The Clark Clan!!!!

Snails & kitties

2010-11-27T14:46:00.000-08:00

The kids have been finding all kinds

of fun things to play with at our

new place.

Snails. . . . .

. . . . and kitties!

South Africans and Smores

2010-11-27T05:30:00.000-08:00

We have had the privilege of sharing

the very American tradition

of making Smores with our

South African friends!

We made some when we crashed their

campsite last weekend.

And we also made Smores around the

firepit on Thanksgiving.

Yummy goodness!!!!

Clark Clan Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-26T14:27:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving

2010-11-26T09:10:00.000-08:00

Thankful

2010-11-26T08:45:00.001-08:00

I was walking the dogs early this morning.

No one else was out yet and it was COLD!

I was really feeling so very, very thankful

for our new little home.

I was even thankful for the cold because

we have had enough of hot weather!

I am thankful for this huge yard

that we don't have to mow.

(Jim is probably more thankful than I am.)

The kids play out here

all of the time.

They find snails and play with the

neighborhood cats.

The big trees are beautiful.

Our table sits by the front window so

whenever we are eating we have a

beautiful view.

The kids really love this park.

It is a little old fashion which is a nice change.

Most new parks do not have swings

and teeter-totters are never seen anymore.

The pool is on the otherside of this playground.

I know we will be very thankful for

that this summer.

My dad's leather jacket.

2010-11-22T19:48:00.001-08:00

This is my dad's suede leather jacket.

I think it might be older than I am.

He started letting me wear it

when I was in high school.

I loved it then and I still love it.

I haven't really worn it that

much in the last few years.

It was nice and chilly today,

just the way I like it.

I pulled the jacket out of the closet,

slide my arms into it,

and thought about how fast the years go by.

Crashing our friend's campsite.

2010-11-21T20:58:00.000-08:00

Our very good friends, Niel and Suzanne,

decided to go on a camping trip.

They headed about 15 minutes west of us

to the beautiful White Tank Mountains.

I have lived here for 25 years

and have never camped at the White Tanks.

I really did not even know that they

had these great campsites.
They invited us to come hang

out at their camp.

So we grabbed some s'more ingredients. . . . .

. . . . . . . . and had a wonderful time.

The kids played cards in the tent.

They had a great time, especially

when Jim scared them!

Webcam Fun!!!!

2010-11-20T15:09:00.000-08:00

This is what the kids have been

doing for entertainment.

Playing with the webcam

and all of it's features!

Boxes, boxes and more boxes!!!!

2010-11-19T15:51:00.001-08:00

This has been our lives lately.

Moving

Packing

Purging

Garage selling

Crying

Packing

Unpacking

Empty boxes are a good thing.

Getting unpacked and organized.

Loving our little cottage.

Rozanna's birthday

2010-11-18T16:28:00.000-08:00

We went to SPRINKLES for Rozanna's birthday!

We had a blast!

Yummy!

Micki & her SIL Trish

Rozanna & Cresta

Michelle & our chauffeur

extraordinaire Gretchen

This is the super cute cupcake bracelet

that we gave Rozanna.

I was also able to give one to

Suzanne for her birthday.
Micki's MIL made each one of the cupcake beads.

Thanks for a fun day girls!

Getting back to blogging

2010-11-18T16:15:00.000-08:00

I really want to get back to blogging.

We have had so much that has happened.

Sometimes life seems to be all about waiting

for the next thing to happen.

And I really want it to be about what

is happening right now.

Enjoying the moment.

Nails by Callie

2010-05-08T21:44:00.000-07:00

Pictures on my camera that were not taken by me. . .

2010-05-08T11:37:00.000-07:00

slacker

2010-05-07T21:27:00.001-07:00

I feel like such a slacker.

I really want to keep up on this blog!

I love having a scrapbook of family pictures and

events to look back on!

I bought a new camera about a month ago and it downloaded the

first set of photos just fine.

I cannot get it to download again!

So frustrating.

I have 400+ photos on my camera.

So for now, I will just admire this cute pic of Callie

and her very adorable tiger striped nails.

Daddy's big 4-0

2010-03-01T21:14:00.000-08:00

Jim just had his 40th birthday!

I met him the week of his 24th birthday.

Time really does fly.

Can you guess what we made him

for his birthday?

Conner peeled the carrots.

Callie & Conner helped make a

really yummy carrot cake from scratch!

Here he is opening his present.

Gift cards from Cabela's of course.

Happy Birthday Daddy!

We love you!

You like me, you really like me!

2010-02-26T07:50:00.000-08:00

Dusty really does a good job

ignoring Polly the majority of the time.

He will occasionally growl at her

when he is annoyed.

So the other day when I

walked into the room

and found this I thought

it was so sweet.

I am sure that Polly was saying,

"He likes me! He really likes me!"

Pineapple Teriyaki Turkey Burgers

2010-02-25T18:47:00.000-08:00

So easy and so yummy
Here are all of the ingredients.
Ground turkey, Veri Veri Teriyaki, oat bran,
garlic powder, mushrooms, onion, pineapple & olive oil.

Look at the awesome deal I found on ground turkey!!!!!

This is the best teriyaki sauce to use.

Letting go.

2010-02-25T09:36:00.000-08:00

I really lean towards being a little controlling.

