The Cat's Out of the Bag

Apparently Grandpa had to break the news of the secret marriage to Grandma's mother and Grandma's grandfather all by himself.

In the letter dated March 31, 1930, Grandpa tells Grandma...

"Well, it's all over now.  I went over to see your mother.  She said that she thot we were married when she heard they had a shower on you but that she couldn't figure when, so I told her when.  She said that she wished us lots of good luck and I said 'thanks, maybe we'll need it.'  She didn't seem angry in the least, I didn't tell her where we went or who went with us tho.  You'd better pass the candy and get ready to quit Sat."

Looks Like the Honeymoon is Over

If the letter contained bitter words and anger, Grandma's bold, block lettering was a telling indicator compared to the penmanship on other envelopes as pictured below.

I have mixed emotions about sharing the contents of the latest letters.  

The dates of the letters are now post Grandma and Grandpa's elopement, and they are certainly not what I would expect to hear from two newlyweds.  It would appear that they definitely had a rocky start to their semi-secret, impromptu nuptials.  Again, I have to remind myself that the ages of these two individuals (whose letters I'm reading now) were only 19 and 23 at the time.  Florian and Helen were not the 60-something grandparents I met when I came on the scene.

From their letters dated January 28, 1930:  instead of enjoying a honeymoon, the couple agonized over money and job issues, former love interests, relatives, and feelings of humiliation and uncertainties.

Rather than divulging the unpleasant details of these two particular letters from 84 years ago (almost to the day), I will leave you with these findings...

Grandpa used the word "cribbin" in his letter:

"Check out up there this week end.  If you don't I'll know your cribbin on me."

In looking up the word "cribbin" in the online Urban Dictionary, there are several definitions--all of which seem to be slang for more current-day activities.  I did find one definition that could be related to what Grandpa was saying which was Definition #4:  "The act of staying in ones area of residence or comfort zone."

...and then this finding...

Grandpa's first letter to Grandma after they were married was written on Kiwanis Club stationery.

Happy Anniversary Grandpa & Grandpa!

On this day, 84 years ago, the two people who exchanged the letters I've been transcribing...tied the knot! Using their middle names on the official record and taking Grandpa's mother to be their witness, they traveled from Marshalltown, Iowa to Knoxville, Iowa to elope.  Upon their return to Marshalltown, they each went to their respective homes where they would continue to correspond with each other for several months before telling the family about their secret marriage.

Why they got married on this particular day and why they kept it secret for so long will hopefully be revealed as I continue reading their story and gathering information through their letters.  

NaNoWriMo Day 6 - She Was Only 18

I did the math today...Grandma would've been 18 years old and Grandpa was 21 at the time these letters were exchanged.  AND...it would be two years before they would elope and subsequently hide their elopement from Grandma's parents for a month.

After reading and transcribing Grandma's letter from Aug. 19, 1927, it's a wonder Grandpa ever returned from Calif.

TOTAL WORD COUNT = 11,967