JACKPOT!

Well, my radio contest obsession finally paid off, and Adam and I are going to see GEORGE STRAIT on Friday! What a perfect birthday gift to myself, he he. I have always loved George Strait's music and can't believe I actually won the contest. Here's how it played out:

I was driving home from the bank and heard the cue to call KBUL 93 for a contest called "Guess the weight for Strait". I dialed the number once and got a busy signal, of course, so I thought "I'll try one more time". It rang and rang and rang and finally someone said, "Hi, what's your name and where are you from?" Since I've had experience with driving/refereeing screaming children/trying to concentrate on a contest, I pulled over, turned off the radio, and shushed my kids. I gave the DJ my requisite information and prepared to guess the weight of some random object.

Joe Johnson is the fat one...he he he.

Eventually, they asked me "How overweight is Joe Johnson?" (he's one of the DJs). My options were a)82 lbs. b)53 lbs. c)3 lbs. I had seen a picture of him years ago on T.V. and he was fairly portly, so first I thought the answer must be A. However, they quickly blurted out that he's only 5'6", so I guessed B. It was the right answer and I went crazy! When Joe said, "Yeah, I really do need to loose some weight," I responded, "Well, if your being overweight comes at the expense of me winning these tickets, be as fat as you want to be!" Now that I think about it, that was a pretty mean thing to say, but...oops! I was too excited to think straight, and now we're on our way to see Mr. Strait. Hooray!

Here We Go to Idaho

At 3:00 on Thursday afternoon, as we swam in our backyard, my mom called to see if we wanted to go to Rexburg in 15 minutes. We agreed, jumped out and dried off as fast as we could, threw some stuff into a suitcase, and before I knew it, my kids and I were strapped in her Suburban and on our way to the land of my childhood. I was excited to see my grandparents, the Liljenquists and Rydalches, to eat frozen yogurt at Millhollow, and to show my kids all my favorite places from when I was younger.

First, we made a stop at ISU in Pocatello so my sisters could hear their friends' concert on the quad. It was fun to see my old buildings (Liberal Arts and Social Sciences) and to let my kids run down the hill I had to climb every day to get to class. Then, we drove to Rexburg and crashed at Grandma Marge and Grandpa Vern's house.

The next morning, we ran errands, I visited Wal Mart which is the biggest store in town, and as much as I hate to say it, I was again reminded of how much I can't stand Rexburg now that I'm grown. Don't get me wrong...I loved growing up there and I have lots of dear friends and family in the area. I couldn't EVER move back there. It's just not my kind of place, you know?

After all the errands were finished, we loaded up and headed for Heise Hot Springs. This was my place of employment for six years and I love it! We swam for a bit and it was fun to see that my friend Brennan, with whom I worked all those years, and his wife are now managing the whole Heise conglomerate. Amber loved the water slide and she was like a little fish. I had to drag her out of the water when it was time to leave.

Angela and Courtney saved the day; they took Amber down the slide at least a dozen times!

The cold pool was still just as cold as ever...but it felt great on a 90-degree day. Rex liked having his feet in the water, but not much else.

Karli wasn't really interested in swimming that day, so she hung out by my mom and worked on her tan.

After swimming, we drove back to Rexburg and I began the arduous task of getting my three overly-tired children to bed. It took me four hours to finally get them all to sleep, and I felt so bad for my poor grandparents who couldn't get a moment of peace and quiet that whole night.

On Saturday, my cousin Greg married the darling Jen in the Rexburg temple and I attended the ceremony. I'd never been in that temple and it was so fun to see how beautiful it is! Also, I recognized every single worker there, which was kind of cool and creepy at the same time. After the many, many Mormon wedding proceedings, my grandparents Liljenquist met us at Porter Park so the kids could ride the carousel. It's a classic Rexburg attraction and went through a major restoration when I was 10 years old. I loved being able to take my kids for a ride on it and they had a blast!

Karli prefers the stationary benches, but Amber and Rex liked the tiny horses that moved up and down.

Rex made a new best friend: my Grandpa Vern. Every time Grandpa walked into the room, Rex ran to him and tried to climb up his legs to be held. It was adorable! Grandpa took Rex on the deck to swing, played hide and seek with the coasters, and offered about a million hugs to my little boy. They were darling together!

