My Method to the Madness

10 weeks old

2012-01-26T17:15:00.000-06:00

Charles Devan Clark

10 weeks old

11 lbs

21 1/2 inches

I love him.

Shudder

2012-01-26T14:18:00.000-06:00

The worst part of having a newborn. This thing makes me shudder.

Poor Devan.

Tummy Troubles Part 2

2012-01-25T12:25:00.000-06:00

My stomach has been hurting for about a month now. My doctor thought it was an infection, so after bactrim and amoxicillin, it still hurt. So, we're back to square one. More blood tests and more waiting. It could be some cysts or my gall bladder or liver. We're praying for fast results and a plan of treatment that doesn't involve the words "we'll wait and see".

2 Months ago...

2012-01-17T16:12:00.003-06:00

November 16, 2011

7 lb. 15oz.

21 inches long

January 16, 2012
10 lb. 2 oz.

22.5 inches long

I know this picture makes him look like he's sitting by himself, but he's really propped up in the chair, but he has gotten so much bigger in just 2 short months. He has also started sleeping through the night and has figured out an eating schedule which makes his mother very happy!
Yesterday he really started talking and smiling too! Click here for a video I posted of his adorable smile!
He is just such a sweet baby, I adore him and love being his mom. I'm going to go cuddle with him now.

My Man

2012-01-17T15:27:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was rough. I was just exhausted. No explanation, I was so tired. I could barely get out of bed and I was dizzy and tired all day even after a nap! I was so bummed with myself and feeling bad that I hadn't done anything productive all day. I decided that I needed to go work out, even if my knees were busted, so I went swimming with my friend, Julia. I packed up and went to the gym and left poor Jason with all three kids. I went swimming for about an hour and then hit the hot tub and sauna. I came back feeling much better and then I walked into the bedroom. My incredible husband had cleaned our train wreck of a bedroom including under the bed! To show you how long it's been since we cleaned out under the bed we found one of Bailey's shoes from when she was 6 months old, 7 pacifiers and about 37 books! I was blown away that while I was doing something just for me, Jason was doing something that he knew I didn't want to do. It really needed to happen. I'm so blessed.

Training Troubles

2012-01-15T20:57:00.001-06:00

The last post weaves a tail of success and triumph when I ran 30 minutes straight and felt like a new person and there was joy. Then... the next day happened. My knees are sooo sore. Not just muscle sore, like bone, joint, muscle, tendons, blood cells sore. I took a day off and tried to run the next day and shooting pain went up both of my legs as soon as I moved from walking to running. So I went swimming instead and tried to build up some muscle and stretch out my knees, but even after taking it easy the next 2 days, my knees still hurt! I feel old.
So, I talked to my trainer, Bethany Janell, and she told me to take a week off running and do biking and swimming instead. That I shall do. Hopefully that will help my knees get back to running strength and I can continue my training!
In other news, Devan is going to be 2 months old tomorrow. I don't understand how that happened. It really, truly seems like yesterday he was born and now he is such a vital part of our family. He has brought so much joy to our little family in 8 weeks of life and I am so incredibly blessed to be his mom.
Bailey and Caden are doing well. Bailey's hair is growing out from the "cutting her own hair" trauma of October 2011. Caden is learning how to be a gentleman and is enjoying all of the attention he gets when he holds doors open for ladies. :)
Jason is doing great, he's also training for the 1/2 marathon and is doing amazingly well. His body is holding up better than mine, but he reminds me that I did just have a baby, so that helps me keep things in perspective.

Life is beautiful. I am blessed. Love you all!

Training Day 5

2012-01-10T23:30:00.001-06:00

Ow.
Just ow.
Tonight we went to the gym and we got back on those ridiculous treadmills. This time though, there was something different. We had music. I brought my Ipod and listened to my "Happy Day" playlist and was pleasantly surprised at how much listening to music I enjoyed helped the time go. I also did some drumming and headbanging along to my favorite tunes which made Jason laugh at me (and my awesomeness) but it also brought a level of fun to working out that I had NEVER experienced before. So, I did reach a major milestone for me. A goal I had for myself. I ran 30 minutes straight, no rests, no walks, just running. It was exhilerating when I discovered that I had finished.
After running, I changed into my swimsuit and hit the pool to swim laps with Julia who had already been swimming laps while I was running. By the time I got down there I was so exhausted, so we took it easy and still did laps, just slow ones. We did that for 40 minutes, then hit the hot tub followed by the sauna. It was a nice way to end the crazy workout.
I got home around 11 and realized we hadn't eaten dinner because Jason and I didn't want to eat and then run, so we just fed the kids before heading to the gym. So, I walked in the house wanting to eat everything edible that I could find, but Jason and I decided on turkey burgers and broccoli. I'm still hungry...
So, now I'm off to love on my littlest one and do some serious stretching (and maybe get a snack.)

Tummy Troubles

2012-01-09T14:07:00.004-06:00

I have been having some stomach pain in a very localized area for about 2 weeks. The pain is getting more intense and more frequent so tomorrow I am going to the doctor at 3:00 to see what's going on. Prayers are appreciated.

Training Days 3 & 4

2012-01-09T14:06:00.000-06:00

Well, training day 3 wasn't supposed to be a training day. It was technically our day off for re-cooping, but I had had a really hard day with the kiddos, so when Jase got home I strapped on my running shoes and sprinted for the door. It was exhilarating! I took all the frustration from the day, all the stress and pent up craziness and RAN! I felt so good and my mind raced with all the things that have worried me lately or things that have just made me sad and I ran them out. I flew around the neighborhood and then when all the frustrations were out, I slowed down and then puttered to a stop. Oh it felt great. My lungs were burning, the air was cold, but I was hot and it felt good. I walked back to the house for a total run of 2.5 miles in around 30 minutes.
Then, then next day was Saturday. Saturday is our "big run" day. We had to run LaFortune Park which is 3 miles. We went to the park and Jason took the kids to the playground and I took off. I was feeling good, not too sore from the night before, but then I realized I had taken a wrong turn and was in the tennis courts. So I turned around and took off again, a good pace, breathing well then I realized I was in the parking lot. This ridiculous course needs signs! So, once more, I turn around and with a little less gusto, I start running again. I was able to run two songs on my ipod and walk a song, I did that for three miles. There's a song by MercyMe called Move and I listened to that several times while running because the beat is great and the lyrics are perfect for a tired runner! I made it around LaFortune in 42 minutes and then sat against a tree and stretched out while watching the kiddos and Jason took off. It was a great day and there was an amazing feeling of accomplishment. I still have SO much work ahead of me, but seeing that I can actually do these things is such a great feeling.

Training Day 2

2012-01-07T12:42:00.001-06:00

Well, after the horrors of training day 1, I decided I'd do some cross training and swim laps for training day 2. My friend, Julia, is my swim partner and we hit the gym looking stylish in our swimsuits from 1999. We rinsed off and got in the pool and then it hit me. I've never swam laps (swam laps? Swum laps? Swimmed laps?). I can swim, I've never drowned, but I've never really had to swim for speed and efficiency. So we decide to do some different strokes to see which gave us the best work out. We did the froggie kick, the T and the apple picking. The froggie is by far the hardest to do for long amounts of time. We did 30 minutes of various laps and I was tired at the end but felt really good. Then we decided to hit the hot tub before heading home. Climbing out of the pool was the hard part, all of a sudden I was heavier and my sore legs hurt and my arms started to ache. I was shocked at how hard swimming laps was and how it really works your whole body, even my neck was sore! We got in the hot tub and relaxed and then got out to get towels. I then learned another lesson... Bring Water! I always bring water when I run, but I didn't think about needing water after swimming! I was soooo dizzy, walking in a straight line was a challenge. We weaved our way to the dressing room and got dressed and crawled to the car. Upon arriving at home I chugged 1/2 a gallon of water and felt much better.
Swimming looks easy, people do it all over the world, but swimming laps is tough! But I felt good and love that I found an exercise where I don't leave covered in sweat AND there's a hot tub involved!

Training Day 1

2012-01-04T10:15:00.001-06:00

Yesterday's work out was no bueno. Jason and I decided we would go to the gym, so we dropped off the kids at the Clarks and headed to the gym with a mixture of dread and excitement. I looked killer in my new work out duds, but I knew that a cute pink top and pretty blue shoes weren't going to make this any easier. We got on the treadmill and instantly the memories came flooding back. I despise treadmills, their sound, their tiny screens with numbers ticking away, the smell of defeat, it wasn't pretty. I picked a 5k program and started running. It started slow and I was doing fine. It sped up a smidge and I kept up without much of a problem. Then... bam! It just took off jumping from level 3.0 to level 6.0 without warning and all of a sudden I felt like I was in the treadmill rodeo just trying to hang on for 8 seconds! My feet flew faster than I knew they could and I huffed and puffed trying to keep from tripping and slamming into the mirror behind me at 60 miles per hour. I ran as hard a I could and quickly reached a mile. Then, just like that, my body quit. My legs were on fire and started shaking. My lungs ached and I started this very non-feminine dog panting in August sound. Sweat stung my eyes and I did what I said I wouldn't do. I pushed stop. The evil treadmill slows down and my spirits came tumbling down too. I was such a whimp! So I took a break and stretched so my legs would quit shaking and my heart would stop pounding and got back on. I ran and walked the next 2 miles and slowly dragged myself from the treadmill once we reached 3 miles. Jason dragged his aching, crabby wife to the stretching area and we stretched while talking and grunting in pain. Jason had done incredibly on the treadmill... We don't need to talk about that. :) So, my first work out wasn't impressive or encouraging, but it is over and that's huge. Going again tonight!

Half Marathon Mama

2012-01-02T23:12:00.001-06:00

Well... This non-runner, lover of butter is running a half marathon. The entire Clark family is running the Oklahoma City half marathon on April 29th. That's 13.1 miles. I don't even like driving 13.1 miles! This could get ugly.
Speaking of ugly, I went shopping for running clothes. I know when you look at me you think, "That's one athletic looking athlete" but in all reality, I need assistance from good shoes and athletic apparel to be successful. So after some advice from my in-laws, I headed to Target to see what I could find. Well, if you ever feel confident and a little too good about yourself... Go shopping for athletic apparel. Most of the things that were my size looked like they would fit my 4 year old. Everything is tight and stretchy... Everything. Another odd thing is that a tiny piece of neon elastic is crazy expensive! I'm hoping the shirt I bought for way too much has gold thread in the hem or perhaps the zipper is platinum. I don't get it.
So, now I have no excuse. I have the shoes, I have the clothes, I have the plan and I have the goal. Tomorrow is my first day of training. This could be the start of something amazing or this could be my last blog post if I die tomorrow after puffing through 3 miles... We shall see!

Christmas Countdown

2011-12-13T16:48:00.000-06:00

Oh sweet goodness, I LOVE this time of year! I never get sick of the squealing from the back seat when we drive by a house with Christmas lights or the continual excuse to bake cookies. Devan adores the Christmas tree and will stare at it and be totally content. Oh, I love celebrating the birth of my King and teaching my children about it, oh, I just love it all! So, in the next 11 days, I've got quite a bit to do, because in a few days, we're loading up our Honda Odyssey and heading North for Christmas! I can't wait, I just can't wait!

Life is Beautiful.

2011-12-06T18:08:00.001-06:00

Oh, life is so beautiful. Having an amazing husband that adores me and still finds me beautiful and three adorable, healthy children is a blessing that I do not take for granted. Life has changed drastically in the last 3 weeks. A "full nights sleep" is now about 6 hours. Getting out the door in "record time" now takes about and hour and a half. Taking time to "look nice" now means brushing my teeth and wearing contacts instead of my glasses. Oh yes, things are different, but I adore this new chapter.

Bailey and Caden have done well with the new little one in the house. Caden has some trouble getting used to the idea and had some jealousy issue, but things are looking up and Caden even told me "I love Devan" just out of the blue. It made me tear up. It's been a rough 3 weeks for poor Caden, but he's a trooper and is really starting to get interested in Devan and wants to help him out, which I adore.

Another beautiful part of my life is that I get to travel to Montana in 2 1/2 weeks to see my amazing family. I have seen my dad 3 times this year, I have seen my mom once, I have seen Bethany twice and Andrew, Emily, Grace and David I haven't seen at all in 2011. It makes my heart sad that I don't get so see them more often, but it makes times when I do get to see them so much more exciting! It's something that we count down to, treasure every minute and really make an effort to enjoy the time we have together.

