Elling Family News

A Laugh for the Seniors...Like Me

2012-02-15T22:46:00.000-05:00

It was a very gray day here - a gloomy, cold, curl-up-on-the couch with your wool socks and ratty blanket kind of day. Then this arrived in the email and things brightened instantly. Now I know I'm not alone in my senior moments. Well, I really did know there were others out there, but this fellow expresses it so well. Enjoy!

Rudolph Adolph Otto Friedrich

2012-02-01T15:22:00.000-05:00

When I was little, I always thought it pretty humorous that my dad had three middle names...and they were fun to say quickly. His middle names were the first names of his three godparents, and that was the custom of the day among the German Lutherans who had immigrated from northern Germany.
I came across my dad's baptismal certificate, which was once quite beautiful, I'm sure, but now it is cracked and deteriorating. It was rolled up in a box and I really didn't get to it in time; however, I did have color copies made so that what we have of it is perserved.

The top half of the certificate indicates that this is a Tauf-Schein, or baptismal certificate. The drawing is of Jesus, gathering the little children to him with the dove or Holy Spirit above him. The flowers, lilies of the valley and roses, symbolize usually happiness and perhaps purity.

The certificate says:

Rudolf Adolf Otto Friedrich Elling, born on the 18th September 1923 in Richfield Township, Henry County, Ohio

son of Albert Elling...

and his wife, Ida, born Spoering

is baptized on 10 October 1923 in the parents' house.

Baptized in the name of God.

G. Peters, Ev. Lutheran Pastor

The godparents were Adolf Baden, Otto Inselmann, and Friedrich Elling, his
uncle, probably.

The baptismal font is shown with Mark 16:16, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved..."

I'm not sure what the 7 indicates next to the date...7 a.m. doesn't seem right. Any ideas?
Dad never spelled his name as Rudolf; it was always Rudolph ... or Rudy.
And he usually just took Frederick as his middle name. Guess he just chose the one he wanted! It was nice to have mutiple choice!

Guest Author - The Spoering Immigration

2012-01-22T22:55:00.002-05:00

Henry and Mary Sporing Arrive to the U.S. in 1882

written in January 2012 by Jason Snow, a great-great grandson of Henry and Mary Sporing

Henry and Mary Sporing, along with their daughters Mary (age 4) and Sophia (age 3), arrived in New York aboard the Main on 6 March 1882. Their place of origin was recorded as Prussia, and their destination was Defiance, Ohio. Henry's and Mary's ages, 36 and 26, are consistent with other records we have for these ancestors. What isn't consistent is the year of their immigration.

Henry declared his intent to become a citizen in 1884 and applied in 1886. In those records, he indicated his arrival in the U.S. as 8 March 1881, not 6 March 1882. Assuming the naturalization process at that time required 5 years of citizenship, the discrepancy would have enabled Henry to accelerate the process.

Their entry to the United States would have been processed at Castle Garden, the predecessor to Ellis Island before it opened in 1892. Castle Garden is now Castle Clinton National Monument, which is where the ferry to Ellis Island departs from lower Manhattan.

The Main was operated by the North German Lloyd shipping line. It was built by Caird & Co., Greenock, Scotland, measuring 365' x 40' and weighing 2,893 tons. The single-screw and compound engines were capable of 14 knots. There is no photo available, but the ship had two masts and one funnel. The Main first sailed in 1868, and its final voyage under the North German Lloyd company was in 1890. The same company ran a new ship also under the name of Main.

Source for the clipping is: New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957, Year: 1882; Arrival: New York, United States; Microfilm serial: M237; Microfilm roll: M237_447; Line: 44; List number: 253. Image and transcription obtained via Ancestry.com. Imaged cropped to show only Sporing family.

**Jason's great-grandmother was Lydia Spoering Loudon and his grandmother, Ruth Loudon. Lydia's photo may be seen at this previous post. Lydia may also be seen with baby Ruth on her lap in this reunion photo from about 1928.

Thank you, Jason!

Mr. Sandman ...

2012-01-15T22:52:00.001-05:00

Did you ever hear the story about the Sandman who visits children on New Year’s Eve?
Several months ago, when my aunts and uncles were together reminiscing over lunch,
some of them remembered my Grandmother Elling dressing with a black hood over her head and chasing her children on New Year’s Eve night, saying that the Sandman was coming to get them! It was all done in good humor, of course.

I had never heard of that German custom and so I asked friend, Kerstin, from Germany,
what she knew about it. She did not know that the custom was attached to any particular day, but she did remember the old fable about the Sandman coming to visit children to throw
dust in their eyes to make them sleepy. Later, I read that some parents then gave that as the reason for the crusty matter that might be in the children’s eyes when they awoke. Oh, the Sandman must have visited!

However, a more vicious, old German fable, written by E.A. Hoffman, exists where the Sandman is very evil. When he comes to visit children in the night, he snatches their eyeballs and takes those back to feed his children. Now that was a scary thing to tell a child!

The whole Sandman story actually shows itself throughout history and many cultures. I especially like this Danish version by Hans Christian Anderson.

But, really, when I hear the word “Sandman,” this is what I think of…

Free Book Giveaway

2012-01-08T16:57:00.000-05:00

Check out my other blog
www.attheriverbend.blogspot.com
for a free book giveaway!

Finishing the Tietje History

2012-01-01T11:40:00.000-05:00

Kerstin writes about the

ancestors of

Hermann Hinrich Johann Tietje (Henry)
back into the 17th century:

"Henry's grandparents, Johann Tietje und Margarethe Bokelmann from Verdenermoor.
The grandfather was Johann Tietje, born June 7, 1758 in Neddenaverbergen and died after 1811 in Verdenermoor. His name was sometimes written Tiedge. He was Lutheran and his address was Hof. Nr. 5 in Verdenermoor, and in other sources, Hof Nr. 84. He was a Neubauer, a new farmer.

Johann's father, Henry's great-grandfather, was Jurgen Hinrich Tietje, born April 8, 1714 in Neddenaverbergen and died December 16, 1784 in Neddenaverbergen. He married Anne Marie Winkelmann in Verden St. Andreas on November 25, 1744. Anne Marie was born August 29, 1719 in Neddenaverbergen and died January 1, 1773 in Neddenaverbergen. The great-grandparents lived on Hof (farm) Nr. 13 in Neddenaverbergen and he worked as a Halbmeier.

Johann, Henry's grandfather, had six sisters and brothers:
1. Dierk Tietgen, born 1745 in Neddenaverbergen and died 1820 in Neddenaverbergen. He inherited Hof. Nr. 13 and lived there with his family. He married Anna Margaretha Tietgen (1753-1810).
2. Trina Alheit Tietje, born 1747 in Neddenaverbergen.
3. Anna Engel Tietje, born 1750 in Neddenaverbergen.
4. Peter Tietje, born 1752 in Neddenaverbergen.
5. Jurgen Hinrich Tietje, born 1753 in Neddenaverbergen.
6. Christoph Tietje, born 1761 in Neddenaverbergen and died before 1819 in Verdenermoor. One of his sons, Diedrich (1799-1844), lived in Bendingbostel later.

Henry's grandmother, wife to Johann, Margarethe Bokelmann (sometimes Bockelmann) was born August 10, 1765 in Neddenaverbergen and died February 20, 1811 in Verdenermoor at the age of 43. They married November 22, 1787 at St. Andreas in Verden. Margarethe's parents were Johann Hinrich Bokelmann, born about 1732 in Neddenaverbergen and Engel Meinke, born about 1735 in Westerwalsede. They had eight children.

There was one job of Henry's ancestors that followed down the Tietje family line - the Meier. Henry's grandfather, great-grandfather, and gg grandfather were Halbmeiers (Half Meier) and his ggg grandfather was a Viertelmeier (Viertel = quarter)*.

This is the photo of a very old painting in oil colors, where you can see on the left side the old timber-framed farmhouse from our Tietje family. When the father of Mrs. Bokeloh, the today’s owner of Krusenhof, Verdenermoor 1, had been in war captivity in France 1944, he had an old photo from the farm and asked a painter, a Mr. Brandt, to paint it. In the painting you see the old farm with its very modest buildings of former times, because they settled in poor moor land. Henry’s house on the left was pulled down in 1890, after immigration. So the photo must have been very old, before 1890. Mrs. Bokeloh owns the old contract of sale.

A Meierhof (sometimes also written Meyerhof was a whole farm and the Meier was the administrator of the estate. A Meierhof had a number of dependent peasants who were obliged to pay taxes. The hof could also include forests, gardens,mills, fish ponds, etc. Today, especially in Northern Germay, many of these buildings are still known as Meierhof. There usually was an allocation of duties, so the Halbmeier was responsible for half of the farm duties and the Viertelmeier only for a quarter part.

The farm, Verdenermoor Nr. 13 from Henry's grandfather, Jurgen Hinrich Tietje, a Halbmeier, for example, was inherited by his oldest son, Dierk (1745-1820), and he was a Halbmeier again. Later his son took over the farm and was also a Halbmeier. A farm was usually inherited by the oldest son. The other brothers and sisters had to find homes and other employment when they were grown. From what I have found out, all the brothers became farmers.
Johann Tietje had to find another place to live. Henry could not read or write, according to the U.S. census, and he inherited a very poor farm.

The family line of the Tietjes of Verdenermoor back in the past...
1. Hermann Hinrich Johann (Henry) Tietje and Katharina Maria Schwiebert (Immigrants to America)

2. Henry's Parents - Johann Tietje (1758-1811), Neubauer, and Margarethe Bokelmann (1765-1811)

3. Henry's Grandparents - Jurgen Hinrich Tietje (1714-1784), Halbmeier Hof Nr. 13, and Anna Marie Winkelmann (1719 - 1773)
4. Henry's Great Grandparents - Dierk Tietje (1685-1732), Halbmeier, Hof Nr. 13, and Adelheit Storch

5. Henry's Great-Great Grandparents - Jurgen Tietje (Tietgen) (1656-1718), Halbmeier, born in Nordkampen next to Walsrode and died in Neddenaverbergen Hof Nr. 13 and Anna Hesterman (1653 - 1713)
Jurgen took farm Nr. 13 over because of marriage. Anna Hesterman had inherited the farm Nr. 13 in Neddenaverbergen in 1680. You find in the Lower Saxony State Archive of Stade: "Jurgen Tiedgen disputes with the heirs of the "Obersten Schacht" (perhaps a govt. agency) in Verden because of payments for the purchase of wine."

6. Henry's Great-Great-Great Grandparents - Lambert Titken, born about 1620 in Nordkampen/Walsrode, buried in Kirchboitzen. He was Lutheran and lived in Nordkampen Hof Nr. 10. He was a Viertelmeier and married in about 1648. There is also a daughter, Anna Elisabeth Titken, who married about 1650, Rippe Kruse (1630 - 1700) from Bessern bei Verden.

Some history on the origin of the Tietje line in Walsrode:
The first ancestor who settled in Neddenaverbergen was Jurgen Tietje (Titken) from Nordkampen/ Walsrode, who married Anna Hesterman who inherited Hof. Nr. 13 in Neddenaverbergen. That family line Tietje has its origin in Nordkampen in Walsrode before the first ancestor moved to Verdenermoor. There are two more Tietje lines in Neddenaverbergen who seem to have the same origin in Walsrode.

Nordkampen/Walsrode is a small village in the district of Heidekreis in Lower Saxony, Germany, near Verdenermoor/Neddenaverbergen. The first recorded mention of the town is dated 986. In 1383, the dukes of Brunswick and Luneburg granted Walsrode a town charter. In 1626, there was extensive destruction in the town by the troops of Count Tilly during the Thirty Years War. In 1757, the town was totally destroyed by a catastrophic fire. Unfortunately, that is probably the reason it is now impossible to find more sources for family history there. In 1811, during the Napoleonic era, Walsrode became a border town between France and the Kingdom of Westphalia. In 1866, Prussia annexed Walsrode and in 1890 the railroad reached there.

I am aware that this work is not really finished. Maybe there will be other facts which will be added or corrected later. Hopefully, there will be more photos or other documents to add later."

Confirmation of George Friedrich Spoering

2011-12-22T11:59:00.005-05:00

This lovely, old Confirmation certificate was given to me for safekeeping, and I treasure it, not only for its family history connection, but also for its beauty. George Friedrich Spoering was the youngest brother of my grandmother, Ida. Born in 1899, he was confirmed in St. John Lutheran Church by Rev. Boomgarden in 1913.
In the photo of the Spoering family below,he is the young boy in the front row, standing with his arm on his mother's shoulder.

In those days, large, colorful certificates were presented for baptisms, confirmations and weddings held in the church. This particular certificate says that it was made in Germany and since German services were always held in the Lutheran churches in Henry County back then, the entire certificate is in German.

"In Memory of the Day of Confirmation"
Now Denkspruch...the best translation I could find was maxim or saying or perhaps, verse.
*UPDATE: Thanks to my friend, Kerstin (our Tietje researcher) for her help in the translations on the certificate:
denken = to think
denk = I would say, that is the form of imperativ singular: Think about!(denk, denke, also bedenke)
Spruch = proverb/ saying

A "Denkspruch" is a short sentence, which wants to express/ verbalize a true rule or experience of life.
It wants to make the reader think about or think over something.
I did not investigate the verses given...maybe some kind German speaker will help on that.
**UPDATE:
Verse 1:The prophet Jesaja predicted the crucifixion of Jesus about 700 years before it really happened by the words:
“Christus is wounded because of our misdeeds and he is broken up because of our sins. He bears the punishment, (or: The punishment lies on his shoulder), so that we have peace and we are healed because of his wounds.”

Verse 2: (Song, Author: Benjamin Schmolck (1672 - 1737))
This is the first verse of an old churchsong from Benjamin Schmolck (1672-1737. He was a German theologian; hymn writer and author of devotional literature.
Soul, go to Golgatha,
sit down under Jesus’ cross
and think over, what impulse bids you there, to do penance.
Do you want to be insensible?
Oh, so you are more than stone.

