486 5/3/1943 Helen Carlson to Sadie Erwin

Helen Carlson 401 Alexander, Monroe, Louisiana Monday, May 03, 1943

Sadie Erwin 1120 Cole St., Enumclaw, Washington

Dear Folks, Summer is really in full swing now and I certainly hope we won’t have to move until fall or winter because in this weather a person doesn’t feel like doing much of anything. I had a nice long letter from you today, Mom, written when you were on watch duty. That telephone call I made to you cost 6 dollars and something but I thought it was well worth it and I knew it would be around that. Today we got the bill from Dr. Bendel for Jimmie’s operation and it about knocked me over when I saw how much it was. I had thought it would be about ten dollars because that is what they usually charge in the hospital I think on new babies. Elmer said we better plan on fifteen dollars anyway but we were way off because it was thirty-five dollars. It just makes me sick but I guess the old bum thought he might just as well make something out of it and he certainly is. Jimmie is just about all healed up now and getting along swell. I had to buy him several little sunsuits though because he is just too warm with much on him. That little wine-colored suit you sent with the straps is as cute as it can be and he can wear that just like a sunsuit without the shirt. The little green suit is light material so I put that on him in the mornings before it gets very hot and he looks so cute in it. This morning I had Mrs. Craig come over and stay with Jimmie for a while and I went downtown and mailed you a present for Mother’s Day, Mom, and I also found some picture frames in the dime store so mailed three of those. One I got at a studio and it is the wrong kind of frame for the picture but I sent it anyway since I couldn’t get any other kind but as soon as I can find a better one I will send it. I also mailed a little something to Glad for her birthday. Nothing is wrapped very nicely because I hurried and did it this morning just before Mrs. Craig was due to arrive. Last night, Sunday night, we went to the show and I had a Mrs. Wilson over to stay with Jimmie. She said if we would like to go early she would be glad to put Jimmie to bed so we went about six o’clock. I can’t remember of leaving Jimmie before at bedtime but Mrs. Wilson said he was so good and went to sleep without a word out of him when she put him in his bed. That is more than he will do for us. Mrs. Wilson doesn’t live far from us and I like her much better than Mrs. Craig but I can’t get her in the daytime because she works. She said if I ever wanted to go fishing with Elmer on Sunday or go away for the day she would be glad to come over and stay with Jimmie. I don’t worry about him at all either because she used to work in a baby nursery when she was taking training for a nurse so she is used to babies and knows how to handle them. Thursday night I am having Coloras over for dinner and guess I will have chicken. They are the ones who had us over for a spaghetti dinner so I want to get them paid back. Thursday is one of Annie’s days to come so instead of having her come in the morning I’m going to ask her to come later so she can stay on through the evening and help me get the dinner and then do the dishes afterwards. Coloras are just learning how to play chess so we plan to play that after we eat. Is it hard to tell the planes, Mom. What do you do if you see one. Do you just report it and then they tell if it is an enemy plane or not. I’ll be glad to read that letter you received from the Anderson School. I’m glad you asked me about Mr. Emmert’s letter because I thought I had sent it back to you but I went all through your letters a few minutes ago and there it was. It is such a nice letter I think. I bet Jim is plenty busy taking in the town and then is probably ready for bed early at night. I had a nice letter from him Saturday and he certainly seems to be crazy about it. I had a letter from Elmer’s sister Nellie Saturday and she said if Florence writes kind of mean letters to try not to get mad at her because she said Florence wasn’t feeling good and her baby is due in just a few weeks and she is getting kind of nervous and upset. I felt so awfully good when I was pregnant and didn’t worry the least bit that I guess I’m not sympathetic enough with other people who don’t feel so hot. Florence is kind of a baby anyway though. Nellie said Florence and Art were going to move this summer and she doesn’t know what she will do about her folks but she said she wasn’t going to worry about it because things always seemed to work out someway. I feel sorry for Nellie because she had to live there for five years and then when Florence got married she got her own home but maybe they will have to move back now. If the mother were only well they could get along alright. Jimmie walked quite a bit today but then always sits down and starts to crawl. I will be so glad when he does walk. Sarah had a wonderful time in Colorado and saw everything she had always wanted to see. She says she is going back there to live someday. I can’t remember Harold Horn visiting us in the Garfield house but now that I think of it I can almost remember it. Who was he with then. My cold is finally going away but it certainly has hung on long enough. Is yours all gone now, Pop. I don’t think I insured the box of candy to Jim but that teaches me a lesson now and I’ll insure everything. By the way I mailed you the tea Saturday so that should be getting there any day. Would you like me to get you some more. I can get all I want here. I asked Annie if she liked to travel and she said she loved it but had always been too poor to do it. She said she wants to get out on the West Coast so badly and get in a defense plant. Those Negroes certainly are good to each other. Just before Easter she showed me some material she was going to make dresses out of for children whose mothers were dead. She said her husband used his number 17 coupon to buy shoes for one child. I got out a lot of things of Jimmie’s that he can’t wear and gave to her and she was so happy to get all those things I thought she was going to cry. There were two pair of shoes and she said she knew children who had never owned a pair of shoes. That day I drove her home and when I let her out all the children around there yelled, Hi Annie, and they all seemed to like her. I hadn’t heard from Ora Dell about her new baby but sent her a present Saturday. She sent Jimmie such a nice blanket when he was born. The man across the hall gave us more fish that he caught yesterday. The kind they catch here are bream, speckled perch, and bass. Elmer just loves fresh water fish. I told him he should go out there and taste the mountain trout. Well Folks, I got my new McCall’s today that I am awfully anxious to look at so guess I will stop for this time. I hope you have a very happy Mother’s Day, Mom, and I wish I could spend it with you but I will be thinking about you. With Love, Helen