Big Boy Bed

Monday afternoon, for the third time, I went to Samuel's room to get him up from his nap and I was surprised when he met me at the door. He seemed a bit surprised also and looked at me, looked at his crib and said "out?" All I could do was laugh. I guess I should have expected it since he is an active boy and likes to climb, but I was hoping to keep him behind bars a bit longer. So, at a mere 19 months of age we are transitioning him to a big boy bed!

When daddy got home last night we headed over to Babies R Us to get one of the bed rails so that we don't find him on the floor every few hours then headed home for the big construction project. Samuel was pretty excited about the whole thing. He watched us take the front of his crib off then he helped me make his bed. He then climbed up on it and just sat there looking very proud of himself. A bit later when we peeked at him he had taken a few books to his bed to look at.

Then it was time for the true test......will he actually sleep in his bed?? Mike and I went through the normal routine then started to talk about how he was going to sleep in his big boy bed tonight. It took a bit longer to get him to fall asleep, but he did finally with daddy sitting and singing next to him. The night went as smoothly as expected considering he is also still getting over being sick. He didn't seem to be up more often because of the bed, but I guess as the nights roll on we will find out.

Today, Samuel was very excited about taking his nap. After I got him cleaned up from lunch he grabbed his blanket and said "night-night" I took advantage of this rare opportunity and went into his room with him. I tucked him all in with his blanket, his cup, cookie and cow of course and sat down next to the bed. Within about 20 minutes he was sound asleep. I'll let you know how it goes!

Recovering

No hikes this past weekend. Instead we all laid low at home and tried to get rid of a bug that has infested our house. I started feeling pretty sick Friday and into Saturday. By Saturday night it had also hit Samuel. He remained pretty miserable even up to this morning.

It seems to be a chest cold that just won't give up. Headaches, stuffy noses, raspy chests and miserable sleeping conditions. Samuel actually spent last night in our bed propped up on pillows to try and make it easier for him to breath. We decided to bring him in after we were up every half an hour with him crying and screaming. To say the least no one slept very well.

He does seem to be in a better mood today and ate a good breakfast. We are going to hang out here at home again and get some medicine in him. Hopefully a nice long nap will be in our near future! We have to be healthy when Nana and Papa come to visit on Thursday!

Big Brother

Take a close look at Samuel's shirt...

This was one of his Christmas presents this past year. Yes, he is going to be a big brother. Mike and I were pleasantly surprised when we found out the news this past Thanksgiving. I had not been feeling well and was beginning to wonder, but figured it couldn't be that easy the second time around. After walking by our linen closet and being able to smell the vitamins I decided it was time to take the test. Lo' and behold it was positive. After an early ultrasound to confirm that everything was good, we found out that we will be expecting baby around July 24th! Which makes me 16 weeks right now.

The first trimester was a rough one for me. I was much more sick with this baby then I ever was with Samuel. I also have not felt that I have gotten enough sleep and am always walking around exhausted. I guess I better get use to it. I am feeling a bit better now, but continue to struggle with what sounds good to eat and then actually eating it. I am well into my maternity clothes, but am showing much differently than I did the first time around. This might be because I don't eat everything in sight this time.

Samuel is excited about being the big brother. He knows that there is a baby in mommy's tummy and everytime he thinks about it he comes over to lift my shirt and kiss my belly. It is really sweet. He was able to see the baby on the ultrasound and hear the heartbeat again last night. He has his own baby that he carries around, feeds and loves to burp! It is amazing how much he has grown up and matured over the last few months. I am hoping this continues as the baby gets closer and closer to being here.

Well, I guess that is it for now. I am sure there will be lots more to tell, but there are 20+ more weeks to talk about all that! Know that baby and mom are doing well, daddy and Samuel and preparing for another little miracle and Bailey is wondering how she can escape before July!

Cars

Samuel loves playing. He is such an active little guy and keeps himself pretty busy throughout the day. You can generally find him running from his room to the living room hauling books, trains and cars with him.

Awhile ago he was in his room playing and being really quite. Which in our book translated to really up to something he shouldn't be doing. Anyway, I walked back to his room and found him like this...

He had lined up all his cars bumper to bumper. I instantly started to worry about him! Was this normal? Do all kids do this? This was just the start. He enjoys lining his trains up and even his books! I guess he is just a bit too much like his mom when it comes to order and organization!

