Skip to main content

Featured

What Was Important to Mom: The Last Roll of Film

  (An out of town trip waylaid continuing to write Jane's story so I have not completed the next post in the series. I'll be back to that next week, promise. In the meantime, here's another post I had ready to go.)   My mom—Ann Margaret Kozlina Gilbride—has been gone since 2010, but I got a glimpse into her life recently: I developed the last roll of film discovered in her 35mm camera. There was nothing really earth-shattering in the photos. Still, they spoke of my mom in subtle ways. And there were a few connections that I made to my current life. I wish I knew the exact years the images were taken, but I can only estimate. It turns out the date stamp was incorrectly set, so all the photos are stamped with '94. I'm guessing that the photos were taken between October when Mom had her birthday, and June or July of the following year. Other clues in the images tell me they were likely taken about 2005-2006, give or take a year.  There are no people in any of the ph...
14 comments
Read more
Labels

Thanksiving, Kid Style


Our Thanksgivings have been a bit different the past few years. Our kids have gotten older and live out of state. This year, like last, we will be apart, and our celebration will be small and intimate...just me, the Hubs, his dad, and a friend.

But I do have several tangible reminders of the kids. Each year, these creations come out with our small set of Thanksgiving decorations. They still bring a smile and memories of when our now-adult children were wide-eyed kids sitting around the dinner table, sharing their own unique perspective on the holiday.

Two items that show this kids-eye view of Thanksgiving are a poem and a menu, created by our daughter Anne and son James, respectively.

Anne wrote this poem about Thanksgiving when she was probably about 8-9 years old. It still cracks me up!

 

James, not to be outdone, decided to create menus for our Thanksgiving dinner one year. He must have been in about 2nd or 3rd grade, learning to spell big words! I always give kids a lot of credit for attempting to spell phonetically, which just makes total sense if you think about it. 


James' menu cover.

My personal favorite is "krann bery soss."

One more throwback to the kids' childhood Thanksgivings is this little set we call "The Pilgrim People." My mom (Memaw to them) sent the set to the kids one year. I particularly love their bowling-pin-like shapes and especially the turkey's expression. It's just a sweet, little set that makes me smile.
 
 
Though we'll miss the kids this Thanksgiving, we are looking forward to seeing them at Christmas next month, hopefully making new memories while also remembering those childhood holidays past.
 
Happy Thanksgiving!
 
Until next time...

© Nancy Gilbride Casey, 2025. All rights reserved. 

 
BONUS!
 
Here are a couple other Thanksgiving-themed posts I've written in the past few years.
  
 
 
 
 


 

 

Labels:

Comments

  1. AmandaNovember 28, 2025 at 7:52 AM

    This is all so sweet! The Pilgrim People remind me of Matryoshka nesting dolls. Happy Thanksgiving (a day late!)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousNovember 28, 2025 at 4:19 PM

      Thanks, Amanda! I think so too. You're right, they do look like Matryoshka dolls! Happy Thanksgiving to you as well, (a day late)!

      Delete
  2. Diane HenriksNovember 28, 2025 at 2:45 PM

    Love this; so cute! :) I love the little Pilgrim set your mom got for the kids. It is so unique. Yes, Thanksgiving (and most holidays) can look quite different when the kids grow up; ours do not look the same either. Happy Thansgiving and thanks for sharing. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nancy Gilbride CaseyNovember 28, 2025 at 4:21 PM

      I hope that your Thanksgiving was wonderful, Diane, even if it looked different. The Hubs and I ended up going camping for the weekend at a state park. We've done some hiking and relaxing. It was a busy few weeks for both of us, so nice to get away before the rest of the holiday prep begins! Thanks for reading!

      Delete

Post a Comment