Well today we went over to Mom's with a cup of coffee for her, of course it was Tim Horton's coffee. While we have drinking our coffee, we began talking about old photos and the past.
The conversation came to hospitals and when we were born. And Mom began talking about my siblings and I and our births. She said Old Doctor Baxter delivered all of us except my youngest sister, he had gone on vacation and appointed another doctor who also became unavailable.
Anyway the questions began. I said Mom you were a midwife back then were you not? Oh yes she said. She continued " There was an old lady in the village (Parkton) at the time and when she could not go, they would ask me to go.
She said " We were like a nurse, and usually the doctor would be there. She said we had to put the patient asleep sometimes, because some of the cases were hard ones. I said how did you put them to sleep? She replied" well the doctor would give us a gauze to put over their face or nose and a little bottle of eather and he would tell us how many drops to pour. " She said "Mrs LeBlanc nearly died when she had her first baby, so she had to be put under longer than the others. Then she said" I was there for Mrs Hache, "for her third baby" ,and for Mrs Williams for her first one. This made me proud of my Mom, she helped with the births of other babies.
Then we started on when I was growing up. First of all you have to know that my oldest sister was what I call "dainty". Mom said she had made this little pink dress for my sister, and when she outgrew it, Mom put it away for her next daughter, but another son came along, then another son. Finally she had a little daughter named Aline. She said " you were a cute baby". So she passed me down the cute little pink silk dress that she had made with love and was once my sisters.
Mom said at the time I had two little front teeth and one day she said I lifted my dress and bit on it and ripped it to pieces. tst tst. grin. Then she said " Aline had to wear glasses and she always came home either with them broken or lost. I look at all my photos growing up and would you believe there is something wrong on most of them? Either my socks are rolled down, my straps of my skirt crooked, my sweater buttoned wrong, my hair not parted straight. I said to Mom " where did I come from? " grin. But no matter what, she still loved me for who I was.
It is always so nice listening to Mom talk about when we were young or when she was young. Now speaking of what I looked like growing up, I haven't changed because at our reunion last weekend, someone took a photo of me and I was wearing a headband with a crest in the middle. Guess what? The crest was on the side instead of the middle. See I haven't changed. grin.
Thanks for listening do stop by again.
have a great day
Aline
2 comments:
Aline, I really enjoyed reading your blog about your mother's memories.
It helped bring back memories of my mother and grandmother- mother had all her children born at home with a midwife and doctor present. My grandmother Elizabeth Vienneau, was a midwife for many years in Joggins, where she lived. She also gave birth to a large family all in their home, no going to the hospital in those days. They did not have an easy life like we enjoy today. Your mother is like my mom, she has a good memory. Your mother sure does not look her age, in the pictures, she is really amazing for her age. God has blessed her with a long life.
Effie
Yes Effie, back then they had to survive the best way they knew how and they did not have the kinds of medical facilities that we have today. Mom got married young she was just a child herself, so she couldn't have been very old when she began helping deliver babies.
Yes she does look good for 91 years. I have so many stories on her side but so little on Dad's side compared to her side.
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