Jackson turns the big... 1. 2. 3!

Our little Jack Jack turned 3 years old on December 31. Although he believes that since we had a party for him on Wednesday and another on Saturday that he turned 4 already. hehe :)

Here is the family party we had at my parents house!

At first he told us he wanted a CARS party, but since he had that last year, Jeff was determined to convince him into TRANFORMERS. It didn't take long and he was all Bumblebee.

Then on his actual birthday we were visiting Jeff's family in Arizona, so we threw another party for him! He was starting to get sick, so he wasn't feeling great but of course never complained and still had a blast with his cousins.

Two days later he woke up with his eyes goo-ed shut and swollen. We took him to the dr and he had a sinus infection, an ear infection and pink eye. Poor guy! I can't wait until he feels better and can truly enjoy being 3 years old!!

Highlights of 2011!

Here are the highlights of the year 2011... Can't believe it's over already, but we are happily welcoming 2012. It's gonna be awesome!

JANUARY we visited Hollywood, saw the sign and walked the Boulevard and even went to the wax museum.

In FEBRUARY, we moved into our home in Claremont! It has been such a perfect place for us and we love that we are building memories in our own home.

(this was one of the first pictures I took of the house, decorated for V-Day!)

In MARCH, Tyler turned 4! We had a little party and he still remembers the dinosaur games we played!

In April, Katie graduated from BYU. Grandma Judy came to watch the boys so I could slip away and visit her and attend the ceremony and celebration. It was a blast!!

In MAY, we got a great family picture on Mother's Day (my secret wish!) I remember feeling so lucky to be a mother and wife to the most amazing boys ever!

In JUNE, I turned 27 and was once again reminded that I have the best life ever!

In JULY we visited the best place on earth! We had a blast at Lake Powell with our family! Can you see how handsome my husband is? He lost 45 pounds this year and is still working hard. Another MAJOR highlight of the year!

In AUGUST, we took another family vacation to Malibu Beach.

We camped one night and played on the beach the next day!

In SEPTEMBER we hit 2 major milestones! Tyler started preschool and Jackson became officially potty trained!

In OCTOBER, my little Batman and Robin were too tough to smile.

In NOVEMBER my Mom and the boys and I took a trip to Sacramento to visit my Grandparents.

In DECEMBER, Jackson turned 3 years old!

I cannot believe the fun we've had this year! We are so fortunate to have happy healthy kids and a truly blessed life!

Christmas 2011

On Christmas Eve, Melonie gave all the cousins these beautiful handmade pajama sets!! It was so fun having special Christmas pajamas and for everyone to match!

 We loved having Christmas morning at our own house- it was a Sunday, so we did Santa gifts and stockings, then got dressed up for church. 

 I've always wanted to have my house decorated for Christmas and enjoy it, but still be able to spend it with family. This year felt really magical because I got to do that!

 Jackson got a CARS racetrack set from Santa!

 Tyler got a remote control car from Santa!

Then we headed to church with the whole family and went to Grandma and Grandpa's house!

HAPPY BOYS!!

My favorite part of Christmas was something special that happened during present time!

We announced our pregnancy to my family! I wrapped the pregnancy test that I had taken a week earlier and put it in a box with my Tommy's name on it. There was no from name and everyone assumed it was from Melonie. At one point, he started opening it and my mom said, "wait until Melonie comes back, I think that's from her." My mom helped the surprise without even knowing! He opened it up later and saw the pregnancy test... His blank panicked look turned into shock and he asked Melonie if it was from her. She didn't see it or know what it was so she just said, "I don't know, what does it say?" In a way that seemed like it WAS her! A few minutes went by without Melonie stating that she was NOT PREGNANT! Katie was 8 months pregnant at the time so I asked if she peed on a stick.. .she said no. My mom announced it wasn't her! Then I admitted it was from us, and with tears of joy, we announced our due date and our excitement!! Clark party of 5 in August!! 

Everyone kept asking why we gave it to Tommy and I just thought it would be funniest-- way weird if my dad opened it (and my mom was preggo!) and Katie was already pregnant. It also so happens that this baby is due on Tommy's BIRTHDAY!

Preschool Christmas Program!

I was so excited to go to Tyler's Christmas program at preschool (especially since we missed his Halloween one)!

It was so fun to watch him up there with the other kids and visit his classroom and teacher after!

He is in the very middle of the back row- red shirt with a Christmas tree- right under the cross! :)

Grandma and Jack watching from the side for a better view. One of the many reasons I love living near my parents is days like this!

Tyler saw us when he walked out too!

Then we visited his classroom and he showed us his angel:

That night we stayed up late to make cookies for his class party. Man is baking hard work- which is why I don't do it very often. But we sure had fun!

The next day at his class party Santa came to see the kids. I asked him if he got to talk to him and he said, "yeah, I asked him for a snowboard."

Really? A snowboard?!! We had a talk about how Santa loves bringing surprises and knows what he likes to play with! I asked him what gave him that idea and he said the boy in front of him asked for one, so he thought he would too!! So funny!

Tyler

This is over a month late, but not a post I want to skip...

11/19/11
Tyler can write his name!! Since he started preschool in September, he has mastered holding the pencil the right way and writing all the numbers 1-10 and spelling out his name. He can write any letter just by looking at it. Starting in January they will start learning how to write the ABC's. I love his preschool and teacher and I'm so excited he is being challenged and enriched each day. Here is a picture I took the week he first started writing his name!

A friend gave us a mini air-hockey table and this easel and he loves drawing on the chalkboard and painting on the other side. This particular day we were all home from church sick so I was happy the boys had new toys to play with so we could enjoy the day.

Tyler LOVES animals! His favorite books to read are bugs and animal books and enjoys learning about different animals, where they live and what other animals they eat. He found this lizard one day and wasn't scared at all to pick it up. One day our kitty Ringo brought in a dead bird- it was so gross, there were feathers all over the kitchen floor! Tyler went outside and gave him a lecture about how we don't kill birds because they are nice and Jesus created them.

Tyler has such a kind heart. He loves making new friends and loves to make his friends happy. He loves helping me do chores around the house and helping his brother learn new things. Another Sunday that he was sick (he's had lots of colds and ear infections this winter) I came home to him and Daddy doing dishes! He was on drying duty and stacking the dishes like towers- why didn't I think of this?!

He loves building things with legos and his trio connect toys and lining up his animals in family groups! He also likes to put pretend bugs in certain places (hall floor, counter tops) to scare me and laughs like crazy when it does!

We love Tyler and his sweetness. He is such a vital part of our family and we are so grateful we get to be his parents!!