The Clarke Family Spot

First Day of School!

2011-09-19T14:03:00.000-04:00

Lelia's first day of preschool - age 4!

Sedona's first day of preschool - age 2, almost 3!

Teacher's first day of school - age 32!!

One of thier first projects was learning about how God created the world. Here they are pasting moon, sun and stars into the sky on thier "God's Creation" poster. They are adding more to this as the days go by and they are loving every minute of it!

2011-09-19T12:51:00.000-04:00

Lelia's Ariel cake...it was really fun to make but a huge challenge too. Tons and tons of piping!

Opening gifts from Papa.

Dad brought breakfast over for us to celebrate! I didn't get any more pictures of Lelia this birthday. Maybe because we lost power due to a hurricane that ripped through Annapolis. We ended up having her birthday dinner at a restaurant because of it.

2011-09-19T12:41:00.001-04:00

Sedona's first dental appointment. She was sooo good, I was really proud of her!

My big helper! They do the laundry! Kind of :)

My other big helper. She helped me build a bookshelf for her room. She did a great job and truely was a big help!!

My first attempts at making a caramel cake. It turned out really well, I was very surprised and pleased.

Our Unit Study On Esther

2011-09-19T12:20:00.000-04:00

We did a unit study on Queen Esther in the Bible. The first morning I went in thier room and told them it was time for Esther to be taken to the palace of the king.

Then I fed them breakfast because Esther was fed very well at the palace.

On another day we did a full morning of beauty treatments. We polished our nails and used fine lotions on our hands and we got all dressed up to meet the king.

The girls did some coloring of different scenes from the story.

We had some friends over to make crowns to signify Esther getting chosen to be the next queen.

Finally we had a great feast to celebrate to new queen just as they did in the book of Esther. We wore our crowns and our finest clothes for the feast.

Queen Esther at the feast.

Also Queen Esther at the feast. It was such a fun week and the girls just loved each day and activity we did to learn about Queen Esther, the women who single handedly saved the Israelites from destruction.

Random July / August Shots

2011-08-22T19:06:00.001-04:00

Duck-duck-goose with Lilly and Maggie, daughters of a man who lives in our building.

Building and playing in Noah's Arc.

Everyone wearing an article of mommy's clothing. LOL!

We were invited to go to 6 Flags for free with Izora and Brayden who have season tickets. The girls had so much fun! I can't wait to take them back to a place like this.

Other June/July Pics

2011-08-22T18:45:00.000-04:00

Megan Gott and I thought baby Dylan was sleeping and when we went into check on him this is what we found...a party going on!

Tom's car after my wreck...not a pretty picture!

Went to a concert at Maryland Hall with Uma.

Sedona cut her own hair!

Breakfast with Papa!

Lelia's First VBS!

2011-08-22T18:20:00.000-04:00

Jill and Jeremy's Wedding Weekend

2011-08-22T18:17:00.001-04:00

The love-birds 2 nights before the wedding.

Rob and Bob sword fighting with sticks?!

The bride and her nephew, Isaac.

Rob squeezing into his back brace from college...he's still got it!

Just barely!

Papa Toomey and all 4 of his grandkids.

Jeremy's sister, Jaime and her daughter Carrie.

Yummmm!

The bridesmaids boat ride the day before the wedding.

Wedding morning, reading a note from her love and trying not to cry!

The twins.

Jill's Pre-wedding High School Friends Crab Feast

2011-08-22T16:26:00.000-04:00

All us girls: Brooke, Courntey, Mom, Annie, Lindsey, Jennifer, Rachel, Jill

Jennifer, Rachel and Jill

The Toomey Girls

The cake.

Jill's Bachelorette Weekend!

2011-08-22T16:17:00.000-04:00

Her surprise bridal shower.

One of the vinyards we went to.

The first vinyard we went to was so beautiful.

Jill's priceless face when she saw her decorated bike for our wine tastings.

Final dress fitting!

And the hazing begins! When she picked us up at the airport my mom had a vail in her bags that Jill had to wear right away! Poor thing.

Trip to PA with Megan and the Boys

2011-07-19T10:19:00.000-04:00

We stopped to feed the baby on the way up to Pennsylvania and found a field to let the kids play in.

We went to a petting zoo and got to pet the largest animals I've ever seen in a petting zoo before. The kids and the parents loved it!

Stopping to enjoy our whoopie pies that we bought from a local Amish baker.

The girls went on 4 wheeler rides with the boys and had a blast!

Preston and Lelia

Ian and Sedona

The kids took tractor rides.

Megan and Lelia

Megan and Dylan

Playin in the pool

Playin in the field.

Preston and Lelia rolling down a hill.

Went to Chocolate World at Hershy Park. We were eating our 2 free Hershy Kisses after our tour of the chocolate factory.

Random June / July Shots

2011-07-19T09:45:00.000-04:00

Going to lunch with Papa.

Playing with baby Dylan who was supposed to be napping...oops.

I got into a bad car accident at the end of June...here's is Tom's car after the accident. We had to buy a new used car that we now call Barney because the 2000 Camry has a hint of purple in the "blue" paint. Tom has suddenly become more motivated to make more money to buy a new car!

This was the other ladie's car.

Went to a free kids concert at Maryland Hall of a Ugandan band and the underprivelaged kids they had taught at a music camp during the week. The performance was pretty good but the kids didn't last through the whole thing. It was really nice to have some time with Uma!

Lelia's very first VBS...she had so much fun and almost a month later we are still listening every morning to the CD of music that we were given from that week. Bonus: she got to be in Miss Megan's group who is one of Mommy's friends that the girls adore!

Breakfast with Papa.

Hannah's Send Off

2011-07-19T09:21:00.000-04:00

Our sweet regular babysitter, Hannah move to Norfolk, VA with her family who is in the navy. She was with our family for about 2 years and she sat for us all the time. We had her over for dinner before she left and this is a picture we took after dinner. She is so missed and loved by all of us!!

