General Relief Society Conference

Was President Uchtdorf's talk last night awesome or what? For any body who missed, it is definitely worth reading - before the Ensign comes out! My most favorite thing he said was (I didn't take exact notes, so there may be some of my interpretation included) "We don't just live life, we create it." I love how he spoke about "creation" - making something exist that didn't exist before, whether it's a beautiful garden, a harmonious home, and then, of course, children. He is such a wonderful speaker and I feel like his message was just for me.

I don't have a "cookie cutter" life.....

I don't have a "cookie cutter" life - I have an exceptional one. But even if I did, is it so bad? I mean, think of all the different shapes of cookie cutters that exist in the world - maybe there might be one like mine, but then maybe I have molded my own shape? And, does the shape of the cookie matter, as long as it tastes sweet??

Really, I don't beat my children!

This was the biggest bruise I've ever seen in my life - it stuck out like 2 cm! And it grew before my eyes, like he was growing a horn. He fell into the rock on the fireplace. Sad! I'm just glad he hit it on the side, and not on the corner! That would have been awful!
We then added Isaac to the picture with his day-old bruise from slipping on water left on the floor. Matthew didn't have a bruise, so he couldn't be in the picture. However, a few days later I got called into the school because Matthew decided to kiss the pavement and cut up both knees, an elbow and put his teeth through his upper lip! It was so traumatic, I forgot to take a picture. No teeth knocked out, but one might turn gray. Good thing it was before school pictures!

Andrew's questionnaire

I had so much fun asking Matthew these questions that I decided to ask Andrew the questions as well. I had to phrase the questions in a way that a 3 year old could understand them, and it was harder to get answers from him, but it was still fun! I love hearing their answers!

1. What is something mom always says to me? I'm asleep! (Can you tell I have morning sickness? And that he wakes up at 6 am?)
2. What makes mom happy? Not being disobedient.
3. What makes mom sad? Doing something bad.
4. How does mom make me laugh? Says a joke.
5. What was mom like as a child? I don't know. Really, I don't!
6. How old is mommy? 6.
7. How tall is mommy? Ummm......Tall.
8. What is mommy's favorite thing to do? Go to sleep. (He's right on!)
9. What does mom do when I'm not around? Watch a movie with Isaac.
10. If mom becomes famous, what will it be for? Watching a movie.
11. What is mom really good at? Cutting letters for my preschool.
12. What is mom not really good at? I don't know. I'm really tired. (He says he's tired when he wants to get out of something! It's really funny, but I'm going to have to put a stop to it one of these days!)
13. What does mom do for her job? Putting Isaac to sleep.
14. What is mom's favorite food? Pancakes. (This is Andrew's favorite food!)
15. What makes me proud of my mom? Doing chores. (Interesting! He's probably not very proud of me lately!)
16. If mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be? A girl that's in a cartoon. There's a girl elephant. (Thanks! I like Matthew's answer better!)
17. What do mommy and I do together? Love each other.
18. How are mommy and I the same? We have the same face without your mole and we love each other.
19. How are mommy and I different? You have brown hair and I have yellow hair.
20. How do I know mommy loves me? Cuz she's nice.

Matthew's questionnaire

I saw this cute tag on someone else's blog and thought it would be a fun blog for me to do. Nothing stressful or overly creative. I asked Matthew these questions and I put his answers with my thoughts in parentheses. I tag anyone who wants to do this.

1. What is something mom always says to me? I love you.
2. What makes mom happy? When you do her chores for her.
3. What makes mom sad? When you fight your brother.
4. How does mom make me laugh? Blow on your belly.
5. What was mom like as a child? Nice.
6. How old is mommy? I don't know. Oh, I really do know. 26.
7. How tall is mommy? Let me see... (Counting from 1-26 from my toes to my head) You are 26.
8. What is mommy's favorite thing to do? Sweep the floors (Really? You couldn't tell today! Or any day! In fact, this morning there were ants in our kitchen because of my lack of sweeping!
9. What does mom do when I'm not around? I don't know...Takes care of the kids?
10. If mom becomes famous, what will it be for? A rock star. (What?!!)
11. What is mom really good at? Doing chores. (Ha!)
12. What is mom not really good at? Doing the dishes. (Right on! It's my least fav chore.)
13. What does mom do for her job? You don't have a job!
14. What is mom's favorite food? Muffins and cake. (Pretty close...)
15. What makes me proud of my mom? When she does my chores for me.
16. If mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be? Daphne on Scoobydoo. (I wish!)
17. What do mommy and I do together? I know! Pull the weeds. (Wow, he's stuck on the chore theme!)
18. How are mommy and I the same? We both have brown hair.
19. How are mommy and I different? We have brown eyes (Matthew) and green eyes (Me).
20. How do I know mommy loves me? Cuz she always says it.

