One Good Thing #23

Today Sam was able to go to another friends house.  I am so happy to watch her grow up and become her own person.  I am really proud of who she is becoming, and she doesn't hear it nearly enough.  She is my good thing today.  When she was born, I was told in a blessing that Heavenly Father sent her to me, to show me how much He loved me..  Well, that couldn't be more true.  She brings such a sweet spirit to our family. And it wouldn't be complete without her.

Three Things I am Grateful For:
1. My sister-in-law, Emily (I love movie nights out!)
2. Girls willing to calmly take over making mac n cheese when mom slices her thumb open cutting a hot dog.
3. Super glue.  It saved me a lot of blood and band aids today

One Good Thing #22

Wow, I can't believe it's already been over 3 weeks since I start of this project. It has been interesting to watch it transform. I have gone from looking for things to be grateful for and a good thing that happens each day, to hoping and praying that I don't forget whatever it was that happened by the end of the day!

Today was it pretty average day when it comes to motherhood. potty training is always an adventure. And I think that's all I have to say about that!

The thing that made my day today was something that Jayce did.  I had just finished changing his diaper a few minutes before, so I was still on the floor.  He got up, walked over to the wrapped up diaper and picked it up. I was going to stop him, but I decided to see what he was going to do instead.  He examined it a moment, then proceeded to toddle over to the diaper pail by the door, open it, and put the diaper inside. He closed it, and continued on with his exploring!  How awesome is that?  Barely one, and already throwing away his diapers.

Three things I am grateful for:

1. My amazing kids.  Heavenly Father has blessed me so much.

2. Oreo Pizza

3. Summer Thunderstorms.

One Good Thing #20

Today my sister brought me clothes.  That may not seem like much, but when you have lost a lot of weight, it is definitely a plus.  I guess I can say I officially love hand-me-downs! (never thought I would say that)

1. My sister taking the girls for a well deserved cousin time.
2. Sleeping in.
3. Good kids.

One Good Thing #19

Today we got to spend time with my parents, who were in ton for a wedding, and my sister! Its been a year since I've seen my mom and it was a lot of fun! They took all 9 grandkids school shopping! (It was quite the sight) And we even got some needed odds and ends. Then it was a quick lunch, said our goodbyes to Grandma and Grandpa Lake then, along with Cass, took the kids to the museum at thanksgiving point for the afternoon. Fun times had by all.

Three things I am grateful for:
1. My sister for taking Sam and Laci for a sleep over.
2. Toddler cuddles.
3. My parents' health.

One Good Thing #15

Today is Jayce's official birthday.  I can't believe it.  Where has the year gone?  I love this little boy so much, and I can't picture life without him.  One of the highlights of my day, was this afternoon.  Everyone was outside squirting each other with spray bottles, Jayce was on the grass in the play pen, with a basin of water and some water balls.  He was so excited and soaked.  It brought great joy to my heart seeing all four of my kids play, even with the large gaps in age.  It makes me wonder what life will be like when they are older.

Three Things I am Grateful For:
1. Slobbery Baby Kisses. (You know, where they open their mouth and pretty much slime your face)
2. Kayla totally rinsed the dishes today.  She got out the step stool, climbed up to the sink, and rinsed the unrinsed dishes, then moved them to the other side of the sink, with the rest of the already rinsed dishes.  Cutest little helper ever.  I gave her 5 pennies and lots of hugs.
3. You know the water fight?  It was during that play time Sam managed. I didn't have to do a thing.  So grateful for her!

Sparklers, Bowling Balls, and Bed-head!

