Other Grandparents!!!

The way I have been going on about Nana and Dad you would think I only had one set of grandparents. I had two of course.
My moms parents, Dr. and Mrs. Charles Miles McKinlay, Mina and Paw. They were my very own grandparents and I had them to myself for 10 yrs. It was great. I loved visiting them.
Mina always had spice gumdrops in the sitting room. She always had a delicious dinner served every evening at the big dining room table. Nice china and silver and her crystal was always sparkling.
She was from Paris, Kentucky. Daughter of a well known tobacco farmer by the name of Hume Taylor Ferguson. He owned a large farm on the Paris-Georgetown pike. It was a grand home and I was always at awww of it when we would go there at Christmas. She had 6 brothers and sisters. Pop Paw Ferguson was a dear man and very hard working. He had one nasty habit, chewing tobacco. LOL and a spitune by every chair that was his favorite.
Anyway, my Paw was a gentleman and a very respected Dr. in Lexington, Kentucky. He was the head of Pediatrics at Good Samaritan Hospital, was the cheif Dr. at the Cardinal Hill Hospital for Children and was Head Pediatrician at the Shriners Hospital in Lexington. So needless to say he was a busy man and had his own practice.
My Paw was a sweet kind man and loved children. He dedicated his life to caring for the health of all children. Took his hypocratic oath very seriously and did serve his patients. He never turned down a child that needed shots or care. He would venture out in the middle of the nite to care for one that needed him. I was very lucky to have him care for me my entire younger life--and also my children when they were little ones. He was a blessing and I loved him dearly.
He was born in New York City and moved at a young age to Tenafly, New Jersey. He went to University of Penn. Cant remember where he went to med. school but it was a brilliant school.
I have the information somewhere but will have to look. He served as a Medic in WWI, did his residency in NYC at Roosevelt hospital. He met my grandmother at a dance for afluent young ladies that were eligible and also was a military dance for the young service men that were officers to meet young ladies. Anyway, they met and married and moved to NYC after the war was over and Paw could continue and finish his residency. That is where my mom was born.
When she was 6 mos. old they moved and Paw opened his practice in Lexington, Kentucky.
Anyway, visiting them was always nice. Usually after supper Paw and I would take a walk and go to the old Ball Ice Cream Co. on North Broadway in Lexington. He would always buy me a double decker Ice Cream Cone. It was the best Ice Cream in the world. I wasnt suppose to have but one dip but he always got me two and made me eat one before we got back to the house.
They lived in the cul de sac of Fayette Park off of North Broadway. It was a grand old home.
And had plenty of room for me to ride my tricycle and later a bike. There were lots of evenings that Paw would let me play his eukalale. It was fun and loved to hear him strum it and sing little old songs he knew.
My sweet Mina was the one that taught me to say the Lords Prayer. She and I would kneel beside her bed and say it together. Then I would ask her to rock me in the huge old rocking chair she had in her room and sing to me. Then I would go to bed. I got to sleep in the other twin bed in her room. I loved it the sounds of the city. Put me to sleep immediately.
Well enough for tonite getting sleepy and need to get some rest. Miss you Mina and Paw.

Dress Up Days

Many days spent at Nana's house on the farm were fun. Her house was so massive that it could be scarey if you were to spend the night with her and Dad alone. It was always more fun to stay with another cousin.
My mom and Aunts used to go to lunch at Nana's quite often. We 3 girls would go upstairs and be nosey. We always were leary of the attic. Making up stories of the boogy man and ghosts in the attic we always shy ed away from going up there.
One day we decided that we would be adventurous and be brave and scout out the attic.
It was amazing in what we found. A little girls dream for dressing up. It was unbelieveable!!
We found beautiful old fashion dresses, shoes, huge wide brimmed hats, gloves and a box of old dolls. We all 3 thought we had hit the mother load.
The dresses were of tafita and lace. One was a lavender dress with a gorgeous shash and covered in lace. It had matching gloves and shoes and a huge wide brimmed hat with flowers and grogain ribbons flowing off of it. The other was a pale pink and had beads and lace covering the bodice and lace covering the tafita. Long sleeves of lace with little beads for buttons.
Huge full crinalines and two gorgeous ball gowns that went with them.
There were some pantaloons and one gown with a hoop skirt.
The box of dolls were different. They were all very old and had handpainted faces. They were very different. The clothes were all handmade. We found out that Nana's aunt and grandma loved making doll clothes. They made all of Nana's doll clothes. The were very unique.
Well after finding all these new things to play with we would put on style shoes for the ladies.
Nana would find some music on the radio and we would strut our stuff and twirl around.
They would snicker at us and clap and we would all giggle.
With putting on heels that were too big we would topple over every once in a while. We would all laugh and keep on styling.
Nana was very giving and would let us play with the dresses and other things as long as we put them back in the trunk the way we found them. What fond memories those are. We had found new treasures at Nana's and had a blast.
What a great lady she was!!! God Bless Nana!!!