lovely olden days'

Little house on the hill                       sweet violets'                                       winter day's                                          most loved                                            New season's                                        hill lindincne

content's

anna where are you? 6

The search end's 24

Nettie 31

Anna go's to town 37

anna where are you?

Ma fastened little Anna's sunbonnet snugly on her chin. ''Such a lovely day Anna!'' Ma told her as she tied the ribbon. Pa was out hitching up the buggy. He put fresh clean hey on the ground of the cover  wagon and made sure the nose - bag was filled for the horse's. Ma came out of the house holding Anna in her arm's. ''Ahh such a fine day it is!'' pa exclaimed as he took the picnic basket from ma and helped her and little Anna up the wagon step's. ''It is John'' ma said with her gentle smile. Anna was only a little girl she was 3 and knew some word's well like ''Pa and Ma or may and yes ''.

anna where are you?

Anna Adele Peterson was her full name the Peterson's lived across a  lovely meadow  and through the river on a green little hill.  The buggy's wheels made tracks in the bare ground  and dust was at the heel of the wheel's. Ma sat straight she pulled her bonnet father frontward  so her face was covered. She pushed Anna's  frontward 's too. To protect her delicate skin from the sun. Pa slouched while driving the team  and held the rein's lousily. Ma held Anna in her lap because she was far to little to sit in the back. Perhaps when she grow's she could.  

The wagon jerked to a stop. Pa jumped out and held ma's hand while she slowly climbed out with Anna. ''Ooh!''  screeched Anna her hand pointed to some thing. ''Those are bunny's dear'' ma gently told her. ''Bunny's! Helen those are jack rabbit's! a fellow's game!'' pa told her. His voice boomed out laughing. It startled the prairie ground's like wind dos when it blow's. His laughed echoed inside ma and she softly smiled at her husband .''Well bunny's or not!What's the difference?.'' Ma told him as she unpacked the food.

 anna where are you

''Well Helen a man must know the difference of game  if he's to hunt'' pa told her while scooping up Anna with one arm his eye's twinkled merrily. ''Well'' ma said faintly ''I see no reason why it was a joke John'' ma sat back she smoothed her hair with her hand. ''I guess but think of it! Game is all around us! we could hunt much as we please and still be be asking for more!'' pa replied . Anna quickly recognized the word ''Game'' and said ''game! bean soup bean soup!'' she laughed out.  

anna where are you

''Bean porridge hot dear'' ma told her. If Anna could say what's the difference  of ''Bean porridge hot and Bean soup'' she'd say bean soup and ma might say it was a name and must be said properly. Pa laughed at Anna because of the way she said it and his eye's twinkled again. Ma finished setting the little picnic up. They ate cheese and bread. She spread  the butter on Anna's bread and split the bread in half with her hand's. ''Any thing you need in town Helen?'' pa asked once they driven back home.

anna where are you

''I don't believe so John'' ma said she grabbed Anna's hand and took her inside. ''John I will be picking our garden's vegetable's with Anna'' ma told him while pa left on the buggy to town. ''Well now! come on then let's pick'' ma spoke to Anna like she she was pa. She took her sunbonnet off and put her dress on with coal black button's. The dress was cream color with printed blue flower's all around. Ma's was plain purple with ruffle's around the sleeve's but it was pretty.  

anna where you

Now ma picked turnip's and carrots. Lettice was picked also. As she picked she saw one that was rarely big. It's rigged leave's were a light frosty  colored green and it was 2 time's the size of all the other's. Ma rolled her sleeve's up and fixed her hair with her gentle hand and grabbed both hand's in all. She pulled and pulled. Anna was not amused even when ma fell and sat down hard with nothing in her hand's. Anna sat down on the soft grass. The violets blew . It was like a painting with green and purple together. 

anna where are you

Then a little blue butterfly came. It danced so freely in the big blue sky. Anna of coarse saw it and followed it away from ma. Ma was too busy to notice Anna wondering away. She was so small to be in such great grass land's a baby like her could easily be lost and never be found. Ma finally got the green Lettice out. Thinking Anna was next to her she moved on to the next one. Anna saw the butterfly fly away and knew it was gone she was about to find it until a great large jack rabbit appeared.  

anna where are you

It's large ear's and face saw her face. It's eye's shone soft black. It's velvet pink nose twitched slightly and it stood very high on it's hind leg's.  Anna screamed but she was little and so was her scream and so ma did not hear it. She ran quietly but quickly to the house. She always wanted to help ma open the door but because she was so little and short she could not reach the door knob. So ma always opened it for her. This time it was wide open and she ran right in.  ''Ahh there you are!'' ma said breathlessly. She had pulled all the stubborn Lettice and  turnip's and was glad of it. ''Next the tomato's will be tomorrow'' 

anna where are you

ma told herself. She smoothed her wrinkled apron and hair. And pulled her sleeve's down. She turned quickly back. Her smile across her face turned to a frown. She exclaimed '' Oh Anna! no Anna!''. She ran through the valley screaming ''ANNA!''. She thought of the young girl named Sarah Whitcher's. She was lost for days'. ''Oh she's only a baby!'' ma screamed breathlessly. The wind died down the word's to a whisper. Sarah  Whitcher was a girl Anna was a toddler younger then a girl was.

