Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday Mom!
We love you!

Monday, August 30, 2010

Best Friends (And Goofballs)

There is never a dull moment with these two around...







Sunday, August 29, 2010

Miss Zella

My baby is starting preschool tomorrow.  Okay, okay.  She is not a baby anymore.  She's 3 1/2.  I know she will love it but I will still miss her terribly.  I took her on a special date a couple weeks ago to get her school supplies.  I can't believe how fast she is growing up!

Saturday, August 28, 2010

A Day at the Beach

Grandma Marker (Trav's mom) and our niece Katelyn surprised us with a visit two weeks ago.  We had so much fun.  We spent the day at Clear Lake and had so much fun at the beach and splash pad.  Except Violet.  Turns out she hates sand all of a sudden.  At least she enjoyed the splash pad and picnic!


Friday, August 27, 2010

Just a Phase

Violet has been a mess the last couple weeks.  It's all teething's fault, but I was honestly starting to wonder.  Is her personality changing?  What happened to my smiling, laughing baby?

I am happy to report Vi is back to normal.  Thank goodness! 

Some photographic evidence:

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Learning new tricks
Cheese!
Blowing kisses
Laughing with Uncle Chris (aka Dr. baby whisperer)

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Ask Lori Answers Part 2

What is your least favorite part of parenting? And your fav part?

My least favorite part of parenting is discipline.  It is hard to always be consistent.  And who wants to referee he said/she said fights all day?

It is hard to choose one fav thing about being a mom.  I love watching their personalities grow and develop.  It is fascinating.  I could never hear "I love you Mama" too much.  Oh, and if snuggling were a sport the girls and I would be gold medalists. 


What kind of job did you have before you were a sahm?

I used to work in public relations. First for an advertising agency in Des Moines, and then as the PR manager at United Way of Central Iowa. It was fun because at a non-profit I got to do a little of everything.


Do you ever miss having a job outside the home?
Ultimately, no.  I miss some things...writing and designing, planning events.  I miss having uninterrupted conversations with adults and being "in the know".  Oh, and the paycheck.  There have been soooo many times that would have come in handy!

Yet I have always wanted to be a stay-at-home mom.  And luckily Travis has always wanted that for our family too.  We have had to make a lot of sacrifices but it has all been worth it.  I am very thankful and lucky to be at home with the girls.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Songs in My Head

Peggy Lee is one of my favorite female singers of all time.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Back to School

Miss Madeline had her first day of Kindergarten-Prep today. She was a little nervous but ended up having a great time. She will be going every afternoon and can't believe she gets to go to school every day. There are 12 kids in her class. 

Zella and I made her chocolate chip cookies for an after school snack. All in all a good day.
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I have the same picture of Zella and Madeline hugging last year.  They always miss each other when they're apart.

Some links from last year (hard to believe how little they look!):
4 Year Preschool

We're proud of you Maddie B!

Monday, August 23, 2010

A Note to the Public

Dear Public,

My apologies to the witnesses of my child(ren)'s recent temper tantrum(s). Honestly, they are normally well-behaved. But lately? Whew. Serious drama.

Please note that I do not give into temper tantrums. So while it may appear that I do not care that my kid is screaming/yelling/hitting/kicking/crying etc. etc. trust me when I say that I do. Inside I am dying a little. (and feeling mortified/horrified/petrified).

I have learned the hard way that if you give into a temper tantrum there will be more. Lots more. So I take a hard stand against them.

So if you are out and about and you see me ignoring a temper tantrum, just know that there is a method to my madness. Oh, and say a little prayer for my patience. Because it is probably on empty.

Yours sincerely,
Lori

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Happy 40th Anniversary!

My parents are celebrating their 40th (!) wedding anniversary today.  We celebrated with them last weekend when my family was home for Hobo Days.  Unfortunately my brother Kurt and his family were only here for a couple hours.  Christa's Grandpa died and they headed back to Indiana right away.  We were so sad they had to say goodbye to Grandpa Irv, and that they had to leave.

The rest of us went to church together and had a party for my parents afterwards.  Just us. There was a lot of good food and a lot of laughter (as usual).

Some pics:
40 years!
Solien Family (Older sister Karen)
VandeLune Family (Twin sis Lisa)
Hiscocks Family (little sister Bonnie)
The Clendenen Family (goofballs)
Jack & Patti
 (Jack is like a brother to me, he lived with our family when I was younger)
We had fun but missed my brother, Christa and the kids.  When we are together again we are getting a professional family photo taken of all of us  Can't wait!

You don't often see marriages last this long these days.  Congratulations to my parents for riding out the highs and the lows to get to the big 40 years!  They have been an amazing example to me and my siblings.  I love you both.

Friday, August 20, 2010

Clendenen Family Reunion

In July we attended a big birthday party/reunion for Trav's Grandpa Howard. He lives in a nursing home in Ankeny now and the reunion was held at a great park there. It was great to see everyone and meet second cousins too. We all had a lot of fun. Some pics of the day: