Elsie.Com

On December 14, 2001, Elsie Decker turns 91 years old. Her 1 child, 4 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren want to say:
Happy Birthday Mom, Grandma, Great-Grandma!

For this special occasion, we want to express our favorite "memorable event" with Grandma.

Happy Birthday, Mom
 
I'll always remember what a great cook you were - before electricity - you'd make pudding - (in the winter) - set the bowls in the entry - where it was cool.  It would set great. 
 
Thanks for all the clothes you sewed me.  I think I was the best dressed kid in the country. 
 
Every Saturday was my job to clean the house, while you baked goodies for Sunday - and I cleaned the glass for the kerosene lamps, probably from 6 - 10 of them, they got so black from the kerosene smoke.  Had to be so careful not to break them.
 
Remember shaking the mulberry trees and my job to sort the good ones, from the twigs and green ones, on newspapers on the kitchen table.  My hands and teeth would get black - from eating them while I sorted.
Remember you raising geese and ducks, so you could buy your organ!!
I remember gathering eggs, didn't care for that job - cause - chickens would peck my hands - was so glad when you got automatic egg nests - where the chickens laid the egg - eggs would roll down to the bottom.
 Also, all the hours we cleaned eggs and packed them in the egg cardboard boxes. wow! 
I could go on and on - 
Trust you're having a great birthday. 
Love, VeAnna
 

One summer, when I was about five, I was staying on the farm. On this day, Grandpa was in the field, grandma was in the kitchen and my chore was to pack the eggs. If you remember, this was taking the eggs from the yellow baskets and putting them onto gray cardboard trays. There was a particular way of stacking the trays. If they weren’t stacked properly, eventually, it would topple over; the trays and smashed eggs would be on the floor. Grandma gave me everything I needed to complete my chore, a stool to stand on, a radio to keep me company, a demonstration of stacking the trays, and, of course, the eggs and trays. Being five, this was a big thing, packing the eggs by myself, I must be a grown-up. Well, it didn’t take long, until I was running up the stairs, because the eggs were on the floor. She wasn’t upset. She simply cleaned up the mess, gave me another demonstration and left me to complete my chore. Once again, I was running up the stairs, because the eggs were on the floor.

I don’t remember how many times I went running up the stairs because the eggs were on the floor, it seemed like many. I thing I do remember is grandma never getting upset; she was always very patient.
Love,
Vyleen Elsie


When I think of Grandma Decker there are so many memories. Life on the farm, grandma's love of music, her involvement in the church, so many....I especially remember the work on the farm, whether it was mowing grass, cleaning stringbeans, weeding the huge garden, or gathering eggs.  Always projects to be done, it was hard work but also very enjoyable & productive. But at then end of the day when the work was done, the motto was we worked hard, now we play hard.  In fact, the same playful spirit that grandma used, I use when playing with my 8 month old daughter........Thank you Grandma.....
Happy Birthday!!!

Love, Marwin


I remember spending summers at the farm.  I would bike the ½ mile driveway to the get the mail.  I spent a lot of time with grandma in the garden, weeding, picking beans, eating peas and corn right out of the garden.  We always took a rest after lunch, usually in the basement where it was cool.  I remember one winter grandpa brought in a calf whose mother wasn’t feeding it.  Grandma fixed a bottle for the calf and showed me how to feed the calf.  Grandma is a great cook.  I especially liked her homemade cottage cheese and the bread she baked in cans.  I have great memories from the farm with grandma filled with gardening, canning, working on projects for the church and lots of laughter.  Thanks grandma for all the things you taught me and for the wonderful memories.
Love,
Venette


1)  Many times of just being plain silly.  We had to finish our work for the day and then at night in the living room just being goofy.  I don't even remember all the things we did because it was varied but I do remember lots of laughter.

2) I must have been in 4 to 6th grade.  We were in the watermelon patch just off the back way to the farm between fields.  I had a 4-pronged pitch fork used (I think) to move straw around the melons.  Something happened and I wasn't happy about it and I had a bad attitude so much so that I threw down the pitch fork and punctured my left ankle.  When I pulled it out a vein popped out.  No blood at all, but it sure looked strange.  I learned to watch my attitude.  To this day I'm amazed that there was no major damage (a few inches higher would have hit my ankle bone) and no blood at all.

3) I must have been about in Junior High grandma & I drove into town (I think Sioux Falls).  It was supposed to be a quick stop or a stop I wasn't interested in going in, so I stayed in the car.  I got bored and turned on the radio.  When she came back, she was concerned when she realized the radio was on.  The battery was weak, she wasn't sure if the car would start.  Boy, was I praying.  Well, after a few attempts it started. What a sigh of relief!
Love,
Marlin Paul

We Love you Great-Grandma!!!