Grandma's Singer Sewing Machine

Grandma's Sewing Machine

March 2017  When I was about 13 years old, my older sister Jane and I took a road trip in her Volkswagen bug from Great Falls, Montana to Basin Wyoming to see our grandparents Doc and Ollie Walker.  Jane had a mission to discuss with them the fact she was going to get married, even though she hadn't finished college... but that's another story.

Grandpa and Grandma owned a house in Basin.  My memories of it were that the basement was full of treasures.  Grandpa Doc loved to go to auctions and find "good deals"  I'm not sure what he did with them, but their basement was fun to explore

I was just learning to sew and on this trip I found an old sewing machine.  I asked Grandpa and Grandma if I could have it.  I remember Grandpa saying, "sure take it."  But I remember Grandma Ollie being a little hesitant.  I'm not sure why, but she was.  I remember she finally said yes and I was elated as we packed it into the backseat of the VW to drive home.

I don't remember using it a lot, but I think I did use it when I was in junior high and high school.  But mostly it stayed it its beautiful case.  When I got married, it moved with me, but I think by that time I preferred using mom's little singer featherweight as it would backstitch.

Fast forward to about about 1982.  Ron's sister Cheryl and her husband were making plans to move to Alaska.  She said something to me about wishing she had a sewing machine.  I told her I had one I'm not using and off it went to Alaska.  I remember my mom saying something about it being antique and maybe I shouldn't have given it away!  I did tell Cheryl if she ever didn't want it, I'd like it back.

In 2011 Cheryl and her husband Tom moved back to Great Falls to live with Ron's mom Shirley.  In 2013 she died after a short battle with leukemia.  Then in 2015, Tom (her husband)  and Shirley came to visit and he brought the sewing machine to me. He told me Cheryl wanted to make sure I got it back.   I opened it and looked at it, but life was busy so I just put it in the closet.

In January, 2017 I decided I wanted to start quilting again.  All my fabric was spread out hither and yon.  Some in tubs, in closets, here and there.  Some up in the attic of the barn.  While going through one of the tubs from the barn (which had been there since 2002 when we moved in) I found a sewing machine manual for this sewing machine.  (oh yes-- I did get my stash all organized)

I looked more closely and noticed that Grandma Ollie had written my name Nancy Fagenstrom in pencil on top of the cover.

I opened the manual (probably for the first time) and found all kinds of notes in Grandma's neatly penned handwriting.  

The cover page showed the sewing machine as a treadle sewing machine with her name Olive Walker 1918.

The diagram of the sewing machine was fascinating.

In the top left hand corner in pencil is written.  "This machine Doc bought in 1920 to sew Joy's diapers and outing flannel nightgowns."  Hmmm did Doc do the sewing or did Ollie?    

To the right it says.  "Better buy a new belt as this is Wyo. dehydrated, then you'll have on on hand."

At the bottom in pencil it says.  The last belt I bought Ethel Osborn she found it in his basement

As I flipped through the pages there is a section called "To OIL THE MACHINE.  In her handwriting it says  "Follow this Nancy, I did!" 

And under the photo it says-- "Have a second key made.  I tied this on when finished sewing. "  The case has a key to open it tied to the handle.

In the book  was a whole chapter on Instructions for using the Attachments.  -- what a find!  For a machine made in 1910 it had a lot of attachments.... ruffler, hemmer,  underBraider, shirring plate, ..and tucker.  Most of them are still in the machine.

On the page about FOOT HEMMER- Grandma write.. Use this--slowly--it works! 

 As I looked at the sewing machine, I discovered a real treasure!  It has a motor that I've learned was probably attached in the 50's.  It has a cloth cord which isn't very worn. The foot pedal was probably replaced in the 80's.

I took it to  Bagnelle's Sewing Center to have it checked out.  He said that  it is in excellent shape, probably hasn't been used a lot.  The writing and artwork is not very worn.  He did a tune up on it. He suggested I should  find a treadle and free it from the motor!

A bit of reflection.  I find it amazing that it took me nearly 50 years to actually look at the sewing machine manual.  What a treasure to imagine Grandma Ollie, in her very teacher-like, exact manner writing some notes to me - by name- about how to use the machine.  I don't ever remember her using it, but obviously she did!

Grandma Ollie with my mom Joy in 1921

Just got it back and set it up.  Took me a little while to get the needle threaded, but it purrs like a champ.  Here I am sewing on a blanket for my granddaughter on a sewing machine that belonged to my grandmother.  Over 100 years old.  Somethings are timeless!

ADDENDUM August 2018
Shortly after I published this post, I tripped on the cord and somehow damaged the motor.   When I took it back to Bagnelles he said it couldn't be fixed.  But he did say that if I found a treadle, he would connect it for me.

