What's happenin' at the Clarks

This week, Abby lost her first tooth! Her eyes are looking a lot less puffy, aren't they? The doctor loaded us up with some allergy medicine ($$$$$- ugh) but it is doing the trick. She wasn't concerned about the asthma symptoms. Probably a side effect of the allergies.

I may have mentioned my work is trying a new flex schedule, and I'm allowed to work 4 10-hour days with Friday's off. Last Friday was my first Friday off, but it was a busy day in stamp-land, so I had quite a bit of work to do from home. Tom had spent the week on the road, so his boss let him work from home that day so he could walk Abby to school and see her classroom. Friday afternoon found us all at the dining room table with our laptops. Abby was playing a game online, and Sarah was not to be left out. I just had to get up and snap a photo of the moment.

Mom and Dad, this pix is for you. See how big these trees are growing that you bought for us last spring?

We have just a few yummy blackberries this year. Hoping the plant will take off next year!

It wasn't looking like we would get any raspberries this year, dispite how healthy and large the plants are. But, low and behold, I see the fruit is starting to come. They are covered with bees right now.

We finally got a frame put up around our mirror in our entry. It finishes it off so nice!

Abby's first week of Kindergarten is going well. She is such a big girl. After the first day she wanted to just hop out of the car and go up to the door herself. No Mom assistance necessary- and she is already talking about her new friends.

Except... she has really been suffering from allergies... puffy eyes especially. I don't know what is triggering it. Also, she has had a couple of weird episodes at night. I didn't think much about it until last night when it occurred to me that it might be asthma symptoms. For example, she is swallowing a lot and wheezing and has a really shallow cough. From the swallowing I thought she was needing to throw up, or was having heart burn or something, but I read that asthma creates extra mucus, so maybe that is it. I made an appt. with the dr. tomorrow morning.

Kindergarten!

Hi! This is Abby! I'm here to tell you about my first day of school! Mom took pictures of me in my new school clothes.
Foothills Elementary is a really great school. Mrs. Tipton is my school teacher. She has really pretty hair and she is really nice. She even gave me a brownie after school.
I saw Aiden and Zach from my daycare today. This is a picture of my new class lining up for school. Looks like I'm the biggest one, huh?
My Mom painted my hand orange. It tickled.
I was working while my mom was helping me. Yay- it was a great first day!
More photos here. Oops, I forgot something. Even Mrs. Tipton has blonde hair but really short and pretty. I met 2 girls named Gemma and Eliza in my table group. It is the blue group. The other groups were red, yellow, and green. My favorite color is blue.

an early anniversary gift

This weekend we replaced this mess...
with this beauty:
Yes, I was aware of the strange irony of taking a photo of my new camera with my old camera. Our old Sony was a good old friend, but not so reliable lately, and definitely beat up. It was time for a replacement. Hopefully the quality of my photos will improve (if I can learn to use it properly!) I'll let YOU decide.

more harvest

Here is an update about the rest of our time in Montana. On Tuesday when Amma (mom) was working, we spent a little time in Fort Benton visiting the library, store, levee, and aunt Ruth. We also stopped to see my old piano teacher, Doris Rowe (below), and heard about her recent 80th birthday party. She is so sweet.

We also stopped to take some pictures of the Shep statue. If you haven't heard the story of Shep and are wondering what is so special about a dog that you need a statue of him, the story is on the sign below. He has almost made Fort Benton more famous than Lewis and Clark! :)

Back on the farm, I spent several hours on Wednesday cutting peas in the combine for dad. I managed to get through it all without breaking the combine or eating rocks :) I'll have to post some pictures later for proof. All the years growing up on the farm I was missing out and I never had a chance to try it. I told mom if I were ever a farmers wife I wouldn't be much of the cookin' kind. Driving combine was much more fun :) Last night, after Tom got back, we went out on the combine together. Dad went to bed and left Tom and I to run it, so I taught Tom and between the two of us we ran it until almost 3 AM. Real farmers!

I forget how many animals there are on the farm. You'd think you'd see more in the mountains, but we've seen way more out here. We saw plenty of antelope, bunnies, gophers, coyotes... fortunately no rattlesnakes. Here is a quick photo of a fox we saw the other night.

Today we have to leave to head down to Bozeman. The week has gone too fast, but we were glad for the time we had. Thanks, Mom and Dad, for everything!

Harvest time

For the first time since we've been married, we finally made a point to get home for harvest time! It is such a busy time around the farm, but there is always an excitement in the air. Unfortunately for us, harvest was a little late in coming this year, so the wheat isn't quite ready to cut. Fortunately for Mom & Dad, that means it looks like a good year! They've had a lot of moisture late in the spring this year. Here is a photo of the beautiful, tall winter wheat. For more photos, check out our Kodak Picture Gallery.

