Documenting Family Quilts

Welcome back to "Weaver Wednesday" as I revisit the subject of documenting heirloom textiles. 

I have written about this before, but I do not think that I finished this story…maybe because this story does not have an ending. 

So let's begin again.

A few years ago, I began this project of labeling family quilts. A family member made the labels for me on her embroidery sewing machine. I gave her the name of each quilt pattern, the name of who made the quilt, and an approximate date the quilt was completed. 

While these labels were in the making, my daughter, Rebecca, photographed the quilts. We draped them over a farm fence on a beautiful Fall afternoon.

When the labels were completed, I stitched them by hand onto each quilt and "framed" the label with a coordinating vintage trim. 

This has been a very rewarding project for me, but as I implied above, I am not finished yet.

 I am looking forward to completing this endeavor soon. It gives me much satisfaction to know that my children and my grandchildren will know who made these beautiful quilts. I think this adds a level of appreciation for our ancestors that might otherwise be missed. 

If you have ideas about how you document your family history or your heirlooms, please share with me. I would love to hear from you. I do not get many comments in the "Comment" section of this blog. I have heard it is because a reader has to have a Gmail account to actually reply. I know there are readers of Family Trails from all over the world, which is so cool!  "Blogspot" allows the writer to view statistics of the blog's readership. When I check the stats periodically and see the map of the world highlighted where someone has read Family Trails, I get so excited. 

I honestly think that people are truly the same all over the world. We all have a desire to know where we came from, who our "people" were, their experiences, their joys and sorrows, what kept them going in the tough times, how they celebrated the good times.  These are the tidbits of information that help us understand who we are. We may find inspiration from our past to encourage us in our daily lives in 2016. 

So, readers, I am looking into another way you can communicate with me to share your ideas. Please stay tuned…I hope to have this set up by next week. Until then,
Love,
Mariellan

Plum Cake: A Family Favorite

Dear Family Trails readers,

Finally! I have this post ready for "Weaver Wednesday." For a recipe that has been a "tried and true" that our family can usually make with our eyes closed and one hand behind our backs, that has been the most difficult post to write. Let me tell you why…

As I mentioned above, this cake is a family favorite and has been for years. There was always debate in our Weaver family as to the origin of this recipe. The "Plum Cake" recipe was shared between aunts, uncles, and cousins. After many years of discussion, I think I will go out on a limb and state that I believe the recipe originated from Era Boyd Weaver, who was married to my grandmother's brother, Dewey. In looking through some old family recipe cards, I found this recipe in Aunt Era's handwriting with her name on it in the corner. Aunt Era was a great cook, and I am sure she would not want us fussing over this. She was generous and always willing to share her recipes. As a result, the plum cake recipe became all of ours.
My father, Tom DeWine, made it all of the time…and I am not exaggerating on this! He had 2 small Bundt cake pans and cranked this cake out for gifts the entire month of December. He was famous for it in his office, so much so that of course, his co-workers started expecting it each year.
It is such an easy recipe to make, and that adds to its appeal as a good, homemade gift.

The unique ingredient that makes this cake so delicious is that it calls for 2 jars of baby food plums. The cinnamon and cloves make it amazing too, and the house smell so good while it bakes. 

Several years ago, Gerber stopped making baby food plums. What??? This was a serious problem for our family. We tried applesauce, baby food apples, anything that might be a substitute, but nothing worked. There was that mysterious taste that only the baby food plums offered. Then last year, sister Rebecca found these jars…"Earth's Best: Apples and Plums." Well, plums were not the first ingredient listed, but she thought it was worth a try. After Rebecca made the cake, she called me to report that her house smelled wonderful and that the cake was perfect!

Here is the recipe as it is written in our family cookbook:

Recipe for Plum Cake

2 cups self-rising flour
2 cups sugar
1 cup Wesson oil
3 eggs
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
2 small jars baby food strained plums
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Sift dry ingredients. Beat eggs. Add oil and dry ingredients along with plums and mix well.
Bake in a greased and floured Bundt or tube pan in a 325 degree oven for 50 minutes.
Cake will leave sides of pan when done. Allow cake to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove cake from pan and allow to cool completely.
Drizzle glaze over cake.
Tip: This recipe is for a regular size Bundt pan. It also works for 2 small Bundt pans that make 2 nice gift-size cakes.

Glaze recipe

1 cup confectioners' sugar
juice of one lemon or one orange
Blend well and drizzle over cake.

Now here is my take on this recipe:

1. I do not shift the dry ingredients.

  I put all the ingredients  in the mixing bowl and mix until blended.

