666 1/1/1951 Helen Carlson to Sadie Erwin

Helen Carlson 4008 Randall Avenue, St. Louis Park, Minneapolis 16, Minnesota Monday, January 01, 1951

Sadie Erwin 1120 Cole St., Enumclaw, Washington

Dear Folks, I want to get a few lines written tonight as Elmer can mail this in the morning. I guess I will type instead of writing. I’ll start back to Christmas Eve. I had everyone over here for supper and there were 20 of us in all, but everything went along quite smoothly although Davy wasn’t used to the noise and couldn’t sleep so he was up the whole time and they all left about 10:30 but by then he had cried so much and had been up so long that he still couldn’t sleep and it was after midnight before we got him into bed. Anyway, for supper I had baked beans and ham and salad. Delores brought the pies and Nellie brought a lot of different things so we had lots of food. There were lots of presents under the tree as all the kids exchanged. Elmer’s dad gave all of us girls a pair of Nylon hose and all the fellows a carton of cigarettes. He gave Jimmy a watch and Mary a game. After eating, which I served buffet style, we did the dishes and then a little later had coffee and the pie and fruit cake. Then Sunday we went over to Recroft’s for a nice turkey dinner. We couldn’t drive our car as the day before a man had backed into me when I was parked at the grocery store and broke our headlight. Elmer was going to put a piece of white cloth over it so we could drive home from Recroft’s after dark but his dad offered us his car and we were glad we had it because it snowed hard all day long Christmas and his car is better. By the time we came home from Recroft’s it had stopped snowing and the temperature was below zero. Here we had gone off without our door key as we weren’t driving our own car so Elmer had to break a basement window to get into the house. During the night the temperature went down to twenty below. Here I am getting ahead of myself. Christmas morning we opened our presents, the ones from you and the ones we gave the kids. Everything you sent was just wonderful. Elmer will love getting the National Geographic magazine and the handkerchief for him was swell to see because I didn’t even have one ironed for him to take out to Recroft’s. Whenever Davy gets fussy we squeak that little rubber doll and he stops crying. Elmer said I should be sure and mention that to you because he really notices it. I love the earrings and pin. They are just beautiful and I’m crazy about jewelry. Mary has been saving the storybook dolls for about two years and was delighted to see the bridge doll. She takes awfully good care of them too. The knife you sent Jimmy is the first knife he has had so he is really pleased with it and his sweater is just the kind he likes, in fact the only kind he will wear. I don’t think he has worn anything else since getting that one. Mary loves her little red purse and you did way too much as usual. I finally got the kid’s pictures and will try to get yours off this week although I do want to buy a frame for it first. It isn’t good and I’m glad I didn’t plan on getting anymore than two of them. Tuesday and Wednesday were uneventful. Thursday I invited Carlson’s over for dinner that night because as things are and it is really my fault, Mary and Jimmy hardly even talk to them and I don’t think that is right. In fact, they have talked so little to them that they still can’t understand Grandpa Carlson very well. I hardly ever have them over and thought if ever we move out there Elmer might think about how I never had his folks over. Anyway when the others heard they were coming over here for dinner they wanted to come over later and bring the cake. Delores had the idea and it was alright with me so she brought a big angel food cake with nice frosting and Florence brought ice cream and also an aunt and uncle along. Nellie and Pierce were out of town so they weren’t here. First, though, that morning Mrs. Dahlstrom called and wanted to know if she could come over and have a little lunch with me and I told her to come and I just hung up and Selma called and Al was going to be out this way for a few minutes and wanted to know if it would be alright if she had him drop her off here and I was glad to have her come because she very seldom gets over here. Anyway, I had some soup to open up and made some egg salad sandwiches so we made out alright. Selma and Mrs. Dahlstrom hadn’t met before. Mrs. Dahlstrom and I didn’t mention anything at all about any trouble. They both left about 2:30 and then a neighbor called and asked me down for coffee so I bundled Davy up and went. I was so glad I had cleaned my house the day before and the first thing Thursday morning I stuffed the chicken and got the potatoes peeled and the formula made and the diapers washed before Mrs. Dahlstrom and Selma got here. That night, when the bunch was here again, some of them played cards and Davy couldn’t sleep again so Elmer just held him the whole evening. They didn’t stay late though. Friday night Grandpa Carlson invited Mary to go to his club with him as there was going to be a special celebration for children with Santa Claus and everything. She didn’t want to go but I talked her into it and she had a wonderful time. They left home about four in the afternoon and she didn’t get home until 10:30 that night. It was one of those affairs like they used to have out at Osceola where the kids run all over the dance floor and slide and run up on the stage and everything. When she got in the house the first thing she did was take her shoes off. You see right away as soon as I started being a little nice to him he was nice to the kids. Then Saturday and Sunday we had a hectic two days and absolutely no sleep as I made Davy’s formula too strong thinking he needed it that way and it just turned his stomach inside out. Nothing made him stop crying and finally he got diarrhea and that got rid of all the strong milk I had given him and he is just fine now. New Year’s Eve we were invited to a party over at Bonander’s. We didn’t think we could go because we didn’t know who to leave Davy with and so Elmer asked his mother if she would come over and she said she would. She was a swell baby sitter. She put Davy to bed and took awfully good care of him. We came home at 2:30 thinking she would be sleeping but she was still sitting up. She said she wouldn’t think of sleeping when she was taking care of a baby. I’m so glad we came home then because I guess the others stayed until six o’clock this morning. Davy slept late this morning and has been just perfect all day long. I sure hope he will be like this tomorrow. Delores had been raving around that she was sure she had T.B. She said she had all the symptoms including the cough so I told her the only thing to do if she was worried was to go and have her chest x-rayed because they have these units all over and it is free so she had Grandpa Carlson take her over to one Friday and she had the x-ray and now it will be about 10 days to two weeks until she gets the card saying she has or hasn’t got it. I think she will be almost disappointed if she doesn’t have it, then she will have to think up some other way of getting attention. Parry Bonander’s sister-in-law has a gift shop and she was over at Parry’s New Year’s Eve. She knows Viola and she said the other day Viola came in the shop with a Mrs. Overton. I’m sure it must be the one we know. She said Mrs. Overton worked for the Board of Education now. When you called Thursday night I could hear you real good but I could tell that you couldn’t hear me very good at that end of the line. Stella couldn’t understand me at all and by the things you answered I knew you hadn’t understood me too good. It was just wonderful hearing all your voices though and I wanted to call you back the next day but was afraid the connection might be the same way. That call cost plenty because we were on the line for quite a while. I’m going to call some night soon too. Well Folks, we’re all going to bed early tonight since Davy has gone to sleep at a decent hour so I will stop for now but thanks again for everything and we certainly are pleased with all the gifts you all sent. I hope you had a nice Christmas and I will be anxious to hear from you. By the way, the kids sure liked the Christmas cards you sent them. They love getting mail. Thanks again. With Love, Helen I wonder if Stella still wants sheets. They certainly are being advertised now for the January white sales. They are all reduced and I noticed in the paper tonight they cost around 2.50 a sheet. By the way, Elmer got an answer from that company in Seattle asking him for more information. Now I have to keep at him until he writes that information for them. The name of the company is John Graham and Company. Goodnight now. Love, Helen