Schmoorgasboorg of Pics... Part 1

OK, can't say I didn't warn you...I have approximately a bajillion pics that I need to post, this is just the surface scratched. But, still fun to go back and look through 2009.
This is all going to be pretty random, so good luck keeping up!

Christmas Morning, Cara and her new baby (that cries, drinks, eats, pees, and poops.) Such a lucky "grandmother" I am...
The PURE joy face as Clinton opened his customized truck...green with TWO trailers! Just like Dad's!!!
Manicure set. I never knew what I was missing before, now that I've been so spoiled, I can't do without. ;)
New flannels for daddy! You can see Meatball's enthusiasm in the background.
So excited for Christmas.
Scooters!
Cara's beloved doll house, she LOVES this thing. Well done, Santa!
My beloved purple tree!! I adored my tree, nearly cried having to take it down. Miss you tree!!
Snowman family at Corrington Christmas party, we all made socky snowmen- Great idea Christy!

Cara and Cadie.
Hubby loves. :)
Cara with Santa at the Klingler family party, she was much more open with Santa this year, had no trouble asking for toys.
Clinton too- except his list is the same every year...trucks, trucks, and trailers.

OK, here are a few of my cell phone pics (smaller size) from the year, I just loaded them, so again, it's gonna be really random...

Baby Gage! I get to babysit Mr. Gage quite frequently, but realized I didn't have any pics of him posted yet. He's quite the flirt. ;)
I know we look kind of ghostly, but this was such a fun day, Cara and I walked the greenbelt and soaked up every second of the sun. Ahhh, I miss it.
Blue October concert! Soooooo very fun! Clint's first concert ever, now he's hooked. Told ya, dear!

Another date night pic, we need more of those!
OK, these are from a day when we had WAY too much time at the bus stop, so we had a photo shoot. This is Clinton's infamous "Scare-wee" face.

Handsome, toothless boy!
Oh, and I'm sure Clint will get after me, because the car looks much different, but here is Clint's new car on the day we bought it.
He's giddy about it. ;) More pics of it's transformation to come as well...

- And, for you squeamish ones out there, here's fair warning to stop now. This is the much anticipated removal of the cast and pins from Clinton's leg. Poor kid!
Cutting the cast...
Poor little foot!

Before the pins were pulled, he was VERY nervous, and so was I. I pictured tears and screaming, but he looked down and the doc was done- not even a flinch. Thank goodness!
His muscles were pretty deteriorated, but after a couple more months he was able to walk on it again. - Never a trampoline again. I'm so glad he can walk again!

Alright, that's it for now. Thanks for bearing with me.

To be continued... ;)

New beginnings...

"Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense." — Ralph Waldo Emerson

OK. So I'll admit I've been a total blogging slacker, but in my defense, I've been trying to fix some technical issues that I finally resolved tonight! - It's an omen that means it'll be a great new year! ;)

I've been reflecting on 2009 for most of the day. Hmmm...how to put it without sounding whiny????....it was TOUGH.
I understand that there is no faster, more thorough way to gain knowledge and insight than through adversity, so I am very thankful for all that has passed.
...AND I'm hoping 2010 is nicer and brighter.
Since my last post (which literally makes my stomach turn everytime I look at the pictures of my gramps and Clinton) life has been a little smoother. Clint went back to work with Transystems (his winter-time driving job) and he loves it. I'm hoping he can soon find a family friendly driving job and be able to do what he loves to do full-time, year-round. We've been VERY blessed to have his brother who employes him in his off season months, there's no way we could have made it this past year without that blessing as well. Plus, what's more fun than hanging with his brothers all day??
I started up the Fall semester with guard again in August. My beloved instructor is leaving next year to pursue her dream of opening a bakery, so she deemed me future ISU Color Guard Instructor. Big shoes to fill?- Check. Honored?- Check. More pay?- Check! Intimidated and Nervous?- Double Check. I get to begin next week in preparation for next Fall. Wish me luck...
Fall is always the busiest time for me, Guard takes up a huge amount of time and full-time school just about drains me. But, this semester I got to add 50 training hours for a Special Ed. course, and a guitar course that was BRUTAL. At first, I tried really hard to keep up, but something had to give in the end and that was it. Guitar theory and notation will have to wait for another time... ;)
The volunteer/training time was fun -hard to schedule, but really, really fun. Once again, I feel completely assured in the career path I have chosen. There is no better way to spend life than with those who are so inspiring, it makes me teary just thinking about it. I can't wait.
The kids have had a good semester too, Cara started up school this year *tear* - I couldn't be too sad though, because that girl is MEANT for school. She eats it up, she's working everyday at home to learn to read. She AND Clinton get almost crazy about it. They ask how to spell words all day long and practice on their well-worn dry erase boards at night. I'm so proud of their diligence and eagerness to learn. I hope they keep that trait fresh within them.
Clinton's leg has really started to bother him, so we got a new removable cast made that sturdies and stretches his foot and leg. It's helped, coupled with his new "U" shaped rice heat bag, he's seemed to have found a way to lessen his pain. The cold weather is always the worst, so his teachers have been so lovely and allowed him to stay inside on those icy days. I couldn't be more thankful for the teachers he's had. So. So. Blessed.