Fast forward to 2018.  About 6 months ago, we were moving some furniture for my good friends from church Rick and Pat Swanson.  Beside the furniture they were moving, they had an old treadle sewing machine.  I asked if it worked and they said yes.  I asked what they were going to do with it and they said they didn't know what to do with it but would like to sell it.  Finally several months later, we reconnected and I was able to buy it from them.  It was Rick's mother's sewing machine and he said she made many aprons on it. 

This is a picture of the sewing machine that was in the cabinet.  Ornate in it's own way! We took the whole cabinet to Bagnelle's Sewing Shop and he took the other sewing machine out and put my sewing machine in it's place.  

Grandma/Grandpa's sewing machine "freed" from it's motor and now powered by the treadle. 

My first project- an I Spy quilt for my grand-nephew Logan William Roberts.  

This quilt was made entirely using the treadle sewing machine.   What a delight to use- even stitches, great tension.   I'm loving it!  

Now my only problem is what to do with the other sewing machine.  I guess a girl can't have too many machines!

2016 Making Memories

As 2016 comes to end, it's an opportunity to reflect on the memories and share a few of the highlights.  

Ron and I are enjoying our retirement.  A highlight of our lives is our 20 month old granddaughter Bethany.  She spends three days a week with us while her mom, Kathie and dad, Ike work here in Missoula.  We also have two surrogate grandchildren:  Gillian, a kindergartner,  who spends Thursday afternoons with us, and Luke, a 2 year old, who comes for Friday morning play dates with Bethany.  Between the three, we have many adventures.

Our back yard has become a playground, complete with a treehouse with a slide, a preschooler slide and gardening and playing in the dirt (or snow)  depending on the season. Of course there are the horses and donkeys next door to feed!   Our house is full of toys and things to do.  We had a great time making Christmas cookies with all 3 kids.  My hobby of creating little videos has been a fun way to document the fun we have.  Check out this video with Bethany, Luke and Gillian! (While you are there subscribe to my channel-- I post videos periodically of our fun activities!)  

Ron keeps busy with gardening and moving snow, depending on the season.  He has worked as autism consultant.  I have created and taught a couple of online courses for paraeducators. We are both active at our church- doing whatever needs to be done!   Of course we LOVE spending time on the river in whatever boat suits our fancy.  We had some great trips with family members this year.

Float trip with Ike, Kathie & Bethany

Float trip with Ike, Kathie & Bethany

Enjoying our favorite weekly adventure! 

We also had a great apple crop  and appreciated all the help we got from friends and family- picking, packaging and making juice!

We purchased an R-Pod (travel trailer)  in 2015 and finally got to use it.  We had several adventures, from overnight weekend trips, to a trip to the Oregon coast and a trip to Glacier in early October that surprised us with a dump of 12 inches of snow overnight.  We are looking forward to even more trips next year.

In February Ron's mom, Shirley began having some health issues.  She spent some time in the hospital and then came to live with us as we tried to find out what was going on. After several months it became apparent that she wasn't going to be able to live on her own.  After checking out several retirement home options, she chose to move to Missoula and got an apartment at Brookdale Senior Living.  We so appreciated having her close by.  She had a special relationship with Bethany.  The other added bonus was that we got to spend more time with Ron's family as they came to Missoula to help her move  as well as spend time with her as her health declined.  Her brother Scott and his wife Patty came from Florida in October to see her.  We think she was waiting to see them as a week after they arrived, she passed away on October 5th.  

Bethany, Gramma Shirley and Erik

Terri, Uncle Scott, Levi, Melissa, Chris and Ken join for Family Dinner  for Shirley at Brookdale.

Paula, Patty, Shirley, Ron, Kathie and Ike

We celebrated Shirley's life with nearly 40 kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids on October 29th here in Missoula.   So fun to have them all together to renew their connections.   A highlight was all the grandkids and greats- singing "I'll Fly Away" as the sending song!  

Our year ended with a trip to Louisiana.  Ike, Kathie, Bethany, Ron and I flew down and met Erik (from Arizona) to celebrate Liz's Master's Degree from LSU.  We are so proud of her.  She is on the way to getting her doctorate.  We also drove to the coast and played in Gulf of Mexico and enjoyed some great food in New Orleans!

Her fiancéé,  Chris will graduate soon from law school at Southern University and they are busy planning their wedding December 30th, 2017 in Missoula.  Mark your calendars and plan to come for a wintry wedding.   

