Been this way since 18

Eri and I with the sister who inspired Danielle to serve.

 (which in turn inspired me!)

 

You will all be relieved to know that the scrap booking mania is about to die down.

 

Mainly because I have now gone through every single box of memorabilia I have, including the giant blue tote my parents have in the basement with my name on it.

 

The THINGS I found in there, people.

 

My cabbage patch dolls.

 

My 8th grade journal.

 

All of my course work from algebra 1.

 (which still looks as incomprehensible today as it did then)

 

Strange pictures.

 

All the letters I sent home from my mission.

(Several of which were unopened. Seriously.)

 

My dad tried to claim they were 'resealed' the humidity in the basement but the sticker speaks for itself, devils!

 

I am so grateful that my mom has slight hoarder tendencies.

 

There are about a million things I am ok putting in the trash but there are a lot of things I am so grateful to have.

 

A drawing from my first day of first grade.

 

My painful Spanish 1 essays.

 

Pictures from my childhood.

 

A letter from my grand mom.

 

A photo of my mom and I the day I was born.

 

 I had never seen it before!

 

Endless mission mementos I had thought were lost.

 

I now have EVERYTHING about my life history in one gray tote.

 

My mission scrapbooks.

 

My graduation caps and gowns.

 

My dolls and birthday cards and 3rd grade art projects.

(The funny thing about the cabbage patch dolls is that there were like 5 in there and Danielle came over and I said "I think these were all of ours" and she was like "Yeah, this one's mine, that one, that one"- she knew EXACTLY which ones were hers and she grabbed them and ran!)

 

I have always thought of my life as this scatter of boxes in the basement and the mission stuff I had hoarded at the bottom of my closet.

 

Now it's all together.

 

Which gives me a weird feeling of peace.

 

And since, this walk down memory lane wouldn't be complete without WAY TOO MANY pictures...Let's do this dance!!

 



The infamous blue tote where all the secrets of my past awaited.





8th grade journal.

The angst level is unreal.

 I apparently really had it out for this girl named Brandi.





Erin says we look like the children of serial killers in this one. I agree!

 



Me and an older wealthy man who wanted to give me gifts.

 Story of my life :)

 

No one could look at this and not identify me as the youngest child.

 

The 80's, baby!

 

I just saw this for the first time yesterday.

Can you believe that when this photo was taken my mom was 23 and had a 3 year old, a 2 year old, a not quite 10 month old, and me?
(My parents had 4 children in exactly 3 years, 2 months, and 4 days)

 

Me as a crazy missionary

 

I loved this khaki skirt.

LOVED IT.

 

I played field hockey for 3 years. As you can see, it was a grand passion of mine.
(I am literally the only one without their shirt tucked in and not smiling)

A Spanish assignment from high school.
(It translates: the sofa to be Bruno's bedroom. You should to be kitchen. The sofa is the bathroom. You should to be the living room....I'll stop there. It only gets more thrilling)

 It's a wonder they even made me take language training in the MTC.

 I was so good already.

Seeing these makes me excited to take a million fall pictures this year!!

My art was hipster before there even was hipster.
 

My 13 year old journal.

Which I wrote COMPLETELY in the third person.

Apparently I was kind of obsessed with the peace symbol and Boys II Men.

Less angst than year 14 journal but more star trek quotes.

So, it's a toss up as to which one the Smithsonian will want after I die.

Who are we kidding?

They'll want both.

And THIS is why I had to take algebra 1 twice in high school.

 

All of my writing assignments.....every single one reads like a horrible, horrible romance novel.

 

Even one I wrote from the perspective of a shrimp.

 

This writing assignment was clearly a cry for help.

And lastly- my dad just found this one today.

It's me at my heaviest weight.

Yikes!

Not that I didn't love that Lori, but I can't ever got back to that.

I'll take this picture of me and my mom over that one:)

So....

It's legit time to move on to our next obsession.

I am thinking self tanning and green smoothies.

Or at least the appearance of green smoothies.

Where I take pictures of myself with one but then dump it and drink a red bull.

YES!

Lori Ann

 

Always say we're going to stop

I am so happy it is Friday.

For some reason, the last two weeks have DRAGGED!

But, as always, when the weather cools down, I start to feel happy.

It feels like fall today.

Like legit fall- not just a moderately hot day that is about to get much worse.

The sisters are coming over for dinner.

I am having a sleepover with the Elly bean.

There may be some experimental baking happening.

So, pretty much the Best. Friday. Ever.

Once I get through precisely 4 hours and 50 minutes of work- WITHOUT MY PHONE!

 How could I forget it??

 I am going through withdrawal after 4 hours.

 Now I'm going to have to WORK in between appointments.

I hope you all have the festive Friday night of your dreams!!

Lori Ann

p.s.- I will be in Utah this time 3 weeks from now! (and we are having our mini reunion that night!)

Today was a day unlike any other day of my life

*this post title was what I wrote in my mission journal on 9/11*

 

I think I have done a 9/11 post for every year that I've had this blog.

