Here are a few pics representing my wonderful late mother at different times…

This was my Mom, Ida, at the age of one year! She had lots of curly ringlets that came naturally, so I was told. (Thanks so much, Ma, I got them from you!) Note Ida’s dress, painstakingly handmade by her mother, my Bubby. See the precious eyelets and ribbons, especially that huge bow crowning her head. See also the pendant and bracelet – my ancestors loved their jewellery, I understand.

Here’s beautiful Ida in 1938, when she was almost 26. A downtown shopping trip meant dressing up in those days. Look at that jaunty flower in her hair, and the other fancy bow assuring a modest neckline. She’s holding white gloves – a de rigueur fashion accessory right up until the mid-60s. Doesn’t she look like a movie star?!

Here’s a typical photo of my sociable Mom among her pals in the Cote St. Luc Seniors’ Club, circa 1980. This may have been the year she was program director. Eventually she’d be co-president. (This was back before the club split into separate men’s and women’s groups.)

Now we’re in the early 2000s, maybe 2002. An old friend of mine created this little collage of Mom and her beloved little dog, Boo-boo. He was a Yorkie she was gifted with, some years previously, who seldom left her lap! I think he was one of the reasons she hung on until almost 93 years of age, succumbing to congestive heart failure in 2005. Boo-boo had a fine ‘retirement’ after Mom had to leave him: he spent his last years with my daughter’s in-laws and their two Labrador retrievers.

I love having these photos to gaze at whenever I want more tangible reminders of my sweet Mom.