Things in Grandma-ma's house

Happy Sunday my raviolis.  Let's do another "things in grandma-ma's house". When you first walk through the front door, there is a small hallway that leads to the living room. Along that wall are lots of "favorite" things of grandma-ma's.  If you look to the right, you see this hanging on the wall:

What, you ask is that?  Well,it is a small Navajo rug called an "eye dazzler" and a small deer skull with antlers.  I found this at a local garage sale (when I lived in Flagstaff, Arizona) and knew it would look good on my wall as a deer totem with the Navajo rug.  I also added some Spanish Moss to the antlers. The Spanish Moss came from Marysville, Georgia, a small coastal village in Georgia.  I like antlers, and Uncle Aaron used to find them for me all of the time when we lived in Flagstaff.  Many American Indian tribes hold the deer totem sacred as it is considered a sacred carrier of peace and show those with this totem how to open their hearts and love unconditionally.  The deer totem also signifies love and protection of children, something that I have for all of you my raviolies. 

Now what is a totem?  A totem is any natural or mythical animal to whom you like or feel a close connection.   A bear signifes strength, a butterfly signifies change, a cat signfies agility, a dog signifies loyalty, and a monkey signifes curiousity.  Learning about animal totems is fun and they can teach us to be happier and stronger people. Click on this link,  ANIMAL TOTEMS and it will take you to a webpage that lists different animals and what they signify.  You can tell grandma-ma which animal totem you like.  Have a wonderful Sunday my raviolis.  Grandma-ma

Things in Grandma-ma's house

Good morning my raviolis!  Today is a rainy Sunday so I thought I would do another post on things in grandma-ma's house.  If you walk into the living room you will find Grampy reading in his chair.  You will find Kota sleeping on the carpet and if you look up to the ceiling not only will you find lights but you will see a broom hanging from the ceiling.  WHAT???? a broom you say!

Yes,  this wonderful old broom is from the 1930s and I had no room in my kitchen for it so I thought, where would be the perfect place for such a perfect broom?  Well, if I was a Halloween witch I would want to ride it and fly through the air.  If I was Harry Potter, I would want to ride it when I played Quittage.  So the perfect place for this perfect broom was hanging it perfectly well from my living room ceiling.

Of course, grandma-ma's broom doesn't fly, but wouldn't it be fun if it really did fly?  Why, if Grandma-ma's broom could fly, she would fly to visit each and ever one of you.  That would be fun magic, don't you think?

Love to all my raviolis and remember to enjoy the day and be good to those you love and those you meet.  Grandma-ma

Things in my house.

Hello my happy raviolis!  Today is a cold, wet and chilly day.  But not as cold and snowy as other places in the United States this weekend.    Look at all of the snow that has dropped in this community.  They are trying to dig out and this man decided to jump into a big pile of snow instead.

Today I thought I would share something in my house with you.  With all of the snow falling in so many places, I thought I would show you the old snowshoes that hang on the foyer wall in Grandma-ma's and Grampy's house.  These shoes are over 100 years old and when I was a little girl, my mommy found them in a thrift store in Stillwater, Minnesota in the 1960s.  She knew they were old and she also liked antiques like Grandma-ma.  She was a very good shopper and paid 50 cents for them.  Even a candy bar costs more than that today.

These snowshoes are made from bent wood and sinew that is woven in a six-pointed star pattern.   I think that the woven star pattern is very pretty, do you?  They are about 30 inches in length and about 11 inches wide and still very sturdy  They could be worn today if we ever needed to use them. (I don't think that would ever happen in Atlanta).

Did you know that one of the earliest ways people moved across snow was by using snowshoes similiar to the snowshoes that Grandma-ma has on her wall? Archaeologists say that snowshoes were used over 12,000 years ago.

Here is a postcard showing an Eskimo girl using her snowshoes.  There are many different types of snowshoes, some are very long and others are as round as a pizza.  Different snow walkers made different kinds of snowshoes that worked best for the kind of snow pack they would walk on.

Here is a drawing of different kinds of snowshoes made and worn by Eastern American Indian tribes.  They come in many different styles and shapes.

These children are all wearing snowshoes as they take a snowy walk.  They look similar to the antique snowshoes but are now made from plastics and they use pretty colors.

Did you know that Uncle Aaron has snowshoes that he wears when he goes winter camping and climbing?  Well he does.  I wonder what color his snow shoes are? I'm going to guess yellow so he can see them against the white snow.  If Uncle Aaron is reading this, will you please tell us what color your snowshoes are?  You can leave a comment and then we can read what the color is.

This is not Uncle Aaron but I bet he looks like this with his camping gear and snowshoes. 

Stay warm my huggable ravs and have a wonderful Sunday.  Grandma-ma