This season of Advent/Christmas has been bittersweet.  Having lost both of our mothers in the past year, there was much to remind us of those women as we celebrated Christ's birth.  One of our devotionals by Pastor Jan Richardson talked about how "Advent has a way of triggering memories that, when we are in grief, can be particularly painful. There is little to shield us against the sheer quantity of seasonal sights and sounds that remind us of holidays past, when our loved one was with us. In the face of such memory triggers, intentional remembering can, paradoxically, become one of our most powerful practices. Mary knew about the art of remembering. The Gospel of Luke tells us that after everything—after her pregnancy, after Jesus’ birth, after the proclamation of the angels and the visit of the shepherds—Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart (Luke 2:19). She understood that the heart is a treasure house of memory. The heart is a space where our memories can be gathered together and made whole in the present."

I'm hoping these intentional rememberings bring a smile to your face. If you get to Missoula, be sure and come visit. Blessings for you in the new year.

Love,

Ron and Nancy

Stay in Touch with us

mslamarks@gmail.com  Nancys blog: http://missoulamusings.blogspot.com

59804  Nancys Youtube channel: http://youtube.com/mslamarks

3524 South 3^rd St West, Missoula, MT

2015-- A Year full of JOY

2015 could be summed up in one word for Ron and I… JOY… What a year it has been!  Not one we will forget in a long, long time. I decided this year deserved a letter to give you the update!

We began the year with both of our mothers having a health crisis within 5 days of each other. My mom's was minor, but Ron’s mom Shirley was in the hospital for about 2 weeks. She came to stay with us for about a couple weeks and made a miraculous recovery.  We were so joyful when she was able to return home to Great Falls.  She has continued to do well.  We are looking forward to her spending Christmas with us!

Ron and his mom Shirley

Not long after Shirley returned home, my mom, Joy, had two trips to the ER.  Her doctor recommended hospice as she was really struggling.  She stayed with us and in March decided to move in permanently so we could care for her.  We were so fortunate to have my siblings come stay periodically and a home-nursing group as well as hospice give care in our home.  We did so well that in May, she JOYously graduated from hospice!

In April, we reJOYced when Miss Bethany Annamarie joined Ike and Kathie’s family on Good Friday! We have so enjoyed her. A week later, I celebrated my 60th birthday holding my first grandchild. What JOY!  

Celebrating my 60th Birthday! 

Bethany has been a JOY to us all. Grandma Joy loved having her come spend her 3 days a week and helped to rock and feed her.   The two had a very special relationship.  Ron and I love having her here--We  fill her days with a daily walk, music, making bread and just enjoying each other..  Ike and Kathie say she’s a TRICK baby…She will trick them into more babies ... so easy and fun!  We hope so, we are looking forward to having a few more grandkids one of these days!

Grandma Joy and Bethany

In July, we made a JOYful trek to Eastern Washington to celebrate the wedding of our niece Kinsey (my sister Susan’s daughter).  Grandma Joy reveled in being surrounded by her 5 children and their spouses, 13 grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren. She celebrated her 94th birthday and danced with my brother Joe with her in her wheelchair.  We smiled all weekend!  

Grandma and her family... her comment: "They all came from me!" 

In late August, Grandma Joy went back on hospice. We moved her hospital bed into our living room, and on September 6th, surrounded by family, she “went home” to heaven.  Graveside services for her family were held on September 12th at the Western Montana Veteran’s Cemetery in Missoula where she is buried next to Dad. (Joy's Caring Bridge Site for more info)

Weeping may endure for the night, but joy cometh in the morning Psalm 30:5

A week later on September 13th, Ron and I celebrated our 40th Anniversary at a friend’s cabin, with some rest and rejuvenation and a few tears.  We are so full of joy to have each other.  

1975

2015

We honored mom at her memorial on November 1st, the day after we celebrated my brother Joe’s wedding to delightful Lori on Halloween.  So fun to again be surrounded by family and friends. Erik was able to come home again from Arizona. Mom would have loved it!  She did love a good party! Her memorial was truly a tribute to her life. My sister Jane and I put together a video sharing how she faced adversity in her life. Truly someone we would want to emulate. She is missed!

Kathie, Ike, Ron, Erik, Nancy with Bethany, Liz, Chris

Our year is ending with a special surprise JOYFUL  engagement of daughter Liz to her good friend Chris Brault.  Liz is going to graduate school at LSU and Chris is going to Law School at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana We are happy to have them home for the holidays.  

Chris proposing to Liz

Truly a year full of JOY. We are so blessed to be surrounded by friends and family.

May your new year be joyous!

Love,

Ron and Nancy

Mom "Graduates" from Hospice

Today we met with the Hospice Social worker and learned that my mom is "graduating" from Hospice.

Joy Fagenstrom

She no longer meets the criteria to receive their services.

Wow... She's done it again-- made it through another life- threatening illness.

