Memories of My Mother

Happy Birthday to my Dear Sweet Mom in her heavenly home. You have been gone from this earth since 2001. Not one day goes by that I do not remember you. All the good things I know in life I learned from you and dad. I was very blessed to have you as long as I did. Someday we will meet across the streets of heaven. Love you and miss you mom.

August 29th 1936

Beautiful attendant for the wedding of dad's sister Angela "Gela" to Uncle Bear. My cousin Jeannie says she likes to think this dress my mother wore was a lovely shade of lilac.

Stopping by Pink Saturday to say hello.

Life in Black and White

My goodness, the first time I saw this photo of these gorgeous BoJon women I thought they were all beautiful brides! But this was the wedding of my mom's younger sister Elsie (far left). Auntie Ang Jacklovich-Steblay is next to her. My cousin Joanne Petgovsek Wieser's aunt Doris Petgovsek Amy and my mom's baby sister Jo Steblay- Binder. I am unsure if Auntie Jo was married to Uncle Tom but I am guessing yes, because cousin Sharon, daughter of Elsie Steblay and Edward "Munson" Trontel is younger than cousin Tommy Binder (1946) son of Jo Steblay and Tom Binder.

My mother is on the far right with my oldest sister Pat in front of her. Cousin Charlotte was making her first communion with my brother Bill (left) and cousin Ron (right). My Tata Rose in on the far left with my grandmother next to her then Auntie Mary and Auntie Elsie (flowers in her hair). Auntie Annie is in the front row with the lil boy in the sailor suit. I am unsure who he is. The background is my grandmothers house which survived in the Pueblo Flood of 1921 and the Pueblo Flood of 1964. The Arkansas river is on the South side of the house and although there is an embankment the floods were quite devastating.

Another wedding photo of Auntie Elsie. Uncle Munson was very much like my own dad. He loved his given name of Edward and he was very kind. I can never recall a time I heard any unkind or inappropriate word leave either one of these gentlemen. They were humble and kind and they spoke respectfully to everyone they knew. Uncle Munson was a butcher. The phamily still owns Frank's Market in Pueblo, Colorado. The had their own feedlot and raised their own antibiotic free cattle. We still buy meat from the market. When I was a kid Uncle Munson would always give us a cold hotdog or a slice of cheese and beef baloney. Years ago my hubby had a co worker JT who loved to purchase a half a beef with us. It was fun sitting in JT's house sorting all those pounds of hamburger meat, steaks, roasts, etc. Good memories all around. If you go here: Frank's Market you can see a few more photos of this BoJon business.

I hope you liked the black and white photos I have shared. I will be putting up more posts. I have decided to post as I can. Sometime life throws you a curve and you do what you can do. I enjoy sharing my phamily history here and will continue to do so. Thanks for joining me and always, thank you for your kind comments.

Day Five: Favorite BoJon Food Memories and A Number One Son Has A Birthday

This google image made me smile. Although Kraft Butter Mints were not sLOVEnian in nature, my sweet grandmother Steblay kept these gems in her drawer for the kids. She always gave us a handful of these buttery soft mints that melted in your mouth. She was an awesome grandma. These will always spark that memory of a wonderful childhood and the good people I shared it with.

My grandmother was a remarkable woman. She is pictured her with my oldest sister Pat. I often wish my sister were still here so she could share her memories of Grandma with me.

I wish I had a photo of my late cousin Sammy with Grandma Kocman. He told me one of the fondest memories he had of our paternal grandparents were spending Sunday afternoons watching baseball with her and Grandpa K making root beer floats. My paternal grandmother was ill most of her life and I do not have as many fond memories of her as I do with Grandma Steblay.

I do not have many photos of my paternal grandmother or grandfather. I adored my Grandpa K. He was a gifted storyteller. As a young child I wish someone would have had a tape recorder. I would love to listen to what he had to say.

Potica is such a wonderful food. It is filled with honey and ground walnuts, fresh cream, butter and often folks add raisins. My mom did not. I have searched and searched for the perfect potica. I have found a few that come close to my mom's secret recipe from the Women's Glory in the Kitchen cookbook. There is a company in Evergreen, Colorado and they appear to be from the same area as my ancestors. They make potica like the kind my mom made from the area of  Ljubljana, Slovenia. There is a company in Minnesota  called sunrise Bakery in Hibbing, Minnesota. This old school Italian family also makes a very decent potica. Of course, in my hometown of Pueblo, Colorado you will find some of the best potica.

Kolbasi is a traditional sLOVenian sausage and the very best can be purchased at Frank's Market in Pueblo, Colorado. Sometime it is wise to preorder it as they sell it out quickly. My uncle Edward "Munson" Trontel was co owner of the market with his brother-in-law Frank Javornik. Since the folks are all gone the children run the business today, Their meat is delicious and they had also owned their own feedlot and had anti biotic free cattle.

Ham is a good choice to bring to the table along with kolbasi.  Ah...the good memories and flavors and smells make me homesick for my mom's cooking. She was a great cook and I miss her terribly.

My mother always had her apron on and was a social creature which I imagine is where I get my ability to converse with almost anyone.

Happy birthday to our number one son today! He shares this day with my mom's older sister Mary Steblay Mishmash. Although my mom lost her sister to Alzheimer's she was a quiet and very sweet little lady.  I only have a wedding photo of her and Uncle Charlie to share.

Photos are such an important part of our heritage. I am hoping many will allow me to share their photos here. I am going to put my blog into volumes of books so I have that history to pass down.

