{ Homemaking like our Grandmothers }

A couple of weeks ago, as I lay in bed just thinking about my day, my mind drifted to my blog.  I was going over all the years I've devoted to this little corner of the internet, and how I wish I wouldn't stay away for so long, not have to step back as much.  But life gets in the way, as I've said so many times before.

 

I began praying and asking God for direction.  Was it worth continuing this blog if I am just showing up once a week?  Should I just step away for good.  I've had these thoughts over and over through the years, and He has always pushed me to stay put.  I always get the feeling that I am needed here.  

 

And then it came to me, through the Holy Spirit no doubt.  You need to focus on why this blog was created to begin with, not only as a means to share your life as a young wife and mother, to spread God's love, but also to encourage others to love the lives they have.  To not look at homemaking as a thing to be embarrassed of, or ashamed of, but rather to embrace it and continue this almost lost art of homemaking.

 

I'm not talking about homemaking the way they do nowadays.  Everything is so sterile, clean cut, modernized.  Everything is about cutting corners, getting things done as quickly and with the least effort at all.

 

I am talking about the old fashioned way of homemaking.  The way our grandmothers and great grandmothers did.  Yes it was hard and today we have things to facilitate, but we should be looking at those as extra not as the way.

 

I've been sitting on this idea for a week or so, and to be completely transparent with you all, I thought about not following through.  Just letting it sit in a corner of my mind, because I do have a Homemaker Series already posted.  But God wants me to focus on the older days, almost like a way to honor our grandmothers, to talk about them, the things they taught us, they things they did, where they came from.

 

I can only speak for myself, but I will say that I absolutely adore my great grandmother and both grandmothers, even though they've been gone a long time, I love them, I miss them and I cherish not only the moments we shared but the life lessons they taught me.

 

So, with that out of the way.  I am going to dive right in and begin this series.  Even if no one else joins in or likes it, it's for me, for my own record and I think our grandparents deserve to be honored and talked about.

 

What do I have in mind:

 

Introducing our great grandmothers, grandmothers
I was blessed to have grown up and be half raised by my great grandmother Ema.  I say half raised because she didn't raise us all on her own, she lived with us and helped raise us while our stepmother and father worked.
 
My grandmothers led very different lives, I didn't get to have a close relationship with my maternal grandmother because she lived overseas.  As for grandma Odete, I think if you've followed me long enough, you know how much I adore her.  So, I will start by introducing each one, each will get a post of their own, I will share as many pictures as I can, or have, and talk about their lives and who they were.  (if you join in, you do the same with your family and share them as well so we get to know who they were).
 
Cleaning
How did they clean, did they have a routine, what did they use to clean, products, tips, ideas.
 
Cooking
Did they cook, what were some of their favorite recipes or dishes the family always requested from them.  Did they teach you how to cook?
 
Decorating
What did their homes look like, what did they consider a homey home, were they into the doilies, or a different style.  
 
Art of afternoon tea
Did you share afternoon tea with your grandmothers, did they enjoy their afternoon tea, what did they eat, traditions and so on.
 
Sewing, Mending, knitting or crocheting
Did they do either of these, and if they did, did they teach you?  Do you have anything they made that you can share.
 
Faith
Were they religious, did they believe in God, did they share their thoughts with you or the family.
 
Natural remedies
How did they deal with sickness, was there something they did for you whenever you were sick, that you now do for your own children? 

 

Favorite songs

If your great grandmother or grandmothers were anything like mine, they would have had certain songs that they seemed to hum while cleaning or cooking.  I will share theirs.

 

 

That's basically the gist of what I will be doing for this series.  If anything else comes to mind, I will add it, but those are the posts that I will be making.

 

The first one will go live tomorrow and I will be starting with my great grandmother Ema.

 

I do hope you will join me, I would love to know about your own grandmothers, meet them, see what they were about and I'm sure even learn something from them too.

 

If you only want to come by and read about mine, that's fine too.  

 

I just think our wonderful families deserve to be showcased and not forgotten. ♥