tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7971677402657588212024-02-19T07:52:08.680-08:00The Wilson FamilyLorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.comBlogger144125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-75439282620580176122012-02-15T07:19:00.000-08:002012-02-15T11:12:06.279-08:00Not So Romantic Valentine's Day 2012<div align="center">We celebrated Valentine's Day yesterday as one big SICK family! We are all sick with bad colds. Luckily, Joe and I celebrated Valentine's Day this past weekend with a "date day" away to Bismarck. We went to a movie and out to eat at the Bistro where we both enjoyed a great steak dinner. We celebrated early as we had a free babysitter this past Saturday otherwise known as Grandma!</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">The kids woke up to find presents on Valentine's Day but were not as excited as usual since they have been sick the past few days. </div><div align="center"> </div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 240px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709386844024706834" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJsMaF2lUhLNVXTssg6Ya_SoCyOMq3Uky6XrvnSsPAcyHO7Z-8R06aq50jhwByd0Y4_E_RJ6CtvYaD7S6jEYyn6uAIln6V1ZAMZkmglMOxGmHVFp6tVNtCWPnA8cA1aO1_gTiDqB3KVRc/s320/006.JPG" /><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">I found Joe and the kids on the couch when I woke up... they were not sleeping well so they ended up on the couch and Dad turned on movies for them. You can see that Tommy has a pacifier.... we had mailed all of his pacifiers away to his cousin Peter a month ago but we "found" one last night for Tommy to use while he is sick.</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4vD5ji-9pzrwG4j1x_1J6muxjdLQ8QLBWFQkGPomUivMl4Wh1UB0XD05joqr7CcHOCEdv_uL5Xo5_Q6HpA0IWv1N14uLWQx6rvSbK-cbO_Q9LlpBpKZh_OueWMqzMgdRAWIN-98se8vM/s1600/004.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 240px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709386829268707810" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4vD5ji-9pzrwG4j1x_1J6muxjdLQ8QLBWFQkGPomUivMl4Wh1UB0XD05joqr7CcHOCEdv_uL5Xo5_Q6HpA0IWv1N14uLWQx6rvSbK-cbO_Q9LlpBpKZh_OueWMqzMgdRAWIN-98se8vM/s320/004.JPG" /></a>Joe took Tommy down to a lung specialist yesterday afternoon. Whenever Tommy gets sick he gets a <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">croup</span> cough so the doctor in Garrison wanted him to get checked out and see what is going on... he cannot get tested for asthma until he is 5. However, we did find out that his oxygen level was low so he will have to take <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error"><span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">nebulizer</span></span> treatments 3-4 times a day <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">every time</span> he is sick. He did such a good job taking his treatment last night!<br /><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 240px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709386827421858434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEgTuOtrYiT6thPd-6ZibvzLuFHUtwgDZot4cLhhuxa5kyAqUQERlXQTlMJ2qBsBd0FpZTn2bK3-u1SXYBEl-otUwJOq2v9jinGGlODnl7DRwt9b1-CNifzXnTVXZKb08DU2-0ZSQLNs8/s320/IMG01098-20120214-1853.jpg" /></div></div><br /><div align="center">Joe brought home a dozen roses for me from Bismarck, c<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-corrected"><span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">hinese</span></span> take out for dinner, and a foot bath that the kids <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">thoroughly</span> enjoyed. I gave him some new snow pants, work pants and a canvas picture of the two of us. We also had cards that we had planned on exchanging after the kids went to bed but it was late by the time they were sleeping so we will open up our cards today. I am excited to open the card when Joe gets home from work as Joe says there is another surprise present in the card!<br /></div><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwnvhpcqP9NSz2-SqesL5qCq6myY_NYRnKX3B4TjMagCUWwW4rAAWQe_AQb7jLY9bDsgBJyKru6gOPDVq0l3XLu-MAtAXPszCwcubM1kRFcWc3VGObOe31Ajz2Z50djQhzt0vBdxsmvYo/s1600/IMG01100-20120214-1919+%25281%2529.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 240px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709387366201138850" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwnvhpcqP9NSz2-SqesL5qCq6myY_NYRnKX3B4TjMagCUWwW4rAAWQe_AQb7jLY9bDsgBJyKru6gOPDVq0l3XLu-MAtAXPszCwcubM1kRFcWc3VGObOe31Ajz2Z50djQhzt0vBdxsmvYo/s320/IMG01100-20120214-1919+%25281%2529.jpg" /></a></p><p align="center">It may not have been a romantic Valentine's Day but we spent it together as a family and hopefully, we will start feeling better soon!</p>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-75362022356864004572012-02-14T11:49:00.000-08:002012-02-14T12:16:17.547-08:00Valentine Memories from 2011<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmfiUM66l8f3bLp8JTXZupmWBWlyvWpWQQz8ZmyEVEFdYbfdyVMuTAaj7vwkEiJj1LeM-tGK4B_OzLnXx2V-3652bqiApQRU4ucRfit15DzxGCl88Wgel6DkLZBhyphenhyphena80JDjiyGngcZwj4/s1600/Old+Pics+from+2011+190.JPG"></a><div align="center">I was downloading old pictures from a memory card I found this past Sunday and they were pics from last Valentine's Day. I couldn't believe how much the kids have changed in one year. I also could not believe that 1 year ago we still lived in AZ.<br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0Sp4Lq2g-P4fsFX2HXN8nBfFaLBwEaRihRdBJyxFy0Qfr9xUkT28pgm3HQUW4oKMf9mTThrx5q1XBWK9RjoOcG1gWTQq8WPiLFmPrQbFJ38ThGaN7AhF3CmcTOP7sBy13xfIbSsh7aQ/s1600/Old+Pics+from+2011+158.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 180px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709082990332464162" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0Sp4Lq2g-P4fsFX2HXN8nBfFaLBwEaRihRdBJyxFy0Qfr9xUkT28pgm3HQUW4oKMf9mTThrx5q1XBWK9RjoOcG1gWTQq8WPiLFmPrQbFJ38ThGaN7AhF3CmcTOP7sBy13xfIbSsh7aQ/s320/Old+Pics+from+2011+158.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8pqp86RwRNXXTvaXWhtN1ndbkPBMqboRxCuPQ6yweUqAj1t8ovSkDkCkoFZrF3wC7dGSOO5vEA2w9Hl9dRirPZ5DcJ2VIGds-z-fvQ1dkKCC7U7ERzeUbNH8Ef8pc9f_BG8QE1u_m-uc/s1600/Old+Pics+from+2011+176.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 180px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709082987947916386" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8pqp86RwRNXXTvaXWhtN1ndbkPBMqboRxCuPQ6yweUqAj1t8ovSkDkCkoFZrF3wC7dGSOO5vEA2w9Hl9dRirPZ5DcJ2VIGds-z-fvQ1dkKCC7U7ERzeUbNH8Ef8pc9f_BG8QE1u_m-uc/s320/Old+Pics+from+2011+176.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Ns7EZ1BQVsN8Ve2zOPA7uy7cuddz-xdTFnLCNEuAeu_Mr0CJXi19glNHGB4iVksMAnn91cyOLxaIb_iqsi6_cO_OoR-_QNFAQsbhPoK88H6qvmksKNjVfyoStny4_dnjr7dqi8qZZps/s1600/Old+Pics+from+2011+128.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 180px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709082241140576706" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Ns7EZ1BQVsN8Ve2zOPA7uy7cuddz-xdTFnLCNEuAeu_Mr0CJXi19glNHGB4iVksMAnn91cyOLxaIb_iqsi6_cO_OoR-_QNFAQsbhPoK88H6qvmksKNjVfyoStny4_dnjr7dqi8qZZps/s320/Old+Pics+from+2011+128.JPG" /></a><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9ejBlQwtdiKRsF6lN0aUl4ucUv-rrkF-d5Cn1c4ZCA5sJuHEW5aJVKnnuPHtyesbwV90VS5xTAtobqt8Ku-Br5bpTPDIkgP2mjO2ZwhoTecDfc8EJREJbr_evX7awY18WApE3iOoO7LY/s1600/Old+Pics+from+2011+153.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 180px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709082232589730258" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9ejBlQwtdiKRsF6lN0aUl4ucUv-rrkF-d5Cn1c4ZCA5sJuHEW5aJVKnnuPHtyesbwV90VS5xTAtobqt8Ku-Br5bpTPDIkgP2mjO2ZwhoTecDfc8EJREJbr_evX7awY18WApE3iOoO7LY/s320/Old+Pics+from+2011+153.JPG" /></a>When I was <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">downloading</span> the pictures I was also reading a beautiful e-mail that Colleen (Joe's Mom) had sent to all her kids and their spouses. She had forwarded a beautiful e-mail that she had found in her e-mail that was sent from Randy in 2009. He wrote to her about how much he loved her and wrote so beautifully to Colleen. Colleen, reminded us in the email not to take for granted the love of your spouse. She also reminded us in the e-mail that the best gift you can give your children is to love to your spouse. It really hit home and I was crying by the end of the e-mail. Joe and I have been married for almost 4 years and I have at times taken Joe for granted. The move to ND has been hard but one thing is for sure our marriage is stronger and I am taking Joe for granted less and less. He is such an amazing husband and I am MORE IN LOVE with him now that I ever have been before... I contribute a lot of this to Randy in heaven as I know he has been praying for us to our God and it has <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">strengthened</span> my relationship with Joe.<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisgWBKUZxZov5ZA48fwiULi_d__k7ZkbbbIyZKMvu48KqkB2C-VoOtkecexxIUkBaCLjQdT1wWJJegJ7ZZMjZYSGEbMpXrS2uOceoXTWXGmm_O3sAPkKWiHdO_lZwxI6GgOwUjkXSunig/s1600/Old+Pics+from+2011+208.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 180px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709082226136391234" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisgWBKUZxZov5ZA48fwiULi_d__k7ZkbbbIyZKMvu48KqkB2C-VoOtkecexxIUkBaCLjQdT1wWJJegJ7ZZMjZYSGEbMpXrS2uOceoXTWXGmm_O3sAPkKWiHdO_lZwxI6GgOwUjkXSunig/s320/Old+Pics+from+2011+208.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinwe2So3A7xuF_PwqGXECg4HScQQF1YQNLhlXvCeMeTTJtIPjCbAGIfyK4zIGVlL0-og8TDhT3IlNEtf5i0GYob4UaOK371oxyQrvAIgYT4pisZplIMMg0AzX13RfQSI1tUFAJ2sz6tSs/s1600/Old+Pics+from+2011+198.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 180px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709082214784875090" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinwe2So3A7xuF_PwqGXECg4HScQQF1YQNLhlXvCeMeTTJtIPjCbAGIfyK4zIGVlL0-og8TDhT3IlNEtf5i0GYob4UaOK371oxyQrvAIgYT4pisZplIMMg0AzX13RfQSI1tUFAJ2sz6tSs/s320/Old+Pics+from+2011+198.JPG" /></a>It is so hard to believe Randy was here with us last year on Valentine's Day and that he is not here with us today but Joe and I both know he is up in heaven and we also have faith that he is praying for us and watching over us everyday. I can tell as my marriage is stronger because of the love Randy had and has for Colleen and his kids.<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9z2C_vjZLbmoMyjaT5Hy6_Uko5UABsEHHwLb96eFjsxIUWVI7Wg1myaxNXsdI4Z6R5KO7zir4TNnL-VM3slp0NUgb2TW8Dn0KQ_x0AswwcQJ371J-uQYtAx_mDSW9uwEHRyBHku1ufmY/s1600/Old+Pics+from+2011+193.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 180px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709082208341529250" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9z2C_vjZLbmoMyjaT5Hy6_Uko5UABsEHHwLb96eFjsxIUWVI7Wg1myaxNXsdI4Z6R5KO7zir4TNnL-VM3slp0NUgb2TW8Dn0KQ_x0AswwcQJ371J-uQYtAx_mDSW9uwEHRyBHku1ufmY/s320/Old+Pics+from+2011+193.JPG" /></a><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-73024610057074114162012-02-14T11:44:00.001-08:002012-02-14T11:49:08.552-08:00Tommy's Ice Fishing Adventure<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-DijAx0FxFUcHXvkG15D57Nrv5LP49sra-hokIAudct8YQE69taausVUB7V8r7YILNckuOzgoJIdt5OnRM7UDY8RnN1oIAIs654hz5QoHeKy4OgFBvWutaI-ZhD0ZABLmcyzLXS8jKgo/s1600/February+2012+014.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 240px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709079499502348018" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-DijAx0FxFUcHXvkG15D57Nrv5LP49sra-hokIAudct8YQE69taausVUB7V8r7YILNckuOzgoJIdt5OnRM7UDY8RnN1oIAIs654hz5QoHeKy4OgFBvWutaI-ZhD0ZABLmcyzLXS8jKgo/s320/February+2012+014.JPG" /></a>My cousin Brian and Uncle Kevin fly and own small planes so a couple of weeks ago they invited Joe and Tommy to go ice fishing and they decided to fly and land on the ice. Tommy was so excited! He got to hang out with the big boys and he loved every minute of it! Lily jumped into the picture before they flew off.