Monday's Memories

Today was a beautiful day here in the islands of Hawaii. The photos below were taken with just an Iphone camera! Not bad for a cell phone camera. I would swear I was a beach bum or a mermaid in another life; as much as I love the ocean, I can never get enough of it! The water was just cold enough to be shocking to my sun kissed skin. 

The beach was full of both tourists and local people, you would think it was the weekend or summer break. I thoroughly enjoyed the cerulean blue water, the silky fine sand in between my toes, the balmy ocean breeze, and the smell of the salty air. When I go to places like this, I love to just watch people just to see what they do. Even though I live here, it's fun to watch the keiki's (young children) play in the water, carry their boogie boards- which looks much larger than the children. But they are having the time of their lives, trying to catch the colorful fish in their little sand buckets, building sand castles and just having fun like little kids do. They are so carefree and enjoyable to watch. This one little boy came up to me and my friend today with the biggest smile on his face, carrying a boogie board. How can you not smile back and say hello? 

Many people become so preoccupied with their own personal lives and the stress they may carry on their shoulders that they seem to forget to stop and take a look around them and consider the blessings that God has already given them. So when I feel all out of sorts and stressed, where do you think I go? I go to the beach of course! I go to my "happy place" and just sit down and watch the waves come in and go back out into the vast ocean. For me, it's very calming and it's almost like the waves pull all my stress and problems of the day and take it to the ocean. I hope that makes sense to whoever is reading this blog. But seriously, for me, the ocean has this peaceful way of making me feel like a brand new person. I end up being stress free and makes me feel like I can take on the world! 

These are my Monday Memories... 

                                                                                             

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A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words

Memories that last a lifetime, photos of family are the treasures of the past. I'm sure you have heard the saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", but for a family historian seeking photos of family members, long gone is really a dream come true.


Have you ever been into an antique store and seen framed photos and wonder who they may have belonged to? There have to be memories linked to such things. Maybe you have seen old photo albums, silver framed photos that are now probably tarnished and could use some extra loving care. Vintage clothing? An old wedding dress or a child's antique toy? I love going into antique stores even if it's just to look at all the things that may have been cherished by a person in a bygone era. Going into these shoppes, have you ever wondered if you were passing up a good find? What if one of those photo albums that was displayed, was a part of your family history and you just never thought to really look at it? I'm not talking about merely glancing through the images, but really looking at the pictures, looking for names and dates and so on. Are you willing to walk away and just forget about these artifacts of the past? I don't think I could!


As a family historian myself, it would be a dream come true to find such a priceless, prized possession! Even if the album or photo didn't have my particular family history attached to to it, I would want to seek out the person that it may have rightfully belonged to. How did it not get passed down through the families generations? How did it end up in an antique store to begin with? 


Personally, I would love to have one of my grandmothers older photo albums, an old journal, love letters, her wedding dress, or any other type of memorabilia from her past. It's all about staying connected to her in a much more personal way even though she has already passed. Today, people take such things for granted and consider something like this as just old junk that should be tossed away or donated. 


Try visiting an antique store in your area, take a look around and see all the lost items of our ancestors past.


I found a website that caters to finding these gems of the past and would like to share it with you!
Check this site out and let me know if you found something :)


Abby's Buy And Sell Genealogy


Image Source:
ImageZoo.Shopping At An Antique Store. (Online Image) Available at http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/77377764/Imagezoo
 Image # 77377764

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Family Heirlooms~ Preserving The Past For Future Generations

When you think of the word "heirloom", do you think of the old doilies your grandmother hand crocheted so long ago, but now look yellow and dingy? I do. When I think of heirlooms, I think of useless objects that have seen better days. Old sienna photos in antique silver frames, handkerchiefs with flower embroidery that my grandmother used to carry around with her, family albums, quilts, baby blankets, family Bibles, and my own wedding dress, which I hope to one day hand down to a granddaughter or great granddaughter of my own. One day! Not anytime soon mind you. What heirloom object would you treasure if it were given to you, to pass on to your children, grandchildren or even great grandchildren? How would you preserve it? 


You may already have a cedar chest full of potential heirlooms, or maybe even in the attic in boxes.  I remember playing with my grandmother's old clothes when I was probably 8 or 9 years old. She had vintage hats made of black velour with feathers and trim which covered the top half of my face. I remember they were in a box that my cousin and I used to go through to play dress up. 

Isn't it funny how certain memories resurface when you see an image, read, or even for me as I  happen to be writing in my blog about something as simple as family heirlooms? The memory of my grandmothers old hats just popped into my head for some reason. I wish I had all of her old hats! That would be such a treasure! I don't know whatever happened to them after she passed away, but it would be an heirloom I would treasure!  

Family Heirloom Ideas

Family heirlooms should evoke special memories of a bygone era. You can even create your own if you wish. Here are a few ideas that have crossed my mind a time or two. It doesn't have to be expensive to make it an heirloom of quality. For most, it is just tradition past on from generation to generation. 

• Wedding dresses or christening gowns
• Create a family cookbook of family favorite recipes- include some that are handwritten   and  dated.
• Jewelry~ If you wish, you can have a custom made ring, broach, or even a charm bracelet made.
• Artwork or drawings that were created by an ancestor- have it professionally framed and matted for other generations to see.
• Medals of Honor- maybe one of your ancestors fought in the Civil War or the American Revolution- creating a shadow box of these medals would be an idea!
• Another popular idea is creating a scrapbook for each of your children, inside include items of times past i.e., a piece of lace fabric, pressed flowers, photos, or something else that may bring back fond memories.
• You could even gather memorabilia from older generations, like maybe a childhood diary that may have been kept over the years, a favorite book that an ancestor may treasure. For example, it could be a signed baseball that was part of a collection in your grandfathers belongings, an old trophy, the list can get longer, believe me.

Use your imagination when it comes to collecting family heirlooms, the possibilities are endless. 

Share your ideas! Comment below...

Image Source: 

Antique Linens

Photo Credit: Doris Rudd Designs, Photography

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Lucia Rose Cornett- Dedication Page

Lucia was my grandmother, who was born July 8, 1914 and passed away just last year at the age of 96, in November 2010. I have very few memories of her, but the ones I do have never fail to bring a smile to my face. I still remember the little blue corduroy purse with red embroidered flowers, that she gave me so long ago. I think I was probably 4 or 5 then. It's funny how you can remember all the details of one moment from decades ago, and fail to remember yesterdays details. My parents divorced when I was very young, so I don't have the memories that other family members have of her. She lived in Whitehall, Maryland and I can remember climbing trees and crouching on top of an old green doghouse, I think I still have the photo somewhere, packed away. I now live in Hawaii, and have many old pictures that I still need to scan to my laptop. Maybe one day soon I will drag them all out and go through them to see which ones I would like to add and share with you.


My great grandmother, Gincy Malinda Long used to scold me on the front porch of my grandma, Lucia's home. I had a favorite teddy bear that I had carried with me forever- I used to clothe him and pretend I was changing his diaper. :D Well, I don't think Malinda liked that too much because she kept telling me to put his diaper back on and to keep him clothed. That's just too funny when I think about it now. I remember sitting in her lap at her birthday party and remember their being a trellis of red roses nearby. Always be thankful for what you have, a family to share it with, because tomorrow is never promised. 


Below is an aerial map image of the general area where she resided before she passed away.

Courtesy of Bing Maps (2010)

Photo of Lucia Rose Cornett is from my own personal collection.

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