This wonderful book that Meg and Sarah (Braun) put together and designed for Alex 30+ years ago or so......is going to be used for the NEXT generation of Fiehls also. Alex's son, Otto, is going to enjoy going through this, page by page, with his Grandparents. He's a very 'hands on' guy who likes to take things apart and put them together to see if they fit, like a puzzle. (I'm guessing all kids are like this at his age, but of course, all Grandparents think their offspring are 'special'.) :-0

He is about 2 weeks short of age 17 months, so he probably needs a couple more months before I'd put this in front of him, but I think it could be a 'special treat' for when he visits the Grandparents, or when we go watch him for the afternoon. It'll give him something to look forward to (on top of the fact that we let him do everything his parents tell him not to!) :-0 I'm really liking this 'grandparent gig': we get a couple hours of the 'good times', and then get to go home when he starts turning 'cranky before his nap'. It doesn't get any better than that! )

The next goal is to stay alive as long as one can to help the little guy grow up………and also to make sure he doesn’t plan to walk around without pants when he entertains guests! J (I’ll have to impart upon him the ill-advised practices of Harvey Weinstein) :-0

But mostly, after flipping through the pages of this book, to let you know that I appreciate all the labor, hours, and craftsmanship that must have gone into the creation of this some three decades ago. Alex loved it when growing up, and it has been preserved, with most of its parts intact, and moving parts in working order. It will be utilized for another generation, and hopefully Alex will keep it to pass down to Otto’s children, when HE is a Grandad.

There is nothing more important than legacy items that are passed down from generation to generation. Those are most cherished. And when one generation ‘cleans out the houses and estates’ of the previous one (which it seems I’ve been getting wayyyyyyyyyyyyy to much experience with) there are ‘keepers’ among the great majority of items that are disposed of.

I’m hoping this ‘activity book’ will be among the Keepers for another 50-100 years in our family.

And I’d like to thank you all for that!

Marty Fiehl - July 2022

Sarah Braun - That is soooooo wonderful, Marty. Those pictures bring back a lot of memories for me too, and I loved working on those books with my mom. Your grandchild is beautiful, and I hope you have many wonderful times with him…

Love to you both!! Your friendship is so wonderful.

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