A is for Aprons

It’s April! Time for the A to Z Blog Challenge. Each day through April (except Sundays) we’re writing a blog post to the Letter of the Day. The 1^st is ‘A’, the 2^nd is ‘B’ … and so on until we get to ‘Z’.

Some of the participating blogs have themes – and some don’t. Bread and Butter Days like to share tidbits from the past. Stop back by tomorrow to see what we added. Or, better yet, follow us and the post will go directly to your inbox. And don’t worry, after April is we go back to the once a week schedule (if that), so your inbox won’t explode.

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A: APRONS

Who can think of the ‘good old days’ without picturing the woman standing in the kitchen with her ever present apron on? Here’s a few tidbits about aprons from the past. It’s from Facebook and the author isn’t named, so I’m not sure who to give credit to.

THE HISTORY OF APRONS

I don’t think our kids know what an apron is. The principle use of Grandma’s apron was to protect the dress underneath because she only had a few. It was also because it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and aprons used less material. But along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.

It was wonderful for drying children’s tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.

From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.

When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids.

And when the weather was cold, Grandma wrapped it around her arms.

Those big old aprons wiped many a-perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.

Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.

From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.

In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.

When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.

When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men folk knew it was time to come in from the fields for dinner.

It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that ‘old-time apron’ that served so many purposes.