The very best part of the trip was when my Grandma Marge offered to make ebelskivers, a Danish pancake that is round and divine. Our family's ancestry is from Denmark, so these are a special treat in the Liljenquist family. When I was younger, we'd go to Grandma's house for a heritage lesson and to enjoy some of her yummy Danish cuisine. I've always wanted to learn to make them (it's a process!), so I had a lesson from the master chef herself. I even made an entire batch all by myself and they turned out to be delicious. I found a pan and brought home the recipe, so I'm all set to make them for Adam. YUM!

Ebelskivers...the best breakfast I'll ever eat.

Despite bringing home runny noses and sore throats and trying to function on my mom's schedule with three small children, it was a wonderful trip. Perhaps I'll go back in another six months when I forget again how much I appreciate living elsewhere!

Wow, I Really DO Have a Life

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I posted last; I completely feel like an old lady when I say, "Time is going by too quickly!", but it really is. We've had a fun summer so far with visits from Adam's sister and her delightful family, Adam's parents, my sister and her cute family, and lots of swimming. All this, plus lessons, birthdays, doctor visits and the like have left me reeling but having a great time. Hopefully I'll be more devoted to documenting these events for my posterity's sake!

Attackne, Back Aches, Black Eyes, Fat Lips

Things have been crazy around our house. Between a bun in the oven, an almost-three-year-old with feet into which she hasn't yet grown, and another toddler who climbs on EVERYthing, we've had our share of visits to the doctor's office and bloody paper towels. Yikes.
Never have I experienced a full-on case of acne until now. How I pine for those poor junior high students who have cystic acne! It is terrible! I'm discovering huge cysts all over myself, including the dreaded back-ne (although that is easier to cover than facial acne), zits on my legs (it's as gross as it sounds) and all over my face. Additionally, I have just begun the wonderful sciatic-nerve-irritation phase, which will likely last for at least 39 more weeks. I can't wait to have this baby and be done with pregnancy forever!
A week ago, Karli rolled off her bed and hit her eyebrow on the edge of the dresser. She sustained a very impressive black eye (fortunately, no stitches, phew!), after which she tripped in the family room and knocked her cheek on the corner of the coffee table. The poor child looks like an abuse victim, and I think all of our neighbors are wondering. She just needs to grow into those beautiful, ballerina feet.
As I've mentioned before, Rex is part-primate. He has further convinced me of his primal/ancestral awareness by climbing up anything and everything. Sunday night, he climbed up the outside of the staircase and did a wonderful swan dive off the edge. He knocked one of his front teeth straight back into his mouth, bruised his whole upper lip and gums, and bit a huge chunk out of his bottom lip. Even worse, though, was that he bled all over his darling, white, U of M jammies! The nerve.
Fortunately, none of us has contracted H1N1 flu and we are all surviving the rigors of life with kids under age 5. Let's hope these phases fly by.

Happy to Be Happy

Here are ten things that make me happy in life:

1. Adam. He's funny, smart, brutally handsome, helpful, and balances me out in ways I never thought possible. He's the best husband I could ever ask for, and I'm thrilled to have him for a best friend. He's awesome!

2. Amber, Karli, and Rex. They are hilarious and mischievous and adorable. Even when they do naughty things, I have to secretly laugh inside because they think things through with magnificent, childlike logic.

3. Great food. Salmon grilled on a cedar plank, taco salad, fresh blue cheese dressing, strawberries, ice water, good steak cooked just right, home-baked carb-laden items, homemade jam. I could go on and on.

4. Excellent music. Symphonic to acoustic guitar and across all genres, I love my music and relish the way a certain song can evoke so many memories, smells, tastes, and feelings in my mind.

5. Nature. I love to be outside, off roads and in the mountains especially. Fresh air is something I always took for granted until I lived in Michigan, and now I value every breath of crisp, mountain air I can gulp. I love the colors in nature and the peace of being away from everything.

6. Art. Any genre, any medium...I love it. I could saunter through museums and county fairs all day, just taking in the glory of something made by another human.

7. Painted toenails. I have to have my toenails painted in a bright, fun color at all times. Lately I've been really into glitter toes; it's a great way to add some bling without having to add weight to my body (that's the last thing I need!).

8. Attending concerts. There's nothing like live music, especially when the band is actually good and I get to see the effort that goes into producing a song that is radio-quality.

9. My testimony. Knowing that Heavenly Father loves me and is looking out for me just makes life so much better.

10. My friends. It's great to have wonderful people in my life who encourage me, entertain me, and educate me. Thanks, everyone!

My Son Must Be a Monkey

"If you have any poo, throw it now."

