The Coggin Clan

Growing babes...

2011-12-05T21:46:00.002-05:00

These kiddos couldn't be any cuter! We are so thankful for every day we have with such precious children.

Lyla Grace is One!

2011-11-12T21:39:00.004-05:00

Our precious Lyla Grace is one year old! She has blessed our lives in so many ways; We thank God for her every day. She and Clark are beginning to play together more. That's entertainment... She loves to eat, she isn't afraid of anyone, and she is an adorable, sweet baby. It's hard to believe that she is already one and Clark is already six. Time really flies, but we try to enjoy every moment possible! Lyla Grace had a birthday brunch for her first birthday celebration followed by a cake sampling. We enjoyed celebrating with our family; Thank goodness the party was for her...she stole the show!

Introducing Belle of the Ball

2011-07-11T11:14:00.002-04:00

Our newest family member, Belle! Clark has been begging for a puppy now for about a year. We decided that a lab was the best choice for us. So a chocolate lab she is. She is adorable, but Clark wan't quite prepared for puppy play that includes teeth (which are extremely sharp). Our house is an *exciting* place to be with a 5 year old, 8 month old, and 10 week old puppy.

Ten little toes...

2011-02-20T11:45:00.002-05:00

Our Little Star

2011-02-20T11:43:00.002-05:00

Friday was Nursery Rhyme Dress Up Day for Clark's Pre-K class. He was the shining star, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star! He did great!

Lyla Grace

2011-01-28T10:20:00.003-05:00

Lyla Grace will be 11 weeks old this Saturday. She is getting so big (99th percentile weight and 93rd percentile height). She is starting to laugh out loud and is grinning and cooing a lot at us. She is a sweet baby and of course we think she is just adorable!

Snugglebugs

2011-01-28T10:16:00.002-05:00

The other night when Clark was going to bed, he wanted Lyla Grace to have a sleepover with him. He scooted over as far as he could so she could have as much room as she needed. It was adorable...he is a little gentleman in the making! He really thought we were going to let her stay with him and assured us he could take care of her if she cried. ;)

Santa and kids

2010-12-22T15:25:00.001-05:00

Merry "Kiss"mas

2010-12-20T09:04:00.002-05:00

Cousins

2010-12-08T11:04:00.003-05:00

I totally swiped this from Alice's blog...(Alice: I hope you don't mind me sharing your cutie fellow with mine on here.)

Clark's Christmas Wishes...

2010-12-06T11:34:00.001-05:00

Clark has circled almost every item in this magazine and we have about a dozen (no joke) Christmas wish lists for him sitting around the house. He is wishing big this Christmas...

Lyla Grace (3 weeks)

2010-12-06T11:20:00.002-05:00

Lyla Grace is already 3 weeks old and she is doing great! She is a wonderful baby. She has already changed so much and is growing every day. Clark is loving her a little more each day and for that we are thankful! Life is good...

Lyla Grace has arrived!

2010-11-16T10:43:00.004-05:00

Lyla Grace was born on Saturday morning, November 13th, at 2:56 AM weighing in at 8 pounds 8 ounces. She is precious!

Clark is 5!

2010-09-27T20:54:00.003-04:00

While it is almost unbelievable, our little Clark is five years old! We celebrated Clark's birthday with our family and way too many presents on Sunday afternoon. He had a great time celebrating with everyone and began watching as soon as we got home from church for his "guests to arrive". We are so blessed to have Clark as our son! He is a true gift from God.

Clark's 1st Day of Pre-K

2010-08-10T21:47:00.002-04:00

Drew brought Clark to school on Friday to meet his teachers and to get to see the classroom. He was tired from the excitement and crashed on the way home. Of course, he did spend the day with Drew and they made a dozen plus stops before getting back home.

Clark was very excited to get to class Monday morning. Here he is with Mrs. Debbie & Mrs. Renee on the first day! What a handsome boy!

Exploring in the classroom...
He left me a work of art before we walked to his class.
He was very happy to tell Drew about his "awesome" day at Pre-K.

He has been a great student so far and loves school! I hope both of those continue for a few more years.

Summer is coming to an end...

2010-08-03T14:49:00.002-04:00

Yet another summer has come and gone! The thing that makes next week different than any of the others in the past decade is that when I go to work, Clark will be coming with me. CRAZY!!!! He will be in Pre-K this year and I am fortunate to have him at Arbor Springs with me. He doesn't seem extremely excited about starting school, but I know he will love getting to socialize with more kiddos soon. He has been home with me all summer and with the exception of play dates and spend the night dates at grandparents' houses, I have been the one to entertain!
On another note, Lyla Grace is doing well...growing like she should and staying busy lots of the time. We got some good news back regarding the testing with the specialist and we are very hopeful that she will be born a healthy baby! November will be here before we know it and we cannot wait to meet her!

