Christmas Memories 2013

The last several weeks have been incredibly crazy busy leading up to Christmas...and now it is all over. We were SO happy to share it with Grandma Good who traveled in the cold weather by bus from Bismarck just to be with her grandkids. We are so appreciative, mom! Thank you for helping make our Christmas so memorable and wonderful. 

We thoroughly enjoyed Christmas Eve service at Hosanna Lutheran Church complete with live stable animals and the most amazing music - WOW, what an uplifting experience! Afterwards, we pulled out the fondue pots for our annual Camp Clark tradition. We savored steak and shrimp fondue and of course, some vino. The kids could hardly wait to open presents after dinner but we managed to hold them off long enough. They were especially good kids this year so Santa was really good to them :)  Dylan saved up to buy a an electric dirt bike and we surprised him, paid for half, and picked it up 6 months early just in time for Christmas. They also received their very first electronics.....Nook HD+ tablets. Not sure if that was a good idea or not since they seem to be obsessed since they opened them on Christmas day morning. Yikes! Who knew those things were so addictive.Thankfully, Dave and I have already set standards in place to minimize the time they can spend on them. 

On Christmas Day, we all got to share time with Dave's sister, Lisa, and her family, and we all savored a big feast....with LOTS of leftovers we are still eating days later! Of course, we had to make Grandma Kemmet's infamous Caramel Fudge which turned out perfectly. The kids really enjoyed helping with that creation AND savoring them.

After Christmas, we all ventured out to Saint Paul to take in the Christmas lights in Phalen Park, Rice Park in the square and the historic mansions overlooking the mighty Mississippi on Summit Ave. Breathtaking! We also went ice skating on Centennial Lakes in Edina which was super fun especially since it was warm and balmy outside. Grandma decided to be a spectator that day but enjoyed watching LTD take to the ice like they have been skating for years. Those little squirts are pretty good at it....and FAST! They really gave mom a good workout. 

Merry Christmas to all!! We are thankful for our family scattered throughout the US and missed those we could not be with this Christmas. You were all in our thoughts and continue to be in our daily prayers. 2014 is going to be an exciting year and we look forward to a year filled with health, happiness and promise. 

PS - Please feel free to check out our Shutterfly link for lots of Christmas photos. 

LTD's First Piano Recital

This past Sunday, LTD got a chance to shine at their very first piano recital. The former Music Director at their school, Aspen Academy, travels to our home weekly to teach our children the art of music on the piano. Mrs. Gonzales is phenomenal!!! They adore her and she has an amazing gift of teaching children how to play the piano and they have so much fun learning from her. Together with several of their school friends who also take lessons from Mrs. G, we gathered in the beautiful worship center of Shephard of the Lake church in Prior Lake. The children all performed so nicely and there were many proud parents that day. Check out our photos and the video below.

Dylan's 9th Birthday Bash!

Day two of birthday madness!! So in our previous post, we mentioned two words:  volume and sleeplessness. Now multiply that by 10 for the boys :)

Seriously, Dylan invited 15 of his school and neighbor friends to help celebrate his 9th birthday and oh what fun they had. Boys are definitely louder than girls, hands down! They are also WAY more physical and obnoxious.....as most boys will be. They played 
LOTS of games (no competitiveness whatsoever :), made candleholders (crafts with boys can be SO interesting), ate tacos in a bag and cake, wrestled and pig piled, opened fun gifts including the latest craze, ROCKS!, watched Elf on the big screen, had nerf gun fights, played football (yes, tackle, inside), built massive forts, and closed the night with reading books by flashlight. Or so we thought. They also had sleeping bag races down our stairs and played car racing games on the PlayStation which Dave put to a final halt at 1:30am. Believe it or not, they were up and at it again by 7:30am the next morning! How do they do that?

By Sunday, we all needed serious naps by noon (and just in time for our piano recital at 3pm). Yep, it was a blast!!! Let's just say, we have done it twice now.......the first, and the last (as our beloved Papa Egg would say :)

Check out a few photos below and more on our Shutterfly link on this blog page. One more year of single-digit-aged children. We are definitely going to make the best of it!

Girls' 9th Birthday Bash!!

Dave and I have officially survived! This past weekend we agreed to let LTD have back-to-back birthday/slumber parties here at Camp Clark to celebrate their 9th birthdays. Two words: volume and sleeplessness :) 

The girls kicked it off Friday night with an indoor bash including 15 of their favorite classmates and neighbor friends. We have learned a few things. First, girls love to scream, ALOT! They also love to play rough with Dave :) He was the engine and they were the cars on the train as he dragged them across the hardwood floor. We have never heard so many belly laughs - it truly was priceless! The weather outside may have been cold and frightful, but the joy and cheer inside was delightful. They played lots of games, made candleholders, danced to 70's music (Dancing Queen and Carwash will always be big hits!), ate pizza and cake, opened treasured gifts, watched a fun holiday movie on the big screen, had pillow fights, listened sweetly as I read them a holiday book and closed the night out by reading their favorite books with flashlights and chatting softly. Of course, that's what Dave and I thought; until I woke up at 3:30am and heard lots of giggling coming from the play room. To my surprise, there were 6 or 7 girlies playing dress up....and yes, Taylor and Lindsey were right in there. That's when I had to call it even though they wanted to stay up all night long. Their parents would NEVER forgive me if I said yes! 

What a memory! All these girls are dear to our hearts and really good kids, even though they would give the Metrodome some serious competition in the volume department. But nothing compared to the next night.....Dylan's party! Below are a few photos with more on our Shutterfly link on this blog. We dropped the ball in capturing a formal group photo - such a bummer! Too much going on, I guess :)

Thanksgiving 2013 Memories

Camp Clark traveled back to ND for the Thanksgiving Holiday to share time with family and friends and had a wonderful time! The kids were ecstatic to have multiple sleepovers to celebrate their 9th birthday; one with Uncle Ken's girls in Fargo at Grandma and Papa Clark's and one with cousins in Bismarck at Grandma Good's. Time flew by WAY too fast, as usual. We always enjoy our time in ND, hanging out with our loved ones we seldom get to see and sharing cheer with so many genuine friends. HUGE thank you to Papa and Grandma Clark, Grandma Good, Grandpa and Grandma Kemmet, Uncle Joe and Aunt Jill,  Uncle Ken, Aunt Helen and Uncle Harlan, and our sweet and lovely cousins, Faith, Anna, Jordan, Sarah, Eastyn and Jaelyn, and our amazing friends from Bismarck who always make time for Dave and me whenever we come home. You are all loved and appreciated more than words can express! Below are a few photos and memories; feel free to click on our Shutterfly link for more. Only wish we would have taken more :(