Grandma got run over...

Everyone has heard the song they play every year about how Grandma got run over by a reindeer....  Well, believe it or not, Grandma did get run over one year about Christmas time but it wasn't exactly a reindeer... 

Now, to set  the scene, you have to understand that Grandma enjoys her trips in to 'town'.  When it comes to a trip to Wal-Mart, she is pretty dedicated, kind of like the mailman.  There's not much weather that's going to keep her at home when she's got the itch to hit the store.  Now, Iowa winter can be a very unfriendly beast.  There are days that many of us would opt to stay in where it's warm and dry.  Some days traveling out of doors in Iowa is not for the faint of heart.  Well, no one's ever accused Grandma of being 'faint of heart' and this particular day is one example of this very point.

It was a pretty typical winter day in Iowa.  Temperatures were in the single digits, there was a pretty significant breeze...

Grandma, safely makes her trip into 'town'.  As she was traveling home on Hwy 3 however, nearly back to Shell Rock, all of the sudden she noticed something in the road ahead of her.  Before she knew it there was a Christmas tree headed straight for her!!! The car ahead of her was transporting the tree home when it was caught by the wind and blew it straight into Grandma's path! 

It's hard to guess who's story would be the most awkward to tell...the lady who's tree looked like it just got run over by Grandma, or Grandma who just got run over by a Christmas tree.  Grandma definitely learned to keep her eyes peeled for flying Christmas trees and even wrote an editorial advocating safe tree transport during the holiday season! (There is a moral to this story after all!!)

Needless to say, Grandma endured a significant amount of teasing over the whole ordeal.  We are of course very glad that Grandma was not harmed...(I can't say the tree fared quite so well).    Safe to say, however, every year since that time, we have reminded her of the year she took out the Christmas tree.  Mike Gabe, in particular, likes to ask Grandma at every opportunity if she's hit any Christmas tree's lately.  It's pretty much impossible to hear Grandma re-tell this story without cracking up. 

Going into this holiday season don't forget to travel safely and watch for flying trees and don't forget to practice safe tree transporting!

A trip to Wartburg...

I've decided since Grandma hasn't written for a while, I would put an entry in her blog for her! I have lots of shared memories with Grandma Neal and heard many of her good stories and her reminiscing.

Last Sunday, I had the privilege of taking Grandma with me to the Wartburg College Choir Alum reunion concert. For Iowa, it was an exceptionally nice afternoon in October. We were very thankful for that!! As we waited for the concert to begin, I got to enjoy Grandma's company and I thought it would be a good bit of history to share on her blog for her.

After Grandma graduated from high school, she began taking classes at Wartburg College in Waverly. Wartburg has grown a great deal in recent years but back in 1939 and 1940 when Grandma was there, it was pretty small and was jokingly referred to as 'Wartburg High' she recalls. Grandma was a member of the Wartburg Choir at that time, directed by Dr. Edwin Liemohn.

At the reunion concert they sang a few of Dr. Liemohn's noteworthy songs. Even though it was 72 years ago, Grandma still remembered the songs well enough to hum along. How awesome.

Since I've been working on the Wartburg campus this month I got to be a part of 'Outfly' at Wartburg this year. Grandma remembers this too from her time at Wartburg. (For those of you not familiar 'Outfly' at Wartburg it is an annual tradition where the student body 'plans' an 'unplanned' day off from school. Other students don't know exactly when it will be until early in the morning on the day of when the word is spread in the hallways of the dorms.) Lots of fun activities go on during this day and Grandma remembers outings to parks and a full day of fun.

I always enjoy hearing Grandma's stories. But, I have to say, that maybe one of the most fascinating things for me is how Grandma always seems to stay so 'up' on the times and technology. When we returned to her apartment after the concert, I had to fix her computer because she was having trouble with Facebook. Now, while this makes Grandma utterly disgusted (when the computer acts up) when I tell my friends and coworkers that my 92 year old grandmother is on Facebook...it shocks them! What is more, she is most frustrated because she can't get her 'YOUTUBE' link to work from her email that plays a video for her through Facebook. Amazing! Luckily it is up and working again and Grandma is back in touch with friends and family (and able to watch her favorite Morman Tabernacle Choir program on YOUTUBE)!

