California Day #3

You know the Day 3 pictures right away because we actually all look like individuals...no matching t-shirts that day! Bummer, I know.

We spent the morning and early afternoon at Disney again. We went early enough that we hit up a lot of the rides multiple times & it was fabulous. 

We finally got a group photo too! In normal clothes, nonetheless. 

 We left in the early afternoon to get back and get our beauty of a van returned. On the way, we needed to stop for lunch and there was a bit of contention all around as to where we should eat. I was driving, so I eventually just pulled into the nearest restaurant we could see and holy shmoly, did we hit the jackpot with that place! I can't even remember what it is called, but it was DELICIOUS. They had a huge menu and everything that was ordered was divine. We were all starving. We passed all the plates around so everyone could try everything and nothing disappointed. They also had an excellent dessert menu, but we were cutting it close on time, so we took our desserts to go and hopped back in the trusty old van.

We had to fill up the van, return it (to the ghetto place that looked like a parking lot when we got there because everyone seemed to be returning their cars at the same time), take the shuttle back to the airport, and get checked in. We were all feeling a bit stressed by this time because we were reeeally cutting it close. As we went through security, my grandma was taken aside to go through a special line and when she did, we somehow lost track of her suitcase. Everyone thought someone else had it, but no one did. By the time we discovered the problem, we were at the gate and they were waiting on us to board. The gate agent told us (not so kindly) that we had six minutes to go back and look for the suitcase and be back ON the plane, or it would leave without us. Mari Ann took off like the sprinter that she is and ran back to the security area where she found it sitting. She then ran all the way back with literally seconds to spare. I was so nervous. Half of our crew had already boarded and the other half was waiting to see what the outcome was going to be. But, she came through in the end and we cheered her on as she ran down the terminal with suitcase in hand.

By the time we were seated, we all thought we deserved a treat, so we busted out our desserts and passed them around,. We also convinced the flight attendant to give us full cans of diet coke to go with them instead of just a measly cup and we were a happy bunch again.

When we landed in Salt Lake, it was around 8 pm. Che', Carlie, and I were lucky enough to be able to go right home, but the Idaho people still had to drive all the way back that night. Too bad for them.

All in all, it was amazing, amazing, amazing. I can't wait to do something like it again!! Hopefully soon! :)

At that delicious restaurant of which I cannot recall the name...

Best picture of the trip, right here. I was trying to get a picture of Carlie and her dessert when Cortney photo bombed with this huge ol' bite of hers. Amazing. 

There we go!

A selfie back in SLC to end the night. Fun times. 

California Day #2

Okay, so I am way, way behind again. It's just my norm. So do forgive me if there are a few "catch up" posts tonight. So remember way back when in May when I went to California with the women in the family? Here is part one of that trip in case anyone wants to remember it (because it was that great): PART 1

On to day two! We spent the day at Disneyland and you know there is nothing better. Disneyland with kids is magical, but Disneyland without kids is just as fantastic. I think everyone should do both in their lives.

So, even though we planned to sleep in that morning due to our nearly 24 hours of being awake the day before, our dear Grandma was awake at 6, dressed and ready to go. So, up we all were. :) She was just so excited. Of course we had matching shirts for that day too. It wouldn't be a Clark trip without, you know.

The day was pretty fantastic, minus a few incidents stemming from my Grandmother's rental of a jazzy wheelchair and her refusal to allow us to help her with it. She ran over just a few toddlers due to her tiredness and stubbornness. I am not joking...the jazzy became quite the sore point during the day because she was just crazy on that thing. We tried to convince her to go home at lunch time for a short nap, but she wasn't having it. Not at all.

Thanks to Che' and Jennifer's expertise, we were on and off rides in no time all day long. The park was quite crowded, but we still rode everything we wanted at least once. We also saw a parade and ate to our hearts content (of course).

Cortney, at 34 weeks pregnant, decided that nothing was going to stop her from riding rides she wanted to go one (nothing too dangerous of course). She was dead set on riding Splash Mountain, and she did so successfully four times with the help of a huge green poncho Mari Ann brought. No one was the wiser. We were kind of hoping she would go into labor and have a Disneyland baby, but no luck (She just had baby girl last week, a week overdue. Sweet little Paige Sue. More on her later).

The water ride at California Adventure--cannot remember the name, but these two were dragged on saying that they didn't want to get wet. Wellll, they got the best of it! Extra geyser and everything, just for them. :)

Kaarin and her boyfriend joined us that day at Disney too. My grandma is just the cutest, right?

