In her house, there was always something fantastic coming out of the oven.
In her house, the "good" china got used on a regular basis.
In her house, there were treasures from decades past that she liked to show off and if you were a really good little girl, she'd let you play with.
In her house, the idea of a great weekend was a day on the lake, in the boat, with a cocktail in one hand and a cigarette in the other.
In her house the idea of a great lunch included trips to nearby Chicago to the top of the Sears Tower, where the girls would gather after a morning of shopping on the Magnificent Mile.
She hadn't lived in her house for quite some time now, having spent the last number of years in a Senior's home.
Now, she doesn't live there either.
Lillian Ashby Scavone Wohler passed away last weekend and with her goes my mom's last sibling.
But what remains are the memories I have of an aunt who loved to bake, loved to entertain, loved to shop for antiques and then loved to party on a hot summer day at Holiday Lake.
I'll always remember getting that $5 from the tooth fairy on a visit to Chicago when I was 7 or 8. I'll never forget the summer vacations at Holiday Lake in my teens when I discovered that girls could ride dirt bikes and drive the boat - because she said so. I'll always remember poking around antique shops throughout Illinois with her, hunting for that one treasure to take home. I'm the keeper of a couple of those treasures in my home now. I'll always remember the love of baking she, along with my mom instilled in me. I'll never forget the gusto, gumption and let's face it...obstinance she lived her life with. She was someone you'd want on your side in an argument - chances are she'd win. She was only 5'2" or 4'11", (depending when you asked her) but she had all the might of someone twice her height.
In better days she loved to laugh. She hadn't done a lot of laughing in the last few years. Her health didn't give her much to laugh about. But one thing that brought her so much joy were her grandchildren, "Little" David, Catherine & Meredith. Showing that old Ashby fiesty-ness she was hell bent she would pack up her oxygen tank and travel to Tennessee for David's wedding last year. I know she was at Catherine & Meredith's recent college graduations, although only in spirit. I know she would have loved to have been at my wedding last summer.
Lil lived 80 years and all in all, it was a good run. She's someone I would define as a real broad, in every sense of the word.
She's in a better place now...no more pain...reunited with her friends and family that predeceased her.
Her husband passed a number of years ago, but I can just here him now..."what the hell took you so long?"
Lillian's Pecan Chewies:
Ingredients:
1 c Light Brown Sugar
1 c Dark Brown Sugar
2 sticks of butter
2 Eggs, beaten
1 tbsp Vanilla
2 c self-rising flour
2 c pecans
Method:
Pre-heat oven to 350-degrees.
Melt butter and add brown sugar one cup at a time. Add beaten eggs & vanilla. Fold in flour & nuts. Place in glass pan & bake for 30-40 minutes.
Cool completely before cutting and then dig in!
