Fast Update

Wow it has been awhile since I have gotten a post up. I thought I would just quickly fill everyone in on our last few weeks here.

We have been busy, busy, busy. Mike working full time and at his internship two nights, Samuel in preschool two mornings a week, Liam and I at the gym , doing the errands and keeping up with everyone. Here are a couple of highlights from the past few weeks.

For two of the past weekends we celebrated Mike's dad's 60th birthday. The entire family went up to Lansing the weekend of his birthday to have dinner together. The family has exploded with kids lately and the dinner tally was 13 (6 of them being kids 5 and under). We had a great time and did a fantastic job distracting Steve from the fact that the following weekend was the surprise party. So the following weekend we headed up for the big surprise. It was a ton of fun. We pulled it off without him ever having a clue. Mike and I also got to spend a night together without kids. We realized that both of us have spent nights away from the boys but we hadn't been away together. I think it is a habit we will have to partake in more regularly.

Last Friday, Mike had to undergo a little "procedure" called a colonoscopy. Going into the surgery we were all a bit nervous about what they would find but everything turned out fine. He colon is perfect and he should be in the clear for awhile. It was great to interact with him after surgery. He was a bit loopy from the meds and entertained me well. We are just so thankful that everything is good and he is healthy!

A few weekends ago the town had an Apple Fest. There were arts and crafts type booths set up throughout town, games for kids, lots of apples and cider and fair type food. We spent a few hours walking around and enjoying some family time. Here are a few pictures of the boys playing at a nearby park.

Overall things are going very well. The house is coming along and we hope to be moving in the first of November. I will update the house blog soon with some new pictures of the place. I will try to be a bit more regular with keeping everyone updated!

Bikes

We have had a couple of really nice days following the massive rain storms. We have made the best of them by playing outside each afternoon. Both boys love being outside and getting into everything. Here they are enjoying yesterdays sun. Liam loves this car. He will open the door, climb in, sit down, pretend to drive, get out, close the door and push it to wherever he wants to go. He will then repeat the process over and over.

Samuel has two new bikes at Nana and Papa's. Here is in on one of them. This one is a bit harder for him and something he can grow into. He loves the tricycle he has and will ride it to the end of the road and back over and over. He also is willing to wear his helmet but most times by the time he makes his way back it is falling off. Guess we better figure out how to get it a bit tighter.

Trash

Liam has been quite the handful lately. He is into everything! If he isn't trying to get downstairs to get to the cordless phone or the computer mouse, he is in the laundry room getting into the dog's water. Walking has slowed his pace a bit but since he is pretty steady on his feet now he is getting faster everyday.

A few mornings ago I was attempting to get Samuel dressed for preschool while Liam was playing with cars in the living room. Not a minute later as I am getting Samuel's shoes on I round the corner to find Liam picking through the trash. Apparently there was a really cool lid and straw in there that he wanted to play with. He was so proud of himself I could hardly punish him! What next...?

Fun in the Rain

This past week we got hit with a big rain storm. Samuel wanted to go out and play so we let him. Since Liam was sleeping in the bedroom we didn't go in to get his swimsuit, instead he went in his undies. He thought it was great!

The water came up to mid calf on him. It was really pretty warm since the day had been hot and the asphalt served as a heater. It was also coming down pretty hard as he was playing. We let him run around and jump in the water for awhile before having to come back inside and get dressed.

Cousins

This past weekend, Samuel and Liam got to spend some time with their cousins. On Saturday, Addision came down to Coldwater to spend the day with us. Samuel and Addison were so excited to see each other. That lasted for about 20 minutes before they both started arguing and fighting with one another. By the end of the day they were getting along like siblings! I think if one would have said the grass was green the other would have argued that it was purple!

Despite some crankiness we had a great day. We spent time playing out around the pool, getting ice cream and playing at a local park. It wasn't long after Addison left that Samuel was asking about here and when she could come and play again!