Here is Farmer Tom with his John Deere. Tom was prepared for this not to be a typical "vacation" and set to work mowing some weeds that were bullying out the grass that was supposed to be growing in a few fields. Tom had to leave for Durango today, but he'll be back on Thursday afternoon. He might be able to squeeze in a few more hours of harvest experience before we head down to Bozeman on Friday. I'm hoping we'll be cutting the wheat by then.

Abby and Sarah wasted no time climbing like monkeys all over the combine.

Princess and the Pea: The wheat wasn't ready for cutting, but Dad is growing several fields of peas that were ready. Saturday night Sarah went out for a ride in the combine with Grandpa, complete with dress-up. She has worn it every possible moment!

Our special friends Sean and Holly Rainey came up for a weekend visit to take in the harvest experience. They left 2 of their kids behind for the weekend (traveling light), but Nick and Bella had a great time riding in the combine. Thanks for visiting! (We figured the "Raineys" would be great luck on the farm. Although I suppose harvest time isn't the best time for rain- unless you need a break to go to the lake...)

Mom put me in charge of her camera for the week so I could try it out and see if I like it (I'm considering that model for myself!) So... be sure to see more harvest pictures in our gallery and check back later for updates! Also, I'm helping Mom and Dad set up their own blog this week. More details there at the Benjamin Ranch!

Bear World

On our way to Montana this week we had to stop in Rexburg, ID for the day so Tom could do some work with a couple of his job sites there. The girls and I had some time to kill, so we hopped over to Bear World. We drove around and saw the animals and then rode a few rides, saw the baby bears, and played in the petting zoo. We had a great day!

Camping in the Uintas

This past weekend we had a quick getaway up in the Uintas (south of Evanston WY) with the Derbidges (friends from work/daycare). We borrowed four-wheelers and had a great time. Drat. Now Tom has added four-wheelers to his toy wish list.

We rode to Lily lake.
Tracee and her daughter Kelsie.
The Uintas are famous for their lodgepole pines. When they were scouting for the campsite the guys saw several moose, but I guess the weekend traffic scared them away because they were nowhere to be found when the girls got up there.
Abby and Bethany
Sarah loved it too!
The wildflowers near our campsite:

Happy Birthday, Hannah!

Mike and Diane called this week to tell us they had brought Hannah and Ilona down with them, and that they were going to have a birthday party for Hannah, so we headed up there to help them celebrate. It is always so much fun to see them! The girls had a blast in the pool they had set up for them. (They are like fish! Hannah and Ilona have always been that way, but you wouldn't believe how comfortable Sarah has gotten with the water, too!)

Nice purple lips, Sarah!

They each took turns batting at the piñata.

And then shared the pot!

We then had some fun face (or body, in this case) painting.

This was Hannah's work of art. Diane was a great sport!

Thanks, Mike and Diane, for a fun evening. It was great to see you again!

4th of July weekend

Here it is, 10 days later, and I'm finally blogging again. Sorry for the lapse. Here is an account of our 4th of July weekend. I think this was probably the first weekend since we've lived here that we haven't been in Montana for the 4th. Since we were there over Memorial weekend, and plan to be again for a much anticipated trip to the farm at the end of the month, we decided staying put sounded pretty good. And it was... although I admit I did feel a little "homesick" once or twice.

We spent the weekend doing a few of our favorite things: shopping (well, that's one of mine, anyway), eating Thai food, hanging out with our kids and our friends; and a few traditional holiday things as well: watching the Riverton fireworks (great show), going to the carnival and parade, and watching our own fireworks while eating yummy snow cones.

vinyl wall decals

Here is a free plug for Stampin' Up! The past couple of months we have been working on launching this new line of vinyl wall decals. You can order them as of July 1. My favorite is the design pictured on the left (the overlapping flowers), and I get it for free for working on the launch! We are adding to the line in the fall. Click on the link to see more and download a brochure.

things to remember

Who said the twos were terrible? We are cherishing this age (because we know 3 is coming! Ha.) I just wanted to journal a few things we'd like to remember about Sarah at this age. When she gets angry, she shouts "Ever". Probably her abbreviated version of "You're the meanest mommy/daddy/sister, ever". I don't think it gets the effect she wants since it usually cracks us up. The other thing she does is when were trying to get her to come. She says "one time" and holds up her finger". When I'm trying to get her out the bath—"one time". When it's time to leave the playground—"one time". I love how she gets her point across. She is certainly starting to strut her independence whenever possible, but when we are wallowing in a fit of tantrums, it's good to remember to cherish the moment.