Rex may have learned it from Karli, but the other day, instead of lying down and napping like a good little boy, he removed his diaper, defecated all over, and managed to throw the results everywhere. It was beyond disgusting, and, like Karli's incident of a few years ago, I had to clean it up while being pregnant. AWFUL! At least this time, Adam helped me and we had a yard and a hose in and with which we could do most of the work. The day I never have to clean up my children's bodily byproducts will be a grand one indeed!

The Best Photogapher in the West

One of the reasons I was sad to leave Michigan was that Jeanette couldn't take our pictures any more, but I was thrilled to find out that my friend, Trina, is branching out into family photography. She came to our house and did the best photo shoot! I am thrilled with the result and will give anyone my highest recommendation of her talent. She is amazing and I can't believe how awesomely everything turned out. She has a blog at http://trinaharrisphotography.blogspot.com, so give it a look.

A Wonderful Way to Spend Memorial Day

Last week, my dad told us about a movie he'd seen advertised about a Marine who escorts a fallen soldier's remains home. It sounded good, and then I noticed Kevin Bacon appeared on Leno's show to promote the film. The next day, my dad emailed me the manuscript that Mike Strobl wrote about his journey and I cried through the whole thing. Then I was really interested, so Adam and I watched "Taking Chance" last night.

It's one of the best movies I've ever seen, and I highly recommend it (especially this weekend). Beware, though: this movie is a tear-jerker! With Adam's brother, Dave, arriving in Iraq this week (he's a Marine), the movie really moved me. I was touched to see the portrayal of honor, humility, gratitude, and respect by every person involved in the process of getting PFC Chance Phelps' body from Iraq to Wyoming. I definitely give this movie five stars!

Nausea, Heartburn, Narcolepsy, Upset Stomach, Claustrophobia...Oh yes, I'm Pregnant

That's right, folks. Clark nino numero quatro is due on December 28, 2009. That makes me almost nine weeks along, and while this pregnancy is easier than, say, my first because I'm not constantly thinking about how far along I am, what's going on developmentally, and worrying about every single thing I do and eat, etc., I have to admit that it is a nightmare to be pregnant and have three other kids to look after. I feel awful because I've been completely irritable, and when I'm nauseous, no one in the family gets dinner, attention, anything (Adam has really been Super Dad lately, for which I'm beyond grateful!). At least I can say that I'm relieved for one reason: this is going to be the family finale, so if I can make it to December, we'll be over a huge hurdle. Here's to more diapers, all-nighters, and frantically struggling to regain the universal balance once bambino arrives!

I love that doctors in Utah do an 8-week ultrasound...it makes the beginning of pregnancy a little more exciting and offers some kind of pay off for all the sickness. Isn't our little peanut cute?

Falling Off the Face of the Earth

Whew! Where have the last 20 days gone? We celebrated Rex's first birthday, had twenty people living under the Clark roof for eleven days, I enjoyed Mother's Day, and we still haven't washed all the sheets and towels that seem to multiply exponentially each day. Clearly, I haven't had time to blog (breathe?), but it's been a great 20 days.

We are all still alive, and now that my teaching schedule is winding down, I promise lots of informative, back-dated blog updates. Stay tuned for action!

Reunion

Adam's youngest brother, Dave, is a Marine who just deployed to Iraq. All of the Clark families gathered for a week or so to hang out together before Dave left. It was riotous and cacophonous and delightful. We especially loved seeing the results of cramming six under-three-year-old children together without naps; I've never heard so much screaming/whining/crying/yelling/swearing (that would be my kids)/playing/laughing in my life! It was great fun to play Guitar Hero Metallica and horseshoes together, as well as catch up on every one's happenings and see how all of my cute nieces and nephews have grown. The "older girls", meaning the first four nieces born in the Clark family, were so amazing to help with all of the little kids (thanks, gals!). I need them to move in with me!

Among the highlights of the reunion were a family picture that actually turned out really well, Ashley's Hannah Montana/Jonas Brothers birthday party (Rob obviously really enjoyed the premiere of the T.V. show "Jonas"),

finding out four families are expecting babies this year, hitting the Snoasis shaved ice stand, racing at Burgess Park, eating a wonderful fillet of grilled salmon, and the most adorable tribute to Uncle Dave by the nieces.

Last year, Kinzie wrote a song for him entitled "My Marine". Kinz, Brooklyn, Alyssa, and Ashley secretly put it to music (my sisters helped) and sang it for him during family home evening. There was not a dry eye in the house and it was so sweet!

