I hope this finds each of you happy and healthy! This week I am going to share an exciting update of the most wonderful blessing that was given to our Oakdale Leader Editor. On January 15, 2022 ... Marg became a grandmother for the very first time! Her joy absolutely cannot be measured. Definitely her cup runneth over. Marg is, in my opinion, a very young and energetic grandma. Her happiness is contagious; she spreads it everywhere she goes! The first thing this very busy, hardworking grandma will do when she meets you on the street will be to show you beautiful new pictures of her precious little Lorelei! Lorelei is now 5½ months old; she has grown so much from the 7 pounds, 2 ounces she came into this world weighing. Lorelei already has two bottom teeth and more coming in on top. She loves to eat her puréed vegetables and loves to play and laugh with the family dog! I know it’s probably hard for most of you to picture Marg as a grandma; she is a very young at heart grandma. Little Lorelei Alice Wendland is definitely the “Apple of her grandma’s eye!” Sweet little Lorelei is the beautiful daughter of Ally and Judd Wendland. Proud grandma Marg’s famous first words upon seeing her precious granddaughter: “She’s perfect!” Marg is right; our grandchildren are “Perfect.” They are definitely an amazing blessing from our Heavenly Father above. God bless each of you ... some of us may be biological grandparents, some of us may be grandparents who choose to raise/or spend special time with grandchildren not our biological grandchildren. It really doesn’t matter; our love for those we consider our grandchildren is unmatched. In the words of one very proud grandma: “Perfect” ... that word will always ring true! Little Lorelei is getting ready to crawl and we know there is a very, very proud grandma running around somewhere in our communities gathering the news, sharing other people’s stories ... Marg, today is your day ... thank you for being an amazing grandma; you are special!

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More wonderful news, this weekend we had an absolutely spectacular “All American Bash” as the early morning parade brought many folks out to downtown. Red, white and blue was everywhere; folks lined the streets and cheered for every entry! Oakdale is a very patriotic town and it was definitely evident this past Saturday. Later in the day the action moved to the Oakdale Saddle Club Rodeo Grounds. Although the heat was tremendous, the concerts lit up the stage with their amazing music. Some performers came from as far away as Tennessee, some that played on our Oakdale stage Saturday night would leave the stage here and would be performing in Las Vegas the next day! We are very thankful to our Oakdale Enrichment Society for the amazing talent Oakdale enjoyed this past Saturday night! As we left the rodeo grounds after the fireworks show, we couldn’t help noticing that cars were parked everywhere they could squeeze into in downtown, everywhere families were enjoying this beautiful night together. Again, we say “Thank you” to the Oakdale Enrichment Society with a special thanks to this year’s President Lisa Ballard.

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As always you may reach me by email at winniemullins51@gmail.com or by telephone at 209-985-5233. Until next time, “Happy Trails to All!”