The amazing thing about this trip is we needed to save over $800 for gas and food for the 22 hour trip up and back and this year has been really tight financially. We were able to save a little bit, but not nearly as much as we needed and our trip was only 3 weeks away! We were still $700 short! Then... Saturday happened. Our small business, Broken Made Beautiful, had a show which was our most successful show ever. I walked away with $400! To compare, the show before this one, I made $61. So, I was in awe at God's grace with this show. Then I came home and checked the mail and received $175 in checks from family for Christmas and the new baby! Then we went to meet up with a couple to give them the engagement pictures we had taken earlier. We weren't planning on charging them, but they insisted on paying us and gave us $200! So, in one day we went from having $150 saved up to having more than we needed to make the trip! God is so good!

So, now my to-do list is long (just how I like it), Christmas is approaching, my baby is here and healthy and I am overwhelmed by God's faithfulness and generosity in our lives. I look forward to the next couple weeks with more anticipation then ever and I am reminded again, life is beautiful.

2011-11-16T23:14:00.001-06:00

Charles Devan Clark
Born at 3:53pm on 11/16/11
7lb 15oz
21 inches long
Perfection.

Bailey at Four

2011-11-10T13:37:00.001-06:00

Bailey is adorable. She's funny and sweet and makes life fun. She is now four, and for some reason, the last 3 months, that adorable, sweet girl has lost all self control. She knows that she shouldn't do things. She's bright. But she just can't tell herself no. In the last 3 months she has...
1. Smeared toothpaste all over her walls and herself.
2. Drawn all over her brother and room with a marker.
3. Painted Dana's futon and Caden with fingernail polish.
4. Snuck scissors into her bed and cut her hair off, cut up her new swing and new blinds.
5. Poured Gold Bond all over the master bathroom including on the toilet paper...
6. Hid a tube of my acrylic paint under her bed until nap time when she smeared it all over her freshly painted walls, new bed set and herself.
7. Wrote all over her bed, walls, floor with chalk.

So, I know it sounds like I just sit around and let her run around unsupervised to be able to pull all this off, but she's so fast! We'll spend the entire morning together, playing, eating... then I got to the bathroom and come out to a disaster or she'll do it after I put her in her bed for nap time or bedtime. I'll ask her if what she did was a good or bad decision, she replies "bad decision." I asked her what happens when she makes bad decisions, she replies, "I get punished." Then she gets punished and the next day she's done something else she knows is wrong! I think if this were happening when I wasn't 9 months pregnant, I would handle it better. But I'm 9 months pregnant, therefore, I'm about to send her to Pre-Boarding school... Are there boarding schools that take 4 year olds? A place with lots and lots of video cameras and locks on all the bathrooms!
Sigh.
Someday she'll be grown and gone and I'll treasure these memories... someday.

Wait, what? It's November?

2011-11-08T20:12:00.001-06:00

Well, it's finally November. November is the month I've been waiting for since February when we discovered we would be a family of five. I love being a mother, being pregnant, however, is not quite so much fun. Bailey and Caden's pregnancies were both relatively easy, this one has been completely different. More sickness, more blood pressure problems, I was put on restricted activity and have had lots of pain, especially in my hips and shooting down my legs. It's not been an easy road. But there is one thing that I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that it will be worth it. Holding Devan will be one of the sweetest moments in my life because it was such a long road. I am currently 39 weeks along and have a planned induction on November 17th but I am hoping and praying (and praying and praying) that I go naturally before then.

Besides being very pregnant, we have also been very busy. I've never been a huge fan of Halloween, I don't like dark spooky things or things jumping out and scaring me. But with kids, Halloween is a bit more fun because they get so excited dressing up! Bailey dressed up as an Egyptian Princess and Caden was a Pirate Captain. We went to Evergreen Baptist's Trunk or Treat and had a blast!

Before we went to Trunk or Treat we needed to fill up on something un-sweet! So we went and got sandwiches and the kids found a table just their size!

We went to a pumpkin patch and had so much fun. Caden is such a stud. He totally posed for this picture! We had so much fun at the pumpkin patch and got to see lots of animals and we each got to pick out a pumpkin of our own!

Here's Miss Bailey being adorable. Notice her crazy bangs, this was the morning she cut her hair(more about that later) so she got to wear her hood the entire time we were at the pumpkin patch!

Here is one of my favorite pictures of all time. Caden was so determined to pick up this pumpkin. He tried so, so hard and actually got half of it about an inch off the grown once, but he gave it his all!

We took some pictures of the kids on October 24th because these are my two 3 year olds! I love it!

Oh my goodness, I love my boy. I don't even know how to describe how adorable I think he is. Of course I do, I'm his mother, but seriously... look at that face!

Here is Bailey, being adorable. This is before she chopped her hair off. She decided to sneak scissors into her room and chop off her gorgeous hair! I cried, but now I've accepted it as part of parenting toddlers and am now giving her some new hair options and waiting for it to grow back out!

After, it is so completely different, but we do what we can! And one day I'll be old and she'll have to take care of me and curl my hair everyday!

Well, that's a brief overview. Hopefully my next post will be pictures of our #3, Charles 'Devan' Clark! Prayers are appreciated!

Fall To Do List

2011-10-07T21:03:00.002-05:00

My list to get done before Fall is over! I'm really, really excited about this idea. I've already gone on one date and I've had a fancy coffee drink! I'm doing great! Now, I'm off to research an apple orchard we can visit!

I had a birthday... a month in a half ago

2011-10-07T20:41:00.000-05:00

So... I am now 27. It was a wonderful birthday, we had cake and presents and revealed the sex of our baby! It was very fun. Above is the cake that Dana ordered from my friend Michelle. The theme of the party was owls. Yes, I'm 27 and had a theme to my birthday party. I like owls.
Below is how we revealed the sex of the baby. We wrapped up a framed picture of the name we chose. We let Chuck and Dana open it.

Chuck was really excited. Boy or girl? Boy or girl?

It's a boy and his name is Charles Devan Clark. He'll go by Devan. Jason's full name is Charles Jason Clark, his dad's name is Charles Walter Clark and his dad's name is Charles Jasper Clark. We were excited to pass on the family name.

Chuck was excited too!

After the reveal we set up a little "It's a Boy" table with little outfits we had for him, Caden's coming home outfit to show how cute boy's clothes can be, etc. And there was a picture frame full of pictures of the 4 Charles' in our family.

We were happy to get the news out and relieved we didn't ruin the surprise!

Nanny was very excited we are naming our son after her late husband, her son and her grandson. She cried and Nanny never cries. It was a very sweet night.

Dana had fun hosting the party and hanging out with her favorite girl. I just love this picture.

I got a box of fruit snacks from Nanny. I LOVE fruit snacks. This gift made me smile, and model with my fruit snacks!

Danae MADE me a soy candle! It was awesome and smells incredible!

Silly boy! He was such a trooper, it was a really long day!

Bailey girl being adorable, as usual.

These are pictures from a couple days ago at a football game. It made me smile. Thought I would share!

So, that's an update from August, but I'll do better. I'm on limited activity due to early contractions and high blood pressure, so I should have some extra time to update!
Love ya!

The Dentist

2011-08-30T15:58:00.002-05:00

I love flowers. I love Autumn weather. I love the color yellow. I love lots of things. One thing you will never find on my "I Love" list is Dentists. They are not bad people, they just chose a profession that makes me cry. I'm pretty sure that most dentists were bullies in elementary school. They made me cringe then... they make me cringe now.
Yesterday, I had to go to the dentist. I had a terrible experience when I was 18 or 19 and have been nervous with anyone specializing in the dental arts since then. So yesterday, at 12:50, I drove into the parking lot of my dentist and did some quick breathing exercises.
Inhale. Exhale. I am an adult.
Inhale. Exhale. I am strong.
Inhale. Exhale. I'm going to up-chuck.
So, the breathing exercises didn't go so well, but I forced myself to let go of the iron grip I had on my steering wheel and went inside and checked in. Then I sat down next to the coffee pot. Why do they put coffee pot in dentist's office waiting rooms? I just brushed my teeth for 45 minutes preparing myself for the spelunking expedition this stranger was about to start in my mouth and you offer me coffee?!? Anyway... I digress.
I sat and waited for my name to be called. "Christy? Christina? No. Christa?" Yeah. That was me. I went and sat in a chair that smelled of shoe polish and waited for my doom. I knew that I had 5 cavities (I know, I know!) and they would need to be filled. A man walks in and introduces himself as Dr. something (I was once again concentrating on my breathing exercises) and then proceeds to lean the shoe polish chair back so that my legs are flailing in the air and blood rushes to my head. I thought seriously about the need for seat belts in these chairs while he took the spot light and focused it on my mouth. Then came the dreaded words, "Open Wide." *shudder*
He knew already which teeth needed fillings and proceeds to make jokes to his assistant about fantasy football drafts and anniversary trips to Eureka Springs. I try not to slide out of my chair and land head first on the tile.
He then takes a needle the size of a bazooka and aims it at my mouth. "This is the bad one. After this it gets better." He then shoves 18 inches of needle into my oral cavity and then slowly into my brain and out the back of my head. (that's what it felt like to me!) He then removes it, gets another needle and says, "This is the bad one. After this it gets better." I am starting to doubt this man. Another needle plunges into my mouth and out my ear. Then a new needle and the same reassurance, "This is the bad one..." and this one came out around my chin. By now the left side of my face feels like a swollen dart board, but I'm beginning to feel some relief, a strange soothing sensation, a tiny tingle and then NOTHING. I felt nothing. I could bite my tongue, stab my cheek, get a nose ring, I don't think it mattered! I was numb! The dentist left to allow me time to fully numb and I read a magazine while trying to figure out a comfortable way to sit in the chair without losing consciousness due to the ridiculous angle. He returned later and tapped on my lip, when I felt it, he took out another bazooka needle had me open wide and forced more medicine into my already swimming head. Then he left.
By the time he came back, my whole head was like a balloon, a happy little balloon with no problems. They ask me again if I am numb. I nod. The dentist then noticed my enormous preggo belly. "Are you expecting?" I nod. "Do you know what it is?" "A bow." (the left side of my mouth no longer responds to any direction from my brain! Why is this man asking me questions?!?) "Do you have a name picked out?" I nod. "What?" "Chaas Deffin" "Excuse me?" "Chhhasss Defffin" He looks at me and nods. "I like it." Um, what? I'm trying to say Charles Devan but with 50% of my mouth and tongue out of commission, it's not happening! You just said you liked the name Chaas Deffin! This is the guy that going to be drilling into my face?
Then it was time, the assistant crammed something in my jaw to keep my mouth open and they started diving into my mouth with more metal objects then I knew could fit in one oral cavity. Clamps, drills, scrapers, some weird contraption with screws on it, more and more they crammed in there. I shut my eyes. I don't know why when my kids go to the dentist they get to sit in a chair and watch Dora the Explorer on a TV over the chair and I get to stare at white ceiling tiles from 1975... just a thought.
I lay in the chair for an hour and a half, trying to think of my happy place while the smell of burning tooth wafts up into the air from the drill the man is using to jackhammer away at my poor teeth! The numbness is strong and I don't feel a thing, but the dentist is strong and my head shakes back and forth as he presses weird substances into micro holes in my teeth. He's polishing up the last tooth when he says, "Oops! Nicked your gums there." and the assistant starts mopping up the blood that is flowing from my mouth. Have you ever had a bleeding mouth that you can't feel? It's disturbing, we'll leave it at that. The dentist and his assistant proceed to talk about children's movies and ask me questions like "Have you seen Megamind?" I nod and go back to my happy place. They also start talking about toys they had when they were younger and they couldn't remember the word for marionette. I remembered, but they just talked about the fact they couldn't remember the word for 5 minutes while I'm mentally screaming, "It's a marionette! They were in Sound of Music! Pinnochio! Come on!" But what could I do?
Finally, we started getting to the end of the procedure. We are rounding third and headed for home. I am now almost asleep due to the blood rushing to my head, my feet are tingling and I feel a pool of drool forming at the nape of my neck. Beautiful. I was one hot mess. But, I was done. Cavities filled. Done.
They set me up and as the blood redistributes, I am dizzy and a little bit off my game, but I make it out of the office and back to the safety of my Honda Odyssey, which is a dentist free zone. It was a rough day. I was sore and tingly the rest of the day, but the feeling of accomplishment over surviving was incredible.
I am an adult.
I am strong.
I will go back in 10 years.

My Parents

2011-08-25T14:26:00.009-05:00

In 6 days my two favorite parents are landing in Tulsa, OK to visit their favorite Clarks and Castles. We'll get them in Tulsa for 3 days and I am so incredibly excited! It was one of those things that we planned long ago and it seemed like the time would never come, but it's here and I'm looking forward to so much! Here are some of the things I'd like to do in these 3 fun packed days!
I can't wait to show off my baby belly. This picture is from the day I had Bailey! Mom is always great to have around when you're expecting!I look forward to lots of attention being showered upon my children. Caden still loves making silly faces and I know mom and dad love to make him laugh!