Verse 3, bottom left: „Be faithful up to death, so I will give you the crown of life.”
In former times, this was a very popular Confirmation verse. It is written in the last book of the Bible in a letter from Johannes to his own parish, who suffered because of acute persecution. The existence of the parish was threatened and the members were afraid about their own life. So Johannes said the words, to encourage his people to be faithful up to death, to keep up in believing in God,even if they will lose their life. Then they will get the „crown“, actual you find instead of „crown“ the word „Kranz = wreath“. Maybe you can compare it with a winner, who gets a Victor’s crown. And the price is eternal life.

George was born on the 14th of August 1899 and was confirmed on the 16th of March 1913 in the Evangelical Lutheran, St. John's Lutheran Church in Deshler, Ohio, by Rev. Boomgarden, Pastor.

The bottom of the certificate holds the impressed seal of the church, St. Johannes.
Notice the rich coloring of the paper and the images presented, all having symbolism, I'm sure. At the top are the angelic children around the communion cup, and at the altar is the pastor with the confirmands kneeling and receiving their blessing with adult witnesses of the church watching. The Last Supper is portrayed at the bottom and in the right, bottom corner is the Dove ascending from the baptismal font. Even the flowers likely carry symbolism - the grapevine ("I am the vine..."), the wheat (bread of life, separate wheat from chaff...), the poppies (death) and are those forget-me-nots?

Tell me what else you see in these photos.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-19T00:03:00.000-05:00

Here's a Merry Christmas wish to you all! Thanks for checking in on this blog and giving me your support. May you all enjoy time with family and friends during the holidays and make some wonderful memories. Dianne

Shhh...The Grammy Elf Has Been Busy

2011-12-07T15:43:00.000-05:00

Please don't tell...

Pillowcases made and stuffed
full of goodies for the boys.

What is in those packages?
Not tellin'.

A sleeping bag for
someone's American
Girl doll, thanks to a great tutorial here at the Peas in a Pod blog.

Now for some rest...

Have You Made Your Crockpot Candy Yet?

2011-12-02T18:28:00.001-05:00

Have you made your crockpot candy yet?

The recipe makes a big batch! Plenty to give away...perhaps.

Today I made this candy and some fudge. A very sweet day all around. In case you have forgotten the link to this easy recipe, look here: http://ellingfamilynews.blogspot.com/2010/12/crockpot-candy.html

Three hours in the crockpot, 20 minutes rest, and scoop out into small puddles.

Mary Schwiebert Tietje and Her Children

2011-11-30T19:55:00.000-05:00

Kerstin writes ...
Hermann Hinrich Johann Tietje, aka Henry, married Catharina Maria, aka Mary,Schwiebert (Zwiebert). According to Kerstin's research, Mary was born on October 20, 1840 in Kirchwalsede, next to Rotenburg.
Her father was Hinrich Schwiebert, born February 5, 1819 in Kirchwalsede and her mother was Cathariana Adelheit Haase, born 1817 in Verdenermoor.
Mary had three sisters:

Catherina Sophia Schwiebert (1814 - 1910 Ohio) This aunt lived in Napoleon after immigrating to the U.S. in 1866 and marrying the same year, Johann Heinrich Vajen (1840-1919).
Anna Margaretha Schwiebert (1843 - 1848)
Catharina Margaretha Schwiebert (1846 - 1848)

May of the Schwiebert family line may be found in the local heritage books of Kirchwalsede, mentioned in an earlier post. The family tree can be traced up until Hans Schwiebert (1622-1713), Westerwalsede, and his wife, Beke Hase (1639 - 1723).

Henry and Mary Tietje probably had eight children, as they reported in the census. The records are a little confusing on this. Their children, with their called name underlined, were:

Johann Hermann Diedrich Tietje, born Dec. 27, 1859 in Verdenermoor. He lived in Visselhoevede and was the stationmaster.
Christian Heinrich Diedrich Tietje, born June 22, 1862 in Verdenermoor, died September 22, 1937 in Bendingbostel. He was the stationmaster in Bendingbostel.
Hermann Heinrich, born December 4, 1864 in Verdenermoor, died November 3, 1936 in Richfield Twp., Henry County, Ohio.
Catharina Sophie Maria Tietje, born October 29, 1867 in Verdenermoor, died September 3, 1939.
Friedrich Heinrich Tietje, born June 26, 1870 in Verdenermoor, died October 29, 1922 in Richfield Twp, Henry County, Ohio.
Hinrich August Tietje, born July 22, 1873 in Verdenermoor, died August 3, 1955.
Wilhelm Tietje, born December 26, 1877 in Verdenermoor, died May 29, 1923.
Marie Tietje, born May 12, 1880 in Verdenermoor, died February 4, 1964 in Richfield Twp., Henry County, Ohio.

In the Civil Registrar's office of Wittlohe, there are two more children, which are registered to be children of Henry and Mary.
9. William Tietje, born June 27, 1876 in Neddenaverbergen and 10. Catharina Marie Tietje, born May 27, 1879 in Neddenaverbergen.

Kerstin noted, "In my opinion, these children do not exist and it is a mistake of the Civil Registrar's office...or they might be children of other parents or the dates interchanged. In the census, when asked how many children she had borne, Mary answered 8, and when asked how many were living, the answer again was 8."

Dates and Places for Herman Heinrich Tietje, Immigrant

2011-11-30T19:29:00.001-05:00

To continue the story of the Tietje immigrants, from Kerstin:
Herman Hinrich Johann Tietje,
"Henry"
Born: March 7, 1835 in Neddenaverbergen (earlier name for Verdenermoor), son of Margarethe Tidge. (Source: Register of Births, Kirchwalsede, Nr. 335141

Employment: Farmer in Neddenaverbergen
In 1858, he is listed in a very old list of inhabitants and residents as a 'soldier.'
Residence: He lived together with his mother and his aunt Marie in Verdenermoor. The place of the farm included a house and a barn.
Farm (Hof) Nr. 84 in Neddenaverbergen. The same place was called later, since 1860, Verdenermoor, Nr. 15

Marriage: He married in the church of Wittlohe, St. Jacobi, May 20, 1859, near Verden. (Sources: Document Nr. 1859/04. The marriage document is available in the archive of Verden. Church Books of Wittlohe Marriages 1853-1875)

Immigration: To the U.S. in 1888. (Some sources say 1884.)
Sale Before Immigration: "In 1874, Hermann Hinrich Tietje has taken off all loads from his farm. In 1881 he sold the farm and immigrated with his family in 1884 to America. A man named Christian Kruse, who lived in Verdenermoor Nr. 1 (Krusenshof) bought this farm and paid 750 Marks for it because the farms lay close to each other. "
(Source:Wittlohe records)
Henry's farm was pulled down in 1890 and from that time, the place all belonged to Verdenermoor Nr. 1.

Henry had no brothers or sisters.
His Father: Johann Hinrich Kohler, born about 1805, came from Leeste near Kirchweyhe. He was registered to be a soldier. Henry's name is often put together with the name Kohler in brackets. But Henry kept the name Tietje from his mother. I could find no more information about Henry's father.

His Mother: Margaretha Tietjen, born December 16, 1802 in Verdenermoor. (Source: Wittlohe records, "Born in house Nr. 84, close to Verdenermoor.")
In the church book of Kirchlinteln, baptisms in 1802, Lutheran:
"Johann Tietje, new farmer in Verdenermoor, and his wife Margretha, nee Bockelman, had born a daughter on 16th, called Margretha." Witnesses for the baptism were Anna Engel Bockelmann, Sophia Bockelmann from Linteloh, and Catharina Margretha Tietje, Verdenermoor.
Margarethe had seven brothers and sisters:

Johann Hinrich Dietrich Tiedge, born 1790, Verdenermoor
Anne Marie Catherine Engel Tiedge, born 1791
Johann Christian Georg Tiedge, born 1794
Jurgen Hinrich Tiedge, born 1795, farmer
Johann (Dietrich) Tietje, born 1796. He was a joiner and a farmer. He took over Hof Nr. 64 in 1852. In the records is this note: 'The man was found dead in his workshop without injury. He was buried on September 20, 1865 in Neddenavebergen.'
Catharina Sophia Tietje, born 1800 Verdenermoor, died 1860 in Wittlohe
Trine Lieschen Marie Sophie Tiedge, born 1805 in Verdenermoo

The Wittlohe records state that "Margarethe und Johann Hinrich Kohler lived together and there is a marriage-contract. Margarethe's father is Johann Tietje, born about 1760, a new farmer, also called Tiedje."

Kerstin writes that Henry grew up with his mother, Margrethe and his aunt Marie Tietje (See #2 sibling above-Anne Marie Catherine Engel)
An article in Verdener Anzeigenblatt, September 29, 1942, written by Heinrich Ludemann, tells this story of Aunt Marie Tietje:
"The Countrywoman and the Captain
This is the story of Marie Tietje, who was the owner of the farm, Nr. 84. This farm was next to the today's farm, Bokeloh (Krusenhof), Verdenermoor Nr. 1 and seemed to be something of the kind of a poorhouse for a time.
It happened in the time of the last king of Hannover, George V. A countrywoman from Verdenermoor had built a new barn without the agreement of the other farmers. So they protested against it, and the captain of the civil office, Mr. Oehlrich, came on horseback from Verden to Neddenaverbergen and they all walked together to the barn. They had decided that the barn must be pulled down.
At that moment, Marie Tietje appeared and gave a sealed message to the captain, saying, "Dor stick man de Nas' mal rin!" (This is Plattdutsch meaning, "There you have it and put it in your nose!")
It was a message from Hannover in which King George had given his personal permission that Marie could keep the barn.
Loathingly, the captain said to her, "Woman, how did the devil guide you to the king?"
Marie answered, "It wasn't the devil; it was God."
The other farmers and the captain had to go home unsuccessfully. Later the captain learned that the countrywoman had asked the King for an audience, and that she arrived in Hannover wearing wooden shoes."

King George V of Hannover

Marie inherited the farm about 1869. She was married twice. She lived together with her sister, Margarethe and her nephew, Hermann Hinrich Johann Tietje.
In the Index of All Names of People from Neddenaverbergen/ Verdenermoor, Kerstin found a notice that an ancestor of the buyer of Henry's farm in 1887, who was also called Christian Kruse, had bought the farm next to Henry's farm, Verdenermoor Nr. 1, many years before in 1816 because of bankruptcy. The former owner was a man named Johann Tiegen. So maybe it could have been Henry's grandfather who first owned what is now Krusenhof. His wife died in 1811 and they left 8 children, some very young. It is a possibility to be explored.
Today the old farm house is still preserved and is a very beautiful holiday farm with some new houses for guests. It is next to the house where Marie and Margarethe lived and where Henry and later his children were born.

Henry's mother, Margarethe Tietje, died on November 12, 1876 in Neddenaverbergen, Nr. 84 and was buried there on the 16th. In the Wittlohe records, we can read, "...she died because of weakness of old age on 12 November 1876. By request of the son and acceptance of the minister Ohnesorg of Wittlohe, the body was buried at Neddenaverbergen."

Thank You, Lord, for a Wonderful Family!

2011-11-23T16:57:00.002-05:00

Learning About Her Ancestor, Herman Hinrich Tietje

2011-11-22T00:53:00.000-05:00

Kerstin continues the story of her research:

"In the beginning, I absolutely didn't know who of the family had immigrated because no one of today's living family members in Germany could tell about it. There was just one very small piece of information as my mother remembered that her grandmother, Emma Hoops (born Tietje, daughter of Heinrich Tietje of Bendingbostel), told that her grandparents immigrated a very long time ago. My mother, who grew up with her grandparents, Emma and Hinrich Hoops in Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg, received very big Care packages from a cousin in Ohio after the Second World War when she was a child. They sent wonderful things like pens, cloth, silk stockings, chocolate, coats and other things.
I am happy to tell that there is a big photo book which was made by my great uncle, Arthur Hoops, for his mother's 80th birthday. I found very old photos of her family, her parents in Bendingbostel, her youth and her children. There are also photos from a visit of the immigrated brother, Herman Tietje and his wife in 1929.

But there was no direct information abou the other immigrated part of the family because it happened in a time too long ago. I only knew that there must have been a great number of persons, maybe brothers and sisters or other relatives of my great-great grandfather, Heinrich, who immigrated.

Why did the family immigrate?
In the beginning of the 19th century, there was overpopulation in Germany. After the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815, restrictions for immigration were abolished, and so there was suddenly an interest because people were free to leave.

The development of steam navigation shortened the journey from more than a month down to 13- 19 days. In 1870, a passage to America in steerage cost 120 mark/ 1000 Euro today ($1362.00 U.S.), but with time the passage became available at more favorable prices. There were many advertising campaigns, often organized by shipping companies who traveled in the country to recruit passengers.
Also sometimes men wanted to avoid the draft, or they had family who had already immigrated and they wanted to follow them. People wanted free or cheap land, free living, national security, economical independence, and a more advance level of industrialization

In view of our family Tietje, I think that they followed their son Herman and other relatives who had already gone to Ohio. They trusted in the experiences their relatives had in the New World and hoped for a better life. They had so many children and the living conditions, especially in the area of Verdenermoor must have been very bad, so their children could hope for a better future in the new country of Ohio.

I heard from living persons in Verdenermor that Henry's family left a very poor estate behind. Many years later, after the farm was pulled down, there were still standing some old, knobbed plum trees next to the street, reminding us of the Tietjes, and an old oven which had a roof covered with straw. This oven later had to be pulled down, too, because it was endangered of fire. The successor, Kruse, built a new, solid baking house (backhaus)."

To be continued...

Photo From the Past

2011-11-20T14:54:00.000-05:00

Anyone recognize this couple, married in February 1948?

