California Summer 1969

Back in 1969 ...  Dad/Lamar's CSC job needed some employees to develop software at the main computer science corporation headquarters in El Segundo. So from July 19 - September 25, 1969, Mom and Dad had a Los Angeles summer.

• The Flight: The company split up the families heading out onto different planes ... "just in case" something happened (if there was a crash, they didn't want to lose everyone). Not a comforting thought for Mom/Margie on her first flight! Mom recalls Scottie  being very excited, and saying, "When are we going to blast-off?"
• The House: It was hard to find somewhere to rent for only three months. They spent a week in a hotel while they tried to find a place. Mom had a cousin (Diana Brady Coleman) who lived nearby and there was a house close to her for rent. Mom was so disappointed when someone got to it first.  Here's more memories ...

From Dad: 5951 INTERCEPTOR, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90045. We lived in this home while we were on a temporary assignment in Los Angeles, working at the main Computer Science Corporation building in El Segundo, 2 miles away.  We rented a small house and moved in on 25 July. The house had two small bedrooms, and a garage. It was located almost in the middle of the Los Angeles International Airport. It was quite noisy when certain runways were being used. At first, Scott would run outside excitedly every time a plane flew close over the house, but soon we became oblivious to the noise. Most of the area was bought out by the airport for demolition, but we rented from one of the hold-outs, We rented for $225 per month, paid for by CSC, plus rental furniture. We took the bare minimum of clothes and household items, so housekeeping didn’t take up much time, even with 3 little kids.

From Mom: We finally found this old house on the L.A. airport property, that was going to be razed to make more runway. At first the noise was so loud every time a plane took off because we were so close. Scott (age 5 1/2) loved it and would run outside to see the airplane. Dad said he could identify all the types of airplanes. After awhile, we didn't even notice the sound. The coat closet in the house, we never opened. It stunk so bad if we did---like something dead in there! With minimal belongings, there was not much to do as far as housework. So it was very boring and hard for me to just tend 3 preshoolers all day with no friends or much in the way of toys while Dad worked. I read every Agatha Christie book there was in the library closest to our place, but it was even hard to read and watch the kids closely at the same time. The ward was really excited to have us--then when they found we were only there for 3 months, they didn't go out of their way much to get acquainted or invite us over or anything.

Visiting Mom's cousins in Cali ... summer 1969

Karen and Lisa Coleman, daughters of Mom's cousin Diana Brady Coleman 

Diana was Mom's same age. Daughter of Bertha Howell and Lloyd Brady

But, while in California, might as well take advantage of area attractions! There was a trip to Knott's Berry Farm (pictures below). Then the family flew to Sacramento for a side trip in late August, then a trip to Disneyland (pictures at top). Wendy was just 18 months, so the folks left her with Mom's cousin. Chris had just turned three ... if they'd gone before his birthday he would have been free. There was also mention in the Dropbox memories/calendar of a trip to Universal Studios, but no pictures ... pictures of Knottsberry but no mention of it on the calendar. Maybe it replaced the planned Universal Studios trip?

Then it was back home to Washington and the house on Saint Street, September 26, 1969. 

Scott was a little late starting kindergarten at Spaulding Elementary.

Creative Cakes ala Margie

I (Jen) have some memories of mom having cake decorating supplies. Of her making royal icing, and teaching me to make roses. When we'd go to the store, I'd love to stop at the bakery department and watch the ladies there decorate the cakes. I'm fairly certain I said that was what I wanted to be when I grew up ... a cake decorator. Mom had taken a class before I was born. Here are her memories ...

Several of us in our Saint Street neighborhood took the class. So the teacher came to the Kosorok's home, so it would be handier for all of us. One evening a week, we would go there (2 doors down from us) and bring our cake, with the base frosting on, on a turntable, for ease in decorating, along with our Wilton tips and bags and little jars of paste colors, and buttercream frosting to decorate with. We were taught to color frosting by dipping a toothpick in the jars of paste coloring and then use the toothpick to add the color to the frosting, adding more with a clean toothpick if needed. The color was more concentrated and you needed less, using the paste colors. The teacher said using the liquid coloring would make your frosting too runny. Then I got pregnant with Jeni and with morning sickness, I had trouble working with food/cakes :-) .

For many years, I made gingerbread houses with you kids each Christmas, that we decorated with Royal icing, and all sorts of candies. Not sure if we still have any photos of them. Then you would each get to eat yours after Christmas.

We also made sugar-mold eggs with you kids, with little "scenes" inside, and decorated on the outside. We made all different sizes. One year, your Grandma Westra/Burgener made sugar mold eggs for all of you and mailed them to Richland to you for Easter. They are a lot of work, but very fragile. They arrived all broken. I felt bad since she had gone to so much work and effort. I can't remember if I told her they broke in transit. Probably not, as that is not my nature.

I don't have specific memories of making and eating gingerbread houses, but I remember there was one (the same one? different ones?) on a white pedestal plate on the piano for many years. I definitely remember the sugar-mold eggs. I LOVED those. Loved peeking inside and seeing the little scenes set up there. Later when I married, I bought some molds and little figures and such to make some ... but then I never did.