I like things clean and neat.

I sometimes have to make myself let go of things.

Like when Conner asked to make his own lunch.

Sounded good.

Until he pulled out the nutella.

and salted it.

Then added this. . . .

He also put some mayo on the cheese.

He asked for salami too but we were out.

Guest post.

2010-02-24T20:19:00.000-08:00

Hi this is Emma.

My mom's guest poster.

I like my hair in this picture

pprreettyy!

I hope you like it too.

Maybe I will do this for one of my

concerts.

Ooohlala.

Bye!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rainy days again.

2010-02-24T18:33:00.000-08:00

Creativity

2010-02-21T19:54:00.000-08:00

This is Callie's passion right now.

I think she is very talented.

This is not the first look she has recreated.

The pictures started out seriously enough.
And it went downhill from there.

Valentine's Day

2010-02-21T13:22:00.001-08:00

Cute & a little sassy!

We love our new church.
There is a real heart for children here.

The girls were able to participate in a
little production for Valentine's Day.

Bamma and Papa came to see the girls.

Pastor David did an awesome job
teaching about God's love for us.
He taught about how when Jesus died
on the cross that was really
the ultimate Valentine's Day.
He did it because he loves us.
He challenged us to love God with
ALL of our heart, soul and mind.
And to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.
(my paraphrase but you can
get the real deal here.)
This has been a challenge for Jim and I because we
tend to have some protective mechanisms
that lead us to want to protect ourselves from
being used and abused.
We kind of grew up with the idea that everyone
just wants something from you.
But we have discovered that
a) This has not worked out to well for us.
b) There are people out there that deserve our trust.
c) We at times may have used people ourselves.
Even if this was not done on purpose the
outcome to the other person is the same, they felt used.
d) This is really not trusting God.

Pastor David taught about the
2 beams to the cross.
The vertical beam is God reaching down and
extending his love, forgiveness, mercy,
grace and salvation to each one of us.
The horizontal beam represents
his desire for us to extend that same
love, forgiveness, mercy and grace to others.
Good stuff!

Cheap labor

2010-02-20T20:05:00.000-08:00

Will work for food. . . . . . . . .

Chicken Nuggets to be exact.

We have a man cave!

2010-02-20T14:57:00.001-08:00

Jim spent all morning and most

of the afternoon cleaning out his garage.

He says it is not really a man cave

unless it has a TV.

There is nothing sexier than a man with a clean garage!

(positive re-enforcement)

Creative Crafty Friend

2010-02-20T10:10:00.000-08:00

This is my friend Micki

She just lost 64 pounds!

Isn't she pretty!!!

Callie gave her a makeover.

This is what she gave Callie for her birthday.

A cupcake tier!!!!

She got the plates and the sherbet cups at Savers.

Savers is like an upscale Goodwill. : )

She just used epoxy to glue it all together.

That little munchkin in the background

helped eat the yummy cake balls that

Micki made to put on the cupcake tier.

Callie's 11th Birthday.

2010-02-20T08:46:00.001-08:00

Callie's B-day Breakfast in bed

2010-02-20T08:39:00.001-08:00

Her request was for cream cheese

stuffed waffles with fresh strawberries.

She is usually my late sleeper so I did not think
I had to get up early to start breakfast.
Funny thing is I did not think that she might get up early
because of the excitement a birthday creates!
Poor girl had to lay in bed for an hour waiting for
her breakfast in bed!!!
Happy Birthday Callie girl!!!!

Random Thoughts!!!!!

2010-02-19T18:44:00.000-08:00

I have noticed that many of my fellow bloggers
have been doing something called
Stream of Consciousness.
I like to call them Random Thoughts. . . . . . . . .
I really want to be better about posting on this blog.
I really want to use this blog to journal
about all the of awesome things God is doing in our life.
My 6 year old son will not go to the bathroom by himself.
He has to have a perpetual conversation
with whomever is nearby so he can reassure
himself he is not alone.

"Hey mommy."

"Yes Conner, what do you want?"

"Nothing, just making sure you are still there."

It is kind of funny actually.
I made the best BLTs tonight for dinner.
Our kids have made new friends.
They are the neighbor kids right down
the street from us.
Callie's glittery eyeliner is super cute.
Emma is coughing and coughing and coughing.
7 days with no Starbucks. : (
No fast food February at our house.
I have a goal that I will be better about cooking
healthy dinners every night.
I will have a weekly menu to help me reach my goal.
I really want a baby.
Jim and I have gone on more dates in the
last 6 months than we had in the last 6 years.
I really love a good tall glass of iced tea.
Ice tea is cheaper than Starbucks and a lot less calories.
Marriage retreat coming up in 27 days.
Need to find people to take our kids when
we go to our 1st ever Marriage retreat.
What we fasted and prayed for in January is
being played out before us.
God answers prayers.
My brother John came over this week
and make the best brownies.
He used honeybutter and vanilla soymilk.
mmmmmmmm
Callie told me on Tuesday that she really,
really wants to go swimming.
She was wondering if we knew of anyone
with a heated pool.
Kathleen called us on Wednesday and asked
if we wanted to come swimming in the heated pool
at the Wigwam on Friday.
So Jim has Conner and Callie at the Wigwam swimming.
I am home with Emma.
Listening to her coughing and wondering
why bacon stinks up the house so bad.
I really like hummus.
That is pretty much all I had had to eat today
until I enjoyed the yummy BLT.
3 months til Family Camp!!!!!!!
Need to go play in the snow soon.
Girl Scout cookies came in.
Add that to the hummus and
THAT is pretty much all I had had to eat today.
Wish I had some pictures to add.
Jim added security to our computers.
Can't figure out how to download my camera.
Bacon really makes me thirsty.
I think I will go have some iced tea.