A Few May Science Lessons

2011-07-19T09:15:00.001-04:00

Searching the jar with the empty cacoon that we had been watching for weeks.

The beautiful Luna Moth that we had waited patiently to watch hatch from it's cacoon. Sadly the moth didn't make it because its wings never fully expanded but it made for such a great time of learning and talking about this amazing process. We got in some good conversations about how God takes us from a place of lesser beauty to a place of greater beauty as we choose to follow Him and learn from Him. This may have been my favorite "project" with the girls so far.

Another very cool project this May was what we learned about after a neighbor found a snake skin. We got to talk about how the snake uses something like a stick or something else in nature to help pull it's skin off. This was one smart snake...he actually climbed through a hole on a wheelchair ramp to pull of his skin and the empty skin was found through the hole...the head through one end and the tail hanging out the other. In the bottom picture you can see where the snake's eyeball was. We borrowed a book on snakes to learn more about the process that snakes go through in order to grow.

Random May Shots

2011-07-19T08:59:00.000-04:00

Check out that belly!!

Planting our vegatable garden in May for the summer. We are getting loads of tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and green beans. They are loving it and so am I!

Riding in the tractor with Ian and Preston.

Pretending to snooze in Uncle Pooya's bed.

Our Trip to Arizona

2011-05-10T15:25:00.000-04:00

Bedtime story with Grandpa Bob.

The Grand Canyon. Absolutely beautiful but not the best place to visit with 2 and 3 year olds. We hope to go back once the kids are around age 10.

Our day with Aunt Beth. These are pictures of the Japanese Tea Garden in Phoenix. The girls (and adults) loved feeding the fish in the pond.

Also in the Tea Garden.

Visiting the all-boys private school, Brophy, where Aunt Beth's.

The Rainforest Cafe!

The view from our lodge in Sedona.

Surprise birthday present...a day and night in Sedona, alone with my man.

Pink Jeep tour in Sedona...so fun!

Cactus Fries!

Random Pics

2011-05-10T14:44:00.001-04:00

Mother's Day gifts. Painted glue on the outside of clear glass vases then sprinkled colored sand on the glue. Adorable gifts and so easy and fun for the girls to make!

Trip to Texas

2011-04-14T21:24:00.000-04:00

We went to Texas last weekend to celebrate the life of a special woman in the Clarke family, Tom's Grandma Mary. Mary was the daughter of Tom's Great-grandma Lelia, bet you can guess where we got our little Lelia's name from. The girls did a great job with the trip and the I think the family all enjoyed having the them there. It was a joy to be with the extended Clarke family who are always so warm with all of us.

Marianne, Judy, Sandy, Sharon, Amy

Getting ready for thier bus ride to the terminal. We sang The Wheels on the Bus and got a few laughs out of other passengers.

On the plane, ready for take off. Lelia looks happy, huh?

They played like this most of the way.

At Aunt Judy's ranch going for a walk to see the creek on her property. I wish I had taken a picture of the baby birds the girls got to see in one of her bird houses. They loved that. Judy's home was such a neat place for kids to visit. So much room to run around and so much of nature to explore.

Lelia and Luke had such a good time together. It is so neat to watch the girls play with thier cousins (or second cousins in this case). Luke and Jake were so good with the girls, watching out for them and helping them when they needed it. I wish I had gotten a picture of Jake...next time.

Soooo cute. Unfortunately, that is not what Lelia and I looked like a few rows ahead. Neither one of us slept at all. But it sure looked like it would have been nice!

Random Shots

2011-04-14T21:04:00.000-04:00

Sedona taking care of her doggy's hiney.

This really tickled me. Lelia asked me for a piece of string one afternoon so I gave it to her. When I came back she had used a piece of fabric, some tape and the string to make her own neclace. It was so neat to me that she had thought up this little project all on her own and it actually came together really well. I love watching my kids learn and grow!

A lollipop with a bunny face on the end of it given to the girls by our good friends Ron and Pam DePas.

The girls making English muffin pizza's at Amy Holley's house. They had SOOO much fun!

Mommy / Daughter Date with Lelia

2011-04-14T20:54:00.000-04:00

Lelia and I had a tough week together so on Saturday we decided that a fun day out together was a good way to bring our hearts back together. We went to a huge indoor discovery place where kids can touch and play with everything there. We had such a great time. I was so encouraged by the fact that she wanted to read for almost a third of the time we were there. She's going to be a great student!! Enjoy the pictures.

I think the firetruck was her favorite. It may have been mine too :)

Grocery shopping.

Planting her very own garden.

Riding a tractor.

Playing in the medical equipment in the back of an abulance.

Papa's Birthday!

2011-04-14T20:43:00.000-04:00

We had a lunch together followed by chocolate birthday cake.

The birthday boy got the job of helping Sedona in the potty. Lucky, isn't he?!

First Swimming Lessons

2011-04-14T20:27:00.000-04:00

The girls started thier first swimming lessons this year to get ready for the summer. I had no idea how difficult it would be for both them as well as me!

With Mr. Mark, thier very first swimming coach.

Our Song

2011-04-14T17:55:00.002-04:00

I went to a Chris Tomlin concert with some girlfriends and the very first song they played was our family's favorite song to sing and dance to. The song is called Our God. I took this video while I was at the concert thinking about my girls and I was so excited for them to see it on my camera when I saw them the next morning!

Some of my girlfriends

2011-04-14T17:51:00.000-04:00

Megan, Pam, Lisa, Amy, Izora and me after the Chris Tomlin concert...so fun!

Sedona feeding Megan's little one.

Lisa's surprise baby shower.

Izora, Amy, Pam, Megan, Lisa and me at Lisa's surprise shower at Carrabba's.

The girls making English muffin pizzas at Amy's house for a girls lunch.

Uma's Birthday / Tea Party

2011-04-14T17:40:00.000-04:00

The girls and I had a tea party for my mom's birthday. We made tea sandwiches, scones and English Breakfast tea. We got all dressed up and had such a nice time.

