<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570</id><updated>2011-04-21T20:05:41.079-05:00</updated><title type='text'>In The Pink</title><subtitle type='html'>'families are like fudge, mostly sweet with a few nuts...'</subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default?max-results=100'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>12</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>100</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-6042815949085259217</id><published>2008-07-30T20:24:00.002-05:00</published><updated>2008-07-30T20:27:59.708-05:00</updated><title type='text'>I'm back...</title><content type='html'>I know that I was never really here on a regular basis- but I'm back. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I am finally on vacation.  11 days off starting tomorrow- you have no idea how excited I am.  no idea.  It has been a very busy month.  I work for an International teacher exchange program at a local University- and we had 2o Pakistani teachers here for a month long institute.  Since I'm the assistant to the director- my life was literally consumed for the entire month of July.  I loved every second of it, made some really great friends and had lots of adventures- but I'm ready for a vacation!!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So I just wanted to let you know- I'm back :)&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-6042815949085259217?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/6042815949085259217/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=6042815949085259217' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/6042815949085259217'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/6042815949085259217'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/07/im-back.html' title='I&apos;m back...'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-4876683504410984434</id><published>2008-05-11T22:44:00.003-05:00</published><updated>2008-05-11T23:00:05.502-05:00</updated><title type='text'>ok- it's been a while...</title><content type='html'>These are just a few of the reasons why I haven't been posting much lately...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;#1- &lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;Happy Mother's Day&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;!!! Today was more like 'Baseball Day' than Mother's Day. If we weren't playing it- we were watching my son play it- listening to someone discuss it- or watching it on tv. Good thing I like baseball! :) Anyway, I had a great day with my mom and my family and I hope all of you wonderful moms had a GREAT day too!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;#2-&lt;em&gt; &lt;strong&gt;Baseball&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;- yes, I did say baseball!!! Not only did baseball consume my day today, but it also consumes 3-4 nights a week too.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;#3-&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt; Brownies&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;- and I *unfortunately* don't mean the kind you eat...no, I mean Brownie Girl Scouts. I am the leader for Elsa's troop and we meet once a week...so basically, we meet on the one day that Ethan doesn't have baseball!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;#4- &lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;Ballet&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;- on the days of the week when Ethan doesn't have baseball and Elsa doesn't have brownies, we have dance. As if we don't already have enough going on!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;#5-&lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt; WORK&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;!!!!- I spent my entire day in front of a computer- so no offense, but the last thing I want to do when I get home is to sit down at the computer and tell you all about my day! :) This weekend was really short for me because I had to work PSU graduation today- UGH.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;#6- &lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;kids&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;- yes, believe it or not, having two kids does take up a good amount of my time. I have to admit, the little buggers grow on you after a while. :)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;and...coming soon......&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;#7- &lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;SUMMER HOCKEY&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;!- on the 18th, E starts summer hockey and it continues every sunday through August. So once a week for the entire summer, I'll be in an icy cool hockey rink for 2 hours!!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So that's my life right now- &lt;em&gt;&lt;span style="font-family:lucida grande;"&gt;Never a spare minute and never a dull moment&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/em&gt;! I hope you are all keeping busy and enjoying life too. It's really too short....&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;* oh, and I don't watch Idol anymore btw...now that my Jason is gone.  (sniff, sniff)&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-4876683504410984434?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/4876683504410984434/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=4876683504410984434' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/4876683504410984434'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/4876683504410984434'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/05/ok-its-been-while.html' title='ok- it&apos;s been a while...'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-8996391760062749041</id><published>2008-04-23T18:56:00.003-05:00</published><updated>2008-12-11T14:42:29.224-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Hallelujah...