Looking forward to reading time with Grammy. The kids loves reading and it's always special to see them sharing their love of reading with Mom.
Swinging is always a favorite pass time, I know we'll hit up the park at least once while they're here!
Caden is already talking about playing ball with Papa. I don't think I have the patience and athletic prowess to teach Caden the correct way to throw. I'll leave that one to Papa.
I love special moments between my parents and my children. Any wisdom they share is so special and I know the kids soak up whatever they say. I'm so blessed to have parents that love my children as much as I do!
I remember getting in jammies and running out to say good night to my grandparents, I love it that my kids get to do that now.
Oh. And potstickers. Those are a must.
I'm also looking forward to watching Bailey chase Dad with a bat. It's consistently hilarious. :)So that's what I'm looking forward to. Before they come I have a little cleaning and laundry to do, but pretty much I'll spend my time counting down the days!

A day at the farm

2011-08-17T21:12:00.007-05:00

We got to do a photo shoot at a horse ranch and while the girl we were photographing changed outfits, we got to take pictures of our cute little family! It was so fun! Enjoy!

It was a cooler day after weeks of triple digits and even though we were sweaty we had a blast and the day ended up being really special! Bailey and Caden both got their first horse ride, Caden got to raise and lower the loader on a John Deer tractor and they loved climbing on the hay bales! The kids are at such a fun stage full of wonder and excitement for every little thing, it's a really great time to be their mom!

On another note, my birthday is 5 days away! I'm a wee bit excited! I love birthdays and parties and on Monday, I get both!

Conversations with my third born

2011-08-05T22:10:00.004-05:00

I find myself talking to my growing tummy more and more as time goes on. I love my quiet time, just me and my little one. Some of the first words my little one has heard me say are...

"You are such a wiggle worm. Thanks for reminding me that you are there, you are healthy and you are full of life!"

"I just fed you! How can you be hungry again? You better be growing a lot and using these calories for brain development, because the extra ones are going to my thighs!"

"My entire stomach is moving, look at you go! What will you be, my little one? A soccer player? A ballerina? Whatever it is, we're so excited!"

"That, sweet pea, is my bladder. Yep, right there where you just kicked. Ouch. Alright, we got it, you know where my bladder is now. Ooof... alright little one. Don't make me get your father."

We have an OB appointment next week and we are looking forward to seeing our little one again and praying for a healthy report. I was 25 weeks yesterday, my tummy is no longer hide-able! You may call me Mega-Mama.

My Hero

2011-08-01T23:53:00.002-05:00

A typical nightly conversation:
Me: I'm craving something.
Jason: What?
Me: Skittles

or

Me: I'm craving something.
Jason: What?
Me: Orange Juice

or

Me: I'm craving something.
Jason: What?
Me: Cinnamon Toast

but tonight was different...

Me: I'm craving something.
Jason: What?
Me: Chicken enchiladas with sour cream sauce, cheddar cheese, onions and jalapenos.

The truly amazing part?
As I sit writing this post, I am eating EXACTLY what I craved brought home by my amazing husband after quite a hunt! I am so, so, happy right now!

Ouch

2011-08-01T01:25:00.002-05:00

I have a sore on the side of my tongue.
It is causing me great pain.
Eating has become quite an ordeal.
I just thought you might want to know.

Preggy Pic

2011-07-27T22:11:00.005-05:00

Here's 24 weeks of baby belly for your viewing pleasure!

I'm feeling big but good. The only major hurtle was when the remote fell under the couch and for all of my grunts and groans, I could NOT seem to get it back out with a watermelon attached to my torso, but other than that, we're doing well! Still not sure what the sex of the baby is and are enjoying the surprise element of this pregnancy. The little one is currently the size of a papaya and weighs about a pound!
Here's my little one sucking it's thumb in my womb! Such precious, precious moments!

My Man.

2011-07-27T13:35:00.003-05:00

I need to take a moment to brag. My hubby is amazing. That has always been obvious to me, but yesterday, he really blew me out of the water. Emotionally unstable wives are no fun to live with, but he just has this patience level that is incredible! This is what he did yesterday.
8:00- Got up and let me sleep in while he went to work to support our family for 9 hours.
6:00- Stayed late to have a meeting with the boss
6:45- Got a stressed out call from his wife, which he handled like a trooper and headed home.
6:50- Stopped at the grocery store to get Dr. Pepper which his psycho wife was craving.
7:00- Walked in the door to a crazy house and immediately started helping with dinner.
7:15- Sat down with the family at the table while we ate burgers, he listened to his wife talk, and talk... and talk. :)
7:45- Let his wife go lay down for a "time out" while he taught the kids the hokey pokey.
8:15- Put both kids down for bed (NOT an easy feat!)
8:45- Did all the dinner dishes and cleaned the kitchen and dining area.
9:30- Realized he hadn't run that day, so he got on his running shoes and was out the door!
10:00- Came home exhausted, showered and in bed and still gave his wife quality talking time before turning off the lights.I love him.

Cute!

2011-07-25T15:36:00.005-05:00

I don't know how many of you have been pregnant during the summer months, but cute is not a word typically used to describe oneself during this time. Words that could be used are:
1. Sweaty
2. Smelly
3. Cranky
4. Sloth-like
5. Hormonally unstable

However, this morning my mother-in-law, Dana, took me shopping for maternity clothes. Something I have yet to do this pregnancy because I am both cheap and poor. We hit the clearance racks at JC Pennys and after some laughs and grunts in the dressing room, we approached the register with a pair of capris, a pair of jeans and 3 summer shirts (they had NO shorts, but Jason did buy me some maternity shorts last week). The full price total was $166.00 worth of merchandise, after clearance prices and 2 awesome coupons, our grand total was $41.00. We also went to Kohls and bought a $20.00 pair of sandles for $1.09. Yeah, we're good at what we do.

So, now I feel this new feeling, an old forgotten feeling. I feel cute. It's been a very good day.

And of course, I know you'll want to see exactly what we got! So, below are the pictures of my new wardrobe, of course these people are skinny model chicks, so just imagine them on me looking WAY CUTER! :)

Lessons

2011-07-22T14:48:00.002-05:00

I've learned many lessons lately.
1. Saving $5 by getting cheap razors just makes you use $5 worth of band aids and Neosporin after a very rough speed shave before hitting the pool with two legs that look like mammoths that got hit with weed wackers. My poor legs.

2. Taking children to the pool is fun. I was responsible and brought plenty of sunscreen which I slathered all over both of my children. What did I forget? Myself. My poor shoulders.

3. Pregnancy has many perks. Lots of food. Lots of sleep. One thing you can't do, however, is your toes. I just tried to paint my toenails and after some grunts, groans and back cramps, my toes look like they were attacked by a monkey ninja with bright red paint. My poor toes.

4. Putting Bailey on the top bunk is necessary because Bailey and Caden need to share a room. However, being able to get up on the top bunk does not mean she can get down. She was stuck up there the whole rest time when all she wanted to do was get down to use the restroom. My poor girl.

5. Lessons can be hard, but they really aren't that bad when you can learn to laugh at yourself!

It's still hot...

2011-07-20T14:27:00.006-05:00

Summer hit hard this year and we're breaking records all over the place!
1. Most calls to EMSA for heat related illnesses or injuries.
2. Most days with temperatures breaking 100 degrees since 1980.
3. Highest overnight low of 81 degrees.
4. Tulsa broke it's water usage record by using 204.1 million gallons in one day. (water restrictions are on the horizon)
5. Hottest temperature recorded of 107 (heat index 115) broke the record set in 1923.
And here's a lovely forecast for the next 8 days...

So, the point of that story is that we're still hot, we're still staying inside most of days and we're still praying for the Fall to arrive early! In efforts to stay cool, we continue to enjoy our little pool...

and we even went to New Life Ranch to use their big pool (thanks Danae)!

Being five months pregnant during this heat wave has just been delightful (insert eye roll). But we're doing fine and I thank God for my air conditioning daily!
Bailey is enjoying gymnastics and seems to be doing really well considering she's only gone 3 times!
It's been a busy summer, one look at my packed calendar reminds me of the fact, but it's full of fun things that will make this summer memorable! I am really excited about finishing up this summer and getting ready for the arrival of Baby D. We went to the Dr. at 22 weeks and the doctor said, "Your baby looks perfect." Which relieves my nervous mind and fills my heart with an incredible joy. God continues to bless this family, I know I am very loved!

Fun in Sun

2011-07-13T13:12:00.006-05:00

There has been one word to describe this summer...
HOT.
With temperatures reaching 110 for week long stretches, we're doing our best to keep cool!
Here are some pictures from our 4th of July celebration with the Clark family!

This is something called Corn Hole. Lauren and Jake made the boards and brought the game.
We had so much fun and the kids LOVED it!

Then it was time for explosives. The children were VERY CLOSELY monitored and loved the sparklers!

A few days later, the sun was beating down and I decided it was time to bust out the kiddie pool! It was a huge success!

Drying off before heading inside!

It's been hot, but a good summer. Baby D is doing well and is really wiggling now! Jason has felt the kicks a couple times which is always so special. He loves to feel my tummy and has taken great care of me! The kids are growing so fast and learning so much! Manners are still at the forefront of their education and Bailey recently mastered "Lean over to bite and back to chew, so the crumbs don't land on you!" at the dinner table. Caden has mastered, "May I have a __________, please?" Which is so adorable considering he's only two and has better manners then most middle schoolers in this town! :)
Bailey and Caden are also amazing in the fact that at 2 and 3 they can completely dress themselves. We've been working on it for awhile because when this baby comes, I want them to be as independent as they can be. They both did very well this morning except for Bailey decided the pockets on her shorts belonged in the front... she also decided that high heel shoes were appropriate, but that's just her being a girly girl. Caden did great in his superman shirt an jean shorts.
Jason's job is going really well. The business continues to grow and they just hired his assistant an assistant, so he's pretty pumped! Pray for his boss who was diagnosed with cancer and is going in for surgery to remove it in a couple weeks. He will be out of the office for 2 weeks and Frank NEVER misses a day of work. It will be hard on Frank and Jason, who will be the go-to guy while Frank is away.
Tomorrow is another ultrasound and gymnastics class, I'm hoping to take some pictures at both so stay posted!

2011-07-13T12:41:00.001-05:00

Life Lately

2011-06-26T19:07:00.002-05:00

Life has been busy lately. Caden is wrapping up potty training. This makes me very happy. I've been changing diapers since October 25, 2007. I'm ready for a break before Baby 3 gets here!

Bailey is starting gymnastics soon! There was an incredible deal at a local gymnastics academy and she's starting in the next couple weeks. I just have to call and sign her up! The only problem I'm having is finding a leotard that covers every inch of her! :)

Jason's job is going really well. It's been crazy busy which is one reason that it is 7:10 on Sunday evening and we are all at the office! I'm working on finding stuff for the baby's room online, Bailey and Caden are watching Veggie Tales and Jason is plugging away trying to get ahead before another week starts tomorrow!

My pregnancy is going well. I've stopped throwing up, but am still fighting pretty extreme fatigue. The baby is a dancer! I've been feeling kicks for the last 4 weeks which is impressive considering I'm only 19 weeks along! An exciting milestone is happening this Thursday with the arrival the 20 weeks mark... HALF WAY!

We've worked every Sunday morning for the last 2 years in Bailey's nursery class, but this morning was our last week before our 6 month break. It was a hard decision, but with two small ones and a tough pregnancy, we felt it was time to take a break and make Sunday mornings a little more enjoyable and less stressful.

Yesterday was an exciting day with the arrival of the half way mark before Christmas. We will be traveling to Montana this year to enjoy Christmas with my family. Considering we haven't all been together since Christmas, 2009, it's a huge deal! I've already started working on present ideas and making sure we have it all planned out so when it comes and we travel 19 hours with a 4 year old, 3 year old and 1 month old, we are prepared!

So, that's a basic update on life lately. It's busy and beautiful, just the way I like it!

Jason's Father's Day Weekend

2011-06-19T22:34:00.002-05:00

Friday Evening-
Jason returns from a hard day at work to find the entire house scrubbed and organized from top to bottom. I clean the house regularly, but I have not scrubbed every room including our bedroom (dumping grounds) in years, he was VERY pleasantly surprised!

Saturday Morning-
The kids and I wake up and make oatmeal pancakes, scrambled eggs and coffee for Jason while he sleeps in. We bring it to him in bed and we all sit in bed and watch Phineas and Ferb. He then gets his Father's Day gift on a veggie strainer he wanted and a box of Captain Crunch!

Saturday Afternoon-
Jason a long shower while I get the kids dressed after our lazy morning, then he takes them out to the front yard to play. Caden plays football, Bailey learns how to throw a frisbee.
We go to a birthday party for Bailey's friend and we eat way too much food.

Saturday Evening-
We leave the party and come home and make a Strawberry Pie to pay the babysitter that offered to watch our kids for pie! Jason and I went out on a date and saw X-Men and then met up with one of his friends for a late night dinner.