Spring is coming...

2011-02-20T12:38:00.000-05:00

We got to spend a few days outside this past week in the middle of February!! Weather above 65 degrees was the perfect invitation to long walks down to the community pier, the playground and picnicing in a community gazebo. I can't wait for Spring and Summer with the girls!

Valentine's Day

2011-02-20T12:35:00.000-05:00

Our Valentine Cake

Valentine's dinner. Pink smoothies, pink mashed potatoes, pink loaf of bread and the pink cake. I couldn't come up with a way to make the chicken, gravy and salad in pink so we left those alone.

3-D card Bob and Mim gave to the girls. They had lots of fun with it!

A few of the crafts we made for Daddy the week leading up to Valentine's Day.

I am so blessed to be able to share a day like this with my family. The longer I live the more I realize how undeserving I am of all of this. It's all an act of God's love and grace in our lives. I am so grateful.

Taking Care of a Major Problem

2011-02-20T12:26:00.000-05:00

One Wednesday night a few weeks back we had a very gross surprise. After seeing both Lelia and Sedona scratching thier heads and finding a bug in my shower I checked Lelia's head and sure enough; head lice. I think I can safely say I have never dealt with anything so disgusting. I do think this is almost a right of passage for little ones so I took some pictures to remind the kids of this "wonderful" time in thier lives. In the picture is one of the 6 times they had either lice shampoo or mayonaise sinking into thier scalps to kill the little buggers. If I had boys I would have shaved thier heads and been done with it but not with girls. I am so glad this is over!!

A Few Funny/Sweet Things

2011-02-03T11:25:00.001-05:00

A few silly and sweet things have been said and done over the last 6-8 months that I wanted to record (before I forget them) for the kiddos to read and laugh at later in their lives. Here they are:

Lelia's:
1. She was sitting at a small table behind me while I was typing on the computer. She had a sippy cup and a flashlight with her at the table. She said innocently and genuinely, "Look Mommy, I'm drinking and flashing."
2. Once again I was sitting at the computer (hmmm, maybe I spend too much time at the computer) and I had my head in my hands in frustration over a cable company issue. She came up to me and said, "It's okay Mommy, Jesus is always with you." My head still in my hands I said, "I know sweetie, you're right." She notices that those words didn't quite achieve the goal she wanted (to make Mommy happy) so she says, "Mommy, I'll give you a kiss and a sticker." I lifted my head, gave her a huge smile and said, "Lelia, I'd love a kiss and sticker." How could anyone be upset after a comment like that?! So sweet.

Sedona's:
Sedona, Tom and I were all sitting on our bed late at night. Sedona couldn't sleep because of her ear infection so I went to get her a syringe with Ibuprofen in it and said, "Here Sweetie, this should make your ear feel better." She proceeded to stick the syringe in her ear. Tom and I both giggled a little and he got a huge smile on his face clearly being grateful to be there at that specific moment and said, "That's awesome."

Two Weeks Of Love

2011-01-31T16:01:00.003-05:00

As we all know Valentines Day is closing in quickly. I wanted to try to figure out a way to make Tom feel extra special loved and appreciated this year for all that he does for our family. I came up with an idea of having the kids do something special for him each day for the whole first 2 weeks of February. I looked up crafts for Preschoolers online and took the girls to Michael's today to pick up all the supplies. And as a bonus we found this cute foam mailbox and the foam heart stickers so the kids could decorate Daddy's "lovebox". Tonight when Tom gets home he'll have a note in his lovebox that tells him that each day he comes home from work over the next two weeks he can look in his lovebox for his Valentines from all three women in his life. As the weeks go by I'll be posting pictures of the crafts we've made so the girls can look back and remember Valentine's month 2011. Most importantly, I hope this makes Tom feel love, charished and respected for everything he does in and for our home. Happy Valentine's Month!

First Gymnastics Classes!

2011-01-26T13:17:00.000-05:00

Here are some pictures of the girls doing one of thier first gymnastics classes. They both love it and I love it too. One of the coolest things for me is that they do a song called "Going to the Zoo" by Peter, Paul and Mary that I used to do at gymnastics when I was kid. They run around in a huge circle, act like the animals in the song, pretend to sleep and then jump up to finish the song with another trip to the zoo. I love my job as a wife and stay at home mom. I can't imagine missing out on these things!

Waiting patiently for thier classes to start.

By far Sedona's favorite piece of equipment.

Lelia doing Going to the Zoo.

Sedona doing Going to the Zoo.

Sarah's Birthday Party

2011-01-26T13:05:00.000-05:00

My friend and previous roomate, Sarah Solorzano, had a birthday party while she was home on furlough from her work in El Salvador. Her husband was here with her too and they decided to share with some of her friends Jorge's last night which was also Sarah's birthday.

We sat down to a beautiful dinner that he mom made for all of us.

Jorge and Sarah shared a little bit about thier lives and thier love for God and each other.

And all of a sudden a Mariachi band walked into her mom's house and serenaded Sarah and the rest of us. We learned later that this is a tradition between Sarah and Jorge that they hire Mariachi bands for special occassions for one another. Jorge said that finding one here was a huge task...very fun for all of us.

Port Discovery

2011-01-15T10:15:00.000-05:00

We finally made it to Port Discovery in Baltimore the other day with some friends of ours who took us along on thier yearly membership pass. It was so much fun to watch all of the kids enjoy themselves. I even ran into a friend from Annapolis! Here are some pics..

Car to play in outside of the grocery store where the kids could go shopping.

The kids loved the domino area.

Train.

I think this might have been everyone's favorite (with the exception of the water area and my camera batteries had run out!) It was a diner where the kids to cook the food, wash dishes, serve the adults, pass out menus, etc...They LOVED it!

