I’m back from our whirlwind trip … I think. We drove straight through (a 25 hour drive one-way) to Utah, in both directions. We’re all tired, but very refreshed. There’s nothing like a visit to the mountains!
BigDaddy had a great time at the reunion. Here’s a picture of the little cabin where his father grew up.
Grandpa (born in 1902) was the oldest of 10 children. When Grandpa was around 23 years old, his father died of pneumonia, leaving my Great-grandma to raise 8 children on her own. (Grandpa was on his own by then and the second child died when he was 2 years old.) My Great-Grandma was an amazing woman. The oldest 4 of the 8 children were girls and the youngest 4 were boys, the youngest being only 4 years old when his father died. For most of their childhood, this little cabin was only 2 rooms — a room for my grandparents and a room for all the kids. The door on the far left hand side is a door to the kitchen, but that wasn’t added until the late 1930’s — I can’t imagine where Grandma must have cooked before then, as there’s no fireplace in the main cabin. Grandma had a hard life. The older children quit school after the 8th grade to help support the family. And just a few years after Grandpa died, her third daughter was killed in a sledding accident at age 18. In spite of everything, she always had a smile on her face and a fresh, home-baked cookie for her great-grandchildren.
To the right is a picture of the outhouse. Indoor plumbing was added at the same time as the kitchen. And below is a picture of a hen house on the property. I took the picture and didn’t even notice the tree growing out of the middle of it. One of BigDaddy’s cousins mentioned that people stop to take pictures of “the shed with the tree growing out of it” all the time.
After the reunion, we spent several days just relaxing and enjoying our cousins on MeMum’s side of the family. We stayed with my aunt, another fabulous woman who has raised 7 children and has 26 grandchildren. We cooked and ate and played games. My aunt makes THE BEST sweet rolls. I had to take a picture.
There were a ton of middle-school-age boys and they all had a great time playing a game called fugitive (a nighttime game where everyone tracks down the “fugitive”) and sleeping under the stars. Oh those western skies — the stars at night are SO clear and beautiful. We also worked a little. We helped my uncle paint a fence one day.
I suppose it was a weak attempt to work off a few pounds gained from all the food they fed us. I don’t think it worked though. Here’s one more farm picture. The long building is my grandfather’s turkey barn. It hasn’t had turkeys in it for many, many years. The farm has been sold now and the new owners will take over in December, so this was my last visit. It’s not the same now, as it was when I was little, so it wasn’t too hard for me to say goodbye.
The last day, we went up to Salt Lake. The boys checked out some schools and my aunt and I did a little quilt shopping. We visited my ALL TIME favorite quilt shop, Whimsy Cottage (no website yet!) It doesn’t look like much from the outside, but the inside is loaded with all sorts of Kaffe Fassett, Lakehouse Dry Goods, Anna Maria Horner, Batiks, etc., etc.
We also found a new little quilt shop, Elaine’s Quilt Block. I hate to say it, but we almost didn’t go to Elaine’s — the name just sounds a little…um…un-exciting. But when we were at Whimsy, we told the clerks that we only had time for one more shop and we gave them three choices and said “Which shop would you go to?” They both immediately, and at the same time, said Elaine’s. It’s a great quilt shop. If you live in SLC, you’re very lucky to have such great choices in quilt shops!
So, now, back to work and catching up on all your blogs. Only 1450 posts to read! I squinted in fear when I opened my bloglines. Maybe I’ll be caught up in a few weeks. It won’t be easy though — two family birthdays this week and a trip to New Jersey. It’s a good thing that Labor Day weekend will be here soon to help me get caught up!
XOXO,
Anna
Wow, that’s quite a trip! How neat to see a slice of family history. It’s amazing to see what our great-great’s made do with, isn’t it?
And how fun to get to visit a couple great quilt shops!
Wow, Anna! What a great road trip! How amazing to be able to see and take pictures of the house, hen house, etc. I’m big into genealogy, but have very little photos of actual homes. Lucky you.
Those sweets are making me hungry!
sounds like you had a blast. Welcome back – I did miss you and your posts and of course your comments.
Sound like you had a great trip! I love your photos, especially the old wood cabin and the shed with the pet tree. How cool to be part of that! And those yummy rolls are making my tummy rumble…even though I just had dinner. Welcome back! :-)
Welcome back Anna! We’ve missed you but so glad you had a wonderful trip and were able to spend time with family. Ahhh…summertime trips and family reunions..there’s nothing better! I’m sure those pillows came in handy during your 25 hour drives!
What an amazing trip. Such wonderful stories – women can be amazing really can’t they. How yummy do those sweet rolls look.
And to top it off you got to visit quilt shops – an all round good holiday if you ask me! Welcome back.
What a wonderful trip. Glad you could squeeze in a bit of shopping :)
What a wonderful trip? Where did you go in Utah? That’s where my family is from…Lizzy is flying to SLC tomorrow. What temple is that? Is it St. George? So beautiful. Do you have a pic of your kitty Scruff…I’ll pass it on to Stella; see what she thinks!
Have a great day!
Cherri
It;s good to have you back! Your road trip sounds amazing – lovely photos. The cabin is lovely, but I know it must have been hard for your greatgrandparents. It sounds like you had great fun as a family. Wonderful
Kim x
Hey Anna – so glad you had a great trip and able to see things from the past. That’s a lot of driving sister – hope you had handwork for in the car :). Missed reading your posts, so I’m glad your back.
Hugs – Karen
OMG those cinnamon rolls look so yummy. Is there a recipe for those? I would love to make some. And I loved seeing the old house. Does your family still own it?
Welcome home!! I’m glad you had such a wonderful time. I love the cabin and the story, just lovely. The quilt shops sounded like fun and I’m glad you had time to enjoy! Have a great day.
What a lovely time!!!! Those sweet rolls look delish!!!
Welcome home Anna! Your destination/family reunion looks delightful and it seems that you survived the 25-hours-one-way, non-stop roadtrip. Glad to see you found a few shops to visit, too!
Nice to have you back. XO
What a great trip! Thanks for all the pictures – I had to wipe the drool while looking at the sweet rolls – yummy!
I’m glad you found some great quilt shops in your travels, too!
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