In honor of Mother's Day: odd gifts from the departed?

[NotUrsula]

Now we all know that we miss our parents when they are gone, but one of the best ways to remember our lost loved ones is to smile when remembering them. In that spirit (ahem), what unusual household things that you still use out of (or got extended use out of) did you inherit when a parent passed away?

My MIL passed nearly two years ago now, and we are still working our way through her extensive assortment of plastic wrap and baggies. She had over 20 unopened packages in her home. She also left behind an enormous number of hair combs (not the kind to hold hair back, the kind you use to comb your hair); she used to buy large multipacks of them.

 

[goofyernmost]

Speaking of that, but, in a different way... My mother passed away 10 years ago. Every Christmas before she passed, she would give me a small box of Chocolate Covered Cherries. After she passed, my sister always gave me the Cherries because my mother asked her too. She would sign the card... Love, Mom.

This year I finally got the courage to tell my sister to stop that. It was nice of her, but, frankly it was creepy, besides the last thing my fat body needed were Chocolate Cherries.

 

[tomatecerise]

Her recipes not odd but she don't had the quantities, i write and mesure all she done when she is cooking to replicate.

 

[disneyfanatic60]

This wasn't related to my Mother but my Husband. My husband and I were married for 30 years and he almost always bought me a dozen yellow roses and sent them to my work on Valentine's Day. It was his favorite holiday! The first Valentine's after he passed away I was upstairs at work and one of the young guys I am super close to walks in carrying beautiful yellow roses in a vase. My heart sank and I said to him well I know those aren't for me. My assistant was there with me so I naturally thought they were for her. Matt smiles and said "No they are for you!" I was stunned. I carefully put them down and looked at the card and it was signed "Happy Valentine's Day. I love you today and always, Dan!" I was speechless. As tears began rolling down my face, I couldn't help but think he had an automatic delivery set up with the florist since he did it so often. After I got my composure, Matt and my assistant smiled as my cell phone rang. It was my daughter and I quickly realized my two wonderful children sent them for their dad! Everyone at work was in on it. Still makes me cry today!!!!!!

 

[Tinijocaro]

This colander was used by my mom all throughout my childhood. I took it when my dad was selling stuff even though it wobbles cause one foot is missing. I use it all the time.

 

[indygirl99]

My mom died 22 years ago last week. About a year after she was gone this giant box arrived on my doorstep. It seems my dad and sister went through her craft room and just dumped everything in a box and sent it to me. 3000 miles away.

I guess they thought that since I did crafts with mom when I visited that I would know what to do with all her half finished projects. I took most of it to a retirement home where I sometimes visited and the ladies had a hay day. One of them finished a sweater that was half done and gave it to me for Christmas the next year.

I did find moms sweater coat at the bottom of the box. I still wear it all these years later. Mom was known for keeping Kleenex in the wristband of her sweaters and coats so I keep one of those small packages of Kleenex in the pocket and enjoy the memories when I put my hand in the pocket and feel the package.

 

[AquamarineSteph]

We finally finished going through all of the unopened packages of napkins that my father had in the house when he passed away. It took almost three years, and we use a lot of napkins. I'll let your imagination fill in that one.

I still have one of my grandmother's old pans that I use exclusively for only two dishes. I JUST finished the last of my MIL's unopened body lotions (everybody gave them to her in the hospital and rehab, and they gave the GOOD stuff). And my mother liked to buy sets of dishes on sale and never use them. We just last year opened the last one that we didn't sell/donate and decide to use them for us.

 

[scrhsa]

When my Mom moved in with my sister she let me have the chair my Dad would sit in on the front porch. It is a huge and made out of cedar posts. He called it the King's Chair. It's on my back patio and I now call it the Queen's Chair Some times I find my self sitting in it, talking to the cats lying around and I think "WOW, I really AM just like my Dad"

 

[Mickeypooh99]

18 years ago this spring my grandpa built my house with us. He was a retired builder about 80 years old. DH and I had property, and we planned to save up a couple years and build our house. My grandpa came to me and said he wanted to build our house, and if we waited a couple years he might not be physically able to do it. So we moved ahead our plans and built. It was a huge family project that we all pitched in on, but my grandpa probably put in more hours on it than anyone. DH and I were working full time and would come out after work, but grandpa was out here working every day. We started in April and moved in in October. It turned out my grandpa was right that if we had waited he would not have been able to help. He passed away a few years later. Even after all this time I think about him so much at random moments when looking at something in my house. DH and I are thinking of downsizing when the kids grow up, and I know it will be one of the hardest things to leave behind the house my grandpa built.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Speaking of that, but, in a different way... My mother passed away 10 years ago. Every Christmas before she passed, she would give me a small box of Chocolate Covered Cherries. After she passed, my sister always gave me the Cherries because my mother asked her too. She would sign the card... Love, Mom.

