Make the McKenzie Connection!
Make the McKenzie Connection!
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 33
X...
"You wore feed sacks!" someone exclaimed when I mentioned that my first machine-sewing project was an apron made from feed sack fabric. My next was a drawstring skirt from another sack from the same fabric design. Many of the fabrics my grandmother and aunt used for their sewing projects and for quilts during the 1940s came from feed sacks. My family bought their chicken and cattle feed in burlap and plain white sacks. So it was with fascination that I looked over the fabric from the sacks...
As my granddaughter sends us photos of her children playing with Sadie and Caspian, I recall the dogs of my childhood on the farm. Also, my daughter had Muffin when she was growing up. The dogs of various sizes and breeds, become playmates for children, teach responsibility and create memories. Several dogs come to mind when I think of life on the farm in the Hudson River Valley of New York State. They were cow dogs, but were gentle with us children, too. Shep was the dog of my early childhood....
So often we throw out letters we receive from family and friends. (If we even them instead of texts these days!) How can we keep everything? However, the importance of letters in compiling a family history and making ancestors come alive was brought to my attention when I discovered letters my great great grandmother wrote. These were tucked away midst memorabilia in an old trunk. I've also found other letters from ancestors kept by my grandmother and my mom. Some were from my great, great...
For the first four years, I attended a one-room schoolhouse about a half a mile from home. For my siblings and me, those one-room school years were formative ones. Then our small school became part of a larger district, expanding our experiences and horizons. The school I attended in Poughquag, NY consisted of six grades with 25 - 30 students. One teacher prepared lessons, taught and disciplined these students without aides, parent volunteers, or principal. The district superintendent visited...
So many family happenings occur around the dining or kitchen table, leaving us with memories that shape our lives. This may be a table in a dining nook, or a large table in the center of the room where many activities take place in addition to serving and eating meals. Sometimes these tables are handed down over the generations. Dining Tables in Your Life Think of the kitchen or dining tables of your childhood, early married years and later days when more than one generation gathered there. Thes...
The annual family reunion! These usually occur in summertime. I recall reunions in my mom's family for Memorial Day (her mother's family) and July 4th (her dad's family)/ I still have photos of those occasions and fond memories. My dad's family didn't have large gatherings...only with his brother who lived in another state. My mother-in-law reminisced about the reunions of her maternal grandmother's family. We have a photograph of more than 100 people of all ages gathering in 1912. About 40...
Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and peaches have found their way to our supermarkets. Even though they don't come from New Hampshire fields and farms yet, they're generally available in stores in the US. Daughter Beth and I enjoy them for meals and snacks. In fact, I seem to get a craving for these foods if I don't have them. I'd rather give up something else to fit these in the budget if I have to make a choice. Recent research also emphasizes the value of fruits and berries in our...
My granddaughter has been sending us pictures of the baby chicks her broody Mother Hen has hatched. This reminds me of the days my dad picked up a box of 100 baby chickens at the post office each year. These yellow balls of peeping puff fascinated us children, and we looked forward each spring when Father ordered the babies to add to the flock. In addition to operating a dairy farm, Father and Mother raised chickens and sold eggs to stores and individual customers. All too soon, these little...
My granddaughter has been sending us pictures of the baby chicks her broody Mother Hen has hatched. This reminds me of the days my dad picked up a box of 100 baby chickens at the post office each year. These yellow balls of peeping puff fascinated us children, and we looked forward each spring when Father ordered the babies to add to the flock. In addition to operating a dairy farm, Father and Mother raised chickens and sold eggs to stores and individual customers. All too soon, these little...
As I browsed through photos of my childhood, I came across one of Sister and me in our "Sunday Best" dresses and little bonnets. We were standing in front of a flower garden on the lawn in front of our farmhouse. Because we had a large vegetable garden each year, we didn't plant a special one during World War II. However, to be patriotic, Mother wanted a Victory garden. She enlarged the flower garden, painted a large wooden tub red, white and blue, and planted flowers in it. She painted large...
With the summer months and salad season upon us, more of us will be using mayonnaise and salad dressing. That's not to say we don't use it year round for salads, sandwiches and even in desserts, but warmer weather of late spring and summer sees us preparing more foods that call for mayo. This is a very versatile ingredient that can be dressed up in many ways for various dishes. The basic components are egg yolks and oil blended into an emulsion. It usually is considered a sauce or binding agent...
As I browsed through a photo album of my childhood, I came across photos of fun at the old swimming hole on our farm. That is where Mother taught us to swim, dog paddling at first, then over arm strokes, sidestrokes and some diving off a rock at the deepest end. Eventually our small town built a recreation center and dammed up a brook running through it to make a medium size pond. There, swimming lessons were offered. My dad was instrumental in getting the adults interested in forming the rec...
