Fierce Enough to be a Star

Amber is in complete Princess mode these days, and her favorite apparel comes from the dress-up bin instead of her dresser drawers. Here she is modeling her Ariel/Aquamarine garb and showing off her newly-acquired strutting skills. Thank you, Project Runway.

Call Me Carlos

Long ago, Amber began calling Karli "Carlos". She made up the nickname all by herself and it made me laugh so hard when she, out of nowhere, said, "Hey, Carlos, get over here!" I thought this picture was fabulous because Karli has a cute little Mexi-stache made from caramel frosting. Now all she needs is a poncho and a sombrero.

Life's a Breeze When You're Not Picky

Rex loves to suck his thumb, but he'll settle for any of his fingers as long as he can put something in his mouth (thus he's been sleeping like log through the night for more than a month now, yay!). Here is a sample of the various comfort mechanisms he employs.

Shear Genius

I've become a huge fan of some competitive reality shows on Bravo lately: Top Design, Project Runway, and Shear Genius. While I watched an episode the other day, Amber ran into the bathroom and emerged with all of my hair styling tools. Then she said, "Mom, who is that girl with short blonde hair? I'm her." So I said, "Hi Nicole. Can you cut and style my hair for me?" Nicole/Amber said, "Sure, but I need you to hold the scissors." She handed me some invisible scissors and went to work on my atrocious style (or is it atrocious because I let these amateurs have at it every day? Hmm...). She was using all the lingo from the show and explaining the steps she took just like the stylists on T.V. did. Then Karli became the assistant and held up the mirror for me to see. She kept asking me, "You look pretty? See?" It is now an every day occurance and it's so cute (that would be the situation...obviously not my hair)!

Ready, Set, Roll!

Rex can now roll over all by himself. He did it first on Thursday and now loves to sleep on his tummy and make us worry about him all night. The best part is that he usually needs the leverage from having his thumb in his mouth to get all the way over. I can't believe he's growing up so quickly. It's fun but sad (what a mommy thing to say!).

Just Leave Me Alone

Karli is learning so many words and phrases at this point, and sometimes it's downright hilarious to hear such a sweet, adorable little voice say some of the things she does. Here's a perfect example; she sings "I Feel My Savior's Love" and then tells Amber to leave her alone.

I'm Leslie

Our friends Leslie and Derrick had their baby boy last week, and we took our kids over to see him last night. Upon returing, Karli immediately took out her five baby dolls and re-named them Oscar after the new baby. Then, she re-named herself Leslie and has been taking great care of her "babies" ever since. It's adorable! By the way, congraulations to the Larson family!

Slap Your Grandma

Here's a clip of Amber singing her favorite song, "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk". She thinks the title is "Slap Your Grandma." It's pretty cute to hear her sing jibberish when the words say "Keepin' perfect rhythm, makes you wanna swing along."

Intriguing Tragedy

I am so fascinated by the Caylee Anthony case; it's all I watch on T.V. and can't get enough of Greta's analysis (Amber now recognizes her and was disappointed when Greta took the night off last week). I guess I just can't comprehend how a mother could appear so empty and nonchalant when her darling daughter has been missing for two months. Adam says it's the perfect defense because it's easy to prove insanity when there's no emotional reaction or excited statements. I'm dying to see how this case plays out and hope law enforcement gets to the bottom of it very soon.

No More Law School!

Adam's last day of law school was Friday. As soon as he came home from turning in his final paper, he hit the hay for some well-deserved rest. I'm so proud of him for making this grand accomplishment and for setting a goal and attaining it no matter the cost. He has sacrificed more than I can document for me and our kids, and we all think he's the greatest dad, husband, friend, student, and pugilistic-near-attorney ever! :) Congratulations, Adam. We love you!

Urban Cavalry

If you read my post last week, you know how I feel about these Rascally devils who cruise around town on their state-supplied motor scooters. While outside with the girls this morning, I saw five different riders eek by on their pimped-out chairs (I think I saw hydraulics and a bass cannon on one..he he), and I felt good to know that one of the largest ladies was miffed because my girls dirtied up the sidewalk where she had to drive. Giddyup!