Jeremy and Brittany 2014 at a Bronco game. I betcha didn't figure that one out huh? Laughing Out Loud!

You might not guess this guy loves those Denver Broncos! So happy birthday to an awesome son! A terrific guy!

Brothers Jeremy and Nick December 1993

Brothers April 30 2016
Dober Dan!

Day Four: BoJon Loves Babies

I bet you thought I was going to show you more brides. I will, eventually. After all I have 27 more days to share this wonderful heritage with you. I have to tell you I started this blog draft and then lost my aol account and this blog. I will admit my attitude was less then nice. I was so stressed I had a pounding headache for three days! Still don't have any access to aol but by the grace of God I got back into my blog. I am so happy. I can not tell you exactly how but one thing I wish blogger and google and everyone else had was more live customer service and we could speak to someone who speaks our own language. It would make life so easy over here. Anyway thank you blogger for some of the tips you gave me to try to get back in here. Praying this will continue because trying to access a new blog is too much work!

So BoJon's love babies, oh heck, we love all children! Both of my parents came from very large phamilies. Although their parents experienced so much tragedy and lost some of their children they persevered in life. Those folks were strong in their faith and their love for each other.  We try to carry on their traditions and their faith and love for phamily. Here is Michael. Oh this great grand boy is fearless. Such a different personality from his older brother Jayden who was more cautious at Michael's age. I say "was" because my buddy Jayden has broken his collar bone and now has a fracture in his elbow bone! This boy became more fearless and let go of the zip line he was cruising along on. His sense of humor and his ability to smile through his pain is something I don't see in adults much less a small boy who turns five in less then one month.

You can see his broken arm and of course, he writes right handed and will start kindergarten in two weeks. Miss Drazah lives in a small farming community with her mom these days but we are so happy when they come to town. She is a smart and sassy girl who is very articulate. I love these lovey doveys!

Three of my loves. My phamily is growing so quickly I wish my folks would be able to have seen these precious little ones.

Scrunchy face Harrison fell asleep in momma's arms. Oh how he fights sleep. He is his father's son! We were at Jeremy and Brittany's last night celebrating Jeremy's birthday which is actually on August 9th.

HaHaHa! That bird is clueless as to the thoughts of the devious cat. Talented but clueless. Stop by Sandee's and visit all the fun shares for Aw...Monday!

This pinterest image shows Lake Bled in Slovenia the place where my ancestors started it all. Isn't it lovely? I thought Jeanne and the Blue Monday crew might like this pretty blue picture along with this fun vintage blue photo and awesome DIY project for those crafty gals from Pinterest too:

I love my heritage, I love my phamily and I love these cool DIY projects using old mirrors,dishes and trays to create frames. Amazing and so creative.

I can not leave you without a Love is... and one more blue. My hubby loves windmills and I have often tried to get a good photo shot while he driving particularly in the state of Kansas where we will be two weeks from today returning Nick back to class for the final time as a Kansas Wesleyan Coyote. I found this image to share here and my hubby loves it:

Before I sign off and pray that this blog will still be here tomorrow here is my final share for today:

Oh Maxine, you are one clever lady not to mention comical.

Sweet dreams.

Day Three: Weddings and Phamily Love

Technical issues stopping me from working on my day three post! Although it is day four, here it is:

August 27, 2000. Noelle and her dad heading down the aisle and into her marriage with Roger. Ah....such a lovely memory.

May 3, 1984 - my Sweets and I on our wedding day. The days go so quickly but I will always hold that day close to my heart.

The Robinson Clan, April 30, 2016, Jeremy's wedding to Brittany. Oh the new memories we have stored inside our hearts.

Pat and Gary's wedding day, August 19, 1956. Look at all those beautiful and handsome BoJon's surrounding the happy couple. To this day, although I was a tiny toddler when my big sis married, I can not visit my hometown of Pueblo without smiling when we pass the Mineral Palace Park on our way into town. Jay Phillips was a very harried professional photographer but his shots were beautiful and he captured every single moment for the happy day.

August 29, 1936. My mother was a beautiful bride and my daddy always looked so dapper and very handsome. They would have celebrated 49 years of marriage when he passed away in April 1985. They were the glue that held us all together.

Uncle Louie and Auntie Ang's wedding in October 1946. I need to find the exact date of their marriage. She was a beautiful and very modern bride. My grandmother was on your right and when I was a kid I thought the priest, Daniel Gnidica was personally related to Jesus because he was a carpenter like Jesus's earthly father Joseph. I guess he is related to Jesus but as a kid, you can understand my thought process.

It is fun to look back on these precious memories and be grateful to God for making me a BoJon girl. I hope you will come back later for more shares on Day Four.

Anniversary Joy to My Love

I would! I would jump for joy to marry this sweet fella I call my love. He is one simply devoted husband, father, grandfather and great granddad! Thirty two years with him seems like yesterday.

One of these days I am going to get a dress form and display my pretty and very simple wedding dress. My father had become very ill and I did not have the wedding of my dreams with phamily and friends. Instead we were married quietly by my hubby's friend, a chaplain. But no matter what size or kind of wedding we had we made a huge commitment that day and we never looked back.

Our grandson Colton's birthday 6/7/2013 We love wearing our matching t shirts.

Proud of our youngest son Nick who attends the Kansas Wesleyan University.

One of our favorite Scriptures we have tried to keep close to our hearts.

We needed this is our day to day lives. Otherwise I don't think we would have been here.

Most of our phamily last summer.

Another wedding Day memory.

More phamily tyme! All of us together for once! We have had some good times to make up for the bad!