This is how we roll.....

on an

average

Friday

night.....

at the Smiths' house! Oh, how I love my little rough-housers! ;) Hope everyone has a rollicking weekend.

Cousins

Welcome, Cyrus Matthew, to the family!
We love you already. :)

Tonight

Tonight, I’m thankful for the way I’m raising my children. I may not make all the right decisions—I may make mistakes every day—but I’m doing it my way. With love. With guidance. With support.

Isn’t that what every mother needs herself? I think so.

Too often in this world, people point the finger, drop a negative word, or pass judgment. Why? Because it’s the easy way? Because it makes them feel better about their own choices? I wish I knew.

All I know is that a simple conversation with a friend made me realize how lucky I am. That I have a husband whose ideas align with mine, but who has an open mind. That I have strong female role models all around me who provide invaluable inspiration. That I’m willing to learn from others, always, but not to accept their negativity. In motherhood, there is no need for comparisons, only encouragement.

That is my wish for every mother. May she—no matter who she is—feel the warmth, the strength, the belief of a loving friend.

In spite of the six thousand manuals on child raising in the bookstores, child raising is still a dark continent and no one really knows anything. You just need a lot of love and luck - and, of course, courage. ~Bill Cosby, Fatherhood, 1986

Love from those around you.
Luck as you make your own path.
Courage to shed yourself of those who stand in your way.

Amen to that.

A Lovely Surprise

Tonight, I was sitting at the computer trying to come up with something to blog. (It had been a week since my last post, so I felt like it was time.) Anyway, I had no distractions. The Bub was already asleep. In the living room, Erik was watching the Notre Dame game. Somewhere in the house Ava was playing quietly. Perfect!

Except, I couldn't think of one single thing to blog about. Nothing.

What had we done since last week? Anything interesting? Anything remotely appealing? I even checked my camera for those lovable random shots that can sometimes carry a post all by themselves. Nada.

Then, out of nowhere, came my little girl with a request: Come look what I did! Usually, this statement is followed by a mess of some sort, so I wasn't too keen on compliance. Plus, I had a blog post to write about nothing. So I thought about skipping.

Boy, am I glad I didn't. She led me into the bathroom (of all places!) and this is what I found:

She had meticulously organized our cabinet drawers!

Surprised and thrilled (as this is not her usual Saturday night routine), I squealed in pleasure, hugged my Ava B. tightly, and promptly grabbed my camera to capture this lovely surprise. She preened, clearly proud of herself, and explained that she'd even gotten Hudson's wipes and wiped down the mirror, counter, and drawers. I love that you can even see, in the picture below, that she refolded the hand towel just so. :)

Love my girl!

Thanks, Ava, for the lovely surprise and for providing me with an unexpected blog post! Sometimes the most meaningful moments can be found in the most unexpected places.

Geek Me

As a child, the public library was one of my favorite places. Now, as an adult, well, nothing much has changed. I still love it! Every two weeks (like clockwork) my children and I visit to exchange our books, peruse the new releases, and play with the puzzles. There's something inherently magical about a library. In fact, I've written about our beloved library routine in the past.

Recently, though, I discovered that our public libraries are in trouble, their funding in crisis. Luckily, many people are working hard to change that, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. They created the Geek the Library Campaign, and I couldn't wait to become a part of this tremendous effort.

Let me explain (with the help of the above website)!

Geek (v):
1. To love, to enjoy, to celebrate, to have an intense passion for.
2. To express interest in.
3. To possess a large amount of knowledge in.
4. To promote

What do you geek? For me, the answer was simple: books! I love to read them. I possess an unimaginable amount of them. I passionately hope to write them for a living one day. Heck, I even love the way they smell!

Even though I have a Kindle and know that technology will forever change the way we experience books, I still know that nothing will ever replace the childlike excitement I feel when I open the first chapter of a new book, as I turn the pages and disappear into the story. I know this little 'ol blog of mine might not make much of a difference for our public libraries, but how could I not share my passion for books?

My name is Lori, and I geek books! :)

Herbstfest 2011

It's that time of year again! Time for yummy fest food, high-flyin' bouncy houses, and a local park filled with family, friends, and fun. Plus a parade tomorrow! You guessed it.....the Huntingburg Herbstfest. :)

As usual, we were eager to join the fun and let the kiddos run wild. While Ava became "Queen of the Bouncy House," Hudson decided he wasn't ready for that quite yet. Instead, he took Papaw Rich by the hand and led him over to the Little League field. Together they played an exciting game of pretend baseball, followed by a rousing rendition of hide-and-go-seek.

Erik and I sampled a variety of the food, which I told the kids was my version of a bouncy house. Ha! Raider fries, breadsticks, tenderloin on bun, walking taco, and lemon shake-ups were some of our favorites. Then we finished off the evening by buying inflatable toys for the kids: Dora the Explorer for Hudson and a big cell phone for Ava.

If you're in the area and have some free time, stop in at the city park and check it all out for yourself. In the meantime, Ava and I are going to sneak back down while the boys take their afternoon naps. ;)

Friday Night Riverwalk

Last night, after eating at The Gaslight to celebrate its 40th anniversary, we headed to the Jasper Riverwalk for a little playtime. It was perfect weather to play outside! Both kids had some extra energy to burn, and Mom and Dad simply enjoyed the break from routine.

Hudson became an expert slider, all by himself! (Sorry, no pics of that, cause I was hovering nearby just in case...lol)

Ava made a new friend, Mason, and chanted his name on our walk back to the van! (Boys have become more interesting than playground equipment. Yikes!)

What a fun night!