Need some buns?

It's very likely that this blog will turn into a time travel tour of Spring Valley. I have pictures from the SV Postcard Tour last weekend, and I feel compelled to share them. They won't mean much to anyone outside of a few (older) family members, so the rest of you can move on to You Tube to watch Michael Jackson videos or a Farrah Fawcett retrospective.

The Spring Valley Bakery has been around for a long, long time. I could do some research and tell you just when it got rolling, but it really doesn't matter. What does matter is the long history of going into the sweltering bakery on hot summer days, or hurrying inside on a frigid January morning and inhaling the warmth and sweetness coming from the ovens of this small town landmark. Bismarks and long johns, moon pies, snowflake rolls (a.k.a. "Spring Valley buns"), crescent doughnuts, garlic toast, raised glazed doughnuts and the chocolate cake variety, and frosted cinnamon bread (no raisins, please): the mere act of typing the words takes me back to the 1960's and a trip to the bakery for a loaf of white bread, sliced. A member of the Haack family greeted customers by name back then, and a member of the Haack family will greet you by name now, in 2009, should you happen to stop by with Charlie Reps, faithful customer for nearly 60 years.

LEARN A NEW LANGUAGE

Here's a recent favorite in my book collection. Lead Cousin Hannah speaks Spanish, and it's time for Assistant Cousin Miles to add a second language. Once he masters Moo, we'll see what Ethan and Owen want to learn. Twin-talk, I imagine.