Our Life

The first 3.5 years of our married life found the two of us doing everything together. We were inseparable. We went to movies, to the lake with some of the teachers and their hubbies, to "ham" radio fests, shot at tincans with the .22 under the bridge, and just generally spent the hours we weren't working together.

Chuck was an amatuer radio operator. So I began studying Morse code with the idea that I might get my own conditional license. However, other things intervened and I never went forward with it.

I found out in summer school that I was pregnant. Morning sickness was no fun! I continued taking night and Saturday classes to renew my teaching certificate. I took an astronomy class in the evenings during first semester of 1958. We went to the teacher's house one evening where we were able to use his telescope to look at the stars and planets. It happened that Sputnik took its death fall that night. I was the first of the class to spot it. Our final test in Astronomy was supposed to be January 21 and that was my due date. The prof told me if I was happy with my grade, I didn't need to take the final. I agreed!

Every year there were students who made it easy to get through the day. In the fall of 1958, there was a delightful little girl named Patty Jo. Whenever I looked at here, she always smiled at me.

I taught until Christmas vacation and came back to the classroom when our baby was 6 weeks old. When I brought Patti to school to show the kids, they all looked at Patty Jo when I told them the baby's name was Patti.

We went to the Junction City Hospital January 14. Our baby girst was born at 2:07 a.m. and weighed 5 pounds 16 ounces. She had peach fuzz hair!

Her daddy wanted to name her Bonnie Eileen (after two of his old friends) He compromised and we named her Patti Eileen. The name Patti came from the little 4th grade girl. We spent a week in the hospital - and then one extra day because there was a snow storm.

Our life changed in a major way with a new baby to take care of. I found myself at home taking care of Patti when Chuck went off to do other things. That was hard.