It's getting difficult for Grandma to type for her blog due to the arthritis in her fingers but if anyone would like to contribute a story or a memory with Grandma, please email it to me at trisheesandwich@aol.com. I'm sure she would enjoy reading it too!

the great great grandchildren....and pics of Grandma!

Grandma's family grows...part 3

This blog is one that I am writing to introduce you to all my grandchildren, great grandchildren and GREAT, GREAT Grandchildren. I will start with my first born Granddaughter, Shelley, who is divorced and has one son, Luke Sherburne. Shelley lives in my mobile home on my farm on Butler Center Road near Shell Rock. She lives right across the road from the big old farm house where Carol lives.
Cindy is married to Mike Gabe and they have a daughter, Alysia, and a son, Travis. Mike and Cindy bought our home in Shell Rock when we moved to The Meadows. I am so glad they take such good care of the house where we lived for 30 years and where I have so many happy memories. That is where the grandchildren liked to come and play in our big basement. We also had lots of family gatherings there. The year after Galen died we had a Father’s Day gathering there and everyone came. I hope Trisha puts the picture on of that family gathering! There were 43 relatives there!! We each told what we remembered about Galen! I wish I had written down what everyone said about him. It was all good memories we had of Galen! I wish he could have been there! We all missed him!
Melinda is married to Ray Cagley and they have a boy, Sloan, and a girl, Paiton, and they live in a beautiful farm home close to where Carol lives.I love to go out to their house for family gatherings. We had had our Christmas at their house the last few years and they always have such a beautiful Christmas tree with all the trimmings. We have a lot of fun!!
Trisha is married to Jason Miller and they live in Charles City, Iowa. We always go to their house for Thanksgiving! Trisha and Jason go to a lot of work to have a delicious meal with all the trimmings. Trisha always has a beautiful dining room table setting with all her beautiful dishes. It is the “Highlight” of the year. We all look forward to it!
Next I will tell about Bill’s daughters and their families: Lindsey is married to John Pierce and they have 4 boys: Trevor, Devon. Kyle and Bryson.They live in Hawaii close to where Bill and Dianna live right along the ocean. I loved to visit them whenever I went to Hawaii. I have not been there since 2004, but Lindsey and her family were back to Iowa in 2008 to attend the big family reunion. The only grandson I haven’t seen is Bryson. I hope they all come and see me again some day. I don’t think I will be going to Hawaii again at my age. Lindsey sends lots of good pictures of her family on FACE BOOK and so I keep up with them on the computer. I am so thankful for that!!
Jenny is married to Aaron Jensen and they have a daughter, Kylee, and a son, Mason. They are expecting a baby boy in August! That won’t be long! They also live in Hawaii close to Bill and Dianna.
Erin is married to Will Howe and they have a little boy, Avery. They live in Australia and I am so glad to hear from them often on the computer. I love all the pictures they send too!! I hear Erin is coming back in August to be with Jenny when she has her baby. I know they will all be glad to see her. The last daughter to arrive in the Neal home was Megan. She is not married and lives in Salt Lake City. Bill & Dianna plan to visit her soon on their way to Iowa for my 92nd birthday party in July!