2. For years, I used "Pam" on my pans. AND that always worked.

I never had a cake to stick to the pan when using "Pam", but recently, "Pam" has not worked. So this time, I buttered and floured the pan and had great results.
3. The recipe in the family cookbook states to glaze the cake while warm. I do not do this. I wait until the cake is cool. Also, limit the juice so the glaze does not get too thin.

In reference to my comment on "Pam:"  In my trial and error of getting the cakes out of the pans, I must say…" Pam" had always worked for me. When it stopped working for some reason, I started asking staff in different cooking shops, "Do you use Pam?" or "How do you get your cake out of the pan?" The resounding answers were, "No, I do not use Pam. It is bad for your nice pans. " In my research, I did learn about the product that Williams-Sonoma sells, and I have bought it but not used it yet. I'll let you know how it works. To be honest, I have these new pans, and I just thought I would not risk damaging them with any of my trial-and-error attempts yet.

Bak-klene ZT from Williams-Sonoma

I hope you enjoy trying this Weaver family favorite.
Oh, and one more thing to pass along… Plum Cake is great for breakfast!

Love,
Mariellan

How Do You See The World?

Good morning, Family Trails readers.
 I realize that I have not been meeting my goal of the "Weaver Wednesday" post very well. Sure, there are a few reasons for this….mainly LIFE. No complaints in that department for sure...life is good, and I wake up every day thankful for the gift of a new day. Though I may have missed quite a few posts deadlines, my mind is always looking for inspiring ideas to share with you.

For a long time, I have had some images in my mind from one of the trips that sister, Rebecca, and I took to Talladega. During the annual "April in Talladega" tour of homes, we had the opportunity to tour Manning Hall on the campus of the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind.  The main floor in Manning Hall holds a museum of the institute since its conception in 1858. There were many artifacts to view:  photographs, books written in Braille, portraits, school desks, old clothing, and old records, but one item stood out to me and its image has not left my mind. That is why I have named this blogpost,
"How Do You See The World?"

How do you see the world?
Do you wake up every day and look out of the window to check the weather?
Do you click on the TV to watch the news of the world?
Maybe you travel and experience the vast size of our country and even fly across the oceans to exotic destinations.
And of course, we all can see the world through books. A book can transport us into a secret garden, or Neverland, or a deserted island; we can ride alongside a cowboy or sit in a covered wagon, enter a spaceship and orbit the moon, or hike the Appalachian Trail with a man and his faithful four-legged companion.
We can also spin a globe of the Earth and run our fingers across the colorful countries as it spins.
Do I take these these opportunities for granted? I admit that I do, but touring this museum helped to remind me to "walk in someone else's shoes" for a bit and imagine how a child without eyesight sees the world.

In the museum in Manning Hall, there is a very old map of the world to help children begin to see the world. 

These maps grabbed my attention. They were hand-made in Louisville, Kentucky in 1882 by the 

American Printing House for the Blind. As you can see, the 2 sides of the globe were hand-carved to help children envision the vastness of the world in which they lived. Children could touch the shape of the continents, feel the mountain ranges, and rub their little fingers across the oceans to get an idea of just how large the Earth really is. 

Thankfully, these maps are preserved in this museum. There are only 2 of these sets that have survived in this country. 

As in a previous post, I would like to pay tribute to four of the Weaver ladies who taught school at the  Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind. I am in awe of their commitment as teachers, and especially as teachers to children with such special needs. 

When I was a little girl, I understood in a childlike way that my grandmother, Ivera, taught children who were deaf. She taught me to sign the alphabet and to sign my name, which I can still do. And one of my most favorite memories has to be when she got frustrated with the 3 of us. I am sure we gave her fits at times. When she needed to discipline us and couldn't get the words out fast enough, her hands started signing. There is no telling what she was saying, but it sure got our attention! We would stop in our tracks and just stare at her red face and her little arms and hands just signing away!  

That's just a little memory of mine, and I hope you enjoyed it. 

And I hope we all continue to "see the world!"

With love,

Mariellan

"Grandmother Weaver" Loved to Crochet

Dear Family Trails readers,

My great-grandmother, Nancy Antoinette Haynes Weaver, loved to crochet. I cannot imagine how she had time to crochet while she raised 10 children. Her last child was born in 1909. In reading about the history of crochet, I have learned that using white or natural colored threads became popular in the early 1900's. The crochet pieces that I have seen of "Grandmother Weaver's" are all in this type of thread, so that gives me a clue into when she might have begun crocheting as a hobby.  