kindergarten graduation

Abby has officially graduated from Kindergarten! Well... she will be starting K. again in August at public school. We decided not to rush things, even though she is educationally more than ready for first grade. She was one of the top students in her class this year and finished on D/E level reading and well into 1st grade math. Here is Abby in her cap and gown:

The kids were so cute during the ceremony. They each read a little line, and they finished by saying their motto and throwing their caps in the air. Their motto sounds a little something like this, "We can do anything we want as long as we make good choices and do our best. Kindergarten kids, who are they? The best darn kids in the U.S.A.! Kindergarten, Kindergarten, yay!
Abby with the other girls in her class: Emma, Olivia, and Audrey.
The graduate with proud mom and dad! (Sarah was jumping in the bouncy house.) Debbie had rented that for the kids to play in, and we all had a barbeque after the ceremony.

a lovely weekend

It was a great weekend for yard work (albeit a bit hot...). I snapped a few photos around the yard. Here is our new patio furniture:

Our potted garden. We planted tomatoes, peppers, basil, cilantro, and few flowers.

Flowers in the front yard. The big bush is lavendar, but I can't figure out why it looks more white than purple.

These are Fourth of July roses. Appropriate for the time of year.

I can't remember what these are called. Pink fantasia or something like that, I think.

And finally, another video:

Lava Hot Springs

We had ourselves a mini summer vacation this past weekend! It was such a fun and relaxing time and we feel rejuvenated, even after only a weekend. (Well, our house is a disaster and I barely have the time to update our blog, so the rejuvenation doesn't seem to last long.)

Friday night we headed up and checked into the house we were renting. We had time to grill up some hot dogs for dinner and then headed down main street for a walk and a stop by the park and the ice cream shop. For more photos of our trip, check out our kodak gallery.

Saturday morning we drove up to Pocatello and had a yummy breakfast with the Bunkers. Becky and Jill were both there visiting, and it was fun to see Jill's sweet baby Zoe! John and Roxanne are such proud grandparents. Big surprise, considering how darling this little doll is!!!

After a couple hours with the Bunkers, we headed over to meet the Coopers at Holt Arena where Brandon was participating in a regional wrestling tournament. It is quite an accomplishment to get to the regional level at his age! They followed us back out to Lava where we met up with the Raineys and spent the afternoon at the pool with the kids and floating the river with the "big kids". It really is a fun little town. That night we all enjoyed a BBQ and time to visit.

The next morning the guys enjoyed a quick round of golf, and then the Coopers had to head out early as they wanted to beat the heat. It turns out their air conditioning went out in their 'burban. There probably couldn't be a worse time for that—it was probably a miserable ride home. Meg, I can't believe I managed to not get any photos of your kids while we were there! I know you took some- please share if you can :)

There is a even a little Thai food restaurant in Lava, so we ate there for lunch with the Raineys before we all split. It wasn't half bad! (Granted, I've become a bit of a Thai food "snob" as I've discovered my affinity for it this year. I've tried just about every Thai restaurant I've come across from here to Australia, so to find one in a small town like this that has decent food is quite an accomplishment!) So, it was a great weekend, and we love spending time with our wonderful friends. It is hard to say goodbye.

"Back to life, back to reality". Tom had to head back to Idaho for work yesterday morning, but he got back again late tonight, thank goodness. It is hard to keep this ship afloat without him. Daddy is our anchor! :) We are looking forward to spending THIS weekend close to home. We have plenty of things to do around here!

catching up

Slap me on the hand. It's been... nearly 2 weeks since I've posted. Well, that is a sign of how the last 2 weeks have been. Busy! Last week was a little rough since it was my first week back to work. I was really tired when I got home everyday, which was a challenge considering everything else we had going on. Starting with Becky, we really enjoyed her quick visit. We took her to a new Thai restaurant, and it is a place we will frequent often in the future! Very yummy. (It's called Pawit, for you Utah locals). I'm even trying to recruit Becky to work at Stampin' Up! :)

Then, we had Riverton convention, and mixed in, a visit from our dear friends, the Raineys. They took us out for a yummy meal at the Melting Pot and we all left feeling a little over-satisfied. You know how that goes. In any case, we love our time with them. Between being sick and having company, we missed more of convention than we'd have liked, but maybe we can get more later in the year.

