Take a Hint

This post might make some of you mom's out there a little mad or even a little jealous. At least those of you that have had/are having issues and challenges with potty training. Here I am, in complete denial that my baby girl is a big girl, not a baby, while she keeps giving me hints that she is ready to be out of diapers.
I bought the Quincess a new "froggy potty" about a month ago. I was not intending on buying one that day, I just walked by it at Target and there is was, so cute and cheap. I thought to myself, "Maybe we will work on this in the fall when the kids are back in school and I can stay home for 3 days."
But she keeps giving me hints like carrying her potty into every room and sitting on it, asking me to take off her diaper and then sitting on it, putting her babies on the potty and saying, "baby going potty!" and putting Elmo on the potty and saying, "Elmo going potty!"Then today we were at Subway and she looked up at me and said, "I go bafroom" and started walking towards the bathrooms. I quickly took her in, ripped off her diaper, and sat her on the toilet. She sat there for a few seconds then let out a big fart! Okay so it's not actually going potty but she tried!

It's amazing to me because we haven't taught her any of this (not talking about the farting)...she is simply the youngest child who is very observant of EVERYTHING her siblings and parents do! She really is incredible in her ability to understand most things (for a 2 year old) and her ability to communicate.
SO, I guess I'm gonna have to accept that she really is a "big girl" and pull-out those cute tiny panties and get going on the potty training. The only problem is finding a 3 day gap where I don't have to leave the house!

My Little Shadow

In a previous post I mention how Quincy mimics just about everything we do (as most kids do). Well the other day I got a bloody nose just as I was rushing out the door to take the kids to the bus stop. I didn't have time to deal with it and I was also worried about getting blood on the new car so I quickly stuffed a wad of toilet paper up my nose to plug it. You know what I'm talking about.
A little later that day, Quincy disappeared for a minute, then came out of my bedroom looking like this:
I was laughing so hard! My friend Megan was at my house and I'm sure she thought we were WAY weird!

Oh BTW, we did get our new car a week ago and we love it! It's an Escalade ESV. It's the size of a Suburban. It's black. Never had a black car. It was a good deal. It has DVD and Playstation. Apparently it has sweet wheels...I wouldn't know. It's pimped out. I just need my doo rag.

WOW

For the Reflections contest at school last fall, Millie made a video (well, started to make a video) about the theme which was "WOW." In the video she introduced her idea as "WOW" being "MOM" flipped upside-down. Then she goes on to say all of the things that make her think WOW about her mom (me).
It made me feel so good to hear her talk about all the things I do that she notices and loves because most of the time I feel like none of my kids notice or appreciate it all that much! I know other moms know what I'm talking about. Most days we just exist to serve, take orders, drive around, feed, pay for, and bathe our kids. But its the moments when they do say, "thanks mom" or "I love you so much" or such things as giving hugs/kisses that make my heart melt and make me feel like the most blessed woman in the world.
I experienced lots of these moments the last couple days...Mothers day weekend. Saturday Grandpa Tom (my dad) had everyone up for a delicious dinner. He did all of the work, thanks Dad! It was so nice to be able to relax for awhile. Sunday I woke-up to Sam and the kids fixing my favorite breakfast. Then it was overload of home-made cards and gifts from the kids, each expressing their love to me. I also got a pedi gift certificate :) Then we went to church where the kids sang a beautiful song in sacrament. After church we drove down to Grandma Judy's and had a really enjoyable afternoon/evening as well as a yummy dinner that everyone contributed to, so no moms had to work too much. Thanks Judy, Casey, Jess, Candice, and Jenny! We even got to talk to Uncle Elder Sean in Minnesota!
Being a mom is the best, and having the best mom(s) ever is the best! I love you mom! Hope all the "moms" in my life had a nice day and remembered how we have the most awesomest job in the world (hard, but awesome)!
Oh yeah, and thanks to Aunt Bee for coming and having a sleep-over with us Friday! The kids LOVE when you guys come! It helped Millie feel not so jealous about you getting married and caring more about Doug then her! ;)

Random Clark Happenings

We LOVE Draper Park! We spent about 2 hours there recently and it was perfect in that it has really fun playground stuff for all ages, as well as a great bike/jogging path lined with trees. Here are some pics:
Then the boys had a great time giving dad a buzz cut:

Next Amilia danced AWESOME at her duet and team comp. last Saturday...the boys even went to support her as well as Grandma Cindy, Aunt Heidi, and Alixann. She really is a good little dancer/tumbler... such a cute little thing!
One of these days I need to upload a video of her dances. Oh yeah and her piano recital (I promised Grandpa and Grandma I would).