Samuel also had his first introduction to arcade games. He ran right up to car, climbed up on the seat, grabbed the steering wheel and pretended to drive. I guess I should stop letting him drive our car (that was a joke, don't report me to CPS).

How can you not just love that face?

St. Edwards State Park

Since the weather was beautiful today, we decided to head out for a family hike. Mike found a state park that is about 15 minutes away from us. It use to be a seminary, but is now owned and operated by the state. There were a bunch of trails, a kids play area and just a beautiful surrounding.

We decided to take the easiest walk (.62 miles) down to Lake Washington. Samuel walked the whole way by himself! Once there, Bailey got to play in the water and Samuel crawled around on some of the rocks. We watched the little waves come in and looked for ducks. After a few minutes we decided to start the trek back up.

Samuel made is quite a way before signing and telling us he was all done. He then got a short ride on mom's back before daddy took over. It was a great little outing!

The Sun is Out

The weather has been really nice here the past couple of days. Yesterday, Samuel and Jase went on a walk around our complex. We have a really nice walking trail that is far enough off the road that the boys can run and play on it without me constantly worrying.

Today, we decided to try a couple new parks out. Neither of them had really good play areas that were young enough for the boys, but they both had really nice walking trails. We set out on the trail and discovered all sorts of neat things. We heard and saw ducks, we heard lots of birds and heard a very excited dog. They boys did great. They even wanted to hold hands for part of the walk.

Hopefully the weather will stay nice through the weekend and we can take our first official family hike of the 2007!

Congrats Uncle Mike

Well, its officially official. Last Monday night, Uncle Mike signed his scholarship to play golf at Indiana Tech.

Indiana Tech is a small, private college located in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The university is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and compete in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference. This year, Indiana Tech is reestablishing their golf team. It should be an exciting year for them.

To say the least we are all very proud of Mike. It is amazing to think that my little brother is going to college and being able to pursue a dream at the same time. Samuel talks about and to (his pictures at least) his Uncle Mike constantly. I am so excited that Samuel will always have Uncle Mike to look up too. I guess we will just have to hurry up and get back to Michigan so we can see some college golf matches.

Keep up the good work bud. We miss you bunches and are so very proud of you!

Congrats!

Happy House

Well, there is a happy vibe in the Clark household this afternoon. The Chicago Bears are going to the Superbowl ! Around 12:00pm we all took our places around the tv. Jenn on the couch, Mike pacing nervously and Samuel finishing up a much needed nap. There was lots of clapping, cheering and even a few grumbles, but in the end there was the Superbowl Shuffle.

Samuel and Daddy after a touchdown dance.

Samuel wasn't happy with all the calls...

...but in the end there was dancing!

Go Bears...two weeks to plan the party!

Fun in the Snow

Well, the weather has not yet taken a break out here in Seattle. We got another ice and snow storm before I left for California giving Mike both Thursday and Friday off. This week is a bit better with him having an hour delay both Tuesday and today. At least they count as days. Right now they will have six days to make up at the end of the year. Uhhh!

This afternoon the boys were driving me a bit nuts so I thought we would head to the grocery store. I soon discovered that I only had one car seat since Mike had Samuel's in his car from last night. Since I couldn't really tie one to the roof we voted against the store. Instead we bundled up and went on a walk.

The boys were relatively good. Of course they don't stay together and each have their own agenda about which direction we should be heading. After about a twenty minute walk around our building we made it over to the little park. They ran around and played in the snow a bit.

Once little hands and noses were cold we made our way back to the apartment. After a snack they are both really calm as they watch good old Elmo. I guess we will have to take walks more often!

California

This past weekend, Trish and I took a much needed weekend away to California. This was the first time that I have spent more than a night away from Samuel. I know I should have done it sooner. Anyway, we had a great time. Here is a brief summary of our trip through pictures.

We flew into San Jose early Friday morning and drove up to San Fransisco. We visited Pier 39. Lots of shops and barking seals!

We had to have Fish n' Chips for lunch at Bubba Gump's.

Since we are chocolate lovers we had to head to the original Ghirardelli shop at Ghirardelli square.

We decided on hot chocolate. Too bad it was soooo sweet we couldn't finish it!

