roller coaster ruby...& vivian

yep, i stole these pics! i left my camera at home, so steph took them...

in case you have never seen one before this is a kiddie roller coaster...and it is AWESOME, i wish i had one! i think that vivian and ruby's face sum it up...in fact, the little girls, baby boys, and big girls all had a great time (although the later did not partake of the roller coaster).

thanks reeves for a wonderful time and yummy lunch, let's do it again SOON!

lists and hope

with mother's day behind, and the move ahead i have spent a lot of time recently making lists. i must confess it soothes me. i love to see it all right before my eyes, to plan the route to make it all happen, and to methodically cross it off. this morning after dropping vivian off at school, list in hand i headed out to "conquer". upon arriving home, bauer had fallen asleep so i decided to do a little computer work, smugly thinking how it fit "perfectly" into my schedule. but as a checked the bank accounts, blogs, and emails i noticed something. a friend had asked me to check out the website of a little boy who was ill, and asked me for my opinion. as most of you know, i have a very blunt way of dealing with illness. and for me, false hope is almost as frightening as the disease itself. HOWEVER, as i read about this boy (who is vivian's age), i couldn't help but begin to hope. now let me say this: his lungs are infected, kidneys dysfunctional at best, his brain permanently damaged, and his heart...well, it is the sickest of all, BUT i have hope. funny how motherhood will do that to you. funny how, with all my being i ache for this unknown family, and against all odds, hope. i hope they find what they need to make it through each hour of the day. i hope they can see past all the wires, tubes and machines, and see their amazing gift from god, their son. i hope they find comfort in each others arms. and i hope beyond hope there is peace. if you find a moment today where your child is a wild man in target, your husband doesn't ask about your day when he enters the door, or your best friend finds it more impending to grouch about her new sofa than say thanks for the mother's day call, or something unexpected comes along and you just can't finish your list...take a moment and have hope, and i guarantee it will help you find peace. love to you all!

handmade, homemade happiness

what a great mother's day weekend! saturday morning, after big-girls-only coffee with addie, clif and vivian called me into the living room for the "unveiling"....
vivian painted the mat, clif framed the pictures, and bauer supervised. (while momo and gigi provided the musical accompaniment of barking!) later that night, clif made pork ribs, and beans (mmmmm....pork!). then on sunday, we all went to church and were joined by greg and joan, dad and dotdot, and granny b. afterwards, they all came back to our house for a little luncheon. when i was helping joan at the car she handed me these BEAUTIFUL roses, and said "happy mother's day!" what a great surprise! here she is on thursday when we went to lonoke. isn't she cute posing with the cherry pie i made her?!

and of course, it wouldn't be a very good post unless, there was a picture of miss vivian. here she is "helping", what a cutie! (please excuse the messy kitchen, i mean come on folks, we move in two weeks!) hope you all had a great day!

a letter from mom

most of the readers of this blog know about my mother. what you might not know, is that this month she will have been gone five years, and every hour of every single day i think of her and miss her. as mother's day approaches, i find myself a little sad...BUT god works in funny ways!! recently, i came across a blog, opening my eyes to a new way of thinking about this holiday, and then today i found this: an email my mom sent me in 1999!! (yes, i could hardly believe i still had it!) so wherever you are, whatever stage of life you are in, wherever your mother may be....happy mother's day! :)

Sommie, I thought you might enjoy this:
I HAVE LEARNED..........I've learned....that you cannot make someone love you. All you can do is be someone who can be loved...the rest is up to them. I've learned....that no matter how much I care, some people just don't care back. I've learned....that it takes years to build up trust, and only seconds to destroy it. I've learned...that it's not what you have in your life, but who you have in your life that counts. I've learned...that you can get by on charm for about fifteen minutes. After that, you'd better know something. I've learned...that you shouldn't compare yourself to the best others can do. I've learned....that you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life. I've learned...that it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be. I've learned...that you should always leave loved ones with loving words. It may be the last time you see them. I've learned...that we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel. I've learned...that regardless of how hot and steamy a relationship is at first, the passion fades and there had better be something else to take its place. I've learned...that heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences. I've learned...that money is a lousy way of keeping score. I've learned...that my best friend and I can do anything or nothing and have the best time. I've learned...that sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're down will be the ones to help you get back up! I've learned...that sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel. I've learned...that true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love. I've learned...that just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have. I've learned....that maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated. I've learned..that you should never tell a child their dreams are unlikely or out landish. Few things are more humiliating, and what a tragedy it would be if they believed it. I've learned...that your family won't always be there for you. It may seem funny, but people you aren't related to can take care of you and love you and teach you to trust people again. Families aren't biological. I've learned...that no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that. I've learned.....that it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others. Sometimes you are to learn to forgive yourself. I've learned...that no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn't stop for your grief. I've learned...that our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become. I've learned...that just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they don't love each other and just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do. I've learned...that we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change. I've learned...that you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret, it could change your life forever. I've learned...that two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different. I've learned....that no matter how you try to protect your children, they will eventually get hurt and you will hurt in the process. I've learned...that your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you. I've learned...that even when you think you have no more to give, when a friend cries out to you, you will find the strength to help. I've learned...that credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being. I've learned...that the people you care about most in life are taken from you too soon. I've learned...that it's hard to determine where to draw the line between nice and not hurting people's feelings and standing up for what you believe.
.....love you, Mom.