</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SA_NlzsN6aI/AAAAAAAAABw/axIu5gqchmY/s1600-h/jason_castro_003.jpg"&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5192594944795994530" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SA_NlzsN6aI/AAAAAAAAABw/axIu5gqchmY/s320/jason_castro_003.jpg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;well, the talk in the Idol world tonight is that Jason Castro will be leaving us...and while I really hate to admit it- I am an Idol JUNKIE!!! I hate pop music and I never buy or listen to any of the 'winner's' albums...but I am a junkie for the show for some reason. And it helps that regular guys that look a lot like some of my buddies are contestants this time around...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Michael Johns was my favorite- he sang my type of music and he rocked...until he was voted off a few weeks ago.  So when I hear that Jason may be leaving tonight...my initial reaction is...god I hope not....if he leaves I'll have no reason left to watch! &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;keeping my fingers crossed!!!&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-8996391760062749041?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/8996391760062749041/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=8996391760062749041' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/8996391760062749041'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/8996391760062749041'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/04/hallelujah.html' title='Hallelujah...'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SA_NlzsN6aI/AAAAAAAAABw/axIu5gqchmY/s72-c/jason_castro_003.jpg' height='72' width='72'/><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-858076131792490763</id><published>2008-04-23T18:51:00.004-05:00</published><updated>2008-04-23T18:55:11.769-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Happy Administrative Assistants Day!</title><content type='html'>I was greeted at work today with a lovely potted plant and a card with a non-winning scratch ticket inside-yes, I had to add the 'non-winning' part.  but hey, it's the thought that counts right? Considering I just started working there 4 weeks ago, it was a pleasant surprise for me.  And I didn't even know it was Administrative Assistants Day until I got to work!!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So to all you Admins out there- Happy DAY!!! :)&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-858076131792490763?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/858076131792490763/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=858076131792490763' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/858076131792490763'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/858076131792490763'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/04/happy-administrative-assistants-day.html' title='Happy Administrative Assistants Day!'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-6778513848590263006</id><published>2008-04-20T09:48:00.001-05:00</published><updated>2008-04-20T09:49:21.673-05:00</updated><title type='text'>IT'S SO QUIET~</title><content type='html'>It's so quiet in this house without the kids here that I slept until 10:30am this morning!!!!  It has been at least 9 years since that has happened.  Granted, I was up babysitting until 2am last night...but still...it felt gooooooood. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Good Morning everyone!  :)&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-6778513848590263006?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/6778513848590263006/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=6778513848590263006' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/6778513848590263006'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/6778513848590263006'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/04/its-so-quiet.html' title='IT&apos;S SO QUIET~'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-5216046377315509441</id><published>2008-04-19T00:21:00.002-05:00</published><updated>2008-04-19T00:25:44.888-05:00</updated><title type='text'>I miss them...</title><content type='html'>The kids are in Fort Myers Beach with Grammy and their uncle and cousins for April vacation week.  They got all packed into a nice big van and drove down- mom said the kids were all troopers!!!  They have been gone now for 36 hours and 22 minutes...but who's counting?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I already miss them. Only 9 days to go!   (sniff, sniff)&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-5216046377315509441?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/5216046377315509441/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=5216046377315509441' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/5216046377315509441'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/5216046377315509441'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/04/i-miss-them.html' title='I miss them...'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-1505569684536999010</id><published>2008-04-15T21:19:00.003-05:00</published><updated>2008-04-15T21:26:31.442-05:00</updated><title type='text'>...the terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day...</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style="color:#cc33cc;"&gt;well, ok. it wasn't &lt;em&gt;that&lt;/em&gt; bad...I'm just really super tired. I left the house at 8:15 this morning and I just got home at 9:45pm. have you ever had one of those days that you just thought would never end? meetings all day long, then Elsa had dance, then I had a dinner meeting, then I had a girl scout leaders' meeting...and now here it is- almost 10:30pm and I'm baking &lt;strong&gt;'worms in the dirt'&lt;/strong&gt; brownies to go with my &lt;strong&gt;'bird's nest tweets'&lt;/strong&gt; (get it, instead of treats? clever huh?) for the &lt;span style="font-family:verdana;"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Wild Thing&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt; bake sale that I soooo conveniently forgot was tomorrow morning.....