On Monday we made it up to Lansing to catch up with all of Mike's step-siblings. We had a dinner at his dad's and let the kids run wild. There were six of the eight grandkids there ranging in age from 4 days to 5 years old. We played soccer, hide and seek, and tag. It was a small glimpse at what Christmas for the next 18 years may be like.

Here is the newest addition to the family.
Kasey Aaron Ellis

Congrats to Scott, Erin and big brother Evan!

First Day of Preschool

Well, today was the day that Samuel has been waiting for, the first day of preschool! We have been preparing him for today for the past three months. Talking all about preschool, visiting his school and his teacher, talking about sharing and telling "preschool stories." Although I thought he was pretty prepared I didn't know what to expect.

This morning he woke up at 7 and came running up the stairs talking about preschool. He was eager to eat breakfast and got dressed without a fuss. He even wore a button up shirt without complaining. After a couple dozen pictures we loaded up and headed out. He talked nonstop in the car, explaining to me how he was going to say hi to Miss Lisa, how he was going to eat a snack and how he was going to share with his friends. He was ready!

We got to the school about 5 minutes early. As soon as we walked in the door we were greeted by the pastor of the church. Samuel instantly hid behind my leg and refused to talk. He wished a good day to Samuel and we headed to his classroom. He eagerly hung up his backpack and headed into the room. He hesitated for about a second then saw the dress up area. He walked over, grabbed the police helmet, put it on his head and headed over to say hi to Miss Lisa. Since he appeared to be doing great I said my goodbye and headed out.

Once I hit the car I had the realization that I just dropped by baby off for his first day of preschool. I felt a twinge of sadness but was more overjoyed and excited for him. I then realized that I had only one kid for the next two and a half hours!

When we went to pick up Samuel he was sitting (yes sitting) with his class. He yelled "Mommy!" then ran over to give me a big hug. He told me all about his new friends, his new playground, what he had for snack and that he wanted to go back again.
I don't think I could have asked for a better first day for him.

Fun in the Pool

Well the weather in Michigan has been beautiful since we arrived. It is much hotter than we are use to. Mike and the boys have been in the pool nearly everyday. Samuel loves swimming by himself (with his ring of course) and is getting really quick at getting around. Liam loves splashing around and playing with daddy. Here are a few pictures from yesterdays afternoon swim.

Updates

I feel the need for quick updates on everyone...

Mike started work at the BISD on Monday. He walked into a classroom that hadn't been cleaned all summer and appeared that whoever was there last left and never came back to put anything away. To say the least it was a bit overwhelming for him. So far he has been through a lot of trainings and meetings, gotten great advise from people who either work with him or have worked in his position, has set up the physical structure of the classroom and is beginning to figure out curriculum, level systems and whatever else he needs before Tuesday. He also meets with Bruce for his internship tonight to talk over the details of that. I think once school starts and he gets into the swing of things everything will even out and begin to feel a bit more manageable then it currently does.

I have been spending most of my days with the boys. We have frequented the gym a few times where I get to work out and the boys get to play in the supervised kid area. I have also done lots of running around looking at things for the house, getting ideas for the remodel, buying school supplies and helping both Mom and Mike with setting up their classrooms.

Samuel is as crazy as ever. He starts preschool on Tuesday and will be going half days two days a week. He is so excited about it and wants to hear preschool stories every night. He talks a lot about he new friends and all the things he will be doing. During the day he loves riding his new cars or bike outside. He also would be in the pool nonstop if he was allowed. He is becoming quite the little boy with all the things he says and the mannerisms he is developing. Notice the toe nails in the picture below. Sonya, his babysitter and Uncle Mike's girlfriend, introduced him to nail polish. He was so excited to show me when I came home. Very cute!
Liam has probably had the biggest change. He is walking! He still prefers the crawling since he is really fast at it, but is walking like a champ now too. He will easily go around the living room from chair to chair and has even attempted larger hikes as well. I think the other day I counted 39 steps before he sat and crawled the rest of the way. He is also signing and talking a lot more. He can sign please, more and all done now. We also figured out when he yells what sounds like "da da" to us he is really yelling at Samuel. Very funny!
Because his curls are so cute...