anna where are you

Meanwhile Anna was inside she jumped up and down on the furniture and sat a while on pa's chair. She smoothed the red velvet with her soft little hand. The design was red little leaf's that felt like silk. She jumped down again and wondered to pa and ma's room. Anna used both hand's and with a little jump made it up on the high bed. She lay there a minute or two then hoped of. She went under the bed it was  like night . The floor was cold and smooth. It made a creaking sound and echoed under the bed. Anna found a brown tattered box she punched it with her little fist. 

anna where are you

She pushed it out with her hand's. Then scurried out from under the bed. ''Brown brown!'' she exclaimed  as she opened it. Because she was so little she did not know that in her hands was a box. She opened it. There laid a little doll. A rag doll. Anna jumped with joy when she saw it. It had curly black hair that was made of yarn. She was tightly stitched with thread. And filled with soft cotton. She had a penciled face that smiled. The reddest cheek's were on her.       

anna where are you

Anna thought it was a ''Baby''. She said ''baby! baby". Then she went on top of the bed again with the old doll and pulled the heavy quilt's up and on her little body and snuggling the rag doll close to her chest she fell asleep. Ma ran mile's and mile's of grass but no baby could ever be found in open grass land's. Tear's  began to fill her eye's the wind wiped them away. But more came. ''Oh Anna why did I not look after you? oh why!'' she screamed in whisper's as she ran across the meadow where Anna might of gone.

anna where are you

Her long skirt's smacked against the grass and the butterfly's seemed to dance and say ''Anna is alright she's in the house''. But ma did not look at them she ran and ran panting her hair blew wildly in the wind and unraveled with the it. Her lung's hurt from panting and running so much but she did not stop. Then out of know where she stumbled across a rock. She tripped  and tumbled into the grass. ''Annaaaa!'' she screamed with all her might. She got up and wiped the grass from her dress. She turned and there was the little house on the hill. 

anna where are you

Tear's filled her eye's. The wind did not blow them away she had to wipe them with her hand's. She looked a long time at the house. ''She's so fragile!" ma sobbed to herself. Then the buggy came. The long horse's  main's blew with the wind pattern's and pa jumped out of it ma ran back to him panting all the way. He looked around the empty place. ''Helen! Helen!" she called. A faint wind whisper answered ''oh John!''. Pa turned his whisker's blew with the wind.

Anna where are you

''Hullo Helen! where's Anna?'' he asked once ma was there. ''John I, I let Anna out of my sight'' then ma snatched up her apron up she filled it with tear's and sobbed so heavily . ''Oh no!'' pa exclaimed  loudly. But the wind took it away to be heard in a faint whisper. Ma wiped  her eye's till they were dry and look a long look at her husband's eye's. They were not twinkling merrily. They shone sorrowfulness and sadness.

anna where are you

Pa was not the man to give up even after ma searched the prairie. ''Have you checked the valley?'' he asked ma in a shaking voice. ''Yes I have she's so young and little a...'' she did not continue her sentence  she bowed her head low because it was shameful to cry. ''Helen I'll check the valley again  the river she might have gone past '' pa told her in a firm voice. ''I will check around our hill and in the garden''. ma's voice was gentle but uncertain of what may happen  next.

anna where are you

anna where are you

Before pa went he looked at ma. Her cheeks' were red from crying so much and her face was pale. ''Don't worry Helen she's far to young of a girl to  walk great distance any way'' then he added '' The lord will not make this last'' ''yes, yes your right John'' ma told him. she ran around the hill calling ''Anna, Anna come here Anna!''. Pa ran through the prairie with his gun hanging down by its's leather strap's. If a wild beast had his daughter he'd shoot it as he thought.

Ma turned the corner of the house and ran to her little garden. She looked at it a minute ''oh why have I not been keeping  my eye on her?'' she asked her self soberly. She remembered how Anna pulled out her first turnip it took her back. ''Such a sunny day it is right Anna?'' ma asked Anna she was younger. Anna jumped out with both hand's out and... Suddenly ma remembered that during her first pull of a turnip she was walking and walked inside the house. Ma came and ran just like she remembered she did a year ago and opened the door   

The search ends

the search end's

The house was clean and neat. But ma's heart was not. It was all over the place her mind raced with love and wonder for her lost daughter despair and saddens was in her heart. She opened the window's so the sun light came in and ran through each room. She lit a candle lamp and stepped into Anna's room. Her little trundle bed lye still. The quilt's were little the bed was little too. Even the room was small little.  

the search ends

she went into the pantry. The wooden barrel's were filled with salt pork and the one beside it was simply stuffed with soda cracker's . Three glass jar's contained soft peach  and sack's of flour and sugar were filled high till it touched their brim.  Ma went to the next room a breathing sound came from it. Startled  by this ma slowly walked toward it. There was Anna! Tear's filled ma's eye's slowly she pick her up. ''Ma, ma!'' Anna screamed with joy. Ma did not see Anna holing the rag doll.

