Do you have a special cousin? Luckily I do and her name is Sue. In this fabulous photo (circa 1915) is our Grandmother with her children. Sue's Mother is second from the left and the eldest, mine is on the right. The boy on the left is my Mother's twin, and the two girls in Grandmother's arms are their twin sisters.
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Our Mothers were close, went away to boarding school together, learned dressmaking and worked together before they married. Sue was born nine months before me and this photo was taken in 1944 when our Mums walked us along the seafront in my home town, Torquay. Sue is obviously practicing toddling while I'm chubby and crying because I'm stuck in the pram - or perhaps just embarrassed by Mum's pillbox hat!
Fast forward to two weeks ago......................now in our sixties (where did all those years go?) kissin' cousins became lickin' cousins. We giggled over this English version of Dairy Queen with a Cadbury's chocolate flake candy bar stuck in. Amazing what grown women will do at the seaside...............especially cousins..JPG)
We then stopped by the house in the center of Teignmouth where Sue grew up.......this was the door we passed through constantly when we were children. My Uncle's real estate business was located on the ground floor, and my dear Auntie's dressmaking workroom was upstairs - I loved watching her sew beautiful clothes. Both Sue and I became handy with a needle and thread thanks to our Mothers' sewing skills, and their patience instructing us in needle arts.
We had so much fun in this house during Summer holidays - the back looked out to a row of posh hotels where we watched the Italian waiters and the dish washers in the kitchens from our bedroom window! The beach and amusement pier were around the corner.
Sue has lived here all her adult life......the prettiest cottage which was once the carriage house to a large estate home.
The entrance gates open into a beautiful courtyard and an upper garden by the red stone wall and.................................................. 
....................you can see how Sue and her DH Johan (the most delightful Dutch man) have made it such a beautiful place to relax.
Cousins.......coffee........a sunny October day in Devon..........perfect! Sue, I hope you read this and know how much I love you. I am so grateful to have had you all these years as my very special cousin.
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How delightful to have a special cousin that you still see over all these years! Her home looks so wonderful and well...she is married to a Dutchman. What can I say?! :)
ReplyDeleteI just love the old photo of your mothers and grandmother! What a precious thing to have old photos like this. Aren't they so romantic in blacka and white? Now why would you cry when you can be wheeled around in the adorable pram? They are all the fashion here again. People look for really old ones to use instead of the new fangle ones on the market. Much nicer too.
By the way, I hope both you and Sue went inside and got a real ice cream cone after the photo?
~~ Heidi ~~
Beautiful post Mary. Your cousin Sue sounds lovely as is her home.
ReplyDeleteOh Mary - I so love this post! I have cousins who are more like sisters to me. I think there is a special bond between some cousins - obviously between you and Sue. What fun you two must have had! I'm so happy that you got to visit with her!
ReplyDeleteThe photo of your mum as a child - I can see so much of you in that photo. (Did I ever tell you that my fraternal grandmother had three sets of twins? She was from County Durham ...My maternal granny had one set.)
This is a most lovely place - I would love to visit there!
I think you look like your Gramma.
ReplyDeleteI have a special cousin named Louise. We grew up playing with paper dolls. We have the best memories. She lives here but goes to Florida for the winter. I sure miss her.
Your photos are great. I love the look of that ice cream cone. The cadbury would make it much better than Dairy Queen.
Nancy
Oh! How good it is to have a special cousin. I have a cousin that i was close to when we were kids. We are not close any longer. she lives many miles away, plus I'll life style is different now.
ReplyDeleteI see a bit of you in your grandmother's face. Thanks again for another peek at beautiful England.
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful to have such a special relationship and memories! I'm not close to any of my cousins. That courtyard is so pretty!
ReplyDeleteManuela
My first comment to you! Thank you for the family pictures. They mean a lot to me. I can see some resemblance! Can't wait to see all of your pictures!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this post, so much, Mary! I had a special cousin, too! We are 11 months apart. I'm the oldest.
ReplyDeleteLoved the photos!
Pat
Oh, such a perfect little cottage! they have done a beautiful job with it! And the shop is so quaint and inviting! How blessed you have each other and such sweet shared memories!
ReplyDeleteOh Mary! What a wonderful post. You are so lucky to have your cousin Sue. You and she are both beautiful and have a great sense of humor, if the ice cream tells a story. What a pretty little cottage and the garden shows so much love.
ReplyDeleteMary, Oh I think this photo is wonderful! I've seen it on another of your post and fell in love with it! How adorable your Mother and Grandmother are..
ReplyDeleteI so enjoy coming to your blog for a smile and to view your gorgeous photos!
I know how homesick you are. My heart goes out to you.
My Mother and Father were both
born in Italy they came here to the US at age 16.. My Mother never got over being homesick for Italy. In 1973 I went with my Mother to Italy. We stayed almost a month.
I remember how sad she was when she came back home from our visit..
She and my Father always said someday they wanted to go back to Italy and live.. They never did. They both passed away in 1988 just 10 weeks of each other.
Please know how much joy your blog gives all of us.. Hugs & love sweet friend! ~Mary~