Friday, November 30, 2007

photo preview


recently we took the kids to have their picture "professionally" made. addie's sweetie craig took the shots at the lewis home overlooking the arkansas river. it was a crisp fall day, and the finished products are truly amazing (even if i am a little biased)! here are just a few samples...look for the family shot on your christmas card! thanks again craig (and his fab assistant aunt addie!!)

bauer couldn't handle all the excitement...but who could when big sister's hugs are so intense?! ;)

Thursday, November 29, 2007

happy, happy, HAPPY 28TH!!


my baby sister, shannon, turned 28 on the the 28th! isn't she gorgeous? you haven't changed a bit, kid!! hope you have a great day!! we love you! :)

the OTHER grinch story


so everyone has heard of the grinch that stole christmas...but here is a little known alternate plot line. christmas vivian loves her toys and her baby bauer. so much she decides to share them...

much to baby bauer's surprise (sister willingly sharing can sometimes be a shocker!)

but alas, the sweet christmas vivian really is vivian the grinch!! and she steals the toys back for herself.....mwwahhhhhhaaaaaahhhhhaaaahah!

hmph...says baby bauer, that looks like fun...i will be the grinch, too!

growing babies...

so because the computer has been down a few days, i am behind in my baby updates. bauer is getting to be a big boy...he has begun sitting in his bumbo (although he is SOOOO skinny i think i should put a blanket in there with him!) as you can tell he really likes it...

vivian is embracing her two's. here she is wearing.....HER BROTHER'S OUTFIT!!! yes, it is actually a three to six month sweatsuit (if you look closely you can see the pants are knickers)!! the yellow is her princess gown, and of course, no outfit is complete without her size 11 pink boots (she wears a size 5). she really thinks she is a fashionista!! ;) she is growing more independent everyday...asking questions, and letting us know, "no, I can do it!"

bauer continues to develop a little personality of his own...and look at that sweet face! :)

vivian, on the other hand is using her sweet face to her advantage...when i asked her is she had been "eating" the blue playdoh, her big doe-eyed response was "no mommy, no eat playdoh." uuuuhhhhhh, i think you might be busted vivian...you've got a little something on your chin!!

and of course the real job, besides corralling this brood...is catching it all on camera! ok, so maybe the crew sometimes isn't very cooperative, or even happy about it (you think he is saying, "mom, puhhhleeeease" ...but they'll thank me someday!! :)

thanksgiving recap


we had a great day, that started with lunch at dad and dottie's. granny b and the crows, along with some of dottie's family were in attendance, and the food was YUMMY! then it was back to our house for dinner with the day side. we played games (my favorite tradition), chased children, ate, and made a lot of good memories...unfortunately i was too busy to take many pictures....however, i think this one of jackson is a good summary...happy and ready to eat!!

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

the great thanksgiving debate

so as i was checking blogs this morning, i came across su's friend kat's great potato debate. and i couldn't help but wonder...who else has these great thanksgiving debates with their family members? the day-clark debate is the following: canned vs. fresh cranberries. su likes canned, i like fresh (we always have both). but is it like this everywhere? are there three different potato dishes on some thanksgiving tables? so place your vote folks...or tell about your family beef (literally or figuratively)...and have a happy happy thanksgiving!

oh, and on the food front...last night the doorbell rang as i was cutting vivian's apple...so she took matters into her own hands! who knew she could do that? ;)

Sunday, November 18, 2007

the baptism

after much planning, clif and i decided to have the kids baptised this sunday at first methodist of north little rock. this is a very special church for us, since not only were we married in this church, but this is also where we first met. we were in the same confirmand class (along with vivian and bauer's godmother, celeste aka aunt sissy) and my mom was our sunday school teacher for two years. it is a very important moment in our family's life when we ask god to bless our children and help us raise them in a loving christian home...it means even more to do it where we have shared so many years of happy memories...ok, ok, enough mush here are the kiddos!

the day's: vivian, clif, somer and bauer
the littlest day in his christening gown. he is so stinkin' cute!!
popa and dotdot holding bauer at the church. don't they clean up nice? ;)
miss vivian wearing her new necklace from popa and dotdot, and on the run at the house. (don't worry cathy it was 75 degrees...it is ok to be barefoot.)
pawpaw and gege trying to handle all of their grandkids...setler six months, bauer 2 1/2 months, and vivian 2...aren't they brave?!
and just immediate family, this is SO hard to believe!! look how much we have grown over the past TWO YEARS!! thanks to everyone for coming to support our family on their big day. rex, steph, ruby, and trip; jon, celeste, harrison, and thomas; harriett and dale; and of course, aunt shannon, uncle john, and jackson; uncle seth, aunt su and setler; gege and pawpaw; popa and dotdot; and mike the manny and granny b. we hope you enjoyed your quiche ;) we love you all!!