Rice has become a common food in American diets in recent years while Asians have eaten this grain for centuries. With nutritionists recommending increased levels of whole grain foods in our diets, we have discovered the delicious flavor of brown rice, as well as white. Nowadays, the average American consumes 25 pounds of rice annually, according to statistics. However, in Asia, the average is 200 to 400 pounds of rice per person. I've begun using rice more often, especially brown rice and...
Ah! The lilacs of spring! They brighten our scenery and our spirits I always look forward to the lilac bushes showing off their lavender or white blooms. These signs of warmer weather are such a welcoming sight. When I recall springtime in my childhood, I can close my eyes and picture the large white lilac bush beside the woodhouse/shop (formerly the original farmhouse) and the lavender one near the front steps that blossomed around Memorial Day. My mother's parents also had a number of purple...
You may have your family food heritage represented in cookbooks but not even realize it. This doesn't have to be a collection of family recipes in one cookbook or notebook. You may discover that family members have contributed to community and organizational cookbooks. These might date back for several decades, but give you insight into recipes your family members used, places where they lived, and organizations they belonged to. These cookbooks compose a part of your family heritage as much as...
With so many people into the "greening" of America and the globe, spring seems a good time to expand upon this theme in our cooking and household. Also, this week I've noticed the green leaves appearing more fully on the trees and bushes, the lawns displaying green grass (almost tall enough to bring out the mower), and green plants blooming. Also, the stores are displaying flowers inside and out, as well as many more green vegetables. Green Leafy Vegetables These are the ones generally known as...
The forsythia, along with the daffodils is blooming brightly in our yard. These blooms bring back memories. The daffodils were my son-in-law's favorite flower and he planted them when they moved here twelve years ago. The forsythia has an even longer history. And memories of my childhood, as well as building a home with my husband. Now the forsythia in my daughter's yard continues with new memories as we live together. The forsythia blooms are connected because the flowers bloom from the same...
As I drove to work recently, I noticed that the trees were beginning to develop an aura of pink, yellow and bright green as the leaves are developing. My mother always pointed this out as winter slowly evolved into spring. Then she reminded us of our elderly neighbor. "Mrs. Synyer liked those colors best," Mother recalled. Mrs. Synyer, Our Neighbor So as I look out our windows and drive along country roads, I enjoy the pastel colors of spring and think of Adele Synyer and her courage about...
One of my nieces has established an online shop of antiques and memorabilia. She posts almost daily about her new finds. So many of these bring back memories of items of my childhood and the ensuing years. She asks for input about the items and it's enjoyable to reminisce. Saltshakers, mixing bowls, eggbeaters, refrigerator dishes, rolling pins, spice tins, and juicers may seem rather ordinary kitchen items. However, it's usually not a monetary value that's important (although this could be...
"Here, Mama. Here are flowers for you," my brother said, as he held out a fist of dandelion heads. Mother filled a soup bowl with water and floated the dandelions there, thanking Brother for his gift. "Why do you save them?" I asked with the "wisdom" of my 8 years. "They're just dandelions and just the tops." "Because he thinks he's giving me something special. They're a thoughtful gift for me." I remembered this when my daughter and, later my grandchildren, brought me flower heads as a...
"Here, Mama. Here are flowers for you," my brother said, as he held out a fist of dandelion heads. Mother filled a soup bowl with water and floated the dandelions there, thanking Brother for his gift. "Why do you save them?" I asked with the "wisdom" of my 8 years. "They're just dandelions and just the tops." "Because he thinks he's giving me something special. They're a thoughtful gift for me." I remembered this when my daughter and, later my grandchildren, brought me flower heads as a...
Potatoes in various forms have been a staple in English, Irish, Scottish and North American diets. These are served in many forms and when scarce have resulted in famines. However, they are generally easy to grow and relatively inexpensive. They were a mealtime staple when I was growing up, served by them and prepared in various combination dishes. Potatoes also were served in many ways when my mother was growing up, and she continued the tradition in our household. Mother also related how...
As my daughter organizes our family recipes and stories about the various cooks, going back to her great, great grandmother, she also takes pictures of the old dishes and implements they used. I found I had saved the large oblong wooden chopping bowl of my youth. As I held this item in my hands, my thoughts reflected upon cooking in the kitchen with its wood fired stove. Many times, I chopped cabbage, carrots and onions from the garden for coleslaw or potatoes and meat for hash, in that bowl. We...
Here in New England, it's maple sap and syrup time when maple syrup lovers tap the maple trees, collect the sap and boil it down for syrup and sugar. Some, like my husband used to do, collect it on a small scale, just enough for a family's own use. Others have commercial scale operations and make sap to sell. When I was a newspaper reporter I visited local maple syrup operations, large and small, and wrote stories for my readers. My aunt, who, long ago, spent part of her childhood in Quebec...
