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I remember travelling to the Eagle River Valley of B.C. to spend holidays with my Grandmother (father's side).  A town of 300 people at the time. My Grandma did laundry for the Canadian Pacific Railway Crew & worked in the local Post Office to provide for her family during the days. My Grandfather died at an early age from a tragic accident when my father was only seven.  They both arrived from England, along with a friend.

The space in the home was limited, and I wondered how we all fit in the two-bedroom house.  I had to sleep with Grandma.  The boys slept on the floor in the living-room.  Mom & Pa slept on a hide-a-bed. The friend, Uncle Jack, occupied the 2nd bedroom.
There was always a fire kept burning to keep the home warm as that was the only source of heat.

I thought it funny at the time - Tea was always brewing & sipped from the saucer only.
Food was cooked on a woodstove, and the only washroom facilities were that of an outhouse.
Laundry was done by washboard.  I kid you not..

I remember the snow being so high that it reached the top of the windows.  The men would wake early to shovel a path to the outhouse.
Bathing was done from boiling water on the woodstove and put in a stand-up bathtub.  Us kids would draw straws as to who went first..

At night we played board games - Go Fish, Old Maid & Monopoly by candlelight as the adults strummed away on their musical instruments.
And yet some today, still complain about having to take laundry from the automatic washer to put it in the automatic dryer.

This life made me appreciate the simpler things in life.

I can't help but re-read your life story over and over... I can't help but long to go back to these days... perhaps this is why the Mrs. Cowface & I love to go camping most of the year, Ahh... the good life!