Early Blast from the Past

I'll be on the road to Texas all day tomorrow, so you're getting this early.

And a friendly reminder - I could use more photos...

More Military notes...

I couldn't find out anything on Uncle Bill's time in the Navy. I do know that he was stationed in Okinawa when he met and married Aunt Take and Bobbie was born there.

Aunt Janet was a nurse's aid when she entered the Navy in 1959. She trained at Bainbridge, Maryland and served at Bethesda Naval Hospital from 1959-1961.
She entered the Military Sea transportation Service (MSTS) where she served until 1964. She traveled to Bremerhaven, Germany or Bristol, England every 30 days transporting military personel or their dependents to and from foreign tours of duty. (per the Samual Adams family book) I remember her telling me that even when she entered the Navy some Captains or Commanders refused to let women on board and the nurses would be left standing on the dock until officials were made to let them on board. Some of the old sea dogs beleived that having women on board was bad luck. She also told me that discrimination was practised and accepted in the Navy and you just had to bite your tongue and do what you were told. I think that was the hardest thing for her to do. She met and married Jack while in the Navy. He was also serving at that time.

My sister Jenny entered the Navy right out of high school. She planned and worked very hard to pass the exams getting help and advice from the enlistment officers. For awhile she struggled but her hard work proved out and she entered the Navy. Jenny went active just as the gulf war was winding down. She was sent all over the world trying to catch her ship which had left its port. She told me that she was in Okinawa airport trying to get a ride to her ship which she had finally caught up with and no one would help her no matter how loud she talked! (I think it was a language thing Jen) The men kept staring at her(blond hair) and finally her ride showed up and she was taken to her ship. She was at sea for awhile then she landed in Hawaii, met Brad, got engaged, shipped out, came back, met Brad again, planned wedding, he shipped out, got back together again in Hawaii, shipped out, got married, shipped out (I think you see the pattern). Both of them were eventaully based together in Hawaii.

I know other cousins spent time as military personel, Jeff, Bart, Audry's husband, Bobbie, and others. Thanks for being brave enough and strong enough to do what was neccessary to keep us safe and out of harms way.

Our Military folks

Ancestry.com is offering free research of military records now until June 6. So I looked up Grandad, Aunt Janet and Uncle Bill. I only found Grandad but Uncle Bill shares his name with 3,130,00 other people in the US and Great Britain! So...here's what I have on grandad. The information is from his World War II Army Enlistment Record.

Name: Robert A. Adams
Bith Year: 1908
Race: white, citizen
Nativity State: Nebraska
County or City: York
Enlistment date: 20 Mar 1944
Enlistment state: Kansas
Enlistment City: Fort Levenworth
Branch: No branch assignment
Branch code: No branch assignment
Grade: Private
Grade code: Private
Term of Enlistment: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law
Component: Selectees (Enlisted Men)
Source: Civil life
Education: Grammar school
Civil Occupation: Automobile serviceman
Marital status: Married

I wasn't able to pull up his service record. If any of you know how to get around better in Ancestry.com perhaps you can find out more. I know that he was wounded by a Japanese sniper in the Philipines while serving under General McArthor (sp). He was a Corpman or field medic. Mom said it was the practise of the military at that time to assign soldiers with backgrounds in farming to be medics. She also said he never once talked about his time in the Army or ever discussed what happened. All the family new was what was given to them when he was shot. While in the jungle his patrol was under fire from Japanese snipers in the trees. He was shot in the butt. As medic he took care of all the other wounded. They had to be carried out to get medical attention. He was the least needy but unable walk, there weren't enough men to carry him out as well. He stayed behind, burying himself in the jungle. He was alone the rest of the day and all that night with the enemy taunting him and calling to him to come out. The next day soldiers arrived and carried him to safety. Grandma Elsie told me that she had to take the train to the hospital when he was brought back stateside. She was terribly frightened. She had packed only enough food to eat on the train and a small bag. She said the train ride seemed to take forever. Grandad's time in the military was the longest time they were ever apart in all the years they were married. He didn't want to talk about it and she was just fine with that. I don't know if he received a medal for bravery perhaps one of his sons knows. But he was always a hero to me. Thanks grandad for everything you taught me, I love you.

A New Family Member!

Here they are - Alan and Angela with their daughter, Taylor Rae. She was born yesterday, May 25, at 2:21 p.m. in Sioux City, Iowa. There is a definite "Regier" look to her, but she does have her mommy's chin, long fingers, and long feet. She also has dark hair.

So far she's a very calm and content little girl. I know she will bring tons of joy to her parents and I can't wait to see her again!

Blast from the Past

Sent by Patty - Grandpa with Tommy, dressed alike. :o)

Birthday!

Grandma Elsie's Date Nut Cake!

This is grandma Elsie's Date Nut Cake recipe sent to me by my mom. I haven't had a chance to make it yet. If one of you makes it post a picture please with your suggestions or changes. I've listed the ingredients just as they are listed on the card then I've added my own instructions for those of you not used to doing alot of baking. What an adventure! Seeing what we can do with this wonderful old recipe to update it and make it our own while keeping it in our family!

DATE NUT CAKE:

1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp soda
1 cup boiling water
1 cup nut meats
1 cup dates
3 or 4 eggs
vanilla

Cut dates into small pieces, put soda in cup of boiling water & pour over the dates. Let stand till cool. If butter is not being used, use half amount of lard. Bake slow for 1 hour.

