Since Mother's Day is fast approaching I thought I'd share this photo and a little bit about my mother. She was born Evelyn Marguerite Gilman on March 29, 1914, the oldest of eight children. She married my dad, Gaylord N. Gardner on December 7, 1933. They met, married and lived in the Belen, New Mexico area until 1945 when they moved to southwest Colorado. They bought the farm that I spent my entire life on, sometime before 1948.
This photo has the date August 1955 in the margin and is one the very first color photos in my mom's photo albums. Left to right: my sister, Marilyn, who is their 3rd child. Next to her is our mom and then Janice, who is their 2nd child and the oldest girl. The little tyke standing on the fence is the youngest of all of us, Gaye Lynn and next to her is the oldest child, Noel.
In front on the left is me, and then my brother Gerry, who is their 4th child.
My mom loved the Lord and served Him. She loved her family and was the utmost as a farm wife and mother. She was also a musician, played the piano and taught a multitude of piano students all through her life. She encouraged, nurtured and helped four of her six children to learn to play and do it well, fortunately I am one of those four. She worked hard at caring for our home, her husband and her children. She was the best cook and knew how to raise a garden of gargantuan size, put it all away for the winter, bake, sew, do just about everything there was to do, keep us all pretty well . . . and love us like crazy!!! She became very ill with chronic lymphocytic leukemia which eventually, after several long, hard years, took her life on February 6, 1994. She was quite the lady!!!! And I miss her so much!!! THANK YOU MOM FOR YOUR LEGACY!!!! HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!
