Time for an oldie but goodie......

From the Korkowski archives.....

Okay, need a little help on this one....it was thought this picture was of Cordy, RoseMary, Theresa and Flavia. However, someone suggested the older girl in the checked dress might be Shirley (Lambertz).  It would be nice to know for sure....anyone???

Ending the month (and busy week) of birthdays.....

Two more birthdays today before we close out the week...and the month of November. It's birthday cake for both Josh Korkowski (#35) and Evan Oxentenko (Shawn & Amy Korkowski Oxentenko) who turns 11.  Happy birthday, guys!

One of these...and one of those

Among the plethora of birthdays this week, we do have an anniversary as well, and today is the day....Norb & Donna Korkowski are celebrating their 15th!  Congratulations to you two lovebirds :)

And, we have a birthday today as well....Mitch Korkowski (#35).  Have a great birthday, Mitch...and eat lots of turkey today as well.

Turkey day

It's Thanksgiving Day 2013...not sure how we got here so fast....and we indeed want to give thanks for all the blessings we have in our individual families as well as the Korkowski family as a whole.  Happy Thanksgiving to you all....and let the feasting begin!  And, from Jody Korkowski Evenson.....

Triple the fun....

Gathering steam today with three birthdays....Mike Korkowski (#58), Troy Magnuson (#43), and Jan (Korkowski) Campbell (#47).  Looks like lots of birthday candles will be melting today!  Happy birthday x 3......

Mike

Troy

Jan

Another birthday...

Another birthday today...this time it's Ed Korkowski (#45) who celebrates.  We just know for sure he's got sun and warmth going on for his special day.  Happy birthday, Ed!

A busy week ahead....

If you're thinking it's time for some birthday cake, today is the start of a very busy week of birthdays...and one anniversary.  So, be ready for lots of birthday greetings to come. To start us off, today it's Nate Korkowski (#32) who gets to celebrate.  No day off from work, but the good news is that it's a shorter week with a holiday coming up...happy birthday, Nate!

Cheap fun.......

We've all heard the expression 'kicking up their heels'...but I'm not sure this is exactly what that's referring to! Abby, Evan and Isaac reportedly love taking mom's heels and providing some cheap entertainment now and then. Maybe they're walking in mom's tap dancing footsteps?  The boys are sure to deny doing such a thing once they're teenagers, but we have the proof right here.........

He's back............

Nothing like 'old friends' dropping by, and this is no exception...it's our fine feathered friend who knows what he likes and where it's located!  Even if I'm not even close to the window, my ears tell me he's feasting because he's so dang big and makes such a thumping sound as he tries every which way to have a snack.  The small size of the suet feeder does not deter him in the least...he's quite acrobatic when it comes to eating.  So, hello my friend....you add a bit of color and humor to our days!

From the family archives

Time to pull another picture from the family archives!  Today's picture is one of Jim and Ronnie Floding's family back in much earlier years.  Bet it seems like just yesterday to them.....

It's a 'two-fer' day.....

Another day of double the fun in birthdays....new daddy Matt Korkowski (#31) and Caroline Korkowski (#52) are both celebrating today.  May you both receive your birthday wishes today...in Matt's case, it just may be a full night's sleep!   Happy birthday you two....

By request.....

About a week or so ago, Andrea (Magnuson) Zuidema's Facebook page had an entry re: her beef stroganoff.  She felt something was missing in the way she was making it (from memory) and decided to go back to the 'original' recipe in her St. Vincent's church cookbook.  In telling her mom about this, she was asked whose recipe it was...and, turns out it had been submitted to the cookbook back in 1978 by her mom, so it should indeed taste like mom's.  But, as it turns out, guess whose files it came from prior to that??  The 'proof is in the pudding'!  Turns out this is the recipe that Faye and Andrea both make, and RoseMary told me not too long ago that it's the only stroganoff recipe she makes.  Well, guess I'd better try making it again myself.....seems I've strayed off the path too.  Let's go cook............

It's her special day.....

No sharing of birthdays today...it's time for Cindy Korkowski (#59) to move into the birthday chair and enjoy a day-long celebration of birthday treats.  Happy birthday, Cindy!

Double the fun....

We have birthdays....today's are Patty Korkowski, who's celebrating a BIG one...she's 60 today.  And, we have Mya Pfeifer (Seth & Jean Korkowski Pfeifer), who also has a big birthday as she enters the double digits...she's 10.  Happy birthday, ladies...celebrate these special birthdays today!

Still going strong......

It was great to receive this picture from Theresa Krentz just minutes ago showing us the Christmas cactus that grandma Grace had at her house so many years ago.  Theresa says the plant was in full bloom the night she died, and now some 22 years later, the plant continues to show its beauty.  No longer in the upstairs hallway, but the 'spirit' remains wherever its home is.  Great job at keeping it alive, Theresa!  You've obviously got the green thumb :)

Starting your week with some 'senior' smiles....

Some cartoons which, at one time or another, we've all thought about.....thanks to Judi for sending my way!

Words of wisdom.....

A birthday once again....

Birthdays are few and far between these days, but it's time to celebrate today....Kelly Dupont (Mike & Brenda Magnuson Dupont) turns 12 today (just one more year, Kelly, until you're a teenager!).  Hope you have a really fun birthday!

Wonderful piece of history.....