Sunday Morning-
We get up and go to church. Work in nursery where the kids make him a beautiful craft complete with cute hand prints.

Sunday Afternoon-
Meet with the parents at one of Jason's very favorite restaurants, StoneMill BBQ. We then went home with full bellies to do his favorite Sunday afternoon activity... NAP!

Sunday Evening-
Meet Jason's parents at their old house for one more dip in the pool before they close and sell the house on the 24th. We ate pizza and swam then headed home for popcorn and Star Wars.

My man got spoiled this year with a Father's weekend instead of just a day! He's worth it and completely deserved it! It was a fun weekend to spoil my man and see how much he appreciates every part of it!

What Fun!

2011-06-08T13:35:00.007-05:00

Life has been busy, crazy but oh, so FUN! In the past week, I've gotten to go to the Bahamas with my friend and I got to spend 24 hours with my dad who was in town for a 50th anniversary celebration. Both adventures were so incredible and made me remember that even though I'm hot, pregnant and cranky, at times, I am so amazingly blessed.

I met my best friend, Sarah, in 1991. I was in 1st grade and she was in 2nd. We met at church and have been buds ever since. We got to celebrate our 20th anniversary with a 5 day trip to the Bahamas where we were on a resort and got to relax. We left our husbands and kids behind for a few days resting and enjoying each others company. It was so incredible!
This is the view we saw for 4 days, lying on the beach, reading and relaxing. It was so incredible and such a blessing that we were able to go.

We got to go sailing, snorkeling and relax by the beach. Sarah even got to do the trapeze. I didn't, due to the baby in my womb (and because I'm a wuss), but she had a blast!
Sarah, my BFF of 20 years, and myself on the beach in the Bahamas!
Dad came to Missouri for the 50th Anniversary of a church my grandpa started and dad drove down to see us after the anniversary party and before he had to head back to Bozeman. It was only 24 hours, but we made every minute count! Lots of fun in the sun! Here is dad showing Caden how to throw around the pigskin.
For some reason chasing Papa with a bat was SO hysterical. Luckily, dad didn't seem to mind running from his very cute attacker.
Goofy girl in Caden's glasses he got in a kids' meal.
Dad took them four wheeling at Chuck and Dana's new house. I think they all three had fun!

Cutie girl in her new cute dress!Caden's new outfit from my mom. The shirt says "Who are you calling short?" It makes me smile and he loves the giraffe!
Dad showing off his favorite grandkids. (I can only say that until November when my sister has her baby!)
Two of my favorite men with their Cardinals hats on. It was amazing to see how quickly Caden attached himself to dad and bonded with him. It was a really special day.
Miss Sassy with her new dress and new purse from my mom (Grammy). She loved them both and had a lot of fun showing off her presents for this photo op. She can really work the camera!
Dad loves baseball and so does Caden. I loved that dad could help Caden really learn the fundamentals of baseball like how to throw correctly and how to use a glove. Caden still talks about "bayball with Papa".
This one is so funny. I think he was watching my dad throw the ball to Bailey. It must have been an impressive throw!
I love this one. Caden's face is priceless, he was so excited to get to play with Papa. He loved every minute of quality time with that guy. I think they are two peas in a pod!
Caden was playing with my dad and it was so cute to see him smile at his Papa. We don't get to see my parents very often so it makes the times we do get to see them so much sweeter.
Bailey has always loved to swing. She's getting old enough that she wants to go higher and higher, which is really fun for her, but makes me nervous! I can't believe my little girl is already 3 1/2! She just keeps getting smarter and prettier!
Something else that is fun and very exciting is that our 5th Anniversary is Friday and our amazing friends, Michelle and Brandon Anderson, are going to watch our kids Friday and Saturday night so Jason and I can go out to the H&P Cabins and relax and celebrate our marriage and the adventures we've had in 5 short years!
God is so good!

We made it to May!

2011-05-27T12:30:00.010-05:00

The weather has been crazy lately, so when we do have a nice day, we're outside! The kids have a tee ball set they love to play with. We're still working on hitting the ball and not the tee, but we'll get there!

Bailey showing us her mad baseball skills!
Daddy teaching the kiddos how to fish (I'm just glad it's not my job!)
Bailey caught a fish at Chuck and Dana's new house!
Jason's Sister's Husband's Brother's wedding. Matt and Briana Reavis!
Dressed up little guy.
Cutie girl.

Kisses!The Clark Men.

Bailey told me she wanted a picture with the princess. She got it!
Showing off my belly. Yep, there's a baby in there.
Too cute! I'm just glad she's never going to grow up!
I am so happy. Just very blessed, overwhelmed by God's grace. I think this picture captures how I feel about life right now!
Caden, being his normal adorable self.
Daddy and Cade all dressed up for the wedding!

Yes, I know. My children are precious. I'm still trying to figure out how I got so blessed to have such incredibly adorable and well behaved children!Always ready for the camera!
My little stud man.
Me and my honey enjoying the weather before the crazy thunderstorms hit that night!
The Clark's family friends, the Roarks, youngest daughter Abi got married. It was a beautiful wedding on a beautiful day!
Uncle Darrel and Aunt Karin at the reception. They always make me laugh and make anything we're at so fun!
Enjoying the reception with Dana and helping her relax after a long day of wedding planning!
The children adore Chuck (aka Poppy) and he does so great with them and just brings out all his electric toys and plays preschool games with them. It's perfect, especially when the kids are tired from a long day and they're at a wedding reception!

Craziness

2011-05-01T18:45:00.003-05:00

I am used to chaos. I like the chaos of having two toddlers a year apart, I love the bustle of Sunday mornings and the craziness that ensues every evening at the kid's bedtime. I love having multiple car seats in my mom-mobile minivan and the chaos that comes from celebrating any holiday, packing for any trip or preparing for any special event. I'll take a day full of errands over a relaxing day at home any day. I like chaos.
But I do believe I'm getting old. This morning we ran outside from our van to church in pouring down rain, blinding wind and 40 degree weather. I thought, "this is not my kind of craziness". Then I went to church and spent the morning dry heaving into trash cans while watching 12 3-year-olds in nursery and barely made it back to the car without losing the bagel I had for breakfast (to prevent morning sickness which obviously failed miserably!) Jason saw how sick I was and we went to the mall to get Preggie Pops from the Motherhood store there (they are all natural morning sickness drops which are pretty effective). When we got there we ran out in the rain and wind to find that the mall was still closed... we waited 30 minutes and then went inside. After purchasing our preggie pops, we met Chuck and Dana at Taco Bueno for lunch and Caden was in a terrible mood and I was still trying not to lose everything I was eating. I came home for a nap and now I am watching the Royal Wedding we DVR'd and watching the kids play with cars on the coffee table. I think I need a craziness break. I need peace and quiet, rest and relaxation, a time out. Being sick for 6 weeks straight takes a lot out of person and I know I will be myself again soon, but for now... I am calling a brief recess from my chaos. Thankfully I have an incredible husband who is always ready to jump in and make sure I'm taken care of. He's currently making me potato soup! I love him.
So that is my current state, a complete change of personality for a few short weeks while my body does it's best to make a good home for my growing little Baby D. I know it will all be worth it and posts like this will become a distant memory when I am holding my little one in November, but it's memories like this that will make that day all the sweeter.

Easter and More

2011-04-27T13:35:00.006-05:00

Easter has come and gone, but my mind is full of memories that will be treasured. The kids were so excited about everything and Bailey really understood the real meaning of Easter. Check out my facebook HERE to see a video of Bailey telling the Easter story.
On Easter Sunday we went to church and met up with the family at Los Cabos for lunch (delicious!). Then we went to Chuck and Dana's new house for Easter Egg hunting and pie!
We got the kids pillow pets for Easter. They have wanted them for about a year and get so excited whenever we see them in the store, we finally got them each one and their reactions were priceless!
It was a wonderful day full of celebrating God's perfect gift. I'm in love with my life!
Other updates include Jason's job is moving to a new, larger office at the end of May. Tulsa Websites and SEO Services is now called Quantis Creative due to the fact that they do WAY more than just websites and SEO.
BEFOREAFTERThe pregnancy is going along well(ish). I'm 11 weeks today and it's been a pretty tough 11 weeks, lots of morning sickness (which is actually morning, noon and night sickness) and I haven't been sleeping well. But the good thing is that I'm almost done with the first trimester which should mean relief from a lot of these symptoms. We went to the doctor and saw an ultrasound. The baby looked good, had a strong heartbeat and seems to be fine! The last post was about the baby being the size of a blueberry. Now the baby is 2 inches long and has fingernails! All of the organs are in place and the little heart has started pumping blood! It's such an exciting time! Below are the ultrasound pics, I love them!

Blueberries

2011-03-30T11:50:00.002-05:00

I've never been a huge fan of blueberries. They are tart and turn your fingers and teeth blue. However, this week my baby is the size of a blueberry.
I love blueberries.

My Hubby the Nerd.

2011-03-28T16:53:00.004-05:00

My hubby loves Star Wars. He also loves Nanny's oatmeal pancakes. So when Dana and I found these pancake molds, we had to get them for his birthday! We got to use them the other day and he loved them! He did say it was weird eating Yoda though... :)
A little creepy, huh?
Top left is Darth Vader, top right is a Storm Trooper and the bottom is Yoda.

Pregnancy

2011-03-26T15:07:00.002-05:00

Oh, it's all coming back to me now! Fatigue, aches and swinging hormones that can have me sobbing in a pillow one minute and dancing to Frank Sinatra with Caden the next minute. However, it hasn't been unbearable and I know that it will totally be worth it in November. I have been blessed with no real morning sickness and Jason is incredibly patient and helpful whenever I need him, I know I am so blessed.
We have an appointment on Tuesday, the first pre-natal visit. I'm really excited, I have the doctor I had with Bailey and Caden, so I'm already comfortable with her and know what to expect. Pray for safety for the baby (we're calling the baby "Baby D" because his/her name will probably start with a D) and patience for Jason and myself. Also lift up in prayer my friend, Jessica Dodson, who found out this morning she had a miscarriage, she was due the week before I am, so it's been a hard day, but she and her husband are such strong Christians and I know God will get them through this heartache.
He is Faithful.

A New Video, Watch the whole thing! :)

2011-03-24T14:14:00.001-05:00

2011-03-22T17:38:00.001-05:00

My Little Man

2011-03-21T10:24:00.002-05:00

My little man is going to be the ring bearer in a wedding of one of Jason's close friends in just a few weeks. We got his outfit all picked out. He's not wearing the hat, we just put that on him because his hair was crazy and he needs to get used to wearing it before Easter.

An ABC Update

2011-03-17T15:30:00.002-05:00

A- Art- I have discovered a new form of art that I adore, Stamping! Homemade cards are headed your way!
B- B.A.I.L.E.Y- Bailey can spell her name!
C- Caden- Caden is growing so fast and is all about cars, tractors, planes and trains!
D- Daisy Dog- we have an adorable dog named Daisy who learned how to fetch yesterday!
E- Education- We are always working on teaching the kids new things and finding creative ways to make learning fun. We are also looking to start some lessons for them in the Fall, probably dance and soccer.
F-Family- My family is currently all across the globe. A bro in Germany, a sis in Bozeman, a mom, dad and 2 siblings in Turkey and a sister on her way to China. Praying for safety!
G- Glory to God- God continues to provide for us and showing us His faithfulness. God is good!
H- Hide and Seek- Our children ADORE playing hide and seek. It is such a sweet game they they get so excited about playing and ask me to play at least 12 times a day.
I- Ice Cream- Jason and I have an ice cream issue. The nightly ice cream cravings are so hard to fight and the fact that we both adore Cookies N Cream ice cream, we don't win the battle very often.
J- Jason- Jason is amazing. He makes me smile, he treats me like a queen and I adore him.
K- Kitchen- We are still finishing up our kitchen renovation and pictures will come when it's done!
L- Little Ones- We are praying about possibly having more children and are very excited about the possibility. I love being a mom and watching Jason be a dad.
M- Mosaics- Our Mosaic Crosses business is doing well with several upcoming shows.
N- Nursery- Jason and I continue to work in Bailey's nursery class every Sunday and adore our twenty little 3 and four year olds!
O- Odyssey- God provided an amazing van, our Honda Odyssey which is such an incredible blessing. We love it and the kids do too!
P- Potty- Potty training with Caden is going full blown, he has a frog potty and CARS stickers as rewards! We will persevere!
Q- Quantis Creative- The new name for Tulsa Websites and SEO Services, a new name for a growing business!
R- Ring Bearer- Caden is going to be the ring bearer in the wedding of one of Jason's dearest friends, Seth, and he'll be walking down the aisle on April 2nd!
S- Sam Sehested- Jason's cousin, Sam, lives in Romania with his parents and sister, he told me he read my blog which made me so happy. Hi Sam! We miss you!
T- Trees- the Bradford pear trees are abloom and Tulsa looks GORGEOUS and is ready for Spring!
U- Under- If you want to find Bailey, she's under her bed. It's her new favorite spot and it always makes me smile!
V- Violets, we have thousands of little purple violets that bloomed in our front yard. While Bailey thinks they are "prettiful", I want them dead! They are weeds!
W- Weather- the weather here is beautiful! It's sunny, in the 70's with a light breeze. Perfect!
X- eXtreme Makeover Home Edition- I am currently watching this show while typing this blog and trying not to cry all over the laptop. What a great show! (sob, sob)
Y- Youngin's- I love my little youngin's. Having a 2 and 3 year old is crazy, but I wouldn't change a thing. They are best friends, they adore me and Jason and are impressing me so much with what they are capable of doing at such a young age.
Z- Zzzzzzz's- We've been getting on a new sleep schedule. We were low on zzz's, but we're getting better! In bed by 10:30 every night and the kids are down by 8:30. It's been great.

