Posted on by Britta

Free Stylin

I was nominated by Akanksha for the Free Style Writing Challenge. Here’s her post regarding the challenge.

This is an exciting challenge where you are given a topic to free write about…it is strictly free writing! NO EDITING ALLOWED! I’m always on the fence about accepting nominations of any sort (I have at least two posts that have been sitting in my draft folder for ages regarding awards), but this seemed really cool. Free writing is such a release and I think it’s a great exercise to share on the blog. Honestly, it makes me feel a bit vulnerable posting something that hasn’t been edited at all (oh my god, that sounds terrible; oh my god, their going to think I’m an idiot for writing that). But hey, we spend so much time trying to keep our guard up in this world that we forget vulnerability is a good thing sometimes. It is through vulnerability that we can allow ourselves space to grow.

Anywho, I was hesitant to nominate anyone for this…I didn’t for the last challenge I participated in.

However, I think I will this time. I’m curious to see what other people will do with this challenge.

— — — —

So, here’s the rules:

  1. Open an MS Word document
  2. Set a stop watch or your mobile to 5 minutes or 10 minutes whichever challenge you think you can beat.
  3. You topic is at the foot of this post BUT DO NOT SCROLL DOWN TO SEE IT UNTIL YOU ARE READY WITH A TIMER.
  4. Fill the word doc with as much words as you want. once you began writing do not stop even to turn.
  5. Do not cheat by going back and correcting spellings and grammar with spell check in MS WORD (it is only meant for you to reflect on your own control of sensible thought flow and for you to reflect on your ability to write the right spelling and stick to grammar rules)
  6. You may or may not pay attention to punctuation and capitals. However if you do, it would be best.
  7. At the end of your post write down ‘No. Of words =_____’ so that we would have an idea of how much you can write within the time frame.
  8. Do not forget to copy paste the entire passage on your blog post with a new Topic for your nominees and copy paste these rules with your nominations (at least 5 bloggers).

I nominate:

Amy from Snapshots, Snippets and Scribbles — Lia from Lifestyles with Lia — DesleyJane from Musings of a Frequent Flying Scientist –Amelia from Keep Your Feet —  Gema from Word Nerd

As with all nominations, no need to accept and I perfectly understand if you choose not to. Y’all can find your prompt at the bottom if you do, though!

Also, you should probably mosey on over to the above blogs if you haven’t already; they’re all quite lovely.

— — — —

Alright, on to my free write…

My prompt was “Grandparents,” which was just dandy since I have so many memories with my grandparents. So, without further ado:

Going to my grandparents house was a highlight of my childhood. Grandma and grandpa were an fun, quirky, and let me eat more sweets than my tummy could hold. Grandma has always had a sweet tooth and there are always some sort of dessert type food hanging out at her house. Grandpa would always play games with my brother and I…house, restaurant, supermarket. We would be the restaurant owners or the supermarket proprietors. My grandparents had a cellar type room with a lot of potatoes and bottles of pop in it and that was our playground.

 Plus grandma would always buy us something when we went to her house. I mean, as a young child I was always wanting—new toys, new stuffed animals, new dolls, what have you. When mom and dad said no, grandma was sure to say yes. At least once.

 I distinctly remember the new beanie babies. Back in the 90’s when Beanie Babies were all the rage, there would always be a new beanie baby propped on my grandparents’ table—one for both my brother and I. God, I had so many beanie babies and most of them came from grandmas. A huge trough full of them. I could barely fit them all in.

 My grandparents had this alphabet table. Well, they still do. Down in the basement, now, but it used to sit upstairs when us grandchildren were younger. I remember sitting and coloring on it. I remember watching movies at night with mom and grandma—maybe dad and grandpa were there too, but I don’t remember them—and eating apples. It was always apples. Apples on that alphabet table. That is one of my most cherished memories from childhood. Sitting at that alphabet table and eating apples, watching a movie.