Finding Information About the Tietje Ancestors

2011-11-15T22:53:00.002-05:00

Kerstin continued her story about how she conducted her research on the Tietje family and some places where she found information:

"The Local Heritage Books of the Parishes in this Area-
The local family heritage books I found from the area of Verdenermoor, where nearly all my ancestors from my mother's line came from, do not only register essential family (father, mother, children), but also are created to show a connection for the family to their genealogy. This means there is a link from father and mother to their respective parents, and a link from the children to their marriages and so on. (See links below.) If you click on a link to the name of a person, there are often new links to other local family heritage books of neighboring villages which contain the same or resembling names so you can compare dates of birth and other personal facts.

The name "Tietje" is often written in different ways, sometimes Tiedge, Tietgen, Tietken and even other variations. In former times, people didn't use standardized spellings; sometimes they wrote how they pronounced it or how they thought it should be written.

1. Before 1900, Verdenermoor belonged to the Parish Kirchlinteln. This is a place immediately to the east of Verden and was previously called "Lintelohe." The church is named St. Peter's. Towards the end of 1758, the old church books were destroyed in a fire at the parish house, but from 1759 on, they are complete. There are duplicates of the lost church books in the State Archive at Stade for the years 1715-1726, 1746, 1751, 1752.
There is an online databank, Local Heritage Books of Kirchlinteln, where you can find birth, death and marriage dates about persons living in that parish. Sometimes there is more information about the employment of a person, the place of residence or other personal, historical or religious facts. Other neighboring parishes from Kirchlinteln are Wittlohe, Kirchwahlingen, Rethem, St. Andreas in Verden, Visselhoevede, Kirchboitzen, and Walsrode.

2. You can also get information in the Local Heritage Books of Wittlohe. The church is named St. Jacobi. These books contain all dates from the church books from 1715 - 1875 and dates of the civil registrar's office. There are also duplicates in the State Archive in Stade. The church books of Wittlohe burned because of a fire in the village in 1742. From 1743, they are kept complete. Since the Reformation in 1567, ministers lived in the parish Wittlohe. In 1859, the village Neddenaverbergen, which is a small village next to Verdenermoor, was integreted to the parish Wittlohe.

3. I made a find in the Local Heritage Books of Verden because Neddenaverbergen, in the next neighborhood to Verdenermoor, belonged to this parish up to the middle of the 19th century. The church of Verden was named St. Andreas. These books are not yet completed and are in the beginning of their examination.

4. I made a find in the Church Books of Kirchwalsede. Here you can find a list of the names of my family Tietje who had immigrated. This is because the descendents of the family Schwiebert made a list of a great number of names and dates for several generations about the family. My immigrated ggg-grandmother was born a Schwiebert. A large number of Schwiebert ancestors immigrated to Ohio.

5. Of great interest is a book about the old farms and their former inhabitants written by Otto Voigt in 1993. The title is Bauernreihen in den Dorfern der Kirchspiele des alten Amtes Verden." Translation: Rows of Farms in the Villages of the Parishes from the Old Area of Verden.

6. The index of all names of persons from Neddenaverbergen, a collection from genealogists of the area.

Stay tuned for more on the family Tietje from Kerstin!

Monkey See, Monkey Multiply!

2011-11-09T23:46:00.000-05:00

After foot surgery, I had about ten days of recovery time...that translates to a lot of couch sitting, reading, crafting, and TV watching with my foot elevated. This is what happened during that time...

Twelve Christmas sock monkeys invaded.

In all varieties, they emerged from the sewing basket, all smiling.

Some were crazier than others.

I hope they will find some homes in the next couple months.

You Are Growing Up Too Fast!

2011-11-09T23:36:00.000-05:00

Happy 8th Birthday, Granddaughter!

The Tietje Family in Verdenermoor, Germany

2011-11-08T12:56:00.001-05:00

I am so pleased that Kerstin is back to continue her story of the Tietje family.
Kerstin is a descendent of Johann Heinrich Tietje and his wife Maria Schwiebert, who immigrated to Henry County, Ohio. Kerstin has been researching the family in Germany and has discovered that the Tietje family lived in the small village of Verdenermoor for nine generations. This segment of her story will reveal more about the history of Verdenermoor and the Plattdeusch language.

Here's Kerstin:

“In 1500 the territory of today’s Verdenermoor was called “The Wild Moor” because of its impassable and rough nature. Until the 16^th century, it was a 200 hectare territory entirely consisting of moor.”*

(Dianne: 200 hectare = 494.2 acres. Moor = a tract of open, peaty, wasteland, often overgrown with heath, common in high latitudes and altitudes where drainage is poor; heath. No wonder our ancestors felt right at home in the Great Black Swamp of Northwestern Ohio!)

Kerstin continues,

“The bishop from Bremen, Christoph, gave the moor to the town of Verden as a present in 1551, so it was named Verdener Moor. The people had to dig peat for fuel for heating, as he wanted to save his own valuable forests.

In 1789, this territory was settled for the first time, and the moor territory was reclaimed for agriculture. The people lived in large houses, together with their cattle, under one roof. This had the advantage of saving energy and building materials. Most of the old farms were pure wooden buildings. In the middle of the room was usually a walled fireplace. The roof gables could pull the smoke up and at the same time the sausage and ham products hanging from the ceiling could be smoked.

Today there is athe small village, Verdenermoor, which has sixteen farms, but only three of them are fully used for agriculture. You can find some beautiful, old farms there where you can spend the holidays in the country. Today, people try to protect the moors and the heath; there are places where you already can see the remains of peat extraction. I know from my ancestors, that the streets were impassable and muddy, and that sometimes it must have been impossible for coaches to go from one village to another. This is long ago, but today there are still some very old, original lanes out of sandy ground, with old trees along, and some streets of old cobblestone.

It is not surprising that the hard work and poverty shaped the mentality of the moorland farmers. Often they are said to be a little stubborn and taciturn. They had their own special dialect called “Plattdeusch” which is not easy to understand. Plattdeusch or Niederdeutsch (Low German) was spoken many hundreds of years ago in the northern territory of Germany, when in the 16^th and 17^th centuries there was a change, and the educated middle class started to write and speak more and more in the High German language. As time drew on, the major part of the North German population spoke High German, and only the people in the country held the tradition and used Low German, the Plattdeusch, in the small villages and farms.

I read that linguistic researchers think that it is not only a dialect, but a language of independent character, partly because it has its own vocabulary and partly because of the varying grammar. There are parts of the vocabulary which agree with the Dutch language and have also Old English language influences. “Platt” is translated “flat,” but it really doesn’t mean “flat,” but instead “clear,” “familiar,” or “good to understand.”

I know that my ancestors spoke “Plattdeusch,” and I often heard a mixture of Plattdeusch and High German when I was a child and had been on a visit in Hamburg. Once I visited a play in Hamburg city with my great-aunt Hertha, which was performed in original Plattdeusch. First I didn’t understand anything, and I thought I heard a totally strange language. While there was a break, my aunt had to tell me what had happened in the play. With time, you get a feel to understand it, but it is not easy. A very popular example: “Beten scheef hett Gott leef.” In High German: Ein bisschen schief hat Gott lieb.” In English: “A bit crooked loves God.” They liked to use such funny patterns. Today you still can hear Plattdeusch being talked in rural districts, and there are some organizations which associate with that way of speaking and try to save that dialect. There are also books available in Plattdeusch, books of fairy tales and plays.”

Kerstin's story will continue ...

2011-11-05T22:23:00.001-04:00

This quilt just went to my new grand-niece, Olivia. It was so much fun to work with the bright colors and to challenge myself to use some of my ever-growing stash. (In fact, that is one resolution I have really been working on - reducing the stash! )

This is also my first attempt at machine quilting. I thought maybe Olivia wouldn't mind if it wasn't exactly perfect. Actually, I need a LOT more practice in handling big pieces...even a crib quilt...while trying to manuever some kind of design and keeping the stitches even.

This was actually my favorite part of the project - hand sewing the binding. There is something really relaxing about sewing by hand, which makes me think I would really like quilting by hand, too. Just need to find a small project for more practice. If I had hand quilted even this quilt, it would have been a wedding gift for Olivia...maybe.

It Was One of THOSE Vacations

2011-11-02T01:36:00.000-04:00

For the last few months, I have been obsessing over having a beach vacation. I even thought about it in July when it was soooo hot here!
However, just recently I was reminded of one memorable beach vacation we had quite a few years ago.

Can you imagine my disbelief upon receiving a phone call telling me that I had won a four day trip, all expenses paid, to Paradise Island in the Bahamas? The caller stated that I had won a giveaway by a nearby radio station by entering the contest at a local grocery store. I had absolutely no memory of filling out an entry form, and I really thought it was a scam, so I asked the caller to please send me an official letter that I could show to my boss as I would have to take off some days to go. The date was in November, right before Thanksgiving - a perfect time to escape to someplace warm.

Well, it was true! Soon we found ourselves taking off from Toledo Airport with other lucky winners, headed for Nassau! We were housed in a very posh hotel on the beach and treated to several dinner receptions. It was all very relaxing as we spent our time walking the island, going into Nassau to the market, and lounging on the beach. We met some very nice folks, and several of them suggested that we eat dinner together in our hotel restaurant on our last night of the trip. (The hotel shall remain nameless for reasons you will soon discover. Honestly, I think it has been torn down by now and replaced with a casino anyway.)

The hotel restaurant exuded luxury, from the fine linens, hushed music and elegant decor to the waiters in black tuxes and bow ties, many wearing large pieces of gold jewelry. Our party consisted of an older, refined couple we had befriended, a younger couple who had spent the day on a Booze and Cruise, and us. We sat at a large round table for six, with our waiter, Cleveland, in attendance. As we studied the menus, Cleveland brought out a large basket of bread and placed it in the middle of the table.
Most of us had our heads buried in the menus, but the woman who had been imbibing all day happened to look up and see tiny roaches escaping from the bread basket and wandering around on our table. She screamed and stood up, pulling her newly braided hair, and calling loudly for Cleveland. All eyes in the restaurant turned to our table, where she stood completely unhinged by the roaches scurrying around.

The rest of us just stared in horror as the little bugs came toward us. We all stood, backing away from our table, while the other diners strained to see what was happening. Cleveland arrived, apologized profusely and whisked the bread off the table, trying to calm down the screamer, as well. We quietly talked among ourselves about what to order that would come from the freezer and not the cupboards, not wanting to risk another roach attack! We all thought a meat and a veggie would be safe, but maybe we should just leave. What to do? But Cleveland hurried back and convinced us that would never happen again, and so reluctantly, our orders were given.

Soon Cleveland arrived with another basket of bread that he deemed to be perfectly safe. He checked it himself, he said. That bread basket sat on the table untouched. We all sat very still, eyes boring on that basket, filled with such delectable looking rolls. Sure enough, after a few minutes, the first little antennae peeked out. We watched as the scout gained courage and proceeded out on the table. Cleveland came, all flustered. A manager was summoned. All meals were free... but who had an appetite?

Ah, yes, fond memories of our last night on our beach vacation...

Iron House by John Hart

2011-10-20T01:04:00.001-04:00

I just finished Iron House, a book recommended to me by a friend...a book that can rob you of sleep, my friends. What a thriller!
Iron House is a very bad orphanage, hidden in the hills, where abuses take place and bullies reign supreme. There, weak, little Julian is tortured by a group of conscienceless boys and Michael, Julian's older brother, has to act as protector. A murder takes place and Julian is guilty, but Michael takes the blame and then escapes from Iron House into the real world where he naturally blends in with the street hustlers, organized crime, and men who kill as easily as drinking their morning coffee. Julian, on the other hand, is adopted by a very rich senator's wife, and he grows up protected by money and influence, although that is not enough to wash away all the horrid memories of his childhood.
Michael and Julian meet again in adulthood, but when bodies turn up in the lake at the Senator's estate, Julian is suspected and Michael is there serve as the rescuer. Julian's adopted mother, Abigail Vane, tries to help, despite the pleas of her Senator husband who is most concerned about his reputation and the polls. Michael wants to "go straight," marry the girl he loves and lead a normal life away from crime, but it's not that easy.
He has to sacrifice that to save Julian once again.
If you can't stomach gore, then you had best not read this, because the thugs in this book thrive on it. If you want a tale of twisted relationships, vivid characters, a plot that never goes in a straight line, and surprises galore, then this is a book that will keep you reading. I honestly didn't really figure everything out until very close to the end. Maybe tonight I can get a good night's sleep...

Quick and Easy - Just the Way I Like It

2011-10-14T14:58:00.001-04:00

I Love, Love, Love caramel corn.

I don't make it very often as it is so addicting, but I did find a quick and easy recipe for it that I now use.

Microwave Crunchy Popcorn
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 stick butter ( I use "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter")
8 large marshmallows (I may throw a few more in, depending on how much popcorn I have made.)
1/2 cup unpopped corn, popped.

Combine brown sugar, butter, and marshmallows in a bowl. Cook 2 1/2 minutes on High power. Stir to mix it and then cook it another 30 seconds on High. Pour mixture over popped corn, cool and break into clumps.

I usually do two batches at a time, so I increase the marshmallows to maybe 15, but I keep the other ingredients the same. That has worked for me.
Too bad I can't show you a photo of the finished product, but...mmmm, it was good!

I also just learned that homemade applesauce can be made in a crockpot. Where have I been? It is so darn easy!
My recipe calls for 4 lbs of apples, but today I purchased a 5 lb. bag, so I just adjusted the recipe up a bit. Cortland apples have worked great for this, and
in my crockpot, on Low the entire time, they are done in 3 1/2 - 4 hrs. Smash, put in containers and freeze. So simple.

Here is the recipe I have been using:
Peel 4 lbs. of apples and put in crockpot.
Toss with 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon.
Pour 1 cup water and 1 TBSP lemon juice over.
Cook on High for 3 hours or Low for 6 hours.

Crockpots can vary, so just watch it closely the first time until you determine how long yours will take to cook the apples thoroughly.