FYI: The guy in the green shirt is not an offender in my eyes; he's actually disabled.

It's Official: We're White Trash

The minute Amber woke up this morning, she said, "Mom, I have the BEST idea. We can get Rex's tub and fill it with water and take it outside and dump it in the dirt and put on our swimming suits and play in the big........huge........MUD PUDDLE!" Despite my ever-increasing desire to avoid messes at all costs, I could tell that the wheels in her little brain had been turning all night to work out every detail, so I couldn't say no.

The girls loved rolling around like piglets in the mud puddle we created between the sidewalk and the seven or eight feeble blades of grass that are left of our front lawn, and to make this vision of low-class living even more authentic, I was still in my pajamas. We were quite the hee-haw spectacle, but the girls had a grand time and I even got a little bit of a sunburn line on my horrifically white feet.

Welcome to the Family!

This is my adorable new niece, Olivia, born to Jennifer and Jimmy on July 21st. Isn't she sweet? This is one of my favorite photos. Her older brothers are already protective and love to put their feet on her soft hair (just like Amber and Karli do to Rex...maybe they're related). I can't wait to meet her!

Today is a Wonderful Day

Today has been a great day! It actually started last night, when Adam and I got to watch a "grown-up movie" and then went to bed at the same time, with not a single child in the bed with us! I know, I know...it's a miracle, and it was only for a few hours (Amber does a spectacular 3 a.m. jump from her bed to ours), but it was grand while it lasted. This morning, I woke up early, ate chocolate and oatmeal cookies for breakfast, fed the kids, cleaned the house, and only had to scrub up one potty-training mess (is it sad that this makes me happy?) which was conveniently right next to the toilet and immediately before bath time, so it wasn't too bad.
Our wonderful friends Deanne, Sophie, and Truman came over for some chatting, playtime, and lunch after which all three of my kids magically fell asleep at the same time. Obviously, I'm catching up on some neglected blogging and scrapbooking, rockin' out to some old school John Mayer, and since I already have dinner planned, I'm thoroughly enjoying this day. I can't decide if it's great or pathetic that these small things get me all jazzed up...it must mean I'm a stay-at-home mom, he he he. I joke about it more than I should, probably, but I definitely couldn't ask for a better occupation!

All-American Boy

Rex is already three months old! I can't believe how quickly time is passing (oh, I sound like an old lady, don't I?). He is now wearing larger clothes and fits into these two adorable outfits. My friend, Diana, gave Rex the darling camo ensemble and I found the tres-American, Ralph Lauren overalls at T.J. Maxx for a great deal (good 'ol Ralph...my favorite designer of all time!). Rex's hair is decidedly blonde and his huge blue eyes (and his enormous smile that inevitably disappears as soon as the camera's flash fires) make him the quintessential American baby. He's a joy and we love having him in our family!

Olympic Aspirations

On August 8th, the opening day of the Olympics, Amber and Karli watched an episode of "Dora the Explorer" about teamwork in which all the team members won gold medals. Amber asked if she could have a necklace like Dora's, so I busted out the family-reunion-Olympics inspiration and made them each a gold medal out of some jar lids and ribbons. I had no idea they'd be a hit, but the gals still love them.

I think they like the medals even more now since we've watched several Olympic events together. Amber, Karli, and I particularly enjoy women's gymnastics and diving, while men's swimming and the genetic freakshow/phenomenon that is Micahel Phelps seems to be the entire family's choice for entertainment. He's fun to watch! I can't believe how easy he makes swimming look. I'll be thrilled if any of my kids make it to the Olympics, but I secretly hope they keep colligiate athletics as their ultimate goal!