California Screamin!

2010-02-06T08:18:00.000-08:00

Disneyland 2010

2010-02-05T20:11:00.000-08:00

Disneyland memories

2010-02-05T08:17:00.000-08:00

Boys & Legos!

2010-01-31T21:04:00.000-08:00

Conner got an Indiana Jones Lego

set for Christmas.
Which is perfect because boys like Legos.

Uncle Johnny

2010-01-31T09:00:00.000-08:00

Even Polly loves him!!!!!

Uncle Brock

2010-01-30T20:55:00.000-08:00

Uncle Brock

We love you.

Emma & Uncle Brocky

Best Friends!
Conner & Uncle Brock
Each with their own hairstyle
No hair & Comb over-sprayed to perfection

Sweet

Uncle Brock, You are very SPECIAL.

A girl and her dog.

2010-01-30T13:29:00.000-08:00

Isn't this the sweetest thing?!!!

A girl and her dog.
Emma had the flu this week.
Little Miss Polly stayed close by her side.

Look at this little guard dog.
She heard the click of the camera.
That look on her face says,
"Don't wake up my Emma.
I just got her to sleep."

Sleeping Beauty

2010-01-30T08:48:00.001-08:00

Emma got reading glasses the other day.

We are hoping it will encourage her to read more.

Jim bought this magazine.

She woke up when I took her picture.

Isn't she cute!!!!!

Jelly Telly

2010-01-29T23:37:00.000-08:00

Anything that comes from the

creator of VeggieTales

MUST be brilliant as far as

I am concerned!

My kids have grown up

watching VeggieTales.

VeggieTales taught my husband

the bible before any pastor

had the opportunity to.

And I will be forever grateful.

What I did on Christmas break. . . . .

2010-01-28T08:12:00.000-08:00

Visited with childhood friends!

Silly kids!

2010-01-28T07:49:00.001-08:00

Kids outside rollerskating/rollerblading

sound of ice cream truck

no kids running inside begging for ice cream

Daddy is home

Kids must have talked Daddy into buying them something

So I went outside to investigate and sure enough,

I found kids with treats.

(Daddy is a big softy)

I was also highly amused at the kids solution to bum pads.

Callie was a little embarrassed.

Poor thing.

Christmas eve

2009-12-26T12:40:00.000-08:00

We always open one present on Christmas eve so this year the kids had to wait until I got home from work. I got a beautiful watch from Callie. Jim got some much needed jeans. Polly liked them a lot. Emma and Conner got new Nintendo DSes. Callie got her Coastal Sense 88 shimmer pallette eyeshadows.

We were all very happy.

Merry Christmas Eve!!

Photo shoot~Emma

2009-12-25T11:29:00.000-08:00

Photo shoots-Callie

2009-12-25T10:59:00.000-08:00

This is our, the kids don't get school pictures done

& we are low on funds, photo shoot.

Callie really enjoyed modeling for me.

I loved the way these turned out.

Helen Keller- braille

2009-12-12T14:27:00.000-08:00

Callie is learning about Helen Keller right now.

We are working on a lapbook.

This is Callie learning about Braille.

She was making cards to put in her lapbook

and made one with her name on it.

Homeschooling the fun way!

Mr Picky

2009-12-12T14:05:00.001-08:00

To say that Conner is a picky eater is an understatement.

Please ignore the blue eyeshadow.

Callie aspires to be a makeup artist.

Her brother is a willing palate.

Oh my gosh, I think this is so funny.

It is an orange segment!

Not brussel sprouts or liver and onions.

That is what my parents forced me to eat.

Jim had to eat cow tongue.

An orange!

OH! MY! GOSH!

Here it comes. . . . .

Gagging!
He is gagging on an orange!
I don't know what else to say.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR EMMA

2009-12-05T22:04:00.001-08:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOUUUUUUU!!!!!

Polly- the cake licker

2009-12-05T21:51:00.001-08:00

BUSTED!!!!!

Jesse Tree- Days 4 & 5

2009-12-05T21:34:00.001-08:00

Day 4- Abraham

Abraham was called by God to leave his country

and go to another country

he had never seen before.

Abraham obeyed God and he was blessed.

He became the father of many.

Day 5- Isaac & the Lamb

Even though Abraham waited a long time to have a son,

when God asked him to sacrifice Isaac he obeyed God.

Because of his obedience,

God spared Isaac and provided a

Lamb to be sacrificed in his place.

Jesus took our place on the cross,

just as the lamb took Isaac's place,

so we could live.

So sweet

2009-12-04T05:42:00.000-08:00

I wake up earlier than the kids and I usually

go and get the puppy to let her out.

The first time I searched her cage and could not find her.

