Button, Button, Whose Got the Button

Do you remember the game, Button, Button, Whose Got the Button we played at parties as children?  It was a popular game and everyone loved trying to guess who the button was given to.  Well Muscatine, Iowa, is or was at one time, the pearl button capital of the world.  They manufactured 37% of the world's pearl buttons.  We visited the button museum to see how it was done.

In the late 1800's a German immigrant trying to begin a career decided to harvest the clam and mussel beds and turn the pearly looking shells into buttons.  He would drill plugs and turn them into buttons through a process he perfected.  People laughed at him, but he soon proved them wrong.  Before long, everyone was jumping on the bandwagon to collect shells and begin their own button making business.  The deep and thick beds were soon depleted within thirty to forty years.  Many species became extinct and the industry then turned to making plastic buttons.  China took over the button business and the factories closed down in the 1960's. 

Display cases show the hundreds of varieties and colors of buttons that were once popular.  Videos and pictures tell the story of this great industry's rise and fall before we were even born.  People loved to collect buttons and sew them on their jackets.  Many button collections have been donated to the museum.

We asked the guide how to tell the difference between pearl buttons and plastic ones.  She said to hold the button to your cheek.  If it was cold, it was a pearl one.   There were barrels of plastic buttons we could purchase by the cupful.  I held them to my cheek.  They also felt cold to the touch.

Our lesson on buttons was in Muscatine.
It's a tidy town with cool things to be seen.
There's a lock, river and grist mill so keen.
With lots to do in this town so nice and clean.

Blossoms Beautiful

Spring brings so much beauty as the trees, bushes and flowers begin to bloom.  It takes great planning to select stock from the many varieties of trees.  As the days warmed up in April each tree took its turn to burst out into gorgeous colors.  I wish I knew their names such as Magnolia, flowering crab apple, pear, and such.  Each one as unique in color and flower shape as the people on the earth.

This walkway from the Women's Garden to Main Street takes visitors toward the Main Street of Historic Nauvoo.  The Grounds sisters work on it often to keep it looking pristine and perfect.
An up-close Magnolia? blossom and the rest of the tree is inviting all to view it up close.

A carpet of violets covers the ground near the Stone Arch Bridge stairway.  This photo doesn't come close to seeing the lavender color and sweet smell.  The tiny violets popped up in many places.  It was as if they were saying, "Forget me not."

Out our second floor bedroom window is a lovely view of the Mississippi River as the trees are budding out.  This tree with lilac look-a-like flowers that grow on the bark is gorgeous.  I thank the many botanist husbandmen that nurtured starts and cuttings from all parts of the world years ago  to create these amazing trees for all to enjoy.

Stopping the Sabbatical Stretch & Sweeping the Stairs

Hi and I'm back!

I've been in Nauvoo, Illinois, on a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for fifteen months.  It's been busy here and I work five days a week six hours a day.  At first I was so exhausted when I got home, I had a nap every day.  Gradually, I was able to stay awake the entire day.  I found many other things to occupy my time.

I neglected my blogs which I loved keeping up.  Instead emails worked out.  Yes, there are fifty plus people on the mailing list.  How many read my letters?  I have no idea.  Many say they really enjoy them, others I hear nary a word.

I could never figure out how to down load pictures to the laptop.  The Apple one died, and now I have a little Chromebook and didn't think it could do it, but the day has come that I now am back in business.

This photo is the stairway down to the stone arch bridge by the Great River Road in Nauvoo, Illinois.  When we arrived in March 2018 it looked all cluttered with leaves.  That bothered me, but I never took the time to do something about it.  Now fifteen months later on a cool Saturday afternoon, I took broom, dustpan, and rake.  In an hour it was swept and scraped clean. 

It looks so much more inviting now.  When new guests stop to see the beautiful stream at the bottom of the stairs, they won't have to step over this mess.  It is almost as lovely as the scene that greets them below.    See you next time.  

The River Road signs beside the military flags and tribute are a must see. 

My sabbatical stretch I will now stop.
Posting weekly or more, watch this blog pop!
See the fun sites, events and horses clip, clop.
You'll see what abounds in Nauvoo.  Hip! Hop!