Saturday morning cartoons, smiley face lists and a 1980 T-Bird!

What was a typical Saturday morning like?

Describe the family car.

Did you have certain responsibilities around the house....did you get an allowance?

Back then, Friday nights were spent at the roller skating rink...and on Saturday mornings, I would sleep in.  I would usually wake to the sound of the vacuum cleaner outside my bedroom door...and the smell of household cleaning products. My Mom was a school teacher and Saturday was her day to catch up at home.

There would be music playing from the stereo that my Dad had rigged to play throughout the house...speakers in every room and on the patio too.  If my Dad was still at home and not partaking in one of his hobbies, he would be mowing the lawn or cleaning out the utility room.
After a few minutes in the kitchen, I'd be relaxing with my cinnamon toast and watching some cartoons...The Smurfs...my favorite.

I did have chores around the house, and I was expected to help out, but my Mom was one of those people who loved to clean. She would occasional leave me notes...I mean lists of things to do. I was expected to finish the list...right away. At the end of the list there would always be a smiley face, as if she thought it would make me happy to clean, unload the dishwasher, put away clothes, and write my thank you notes. Sometimes I got an allowance and sometimes I didn't...mostly, I got what I needed and did extra chores to earn money for something special.

My Dad was a salesman. He drove a company car. He would trade it in every 2 or 3 years for another new company car. They were always big FBI type cars...the one I remember the most was a brown Ford Thunder bird. The company car was our family car, because my Mom had a very sporty little Datsun 280 ZX. It was a 2 seater...sometimes if we all 3 went somewhere in that car, I would lay across the floor of the hatch back....perfectly safe, of course.

Today....in my house, things aren't really that much different. Saturday mornings the kids (and I) sleep in a little bit...the house smells of coffee, not cleaning products, but I do fold laundry and David mows the lawn. The Disney channel is on throughout the house...and cinnamon toast is  frequently on the menu...unless David makes a big breakfast, which he really does like to do. We take turns going on a run...then we move ahead with the rest of the days plans. To me, the best Saturdays are the ones we spend at home.
The kids have chores that they do when we ask them to. No charts, or chore boards....we have tried...but this just works better. I have even left lists a few times, but no smiley faces. There is no weekly allowance, but if someone is saving for or really wanting something, we will find a few extra chores that pay pretty well.
Our family car is more like a station wagon, than the sedan of my childhood years....an SUV...funny thing though...it is a Ford!

Memories are fun! Share your memories or a link to your post in the comments here!
Enjoy your week!

Next weeks questions:

Where did your family do most of their shopping?

Can you remember a really fun surprise?

What do you remember about talking on the telephone?

TV's with rabbit ears, Dad's hobby and Minnie Mouse!

1. What do you remember about prime-time TV?

2. Did you (or another family member) have a hobby that took up a lot of time?

3. Did you sleep with a special toy....until when...where is it now?

Prime time TV in the 70's included shows like Welcome Back Kotter, Hawaii Five O, The Waltons, Wonder Woman, and my Dad's favorite Monday Night Football. I also remember watching The Dukes of Hazard, Love Boat and Fantasy Island on weekend nights!
Our television set was positioned on a built in wall system. We had 4 channels and only 3 of them were clear. We did not have a televison with a remote for most of my childhood years. I remember many times my Dad calling me into the living room, pretending to need something important, only to say,"Will you change the channel?" That would always frustrate me! I remember my neighbor having rabbit ears on the top of their big furniture like set....after changing the dial, the antennae on the top of their house would turn. I always thought that was so cool!

My Dad had many hobbies. He would find something that he enjoyed, then jump fully into it....until he moved onto the next thing. He bowled, played golf, built things out of wood, played raquetball, fished, played tennis, and even taught a few classes at the Community College.
The one that I remember taking up the most of his time was sailing. We had a Hobie Cat. On Saturdays, he would sail in preparations for several races that were held during the summer. We would go to the lake early in the morning...and meet up with lots of other Hobie Cat families.... and sail all day. At the end of that day, sunburned and so very tired we would meet up for a cookout. When we had races to go to....we would camp near the lake or stay in hotels on the beach. When I got a little older, I would race with him, although I always thought it was more fun to play with the other kids.

I got Minnie Mouse during my first trip to Disney World! I was 6 years old. She became the one special toy that outlasted all the others. She was completely worn out to the point of embarrasment...but she helped me through middle school, high school....and even went with me to college! She is now in a box of treasures, with my high school yearbooks and a few other goodies, that I guess I plan to keep forever!