That was because she was all warm and cuddly with Emma.

So every morning I go to get her I always have

to dig down into the covers to find her.

This is where I found her this morning.

Dec 1st-3rd Jesse Tree ornaments

2009-12-03T18:38:00.000-08:00

Day 1- Creation

Someone hand painted the continents on

all 25 ornaments!

Now that is creativity.

Day 2- Adam and Eve

I love the snake's tongue.

Some people are so talented!

Day 3- Noah and the Flood.

How awesome!!!

Jesse Tree

2009-12-03T13:09:00.000-08:00

The Jesse Tree is named from Isaiah 11:1:

"A shoot will spring forth from

the stump of Jesse, and a branch out of his roots."

A Jesse Tree is used to tell some of the main stories from the

Old Testament starting with creation through the birth of Christ.

I have read that many Churches

would have a tree carved into a wall of the church with a

symbol for each of the main stories.

This was a way for people, that did not own a bible,

to remember these stories.

I read about Jesse Trees last year and really wanted to do one.

The thought of making the 25 ornaments on my

own was just too overwhelming.

I did find some templates on the internet that

I could have printed off and had the kids color.

This year I was so blessed to be a part of

Desert Springs Community Church homeschool co-op.

And guess what I found out they were

doing for the end of the year party!

A Jesse Tree ornament swap!

Everyone had to make 25 of one type of ornament

and wrap them with the day

they symbolize marked on the package.

Each day from Dec 1st - the 25th

we open one package.

There is a devotional that goes with each day.

I feel so blessed that God knows me so

well and even answers my desires for

what seems like simple things.

Here are the 25 ornaments I made for day #18.

Jeremiah 31:33 (New Living Translation)
"But this is the new covenant I will

make with the people of Israel on that day,”

says the Lord. “I will put my instructions

deep within them, and I will write them

on their hearts. I will be their God,

and they will be my people.
Here are all of the ornaments waiting to be swapped.

I can't wait to see what they all look like.

Polly Clark

2009-12-03T12:48:00.001-08:00

This is Polly
Emma's chihuahua.

We really love her.

I mean really, who would not love a face like that?

And those EARS!
Ohhhhh, she is so cute!

Here she is chewing on Trevor's shoes.

Here she is sharing with Dusty.

Here is Dusty, not at all happy about the sharing.

Here is Polly standing in Dusty's food bowl eating her own food.

(you are welcome Dusty)

She is so sweet. . . . . . . .

. . . . . . except when she is on a leash.

That is our story about Polly Clark

. . . to be cont.

Emma K. Clark, 9 years old

2009-12-03T12:32:00.001-08:00

This is what time I got my wake up call on Wednesday, Dec 2, 2009.

It was Emma's 9th birthday

and we had 3 very excited children

& a daddy that had to go to work.

So Emma got some great Birthday gifts!
A cowgirl belt, a Moxie girl, a pink hair stick for cool
highlights. And of course, Polly, Emma's chihuahua.
We have had Polly for 2 weeks.
Polly got a collar & leash.
Happy Birthday Emma!

Then we had some birthday bathing, complete with goggles!
A free meal at Red Robin's completed
our birthday celebration!
Papa, Bamma, Uncles David & Brock,
Jessica & Aubree
and Suzanne & Danille
celebrated with us.

Happy Birthday Emma!!!!!!!

A Journey Through Learning

2009-11-20T19:24:00.000-08:00

I started doing lapbooks with the kids a while back. I am very excited to start our Thanksgiving Lapbook that I found on http://www.ajourneythroughlearning.com/.

They have made it so easy to find the information to read about

whatever subject you are studying. They also provide all of the

mini-books to print and fill in the information and place into the lapbook.

I already have my eye on the Christmas lapbook we are going to do next.

I can't wait to make Reindeer food and edible Christmas trees.

For my non-homeschooling friends these lapbooks would be a great to use for

research projects for school.

I will put pictures up as soon as we get started!

Teaching the human body,

2009-11-07T23:10:00.000-08:00

Homeschool style

We did the class about once a week and learned about muscles, bones and organs.

CHILLAXING.

2009-11-07T14:30:00.000-08:00

Bowling!

2009-11-06T19:39:00.000-08:00

We had so much fun bowling last Saturday night.

Can you tell?

So sweet. . . and muddy

2009-11-06T06:31:00.001-08:00

So I can remember they were little once.

Not so very long ago.

cousins

2009-11-06T06:27:00.000-08:00

I am feeling nostalgic today.

Why do they grow up so fast?

Dear Renee,

2009-10-30T16:19:00.000-07:00

Dear Renee,

This is what we did while you were busy moving.

We tried to not have too much fun,

as you were working so hard and really not

enjoying the day very much.

We tried, but we ended up having fun anyways.

I hope we can do it again soon.

(Without the moving part)

Love,

The Clarks

Mod Podge rules!

2009-09-26T21:46:00.000-07:00

We made this for Callie's bedroom.

It is just strips of scrapbooking paper that is mod podged onto cardboard.

I printed sayings like, "big sister, bookworm, daddy's little girl"

onto scrapbook paper and Callie cut it out for me.

She is the one that made the list.

Fashionista is my fav.

I have had this frame for about 10 years.

Seriously.