Monday night Tom had to travel down to Page, AZ for work, so I went over to Paula's house (a coworker) to have a picnic and walk around the little lake in her neighborhood at Daybreak. It was a beautiful evening and the girls enjoyed watching the ducks and throwing rocks in the water. I actually took this photo on my phone, of all things! I was impressed with how well it turned out.

This weekend we have plans to travel up to Lava Hot Springs. The Raineys will meet us there for a night again (on their way home from Park City) and the Coopers from Bozeman are in Pocatello for a wrestling tournament and will meet us there as well. Also, Becky and Jill are both in Pocatello, and I'd love to see Jill's little one!

Medical update: I am feeling much, much better this week. I'm getting a little energy back, and am actual starting to feel.... normal! I'll try not to let so much time pass before posting again. Bye for now!

back to normal

It's been a week since our last post, which is a good sign that life hasn't been too exciting this week. I'm feeling much better, so we are looking forward to getting out in the yard this weekend to get caught up. I'm planning to go back to work Monday, and then we are getting ready for a quick visit from my cousin Becky Hermanze! I'm very excited to catch up with her. And then later in the week, a visit from the Raineys in Bozeman, and our Riverton (church) convention as well! It was nice to take a little breather last week to recover since we are jumping right back in to our normal busy-ness. Life is great :)

surgery update

Since I'm back home and a bit more coherant, I'd thought I'd post an update on my gall bladder surgery. Thursday I had my surgery in the early afternoon. It took a bit longer than expected because my gall bladder was apparently quite swollen and showed signs of many previous attacks. Apparently there was no bile in the gall bladder, which meant it had been blocked for at least 3 weeks. The doctor gave me quite a scolding for not listening to my body signals, but also said I'll just have to be aware that I have a high pain tolerance, so need to be especially aware if something seems off.

The surgery was laparoscopic except for one incision that had to be a little wider to extract my swollen gall gladder. The scars should be much less ugly than the one I have from my appendix. One lesson I learned from this experience is that one should NEVER be alone in the hospital. Every patient needs an advocate. Tom had to leave after the surgery to get the girls, so I was alone in my recovery room when the anesthesia started wear off. I woke up because my IV had run out and was beeping incessantly. I was in a lot of pain and was incredibly thirsty, but the nursing staff was behind and I couldn't get someone to come even after repeated calls. After more than 2 hours had passed, I had enough and had Tom take the girls to the neighbors so he could come in and be with me for the night. It wasn't until he came in that he was able to chase down a nurse and finally get me some pain meds and water. My doctor balled them out the next day when I told her about it, and so after that they were pretty apologetic. Hospitals aren't my best friend, so I was glad to go home on Friday morning, and Tom has been taking great care of me.

I've been fairly comfortable as long as I stay on top of the pain medicine, and I feel like I've been improving a little every day. Thanks, everyone, for your well wishes and support.

Memorial Weekend

A typical rainy Memorial weekend in Montana. This was a constant, heavy rain like you almost never see! My farmer dad was sure happy as it amounted to about 3 inches up on the farm. We headed up to Bozeman Friday night. Abby went with her older cousins and Nanna and Papa on Saturday to a horse show in Billings. Tom, Sarah, and I stayed back and went to Justin and Tiffany's for a mexican dinner. (Yum- Tiff is always such a great cook.) On Sunday, we went to meeting with Brad and Amy and then went to their house for lunch (another great meal!) We had a barbeque that night and had even MORE great cookin'.

Turns out, all that great food isn't great for one's digestive system. I ended up in the ER Sunday night with a gall stone attack. They determined that it wasn't infected and sent me home with instructions to get with a dr. as soon as possible. Turns out that is harder than you would think. Many of the specialists around here don't take new patients. I finally got a referral from my regular doctor and had an appt. today. She was ready to admit me this afternoon! Apparently my gall bladder has to come out, so I have to show up at the hospital tomorrow for surgery. It should be laproscopic (sp?) and hopefully the recovery time will be limited to about a week. I'll be spending a night in the hospital, so hopefully I can post an update once I'm back home again.

To leave you on a happy note, here is silly Sarah, hamming it up for the camera in the car.

green thumb

Who knew I would enjoy gardening so much? I think because Spring seemed so slow to come this year, it has felt so good to get outside and work in the dirt. This weekend I planted tomatoes and peppers and some annuals. I planted several of these alliums last fall, and it was fun to see them blooms so heartily.

I planted this Pink Innocence, purple petunias, and impatiens. Annuals are a bit expensive I found out, so hopefully they fill in nicely since I didn't want to spend any more money!

Our next big project is to get a big load of mulch and spread it everywhere. It seems to make a big difference in keeping down the weeds.