So, those are the ABC's of us right now. 26 little snippets into our lives.

Funny Funny

2011-03-09T19:50:00.002-06:00

Tonight Bailey asked me if she could be Mommy and I could be Bailey. I said fine. I was sick so I asked her to bring me the remote. She gave me the remote and said, "But, Bailey, don't eat the remote. It's not a treat!" I laughed and said ok. A little later she went over and opened a box of Girl Scout cookies Jason had brought home for me. I told her not to take cookies without asking mommy first. She looked at me with a huge smile, "I say ok" and popped it in her mouth.
She turned my sick day into a very funny day. I love that girl.

Little Sahara

2011-03-07T14:44:00.007-06:00

This weekend we went to Little Sahara State Park which is an incredible park near Enid, OK that is miles of sand dunes, it's beautiful and open 24 hours a day for four wheelers, bikers and ORVs of all sorts. It's got camp grounds, so we brought the RV and went out for the weekend, it was amazing!
Bailey and Caden were going to spend lots of time in the RV, so we bought special markers and paper just for the trip!
Caden loved the "tractors" and watched them drive by the window all day. He even got to ride them a couple times!
This is a Razor, which is an offroad vehicle that is really fun to ride in. Nathan Banker was driving, he came along with his dad, Jerry to join in on the fun. The kids loved taking a ride with him, even though it was just around the parking lot.
Then Jason took the kids on the 4-wheeler. They were both thrilled!

Bailey and Chloe got to play on the four-wheeler. I think she looks pretty comfortable on that thing even though it'll be a couple years before she can drive it!
My future four wheelers.
Caden is precious.

Then Jason and I got to go out by ourselves, it was so fun! The sun was setting and the weather was beautiful.

I like to show off for my hubby. He thinks I'm hot.

The sand was beautiful, so soft and went on for miles!
Our drive back was fun because we got to see another side of Oklahoma. Lots of plateaus and dunes, it really is a beautiful state.
The poor kids were so tuckered out after 2 days of staying up late and waking up early. They slept most of the way home. I love them.
So that was our weekend, it was pretty incredible. I love being part of this family.

Feburary Updates

2011-02-22T16:37:00.008-06:00

So, my Granny reminded me today that it's been awhile since I've updated (18 days to be exact, which is just unacceptable), so I will now update.
A week ago we got a record breaking snow storm that brought our fair city to a halt. No school, no businesses were open, everything stopped and while it was rough on the economy, I didn't mind having a few quiet days stuck inside. Here are some pictures of the 20 inches we got in 3 days...
Caden wasn't too excited about playing outside, but once we discovered that pouring colored water onto the snow made "snow paint" he was thrilled and we spent most of a day outside.
Bailey loved the snow, it was so cute to see her rosy cheeks and bright blue eyes light up when we got outside!
This is after a few hours in the snow, they were frozen through and were ready to head inside.
Inside they thawed out and enjoyed hot coco for the first time!
After the snow came Valentines day and we got some lovely cards in the mail! (Thanks Granny and Grandpa!)

And yesterday we celebrated Jason's birthday (even though his actual birthday is today) and Bailey was all ready to help make Jason's favorite chocolate cake!

We also made his favorite broccoli cheese soup. It's delicious but it's kind of a challenge to make! Good thing I love that boy!
His family and some friends came over for a small celebration, which is perfect. He tried to blow out the 26 candles Nanny put on some brownie bites for him, but he only got out 25 before he gave in.
Caden approved of the brownie bites.
As did Bailey.
The rest of us had chocolate cake and this made Jason a very happy boy. See below. He's happy.
Caden helped Jason open his presents... he's such a useful boy.
Jason got a charging station that helps keep all his cords in order for when he charges his ipod, phone, etc at night.
Bailey loved showing Grandpa Sehested how to use Dana's iPhone, if you look you can see she held his finger and made him point to things to play the game. It was so amusing!
Chuck and Caden had fun, as always. Two goofy peas in a pod!
Then Chuck helped fix our vent hood and Caden looked on to make sure he did it right.

So, that's it for now. It's been a wonderful month and I know there are more adventures headed our way!

Studio Lights

2011-02-04T20:58:00.003-06:00

I got studio lights a couple weeks ago and haven't been able to play with them. Then, one night we got all dressed up for dinner and decided to set up a little studio in our living room. Here are some of the shots we got!

It was so fun and a great way to spend the evening!

January 2011

2011-01-27T15:43:00.007-06:00

It's been a beautiful month so far. We have enjoyed 2011, the kids are growing and keeping me busy, but I wouldn't have it any other way! Jason's sister asked for a new family picture, and I totally forgot, so we took one on our way out the door last Saturday, so now you can all enjoy the cuteness of my little family! :)Dana got Jason and Caden matching shirts for Christmas (kinda matching), and then Caden got some black shoes that matched Jason's Chuck Taylor's so, we got a father and son picture. They are the cutest! Two peas in a pod, I adore my boys.
Then it was time for a mother/daughter picture. Of course Bailey looks adorable and I look funky, but I'm used to that. :) That's what happens when you have beautiful children!
Another new thing we've been doing is playing hide and seek with the kids. We've done it quite a few times, but I finally got some pictures of it. The kids take it so seriously! They LOVE trying to find us! Bailey looks EVERYWHERE including in trash cans and the toilet, just in case Daddy decided to snorkel in the potty. Here they are trying to find me.

I was under the blankets on our bed. Look at my face. We take it very seriously. There are always roars and screams followed by lots of giggles when we are found!
Then it was Jason's turn to hide. It took them quite awhile to find him under the dining room table, Caden totally found him though! He was so excited!
Jason got new glasses. I think he's hot. He enjoys life being able to see street signs, menus and such. I married a stud. A very smart stud.
It snowed a couple days ago, which meant s'mores over the fireplace. Caden really enjoyed making them...

But he did NOT enjoy eating them. As you can tell by his cute little face. He took one bite, then was done!Bailey enjoyed making them AND eating them.
We are learning colors with Caden, so we had a green breakfast day. Green pancakes and applesauce! Bailey enjoyed the meal!
Caden did too!
Another exciting thing is that I received my diploma. There has been a special place reserved for it. We moved our thermostat a couple months ago and had a white spot in our wall with a hole and wires coming out of it. I didn't want to patch the hole because I knew that seeing it would be motivation to finish my degree so I could hang it up next to Jason's degree. This is the (hideous) before picture.

I was a little giddy framing it. It was real. It was official. I was done.
The beautiful after picture, we got matching picture frames and the hideous hole is covered and I get to see this every time I walk outside of my bedroom. What a great way to start the day! :)
Another good thing has been that I have gotten to Skype with my Granny multiple times this month. I highly recommend it. Oh, and I am now a redhead. I don't know how long it will last, but for right now, I am. This is my friend Julia, she did my hair. It was girl's night. It was fun!
So, that's it for now! Love to you all and a special *mwah!* to Granny and Grandpa Kelch!

Sickies

2011-01-19T14:51:00.002-06:00

Yesterday, I woke up feeling pretty puny. My head was very congested and throat was hurting and I had that annoying itching deep in my ear. That itch is enough to make a perfectly sane woman cram a spaghetti spoon into her ear canal and try and make the itching stop! Well, anyway, that's what I was dealing with, but I made it through the day because Jason promised me a date night and when date night is on the line, I could lose a limb and still keep smiling!
So, we made it through yesterday and all was well. Then we woke up this morning and little Caden has a cough and Bailey is really congested. I guess we really know how to share in this family! So, after a breakfast and lunch when no one really ate much, we decided it was time to cuddle up and watch old shows. We watched some old Inspector Gadget cartoons which the kids loved and now we've moved on to Fraggle Rock. Jason loved Fraggle Rock as a kid, so it's fun watching my children enjoy it so much. My kids are also experiencing something new today, warm liquids. I gave them each a cup of hot coco and they looked at me like I was crazy. It was then that I realized they haven't had anything warm to drink since milk as an infant. They finally trusted me enough to give it a try and now they have a new favorite cold day drink!
Speaking of cold days, snow is in the forecast for tomorrow. I'm really excited by this. We had a little snow a couple weeks ago, but it was pretty disappointing, so now we have another chance at having a good snow this year. We're forecasted to get about 4 inches, which would be fine with me! I've got chili in the crockpot, so we are all ready for a snow day tomorrow! Here's hoping!

New Things

2011-01-14T13:53:00.004-06:00

Here are some new things I think you should know.

Bailey-
Bailey is now 3 and is quite the little lady. She sits with her legs crossed and says "yes, ma'am" and "yes, sir". She is also capable of cleaning her room all by herself, dressing herself (not stylishly but she can do it!). She is also a very girly girl. As you can see in the picture above, she loves to wear "princess shoes" which are her pink high heels. She also likes to do her hair and one of her favorite things is for me to paint her nails. She also painted my toe nails... there are about 12 layers of multi-colored polish on my toe nails that won't come off... I'm renting a jackhammer later today to try and get it all off. :)

Caden-
Caden is 2 and is growing so fast! He's also getting quite an opinion about life. Getting him dressed in the morning is quite a challenge! He doesn't want to wear anything that doesn't have either the characters from CARS, Toy Story or have a sports theme of any kind. I tried to put a plaid shirt on him yesterday and he said, "No, mom! Cardinals shirt, Cardinals shirt!" I gave in this time, but he's not calling all the shots yet! He's also getting really good at counting to 5 and is learning basic colors, even though right now he calls everything black. But he's starting to get them right on the second try.

Jason-
Jason is doing well at work. He is being challenged by a co-worker who does not accept his faith, but it's a challenge that Jason is taking well. We are staying focused on considering it joy when we face trials, and I know he will come out stronger in his faith because of these challenges.
Jason also is the new owner of a VERY stylish pair of glasses. I will post a picture of my stud muffin. He was all scruffy last week, and this week he got a hair cut, shaved his beard into a goatee and got new glasses. Yes, he is mighty fine.

Christa-
I am also doing well. I've kept up with my resolution to be more organized this year. It's been a challenge, but it's been good. I love the fact that if someone happened to drop by unannounced, the house is in a presentable shape at all times, so at least I won't be mortified like I was last year. I am also working on getting the children to understand that they have certain chores. Bailey is great at helping me clean, Caden... not so much. But he's getting there. He can clean his room and is getting better at helping me clean up the living room.
My diploma should be arriving any day. I am very excited by this. We already picked out picture frames at Target to hold our diplomas, and I am so ready to get them hung! Don't worry, I WILL take pictures! :)

That's all for now!
Oh, and thanks to Granny and Grandpa Kelch for the wonderful hour long Skype last night. It was such a treat! We should do it again while the kids are up, they would love it!

Laughter

2011-01-12T16:40:00.002-06:00

I realized that a lot of things make me laugh and I think I'll share some with you.

1. This morning I wanted coffee (I want it a lot but rarely actually make myself a cup). So, I ground some beans and realized that I ground enough for about 6 cups, so I made 6 cups of coffee so it wouldn't be too strong and had every intention of just drinking one cup. Well, 6 cups later I am so hyped up and jittery that I have done 6 loads of laundry, cleaned every room in the house including scrubbing the front bathroom tub (which really needed to be done!), I have also danced around with my kids, played "monster" which is extremely physically draining and I'm still going strong! While I would not suggest drinking 6 cups of coffee in one day, if you do, it can make you extremely productive! Just wait for the blog post when I crash tonight though, I imagine it's going to be pretty gruesome.

2. There is a game that I play on my ipod touch called "Words with Friends" It's Scrabble that you play online with people all over the world, or you can play with friends too. I play against Jason and my father-in-law Chuck. Well, today I realized that whenever I play a good word, I smack talk. Today I played a really good word and actually said, "Eat that, mtm1984!" Oh brother. I'm the least aggressive girl in person, but play scrabble online with me and I'm like "Bring it on Punk Wad!"