I think I may have bought it before Callie was born.

I actually bought three of them.

The glass is broken out of one so I need to get that replaced.

They will look so beautiful in Callie's shabby chic room.

Now we need to decide what to do in the other two.

Any ideas?

**********************

Check out this blog

http://asoftplacetoland-kimba.blogspot.com/

I am linking to it so I can enter to win

something really cool.

Wish me luck*************************

Stinky!

2009-09-20T19:10:00.001-07:00

This is Emma's ferret Stinky.

He is a little bit stinky but not too bad.

We love him alot.

He is the funniest little critter pet

we have ever had.

He chases us around.

He licks our legs when we get out of the shower.

He loves to chew on velcro.

He is litter box trained.

He steals shoes and hides them under Emma's bed.

He smells Dusty's booty and makes him growl,

especially in the middle of the night when he

gets his cage door open.

He hides under our bed and bites my

toes when I am making the bed.

When he is really happy, he squeaks when he runs.

When he is tired, he yawns.

Isn't he cute!!!!???
Photos by Emma K. Clark

Emma's new business

2009-09-20T19:05:00.000-07:00

How cute is that?

What you can't see is the sign on the back.

I think she is selling rides and artwork.
Right now her artwork is on display

in the front room.

She has the original artwork taped up on the walls.

She will not sell the originals.

She has created copies that are for sale

in her "gift shop".

I really need to get some pictures of her art gallery.

Fun times.

I am back!!!

2009-09-20T19:02:00.001-07:00

The batteries in my camera have been dead,

and I just cannot blog without pictures!

Here is a beautiful Arizona sunset.

Family Business

2009-09-05T08:32:00.001-07:00

Jim's mom taught me how to make these

socks when Callie was a baby.

I have made a few pairs here and there

for the girls when they were babies.

Or for a gift for a new baby.

Now my girls are old enough to learn!

It was so fun teaching them.

We can now start a family business!

Conner worked on his turtle.

I will have to post the photos of the

finished project later.

Sock making is our new favorite thing to do when we are

watching Little House On the Prairie.

We have started season 2!

choosing Thomas

2009-09-04T14:37:00.003-07:00

http://www.dallasnews.com/s/dws/photography/2009/thomas/

I don't know if this link will work. You might have to cut and paste it. Or, you can google Choosing Thomas. If you are pregnant then you might not want to watch this. It is the story of a couple that choose to trust God and choose to have their son Thomas. Thomas was diagnosed in the womb with Trisomy 13. This diagnosis is incompatible with life. It is a beautiful story.

Awesome friends

2009-09-01T12:50:00.000-07:00

I was going through some pictures and

realized that I did not blog about some

really awesome happenings this past summer!

How could I not blog about my

awesome birthday celebration

with my awesome friends!!!!!

First we went out for some mexican food. of course

Then we tried some karoke.
That did not work out so well.
(can I just say Conway Twitty and Willie Nelson
were the featured artists for some reason)
My awesome friends did sing me a song.
That was awesome.

We then spent the night at the awesome Wigwam resort.

We then slept in, again awesome!

Then we hung out in the pool for awhile.

I have the most awesome friends!

First day of dove season.

2009-09-01T12:06:00.001-07:00

These pictures were taken today with Jim's cell phone.

First day of dove season and the first hunting trip with all 3 kids.

I had to stay home and babysit.

Jim said the kids had fun!!!!!

Callie looks like a professional bird hunter!

She shot 2 birds!

Her first ever.

Emma shot a bird.

Conner just scouted out the birds for everyone else.

Why is he in his spidey pajamas?

Because Jim loaded him up at 4 am and brought

along clothes for him to change into later.

He forgot underwear so Conner refused to get dressed.

Stacy's Party

2009-08-31T09:01:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I did not post anything

about this awesome 80's party I went to in June!

This is my friend Stacy, and her husband Joe's, 40th birthday party.

The share the exact same birthday.

Her parents threw a huge bash at their house.

This is Christina and I.

Aren't we cute!!!????

Christina and I were trying to get a facebook shot.

I am not sure why my eyes are almost closed.

So I tried to make sure that did not happen again in the next picture.
Can you tell we are having fun?
Stacy's best friend and college roommate
won a prize for her costume.
She won a can of aqua net.

not so little boy

2009-08-30T17:21:00.001-07:00

Conner got legos for his birthday.

I thought it would be a good project for daddy.

I never thought for one minute that Conner would

be able to do them on his own.

He is too little.

I thought wrong.

My little boy is not so little anymore.

Oh those freckles

2009-08-23T11:17:00.000-07:00

I really love those freckles.

She is just on the verge

of being a young lady.

She is still a little girl

in so many ways.

I love watching her grow up.

Another moment to freeze. . . . .

2009-08-22T23:15:00.000-07:00

. . . . in time

Moments to freeze. . . .

2009-08-22T11:10:00.001-07:00

. . . . in time

Happy Birthday Baby Boy

2009-08-21T20:49:00.001-07:00

This is the longest post ever.

It is because Conner's birthday

went on and on.

Part I

It started at

Peter Piper Pizza.

With loads of friends, pizza,

games, tokens,

presents, cupcakes and FUN!!!!

Part II

Waking up to a birthday present!

