THREE SCORE YEARS AND TEN!

Yes, I have reached that milestone.  I thought it was a good time to change the design of my blog.  It's not that I'm feeling blue, it's just that I liked the looks of this one!

You may have noticed that I changed my profile picture on Facebook.  It was taken on my first birthday.  Mom had it enlarged and tinted.  Here are a few others of that special day in 1943.  It helps to be the first child in the family when it comes to having pictures of your childhood!  Then too, my dad spent the first three months of 1943 working in a copper mine in BC.  He and Mom wrote letters to each other almost daily and pictures of "Bebe" were often enclosed for Dad.

Feb 10, 1943
(on Grandma Erickson's dining-room table)

"Bebe" and Grandma Sophia Erickson
( Grandma was 61 when I was 1year)

Caroline Elaine Erickson
Feb 10, 1943

4th birthday cake with Gloria on the front step at the farm

Five years old with my new set of dishes
(They are 65 years old today, still have them and the dress!
 Brother Merv is in the left window and friend Caroline Jensen in the right)

Party at the farm for my 7th birthday
(cousins Arlene Erickson holding Merv, Vern Erickson
friends Myrna Johnson, Eunice Jensen, Marilyn Erickson, me, Joan Johnson)

My tenth birthday, a turkey dinner at Grandma and Grandpa Ericksons
(Dad, Grandma E, Grandma Haaland, Aunt Selma E, cousin Vern E
Mom, cousin Arlene E, Grandpa A.B Erickson
Elaine, cousin Marilyn E, brothers Mervin, Alan in front

My 12th birthday party in Salem Oregon, taken at Aunt Edna's
( I took most of my grade six at Garfield School,  Sept.'53 to March '54)

Eighteen years old with my "autograph hound"

Now, aren't you glad that I stopped at eighteen and didn't cover all 70 of them?  You will notice that  many of the pictures were taken outside.  That's because there was no flash on the cameras in "the olden days".  I'm surprised how clear most of the pictures are when scanned and put on the computer.

I just looked in the box of Mom and Dad's letters and found the one that she wrote to Dad on my first birthday.  I had a white layer cake with white icing and pink decorations. (pink is still my favourite colour!)  Clifford, the little neighbour boy, came over around noon, brought me a cute card and a little pair of silk panties (Wow!)  In the afternoon Mom and I went to Sewing Circle at Gilbertsons. (I had an early start at Circles, and still attend those, and "Quilting Days".) Freda and Cece sang "Happy Birthday" to me. When we got back to G and G's, Clifford came over for birthday cake..  He blew out the candles and we had a birthday party all by ourselves eating cake.  Clifford asked for a second piece so Mom thought it must have tasted OK by him.  Dad sent me a little mohair teddy bear.  I gave it, along with the card that Mom had put in my scrapbook, to our first granddaughter, Abbey, when she was a year old. My cousin Helen sent "the sweetest little pair of mittens, white with a pink and white cord with tassels on the end." (Helen had knit them, was about 14 years old then)

An interesting comment in this letter "I hear films are going to be rationed too, wish that I had a dozen 127's.  I like taking snaps of Bebe".  She must have been able to keep a supply on hand as I am blessed with numerous baby pictures!

Tomorrow is the second anniversary of this blog so I might get around to adding a few more pictures then and telling you how I spent my 70th birthday, besides working on this blog in the afternoon.  I really should go down and do some stitching and relive somewhat my afternoon at Sewing Circle 69 years ago!