These pictures are 2 examples of her small projects…doilies for chairs, I imagine.
The one above is damaged and stained. Some of the threads are broken. I want to have them repaired…or restored. (There is a difference in this, and I need to learn more about both processes.)

Photo courtesy of Rebecca Wise Photography

These pictures show a bed spread that Nancy Antoinette Haynes Weaver crocheted. This spread is very intricate, much more so than the doilies. There is a 6-point star-or flower-pattern repeated to complete a spread to cover a full-size bed. Each star point, or petal, has 6 crocheted knots that are made from several stitches to create a raised knot or "bubble." As in most needlework, the more intricate the stitch, the more time-consuming it becomes. This spread must have taken many, many hours for her to crochet, and if I have my family lore correct, this is only one of many that she made for family members.

Photo courtesy of Rebecca Wise Photography

A very damaged photo of "Grandmother and Grandfather Weaver" with their first 3 children. 

I hope you enjoy seeing these crochet pieces. If you have been on the Family Trails with me for awhile, you know that my list of family history projects is getting longer. The organization, restorations (see photo above for proof !) and the documentation …it can be overwhelming. But I keep reminding myself,

 "One day at a time….."

Love,

Mariellan

When God Closes a Door...

Doors are fascinating to me.
Usually doors are the focal point of a home, and they each say something to the outsider…either "Come on in," or "Keep out," or "Please notice me."
I thought I would share with you some pictures of doors I have taken over the years when I have returned to Talladega, Alabama. 

In the movie, The Sound of Music, The Reverend Mother tells Maria,
"When God closes a door, He opens a window."

I never tire of hearing that message.  I would imagine that each one of us has experienced doors closing in our lives, then discovering that God is there with us as the door closed, but He also provides an open window. That window might be a new beginning or a second chance or forgiveness or a healing from a physical or an emotional pain.  The lists of the windows in our lives could go on forever.

Maybe that is why I take pictures of windows and doors. 

I hope you enjoy these photographs.

These doors and windows look a lot like life. 

Some are well-painted, and the glass is crystal clear. 

Others are cracked and peeling with no weather-stripping to keep the wind out.

 Some have metal bars.

 Some are shut tight, and some are left ajar. 

Yes, time has moved on, and many of the doors of our home places in Talladega are closed to us now.   But as I stare into these old windows trying to learn about our family's past, I hope to remember to put those history lessons to good use…study the past, but look ahead. Move forward. Keep searching. Keep learning.
And…
 open some doors.

Love,
Mariellan

A January Field Trip

 Dear Family Trails readers,

How are you doing In The Bleak Midwinter ?

That was the title of the last post, over a month ago! Where does the time go? 

 The great state of Alabama has had its usual myriad of weather changes, the most recent being yesterday's tornadoes. I am happy to report that today the sun came out, and the sky is blue. Now don't be alarmed…I am not trying to turn this blog into a weather report, but I am amazed at the contrasts we have. Just last week, sister Rebecca and I made a field trip to Talladega, and we nearly froze in the biting wind. Let me tell you about our day there….

We had hoped for a day to go to Talladega to check on a few things, and last Wednesday was our day to go. We did not accomplish all that we hoped to do, but we did check a few things off of our list. 

The first stop was Oak Hill Cemetery to check on the condition of our family's cemetery markers. I had spoken to someone earlier that week who might help us arrange for the markers to be cleaned. He asked that we take pictures to show him our concerns. 

Sister and I were in for a shock. In one year's time, many of the markers were in much worse condition. Some were almost illegible. Most were spotted with a black….something…more on that later. And the last issue was the ant beds. Who knew that the tiny ant could be so strong to actually "lift" a grave marker off of the ground? Whoever coined the phrase, "Many hands make light work," must have observed an ant colony. 

So fast-forward to this week when I have had some time to research about the care of cemetery markers. I learned that the black covering on stones is actually a living micro-organism. Some other issues on stones are mildew, mold, lichens, and pollution, and salt for those stones near the coasts. Then there is the errant lawn mower that chips away at the stones' corners. There is nothing to do once the damage is done from a mower, but the other problems can be controlled. 

In everything I have read or watched about cleaning these family treasures, the first rule is, "Do not cause more harm." That means, no bleach, no acids, no hard scrubbing, and no forceful pressure-washing. I am not promoting any cleaning products, but I am impressed with two that were demonstrated in some You-Tube videos. The first is "D-2 Biological Solution" which does require some elbow grease but looks to be a gentle and effective mixture. This is used on our nation's capitol buildings. 