Gender is Revealed...

2010-07-02T09:30:00.004-04:00

We did the 20 week ultrasound yesterday. Clark was so excited to see pictures of "the baby" and he had been saying both he and she all week long changing back and forth. Drew and I were convinced recently that it was going to be another boy. We finally got to see that the baby was indeed a girl. Lyla Grace was very active and gave us some good laughs at how much she is already like me...quite humorous. We are all very excited; the family gathered last night to celebrate the announcement!

Walt Disney World

2010-06-22T22:34:00.005-04:00

We finally took Clark to Disney World this past weekend and he loved it! We all had a great time, especially Clark.

Of course, the castle was amazing to Clark. It seemed a little less large to Drew and me as adults, but it was still "magical".

Can't go to Disney World without seeing Mickey and Minnie!

Drew braved any ride Clark wanted to try....old reliable merry-go-round.
Clark was so excited to see Tigger and wanted to know why he wouldn't bounce on his tail. ;)

Our late night at Disney World and Clark was going strong about 10:30 on the Dumbo ride with Drew.
One of my favorite pictures from the trip!

Another favorite...Clark's view of the fireworks on Drew's shoulders!

This proved to be the best method to keep Clark awake on the bus ride back...games on my phone. We tried whatever worked!

Clark was super excited to see one of the characters in the afternoon parade. I don't remember who it was, but I love his face here and his hand was busy waving as fast as it could go.

Clark and me in front of the castle.

His all-time favorite character (and ride) at Disney World was Buzz Lightyear! He has talked about it non-stop!!!

At our hotel, they had a huge Woody that Clark loved!

A Wild Week

2010-05-02T12:42:00.002-04:00

After several rounds of strep during the winter and other issues Clark has faced with enlarged tonsils and adenoids, we decided about two months ago to have them removed. Drew and I discussed (in detail) what exactly that meant with the doctors, nurses, and other parents who had been through similar situations. We scheduled the surgery for this past Wednesday since we knew it would be a two week ordeal of being out of school and arranging for Clark to stay with grandmothers. I couldn't afford to miss before the CRCT (what a shame,but how true that statement is)! So we went in for the surgery early Wednesday morning expecting the procedure just as everyone told us about. "Kids react differently, but overall they bounce back quickly." Well....what a shocker we both faced when Clark was brought back to us. He was MAD and inconsolable for about an hour and a half. It was terrible for him, Drew, and me! After he got the IV out and threw up a few times and we got more medicine in him, he seemed to be feeling better. That was temporary. The night was hard for him and me! But...every day has been a little better and he is recovering "as expected". We are all emotionally worn out and Clark is physically worn out. It has been harder than we expected, but we are hopeful that Clark will (not any any order) a)stop snoring b)eat more food c)not gag at the drop of a hat d)be well e)hear better and f)breathe better. Now off to a child who has seen way too much t.v. and who has learned all about the Nintendo DS.

The Real Snow Day

2010-02-13T11:12:00.002-05:00

We got snow (and an extra day off of school)! Clark got out a little while yesterday to play, but we all got out to play this morning. He and Drew tried to build a snowman, but it didn't work so well. Clark had a great time until he took his wet gloves off and then realized his hands were freezing!

Snow Day (the way we Southerners refer to it.....)

2010-01-08T11:05:00.003-05:00

Today was a day off from school because of a little bit of snow, but a lot more ice. We went out just for a few minutes to play, but with the temperature at 18 degrees, it was a short trip! The warm hot chocolate was a nice treat afterwards!

Christmas

2010-01-05T21:13:00.005-05:00

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. It was very busy, but we got to enjoy visiting with all of our family members and ate way too much food at every event! I only took my camera to Memaw's on Christmas Eve and took a few pictures at our house Christmas morning. We had some really cute photo ops at Mimi's and PawPaw's and at Peep & D-Dog's, but of course I had forgotten the camera! Please excuse the crazy order of the photos...it's too much work to rearrange them.Clark on his scooter for the first time in the cul-de-sac. He loved it until he fell in the driveway and hurt his finger. It's been too cold outside to try it again!!!!

Clark is enjoying playing with one of his many toys he got for Christmas.

Us on Christmas morning (still in pajamas at 11:00!!!!)

Crip made the whipped cream for the pancakes!