Life Doesn't Get Any Better Than This

2011-01-12T14:39:00.001-05:00

We had enough snow on the ground to play in this morning. The girls and I set out on a walk and had so much fun in the snow. I love hearing the swishing sound that thier snow pants when they run in the snow. We have been reading the book The Snowy Day this week and did all the fun things Peter does in the book like making different kinds of tracks in the snow, making snow angles and smacking snow off of trees with a stick. It's so neat to see how much they enjoy reading and applying what they've learned, eventhough at this point application is simply copying the characters or words. And, we had to follow-up the play in the with hot chocolate and marshmallows. I just so happened to have some sugar cookie dough in the fridge and threw some of that in the oven to make the snack extra healthy, haha! What a fun morning! I am so enjoying my kids these days and feel so fortunate to be able to stay at home with them. I'm not sure why God chose to bless me with these little miracles but I'm glad He did! I'm pretty sure life doesn't get any better than it was this morning!

Baby Shower

2011-01-12T14:27:00.000-05:00

Our small group threw a baby shower for 2 of our 3 pregnant women who currently attend group. One had her baby a few days before the planned surprise shower and one had her baby a few days later. Both babies were 2 weeks early!! Congrats to Bradd and Megan Gott and Matt and Amy Holley!!

Jumping Jacks

2011-01-07T15:34:00.001-05:00

Mmmm...toothpaste and potty training chocolates!

2011-01-07T15:24:00.000-05:00

I was working on the computer today and realized that it had gotten very quiet with the exception of the bathroom door opening and closing a few times. I went in to find both girls squished into thier sink eating toothpaste and potty training chocolates. It was impossible to punish them because it was so cute!!

Mommy's New Boots

2011-01-07T15:10:00.000-05:00

One word - stunning!

Christmas ICE Exhibit at National Harbor

2011-01-04T10:32:00.001-05:00

Lelia had a blast!

This was a slide made out of ice. Sedona got stuck and didn't like that so much.

We went to the Gaylord for an annual Christmas themed ice exhibit. This year the theme was The Grinch. All of the rooms were filled with huge ice sculptures of scenes from the book. It was 9 degrees inside the tent so they give you extra heavy parkas to wear while you are inside. Sedona wasn't so fond of the cold so we only lasted inside about 15 - 20 minutes.

Chirstmas tree made entirely out of Peeps.

We took a ride on a train inside the Gaylord hotel. Daddy and Sedona sat together and Lelia and I sat together. It was a sweet time with her.

We had ice cream at Ben & Jerry's BEFORE lunch.

Our Visit with the Solorzanos

2011-01-04T10:07:00.000-05:00

My friend Sarah Meehan Solorzano is back in the states on furlough from her missions work in El Salvador where she met her husband, Jorge. Once again I didn't take great pics but here are a few from our dinner.

Oops, Jorge's eyes are shut...should have taken more pics!!

The kids were taking pictures with Sarah's camera all night.

New Years Eve

2011-01-04T10:00:00.000-05:00

We had such a great time on New Years Eve this year. We went to the Gotts' house and had finger food as well as a chocolate fountain with fruit and other goodies for dipping. I'm pretty sure that was the hit of the night. It was also exciting because the Theils had never seen or played a Wii before. It was hillarious and such fun for all of us! We feel so blessed to have the friends we have.

The game started very modestly, on the couch with little movement.

The game quickly got more serious.

They were really getting into it. I think Theil actually won. Beginners luck?

Rose, who is very laid back and very reserved didn't want to play. We finally convinced her and not only did she get really into it, she beat everyone!

Here's Megan with Thomas Theil and her son Preston. You can't see it but she is 8 months pregnant and still playing with the kids and hosting parties at her house. She's awesome!

Lelia playing in thier playroom.

Cooking with Mommy

2011-01-04T09:48:00.000-05:00

Lelia wearing her new monogrammed apron she got from Aunt Jill and Uncle Jeremy. So cute!

Christmas Pics

2011-01-04T09:42:00.000-05:00

Like I said on my previous post, I am embarrassed at how few pictures I took this Christmas. We only got pictures of opening stockings and opening the tree with my dad. No pictures of the time we spent at my mom's house. So, when they send me some pictures I'll post more later.

Christmas Eve

2011-01-04T09:32:00.000-05:00

I am embarrassed about how few pictures I took this year of our Chirstmas Eve and Christmas Day. I did take a few of our time on Christmas Eve that we shared with our very close friends the Theils. Unfortunately the only pictures I took were of the kids bouncing on the trampoline after dinner. Here they are...

Training Shoppers

2011-01-04T09:24:00.000-05:00

I took the girls out for some last minute Christmas food shopping. They had so much fun pushing the carts and helping mommy choose food to buy. The best part was Lelia signing Jingle Bells all the way through the store. We got lots of laughs, giggles and "they're so cute" from the other customers shopping. It was pretty fun.

Snow Angel Practice

2011-01-04T09:18:00.000-05:00

Frist Snow of the Year!

2011-01-04T09:11:00.000-05:00

Getting ready to brave the cold!

Lelia's snow angel.

Sedona recovering from her snow angel.

And, eating it!

Pebble Snack for Christmas Gifts

2011-01-04T09:05:00.000-05:00

They unwrapped all the Hershey's Kisses with surprisingly little help.

Put the Kisses on square pretzels lined up on cookie sheets.

We placed the cookie sheets in the oven on low for 5 minutes.

As soon as they came out the kids put a peanut M&M into the melted Hershey's Kiss. After letting them cool and harden we placed them in boxes to deliver to neighbors and other friends. I got the idea from Laura at 10 Million Miles while she was guest posting on Raising Homemakers.

Extra Pictures

2011-01-04T08:52:00.000-05:00

Decorating for Christmas

2011-01-04T08:47:00.000-05:00

We decorated our Christmas tree right after Thanksgiving this year. It's the earliest we've done this before and we really enjoyed it. Every day the kids came out from thier bedrooms in the morning to turn on the tree lights and that continued through Christmas Day.