Some Congrats are in Order!

2011-10-11T23:47:00.001-04:00

It's a new baby girl, Olivia Marie, for
Patrick and Jenna Byrnes, and my sister
and hubby are officially GRANDPARENTS! Congratulations to all!

Then we have the awesome news of Kayla and Nate's engagement! Joe and Peggy are beaming and so are we.
Congratulations to the California couple!

And the finale...a fabulous 90th birthday for
Uncle Alfred this year! Fiesta! Fiesta!
Happy Birthday, Uncle Al!

I'd love to celebrate some more family milestones
on the blog. Please send along some news!

Check Out This Head Gear

2011-09-25T16:21:00.000-04:00

The Tietje Brothers - Heinrich Jr., Karl, Gustav

When Kerstin sent along this photo of Heinrich Tietje's three sons, all dressed up in uniforms and with the rather unusual looking helmets, at least to my eyes, I decided that I wanted to know more about this. Were all of the brothers in the military? Well, it's all intriguing, so I set out to find out what I could about each of the helmets and uniforms. All of them seem to pre-date World War I.

On the far left is Heinrich Tietje Jr. in his Pelmutze. This helmet was used by the military from 1850 to about 1915. From reading about it here, this helmet resembles greatly the example of the 1897 infantry pattern with the flap of cloth on the right side. These helmets were made most often of very tight, black dyed seal hair stretched upon a frame of bamboo on top and corrugated, stiffened burlap on the bottom. The oval object at the top front was a cloth covered wooden badge and the colors of it would indicate the area/province/state represented by this soldier. It was called a Feldzeichen. (Notice that Karl also has the oval badge on his helmet.) For parades, plumes would be added to this badge. Heinrich's uniform also resembles closely those of the Husaren Regiments.

In the center is Karl, wearing a helmet called a Tschako, probably from around 1900-1915. This type of helmet had been worn by German soldiers from the time of the Napoleonic Wars. Usually it was worn by Jager, Telegraph or Aviation troops and for awhile the Train Supply troops wore it, as well. The eagle on the front dates this helmet around 1915, according to this source. To me, the uniform looks most like the Prussian Guard, Jager Battalion.

Gustav is standing on the right with my favorite helmet – the pickelhaube. (Pickel for “point” and haube for “hat or bonnet.”) The pickelhaube was worn in the 19^th and 20^th centuries by the German military and sometimes firefighters and police. It was first used by the Prussian infantry in 1842.

The hat is made of hardened, boiled leather with a metal spike at the crown. The ornamental front plate, usually with an eagle, helps to date the helmets. Even into World War I, these helmets were used at first, but it didn’t take long for the military to realize that they offered little or no protection to the soldier from flying shrapnel and worse yet, the spike acted like a target in the trenches for the enemy! By September 1915, new helmets were ordered – steel helmets. However, the pickelhaube was a desired trophy for enemy soldiers,especially the British, to keep as souvenirs, so with that knowledge, the German soldiers often booby trapped their old helmets. Well, you can imagine the rest… Read more about the pickelhaube here.

I really am only guessing as to years and the specific military units connected with these uniforms. Maybe a reader can set me straight. I still wonder why the three sons were posing, the year of the photo, and the involvement in the military, if any, they had. Another family history mystery!

Heinrich Tietje's Story from Kerstin

2011-09-21T10:27:00.001-04:00

When Herman Hinrich Johann Tietje (born 7 Mar 1835) and his wife, Catharina Maria Schwiebert (born 20 Oct 1840), decided to immigrate to America with their family, two of their older children chose to remain behind as they were already married with children and had jobs in Germany. Dietrich, the father of Wilhelm (Dutch Bill, husband to Kate Spoering) and Dietrich's brother, Heinrich, stayed in Germany where they raised their families. Heinrich, the younger brother of the two, was Kerstin, my German correspondent's, great-great grandfather.

Marie and Heinrich Tietje are sitting in front. They would have been Wilhelm, "Dutch Bill" Tietje's aunt and uncle. ( Bill was married to Kate Spoering.) In the back on the far left is Ida, their daughter, and her husband Dietrich Luhrssen and their child, Margarethe. The others are grandchildren and spouses.

Here Kerstin writes the story of Heinrich Tietje from Bendingbostel:

“Heinrich Tietje, my great-great grandfather of my mother’s family line, was born 22 June 1862 in Verdenermoor in Germany. This is a very small village and today a protected area in Lower Saxony in the north-western Germany. The Verdener Moor belongs to the parish of Kirchlinteln in the district Verden. It is surrounded by the Linteln Geest, also called Verden Heath, which is dominated by woods, hills, heath and small villages. Today many people decide to build new homes there or to buy old cottages in the region because of its picturesque landscape and its location close to the cities of Bremen and Hannover.

Heinrich was the second son of Hermann Hinrich Johann Tietje and Catharina Maria Schwiebert. He and his older brother Dietrich decided not to immigrate with their parents, brothers, and sisters in 1888 and stayed at Germany. That was because they had jobs and were married and their first children were born. Heinrich’s wife was Marie Therkorn and they married in 1882. She was born maybe in Rotenberg and had lost her parents very early when she was a child. So she grew up on a strange family and told often about her very poor childhood. Sometimes she had no shoes to walk with. There are some photos when she was getting old and she nearly got to 100 years old, living in Bendingbostel and was very alert.

After their marriage, Heinrich and Marie often moved and my mother remembers villages like Jeddingen and Cordingen where they lived before they moved to Bendingbostel. Heinrich got the job as a stationmaster in Bendingbostel and they first lived in the house of the rail station with their children. He had to fulfill a lot of different tasks as a stationmaster, for example to leave the barriers down for trains at specified times and to look after tracks and signals. I think it was a very responsible job and one had to be very reliable. My great-grandmother Emma often told about the nice garden around the stationhouse. They had a big swing there, also a big baking oven outside where they baked their own bread. Heinrich had five children: Ida, Emma, Heinrich, Karl and Gustav. The three boys were all born in Bendingbostel.

The station at Bendingbostel

In 1905, he built a house with a garden and a small outbuilding in Bendingbostel “An der Bahn Nr. 30” and lived there first with his wife and daughter Emma and her husband, Hinrich Hoops. Emma’s three children were born in that house. After Emma moved away to Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg, the other daughter Ida and her husband Dietrich lived together with them.

In the small outbuilding they had some goats, pigs and a small smokebox and Heinrich owned some beehives. In the garden, they had some fruit trees and a lot of vegetables. During the Second World War, when my mother was a small child, they were so hungry and often visited Heinrich and Marie in Bendingbostel because there were so many good things to eat there and it was safer than the city in Hamburg.

The house in Bendingbostel

On Sundays, Heinrich and Marie liked to go by coach to church in Visselhoevede. There Dietrich, Heinrich’s brother and father of William (Dutch Bill), was living and they met there and went to church together. They were all very religious and praying before meals was a duty. For example, “Come, Jesus, be our guest and bless the things you gave us.” “We thank you, God, for food and drink.” In German language, it sounds better because it rhymes.

And everyone I knew – my great aunts, my mother and others – talked about Heinrich’s indescribable strictness. Especially while they were eating, nobody was to talk a word and one hand had to be under the table. Once my mother, three years old, was on a visit and did some mischief. He took her and locked her up into the dark cellar for a long time. She never forgot that feeling of fright there in the dark and coldness, and her grandma found her later, totally exhausted.

Emma’s children, Hertha (1906), Hilda (1907) and Arthur (1909), were born in Bendingbostel in Heinrich’s house. Aunt Hertha told about her one year in the small school in Bendingbostel, where a few children of different ages sat in the same room, the small ones in front and the older pupils in the back. When she was seven years old, she moved with her parents, sister and brother to Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg. Her whole life, she was longing for that wonderful life in the country when she was a child. She often told how wonderful it had been for the children and theat they spent all holidays in Bendingbostel with Heinrich and Marie. The new life in the city with apartment buildings was a great change for the children from the country.

Heinrich with his beehives

Heinrich, his brother Dietrich, and many people found jobs at the railroad because in 1873, there was the beginning of a new age for the railroad in the area of “Luneburger Heath.” A new railroad line was built and a lot of small villages like Bendingbostel and Visselhoevede were bound on the rail network. The “Uelzener Railroad Line” was 97,4 km long and connected from West Bremen-Langwedel-Uelzen-Berlin to the East. First, it had been one track. This track was also called America Line because it connected the east to towns like Bremen, Bremerhaven and Wilhelmshaven where thousands of immigrants went to leave their country and to get by ship to America. During the Second World War, it was of great use for the army, therefore it was often attacked and demolished. During the lifetime of my great-great grandfather, it was a good time for the railroad and very many people used this railroad line. Today there are many stations empty and a lot of tracks are moved away. Some stations are still operating and mostly used by tourists.

Maria Tietje at 95 in 1959

I remember as a small child that my parents, sister, Aunt Hertha, Uncle Arthur and his wife and my great-grandmother Emma made a day tour to Bendingbostel.. They wanted to look after the house because Marie and Ida had died and the house had to be sold. I remember a cobblestoned road in front of the house. The house was of red-brown clinker and there was a big front yard. I never forgot the smell of different flowers in the garden. The garden was overgrown, but you could find some flowerbeds with dahlia and behind the garden, I saw some railroad tracks. We picked a lot of apples and other fruits. It as summer 1966, I guess, and I’ll never forget that warm, sunny day adorned with flowers, which had been the day to say farewell to Bendingbostel and a part of the family history. In following years, we came back to visit the family graves, but the house was sold and I never walked through Heinrich and Marie’s garden again. I’ve a photo from their gravestone in Bendingbostel. Heinrich died on 22 Sept 1937."

Here rests in God the stationmaster in retirement

Heinrich Tietje

22 June 1862 - 22 Sept 1937

Maria Tietje

born Therkorn

26 April 1864 - 7 April 1964

Far away from our eyes,

But near to our hearts

The Tieje Family- Perspective 2

2011-09-14T17:12:00.001-04:00

Kerstin continued her story of the Tietje family:

"I can tell by the line of my great-great grandfather Heinrich from Bendingbostel that nobody else decided to leave Germany. His brother, Dietrich (born 1860), who also worked as a stationmaster, lived in Visselhoevede, had five children - four daughters and a son, Wilhelm Heinrich, born 1883. That son, Wilhelm (later also known as "Dutch Bill") followed the others to Ohio and married Katharina Spoering in 1911. It is possible that he emigrated to avoid the draft. Maybe he was allured by the stories of the new life of his aunts, uncles and grandparents in Ohio. I can only guess.

August 1929 - L to R: Heinrich Tietje and wife Mary, his brother Herman and wife from Ohio, then Heinrich's family - Emma and her husband, Hinrich Hoops and their children, Hertha, Arthur and Hilda and then Heinrich's sons and their wives - Heinrich, Gustav and Karl

I read in Kate's story that Wilhelm was said to be very strict to his adopted son, and he and his wife, Kate, had been very religious. I don't wonder about it because I heard from my mother and grandmother that Bill's father's brother (my great-great grandfather Heinrich) had been very strict to his children in the same way. So my aunt Hertha told, when they visited Heinrich in Bendingbostel, they had first to pray: "Komm Herr Jesus, sei unser Gast und segne was du uns bescheret hast" or "Jesus, sei Dank fur* Speis und Trank." The translation is "Jesus, thank you for food and drink." And after praying and before they started with eating, he shouted, "Hands under the table," and they had to eat with one hand, which was so difficult.

Every Sunday he and his wife went to church. Sometimes they went by coach to the church of Visselhoevede and met the family of Dietrich Tietje, Bill's father. And if a child had done something stupid, he did not show mercy and they were locked into the dark and cold cellar, sometimes for hours. I think that Bill's father could have been strict to his children in the same way.

Wilhelm's sisters were younger and their names were Elfriede, Else, Emma and Marie. Elfriede became a nurse, married a man name Minister, and lived in Ottersburg. Else married a man named Todter* and lived in Blankenese. Emma married a Brunkhorse who worked on the railroad in Rotenburg. She had no children. Wilhelm's sister, Marie, married Paul Freitag, a baker in Rotenburg. They had two sons - Paul, who also became a baker, and Hans, who died at the age of 42 at a horse race.

I made some investigations about my immigrated great-great-great grandfather, Hermann Hinrich Johann Tietje whom I already mentioned above. He was born on March 7, 1835 in Verdenermoor. This is his real name at birth and there are original documents in the churches of Kirchlinteln and Wittlohe where he had belonged. In America they called him Johann Heinrich Tietje and his wife, Maria Schwiebert and they are the same persons. Sometimes his name is written with the additional name of Kohler*,because this is the name of his father, Johann Hinrich Kohler. It is presumed that this man is his father, who lived together with his mother, Margarethe Tietje. Maybe they got married; there are different sources. He had no sisters or brothers, but a lot of cousins."

* needs an umlat and I couldn't get blogger to do that!

The Tietje Family - A New Perspective 1

2011-09-11T00:12:00.000-04:00

I was so excited this week to receive an email from Kerstin in Germany who, it seems, is an ancestor of the Wilhelm (Dutch Bill) Tietje family. If you have forgotten Dutch Bill, check back to this story about Katharina (Kate) Spoering. Great Aunt Kate's first husband was Wilhelm Tietje.

Katharina Spoering and Wilhelm Tietje wedding photo

Kerstin has been researching the Tietje family who remained behind in Germany, and she was thrilled to come across the photo of Wilhelm on this blog. She is a descendant of one of his brothers (Heinrich) who decided to remain behind in Germany, while a good portion of his family emigrated to the United States. She is hoping to find out more about her "missing" family in America.
Kerstin has translated some of her research to English for me and although she apologizes for her English, it is really quite good! I have changed just a few words for clarity.

