This picture is of Ouma, the sweetest daughter-in-law a mother could ever have, Holly, Joe, and Grandad.

I prepare for another wrestle trying to learn how to blog and feel sorry for myself, we can look back at Web and see how life was treating him – “Thursday September 20, 1866 cloudy & Rainy  Hauled two loads of sand from sleepers sand bank for the school house.  Went up to Moses got Lydia with his colt”  This is Web’s entry in his diary.

 Friday September 21, 1900 Hot & Showers

DBH went to creamery   done chores   dug potatoes Guy W helped me. 

This was Web’s entry for this date in history.  DBH was a man who worked for Web.  The creamery was where the farmers took their whole milk and brought home skimmed milk and were paid for the cream that the creamery then turned into butter to be sold.   Web was 68 at this time and still ran a farm and was part owner of the starch factory.  He grew potatoes which he sold to the starch factory.   Guy W was my father.  He was three years old at this time and lived in Web’s house with Web, Hattie, his mother, and Ernest his father.  Web helped to raise Guy for the first 20 years of Guy’s life.  Guy Webster was named for Web.

“January 5, 1866:  Web and John did the morning chores and returned to the house.  At breakfast Web said, “I think I will thrash the wheat at Father’s place today.  It is too cold to be outside chopping.”

   Sounds like a good idea,” agreed Lydia.  “Be sure to dress warmly.”

   Lydia worked around the house all day.  She finished up the ironing and mending for the week.  she worked with renewed strength.  The visit last evening had done her a world of good.  She even baked an apple pie for Web’s dinner.

   When Web came home for dinner, it took him quite a while to get warmed up.  He lingered a little longer by the fire this noon.

   “Why don’t you stay home this afternoon?” Lydia asked.

   “I don’t have much left to do and I would like to get it finished today.”

   “I will do the butter this afternoon.  I can help you that much and besides I have wanted to teach John how to is done incase we need him to do it one day.” Lydia hoped this would get her husband home earlier and out of the cold before dark set in.

   Web agreed and headed up to Father’s place.  When he was only half way there he wondered if he had made the right decision, the cold settled in so quickly.  But there was work to be done and he would do it.

   Lydia taught John the ins and outs of butter making.  She took him step by step through the process and taught him the dos and dont’s of butter making.  She showed him how to churn the butter, how to work out all the buttermilk.  She told him to always use the wooden paddles and never use his hands, as that would give the butter an oily taste and make it become rancid very soon.  Next he must use rock salt, because this does not contain as much lime as the common salt does.  Then the butter is to be packed firmly into the butter tubs and half buried in the floor of the cellar.  If the butter is done this way, it will keep nice for years, or as long as needed.

   Web finished thrashing the wheat.  He loaded his sled with a load of straw for his animals and he brought home the bags of wheat he had worked on all day.  By this time it had turned colder still and he was thankful to arrive home this afternoon.  John helped him put the straw and wheat in the barn before he would go into the house to warm up.  Web started the afternoon chores but he was so cold and sore he asked John to finish them alone.  Web went into the house to sit for a spell before supper.

   Supper was eaten in near silence.  Web asked John to do the evening chores without him this evening, and after writing in his diary Web went to bed early.  Lydia gave him an extra free stone to help him get warm.

  In his diary he wrote:”Friday January 5, 1866  Dreadful Cold Day  Went up to Fathers  thrashed wheat  took home load of straw and the wheat  Froze both my ears”

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