Anything for my girls!

As most of you know, I have been in Young Women for 4 YEARS now - (not that I'm complaining ... I would never ...) ;) But over the years I have become the official dance hairdresser for the girls. So, Saturday I went down and did Kinley and Erica's hair for Homecoming. It was fun hangin' with my girls - I truly love them. Anyway, the experience to me was "blog worthy" - so here is a picture of Erica and her lovely hair! Unfortunately I didn't get Kinley's pic but it was extraordinary - you'll just have to trust me on that! I love you girls!! Really and truly.

Too Tired to Blog

Okay so lately I've just been too tired to BLOG - so this is a "catch-up" post. I'll try and be a little bit more on top of things. But here's a little re-cap from the week.

TUESDAY - I spent most of the day at Paula's house helping her paint her nursery. It just needed to get done before the baby (with no name) comes ANY DAY NOW!

So, we painted it light blue and brown! It turned out ADORABLE - but I don't have a picture of the finished product, so you'll just have to trust me on that one.

That night I went to the "So You Think You Can Dance" concert with Leslie (thanks, Les!) - but I forgot my camera and am still waiting on some pictures of that so stay tuned....

Wednesday - We had our long time BFFs over for dinner. (since we ditched 'em the night before to go to the concert! - Sorry Kristy!) It was lots of fun catching up - and was long overdue!! Here's their cute family.

Their little Nick is the cutest little guy - you would die! He says "BYU eats boogers!" and kids never lie so...

Thursday - SOCCER, SOCCER, SOCCER!!

FRIDAY - Friday was too boring to blog about, really. Just a relaxing day. But here's the cutest picture of Cole that day playing with his favorite doggie. You can tell when a stuffed animal is a favorite of Cole's because he'll bite the nose! Mason did that too - I love it!

TODAY (Saturday) - So far - well not much. But I had an extremely frustrating morning with Hallie. She is so stinkin' shy - like PAINFULLY shy that she just can't function in crowds. I kinda just had it with her this morning at Soccer when she played her final game of the season and just stood there AGAIN! She has some serious "stage fright" issues that need to be resolved. No amount of coaxing, bribing or threatening has worked.

To show you what I mean, here she is on a normal basis at my house:

And here she is at Soccer (or Dance or Preschool or anywhere public):

It topped it off when she had pictures today and wouldn't stop putting her fingers in her mouth. I asked for my money back and told her we were done with Soccer. I don't know what to do. I tell ya - I feel like a failure sometimes.

So that's my week thus far ... "In a Nutshell" - (get it??)

Happy Anniversary!

Today is my Mom & Dad's 33rd wedding anniversary, and I just wanted to say...

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM & DAD!

I have only been married for 7 1/2 years and I feel like that is an accomplishment. Imagine 33! I seriously couldn't ask for better examples of love and devotion than my two wonderful parents. I can honestly say that in my entire life, there has never been a time where I have doubted their unconditional true love for each other. I am so proud to be their daughter. I love you both very much. Thanks for all you do!

It's official....

...I'M OLD!

So, I turned the big THIRTY last week - and I can honestly say, it wasn't fun. I'm not sure why it effected me so bad - but I really do feel OLDER. Usually birthdays just come and go for me without really noticing. But this one felt weird. Ugh. Oh well, I guess it's time for me to grow up and embrace my true age. Anyway, as we all know ... I have great friends - and therefore this is what I woke up to that morning. Thanks guys for never forgetting to announce my birthday to the world! (and a special thanks to Paula for the TOILET PAPER! - You're dead.)

After spending the majority of the day with my friend, Tina - who I'm afraid felt obligated to hang out with me all day since it was my birthday. Thanks, Tina - and thanks for LUNCH! It was a lot of fun... I came home to these awesome flowers from my Dad!! My dad never forgets about me and always manages to send me something to let me know he cares. He is the greatest Dad ever... and I mean it! Thanks, Dad - I love you.

And later that evening, I went and saw cute Kinley and Erica rock the house in their High School Musical play. They did awesome! Good job guys.

After which I came home to my adorable family - who had cake and ice cream ready for me. And my kids had worked really hard to make me these adorable presents filled with all sorts of fun stuff. Thanks, guys! I love you.

And don't worry, my birthday didn't end there! The next day, we all went to the Spaghetti Factory for dinner (my favorite) to celebrate a little more.

I have the best family in the whole wide world. I am truly blessed!

Oh and don't you worry - my sweet husband took me to the Little America Hotel for the weekend. It was so much fun! We just relaxed and spent some much needed time together. Thanks to my mom who so kindly watched my kids for us so we could have a little bit of time together. Thanks Mom!! And Thanks, Ross - I love you very much. You truly are the best husband I could ever ask for.

So, don't worry - my big 30th birthday didn't go uncelebrated!

Thanks to all who made it really fun and special. I couldn't ask for better family and friends.

Happy Birthday Chad!

