An Old Fashioned Summer: Coca-Cola, A Personal History

 

Lest you think I am touting a product only you'd be both right and wrong.  I do favor Coke over other soft drinks.  I always have but, I am a southern girl.  And we southern girls don't call fizzy drinks 'soda' or 'pop', we call them all Coke or Coca-Cola regardless of brand.   It is not uncommon to hear someone say "I want a Coke...Make mine a Pepsi!"  (or Dr. Pepper or Fanta, etc.).   

Growing up ours was a divided family.  Yes, it's true.  Daddy's side favored Pepsi and Mama favored Coca-Cola and Granny mostly favored store brand or Kool-Aid type drinks.    

Interesting fact here, my Daddy's father took a Pepsi each day and poured a bit into his iced tea.  Why?  Well Grandmother used saccharine in her sweet tea to save on sugar and it wasn't quite sweet enough to suit Granddaddy, so he'd pour in about half a glass of Pepsi and then top it up with Iced Tea.   As kids, we only drank Pepsi in the way that Granddaddy did, lol.   Give us a bottle of Coke though and we drank it as it came.

The Week Ahead: Just One More

Here's a kitchen that caught my eye.  I'd say its from the early 1960's.   The kitchen is a little larger than those we've seen in the 30's and 40's.   Certainly there is a LOT of cabinet space available and the colors are bright, light and cheery.  But I confess, I find it far less charming than those modern day kitchens so new to the previous eras.

The kitchen is conveniently located to the deck and that is something I do like.  We don't barbecue much but honestly most homes I've been in where they do barbecue are seldom convenient to the deck or grilling area.  Awkward steps or having to carry foodstuffs through other rooms.

Diary of a Homemaker's Week: Running Through the Sunshine

 

Saturday:   I confess to you all that yesterday afternoon I'd told John, "I'll not demand the boys play with me today.  They can go straight on the Kindles if they choose.  I'm just not going to fight them over it."  Imagine how I felt when Josh, who told he might do whatever he chose, asked me to create a dining table fort, build a campfire, gather the bears in their caves and please play with them.   I tell you it made my heart swell and I obliged the boys in all that they wanted to do.   

At one point Millie went into the tent with the boys to sleep.   At another moment, Isaac crawled into the toy box which had suddenly become a boat and that little boy who 'doesn't like to eat pish' told me was fishing.   

They built paper airplanes and drew pictures and only much later in the evening did they ask to play on the Kindles.  

An Old Fashioned Summer: Kool Aid Kids

 

When Granny had all seven of us at her home, we were unlikely to get sodas.  It was far more common to find she had a stack of Kool Aid packets which we mixed fresh daily to drink.   Frankly I think it's hard to beat a glass pitcher of Kool Aid with ice!  

I recall one day when Granny had visitors and the adults were all out in the garden gathering some things to carry home with them.  My cousins and I decided that what those adults required was a tall glass of something cold to drink and we mixed up a pitcher of Kool aid and filled glasses with ice and took it outside to them on a tray.   The grown ups all sat down in the chairs under the oak trees and we served them.  I've never forgotten the looks of pleasure on their faces as we handed each a sweating cold glass of ice and cherry Kool Aid.  Now I think perhaps they might have preferred a glass of iced tea but not one of them acted as though they were sorry we'd chosen Kool Aid!

From the Pantry Shelves: Homemade Brownie Mix

 

I long ago determined that my beloved and delicious brownie recipe was costly to make.  It didn't take a genius to figure that one out: two sticks of butter, four eggs...and that only made an 8 inch pan.   I decided that it would be a rare treat and we'd let mixes suffice. I could buy a decent mix at Aldi for 85c a box.   Yes, I still had to add eggs and oil, but even so it was a decent price compared to my homemade version.   But I missed the flavor of homemade brownies.   And honestly...a store bought mix is never going to taste as good as homemade.   There are too many chemicals added in to preserve the ingredients and inhibit mold growth.

A few years ago, I stumbled upon a Brownie mix recipe in one of my 1950's September issues of Woman's Day and I jotted it down on paper, shoved it in my recipe files and there it stayed until this past month when I decided to give it a try.

The Week Ahead: Three, Two...Counting Down Birthdays

I stumbled upon this kitchen this past week while I was online.  I'm thinking it's from about 1930.  Unlike others I've featured, it is not an Armstrong kitchen.  This was put up by the General Electric company as their idea of a modern all electric kitchen.

I've got to start with the floor.   That sunrise effect on the floor with the arcs of color and radiating lines is just stunning, isn't it?  It appears the same marbled linoleum may have been used as back splash on the walls behind the counters.  I love that the 'sun' portion of the floor is right at the sink and the other lines angle out from that area.  Visually those lines are expanding the floor space even if the kitchen isn't as large as it appears it could be.  It's so hard to judge size when you're looking at a floor model with two open walls...

Diary of a Homemaker's Week: Birthday Season

Saturday:  Up super early to greet Caleb.  He was in good form and happy to see the goggy.  River had come to the house early, too, and was standing there wagging her tail when he arrived.   We did pretty well.  He took a nap and woke about the time the big kids all arrived.  

And then every one arrived at once, the pace was hectic and frantic and party-ish and on and on and then suddenly it was over.    Everyone went home.  John and I got a cup of coffee, breathed a deep sigh of happiness and relief.   It had been another grand party with only minor little disasters (Caleb discovered cake left behind and was feeding handfuls of it to himself and Millie.  Isaac sat in frosting, someone's glass fell from the table but that's why we use plastic cups...)