Whew! That's it for now.

13

WARNING: Sappy Alert!

Last weekend marked 13 years of marriage for us. 13 years! To celebrate we enjoyed a nice yummy dinner, then a couples' massage at Sanctuary Spa, then off to the movies. We talked about how on our wedding day we didn't think we could get any happier, but now here we were, even happier! We talked about our kids, our life, and our accomplishments. We agreed that even though we have had some challenges and many shortcomings over the years, we really have figured out how marriage works (for us). We just GET each other. I help him, he helps me. I let him play, he lets me play. When I want to pig-out, he pig's out with me. He includes me in his interests like buying me a bike and inviting me to ride with him. When I am overwhelmed with housework and laundry, he's right there doing his best to relieve the load, without being asked. He gets that sometimes I need sisterhood and shopping. He is supportive of my career as a nurse by arranging his schedule so I can work 1 shift/week. He puts up with my endless projects.
In turn I understand his need for the things he's passionate about: bike riding, skiing, and such things that take him away from me and the kids. I pack-up the kids and go to his races and events so we can cheer him on. I try to have a yummy dinner ready and an orderly house when he comes home. BUT, I know it is never expected and always appreciated. And if some days it just isn't happening (oh yeah it happens) I don't have to worry because I know he understands and won't care. I'm sure I do more (I hope) but you get the idea. And did I mention he is the best dad ever? I LOVE YOU babe.

This is us on our anniversary last year:On a Carribean Cruise with 17 other friend couples! Above we are sailing, to the left I am zip-lining through the jungle, to the right Sam is getting a little crazy playing a really fun game (no we're not drunk)!
Below we are getting ready to head out on a kayak/scuba adventure. It was a trip we will never forget.

SOLD

Well, in the last 2 weeks we've gone from 3 cars to 1. We sold the truck a couple weeks ago...we listed it in the morning and it sold later that same day! We weren't quite prepared to see it go so fast - it was pretty sad; we loved that truck!

Then, last week we decided that maybe it was time to update our family truckster....the Yukon XL (0r "Suburban", or "mom's car" as we call it). We agreed that we would list it for a certain price, and if we could get it, then we would sell it and get a new car. If not, then no big deal, we'll keep it.
So Sam listed it and sure enough, last Friday Sam got a phone call, met the guy in Ogden, and watched as our Suburban drove away forever! The guy had a check already for us, it was such an easy sale! Again, we were surprised and a little sad about parting with our car. It has seen us through so many family vacations and has been a great car. It even cleaned up really well despite being totally trashed by the kids (chicken nugget under the seat from who knows how long ago, dried milk from Quincy shaking her bottle, something growing in the cup holder in the very back, dents in the leather seats from numerous car seats and boosters, etc). There were some small tears from shed from Millie and Sambo when we told them it was gone. They were like, "we didn't even get to say goodbye!"

Good thing we still have our "sports car!" But it's a problem...6 people with 1 car that holds 5 passengers. We've had a rental car the last few days but we just dropped that off today...we need to find our new car soon! What will it be? We were thinking about down-sizing but realized that with all of our adventures and 4 kids we still need the space. I guess we'll see...

2 Wheeler

As mentioned in a previous post, Will learned how to ride his "2 wheeler." I think it's funny how the kids call their bikes that for a time when the training wheels come off, like they have to make sure everyone knows!
In March, the week of his birthday, it was nice spring weather (very short lived). But it was enough that we got outside and it didn't take long before Will had mastered riding his bike! He got a new Spiderman bike for his birthday, but he definitely felt more secure on this little "Rocket" bike handed down from Sambo. He was so happy and Dad and I were even happier. It's so cute watching him pedal twice as fast as the big boys and girls to keep up with them.
Because of the cold snowy weather we had about a month gap that he couldn't ride his bike. He has been anxious to get out and see if he could remember. A few days ago I took this video of him...he had been riding for awhile so he was tired by the time I recorded him. But you can still get a taste of his wicked biking skills. His favorite is leaving skid marks.