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg97z87UExetRUlDkMg1ZZKZ5ksNWVMJxpgRzNci4sSHpm0mJcAsiOM5KicWNyQ627jwNb5jfxZKF5uyH5rbR2cfpvTUM6Dl4cXcCIRg0xDLf8YMV5NayF_4_yW0-DUic1RAdY8r3jdVwA/s1600/February+2012+043.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 240px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709079486108434466" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg97z87UExetRUlDkMg1ZZKZ5ksNWVMJxpgRzNci4sSHpm0mJcAsiOM5KicWNyQ627jwNb5jfxZKF5uyH5rbR2cfpvTUM6Dl4cXcCIRg0xDLf8YMV5NayF_4_yW0-DUic1RAdY8r3jdVwA/s320/February+2012+043.JPG" /></a>Uncle Steven (my brother) joined the boys on the fishing adventure!<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcxNr2uKiRf-l57MnEFj5KUBNhSsCF5BbL9cJ5YwuZj5HBN_WlxKUNzACmUQn1vEmNlMj9Oh1dCW0q-SOOCp0Gi4pdMVB4rx9OLdm78KA8zVjjFRzvLV5NvPL9M1dJ0UpAWyNrIxHLulE/s1600/February+2012+034.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 240px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709079481666130578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcxNr2uKiRf-l57MnEFj5KUBNhSsCF5BbL9cJ5YwuZj5HBN_WlxKUNzACmUQn1vEmNlMj9Oh1dCW0q-SOOCp0Gi4pdMVB4rx9OLdm78KA8zVjjFRzvLV5NvPL9M1dJ0UpAWyNrIxHLulE/s320/February+2012+034.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaizv0ZTN_v8syz0rsV5XbF98aTpwydSMO-kL1cRevNjVDhFcemScH2cUizzxIF4jpvbqpfjjv7jOqWs9czhsx3L4vAshXB7FT-ORFd6UzJ_6sBnRvvzIEI6AlMFdIpMPveMxFsBIiTq8/s1600/February+2012+035.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 240px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709079470160442322" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaizv0ZTN_v8syz0rsV5XbF98aTpwydSMO-kL1cRevNjVDhFcemScH2cUizzxIF4jpvbqpfjjv7jOqWs9czhsx3L4vAshXB7FT-ORFd6UzJ_6sBnRvvzIEI6AlMFdIpMPveMxFsBIiTq8/s320/February+2012+035.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRikfVgWUg8QKS-cdAu-pK8ciPnUYSgEUXOy4B4yKFysREjYg3ym65jjGcZkw_Hy2t8uwUPljAZse1j4RStYxnftL9o-gweWHIHIFKTbp6qWmx4bz0AY3ufEiUTCXyvOZNs-avJTaZyko/s1600/February+2012+050.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 240px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709079464112261538" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRikfVgWUg8QKS-cdAu-pK8ciPnUYSgEUXOy4B4yKFysREjYg3ym65jjGcZkw_Hy2t8uwUPljAZse1j4RStYxnftL9o-gweWHIHIFKTbp6qWmx4bz0AY3ufEiUTCXyvOZNs-avJTaZyko/s320/February+2012+050.JPG" /></a></div><div>They drilled over 40 holes and were not able to catch anything but Tommy had fun anyways! He had so much fun that he fell asleep on the plane ride home!</div></div></div><br /></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-5212176204318216852011-12-21T10:55:00.000-08:002011-12-22T11:25:24.868-08:00Hi Waffle<div><div><div>It has been awhile since I have blogged and I meant to post things a <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">million</span> times but my life living on the lake with a 2 year old and 1 year old has been fun, busy and crazy!! I will post more soon but I have to share this story. </div><div> </div><div>Tommy ate a waffle for breakfast and we had soup for lunch. Right after lunch he told me, "Mommy, I am so full and my soup went into my tummy and said hi waffle,".... it was the cutest thing I had heard all week! He says cute things all the time!! </div></div></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-20837359985688919582011-05-23T19:20:00.000-07:002011-05-23T19:49:17.976-07:00Happy 1st Birthday Lily!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCMdYz5swgeJ72s31ouAzSIw09RSmX0SZvrUPyphmts41LBJgPd9kMSw71g7GFt5j76Euv1wwzRmci9h2fJYLOFAhS4_0d5KaSumBwr7SufneH3ZUyOKXim1VfB54bAs80iTYtxLN5KPw/s1600/The+Lake+2011+017.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5610104359109385298" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCMdYz5swgeJ72s31ouAzSIw09RSmX0SZvrUPyphmts41LBJgPd9kMSw71g7GFt5j76Euv1wwzRmci9h2fJYLOFAhS4_0d5KaSumBwr7SufneH3ZUyOKXim1VfB54bAs80iTYtxLN5KPw/s400/The+Lake+2011+017.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioG2cPUyWcMFivB3PLD_vlNpUCwSnYUVW80ZB3VR_1UpZKYRh-Z_b053syE1vi4z4a3jToo_ZVnoD4JZD8NsLYtYa9hlrIiR9K1noocUkDbVWqul7MRetDTDgQn5kzmUo4xRX8HN_7Tec/s1600/The+Lake+2011+014.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5610104349604478578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioG2cPUyWcMFivB3PLD_vlNpUCwSnYUVW80ZB3VR_1UpZKYRh-Z_b053syE1vi4z4a3jToo_ZVnoD4JZD8NsLYtYa9hlrIiR9K1noocUkDbVWqul7MRetDTDgQn5kzmUo4xRX8HN_7Tec/s400/The+Lake+2011+014.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3M1i_AgZ-_Z-k3gNYpM7Jm1AWmAZbdwAAhBed8Ks-bulmlA0rG0vMK422qSOzyBndkTnYj2T4xUIEmSIfaZ9Qlwp_JUVx6o60C65Cf0BRvjsE50Q4ftZwep3ohDLw6vlBWWgkElnczhs/s1600/DSC_1870.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5610104339439517122" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3M1i_AgZ-_Z-k3gNYpM7Jm1AWmAZbdwAAhBed8Ks-bulmlA0rG0vMK422qSOzyBndkTnYj2T4xUIEmSIfaZ9Qlwp_JUVx6o60C65Cf0BRvjsE50Q4ftZwep3ohDLw6vlBWWgkElnczhs/s400/DSC_1870.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtvt_eikELLUCexDFMMqy24UygXPB1UYU1Ztjakh0bl3hAiIpHRg2TRG5tXNGAZIzBIsuzmcSjc6aiS_tWJGDzu2I-tdJoLtxHAqliCcnDsjeAyJAW2B2v8tbpfxtym7kT3freab71CE8/s1600/DSC_1970.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5610104332090391058" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtvt_eikELLUCexDFMMqy24UygXPB1UYU1Ztjakh0bl3hAiIpHRg2TRG5tXNGAZIzBIsuzmcSjc6aiS_tWJGDzu2I-tdJoLtxHAqliCcnDsjeAyJAW2B2v8tbpfxtym7kT3freab71CE8/s400/DSC_1970.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>Happy 1st Birthday Lily!! You turned 1 on May 21, 2011. You are the light of our lives (along with your brother Tommy) as you wake up with a smile on your face. You are so beautiful and the have the biggest eyes that I love! You are a sweetheart who loves to give hugs and kisses. You also are a "little mother" as you love your little dolls and hold onto them so tight as you hug them and carry them around the house. You can be very independent and social but you also love to cuddle and be carried around the house. You have been walking since 9 months and you love to follow Tommy and play with him! You like to be comforted in the night still so you get up 1-2 times a night even though you should be sleeping through the night. I actually don't mind getting up with you and sometimes I even bring you back to bed with me as you like to cuddle! I am so thankful to have you and I am blessed to be your Mom! Love you Lily!! Happy Birthday!</div></div></div></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-82998384729407235502011-05-20T07:11:00.000-07:002011-05-20T07:25:07.336-07:00North Dakota so farJoe sent out an e-mail to his family updating them on our trip to ND so I thought I would share it on the blog...<br /><br />Written by my hubby!<br /><br />So I got done <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">texturing</span> the basement tonight about 9. It is light here till about 10. The lake was glass and the temp was perfect. I went back to the big garage out back and got Tommy's new fishing rod that we just got him and mine and threw some worms on. Tommy was watching his nightly little bear cartoon before bed and Lora was laying on the couch next to him. I opened the door and <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">whispered</span> "Tommy come here." I said, "you want to go fishing?" He <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">whispered</span>, "Yes." I <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">grabbed</span> his sweatshirt and carried him, the rods and tackle box down with a Miller lite in my pocket. Tommy <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">whispered</span> to me down the hill are we going to catch a fish? I said, "yep, a big fish." We sat on the end of the dock as the sun set with our rods in the water and listened to the owl and ducks. About five minutes later, we got a big pull. I said, "Tommy, we got one!" I took his rod and reeled it in and it was huge. We fought with it for a minute or two trying to drag it to shore. Tommy was running and yelling in joy and just as we almost got it up and out, the line broke. It was a huge, heavy, 24" walleye. About 10 minutes later we pulled in another one and put in the keg bucket we had and it was huge. Tommy just loves it out here. We have been farming with the neighbors as they are planting wheat and Tommy usually falls asleep in the first 10 minutes and then we ride as he naps for an hour or so. Lily and Tommy just are having blast. As I work down <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">stairs</span> in the basement. Tommy and Lily yell down to me, "Dad are you <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_6" class="blsp-spelling-error">ok</span>? Are you working hard?" I say yep working hard and run up the stairs where they are both at the gate waiting for a kiss from me and Lora usually has lunch and dinner ready. Supper by the lake is amazing and peaceful. I wish I could tell Dad the fishing story but I know he is watching us. It has been a blast so far. Miss my Mom and family and can't wait for visitors. I start my new job on Monday as my new F-150 Truck arrives in Bismarck. I will be training the first month or two. I am excited to start. In the meantime we found an awesome church, St. Leo's in Minot and have seen a few friends and love the friendly people in all the small towns. The kids, eat, sleep, and play so well and love the fresh ND air.<br />Love<br />JoeLorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-5885718437716302592011-05-06T09:17:00.000-07:002011-05-06T09:26:59.357-07:00Moving.....It is such a pain.... Moving a whole house in two weeks is really hard. Tommy keeps asking where all his toys are going and he has cried a couple of times. I keep telling him that his toys are being shipped to ND and Grandma will pick up all his toys at the lake and take care of them until we arrive on the airplane... he feels a little better once I say that! We are sleeping on the floor as the beds are packed and we will be moving in to Nana's house for the week while Joe drives some of our stuff to ND. The rest of it is being shipped. I will fly up with the kids and Joe's brother Pat next week after Joe has had a few days in ND to get things settled. Pat and Joe will work on finishing the basement once we arrive!<br /><br />Last night we had some professional family pictures taken as I want my kids to remember that they were born in the desert of AZ! So, we took the pics outside by all the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">cactus's</span> and cool surroundings. It was beautiful and I can't wait to see the pics but poor Tommy started touching a cactus and poked his finger. Tommy is walking around this morning complaining about a hurt "ginger".... we are looking forward to getting settled at the lake.... it is starting to get hot in AZ so it is perfect timing! Hopefully, the snow has stopped falling in ND!Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-90550154116181753622011-04-19T10:13:00.000-07:002011-04-19T16:57:00.854-07:00We are moving back to North Dakota<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw87FPOZPrSLkF-s-sLrZEMbkBNRhpH56VyJZYdkDI4M-nY22POSvNxc3CzAD5vMIkl9UUGG8lsvlWoGQEOBgEoG-HSHsFEpP1ri9NiBKh1x-8BJKzB6cq8-_hp1O6PDqWopHctiudeOk/s1600/The+Lake.bmp"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597346984002079778" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw87FPOZPrSLkF-s-sLrZEMbkBNRhpH56VyJZYdkDI4M-nY22POSvNxc3CzAD5vMIkl9UUGG8lsvlWoGQEOBgEoG-HSHsFEpP1ri9NiBKh1x-8BJKzB6cq8-_hp1O6PDqWopHctiudeOk/s400/The+Lake.bmp" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div>Joe and I are excited to be moving the family back to North Dakota in May! We love Arizona and this move is bitter sweet as we will be leaving great family and friends in AZ. We are especially sad to be moving far away from Colleen and Pat (Joe's mom and brother) but we are excited to raise our kids in the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">Midwest</span> where we are both from in North Dakota!