Kerstin writes:

"The Visit to the Exhibition "Ballintown"* in Hamburg, 2001 -
It happened in the summer of 2007. My husband, my two sons and I visited my husband's parents in Hamburg and my mother-in-law suggested to go to a very new and interesting exhibition in Hamburg called "Ballintown." Ballintown is a historical reconstruction of a part of the halls where the immigrants to America spent their time before leaving by ship to the "New World."

Since 1850, Hamburg had been one of the biggest European "sea habours" for immigrants. At that exhibition, we could see original sleeping rooms, dining rooms, and see old films and hear many stories about the different people, what they dreamt about and what had been the reasons why they left everything they had. A man, Albert Ballin, was the one who planned the great halls and it was lucky for the people because there were big rooms, enough for everyone, and hygenic circumstances. The trains arrived directly next to the halls. People were provided with food and later were brought to their ships.

Trunks outside of the Ballinstadt museum

In one of the halls, we found a room with computers and the visitors to the exhibition had the chance to look for ancestors on the internet. I only knew from my mother that a big part of her family had immigrated to the U.S.A./ Ohio many years before she was born (1933) and that she got some very big Care packets from her grandmother's immigrated cousin from Ohio during the second World War.

So I sat down and typed the words "Tietje immigrated to Ohio" and I made a find and discovered the immigrated family of my great-great grandfather, Heinrich Tietje (born 1862), who himself did not immigrate, but instead stayed at Bendingbostel, a very small village near Verden/ Hannover and worked as a stationmaster. Some descendants of the Tietje family or other genealogists had published family trees with Heinrich's parents, my great-great-great grandparents, Herman Hinrich Johann Tietje and Catharina Maria Schwiebert.

These great-great-great grandparents had immigrated in 1884 to Ohio with eight of their children. Two older sons, Dietrich and Heinrich (my gg grandfather) were already married and did not want to go with them. It was very interesting for me to consider that nearly the whole family Tietje left Germany, and if Heinrich would have also decided to go, my great-grandfather would not have met my great-grandmother and so we - my grandmother, mother, and I - would not exist.

This aroused a great deal of interest and at home again, I carried on with looking for family trees, looking for the parts of the family in Ohio and on the other hand, for ancestors in Verdenermoor in Germany where they all came from for nine generations, as I discovered later."

Tune in for more of Kerstin's story on the next post.

Day Trippin'

2011-09-07T14:11:00.000-04:00

We were not on babysitting duty yesterday, so hubby and I decided to take a little day trip to Fremont, Ohio, to the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Home and Museum. Only 1 1/2 hours away, the place is well worth a visit!
Spiegel Grove, the Hayes estate, is located within the city of Fremont on a slighly elevated triangle of land filled with trees and gardens and paved walking paths.

First we took a great tour of the home with a tour guide who was so knowledgeable. At 85 years old, she was still doing research on the Hayes family and I don't think we heard 1/1000th of the knowledge she has accumulated. Full of energy, she was a delight to listen to and she made the tour through the 18 bedroom home a joy.

We walked the grounds a bit. Rutherford and Lucy Hayes are buried just a short walk from the house. On the walk, we noticed at least one tree that was marked as being there since the Revolutionary War - a giant oak. That's nearing 250 years old!

Then we went to the museum where I was focused on viewing the exhibit on Darius and John Baird, two Civil War soldiers from our area. Maybe you remember a previous blog where I told about transcribing Darius's two journals into book form for our genealogical society. Then last May, when we were in Marietta, Georgia, we visited Darius's grave at the National Cemetery there. Darius died at the Battle of Jonesboro during the Atlanta campaign in the Civil War, and afterwards his brother, John, who served with him, mustered out and went home to their widowed mother, carrying what was found of Darius's effects. I was excited that a photo of Darius had been found. Now I could put a face with the thoughts I had read in his diaries.

Darius W. Baird

His army issued blanket - one of the items brought home to his mother after his death.

Now for some other news ...I was going to take down this blog, but some new information is coming in, so I am struggling to cut the lifeline with yet-to-be discovered relatives out there. So for now, I am going to at least leave the historical items posted. I still would very much like to have some posts from my great family!

First Jason Kline Memorial Golf Outing

2011-08-25T15:07:00.000-04:00

Hey, Golfers!

Come join us at the first

Jason Kline Memorial Golf Outing on

Saturday, September 17th.

Four Person Golf Scramble

Wapakoneta Country Club,

18781 Ohio 501, Wapakoneta, Ohio

Registration - 8:00 a.m.

Shotgun Start - 8:30 a.m.

Great Prizes! Good Food!
All proceeds to benefit the Jason Kline Memorial Scholarship.

$50/person or $200/team
- Includes green fees, cart, lunch, team prizes, proximity prizes, and more.

SPONSOR A HOLE for the Jason Kline Memorial Golf Outing

We are asking $50.00 to sponsor a hole. All proceeds go to the JASON KLINE SCHOLARSHIP FUND.

Hole sponsorship will get you a custom sign with your company name on one of the tee boxes.

Email me to request a team form or a sponsor form!
(Click on Dianne on this page for email.)

From Jennie Kline:

Other donations may be made by making check payable to the Wapakoneta Area Community Foundation with Jason Kline scholarship in the memo and mail to Wapakoneta Area Community Foundation, PO Box 1957, Wapakoneta, OH 45895. The scholarship in Jason's name is given annually to a Wapakoneta high school senior...thanks to many kind donors, the first was awarded in May 2011. Thank you!

Another Great Reunion!

2011-08-15T12:23:00.001-04:00

Thanks to Bev, Sue and all who helped them plan and execute another great reunion, Beach Party style. Couldn't have been better.

Things I know for sure:

We had a lot of laughs!

Coconuts and Grass?

It was very "South Pacific!"

An abundance of talent rests in this family.

Great job on the juggling!

I really enjoyed talking with my FB friends and getting to know them.

Some people should be limited to two trips to the buffet.

Just saying.

The rice was gone when I went back.

I really wanted a taste.

It looked just like my mom used to make.

But the bowl was empty.

Could this man be responsible?

It is such a joy to gather family from different states into one spot, even if it's just for four hours. Precious times.

And finally...I can only pray I look this good when just a few more years are added. All the aunts and uncles looked great!

If you couldn't make it this year,
please save the date for next year.

We missed you!

Another Blast From the Past

2011-08-07T22:00:00.000-04:00

Does anyone know what year this photo was taken?

One Week to Go

2011-08-04T23:31:00.002-04:00

Those in the photo above shall remain nameless in this post.

But we will see five of them next week at the reunion, I hope.

The last is in my heart and memory.

He would have loved this party.

Family time and a chance to bring the buttonbox, if Mom would let him.

A whole afternoon to "shoot the breeze."

Perfect.

One Aspect of Summer

2011-08-03T14:41:00.000-04:00

Mmmmmm... good!

As long as you have one good front tooth, eating corn is possible!

Remember When It Was SOOOO HOT That...

2011-07-21T10:18:00.001-04:00

I don't want to whine about how hot it is.
I really don't.
Because I dislike bitter cold so much more.
But, after so many days of 90-100+ temperatures,
I do have to consciously put a lid on my
tendency to complain about the heat.

It always does me some good to think back to
younger days and the ways we beat the heat...or tried to do so.

*In our old farmhouse, all the bedrooms were upstairs and very hot in the summer. So as soon as this over-the-top heat and humidity hit every summer, we would sleep downstairs on the living room floor at night.
We'd grab a quilt to plant on, direct a fan our way, and snooze away. It's a wonder we did get any sleep with four kids in close quarters on the floor, but I guess we were used to it. We also were probably exhausted from playing outside.

*I remember well eating watermelon slices under our big, shady maple tree. That's where the lawn chairs sat all summer. Watermelon was a wonderful, cool treat on a summer's afternoon and letting the seeds fly was fun, too.

*Sweet corn and tomato slices, along with any other garden produce in season, were the evening meal day after day in the summer, and we liked it that way. Mom had a huge pot that she would boil water in and then load with sweet corn ears for a quick boil. The kids would often be the ones cleaning the ears before cooking, and we each ate lots of ears! And we never tired of big, red tomato slices with a little sugar sprinkled on top.

*Do you remember the days we could play in the sun all day, no matter the temperature? We didn't know what sunscreen was, or if our parents did, they didn't think it was important. We'd come in to eat and then go right back outside. Sometimes we'd take a drink directly from the outside pump or the hose.

*Mom used to hang all the laundry outside - every piece. And later on, I had that job. I still love the smell of sheets dried outside in the sun, and I can "feel" the scratchiness of the towels, too.

*We went barefoot all summer at home. We walked on the driveway stones gingerly, but confidently. We watched for bees so we didn't get a sting. We rode bikes with no shoes on, walked in the fields, and through the mud puddles.

Pretty good memories, eh?

Temperatures Soaring...

2011-07-16T17:21:00.000-04:00

When the temperatures reach the 90+ range,

take off the shoes,

seek out the nearest shade tree and a few good companions,

spread a blanket,

then

pull out an icy popsicle,

and enjoy!

Don't Forget - Saturday in the Park for the Elling Family Reunion!

2011-07-11T23:31:00.001-04:00

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Oberhaus Park, Napoleon

1:00 P.M

Bring...

Some food to share
Favorite drink
Lawn chairs

Can't wait to see you all there!

Colorado, Continued...

2011-06-15T15:55:00.000-04:00

From Colorado Springs, we headed straight for Durango in the southwest corner of the state, eager to visit our first "must see," Mesa Verde. It was a full day's drive there, and once there, the General Palmer, an historic hotel, looked very interesting to us.
Those big, old keys are pretty heavy! The location was great and the tour to Mesa Verde the next day would pick us up at the door. We acquired a room with a Murphy bed and a great view of the mountains from the windows.

Solarium at the General Palmer

Murphy bed to the right was surprisingly comfortable.

See that mesa up there...we headed to the top the next morning in a shuttle bus with an excellent tour guide who stayed with us the entire day with running commentary about the park, home to the ancestral Pueblos long, long, long ago.

After taking the necessary tourist photo, the bus began its winding ride up the mountain. We were lucky to spot a bear, mule deer, a coyote and some wild horses along the route.

It was pouring rain when it came time to climb down into the first area. After hearing about the climbing necessary and the ladders, and considering the rain, wind and eventually sleet and hail, we decided not to do this climb. This photo is taken from the observation area - so impressive to see the ingenuity of these early builders.

We did take the walk down to Spruce Tree house. Jim climbed down into one of the kivas.

Our guide really made the trip as she was so knowledgeable about the culture and what archeologists have discovered so far about this settlement. New finds are still happening.

The next day we headed slowly up through the Rockies to Denver, about a day's trip for us. The scenery was spectacular, of course, with lots of snow still in the mountains and skiing still going on in Breckinridge, for example. We eventually found a centralized hotel in Denver and made stops at the Mint and the Capitol.

Jim in the rotunda of the capitol building in Denver

A trip into the foothills of Denver brought us to the Red Rocks Amphitheater where so many famous concerts have occurred.
That was such an impressive place!
Many people were exercising there, walking the steps. We just walked down, not up, and it was an exertion at that altitude.

Red Rocks Amphitheater

One of our other places we wanted to go for sure was Rocky Mountain National Park. It was still snowing up there occasionally and the Trail Ridge Road, highest continuous road in the U.S. was only partway open.

The snow along the highway up there was probably 10 - 12 feet high still.

The air was fresh and even with all the snow, a sweatshirt was still warm enough when the sun was out.

It was a fairly clear day on the ride up until we got way up into the clouds and our visibility ended.

We were also rewarded with the spotting of two bears and lots of elk.

Just a gorgeous area and a fantastic trip to Colorado. A week was just not long enough!

Walking the icy trail to Bear Lake in Rocky Mt National Park

We Hit Colorado - Part 1

2011-06-09T00:13:00.001-04:00

Jim waiting in Chicago Amtrak station

Thought it was time to just jump in and talk about our recent trip to Colorado. It was the train experiment. Would we like traveling by Amtrak to a destination? Well, I know my answer...
No.

We were to leave Bryan, OH around 7, and the train didn't show up until after 9:00 a.m. So, we sat in the car and drank coffee and ate a donut, and then finally chatted with some others who were itching to leave that morning - all of us getting a little perturbed at the wait. But, from what I had heard, that is the way of train travel.

I would definitely take the train just to Chicago - an easy ride and well worth avoiding the traffic. The station is well-placed and close to busses and others modes of travel in the city, so one really wouldn't need a car to see the sights downtown. The discomfort comes into the next 20 hours of the trip that would take us to Denver.

When it's all aboard for Amtrak, you'd better queue up and be ready. One advantage of being a senior citizen now...preferential boarding, right along with the families with little children, the disabled and the military. So we were in the front lines in Chicago when the masses started walking down the dark terminal searching for our train. All persons going to Denver were put into the top tier of our car, so we had two pieces of luggage, a duffel and backpack to get up the narrow steps to the upper level. I thought it was a little claustrophobic up there, and by nightfall, when the temperature dipped, we had to dig our blankets out of the duffel and I pawed through my suitcases for socks! The upper level of the train also swayed quite a bit, so the motion sickness meds came out, too.

The train was stop and go the whole way, taking on passengers and changing crews along the way. The conductor would come on the speaker announcing the next stop. I found it really hard to sleep, but Jim did well!

Just darkness in the car at night, and the time limped by.
By dawn, I looked out and we were crossing the eastern Colorado plains and I could see the mountains in the distance. What a welcomed sight!

Nothing like a few snow-capped mountains to get some excitement flowing about getting off that train.
In Denver, the Union Station was being renovated (until 2014) so a very small, temporary Amtrak terminal was available.

The train had to back up into the station after crossing a bridge - that was an interesting feat to witness. As soon as we disembarked and hit the terminal, I pulled out the cell phone to check on the rental car we had reserved months in advance. Unfortunately, our AAA agent had made an error in the reservation, not taking into account our arrival in Denver on the day AFTER we left, so I heard, "We may not have a car for you." Great. Hertz did come and pick us up in their shuttle, and after waiting until everyone else who had a proper reservation received their cars, we ended up with a Nissan Rogue SUV which was great, actually.
By the time we completed all the paperwork on the car and headed out of Denver south toward Colorado Springs, we had not showered or changed in about 32-33 hours. Sleep had not been great. We were starving. Hmmmm...we took the first, nice hotel that would let us do an early check-in!

After resting awhile and grabbing a sandwich, we took off for Garden of the Gods which was just a few miles from our hotel.

Glorious red rocks in interesting shapes, complete with human climbers and lots of hikers.

It never stormed, although the clouds looked ominous.

We arrived late in the afternoon and since we were tired, we took the shuttle tour through the Garden and watched the movie in the Visitors' Center. It was a leisurely start to our vacation and a way to unwind from the previous day's travel.

Coming To An End...

2011-04-11T17:42:00.001-04:00

After taking on too many other obligations and suffering from a lack of new family material to post, I've decided to discontinue this blog and just continue with my blog, At the Riverbend (http://www.attheriverbend.blogspot.com/).

I will be slowly be taking the blog down from oldest post to newest, with the goal to have the entire blog down by our family reunion this summer.

So, if you have family history here that you want to save, please capture it before it is gone. I am not planning to migrate any of this blog over to my Riverbend blog. Thanks so much to all who have contributed to or commented on this blog!
You're not really getting rid of me; I'm just going to relocate my commentary/ photos/ family stories to my other site.

The Wedding Party 65 Years Ago

2011-04-09T18:28:00.003-04:00

Back: Julian "Bud" Connolly; Ed Hausch

Front: Rudy Elling, Sue Connolly Clausen; Virginia Dershem Elling; Alfred Elling; Jerry Elling; Joan Myers Reimund

Not pictured: bridesmaid Helen Smith (late because of car trouble)

A little trivia: Did you know that ...

Ginny wore orange blossoms attached to her veil,

a gift from Aunt Vera Quail from Florida?

The newlyweds drove to Chicago in Al's 1934 Ford

and honeymooned along Lakeshore Drive?

Gasoline was 10 cents or less a gallon?

Those were the days!

An April Wedding Anniversary #65

2011-04-01T06:00:00.035-04:00

On a beautiful Easter Sunday afternoon, April 21, 1946, Alfred A. Elling and Virginia Dershem were married in St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Napoleon, Ohio.
God willing, they will celebrate their 65th wedding anniversary this month!

Mom has always said she married Dad for his money. He always said he married Mom for her pretty legs. They are quite the couple, keeping their humor through the years!

Some "love and marriage" quotes:

* A wedding anniversary is the celebration of love, trust, partnership, tolerance, and tenacity. The order varies for any given year. ~Paul Sweeney

* A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person. ~Mignon McLaughlin

* Love does not consist of gazing at each other, but in looking together in the same direction. ~Antoine de Saint-Exupery

* A happy marriage is a long conversation that always seems too short. ~Andre Maurois

* Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom. ~Marcel Proust

And the BEST is yet to be.

Miscellaneous Ramblings...

2011-03-26T15:54:00.000-04:00

- I am reading the new Brad Meltzer book, The Inner Circle and it is so compelling, I can’t put it down. I stay up way too late reading. The setting is the National Archives and the characters include the fictional President Wallace. The plot revolves around a modern day Culper Ring (civilian spy network of George Washington’s) and some archivists who are way too smart. Full of suspense! I just highly recommend.
Oh, and it you haven't seen Decoded on the History Channel, you are missing a very interesting show. Meltzer also is the narrator of this show which investigates historical happenings.

- I’m heading out to the Ohio Genealogical Conference in Columbus sometime next week and will be there for three days, soaking up knowledge.  Ok, I might hit the vendors and find some good places to eat, too.

- On my late night foray into ancestry.com last night, I came up with a photo of Jim’s great-grandparents and their family. That was a wonderful find to add to the family photo wall! We didn't know the photo existed.

- We had a great time last week at the Ridgeville fish fry with many of the cousins and three aunts and an uncle. We needed a BIG round table, though, so we could talk to everyone.

I can't leave out a visit to Columbus to witness the wedding of Connie and Jim's daughter, Jenna, and her husband, Patrick. Such a nice day together that went by way too fast and a beautiful wedding.

Have a great weekend!

Book Review - WE BE BIG by Rick Burgess and Bill Bussey

2011-03-22T11:02:00.002-04:00

Both Rick Burgess and "Bubba" Bussey have always been fascinated by radio and in this book, they alternate in talking about their road to success as radio talk show personalities. Their outrageous morning show, the Rick and Bubba Show, became number one in their listening area, Birmingham, due to their down-home talk about their size (hence the Fat Fest and their phone number, WE BE BIG), their families and the people and experiences of their lives. Sometimes they were unsure of their job security, but somehow they persisted and came out even better each time.
On their show, they openly talked about their faith. Rick’s faith journey was a little bumpier than Bubba’s, as early on he was the party boy and just a “cultural Christian,” as he called himself. The last chapters in the book were so moving as Rick described his own personal family tragedy. Undoubtedly, God was working in Rick’s life as “God provided the words” for him to speak when it was necessary.

This book reveals not only the development of a successful radio duo, but it also is a testament to what faith can do and how many have been touched by these two and the events of their lives. Honestly, being from the North, I had never heard of the Rick and Bubba Show, but I plan to check out their other writings and recordings. This was a different sort of book than I usually read, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

*This book was provided to me for my review by Thomas Nelson Publishing and the Book Sneeze program. This review is totally my own opinion.

Reunion! Save the Date!

2011-03-09T00:16:00.001-05:00

SATURDAY, AUGUST 13, 2011

REUNION

Descendants of Albert & Ida Elling

OBERHAUS SHELTER HOUSE

NAPOLEON, OHIO

1:00 P.M.

(More reunion details later. Just write it on the calendar!)

**I would love to see any old photos/postcards you have that could be put on the blog as I have about exhausted my supply. I would have to scan them at home, so if you bring photos for me to copy, please place them in an envelope with your name on it. I will drive them back to your house when finished...unless, that is, you live hundreds of miles away (or gas goes up to $10 a gallon!) In that case, I'd be happy to priority mail them back to you.

Start digging in those boxes! You know you have some good photos and stories!

Down Maplewood Avenue

2011-03-07T15:40:00.000-05:00

Another look back at old L.C. Note the vehicle on the left; I think it's a car. I zoomed it up to see if the road was paved and it didn't look like it. Anyone want to venture a guess as to the year of the photo?

Young's Cemetery, Liberty Center, OH

2011-03-06T19:01:00.000-05:00

Dipping into the old postcards again, I found this of Young's Cemetery in Liberty Center. It was probably around 1918 or before. Maybe someone has an idea when that fence came down.

Book Review - Springtime of the Spirit by Maureen Lang

2011-03-01T22:00:00.001-05:00

Springtime of the Spirit by Maureen Lang

A book from The Great War Series

Germany is in chaos right after World War I and the beautiful, young Annaliese is in the middle of it, following the idealistic and charismatic leadership of Jurgen, a Socialist leader in Munich. In the meantime, German soldiers, like Christophe Brecht, are coming home to Germany from France, tired of fighting and killing. When Christophe is asked by his friends, the Durays, to bring their daughter, Annaliese, back home from the city, he is more than willing to find her and get her to safety. But will she leave?

The historical and political history of a war-torn Germany is vividly portrayed by the author, but not at the expense of character development and theme. The reader follows Annaliese as she matures from a blind follower to a young woman who thinks for herself. When Christophe asks her what part God plays in her life, she has to evaluate her faith and its importance in guiding her decisions. The lure of the promises of a socialistic and communistic society are presented and the characters must evaluate what is truth.

This novel not only gives the reader the historical flavor of the time, but also the views of two especially interesting characters – Annaliese and Christophe - who are drawn to each other. I enjoyed the book thoroughly and would recommend.

**Disclosure: This book was provided to me by Tyndale Publishers for my review. The opinions stated in this review are my own.

Book Review - Seek Me With All Your Heart by Beth Wiseman

2011-02-24T08:26:00.001-05:00

Canaan, a small community in southern Colorado, has attracted members of the Old Amish from the Midwest, each seeking a new start in the West. Emily and her family have come here for Emily’s sake, as she tries to deal with a terrible experience in her past. David’s family traveled to Canaan more for financial reasons. David has a health issue that requires expensive medications, although he is not aware of the financial burden on the family. David and Emily aren’t the only characters reconciling themselves to this new life in the West. Margaret, the English lady in the neighborhood, who seems so tempermental has had her share of tragedy, while David’s uncle and aunt struggle with childlessness and a fading marriage.

Through their faith, the characters accept God’s will for their lives. In the midst of their turmoil, God speaks to them, “Seek me with all your heart.” Emily, David and the others face their fears and anticipate what their new lives may be like in Canaan, secure in the knowledge that God has a hand in their path.

It’s not hard to understand why this book was named “Women of Faith Novel of the Year.” The reader is easily transported into the lives and emotions of these people. The growth in their relationships, young and old, evolves genuinely and deeply, with truth and their faith as a base. The love story between Emily, who feels unworthy to marry, and David, who doesn’t expect a long life, is a beautiful one of friendship, support and respect. Out of their fear, misunderstandings and guilt, God leads the characters into His plan for their lives.
I loved this book and didn't want it to end, so I definitely would highly recommend!

Disclosure: This book was provided to me by Thomas Nelson Publishing through the BookSneeze program for my review. The opinions expressed in my review are strictly my own.

I'm Just Watching Out for Your Blood Vessels

2011-02-23T23:18:00.005-05:00

Top L to R: Marie Fuhrhop and
Donna Elling
Bottom: Rudy Elling

Recently I read an article on http://www.realage.com/ that discussed how our blood vessels really benefit from a good laugh. Laughing causes us to relax and that increases blood flow, helping the heart. One study measured blood flow among a group watching a funny movie versus a group watching an action film. The action film brought on stress, resulting in the constriction of blood vessels and producing a strain on the heart, while the funny film - that's right, lots of relaxation going on and more blood flow.

So, in the interest of insuring that my family, friends and all readers of the blog have at least one good laugh today and superbly, flexible blood vessels, please watch this! I guarantee a chuckle,maybe a chortle, and perhaps a guffaw. Indeed a little snorting and howling would be good, too. Enjoy!

http://www.wimp.com/photobooth

Ok, now you've really had a laugh!

Liberty Center Postcard

2011-02-19T22:26:00.001-05:00

Isn't this the old St. Paul Lutheran Church in Liberty Center?

No date on the postcard, but I would guess 1920 - 1930.

What do you think?

Just Don't Fight It

2011-02-14T19:06:00.000-05:00

He didn't really want to take a nap...but sleep won out.

Happens to me a lot more than it used to.

Sleep sneaking up on me while reading the paper, for example.

Head nodding, fighting to stay conscious.

Maybe I'll just doze for a few minutes.

Which leads to an hour.

Well, you know how it goes, don't you?

Book Review - An Amish Love: Three Amish Novellas

2011-02-11T03:56:00.001-05:00

An Amish Love – Three Amish Novellas

by Beth Wiseman, Kathleen Fuller, Kelly Long

Such a good read! Each of these novellas is a love story that will touch your heart. I highly recommend!

Marriage of the Heart by Kelly Long
Abigail Kaufman is an Amish beauty feeling stifled at home by her cold, humorless father. When she sees the handsome Joseph Lambert who has just returned to the Amish from the English world, she determines that marrying him will be her way out. The marriage takes place, but Joseph decides that they will live with her father and help him on the farm – not what Abigail had in mind. Though attracted to each other, Abigail’s use of manipulation to get what she wants and Joseph’s secrets from his time with the English put a barrier up between them. It will take some work to become a “marriage of the heart.”

What the Heart Sees by Kathleen Fuller
Five years ago, a car accident left Ellie Chupp blind and her best friend Caroline dead. Christopher, Caroline’s boyfriend at the time, left the Amish community in distress, but now he has returned, bitter and angry still with Isaiah, the driver of the car who is now engaged to his sister. Forgiveness does not come easily to Christopher, but he learns to love Ellie and her wisdom helps him to reconcile himself to the past. Ellie’s blindness reminds him that God sees and cares about what is on the inside of each person, not the outside physical self.

Healing Hearts by Beth Wiseman
It had been a year since Naaman left his home and grown children and their families in the Amish Community of Paradise to “find himself.” Now he is back and Levina, his wife, struggles to understand what made him leave and how their marriage can be made whole again. When Sheriff Larry Dozier comes to town asking for Naaman, rumors begin to swirl about what Naaman must have done to have the law after him. Levina believes that Naaman is a gut man, but does she believe in him enough?

*This book was provided to me by Thomas Nelson/ BookSneeze for my review. The opinions expressed in the review are totally my own.

He Makes Me Laugh - #1

2011-02-09T22:47:00.001-05:00

Tim Hawkins! Just some good, clean fun. For more about Tim, visit his website at http://www.timhawkins.net/

First, things you don't say to your wife. Take heed, fellas!
http://www.youtube.com/user/timhawkinscomedy?blend=1&ob=4#p/u/26/XpFD-kgQxnI

And a little parody of "Jesus, Take the Wheel" - "Cletus, Take the Reel."
http://www.youtube.com/user/timhawkinscomedy?blend=1&ob=4#p/u/33/Zfs3BJZxKkc

Book Review - The Real Skinny on Losing It

2011-02-01T16:55:00.000-05:00

The Real Skinny on Losing It

True Confessions & Divine Revelations of a Former Yo-Yo Dieter

by Michelle McKinney Hammond

Many will identify with Michelle Hammond's fight with weight control. In this book, Hammond reviews her life as a dieter - one who has tried every diet out there and failed. She comments on each of these diets and why they did not work for her in the long-term. She discusses the health benefits of being a healthy weight and the importance of examining oneself to find the emotions behind one's eating habits. In the last part of the book, Hammond introduces her Ultimate Diva Diet which is a combination of the Blood Type Diet, The Abs Diet and Fit for Life.

