Grandmothers

I officially have five grandchildren now and that makes me sound like an old lady who sits in her rocker with a dip of snuff watching "Days of Our Lives"! Do you remember your grandmother??? Mine were OLD by the time I got along!

Mama Cox had a butt-load of grandkids...since she had 16 kids of her own. (Those reality shows have nothing on her!) Mama Cox lived in Anson on the "north" side of town....just off the street that took you to the "New Addition" (which I always thought was hilarious cause the houses were built in the 50's and 60's....I wonder if it's still called the "new addition") Anyways....she lived in a little two bedroom house with no air conditioning (we all had no air conditioning...just window units...except for those who lived in the "new addition"...now those houses had the real thing!). When we went to see Mama Cox, she would be sitting in her rocking chair just a rockin away and dipping snuff, while a trickle of the brown molasses looking juice would barely escape the edge of her smile before she wiped it away with a handkerchief! I loved Mama Cox...she later moved to the rest home and died peacefully..in her rocking chair after reading her Bible....now that's the way to go! That was the first and only time I ever saw my daddy cry!

Mama Warren lived in Abilene...on the north side of town...just as you come in from Anson. Her house was also without air. We had to go see Mama Warren every Saturday and in the summer on a week-day every now and then... and let me tell you...it was a chore! She was addicted to "Days of Our Lives" and pain-killers. Lisa and I hated to go there...there was nothing to eat unless she had a box of saltine crackers and nothing to play with. Mother finally let us leave some paper dolls there and when we went we would go to her bedroom and play paper dolls while Mama W. and mother discussed the lives of Doug and Julie on "Days" and Mama W. planned her next trip to the drug store. After a while, we would get ready to take Mama W. to town (which meant grocery store, drug store and Thornton's dept. store). We watched in awe as Mama W. put on her old shoes (they looked like the type the wicked witch of the west wore in Wizard of Oz). Now, Mama Warren had big toes that had to have been 4-5 inches long cause they curved behind her other toes all the way to her little toe and beyond, if I remember correctly. I prayed nightly as a child that my toes would not grow like that. Once we got her shoes on, she would grab her purse and we would all head to town for a terribly boring trip. Mama Warren had a fear of escalators, so we had to coax her to even get on one. Lisa and I would go up and down them 5 or 6 times trying to convince her to get on...and that was the best part of the shopping trip. If we were good (very very good..."you girls be nice...Cheri don't be ugly to Lisa!") we got to go to Mackey's Toy Store after we left Mama Warren at her house with a fresh box of saltines and a supply of pain medications. We usually only got to look at the toys, but the store had air conditioning so we were fairly happy. I always wanted to get on the bikes and bouncing horses while Mother was steering us over to the doll section. Anyway, Mama Warren later moved to a rest home. We would have to visit her there and dodge the old women who would try to grab Lisa and I for a hug. Mama Warren died when I was about 13.

So...there are my memories of my grandmothers....hopefully I can leave a better memory with my grandkids.....so I vow to always have a fresh box of Nabisco Crackers...a beautiful pedicure...toys galore.....and a Bible next to my rocking chair! I'll hide the snuff and the pain pills until the grandkids leave so I can "dip" and relax while I watch "Days of Our Lives"!