We then drove up to Golden Gate Bridge. We walked halfway out to get some good pictures before we headed to Monterey. It was windy and cold!

Picture of the city from Golden Gate.

Once we arrived in Monterey, we drove around to some of Trish's old stomping grounds. We saw her old apartment and language school. We couldn't leave without eating dinner at Michael's.

A view down Cannery Row.

Sand dollars at the aquarium.

We did a lot of walking on this trip. We took a three mile hike through Point Lobos.

This deer was literally this close to us. There were actually five total wandering around eating.

The Lone Cypress at Pebble Beach.

One of the golf courses in the Pebble Beach area.

A view of the coast.

The beautiful sunset over the water.

Love of Puzzles

Samuel loves doing puzzles. Here he is with a collection of four of his favorites. We do all of them at least 10 times a day, more on a good day. He is so proud of himself each and every time he completes one.

18 Months

Last Saturday, Samuel officially turned 18 months old. Last night we made it in to have his pictures taken. Here are a couple of our favorites.

What's new for Samuel this past month...

2 stitches to the forehead wound he suffered while playing the piano with daddy.

Way too many Christmas gifts.

10 hours of flight time for our trip back to Michigan.

18 hours of driving time on the trip down to Georgia and back to Tennessee.

A large obsession with puzzles. He does different puzzles at least 20 times a day.

A continued love for books.

Bob the Builder has become another favorite cartoon he gets to enjoy.

Continually dancing around the house sometimes to his very own music.

Many, many more words and a few new signs.

The discovery of candy! We gave in and gave him a sucker after the stitches. Now he knows and asks for it whenever he sees it.

A new love for coloring. He has even tasted a few crayons.

Beginning to learn the difference between cars, trucks and tractors.

Samuel continues to amaze us as we watch him grow. This is one of the best stages we have experienced so far. He is so active and has such a pure joy for life. I know we may be a bit biased, but we still believe he is the best little boy ever...not to mention the cutest!

The Joy of Coloring

Samuel loves to color. For Chirstmas he received several coloring books and some crayons. I have to hide them around the house because the moment he sees them it is non-stop begging to color (accompanied with many pleases).

Once we get all the stuff out and the table protected, he has to have Mike or I help him. He starts by choosing the crayon he wants then gives us the one he would like us to use. Since coloring if so much fun, we willingly sit with him and color whatever picture he has chosen.

The only question we generally have at the end is whether more ended up on the paper or on him. Oh, to be a kid again!

Our Christmas Story...Part 3

The rest of the story...

Wednesday afternoon we all packed up the car (8 suitcases, 4 adults, 1 child in a car seat, lots of candy and several extra bags) and headed down toward Georgia. We were all meeting there to celebrate the marriage of Ashley (Jenn's cousin) and Chris. After spending about 7 hours in the car accompanied by a two hour stop at Cracker Barrel, we arrived in Nashville, TN where we would spend the night. Thursday morning we got up and drove the remaining 5 hours down to Conyers, GA. Lots of family gathered at the same hotel for what promised to be a weekend of fun.

Friday morning Nana, Mom, Dada and Samuel headed into Atlanta to get Aunt Angie from the airport. She was thrilled to see Samuel and he was finally starting to feel a bit better so had a bit more life in him.

Friday afternoon we met more family at the Atlanta Aquarium. It was a beautiful aquarium, but way to crowded. I think we all would have enjoyed it much more with about half the amount of people there.

Saturday morning we spent time relaxing at the hotel and preparing for an evening of dancing. At 5, we went to the wedding which was immediately followed by the reception at a beautiful mansion. We had a wonderful dinner and Samuel enjoyed dancing all over the dance floor.

Sunday morning we packed up and headed back. After dropping Angie back off at the airport we made our way back to Nashville were we would leave Monday morning. We made it to the hotel in time to watch the Bears play. It was not a good game at all and everyone ended up falling asleep long before the ball dropped to bring in the new year. Oh well!

Monday morning we all got up, ate breakfast then headed to the airport. Since Nana and Papa had a long drive ahead of them we arrived at the airport plenty early for our flight which ended up being delayed. After a very long wait and a very long flight we arrived back in Seattle around 6:00pm. We were very excited to all see our own beds after many days of travel!

And that is the rest of the story.