''Oh Anna, Anna don't you ever wonder away from me again'' ma told her. Anna slightly understood and said yes ma. Tear's of gladness shone in ma's soft brown eye's. Later pa came back his head was bowed low his eyes were shut closed and his gun hanged down. ''She's gone Helen gone with the wind I'm sorry I could have done better of finding her but the night rolled in'' pa sorrowfully told her. Ma smiled before she answered him Anna's sweet voice said ''Pa's home pa's home!''.

the search ends

Pa looked up quickly to see his lost  little daughter reaching both hand out toward him. ''Anna Anna!'' pa exclaimed joyfully. with one swift move he scooped her up and put her on top of his shoulder's. ''Where did you find her at Helen?'' pa asked ma a bit later at night after Anna was safely  tucked under her quilt's in her trundle bed. '' I found her in our room John'' ma told him as she cleaned around the house. ''I'm by jinx's surprised she wandered to our room''.  

Ma went into their own room and she tend to tidy up while pa sat in his velvet chair pulling out his fiddle. He played ''Dinning rose's and Star's aglow''. Ma listened   while she tidied the place up. Then she notice her brown box was emptied.  ''Oh!'' she exclaimed faintly through the music. She looked for the rag doll that laid there the night before and the morning too. She lifted the heavy quilt's and searched under the bed the doll was no where to be found.

''Anna must have took it while she was here. '' She thought that while she and pa were laying down she said she will search for it tomorrow morning. That day had been such a wonderous one. Ma would never had thought Anna would wander away and get lost but at least she was safe at home.

The search end's

Nettie

Now the sun came up making the whole land seem peaceful and quit. Ma was in the kitchen preparing breakfast. She stirred the batter so, and sprinkled sugar on top. She poured the fresh creamy  milk and added a teaspoon of salt. Anna came downstairs'. In her arm's was the rag doll she found the day before. ''Oh dear!'' ma exclaimed she looked at the empty basket. ''Where out of egg's  already?.'' she thought about telling pa so she did ''alright Helen I will a dozen?'' pa asked ma  cheerfully    

nettie

Pa opened the lean to door and grabbed the tin pale. Anna dropped the rag doll and rushed out after pa. She wanted to help. Ma quickly saw her running and stopped her  gently. ''No Anna . Stay here'' she told her. Pa saw  Anna and chuckled ''phswa! let her come Helen. She can't get out with my sight on her.'' Ma sighed softly and said she may go. Pa whistled while gathering the round egg's. Anna grabbed one but it slipped and cracked.  

nettie 

Anna cried because it was on her leg. It was slimy and gooey and yellow. ''Silly girl! that's yoke'' pa laughed at her while telling her that the yellow thing was yoke. Anna was shanking her feet and stomping hard on the ground. ''Ooh'' she cried. Her bright golden hair was short but it got into her face like any long hair did. Tear's filled her eye's. Pa told her to wait till he finished collecting the egg's. But when he saw how scared Anna was he sent her to ma. He watched her all the way.

nettie

Ma was busy she stirred the  pancake batter quickly. ''Anna! where is pa ?'' she asked herself grabbing Anna in her arm's. Then ma noticed the rag doll. ''I deciare! that doll is older then I known her for'' ma said in a loud soft voice. She held the doll in her arm's. The face shone red cheek's and the mouth smiled and the cloth  was worn so. ''I have not seen this doll in age's!'' ma exclaimed. Anna reached out her hand's for the rag doll.

                           Nettie

Ma shook her head no. ''Anna this doll is so worn out! see'' ma showed Anna the stuffing that was coming out of the side's. The hair was nearly plucked out. Ann frowned then ma notice some thing else. Yellow gooey yoke! On Anna's leg. Ma made a disguised expression and quickly took Anna in the kitchen. She pulled out a white wash cloth some water from the pail pa had fill the day before and dipped the cloth in. And wiped Anna's little leg. ''Ooh it's cold!'' Anna screamed softly.   

Nettie

Ma told her she should be more carful when handling egg's. Then the lean - to swung open. Pa stood there with his's eye's twinkling at the room and ma. ''I've brought the egg's Hellen!'' he joked out. And that Morning they had fresh milk and soft airy pancake's to eat. Ma thought about Anna her birthday was in a few month's. For day's ma has been thinking about a gift she should make for her daughter. Then Ma go it! The rag doll Anna had found was just a little worn ma could make it good as new if she tried. 

Anna go's to town