Howdy! Maybelle Crabtree, here. That’s my married name. I was Maybelle Marie Mathison before that. My name comes from both of my grandmothers: May Wheeler and Belle Mathison. We lived in the same town as my mom’s parents and I spent a lot of time with May May, my grandmother. I was Little May around my family and May at school until college when I just kept it Maybelle.
My Early Years
I looked the name “Maybelle” up once and it said that it was French for Mabel and means “my beautiful” or “lovable” depending on the source. French is not how I would describe myself. Country Hick is more like it. Beautiful may be stretching it a bit too. I watched television shows like Beverly Hillbillies and Hee Haw to practiced having a southern accent. When asked where I was from I would say, “South California.” Got some strange looks with that response.
Born and raised in southern California; I spent my childhood in the Inland Empire (the I.E. to us natives). Smogville USA us kids use to call it. You couldn’t see the beautiful mountain ranges that surrounded the valley because of all the smog. Police helicopters flew around the town on summer evenings announcing over their loud speakers for all the citizens to stay indoors due to the third stage smog alert.
My Life Now
I live in north Los Angeles County in a high fire danger zone. Nobody told me that when we moved there. I found out when I was reading about one of our latest wildfires a couple of years ago. The article said you could put your address into the CalFire website and find out your risk assessment. I put in our address and boom! We are smack dab in the middle of the zone. I guess I should have realized that with all the wildfires that have burned around us. Never had to evacuate, though we packed up the cars a couple of times.
“We” is my husband, Tom, and myself. We’ve been married over 25 years. It hasn’t always been easy but it’s been interesting. Our first home together was a small, two-bedroom condo in the South Bay area of Los Angeles. Matthew, our son, lived his first year of life in that place.
Tom received a promotion at work and it was time to move up. We found Primrose Lane in the Meadowlands housing development in the city of Alta Vista. Our house is 3 times the size of that condo with a big backyard and more space than we thought we could ever fill. Then the girls came along, Laurel and then Holly, and all that empty space filled up. It is the only home our children have ever known and the mortgage is paid off. So as long as we can pay the property taxes each year, the house is ours.
Why Now?
You may be wondering why I am doing this blog now. Well, the youngest has finally graduated from high school and off to college. My job as a full-time, stay-at-home mom has been eliminated due to lack of duties. Aside from being empty-nesters, Tom recently retired. It is a new chapter in our lives. I hit menopause a few years ago and it dawned on me that I am closer to the end of my life then the beginning. I do not think of it in a morbid way; just as a way to remind myself that life is short and sometimes you have to take chances. If not now than when?
I’ve always wanted to write. Just didn’t know exactly what to write. I’ve dabbled in short stories, poetry, and a couple of rough drafts for novels. I have been told to write what you know. So what do I, Maybelle Crabtree, know? I know about me, my family, some of my crazy, make that interesting, neighbors, and maybe a few things about life in general. So that’s what I’m going to write about. God willing, it will be entertaining too.
So here I am taking the first step of a new journey in my life. Thank you for joining me. I hope you will travel a long way with me. I’ll share stories that can make you laugh and that will make you cry. You might find out too much about me but isn’t that what friendship is all about? Pull up something comfy to sit in, have a refreshing drink beside you, and relax with some of my adventures of life on Primrose Lane.
God bless you all, Maybelle Crabtree.
Delightful.
Thank you.