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[Page 65]
treatment and looking after. Every hour of the day I had something to give him to build him up again. I had to take him back to the hospital every week until he picked up and he had to rest a lot and at this stage not allowed to go back to school, then visit the hospital 2 weeks, and then it got to monthly and doctor told me I could now send him to school for a half day only, so he gave me a certificate to that affect, and take Albert back in 3 months. So this I did and I also told him that he may as well be back for the full day at school as he was not resting, so he allowed him to go back. Well it was a break for me.
Well now it is the 8th December 1941. I am a bit late putting this in about Albert. I must put pieces in about him when I can remember them as you will all find out as this story unfolds. A (Great Boy). Now we shall return to Christmas 1942 with the 7 of the children. We all stayed at our place for Christmas that year and we all enjoyed it. Nanna had bought the children some games she found at Paddy's Markets, and she came down and had Christmas tea with us, and the children were playing with this game and Nanna asked what it was and they said you gave it to us Nanna and it was called Crown & Anchor. Well they were playing with pennies and half pennies, it was a gambling game but Nanna did not know there was Ludo, Snake & Ladders, and there was also another but I can not remember. Well they used to play this game every Christmas afternoon and I think the eldest girl Merle still has it at her home.
We are now coming into 1943 and Merle is off to High School, navy skirt, white blouse, the others still going to Clempton Park and Merle's friends Margaret Thomson and Jean Pringle, the 2 of them were at Clempton Park also and those girls are still friends I think. Margaret Thomson is Merle's eldest boy's Godmother. Beryl is now the one if I have to go to Sydney which I had to do at times. I keep her at home from school to look after Margaret and Yvonne. I could rely on her to do that but not housework. and I would be back in time to feed Yvonne as she was still on the breast, and I was lucky I was able to feed all my babies. Beryl is now 11 years, Albert 10 at the end of the year, Betty 8 September 1943, Margaret is 2 years, John 6 years in July and Yvonne will be 1 year in November. Now we get another war year over and we are still managing OK.
We are in 1944 and I am still making some of those canvas covers I mentioned for the step on the planes, it was Berkemyre not ordinary canvas. Also I had a lot of scrap material that the wings of the planes were covered also I acquired an old silk parachute and I was able to make all kinds of clothes and things for the children and myself. Everything came in very useful, nothing was ever wasted. We had a long hall in the house at Earlwood and all the floors had lino on them. Well they all had to be washed and polished and the children used to slide around after I had put the polish to shine them. We had the place very nice and clean, and we always had plenty to eat. The Dairy was over the road and when they had the beasting milk (that is the first milk after calf is born), the milkman always left me 3 or 4 gallons of it. It was great for cooking custard, baked custard, rice or sago puddings as no eggs were needed and they were delicious. I often wonder what happens to that milk these days. It was real yellow, no good for drinking. It had to be cooked.