<br /></div><br /><div>Joe received a great job offer with a great company called <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">Victaulic</span> where he will be in a sales position. Joe is currently self employed in AZ and it is getting old paying for everything out of our own pockets like health benefits so we are excited for him to start his new adventure with <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">Victaulic</span> as they will offer our young family many benefits!<br /></div><br /><div>Joe's position is based in Minot, ND and we will be moving back the week of May 8<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-error">th</span>. Minot is growing and there are not many housing options available right now so we will be living in my Mom's cabin on Lake <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-error">Sakakawea</span> for the time being until we can find something in Minot. If you know of anyone wanting to rent their home out in Minot please let us know as we would be great renters! My Mom is completely finishing her basement for us and we are excited to live on the lake especially during the summer months! We will be renting out our house in AZ so if you know of anyone interested in a nice 4 bedroom/2 bathroom/3 car garage home please let us know!<br /></div><br /><div>We will be busy over the next few weeks packing but we are so excited to be back in ND where most of my family lives. Joe also has family in ND. We are also excited to reconnect with some great friends we both have in ND and meet new ones. This will be a new adventure and I am sure it will be an adjustment after living in a city of over 6 million people but we are excited to see where God takes us as we move back to the prairie!<br /><br /></div><br /><div>Look out North Dakota... HERE COME THE <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">WILSON'S</span>!!</div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-8596294407728326232011-04-06T12:44:00.000-07:002011-04-06T13:46:51.576-07:00Pops, Tommy, and Jesus<div align="center"><em><span style="font-size:130%;">“Most certainly I tell you, unless you turn, and become as little children, you will in no way enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. For whoever therefore humbles himself as this little child, the same is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven." Matthew 18:3-4 </span></em></div><br /><div align="center"></div><br /><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVHIdHcamwzUrFy0fKHm2f1vGTvbtP1cAjgpAnCbmBj-82Lbc3nXyXHvnojfD7dCxlnFfy2EdJcDt6jvxckC6yexAnz0sJouMY6rnMWBKNfk_aatL7bw8G9cNb267X3CZN-BCzo1tc-uA/s1600/Tommy+at+funeral.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592567088296056066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVHIdHcamwzUrFy0fKHm2f1vGTvbtP1cAjgpAnCbmBj-82Lbc3nXyXHvnojfD7dCxlnFfy2EdJcDt6jvxckC6yexAnz0sJouMY6rnMWBKNfk_aatL7bw8G9cNb267X3CZN-BCzo1tc-uA/s400/Tommy+at+funeral.jpg" /></a><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></p><br /><p><span style="font-size:130%;">I don't know where to begin or how to write about the loss of Randy (Joe's Dad, My father-in-law, Tommy and Lily's Pops) so I won't</span>... But, I want to write about a few experiences Tommy has had since Randy passed away on Monday, March 7<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error"><span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">th</span></span> as I want to remember these stories and share them with Tommy someday. Randy and Tommy had a great relationship and they had a connection that is unexplainable... the morning Randy passed away Joe and his whole family were surrounding Randy and I was home with the kids as they were sleeping. Joe came home a few hours after Randy had passed and Tommy was still sleeping but as soon as Tommy woke up I went into his room and did not tell him anything about Pops passing away as I wanted to wait for Joe so we could tell Tommy together but while I was changing his diaper Tommy said "Pops sleeping, Pops sleeping, Pops sleeping." I could not believe my ears because we had not said anything yet to Tommy about Randy passing away but Tommy already knew somehow... </p><br /><p>About a week later Tommy woke up from his afternoon nap and I asked him if he had any good dreams and he said, "Pops playing with me... Pops playing with me and the animals"... it gave me goosebumps and a few days after that Tommy told me when he woke up from a nap that "Pops playing football with Jesus and the animals" and he kept repeating this story about Pops playing football with Jesus and there were all these animals around. Tommy has said all of this on his own without any prodding...Joe and I are so amazed as he says these things right after he wakes up from his naps so you can believe what you want but I believe that Pops is visiting Tommy in his dreams and I do believe that he is playing with Tommy and that Tommy can see Randy who is safe and loved in the presence of Jesus. </p><br /><p>The other reason I think this is because Tommy never asks where Pops is or wonders where Pops is when we go over to Nana and Pops house. He used to always run in their house and run right to Pops... he would even run past Nana as he loved Pops so much but now he goes over there and Tommy never even asks where Pops is and he never even looks around for Pops.... Again, I believe he does not ask about Pops because he KNOWS Pops is safe in heaven. This whole experience just makes me believe even more in Heaven and Hell and the power of Jesus. Jesus is our SAVIOR and KING and I can see that more clearly through the eyes of my 2 year old!! </p>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-63541031474110713872011-02-04T09:13:00.000-08:002011-02-04T10:29:22.174-08:00Catch Up from Christmas<div align="center">I have not blogged for awhile as it has been so busy but we love this time of year as the weather in AZ is perfect! (This week is a little cold but it is usually in the 70's) We live in extreme heat during the summer so this is our chance to get outside and enjoy the nice weather!</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center">We hosted Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at our house with family from both sides! We had lots of fun celebrating with everyone. My husband is an amazing host and cook and he rigged the ping pong table so we could all eat around one big table... that's right... we ate Christmas dinner on our ping pong table as you can see in the picture below! </div><div align="center"><br /></div><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwsauCEWh01X9YH8WlTJ_XNzoN-Tt2YolPtMzxs20EaE_GdM6qw0gnOzp3YXYfCi2ZoMgMJk-uX_IQKOwJjwCwaUeH8CSUTRYIagOM6lf6Ck0E9pL5czIUqQmOI5xZeYS2lApifMImtWQ/s1600/christmas+2010.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569894809335355170" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwsauCEWh01X9YH8WlTJ_XNzoN-Tt2YolPtMzxs20EaE_GdM6qw0gnOzp3YXYfCi2ZoMgMJk-uX_IQKOwJjwCwaUeH8CSUTRYIagOM6lf6Ck0E9pL5czIUqQmOI5xZeYS2lApifMImtWQ/s400/christmas+2010.jpg" /></a><br />Tommy got a special visit from Santa on Christmas Eve and we sang Christmas carols, exchanged gifts, and blessed the Christmas tree. Tommy loved seeing Santa and still talks about the tennis shoes that Santa brought for him as an early Santa gift. Lily cried and did not really enjoy Santa this year but hopefully, she will like him more next year.</div><div align="center"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEissMc31U8GtoXeboA7jLhoKcPWOfZEEn0Y-Y0G-m558gzEPItoNhn2_d_l67JtmITcpBO1lqajk609_z_cRw3NbyEOVzVx8dvOJK0vKjtxDqji5xj-9Eko4XkgR1EmEhXI3ESCy2XojsI/s1600/snata.bmp"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569895446840923474" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEissMc31U8GtoXeboA7jLhoKcPWOfZEEn0Y-Y0G-m558gzEPItoNhn2_d_l67JtmITcpBO1lqajk609_z_cRw3NbyEOVzVx8dvOJK0vKjtxDqji5xj-9Eko4XkgR1EmEhXI3ESCy2XojsI/s400/snata.bmp" /></a> I love the picture below as it showcases Christmas in Arizona..... I miss having a white Christmas but I also love the sun and palm trees! </div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdNITGQiXacYlPIk8L3KTSV89qL8rKZNbk5-NddRKOie2-VHw0ZdWg2NNsWt8HUg0mT0YNtCGQvnyeqtUBsBz8ovhg1WSI8Jls5NGV3NZV2oKfmlpryBWqlUOPNoHUKQH8G-PlJBrpjy8/s1600/_DSC0328.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569893603476543314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdNITGQiXacYlPIk8L3KTSV89qL8rKZNbk5-NddRKOie2-VHw0ZdWg2NNsWt8HUg0mT0YNtCGQvnyeqtUBsBz8ovhg1WSI8Jls5NGV3NZV2oKfmlpryBWqlUOPNoHUKQH8G-PlJBrpjy8/s400/_DSC0328.JPG" /></a><br />We love our kids! Tommy and Lily are the joys of our life and it is so fun to see them grow and play together! We want more kids someday but for now we are enjoying our family of four!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNBdVaoguuuUmhaK-MYefhfZPPmcGSLiLCcFZfIv9sSxlANjCeDBHSsir7pQ8W7c9o_8WMojT74MYmub0e7Qhyphenhyphen_4Mwc3-vLi5GHVsPyZF3jhX4g_tDJzBztaLbUX_YjRDiD2wYoB2mgQE/s1600/_DSC0270.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569893599175241778" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNBdVaoguuuUmhaK-MYefhfZPPmcGSLiLCcFZfIv9sSxlANjCeDBHSsir7pQ8W7c9o_8WMojT74MYmub0e7Qhyphenhyphen_4Mwc3-vLi5GHVsPyZF3jhX4g_tDJzBztaLbUX_YjRDiD2wYoB2mgQE/s400/_DSC0270.JPG" /></a><br />We were able to sneak away after Christmas for three days and two nights to Texas as my cousin Michelle got married! Joe and I had a great time and Michelle and Garrett's wedding was beautiful! I was so worried about leaving Lily as she refuses to take a bottle but she did great with Nana and Auntie JoJo and it was so nice that Joe and I were able to get away without the kids so we could celebrate Michelle's wedding without distractions! Below is a picture of all my cousins at the wedding.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7bhGTAEJwp7GOMAGFwNJsXZOGQyxjNt4VUxKh8p5xUKvADCd3o7CGZZZ970rWBesbAU6a__sw-qOgXvweU7mV5x715WpfiXToqcqrhNi1rAhqr0E62iJyalTq1sTa4xtrGvLEJOah7ZE/s1600/165371_10150165680569937_507444936_8286585_4900862_n.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569893606373372178" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7bhGTAEJwp7GOMAGFwNJsXZOGQyxjNt4VUxKh8p5xUKvADCd3o7CGZZZ970rWBesbAU6a__sw-qOgXvweU7mV5x715WpfiXToqcqrhNi1rAhqr0E62iJyalTq1sTa4xtrGvLEJOah7ZE/s400/165371_10150165680569937_507444936_8286585_4900862_n.jpg" /></a>We celebrated New Years with some of our close couple friends and their families! I feel so blessed as we have made some great friends in AZ. Joe and I are part of a group called TOOL (Teams of Our Lady) where we meet once a month without kids and have dinner and wine together and then we discuss God and pray together! It is a great group for Joe and I and we look forward to it every month. We also like getting together with all of them with our kids like we did in the picture below on New Years!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7p_Y32QKMlS15uxidyhxKC4eIGWTsAoOQBhxlfqBh43nvINKVoosdlHV_KKYEEDt3Nh-zHsjunCSqkQwlZaTlluB-Twb_dTNjarLB1m_PPyfxyt2IJoskuJPXCkpmyLW-GaZEzeqkqj0/s1600/168707_1719872473099_1126897352_31914270_2958957_n.