The other day as I was preparing to make a pitcher of Sweet Tea, I took a second look at the tin I keep my tea bags in. I've used it every day for 29 years. My husband bought this tin for me because I had shared one of my favorite childhood memories with him and it involved animal crackers.
This story goes back to the early 60's (because I'm old). My dad and I lived with his parents because my mother died when I was 7 months old. I never knew my mother, so my Grandma was all the mother I'd known up to that point. I'm sure it wasn't easy for her to take on a newborn just as she was turning 50.
Because my Grandfather had retired from the Army, my Grandma shopped at the Commissary and the Military Exchange. Once a month, with me tagging along, she would shop for the whole month. In order to keep me entertained she would pick up a box of animal crackers. I would sit in the cart and nibble on my little animals, always biting off the heads first. As we neared the check-out, if I'd been good, I could pick out a Golden book.
Somehow those Golden books were saved for all of these years. After Grandma died I found them in the guest room of her home, my name carefully written in the section "This book belongs to:".
This story goes back to the early 60's (because I'm old). My dad and I lived with his parents because my mother died when I was 7 months old. I never knew my mother, so my Grandma was all the mother I'd known up to that point. I'm sure it wasn't easy for her to take on a newborn just as she was turning 50.
Because my Grandfather had retired from the Army, my Grandma shopped at the Commissary and the Military Exchange. Once a month, with me tagging along, she would shop for the whole month. In order to keep me entertained she would pick up a box of animal crackers. I would sit in the cart and nibble on my little animals, always biting off the heads first. As we neared the check-out, if I'd been good, I could pick out a Golden book.
Somehow those Golden books were saved for all of these years. After Grandma died I found them in the guest room of her home, my name carefully written in the section "This book belongs to:".
I kept all my golden books and now my girls have them! :) Love em.
ReplyDeleteI was just thinking about all the things I used to love as a kid..
Koala yummies were my number one. Mmmmm..
I also remember sneaking off to the corner store down the road and buying those fake candy cigarettes-- my cousins and I would hide them and break them out when my parents weren't around so we wouldn't get caught. Oh memories.
:)
What sweet memories. Thank you for sharing them. I remember Little Golden Books too, and I'm a child of the early 70's :)
ReplyDeleteI have a ton of my Little Golden Books from childhood, though most aren't in as good condition as your books. My favorite was "Corky" about a black lab who was jealous of his boy's teddy bear. I enjoyed sharing my books with my son and I am holding on to my books for the day that I have grandchildren (my son is only 7, so I'll be waiting for a while). The majority of my books are marked at .59 and .69. I got some from our local Goodwill that were marked at .89- gasp! *wink*
ReplyDeleteI have my grandma's red glass candy dish that used to house "Grandma Candy"... you know, the petrified lump of hard candy, lol. It's the one thing that I was willing to go to war over when we were cleaning out her house. I miss Grandma.
We had a ton of Golden Books!
ReplyDeleteI love Golden Books, I used to read them to my kids.
ReplyDelete