As a child, times were hard and toys

Were something the parents couldn't Afford so we had to make the most of It the best way we could. We didn't see Many kids then except in school. We lived Far back into the hills of Wv and not many Neighbors around and the one's we had Were older people.

My foster sister and I use to go into the

Woods after our chors were done And build what we called stick Houses by pulling the sticks out of The ground and placing them back in In the form of a house Then we would put A sheet or whatever we could find Over it.

It must have been 90 degrees in there!

But we were very young and didn't Pay any attention to it. We would pretend We were making chocolate pies by putting A little water in the dirt we had dug up Shaping them and letting them dry.

I remember one time I must have been hungry

So I bit into one of those mud pies, yuk! I didn't do that again! Back then about Everyone baked with lard not shortening. So We would wait until it was all gone and Get the lid from the bucket it came in and

Make our toy car by nailing the lid to an old

Broom handle. We had side steps We would place the stick between the steps And set with our legs dangling and Moving the lid around and around like we Were driving. It was fun, and it was all our's.

On rainy days when we weren't allowed out

Our time was spent cutting out paper dolls From a sears roebuck catalog, after inside chors Of course. I don't recall when the real paper dolls Came out, all I know is we didn't have any.

I had one rubber doll back then, I got mad at

My sis and bit it's fingers and toes off lol. I think I might have been grounded for that one! Back Then dolls were made of soft rubber and stuffed With cotton. We didn't get toys for Christmas Like kids do today. We mostly got oranges and Nuts and apples and one big peppermint stick There here were no stocking hung in fact we Had never heard of it being done until Much later in life. We had good old fashion fun Back in the early 50's.

There were six girls and I made seven. The Mother

And Dad so that was quiet a lot living under one Roof. We used to walk a long way to get to the school Bus stop, snow would be half way up our legs and Our shoes would b e soaking wet by the time we Got on the bus. We didn't complain it wouldn't Have done any good if we had. Times were hard And that's just the way it had to be.

I remember one summer I was around 7 then.I

Wanted to do something so the parents would Be proud of me so I stripped all the bark off a Big old oak tree that stood right in the front yard. It was so slick and shiny I worked all day getting It all off. When there Dad came home I heard him Raving about something as he came through the House he looked straight at me and ask why did Did you strip that tree? I said, to make it pretty. Needless to say I got a whipping I never forgot.

We went into town once every month seven kids

On the back of an old pick up truck. Needless to Say it was a rough ride. The parents would buy us All and ice cream cone's and I remember once my Foster Mom bought me this beautiful yellow dress. I just happened to be wearing it on the back of that Old truck when the ice cream was passed around. You guessed it, the wind blew it all over my beautiful Yellow dress. It ruined it. But the ice cream was so Good I got over it in a hurry!

We never has desert at home so it was a real treat,

We all took turns washing the dishes I was short And had to stand on a chair. The dishes were stacked Past my head and I thought I would never get through Washing those mile high stack of dishes.

On Sunday mornings we had to kill four chickens,

Dip them in scalding water, and pluck out the Feathers, and then cook them to make chicken and Dumplings for dinner. Some of the neighbors would Stop by to have dinner with us. Back in those Days that was a very important day.

But I don't remember one that ever went to church

In my foster family. Never have understood that. I was fifteen when I first went to church and was baptized. I loved going and did every Sunday from then on. By that Time I was living with my real dad. I was married and had two children, there in there fourties now with families of there own.

I remember we used to go visit some of the kin folks and

one very hot saturday afternoon one of there kids and me were hiding ice cubes from each other. I put mine on top of a couple fence post. anyway she didn't find them and when I went to take them off they were gone. I was upset and wanted to know what she did with my ice cubes! I just couldn't seem to understand they had melted!

Well I have about ran out of page here.I thought I would

share some old memories with you. Maybe there's someone Who can relate to the good old hard times as a child. God bless you all.