 The second is "Wet & Forget"which, as its name implies, does not require scrubbing.

 Both rely on the sun, wind, and rains to continue the cleaning process. This means that after the products are used, the outcome will get better in the following few days.

Now, about those pesky pests, the ants. I think I will save that research for another day. I do think that once the anthills are destroyed, then the stones must be replaced to lay flat. That is definitely a job for a professional. One video I watched emphasized just how much a tombstone can weigh…up to 2 or 3 tons.  The foot stones must surely weigh less, but they still would require some strength and know-how in moving without breaking. 

So back to the field trip last week... We visited the family library at the First Baptist Church, took a sentimental drive around the family homes, visited the Heritage Hall art museum, and saw that the Wood-Weaver Shoe store display was still up in the public library. We had a good time, and I know that may sound weird knowing we spent most of the day in a cemetery, but the truth is, we carry a good time with us wherever we go.

 Hopefully, we can move forward in protecting the family grave markers.
I will keep you posted.

Love,
Mariellan 

"In The Bleak Midwinter"

Dear Family Trails,

OK! I admit it! I am not a big fan of Winter. The days are short; the weather is gloomy, rainy, and cold. The sun does not come out much, so twelve o'clock noon looks just the same outside as 4:30 in the afternoon.  To help combat this, I usually keep several strings of white lights up in the house to brighten the day. I also do not turn the light switches off when I leave each room, and I try to get outside when it is possible. These steps help…a little. Now those of you in the North are probably thinking, "What a wimp!" But remember, I am a Southern girl, and we Southerners do not expect Winter to last long at all. We expect to see the green shoots of our daffodils pushing through the ground in January and the forsythia to bloom in February and the azaleas to be radiant by April. 

Now really, is that too much to ask? 

My backyard a few years ago!

My front yard!

As far as getting sunlight and our vitamin D in each day…I did read that the cut-off line in the U.S.  for getting natural Vitamin D from the sun is around Huntsville, Alabama! That means that there are many folks in our great country who must have to work hard at finding some "sunshine" in their lives each Winter day.

So why did I title this post, "In The Bleak Midwinter?" Because, readers, we are all IN the bleak midwinter right now. 

No driving on this Southern road!

 This hymn is a favorite of mine, even though I'm not crazy about wintertime. The lyrics, written by Christina Rossetti, are beautiful, and the music, composed by Gustav Hoist, does make the listener shiver like one is so cold. But the message…it is full of warmth and comfort and hope. Like most Christmas hymns, "In The Bleak Midwinter" is sung at Christmas but could be sung all Winter long.

My encouragement today is.. get outside when you can.

 Take a walk, sit on the porch, go to the park, whatever works for you.

 This Fall I was so fortunate to have had some opportunities to get outside for long stretches of time.  I thought I would share them with you.
 The first outing was with my friend when we visited her parents on their farm one warm day in November. We had a cooking lesson with her mother; we walked to the creek so the dogs could swim; and we fed the horses. We even had some time to help her Mom pick the last veggies from their garden. All good things! That day was food for the soul!

Then the night before Thanksgiving, my husband's family gathered at a family retreat spot for a bonfire and chili supper. Our grandchildren had a blast throwing the ball for the dogs and picking up sticks. I won't even mention the connection between boys (of all ages) and bonfires! 

 AHH, the simple life really is the best!  We even watched the moon rise over the trees.. breathtaking. 

The day after Thanksgiving, my husband and I spent the day with our daughter-in-law's family at their farm. We decided to forego washing the last of the dirty dishes and enjoy a gorgeous day outside on a long hike! Glad we did. 

Are you looking at these clouds? 

Then to get in the Christmas spirit, the "DeWine girls" drove to Springville, Alabama for the Homestead Hollow Christmas Festival. Homestead Hollow is a restored homestead in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountain chain. Volunteers in period dress demonstrate what life was like for the pioneers of Alabama with soap-making, washing clothes, gardening, decorating for Christmas in the cabins, bee-keeping, even moonshine-making.  If we were feeling stressed at all about the upcoming holidays, visiting Homestead Hollow reminded us that life is easy and grand compared to our forefathers' way of life.  

Santa hats on horses…so cute!

I hope these pictures and stories of life for us here in Alabama this past Fall and Christmas season have helped brighten your spirits on a cold winter day.  I am the first to admit that staying indoors and sitting around the fire is comforting-and good medicine on a dark, cold day.  But look for the sunshine, and get outside when you can, and soak up that natural vitamin D - the best cure for the "Winter Blues."

Love,
Mariellan