3 months ago, we sat around the same table with the hospice nurse Joe and the social worker and talked about mom getting onto hospice.  Now Hospice to me always seemed to mean that the end was near.. but I guess that's not necessarily so.  Three months ago she  had had  2 trips to the Emergency room and a stay in the hospital within about 3 weeks.  We had just gotten her home, and I was helping her in the bathroom and she went limp on me.  I called Ron and he called 911.  They sent the ambulance and firetrucks with sirens to our house (caused quite a stir in our neighborhood, let me tell you)  The two trips to the ER amounted to sitting in an ER room, mom being poked and prodded with basically the same info back-- she is probably having TIA's (mini strokes) and there's really nothing they can do for her, she will most likely have another episode.

When those emergency folks came into mom's room (after Ron and I carried her there), she gradually came around.  As we stood there, they asked what we wanted to do, one of them suggesting that we again take her to the ER.  At that point I looked at Ron and said "No, we are staying here."  They had us sign some papers and they left. After they left, Ron and I asked mom- what did she want us to do? Did she want to go back to the hospital, or if she was to die, did she want to be right here in our house.  She told us she didn't want to go back to the hospital.

Ron  then called mom's doctor and the nurse called back suggesting that she make a referral to hospice.  Not only did they make the referral, but the nurse and social worker  from Partners in Home Care showed up at our house within 2 hours of the phone call.  What a difference that made.  We brought mom out to the table, I still remember her sitting there, very confused, her hair messy and barely with us.  She was able to answer questions as we filled out the PULST (a form to use in emergencies that tells what her wishes are) They got us connected with a home health aide 2 days a week to give her a bath, a massage therapist 1 day a week, weekly nurse visits, medication management,  and a volunteer periodically to come help provide respite. (all these services are covered by Medicare)   Nurse Joe would come once a week- check on her and help problem solve issues.  One of the first things we did was take her off coumadin .. and soon after take her off the blood pressure medicine.  Her med list has been reduced to two meds (from many).  She struggled with constipation (I found out later she had been struggling with it for a while) and with Nurse Joe's help- she is more regular than she's been in years!   A small thing, but still a huge thing for her.   The other big plus was that we never have to call 911 again, we call the hospice number and they come help us out.  That was huge for us.

Nurse Joe's weekly visits have been invaluable.  As issues have come up, he has helped us problem solve them and mom's life has gotten progressively better.  We still struggle with her waking up at night to go to the bathroom  (which she doesn't even remember) but she now uses a bell to tell me she needs assistance, and we added a monitor that connects her room and ours so we hear her  ringing the bell, moving around or locking and unlocking the brakes on her walker.

Now, Mom is pretty independent in our house.  She is more alert and able to get herself to and from the bathroom without assistance.  We found a great resource called Home Instead that has caregivers who come into our home on a daily basis for an hour in the morning.  Help her get up, get dressed, get breakfast and do some household chores so Ron and I can get our daily walk and time away from the house.

Ron and I have gotten into a rhythm.  Being retired is very helpful, we can basically do this care as well as having the opportunity to do childcare for our new granddaughter Bethany two days a week.

So... mom graduates from Hospice.  What does that mean?  We will hire someone through Home Instead two more days a week to help with showering and she will have to pay for medications and other services.  If she does have an episode,  we can choose not to call 911 and call her doctor and if need be, get back onto Hospice.  But for now... we are settled in and so thankful for the supports we do have- including my siblings, our kids and our church family.  So... Hospice was there when we needed it... and we are thankful!

Moms and grandkids

I started this blog a couple of years ago, but couldn't decide what to write about.  Nothing about my life seemed particularly interesting or worth reading about... so I stopped writing. 

In one year, my life has moved from being totally focused on education and professional development... to now having my mom live with us full time and caring for my new granddaughter 2 days a week... what a change live has brought us... and such a blessing.

Recently my friend Kathleen, suggested that I try writing a blog around what is happening with my life.  I retired September 1st from the field of education, thinking that I probably would want to do something with education...  Well the Teacher Retirement system basically said- take a 150 day break from doing education... hmmm so now what?  Whatever it was, I decided I wanted to make a difference. 

My mom with great- granddaughter Bethany

Well I'm thinking the good Lord had plans for me.  I spent much of my time in the fall doing things with my church, learning how to create and edit websites (check out www.marksmac.com and www.imluchurch.org)   I also took on a project of making short videos -- mostly for church but a few of my own... which was fun.  

Since December- life has changed radically.  Within a week, both my mother and mother-in-law had strokes... and in April my beautiful granddaughter Bethany was born.   I talk about becoming the Granny Nanny or is it the Nanny for the Grannies?  Either way,  I have had the opportunity to team up with my wonderful husband Ron and provide care for both mothers and our granddaughter.  I think I've heard that we are the sandwich geneadsfration and we were reading in AARP that 42 million Americans are caretakers for their parents.  So.. we aren't alone. At any rate..  maybe there is a story to tell.. maybe others who will identify with me...  maybe a way to share a story and resources and ideas for how to provide quality life for our parents and grandkids..