December 1957
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December 7, 1957 Friday
Dear Mother,
Here it’s Friday again – you’re right time has certainly flown! I am going to attempt to write you but don’t know how successful I’ll be as I really have competition today.
As I told you in my last letter I’ve had a perfectly miserable cold and except for my brief trip to church last Sunday I haven’t had my nose out-doors for two weeks! I just don’t dare take a chance with pneumonia and can’t afford doctor bills (unless absolutely necessary). It’s loose – but cough and cough until I sometimes think I’ll never stop. It wears you out as YOU so well know. How’s your asthma and do you still take medicine regularly?
Yesterday John awoke with something different – a bad stomach ache which led to vomiting on and off all day! He’s fine today and I really had to talk to get him to stay home. But he couldn’t even keep water down and ran a slight fever (I feared appendix) but must’ve been a 24 hour flu bug.
Both Cindy and Sharon have had colds and I’ve had them in bed for several days but thank goodness we all seem to be better today, although Bill had a sore throat and upset stomach this morning.
Late last Sunday a neighbor came over and asked if I could possibly care for her two boys for a few weeks. She’s wife of Vanover’s foreman and works on base. She has had a woman coming in but she’s unable to come any longer – she’s only paid her 15.00 and I said I’d try it for 20.00 plus milk (they have a cow). So I’ve had them this week (of all weeks – imagine!)
But I was so thankful for the extra cash with Xmas coming and certainly hope it will be permanent. It’s so good not having to go out in the snow and ice, like she does, to earn $ and would help us so much BUT her husband (having been demoted by Vanovers – not her story she says they don’t make enough $ there – is looking for work on base and then they’ll move). Even if I can have them for a few months though it will help.
They’re darling boys three and five. Both really cute, so good (not at all like Michael!), mind well and are just plain good – really not much trouble at all. This week has been hard for me because I’ve felt so awful but if they weren’t much trouble this week they’ll be easy next week. So right now I have five home so you can see why I said I’ll try to write you!
Your letter arrived last night. So sorry you’re “low” – please don’t be. I should be able to mention one thing (as a Mother myself) without your getting like that. I’ve never criticized YOU as a Mother and I’m not now – you’re wonderful!! It’s only that I don’t want alot of advise on the children – no more, no less. I have to rely on my own judgment in bringing up the children.
Perhaps when we too can give or buy expensive gifts I won’t mind receiving them. But our Xmas $ is limited to 20.00 I just received today for care of boys – we’re determined not to add to our already too large account at Sears. In fact, I’d been watching the newspaper for weeks ‘Help Wanted’ section but very unenthusiastically and now my problem is solved! Quite a coincidence!
I have another list to send in to catalog if I have them next week – the one I sent to Sears for today is mostly clothing plus one toy for John (a remote control plane) and some doll clothes.
I peeked in the box Carolyn sent for Bill so I wouldn’t duplicate and such a shame he never wears cuff links and is even less likely to here as now he wears only flannel shirts. Tell Carolyn – I’ll gladly mail them back but heavens don’t want ‘hurt feelings’. The cuff links are so pretty BUT what can he do with them??? I didn’t look in mine as I want some surprises!
It’s been pretty out – we still haven’t had a heavy snow storm and the east is snowed under. We have ‘light flurries’ and there’s about three inches on ground now and trees are covered and stay that way – really pretty BUT I haven’t enjoyed it as I haven’t been out. I’m so anxious to breathe air again our house is hot and stuffy and the windows steam up so I can’t even see out!!
Bill had $10 left over from his check after paying bills and bought two sleds (to be shared) for Xmas at 4.00 a piece at P.X. – so they’ll have those and I know will love them. Our driveway is perfect to sled on in fact!
Still counting months until June or July – are you??? Tell Carolyn I want to write her but it’s her turn – I still haven’t heard about Anne’s father or shower. You tell me, I’ll wait forever for the news from HER!!
Let me know when our package arrives – O.K? Love, Mildred
P.S. John enjoys boys and I pay him 10¢ an hour after school for helping care for them and is he proud! Linda and Cindy get 5¢ and are a help too! Sharon’s nose is out of joint – having competition but it’s good for her!
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December 18, 1957 Wednesday
Dear Mother,
Please excuse this hurried note but you see it’s 10 o’clock and I have had quite a day – and it’s far from over as I have cookies chilling in refrigerator (Xmas ones) to be rolled out and baked before bedtime. I made them before Bill came home but still haven’t had time yet to finish them.