"My faith in you is always strong and always true
When you go out there, I have faith in you!
Every once in a while, I drop a tear when I think of you
Not knowing what you're going through, all those miles
But I know Heavenly Father will keep you safe
You are my uncle, Marine and my hero
Fighting for what we believe
We will miss you so much, Uncle Dave
You're in our prayers, be safe out there
Time will go by fast
And you'll be home at last!"

All in all, it was a wonderful week full of fun, hilarity, delicious food, and great company. Let's do it again next year!

Rex Turns One

We didn't have much of a party for Rex on his first birthday (gotta love the pre-memory stage), but I did make him a cute T-Rex/volcano cake and Amy kindly let us crash Ashley's birthday party (Ash and Rex's birthdays are May 1st and 2nd, respectively). It turned out to be great fun and Rex seemed like he understood that it was his special day.

The birthday boy in his sweet shades, courtesy of Elton John.

Rexy loved his cake! His reaction to the steam from the dry ice and the candle and the dinosaurs was the biggest baking pay-off I've ever received. It was adorable.

He couldn't stop squealing during "Happy Birthday." He kicked both legs and flailed his arms with delight!

Here's the finished product--pretty much a tube cake on top of a 9-inch round cake with chocolate rocks and tinted Dream Whip for frosting. The recipe is Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake from America's Test Kitchen. It was divine!

Rex loved his balloons more than anything else.

It was great fun to have the cousins here to help us celebrate. I can't believe Rex is one. The past year has flown by and he is even more delightful now that he was at birth. We love our little T-Rex!

Seven Fabulous Years

Adam and I celebrated our seventh anniversary on Saturday. Where does time go? I still remember exactly what I did every day for the week leading up to our wedding and I can't believe we've now had three kids, a law degree, eight different domiciles, and so many other fantastic adventures together.

We took the kids to Niel's (a.k.a. Nemo's House) for lunch so we could enjoy those wonderful beer-battered fries and gigantic, homemade buns. Add the delicious fry sauce and it was a delightful way to fill up. We came home, put the kids down for naps, and watched "Quantum of Solace", which I've rented three times but hadn't ever seen. Promptly, we left the kids with Leslie (THANK YOU!) and headed to Costa Vida for dinner. Then, we hit the theatre for "State of Play" which was better than I anticipated. We returned just as it was time for our kids to go to bed. We had a marvelous day with only a little of the usual kid-related stress and it was great!

I feel very lucky to have such a great husband. He makes me laugh, keeps me in line, supports me, and takes great care of me. I love you, Adam!

My Favorite Meal

This lovely creation is my mother-in-law's recipe for taco salad which has now become my favorite meal. I serve mine with Santita's chips (the best!), pineapple, carrots, lettuce, cilantro, cheddar cheese or queso fresco, tomato, avocado, and a squeeze of lime juice. It's muy sabroso, so here's the recipe:

1 pound extra-lean ground beef
1 T. chopped and dried onion
8 oz. tomato sauce
6 oz. tomato paste
3 c. water
2-3 T. chili powder, depending on taste
1/2 c. Minute rice (I use brown, but you can use white)
salt and lots of black pepper

Brown beef, stir in onion. Add remaining ingredients, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes (stir occasionally). Serve over crushed tortilla chips, topped with salad fixings of your choice.

Which Is Worse?

By now, you're all terribly familiar with my obsessive habits. Laundry is most definitely at the top of my list, and I recently put my foot down and asked Adam to refrain from folding any of my or the kids' clothes (clearly, I have problems!). Today as I was preparing a batch of dirty things for the washing machine, I performed my ritualistic sorting of blacks, warm colors, cool colors, and whites and thought to myself, "I must be the craziest person on the planet!" So here's my question: Which is worse...having enough dirty laundry in the basket to constitute a separate batch for each segment of the color spectrum, or actually washing loads in separate batches for each segment of the color spectrum. Either way, my practical side (Schizo, anyone?) is screaming to me to get a grip, while my Martha side is saying, "Excellent work. You're maintaining the vibrancy of that orange shirt so nicely!"

5, 6, 7, 8...Sit Back...Swing Up

5, 6, 7, 8. That is the mantra of my life. I've been hearing it since I was en utero and now my children are garnering the same exposure. It's paying off, though. Recently, I took my girls to an open gym class at The Factory where I coach cheerleading. Amber saw and heard my mom teaching the older girls how to do a back handspring, so she's been imitating Miss Shelley by yelling, "5, 6, 7, 8. Sit back, swing up!" and flailing her arms about like a prep for a back handspring. She's never dared to do it--not that she could...she's progressing well in tumbling but not that well--until today.