Betty has three grown up children. Leah & Joe are parents of 4 children: Shelby Cole, Rachel Cole, Kyle Cole and Katelyn Cole. They live in
Allison, Iowa. I love to have them come visit me and we usually go to McDonalds for “Happy Meals” (I am not too old for a Happy Meal)
Shelby will be a freshman in High School next year and Rachel is 10 yrs. old, Kyle is 8, and I think Katelyn 6 yrs. old. I hope I have all these ages right! I know it is close anyway. They are such cute little Hawaiian kids!
Matthew is married to Tina. They live in Waterloo and they are expecting a new baby boy in August. I know they will be wonderful parents! Betty lives in Waterloo and works at Community National Bank and I know she will enjoy helping with the new baby! I can’t wait to see the new baby. I’m glad I can still travel around Iowa anyway. Last year I got to go with Bill & Dianna to Nauvoo, Illinois. That was a wonderful trip, we got to see their daughter, Megan, play her cornet in the band in Nauvoo. I hope we take another nice trip in Iowa next month when Bill & Dianna are home to visit!!
Alana is Betty’s youngest daughter. She lives in Hawaii and has a good job there and loves it in Hawaii. I am also glad to see her when she comes home for a visit. Alana is a beautiful Hawaiian looking gal. She was one of the cheerleaders all four years in High School in Waverly, Iowa. I don’t blame her for wanting to live in Hawaii near her Grandma Gamundoy and her other relatives in Hawaii!!

My last two grandchildren I want to tell you about are my two great, great, grandsons. Their parents are Aaron and Alysia Gabe Countryman. They live in the country close to the town of Fairfield in southern Iowa. I don’t get to see them very often, but I am sure they will come to my birthday party in July! The great, great grandsons names are CHASE (who is 2 yrs, old) and Channing (who is 8 months old). They are so cute and so lucky to live out in the country. Chase has his own little John Deere tractor already.. Alysia is a Registered nurse and is working in a Doctor’s office. Aaron is an Insurance Salesman. THIS IS THE LAST OF MY FAVORITE PEOPLE blog and I sure hope I did not forget anyone. If I did I am sure I will hear about it. Ha Ha I’m sure you can understand how much I love all my family because as you know, I was an only child and was adopted. I think I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family!!

Grandma's family grows...part 2

This is Saturday night and I just took a walk outside on this beautiful evening after supper. “The Meadows” where I live is an Assisted Living Home for the elderly. There is also a Care Center connected to the Meadows. My daughter, Carol Soldwisch, has worked here for 30 years as Head of the House Keeping Dept. I see her almost every day and it is so nice to have her close by if I need help. She takes me shopping every week. Betty lives in Waterloo and works in the Community Bank. She is so good to come visit me almost every week and comes to help me often and helps me keep my computer going plus doing lots of other errands for me. Last week she shampooed the carpet in my apartment and it looks so nice now. I am looking for Bill and Dianna to visit me in July. They are planning to leave Hawaii on July 6th. I am looking forward to having a big celebration for my 92nd birthday in July. I love it when all our family gets together for any celebration. We always have such a good time! If anyone reads this and I haven’t seen or heard from you in a long time and you want to talk to me you can find me at “The Meadows”in Shell Rock, Iowa.
My Father was a Methodist Minister in Iowa for many years. My parents were Rev.and Mrs. J.W.Bearse. Dad was a Minister in Walker, Clarence, Brandon, Rowley,Melbourne, Parkersburg and Shell Rock. Remember Lois (Bearse) Neal?

To continue with the second page of my last blog I had just finished telling you about Carol and Bill’s families. Now I will give you a little history on our daughter, Betty. She was born on August 29th, 1950. She was born in the Waverly hospital and was such a little doll. She was such a good baby too!! Her brother, Bill, was born the year before on March 27th, 1949 so I was a busy and happy Mom taking care of two little ones. Carol was always a wonderful help to me except the time she was supposed to be watching Betty and I was washing clothes in the back room and pretty soon I heard someone falling down the stairs. I think Betty hit every step on the way down. It was lucky there was no damage to Betty or the stairs. Another time when Bill and Betty were older they were outside playing and Betty came running in the house yelling that “Bill fell out of the Hay Mow in the barn!” I ran down to the barn and he wasn’t hurt since he fell on a pile of hay. I had to laugh at him because he looked so funny with hay sticking out of his ears, nose and mouth he looked like a scare crow. Needless to say they had been warned that the Hay Mow was a dangerous place and I think they learned their lesson. It seems to take lots of bumps and bruises to grow up. Luckily there were never any broken bones.

