Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Answering Questions ~ Part Two

Do you or your daughters ever wear pants or shorts?

No, we don't.  We wear skirts and blouses, and dresses.
 
What colors do Amish women wear?

It varies from community to community. In the one where I grew up colors worn by women were all dark but in the shades of  blue, green, teal, purple, red, brown, black, and grey.
 
I never had a red dress though since my parents didn't think it was an appropriate color, especially since we had a store and dealt with the public on a regular basis. I can understand their reason.
 
Do men have more options for colors than women?

In the community where I grew up there were no colors or shades of colors off limits for men's shirts. With five brothers our clothes line used to look quite colorful every Monday morning.

What books other than the Bible do the Amish read?

This depends a lot on individual families and what their preferences are.  My parents were quite careful with what kind of reading material made it's way into our house, while my husbands family was much more lenient.  We had a lot of books written by the Amish as well as the Little House books, Anne of Green Gables series, Elsie Dinsmore series, and anything from Rod and Staff and Christian Light Publishing.  My husbands family had books by Lewis B. Miller, Louis L'Amour, Grace Livingston Hill, lots of mystery, as well as Christian romance.  I was in book bliss after we got married and I was introduced to a lot of new genres and authors.

Have you added a lot of new books to your home library since leaving the Amish?

We have added some books, but not nearly as many as we used to buy while we were Amish. As a matter of fact we got rid of a lot of books after we left the Amish.

Do you ever miss the more simple life?

Every once in a while. Mostly just when the power goes off and I think of the days when I never had to worry about having my life interrupted like that.

How often do the Amish bathe?

This again varies from community to community and family to family.  During the winter we used to have a Saturday evening bath but during the summer we enjoyed a shower at least once a day.


And how did it seem to be able to have a shower after leaving the Amish?

At the time we left we were used to having daily showers year round so that part of our life didn't change when we left.

What do the Amish eat for breakfast? Also lunch and dinner?

This again varies from family to family. Growing up we used to have hearty breakfasts. To start off we had eggs, slightly salty slices of onions and buttered bread. We would cut it up, mix it together and enjoy it. (It's still delicious!) Next we had fried cornmeal mush with tomato gravy, followed by oatmeal with some kind of pie or cake and a cup of hot unsweetened tea.  Oatmeal had a huge gag factor for me so I always passed on it and sipped my tea while the others ate.
 
For lunch during the school year we had soup, bread, some kind of pickles or red beets, and fruit.  During the summer we used to have potatoes and gravy, meat, vegetables, and salad.
 
For dinner we had potatoes and gravy, meat, vegetables, and if the garden was in season we added salad. We always had dessert afterwards.
 
Saturday evenings we enjoyed soup with fresh homemade bread, hard boiled eggs, and most of the time peaches.
 
What are some of your favorite foods?
Fried chicken, pasta...... I enjoy almost anything except oatmeal.

16 comments:

  1. Lol! I bet you would like baked oatmeal, it has none of the glue-like texture. My husband despises oatmeal too, but he loves it baked. Have you tried it before?

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  2. I hope I am not late in asking....Do Amish have set days for chores like laundry etc and what is the schedule? Or is it different in each community?

    Erika
    Have enjoyed the posts

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  3. Today we read your post at the breakfast table, and my husband who enjoys his breakfast was delighted to hear of the sliced onions with the morning meal. Looks like we'll be adding those to our morning fare. :) Once again, very interesting and pleasant reading here. Thank you!

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  4. I 3rd the oatmeal!! I wish I liked it though.

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  5. Growing up I often had oatmeal for breakfast. But I remember my dad saying that his mother made it every day, and now that he had a choice, he would never eat it again. And he didn't!

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  6. LOL! Oatmeal has a huge YUCK factor for me too, but my kiddos love it!! lol! Let's just say that oatmeal day is *smoothie* day for mom! :D Thanks for sharing!--S

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  7. I really like oatmeal, but don't eat it often...moreso in winter, because it is so heavy, and I'm not a heavy eater in the mornings.
    Would you believe that my husband's aunt ate it uncooked, like a cold cereal, with milk and sugar?! He does, as well! Now that is something I'm not going to try! :-) Shredded wheat is a favorite of mine, whether cold or with hot milk and butter.

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  8. So interesting!
    I really learned alot about you and your family.
    Have a great day!

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  9. Why did you choose to no longer be Amish and when?

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  10. I absolutely adore oatmeal! Not the quick stuff (and heaven forbid instant oatmeal should ever cross my door step) but the good, old-fashioned five minute kind. With raisins, please, or dried cranberries if you have them. To me it is the ultimate comfort food. Cream of Wheat, on the other hand, is a differnt story completely. It never fills me up. I could probably eat it all day and never get full. Waste of time and money. And never mind Wheatina. It always "came apart" and got in my teeth and stuck tothe inside of my mouth. Do they even make that stuff any more? And the only cold cereal I like is Quaker Oat Squares, but they are so expensive I seldom get them.

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  11. Tomato Gravy? I thought my mom was the only one in the whole world who made tomato gravy!!! I love it but we have it for lunch. Curious how you make it?

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  12. Interesting reading, thanks for sharing:)

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  13. We had a lot of oatmeal growing up as well as other breakfast foods. We still have oatmeal once in a while but not the instant as Lady Anne stated. Love seeing these post.
    Mrs. J.

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  14. On the food one, if you were a Quaker, you'd have gotten a question specifically about oatmeal. It's like the company that lifted the name is the only Quaker thing some people have heard of...

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  15. Oh! I just read that you had several books in your home by Rod and Staff publishers, that's where we get our home school curriculum and several of our enjoyement reading books for our children. *smile* We watch Little House on the Prarie and Anne of Green Gables as I watched them before I ever read the books. I have read aloud the first Little House book to the children though. *smile* Our children have a love for books that I didn't have until I read my first Jannette Oke book. *smile* Have a blessed day. Sincerely, Mommy of two little blessings & so much more!

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Thank you so much for taking time to comment. I love hearing your thoughts.