That's life in a nutshell. I have many more pictures to post, but I'm on the wrong computer currently- so I'm hoping to get that done and just have a big-picture-schmorgashboorg next week.

Praying for the Happiest-Healthiest-Best Lived Year yet! YAY 2010!!!

Overwhelmed in Summer-ish-ness...

Oh there has been so much going on it's hard to know where to begin. I guess I should start with my grandpa's surgery- since that's when life for me started to take a turn into crazy chaos. He had Aortic Valve Replacement Surgery in March and went to the Cardiac Clinic here in Pocatello. This was hard on his wife to travel, but for me it was nice because I was able to help him a lot more. Between full-time school and kids, I would help out daily at the hospital. It is quite an extensive surgery to recover from and there were a few complications...at the time all of this was happening we also were rennovating our 2 bathrooms and I was helping to teach in our neighborhood preschool. Like I said, crazy/chaotic. It was a very stressful time, and all that really mattered to me was helping my gramps in anyway possible. My kids disagreed and I'm sure my husband missed having his wife around- but I'm so thankful to them for sharing me so that I could be there for my wonderful g-pa. This craziness continued for about a month when we were then informed that gramps would have to go to a long-term care center. The closest one was SLC/Provo. I was able to fly on a life-flight equipped airplane for the transport with him and thankful to be able to accompany him because he was pretty nervous about it. My aunt who had also spent many hours in the hospital with him, met us down there and helped us get settled in. For the next month she and I and other family members took shifts helping out, I would go to school during the week and then leave on Fridays to spend the weekends in Provo with gramps. It was a very bittersweet experience, there were many upsetting and disheartening times, watching someone you love having to endure such pain and seclusion. But, I try to be as optimistic as I can about that time and know that I was finally able to return some of the time and love my grandpa had given to me grwoing up. I have many memories of laughing and crying with him during these months and I'm so thankful we were able to extend our relationship that much more. He lost his fight in late May, but he never gave up.



My favorite picture of him...






Our last picture together...eating peas from his garden.

I gave the life-sketch at his funeral. Even though it was a difficult thing to face, writing something well enough to measure up to such an inspiring person and an incredible life, I was blessed to be able to reflect and put my thoughts into work. I will post it later on with more from our time together....


Like I said before, there was no place I would have rather been than with my gramps, school wasn't as understanding as my family though, it took a lot of focus and determination to finish out the semester, and I'd be lying if I didn't say that it was my most difficult semester to date. But I did it. With 3 A's and a B no less. - That was a miracle by the way, I'm still shocked at those grades. After the semester finished out and Grandpa passed, we focused on taking care of gram and her huge yard, getting Clinton through the rest of school and Clint's new jobs. No time to stop for a breath...



And then, just when I thought surely we were deserving of a good long break, without any new worries or trials...Clinton did it. It was most likely inevitable- though I'd hoped the day would never come. He broke his leg. Yep. The bad leg. He did a thorough job too. Both bones. Well enough that he needed surgery and pins to repair it.




Grrr trampolines...

Trying to be tough until the meds kick in...

You never realize how vital ONE leg is until it's taken away. He now needed help with everything, it was like having a baby again. Getting in and out of bed, dressing, bathing, going potty- endlessly going potty...- getting into chairs, up and down stairs, in and out of cars, he could no longer play with friends in the street and run around, which would frustrate him to no end...and learning the manuvere the wheelchair. Oh MY. The first 2 days were completely aggravating in that stinkin chair. He would literally scream if anyone touched the chair, for fear of them bumping his leg or trying to push him. He couldn't quite get the hang of it- but wanted NO ONE to help him. Oh Patience. But in his amazing Clinton style he picked it up almost immidiately and was awesome at it. He's not going to be happy to give the wheelchair back when the time comes. ;)



Nine weeks and 2/3rds the summer later, he has finally got the cast off. He's not able to walk yet, the muscles in his leg have deteriorated and he will need some extensive exercise and therapy to gain it all back I'm afraid, but at least he can move around a little easier. He's learned how to live around the disablity and shown what a little fighter he is. He never ceases to amaze me. How blessed I am to have such inspiring people in my life.