This year I finally got the courage to tell my sister to stop that. It was nice of her, but, frankly it was creepy, besides the last thing my fat body needed were Chocolate Cherries.

Love this. My Dad loved chocolate covered cherries, so all of us girls used to get them for his stocking. When he passed away, my DH became the lucky recipient of chocolate covered cherries for Christmas to carry on the tradition. He gets them every year. They disappear quickly, so I guess he likes them. I've also started getting him chocolate covered blueberries, because we have huge stockings. They take up a lot of room.

 

[loves to dive]

My mom collected cook books, I don't cook but two of my brother's are chefs so when she died they decided to go through them. Each took between 25 to 50 books each and we still sold about 50 at a yard sell then I ended up taking a car load (the entire back of a Chevy HHR with the seats let down and stacked at least 4 high) to the library to donate. No way she cooked out of every one of those books. She was also loved to sew, knit and needlepoint. We gave away 4 sewing machines (I don't sew, the only sister-in-law I had who did had her own machine) and a surger (darn thing must have cost at least $500 new). Then we found a whole room stacked with plastic bins full of material, some of which I'm sure she bought overseas in Europe and Asia when my parents traveled. A whole bedroom sized room stacked with bins so tight you couldn't walk through it to get to the back full of material. Seriously, did she even know what was in those back bins and did she really think she would ever make that many dresses for me? Again, donated most of it charity and a friend of mine who sews took part of it. She also loved table cloths and napkins. She changed out both her kitchen and dining room tables at least once a month and then had holiday themed ones, even holidays like Memorial Day. I did take a number of those, my dining room table is a tad longer than hers so they don't hang over the sides as much but every time I take one out and put it on my table I cry. They smell like her still, even though I've washed them a number of times.

 

[apirateslifeforme]

Not the item itself that is odd, but the way it was found...

When my grandmother died in 2007, I went through every nook and cranny of this house looking for her wedding ring. It's a wide, thick gold band with a diamond-cut design around - not at all me, but I always remember her wearing it and I wanted that ring. I even went through the kitchen sideboard at least 6 times. Finally I resigned myself that it had been lost - she had taken it off initially due to weight loss, then she swelled from kidney failure, so she didn't wear it for many years.

Well, November of last year, right around her birthday, I was looking through the sideboard again - for something else - and tucked into the front corner of the middle drawer was her ring. My jaw dropped. And wouldn't you know, that ring fits my right ring finger perfectly. Considering that and how it was so close to her birthday, and that it was missing so long in the first place, it seems like she was saying that she was finally ready to give it to me.

 

[Jaya]

When I was clearing out a trunk of my grandmother's that had been stored away for many years, I found a war savings bond that she had taken out for my dad in 1944 when he was in the Navy. It was a $20 bond originally and, even though it had stopped accruing interest a long time ago, it had grown to a worth of over $100. I checked first with a bank to make sure it was still good and then handed the bond over to my dad, saying "here's a gift from Grandma.....it's a little late, but better late than never." There were tears all around.

 

[fly girl]

When my great grandma passed in 1974, a vine plant was given as a memorial gift by someone.

My grandma took that plant, nurtured it, and kept it alive by rooting new leaves ever since.

In 2001 after telling her how much I loved the story of the ivy, she secretly started my own plant from it and gave it to me for Christmas.

Sadly ... it got root rot and died in 2014. My grandmother was now in an assisted living facility (Alzheimer's) and when I went to visit I saw that the ivy was still alive, but it was looking sad.

I couldn't take the whole plant -- just didn't seem right as she now thought her mother was alive (Alzheimer's is horrible) so I took several clippings and attempted to start the plant again.

Next visit (6 months later -- she lived six hours away) the ivy was gone. It died. I was crushed, but thankful and grateful I took the clippings when I did.

