Day 1 - 1950s Housewife Experiment Take 2

This morning started out fairly well. I got up, showered, did my hair and makeup and proceeded to make coffee and breakfast. Promptly after breakfast I got to work. Now, while most housewives of that time generally cleaned about 3 hours (their homes were also smaller than ours) they cleaned every day. Since I've let some of my household chores slide a little this cleaning is taking me all damn day. Did I mention I have three teenagers home from school today and tomorrow?

While I originally started out cleaning the basement to some fabulous Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett records, that eventually ended when the first child decided they wanted to watch TV. Okay, cool. Whatever.  I just proceeded to clean, and finally moved upstairs. Have you ever heard the definition of insanity? Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. I think that title works perfectly for mothers. I seriously can not tell you how many times I cleaned the exact same mess, the exact same room, until I finally exploded. The oldest boy had the audacity to ask me why I was mad. I just glared at him, sweating rolling down my forehead, while he munched away on pizza and dropped crumbs all over the table I had just wiped down and the floor I had just swept.

Deep breath in, deep breath out. I broke my own rule at one point and popped onto Facebook to vent. Mothers who lived in that time assured me it was nothing new. However, my best friend's theory is that mothers were able to beat their kids back then. Either way, I can't see my grandma allowing my mom and uncles to constantly make a mess as she cleaned.

Now, on top of trying to be the perfect vintage housewife around three kids I'm also dealing with a now three-legged cat. She was originally a stray who appeared one day and refused to leave. I really didn't want twenty more barn cats so I had her spayed. Well, either some kind of a predator got a hold of her, or she got into the engine of a car and the car was started. Either way, this is Grace now.

*Grace the Wonder Cat has her own Facebook page if you'd like to keep up with her recovery.*

I don't know if you can tell by this pic but she has massive damage to her right hip and rear end, damage to the left side of her face, cuts along her back, and had her right front leg amputated. So, on top of dealing with my normal day to day life, and attempting to live life as close to the genuine 1950s housewife, I've had to play nurse to this little girl. In case you haven't guessed yet, she will now be an inside cat.

I've tried several times to download the pics I've taken through out the day, including pics of my homemade chicken and dumplings I made from my 1954 Betty Crocker's Good and Easy Cookbook.

Sorry for the horrible pic. Took it with my phone,

I had my doubts as not only was this my first attempt at making chicken and dumplings, but it was from an old cookbook. There were so few ingredients for the dumplings, yet they were delicious since they were boiled in the broth made from stewing the chicken.

Sorry I can't post a pic of the actual meal. Stupid laptop! When I figure out where I'm going wrong I'll post, I promise.

Now, on to the rest of the day...I'm freaking exhausted! I swear I'm limping and my back is so sore! The only time I sat today was to fold laundry. Other than that I was on the go non stop. Oh wait, that's not true. I had to sit while driving to find a police officer to unlock my daughter's handcuffs. Yes, you read that correctly. My darling daughter threw her key in a huff, and her brother didn't know that when he locked her wrists in those damn metal contraptions, We were able to get one wrist out with soapy water, but the other was way too tight.

So there's my first day in a nut shell. Not really a failure, but not exactly a success...not in my eyes anyway. My makeup is smeared, and my hair went crazy hours ago. Tomorrow I'm babysitting my nephews for a few hours so I'll just pretend I'm going to my bridge club or whatever they did with the other ladies back then.

Night, y'all. My poor booty needs rest!

1950s Housewife Experiment - Take 2

For those of you who have been following this blog for a while remember my first 1950s Housewife Experience. Well, guess what? I'm doing it again. This time you can find everything on my other blog, I'd Rather Be Blogging. I will be cross posting so nothing will be missed, and this blog will stay up as I plan on continuing with my housewife posts.

In the meantime, enjoy some fun, vintage commercials:

Day 3 - Total FLOP!