&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style="color:#33ccff;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-1505569684536999010?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/1505569684536999010/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=1505569684536999010' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/1505569684536999010'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/1505569684536999010'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/04/terrible-horrible-no-good-very-bad-day.html' title='...the terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day...'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-6067528608770326047</id><published>2008-04-14T20:16:00.003-05:00</published><updated>2008-12-11T14:42:29.578-05:00</updated><title type='text'>LOVE</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAQCJ8jmnkI/AAAAAAAAABo/C7QuWZmp5eg/s1600-h/180220739503_0_ALB.jpg"&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189275040535191106" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAQCJ8jmnkI/AAAAAAAAABo/C7QuWZmp5eg/s320/180220739503_0_ALB.jpg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div&gt;my little love has lost her front tooth...she's growing up too quickly.&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-6067528608770326047?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/6067528608770326047/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=6067528608770326047' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/6067528608770326047'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/6067528608770326047'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/04/love.html' title='LOVE'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAQCJ8jmnkI/AAAAAAAAABo/C7QuWZmp5eg/s72-c/180220739503_0_ALB.jpg' height='72' width='72'/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-5476009948722554016</id><published>2008-04-14T20:04:00.004-05:00</published><updated>2008-12-11T14:42:29.914-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Is there an end in sight???</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAQAEcjmnjI/AAAAAAAAABg/j2syWrscfIQ/s1600-h/IMG_9360.jpg"&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189272747022655026" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAQAEcjmnjI/AAAAAAAAABg/j2syWrscfIQ/s320/IMG_9360.jpg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div&gt;This is the winter that never ends...I mean, don't get me wrong-we are definitely a snow loving family...for skiing, sledding, building snowmen and making snow angels; none of which we can do in the &lt;em&gt;nasty, dirty, crusty, slushy&lt;/em&gt; snow that is STILL in our yard. I just took this picture tonight from my front door.  no kidding- I took it on April 14th at 7:45pm.  Can you see now why I say that I'm done with winter? I want the snow to be gone &lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;now!!!&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt; I'm getting tired of looking out my window only to see HUGE 5 foot snow banks right outside of my front door.  It's depressing. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div&gt;It has been in the mid 50s to mid 60s several times in the past week or so...and if you drive down off of the mtn that I live on-you see grass, flower buds popping up, big mud puddles even...but not 2 feet of snow like we have in our yard. It's like we live in a giant snow globe and we're the only ones in town that still have snow...and I'm pretty sure we'll have it for quite some time. I guess I should look on the bright side-come June when it's really hot outside, our yard will have built in air conditioning! &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-5476009948722554016?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/5476009948722554016/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=5476009948722554016' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/5476009948722554016'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/5476009948722554016'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/04/is-there-end-in-sight.html' title='Is there an end in sight???'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAQAEcjmnjI/AAAAAAAAABg/j2syWrscfIQ/s72-c/IMG_9360.jpg' height='72' width='72'/><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-2927595087056018452</id><published>2008-04-13T20:59:00.003-05:00</published><updated>2008-04-13T21:07:26.727-05:00</updated><title type='text'>'Not a single bite, I promise...'</title><content type='html'>I just couldn't wait to share this...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today the kids and I made some 'birdie nests' for Elsa's WILD THING bake sale at school.  &lt;em&gt;The first graders are doing a bake sale and the proceeds will go towards a school project in honor of Earth Day.  &lt;/em&gt;Anyway, we made birds nests out of chinese noodles and melted morsels.  I put the cookie sheet with the nests in the fridge so they could harden up before we wrapped them and I left them for a bit. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;About an hour later I'm on the computer checking on my Ebay auctions and Ethan comes running in...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;Ethan&lt;em&gt;:  'Mom!!! Elsa is eating the birdy nests for the bake sale!!!!'  &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;Me:  &lt;em&gt;'What?? are you kidding me?'&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;Elsa:  &lt;em&gt;(comes running in to defend herself) 'No I'm not mom...I haven't eaten any bird nests at all'  &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;**meanwhile her entire face, and I mean &lt;em&gt;ENTIRE face&lt;/em&gt; is covered from ear to ear with chocolate**&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;Me:  &lt;em&gt;'you promise?  not even a single bite?'&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="color:#ff99ff;"&gt;Elsa:  &lt;em&gt;'Yup.  