Today is my brother, Chad's birthday. He is my only sibling, and therefore my very favorite! I spent most of my childhood following him around trying to be included in everything he did. I have always looked up to him and wanted to be around him. He is one of my very best friends in the whole world, and I can't imagine my life without him in it.

My Brother IS:

• Very, very FUNNY!
• Good at I everything he does.
• A BIG sports fan. (and is good at all of them)
• A huge StEeLeRs fan.
• SMART
• A great Dad.
• Talented
• A hard worker
• Loyal
• A great Brother!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CHAD!

I love you!

Something MUST be done ....

... about the FOOTBALL OBSESSION!

Okay, so we all know about Mason's newest obsession - FOOTBALL. When my sweet little boy likes something - he REALLY likes it. He learns everything he can possibly learn about it and then has to practically LIVE it. The poor kid can't even get it off his mind. He makes his sister play with him, his friends, his grandpa and most of all his daddy. And if he wasn't playing it, he was playing it on a video game or watching it on TV. Of course, it doesn't help that it's football season and his dad has it on the TV 24/7! But it finally got to the point where something had to be done. He was sitting out on the front lawn throwing the football up in the air and catching it for HOURS straight! I finally told him that he had to limit the time he spent doing anything football. So, after a HUGE tantrum - (I'm talkin' slammed doors, pounding fists and kicking feet) we finally came to an agreement. He gets to play football on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. All other days he has to find something else he enjoys doing and do that. It was a rough go - but he almost seems relieved. Please tell me I did the right thing!

Sweet but Scary!

Every day at the Clark home we wake up and spend the morning getting Mason off to school. It was always hard for Hal to watch her brother leave. She loves him and even though they drive each other nuts, she misses the crap out of him while he's gone. So, what does she do with her time waiting for her big brother to come home?....

...she drives her baby brother CrAzY!

She has just very recently become OBSESSED with the him! You can seriously see FEAR in the poor kid's eyes as he sees her approaching. He usually looks at me with that "help me, mom!" look begging for me to do something. She drags him around, dresses him up and is constantly in his face. I try and stop it, but she truly cannot help herself, I'm afraid. Here are some of the cuter, more pleasant moments with Hallie and Cole keeping themselves occupied until big brother comes home.

He loves her to death, but he's terrified of her! I hope he survives.

Oh... and here's a picture of the newest resident in our home! (don't worry, I will be disposing of it as soon as I possibly can without Mason knowing)

I HATE SPIDERS!

I love my life!

Ya so we kinda just had a laid back weekend. Nothin' too wild and crazy - which is not like us. But it was kinda nice. It's always nice to slow down and just chill.

Here's a re-cap....We played with our friends, Taygen and Forrest!

We went to Hals soccer game. And no, there wasn't much improvement this week. This may very well have been 1 of maybe 2 times she touched the ball the whole game. She really does like to play - what is up with my kids?

Our nephew, Mitchell plays football for Hilcrest. This week he played in Bountiful - so we thought we'd offer a little support and go watch him play. It was fun - especially for Mason to see his cousin play football! And yes, Ross gave him a little "pep talk" so to say. Sorry Mitch! We love you!

Make it stop!

MY LITTLE GIRL STARTED PRESCHOOL!

What is going on? I feel like everything is going in fast forward and if I blink I might miss something. How in the world can I have a 1st grader and a pre-schooler? Didn't I just graduate from high school? I'm the type of mom that takes video and pictures of EVERYTHING but then can't go back and look at it EVER because it will make me cry uncontrolably for weeks straight. It's really hard for me to watch my kids grow up. I will never get this time back.

Anyway.... let's try and pull it together here.... Hals started preschool on Tuesday with Mrs. Eggett. She did GREAT! Originally I thought that she would have a hard time, since she has watched her big brother cry practically every day for the past 2 weeks as he goes to school. But I didn't give her enough credit. She went like a champ! She is one of only 3 girls in her class - which is normal for Hals. She is used to being around the boys. And her buddies, Max and Camden are in her class so that helps. I think she was just totally ready after watching her big brother go through all of this the past few years.

She came home from school and had to instantly call her daddy and tell him how "great" her day was. I'm so proud of her. What a big girl!

Okay, so she's not really participating. But at least she's not crying!! I think she did great.

Argh!

Okay, so yesterday (Tuesday) was a rough day for Amy. My little Cole woke up screaming in the middle of the night ... I didn't think much of it, gave him a bottle and he went back to sleep. The next morning, he couldn't open his eye. It watered all day long, and he spent THE ENTIRE DAY with his eyes closed. If he ever even got a peek out - he would cry and close them immediately. I just thought it was irritated, because he poked it or something. After like 8 hours, I decided to take him to the Doctor. Here's how he looked when I came out.K, it looks worse than it is... but isn't that just so sad?

Apparently he scratched his cornia - and this is supposed to force his eye to rest so that it can heal. Whatever - I'm just glad to have it off now. We had to keep it on him for 24 hours. It was a rough day for a mommy. I hate stuff like this. I love you, buddy!

Stubborn Tooth!