Because we had my Grandma, we went in the line for those with wheelchairs, etc. on the Cars ride. We loaded up and waited and waited and waited...and then when we went to race and by total luck of the draw, we raced Sue and her girls in the other car. It couldn't have been better! They won, though, darn it. 

Apparently I am competitive...

The grandgirls

That darn Jazzy....

See, can't even tell she's pregnant, right?!

That day's shirts

This is when Che' bribed Sue Dawg to come on Tower of Terror by telling her she would buy her a churro. (We are all motivated by food). She did and it was classic. Che' did pay up, lest you worry.

Here we are waiting for the parade. While we waited, we learned a little cheer then Hailie and I were pulled out in the street to help demonstrate it. We have a little video of it and it's quite embarrassing given that Hailie is a cheerleader and followed along quite well and I on the other hand did not. Ohhh well...

This is the Grizzly River Run that was just hilarious. Right before Sue got sprayed in her face, she yelled out, "Daaaaaaanger!!!" in a really ominious voice. And then the ride paid up....perfect timing.

Good thing Mari Ann had 27 jackets and ponchos to equip us all for the ride. We did fine on that side of the bench, but the others, not so much.

Clearly the operating error stemmed from the fact that she was not in fact paying attention while the lady gave her directions on how to run her machine....

On to Day 3!

Happy Father's Day

I don't have time for a regular post today because I have spent the evening trying to prepare for my lesson next week in church (Elder Uchtdorf: The Gift of Grace https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/the-gift-of-grace?lang=eng Suggestions welcome!! This is such a deep and wonderful subject matter. I am really intimidated to teach this one..)

Anyway, I just wanted to do a quick Father's Day post. We have many wonderful fathers in our lives and we are so grateful. Here are just a few things we love about each:

Dave (my mom's husband):
*Dave is so good with the kids. They LOVE him and he is so kind and patient with them.
*Dave is a wonderful companion to my mom. She is happier than she has ever been and that is because he is so good to her.
*Dave is a great example of overcoming hardship and becoming a righteous leader in his home and in our church.

Dad Perry:
*He is one of the most kind and gentle people I know.
*His love for his wife, kids, and grandkids is apparent in everything he does
*He is quietly giving and generous of his time, talents, and money
*He taught my husband how to be the kind of father and husband who carries an equal role in the home. No chore is below him nor any task with childcare. Both are hands on fathers and Devin learned that through example from his dad.

My dad:
*My dad is dedicated to serving his family and others. He makes it a priority to attend the temple often and this has always been a big example in my life.
*My dad is extremely generous as well. If someone needs help with something, he is there. I know that I can turn to him for help with anything without judgement.
*When I was a child, my dad taught me and my siblings to work hard and to enjoy the rewards of our hard work. He has always been a hard worker and passed that on to me.\
*My dad is a fun and funny grandpa. The kids always look forward to seeing him and spending time with Grandpa Dave.

Devin:
*Devin is my favorite person in the world...my best friend, my soul mate. I know that people don't believe that such things exist, but they do and he is mine.
*Devin is a fun and active dad. He loves to rough house with the kids, take them on adventures, or just cuddle with them.
*Devin is completely and wholly dedicated to my happiness and the kids' happiness before his own. I have never met someone so selfless and giving. He picks up the slack for me a lot at home so that I get to enjoy an active social life. :)
*Devin is a hard worker. He is quiet, but excels at what he does. He is a great provider for our family and I have never known anyone to complain about his work ethic.
*Devin is hot.
*Devin is a righteous example of a priesthood holder. He wakes up at 6 am every morning to read his scriptures and study before everyone else wakes up. He fulfills his callings always. He is a dedicated home teacher. He leads our family in prayer and scripture study and sets a righteous example by what he does, not just what he says.
*Devin is dedicated to improving himself. If there is a weakness he has (and he doesn't have many) he works to improve and overcome it.
*I love him.

Hallie made the cutest tie in her primary class today with questions and answers about her dad. I have no idea where it went and I am so sad because it was the cutest thing. I will try to at least write down the questions and her answers that I can remember (with her spelling-- quite a weakness that we apparently need to work on!)

My dad is my hero. 