Part III

Ride Makers

Part IV

Johnny Rockets

The waiters asked Conner how

he would like his birthday song.

The regular way or backwards.

He choose backwards.

I was so impressed, trying to figure

out in my head how to sing the song backwards!

This is how you sing "Happy Birthday" backwards!

Part V

Playing in the water

Part VI

Birthday Cake

and more presents

from Papa and Bamma

snails

2009-08-20T18:53:00.000-07:00

This was the beautiful view from our

hotel room in San Diego.

We could see the ocean in the distance.

And this is what the kids

noticed right off the bat.
Snails!
A Clark Kid's dream come true!

It was all good until one pooed on Callie.

Emma's Butey Planet

2009-08-19T11:15:00.000-07:00

More San Diego

2009-08-17T23:12:00.000-07:00

Secret Keeper Girls-Facials!

2009-08-17T07:18:00.000-07:00

We had our 2nd Secret Keeper Girl meeting.

Date #2 was

Studying My Own Beauty

God's idea of beauty is nothing like

this world's idea of beauty.

Our key verse is

Song of Songs 6:8-9

Sixty queens there may be,

and eighty concubines, and

virgins beyond number;

but my dove,

my perfect one,

is unique."

I am just in awe of what God is doing with

this awesome, unique, priceless

group of girls.

The moms in this group are

hungry for what God has for our girls.

I just think these girls are so beautiful.

I have had 2 moms contact me to start a

Secret Keeper Girl club!

How exciting is that!?

We are going to have the

breakthrough anointing for this group!

If you are interested in starting a group

I say go for it!

You can do it one on one

with your daughter,

or start a small group.

You can do the dates by going out

and paying for them, or you can go the

economical route like us

and do them in the home.

Our next date will be one on one

in our own homes.

We will be setting up a

bubble bath for our girls

and encourgaing them to have

a quiet encounter with God.

Then the 4th date is a

tour of art galleries.

In our area, once a month,

there is a FREE tour

of the downtown art galleries!

How cool is that!

God is so good.
If you want to check out our 1st

Secret Keeper Girl meeting,

click here. . .

http://rnmommy.blogspot.com/2009/08/secret-keeper-girls.html

To check out the Secret Keeper Girl website

click here. . . .

http://www.secretkeepergirl.com/

To check out the Secret Keeper Girl tour

click here. . . .

http://www.secretkeepergirl.com/Tour_Schedule.aspx

San Diego

2009-08-16T11:10:00.001-07:00

We had so much fun on our vacation.

I have so many pictures I want to post.

So I will just start with some of my favorites.

Sunday doughnut day.

2009-08-16T09:52:00.000-07:00

Remember that Sundays

are a day to celebrate?

http://rnmommy.blogspot.com/2009/07/sundays-are-to-celebrate.html

Everyday is a day to rejoice!

Psalms 118:24

This is the day the Lord has made;

Let us rejoice and be glad in it.

I say this verse every morning

when I wake up

before my feet hit the floor.

But Sundays in our

house is doughnut day.

It is all about traditions and

having one more thing

to weave our family together

stronger than ever.

Don't think that a

family tradition

has to be something complicated.

It can be as simple as

having doughnuts

every Sunday morning.

It can be as simple as

have movie night with

microwave popcorn

every Friday night.

Conner was rejoicing

today because

I assured him that

I picked out the doughnut

with the most sprinkles.

Families rock!

What family tradition do you have?

Vacations wear us out!

2009-08-16T09:42:00.000-07:00

This post hardly needs words.

Just a photo of my sunburnt, tired little girl sleeping in past 9 am.

This child never sleeps in.

She must be plum-tuckered out!!!!!

How can they sleep like this?

2009-08-11T23:34:00.000-07:00

I am a "don't touch me" person

when I am sleeping.

Everyone else in my family is a

"sleep on top of each other" person.

I am glad they have each other for that.

Everyone should have one of these.

2009-08-11T11:43:00.000-07:00

This is what I found when I walked

into the office the other day.

Everyone should have one of

these in their home office.

A little boy perched on

their shoulders.

Do you think Jim is getting a lot of work done?

Kids live here

2009-08-10T23:29:00.000-07:00

Conner is in a paper plane making phase.

This is only a fraction of the paper planes

floating around our house.

Someday when my kids are grown up

I will yearn for paper planes laying all around.

Silly moms!

2009-08-10T23:26:00.000-07:00

This is for my fellow blogger Lynnette.

Just so she knows she is

not the only spazzy mom out there!

I know I feel better knowing I am

not the only silly mom out there.

The top video is Callie and I

trying to cheer Emma up.

She was sad because we gave our dog

Petey to some good friends of ours.

Callie and I were on our way home

from the childbirth class I teach.

The second video is the one

Emma sent back to us.

I think we cheered her up a bit.

10 Things About Me?

2009-08-07T08:43:00.000-07:00

I linked my blog up with Lynnette's blog http://lynnettekraft.blogspot.com/

and she wants us to write a list of 10 charming, interesting and fun things about me. I always get such bad anxiety over things like this because I am sooooo boring!!!! I try to think of things and all I can think of is my faults or all of the things I want to do but haven't done yet. Then I get more anxiety because I have so manythings I want to do. Is this depressing? I really, really love my life. I am happier than I have ever been. I just haven't done anything really cool and different.I want to put something on my list like I have toured Ireland on a bike, or I gave birth at home in a kiddie pool, or I make all of our bread from scratch even milling our own wheat!Maybe next year at this time I will have something really cool to put on my list.