We set up our nativity set too. The one you see here is one that has belonged to my mom's side of the family for years. The kids played with it a few days before I had to super glue one of the shepherds heads back on. So, we decided to purchase a Melissa & Doug kids nativity set to have up until our kids our a little older.

Christmas Tree Lighting

2011-01-04T08:34:00.000-05:00

We took the kids to the tree lighting at the Annapolis Towne Center. There were carolers singing and they were giving out free hot chocolate and Christmas cookies. We all had such a fun family evening.

A Few November Activities

2010-12-02T17:02:00.001-05:00

: Thanksgiving Craft

Trick-or-Treating

2010-11-12T04:11:00.001-05:00

Pumpkin Carving / Burning

2010-11-12T04:05:00.001-05:00

Redneck pumpkin carving!

This was a cultural experience for us. We'd carved plenty of pumpkins but burned them, no. It was really beautiful actually. Unfortunately I couldn't get a good picture of the pumpkins burning.

Explaination of our Homeschool

2010-10-27T09:49:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I am still trying to figure out Wordpress. I couldn't figure out how to write this description in the previous post so here's what I wanted to add.

We started a very light homeschooling book called Before Five in a Row where we would read one children's book 5 days in a row and take from it a new area of learning each day. They absolutely loved it. We did that consistently for about 2 months. Lelia got a lot out of it and Sedona just hung in there for the readings but not usually the 5 minute lesson afterwards. That's great with me. Sedona isn't quite ready for all of this so I just let her wonder off once she's had enough.

Then, after a few weeks of very bad days with Lelia we thought that she needed some more structure in her days. That's when we started another very light homeschooling curriculum from the website www.1plus1plus1equals1.com that's focus is mainly on Scripture. Lelia had an enormous breakthrough the very first day we started and life around here has been so much smoother ever since. We are so grateful for the woman who provides the learning materials from that website, completely free to any user. Take a look at it if you are interested.

Our focus right now is just to take things at Lelia's pace. She is only 3 and doesn't need to be formally taught right now, so we aren't. She's loving what we are learning. She has 2 Scripture verses memorized from the first 2 weeks and knows 2 new songs that we do each morning. We also have some tracing for her to do while she's learning her letters. Eventually I will be teaching her how to read. I can't wait for that, that really excites me. Being the one to teach my daughter to read is something I will always cherish! Anyway, I'm getting ahead of myself. So she traces, cuts and learns numbers, all out of workbooks that she does when she asks to. That's it these days. It's exciting!

Starting to Homeschool

2010-10-26T16:04:00.001-04:00

: I have seen a huge improvement in Lelia's cutting since we started school 8 days ago.

Lunch with Uncle Pooya & Laura

2010-10-26T11:43:00.001-04:00

Lisa's Baptism

2010-10-26T11:27:00.001-04:00

A very good friend of ours was baptized on Sunday. Check out the pics...

Mim's Jumpers

2010-10-26T11:05:00.001-04:00

These are the jumpers that grandma Mim made for the girls for the Fall / Winter season. We got so many compliments on them at church. Someone even mentioned them a week later! Thanks, Mim!

Monuments by Moonlight

2010-10-25T11:09:00.001-04:00

One of Tom's birthday gifts was a Monuments by Moonlight tour of downtown Washington, D.C. It was a really nice evening for Tom and I to get away for a while alone. We drove down to Union Station, took a cab to a terrific resaurant in China Town then came back to Union Station to pick up our trolly for the tour. It was a beautiful night!

Apple and Spinach Picking

2010-10-25T10:54:00.001-04:00

We went up to Larriland Farms to go apple and spinach picking on a beautiful Fall afternoon. Mom had to climb a tree to get to the good apples, all of the good ones from the bottom had already been picked! We all had such a good time. The fresh, hot apple fritters covered in powdered sugar weren't bad either.

Silly September Pics

2010-10-25T10:30:00.000-04:00

Build-A-Bear Gift

2010-10-25T10:05:00.001-04:00

Here are pictures from our visits to Build-A-Bear the girls got as gifts from thier Aunt Beth in Arizona. They had a blast!!

Sedona's 2nd Birthday!

2010-10-25T09:28:00.000-04:00

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Our precious Sedona turned 2 on September 16th! Here are a few of the pics. She had a little too much help on opening her gifts as you can see. Since then we've been seeing the very real shift to a full blown 2 year old. Testing the boundaries and manipulating with the best of them!! But, inspite of all of that, she's a pleasure to be around. :)

Our Ballerina!

2010-09-13T11:41:00.005-04:00

Getting ready to leave for ballet.

Her little sis had to join in the fun of dressing up even if she wasn't going to dance.

Outside of her classroom at Maryland Hall. It is the very same place I took ballet when I was her age.

Her "knee" socks weren't really up to her knees like the other kids. Poor thing is going to have the same problem as her mommy...long legs that are impossible to find clothes for!!

A Few September Pics

2010-09-13T11:38:00.002-04:00

We had good friends, Missy, Jimmy and Baby Noelle, over for dinner.

Who do you think is bigger, Sedona or Noelle? I'm not quite sure.

Random August - September Pics

2010-09-11T10:45:00.006-04:00

Posted this picture twice becasue this is one of the first really good pictures Tom and I have had in the recent months.

Sedona and mommy have donuts at the Donut Shack in Severna Park while Lelia was at her gymnastics class. You would never know this from the picture but Sedona decided to pass gass while she was sitting up at the bar...nice, huh?! She wasn't allowed to sit on the bar the following day!

Awe!

Sedona enjoying the hotel bed. We stayed in Wilmington, DE on our way home from Mystic on our way to St. Michael's for Julian's baptism.

Sedona put her shoes on by herself for the first time!! I had to take a picture :)

Decorating cookies. {ahem} I mean, eating cookies.

We've started a family movie night on Fridays when we don't have other plans. Sweets, popcorn and a movie of the girls choice. So far, Peter Pan and Aladdin have both been huge hits!

Uncle Jay, comfortable with his masculinity?

She's all girl!