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569893611653609170" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7p_Y32QKMlS15uxidyhxKC4eIGWTsAoOQBhxlfqBh43nvINKVoosdlHV_KKYEEDt3Nh-zHsjunCSqkQwlZaTlluB-Twb_dTNjarLB1m_PPyfxyt2IJoskuJPXCkpmyLW-GaZEzeqkqj0/s400/168707_1719872473099_1126897352_31914270_2958957_n.jpg" /></a><br />Like I said earlier, we are enjoying the nice weather in AZ and we try and go hiking once every couple of weeks with the kids. We like to go to Usery Park as you can hike and then let the kids play on the playground and have a picnic!<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgioqBn4hijTpHqZ4c9H5vCLaVH4sIin_ZImfcjPlQQMnUF2Xt5MMRjspDbfsjFRQ1FSB0tUmvYUJXqDz8CW2nWkI-BsK_n9VCOqq2Zw8r3mFC23N7o-nGW2ZNrZdiyok0GGu5en9YJ1n8/s1600/hiking.bmp"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569895454415836306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgioqBn4hijTpHqZ4c9H5vCLaVH4sIin_ZImfcjPlQQMnUF2Xt5MMRjspDbfsjFRQ1FSB0tUmvYUJXqDz8CW2nWkI-BsK_n9VCOqq2Zw8r3mFC23N7o-nGW2ZNrZdiyok0GGu5en9YJ1n8/s400/hiking.bmp" /></a> I am also thankful for the mom friends I have made in AZ. I am involved in a couple different playgroups and bible studies. Not only do we go to play dates but it is also fun to go out with friends without the kids. Below is a picture of all of us Mom's out for dinner right before Christmas! I am so thankful for all of the friendships I have made in AZ!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP5VXHP12Js8M-xS7pLAYChTY20_7Qu4HKdB5ocabJzKkMW7ucGwabP4xpNHfDgaBO2ISeyXj84PfmvXZWJW1pnRo-5hh1tBJ9l-Df8YnhobSH9cM6OqOAI9Kb-79AQWkgdLN8MAP2JcI/s1600/christmas+party.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569895447020068338" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP5VXHP12Js8M-xS7pLAYChTY20_7Qu4HKdB5ocabJzKkMW7ucGwabP4xpNHfDgaBO2ISeyXj84PfmvXZWJW1pnRo-5hh1tBJ9l-Df8YnhobSH9cM6OqOAI9Kb-79AQWkgdLN8MAP2JcI/s400/christmas+party.jpg" /></a><br /></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-16178464173090814982011-01-18T10:06:00.000-08:002011-01-18T15:33:48.222-08:00A Good BookLast night I stayed up late and read a book... a whole book in one sitting! It was amazing and so relaxing just to lay down and read. I need to do that more often. Joe bathed the kids while I read and then I put Lily to sleep and continued reading while Joe put Tommy to sleep. It was so nice to relax and get lost in a good book. I couldn't put it down. My <a href="http://cmerie.blogspot.com/2011/01/unplanned.html">friend</a> recommended the book Unplanned on her blog so I ordered a copy right away on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Unplanned-Dramatic-Planned-Parenthood-Eye-Opening/dp/1414339399/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1295393572&sr=8-1">Amazon</a> and it came in the mail yesterday. I would highly recommend this book to anyone! It is a very interesting true story. I was in tears while reading the 1st chapter.<br /><br />The book description:<br /><br /><em>Abby Johnson quit her job in October 2009. That simple act became a national news story because Abby was the director of a Planned Parenthood clinic in Texas who, after participating in her first actual abortion procedure, walked across the road to join the Coalition for Life.<br /><br />Unplanned is a heart-stopping personal drama of life-and-death encounters, a courtroom battle, and spiritual transformation that speaks hope and compassion into the political controversy that surrounds this issue. Telling Abby's story from both sides of the abortion clinic property line, this book is a must-read for anyone who cares about the life versus rights debate and helping women who face crisis pregnancies. </em>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-16789179575330388092010-12-01T19:02:00.001-08:002010-12-01T21:28:55.816-08:00A Father's Love<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGT04AMEgu2ALftXptkMpue3PzzdxHdjiT6PTh3M6pp-WOpiH7R2OaL2l5IAVex1oNYFcwz7dY1QFiucB3-wW2t9MO9N5nSh_EWnnnZ-DhnZD7wIhYgClbEWnrQgyZ9dtojxjiFxtdiGU/s1600/DSCN2199.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545918168786812738" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGT04AMEgu2ALftXptkMpue3PzzdxHdjiT6PTh3M6pp-WOpiH7R2OaL2l5IAVex1oNYFcwz7dY1QFiucB3-wW2t9MO9N5nSh_EWnnnZ-DhnZD7wIhYgClbEWnrQgyZ9dtojxjiFxtdiGU/s400/DSCN2199.JPG" /></a><br /><div>I have been thinking about my kids lately and how I want them to be raised. Tommy is starting to pick up on every little thing we say or do and I want to make sure he is feeling love and hearing loving words even when he is being disciplined. This topic has come up with a couple of my friends lately as we discuss how we parent our children. I want my children to know that they are loved by their parents and loved by God, the Holy Spirit and Jesus. </div><br /><div>I look at Joe and I am so thankful for a strong husband and father who loves his children whole <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">heartedly</span>. I am so thankful that Joe helps out so much with everything from cleaning to diapers and he also works so hard to provide for his family. None of this would be possible without the love of his parents especially the love and teachings he receives from his father. I was looking through a prayer book of Joe's the other day and I found a note that was written on the front cover. The note wast written to Joe from his Dad.</div><br /><div align="center"><em>To Our Joe, My Champ, </em></div><div align="center"><em>Throughout every moment of your wonderful, </em></div><div align="center"><em>blessed life, </em></div><div align="center"><em>No matter what you think, no matter what you say, </em></div><div align="center"><em>no matter what you do, </em></div><div align="center"><em>You can ABSOLUTELY count on the fact that </em></div><div align="center"><em>you are LOVED, a powerful love, all healthy love, </em></div><div align="center"><em>a tender love, a rough love, a rich love, </em></div><div align="center"><em>a thoughtful love, a love that wants everything great, good</em></div><div align="center"><em>and wonderful to happen to you Joe. </em></div><div align="center"><em>A love that wants you feeling happy and joyful <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">throughout</span> </em></div><div align="center"><em>your whole eternal life. GOD LOVES YOU JOE, </em></div><div align="center"><em>Jesus love you Joe, the Holy Spirit loves you Champ, </em></div><div align="center"><em>All with God love you, your beautiful Mom loves you Joe,<br />Dad loves you.... </em></div><div align="center"><em>Joe, every moment</em></div><div align="center"><em>be the best you can be, no matter what you think, say or do... </em></div><div align="center"><em>Love, Mom and Dad</em></div><br /><div align="left">I can only hope that Joe and I can love and teach our kids the way our parents raised us and loved us especially the way Randy and Colleen raised Joe. The writing above by Joe's Dad is so beautiful and powerful and Randy means every word he wrote as I can see that powerful love in Joe. That is why I have such a strong and wonderful husband who is such an amazing father to our children. Hopefully, we can pass on this powerful love to our children and grandchildren.</div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-82448763306105234782010-11-30T07:19:00.000-08:002010-11-30T08:07:06.224-08:00Tommy's Monster Truck Birthday Party<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeLBBHVg0gCob4Nn9Xxtp39eHkyOB4z76vfsZgwtUHy6jZ-OMZvGk5RlmNWY_7m1Kmawb9zbgUHFrdVlAhZKC3u-X8kP8dAxBigjhkAjpMgGZZ5kZ0PPWbB_nYsiZ7HB0UaqKM-87WQRY/s1600/DSCN3821.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545374178530945282" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeLBBHVg0gCob4Nn9Xxtp39eHkyOB4z76vfsZgwtUHy6jZ-OMZvGk5RlmNWY_7m1Kmawb9zbgUHFrdVlAhZKC3u-X8kP8dAxBigjhkAjpMgGZZ5kZ0PPWbB_nYsiZ7HB0UaqKM-87WQRY/s320/DSCN3821.JPG" /></a><br /><div>We threw Tommy his 2nd birthday party a month early as family was in town from ND and Texas! Tommy's official birthday is December 30th so I wanted to throw him a birthday early so it would be seperate from Christmas. We will still celebrate with him on his actual birthday but it will be just our family. </div><div><br /> </div><div>We had a Monster Truck bounce house and served pizza with mud pie for dessert! It was so fun as we have made so many good friends in AZ over the past few years so it was fun to celebrate with family and friends. Tommy loved the bounce house and he had fun with all of his friends and he received some amazing gifts!! Thankfully, my mom was in town so she helped me decorate and she made over 40 cups of mud pie! Mud pie was my favorite version of birthday cake when I was a kid so we had to make it for Tommy and it was a hit. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Q98SRC9Ph1swP9UNf-FpN0yKkhQw6RFRixFSg8hxmn01dXaAET6ELZsi-WgnPslVpgtRjvdWX2qUfYwgaS3RYR76gBXfUBoClPJrZO6oj_e-I2gDUXg9B1TKhsfXlmBEJw80gQNbLYE/s1600/DSCN3822.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545373696643130306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Q98SRC9Ph1swP9UNf-FpN0yKkhQw6RFRixFSg8hxmn01dXaAET6ELZsi-WgnPslVpgtRjvdWX2qUfYwgaS3RYR76gBXfUBoClPJrZO6oj_e-I2gDUXg9B1TKhsfXlmBEJw80gQNbLYE/s320/DSCN3822.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid20mHtsHrU0_Vi9dhenphbnMEG0NszOXX8L8QHAhkDEvW0XJ1Tg3F_Uv4d2WSa_8oen-uGxRfmQUWrFPxk9QDRL6E-QtU1TxJJf2Tg4ykx5q10jAmtbOwxaerFpQ7pt1_UnqMnjj4ycQ/s1600/DSCN3822.JPG"></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_rkH19a81UKViMhRnLZoe0ONGlNKHHu09tmpg3dznrG3FA-91DGWOXLJTLLOqdPMeRul2VweYCO31toWVuRxywN9t-4Se1URMputeEieEvKzsYEJxef7JMYwtlyXuiyql0REn-znGCg8/s1600/DSCN3825.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545373039531880098" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_rkH19a81UKViMhRnLZoe0ONGlNKHHu09tmpg3dznrG3FA-91DGWOXLJTLLOqdPMeRul2VweYCO31toWVuRxywN9t-4Se1URMputeEieEvKzsYEJxef7JMYwtlyXuiyql0REn-znGCg8/s320/DSCN3825.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM2M9lBPbE2-ybk2oTCqECSNkwxyflJnXZybiYdd1_2P9gKCefDPoXgRt0YvKg9Brvz2Kfqbn9p_w5Dtnw9aUKa__W7ZMredL1JCsSQbLO5gKcKw9niJjSi23N-eYFRaeQ2F2GQopbQTM/s1600/DSCN3827.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545373031854177538" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM2M9lBPbE2-ybk2oTCqECSNkwxyflJnXZybiYdd1_2P9gKCefDPoXgRt0YvKg9Brvz2Kfqbn9p_w5Dtnw9aUKa__W7ZMredL1JCsSQbLO5gKcKw9niJjSi23N-eYFRaeQ2F2GQopbQTM/s320/DSCN3827.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR2BMBWA4qhWtrYtE08Qq17F54HZqw-vk3QWpZvKdVsTBCB950NLpidG4YBOcGFBQIcZOAKyeoF0vRAQ8Es-QM1suF1yQFr5TQDQradPHtIL1qG7O2JNfhVdIwUwncsWIMe0CnKb8U9ws/s1600/DSCN3832.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545373011275573314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR2BMBWA4qhWtrYtE08Qq17F54HZqw-vk3QWpZvKdVsTBCB950NLpidG4YBOcGFBQIcZOAKyeoF0vRAQ8Es-QM1suF1yQFr5TQDQradPHtIL1qG7O2JNfhVdIwUwncsWIMe0CnKb8U9ws/s320/DSCN3832.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjohUFyK6QZ_XGhMCBAQ7CIXkIZqWuDaC_kQGuTUc7KfiwpXXUg3ZiH5_t1oC8WMzHryu5PZFXaaKJVFnTBXk-sT4ilYY6lCQ8FHEVWi24IyQmrDoN7qj2voDvGePkHdr4iF3nAdV8UB3Y/s1600/DSCN3835.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545373008698223794" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjohUFyK6QZ_XGhMCBAQ7CIXkIZqWuDaC_kQGuTUc7KfiwpXXUg3ZiH5_t1oC8WMzHryu5PZFXaaKJVFnTBXk-sT4ilYY6lCQ8FHEVWi24IyQmrDoN7qj2voDvGePkHdr4iF3nAdV8UB3Y/s320/DSCN3835.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhMNTEIHTdLUmRxP7i-qXrvGtOfgCzFSBGtN_ck5YVCphEmhO31VAmKeoWqK1Ca_9GrPxENlAJzwBjY4zwNHl09-QWOSEltvFp-tSDFTlQMVKtAffotvVwVzTQ0Og47rw5VZwx_iSpzjk/s1600/DSCN3839.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545372998712940306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhMNTEIHTdLUmRxP7i-qXrvGtOfgCzFSBGtN_ck5YVCphEmhO31VAmKeoWqK1Ca_9GrPxENlAJzwBjY4zwNHl09-QWOSEltvFp-tSDFTlQMVKtAffotvVwVzTQ0Og47rw5VZwx_iSpzjk/s320/DSCN3839.