And that's my little trip down Memory Lane. I'd love for you to share your memories too. The McLinky charges a fee to use their linky now...and I didn't like how tiny the link was from last week...so how about this~ share in the comments or type the link to your Memory Lane post there.
Happy Memories!

Next weeks questions:

What was a typical Saturday morning like?

Describe the family car.

Did you have certain responsibilites around the house....did you get an allowance?

A best friend, a green room, and a trip to NYC!

A meme dedicated to enriching the present by preserving the past!
This week's questions are...

What do you remember about your very first best friend?

What did your childhood bedroom look like, smell like, feel like, or sound like?

Do you remember being allowed to do something as a child or teenager...that you would not think of letting your own child do today?

Here goes....

My very first best friend...that I remember well....was a gorgeous girl named Leigh! I met her in kindergarten. She had dark hair and dark eyes and she always had a fabulous sun tan. One of those children that everyone commented about how beautiful she was. We went to an after school program together for several years, played at each others houses, cheered together, grew up and attended youth group and church retreats together. We even sang a duet together in 8th grade chorus....the song about "I say tomato, you say tomato, you say potato, I saw potato....let's call the whole thing off ". It wasn't until our last 2 years of high school that we started to grow apart....different goals, different values and different expectations. Although, we still always remained "friendly"!

Two years ago, with the explosion of Facebook, we re-connected and found out that we lived in the same city. We had a nice lunch to catch up on the last 20 years! She is still just as beautiful and tan as ever!

My childhood room was green! It is still my favorite color! I remember clearly moving into my room, which had previously been the guest room. We added new shag carpet, the most perfect little yellow and green flowered wall paper (oh Yes!) and new curtains and bedding to match. Along with a twin bed and dresser, there was an antique cradle that held all of my stuffed animals, a bookshelf with a TV (don't tell my children), a little schoolhouse desk that my mom had painted.....and an organ (tiny....but working) to fill the room.
At night there would be little colored lights shining all around the room as a result of the coolest little disco light. The sounds of "We Got the Beat", "Jack and Diane", "Physical", "Super Freak" and "Eye of the Tiger" blasting from cassette tapes on the Boom Box. 
I loved my green grown-up room. I remember very clearly the day that we moved out of our house...hiding in the closet of that bedroom ....wishing we didn't have to move!

NYC....what was she thinking?
In the 9th grade, my mom let me go on a 4 day trip to New York City with my drama class.
We saw CATS, toured NBC, shopped at Macy's without a chaperone, took a dance lesson with a choreographer from 42nd  Street (the musical) rode in taxis (just to say we did) and loved every minute of it!
Of course, I am thankful that my mom gave me that opportunity, but geeez....not today! No way!

Thanks for strolling along my Memory lane...now it's time to link up so we can stroll along with you too! The linky will stay open all week!  I'm looking forward to hearing about your friends, your rooms and /or your "No way, Not today's!"

And the questions for next Monday, May 23....
1.  What do you remember about prime-time TV?
2.  Did you (or another family member) have a hobby that took up a lot of  time?
3.  Did you sleep with a special toy....until when...where is it now?

 Here is the linky.... it will be here all week!

From now on, Mondays are for....

Memories!

A meme dedicated to preserving the past!

We all love stories. 

Telling and re-telling stories allow us to re-live those moments again in a fresh new way!

My children love for me to tell them stories about things they did when they were younger......even more than that, they love to hear stories about

the things I did when I was younger.

I have started this little meme to help us all remember, share and preserve our pasts!

I would love for you to join me each week for a stroll down Memory Lane.

This is how it will work!

I will post 3 questions to be due the following Monday (or any day after).

You will decide how you would like to participate from there.

You may simply answer the 3 questions....or even answer just 1.

Or you can take 1 question and expand on it with photos, details, etc.

Then, if you would like....link up to share your memories with the rest of us!

I would love it if you would add the Memory Lane button to your post too.

{I hope to have it ready by Monday...you will find it on my sidebar!}

And of course, take a few minutes to visit a few other blogs

and  leave a comment to let them know you stopped by!

Here are the questions for next Monday, May 16, 2011.

1. What do you remember about your very first best friend?

2. What did your childhood bedroom look like, smell like, feel like, or sound like?

3. Do you remember being allowed to do something as a child or teenager...that you would not think of letting your own child do today?

Will you plan on joining me?

Thanks for strolling along!

Happy remembering!