Lelia is learning to trace her letters and LOVES it! Homeschooling, here we come!

Trip to Kinder Farm Park with the Holdens. We had to leave early because Lelia shut Sedona's hand in a bunny cage door...just another normal day with the Clarke girls!

Lelia chillin' with one of our great friends, Thiel, who is finally back from an intensive Arabic language course in Syria. He is still waiting to bring his wife and son back to the states after thier stint overseas. Rose and Thomas (otherwise known to us as Dreams) are both still in Sudan with Rose's family. Thiel is finishing up some school before they come back. Can't wait to see them too!!

The girls playing with the easle that Mim and Bob gave to Lelia for her birthday.

The girls at Clark's Elioak Farm in Ellicott City, MD...it has so many fun things for kids to do and see. We'll definitely be going back this Fall.

Family Pictures

2010-09-11T10:43:00.001-04:00

Lelia's 3rd Birthday!

2010-09-11T10:36:00.002-04:00

Lelia seeing her Tiana cake for the first time...it was so fun!

Mommy's first attempt at making a special cake. I was pretty pleased with how it turned out.

Uma, Grandpa Jack and Grandma Lonnie came for Lelia's birthday dinner.

Papa came to have breakfast with us on Lelia's birthday and brought lots of cool gifts!

Trip to the Cantor's New Home - Mystic, CT

2010-09-11T10:22:00.005-04:00

A romantic walk on the beach in a beautiful beach town in Rhode Island.

Doin' fun stuff at the annual arts festival in downtown Mystic.

Literally, this is how Sedona spent most of her time that week!

Went sailing at Mystic Seaport

Playing in time period costumes at Mystic Seaport. Isn't she cute!

I had the D&C for Baby Girl #4 the day before we came to Mystic and I had so much joy watching our families simply having fun. I am so grateful that the Cantors took us in as we were going through such a tough time. Being with the Cantors that week was the very best thing we could have done for our family.

Celebrating Naomi's birthday! Check out Sarah's belly! Mary was on her way in a few short weeks!

The Toomey Family's Visit to Annapolis

2010-09-11T10:13:00.003-04:00

The Toomey family came back to Maryland for cousin Julian's baptism at the very same church where Rob and Courtney were married and where cousin Will was baptised. It was a blast to have our families together again.

Another Tragic Loss

2010-09-11T09:39:00.005-04:00

Here is the sonogram of Clarke Baby #4. Here's her story...

We were told when we went in for an early sonogram that the egg was a blighted ovum (no baby ever developed) and that I would miscarry in 7-10 days. This would have been our 2nd miscarriage in 2months.

I began to feel more and more sick and wasn't miscarrying the baby. They brought me in for a repeat sonogram (this is the picture you see above) and we saw a baby with a strong heart beat. Surely, this was God giving us a miracle so we could have a healthy pregnancy after all we had been through with our loss the previous month. We went in for another sonogram at 11 weeks and our baby girl's heart had stopped beating. What a kick in the gut that was.

Because of her size at that point in time they suggested a D&C because I would have most likely needed one anyway. So, that's what we did and because of the two miscarriages so close together we thought it would be helpful to have this baby tested to see if there might be a problem with my carrying children.

We found out that this sweet girl had what it called Turner's Syndrom. It is one of the leading causes of miscarriage. It is when a girl only recieves one X chromosome rather than the normal two. These girls can sustain life but often do not. We found out quite a bit about what she would have looked like. She would have had a sheild shaped chest (wider at the top than normal), possibly a webbed neck and she would have been shorter than average, which in this family definitely would have been a noticable difference!

After learning this news there were positives and negatives. The good news...it most likely is not a problem with my body or Tom's and my genetic make up. The sad news, I wanted this little girl so much more than I had before. It was so hard to know such defining characteristics about her. I have a picture in my mind of this little girl that I can't get out of my head and I don't want to.

If she had lived she would have had some health issues but she would have lived a normal life with a normal IQ and all the "normal" things you and I do...independent living, work, marriage, etc... To know that she wouldn't have suffered made it all the harder that I couldn't have her and hold her...I would give a good many things to be able to do just that.

In any case, she isn't mine to hold, she is God's. He wanted her and she is in a much better, more peaceful place enjoying eternity in heaven. All I pray is that when I get to heaven I will see her and know her even though I never set eyes on her in this life. I believe I will.

I love you, Baby Girl.

Celebrating Tom's Promotion

2010-09-11T09:35:00.003-04:00

It just so happens that Tom was promoted on the same day that Lelia was having her first sleep over at Uma's house. So, we were missing one important part of our family for the celebration of Tom's promotion. Sedona loved being the center of attention for a change and we had a blast enjoying her for such a special night. I am so proud of my husband who works so hard to provide for our family and does such a wonderful job at it too! Thanks, Babe :)

My Little Girl Is Growing Up!

2010-07-27T07:37:00.002-04:00

I just wanted to write a quick post for this past week for Lelia to look back on. This week we have had a few firsts that have made me tear up and know that my little girl is no longer little any more. Friday night she had her very first sleep over at Uma's house without Mommy or Daddy. In spite of the fact that she only got 4 hours of sleep due to a talking pillow and a cat who startled her awake by playing her with her feet, she did great and wasn't homesick at all. I'm not sure how I'm supposed to feel about that. Then, yesterday she went to her first summer camp for 3 hours by herself. She was so excited to play on the gymnastics equipment that she didn't mind me leaving at all. She did great. I can't believe we have gotten to this point with her already. My little girl is growing up!!

Lelia's First Trip to the Dentist!!

2010-07-22T17:03:00.003-04:00

Lelia went to the dentist for the first time yesterday and she did a GREAT job. She did just what the hygenist asked her to do as well as the doctor. After the appointment she got to pick out a special tooth brush and a ring. Afterwards she asked if she could pick one out for her sister...awww!