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4767EK8PzJdOC7hb9HYclKXYLwvmOmnnk_5UVKAlH2eh0Zt3Q-NEWAFD1PUQCR1POPlPp3Zuai1cUwEii-AvG_1_vjekIFg1qFZW8MVux4xHLpLe7WBrTDtQE5HWHIK8HH-jpjgB5vCg/s1600/DSCN3840.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545364819540166658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4767EK8PzJdOC7hb9HYclKXYLwvmOmnnk_5UVKAlH2eh0Zt3Q-NEWAFD1PUQCR1POPlPp3Zuai1cUwEii-AvG_1_vjekIFg1qFZW8MVux4xHLpLe7WBrTDtQE5HWHIK8HH-jpjgB5vCg/s320/DSCN3840.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb6ZmelGeU8oKTSYJl5uu0ivF5n8VDdq3eeRKZLnJ0xftBHAtcZdW-nASarrEbl7qnLdxCPQSVu_LzDb3PbYk_DJ1vY0vKUeRsiLFVqkG6ADyIHmLry_ghn5M0NRvcvsuHmsYE4EzPrUA/s1600/DSCN3844.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545364815491270578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb6ZmelGeU8oKTSYJl5uu0ivF5n8VDdq3eeRKZLnJ0xftBHAtcZdW-nASarrEbl7qnLdxCPQSVu_LzDb3PbYk_DJ1vY0vKUeRsiLFVqkG6ADyIHmLry_ghn5M0NRvcvsuHmsYE4EzPrUA/s320/DSCN3844.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSB0noB7yPGgDJtkGadBOjL0TokTV0HnT63DxnAjU-3Zx3nWuNLa8Gd2FjHFqEWzrKqddCpwVftS1a-2TnEv84m6uiM1Vk4hnycrrVmZSHfHsnoPEq-zzQA8GcT5Gr9vwogPZ2X7MCvVc/s1600/DSCN3847.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545364806266804002" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSB0noB7yPGgDJtkGadBOjL0TokTV0HnT63DxnAjU-3Zx3nWuNLa8Gd2FjHFqEWzrKqddCpwVftS1a-2TnEv84m6uiM1Vk4hnycrrVmZSHfHsnoPEq-zzQA8GcT5Gr9vwogPZ2X7MCvVc/s320/DSCN3847.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYXb0u1wT-MHlb03IpH0nUQn16Xql9DfGaJeBd4iBH8jTxuu9u8yIjiaksBq7LTf4fJm6c87LTB7woiX1z97d4Z3xCkEidmT7Ly44vBalHypkBHX0qszm1yPCZu7x5YPPMkh7_N-XZCbk/s1600/DSCN3849.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545364805267615506" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYXb0u1wT-MHlb03IpH0nUQn16Xql9DfGaJeBd4iBH8jTxuu9u8yIjiaksBq7LTf4fJm6c87LTB7woiX1z97d4Z3xCkEidmT7Ly44vBalHypkBHX0qszm1yPCZu7x5YPPMkh7_N-XZCbk/s320/DSCN3849.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-72080855109299459982010-11-29T10:15:00.000-08:002010-11-29T10:41:02.107-08:00Our ThanksgivingMy mom and brother Steven flew in from ND for Thanksgiving weekend. We had so much fun with them and Joe's sister Mary and her husband David and daughter Lucy who flew in from Texas! It was a great weekend. We hosted Thanksgiving dinner and it was very easy for me because my husband loves to cook. I woke up on Thanksgiving morning and Joe had one turkey <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">brined</span> and cooking in the roaster and one turkey in the oven. He had everything lined up and labeled and a timeline for all the cooking. He also found time to mow the lawn! He is amazing as the food tasted great! Nana and Pops (Joe's parents) also brought an amazing ham so we had a lot of food and leftovers which I think is the best part!<br /><br />Tommy and Lily had so much fun playing with their cousin Lucy and Tommy loves his Uncle Steven who he calls "Zena" - Tommy was really sad to see Steven fly home and even said "I luv you Zena" as Steven was heading into the airport. I may or may not have seen a tear coming down from Uncle Zena's face as he walked inside. Tommy also loves playing with his Aunt Mary and Uncle David. David is really good at throwing Tommy up in the there air!<br /><br /><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2sFp296uztaNGaiTybeUlkkn_6Y9BUvyrxlatt74CWThvENGOD2MMFqmSFbZS62wu7U8rzQ5Oqof9S1ka1DtwFEcfS6bofg739cPS3umqj2CLrE2rDrRMoXfR_DQflWoeImTV6TKzRvo/s1600/DSCN3783.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545040879336693970" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2sFp296uztaNGaiTybeUlkkn_6Y9BUvyrxlatt74CWThvENGOD2MMFqmSFbZS62wu7U8rzQ5Oqof9S1ka1DtwFEcfS6bofg739cPS3umqj2CLrE2rDrRMoXfR_DQflWoeImTV6TKzRvo/s320/DSCN3783.JPG" /></a> Joe's cooking timeline and set-up</div><div align="center"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD5GwUH1TwZzUXtMPqhYU0hByj8M8XeCr-9N6J_XJDDwlOSA-cYecpYaFWtfj_05gxzZQF6OGEPLdmkY741oNQk8iZKccziZia1vnS73nGp11-QiqbiTRHi_ko5EZ0QjCY_TLvyWVJYW8/s1600/DSCN3780.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545040876869646338" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD5GwUH1TwZzUXtMPqhYU0hByj8M8XeCr-9N6J_XJDDwlOSA-cYecpYaFWtfj_05gxzZQF6OGEPLdmkY741oNQk8iZKccziZia1vnS73nGp11-QiqbiTRHi_ko5EZ0QjCY_TLvyWVJYW8/s320/DSCN3780.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY4_l9eHpKWBBUqIc7Gegz2pTPgHCGy_QiqRTkN7AjL4O_kGgE2SoehlWSn_bZpTWF4N9v5M5xljnAtkXM7gOlus7ZrYnCnYkQlLUe41dxgH2qSEOaoK2CjsbRpvU-IaQo7k8pDexbEC8/s1600/DSCN3787.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545040856020399314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY4_l9eHpKWBBUqIc7Gegz2pTPgHCGy_QiqRTkN7AjL4O_kGgE2SoehlWSn_bZpTWF4N9v5M5xljnAtkXM7gOlus7ZrYnCnYkQlLUe41dxgH2qSEOaoK2CjsbRpvU-IaQo7k8pDexbEC8/s320/DSCN3787.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-G6FcnCgsTEnfGPrNvIaClLU0ofJCB7PVNQuWK8EG-LG8TUqVvrXgKqXouHJEj0jjncLyZF7ndEBNOnOCNRa6DYv0QgzLG3s9ilsrTq7VkUbh21MOqaAvgLCNQQ6ReGKjdUS1Syg0SBU/s1600/DSCN3831.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545040848718552850" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-G6FcnCgsTEnfGPrNvIaClLU0ofJCB7PVNQuWK8EG-LG8TUqVvrXgKqXouHJEj0jjncLyZF7ndEBNOnOCNRa6DYv0QgzLG3s9ilsrTq7VkUbh21MOqaAvgLCNQQ6ReGKjdUS1Syg0SBU/s320/DSCN3831.JPG" /></a><br />Playing a little ping-pong before dinner<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMN1VlqAhPRSaSAn8pT9J6-4-u0_JqpbGRxiED4mWAi35QO5f-i3JY1_HRm7U-rpUatZ0iOaa1fJH1d46Ja896Ek63YPFLNzfutGCclHRWkb12twVTqRm1WvejGwndiYWm6jIuKE6x4FE/s1600/DSCN3797.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545040837515891490" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMN1VlqAhPRSaSAn8pT9J6-4-u0_JqpbGRxiED4mWAi35QO5f-i3JY1_HRm7U-rpUatZ0iOaa1fJH1d46Ja896Ek63YPFLNzfutGCclHRWkb12twVTqRm1WvejGwndiYWm6jIuKE6x4FE/s320/DSCN3797.JPG" /></a> I wish I had gotten a picture of everyone eating<br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG4f-dqivtpTMdThYnNr3J5au_FPYkPsIvIP7JDNnPd-eajgAItvnnOfQsh-4lXWiJvapoTv_nK4kYgVgS9sftCviI3j0e5XKn354BtnlkWspYs0Mb-BtQE9nPyxjKpIgWFNIQgURItvs/s1600/DSCN3798.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545039796933975810" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG4f-dqivtpTMdThYnNr3J5au_FPYkPsIvIP7JDNnPd-eajgAItvnnOfQsh-4lXWiJvapoTv_nK4kYgVgS9sftCviI3j0e5XKn354BtnlkWspYs0Mb-BtQE9nPyxjKpIgWFNIQgURItvs/s320/DSCN3798.JPG" /></a> Lily and I in our matching necklace and headband that was made by my friend Heather</div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwqt_ZMB7StXw2yuh7jSWQQ7GQgClrMDg6mda25F-ee324LVmA-JP954szaUMJaxPmMtJJjGS6IQ_hZbc6uxBtp1x60dPFrdAfL2M574AiRKAltPPiea_D8LkchS_rnpsB7o2tyH9QCgo/s1600/DSCN3804.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545039788732343138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwqt_ZMB7StXw2yuh7jSWQQ7GQgClrMDg6mda25F-ee324LVmA-JP954szaUMJaxPmMtJJjGS6IQ_hZbc6uxBtp1x60dPFrdAfL2M574AiRKAltPPiea_D8LkchS_rnpsB7o2tyH9QCgo/s320/DSCN3804.JPG" /></a><br />Aunt Mary and Tommy playing<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFfZZJdjZXH-dV_MXmu5iKTh_wTmJCPIHMQpc8T2rmZMLwh-3tzVlIHam1ewUudIh7sBXyGon362w7tEaixGF40_aAPtlKHQhV-RSHo9cAS12K0v3O9ZSSr5FP1PfMHuK89w_djhZcbPs/s1600/DSCN3809.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545039783806628530" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFfZZJdjZXH-dV_MXmu5iKTh_wTmJCPIHMQpc8T2rmZMLwh-3tzVlIHam1ewUudIh7sBXyGon362w7tEaixGF40_aAPtlKHQhV-RSHo9cAS12K0v3O9ZSSr5FP1PfMHuK89w_djhZcbPs/s320/DSCN3809.JPG" /></a><br />The cousins - Lily, Lucy and Tommy (We were missing <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">Jaxson</span> and Wyatt)<br /><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545039776606383394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVVfooqQOeTpmNLGeW3vuhyatLC3MRYQ_Ce3fg7IaKZCP8bWcN53kYCSGWPEKVMwbBisT6SznxP0Y0OLNy5p4yDOQVY-46m7KT85w_wV9LcweXG2CRhIEDEOYpv_4RfaycCZxMbG9ZkVk/s320/DSCN3817.JPG" /><br />Uncle Zena and Tommy enjoying the pool<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik5_J9Ra8sQTqNyTNhQSgQxfL9YPGw4dZvWUWRTonX6Yx7gNT_Krf3bX39b5ybOiqshdX8FEIiIqU_hInNAJNFWFaPC-uR3VChVAdU5iyXp8zuMU6vsa8D9fRpr5l1Mi9BmNeipiR215Q/s1600/DSCN3877.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545039764329054034" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik5_J9Ra8sQTqNyTNhQSgQxfL9YPGw4dZvWUWRTonX6Yx7gNT_Krf3bX39b5ybOiqshdX8FEIiIqU_hInNAJNFWFaPC-uR3VChVAdU5iyXp8zuMU6vsa8D9fRpr5l1Mi9BmNeipiR215Q/s320/DSCN3877.JPG" /></a> Saying good-bye - so sad! </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-58184472058402413202010-11-19T18:13:00.001-08:002010-11-19T18:22:19.943-08:00DaydreamingI received an e-mail last night from my cousin Michelle. She is getting married at the end of December and I am her Matron of Honor. I am so honored to be in her wedding as I love her like a sister. Anyways, she wrote me last night to confirm my hair/airbrush make-up/fake eyelashes appointment!! YEAH!! I am going to get my hair and make-up done with her in her room before the wedding along with fake eyelashes! This may not seem like a big deal but when you have been either pregnant or nursing for the past three years being pampered sounds like heaven!! I was daydreaming about flying away to her wedding without the kids. Should we bring them or leave them? My mom bought Joe and I plane tickets and got us our very own hotel room with a king size bed as we will be flying to Texas for her wedding. I cannot even imagine being away from the kids as it makes me scared but hey, I also need a break and Joe and I could use some time away from the kids. The only time I have been away from Tommy for more than 10 hours was when I gave birth to Lily and that was an amazing experience but it was no vacation. So, my dilemma is that Lily refuses to take a bottle even with pumped milk....do I leave the kids with Joe's parents who are amazing or do we bring them along since Lily won't drink out of the bottle? I think I have already made up my mind to leave them as we will only be gone for two days but I am also nervous as I don't want Lily to scream for two days? What do you think? Any advice?Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-63267886839185333332010-11-01T09:02:00.000-07:002010-11-01T09:34:14.033-07:00Happy Halloween<span style="font-size:180%;color:#ff6600;">We had a fun day yesterday on Halloween!</span> We went to church with Joe's family and then we went out for breakfast before Joe's Grandma flew back to North Dakota. Tommy is still wondering where <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">GG</span> went as he is sad she left.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi11GoNl5BH0T9dJUQGmcY7kscd7I-9IneB71koG-CnZFJVOoV6SPCvPZ-KSFbyTSjLhcK1ZZOUC_Un87ynUco1OnR-Vcc_xR1bDxC44QmDVhOTzUdMaploL9LiAlH4UibunPxKgCOFiL4/s1600/DSCN3596.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534615747265789058" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi11GoNl5BH0T9dJUQGmcY7kscd7I-9IneB71koG-CnZFJVOoV6SPCvPZ-KSFbyTSjLhcK1ZZOUC_Un87ynUco1OnR-Vcc_xR1bDxC44QmDVhOTzUdMaploL9LiAlH4UibunPxKgCOFiL4/s320/DSCN3596.JPG" /></a><br /><div>Joe and I were both so tired from a busy weekend but we spent most of the afternoon in the backyard playing with the kids and carving pumpkins. Joe made real pumpkin masks for the whole family.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMeOkhPFOiJsrZdinRKe_qHdEm1wFTelB_mYh3kbHcE-L1M9qlnuQkozBWXqTOdDgCp1Xs_TaFwJtWNUzl_5bJ3uEWzwsyr1KpwlYxHp8uzRwNorhSOfu2jC2najaN56S9vbrinyIVkS0/s1600/DSCN3607.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534615762956608034" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMeOkhPFOiJsrZdinRKe_qHdEm1wFTelB_mYh3kbHcE-L1M9qlnuQkozBWXqTOdDgCp1Xs_TaFwJtWNUzl_5bJ3uEWzwsyr1KpwlYxHp8uzRwNorhSOfu2jC2najaN56S9vbrinyIVkS0/s320/DSCN3607.