The boy’s Mother didn’t get here tonite until late – supper was late – and we sang carols and decorated more of tree and then I had 16 notes to write as room mother, to parents (I’ll include one). Bill has just left to bring notes to teacher so I’m supposed to be baking while he’s gone.
Last party John brought them but I have a hunch he might lose them and better make sure she gets them personally. If they’re in bed he’ll stick under door – she lives across from school.
Br-r-r it’s cold. Yesterday for first time temperature went to 0 and last night 6 below and tonight 12 below zero!! Listen to this – we have frost ¼” thick on inside of all of our windows!! I never have seen the like. I told you our windows steamed up, well it’s frozen – and we have ice and snow inside. We don’t have storm windows you see but are sending or heavy plastic they use here for outside!
Golly so much to tell you but must close. We cut our tree ourselves out back yesterday and really feel Xmasey!
Am enclosing two pictures from school of children’s pictures. Do you like?
Didn’t know was going to take them and just happened to have sweater you gave Linda on? I love them – they’re so natural.
We’re well. Got your note and letter today. Of course, you know puffs arrived. I miss you terribly and love you. House is so pretty and all decorated. Will tell you more next letter. Love from us all. X X X X
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December 20, 1957 [journal]
Bill looked like Santa last night arriving home with all presents from home. Now tree is laden underneath. How pretty house looks and how realistic as Xmas with frost thick now on all windows and Xmas and sow songs on radio. 15 [degrees] below now at 7:00 in morning.
Bill is out now starting up car – we’ve bought snow tires, plug-in headbolt heater every night.
Play was good and Linda’s class sang song and played cymbals.
Tonight we go to Xmas dinner and dance at officer’s club.
Janie went to 1 other night at Rotary. Looked lovely in black low formal.
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December 27, 1957 Friday 10:45 A.M.
Two days AFTER and I feel it!
Dear Mother,
The question is: will I ever recover? And then I ask myself, “from what?” I’ve never been so completely BUSHED, I know it’s mostly this D – cold I can’t seem to throw. We’re really going to attempt to go to bed before midnight or 1:00 – our usual bed time. You just lay yourself ‘wide open’ for colds that way. Every morning when I wake up I feel ‘feverish’, my throat is so sore and my voice is gone – I feel AWFUL – but as the day goes on I feel better and get wound up.
This wasn’t meant to be a ‘woe-be-gone’ letter and I didn’t even mean to start out this way – but it all ties in together with my Xmas report. You know me. I’m like you in that I push, push myself and I have ever since Thanksgiving when I first got this cold. (It dissappeared [sic] for about three days) and then boomeranged! Then getting the boys – all that extra plus Xmas and later and later hours WELL – by Xmas I was too tired!
I had the boys Monday, then Tuesday thank goodness I didn’t but baked more cookies all day and cleaned (no vac!) one reason this cold won’t go – I have to go out on the front porch over and over again to shake the mop, shake rugs etc. Our house is so dusty every morning from six people sleeping, lint etc. – I just have to clean it and can’t put a coat on every time. Oh, well – I should get vac back today IF he can fix it (which I doubt). From now on my appliance will come from Sears when [sic] I can get PARTS easily!
Anyhoo Bill took John to work such a thrill for him, and they didn’t get home until 5:30. I was so worried at I knew Bill got through at 5:00. I knew also they had to go to Ward’s to get our last order and get John a haircut but I still worried after 4:00 (you know how it’s.). And we do have that awful hill I think I’ve told you about where there are sixteen crosses for every person killed there!! (Now they put a railing up but I still hold my breath every time we go over the bridge hill and curve. It’s a TERROR. There’s a blind curve at the beginning of the hill and then a terrible drop – the hill goes straight down to the bridge over Eagle River with of course rapids below – it’s bad enough any time but now with ice on the road – Bill says though he doesn’t mind it at all now because it’s the only section of road they sand all of the time!
Well, by the time he got home – the big Market was closed and I had to go to the little store and her prices are terrible – I paid .49 for one head of lettuce and .29 a piece for a bunch of radishes that turned out to be all black. I didn’t need much – luckily – but had to use a slice of ham for dinner I had in freezer AND – oh, I shouldn’t tell you all this but I have to.