OK ALL THE THINGS NOT LISTED IN THE RECIPE:

No temperture was listed for the oven so I'm going to say 350*. No pan size is listed either so give it your best guess. Also I'd mix the buttter and sugar then add the eggs till well blended then the flour. The dates should soak up most of the water and soda so just toss it in and the nuts with the vanilla. I'd stir by hand at this point so as to not smooch up the dates. There's no salt listed so you may need to make it a time or three and decide if you want to add any. The soda should take its place OK. I'd use walnuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds or sliced almonds for the nuts. I think grandma used walnuts tho chopped up. If you want a lighter cake you could add some buttermilk maybe half to a whole cup. Since soda is already in the recipe it will give a very nice rise with the buttermilk. I think we ate this with whipped cream sometimes and a hard sauce type frosting at others. Do any of you remember? I'll try and make this over the weekend and I'll post the result.

Sometime soon I want to get over to Tammy's and she'll scan these cards so we can share originals with everyone. I don't have alot at this point. Mom says Aunt Janet has grandma's recipe box so perhaps she could send it to one of us and we could scan or copy the recipes? Good Luck everyone trying this family recipe!

Nuphet again!

Here's another picture of Nuphet (slightly better I think). The girl beside him is his "possible" girlfriend. I had posted earlier info on him, about 3 posts back. He also added a comment to the Chilton info post and included his email. Could you all give him a big "Hi!" please?

Blast from the Past

Besides the fact that Joyce and Audrey are so darned cute in this photo, I love that it shows the funky wallpaper so well! :o)

Then and Now

Patty sent these photos and asked that I challenge each family to post a "then and now" photo. I don't have a current one of me with my siblings, but as soon as I can get one, I will.

Who is up to the challenge?

Doesn't even have to be all siblings together if you don't have one. Post a photo of yourself as a child and one of yourself now. Post that 25 year-old wedding photo and a current one of you and your significant other. Post one of you with your kids as babies and you with your grown up kids. You decide. We just want to hear from all of you!

My Youngest Son Nuphet

This is my youngest son Nuphet. His name is pronounced New-pet. (The boy on the right) It means diamond in his fathers native language. He lives in Memphis TN with his dad and stepmom and attends Christian Brothers College Prepatory High School. He'll be a junior next year. This summer he's training for track and looking forward to the workouts and all the running. He's run cross country before and liked it so when the coach asked him to join up this summer he decided that it would be a good thing and he'd get back into shape. Writing classes, Ethics, English, and basketball are things he enjoys. He is a member of the Baptist Church and enjoys lots of youth events. Basketball has been a very big thing for him in the last few years and according to him his wingspan is really big so he should be about 6'3" when he quits growing. When he was little he liked to draw and create stories. He develeped other interests over time but now he says he's begun drawing again and remembers how much he liked it. He was very excited to find out some of his ancestry here on the Cousins site and will probably add comments now and again. Maybe some of you could connect him to some of your kids of similar age? He'd like getting to know other family members.

It's Birthday time again!

Blast from the Past

Patty with the Grands. What was the occasion?

Photos from Missouri

Debbie sent these this morning - taken over the weekend in Missouri at Uncle Bill's house. Bill & Sherry

Sherry with Bobby & Danny

Group photo: Stacey's daughter and granddaughter (sorry, I don't know their names), Danny, Bobby, Dawn, (Dawn's son?), Bill and Stacey

More Mayflower stuff

It's a rainy and gloomy morning here, perfect for putzing on the computer since I can't get outside and plant flowers. So I started researching the Mayflower Society and ended up joining a Yahoo group for Chilton descendants. Oh, and I found that Judy Weaver is a member, too, so I emailed her and invited her to take a look at our blog. I hope she joins us. :o)

Here are some web sites that might be of interest:

http://maflowerfamiliies.com/mayflower/james_chilton/htm

www.chiltonschildren.org

www.nebraskamayflower.org

http://www.themayflowersociety.com/index.htm

The picture today is of a painting depicting Mary Chilton stepping onto Plymouth Rock.

Blast from the Past

Kathy and DeeDee as a baby - is this Grandma Gifford or a different grandma?

Some family history

I know when I started this blog I promised some family history and geneology. The other day I ran across a postcard sent to me by Judy Weaver in the summer of 2003. Her mother was our parents' cousin, though they didn't know the family very well. I "met" Judy on the internet several years ago when we both registered at a Chenowith cousins web site (we had a grandmother several generations back who was a Chenowith). Judy contacted me to see if I knew any of the Adams's from the Bradshaw area and we discovered we share a Great Grandfather. I emailed her a photo of my mom, she emailed back a photo of her elder sister - could have been twins almost. I put her in contact with Uncle Bill and Aunt Sherry.

Anyway, Judy has done extensive genealogical research on the Adams family, and she sent information dating back to the Mayflower. According to her research, we are descendents of James Chilton, the eldest passenger on the ship. I just Googled "Mayflower Passenger List", and this is what they say about James Chilton:



James Chilton, a tailor by trade, was the oldest Mayflower passenger, and one of the first to die after reaching the New World. He was born and raised in Canterbury, Kent, England and around 1600 moved to Sandwich, Kent.
By July 1615, and probably as early as 1610, James, his wife, and at least some of his children were living in Leyden, Holland. On 28 April 1619, James Chilton and his daughter Isabella were caught in an anti-Arminian riot and James was hit in the head with a brick, and required the services of the town surgeon, Jacob Hey.
He came on the Mayflower with his wife and daughter Mary. James and his wife died the first winter, leaving their daughter orphaned; she probably joined with the household of Myles Standish.
Mary Chilton came on the Mayflower at the young age of 13, and popular legend gives her the distinction of being the first female to step ashore at Plymouth. She married John Winslow, who came in the ship Fortune in 1621, and was the brother of Mayflower passengers Edward Winslow and Gilbert Winslow.

Here's a link to a web page about him: http://members.aol.com/calebj/passenger.html



Since we have this proven tie to a Mayflower passenger, any of us can join the Mayflower Society if we want. I haven't even looked into it, but it may be a fun summer project!