On the positive side, Hammond has a conversational tone in her writing that is easy to read and directed toward a "girlfriend." I could certainly identify with her frustrations with dieting. She provides a "Keeping It Real" section at the end of each chapter with questions for self-evaluation and "Diva Reflections" which are anecdotes or musings to help us understand the dieting journey. The recipes provided at the end of the book are very simple to follow. She lends an encouraging voice to those fighting to lose weight.

On the downside, I thought that the book just didn't offer anything new about weight loss and I thought it was way too repetitive. Some suggestions were trite and overused - using a smaller plate and keeping a food journal, and get enough sleep, for example. Occasionally, the author throws in a spiritual relationship to eating, i.e. ask God for forgiveness for abusing your body. At the end of the book, she lists a Biblical reference to relate to each chapter.

Unfortunately, I didn't find any revelations about weight or how to lose it. It was what I knew already - cut calories and exercise. Too much time was spent reviewing what did not work and then when her own weight management program was introduced toward the end, it was nothing original. True Confessions, yes. Divine Revelations - no.

A complimentary copy of this book was provided to me by Tyndale Publishers for my review. The opinions in this review are entirely my own.

Craft Hope Project Done and a Giveaway!

2011-01-23T17:13:00.004-05:00

Last Wednesday I looked out the window and saw this...

Ice everywhere. Stepping out the front door was dangerous and our driveway hill was a real challenge. No school. So, I had two helpers for the day who, of course, were bored two hours into the morning.

I had been working on making the receiving blankets for the http://www.crafthope.com/ January - February project, Konbit Sante delivery kits for use by health workers in Haiti to ensure safe, sterile conditions for the delivery of babies. I put my two willing helpers to work stuffing baby-safe stuffed toys to go into each kit.

The bunnies and blankets are now finished and the kits packed.

Small soap, alcohol swabs, anti-bacterial wipe, string, plastic sheeting, latex gloves

Receiving blanket and stuffed toy

To finish off the project, everything is placed in a tote bag that can easily be picked up and taken to the location of the birth. Tomorrow, six kits are headed for Maine and from there, to Haiti. It is always a good feeling to contribute and to finish another project. I urge everyone to watch the CraftHope site for ways to help.

I found the simple, stuffed bunny pattern here: http://www.allcrafts.net/fjs.htm?url=www.carewear.org/patterns/sew/images/fiberfill_bunny.pdf

********************

I have an extra CraftHope book by Jade Sims that I would be glad to send out to someone who doesn't have one. If you are interested, comment by January 31st and I'll draw for a winner.

Congrats, Renee! I'll send the book out...as soon as this blizzard stops!

What's Your Sign?

2011-01-12T07:38:00.005-05:00

Can't quite read those white signs...but the landscaping is lovely.

Dr. Haas is ready for business!

Hop right up on the table and the adjustment will begin.

Here is her lovely assistant, Miss Ella, practicing her adjustment methods.

Congratulations to

Dr. Bethany Haas

Doctor of Chiropractic!

It's always more official when the sign goes up!

Goals, Not Resolutions

2011-01-09T12:09:00.000-05:00

I'm done with resolutions. I just never make it to the end. Believe me, I've tried for xx years! This year, I'm setting goals and hoping that the change in terminology will help me get some things done in 2011.
I've already met some of the easiest goals - the ones that concern activities that I actually LIKE to do.
1. Another couple outfits for Gracie's new doll - done.

Summer two piece outfit

A new fleece robe and headband and crocheted slippers

2. One prayer shawl done for church -torn out twice and restarted, with some mistakes that are hopefully not too visible.

Homespun yarn, not the easiest to work with, but very soft

3. I promised myself that I would make a dozen pillowcases for pediatric cancer patients and send to Cleveland Clinic. Vickie and I visited Sauder's for their after-Christmas sales and the quilt shop offerings were just too tempting for me. I was looking for fabrics that would appeal to boys and look what I found!

John Deere fabric!

It was hard to find a trim for this basketball fabric.

For the football fan

What little boy doesn't like big machines?

Twelve pillowcases ready to send for Conkerr Cancer

Now to tackle the two tablerunners and three quilts I have started - it's all about finishing the unfinished this year...that is, until something tempting takes my eye. I'm waiting to see what the new Craft Hope project is. You can find out, too, at http://www.crafthope.com/
If you've finished a project that you'd like to share, send me a photo and description! Would love to post.

She Makes Me Laugh #4

2011-01-05T21:06:00.000-05:00

If you've ever been caught in an embarrassing situation and you need a cover story, maybe Karen Mills can provide it. She says, "I'm not a southern belle...unless I need to be." Does "funny" really follow her around?
I guarantee she'll make you smile. Enjoy this sample-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5kvkKCYs3s

More about Karen here.

Book Review - Possession by Rene Gutteridge

2010-12-31T13:26:00.000-05:00

Possession
by Rene Gutteridge
Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2010

Plenty of Suspense!
Vance Graegan and his wife, Lindy, and son Connor, are moving to California for a fresh start on their marriage and their life. Vance, a police officer, who helped during the D.C. sniper investigations has never quite recovered from the stress and the images that he saw during that time. His cop partner, Erin, who had saved his life during one incident, coped by drinking too much and too often. Vance had tried to save her from herself, but Erin didn’t see it that way. Now Vance and Lindy have loaded up their belongings and a moving company is to move them West – away from the people and events of the past.

The problem begins when Joe, the mover, will not unload their goods because the condo is too far away from the curb and he will charge an exorbitant amount each day he has to store the items. Can a moving company hold a client hostage?
The suspense builds as Vance and Lindy try to confront Joe, and Vance begins to investigate. People are not what they seem to be and where they seem to be. Soon several murders occur. Has Vance gone over the deep end as he suffers from untreated PTSD? Has he committed murder? Lindy and Connor are taken hostage, but who really is behind it all? And what is to be gained?

Well, I just can’t tell any more without giving the plot away. I think the description of Vance’s post-traumatic stress disorder is very believeable. The boy Connor has long depended on prayer in his life, and his parents have always been uncomfortable with his beliefs. As the story progresses, Vance and Lindy learn that God is always with them and “…God’s hand had already been moving in their lives. He’d been there even before they needed Him. Or wanted Him.”
I found the plot and characters interesting throughout, and I lost some sleep, trying to read into the night to see where the story was headed. I highly recommend.

This book was provided to me by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. for my review. The review is my own opinion and a positive review was not solicited by the publisher.

A Surprise in an Old Newspaper

2010-12-29T19:17:00.002-05:00

The last two days have been research days for me. I've left the laundry and the mundane behind to go exploring in libraries, feeling the twisted "joy" of becoming nauseated from hours upon end of viewing galloping microfilm and inhaling the musty smell of old books. But sometimes it all pays off in a treasure or two. My goal was to find some old letters home during World War I (see my other blog http://www.attheriverbend.blogspot.com/ for that info) but always when reading old newspapers, I get caught up in the other stories...and sometimes, there's something fun to be had.
Today I was browsing through the 1947 Northwest-Signal looking for a certain obituary (which I never did find) and I came across this article on the FRONT page on June 19th. Why wouldn't it catch my eye? The name ELLING was in caps and bold letters.

"ELLING - HAUSCH
A very pretty and impressive candle light wedding took place Sunday, June 15, at 5 o'clock in St. Paul's Lutheran church, when Miss Lorna Elling, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Albert Elling, became the bride of Edward Hausch, son of Mr. and Mrs. Geo. Hausch of Archbold.
Before the altar banked with palms and garden flowers, Rev. Martin Zschoche performed the double ring ceremony. Miss Elling entered the church on the arm of her father, who gave her in marriage. The bride was attired in a long white satin gown and veil. She carried a bouquet of white carnations.
Linda Lou Hicksted, niece of the bride, served as flower girl. She was pretty in a long pink gown of dotted swiss. Her bouquet was of assorted flowers in pink.
Miss Eleonora Elling was maid of honor. Her gown was of yellow rayon marquisette and lace over taffeta. She carried a bouquet of pale pink carnations.
Miss Louise Elling and Mrs. Rudolph Elling served as bridesmaids. Their gowns were of blue rayon marquisette over taffeta. They carried bouquets of red carnations.
Menno Hausch, brother of the groom, served as best man. Rudolph Elling and Peter Hausch served as ushers.
David Druhot, nephew of the groom, served as ring bearer.
The bride's mother wore a navy dress with black accessories. Her corsage was of white carnations. The groom's mother also wore a navy dress with black accessories and her corsage was of white carnations.
Following the ceremony, a reception was held at the Harrison Grange Hall for about two hundred guests. The couple will reside with the groom's parents, Mr. and Mrs. George Hausch of Archbold."

Wedding Gowns of Aunt Louise, Aunt Lorna, Aunt Ginny
as displayed at 2009 Elling Family Reunion
Photo by Jane Elling Haas

Merry Christmas from Our Crew!

2010-12-23T14:24:00.000-05:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Book Review - Fall of Giants - and a Spoering Connection

2010-12-21T19:56:00.002-05:00

I have loved Ken Follett's books from his earliest ones, like Key to Rebecca, which kept me up all night finishing it, to his last series set during medieval times, Pillars of the Earth and World Without End. Fantastic. His latest book, Fall of Giants, was somewhat of a disappointment, however. Not in its characters which were many and varied - from the coal miners of Wales to the aristocracy in London, from the rugged peasants of Russia to real historical personages such as Lloyd George and Winston Churchill, from advocates for women's rights like Maud and Ethel to American aide to Woodrow Wilson, Gus Dewar. So many characters of interest! It was fascinating - amazing, really - how Follett intertwined their stories and made connections among them.

I have to say that I have never really studied World War I in depth. It seemed like history classes never really made it that far, or if they did, it was in an end of the year hurry. I learned so much from this book as far as why the war began, the atrocities on the battlefields, the inner political fighting and negotiating, and how each country felt about the war. The reader is given an insight into the personalities of President Woodrow Wilson, Winston Churchill and Lloyd George.

The downfall of the book to me was the weightiness of the discussions on the political aspects of the war, before and after, often going on for pages. I tired of it. I just wanted to get on with what was happening to the characters; I wanted to go on with the plot without all the "history book" reading.

The story ends in 1924, just as Hitler has been arrested during the revolution in Munich. After the war, Germany was forced to accept blame and they were given some tough consequences. Life in Germany was hand to mouth for many. The currency was worthless, food was difficult to find and expensive, and the people were downtrodden. We are given a foreshadowing of the country's low tolerance for its Jewish citizens. So, the next book will undoubtably continue on with World War II.

Grandpa Elling had given me a book about World War I which I have passed on to a real historian of the time for his studies. I realized as I read about the war in Follett's book that Grandpa would have had a real interest, especially because Grandma's brother, Fred, was serving his country then. Fred enlisted on July 23, 1918 at 30 9/12 years old. He was single, living at RT 3 Deshler and farming.
Fred served in Truck Company D, 5th Corps, Artillery and made Private First Class on January 14, 1919. He served in the American Expeditionary Forces until his discharge on April 4, 1919.

The 5th Corps or V Corps was dubbed the Victory Corps in recognition of its rapid advancement in the final phases of the war. It participated in three campaigns, the main attack being the Meuse-Argonne offensive, September 26 - November 11, 1918, a particularly bloody and long fought battle. I can imagine Grandpa and Grandma Elling, perhaps reading their German language paper, or listening to the radio, if they had one at that time, to follow what was happening to Fred.

Fall of Giants does give one a very strong look at what the war was all about and how all the soldiers, but especially the Russians and Germans, suffered on the battlefields from lack of food and proper equipment. It just wasn't one of my favorite Follett books, BUT I will be looking for the next one in the series!

For more info on Meuse-Argonne, I would recommend:
http://www.worldwar1.com/dbc/bigshow.htm

Remembering Jason and Raising Scholarship Money

2010-12-21T17:40:00.001-05:00

This last weekend brought a rush of emotions as we celebrated our first family Christmas without Jason on Saturday. Then on Saturday night, we attended the Wapakoneta - St. Henry basketball game. T-shirts honoring Jason with the JK black patch and his quote, "Every day is a good day" were sold as a fund-raiser for the Jason Kline Scholarship Fund and were to be worn at the game. (This year all athletic uniforms also have the JK patch.)
A nice tribute to Jason was read before the game. It was very moving and such a nice gesture. Thank you, Redskins, and thanks to Supt. Horner and wife for the wonderful tour of the new building and a look at the Jason Kline Courtyard.

Redskin players

Cheerleaders

Student and adult fans

Scoring Crew

Christmas Prep at Our House

2010-12-17T20:14:00.000-05:00

This year the Christmas tree was up a little early, ready for the younger crowd to decorate it on Thanksgiving Day.
The kids did a very good job (and I added ornaments to the top half of the tree later.)
Many ornaments on the tree have special meanings to us, so it may not be all color coordinated, but we like it.

Luke decorating his train ornament with blue and more blue.

All of the grandchildren painted ornaments to take home and hang on their trees. We had a lot of creativity shown here!

Abel on nut-grinding duty and Gracie on pan prep

These are my trusty fudge-makers
who quickly abandoned the project when Grandpa asked if they wanted to go out and play in the snow.
I don't blame them; it takes forever to cook and stir that candy! They were eager samplers later.

Matthew, who will be 2 in February

This is our master cookie taster; he has a keen eye for a chocolate chip and a fine palate for sweets. By the way, this cookie was pronounced good enough to eat.

Nativity figures by Jim Shore are a tradition for the mantel

The dining room table, ready for company.
Jim's mother made the poinsetta dish long ago in a ceramics class.

We're ready for Christmas!