To continue my story about Betty I think she was a great addition to our happy family. She was lucky to have an older brother and sister to take her places and do things together. They loved to play school and Carol was always the teacher. Bill said one time he would like to have been the teacher sometime. Betty graduated from High School in 1968. She decided to go to Ellsworth College in Iowa Falls, Iowa.She took a one year business course. Their program at Ellsworth was to go to school for 6 weeks at a time and then work in an office 6 weeks. They did this all year long and by the end of the year Betty had lots of “on the job” training. She got a job in an office in DesMoines right after she graduated from the business course. She had a nice apartment in Des Moines and had two nice room mates. After she had worked in Des Moines a while she decided to see if she could visit her Aunt Dorothy in Hawaii and get a job over there. She asked one of her room mates, Lyn Lupkes ,to go with her. Betty loved it in Hawaii and found a good job over there. We visited her over there several times and then eventually we got a message that she had a Hawaiian boy friend and they were going to get married ! I went over to the wedding and met Frank for the first time. I liked him real well and also enjoyed meeting his folks. ( I forgot to tell you that Dianna gave me her wedding veil to take to Betty for the wedding. I had it on a hanger and carried it thru the air-port and into the airplane and I got lots of attention. The stewardess was very nice about hanging it in a closet so it would look nice when I got to Hawaii.) It was a beautiful church wedding! Betty was a beautiful bride and became the wife of Frank Gamundoy. Galen and I loved to go over and visit Frank and Betty. When their first daughter, Leah, was born we went over to visit and get acqainted with her. She was a doll! We always felt welcome in their home and we also visited Galen’s sister in Hawaii. Betty and Frank were so happy when their son, Matthew, was born. We went over to get acquainted with him!. We always loved to have Betty and Frank come and visit us in Iowa!! I remember one time they came for Christmas and Leah was about 4 yrs. old and she said, “Grandma, where are all the leaves?” She had never seen trees without leaves before. They also loved making snow men and angels in the snow. Betty had another cute little baby girl, Alana, and when Alana was about 5 years old we got a sad call from Betty telling us that Frank wanted a divorce. We were happy that Betty wanted to move back to Iowa and it was so fortunate that there was a nice house available for her to move into. Bill and Dianna were sorry to see them leave Hawaii, but Bill was so glad they would have a nice house in Shell Rock!!. I think Betty and her family have really enjoyed being back in Iowa. Betty had lots of friends and relatives to welcome her back. We really enjoyed having our only grandson living close. Matt loved going out to the farm with his Grandpa Neal. Matt has always been such a help to all of us! He is a very good carpenter and such a help! I will tell you more about all my grandchildren in the next blog. I think Betty and her family have had a very happy life being close to us and to her sister, Carol,and family. Betty was fortunate that she has always been able to have a good job and is so talented. She is so good at interior decorating and has always been so good at decorating. She has helped me decorate my apartment and recently she helped Carol decorate her home. It looks like a new house inside!. Bill will be surprised when he sees his old home place on the farm! (Bill just called me on the phone. He always calls me on the week end to check up on me! Nice to hear his voice!) The next blog I will continue to tell about all the grandchildren and great grandchildren and great, great grandchildren! Stay tuned to hear more about my favorite people, MY FAMILY!