Bailey is doing great. She traveled extremely well and is seeming to enjoy Michigan. My parents also have a chocolate lab, Coco, so Bailey has a friend 24/7. She still spends most of her day sleeping as far away from the kids as she can. She is loving the big deck where she can lay and sun herself. We have not yet introduced her to the new house since there are staples and carpet tack strips laying out. We will soon. I am sure she will love all the land to run through.
There is a quick update on some of our lives. I will try to keep everyone a bit more updated in the future!

The New Blog

So ladies and gentlemen...here it is. The new Clark Family blog. It is the same address just a different layout and name. All our old posts are still there and can be found in the archives on the bottom. The blog will also remain private.

In addition, we have started a separate house blog, Under Construction. This blog is intended to serve as a journal for us as we move through the process of the remodel. It will keep track our our progress and experience. There will also be plenty of before, during and after pictures. You can link to it here. You can also always find a link on the right side under Friends Who Blog.

Enjoy!

Day Fifteen...Sullivan, IL

Our last stop was in Sullivan, IL to visit with Mike's relatives, Grandma Randol, Cousin Jasmine, Uncle Bruce, Aunt Gail, Cousin Caleb and Cousin Luke. Mike and I have not seen them in over five years which of course means the boys have never met them. We arrived mid-afternoon and were able to spend the evening visiting.

Liam loved Jasmine. They played together for quite a bit. Lots of laughs!

Samuel loved watching the fish in Grandma's pond.

Grandma, Mike and Liam

Grandma and Samuel

Grandma, Samuel, Liam and Mike

Final stop...Coldwater, MI

Day Twelve through Fourteen...St. Charles, MO

Heading to St. Charles was probably one of the most anticipated stops of our trip. We were going to visit our good friends, the Dinkins. I have known Trish and Roxy since our first November in Seattle. This past December they made the move away from Seattle to the St. Louis area in order to be closer to family (I guess we can relate).

Samuel had been talking about going to see Roxy for the twelve days prior and told us that he was going to yell "Roxy!" and run up and give her a big hug. As we pulled up he did see her right away and did yell . The hug took a bit more warming up but by the end of our time there they were arguing like siblings. Good times.

While in St. Louis we had a great time. We loved catching up with Trish and Paul and meeting Everett for the first time. They introduced us to a new store, H&M, that I am now officially in love with. I didn't even shop for myslef, but Samuel and Mike got lots of back to school clothes. We also went to the zoo, played at the park and enjoyed spending time together. Here are a few of my favorite pictures of our days there.
Liam hanging out at the zoo.

Samuel and Roxy playing with thier "baby rocks."

Everett...all smiles

Two peas in a pod. This was a few hours after arriving. We were heading to the park.

Playing at the park.

Liam and Everett getting to know one another. Yes, Liam's feet are that dirty.

Samuel and Roxy at the zoo.

"Mommy, I love St. Loius."

Trish, Paul, Roxy and Everett...
Thanks so much for letting us stay with you. It was great to see you all and meet your new little guy. We are so thrilled that we are closer now and will get to catch up more often! See you soon!

Day Eleven...Mt. Pleasant, IA

Nothing much happened today. We took off from Angie's around noon and had about a five hour drive to Mt. Pleasant, IA. We were able to drive most of it straight with only minor pitstops for bathroom breaks. We ended up arriving around dinner and were welcomed by The Pizza Ranch. We had one in Hudsonville when we lived in Jenison so were thrilled to see it there. After dinner we headed to the hotel and settled in to watch Michael Phelps win another gold.

Sorry no pics today.

Day Ten...Burnsville, MN

The rest of our time in Burnsville was great. We visited a local park with the boys and spent time relaxing around the condo. We were able to get our laundry done, consolidate into one suitcase and rearrange the van so we had more room. Here are a few last pictures of our time there.