wooooohoooooo

today i came home to this...it is official. the only thing left is the exchanging of keys\signing...

so really...what more is there to say?! a beautiful bald baby bauer, and super sold sign!! WOOOOOHOOOOOOOO!!!! :)

the perfect truth

after a very interesting (and wonderfully stimulating) conversation with someone the other day i was inspired to write a little "truth" post. i wasn't really sure how\what i wanted to say until yesterday. upon returning home from the store, i saw clif coming up the hill from the lake pulling the kids in the wagon. i thought to myself..."aaaaah, what an ideal moment. i MUST run inside and get the camera and take a picture of my perfect little family." HOWEVER, by the time i ran in, grabbed the camera, and came back out this is what i got. vivian was screaming to hold bauer, bauer was crying because after he saw me for a second i had disappeared, clif was frustrated, and i was flustering about trying to get everyone's attention and failing! ;)

finally i got it, and i started to laugh. here is the "truth": i love my life, but my life isn't perfect, nor would i want it to be...and neither is anyone else's. in this world of blog, it seems as if every weekend is filled with parties, zoo trips, and happily ever afters...and somehow the pressure to be the perfect mom\wife\employee\daughter\in-law\friend\etc. can become overwhelming. so knowing the truth, and not trying to live above it, sometimes can be tricky.

but here is the beauty of knowing the truth: it makes all those brief moments of perfection even better...AND gives you great fuel for laughter concerning the crazy moments! so take heart, take a moment, and relax...laugh at yourself...i promise, things will end up a lot better than perfect!

viv-casso

i know the picture quality is less than great but i HAD to share. these are vivian's tub-time drawings. that kid is really a sponge!! let me explain, i am constantly drawing faces for her (what can i say, my on-the-spot drawing abilities are limited), but i didn't know she was paying such close attention.

then today she said, "look mommy, it's my frappy face! (translation happy face)" and this is what was on the wall!! i thought it must have been just luck so i asked her to do it again...

and this was her second attempt. she did several more too!! what a big girl...i knew there was something clark in that kid!! :)

petting zoo party

saturday was thomas lee's 2nd birthday party. it was a gorgeous day to be outside enjoying the beautiful weather, and the petting zoo in the lee's backyard (it was truly AWESOME!)

vivian thought the bunny was so cute (i thought the bunny was sedated, i CANNOT believe he let all those children hold him.)

thomas' barn cake was super cute...he is such a big boy...

and speaking of big boys...look what little bauer likes to do...stand up and check things out! (with daddy's assistance of course.)

and did i mention vivian has been exceptionally brave lately? she even let the pig eat out of her hand. it was hard to convince her to leave, but that clever aunt sissy thought of everything...she had animal crackers and books for the kids as favors to entice them out the door! thanks lee's, for a GREAT birthday bash!!

friday fair

everybody knows about the "carnies" and the little "fair" that comes to mccain. when clif and i were dating we stopped by after dinner once and rode what i quickly nicknamed the quick-me-sick. this friday the next generation got to go for a ride.

we weren't sure how miss vivian would take to these at first (the rules for the smaller rides are no parents allowed), but she LOVED it! here she is in action!! look at her serious driving face...

and of course little bauer was so sweet, he just chilled out, like always.

then it was on to the princess horse (that was vivian's name for it). she was such a brave girl we decided to treat her to a popsicle. can you guess what color she chose? ;)