Grandma's family grows...part 1

It is so much fun to remember the bygone days when my family was growing up. In my last blog I told about Carol and Don. They were married in California while Don was in the Navy and after the war was over and Don was out of the Navy they moved back to Iowa with their little daughter, Shelley, who was about 2 yrs. old then. Don found a job at the Carnation Company in Waverly (now known as Nestle). They found a place to rent on an acerage near Waverly. Eventually they found a home in Shell Rock on Barbara Street. Cindy was born on July 8,1969. Now Shelley had a cute little baby sister. I loved to baby-sit my two little granddaughters and when they got older I loved to take them to Sunday School with me. Lila Hall told me one time that it was like I was bringing my two daughters to SS again. Lila remembered when I used to bring Carol & Betty to Sunday School. Lila was my neighbbor for years when we lived out on Butler Center Road. I don’t remember the exact year when Carol and Don were divorced but after that, Carol and the girls continued to live in their nice house in Shell Rock for a while. Later, Carol met a very nice young man, George Soldwisch, and they fell in love & were married in Carol’s home. Several friends and relatives attended their wedding. It was great that George loved Carol’s daughters so much too. He told me one time that they were such nice little girls and so well behaved. At that time Galen and I decided to move to our new house in town and so we asked Carol and George if they wanted to move into our house. Carol has always loved living in the country so they moved into our house and we moved to town. We were very happy in our new home in Shell Rock and Galen used part of the house as his new office. He was selling Butler County Mutual Insurance at the time. We had lived on the farm for 30 years and eventually we lived in our new house for 30 years. We were so happy to hear the news soon after Carol & George were expecting a new daughter. I will never forget the day Melinda was born! George stopped in to tell us we were Grandparents again and he said. “We are going to have so much fun with that new daughter!!” He was so happy! We were also happy to hear the news. Melinda Is now married and has two children of her own. Melinda also has a younger sister, Trisha, who joined her in March of 1980!
We loved having the four sisters visit us whenever Carol needed a baby-sitter. We had a big basement where they loved to play. It lots of toys and a rocking horse & roller skates (and a record player!). I will never forget the time Carol left Trisha at my house while she was shopping and when she got back Trisha and I were playing the piano together and shd didn’t want to go home. Ha Ha Carol told her she couldn’t come to Grama’s house any more if she didn’t want to go home when she came to pick her up! I don’t think Carol meant it. When Melinda & Trisha were in school I used to pick them up on Fridays after school and we would have Chef Boyardee pizza & other goodies for supper (chocolate pudding with whipped cream on top). I loved to have them come and I know they liked it! This is my short story about four of my Granddaughters. Little did I know then that eventually I would have ten Granddaughters and one Grandson. Bill & Dianna had 4 daughters and Betty had two Daughters and one son.

Bill attended UNI in Cedar Falls for 4 years and after he graduated he taught school in Spencer, Iowa. He taught typing and shorthand in high school. At first the only furniture he had was a Grand Piano. That was his most important purchase and it traveled with him all over the US and to Hawaii later on. Bill is a very talented piano and organ player. I really am so glad he practiced the piano and I know he really enjoys playing for church and using his talent to accompany his daughters when they play the flute or cornet. He played the organ when Jenny marched in with her graduation class in High School I was there to watch that & I was so proud of him! Bill taught at Kirkwood Community College after he taught at Spencer. Dianna was also teaching in Cedar Rapids at the time and after they met and fell in love they were married in Dianna’s church in Des Moines. They had a beautiful wedding, lots of music, and lots of friends and relatives to wish them well. We were so happy to meet Dianna’s family too. After their honeymoon they went back to Cedar Falls (where they were living at the time) and after Bill finished his year of teaching there they moved to Blacksburg, Virginia, where Bill earned his Doctorate degree in Business at Virginia Tech College. We really enjoyed visiting them when they lived there because we had never been South before. Dianna taught school there while Bill was attending college. After he graduated from there they moved to Logan, Utah, where Bill tauight in the State University there. Not long after they moved there we got the exciting news that they were expecting a baby. I was so happy to take the train out to Logan so I could help Dianna after the baby was born. I arrived in Logan on the 19th of March 1980 and Lindsey was born that night. I think Lindsey was waiting for me to come. She was such a cute baby too with dark hair and beautiful brown eyes. She was a little doll and still is!! Ha Ha Dianna & Bill had lots of company to come see her and I will never forget all the beautiful quilts they brought, all hand made. I wonder if Lindsey has any of them yet? Two years later Jenny was born and Dianna said she looked like me when she was born. Sorry Jenny! haha Must be I resemble Bill somewhat! Ha Ha Soon after Jenny was born the family moved to Hawaii where Bill taught at Brigham Young University. Erin was born two years later and Grampa & I went over to Hawaii to be there when she was born. Going to Hawaii has been so much fun for us and we love it in Hawaii. We first went there on our 25th Wedding Anniversary to visit Galen’s sister, Dorothy. Bill & Dianna have one more daugter who was the spoiled one! Ha Ha Her name is Megan and she actually told me she was spoiled. She said she got things that the other girls never could have. Is that right Megan? I will tell you all about my granddaughters and their families in future blogs. Next I want to tell you about Betty’s family... (to be continued)