Welcome Wendy!

When Wendy was at Snow College, age 18, she took a class that required the students to write up an autobiography. Here's what Wendy wrote (based on her baby book and interviews with Mom) ...

It was 8:15 on a Monday morning when a miraculous event took place on earth. I, Wendy Westra, was born on April 29, 1968. My parents were excited to have a girl after having two boys and had had my name picked out for five years simply waiting for me to arrive. At eight pounds I outweighed both my older brothers. The nurses fussed over my long dark hair and formed little curls on the top of my head. The first night home I very considerately slept the whole night through. I have loved sleeping from the day I was born! At six months I was a very active baby. I turned over and over, got around in my walker, and started crawling. At ten months I stood up for the first time. My first words were “Mama” and “Dada.” I became very attached to a pink thermal blanket and wouldn’t sleep unless I was holding on to it tightly. By the time I was 19 months old, I had been on five round trips by airplane. I haven’t been on one since, and have always wanted to. At age 1 ½ to 2 I began to take all my stuffed animals to bed with me. Luckily now I only take one stuffed animal to bed!

Mom added some memories ...  Since Chris's labor and birth was so long, I stayed home too long with Wendy and was only at the hospital a half-hour! She was my quickest birth and weighed 8 lbs. I remember being out in the sunshine planting a flower bed at our new St. Street home the day before she was born, outside the sliding glass window area of our family room. Born on a Monday. Never missed a week of church.  Regarding Wendy sleeping through that first night home ...when I woke up the next morning and realized that she had not woke me up in the night, I panicked, thinking crib death, and rushed to her room, so relieved to find her alive and peacefully sleeping! Regarding the plane trips; in 1969 we were flying to California (my first time in a plane) for the 2-3 month assignment for Dad's work, a flight to visit Nelva's family in California, and our flight home from California back to Richland. I hadn't even remembered that we flew to Nelva's and back, while we were stationed in Calif. until you girls were working on this project (it was written in Dad's history of that year). Must have been quicker and cheaper to fly and allowed us to have more time with them.

From Wendy's Baby Book ...

• Blessed on June 2, 1968. Grandma Westra came from SLC for the blessing.
• Became very attached to a pink thermal blanket and wouldn't go to sleep without it (6 months to 18 months). 
• At 18 months, wanted to take ALL dolls and stuffed animals to bed.
• Gave up the bottle at 20 months old. 
• First words:  Mama, Dada
• Had been on five round trip airplane flights in the first 19 months.
• First two teeth at 7 months old. 3rd tooth not until 13 months. First dental visit at 3½ years old. First cavity at 6½. 

Originally - I hadn't found this "on this day" report for Wendy, so I Googled to see if I could find something similar. Then I located this file, but thought I'd include some of the other interesting facts I'd found from the year.

• 1968 was the year that the first episode of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood aired, providing a stable, warm cultural icon for generations of children. This was also the year that Planet of the Apes, starring Charlton Heston, was released in theatres. And one of the great bands of the 20th century, Led Zeppelin, performed live for the first time in October of this year. In another more mild development, Yale University announced this year that women would be admitted to the university, making it a coeducational institution.
• This year was also an important one for space exploration. 1968 saw the United States launch Apollo 7, the first manned Apollo mission and an important step toward the Moon landing. Apollo 8 followed not long after, when Astronauts Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William A. Anders orbited the Moon. These men were the first human beings to see the far side of the Moon.
• 1968 will be mostly remembered, though, for the death of two major political figures in the United States: Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy. Martin Luther King, a major civil rights leader in the United States, was murdered at The Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee on April 4th. In addition to mourning across America, King’s murder sparked a great deal of civil unrest in an already tense environment. Robert F. Kennedy, brother of assassinated president John F. Kennedy, was a U.S. Senator from New York and was a presidential candidate in the Democrat Party. While campaigning for his party’s nomination in Los Angeles, California, Kennedy was shot on the evening of June 5th. He succumbed to his wounds on June 6th.

A Birthday FOUR Scotty

At the end of 1967, little Scotty turned FOUR years old. Looks like there were at least nine kids there, plus little Chris. Mom is there in the picture helping out with some craft, and it looks like there was another woman assisting also (I'm sure the extra hands were needed with that many young kids!). Lots of balloons, and probably a homemade cake (this was a little before Mom got into her Creative Cakes, although the one pictured is pretty cute!)

You can read more about When Scott Was Small and get a peek a some live action birthday party (when he was six years old) ... back when video was just coming on the scene!

1967 - Annual Recap

 

1697 ...Major News Stories include Worlds First Heart Transplant, the first ATM,  the first Super Bowl (Green Bay Packers and the Kansas City Chiefs). There were strikes by US teaching staff for pay increases. The Vietnam War continued, as did peace rallies and protesters against the war. Muhammad Ali was stripped of his boxing world championship for refusing to be inducted into the US Army.   Twiggy became a fashion sensation and mini skirts continued to get shorter and the Beatles continued to reign supreme. The movie industry produced "The Graduate" "Bonnie and Clyde" and "Cool Hand Luke" . TV shows included "The Fugitive" and "The Monkees" and color television sets become popular as the price came down and more programs were made in color.