Well, this has been the major happenings in the summer, between those, Clint's newly aquired THREE jobs, a new baby nephew (babysitting), housekeeping, grandma helping, yard-work (which I've basically given up on), and day-to-day occurences- it's been full. It's been hard, trying, patience-testing, and inspiring, work-filled and wonderful. We've pushed through and I'm hoping things will settle for a little while before school starts up and the craziness begins all over again.


There will be more to come, LOTS and LOTS of new pictures, and other updates, so be patient with me. ;)

Clinton's Rodeo Daze...

Mr. Clinton was invited to come spend time with the cowboys and rodeo queens of the DNCFR at the Special Rodeo. Saturday was the last day of the rodeo and before all of the general public came they close off Holt Arena for the Special kids and let them ride a horse, play on some pretend bulls, and learn how to throw a lasso. Clinton was realy nervous about riding a horse. But, I have to say, that as soon as he caught sight of his Rodeo Queen he forgot all about his nerves. ;)
Here he is looking cute as can be in his western wear...

Cara was sad that she couldn't go in with him to ride the horses, but she was so excited for him afterward.

Watching the cowboys...

His little "Wrangler Butt" :)

Here's his Rodeo Queen, she took him all over and gushed over how cute and sweet he was. The people there were so genuinely happy to be able to hang out with these kids. It was so fun to see them all running around and trying new things.

Cara literally ran away from Clint into the arena to get her picture with the "rodeo princess." She was quite pleased herself.

His tough Cowboy face.

Afterward Cara got her face painted. She had a lot of fun after all, even if she didn't get to ride the horses.

Clinton ended up being asked to open the Rodeo later on in the day. They do a segment that spotlights the Special Rodeo program and Clint and Clinton got to ride out in the DNCFR truck and wave to the crowd. There were only 3 other kids that got to do this with them and Clinton was pretty proud of himself and VERY excited. He kept saying, "That was a cool day today, mom. I got to go to the Rodeo!!"

He really is the cutest cowboy ever!! :)

Cara's Storytime...

A few weeks ago, instead of reading from a book at bedtime, I told my kids about an "Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly..." :
"There was an old lady who swallowed a fly, I don't know why she swallowed a fly! I guess she'll die...
There was an old lady who swallowed a spider! That wiggled and jiggled and tickled inside her! *tickling kids*
-She swallowed the spider to catch the fly, I don't know why she swallowed a fly! I guess she'll die..." Ect..ect...
Well, they ate it up! Since then they ask me to tell it over and over and now Cara has decided that she will tell US the stories at bedtime.
They're very entertaining (especially her facial expressions) and often vary between the Old Lady story, a prayer, and pure imagination... here's a couple of vids of Cara at bedtime...

Here's another more original one...


Yes- she's an imaginative gal. Somehow that story seems to echo the events that took place earlier that day... ;)
And the "I told her 3 times!" - Yeah...ahem... wonder where she heard that from???

UPDATE!!!