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiftq-clEiEL3bazr3wnmMd705CxDOYSn7JnuI62mwjvVi2-Maq61YeZHSKMntZ5QMR0SZh7Fy7wfWdn5q3SkV2E1UV5EU1P3RDbw3a-h7Xw8QAjeyHbc-eBF-sg70a-etqsaLMBN0Ytcc/s1600/DSCN3600.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534615748617329138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiftq-clEiEL3bazr3wnmMd705CxDOYSn7JnuI62mwjvVi2-Maq61YeZHSKMntZ5QMR0SZh7Fy7wfWdn5q3SkV2E1UV5EU1P3RDbw3a-h7Xw8QAjeyHbc-eBF-sg70a-etqsaLMBN0Ytcc/s320/DSCN3600.JPG" /></a><br />We were excited to take Tommy trick or treating this year. He did not really know what was going on at first but he loved it after he realized he was getting all of this free <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">candy</span>! We went over to my friend Kim's house and went trick or treating with her kids and husband Johnathan. Her daughter is a few months older than Tommy and her son is a couple months younger than Lily so we had fun hanging out with them and they have a great neighborhood! There were lots of trick or <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">treaters</span> running around. </div><div><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRPK79wUdrLlK2VeAdeJ3wKLVVVVnO1oi3s4NsEJe7r8ARHHG-U1QeCXR3XVMkgtXrj3aj1fzCOZwnps8PgVnk5lGFfF0QMGp72ViiYa-WPwJ0ejBqvCpYuy1KssGjowmAr5fn8_YJ3SY/s1600/DSCN3610.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534614551077904722" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRPK79wUdrLlK2VeAdeJ3wKLVVVVnO1oi3s4NsEJe7r8ARHHG-U1QeCXR3XVMkgtXrj3aj1fzCOZwnps8PgVnk5lGFfF0QMGp72ViiYa-WPwJ0ejBqvCpYuy1KssGjowmAr5fn8_YJ3SY/s320/DSCN3610.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvvs3Hd81ff6XLST-UeiY9I_X_R7S9ltU36j3w956E5hLbbeX0UTiRCXIiOgr8U7FSuGzF9MVynC1d8wVVxrAQsEVDQqi2Lnc0Yqk6UntStk0s5fvVehMnAAds-6P7fjnBk7r0AnS_3qo/s1600/DSCN3618.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534614539852213410" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvvs3Hd81ff6XLST-UeiY9I_X_R7S9ltU36j3w956E5hLbbeX0UTiRCXIiOgr8U7FSuGzF9MVynC1d8wVVxrAQsEVDQqi2Lnc0Yqk6UntStk0s5fvVehMnAAds-6P7fjnBk7r0AnS_3qo/s320/DSCN3618.JPG" /></a><br />Tommy and Lily went as skeletons and Joe went as a Chilean Miner. He was chanting, "Chi Chi Chi Le Le Le... Chile Chile Chile" most of the night.<br /><br />On our way home we stopped at Nana and Pops house and they had a huge plate of candy, treats, and a movie for Tommy. It was so cute and Tommy loved showing off his costume to Nana and Pops! Joe then transformed into a Pumpkin head Chilean Miner.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6i_dps_Obq21iDIY32_2ID5nBdjEbo5MIKK5sRRKzuC5Qf_IUWKVTa2bAG5jNIgRVuw3STJhIVYqn8ef216s4Zc_SkwH-gO9LSHHZDe-DcGQP_q2ge_tvek-5UJhQjz_EiRZsdgbquyQ/s1600/DSCN3629.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534615771212745906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6i_dps_Obq21iDIY32_2ID5nBdjEbo5MIKK5sRRKzuC5Qf_IUWKVTa2bAG5jNIgRVuw3STJhIVYqn8ef216s4Zc_SkwH-gO9LSHHZDe-DcGQP_q2ge_tvek-5UJhQjz_EiRZsdgbquyQ/s320/DSCN3629.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6S_5IX0YnPV59XMpJ2BW_tj94tIh1XP7WusSWwHofdRZpnbL1FXTbgNMnwfEqqOREuJ2rA5uCuquisCmvRoO9uH0oEFu1jIs_FcxF01rdkXeX-GrjFdWjUQycT9lq0AQsXiMl3DJ2gQM/s1600/DSCN3623.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534614536213533698" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6S_5IX0YnPV59XMpJ2BW_tj94tIh1XP7WusSWwHofdRZpnbL1FXTbgNMnwfEqqOREuJ2rA5uCuquisCmvRoO9uH0oEFu1jIs_FcxF01rdkXeX-GrjFdWjUQycT9lq0AQsXiMl3DJ2gQM/s320/DSCN3623.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4y0wK7CCZEMOfskfS5OWD6b14YjNqz-YdbMR9E1UB6WZNM0E_TchbWmHHH1VtY_C-PqvAieHeG2MQ4sfW-6wbfYYfzm_2jzW2Hnu1MX4QKsp4r8M5ggvQnmn-_l_olozXPJiqrUsk5bk/s1600/DSCN3622.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534614519603106626" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4y0wK7CCZEMOfskfS5OWD6b14YjNqz-YdbMR9E1UB6WZNM0E_TchbWmHHH1VtY_C-PqvAieHeG2MQ4sfW-6wbfYYfzm_2jzW2Hnu1MX4QKsp4r8M5ggvQnmn-_l_olozXPJiqrUsk5bk/s320/DSCN3622.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV_Eio4UF2TAtZMCkVauKumZT1as2y4waKEhnYq7rrGAeqIJjNrYxn4qNe4pG97DjtusuKpimhnsDrVMA36ftwXIjP7RxgufjD7OlwArIf2XyzbsR9YUQ3JY-T_yletJMCW3xliwiNHtI/s1600/DSCN3627.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534614507836044098" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV_Eio4UF2TAtZMCkVauKumZT1as2y4waKEhnYq7rrGAeqIJjNrYxn4qNe4pG97DjtusuKpimhnsDrVMA36ftwXIjP7RxgufjD7OlwArIf2XyzbsR9YUQ3JY-T_yletJMCW3xliwiNHtI/s320/DSCN3627.JPG" /></a> </div></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-48778354499819306252010-10-30T14:27:00.000-07:002010-10-30T16:12:09.811-07:00Tommy and Lily UpdatesTime flies by when you have two little ones so I want to try and slow it down by writing down a few updates.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfMrHjuORSOEXLMsf7-n-flEBpbrevk_HbOQ3Qpr_vx-WSOrqwnHricAO-pI49IQaEFgB8FcFI4jWDtt-NILgJaPCnlpqqWb-ELhOrIVlEVtlq1x-eccGLTICuZt7f8M803OpdzgLI2DQ/s1600/DSCN3469.JPG"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-N4-mmK6xuGtkNmqUjIRsEs9JSMHztOrAZXjPMHpfIVFXtys9ciOIirZyx0kIss4xNFm6PSa5COdJNaaJoQoak2iqGvUKss8fR-a5mpstJ-Ps8ZF0qEFAu7bpvxN6gEtZm8Gf0cSIEOs/s1600/DSCN3575.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533977470589017154" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-N4-mmK6xuGtkNmqUjIRsEs9JSMHztOrAZXjPMHpfIVFXtys9ciOIirZyx0kIss4xNFm6PSa5COdJNaaJoQoak2iqGvUKss8fR-a5mpstJ-Ps8ZF0qEFAu7bpvxN6gEtZm8Gf0cSIEOs/s320/DSCN3575.JPG" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:180%;">Tommy</span> turns 22 months old today- October 30, 2010. He is a very sweet boy. He loves his little sister Lily and is very protective of her. He protects her car seat and toys when we are out at <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">playdates</span>. He likes to check on her and give her lots of kisses and he tries to pick her up and walk around with her but he is not strong enough yet... so I am always holding onto her too while he tries to hold her. He weighs around 23-24 pounds. He is a Daddy's boy. He loves to play with his Dad and he runs to the door every night when Joe gets home. Tommy takes a 2-3 hour nap everyday. He sleeps through the night and usually sleeps around 10-12 hours. He goes to bed around 8:30pm. Tommy loves milk. He would rather drink milk than eat a meal so we are working with him on eating as he has become a picky eater. Although, he always has room for dessert which is just like his momma! He loves to give us kisses and hugs and he told me that he loved me the other day for the first time. It melted my heart!! Tommy still loves his pacifier and we are trying to break him of this habit. He has gone pee on the toilet a few times with his special football seat and has gone #2 on the toilet once. I am slowly working on potty training but I don't think he is ready yet so I am going to wait until he shows more interest. I think the only reason he went #2 on the toilet once was because I gave him a whole ice cream bar. Tommy loves to talk and he amazes me every day as he learns new words. He loves to play football and loves to play with trains.<br /><br /><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzMM_zgxKtrEwjh16aPrfwZdqIEJADz71W2viejMepVvCZ4sa3C7Oa-3wgl_wCELQJPQ4fEoMdQOCP-SM-tL1T_3NfVIHe2i1Uj9NVOPaMGaV_TBNDiLkrAr3s5wOww5AJyIHwl-4cloA/s1600/DSCN3576.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533977460678331122" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzMM_zgxKtrEwjh16aPrfwZdqIEJADz71W2viejMepVvCZ4sa3C7Oa-3wgl_wCELQJPQ4fEoMdQOCP-SM-tL1T_3NfVIHe2i1Uj9NVOPaMGaV_TBNDiLkrAr3s5wOww5AJyIHwl-4cloA/s320/DSCN3576.JPG" /></a><br /><div><span style="font-size:180%;">Lily</span> turned 5 months old on October 21, 2010. She is a very <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">smiley</span> baby and is usually happy. She loves her older brother Tommy and lights up when he is around her. She loves to jump in her jumper and loves to watch Tommy play. She also sits nicely for meals in her <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">Bumbo</span>. We started her on rice cereal and oatmeal cereal at 4 months old. She can't get enough food and she is always trying to reach for our food. So, I gave her crushed up bananas the other night, crushed up peas, and an avocado. She did not love the avocado or peas but she did like the bananas. So, I bought her a lot of 1st food jars today and I am going to start giving her food twice a day. She loves to nurse and has stopped using her pacifier. She has rolled over from front to back and from back to front a few times but does not roll a lot. She cannot sit up on her own but she is almost there. She weighed 15 pounds at her 4 month appointment and was in the 90<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-error">th</span> percentiles for height, weight, and head circumference. So, I am excited to see her progress at her 6 month <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">appointment</span>. Lily does not like to sleep on her own. She loves to cuddle next to me and loves our king size bed. She sleeps good and usually wakes up to eat 1-2 times a night and gets around 11-12 hours of sleep each night. She takes a morning nap and usually a 1-2 hour nap in the afternoon. So, we are doing the co-sleeping thing at night right now. I am not against co-sleeping but I don't really like it as I don't sleep as well when she is sleeping right next to me. I am hoping to work her out of this stage soon.<br /></div><div> </div><div>I love my babies and I thank God everyday for them. They amaze me and I am so thankful that I can be their mom and I enjoy staying home with them!</div></div></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-37943395834994538002010-10-27T15:04:00.000-07:002010-10-27T15:20:53.427-07:00Great Grandma (GG) comes to town<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyXuF5XJnj8x3iwd35b12VUihf6tcsfhEoAotIheKhSrnBv0gDRZxxEjAyun63nJb4lSV2YkzPxZCwyFa2fra_fIDAU_6BaskxBsoqaUYRGjCQad87TQ6TXNXc4gD5N48gwvpWiD7eZ3g/s1600/DSCN3541.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532854121541717730" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyXuF5XJnj8x3iwd35b12VUihf6tcsfhEoAotIheKhSrnBv0gDRZxxEjAyun63nJb4lSV2YkzPxZCwyFa2fra_fIDAU_6BaskxBsoqaUYRGjCQad87TQ6TXNXc4gD5N48gwvpWiD7eZ3g/s320/DSCN3541.JPG" /></a><br /><div>Joe's Grandma is in town visiting and it is so nice to have her stay with us. All of my grandparents have passed away and I miss them a lot so it is nice to have <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">GG</span> come and visit us from North Dakota. It has been fun seeing her play with the kids. They love her and it is so cute to hear Tommy say <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">GG</span>. I am glad that Tommy and Lily have Great Grandparents on Joe's side. Virgie is really young and active so we have had fun taking her hiking and enjoying Arizona. She stays with us at night and goes over to Randy and Colleen's most days to visit. She has been helping me with cooking and baking and I like learning her tips. Here are a couple of pics from this past week. </div><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1XF5IslpXDyjFy2ywFZBQ_7PSMCAkzEfsMhcTalY29NouheqdjcjuyOqeyLYEzDlBb0VSzK1D7rW33irQDWOnwZtlQbwDKqY9tGmYL39pCFynBjhgpkLYyfZ2h7olAxbaoSbFuDrDqYw/s1600/DSCN3519.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532851913672575074" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1XF5IslpXDyjFy2ywFZBQ_7PSMCAkzEfsMhcTalY29NouheqdjcjuyOqeyLYEzDlBb0VSzK1D7rW33irQDWOnwZtlQbwDKqY9tGmYL39pCFynBjhgpkLYyfZ2h7olAxbaoSbFuDrDqYw/s320/DSCN3519.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5i9OIHjMDeWSIq9whyphenhyphenkXdfDetP7j63MAmrs597wlp7KEpFrX0iHOGrfGIssIA4iGMN_8UlOz7YUU_h5f0HsYcgsT82GPGHSUJt7NoY25mY3hCL3Rkx2YpHV0W7Sf3nedru3vwIC_4Tks/s1600/DSCN3495.