MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Hi Family! We just want to wish all of our wonderful children, children-in-loves, and 15 awesome grandchildren a very Merry and Blessed Christmas Day!! Can't wait to meet our newest little grandbaby in 2011, Cambree Madison!

IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME!

It's an okay picture, right? Well hope your Christmas is bright and cheery and that we all remember that it's Christ's birthday that we are celebrating! Sure wish all the Philadelphia Koehler's, all 8 of them, could be with us this year!! You will be missed!! Onward to our celebration!!

LOVE THIS MONTH!

Did you know that I love the month of December? There are lots of reasons, so let me list a few:
1. It's my birthday
2. Everything is so festive
3. Snow
4. Holiday celebrations

And certainly not the least of these but the first, it's Jesus' birthday. We all love celebrating Christmas. It is indeed a great family holiday. It's so wonderful, fun, memorable and exciting getting together over the holiday and exchanging gifts, making memories, talking, sharing, celebrating! Thank you God, for sending your Son to us!!

It's Thanksgiving month! I'm so happy it's finally here! It's fun to already think of all that we'll have on our Thanksgiving table. In fact my grocery list is done and I'm ready to shop. One thing I'm waiting for is the turkey to go on sale. But Frank said that he read that turkey's are going to be more expensive this year, go figure, what isn't? Who cares, I'm still thankful, even for an expensive Turkey. It will be a wonderful day, but we sure will miss our family in Philadelphia. It'll be different that's for sure. We'll be thinking of you all and hoping that your first Thanksgiving in PA. will be your best yet!! How can it not be with a new baby to be thankful for :-) We'll have a very thankful day too with all our dear ones with us. I'm so thankful for my family and all the blessings God has poured on us. You 25 people are my life and I love you all!!!!

GRANDCHILD #15

Of course this post is going to be about the fact that grandchild #15 is a GIRL!!! We just found out on Sept. 16th!! It's so exciting!!! So 3 boys and now 3 girls for Eric & Tonia. How delightful!! And for the grandchild chart it's still the boys beating but the girls are catching up!! ONE MORE granddaughter and it would be equal :-) 8 grandsons and 7 granddaughters!! Who could ask for anything more??

WE'RE HAVING GRANDCHILD #15!!!

Happy days are here again. . . just this week we learned that another Koehler baby is on the way!! Eric & Tonia are having their 6th baby and we are so very excited, for them and for us :-) We love babies that's for sure!!! We will pray for this new little one every day for health and strength while he/she is growing in the womb :-) What a beautiful thought!! We will pray that he/she grows to love God with all their heart! And we will pray that we can get out to Philadelphia very soon after the birth!!! I think I need to get a job :-) Thank you God for giving to our family another child to love and cherish and grandparent along the way!!

CAMERON'S COMING!

WOW! It's so exciting! Cameron is coming "back home" to Illinois for a few days!!! We'll even get to celebrate the first holiday of the summer with him! We're so excited! Thank you Eric & Tonia for letting him come. It is such a special 8th grade graduation gift to him. . . and to us :-)

POMP & CIRCUMSTANCE

Congratulations Austin Alexander Ray!! You have successfully completed 9 years of elementary school and 4 years of high school! We are so very proud of you! You, being our first graduating grandson, have a very special place in our hearts!! You'll always be #1, that's just the way it is!!! What an honor and privilege for us as your grandparents to see this day come to fruition. It's a celebration for our whole family!! We've been the rounds through 4 of our own children and now starts the next generation ~ only 13 more to go. . . at this point :-) You are loved beyond measure forever and always!!

HOME AGAIN, HOME AGAIN, JIGGETY JIG!

We are so glad to be home from all our travelings over the past month! We feel like we've been gone a long, long time! It's always good to be home. Even though I love going places, and I really do, it's good to be back where you belong :-) I'm so amazed at all the "spring" things that are going on around us!! Our whole yard is in bloom now! I love the trees, what are left of them, out my office windows that block the neighbors house and the barn!! And we have 2 new green additions to our front yard, an arborvitae and a flowering plum tree! They're like our new best friends!! It's fun even after almost 36 years in a house to have something new to add to the landscape! It's never really "done!!" So, welcome home to us!!