Finally!! I'm such a slacker, I know... but here's a few little tidbits from the past couple of months (besides Christmas):
1. First of all, and in addition to school, motherhood, ect... being my reasons for not posting- I've apparently lost my brand new memory card. Yes. It sucks. And I really hate to be one of those moms that blames her kids for every lost or broken thing...but, I'm starting to think there's no other explanation. Not in my camera. Not in my computer. SO- I know that I am not the one responsible. The investigation continues...
2. I do have some pictures, I have a much smaller memory card that I've been using, but when I do find the other, there will be much more to add to, so I will do it all then.
3. OK- so starting back where I left off- Right before Christmas Clint's uncle Murray passed away. It was a sudden thing and he was way to young to have left his wife and kids. Very hard for them. They decided to have a funeral up here (they live in AZ) but Murray always wanted to be buried in Blackfoot, so we went to the funeral home there. The service was beautiful and just as everyone was gathering into the Chapel for the main service, Cara turned her face into my chest and proceeded to puke all over herself, myself, and our dress clothes. Yeah. It wasn't a little bit of puke either. My family tried to talk me into staying, we wondered if she had just choked or something, but I decided I didn't want a re-enactment during the already emotionally racked talks. Smart. As soon as I got her and Clinton into the car to drive back to Pocatello, she began again- and continued to throw up every 5 minutes or so from Blackfoot. I swear, that was one of the longest drives in my adult life. The stomach Flu then passed through every member of our family through the week of Christmas. Miraculously enough- no one was severely effected on Christmas Day.
4. Clinton is now addicted to Alvin and the Chipmunks. It happened sometime in December, we're not sure yet, but it's looking like he may need to attend rehab.
5. I started school back up this semester and I'm really liking it. I'm currently taking a Motor Development class, Behavioral Psychology, and an Autism course. All pretty interesting, and I love that these classes don't just teach me about things I will need to know, but I can apply them into my life now. Always a plus. ;)
6. Just as Clinton is addicted to the Chipmunks, Cara is quite possibly addicted to Prayer. I know, I've never heard of anyone addicted to prayer either- maybe because addictions tend to be destructive- and there's no way that prayer could be that. She is wise beyond her years in knowing when persons or situations need intervention by prayer. It really brings a sweet spirit to conflict or stress and it's just plain awesome that she's so aware at the tender age of 4. I pray that she always turns to prayer when she feels upset or wants to help others.
7. Clint's job is officially over this week, and although it's been a good job, I can't say that I will miss him working nights. It's started to wear on me more recently and I can't wait to have him home for a bit. I've missed my pookie.
8. Clinton has been deemed the official ball boy for his cousin, Colton's team. Clinton went to watch one of Colton's practices and the coaches said he was such a fan and brought so much energy to the team they asked if he could join them. They had him a jersey made- even gave him # 1, and make him attend all of the practices and join in with the much older, taller boys. I can see how wonderful those boys are and how much they accept him as a part of their team and it's awakened some of the faith I had lost in Humanity. I thank the Lord for people who are as understanding and generous as that team. Go Predators!!!
9. On the same "Clinton note"- he has been testing at a 3 on his IRIs. (At grade level) he does need help with some of it, but he is in the top percentage of his class as far as letter recognition and sounds go. I went to his IEP meeting yesterday and his teachers are labeling him as "Charismatic." I couldn't agree more. And HE knows it. He can really work them over- I had to explain some of his tricks, such as "I don't know *big smile, innocent eyes* to get out of doing work, and all of the "What?" questions to get attention. He'll ask "what" 50, 000 times to keep a conversation going. People play along because, well, they think he really can't hear and he's unbelievably cute- so they just keep going... ;)
10. And with our wonderful blessing of a tax return, we are planning a trip to Oregon to stay in a yurt (like a permanent tent) about 1/4 mile from the ocean. I can't wait. We had no vacation last summer and I'm so thankful to have something to look forward to. I dream of sitting back, watching my kids acquire sand in places they don't want it, and soaking up the sound and smell of the forest and ocean. It will be the reason I get through the semester.
11. Also, as a treat for Clint and I on our 10th anniversary, we are going to the Blue October concert in Salt Lake. This is another perk for us this year- and we haven't been out together for way too long, so we both can't wait. Hopefully this will help ease the pain of not being able to go on a cruise for our 10th like we had hoped. Maybe our 15th... :)
That's about it. When I find that stinkin card I will get more pictures up...wish me luck!!

Christmas 2008

I'm finally getting Christmas stuff up! It's been a long process of loading baj-illions of pictures off of my camera, attempting to organize them and then posting. :) We had a wonderful Christmas this year, I think it was the most meaningful ever for us as a family. We had a lot of hardships, but it truly made us thankful for everything we have and most of all for our wonderful family!!


Jeff and Anita came over on Christmas Eve and had dinner with us. Jeff was very patient and got some family shots... ;)

Then we read stories and said bedtime prayers...

And the kids tried to sneak a peek for reindeer and Santa...

Christmas Morning...

Happy as punch!!!

Christmas kisses for each other!

Shredding...


Here's a little clip of the kids showing off their stuff...

She really wanted a Sleeping Beauty!

When Clinton opened this, he literally stopped opening ALL gifts. I asked him, "Do you think we should wait until tomorrow to open the rest since you like this one so much?" He said- "yes." I was shocked!! I started laughing and told him I was just teasing, and that he could keep opening presents...but I really think he wasn't interested anymore... A + on that gift Santa!!

She was so happy to get a cell phone and purse!

And a truck like Dad's...

And these are some of our family Christmas party pics from 2008...

Here's the Corrington Christmas party- Cara was terribly sick with the stomach flu that day so she and I missed it- I nearly threw myself on the floor in a fit! I LOVE this party- it's one of my favorite parts of the season. Clint and Clinty went and had a ball!!

> Here's the Klingler Christmas Party... lots of fun- Santa came and saw all of the kids and surprised them with little gifts...

der=0> Chill-axin...

Santa with Cara and Logee

Grandpa and Santa
My dad wrote stories for the kids and had books made- I LOVED this gift!!

The car/scooters grandpa got the kids...

Derrick giving me a push on the scooters...he almost killed me!

Doug gets his turn...

We had such a great Christmas season with friends and family!! It was the perfect time with the kids- they are at the best age for Santa and all of the wonder that comes with Christmas. It was one of the most memorable Christmases ever.