The Clothesline

It's official. Spring has arrived :D. For the first time in 6 months I will be hanging clothes on the clothesline. Woot-woot! The sun is a natural bleach and it certainly saves on the dryer bill.

It may not sound like a big deal but in my little Appalachia world, it is. I enjoy hanging laundry outside. It's a moment to spend outside with the warm sunshine on my face. While raising the kids, personal time was a minimum so hanging laundry out was a moment of peace for me. 

The fresh laundry smell is addicting and there's nothing like bedsheets hung outside. 

 Vintage aprons, clothespins, feedsacks, doilies and buttons are a 'thing' of mine. Can't get enough. Major renovation going on here and I'm going to do this window treatment in my kitchen. I've always said I belong in another century/decade.

When I was little my dad put up a wee clothesline beside my mom's and I had a little pink laundry basket with pink plastic clothespins. Mom would wash my doll clothes and I would head to the clothesline with her and hang up my doll's clothes so they could dry. I would then plunk down in the lush green grass and watch them dry....lol. 

Off track a bit. I was raised on a farm and my cousins lived 'next door'. We didn't have computers and our 2 station tv was by antennae therefore very limited. We played outdoors (after chores) from sun up to sun down. We laid on the grass and counted the clouds, looking for shapes and at night watching and counting the stars. Picked blackberries for our grandmother so she could bake a pie. Whittled wood with my grandather (native American roots) and learned the importance of nature.

A packed picnic lunch of PBJ's or cheese and ketchup sandwiches under the ole willow tree was an everday occurance.

A soaking summer rainstorm was a source to cool off. We climbed trees, rode bikes, rolled down the hill, did somersaults, headstands etc....all without a helmet and we survived. We had an imagination (something kids of today lack). Play bow and arrows, headdresses and cap gun holsters were dispersed and we played cowboys and Indians. We had a Radio Flyer wagon and it became a covered wagon, lumber wagon (when we built the treehouse), hauled toys under the ole willow tree and converted to a hearse when a beloved pet passed as we carried our little Bibles to the 'graveyard'.

My husband and I have mentioned how you never see kids playing outside anymore and that is a sad state of affairs for kids today. It has suddenly become necessary for parents to 'entertain' children by running to every activity available vs quality time at home using the imagination and getting much needed fresh air. 

Time spent with family last weekend and everyone agreed (cousins too) that we had the best childhood.

Life...knowing money and stuff are not necessary to build strong foundations