tell the meaning of thrifty. Ask how much they can buy at the dollar store. Can they buy pants? Or a coat? Or a dress? Well Bertha Marie always shopped for bargains. One time she bought a nice dress for $1! She was a real shopper.

She would always save her money first before buying something. She loved antiques. They were expensive. She would save up, then buy the piece of furniture. (Show picture of brass clock, Roberta’s grandfather clock, lamp, bedroom set?) Don’t have pictures of these items yet.

   Because she worked hard, saved her money, and was thrifty, she became rich.

‘Fun’ Card

    When Bertha Marie was about 5 or 7, she won a scooter for free! You had to collect labels on cans. Her dad was a cook, so he saved all of his. Neighbors saved theirs. It was at a time when everyone was poor because of the depression. She was so excited when she won the prize. That would be like winning a motorcycle today. (show picture of she and scooter in the Reinking book. Point out her mom and dad on the front. Talk about how they saved their money. Show family car and house in Seattle. Show the Hooverville houses that some people had to live in.)

   Chocolate Éclair – this was Bertha Marie’s favorite treat. One time she told us kids that she had found the best eclaris! When we asked her where, she said they were on the other side of town (20 minutes away). Ask the children, “What would you do?” Pause. Well we asked her if we could go right now and go try them.  “What do you think she said?” Pause, “You’re right! She said yes, and so we all piled into the car lickity split, and got to that special bakery on the other side of town. “Do you think they were the best?” Yep! Well, maybe you had better try these and see what you think. (Pull out eclairs)

Thanks so much for the inspiration Joan.  I can't wait to try this.  

Stories

Patricia Burrow sent me this great email today.  I couldn't wait to tell you about her idea.  We've already scheduled a time to do this with my family this summer.  We're going to do it at our traditional summer get together.  But we may have to do it at other holidays too.  Thanks for the great idea Patricia! 

Hello Janet,

Love the Zap books.

I wanted to tell you about a success we have had in our home. Several years ago someone told about how they had everyone write a "story" to be read at Christmas dinner. What a great idea!! My husband and I sent out letters to all of the children before Christmas to say that all we wanted for Christmas was a story.  Two paragraphs to two pages, photo illustrations optional. And, the new rule is, no dessert until you read a story that you have written. The first year, only my husband and I read our stories (they got dessert anyway with a promise to do better the next year). The second year, half did the story and a few thought that they could get away with TELLING a story (nope! it has to be written). Third year EVERYONE had a story, most with photo illustrations. All were wonderful and everyone enjoyed it very much. Loads of laughs. Now, they all look forward to this "tradition". We learn more and more about our daughter-in-law and new son-in-law and they learn about us. The grandkids are hearing family history and our kids are hearing stories about their parents that they never knew or experienced in a younger time. After last week's Easter dinner our seven year old grandson said that he already had his story done for next year. I think he thought that we were doing stories for every holiday. He was a bit disappointed but knows he will be ready for December. I think we have him hooked. We have allowed the kids to make up stories until they are 12 years old at which time they have to write real stories.

Stories could be about anything, about firsts (school day, riding a bike, tasting oysters, going to Disneyland, etc) or events (meeting your father, becoming a mother, graduation, coming home, etc.) or people (I remember grandpa, or my 3rd grade teacher, etc.). A friend tried this at their home and they loved it. Dad told a story about an activity he did with his son. His son disputed that story and told his own story the next year. It is now a family fun time to hear several sides to one story.

I collect all of these stories and include them with the year's Christmas photos and Christmas cards in a scrapbook. I put five years worth of pics and stories into one scrapbook and put it out on the coffee table during the holidays. The book is seldom closed while there is family in the house. We are on our second scrapbook and the stories are read and reread every year.

I hope that you get wide distribution of your books and that more families will bring the grandchildren into their stories. Thanks for you good work.  - pb