6.27.2007

Childhood Memories





Kids. You gotta love 'em. I would think that as your kids got older they would understand time better. "Mom. Tell us what is was like in the olden days when you were a kid." They say this with a sparkle in their eye as they look at my ever greying hair. Sigh.

As I say with a straight face to my gullible children that we were the first on the block to have indoor plumbing I start remembering the good ole days...

Deciding between a bowl of Quisp or Golden Grahams cereal was the toughest choice I had to make back then.

Filling my new Trapper Keeper with my tie dyed pencils and bright colored loose leaf paper. Oh how I loved new school supplies! And the smell of a new box of crayons was almost as good as my yearly bottle of Love's Baby Soft perfume.

My mom letting me watch the Afterschool Special before I finished my homework.

Schoolhouse Rock

Being allowed to go to the Sunday double matinees all by myself. My mom always put my hair up in curlers on Sunday afternoon so I had to go to the movies with about a dozen pink foam curlers in my hair!

Going to the roller skating rink was considered THE place to hang out.

Inviting friends over to make snow cones on your Snoopy Sno Cone Machine. I think they still make them! Or how about Shrinky Dinks?

My dad won a television that had Pong built right in! We were the first in our neighborhood to enjoy such a luxury...lol! My brother and I would play it for hours. I can't even imagine doing that now.

Curling up in bed on a rainy afternoon and reading Charlie Brown paperbacks or Little House on the Prairie. Hey, I still do that!

Guessing which Brady Bunch episode within the first three seconds of the opening. Hey, I still do that too!

We had a bell as big as the Liberty Bell that mom would ring when it was time for us to come home. We knew that it was time for supper! Which during the summer always consisted of green beans, sliced tomatoes, corn on the cob, fried potatos, and tea.

I carried the biggest colored comb in my back pocket when I feathered back my hair. Why oh why did I cut off that long beautiful hair?

Picking out a tv dinner was a real treat. So was getting to eat at White Castle.

I always wanted to break a leg so I could have a cast and let people sign it. Plus I thought crutches looked like so much fun! Little did I know...

VBS and cherry Kool Aid. The two go hand in hand.

4H sewing projects and tears. These too go hand in hand!

My first PG movie. I say Tommy with my brother. Didn't understand a thing!

I loved rolling down the hill just as fast as I could go.

Wax lips, candy necklaces, Freshen Up gum, Now & Laters, giant Pixy sticks!

The whole neighborhood used to wait on my front porch for the school bus to come. My mom would come out and talk and they all thought she was a cool mom.

Seeing Donny Osmond for the first time and wondering, "Who is that?!!!" Forget Steve McQueen, there's a new man in town!

Blue eyeshadow and clear lip gloss that tasted nasty. I thought I was so pretty. After all, it was blue!

Reading "Are you there God, it's me Margaret?" with my friends and laughing and giggling wondering when will I get my period? Ten years old is just too young to start.

Christmas was very special. Until the age of thirteen I always got a brand new baby doll. When I was going into high school I still had a baby doll on my wish list and my mother told me I was too old to play with dolls. Bah humbug! I still have alot of my dolls. My Thumbelina's are by far my favorite and then my anatomically correct little boy. I'm so juvenile!

Do you remember getting the book order forms in school? Oh how I would go over and over it and spend my money wisely. We didn't have a lot of money, but I was always allowed to spend three dollars each time.

My folks use to let me order the box of seed packets from the comic books so I could go door to door selling them. I was never able to sell very many of them and dad always ended up buying the rest.

My first computer was a Commador 64.

Family nights of board games and watching Charlie Chaplin or Ma & Pa Kettle movies were THE absolute best and still are!

Oh I could go on and on. This was fun reminiscing today. What's something about your childhood that brings back fond memories?

6 comments:

Christine said...

Those are all memories I have too. I haven't seen Quisp cereal in so long, I loved the commercials.

I was just thinking about when my husband and I were growing up, we'd play from the time we finished our homework, until dinner, and then after dinner until the street lights came on, with all the neighborhood kids. All the endless Summer days of riding bikes and playing games. My kids don't get to enjoy that because of the way thing are now.
I enjoyed reading this, brought back so many good memories.
Thanks Amy!
~Christine
www.arewethereyetmom.com

Kimmy said...

A lot of what you shared are childhood memories of mine as well. I had forgotten about Freshen-up gum til you mentioned it; and the book, "Are you there, God, it's Me Margaret." I wasn't allowed to read this book but I knew all about it anyways. Shrinky dinks. I wanted them but never got to try them out. And yes, the book orders. My boys still get those today, and they are a definite highlight of the month over here! Thanks for taking me down memory lane. Have a great rest of the week!

De said...

Because my growing up years were just a tad bit later, how about Wacky Wall Walkers that you got inside some sugary cereal? Snorks and Smurfs on Saturday morning. And at the end of so many things on tv "Sit Ubu sit. Good dog. Ruff!" And when your family got their first microwave. THAT was a big deal in our house (along with the VCR). I remember a lot of it.

Michelle said...

Oh I loved this post! You brought back a lot of memories for me too! Trapper Keeper, Afterschool special, snoopy sno cone machine (I had one!)

Heart of Rachel said...

Thanks for sharing your wonderful childhood memories. I remember my Trapper Keeper and how I had some pages signed by friends before we parted for summer vacation. I was so happy when my mom bought me a Hello Kitty Trapper Keeper for my birthday.

I remember Raggedy Ann and Andy. I love their story and I would sneak up in my bedroom hoping to see them in action.

Anonymous said...

Oh my we MUST be the same age! What fun to take that walk with you down memory lane! I used to love my Love's Baby Soft perfume! And yes I too had a big ole comb in my back pocket of my Chic jeans to feather back my Farrah Fawcett hair. Gosh, there are so many of your memories I could comment on...........what fun!