Not a single bite, I promise...'&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-2927595087056018452?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/2927595087056018452/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=2927595087056018452' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/2927595087056018452'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/2927595087056018452'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/04/not-single-bite-i-promise.html' title='&apos;Not a single bite, I promise...&apos;'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-7161356521230031968</id><published>2008-04-13T20:30:00.006-05:00</published><updated>2008-12-11T14:42:30.070-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Ok, so it's been 426 days...</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAK4Z8jmneI/AAAAAAAAAA4/s_6CCYtFRxA/s1600-h/IMG_7171.jpg"&gt;&lt;img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188912476575931874" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAK4Z8jmneI/AAAAAAAAAA4/s_6CCYtFRxA/s320/IMG_7171.jpg" border="0" /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAK4acjmnfI/AAAAAAAAABA/mxR8sqvWYt0/s1600-h/IMG_8400.jpg"&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAK4acjmngI/AAAAAAAAABI/hSISW6zOrK4/s1600-h/312596359503_0_ALB.jpg"&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAK4a8jmnhI/AAAAAAAAABQ/r1sYj70-T14/s1600-h/IMG_4577.jpg"&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div&gt;That's right, 426 days...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It's been so long since my last post that I actually forgot that I have attempted this thing-called a blog- once before. I have had a few friends asking me why I don't create a blog...and to my surprise, when I tried to 'create' one...I already had one. HA HA.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Okay, so I have to admit...I have been skeptical of these blogs for quite some time until I realized that many people that I know actually have them. And guess what??? I really enjoy checking in on them to see what is happening in their lives. Sooooo...I have decided to follow suit. &lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div&gt;Our life is eventful...there is always &lt;em&gt;something&lt;/em&gt; going on, whether it's a sporting event, a family gathering, playdates, parties, etc...there is one thing you can count on with the our family...there is never a dull moment. There are lots of little things that go on in my days that I would love to be able to share with everyone...and now I can!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I'll start with a little update on where we are at this moment in time... &lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div&gt;Hockey season is over and baseball is soon to begin (that is- if the 2 ft of snow that is still on the ground ever starts to melt). Ballet is in full force with a big recital in June. Brownies (I'm the leader) keeps us busy at least one night a week. I recenly went back to work after 7 years as a stay at home mom. I am now employed at my old alma mater- Plymouth State University. I hate to admit it, but it's actually easier than being at home with the kids! (shhhh...I didn't say that!!)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;anyway...I'm in for a busy week with lots of deadlines...so I'll be back when I get a chance!  I promise it won't be another 426 days before my next post!!!  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-7161356521230031968?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/7161356521230031968/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=7161356521230031968' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/7161356521230031968'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/7161356521230031968'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2008/04/ok-so-its-been-426-days.html' title='Ok, so it&apos;s been 426 days...'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media='http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/' url='http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ZscTpzGBAy0/SAK4Z8jmneI/AAAAAAAAAA4/s_6CCYtFRxA/s72-c/IMG_7171.jpg' height='72' width='72'/><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1264744785075991570.post-8319287691241760666</id><published>2007-01-14T14:18:00.000-05:00</published><updated>2007-01-14T14:21:39.306-05:00</updated><title type='text'>LET IT SNOW!!!!</title><content type='html'>well, I just wanted to share with everyone how happy&lt;br /&gt;I am about seeing a beautiful white blanket on my grass&lt;br /&gt;when I look out the window today...we have been longing&lt;br /&gt;for winter and it seems like it's finally arrived, full force! &lt;br /&gt;it's one of those days...where it's just so nice to be in the warm&lt;br /&gt;house, wearing slippers and sipping hot cocoa.  Football is&lt;br /&gt;on later so we'll head to my folks' house down the street to&lt;br /&gt;watch on the 42" plasma tv...but until then we will enjoy a&lt;br /&gt;lazy afternoon with absolutely nothing to do but hang around&lt;br /&gt;and enjoy eachother's company.  these days are few and far&lt;br /&gt;between...LET IT SNOW!!!!&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1264744785075991570-8319287691241760666?l=lauriatfamily.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/feeds/8319287691241760666/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=1264744785075991570&amp;postID=8319287691241760666' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/8319287691241760666'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/1264744785075991570/posts/default/8319287691241760666'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://lauriatfamily.blogspot.com/2007/01/let-it-snow.html' title='LET IT SNOW!!!!'/><author><name>mom_of_2</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/08461974738354724325</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry></feed>
