In 1965, at the age of twenty-nine, I had a perfect family—Kari (9,) Lori (7) and Chris (3). In two more years, Chris would be in school and I’d be able to join the workforce, at least on a part-time basis. I looked forward to being able to add to the family [...]
When we built our home in Cottage Grove in 1966, we knew there would be some challenging landscaping. The lot lay flat for the first 100 yards or so, but then it sloped sharply upwards. Paul drew our house plans—the split level would begin with the double garage on the ground floor, [...]
In the mid-sixties I was the leader of Kari’s Brownie Scout Troupe, where I’d plan either outings or projects, especially for holiday gift giving. The attention span and fine motor skills of seven or eight-year-old girls is limited, so I had to plan projects with those qualities in mind. One year, preparing [...]
In November 1966, Paul’s mother drove Elsé Nymoen and Kari, her two-year-old daughter, from Osage to Madison in order that Elsé might board Amtrak at Columbus (Wisconsin) to travel to the East Coast. Elsé’s husband Odd Peder, about to complete his studies, would meet his family and they would then return to [...]
“Now I know there is a God,” exclaimed eight-year-old Christopher as Paul helped him net his first big Northern Pike. Our family, camped in Minnesota’s Boundary Waters, depended upon “catch” for our evening meals and the two fishermen had been out on the water for hours. There hadn’t been many nibbles on [...]
Unlike others who move into their new homes with only a few unfinished items to deal with - perhaps window coverings or a light fixture on backorder, we moved in without as much as running water that cold, rainy November 1st, 1967. Our kids spent the week in Iowa with my parents, [...]
In 1961, Paul and I, plus our two little girls Kari (5) and Lori (3) lived in Madison on Cottage Grove Road, renting in the old Hernsmeier farmstead. Today, some fifty years later, the house and barn on the property are gone, an apartment house in their place and a fire station [...]
“Being nineteen months younger than her older sister is mostly good, but there are times when I wonder if my parents cheered as loudly when I took my first steps or said my first sentence. Did Mom cry when I started kindergarten? She said she did Kari’s first day of school. And [...]
Why would anyone write anything about a vacuum cleaner - a piece of necessary household equipment? They’re ugly, make loud irritating noises and have a foot-tripping cord, dangerous for old people. So again, why? Perhaps I simply have a strange fascination with them. Or is it because we haven’t always had one? [...]
Hilda Hammer stopped by to welcome me to the neighborhood in spring 1958, soon after we’d moved into the farmhouse on Cottage Grove Road. The Hammers lived a quarter mile east in the once grand Hernsmeier family homestead that included a large barn plus the three-story house (okay the third story was [...]