Over the past weekend, Cliff and I had a 'homework assignment' from grandson Joseph down in Florida.  It consisted of a couple pages with questions re: our parents and grandparents, as well as some questions relating to us.  Of course, our memory not being the best some days, we used the internet a bit to research some questions......and what gems we found!  Who knew some of this stuff could be accessed?  The following is from the 16th census of the United States, taken in 1940.  And, at the top of the page....John and Clara Lambertz and the family at that point!  It was like stepping back in time.....and, we'll have another thing or two to share in days to come.  

I'm sorry that I didn't know sooner but caught this obituary on the online Echo Press this afternoon.  Our condolences to Christella Korkowski and the rest of the Goering family.

Another successful hunter.....

Deer hunting wasn't the only hunting going on recently as evidenced here with Christopher Korkowski showing his bounty from the sky recently.  A successful hunt of snow and blue geese to be sure.....

It was on her 'bucket list'......

Not sure how many entries Staci Korkowski (Jim) has on her 'bucket list', but riding a motorcycle for the first time was #24, according to the email received along with this picture.  Do tell, please, how many entries you have....and are you doing them in order?? That big cycle and the black leather on you look really good!  So, you can cross that off the list and go onto the next one......

And, not on the 'bucket list', but on the list of 'will it ever, ever amount to anything?' is this lemon tree they have in their yard.  Sometimes, really good (and yummy) things take a while to develop, and this certainly appears to be the case with the abundance of bright yellow lemons....pie, bars, or sorbet???

Always great to hear from you, Jim and Staci; thanks for sending the pictures!

Veterans Day 2013

Today is a time to remember all those who have served in the military over the years, taking time away from their families to protect our country.  Thank you all for your service!  Happy Veterans Day 2013.....

Ron Magnuson
Army, 1966-1968

A fine fall greeting....

This is the scene that would greet you upon arriving at Tom and Jody (Korkowski) Evenson's home this Thanksgiving season.  We can definitely see that sense of decorating 'smarts' in this scene from their front sidewalk.  So, Happy Thanksgiving from their house to yours!

You've got a winter to dream of planting......

Nothing like seed catalogs or outdoor ideas to make you think about next summer, and this idea discovered on Pinterest certainly piqued my interest.  No hard-to-find supplies plus it doesn't take up a lot of space, so it's great for those who have very little garden space. And, I'm thinking that weed control wouldn't even be on the radar here!  Another bonus...no stooping over to work on maintenance or harvesting....

A successful morning.....

The early bird catches the worm...or, in this case, shoots the deer!  Norb Korkowski was out very early with this picture coming in by 10:25....and, that's after Donna got a call from Norb to come help him find it.  Some of these guys are a bit hindered by that color blind gene :)  Good wife that she is, she was successful in the hunt and brought home the bacon, so to speak.  Good job...Norb.....and of course, Donna!

Only 117 years ago.....

Another picture from the Korkowski photo stash....this one a wedding picture of Frank Korkowski and Cecelia Ledermann back on October 20 1896.  *** (See much better copy of picture below, along with a note.)**  Picture has a lot of wear to the finish but not so much as to obliterate some of the details like the huge ribbon attached to the flower that the groom is wearing....sort of reminds me of a ribbon awarded at the fair!  And, the young bride is clothed and 'decorated' to within an inch of her life. Has anyone ever heard over the years what color the dress was?  I'm guessing not white as the white lace around the neck area stands out from the dress itself.  Call me crazy, but I do think Jan Korkowski Campbell strongly resembles this bride...anyone else think so? PS...when I asked Cliff if the bride resembled anyone in his family, he answered "Jan Campbell".  So, two crazies??  I don't think so....

Wow, look at this copy below!  Christella just sent me a copy that her nephew (Charlie Goering) retouched/corrected for her.  It is amazing!  So, for those of you who wanted to 'lift' this picture for your own files, the one below is THE one....thanks, Chris!

Never too cold for a bonfire and brats.....

Last weekend, Cliff and I had suggested to our neighbors that with the milder weather forecast for Sunday, we should have one last bonfire to close out the longer days of fall after the end of daylight savings time.  Of course, you will remember that then the winds of Sunday became gale-force in nature so we just assumed (never assume!) that our neighbors would say 'way too windy and chilly' so of course we planned other things. Imagine my surprise, when at the previously appointed bewitching hour, there were a couple of our neighbors stoking up the bonfire with coolers nearby.  Before we knew it, there were eventually a total of 10 hardy souls roasting brats/hot dogs, and savoring a glass (or two) of wine.  And, no we didn't start a forest fire...and it really wasn't too bone-chilling cold either.  In fact, it was decided that with the first snowfall, another bonfire should be in order!

Ah, yes....those were the good ol' days......

It was hard to put this together in a somewhat easy-to-read format, but I think this came out pretty good. Thanks, Sr. Cordy, for sending my way.....and yes, things were simpler back then and yet we had lots of fun....

Welcome to the family......Piper Louise Korkowski

Move over Tony Krentz.....you have someone who's going to be sharing your birthday with you from now on! Matt & Amber Korkowski, along with big sister Cecilia, welcomed little Piper Louise very early this morning.  Her vital statistics are:  weight of 6 lbs. 14 oz. and length of 21".  Grandma K. is happily watching Cecilia while they wait for the newest member of the family to come home.  Congrats, Matt & Amber!

A spider...and a princess!

In what has to be one of the cutest costumes for this year is Alyssa Korkowski's (Nate and Edith) spider outfit! Just love the expression and posturing that goes with it.  And, then the princess...sister Haley...who has a look of pure shock at seeing the spider ready to pounce.  Great expressions, girls!