Too late for second guessing

I am not a natural risk taker.

I love the whole "carpe diem" thing as an idea, but I am also a creature of habit.

It has been a few years since I've done anything out of the ordinary. I mean, these years have been the best of my life- spending time with my nieces and nephews and working on my clinical licensure. They've been productive and fun. Just not all that adventurous.

So, when I took off Friday and Monday to drive my sister Erin to Pennsylvania, we decided to do something different.

Instead of going straight home, we drove to Atlantic City. Atlantic City is the nearest beach to my parents house.

I'd decided to cross another item off my life ambition list- "See a sunrise over the Atlantic".

I saw a sunset over the pacific about 7 years ago and it has bothered me that I hadn't finished the other bookend of seeing a sunrise over the Atlantic.

It was a LONG drive. We got stuck on I-95 outside of DC and I think my sister had begun plotting my demise. It took us about 11 hours to get there.

I haven't been back to Jersey since I graduated high school 12 years ago. Literally. I left the day after graduation and haven't looked back.

I knew the moment we were back in New Jersey. I heard music I haven't heard since 98. It smelled like the ocean. There were rows of wooden beach houses, unchanged since the 40s.

Ahh...Jersey.

Part two to come tomorrow.
(Enjoy this story while its free, because its so riveting I am sure it will be published...then you'll all have to buy a copy! )

Lori Ann

Nobody knows it

Have you ever had a really crazy weekend?

I haven't.

Until now, that is.

My weekend included all of the following:

 

Getting Lost in Philadelphia

Trying Lobster Tail for the first time


Seeing a sunrise over the Atlantic Ocean and crossing another item of my "Bucket List"

Getting stuck on I-95 and seeing the Temple

Getting my hair to look like this!

Losing 20 dollars to the penny slots at the Tropicana in Atlantic City and remembering why its not a good idea to gamble!

More details to follow. Try and get some sleep, I know the excitement over hearing all the details must be killing you:)

Lori Ann

*this post is dedicated to my sister Erin. Thanks, Eri. For everything*

And as you move on, remember me, remember us and all we used to be

"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."

Dr. Seuss

Lori Ann

You say One Love

Do any of you have a favorite song?

I have a thousand songs that I like.

About a hundred that I love.

Maybe 10 that I consider to be the "Soundtrack to my Life"

One or two that invoke strong amazing memories or feelings.

And then there is ONE.

One, by U2.

It's the song that kinda gave my life direction.

I love the lyrics:

We're one, but we're not the same

We get to carry each other

It made me want to serve. Serve a mission. Serve in my profession. Live a life of service. I love how it says "we GET TO carry each other". Not, we HAVE TO, but we GET TO.

I know that Bono wrote this song about his Dad and it might have a completely different meaning for him, but I reserve the right to make this song about what I want. So, take that, Bono! (because I know you blog stalk my blog!)

Lori Ann

Happy Mothers Day

I am a big fan of quotes. I have a quote wall in my kitchen and a quote wall in my office. Famous quotes, silly quotes, and; more than any other kind, inspirational quotes.

So, for this mothers day post, I set about looking for the perfect inspirational quote.

There are hundreds of quotes about mothers out there. A lot of them reference angels weeping, tears and kisses, or gentle hands and warm hearts.

My mother isn't an angel weeping tears, gentle warm heart kind of mother.

Good thing I found this proverb

God could not be everywhere, so he created mothers.

~Jewish Proverb

My mother frequently cites a mothers role as being similar to God's, even going as far as to say that things like the Ten Commandments don't apply to mothers and they are free to do what is necessary for their children, legal or illegal.

The cool-slash-scary part is that I know she means it.

My mother is unlike any other person I have ever met. She is kind, strong, and just a little bit eccentric. She is everyone's favorite person to be around. The party can't start until she gets there.

She calls (or texts..my gosh, my mother texts) randomly to ask how I am. She bakes homemade cakes for every birthday. And even though she says it about me, she IS brilliant.

This mothers day I wanted to say Thanks to my mom. For a million things. For every sacrifice, for every package on my mission, for every night on your feet as a waitress, for paying off my tuition so I could go back to school, for teaching me to make chocolate chip cookies, for the hurricane lamps, for making a big deal out of little things, for surprising me on my 30th birthday, for putting yourself through nursing school, for giving my nieces and nephews the grandma we never had, for buying me Peachy, for taking Junior to Taekwondo, for sewing dresses for us when we were little, for EVERYTHING.

Thank you so much.

 

 I love you, Mom.

 

Lori Ann

You make me feel like I am home again

All this week in group therapy, I have been asking the kids to share their favorite memory of their mothers.

It has gotten me to thinking about what is my favorite Mom memory of all time.. I have a million great memories, but there is one that stands out to me for some reason.

I left home the day after high school graduation.

It was a sad, crazy, happy, scary time of my life.

One day I was just a kid and in high school and literally; a day later, I was an adult and I was gone from home.

I felt very lost and alone.

Anyway, my favorite memory of my mother was at this time. I was flying out to Salt Lake City to live with my sister before college.

My parents brought me to the airport and waited with me at the gate (that was pre 9/11). It was so strange for me to realize that this was not just visiting someone for a short time.

This was it.

I was leaving home.

My flight was called and I said a tearful goodbye to my parents. As I sat on the plane, I could see my mom's bright pink shirt in the window, looking out at the plane.

My flight was delayed over an hour at the gate.

My mom stood there the entire time. I could see her pink shirt in the window the whole time until we taxied away for take off.

Something about her waiting for me to leave gave me the strength that I needed to go.

She made me strong, just like she did through all of my years of growing up.

Lori Ann
 

I love you, Mom.

You make everything alright

What I learned from my Mother

The things I learned from my mother are more than I could ever write. From the small and simple (how to tie my shoes) to the serious and life shaping ( get a marketable trade), my mother has taught me more than she will ever realize.

I sign my middle initial with my name because she always did.

I tell all the kids that I work with that they are "brilliant". (because everyone is in some way). I say this because more than any other thing she said to me, I remember my mom telling me that I was brilliant and it motivated and inspired me.

I still call her with every major accomplishment, because nothing makes me feel as happy as hearing her say "are you serious? That's great, sweetie". When I can, I call my client's parents with the positive things that they do. I want them to have their "are you serous?" moment too:)

I work with a difficult population of people, because she taught me the value in helping those who society ignores or overlooks.

I want to send all of my clients home to live with her, so that she can make a big deal about them, tell them that they are brilliant, and be there to listen to every hurt and every moment of accomplishment.

A lot of what I have in me that is good and charitable, I learned from her example.

So, thanks for everything you've taught me, Mom.
 

It's made me a better person.

I love you, Mom.

Lori Ann