The Return of Fun Fact Friday

I'm a little rusty, but my brother's in-laws have been waiting for the return of fun fact Friday and who am I to disappoint? (Hi Cheryl!)

*I once sat on a bee's nest and got stung on my butt and my thumb. I know this is strange, but the nest was under a porch swing. I still have a scar in both places from the stinger.

*Did I mention I'm slightly allergic to bees? My thumb swelled to three times its size. And my butt? Well it's still a little swollen. (Or is that from too many cupcakes?)

*When I sat on the bee's nest we were at our fishing cabin in northern Minnesota. We had no Benadryl and were far from a doctor. My grandpa Delbert said that mud would help draw out the poison and he was right. Although I'm sure I was quite a sight with mud on my butt and my huge thumb stuck in a bowl of mud. At least it worked!

*I also have a bit of an unbelievable bee story, but I assure you it is true. When I lived in Des Moines Travis and I went shopping at the mall in February. We were at Younkers at the cash register paying for our purchase. All of a sudden a bee flew up my shirt and stung me in between my breasts. A BEE. Up my shirt. In February. I let out a yelp and Travis and the store clerk looked at me like I was crazy. But I assure you I was not. We had to hurry and get some Benadryl so I wouldn't swell. I learned that night that Benadryl makes me VERY sleepy. I fell asleep in the mall and Travis had to carry/drag me out to the car.

*Apparently this version of fun fact Friday should be called "Lori is windy and tells long stories instead of short facts." Or, "Lori's past experiences with bees". Fascinating, right?

And because the return of fun fact Friday was inspired by my brother (and it would be weird if I kept talking about BEES) I will tell a fun fact about him...

* When Kurt was in high school he went on vacation at the fishing cabin. He was roasting a marshmallow around the campfire and it started on fire. He went to blow it out but the fiery marshmallow got stuck on his forehead instead. He ran to the rain barrel and stuck his head in to put the fire out. I think he still has a scar.

He may or may not consider that a fun fact. But it makes for a good visual, doesn't it?

Snowball Fight

We've had a lot of fun in all this snow this winter. (But please, snow, don't wear out your welcome!) Madeline and Zella love to chase me around and throw snow at me. Right after I took this photo of Madeline she yelled, "You can run but you can't hide!"

Decorating the Christmas Tree

I've mentioned before that my computer died in December so I missed out on posting pictures of our holidays. Please bear with me while I play catch up.

We had so much fun decorating the Christmas tree this (last) year. The girls are a little older and totally got into it. It was fun to see how many ornaments they remembered from last year. This year we decided to "cheese it up" with the Santa hats.

Even Papa got in on the hat fun.

Next year will be a little different...Violet won't be "contained".

Madeline was so excited.


Zella was actually pretty serious about the whole thing.

Great job girls!

We had hot chocolate and listened to Christmas music once the tree was "sparkeled up" (another Zella-ism). The girls are still pretty young and I'm not sure what they'll remember when they're older, but I'll remember it forever.

>

My Baby Can Beat Up Your Baby

See my finger,



See my thumb,


See my fist,


You'd better run!

Violet's first black eye. She pulled a door towards herself and hit her eye with the doorknob.
Somehow she still looks adorable.

Violet

Here is a video of Violet, then ten months old, saying "spaghetti" for the first time.



Totally adorable.

More later,
Lori

I'm Back (insert manical laugh here)

I am typing on my new laptop (a fabulous birthday present from my husband). I am so happy to be back online! I have a lot to catch up on the blog. It is my journal/scrapbook of sorts and I am anxious to post pictures of Christmas, Zella's third and Violet's first birthday.

Where to begin???

Well, first off I'd like to congratulate my husband for being promoted to Site Manager. He has worked very hard and we are SO proud of him! I'm so thankful he has a job that challenges him. I like to think of him as a professional problem solver. :) Somehow we took a roundabout road to end up right where we wanted to be....Travis at a job that he loves and me at home with our kids. We don't let a day go by without being thankful!

We have a busy week but hopefully I can get caught up. To tide you over here is a photo of the three cutest girls I know.



Aren't they cute? Lots more photos to come!

Hope all is well with our family and friends who check in with us.

More later, Lori

I'm Still Here

Hello all. I have not forgotten the blog. Just haven't gotten my computer fixed yet. I'll have a lot of catching up to do once it's fixed. Lots of photos to share!

We had a great Christmas. Then Zella turned three. (Seriously? How did that happen? Wasn't she just a baby?) Her butterfly party was fun and she thought her cake and cupcakes looked like butterflies so I was happy.

Now onto Violet's first birthday on Valentine's Day. Has it really been a year already? One year ago Travis was in Oregon training for his new job, I was giantly pregnant and unable to bend over (really, I'm not exaggerating). It seems like so long ago and just yesterday at the same time.

Can't wait to post pictures.

More later,
Lori

Technical Difficulties

Hello all. My computer has been down for a couple weeks which is seriously hindering my blogging. I'm borrowing Trav's computer while he is sleeping and I can barely decipher a thing.

Did I mention that he works for an international company? Based out of Denmark? So all the computers are set to the Danish language. Slightly confusing.

ANYWAY, we have been very busy. We spent Thanksgiving in Milo with Trav's family. It was a lot of fun. Especially on Black Friday when Travis watched the girls and I woke up at 3:30 a.m. to go shopping with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law. We had such a great time!

Then last weekend we went to my twin Lisa's house for our annual deer hunting trip. Travis took some vacation time and it was a lot of fun. He didn't get a deer, but he loves being outdoors and the strategy of it all. The girls cried when we had to leave. Such a fun time.

I would show you pictures but no computer means no pics. Ugh.

Then we had a blizzard. (It was COLD and there was lots of SNOW and lots and lots of BLOWING SNOW and lots of DRIFTING.) My little sister Bonnie and her daughter Claire were snowed in with us all. :) She was visiting from Iowa City. We had a great time! I was thankful she was stuck with us.

What else...

When Violet took her afternoon nap today Madeline, Zella and I had a snowball fight in our yard. Madeline kept chasing me yelling, "You can run but you can't hide!". Zella loved making snow angels and throwing snowballs at me. It was cold so we weren't out for long. And of course we had to warm up with hot chocolate and hot apple cider once we got inside. All in all a good day.

We have a busy couple weeks ahead but I LOVE the holidays! And we are finally healthy (knock on wood).

It really IS the most wonderful time of the year, isn't it?*

More later when I either figure out how to fix my computer or break down and have it repaired,
Lori

*This is a rhetorical question. If you do not currently think it's the most time of the year please heed this advice:

Turn on your Christmas tree lights, make a cup of cocoa or cider and listen to some Christmas music.

See? That's better.