Wednesday, November 7, 2018

I Do Collect One Item

This a follow up to a post I started 2 weeks ago.

If asked if I collected anything I would probably say no, but that wouldn't be exactly true. I do collect books. I have no other collections in the house, but I have several different book collections. I should know better. Collections only mean something to the person who collects them and when you pass on someone else has to deal with them. Those collections are never worth anything. Trust me I know because I have had to deal with them.

My mother-in-law was a collector of things such as Depression glass, Wedgewood plates, Cabbage Patch dolls, etc. I had to try and find homes for all of it. The Depression glass was the only thing that was easy. If I waited a decade maybe the plates would have been easier. I still have a set of pink ones in the cabinets now if anyone is interested:) I actually took the Cabbage Patch dolls to Goodwill with their little official certificates and everything!

Anyway, I am going to take you on a stroll through my book collections which I do enjoy looking at, so I am hoping my kids will forgive me one day for leaving them so many books with which to contend.

This one is an obvious to anyone who know me locally. Space books.

Many are signed.

I have more of these than I will even show you or you would be sure I have gone off the deep end. They are in lots of places in the house. If I put them altogether I might scare myself. I have been fascinated since I was a little girl and this is the one collection that others have enabled me with. Students, friends, etc.

Get a load of the price on it. $.25


In fact this one was located in a library by a former teacher that I worked with. She called me one day and said, "Hey, I found a book that was being discarded I thought you might like." She was correct. I loved it.

This is one of my favorite children's author for science books. Had no idea he was that old.


I have lots of picture books that I used for teaching with and then there are those that I just like to look through. I have shared only a small amount of  these with you...Seriously!



About 15 years ago, I set out on a mission to gather up my old elementary textbooks. I was sure of the titles because Mother was such a great documenter of life with the camera and having attended such a small rural school our annuals (yearbooks) had elementary school pictures too.



I started with the Dick and Jane readers. I had the 1963 edition.
I loved everything about them. I have written about them before here. What is not to love about these pictures?!


And poems...



That collection then turned to the science and social studies books. I was very successful with the science books. I remember them like they were yesterday.

The one of the far right is from my teaching years. I loved teaching 4th grade and this was my favorite book I taught science from.
Y'all when I was doing the science coach job my last three years I used these books to write up some third grade lessons that went over wonderfully. I was in need of something to transition the third graders into these kits that we bought. I took these books and wrote up two missions that the teachers and children loved to help them move into the big kid stuff. They were invaluable.



I wasn't successful with the social studies books. I did get a couple, but they are not the ones I had. I can remember them so well and KNOW that if I ever see them I recognize them. They are probably in a landfill somewhere. Pooh! My third grade one was my absolute favorite. IT was about a family that moved from the east to the west. It followed them on their journey and we learned about geography and cultures along the way. It was like a story.


If you are thinking I am nuts by now, it is ok. Everyone has their obsessions. Mine is books:)

I also have stacks of history books all over the house. I have passed that love onto my son. We are partial to World War II, but not exclusively. There are little groupings like this everywhere in the house.



Of course, any good Auburn alum would have some groupings of Auburn books along with many many coffee table books that can't be displayed at the moment due to a little doggie named Gus. He likes books too...just not to read.


I collect old books as well. I have many old sewing, gardening, and decorating books. I took some of those to Auburn to enjoy when I am there. Of course, I have mentioned before I simply love love love decorating books.



I have lots of books I had in my classroom. These are some of my favorite read alouds. They bring back so many good memories.

With a few of my childhood books mixed in.


And then more space books...

I told you!


And more picture books.



This is one of my favorites!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I also have a big collection of books from my childhood and from my own children's childhood.  I saw someone else's collection of Little Golden books the other day and I thought I had a lot, but no I really don't.


My own kids were fans of The Berenstain Bears. They are in the basket behind the Little Golden Books.

Paul Allen was obsessed with The Messy Room.



We had to read every label on every box EVERY time we read it. He wanted to be this neat, but there was no chance.


I love old magazines. There are decorating, space, and Seventeens in there. I really really wish I had kept my old Southern Livings because I would enjoy looking through them now. Mother had a huge stack of 80's and 90's ones in her utility room that she finally got rid of. If I had known how much I would miss those days of Southern Living I would have held onto them.


One more item to share... cookbooks.
I have a short closet in my kitchen hallway that I store them in along with my vitamins, medicine cabinet, and paper plates, cups, etc. I won't share with you how many I have because you might think I need to start a food blog. That would be a real big joke around here!!!! I only like to bake and each cookbook probably has a recipe or two that I love. I probably need to compile a cookbook for the kids with those recipes.


That one with the watermelon spine is one of my favorites.

I do love the set of Southern Living cookbooks I have kept. The 1982 and 1983 are my absolute FAVES!!!!


If you are still with me, I will stop this stroll, but I could go on...I promise. I will leave you with one last picture. I had this nursery rhyme book since I was a little girl in the early 1960's. 





I hope you enjoyed my little collection tour. Do you collect anything?

I will be back next with some stitching.
Sandy

10 comments:

  1. I am older than you...we read Alice and Jerry books in first grade. We got Dick and Jane later. I have a few Alice and Jerry readers because they bring back such lovely memories. I did purge my books several years ago so I only have the ones I absolutely love. It was a hard task.

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  2. This all looks very familiar!

    I remember Dick and Jane very well.

    We still have our Golden Books from my boys' childhood. I'll never part with those.

    There are a few of those annual Southern Living cookbooks in my cabinet too. :)

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  3. Sandy, oh I love looking at your book collection! I've always loved books but I don't think I've read too many space ones. I do remember the Dick and Jane books and also Tip and Mittens! Books are like old friends. They are delightful to visit with!

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  4. Sandy, I enjoyed your picture share of your book collection. Some of them triggered memories from my childhood. I hope Tucker will come to love books as much as his Grandma.

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  5. Oh, Sandy, what an incredible collection!!!!!

    If you remember the names of your social studies books, I will take a look around here and at my dad's home. We collected old textbooks like they were going out of style. (Actually, they probably were and that's why they got discarded by the schools!) Your third grade one sounds just delightful, and I can see why you liked it so much.

    As I am cleaning and sorting through kids' books, if I find any with a space theme I will check with you to see if they are ones you don't have.

    And I spied Practically Seventeen on top of a stack of childhood books. I loved Rosamund du Jardin and especially the Tobey Heydon books. Just noticed, too, that there is a Mary C. Jane mystery up there. My girls loved those and I don't remember seeing that particular one before.

    Well, I could go on and on (just like your collection) but I won't. I am finding books in every room (other than the bathroom) of my childhood home. Actually, one bathroom had cabinets and some books were in there. They, and especially my mother, were obsessed with books! And now, as you said, I am trying to figure out what to do with all of them.

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    1. Oh Mrs. T you totally get it don't you!? The mystery book by Mary C. Jane was a Christmas gift from my 5th grade teacher. She was my very favorite teacher from 1st through college. I wouldn't trade that book for anything. She meant that much to me. The Practically Seventeen book was ordered in 8th grade from the book orders given out by our English teachers. You can see I kept my books:) You were very observant.
      My science and reading books are pictured in my annuals and in photos from when I brought books home, but I don't have a picture of a social studies which has made it harder to find. I scoured eBay, used book stores, and garage sales for years. I know I will know it when I see it if ever. I guess there could be worse things to collect. One day they can just box them up and take them to a used book store. Like I said I am not much of a collector of anything else. I like to decorate with books and I really do revisit them often. In fact, I might just go reread Mystery in Old Quebec:)

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  6. Oh I so enjoyed this post! I have paid so much overweight when I travel abroad because of books.AriadnefromGreece!

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  7. My family moved a lot with my father's job, so my mother insisted I cut out any articles I wanted to keep from my Seventeen magazines. Save the articles and throw away the rest. To this day, I still operate that way. But when you live in the same house for a long, long time, you can keep the entire magazine.

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  8. I want to come to your house!!! Oh, Sandy, I love this post more than I can say. You're the only person I've ever met who must love books as much as--or even more than--I do! I love the fact that you know what books you had in elementary school and you're tracking them down. How cool that your mom kept up with information like that! And I spy a few books on your shelves that look an awful lot like ours. I think we've read nearly every good WWII book out there. In July 2014 we were able to take our sons (who were 17, 21, and 23 at the time) to Normandy for a week. Visiting all the D-Day sites had been a dream of ours for so long--it was amazing to be there with our sons. Then in August 1914 my husband began reading books about World War I. As you know, tomorrow is Armistice Day, so he's finishing up his last WWI book. Not sure where our book journey will take us next, but I'm sure it will be a great ride. :)

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  9. Sandy you have a fabulous book collection. You brought back some great memories with Dick and Jane and Puff. We read those in the first grade. I do not recall the Jerry and Alice books however. RJ

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I am so glad you stopped by my little blog. Drop in again anytime.
Sincerely,
Sandy