Let's Begin

When my grandma Mabel passed away I was given two of her treasures. One was a set of her vintage Roly Poly pastel-tinted glasses and the other was her 1956 Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book. 

I loved those glasses. I have many memories of my parents and I driving over to Grandma's house in tiny Lafayette, MN on a Sunday evening for dinner and 60 Minutes. On the visits that we didn't bring dinner along, Grandma might serve us frozen pizza from the local gas station, or a hot dish and dessert from her freezer ("I hope it's not too old"-said Grandma...every time).  I feel like we always used those colored glasses. When not in use, Grandma kept them on display in her China cabinet. I'd admire them on every visit. After her funeral, the glasses were boxed up and taken along with many other of Grandma's unclaimed belongings to the thrift store. My mother, being tipped off by my sister, returned to the thrift store the next day and asked if they still had the glasses. She offered to pay for them, but after hearing the story, the helpful employee insisted that my mother take the glasses back for free. I was thrilled to receive the glasses that I had admired for so long and that reminded me of Grandma Mabel. 

The Betty Crocker cookbook was not something I had any memories of. I don't know that I ever saw Grandma Mabel cook from it. When it was given to me, I said a polite thanks, but my attention was focused on the colored glasses. This past week I opened the Betty Crocker cookbook and said hello to my grandma. For inside the front cover, and sprinkled throughout the book are her handwritten notes. Seeing her flawless cursive across the pages and little notes with tips for the recipes she tried is such a joy. It brings her back. 

The recipes and published notes are quite entertaining in themselves! Times have certainly changed and it is charming to look back at the words of wisdom in these pages and the tips for a "tidy home."