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532851908400650642" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5i9OIHjMDeWSIq9whyphenhyphenkXdfDetP7j63MAmrs597wlp7KEpFrX0iHOGrfGIssIA4iGMN_8UlOz7YUU_h5f0HsYcgsT82GPGHSUJt7NoY25mY3hCL3Rkx2YpHV0W7Sf3nedru3vwIC_4Tks/s320/DSCN3495.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfkbdFzBoS-UFxuTKmIeSv5CMrk87dMEGsoA4rbsf2H7TRKWwDoXXZIQYEGZ5_oOSLuiwUIi11OFleDshocFF_n1e46_2IIRXV9k_SYIeEM20RdIafnggfhxedSDAavdDU5QL3zKcZDMA/s1600/DSCN3513.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532851905851758274" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfkbdFzBoS-UFxuTKmIeSv5CMrk87dMEGsoA4rbsf2H7TRKWwDoXXZIQYEGZ5_oOSLuiwUIi11OFleDshocFF_n1e46_2IIRXV9k_SYIeEM20RdIafnggfhxedSDAavdDU5QL3zKcZDMA/s320/DSCN3513.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCMtNlsYBGJJ5Q77fb-tJVwOVyBERAOqoRcvhDZ64LsBQC4U20AfUhKR7AdDEKOZ3hjY7M238lEJmePWoCxbJuZDbc3Ir04-WKyNwV7Gb3GHpoAD9U5eR7aDDmlL61vxrDRtd4F6CS508/s1600/DSCN3446.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532851896584539090" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCMtNlsYBGJJ5Q77fb-tJVwOVyBERAOqoRcvhDZ64LsBQC4U20AfUhKR7AdDEKOZ3hjY7M238lEJmePWoCxbJuZDbc3Ir04-WKyNwV7Gb3GHpoAD9U5eR7aDDmlL61vxrDRtd4F6CS508/s320/DSCN3446.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHoiUMDfPimIV7lQILsTFrrHRzC_o3cQyxnKwFNJo9kWfIbziSdDSv-Xl-dd4wMsy_DrFuSqMjnBkNzfK29aNl984WrVKdug80kG6SvgfvgsQZDbEtWBGnC44XOqIBlWdDGQMJcqMj8MM/s1600/DSCN3444.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5532851888426164338" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHoiUMDfPimIV7lQILsTFrrHRzC_o3cQyxnKwFNJo9kWfIbziSdDSv-Xl-dd4wMsy_DrFuSqMjnBkNzfK29aNl984WrVKdug80kG6SvgfvgsQZDbEtWBGnC44XOqIBlWdDGQMJcqMj8MM/s320/DSCN3444.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-30697704424887091032010-10-21T20:36:00.000-07:002010-10-25T12:47:16.745-07:00Garage SalesI love garage sales. I never thought I would be the garage sale type but now I love them. They are all over the place in Arizona and you can find one every weekend almost year round. I don't go every weekend but now is prime time for garage sales in AZ as the weather is nice. Some have a lot of junk but you can always find one or two good houses that are selling quality items. I usually wake up at 6am on Saturday and head to Starbucks before driving around to look for garage sales. I really enjoy my alone time and it is pretty peaceful drinking my coffee driving around the neighborhoods in Gilbert. I don't have to drive far as there are tons of them.<br /><br />Two weekends ago I found some great deals! I found a baseball ceiling fan for Tommy's room for only $8.00! He had a plain white ceiling fan in his room before without a light. Now, he has a light/ceiling fan with a baseball theme! He loves it! I looked online and this ceiling fan retails for $100-$149.<br /><br />I also found a Thomas the Train set. I had been looking for a good used set. The guy wanted to sell it for $20 but I bargained with him and got it down to $10. It has tons of tracks and trains and Tommy plays with his "<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">choo</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">choo</span>" set for hours at a time. A big box like this retails for around $100. Lily likes to watch Tommy play while eating her "Baby Mum-Mum" and jumping in her jumper. She likes to watch the trains go round and round. Joe also likes the train set as he sets up new tracks for Tommy.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9uG6yZZlQbxEEIMeP0gqkyFh4l4kZOwzJe5rAP2cW83TEN_j56Au3IHYZ6h3QKPPEy1gkXjaRftMW9CX-Ogr5EusBx3YGAG5_iQYOvtglcJyEmgPTWBjsG6XrYkusqigDhvxtjF2YlTw/s1600/DSCN3412.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531476714927537410" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9uG6yZZlQbxEEIMeP0gqkyFh4l4kZOwzJe5rAP2cW83TEN_j56Au3IHYZ6h3QKPPEy1gkXjaRftMW9CX-Ogr5EusBx3YGAG5_iQYOvtglcJyEmgPTWBjsG6XrYkusqigDhvxtjF2YlTw/s320/DSCN3412.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmsPphVsKnVuE1A8f6j-jl65ik8FwR_gBmio301Bh8silWf_k20agquvvyz2a_G7_pqKCfCFce9IipsQqx2U1Izr_y1z_CKu2mGHFXTXhIbNBAOhFUwYmvooXV8EhDsFLVs60IEk3yRxU/s1600/DSCN3408.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531476710315638690" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmsPphVsKnVuE1A8f6j-jl65ik8FwR_gBmio301Bh8silWf_k20agquvvyz2a_G7_pqKCfCFce9IipsQqx2U1Izr_y1z_CKu2mGHFXTXhIbNBAOhFUwYmvooXV8EhDsFLVs60IEk3yRxU/s320/DSCN3408.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI2Jt9GbTNHqpNieBAItwksXYVGIeb9Cj_dKt9wkHl5VjV8O9jV7LoRhe093quMVa6vYPmFCpif1jOyou7J4xzRM_pt023QUkEuNgeMAUSzOK06wUMROMV44DRlGJ3uTWWOyxvQ6SjYTI/s1600/DSCN3419.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531476705621756018" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI2Jt9GbTNHqpNieBAItwksXYVGIeb9Cj_dKt9wkHl5VjV8O9jV7LoRhe093quMVa6vYPmFCpif1jOyou7J4xzRM_pt023QUkEuNgeMAUSzOK06wUMROMV44DRlGJ3uTWWOyxvQ6SjYTI/s320/DSCN3419.JPG" /></a><br /><br /></div></div>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-12939472374749743962010-10-06T14:21:00.000-07:002010-10-06T14:26:26.846-07:0056<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Da5LJ2lWWL7rIP90H5y77Do5s-qJ1ol6xIPZo6ZmD5TbM9Ty0MBV0rDSf1Xic-iw4c_CGkhtlUllblFWhr5x1_tEXQF0miyE7JbCuGwCY_wOHc9DNFgKqyAtEmkpBp0LLiVPV4iPRec/s1600/DSCN2513.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Da5LJ2lWWL7rIP90H5y77Do5s-qJ1ol6xIPZo6ZmD5TbM9Ty0MBV0rDSf1Xic-iw4c_CGkhtlUllblFWhr5x1_tEXQF0miyE7JbCuGwCY_wOHc9DNFgKqyAtEmkpBp0LLiVPV4iPRec/s320/DSCN2513.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5525047176567006818" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsQ72Ft4mOnrxyWBBNwoEx_0haNsQkez_eIFHSB83aQuJGYxnz1wbsRbXQzSRMHeNfkeE4IuIF6wTYs2IQctv5iQZvaEvsZDESSiJvVbcN9DjB7KSrCex3YlizbJd0GATZG8NYu3LjR5A/s1600/DSCN2512.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsQ72Ft4mOnrxyWBBNwoEx_0haNsQkez_eIFHSB83aQuJGYxnz1wbsRbXQzSRMHeNfkeE4IuIF6wTYs2IQctv5iQZvaEvsZDESSiJvVbcN9DjB7KSrCex3YlizbJd0GATZG8NYu3LjR5A/s320/DSCN2512.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5525047168624200610" border="0" /></a><br />i<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn7MdR1N6nGV9I2cACFW8vcVFqVD4J_5ehn8U6QwuzwW9rnHlGmlSyo9Z0JWdK7s-JGCmxXuRY70QOoMYsTi6GumUurzTFMYA-gLGlLCiLXNaa7SA9-ubi4qmuxPo_HrO3mTcfR33nuo8/s1600/DSCN2814.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn7MdR1N6nGV9I2cACFW8vcVFqVD4J_5ehn8U6QwuzwW9rnHlGmlSyo9Z0JWdK7s-JGCmxXuRY70QOoMYsTi6GumUurzTFMYA-gLGlLCiLXNaa7SA9-ubi4qmuxPo_HrO3mTcfR33nuo8/s320/DSCN2814.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5525047164216503026" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivs1h3RLvF59mS_ZSWXLtyTA1SJXcXOLHpcG2nN2GSxfUn2ixZwhknFtazRoXRPeQh4Ou4KHPV0W__mmX39_sC2YcEenF358cw8TmcO7eOJ9CQTw2WSyMqlelmx00RDw0RnNX169t_2Z8/s1600/DSCN2819.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivs1h3RLvF59mS_ZSWXLtyTA1SJXcXOLHpcG2nN2GSxfUn2ixZwhknFtazRoXRPeQh4Ou4KHPV0W__mmX39_sC2YcEenF358cw8TmcO7eOJ9CQTw2WSyMqlelmx00RDw0RnNX169t_2Z8/s320/DSCN2819.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5525047158268708370" border="0" /></a><br />Happy Birthday Dad! My Dad is 56 today and I get to celebrate with him on Friday when I get back to Bismarck. We are going to go for coffee and talk which is one of my favorite things to do with my Dad and Lily will be joining us! Happy Birthday Dad! Can't wait to see you on Friday!Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-65864848514303448152010-10-05T12:19:00.000-07:002010-10-05T12:37:39.433-07:00Fall<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZNb7_lKhyQ-nzHY5dDpkUxClC40BlVW86Jz_5n1JlwmvgSn6w7Ezfo6m_s2KNxzB2xFXeaKMCSiogQe-pIFYmQ27xuQKVFk-xVfUrVY_id94B8HEUdIqFi0FYbfhOLtAN50NYSZuqlpw/s1600/DSCN3137.JPG"><br /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe8LQAkWMVwGDLvva1nmZaYeVRhYnKlywtCeETAUIuhvKX5JDo6M5s9btiHbAG_SfauzWt6dfdlFsQ0FP6Jkzq5e-qKTrLhQZeos4_b0rb2RDWOpEs4AtIY79EljxHCXOAVrt6NJeKYSk/s1600/DSCN3245.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe8LQAkWMVwGDLvva1nmZaYeVRhYnKlywtCeETAUIuhvKX5JDo6M5s9btiHbAG_SfauzWt6dfdlFsQ0FP6Jkzq5e-qKTrLhQZeos4_b0rb2RDWOpEs4AtIY79EljxHCXOAVrt6NJeKYSk/s320/DSCN3245.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524645659465685042" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvK7-YsP81JTFjzGNEsDglgUCKKT-HwJrpBVy_FlWOL8RDfqXpUZ3K4tGAs8gNcNUM7-4D-ww_cpkrS7XAs9RJ6k1F4GfkBEmql7DmE05VCST8ehf4lYhc1tibcNQX34IAe__J2Jiylqs/s1600/DSCN3249.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvK7-YsP81JTFjzGNEsDglgUCKKT-HwJrpBVy_FlWOL8RDfqXpUZ3K4tGAs8gNcNUM7-4D-ww_cpkrS7XAs9RJ6k1F4GfkBEmql7DmE05VCST8ehf4lYhc1tibcNQX34IAe__J2Jiylqs/s320/DSCN3249.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524645645383158386" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6WvvBciju_TjLaFswosEjKTDdmzSXJyEdhhYt_5BqU1ycpPcSDGDfdGbN4q9_W164JpdpevqwDAUAiR_9U_NoopdnRsqxXGqwHHEX5Fb1Gx-1NdvWeMGHF8IB-DKo7NOEe5uh-bZ4UAE/s1600/DSCN3253.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6WvvBciju_TjLaFswosEjKTDdmzSXJyEdhhYt_5BqU1ycpPcSDGDfdGbN4q9_W164JpdpevqwDAUAiR_9U_NoopdnRsqxXGqwHHEX5Fb1Gx-1NdvWeMGHF8IB-DKo7NOEe5uh-bZ4UAE/s320/DSCN3253.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524645640019717682" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij6wrxtzPUc4rf9rP5o4YpJrGnYJtK7fUWe2u7MRbPPrEvDzbcJ0nQyfGhJ1RHWvLEapfJ2VnISWkTm0qAZyL6fJi1Zaczq_tgolS4500G6j9lJGjAGaU6X5ZJ9GgO13UUan3SOPVOSGw/s1600/DSCN3259.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij6wrxtzPUc4rf9rP5o4YpJrGnYJtK7fUWe2u7MRbPPrEvDzbcJ0nQyfGhJ1RHWvLEapfJ2VnISWkTm0qAZyL6fJi1Zaczq_tgolS4500G6j9lJGjAGaU6X5ZJ9GgO13UUan3SOPVOSGw/s320/DSCN3259.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524645635093236994" border="0" /></a><br />I am so excited for fall as I am ready for it to cool down here in Arizona. It has been way too hot. When I first moved here three years ago Joe told me that it cools down by September 1st....YEAH RIGHT!! He later told me he may have fibbed as he wanted me to move to AZ. I realized that it does not cool down here until October and it is still a little hot this year. I was so excited the other day for cool weather, fall and Halloween so I had the kids try on their Halloween costumes. They are going to be skeletons. My mom bought Tommy some skeleton pajamas when we were back in Grand Forks and it reminded me of when I was little as my brothers loved their skeleton pajamas. Luckily, I was able to find a skeleton <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">onsie</span> for Lily at a little boutique in Grand Forks for $3 so I was pumped! I think they both look so cute! I also have a Superman costume and Elmo costume for Tommy. My mom got the Elmo costume at a garage sale this past year and she bought the Superman costume last year at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Wal</span>-Mart after Halloween. You can get the best costume deals after Halloween so I will be on the lookout this year.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZNb7_lKhyQ-nzHY5dDpkUxClC40BlVW86Jz_5n1JlwmvgSn6w7Ezfo6m_s2KNxzB2xFXeaKMCSiogQe-pIFYmQ27xuQKVFk-xVfUrVY_id94B8HEUdIqFi0FYbfhOLtAN50NYSZuqlpw/s1600/DSCN3137.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZNb7_lKhyQ-nzHY5dDpkUxClC40BlVW86Jz_5n1JlwmvgSn6w7Ezfo6m_s2KNxzB2xFXeaKMCSiogQe-pIFYmQ27xuQKVFk-xVfUrVY_id94B8HEUdIqFi0FYbfhOLtAN50NYSZuqlpw/s320/DSCN3137.