For work he:
ladscps (landscapes)

He loves to: 
wach moves (watch movies)

He always says:
be nis (be nice)

He is best at:
bascitboll (basketball)

He is not very good at:
her (hair)

My dad and I like to:
snugel (snuggle)

He loves me because:
I love him

And I love him because: 
he loves me

hahaha!! Isn't that the cutest? I love those little kid projects. SO cute.

Happy Father's Day to all our wonderful dads.

Sunday Post #11

This has been a fairly slow week for our standards, which I am totally fine with! I had adoption training classes Friday night and all day Saturday and I had a lot to do to prep for them, so the majority of the free time this week was spent doing that.

We had our first go of our new babysitting arrangement and I think it went well! The girl that comes over for Flor is a recent returned missionary who actually only lives a few blocks from us. She is in our stake and her best friend is in our ward. So random how that worked out, but she was fabulous. We really like her. She is great with Flor and also helps with the other two (though that's not her job-- she can only by law work one-on-one with Flor. The other two have our neighbor come over to babysit them...Kind of weird, but that's how it has to be). Anyway, so that is a big relief. 

We did make it to the park once, and apparently that is the only thing I took pictures of this week. I just love Flor's face while she is swinging though. She loves it. I think we need to get a swing in the backyard because she loves it so much. The only problem with swinging is that someone has to stand out there and push her. I think I should invent a big kid swing that is mechanical like a baby swing. Ha ha ha...

In other news, we know for sure that our packet arrived in Ecuador and that it has been turned into the committee. We are really praying that we will be "matched" with M before the end of the month as the committee takes the whole month of July off for holidays. I know we are asking a lot with our prayers, but please keep praying for us. I feel like we have had too many delays already and we really, really want this process to get moving. Anyway, so there's that.

And speaking of Ecuador, I had a really cool experience this week. I was telling my friend, not even a week ago, that I had no idea what happened to one of the girls who had aged out of the orphanage when I was first a volunteer there. They gave her a short-term position at the orphanage to help her out until she could find some other job. She was a teenager at the time. She was there when I went back with Kylee about 5 months after my first trip. After that, I knew that she wasn't at SVP anymore and I never knew what happened to her. Anyway, I was just saying that I have no idea where she is or if she is okay, and then I got a friend request from her on Facebook this week! Honestly, it has been 9 years since I have heard from her. I originally ignored the friend request because the profile told me nothing and I didn't recognize the name, but then I thought, "The first name is the same as this girl..." (It's a common name), so I added her and sure enough, once we are friends I can see all her pictures and see that it's her. We messaged a bit and I found out that she is living with a distant relative and working 6 days a week to provide for herself. She has moved out of Quito, but hopefully we can go visit her when we are there. I'll have to find out where she is- I didn't recognize the name of the city. Hopefully it's not too far from Quito. Anyway, little miracles in life.

Well, that was short. Maybe this week will be more exciting.

Sunday Post #10

We had a fun and exciting week around here. We kicked off summer officially with the kids getting out of school! Yay for summer! (I hope I am still saying that in a few weeks...check back with me...)

We also had a few stressful points, though nothing serious. That's just the course of life. I am starting to feel like everything I do is an uphill battle. :) A while back, I volunteered to take an extra shift at work because a couple of my co-workers are out of town. Well, I didn't think about it until this week, but the shift I picked up was on Friday, the first day out of school for my kids. Hallie and Jace are easy to get babysitters for, but Flor isn't. She can be a bit of a challenge and I get that. Anyway, one of the biggest challenges of moving to Farmington for me is the lack of teenage babysitters who actually WANT to babysit. We have one family that we utilize A LOT and I feel bad because I don't want to burn them out. They are wonderful with the kids, but it is hard for their 12 year old to handle all three of my kids. She will be watching Hallie and Jace this summer (more on Flor's summer situation in a second) and will do a great job. But anyway, I scrambled all week long to get a babysitter for Friday. I asked pretty much every family in the ward with older teenagers and got zero response. It's hard spot to be in because I feel like a burden and yet I don't have anywhere else to turn. So, finally, the girl that helps get Flor off the bus Mondays and Tuesdays arranged her schedule so she could do it. It was stressful, but resolved last minute. 

