My love of baking started when I was a very little girl, about three and a half to be exact. It all started during a visit to Nana and Bob’s house. Since Nana and Bob lived in Mississippi and I lived in Pennsylvania, any time we came to visit was a grand affair…and any grand affair was good reason to bake a cake. Now my Nana was not much of a baker, so we always used instant cake mix, but I still remember fondly how she used to let me help her make the cake. She even taught me that I could lick the bowl…
…of course I really liked that part. Anyway, this post isn’t about baking, it is about the little yellow ice cream chair that was Nana’s when she was a little girl. That chair (plus my three and a half year old self) gave me the height I needed to reach the kitchen countertop and learn how to mix up a cake mix with Nana…
…it also helped me to be tall enough to help bear the responsibility of cleaning up.
Throughout the years, the little yellow ice cream chair was used in family portraits, as a just-my-size seat, for a step stool and as a place to play.
See the little yellow ice cream chair in this picture from 1965 (above)? That’s my uncle in the back of the car. I’m guessing he was using the chair as a step stool to wash the top of the family car, while my Mom played her guitar over on the steps to keep him company.
These days, the little yellow ice cream chair has been used as a plant stand, a place to lean on and tie your shoes and most recently, it has been used as a stand for Leo’s water dish.
This little yellow ice cream chair has seen a lot of action in its day and it is still going strong, filling whatever role it needs to be to get the job done.
The little yellow ice cream chair lives in my den not far from Nana’s little yellow couch, and every time I happen to glance in it’s direction, I get the strangest craving for a piece of cake.
Sweet chair, sweet story, and–especially–sweet 70s decor in all those photos!
Thanks Rita!
My Nana and Bob lived in a very nice late 60s-70s style brick ranch house! Plus as you can probably tell from reading these stories on my blog, my Nana’s favorite color was yellow, which is one of the happiest and sunniest colors for decorating (except for possibly orange, which is my favorite!) 🙂
Nice old photos! Based on the taillights, that’s a 1960 or 1961 Mercury Comet wagon, same colors as the 1963 Comet wagon I’m restoring now.
Very cool Uncle Atom! I’m not sure of the make/year exactly, but perhaps my “Mid Century Mom” can chime in with the details! 🙂
Good eye, Uncle Atom! It was a 1961 Mercury Comet station wagon. (I actually still have the keys to it somewhere since I learned to drive in it.) When we traded it in in about 1967 we got a 1965 Mercury Comet station wagon which was black with “wood” sides and black vinyl interior. Since we lived near Newport, RI at the time and surfing was really big, our “woodie” of sorts was perfect for someone in high school and trying to be cool. 🙂 My brother drove the 1965 wagon through his college years and into his working career until it was stolen in Cambridge, MA in April of that ye (1980???) … the 400th car stolen in Cambridge so far that year. Guess burglars liked old wagons since it was before the mini van era took hold. He called me to tell me his car had been stolen but worst of all, his tools were in the back and were a bigger loss. Ahh the memories!
Kate .. love the little yellow chair post … Nana would be happy too to know that you are enjoying one of her lifelong treasures from her childhood … and that you have a fondness for yellow too.
Thanks for the car ID Mid Century Mom! 🙂
I’m sure Nana would get a kick out of how much I enjoy her treasures. 🙂
Love the mini-you photos! And how great that you still have that chair, it always seems to have jut the right place in your life!
Thanks Tasha! It does always have a spot in my life, doesn’t it. 🙂
Cute overload! How wonderful to have all those family photos showing Nana’s little yellow chair. P.S. You look JUST LIKE your mom!
Awww thanks Pam. Everyone says I look just like my Mom. Apparently we have the same voice too… 😉
“The Little Yellow Ice Cream Chair”–sounds like a good children’s book!
hmmmm that’s a good idea Sussie Q! Perhaps in the future I could make one about the chair. Wouldn’t that be fun!
Aw, this is so sweet! I love the vintage items that you treasure because of the memories they inspire, not just their aesthetics.
Thanks delicut! 🙂 Having some of these things in my house makes me feel like my grandparents (who have both passed away) are still here in spirit.