Here is my list for now :

I have been married for 11 1/2 years and my husband has been a firefighter since before we meet. He is the best dad ever. When we first met he told me he did not want any children. lol.
I have 3 children and would like to adopt one or two more.
I have given birth without an epidural, with an epidural and have had a Cesarean. I think that is why I did not want to give birth to another child.
Our son was born by cesarean because he was breech and had the cord around his neck 3 times and after delivery we found he had a double knot in his cord. He is our miracle baby for sure. (as if all babies are not miracles but I am in awe of this miracle everyday!)
I am a labor and delivery nurse.
I teach childbirth classes on Monday nights
We homeschool our 3 kids.
As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord
I have the best friends ever.
This has been the best and worst year of my life. I would not change a thing about any of it! I have never felt God's presence more.

Ummmmm, Ok?

2009-08-04T09:37:00.000-07:00

Does this happen at your house?

This is what I found when I looked

in the backyard the other morning.
Conner, in his favorite Spiderman
"tanker tot" pajamas,
giving Jim a haircut!

Ummmmm, ok.

Looks like fun.

Flying airplanes in the house!

2009-08-04T09:22:00.000-07:00

The other day I found them together in the backyard.

Conner trimming Jim's hair!

What boys will do when they are left alone together!

Now they are flying airplanes in the house!

I doesn't matter that they are paper.

They are still dangerous.

One hit me in the nose!

Today is back to school day.

2009-08-03T23:10:00.000-07:00

Today was back to school day

for most of our friends.

Homeschooling is good in so many ways.

But it is also hard.

It is a lot of work.

It can cause a lot of uncertainty, fear, insecurities and frustrations.

It has made me really have to search my heart.

Psalm 28:7 The LORD is my strength

and my shield;

my heart trusts in him.

Do I really trust Him?

Do I really believe He entrusted Jim and I with our kids?

1 Timothy 6:20-21

Guard what was committed to your trust,

avoiding the profane and idle babblings

and contradictions of what is falsely

called knowledge by professing it some have

strayed concerning the faith.

Ok God, I take on this mission for another year.

So to celebrate another year of homeschooling

we declared today

We are not going back to school today!

We stayed in our pajamas!
We watched Little House on the Prairie.

Actually we watched 2 episodes.

Then we ate lunch in our pajamas with today's Borrow a Kid.

Then we went to the pool and for an hour or

so we were the only ones there.

I realized once we got there that I still had on my house slippers.

How embarrassing.

Conner played with some kids he does not know.

It was fun!

Deuteronomy 6:6-9

(New King James Version)
6 “And these words which

I command you today

shall be in your heart.

7 You shall teach them diligently

to your children,

and shall talk of them when

you sit in your house,

when you walk by the way,

when you lie down,

and when you rise up.

8 You shall bind them as a

sign on your hand,

and they shall be as frontlets

between your eyes.

9 You shall write them on the doorposts

of your house and on your gates.

Family Intergrated Living

2009-08-03T12:31:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite blogs to read is

Lynnette Kraft's blog

Dancing Barefoot on Weathered Ground.

http://lynnettekraft.blogspot.com/

I love her and I love her family.

I am reading her book, In Faithfullness, He Afflicted Me, right now.

I am so inspired that I want to go out- wait, I don't want go anywhere!

I want to stay at home and cuddle up on the couch and crossstitch

and watch Little House on the Praire.

Reading her blog incourages me to not yell at my kids,

have doughnuts on Sunday morning,

celebrate kids' day and just enjoy the small stuff.

She confirms my belief that quanity time is more important than quality time.

I asked permission to quote her and she said yes!

So the following is a quote from Lynnette.

Let's face it, families all around us are falling apart. Friends outside the home are often more important to children than their own siblings. Children often turn to their youth group leaders, pastors and Sunday school teachers rather than their own parents. I can understand this if the family isn't close to the Lord and the child/teen wants to be - they need others to turn to for counsel and advice. But it's happening in Christian homes as well. Parents are giving the important job of raising their children to these leaders. While these leaders may be wonderful, God fearing people, they don't love our children like we do. How can they? But more importantly, they are not the ones who God will hold accountable regarding our children. No, it's not their responsibility, it's ours.

"...And these words, which I command you this day, shall be in your heart. And you shall teach them diligently unto your children, and you shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up..." Deut. 6:6-9

We feel that we are sacrificing something good for something better. I guess it's kind of like a families choice to live without a tv or without an abundance of toys. There are benefits to having those things for sure, but in living without them those families feel they're making room for things they feel are better. That's the view we have from here. We are giving up perfectly good things for things that we feel are better - eternal relationships

Date night.

2009-08-02T21:44:00.001-07:00

Date night at Ruth's Chris!

I will just leave you with the image of deliciousness.

Creme Brulee.

Thank you to the man that blessed us with the gift card. He is not well and could not pay Jim for some yardwork that needed to be done so he blessed us this way instead.

Secret Keeper Girls!