On the Westra homefront ... the young couple (Marge, turned 25 & Lamar who turned 30) said goodbye to their little home on Rainer Street where they had lived when both Scott and Chris were born. They moved to their new St. Street home, which was only a few blocks away and was even in the same ward. 

Chris was a New Year's Baby, learned to crawl, walk, talk and he celebrated his first birthday. Little Scott started pre-school and turned four at the end of the year. In the "history" in Dropbox, it is noted that Grandma Lucille came up to visit in August, but it looks like there must have been a family trip to Utah earlier in the year as there is a picture with Margie's folks and grandparents (and Grandma Lucille) too. 

Margie was pregnant with Wendy the last half of this year ... and back in Utah, a little boy named Rick Jensen was born. Those two wouldn't meet until years later, but it was 1967 where their story began.

You can also check out the extended Westra news in Grandma Lucille's Christmas Newsletter.

When Scott Was Small ...

 

Scott squeaked into 1963 ... December baby. The next few years he got to be the center of attention for his folks. Small Scott pictures dominate the Dropbox folders for these years. Mom/Margie was good at keeping up with the baby book and recording milestones and memories. Here are a few ...

• Turned over alone at 23 days old
• Started smiling at 5-6 weeks
• Turned from back to stomach at 4 months
• Crawled at 5½ months
• First tooth at 6½ months (8 teeth by 13 months)
• Walked at 8 months
• First words (11+ months) mama, dada, ball, woof-woof, nose
• Taken off the bottle at 13 months 
• Favorite toys were balls, pop-beads, chatter-phone, push-chime
• At 21 months, could count to ten (usually leaving out 1, 5 and 8)
• At about 1 year of age you became very interested in animals. You loved to see them and point them out in books. One of your first words was woof-woof. At 13 months you began to like stuffed animals; your teddy bear, monkey and clown. At 17 months you started taking your monkey to bed with you every night. 
• When you were 16 months old, your mom and dad both got bicycles with a cute little seat on the back for you. You loved to go bike riding every day and would ask "Go bye-bye on bike?" Daddy would ride his bike to work and we would ride to meet him every day.
• You were an excellent talker, pronounced words well and had a large vocabulary. At 26 months you could recite the Pledge of Allegiance" all by yourself. 
• By age 3, you knew many songs, nursery rhymes and finger plays. You started Junior Sunday School and enjoyed it very much. Mommy was your teacher.
• Shortly before you turned four, we moved into our new home on Saint Street. You started nursery school and had your first "friend" birthday party. 13 children came. You were four when you went to the dentist for the first time. You were very good at the checkup, but had two cavities. You were so good and tried so hard to be brave. But when we went back for the second one you bawled and wouldn't let the dentist do one thing!
• Your first plane ride was December 1968 when we flew to SLC for Uncle Merrill's wedding. You had your 5th birthday while we were there. You thought the plane ride was great. After boarding the plane, you asked "When are we going to Blast Off?" We went on five round trips by airplane during that next year, and lived in Los Angeles, California for two months. Started Kindergarten at Spalding Elementary. You rode the school bus, which stopped right next door. 
• April 1970 (age 6) ... lost first two teeth. Bottom center (these are preserved in the baby book!) Started 1st grade at Sacajawea School, there was team teaching in 3-class clusters (there is a big newspaper feature about it). We bought a moving picture camera and our first pictures were taken at your 6th birthday party.

Here's footage from that event!

1966 Recap

 

In 1966 ... Chris came. There is already a post documenting this momentous event, but there were a few other items happening with the Westras this year as well. In Dad's Dropbox history, there is only a "Trip to Seattle" noted February 4, 1966 as far as getting out and about. Based on the photos though, that wasn't the only traveling done. In March, it looks like not only the Westra family, but Rex & Zada, went out to California for a reunion with Merrill, returned home from his mission. Pictures are at Nelva and Arnold's house, with little cousins Dale and Karie. Then it looks like the crew returned to Utah, and made the rounds with more visiting to the Grandparents. The group picture includes both sets ... Zada's mom and her husband (Hannah and Arthur Bohne) and Rex's folks. No Chris in those pictures ... in March, he was still a little bun in the oven. No Dad/Lamar in those photos either, methinks he was likely the photographer.

A little later in the year, Rex and Zada made a trip to Washington to be there for the birth of Christopher ... that's when Dad/Lamar caught the big fish! It looks like the Westras must have made a trip back to Utah, or Aunt Diane made a trip up to Washington, as those two families are pictured together (cute little cousins Chris and baby Brad, and Scott and Mauri). Photos of little Scott enjoying the Thanksgiving turkey. Grandma Lucille had written a Christmas Letter in 1967 mentioning that Steve had gotten engaged Christmas of 1966, and left for service January 1967 (so that picture was probably taken one of those times). 

1966 looked like a fairly full year!