jackson's party


this saturday we drove to texarkana for jackson's first birthday party. shannon did a beautiful job setting everything up...she even designed the cake! i LOVE it!!

apparently jackson did too! this might be my all-time favorite picture...

as you can see, mom and dad are pretty proud of their big guy, but who wouldn't be? after a quick bath, jackson began opening his presents and then gave everyone a quick surprise when he took his FIRST STEPS!! about five in a row, before he realized a room full of people had caught him in the act. ;) what a great treat for all of us! congrats cousin jackson on your big day, we enjoyed being a part of it!!

Thursday, November 15, 2007

some real genetic proof...


i couldn't help but notice when i was looking for pictures of jackson how much the baby boy cousins resemble each other. i have always said that jackson favors shannon's baby pictures, but i find myself seeing my own son in shannon's baby pictures as well. here is a side by side for comparison...jackson is about four months and bauer is about two. they could be brothers! woooohoooo....at least the smith-clark genetics are being kept alive via the boys! :)

birthday bonanza weekend!!

HAPPY, HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! can you believe little baby jackson is turning ONE?! look at this big boy drinking his REAL milk out of a sippy cup. it just seems like yesterday, that shannon gave birth to this beautiful little boy...

and i HAD to post this picture. it might be my all-time favorite (although the skunk is a close second). check out shannon's post for lots more great pics (including a cute prego shot).

and also a very, very, VERY happy birthday to miss parker grace, who is turning two. parker is one of vivian's best friends...cill and i worked nights at children's together when we were newlyweds and then were pregnant together with the girls.

this picture is the epitome of miss parker...she loves her jewelry, just like her mommy! :) and here are the girls playing last year...look how much they have grown...

we hope you each have a great birthday....we love ya!

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

bauer power

this week i realized that poor, poor, baby bauer truly is a second child. at this point vivian had hundreds of pictures taken, and bauer is lucky if he even manages to get IN the shot with big sister around! so this week i made it my mission to take his picture, and have some one-on-one time with him. i also thought an update might be in order, so here goes: he has been smiling for a couple of weeks, but has just started to laugh...he is great at holding his head up and following his big sister all around the room...he isn't too keen on baths (but that is ok, because most of the time i can't find the time or energy to give him one)...he sleeps a good seven hours straight at night...and might be a little bit more like vivian than i originally thought.

for instance, this is clif's favorite picture (see what a showboat he can be...just like vivian!). he is definitely "pumped up" don't you think?

these are my favorites....mr. serious.....oh wait....he couldn't help himself...heheheee

the pout. enough said!


the super cheese (it's genetic) and of course his signature smirk. i must admit we get a LOT of the smirk. it might be HIS favorite!

ok...so here's a little vivian


i don't think blogger would accept my post if it didn't have at least ONE vivian picture. these are her new winter pjs, and her wild hair before bed....you gotta LOVE those big ol' eyes!

Thursday, November 1, 2007

the halloween "day's"

after much anticipation....halloween finally arrived!! clif had the day off, so we took it easy during the morning and made a big pot of vegetable beef stew. that afternoon we made spider cupcakes, as a family, for all the neighbors (vivian really enjoyed eating the black licorice more than anything else.) after that we put on our second set of halloween costumes. straight from la boutique de nebraska!!

bauer was a fierce monster, and vivian was, of course, tinkerbell!!

nene had invited us over to help pass out candy, and so we brought her a spider cupcake. she thought it was super scary!!

but what would halloween be without scary spiders and monster attacks? wait.....hmmmm.....i mean tinkerbell attacks! ;) we hope everyone had a safe and happy halloween!

pumpkin painting

so being the overly protective, but creative, mother that i am...we went for pumpkin PAINTING rather than CARVING! as you can see vivian LOVED it! (yes that is my tank top and not a dress she is wearing!)

after we painted for a while, vivian informed me she needed to "mark" the pumpkin. after a brief drying spell, and maybe even a snack or two, we came inside and got out the markers. she is very intense, don't you think?
and here of course in the finished project. it actually looks very pretty sitting on the china cabinet. and if you were wondering what bauer was doing during all the artistic excitement...

he was having a great time with this gege. i think there might have even been a little flirting going on....look at that killer grin! :)