Happy Birthday Mom! (Featuring Roberts, Waitkus & Puddin' Head)

1952 Topps #59

Once again, the combination of my ability to prepare tax returns and my having an awesome mother has resulted in me receiving cool, vintage Phillies baseball cards.  I've long assisted my family members and close friends with the preparation of their tax returns, and I refuse to accept any type of monetary compensation.  However, payment in baseball cards is not only accepted, but encouraged.

The cards featured in this post had been the top three cards in my Ten Most Wanted - Vintage list on the left sidebar.  My Mom added the 1950 Bowman Willie Jones and 1952 Topps Robin Roberts to my collection as payment for preparing her tax return.  And somehow, my 96-year-old grandmother not only found my want list, but tracked down the 1951 Bowman Eddie Waitkus card that I needed.*

In honor of my Mom's birthday today, and continuing the tradition I started last year, I'm using this post to show off these cards and to wish her a very happy birthday.

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1950 Bowman #67

1952 Bowman #92

Now about these cards . . . The addition of the Jones card puts me five cards away from a complete 1950 Bowman Phillies team set.  What's more, the addition of the Waitkus card puts me at five cards away from a complete 1952 Bowman Phillies team set.  With the help of both my parents, I've previously completed the 1951, 1954 and 1955 Bowman Phillies team sets and I'm getting closer to my ultimate goal of having a complete run of Bowman Phillies cards from 1948 to 1955.  What was once a pipe dream of a goal is now a realistic possibility.

I love Waitkus' facsimile autograph on his card and the back of Jones' card makes the obligatory mention of his "Puddin' Head" nickname.

And I now own a 1952 Topps Robin Roberts card.  This card is gorgeous, and it becomes my favorite card of the Hall of Famer now in my collection.  Over five years ago, I wrote about the reprints of this card in my collection and I finished off that post with the line, "And who knows? Maybe one day I'll actually own one of the originals."  Hard to believe that I now do, and I'm extremely grateful to my Mom for making that (and everything else) possible.  Happy birthday Mom!

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*My Mom will neither confirm nor deny that she may have acquired this Waitkus card on behalf of my Nana.