In Grandma's Attic Read Free Page A

caused a search party to spend many anxious hours looking for me.

4
    Ma’s Busy Day
    Grandma’s quilt was almost finished. We had been tying it and talking about the brightly colored squares that had so many good stories in them.
    “I’d like a dress like this, Grandma,” I said, pointing to a square with tiny green leaves and flowers. “This is pretty.”
    “Yes,” replied Grandma. “That was pretty when it was made up. It was one of Ma’s dresses before she made it into an apron. In fact, a lot of these squares came from Ma’s aprons. She was never seen without an apron on anyplace but in church.”
    Grandma laughed. “Pa never let her forget that she tied an apron over her nightgown one night before she got into bed! I remember another day that Ma didn’t live down for a long time.”
    Grandma sat down by the table, and I pulled up the kitchen stool.

    When Ma dressed in the morning, she put on a clean apron over her housedress. Then she carried a fresh one with her to the kitchen to hang on the back door. This was to make sure that, should we have company, a clean apron in which to greet the visitor would be nearby.
    This morning, as usual, Ma hung her extra apron on the door and prepared to fix breakfast. I was setting the table, and the boys were coming from the barn with the milk. Ma hurried to open the door and let them in. Pep, our big dog, had also seen them coming and figured this might be a chance to get into the warm kitchen. He lunged for the door just as Roy was going through. One of the milk pails flew into the air, and Roy and Pep were covered with fresh, warm milk.
    “Oh, that dog,” Ma sputtered. “There’s only one thing he can do better than make a mess, and that’s eat.” She mopped up the milk, sent Roy to change his clothes, and rubbed at the front of her apron with a towel.
    “I haven’t time to change now,” she said, grabbing the apron from the door and putting it on over the spattered one.
    It was baking day, and Ma was busy making bread, pies, and cakes, keeping the stove hot, and cleaning up the kitchen. She had no time to think about her apron again.
    Shortly before dinnertime at noon, Ma saw a buggy turn into the lane. “Mabel,” Ma called to me, “run and get me a fresh apron, will you? Someone is coming up the lane.”
    I brought the apron, and Ma quickly put it on and tied it just as the visitor approached the house. It was a neighbor who’d driven over to ask Ma if she could come that afternoon to see his wife, who was not feeling too well. Of course Ma could, but wouldn’t he stay and have dinner with us first?
    After dinner, when Pa and the boys returned to the field, Ma and I packed a basket to take to the neighbor. As we were about to set out, Ma looked down at her apron.
    “Mabel,” she said, “I believe I’d better have a fresh apron before we leave.” I got another apron, and Ma tied it on as we walked to the buggy.
    It was getting on toward suppertime when we returned. Ma planned what we would fix, and we hurried about the kitchen getting supper on the table before Pa and the boys came in.
    As we prepared to sit down, Ma decided that her apron didn’t look very good, so she hurried to the bedroom for another.
    Pa came in and sat down at the table. He watched Ma as she finished taking up the food and supervising the boys’ washing.
    “Maryanne,” Pa said, “have you been putting on weight?”
    “Why, no,” Ma replied. “I don’t think so. My clothes feel the same. Why?”
    “Well,” said Pa, “I declare you look bigger than you did this morning when I left the house.”
    “I know why,” I said. “Ma’s got more clothes on than she did this morning.” Ma looked puzzled for a moment, then she began to laugh.
    “I guess I have,” she said. “I’ve been rushing around so fast today that I haven’t had time to take one apron off before I put another one on.”
    She began to untie the aprons and take them off. With each one Pa and the