Well, it happened again. Grandchild #2 arrived on February 8th. Arlo Wallace Anderson weighed in at 7 pounds 10 ounces and is doing very well. He has been gaining weight and most importantly is a good sleeper! Big sister Matilda is still getting used to the idea of having someone else in the house and treats Arlo more as a novelty than baby brother. Nicki and I of course are treating him like the little prince he is, perfectly complimenting princess Matilda. What a blessing they are to us!
While Arlo is a new name in the family tree, Oswald’s 1st generation owner W.W. Wickel’s (right side of the frame behind the counter) middle name was Wallace. W.W. Wickel is Arlo and Tillie’s 4th great grandfather! They are the 23rd and 24th grandchildren coming down from Grandpa Wickel. I think he would be very happy.
Growing up around a family business like Oswald’s is always cool through a grandchild’s eyes. There is so much to explore, see and do. My mother tells the story of begging grandpa Oswald for an ice cream cone from the soda fountain when she would drop by the store. As most homes had no freezers, ice cream was truly a treat worth begging for! When I was a kid, I remember roaming around the store looking through the toys and candy. My grandpa Kester would pay me and my brother a quarter to stock the prescription bottles and paper bags. As a Hershey bar was only a nickel it was pretty good money! All of my kids spent a lot of time at the store after school playing in the basement and pestering the help for treats. When the Beanie Baby craze hit they were put to work restocking the shelves as those pellet filled critters flew out of the store. Now it’s fun for me to see my grandkids coming in for a visit. Though Tillie’s first word wasn’t “Oswald’s”, it’s fun to hear her say it today when she wants to come in for a visit. I hope one day Tillie and Arlo’s grandchildren will be stopping by the store!
On a different note, as we are always trying to give our customers the best service and shopping experience in town, we have just lowered our prices on over two thousand items. Working with our vendors we have been able to reduce the price on these everyday items in all of our core categories. Look through our health and beauty, first aid, analgesic, antacid, vitamin and many other departments for great new savings. Thanks again for supporting our store. We truly appreciate your business!