Aunt Beth's Visit / Chuch-E-Cheese

2010-07-22T16:58:00.002-04:00

Tom's sister, Beth, came to visit us for a week in mid-July. We always have such a nice time with her and she's always bearing many many gifts! They went to Chuch-E-Cheese without mommy(home sick with 1st trimester yucks) to play and have fun.

You've gotta be creative when you live in a condo...

2010-07-22T16:53:00.002-04:00

4th of July in Washington DC

2010-07-22T16:40:00.002-04:00

We took the girls matresses with us and they slept on the floor. They LOVED this set up so much that we had to separate thier 2 matresses (see above) because they were too excited to sleep so close together :)

At the DC 4th of July parade...it was HOT!

We went to the pool. Sedona couldn't swim because I forgot her swimming diaper. I tried to sneak her into the pool before they noticed and she peed on the concrete right in front of the lifeguard about 30 seconds before I could get her in the pool. My dishonesty was revealed. It was pretty embarrassing!

We borrowed Jack and mom's condo that is about 2 blocks from a metro stop. The above picture is how we ate our meals. They have the condo because Jack works in Tysons Corner and needs a place to stay some nights during his work weeks. So...they don't have a table to eat at because they don't need one. The girls LOVED eating on the floor. Especially Sedona.

We went to the National zoo!

One of the girls favorite parade floats...Madeline. They love that book...thier Uncle Nick gave it to them.

Making Margarita Pizzas

2010-07-22T16:34:00.001-04:00

One of the most important things to me as I raise my girls is in training them to be keepers of a home some day. They are very young now to be doing any "real" training but I am getting them started in the little fun things...like making our favorite pizza!

Small Group Get Together

2010-07-22T16:32:00.002-04:00

Yesterday's Blessing

2010-06-26T07:22:00.002-04:00

I had a very hard day yesterday for a number of different reasons, all my fault. I went on a walk with my next door neighbor and found something that left me so blessed and feeling so loved by God. Over the last year God has been cultivating a desire in me for homesteading. For those of you who don't know what that is, it is living simple life off of your land for all of your needs. I have felt a little dissapointed that living in a condo doesn't lend well to homesteading although there are small things you can do. Anyway, back to the walk. On the walk I found a huge patch of wild raspberries! We went to get our boots and then whole family went back out to the raspberries and picked for about 30 minutes. I felt so filled up in that deep desire to grow and eat from our own land. This morning I am making raspberry chocolate chip scones for breakfast. I can't wait to try them. In the midst of such a tough day, the raspberry discovery filled me up with joy that I needed so much. I felt God loving me through that find and through the pleasure of raspberry picking with my family. Thanks, God!

Father's Day

2010-06-23T13:29:00.002-04:00

Sweating bullets, I mean, picnicing at Quiet Waters Park in Annapolis.

Sweating bullets on the walking trail looking for animals. We asked God to show us a really cool animal and we got to see 2 deer just feet away who didn't move when we got up close to them. Thanks, God! It was a great way to teach the kids about answered prayer.

Our precious girls walking down the path hand-in-hand.

And a big hug...so so sweet!

Jill and Jeremy's Visit

2010-06-23T13:17:00.004-04:00

Double date downtown at Joss, round 2.

Dad taking a much needed break. He was cooking all day and made the best ribs I've ever tasted and bought crabs for all of us. It was such a nice day.

Jeremy taking in the whole crab-eating experience...he was a natural.

Ug working hard to keep Lelia fed! It's a full time job.

Me and Jill on a moped ride around the community.

"Sharing" mommy's water...I'm not sure that I got any, but we'll still call it "sharing."

Jeremy on his first moped ride, also a natural.

Dad giving all of us a tour of his home-made wood working shed...almost done.

Jill and Jer.

Think we look alike?

Random June Pics

2010-06-23T13:06:00.003-04:00

Tom's long-time friend (and one of the men in our wedding), TP, who is stationed in Colorado called one night and told us he was in town and wanted to meet for dinner. The girls and I couldn't make it but Tom went and brought TP home for a very quick visit. It was wonderful to see him!

Have you ever seen a more beautiful princess / prince / ballerina?

We LOVE berry smoothies!

Isn't this a sweet picture...sitting on a blanket, watching the rain together. Melts my heart.

Taking a rest at Bed Bath & Beyond.

Sedona and Pheobe...they have been friends since in thier mommy's wombs!

Make-your-own strawberry shortcakes at Papa's house...they didn't mind this too much!

Kinder Farm Park

2010-06-23T13:03:00.001-04:00

Gardening with Uma

2010-06-23T12:57:00.002-04:00

The girls planted a vegitable / flower garden with Uma. Both girls had their own tee-pee for thier beans to grow on. They marked whose tee-pee was whose by the garden ornaments that they are dancing with in the pics below. So cute!

A Difficult May / June 2010

2010-06-08T15:04:00.005-04:00

I debated about whether or not to write this post. My intention for writing it isn't depressing all of you who didn't know about our loss. My intention is honoring the very purpose of our blog: recording our family's journey to loving God and other's. While our last month has been excurtiatingly difficult, we still know that this experience will make us more like Jesus, the One our lives is all about.

In mid-April Lelia was telling both Tom and myself that, "Mommy has a baby brother in her tummy." Niether of us understood why she was saying that. Two weeks later, on April 25th, the day before my birthday, we got the positive pregnancy test that confirmed we were indeed having another baby. We were so excited, we really wanted another child and God gave us one the very first month we began trying!

About 2 weeks after that I asked Lelia where her baby brother was, (patting my belly). She said in a sad voice, "I don't have a baby brother anymore." We didn't understand why she was saying that until another week later. I woke up one more and knew, it was over, we were not going to meet this baby during out time here on earth. Strangly, the first thing I thought was that I would be able to help other women through something very hard after all of this was over.

That morning I was in the car taking the girls to a friend's (the Cantor's) house so that I could get blood work done to confirm that I was miscarrying a pregnancy. As we pulled into the Cantor's driveway Lelia said, "Mommy, the baby is crying?" I said, "What baby, Honey?" She said, "The baby in your belly?" I was speachless. I just simply didn't know what to say. It wasn't until Friday that the tears came...and came....and came.