 My dad’s mom died before I was born and my dad’s dad remarried soon after. I was never close with them. My dad’s dad is still alive, but much too old to develop any sort of relationship with now. His memory is lacking and so is his hearing.

 My great grandma Marge, my grandma’s mom was also a part of my childhood. She had a bigger sweet tooth than grandma. I always loved visiting her. I remember the night she died. I was 18. I was living with my grandparents at the time, working at the museum in their town that summer. It had already been a horrible day. When grandma told me she died, I cried half the night. She was 93 and had been hoping for death for a while. She wanted us to have a party at her funeral, celebrate her life instead of mourn it. She was ready to die.

My grandma Barb. She might be reading this since she subscribes to my blog. My grandma Barb is such a special lady. So kind. So caring. I love her to pieces.

No. of words: 483–Time: 10 minutes

— — — —

So, nominees…it’s your turn now!

Your topic is: Childhood Toy(s)

31 Replies to “Free Stylin”

  3. I love your writing! Everything you write is always so insightful and imbued with wisdom. I love that, in spite of your fears, you bust through the wall of insecurities and continue to write. You are my definition of a true writer. I just had to say that.

    Also, I love this challenge! I will definitely be doing it!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Oh wow, thank you so much, Gema! What a compliment. It’s comments like these that make me want to keep writing and blogging so thank you.

      Best of luck with the challenge! I hope you enjoy it. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  5. Pingback: Barbie | Snapshots, Snippets and Scribbles

      1. My other grandmother lived 20 minutes away, and (much) later in life we both moved, and for the last few years she was alive, we lived right next door to each other. 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

  7. Britta! What a fun challenge and thanks for nominating me!
    I enjoyed reading your touching and heartfelt tribute to your grandparents… It’s funny how grandparents tend to possess similar characteristics…full of love and joy!
    And the beenie babies! I remember those! What a treat to find one each time!
    I’ll work on my response to the challenge soon! Thank you again for nominating me: )

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    Reply

    1. Absolutely, Lia. I always love reading your posts and thought you might have fun with this. 🙂 I’m looking forward to seeing what you come up with!
      I’m so glad you enjoyed reading my memories. They really are some of my most cherished from childhood. Heck, I still love visiting my grandparents today. I have a really good relationship with my grandma and I always love when I’m able to spend time with her.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      1. Thanks, Britta for thinking of me for the challenge! You know I like fun things!
        Grandparents are such special people…they provide us grandchildren with unconditional love and lots of spoiling! My grandma would always buy us Doritos and Twinkies when my mom would forbid them! It was always a treat to be at her house…I’m so glad you have a great relationship with your grandparents…they provide such wonderful wisdom too!
        Cheers, dear Britta and here’s to all the grandparents (and parents) out there!
        Enjoy the rest of the weekend!
        *Lia

        Like

  8. What a fun writing challenge! I love all your grandparent memories. (And who can forget the Beanie Baby craze of the 90’s?) Thanks so much for the nomination! I’ll post my response soon.

    Like

    Reply

    1. Absolutely Amelia. I thought you might enjoy this challenge and I hope you have fun with it! I’m looking forward to seeing your response. 🙂
      Glad you enjoyed reading my memories, too. I enjoyed writing about them and sharing them with everyone in the blogosphere.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  9. Oh Britta, how lovely this glimpse into your childhood is! Beautiful memories here, just lovely. I was holding off reading this because I didn’t want to get to my prompt at the bottom until I was ready to write but then I read Amy’s Barbie story so that cat’s outta the bag! I’ll definitely join in 🙂

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    Reply

    1. Thanks so much, DJ. I’m so glad you enjoyed it. It was was fun for me to dive back into my memories and bring them back to life. 🙂
      Ah, well, I realized I ended up nominating a bunch of bloggers who float around in the same blogging circle so it was bound to happen that some of you would see each other’s responses before joining in yourself. I’m looking forward to see your response when you get around to completing it, none-the-less!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
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