Okay, so it's been a couple of weeks since this happened... but it is totally blog worthy - so deal with it. So, like over a month ago, Ross and Mason were playing football in the front yard. As usual, they got a little rough, and when Ross yanked on Mason's face mask, his chin strap came up and knocked his tooth loose. Well, I tried and tried to get him to let me pull it for weeks after that - I tried everything! Bribery, threats... nothin' would get him to let me touch it. So, a couple weeks ago... my buddy, Angie helped me out. (she's a dental assistant - but my kids think she's a doctor) We practically pinned him down, kicking and screaming - but she yanked the sucker out! I was so glad to see that he didn't have that dang tooth, dangling from his mouth anymore. After about a half hour of him screaming afterwords... we finally calmed down and could smile about it.

Thanks, Angie!!

(and don't worry, Mason still loves ya)

Super Saturday

Okay so remember when I said it had been a crazy weekend for us? Well... after the 14 hour Salsa extravaganza, I had the crazy idea to have a Yard Sale. Yes, I am nuts! But we all know this so let's not dwell on it ... so we had a fairly successful yard sale, thanks to my awesome friends who helped me make and put up signs, and my "sis", Tina who helped me sort and organize everything until after midnight - and thanks to my parents who kept me standing on Saturday! Thanks everybody! And of course with every Yard Sale comes a Lemonade Stand (courtesy of Angie) - hey, the kid's have gotta make a living too, ya know!

..............................................................................................................................................................

And then of course, we couldn't miss the U of U football game - not a chance! And since it was my dad's last day in town, we needed to go big - so we decided to ride the new UTA FrontRunner train into town and then take TRACKS up to the game. It worked out pretty smoothly ... but let's just say it took ALL DAY - like we got home well after midnight!

This is us ... (minus me) ... waiting for the train.

As we all know, the University of Utah football season plays a rather LARGE role in the Clark home. We (he) takes things pretty seriously. But as you can see - the stadium was PACKED! So, it's nice to know we aren't alone!

Grandpa and Hallie had a great time!

And our little Mason (bless his heart) has re-lived the game about 40 times since then in our front yard... while asking his dad millions of questions about who plays what position and what happened in which quarter and so on...

And of course there was peace and happiness when we finally got home that night because... THEY WON! (by a lot, might I add)
G O U T E S!

Look out for...

...BLUE LIGHTNING!

Good grief ... I'm not sure if I have ever seen anything quite as cute as this little 3 year old soccer team! I could not stop smiling. Hallie is playing in a co-ed Tiny Tot Soccer league and had her first game on Saturday. She is the only girl on her team - and she can't seem to get herself down the field without her fingers in her mouth and her daddy holding her hand. But when they're this cute... who cares?

I mean seriously... pink cleates and all! She's really excited about playing. . . but Hals hates to have any attention drawn to her. So, hopefully she'll warm up and play.

Go BLUE LIGHTNING!

Apparently Ross is coaching next week - so maybe she'll actually give it a good effort! I'll keep ya posted.

It's Salsa Season!

Alrighty so this was one heck of a weekend, I've just gotta tell ya. Every year about this time, some of my friends and I try to be domestic and make SALSA. It was my turn to do it in my kitchen - what a great way to break in a new kitchen! Last year's batch was AMAZING and we all went through it way too fast. So, we wanted to make more this year. Let's just say we went a little overboard, okay. 108 JARS OF SALSA! Don't ask me how it happened or what we were thinking, but we've got enough salsa to run our own mexican restaurant. Way fun, but let's just say I couldn't feel my feet by the end of the day. It's amazing what can happen when you get 5 girlfriends together to do a project! I know you are all amazed and impressed.

So 14 hours later, with frustrated husbands, tired kids and aching bodies we present to you ....

What Angie has officially named our "BFF Salsa". (yes, and she even made labels!)

And I've just gotta say - it is super fantastically delicious! (not that we'd admit it if it wasn't) Might I suggest warming it up with shredded cheese... mmm... mmm...!

Thanks girls! Let's not do it again until next year okay?

What a kid!

Just wanted to show y'all what I see when I walk into this little guy's room every morning. He brings so much happiness into our home!

Cherry Hill...

..."the greatest fun spot there ever was!"

Okay so don't laugh but yes, the very first official Clark family camping trip was to Cherry Hill. Let's just say we don't do a lot of camping. And what we have done has been in a cabin. Sad, I know... but it is officially one of our goals now! (not that that means a whole lot) Anyway, we had a blast last weekend with our buddies campin' out at Cherry Hill. I am so glad that Tina and Scott had the idea and made it all happen - thanks guys! You know you are "virgin" campers when you can't even get your own tent up without needing some assistance. And yes, we went for the giant hotel of a tent - it was awesome.

And heaven only knows why we don't do this more often, because the kids has a blast! They loved sleeping in the tent! Prior to this, the only tent my kids had ever slept in was a shark shaped one in my living room. Sad.

We swam all day and everyone was pooped by the time we got home, but it turned out to be so super fun. I think we might make it a tradition every Labor Day weekend!

Thanks everybody!