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524646515345993666" border="0" /></a><br />We had the best time last weekend in Grand Forks. It was the best trip we have taken in a long time. It was three days and we had so much fun visiting and staying with Joe's Grandma Virgie and Aunt Joanne. They were the best hostesses. We also had fun visiting with old friends and eating at all of our favorite restaurants from college. We also went to a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">UND</span> football game. I did not make it through the game as the kids were tired but Joe had a great time watching the whole game and hanging out with some of his old football buddies. You can check out our pictures from Grand Forks by clicking <a href="http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=238913&id=606583211&l=3a0d87f71c">here</a>. We want to try and make it an annual trip back to Grand Forks in the fall as we had such a blast and you can't beat $19.99 airline tickets one way!! We love <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Allegiant</span> Air as it has great prices on air fare and direct flights back to 3 major cities in ND so it works out great!! I will be heading back to Bismarck this weekend with Lily to attend my 10 year high school reunion. Joe will be home in AZ with Tommy. Hopefully, the boys won't get into too much trouble while the girls are away!Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-12874693034265466722010-09-17T13:07:00.000-07:002010-09-17T14:23:43.770-07:00Catholic Questions<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK7jQ_jh9Se1xZklXb9L3kNODT26scrY575H0ytm9Cp8OJULrx_hODfBVkHwAqSK5aTfWqbH-9hZ3JXuObr5Q17hiZyyIgsiZ5cI7FneaX2ZYVY35yDePxHgbn0NS1TNM6RX2cywG6a7w/s1600/mother_mary_1.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 232px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK7jQ_jh9Se1xZklXb9L3kNODT26scrY575H0ytm9Cp8OJULrx_hODfBVkHwAqSK5aTfWqbH-9hZ3JXuObr5Q17hiZyyIgsiZ5cI7FneaX2ZYVY35yDePxHgbn0NS1TNM6RX2cywG6a7w/s320/mother_mary_1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517985273648441282" border="0" /></a><br />I would like to write about something that means a lot to me and that is my faith! I converted to Catholicism in April of 2009 after a year long journey of learning about the Catholic faith. It is going to be a lifelong journey as I learn more and more everyday. I was baptized Lutheran as a baby and grew up in an Evangelical church so I never imagined that I would end up Catholic. Many of my best friends and family are not Catholic and they probably think I am a little crazy for converting so I wanted to share more about my journey on my blog. I want to be more open about my faith and I am open to questions. This is my journey and I want to share it with you if you are willing to listen. Many people have so many misconceptions about Christianity especially Catholicism so I wanted to write a little bit about some of the misconceptions I had before I converted. I am in no way representing the Catholic Church and I do not have all the answers. In fact, I am still learning so much everyday and firmly believe that I know very little but I am hoping to learn more everyday through the grace of God. I am going to choose one topic each time. This week is Mary.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Myth #1: Catholics worship Mary</span><br /><br />I do not worship Mary and neither do most Catholics. If they do worship Mary then they are misguided in their faith. The Catholic Church does not teach us to worship Mary. However, I do now pray to Mary. Have you ever asked a friend to pray for you when you were in need? You could go to God directly but you ask others here on earth to pray for you too as the more you have praying to God the better, right? Let's say your child is sick and you ask friends and family to pray for your child. You see it on blogs all the time where someone is in need and they ask for prayers. I do the same thing with Mary now. I pray to her when I am in need and ask her to pray for my family. She is in <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">heaven</span> and is more alive than any of us on this earth so why not ask someone who is right next to Jesus to pray for you? Catholics believe that you can pray to anyone in <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">heaven</span> and ask them to pray for you to God. We are not worshiping Mary but rather asking her to to talk with God. Next time you are in need of prayer why not pray to Mary who is the mother of God and ask her to pray for your needs. There is so much more that I could write about Mary but I am going to keep it simple for now. I have grown to love her since becoming a mother in so many ways which is crazy because I never used to think about her.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Again, I want to open up about my understanding of the Catholic faith and I am open to questions that you may have.... if you don't feel comfortable leaving a comment please send me an e-mail. I will try and write about a new Catholic topic once a week even if I don't get any comments. I am not here to judge but rather to share about my journey. </span>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-15798606125045210532010-09-13T13:25:00.000-07:002010-09-14T12:08:46.192-07:00What's in a name?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC3248XvWB8nquYYP-_-5Fbjuje0YfWM20xnrnm6lmOeDW-Yz9Q1-H8aaOxjShVYNkY8GRWQMW3_N-vGXRR9gN3JTGmbn0pHGRo0AGYWaOD05MqrsS5cWHv5186uEe7RHfGnTx5YF6DZo/s1600/139.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC3248XvWB8nquYYP-_-5Fbjuje0YfWM20xnrnm6lmOeDW-Yz9Q1-H8aaOxjShVYNkY8GRWQMW3_N-vGXRR9gN3JTGmbn0pHGRo0AGYWaOD05MqrsS5cWHv5186uEe7RHfGnTx5YF6DZo/s320/139.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516501682207481314" border="0" /></a><br />I love family names. I was named after my Great Grandmother Lora Smith. My middle name is Jo which was my Grandma Petrik's middle name as her name was Mary Jo.<br /><br />I have always wanted to name my children after family members. Tommy was named after my Dad, Thomas Petrik. When we found out we were having a girl Joe and I both loved the name Lily but it was not a family name. So, we gave her the middle name Anne which is Colleen's middle name. Colleen is Joe's mom.<br /><br />However, about a month after Lily was born I received a phone call from my mom. She was cleaning out her cabin and found an old black vase that was my Grandmother's. Inside the vase was a note written by my grandmother in 1986. It said that this vase was given to Aunt Lily from Sheldon around 1940. WOW! Lily does have a family name. She was named after my Great Great Aunt Lily Blom and we did not even know it when we named her. Joe and I had debated about spelling Lily's name with one L or two L's and I wanted one L which is exactly how Lily Blom spelled her name. I got goosebumps and I am so proud to say that Lily has a family name and someday she will be given the black vase. Now I need to do a little digging and find out more about Lily Blom.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFEi5HXGJJ1EqzXIOL_kNytJKPcweUusUb2AhRUw6u87QKkqDKb0phVPkXUxEDB5qvdnIH-LagsY4nqEjuXDoVBmCzs0ZxQnTANjUdf8UYhCQYO_CHJxhHsbO0fFO7aaQYIsGIznQ0swE/s1600/142.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFEi5HXGJJ1EqzXIOL_kNytJKPcweUusUb2AhRUw6u87QKkqDKb0phVPkXUxEDB5qvdnIH-LagsY4nqEjuXDoVBmCzs0ZxQnTANjUdf8UYhCQYO_CHJxhHsbO0fFO7aaQYIsGIznQ0swE/s320/142.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516501673444784674" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigGXX0yUso0N11n1CNAUJEk7G1n0Ycdxs5OGzt8RthJHiT5N3xgQLjEpK66Dv8P5ANyzAUq5QVKdR3yGkZmOl7yV4muLzyFC8BM7jdDp4R9JCcmr4kwymJuqsLrVWomTCwk2W-X0B5xOE/s1600/141.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigGXX0yUso0N11n1CNAUJEk7G1n0Ycdxs5OGzt8RthJHiT5N3xgQLjEpK66Dv8P5ANyzAUq5QVKdR3yGkZmOl7yV4muLzyFC8BM7jdDp4R9JCcmr4kwymJuqsLrVWomTCwk2W-X0B5xOE/s320/141.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516501663620063474" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsPo5jlAeBT1X_85VQHCBUx83gIemQSdV-hJ5QEUPQ1RbZRjJBSFyX7cFwT9fXJ6mTZGaS4WSGrkkSoXNv5SRAAGcFlt3r0X-GElGiUDugf8tJBe-ZZpATVRxPbe7tU-FeQKWibgaOU5Y/s1600/140.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsPo5jlAeBT1X_85VQHCBUx83gIemQSdV-hJ5QEUPQ1RbZRjJBSFyX7cFwT9fXJ6mTZGaS4WSGrkkSoXNv5SRAAGcFlt3r0X-GElGiUDugf8tJBe-ZZpATVRxPbe7tU-FeQKWibgaOU5Y/s320/140.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516501655590314690" border="0" /></a>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-81661983396103181542010-09-13T13:20:00.000-07:002010-09-13T13:24:46.920-07:00North Dakota<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKkV7HwJHOZEF0KFXgPyZH3QDqNg8XTD4k3yZC0uWoLES1VfuJD2xaiyD_KXbvHTuiGMxlPC354SW14DoR0rxuMSd0bMXdRrAbBabdJTfsAOH1HxDx1s67QlJDkAnZxVBEUEa0W27JdvU/s1600/DSCN2756.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKkV7HwJHOZEF0KFXgPyZH3QDqNg8XTD4k3yZC0uWoLES1VfuJD2xaiyD_KXbvHTuiGMxlPC354SW14DoR0rxuMSd0bMXdRrAbBabdJTfsAOH1HxDx1s67QlJDkAnZxVBEUEa0W27JdvU/s320/DSCN2756.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5516496266280495266" border="0" /></a><br />We had such a great time in North Dakota but it feels great to be back home. If you are not my friend on facebook but would like to check out our pictures please click on the facebook links below:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=195395&id=606583211&l=98e3e33c24">North Dakota Part I</a><br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=198980&id=606583211&l=f4e3c57765"><br />North Dakota Part II</a>Lorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-797167740265758821.post-65943629768889140702010-08-11T09:19:00.001-07:002010-08-11T09:19:57.114-07:00A letter to my husband<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MFge5ibJOGA/TGLMP6k9uBI/AAAAAAAABSc/tNHRUVDEN_Q/s1600/DSCN2590.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_MFge5ibJOGA/TGLMP6k9uBI/AAAAAAAABSc/tNHRUVDEN_Q/s320/DSCN2590.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5504186268394567698" border="0" /></a><br />Dear Joe,<br /><br />We miss you! I thought that going away to the lake for 5 weeks was such a good idea but we miss you terribly! I do love being at the lake with family but I wish you were here! This time away makes me appreciate you more than ever before... you are the love of my life and although it can be hard on our marriage sometimes raising two young babies together I am so thankful that I am in this journey with you! You are an amazing husband, father and friend.<br /><br />I am also sad that all of your family is together right now and we are not there to be a part of the action. But, that is ok as we are having fun at the lake with family. We love being right on the water. We get up every morning around 8am and Tommy screams for "Ma" (his Grandma). We then go for a walk in the double stroller around the circle two times after breakfast. I love the fresh smell of North Dakota and the wide open spaces. It is so wet here compared to AZ. The only thing I do not like is all of the bugs.<br /><br />Ma bought Tommy a Strider bike and it came in the mail yesterday. Tommy loves his new prebike and his new helmet. This bike will teach him how to balance on a bike. He loves it! Tomorrow we are heading down to Bismarck to hang out with Grandpa Petrik. It is so nice to be able to see my family and friends but we miss you Joe.<br /><br />Thanks for working on the house. I can't wait to see all the rooms you are painting. I am also excited to see all the landscaping projects and new garden. Don't work to hard. Sleep in a day or two and enjoy your time at home alone. I know you miss us too and we can't wait to see you in a week when you fly back up to ND for a few days before we fly back home together. Tommy really misses his Daddy and Lily is getting so big. I can't wait till you see her again.<br /><br />Thanks for being such a good man and working so hard for your family! We can't wait to see you next week.<br /><br />Love you!<br /><br />Lora, Tommy and LilyLorahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08638586054068335305noreply@blogger.com0