2009-08-02T17:03:00.001-07:00

"Don't let anyone look down on you

because you are young,

but set an example for the

believers in speech,

in life, in love, in faith

and in purity."

1 Timothy 4:12

God clearly says that we should not

despise our daughters' youth.

We should encourage them to be an example to

believers in conduct, in faith, and in purity.

This group will help us to teach our

daughters truth about her

beauty and what God thinks about fashion,

but it will also teach her the art of soothing her

emotions in the precious refreshment of the

Spirit of God. The girls even got a hand massage!

In the eyes of those around us, we're either
trashable Styrofoam cups,
everyday old ceramic mugs,
or the priceless china tea cups
in the way we dress,

talk, act, or in the places

we are willing to go.

Key verse:

Isaiah 64:8

We are the clay, you are the potter;

we are all the work of your hand.

Borrow a Child

2009-07-29T06:49:00.000-07:00

We participate in the Borrow a Child program.

I really, really want another child.

When we made the decision after Conner

to not have anymore children I kept asking Jim,

"What if we change our mind?" He said we could just adopt.

I said ok!

I am fine with not being pregnant again. (kind of) : (

So I keep tossing the ideas around in my head.

Adopt, foster, supernatural conception.

I am open to whatever.

I have found this last year that if I

just make my desires known to God,

and if they are pure desires,

and my desire is to bring Him glory,

he hears them and brings them to me

in a way I could never, ever imagine.

So I am proclaiming this now,

we will have another child.

How? I don't know.

And I am ok with that because He knows.

It will be in His timing and His way.

And that is so exciting.

It is like Christmas day could come at anytime.

So until then, I will continue with our

Clarks Borrow a Kid program.

And I am grateful that

I get to love on someone elses baby

until ours comes.

I waited patiently for the LORD to help me,

and he turned to me and heard my cry.

Psalm 40:1

today we. . . . .

2009-07-28T22:35:00.001-07:00

Did some crafts.

Did some home educating.

Finished a project!

And Borrowed a Child.

We also ate some yummy

food from our friend Paco

from church.

We shared that yummy food

with our friends

Neil and Suzanne.

We also swam in their pool.

And we also watched the Deadliest Catch.

(but I forgot to bring my camera for that)

It was a good day.

A project completed!!!

2009-07-28T21:50:00.000-07:00

Everyone has at least one child that loves stuffed animals,

or so I have heard.

Emma is my stuffed animal lover.

I made her get rid of so many before we moved.

We laid them all on the floor and for everyone she kept

she had to get rid of one.

It was traumatic.

For all of us.

So this is her pile of stuffed animals.

This is her cutest stuffed animal trying to pull

another stuffed animal under the bed.

I bought this headboard/bookshelf at Goodwill for $7!

It was all brown and this is a picture

I took halfway through the painting.

Here is the almost finished project.

I mod podged some cute scrapbooking

paper onto the back of the shelves.

I got the idea to use elastic to create a "jail" effect for

holding the stuffed animals in from a magazine.

I had to dye the elastic brown.

Jim screwed them on for me.

I then hot glued some buttons over the screws.

Now they just need to stay in there!

I think it turned out pretty cute.

Now we just have to secure it to the wall so it doesn't fall over.

Saturday Adventure and it was FREE!!!!

2009-07-27T10:43:00.000-07:00

Two cute kids. . .

Free admission to the Heard Museum. . .

Free crafts. . . .

Free ice cream sandwiches. . . .

Cool Native American culture. . . .

= FUN

This guy was playing instruments made out

of seashells, tortoise shells, antlers, gourds.

Big surprise here, guess who got up on stage?

Emma's new skirt!!!!

2009-07-27T05:39:00.000-07:00

I should have learned to do this a long time ago.

Little girl in swirly skirts!!!!!

So cute.

Eggplant parmesean

2009-07-26T19:00:00.000-07:00

Yummy Eggplant Parmesean.

Slice the eggplant, salt it on both sides and let it sit for 30 min.

Then rinse the salt off and steam it for 10 min.

Dip the steamed eggplant in stoneground cornmeal.

Layer the eggplant with pasta sauce
and then cheese, repeating layers.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes covered

and then 10 more minutes uncovered.

Then feed your hungry, hardworking husband.
(The kids said NO WAY!)

Jim's present to us.

2009-07-26T16:23:00.000-07:00

Millipedes!

Jim went up north yesterday to do man things.

When he was on the side of a mountain he started

seeing millipedes everywhere.

So being the super cool daddy he is, he brought some home.

Conner was very excited. In fact, he has named them already.

The girls were not as excited.

Conner named the two little ones Curly and Shirley.

Can you spot Curly?

We had to get on the internet because Conner

wanted to know what they eat.

Decaying Organic Manner. . . .

Old Banana. Yum!

I think this is Shirley.

Callie finally was brave enough to hold one.

Conner named the big ones

Bob and Larry.

I am not sure which one is which.

Thanks Daddy!!!!

No really, Thanks.

(I have not and will not be touching these things.)

What I woke up to.

2009-07-26T15:54:00.000-07:00

This is what I woke up to. . . . .

He is growing up so fast that when I see these little kid

moments it just breaks my heart.

I just want to freeze these memories in my mind.