Interestingly enough, one of Lelia's favorite new songs is Blessed Be Your Name. Part of the song goes like this: "You give and take away, you give and take away, my heart will choose to say, Lord, blessed be your name. Blessed be the name of the Lord, blessed be your name. Blessed be the name of the Lord, blessed be your glorious name." I wish I could say that I have succeeded in saying those words to God all the way through this time. I have not been perfect. Have I questioned why this had to happen? Absolutely. However, I know that God loves me and I also know I just don't see everything as clearly as He does. He knows what I need far better than I do.

Blue Angels

2010-05-26T12:15:00.004-04:00

The Blue Angels watching crew...Megan Gott, her mom and the boys and Kristen and her boys.

Ahhh, earplugs...the girls LOVED it once they had those in.

It was a little warm. Can you tell?

The Cantors - Farewell!

2010-05-26T12:09:00.004-04:00

Our last Ladies Night with Sarah Cantor (3rd from the left) at the Cheesecake Factory. I'm not sure what I'm going to do without her...cry a little, for sure, and then adjust. You are going to be soooo missed, Sarah, but you won't be rid of the Clarke family! We'll be visiting :)

Our last Jon Cantor-lead worship time at small group.

The Armacosts and the Gotts

Passing the torch...Jon Cantor will be leaving the worship to Matt Holley who will be opening his home with wife, Amy, for our group to continue.

And More Ice Cream...

2010-05-26T12:04:00.002-04:00

Ice cream at Brewster's in Annapolis with Uma and Jack.

All done.

Yumm-o!

Our Trip to the PA Homeschool Conference

2010-05-26T11:54:00.004-04:00

Mim and Grandpa Bob took care of the girls while Tom and I went to the CHAP homeschooling conference in Pennsylvania. It was a great time in learning more about homeschooling as well as deepening our relationships with God and each other. We are so grateful to Tom's folks for being willing to take the girls for two whole days by themselves. The picture above is of their trip to the Hershy Zoo.

The girls had a blast at our hotel's indoor heated pool. It was so fun to watch and take part in ther joy...Sedona was terrifyingly unafraid of the water...swimming lessons might be in order!

One of our many ice cream eating adventures with the girls, Bob and Mim. The hardwood floor in the hotel seemed like the safest place :)

Grandpa Bob and Mim's Visit in Annapolis

2010-05-26T11:47:00.004-04:00

Pictures are finally up from our wonderful visit with Mim and Grandpa Bob. We spent some time taking walks and playing at the playground. The girls forgot what it was like to eat vegetables while they were here and really got used to ice cream after every meal. They were spoiled rotten just like grandparents are supposed to do with their grand kids. It was so wonderful to see the joy that the kids got out of this time as well as the grandparents. We had a lovely visit with them! Thank you, Mim and Grandpa Bob!

Last Pictures from Baltimore

2010-05-26T11:37:00.002-04:00

After Jack's immune system was up and running again I was able to bring the girls up to Baltimore to spend the day at the Baltimore Aquarium with mom. I took this picture of the fountain because it was very close to thier condo and I'm sure will be a well remembered landmark that they saw every day. Jack is doing beautifully and so happy to be home in Annapolis...and back to work in Virginia, if you can believe that!

This picture was from a few days before they moved back to Annapolis. Jack was already on the upswing. He had enough immune system to even see the little germ-bags...er, um...I mean the kids :) HA!

Well, the transplant is finally over! Jack came through it better than most and his attitude was amazing. This picture was from mid-trasplant while Jack was in the hospital with mouth soars that they wanted to keep an eye on.

Mother's Day Gifts

2010-05-26T11:29:00.004-04:00

This year we made Mother's Day gifts for both of the grandmas. The girls each painted a magnet ($1 each at Michael's and that came with the brush and paint) and painted and decorated a picture frame (each item including the frame was $1 or less). We put a picture in the frames of Sedona sitting on top of Lelia tickling her. The turned out so nicely and I think both Tom's mom and my mom loved them. We had such a fun time making them and even more fun watching them being opened.

Late April Pictures

2010-04-29T08:09:00.003-04:00

Silly faces!!

I'm a proud mamma of a crab lover!!

Frozen peas off the kitchen floor, mmmmmm.

Sedona is deathly afraid of 200 pound dogs, as you can see.

The Dancing Princesses

2010-04-29T08:03:00.002-04:00

Please don't take note of the mound of laundry that needs to be folded while we goofed off instead :) HA!

Sedonaese

2010-04-27T14:48:00.003-04:00

I started a "Leliaese" post a while back on our blog that I randomly go back to in order to add new words she's made up...and here is the same for Sedona. These little silly things are the fun things I always wanted to know about my childhood so that's why I'm recording them for the kiddies and will continue to add to them as time goes by.

colum = color
wadert = water
seepoon = spoon

Visiting Mom and Jack in Baltimore

2010-04-17T14:43:00.003-04:00

My step-father, Jack, was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma about 4 years ago. He had the wonderful opportunity to recieve a bone marrow transplant that began on Palm Sunday. Both he and my mom have been doing phenominally well. Jack has been a good patient and hasn't had any infections so far which is great news. He still has a few weeks to go before his immune system finally drops to the bottom and then comes back up with his new, healthier marrow. My mom is being a wonderful nurse, as you can see. The strength and peace they have both had through this has been inspiring. They will be moving back home to Annapolis in about 3 weeks time and are looking forward to it! Thank you to everyone for your prayers and support of them while they go through this. We love you, Mom and Jack!

A Day At Papa's

2010-04-17T14:40:00.003-04:00

Last Saturday we spent the day at Papa's house and took the kids out on the canoe. Somehow we didn't get any pictures of Papa or Daddy that day.

The Girls Having Fun

2010-04-17T14:37:00.000-04:00