The important people in my life...part1

I have been thinking about what I would write about the important people in my life. This was the last question that Trisha asked me to write about. The more I thought about it, I came to the conclustion, that the people who were really important was family. There were lots of friends that I have met during my life and they were important at that time, but the ones who are the most important to me now...are family! When I married Galen on September 12, 1942, he became the most important person in my life. My parents were still important to me, but I did not depend on them anymore. Galen's parents still lived in the big old farm house where Galen grew up and we lived in the tenant house (where the hired man usually lived) and we were very happy there. We were still living there when our first daughter, Carol Jane, was born in 1944. Carol was my first important relative (remember I was adopted when I was a baby) so Carol was my very first blood relative. She was also my parents first grandchild. Carol was born on Jan 15, 1944 in the Waverly hospital. Carol was a beautiful baby and the love of my life. I spend 10 days in the hospital as that was the normal time new Mothers were required to stay in those days. I had a very good Doctor and lots of good care. I will never forget how excited Galen and I were when we took our new baby home from the hospital. Since Galen's parents lived in the big house next door to us, his Mother offered to keep Carol in their home the first night so I could get some rest. That was a big help because it was a big adjustment for me being a new mother and I think Grandma Neal thought it would be a big help to me if she helped me get the new baby on a schedule. We took over the next day and took Carol to her new home where we learned to become parents. My mother came to spend a few days with us to help with her new granddaughter. I remember at first we thought Carol had her days and nights mixed up so my mom thought we should try keeping her awake more in the day time. I guess this must have worked because she eventually learned to sleep nights. That is just one of the many things she had to learn and Galen and I had to learn to be patient like all new parents do. We moved into the big house when Galen's parents decided to move into town. That was the house that Galen grew up in!! The second most important person in my life was born on December 17, 1947. Robert Ray was welcomed into our home after the usual 10 day stay in the hospital. Carol was a good helper with her new little brother and we loved him very much. However, in spite of all our loving care, he became ill and died 8 weeks later in the hosptial. That was a very sad funeral. His grave is in the Shell Rock cemetery. The third important person in my life was our second son, William Gallen "Bill" Neal, who was born on March 27, 1949. Bill filled the empty spot in our home that Robert Ray had left. He was a wonderful son and brother. Galen's parents enjoyed their grandchildren so much too. When Betty joined our family on August 29 we had one more important member added to our family. Bill and Betty and Carol grew up on the farm together and I know that they are the most important people in my life, even though I had lots of good friends. Galen and I were very fortunate to have such a wonderful family. **************************************************************************************************** Next I want to tell you about my important Grandchildren. It was such a thrill when my first Granddaughter was born on January 14th, 1966. Carol was living in Long Beach, Califonia, with her husband at the time. Don was in the Navy and was away from home much of the time so I told her I would come out and be with her when the baby was born. It was quite an adventure for me to take the plane out to California. Carol met me at the airport and it was quite late in the afternoon. We had supper soon after that and then (believe it or not) Carol started having labor pains and we called the Doctor and he told her to get to the hospital right away. Carol had a friend who took us to the hospital. That was an exciting time for me and I was so glad I was there when Carol's baby daughter, Shelley Rae, was born early the next morning on January 14th. That was a nice birthday present for Carol who had a birthday on January 15th! When I called Grandpa Galen at home about the new baby he was very happy to hear the news. My folks were retired and living in Leisure World in Califonia (close to Long Beach) so several days later we took Shelley out to see her Great Grandparents. Of course they were very happy and excited to see their new GREAT grandaughter, Shelley! Carol and I had such a good time for two weeks taking care of the new baby. I also enjoyed being in California becase the weather in Iowa was below zero most of the time I was gone. I loved being in California where I could wash clothes and hang them out on the line to dry. It was a special time I will never forget!!