Watch Out for Austin

2010-12-15T16:46:00.001-05:00

Austin Fritz, son of Cindy and Alan, is back on the gridiron on Saturday! Austin was invited to play in the All American Bowl, originally scheduled to be played at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. That's not going to happen since the roof collapsed last week during the snow storms there! The game is now going to be held at the University of Minnesota indoor sports complex.
Austin, a senior defensive end at Adrian College, had a great senior year and his hard work has paid off in this invite to play in this bowl game. It is expected that professional scouts from the NFL, CFL, European League, UFL and the Arena League will attend.
Austin is quoted in tonight's local paper: "I think it will be a pretty neat experience for me to go against some Division II players and NAIA players...So I'll get to go against some scholarship players."
Congratulations, Austin! Have fun!

Project Runway - My Style

2010-12-12T16:48:00.000-05:00

Because it snowed today, wiping out other plans for the day, it was a good day to sew, sew, sew on my American Girl doll clothes project. (Shhhh...still a secret for a granddaughter.) I managed to finish three outfits to give for Christmas, but I'll probably do more later on.
After a rough start as I struggled to remember all about facings and linings and how to fit a sleeve, things gradually became easier...and kind of fun.
AND I made a very small dent in some of the fabric stacked in the closets and dressers...very small. These clothes really don't take much fabric - just time.

At the Present

2010-12-12T11:55:00.000-05:00

A very pretty Sunday morning ...

and more snow to come.

Time to shovel.

Don't Forget the Coffee Cake

2010-12-11T21:14:00.001-05:00

I've just spent some time looking through my old recipe box. Truthfully, it tells a history of my life - friends, relatives, neighbors, occasions remembered, foods we once enjoyed before cholesterol was a household word. I wouldn't bother to make many of those recipes now. They are much too labor-intensive for me to make for just us two and besides, Six-Week Cole Slaw just doesn't even sound good anymore, nor does Creamy Zucchini Soup.

But then...ah, yes...the old German Coffee Cake recipe appeared. I can remember my mom making it a few times, but it must have been so frustrating for her because it disappeared in an instant once all six of us began eating. I know we always had it at Elling Christmas dinners and I can envision eating it at Aunt Kate's table. It was always (and still is) a treat, but when I look over this recipe, I think the odds of my attempting to make it again are slim.
But for the more ambitious, here is the recipe.

German Coffee Cake

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup peeled cooked potatoes that have been mashed up
1 cup of the hot potato water in which they have been cooked
1 cup milk
1/2 cup melted lard (Yes, we used lard then!)
1/8 lb. yeast (6 envelopes or cakes)
salt (no measurement given - just guess)
6 - 7 cups flour

Mix ingredients in order listed and let rise until triple in size (about 1 hour)
Knead by the handful. Roll to 1/4 inch thickness and press into greased pans.
Grease top with melted butter or margarine and let rise until double in size.
Dot with butter and sprinkle with sugar.
Bake at 375 degrees until brown (about 15-20 minutes)
Remove and spread with butter/sugar/cinnamon mixture.

Whet your appetite yet?

Crockpot Candy

2010-12-09T15:55:00.001-05:00

If you like chocolate peanut clusters, this is the recipe for you. It makes LOTS and is a great addition to the holiday treats plate. I didn't believe it could be so easy, but it was absolutely little effort to make these tasty goodies.

Ingredients:
One 16 oz jar unsalted dry roasted peanuts
One 16 oz jar salted dry roasted peanuts
One 12 oz package semi-sweet chocolate chips
One 4 oz bar German chocolate, broken up
One 24 oz plank white bark chocolate, broken up
One 24 oz plank regular chocolate, broken up.

Place ingredients in a 4 or 5 quart crockpot, layering them evenly in the order listed above.
Cover with lid and cook on LOW for 3 hours without lifting the lid.
After 3 hours, turn off, but do not lift the lid for another 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, stir the ingredients together right in the pot and drop by spoonfuls on wax paper.
Allow candy to cool until firm.
Store in a covered container.

How easy is that? And they are delicious.

Thanks to Jennie and Stephanie for this recipe for crockpot candy.

She Makes Me Laugh- # 3

2010-11-29T15:41:00.002-05:00

Several friends have sent me this video in the past, and I watch it every time and
laugh again. Jeanne Robertson's facial expressions, comedic timing, and that lovely southern drawl all help me imagine how this visit to the grocery store went down.
Oh, and if you do send your hubby to the store as I often do, please be careful how you write your list!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YFRUSTiFUs

http://www.jeannerobertson.com/

More and More Thankful

2010-11-26T12:37:00.002-05:00

It has been a very tough Thanksgiving without Jason here with us, but we have so much to be thankful for in memories of him and also in our lives today. This article in the Wapakoneta paper brought tears to my eyes once again, and gave me yet another reason to give thanks for all the wonderful people who were in Jason's life. Thank you again to the Wapakoneta School System and to all those who donated so generously to the Jason Kline Memorial Scholarship.

"PROPOSAL MADE TO NAME COURT
Wapakoneta Daily News

Friday, 26 November 2010

By KAREN CAMPBELL
Assistant Managing Editor

The courtyard at Wapakoneta High School soon will have a name.
Principal Aaron Rex proposed naming the courtyard — the Jason Kline Courtyard — in memory of the former assistant principal of the building who died this summer after a battle with brain cancer. 'I think it’s a great thing not only for the school but to honor Jason,” Rex told members of the Wapakoneta City Schools Board of Education this week. “We wanted a way to honor him in the school building and a way to honor him for years to come.'
The principal, who served alongside Kline as a teacher and administrator, said Wapakoneta High School students in the building now remember his legacy, but for those yet to attend the school in years to come, he wanted to leave a lasting reminder.
A plaque including an etching of Kline and a description of his years of service with the district and the ways he impacted students is to hang as part of the memorial.

His wife, Jennie Kline, attended this week’s meeting of the school board to thank them and the administration for all their support.
'It’s been amazing,' Jennie Kline said.
Superintendent Keith Horner in turn replied that her husband was an amazing man.
Updating the board members on a scholarship in her husband’s name, Jennie Kline said more than $20,000 has been raised for the fund with the first recipient to be named in the spring.
Speaking about criteria selected for the scholarship, Rex said they took into consideration what was important to Kline, with two of the biggest criteria being attendance and a grade point average that would be manageable for most students who try hard.
'He was a man who gave everyone a chance,' Rex said. 'The kids are already talking about the scholarship and it will be an honor for whoever receives it.'"

The Lutheran Song

2010-11-22T17:27:00.000-05:00

A little out of date...but still fun.
Enjoy "The Lutheran Song" by Lost and Found.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=102kvQ1dWoY&feature=share

Branson Revisited - Day Two

2010-11-14T16:13:00.002-05:00

Some Christmas shopping was done

Our second day in Branson began with
some serious shopping at one of the outlet
malls. It was a Saturday morning and the
place was packed. Christmas music was
playing and some intense shoppers were
out there with agendas. Connie and I were
out there looking for some great bargains and she, especially, got lucky.
No more hints, Dan and Jenna...

Our chauffeur

After an hour or so of fighting the crowds, our chauffeur (B-I-L Jim)picked us up and headed the CRV towards the chateau...

The Chateau on the Lake, that is.

http://www.chateauonthelakebranson.com/

Jim's niece, Debby, works there and she was kind enough to give us a tour of this gorgeous resort property high on a hill outside Branson. Everything was decorated for Christmas and looked spectacular.

The spa was so inviting. If only

it were closer for our intended

girls' getaway!

Jim and Dianne at the chateau

Connie and Jim in front of the chateau

View from the patio of pool and gazebo

After a complete tour and some visiting with Jim's niece, we took a great tour of the countryside around Branson. Using just Jim C.'s inate directional skills, we managed not to get lost and we saw some fantastic views.

Views around Branson

In the evening, we all thoroughly

enjoyed the Andy Williams Christmas Show. Andy sang many Christmas favorites and included his classic Moon River at the end of the show. He included other acts in his show, as well, such as an impressionist, dancers, a very fast fiddler and some comedy acts.

It was a quick hour and a half.

Moon River Grill

I was thrilled to enjoy my birthday dinner with everyone at the Moon River Grill after the show. (The carrot cake was delicious.)

Also, I want to thank everyone for NOT singing to me.

Thanks to Connie and Jim for meeting us in Branson and for making it a very memorable birthday!

We Salute You

2010-11-11T15:46:00.000-05:00

How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!

~Maya Angelou

A BIG THANK YOU to all who have served and who are now serving!

More Honors for Austin!

2010-11-11T15:13:00.000-05:00

Austin Fritz, son of Cindy and Alan, was named to the ESPN/ CoSIDA All-Academic Second Team in District IV College division for his work both on and off the field in football. Austin plays for the Adrian College Bulldogs as defensive end. He has a 3.63 GPA in criminal justice and has had 117 tackles including 25 1/2 tackles for loss and 12 1/2 sacks. He ranks fifth at Adrian in tackles for loss in a career and fifth in sacks for a career.

Woot! Woot for Austin! CONGRATULATIONS!

Branson Revisited - Day One

2010-11-10T10:23:00.002-05:00

View from our hotel window

We've just returned home from a long weekend visit to Branson and this time we had the pleasure of meeting Connie and Jim, our adventurous travel companions, there. Connie is my soul sister is shopping and her hubby, Jim, finds all the best restaurants.

Steamboat on the river by the Landing

Our first morning was spend on

Branson Landing. The guys had a good time in the Bass Pro Shop, while sister and I wandered the many other stores. We especially liked roaming the old 5 & 10 cent store in old Branson. This week was dedicated to veterans, so there were many there, and the tour buses abounded. It was not as busy as in the summer, but the traffic was still bumper to bumper before and after shows.

At Texas Land & Cattle

We had a great lunch at Texas Land & Cattle, so we were fed and ready for our first show.

Christmas decorations as we enter the Landing

Everywhere in Branson is decorated for Christmas as the season starts there on November 1st.

http://www.piercearrowtheater.com/

At 3:00 p.m., we attended the

Pierce Arrow show, one of our favorites. Pierce Arrow is a quartet who sing everything from country to pop to gospel. But I really love their comedian...even though we've seen him quite a few times, he never fails to make me laugh.

Sight and Sound Theater, Branson

While BIL, Jim, visited with his niece, Debby, who works in Branson, the rest of us grabbed a quick sandwich so we could arrive early, as requested, at the next show, The Miracle of Christmas, which was playing at the temple-like theater, The Sight and Sound.

What a place! High on a hill overlooking Branson, and beautifully decorated, the outside and inside resemble a temple from Biblical times.

http://www.sight-sound.com/WebSiteSS/getlanguages.do

This show had its wondrous moments, but we all agreed that it was a little overdramatic for us and too many liberties had been taken with the Christmas story. When Mary's mother breaks out into her song,

"I'm Jesus's grandma"...well, that

might have been my turning point!

The show featured real camels and horses and other animals. The performers and animals sometimes entered from the back of the theater and angels came floating down from on high. The sides of the theater were used as stages as well. The scenery and costumes were superb, but...

Not our best show, we all agreed.

Back to the hotel to rest up for tomorrow!

Amy Inspired by Bethany Pierce - A Book Review

2010-11-09T15:27:00.002-05:00

Amy Inspired by Bethany Pierce
She has a burning desire to be a writer- one who is recognized by the public and whose works are actually read, but instead Amy receives many rejection letters and she struggles with writer’s block. She spends her days teaching writing part-time at an Ohio college, living with a somewhat eccentric roommate who takes in extra boarders now and then.
Approaching thirty, Amy, like many of us, is ready to take stock of her situation in life, her relationships, and her beliefs and the reader is taken along for the ride. Amy says, “If you studied stories long enough, you almost started to believe in plot, to expect your life would progress in a sequential order of events fitted on a straight and narrow timeline. Childhood was the kernel around which my adult self has been collaged.” With a father who left the family in childhood, Amy has some trust issues with men and a desire to be so efficient, so good, and so pleasing to everyone. She notices that many of her friends are married with families, and she still hasn’t found the right man for her.
This novel is full of unique characters and, although the story begins slowly, by mid-novel, the reader is drawn into the story of Zoe and her mother’s battle with cancer, Eli and his struggle to be an artist, Amy’s mother and the upcoming brother’s wedding, and especially the questions that Amy faces about her own feelings.
When Zoe’s essay about a nameless housemate (Amy) who organizes her life through a plethora of post-it notes covering the house is published in a journal, Amy is offended, of course. Zoe writes: “I began to wonder if it’s possible that in spending our days in the systematic elimination of perceived obligations, we are actually missing out on living itself… So at the risk of being trite, I say: ‘ Ladies, burn the checklist, and smell the roses.' ” Although angry at this reference to her structured way of living, it does prompt Amy to find more zest in her life, to take some chances, and to explore relationships, especially with Eli, that were previously rejected. Even one of her students, Ashley, benefits.
I enjoyed this novel, especially the second half. The first part is rather slow-moving and had me wondering what the plot could even be. However, in the author’s defense, her characters are interesting, have depth and I grew to care about them – especially Zoe, Ashley, and Amy.

(This book was provided to me by Bethany House Publishing for my review; however, the opinions stated in the above review are solely mine.)

Spengler's - It Was Cousin Country

2010-10-31T11:36:00.000-04:00

Yesterday we met some of the cousins for food and conversation at Spengler's. What fun it was to see each other again and to catch up with each other's lives. The time goes by so quickly! We have to do it more often!

http://www.spenglers.com/aboutus.html

If You See Him...

2010-10-31T11:23:00.001-04:00

If you find one of these in the house, you might want to call Billy the Exterminator - or maybe not.
These are dangerous creatures, my friends.
They will rob your snack box, occasionally take over your tv remote, dictate your lunch menus, cause you to actually want to freeze off your nose at an early morning soccer game,
and most of all, they will steal your heart.
We have four of these in our lives.
Watch out...
and
give in to their power.

Grandchildren - We love them all so much!
(Even when they look like this.)