3. Whenever you give Caden something and ask him "What do you say?" He says very proudly "Thank You! You're Welcome!" It makes me laugh. He's such a cutie.

4. Yesterday Caden was being goofy and was saying, "Bad Grandma, Bad Bad Grandma" (I have no idea why). Well, Bailey didn't like that at all. She goes up to Caden and gets right in his face and say, "No, Caden. Grandma's not bad! Only Lions are bad!" I have no idea what is going on in that cute little head, but I love it!

That's it for now. I know there are more things that make me laugh, but I just realized I have to be at the church to work in nursery in 40 minutes and I look like a homeless monkey that just got hit by a semi-truck in a rain storm... gotta run! Don't want to scare the children tonight!

Changes

2011-01-11T14:00:00.003-06:00

I have lots of hopes for 2011. 2010 was a hard year, a good year, but hard. So many plans for 2011 and we're starting with some simple changes. The first change was to finally sit down and do family hair cut night. Poor Jason hasn't had a hair cut in months, Caden had a hair cut a couple months ago, but I did it in a rush and missed some serious spots and Miss Bailey's hair was growing fine, but her little eyes were covered with bangs. It drove me crazy! So, now I'm working on just doing what needs to be done. Stop whining, stop rolling my eyes, just do it. So, last Sunday we pulled back the rug and I set up shop. An hour later I had 3 great looking cuties with 3 new looks!
BEFORE (I just took her hair down from a pony tail... it doesn't usually look like that)
AFTER
BEFORE
AFTER
BEFORE
AFTER
Yes, I was proud of my little family. They all look so nice!

Other things that I have worked on is getting organized. Since January 1st we have cleared out our kitchen cabinets, reorganized the tupperware cabinet and silverware drawer and rearranged Caden's room so he can't trash it as easily. It's been a tough couple weeks, but it's so great when things get done. Going to bed after a day of productivity is such a good feeling!

Another thing that I am working on is giving the children responsibilities. I spent last year cleaning up toys from the living room every night, picking up shoes, clothes, books from all over the house. It hit me. This year... they can clean up their mess. Not all of them, I don't expect that, but they will be in charge of cleaning. Bailey is now capable of completely cleaning her room by herself and now Caden is learning where things go and he can take things from the living room and put them in his room. I've only been working on this for a couple days, but it seems to be going well!

So, 2011 is looking good. Lots of hopes for new better habits that will make my sweet life just a wee bit sweeter. I love it.

Cranky Christa

2011-01-05T22:20:00.002-06:00

I was cranky. I do that every once in a while. But long ago I learned a song based on a verse and it's helped me lots of time turn my little pity parties around. So, here it is. I just sing the song and think about each individual line and find an example of that truth in my life.

Whatever is true. It is true that I am the daughter of a King and am promised eternal life because of the ultimate gift of His Son.
Whatever is noble. My husband is noble. He puts my needs over his own everyday. He is chivalrous, kind, generous and treats me like a queen (even when I'm cranky.)
Whatever is right. It is right that I am where I am. God put me here and here I intend on staying. There are amazing things for me here, I just have to put forth the effort to find them. God knows what He's doing, He's right, I trust Him.
Whatever is pure. While my children are not perfect, I can see the purity of their spirits in how they see the world. It is both an honor and a highlight of my life. Watching them discover fall colors in the leaves, dogs digging or ticklish spots on mommy are all wondrous and so exciting in their eyes!
Whatever is lovely. My life is lovely. My wonderful husband, my two lovely children, my cute little house on 21st st, my brown dog that adores me and a relationship with the God of the Universe.
Whatever is admirable. Surviving last year was admirable. I could not have made it without my family, friends and God giving me the strength I needed. Being a mom to two toddlers, being a full-time student, starting a job, leaving a job and work on two small businesses in one year is a lot. I am not admirable, but with God I can do things that are.
If anything is excellent. God's promise for my future is excellent. God knows His plan for me and they're full of hope and I'm thrilled by this.He's not going to give me anything I can't handle, that's also reassuring.
If anything is praise worthy. God is praise worthy, so I will praise Him. I will praise Him everyday.

So, with all that said, my crankiness goes away and so starts my humble return to grateful adoration of the God of the Universe for all of His abundant blessings. That's how it always goes. :)

3 Kiddos

2011-01-04T13:15:00.002-06:00

I'm watching my nephew, Hunter, today and he is right between Bailey and Caden age-wise. So I have a two year old boy, a two and a half year old boy and a three year old girl. I thought I might share some of the things I have said today watching 3 toddlers.
1. Get that out of your mouth.
2. Monkeys are for hugging, not hitting!
3. Socks go on your feet, not your hands.
4. Get that out of your mouth.
5.Kicking someone's face isn't very nice.
6. We don't need to take every single wipe out of the package... just a thought.
7. Get that out of your mouth.
8. I know I put Bailey's hair in pigtails, but I can't put your hair up too, it's just too short and you're a boy!
9. When I say gentle, I don't mean to sit softly on Caden's head, I mean don't sit on his head at all.
10. Alright, when I say get that out of your mouth, what does that mean to you?

Luckily, I love it. It's a happy chaos. But I will always be happy that God didn't give me triplets! 3 toddlers at once is insane!

Christmas with the Clarks

2011-01-02T01:43:00.006-06:00

Christmas at the Clark household is always quite a to-do. We take celebrating Jesus pretty seriously and plan many things in to one action-filled month. It is delightful.
Christmas this year began with a Skype Christmas with the Keenas. The Castles came over and we enjoyed talking to the family over Skype on our TV. It was fun seeing my dad on our wall. It was such a fun evening.
Danae decorated Christmas cookies with Caden and Bailey. They both had sooo much fun, and I think she did too. Bailey wore her apron, Caden wore most of the frosting. It was so fun to watch and needless to say, neither one of them ate a very good dinner afterwards...

We used some sprinkles we got from Granny and Grandpa awhile ago. Caden was a big fan of the dinosaur sprinkles. I personally liked the stars. :)

After Christmas with the Keenas we headed over to Chuck and Dana's to spend the night and the kids (Bailey, cousin Hunter and Caden) all got matching jammies and Christmas socks! They were so precious. They also got little light things that were a big hit!

The next morning was Christmas Eve, we did our regular Christmas morning stuff early so Jessica and Justin could be there. Bailey and Caden got a keyboard, Caden LOVES it! He is quite musical, I hope he takes after his Grammy Keena and Granny Kelch!

After the presents, the kids crashed and watched Toy Story (something Caden got for Christmas) it was cute to see 3 crazy, active toddlers crash so hard and stay still for an entire movie. Christmas morning isn't for amateurs around our house!

That night, the other side of the family came over and we had Christmas Eve with Chuck's side of the family. It's always an evening full of laughter and this year was no exception. Lots of food, lots of jokes, lots of silly presents and one perfect evening with the fam.

Jason got his blanket that I made for him out of old college t-shirts. He liked it... as you can tell by his face.

I also made a blanket for Jason's dad (Chuck), Jason's cousin (Thomas), Jason's brother-in-law (Justin), Jason's Uncle (Darrell) and Jason's cousin-in-law (Jake). They were all a hit!

Caden got a new Cardinals hat for Christmas. It was so cute to see his little face light up! He's been wearing it ever since! (We do force him to take it off for bath time and occasionally bedtime, but he has been known to wear his hat to bed a couple of times when mommy's too tired to mind.)

Chuck was so cute, he really loved his time with the three grand kids. Hunter lives in Eastern Arkansas, so it's been hard having him so far away, so when he's here, it's all full of fun activities and quality time!

One of my favorite presents that Bailey got was a doll from Dana (Bailey named her Roxy) and then Dana got her a dress and a matching dress for Roxy. It was so cute! Bailey wore it to church on the 26th and got quite a bit of attention for her little ensemble!
So, these are just a few of the pictures from this Christmas. If you want to see more, just click here and you can see them all!
We love you all and wish you a very Happy New Year!

Christmas is Coming!

2010-12-22T00:51:00.002-06:00

Well, I am ready. I am beyond ready. Well, I guess I'm more emotionally and mentally ready then I am really ready because I still have 3 1/2 gifts to finish, but I know I'll get them done in time. I'm very, very excited.
I love Christmas, I love celebrating the birth of my Savior while spending time with family and enjoying beautiful music and walking through Christmas light displays and sipping coco. I live for this time of year, this is when I really thrive, I wake up excited about what I need to get done and go to bed exhausted, yet thrilled by the accomplishments of the day. I love it.
Bailey knows that something very exciting is happening, I don't think she remembers Christmas, but she knows that it's Christmas time and there are Christmas presents and she loves listening to Christmas music (even though she won't believe me that the song we're listening to is Christmas music unless there are bells or chimes of some sort...) I can't wait. I love telling her all about the first Christmas and she has new words in her vocabulary including "stable" and "manger".
Caden is so good. He is drawn to the Christmas tree like a moth to a flame, but he doesn't touch. He knows better. He also knows not to touch the presents, but he gets really, really excited while staring at his stocking with a small stuffed football sticking out of the top.
Jason is also ready for Christmas, he has some good gifts coming, most of which he knows about but one that is still a surprise. Tonight he bought me a gift, I have no idea what it is and typically, I figure it out about 30 minutes after he purchases it through asking trick questions or peeking when I'm not supposed to!
I am ready. We have Christmas with the Castles and Keenas (via Skype) on Thursday night, then we're going to spend the night at the Clarks and have Christmas Eve morning with Jessica and Justin, then Christmas Eve night with Chuck's side of the family. Then Christmas morning we will have a small celebration here, then spend the day relaxing with the Clarks. I am ready. I have nothing but exciting bubbling inside and I am so blessed to have such an incredible family to celebrate the birth of our King with.
Merry Christmas.
Christa

Graduation

2010-12-14T16:40:00.003-06:00

I graduated from high school in 2003. I was going to be a nurse. I went to college to get my nursing degree and God opened my eyes to the fact that He had something else planned for me. Nursing is an incredible field, but it was not for me, so I decided to take a break in December of 2005. I got married in June of 2006, had Bailey in October of 2007 and Caden in October of 2008. My college graduation was getting farther and farther away.
Then, God opened several doors all at once. My father-in-law, Chuck, pulled me aside and told me that if I ever wanted to go back to school, he would foot the bill. Then I started researching and found a program at Oklahoma Wesleyan University and discovered that I could graduate in December of 2010. So, in September of 2009, I started back to school full time, no Christmas break, no summer break, straight through from September in 2009 to December 2010.
Last Saturday, I finished. I walked across the stage and graduated from college with a Bachelors of Science in Organizational Management and Ethics. It is a goal I've had since high school graduation in 2003 and I know that I am completely blessed to have been able to finish this degree and move on to new goals in my life. Thanks to everyone who encouraged me over these last 16 months, I am better because I know you.

.

Pictures from our Thanksgiving with the Keena Family

2010-12-06T13:17:00.009-06:00

This week...

2010-11-21T21:44:00.007-06:00

This week, I will see some of my favorite people, including...
Jim & Kim Keena (aka Dad & Mom)
Bethany (aka Aunt B)
Douglas & Danae Castle (aka Uncle Gug and Aunt Nae Nae)
Emily Keena (aka Aunt Emery)
Grace Keena (Uncle Grace)
David Keena (aka Uncle Davvid)
Dana Clark (aka Jason's mom and Grandma)
Charles W. Clark (aka Jason's dad or Poppy)
Randi Clark (aka Jason's grandma or Nanny)
Edel Sehested (aka Jason's grandma)
Bob Sehested (aka Jason's grandpa)
Justin Reavis (aka Jason's Sister's Husband or Uncle Justin)
Jessica Reavis (aka Jason's sister or Aunt Jessica)
Darrell Duke (aka Jason's Dad's Sister's Husband or Uncle Darrell)
Karin Duke (aka Jason's dad's sister or Aunt Karin)
Jake Blevins (aka Jason's cousin's husband or Uncle Jake)
Lauren Blevins (Jason's cousin or Aunt Lauren)
Yep, I'm pretty excited. Thought you might like an intro to my incredible family. 24 people I am SO READY to see this week!

These are a few of my favorite things...

2010-11-19T09:21:00.007-06:00

1. I love the fact that my children don't have any idea that I control the windows in the car. They just yell at the windows to open or close, and giggle when the windows "obey".

2. I love Peppermint Mocha creamer. It makes my morning coffee so festive!3. I love that whenever you ask Caden something, he says no. But not like, disrespectful, stubborn "no". Like, "I-really-do-want-that-but-don't-know-how-to-verbalize-it" no. He'll smile really big when you ask him if he wants juice, then he'll look up bashfully and say "noooooo."