It Makes Father Happy

After three years of living in ghetto-ville, both Amber and Karli have learned some not-so-choice phrases from the neighbors (okay...fine...some come from me and Adam, but not many!). Despite the rule I established for all children who enter my house that prohibits using the Lord's name in vain, Amber inevitably began saying "Oh my $#@" one day and naturally, Karli chimed right in as well. As I calmly tried to explain when it's appropriate to use the word God, I mentioned that it's Heavenly Father's name and it makes him sad if we say it in a naughty way. Karli said, "Dat make Heee Faddah sad?" ("That makes Heavenly Father sad?") and I said, "Yes, but whe we sing 'I am a Child of God', it makes Him happy" because Amber was thoroughly confused as to why we could say it sometimes and not others. Now, Karli uses this logic to explain every situation, but has conveniently omitted "Heavenly" from the phrase. Amber had an "accident" today (it's actually called peeing all over the bathroom floor when the toilet is one inch away from her...arrrrgh!) and Karli said, "Dat make Faddah sad, Amby!" When Karli ate all of her food the other day, she said, "See! I eat all mine food and dat make Faddah so happy!" She even uses it to describe happy or sad movies, respectively, and completely random events like getting a letter in the mail or spilling something on one's clothes. It's pretty hilarious.

A Founcy Zucchini

My sister, Allison, used to work for a Brazilian imports company and snagged this itsy-bitsy adorable bikini for Amber last year. While it is now strictly bathtub wear, she sneaked into her room and put it on all by herself yesterday so I let her wear it around the house for a few hours. How could I resist when she told me she wanted to wear her "founcy zucchini"? By the way, that means fancy bikini. :)

An Angel in Scrubs

Last summer when we lived in Utah, I experienced my first migraine and thought I was having a stroke. Since our insurance generally doesn't cover out-of-state emergencies, I put off going to the ER as long as possible while I waited for the phone call from McLaren authorizing the visit. They never called back, so finally when I couldn't see out of my left eye, I packed up and headed to AF hospital. The doctor there, Dr. Shelton, took great care of me and even gave me a CT scan to make sure I didn't have any clots in my brain.
After returning to Michigan and filing paperwork for a year, I found out that my primary insurance would cover part of the bill, but there was a hefty chunk left that my secondary insurance would have to cover. Of course, Dr. Shelton doesn't do business with the secondary insurance company, so I was left to pay for the rest of the visit. May I take a tangent here for a moment? I totally believe in paying for what I use, self sufficiency, etc. I didn't want to go to the ER because I wasn't sure that the visit would be covered, but I honestly felt like I'd have two kids and a husband who would be mother/wife-less if I didn't go (it was a really bad migraine!). That said, I knew I needed to pay the bill but we absolutely didn't have enough money to cover it (or even a significant portion of it). I followed the secondary company's suggestion and filed a hardship claim, detailing that my husband is a law student and we were just barely scraping by, etc. Yesterday, I got a letter from Dr. Shelton:
"Dear Mrs. Clark,
I have read your letter concerning your financial situation and I understand more than you probably know what that situation is like. I too went to Michigan, Wayne State University Medical School, and I know what it is like to have a family and not much money. When I was in Detroit many friends and church members took us under their wings and gave us furniture, food, and other necessities without asking for anything in return. These people knew that I was not planning to stay in Michigan. All they asked was that if I ever had the chance to help another family out like they had helped me, then I was to extend to them the same gift that I had received. What this means to me is that I have asked my billing company to wipe out the debt you owe to me. In exchange, however, I ask of you the same thing...If you or your husband ever have a chance to assist another family in need, please give them that assistance. If you do then I will consider this bill paid in full."
Obviously, I was so touched that I broke into tears. I'm thankful for the charity, kindness, and understanding of this doctor and I hope that we will be able to help LOTS of families in need because we have been so blessed in our educational endeavors. To all of you who have helped us in so many ways, thank you. Your kindness and generosity are appreciated more than you'll ever know.

Adam...Karli...Any Similarities?

The other day, Amber found this photo of Adam in the tub when he was a toddler. I can't believe how much Karli looks like him. Karli even thought it was herself in the photo. What a bunch of cuties!