My grandma passed one month later so I wasn't able to start the new plant for her room, but I'm now in charge of the legacy ivy that is 41 years old.

Here's the plant I have from those clippings I took in 2014.



It's in my foyer, so I'm greeted with it multiple times a day. Needless to say, it's my favorite plant in the house!

 

[yoopermom]

Most people inherit precious china or other dishes from their relatives, not me . My grandmother couldn't cook a lick, burned everything, etc. She had four super heavy, metal, flat bottom pans that were completely useless as cooking pans anymore, but I took them and use them for water bowls for my dogs. She loved all animals, but especially dogs, so I like to think she'd understand....

Terri

 

[tvguy]

Speaking of that, but, in a different way... My mother passed away 10 years ago. Every Christmas before she passed, she would give me a small box of Chocolate Covered Cherries. After she passed, my sister always gave me the Cherries because my mother asked her too. She would sign the card... Love, Mom.

This year I finally got the courage to tell my sister to stop that. It was nice of her, but, frankly it was creepy, besides the last thing my fat body needed were Chocolate Cherries.

My mom passed away 3 years ago and every Christmas she gave me Chocolate Covered cherries, and the last 3 Christmases DS, DD or DW made sure there were chocolate covered cherries under the tree. Not very many anymore in a box, but since I am diabetic now, I allowed my self one a week until they were gone.

Our family room TV was my moms. The TV in the living room was my MIL's and she passed away 17 years ago.
I know when my mom passed away, I had pretty much come to grips that most everything of hers would be sold or donated, or taken to the dump because that is exactly what happened when my MIL passed. I was surprised however by how many things my wife wanted to keep. Everything from the well worn milk glass salt and pepper shakers my parents got as a wedding gift in 1950, to a couch and lazy boy and a couple of oil paintings my Uncle had done.

 

[goofyernmost]

My mom passed away 3 years ago and every Christmas she gave me Chocolate Covered cherries, and the last 3 Christmases DS, DD or DW made sure there were chocolate covered cherries under the tree. Not very many anymore in a box, but since I am diabetic now, I allowed my self one a week until they were gone.

Our family room TV was my moms. The TV in the living room was my MIL's and she passed away 17 years ago.
I know when my mom passed away, I had pretty much come to grips that most everything of hers would be sold or donated, or taken to the dump because that is exactly what happened when my MIL passed. I was surprised however by how many things my wife wanted to keep. Everything from the well worn milk glass salt and pepper shakers my parents got as a wedding gift in 1950, to a couch and lazy boy and a couple of oil paintings my Uncle had done.

I thought the intent was nothing but sweet, but, so were the candies. I'm not diabetic and want to stay that way. Another part that I left out was that my Daughter makes me a batch of homemade Chocolate Covered Cherries which make the store bought ones taste like plastic. But, beyond that my personality can accept things that relate to my Mother like items (of which I have very few) that I can identify, however, to have a new something arrive on a yearly basis from a person that has been dead for 10 years feels creepy to me and although I appreciate the effort that my sister put in it, I was really getting nothing out of it, except fatter. As a footnote, my sister was glad to be released from the responsibility as well.

 

[tvguy]

I thought the intent was nothing but sweet, but, so were the candies. I'm not diabetic and want to stay that way. Another part that I left out was that my Daughter makes me a batch of homemade Chocolate Covered Cherries which make the store bought ones taste like plastic. But, beyond that my personality can accept things that relate to my Mother like items (of which I have very few) that I can identify, however, to have a new something arrive on a yearly basis from a person that has been dead for 10 years feels creepy to me and although I appreciate the effort that my sister put in it, I was really getting nothing out of it, except fatter. As a footnote, my sister was glad to be released from the responsibility as well.

Creepy is the junk mail that arrives at my house for deceased family members that never ever lived at my house.
Trader Joes somehow linked my wife's stepfather to our address and we get mail from them for him. He died 21 years ago. I don't even think Trader Joes was here 21 years ago.
It is the only mail for him we get.
Once in a while we get something for my MIL, again she never lived her and she passed away 17 years ago.
I am more understand about mail for my mom. She passed less than 3 years ago, and I'm sure she would have laughed at the flyer from the Ford Dealer she got trying to get her to buy a Mustang. Just what a 93 year old woman needs, a Mustang.