Author: Lori Clinch

  • Remembering what to say is a full-time occupation

    Remembering what to say is a full-time occupation

    By Lori Clinch Having a bad memory is awful enough, but when I’m around my husband and our four sons, it’s the worst! They are all blessed with stellar memories. They know where they have been, where they are going and why they ran into the kitchen. Not to mention, they know who they told…

  • A family that always sees the can as half-empty

    A family that always sees the can as half-empty

    By Lori Clinch Although we are painfully close to being empty nesters, we still get to enjoy the company of our children from time to time. They come and as they go, they like to leave telltale signs of their aforementioned presence that they were here. There is always at least one stray sock left…

  • If it isn’t too cold, it’s too darned hot

    If it isn’t too cold, it’s too darned hot

    By Lori Clinch Old Man Winter is long gone and I, for one, could not have been happier to bid him a fond adieu. Sure, he was nice at times. In fact, sometimes he was a real ray of sunshine. But then, just when you thought you were really getting to know winter, he would…

  • A thousand words might be easier

    A thousand words might be easier

    The family photo, as I ponder it … I remember how tough it was when our kids were little. There was the familial wrestling photo we took without a referee in 1998, the boxing photo of 2003, and the day I dropped to my knees and prayed for endurance before I covered my little darlings’…

  • Cultivating an attitude of gratitude

    Cultivating an attitude of gratitude

    Miss Manners, Dear Abby and my favorite cousin are all going to be appalled, but I am going to say this anyway – thank you cards are a pain in the behind. I don’t mind an occasional “thank you” where a gal pens one nice note and then places it in an envelope and sends…

  • I’m pretty sure this is all his fault

    I’m pretty sure this is all his fault

    By Lori Clinch Ever since the beginning of our marriage, my husband and I have had an ongoing power struggle I like to call the Normal Person vs. the Morning Man. Simply put, Pat loves to wake up before the early birds and I am a normal, well-rounded human being. Pat has made constant attempts…

  • This moment was years in the making – and inevitable

    This moment was years in the making – and inevitable

    By Lori Clinch Way back in the day, when my good friend, Julie, and I dropped our youngest children off at kindergarten, I looked at her and said, “Do you know what that was?” “You bet I do,” she responded without missing a beat. “That was our last.” Our lives would be forever changed and…

  • All hands are on deck for party preparations

    All hands are on deck for party preparations

    By Lori Clinch Normally, I view myself as an easygoing kind of gal. I let the little things go, don’t sweat the small stuff and don’t flip out unless the situation truly calls for it. I don’t think my family appreciates my even temper enough, especially when it comes to housework. I don’t like soiled…

  • Tears of sadness, tears of Joy!

    Tears of sadness, tears of Joy!

    The month of May is quickly approaching and I must say, with two graduations, it is going to be a busy one. First of all, our very own Little Charlie, who isn’t so little any more, will be graduating from high school. As I ponder him leaving our nest, I do so with a heavy…