Golly Mom the house was really beautiful – it took hours and hours to do, every curtain was clean, every bed fresh and nice (ready for puffs) but by Xmas eve I was so tired. We had so much to do – I had all the Sears presents wrapped days before and under tree but Ward’s order had juts come Saturday so we had to wrap them. It was 1:30 Xmas eve by the time we got to bed and of course the children were up bright and early. I was so tired – I just stayed in the living room all day. We had a nice lunch on table in the living room – a party – with sandwhiches [sic], olives, fruit, punch and all those Xmas cookies I’d baked! IT was nice but then I was so tired I got dinner too quickly and oh, Mom I burned my one slice of ham. It’s funny I know BUT it wasn’t. There the whole house looked like Xmas and no meat for dinner! Everyone was such a good sport but I was sick. There was the table all fixed special, white damask cloth, silver, best dishes, candles, etc. and NO MEAT. Well, I haven’t finished you see Thanksgiving I spent all day cooking (it was good) so Xmas I decided to try a special mince pie (on sale – I might’ve known!) in a tin (thank goodness I had plum pudding too – it saved the dinner, well, helped!) and it was unedible [sic] – I never saw anything so awful!!!!!! And the frozen vegetables were BAD. Never have I seen frozen vegetables bad – I had lots of vegetables but taken all together – well, you can imagine how I felt. Merry Xmas!!
Really, though I was too tired to be sad. Instead I felt terrible but it struck me funny too! Just like a story I once heard on Radio and I felt so badly for the people.
The children had a wonderful day and I never knew them to be happier and more contented with everything they received. They shone like stars and after all that’s what counts!! They stayed in the living room all day and played. In the afternoon I set up the card table and Linda and John and Mommy painted – those sets you gave them are lovely and they’ll write you about them – while Cindy contentedly cut out and pasted those cut out pictures. She didn’t need any help and did beautifully. Linda was thrilled with her set and did very nice work. Everything you sent was so nice!!
I hadn’t noticed my name on the package you sent and was flabbergasted. When you mentioned in your letter ‘a jacket and jewelry’ I thought for some other time. Oh Mother, I am CRAZY about the jacket – could you make me a circular black velvet skirt in same material – please! I’ll even pay for the material. The jacket is a tiny one and the skirt should have a very high waist band. I haven’t tried it on with skirt yet (only alone) but will [and] then I’ll write you for sure. See, I sent you a sample of material thinking you had jacket. If we go out New Years I’ll wear it. I’d like to be able to wear jacket over a blouse (will look pretty over my new white one) or alone with skirt as a suit plus scarf. I adore the leopard accessories. I just oohed and ahhed all day over bracelet and ear rings – I love the set. So different, unusual, smart and very, very nice! I’d like a beige wool jersey dress to wear or a black one and a leopard hat. I’ll look in catalogs. Golly, I need things so bad. Still don’t have a winter coat and am wearing light California one (another reason for colds). Everyone has a few – and it’s no luxury here! Maybe next year I can afford one – if we intend to remain. Meanwhile I must send for one but Xmas, no matter how small, costs! You must’ve spent a fortune – I wish you’d buy yourself more clothes. Please do for yourself and you’ll want things to come up here. (I can hardly wait, oh, how I’m looking forward to your visit – four to six weeks – we insist!!!
Bill’s shirt is the nicest, most unusual I’ve ever seen. He loves it and it looks so warm.
I have the boys today – only two days this week, only 8.00 but that’s something. I borrowed from milk fund to get Bill’s sweater so will pay it back. We have a milk fund and pay cash for all of our milk – keep $ in silver chest so won’t get mixed up. They we keep our grocery $ in teapot. It really works and then we pay bills with remainder. Don’t worry about Seaboard – let them wait. We do the best we can and soon Bill will get his raise $ — that will really help and if I can just keep the boys a little longer.
Yesterday all my tiredness and cold hit me. I know I could never have boys today if I didn’t rest – so really took it easy yesterday. Kids stayed in (no boys) and played with new things and I lolled around all day (first time for me) and today feel much better already. Mostly just tired – don’t get so tired – we all must get more rest!!
So anxious to hear about your book – we’re certainly keeping our fingers crossed. Now that Xmas is over I’ll try to get back to my writing – we’ll see!
Well it’s 10:30 and I’m going to try (I mean try with six children) but at least I got this written – to iron some. I’m really behind with it!
I missed you terribly on Xmas and I think partly reason I couldn’t feel wholeheartedly Merry!
It’s still cold out but above zero today so I’ll try to get children out for awhile. (Such a job though). We haven’t had any snow for ages – just cold weather 10 to 20 below for weeks and weeks. Wish it would snow!
No more news – Love and kisses, Mildred.
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