Today was not a 1950s success. Because we have those little things called bills I had to find a way to find some money. Like so many people in the country these days we're struggling financially. Our pay check (meaning, the husband's as I don't work outside the home) was cut in half by higher insurance premiums and higher taxes. Of course, at the same time, all our bills have gone up. We're not shoppers or spenders, and have lived on as tight of a budget as possible. Regardless, bills are late and Christmas is coming up.

Today, I spent hours posting things I'd made for a craft fair on Etsy and Craigslist, as well as posting some things we no longer use on Craigslist. I also spent hours looking for a job that would work around my very strange schedule. *sigh* Nothing. I'm disheartened to say the least.

In the meantime, I continue writing books and trying to get published. Writing has always been a passion of mine, and seeing my books in bookstores (both online and in brick and mortar) has always been a big dream!

I am a true believer in everything happens for a reason, and God puts us where we're supposed to be. Apparently, writing and taking care of my family is exactly where I'm supposed to be. Today has been emotionally difficult, but I'm going to put a smile on my face and go upstairs to make dinner for my beautiful kids and unbelievably supportive husband. Have a great night, y'all!

Day 2 - First few hours

I'm breaking my own rule today and have gotten online fairly early. As I started my day today I kept beating myself up for not being "pretty". The common misconception is that women got up before dawn, curled their hair, and painted their face. Society has an image of the 50s housewife as floating through the house wearing a flowing skirt, heels, pearls, and a red mouth.

I agree June!

That's a false conception. Yes, a lot of women did wear dresses every day. My mom has memories of my grandma wearing a dress to garden. As I posted yesterday they would wear something called a day dress or house dress, complete with apron. They wore comfortable shoes or house shoes for their housework and gardening.

 

Yeah, so this dress isn't as appealing as our mental images of the 50s housewife, but what does this say to you? To me, I think of the shortage of everything, especially money. This shortage of money generally meant that women not only had to make their own clothing, but they had to take great care to keep the dresses in good condition. If you've ever bought, or even held a vintage dress originally from the 40s or 50s you'll notice how much better quality was put into the clothing of that time as compared to our wear and throw away wardrobe of today.

 

As I cleaned in my jeans, t-shirt, and tennis shoes to as much classic music as I could find in my small oldies library I couldn't help but think about family dynamics of yesteryear as opposed to today. At that time in history staying home and raising your children was just expected. Yes, we have a choice whether we want to go to work, go to college, or stay home now, but is there really a choice for us as women?

 

Think about this for a minute - in that day, the man went to work while the women stayed home to raise the kids, clean the house, cook, pay bills, run errands, etc, etc, etc. Now, we have the choice to go to work so we can come home and raise the kids, clean the house, cook, pay bills, run errands, etc, etc, etc. So, where is the choice? Oh, I know there are men out there who help around the house, but admit it....that's rare. And honestly, I don't want my husband to do the laundry, and homeboy can not cook! He helps when I ask him to, but being as he works up to twelve hours a day, why in the world would I ask him to do something I could've done during the day while he was working his butt off to support the five of us?

 

Okay, so where am I going with this? Honestly, I'm not sure. I laid in bed last night for hours, my feet throbbing, my body exhausted, and my mind reeling. I already live the life of a housewife, but what makes me different from a 1950s housewife? Is it because I choose to live this life? Is it because, as a society, we no longer put pride in our appearance when we go into public, or pride in our homes and family? When I think of a traditional 1950s housewife the picture at the top of my page is what comes to mind.

 

 

To me, this is the 1950s. The family didn't save their nice clothes for strangers; they dressed nice to have dinner with each other. The family is praying together, sitting at the dinner table to eat instead of everyone making a plate and disappearing into another room where they can eat in front of the television or computer. The wife (at least in this picture it was the wife who prepared the meal) took great care to make sure she made something not only nutritious but tasty and appealing to the eye for those who are most important to her. Why have we decided that we'll save our best (personality, manners, kindness, appearance) for strangers or a night out with friends rather than the people whom mean the most to us? And when did this shift from family happen?

 

I will still post about my experience from today this evening, but for now I can't help but reflect on these things while I attempt to rebuild the 50s family in my own home.