 

There is likely nothing new to say that I haven't said before.

 

 

I was standing right about here the morning of 9/11/01. 

 

Where this picture was taken in this very apartment.  

 

 

Serving with this amazing sister- a little less than half way through my mission in Illinois, Chicago.

 

We got a call from one of our members and we drove to the home of our newest members.

 

 

 Los Nunez. They'd been baptized about 2 months before.

 

 

And I spent the next hour or two watching 9/11 coverage from this very couch.

 

Surrounded by this family.

 

Further evidence that God watches out for all of His children because, other than my own family, there wasn't a place I felt safer and more at peace then with this wonderful family and my amazing, calm companion.

 

 

I'll never forget that day.

 

I spend every anniversary feeling mildly sick to my stomach.

 

I can only imagine how hard it must be for the families and loved ones of those who were lost.

 

 Or who have been lost in the conflict since.

 

 

 There have been a few moments in my life when I was able to see immediate growth and immediate change in myself.

 

The day I became an aunt.

 

After my first car accident.

 

That first night in the MTC.

 

But nothing changed me more instantly than this day 13 years ago.

 

I grew up so much on that day.

 

13 years later...

 

I still believe America is the promised land.

 

That 'City Upon a Hill' that John Winthorp talked about all those hundred of years ago.

 

I pray that we will be safe.

 

 That we will have peace.

 

And that my nieces and nephews may never know a day like 9/11.

 

Lori Ann

 

But in the end it's right

Ok- the scrap booking mania has died down a little. 

Because I overdosed and stayed up crazy hours and then today I felt sick to my stomach and left work 2 hours early. 

(which was good because I got SICK when I got home but now feel mostly better)

Apparently scrap booking is a little like meth- you do too much and it messes with you.

Who knew?

But, before I move on to my next obsession- here are a few of my favorites I've found recently.

My high school graduation.

 I love how long my hair is here. 

Not loving how much I weighed and I have no idea where my glasses are but I might grow my hair out again. 

 I don't like myself in this picture but it means a lot to me.

 After the mission, Tyler, Dalley and I went on a road trip from Utah to Los Angeles to see one of our member families.

 Los Nunez.

 My one and only trip to California.

 Hermana Mietzner had actually (due to various issues) been transferred out to LA to finish her mission and we got to see her there and take her and her companion out to lunch

. It was the last time I would see her. 

Me and Amy Nunez about two weeks before the end of my mission.

 I love my hair at this length too. 

Reading my mission journal has been painful but also reminded me how much I loved the people I taught. 

I miss them so much and wish I had tried harder to stay in touch. 

Winsor and I in the MTC at the beginning of the mission. 

(2 days in according to my camera). 

This picture pretty much captures my MTC experience.

 Total exhaustion every day. 

It's been weird but awesome to see so much of my life. 

And, really, it's been inspiring. 

It's made me realize how much I've been through. 

How much I've done.

It makes me want to make the next 34 years as interesting and amazing as have been the last 34. 

Wish me luck.

Lori Ann

Go round and round

Randomness.

I have been scrap booking like a crazy person all weekend. 

I didn't get any of my cleaning done. 

It's insanity. 

Here are some of my favorites from the insane amount of pictures and things I looked at this weekend! 

My cousin Lisa and I

Eri and Danielle- evil older sisters unite! 

All of us. Not sure what is happening here. It was the 80's. 

All of us and our cousins Lisa and Greg. 

I hadn't seen any of these before today. They are amazing!! 

Me and Erin with Jr

My kindergarten picture. I had the same lack of smile as always :) 

My mom at her baby shower for Jr. She was 20. She looks just like Erin!

She does this EXACT same face EVERY day! 

Every single thing from my mission is now contained in these two books. 

I snuck this thing into my office. We'll see how long until they make me get rid of it :) 

And my fall decorations are already up!

Ok- so very random, I know.

But I am feeling a little dizzy from over focusing on scrapbooking.

I'm taking a break until next weekend!

Lori Ann

I will remember you

So, missionary work is still my current obsession but, now that my feet have healed from that crazy half marathon, I am shifting back into weight loss and fitness.

(and by 'shifting' I mean "kinda thinking about doing something while I eat fiddle faddle for breakfast")

What I am trying to do more than anything is keep myself inspired when it feels like progress is really slow. 

So, here are some before and afters.

You've probably seen them before, but I need to see them again. 

So that I don't ever go back. 

 Hopefully this time next year my current 'after' pictures will be my new 'before' pictures :) 

LORI BEFORE 

The infamous license picture. Oh. My. Gosh. 

LORI AFTER

Still with the same, angry blank expression.

So, clearly I am hot at any size. 

But hot and healthy is my ultimate goal :) 

We're 70% of the way there, people!

Let's get the last 30% done and then...

Endure to the end!!

(without fiddle faddle. Oh how I'll miss you fiddle faddle)

Lori Ann