We have had a busy couple of days. Here are pictures from the 4th of July, bowling, and our haircuts we got today!
We had a great time as a family for the holiday. We did all our cleaning on Friday, so all day Saturday we got to play. As you can see, the girls really have gotten into helping clean lately, and we all work together as a family to really clean the house about every two weeks.
On the 4th of July, we spent time as a family watching movies, and then after cooking up some tasty burgers(compliments of Bryan), we went outside at dusk on the grass and played games til it was time to set off fireworks. The girls had a lot of fun with a few sparklers(that were hard to light at first because of the wind), and then us ladies sat on the grass while Bryan did all the work to give us a fun little firework display in the complex parking lot. The girls got to bed late, and were more than cranky the next morning for church, but it was sure worth all the fun.
Sunday was fast Sunday, and Sammie got up and bore her testimony all by herself. I wish I could remember what she said, because there was just one thing that was so sweet. but I am sure you can imagine.
Laci even wanted to bear her testimony so I got up to take her. Now, a few months back I totally fell in the middle of Sacrament Meeting(you may remember that story) and so as you may guess, I was so paranoid to walk up. But of course, I knew it was so unlikely I would fall again so I just went ahead and got up(taking my shoes off first to make it less risky), knowing if something happened, Bryan was right there. So I got up and guess what? I totally tripped over my own feet and caught myself by grabbing on to the pew(which caused me to do a 180) and hung on for dear life with one hand inches from hitting the floor! Of course, Bryan was there in seconds to help me up, and it happened so fast from the time I stood up to when I fell, and got up and walked up to the front, that I don't think very many people even noticed! But oh my word! What luck!
When I got up to the front I realized Laci was being shy and didn't follow, but with a little coaxing she joined me on the stand. When I took her up, it being her very first time, I whispered in her ear, "I would like to bear my testimony," she then responded with a very audible, "What?" into the microphone. After a few attempts of getting her to repeat that, I finally gave up and had her just say three things, and her testimony officially started with "I love my family" It really was the sweetest thing ever. I am really glad I finally have the opportunity to do testimonies with the girls, now that I have the spousal support in Sacrament Meeting!
Yesterday, my good friend Karin came down from SLC for a visit. We decided to go bowling! Of course the girls had a blast, and I even got a strike on the 10th frame! Sammie did so good, she bowled all by herself and got a bunch of frames with only one pin left! I guess playing on Wii really does pay off! Bryan is the genius bowler in our family(or claims to be ;) ) but he complained the lanes hadn't been greased in forever, and made it impossible to bowl with accuracy. He scored under 100 the first time in his life with a final score of 99! Karin scored right behind Bryan. She claimed she is usually horrible, but usually she plays "normal" people. I argued I was normal, apparently normal people don't use a crutch when they bowl. :)
I have been so looking forward to today! I went and got my hair chopped off and highlighted, and I absolutely love it! I have had long hair for two years, and I was ready for a change and a non-itchy, light-weighted head again! The girls have been struggling with brushing out their hair(Laci gets the rattiest bedhead!) so we went ahead and got their hair cut too. Actually, we all got the same one, except Laci was given bangs since the front of her hair was so whispy.
Life goes on in the Clayton Household, and we are excited about the future! Bryan has been doing shadowing, and gets to shadow a surgeon in surgery tomorrow for the second time. He registered for classes today, and he is looking forward to starting school up again in the Fall. The girls are headed out on Sunday to spend two weeks with their dad in Arizona while we pack everything up and move to Salt Lake in 9 days! Thank goodness, Bryan has agreed to do most of the packing. He remembers from my Mingle Profile that one of my 3 pet peeves is "packing to move" I absolutely hate it! What a good husband!

Our month of June!

Sammie turned 7 June 15th! I can't believe it! Here are some pictures from her birthday! We did a mini family party with the 4 of us on her birthday. Then on Tuesday we went for pizza with Cass, Mark and the cousins. Wednesday she had her best friend Emily over for a party. They had a blast with a fashion show, hide and seek, and lots of fun.

I can't believe my little angel baby is 7 now. Seems like just yesterday that she came into my life and changed it forever. She and I have conquered so much together. She has been my companion through life's struggles, the one to dry tears in hard times, and the one to make me laugh in the happy ones. She is a blessing to all who know her, and I can only hope she knows every single day of her life how special she is.

Also included in these pictures is the Manti Pagent, and the girls swim lessons. As you can see they are little fish. I will have to post video of them jumping from the diving boards in a later blog.

I love my family, and this has definitely been the summer to remember. (So far)

Better Than Okay!

I am so glad the nice weather is finally here! The girls and I have been outside A LOT recently. We all have crazy farmer tans, I am not kidding. Besides a couple little spells of sickness, this first week of summer has been great. We have enjoyed spending time with friends and neighbors. There really isn't anything new going on, other than the nice weather.

I have started walking again. It is so nice to be active. I have walked atleast a block 4 times in the past week and a half. I actually just got back from walking just now. The girls are over at Sidney's playing and I decided to make good use of my time. When I came back into the parking lot, a few neighbors were outside and were cheering me on. We have such great neighbors, I feel so blessed to be in this place at this time. They are great.



On Wednesday, Sam and I went out to the movies together while Laci stayed back and played with a neighbor (Thanks Amy!) She had a great time. We saw the new Chronicles of Narnia. I was worried at first that it would be too intense, since I hadn't seen it, and I was worried it would be too much for Sam, but she loved it! She was cheering on the good guys the whole time! When it first started, she said, "I like the first one better mommy!" About 10 minutes later she turned to me and said, "Nevermind I like 1 and 2 the best!" It was a lot of fun!



I feel so blessed to have such amazing people in my life everyday. I have grown so much from each one of my friends and family. I know the Lord has put people in our lives at certain times, for certain purposes we may not even comprehend completely. I feel so spoiled to have so many wonderful people to talk to and learn from everyday. I have always been a people person. I enjoy getting to know people, but lately, I have just felt so overcome with love for the people who have come into my life.



I know I talk about the adoption a lot, but I feel so blessed to be a part of this experience! I have truly enjoyed watching Tyler grow and experiencing through letters the joy that his parents are experiencing! I remember, before signing the papers, wondering if I would have the courage to do it. I did not think I was strong enough. I remember the thing that kept me grounded was who I was blessing by the sacrifice I was making. I could not bare the thought of taking Tyler away from Braden and Jen. In the end, it was my love for them (and Tyler) that made all the difference!

I cannot believe in a few days, Tyler will be 3 months old! That is just amazing to me! The Lord really did know what He was doing. Even though I thought He was crazy when He answered my prayers with, "I will be there, Melody, and all will be okay," I had no idea it would turn out this good! He has never left my side, and the Lord was right, all is okay. In fact, it is better than okay!