I put her down for a nap and went next door into my room to fold some laundry. I heard the familiar count-off and smiled to myself. Then, I heard a bounce on the bed. I couldn't resist, so I sneaked around the corner and saw Amber do a back handspring all by herself! I couldn't believe my eyes. I'm proud of (and terrified by) her for having the courage to try something like that and for knowing all the steps simply from observing other kids do it. She had such a serious look on her face and (this is ridiculous) it brought tears to my eyes! Adorable! Like, totally YAY for cheer!

A Blizzard, A Tea Party, and Ted Nugent

There's nothing like a blizzard in the middle of April!

After several beautiful days of fun and sun, April 15th seems to inevitably bring snow every single year. I had big plans to attend a tea party today, but am too wimpy to brave the snow, hence my protest waged on the laptop from my cozy dining room.

I'm watching Glenn Beck right now, and I have chills because it's crazy and wonderful to see the voice of the people being broadcast to the government. I'm particularly moved today because I believe in the cause that so many people are working to champion, but I realize the blessings of living in a democracy and think it's grand to know that we can express our opinions, vote to change things if we don't like the way they're going, and that we won't be silenced no matter what we believe. I love America!

Since living in Michigan, I've also become something of a fan of Ted Nugent (who is accompanying Glenn Beck), especially his rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner". He's proof that the U.S.A. rocks!

Retro Delight

The lighting of the "Flaming Turtle" fondue was my favorite part of the class.

Last night, my wonderful friend Leslie and I went to a fondue class at Thanksgiving Point. It was great fun, great food, and I even expanded my horizon de cuisine and sampled duck. It was pretty yummy! I learned that meat and veggies can also be poached in broth rather than fried in oil (seems obvious, right? but I'm not very creative these days), which made me love the idea of fondue even more. A gal from The Melting Pot taught the class and I scored several of their yummy recipes. If you want them, leave a comment and I'll email them to you. To have an evening away from the kids with a great pal and fantastic food was delightful and I'm excited to make fondue for my family. Bon apetit!

The Fever is Spreading

Since my brush with "Twilight" last week, Amber and Karli have become obsessed with Edward and Bella. Every time we see a Redbox with a "Twilight" poster, they scream out, "I SEE BELLA! I SEE EDWARD THE HANDSOME VAMPIRE WHO"S NICE! I'M GOING TO BE BELLA FOR HALLOWEEN!" It's a phenomenon and it's so hilarious.

My niece Mckinzie spent the night on Saturday and we rented the movie again. Apparently, Kinzie was the only girl in her grade who hadn't seen the movie. Amber, Karli, Kinz and I watched it (I was the trusty editor of scary parts) and all of the little girls were madly in love with Edward by the end of the movie.

For a craft project during conference, Kinzie helped my girls make picture frames that were immediately dedicated to holding pictures of Edward. Amber told me she was going to put a picture of him in the frame, then add a "true love heart sticker to make Edward fall in love with me!" I nearly died, but it was so cute and funny to hear her gushing on and on about the handsome lad.

Kinzie has a cute pink cell phone, so I made her a ringtone of "Bella's Lullaby", we printed several different photos for the girls' frames, and we even made wallpaper for Kinzie's phone of the precious moment when Edward serenades Bella on the piano. Amber kept squealing with delight, jumping up and down and doing the flittery hand thing, and I think Kinzie was thrilled with her newly-acquired Twightie status.

I've Been Bitten

Now, now...before you get all excited, you must know that, of course, I did not read the Twilight series (come on, now!). I did, however, watch the movie last night, and I loved it! Upon pressing play, I thought to myself, "Geez...this is just as bad as suffering through a novel...it's so slow...what's with those eyebrows?" but upon noticing the nuanced, tasteful, and riveting sexual tension strung all through the plot, I was intrigued and drawn in, and even sad when it ended because I wanted to see more.

Adam liked it too, and the movie was so good that I stayed awake until 4:05 a.m. to finish it. I also almost considered trying the novels (only for a moment, though!). Perhaps I still may, but my burgeoning ADD seems to prohibit any action that requires my full attention. I'd much rather scrapbook and enjoy Twilight, so I think for now, I'm stuck in wonder and addiction until the next installment comes out on film. Becky, I'll definitely go with you to see #2 in the theatre!