Oh man, when I saw these I was overcome with nostalgia! I remember winding these up over and over and over again at Gram and Grandad's house in Sheridan, Wyoming. They were such great toys, just perfect for little people! I particularly remembered the space shuttle, the robot, and the swimming turtle you could wind up and put in the bathtub. For years I have looked for little wind-up toys to put in the bathtub; I remember Santa used to bring us those in our stockings. But alas, I have had no success finding them.
I'm opening up the comments for all of "Gram's Kids" to share some of their favorite memories. In 1990, when my parents and I lived in Monterey, California, all of my cousins came to Monterey for "Christmas at the Beach." All of the 9 Cox grandchildren were there (and my Dad's brother and his family as well) and we had t-shirts made that said Gram's Kids. On the arm of each of our shirts was a number designation telling which number grandkid we were. I was #1D (1 for my mom, who was the first of Don and Jeanette Cox's daughters; D for me being the 4th kid in my family.) Here we all are:
What are some of your favorite Gram and Grandad memories?
For all of you non-bloggers, it's pretty simple to leave a comment. Just click where it says "comments" at the bottom of this post. Type in whatever you want to say and then click "Nickname" and enter your handle of choice (nice work, Shawn, for using your designation!) Just leave the "URL" blank, then click publish comment. Or you can always just click "Anonymous."
11 comments:
I am totally loving all the stone washed jeans, those were so in.
I remember playing with all the wind up toys in the sink in the sulfur water. Does she still have the wood thing that you pound the little pegs into and they come out the end?
Oh baby I am loving that picture of all of us grandkids, back when life eas so simple, non of us were married yet and we all just hung out and goofed off together!
I remember the big can of ritz that was always stocked in the cupboard in the kitchen, and I remember the little cowboy windup toy that was in the droor with the rest of the wind up toys. Also, (wow, its all coming back to me now...) I remember the winnie the pooh dolls that were always up on top of the cabinet thing. Oh man, good times! and miss kitten of course!
The "gram" drawer has been passed on to Jane's house. Spencer and Tyler take about 3 seconds to get to it when they go over. And the wood thing that you pound little pegs into -- one of Tyler's favorites in Gram (Jane)'s basement!
Lily was so funny last night. She asked me to tell her who all the people were. I started with "Uncle David, Uncle Don...Shawn, Spencer and Tyler's daddy" and as soon as I got to Josh she said, "I know who that is, Uncle Josh." I said "You're right! How can you tell?" She said, "Because he always has that same look!" I totally busted up laughing!
I love how Jenny and I are about to break out in cheer "L-E-T-S-G-O Let's Go, Let's Go!" And Becky, can you believe we used to wear glasses that big?!
One of my favorite memories of Gram and Grandad's is when we picked fresh raspberries for breakfast and ate them on top of Cheerios and Half-n-Half. Mmm... I also remember the little green apple juice cans that were kept in plentiful supply in the downstairs fridge. The fridge was totally old school with a handle that clicked when you pulled it open. Also, remember the spooky storage closets where Gram kept food storage?
Speaking of the sulfur water, I'll always remember Gram's bathroom in the basement with the black & white wallpaper of all the people in the bathtub. And the framed picture of Potty Monster at Kearney Lake.
I could go on all day!
"Life is so uncertain, eat dessert first."
Word to live by.
Hey, looks like more than the bloggers read the family blogs! Excellent! Let's see, the Gram drawer was the best, for sure! I already have toys mentally earmarked for my "Gram drawer", which better not be needed for at least ten years!
I, too, remember picking fresh raspberries for breakfast in the morning. Occasionally, you'd get a bug crawl out of one, right into your cereal bowl. Just pluck it out, and keep on eating. It's all an organic experience. And the scary storage rooms, I remember those, too. I think I mentioned them in a short autobiographical story I wrote in college. Remember the crazy-big spiders out in the garage? At least they seemed that way as a kid. Probaby weren't any bigger than a quarter, legs and all. But, I still love the smell of hay from Granddad's workshop. Funny you mention the wallpaper in Gram's bathroom downstairs. I was just thinking about that the other day, wondering if anyone in the U.S. still prints it, maybe some specialized vintage wallpaper company, or something. Hey, does anyone have a picture of the potty monster that could be reprinted?
Man, I miss the windup bath toys. I've kept an eye out for them, too, but can never find any. There are some vintage windup toys on eBay, but none that I remember from the kid years. I remember the green frog with kicking legs, and the red koi-looking fish whose tailfin went back and forth. And do you remember the card game that had authors on it or something? And that's where I learned to play Go Fish.
And looking at the 9 Grandkids picture, was I ever that skinny? I want to be that again! I wonder what I used to weigh... And yes, my glasses were ginormous, Zen still teases me about them whenever he sees a picture.
Love you guys! Grandkid #1C
Thanks' for the best laugh of the day. 3A's wife
i wish i could still get into those jeans, even if they are stone washed and snug.
3A
Believe it or not, I still have the girls shirts in my Grandmother Sneath trunk which sits in my front room. I think Chris's is on a teddy bear as it is about that size. But I am unsure about where 3A is located....I'll have to look around.
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