Tim's Birthday Party

Tradition in our family is to make Tim a pineapple upside down cake for each birthday. When we had only been dating one week, it was his birthday and this was the cake I made him, not knowing if he liked it or not! Well, come to find out, it's his favorite! And he wants it every year! This year, I tried to make the pineapples read "30", but it didn't work so well.The boys decorated the balloons by writing "I Love You Dad" on them.
Tim's local family came over. Below he is with his brother, John.
Tim's brother Barry and his two boys, Mitchell and Adam.
All the cute little kids, waiting for their cake!
Tim's got a lot of wind left in him! Watch him blow out those candles!

Happy 30th Birthday Tim!

Tim and his boys on his birthday!Traditional birthday breakfast in bed. I know, I know...the breakfast I made didn't compare to the breakfast he made for me on my birthday, but I was sick! I was just grateful I had groceries in the house to make him breakfast! Matthew had the idea to make the heart-shaped eggs with the cookie cutters.

Look how cute Andrew is! He was so excited to see what his Daddy got for his birthday! New rollerblades! Tim's were 20 years old (he bought them used 15 years ago) and since he loves rollerblading so much, new ones were much needed! He loves them and takes the kids on rides daily! It's the one exercise Tim and I both enjoy to do together so, when I'm not sick of course, we take the boys on rollerblade rides.Tim sporting his new blades.

Clarksons in Kanab

Kanab has a fun tradition of celebrating it's Old West heritage by having a "Western Legends" weekend. They have a parade, booths, entertainment, etc. Here is a pic we took at the parade. People enter with oxen, horses, covered wagons, and things like that. The kids love it!The boys playing with "old fashioned" water pumps.
That weekend we celebrated the return of Grandma and Grandad Clarkson (Tim's parents) from their mission in Argentina. We heard their wonderful homecoming talks and had a party at their newly remodeled home in Kanab.
A couple of weeks later, they visited our family for dinner and Family Home Evening. They shared stories, pictures and souvenirs from their mission.
It's so fun to have them home!

It's always fun when Grandma comes!

A month ago we went up north for the weekend and my mom was visiting from CA as well. While Tim and I attended our nephew's sealing, my mom watched our boys. They had so much fun and she spoiled them with presents!
Isaac loved this marble game.
This is the magic cupboard. There are 2 exits, so while the front door is closed, you can magically escape out the side door. Now you see them.....
Now you don't!
Then my mom drove the 3.5 hours south to our house to visit for a day!
She even treated us to Baskin Robbins - YUM! Thanks mom! We all had so much fun!

Sick!

I am officially sick and have been wondering why, if God wants me to have children, He makes me feel so awful? I have the sweetest neighbor ever, who came over the other day and did my dishes for me! I was so embarrassed, yet so grateful! She has a 3 year old boy who is Andrew's "Bestest Friend Ever" and they play all day, every day, if we let them! So, my house is a wreck, and I go around in my pajamas all day trying not to gag and throw up at any scent or thought of certain foods. We are all living on snacks and fruit right now...."safe" foods. Matthew has been especially wonderful, asking me often if he can do anything to help me feel better. He is so thoughtful and I am so lucky. Tim, of course, is a great example for Matthew to follow as he is always helping me out.

Baby #4!

Okay, so since I'm only 6 weeks, we don't know if our baby is going to be a boy or a girl, but given our track record, and that the only name we agree on is a boy name, we think we are having a boy! And it is so early that I haven't even gotten sick yet, or been to the doctor, and it could all end up in a miscarriage, or something, but for some reason this time I have had such a hard time keeping this baby a secret!! We didn't tell people we were expecting Isaac until we knew he was a boy, but this time I just want to tell the world....so here I am! Who-Hoo! Levi is on his way! And, I don't care if you don't like the name we picked out, we really like it and agree on it and that's all that counts!