The other stressful thing is arranging care for Flor for the summer. She is eligible for one time respite services through the state, which is a HUGE blessing. Basically, someone trained and qualified to care for her can watch her during my times at work and it is paid for through the Department of Human Services. This is a one time respite program for kids on the waiting list for DSPD services (the list can be long- like 8 years is the last I heard). Anyway, this could not have come at a more perfect time for us. The only problem is that it was not fully arranged until Friday this week (see above about having everything be an uphill battle!). I got a list from the state of companies I could choose from to provide the services for her, and of course there are almost none in our area. Provo/Orem has a huge list, Davis County has like 2. I called the first one and thought I had things pretty much arranged with them, but got thinking this week that I hadn't heard anything from them since the initial phone call and she was supposed to start Monday. So I called and it took 3 times to get ahold of them and then when I finally spoke to a human, she told me she knew nothing about Flor or her case. Ugh. I called the girl that the state that was supposed to be arranging it and she told me she had already sent them everything. So, there was some lack of communication there and neither seemed to want to follow up with the other. So finally I called the other program in the county and asked what it would take to get Flor switched over. These guys were MUCH more responsive and set a time to meet with me on Wednesday to go over everything. The director also volunteered to sort out everything with the state and take me out of the middle, which was super nice. So, I was much more impressed with them. But, she told me she would call me Thursday to make sure she had someone that could start on Monday (short notice, you know) and then I remembered Friday night at like 10 that I had never heard from her. I called and left a message Saturday but of course they were closed. Someone must have come in later in the afternoon because she called me back and told me that everything is good to go for Monday. So, phew. That was a bit stressful, too. 

Anyway, other than those few things, we had a great week. Here is a picture version:

Wednesday night we had a BBQ to bring in summer. We made homemade berry frozen yogurt and it was SO good. Seriously, so good. We have an ice cream maker that we got for our wedding that whips the stuff out in 20 minutes. Can't beat that.

Last day of 4th grade! Can't believe it. Only two more years of elementary school for this girl! Crazy, right?

And last day of Kindergarten for this one. They grow up too fast! The biggest difference between Hals' start of the year pictures to this one is her teeth! She's lost most of her baby teeth and is growing in the big teeth still.

While they were supposed to be cleaning the basement, Hallie and Jace got into the dressups. One sure fire way to get the kids to play together quietly for a long time is to ask them to go clean something. It's a great trick I keep up my sleeve...:) Anyway, the next few pictures show some of their creations. They are funny little things.

I especially love the broom prop...

For this one, they even had a cheer made up that Hallie had coached him on. I think it went something like "I love Mom, Yah whoo!" hahaha.

Saturday morning Devin wanted to go to the driving range, so I suggested he take Jace for a little father-son bonding time. He then of course wanted to go to Walmart and buy him a set of golf clubs, but i put my foot down on that and told him we were going to the DI instead. I was sure there was something there, and sure enough, there was. It may have only been one kid club instead of a whole set, but who cares? He only needs one! Plus it was $3 instead of $50. Good job me.

That afternoon, Devin and I dropped Flor and Jace off at Travis and Jenny's house so that we could take Hallie to the Hale Center Theater's play, The Little Mermaid. We got tickets for free from one of my contractors with Utah Adoption Specialists. It pays to know awesome people! Anyway, her husband is one of the big guys there doing lighting and set designs. She also helps with costumes. The play was AMAZING! I cannot stop raving about it. The costumes, the sets, the acting, they even had aeralists who were incredible. All of it was just so great. It was opening night for their T/Th/S cast, so that made it extra fun. I want to go again already. Hallie loved it too. Devin liked it, but it wasn't his favorite. Just not his general favorite type of play you know (he likes comedies). 

The stage...this was Hale in WVC. We used to go to plays occasionally at the Hale in Orem. This one is bigger and seems even better if possible.

Hallie and Scuttle after the show

Sebastian and Flounder (and see the guy in the back--one of the aeralists...I have never seen anything like it! SO GOOD)

And of course with one of the Mermaids (one of Ariel's sisters)

Selfie out front. The sun was in our eyes. 

 Thanks to Travis and Jenny for taking the other two crazies so we could go. It was a great night. After the play, we headed to Cafe Rio for some dinner and to kick off our fast Sunday. It worked well; I wasn't all that hungry today. :)

Apparently all the fun wore these two out. Jace conked out while we were watching Meet the Mormons this afternoon (I know we are behind the times- we haven't seen it yet. It is on Netflix now though and so we took the opportunity to watch it today. It was as wonderful as everyone told us. I highly recommend if you have not seen it yet!)

That's all for this week!