Katie knew a nine-patch quilt was not hard to make. She bent over her work again. Stitch. Snip. Stick. Soon she would be finished with another checkerboard of squares. When she had fifty-six nine-patch blocks made... Well, that's what she was looking forward to.

Live with nine-year-old Katie Eberly from January 1925 to January 1926. Follow the routines of home and farm life when either human or horsepower provided most of the energy to accomplish the work—making a rag carpet, churning butter, making cheese, putting up hay, and preserving food. Feel the excitement of Katie and her family as electric lights brighten the house, an open-sided car speeds them over bumpy dirt roads, and an electric well pump brings water right to the kitchen sink!

Why was Katie so determined to finish her quilt blocks? What does she learn from Grandmother, who comes to live with Katie's family? Why must Grandmother say good-bye?

This historical account is based on the childhood memories of a great-grandmother who was born nearly 100 years ago.

Contents

• Acknowledgements
• 1. "Watch Out!"
• 2. A Snowy School Day
• 3. "Rug Rags for What?"
• 4. Learning Contentment
• 5. Miss Martin Is Quitting
• 6. Summer Chores
• 7. Churning Butter
• 8. Going to Church
• 9. Cherries and Hay
• 10. Time to Pick Peas
• 11. Mother Makes Cheese
• 12. Grandmother Comes to Stay
• 13. Uncle Will's Come to Visit
• 14. Electric Lights!
• 15. Hot Day—Cold Treat
• 16. Summer Ends
• 17. The New Teacher
• 18. "Is That Car Ours?"
• 19. What Grandmother Likes
• 20. The Fall Harvest
• 21. Running Water at Last!
• 22. A Job Well Done
• 23. Grandmother Says Good-bye
• 24. A Trip to Orrville
• More About Katie
• Glossary