SUPER BIRTHDAY MONTH

I just want to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Joshua, Emerson, Eric and Malia!!! Four birthday in one weeks time!! Whew, it's unbelievable!! And throw in there Kevin's birthday and Cameron's spiritual birthday and don't forget Aaron & Jenni's 4th wedding anniversary, well what can I say? It's an amazing month full of memories and special events!!! Hope that each one enjoys their special day!! We'll be thinking of you!

HAPPY DAY!

It's all about the rain in spring, remember April showers bring May flowers!! I actually love the rain, and thunderstorms. I'm supposing the storms cause a lot of my grandchildren stress, but hopefully someday they'll like them too :-) I'm glad I don't have that SAD problem!! Don't get me wrong, I really like the sunshine, who doesn't? So come on SUN!!

HAPPY SPRING!

I love the month of March! It means spring is here! Now I can take down my snowmen from winter, the ones decorating my house, and put up "springy" things. I'm crazy about spring things! So on Monday, March 1st I'll be dusting and cleaning and decorating! I like doing those things, call me crazy! Never mind!!

Gramma's Thoughts!

So, two big things happening in my two oldest grandson's lives! Austin is turning 18 and Cameron just registered for high school!! Oh my, oh my, it's hard to believe. How did I get so old :-) No comments please! It just seems like yesterday we were celebrating Austin's 1st birthday here at my house. He was surrounded by balloons and all you could see was his chubby face and very curly blonde hair :-) He was a challenging baby, but a delightful little boy and an amazing teenager! Austin, we are so proud of the young man you have become! Your leadership skills are evident and we pray that you will love God more each day! Cameron, how I remember the needle in your wee little head and how scary it was to hold you in your first days. That was pretty traumatic! God had big plans for you though and you have grown into a marvelous young man who is almost ready to head off to high school! Unbelievable. All of this brings tears to my eyes because in a way I wish they were still little guys who loved spending time with their gramma :-) Now they are off in their own world with their whole lives ahead of them!! I really wouldn't want it any other way! Just know guys that your gramma loves you with all her heart and I treasure the fact that God gave you to me. I pray for you each every day and will continue to do so as long as God gives me breath!!!

It's time to celebrate Valentine's Day!! It's such a "sweet" holiday! My favorite thing this year is that Grace Church is having a banquet and it will be "sweet!" Also I already know that my "sweet" husband bought me a card!! WOW!! My favorite saying for Valentine's Day is this:
EVERYDAY IS VALENTINE'S DAY FOR THOSE OF US WHO ARE BASICALLY LOVABLE!!
That, believe it or not, comes from Snoopy!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AARON/HAPPY GROUNDHOGS DAY!

It's coming very soon!! So, I had to get Aaron's THIRTIETH birthday in here and Groundhog Day too!!! I think it's so cute that Aaron was born on Groundhog Day!! Mrs Gould even bought him a stuffed groundhog one time when he was in high school. It's still sitting on his old bed down in the man cave!! For some reason he didn't want to take it with him when he got married! (Sorry Jean!) So, what are my thoughts with my baby turning 30?? I just can't believe it! Where did all those years go? Happy Birthday Aaron!! Hope the groundhog doesn't see his shadow!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

It's already Monday, January 4, 2010 ~ WOW, a new year and a new decade. It was certainly a very sad ending to 2009 and we still have the sadness of Joshua & Abi moving this next weekend, so one year ends sad and another starts sad. It's a bit much wouldn't you say? And this is what I hate, when people say, "oh it will give you nice places to visit!" Do they think that makes us feel any better? I know they're trying to be kind but it doesn't help believe me. I don't want to make a field trip, I want them to still be here! In saying all that I know that it wasn't God's plan for that to happen. I am so thrilled that both families have jobs! I'm thrilled that God placed them in churches that will love them! I'm so thrilled that they are all happy :-) Honestly I am. So my prayer now for 2010 is that Dennis finds a permanent, paying job and that Kym can quit her bank cleaning :-) I'm praying that Aaron can keep up with all the ministry on his hands and that Jenni continues to be an understanding pastor's wife!! I'm praying that Eric & Josh get settled in their new homes and that their old homes sell SOON. WOW, lots to pray for! Happy 2010 family!!