4. I love my to-do list for graduation. I printed it off in September and it had 10 things on the list including classes, seminars, CPR certification and Clep tests. And quite ceremoniously, 6 times, my husband has made a drum-roll sound while I marked off one of the things that I just finished. I love how excited he is for to graduate. I think he misses his wife. :)5. I love how when you ask Bailey if she needs to go pee pee and she doesn't, she says, "No, I fine" Like she's 12 or something...

6. I love that our house is clean and we've kept it clean for almost a week. This doesn't sound like a big deal, but with 2 toddlers who love to pull everything from their rooms into the living room, it is quite a feat! We were determined to keep it clean through the Holidays (and hopefully get into the habit) and I think we're doing swell! The dishes are always done, the trash is always out and I can enjoy sweet moments in the morning (like right now) without stressing about cleaning!

7. I love the "Mulled Cider" candles from Wal-Mart. They are a soft, cinnamon apple scent that is perfect for Christmas, but not overly Christmas like Peppermint Pine or something that Jason would detest. They smell great, are super cheap and keep my home smelling cozy!

8. I love my husband. Lately, I am reminded of how much he does to provide for our family and how much he adores us all. I really appreciate how when he knows that I'm stressed (usually about school), he takes over, gets the kids where they need to be, helps with the chores and makes sure that I have what I need to get my school work done. It's been a crazy year and a half, I knew it would be, but I can honestly say, when I graduate, we are BOTH graduating. It is something I never could have done on my own! No one else could ever make me laugh the way he does, make me realize how blessed I am every single day, and if I could do it all over again, I totally would.9. I love my "Mountain Arts Potter" mug. I got two at dad's church and even with a cupboard full of mugs, I am usually sipping coffee out of one of the mugs and washing the other one for the next day. They remind me of a perfect Christmas and an amazing family.
10. And speaking of amazing families, the last of my favorite things, is my incredible family that I get to see in 6 days. I started a count down on my Facebook when there were 114 days left. But if you actually do the math, I have not seen them in 323 days. That is entirely too long. I am so ready to hug my parents, beat up my siblings and relax for 5 days with the best family anyone could ever ask for. I'm not just a little bit excited, it's what I think about when I am trying to fall asleep at night and it's the first thing I think of in the morning. I'm constantly planning, working on to-do lists, making sure that we are ready for when they arrive because I have never gone 323 days without seeing my parents and I never, ever plan on doing it again.

My Babies

2010-11-18T14:58:00.003-06:00

My babies make me smile, every single day.

They "helped" me make cookies the other day. They sat there and watched those cookies bake. It was so cute!

The next day I went in to get Bailey up and she was already up. It took me a bit to find her! She's such a ham!

2010-11-18T14:58:00.000-06:00

Crying

2010-11-16T21:54:00.005-06:00

I cry when I'm sad.

I cry when I'm hurting.

I cry when I see a sweet commercial or watch Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.

I cry when I miss my family.

I cry when I'm exhausted but I can't go to bed.

Today, I looked at my beautiful life. My cozy, clean house that smells of cider, my Christmas tree all aglow and 4 stockings hanging from our fire place with a small fire in it, warming the house and keeping my babies toasty. I looked at my children, a beautiful girl with sparkling blue eyes and a laugh that is so infectious and a son with gorgeous hair, that one deep dimple and the sweetest heart you'll ever know. I looked at my husband, who adores every inch of me and reminds me of that fact every single day. I looked at my stove that had stew simmering on top and cookies baking inside. I looked at all that God has blessed me with, I became so incredibly overwhelmed by His generosity, His sovereignty, His grace, I cried.

Countdowns!

2010-11-15T13:04:00.002-06:00

10 days until I get to see my family!
20 days until I finish my last class!
26 days until I graduate from Oklahoma Wesleyan University!
40 days until Christmas!

So happy! So excited! So blessed!

Awake

2010-11-14T01:44:00.002-06:00

So, it's 1:44am. I have had a wonderful day full of garage sales, thrift stores and antique malls. Just my kind of day. The best part? Jason got to go to all of those places with me and he seemed to really enjoy himself. He's a bargain hunter at heart! So, I'm so tired, but for some reason, I just can't fall asleep. So, I'm checking up on the lives of my family and friends on Facebook and Blog and am waiting for sleep to come. Hopefully it comes and knocks me out with a sledgehammer soon because I have nursery duty in the morning!

Mouse Hunt

2010-11-11T16:46:00.002-06:00

Two years ago, right as the Fall turned to Winter, we had a mouse problem. There were four mice, that we promptly trapped and got rid of. We thought the problem came from our house being abandoned for a couple years and that there wouldn't be a problem after we lived here for awhile and the mice understood that this house now belonged to humans.
Well, they are back. They are gross and they are back. I don't know how they are getting in, but we have caught 6. Some were fine, some were traumatic.
Well, now the only mice we have left are the brilliant ones. They snap the traps shut, then eat the peanut butter. Now, I am sitting here listening to a mouse munch on something very hard behind the trash can in the kitchen. I am beyond disgusted. My lovely husband does great at emptying the traps, but he is not able to defend me from these vial rodents while he is at work. I need a body guard. I need to make dinner and I'm terrified about going into the kitchen. There is one brilliant mouse left, a brave little sucker that eats a snack in the middle of the day.
I think I need to move.

OWU

2010-11-08T17:19:00.002-06:00

So, everyone knows that I'm finishing up my college degree. It has been one of the hardest things I've ever done. It's exciting that I am so close. I am less than a month away from being done with my course work. I am currently in Philosophy of Christian Thought, Executive Development, Tennis and Aerobic Conditioning. It is pretty intense because typically you take one class at a time in this program and I am taking four. But it will get me done in December so it will totally be worth it!
Oh, have I mentioned that my family is coming in 17 days? Yeah... 17. That's a wee bit over 2 weeks which means that A. I am one happy girl. B. I need to clean my house. C. I need to read "To Kill a Mockingbird for the family book group. D. I need to find fabulous clothes for Thanksgiving dinner.
Bailey is growing so fast. She's started saying things that she hears like, "It's so good to see you" and "That's so creepy." She is so entertaining.
Caden is getting so big and has started showing a very slight interest in potty training. I just know that I'm going to let him call the shots. When he's ready, we'll jump in with both feet, but for right now we're sitting on the potty once a day, and he seems to be excited about it. He is also starting to talk a lot more, he just loves to copy things I say. He is also so into cars and balls right now. He is such a boy. I adore him.
Well, I guess that's about it. Special shout out to Granny and Grandpa Kelch, my blog's biggest fans! :) I love you both!
I have chili on the stove so I better run.
-Christa

Enhale... Exhale... Repeat

2010-11-05T12:54:00.004-05:00

Life has been beautifully hectic lately. I love having lists of things to do and figuring out how to get it all done. Sometimes I do get overwhelmed, but for the most part, I enjoy the chaos.
So, I have a 2 year old who is all about learning new words, playing with his truck and has shown a slight interest in potty training. I have a three year old who is so curious, asks "why" about a thousand times a day, wants to help with every thing I do and is really starting to be helpful around the house. Being a mom is enough to keep my to-do list full, but no, I decided to be a full time student and volunteer Sunday mornings in nursery and work Sunday and Wednesday nights for some extra cash. It's been great. I did have too much on my plate while I was working part time at Target and my kids were in preschool plus everything else. That was too crazy. I'm not comfortable with my current state of craziness.
So, school has been a challenge. I had a plan. I always have a plan. But my perfect plan didn't work and my graduation in December looked like it might not happen. I was not excited about this at all. I was short one elective hour and after a lot of praying, crying and going back and forth about what I was supposed to do, God took the reigns and got my schedule figured out so that graduation is back on! I am so thrilled. I want to be done with this. I want to mark it off my list. I want Jason to know that I'm as smart as he is.
My family is coming in 20 days. I looked it up this morning and I haven't seen my parents in 309 days. I figured it out after listening to people complain that they haven't seen their parents in two whole weeks. Pish. Big babies. I haven't seen my parents in 10 months and 5 days, that's 44 weeks or 7416 hours! So, anyway. I am so ready for Thanksgiving. I want to hug my mom and dad for about 3 hours a piece, then talk for 5 days straight. We can sleep when we're apart. To explain how long it has been, here is a picture of Bailey last time I saw my parents.
and here is little Caden from last December...

and now Miss Bailey is so much bigger and SO much more verbal!

and Caden is taller, mobile and so funny with his understandings of the world.
So, just 20 more days and I will be living it up with my family, I can't wait. God is soooo good!

Halloween 2010!

2010-11-02T17:07:00.006-05:00

Birthday Babies!

2010-11-02T16:49:00.009-05:00

To Grandmother's House We Go!

2010-10-14T19:52:00.012-05:00

It was such a great trip to Indiana in October, thanks to Danae for going with me, Granny and Grandpa for hosting us and Aunt Kim, Alexandra and Adriana for visiting!

A Day at the Park

2010-10-06T13:45:00.005-05:00

I heart my babies.

Today

2010-10-03T23:03:00.003-05:00

Today I...
Volunteered in Bailey's nursery (15-two year olds)
Went to work for 7 hours (it was supposed to be a 5 hour shift)
Took 6 different sessions today including a couple in wheelchairs, 3 very sad children, a funny, yet exhausting family of 6 and autistic boy who liked to scream and run at my lights.
Picked up the kids from Chuck and Dana's
Fed the kids dinner while my husband worked at the Fair
Wrote a 10 page paper for a final in Global Business Environment (which brought me one step closer to graduation!)
Did 10 discussion posts for my two classes
Wrote a 1 page analysis over a current business ethics dilemma
Wrote a 2 page paper over 10 ethical dilemmas
and now...now... my wonderful hubby is giving me a foot massage WITH LOTION!
I am glad I am done. I am glad I am married. I am tired. I am blessed.

October Already?

2010-10-02T22:24:00.003-05:00

Ok, so I don't know what the deal is, but this year is FLYING by. I remember feeling like months were ticking by while I was younger, always waiting for the next big thing to come along, and now I stand in shock that this month my son will be two and my daughter will be three. Weren' t were just celebrating their 1st and 2nd birthdays yesterday? Sheesh.
Well, several things are coming up... I'm going to visit my grandparents this week. Leaving on Friday, coming back Tuesday. I'm SUPER excited. I'm ready to go help go through boxes (they're in the process of moving to Ohio), relax with my grandpa, chat for hours with my granny and spend quality time with Bethany and Danae. Pray for safety and patience for the kids, cuz we'll be in the car for 12 hours!
The kids' birthdays are coming up. Caden will be 2 on October 23rd and Bailey will be 3 on October 25. So, on October 24th I will be the mother of two 2 year olds! We are having a party for both of them on Saturday, the 23rd. You are all invited. I ordered invitations yesterday from Target Portrait Studio (where else!?) and I should get them back on the 8th, so you should be receiving invitations shortly after. I took pictures for them and really want to share them with you, but then the invitations won't be a surprise, so you shall have to wait.
I get to see my family in 54 days. This brings so much joy to my heart. I am so, incredibly ready to see them, hug them and talk, I want to talk for hours! As much as I love calling my mom, I want to see her face, see her reactions when I tell her things, see her roll her eyes when I tell her other things. I love people. I love talking to people's faces. That's just me.
So, there is a little update for everyone. Things are going extremely well in the Clark household. Work for both of us is going well, the kids love their preschool and are always excited to go. God is watching over this little family on 21st street and I praise Him for His continued faithfulness in our lives.
I am blessed.

God is Good

2010-09-29T16:27:00.004-05:00

We had a problem. God fixed it. Then I got another one and He fixed it. That's just how He rolls. I love that.
We had a 1995 Nissan Maxima that was a problem. It wasn't taken care of before we got it. Then we got it and tried to take good care of it, but it wasn't too excited about it. It was old and had over 200,000 miles on it. Jason drove it to work for about 2 years, then one day he drove it half way home. I got a call telling me that the car died and it would be too expensive to fix while I was on my way to work. I stressed mildly, but was too busy to worry about it. Then I got off work and was informed that we needed to go pick up our new car. I was confused, but so relieved. God had a plan that He had been working on for a couple weeks preparing the perfect car for us. It's a Dodge Stratus (that looks remarkably like our old car). Jason adores that car. The old nissan didn't have air conditioning, wipers or a CD player. Our new car as all three! He's so spoiled!

Another problem I had was trying to get all of my school hours in before I wanted to graduate in December. I was worried about being able to get all my core classes and electives in two months. So, I had the opportunity to take a CLEP test which gives me the credit of a class just by taking a test that shows that I already know everything that the class would teach me. I was concerned about the class because I was informed a couple days ago that I had to get it done by Oct.1! So instead of studying for 6 weeks, like I was supposed to, I studied for 2 days. I took it this morning and PASSED! The one and only way I passed it was through the mercy of God, there was a lot of guessing and God lead me through the test, one question at a time. He is so faithful!

God is in the business of solving problems. I am not. This makes me happy.

I'm back

2010-09-26T22:03:00.004-05:00

Hello blogging world. I have missed you. Things have been insane, but wonderful. That's how my life is and I like it that way. My two beautiful children continue to grow and astonish me with what they are learning and how incredibly sweet they both are.
I got a new job working at Target Portrait Studios for Lifetouch Studios. It's a pretty sweet gig. I get to work with families, making them smile and capturing sweet moments that they will treasure for years to come. I know it's sappy, but it's true. Below are some pictures that we took for a training session when another girl and I were learning to use the camera. We had some pretty adorable models, so it wasn't too challenging to get a great shot.

So, I've been working there for about 6 weeks. We've had some fun times and some pretty stressful times. I had a family come in who didn't speak English and trying to explain "a standard sheet includes either one 8x10, 2-5x7s, 4-3.5x5's or 8-wallets" can be very tiring when you don't speak the same language! We also had a slumber party come in with eight girls under the age of seven who wanted group shots in their dress up clothes, then individual shots, then they all changed into "slumber party" shirts and we took more group shots. Believe me, I was so tired when that group pulled out and swore off slumber parties for my children until they're 18 and on their own!

But the sweet times are more frequent and so fun. I had a lady bring in her special needs son who was paralyzed from the waist down and he was so incredibly happy and sweet and we got some great shots of him on a couch sitting up on his own! His mom was so happy, our couch just happened to be the right size and shape to keep him up without mom's help. I also had a lady come in with her seven month old who was teething and she was so upset because she had never gotten his pictures taken and she felt horrible. So, I worked with her and got some great shots, she cried when she saw them and ordered a ton, but it was her "thank you" that really made me happy. This is a job where you get to give someone something so special. It's not a toy they can break or a book they'll read and forget about, it's something they put up in their homes, proudly display and keep for years to come in photo albums to remember these precious times. It's a great job that I adore.

I am blessed.

What do you mean it's August?

2010-08-09T15:27:00.003-05:00

Things have been great. Jason's job is going well and we got to spend some quality family time at the Children's museum in Tulsa. Bailey loved to dress up and below, Jason is showing the kids where Grammy and Papa live.

Caden loved to talk into the working microphone on the big stage. It was so funny to watch!
Bailey also had a blast on the climbing wall. She didn't get very high, but she was so cute, she thought she was a pro!
Here are some videos of the kids performing onstage. They are both talkers, that's for sure!
This is Bailey, sorry it's sideways... I wasn't paying attention when I took it.

July has been beautiful!

2010-07-26T16:02:00.009-05:00

July has been wonderful, above is the 4th of July, we watched Rockets over Rhema and the kids were sooo tired, but it was still fun.
Doug had a concert at a church in town, so we went, Bailey was so excited and could barely wait for Doug to stop playing before she said hi. Above, she's clowning around with Aunt Danae and below is Doug playing. It was a great concert, I was really impressed at how talented my bro-in-law is!
I kept telling Bailey to talk quietly, then I laughed too loud and she told me to "shhhh!". It was precious!
Caden and I, showing off our matching eyes!
As soon as Doug as done, Bailey ran up screaming "Hi, Uncle Gugg!" So, here's a pic of Doug and his biggest fan.
A few weeks later we had a family pool party to celebrate Thomas and Kate's engagement. Thomas is Jason's cousin. It was great, and Chuck really had fun hanging out with his grandson.
This is Kate. She's tall. Bailey and Lauren showed just how long her legs are!
Bailey was showing off her new shoes!
She was so precious, we swam, ate yummy food and hung out with the fam.
Last week I reconnected with a friend from high school who also has a 2 year old named Bailey! We went over to play and make cupcakes, it was so cute!
First we made bracelets, Bailey is still wearing hers today!
Bailey and Bailey taking a break waiting for the cupcakes to bake.
Caden was so funny, he didn't really play with the Baileys but he had tons of fun just exploring all the new toys!
Time for frosting!
Caden wanted in on the fun, don't worry, he got a cupcake or two!
Dig in cuties!
Chuck and Dana's 30th Anniversary is this December 27th. It's always hard to celebrate an anniversary 2 days after Christmas, so we decided to celebrate early with a patio makeover while they were out of town.
BEFORE
AFTER
BEFORE
AFTER
BEFORE
AFTER
I watched two kids this weekend, Archer and Annabelle Anderson. Annabelle is Caden's age and Archer is Bailey's age. It was perfect! Here Caden and Annabelle enjoy dinner!
Archer and Bailey watching Cars, their favorite movie!
The four kids enjoying popcorn and a movie! They actually sat this way for quite awhile!
So, July has been a great month full of fun, family and surprises. It's been beautiful. Hope August is just as fun!

Summer Fun

2010-07-01T13:40:00.005-05:00

It's been a great summer so far! Above is my newest love, Daisy Dog. She is so precious and such an easy dog. Our little Denver needed a play mate, so they are really having fun getting to know each other and play in the backyard together a ton!

We went to the lake last weekend and hung out with Chuck on his boat. It was so great! Caden LOVED to pretend to drive.

Chuck and Caden are two peas in a pod!
Bailey and Jase had a great time too. Bailey loved her little vest (for the most part) and was great on the boat.
Here she is sporting her lake gear, she loved going fast!
Me and my little buddy enjoying the rays.
He tuckered out early, but luckily he's so well behaved he just laid down and enjoyed some juice until he got his second wind.
Bailey and Jason went on the raft. It was so fun to watch. Bailey is my fearless one!
I love this one, Chuck sped up across the lake so Jason and Bailey sat in the front and enjoyed the ride!
Poppy kisses!
Me and my babies on the raft, it was such a pretty day and the water felt GREAT!
Bailey and I did tricks while we were on the raft! Such raw, natural talent!
After a long day at the lake, the kids were bushed! They were out within minutes of getting in the car. I heart my little family.
This weekend we'll be hanging out with Chuck again and celebrating the 4th of July in their pool. I'm really looking forward to relaxing and celebrating the birth of our country!

Hello Summer!

2010-06-25T16:44:00.005-05:00

I love summer, I love swimming and cook outs and trips to the zoo. Here are some pics from our summer so far. Above is Miss Bailey showing her love of popcorn, if you ever want her to smile, just say "Do you wanna sit on the couch and eat popcorn?" She sprints to the couch screaming "pacorn, pacorn!" It makes my heart happy.
We got a little plastic pool last summer and only used it once or twice, but this summer the kids are big enough to actually enjoy the pool. Caden came out strutting in his Nemo trunks.

And one of my favs from the summer, is this one of Bailey. She was sooo excited to swim! It was a hot day and we had to wait until evening for the sun to lessen up before we could go out, but her smile totally made it worth the wait!
I got onto Bailey for splashing Caden, then he splashed her back, so they were on their own! It was so funny to listen to them squeal and laugh together!
Bailey was so tired after the pool that I got her in her jammies and then went to take care of Caden. When I went out to the livingroom to put her in bed, this is what I found.
Caden is officially a walker. He started teetering around about a month ago, but just in the last week has he really figured it out. He walks everywhere now and seems to be much happier now that he can keep up with his sister.
Bailey is becoming quite photogenic, she knows how to work it!
Bailey and Caden are growing and bonding, it is so fun to watch. They love to get up on the couch and wrestle. This is not something I taught them! They figured it out on their own!
So, things are going well. I know people have been praying for us because big things are on the horizon. We also have some fun plans for the next couple weeks including going to visit Jason's friend for the 4th of July as well as going down to see my friend, Jessica for my birthday (which is also her birthday!) Things are good, God is great, Life is sweet.

6 Months is a long time.

2010-06-17T23:25:00.005-05:00

Six months ago, I spent Christmas in Bozeman. I loved every minute. It's been a long time since I've seen these people and I'm missing them a lot. Especially the people pictured above. They are two of my biggest fans. They are the kind of parents that I want to be and they have the kind of love I try to show Jason every day. I wish they lived next door.
I also miss this gorgeous girl. She always has sound advice and a listening ear. She is one of the most encouraging people on the planet. I want to be more like her.
These two clowns live about 10 miles from my house. I see them about once every 3 months. This makes me sad, but they are 2 very busy people. Whenever they come over, I seem to have stomach cramps from laughter. I miss them, even though they are in my town.
This guy is one of a kind. I got to hang out with him a lot when he was at JBU, but then he transferred. I'm glad he's happier where he is now, I just wish Montana State University was in Oklahoma. He is one of my favorite people on the planet and my children adore him.
This here, is my twin. She has my nose, my eyes (except in brown) and my hips. I love her. She makes me laugh more than anyone and when I'm with her I just want to hug her all day. She is great at making me smile, even when I'm frustrated and she's been "my pal" since she was about 4.
This gorgeous lady amazes me. Not only is she amazingly cool because she is a Keena, she manages to be athletic, social and beautiful all at once! She was only 8 when I went off to college, so she'll always be 8 in my mind. But she's become this beautiful, smart and funny woman that makes me proud over and over again with her continual accomplishments. I miss her too.
And this guy, this guy is incredible. He has it hard as the youngest of seven, but he is strong enough to handle it! He is the athlete my dad always dreamed he would have and our whole family watches him in amazement. He makes me smile with his sarcastic humor (something I may have taught him) and I know my kids adore him!
I love Tulsa, I love my little family and our cute little house. I am so blessed to be here, I just miss my Bozeman family. I wish I could hug them, go out to lunch with them and sit in the bleachers at my David and Grace's many games. I know that God has us apart for a reason, and I feel blessed to have gotten to spend Christmas with them, I just get a little weepy around the 6 month mark. I'm having Keena withdraws. I love them all. Just 5 more months and we'll be living it up at Thanksgiving!!!

Bestest Anniversary Ever!

2010-06-11T21:32:00.011-05:00

Our 4th Anniversary was yesterday. It was fabulous! First off, I got a call from Dana and she said, congrats! I was confused, then remembered that I had entered an anniversary contest and we had won! This radio station...gave us...
which were beautiful!
As well as a $20 gift certificate from Kaffe Bona which is a really cute chain of coffee shops around Tulsa. Then I got a package from this beautiful woman!
And it contained a couple cute outfits! Bailey got an adorable new dress and white sandals (I COULD NOT find any in Tulsa!)
Caden also got a few new outfits, this one is one of my favs. It makes his eyes look incredible!

Then I dropped off the kids at this wonderful woman's house so I could take Jason out on a lunch date.
We went here, it was Barnett's-esque. About a gillion calories, but SOOOO good!
Then, after a wonderful lunch and nap time, I dropped the kids off at this cute couple's house for a wonderful date night!
Then we went by and this guy...
let us borrow THIS!!!
And we went here with a gift card from Jason's cousin. It was perfect!
I curled my hair like I did it on our wedding day, just a reminder of the woman Jason married.
It was a great night, a perfect day and a wonderful way to celebrate 4 years with the most incredible man I've ever met! Thanks to everyone who helped make this day so special!

They just won't stop!

2010-06-04T12:06:00.007-05:00

So, I sat down my children and asked them very nicely to stop growing. I want them to stay just the way they are forever. I asked politely and said please, but they said it was a no go. Bailey is learning new things and becoming quite the little Einstein. Caden is getting so big. It's so amazing to see him grow out of the baby stage and into a little boy that has me wrapped around his little finger!
We went to the zoo on Memorial day, here are some pictures from that beautiful day!

Bailey watching the camels.
Bailey thinks she's as big as me. I decided to let her show me how strong she was, so she pushed Caden for awhile!
The turtle statue is a very popular photo-op. One of these days I'll get a shot of both of them smiling!

The kids loved this big tortoise. It was so active and kept moving around and sticking his head in and out. It was great!

We've been to the zoo at least 8 times this year, but only one other time has Jason gotten to come with us. Bailey LOVES hanging out with her daddy! It was such a special treat.
We went on the train, I love both of their faces!
Bailey looks forward to the train from the moment we step in the zoo. It's always the last thing we do though because it takes us back to the entrance.
Jason's Aunt Lyn and Uncle Dan are missionaries in Romania. They have two adopted children, Sam and Briana that are both 10. They have all been in the States for 9 months, and we had a going away dinner for them. The kids had so much fun together!

Can you believe Caden is this big!?!
Smile!!!

Briana wanted to take a couple pictures, so I let her use my camera. I was very impressed when I saw this one! After minor edits, I think it's one of my new favs!
It's been a really fun couple months. Things are going well, life is beautiful and God is GOOD!

He can walk!

2010-05-21T23:36:00.002-05:00

Most children start walking around 12 months old. My 19 month old son showed no interest in the hobby. After much prayer and several dr. appointments, he decided he would give it a whirl!