A griddle full of pancakes for breakfast.
This was our dining room on Christmas morning, including the extra chair that didn't get moved out in the chaos of the morning.
Memaw and Alice at Christmas Eve.Baby Austin and Mrs. Carol enjoying some good cuddle time!

Clark was ready to drive through the lights at Callaway Gardens!
One of the scenes Clark enjoyed

Arnie, our Elf on the Shelf, went back with Santa on Christmas Eve!

Drew and Clark having a conversation on Christmas Eve. Drew was probably asking Clark if he thought Santa would find our house. I think Clark was worried he really may not come because the first thing Clark said on Christmas morning was, "Did Santa find our house?"

A Precious Face

2009-12-13T20:06:00.002-05:00

I had a very hard time trying to decide on which precious face to put on our Christmas card! The one of him really smiling/laughing portrays his personality best, but the sweet, adorable face on the others melt my heart!

Santa Claus visits Cedar Grove

2009-12-06T14:19:00.005-05:00

Today, Santa came to visit the little kids (and big ones too) at Cedar Grove. Clark told him all about what he wanted for Christmas and he explained about our new tradition, the advent calendar.

Randi helped Clark complete a few Christmas crafts/ornaments for our tree.

Reasons for thanks...

2009-12-06T14:02:00.006-05:00

We have dozens of reasons to be thankful. Below are some photos of Thanksgiving that remind us many of the reasons we are thankful each day!

Carl, Barbara, Drew, me, Clark, Kim, Peep, & D-Dog (Crystal is taking the photo) enjoy lunch together on Thanksgiving day.Mimi and Clark sneaking into Clark's turkey brownie treat!
Since I rarely post any pictures of Drew and me...
I joined Clark for his little "feast" at school on the Friday before Thanksgiving.

The Clark family
Kim, me, and Crystal

Halloween @ Cedar Grove

2009-10-30T21:24:00.002-04:00

Clark had loads of fun this year at the fall get-together at church.
He rode the horse without hesitation.

Halloween @ School

2009-10-30T21:20:00.002-04:00

Clark had a Halloween party @ school. His wonderful teacher, Mrs. Heather, face paints. As you can see, he chose Spiderman!Clark & his buddy, Austin, who was Spiderman also!

Mrs. Heather, Clark, & Monica

Carving the Jack-O-Lantern

2009-10-27T18:23:00.004-04:00

Drew & Clark carved the jack-o-lantern this afternoon! Clark does not typically like slimy things on his hands, and that was no different this afternoon. It took a little bit of persuading and a pack of gummies to convince him to touch the insides. But he finally did it and didn't gag this year!

Clark is trying to decide how best to draw the eyes, nose, and mouth on the pumpkin.
He and Drew work together to draw off the face and the "lid".

Elmo Show

2009-09-20T15:54:00.005-04:00

Peep took Clark to Elmo @ Philips Arena again this year for his birthday. He had a great time at the show! Thanks, Peep.

Clark @ work and play...

2009-07-16T14:51:00.004-04:00

While I don't have any pictures to show for it, Clark had a small accident last weekend and ended up getting 5 stitches in his head. He did fantastic and was a real trooper for the entire ordeal. The worst part has been keeping his head completely dry...not even sweating...hello? It's July in Georgia! We only have another day to go. He has done great so far!

These pictures are from a month ago when Drew did a paver patio for my parents. Clark had fun "helping Daddy work" and cooled off with the hose afterwards.

4th of July

2009-07-06T14:58:00.003-04:00

We had a great 4th of July. Clark had fun at the PTC parade, Moreland Bar-B-Que, and the fireworks. Needless to say, he slept very well that night! It was a long day.

We also welcomed a new family member, Austin, on the 4th. He is adorable and Clark can't wait to teach him all kinds of things.

Beach Trip

2009-06-08T22:10:00.004-04:00

We went to the beach this weekend and had a great time! Clark really loves the water and even enjoys the sand...he takes after his mom in this regard! Drew has always disliked the beach, but is learning to enjoy it more now that Clark loves it so much!

Here are a few pictures from the weekend. My favorites are the black & whites!

Clark is not wanting to pose with either one of us. This was Friday night when we first got to the beach and all Clark wanted to do was play with the sand between his toes. He was not up for taking photos.

Boogie Boarding...he got pretty good at catching the waves and staying balanced on the board.

Easter

2009-04-25T21:48:00.008-04:00

Clark & Peep @ Easter Dinner!
Clark is checking out his goods left by the Easter Bunny!
Easter Egg Hunt @ Cedar Grove on Saturday.

Clark didn't have a basket to collect eggs in... one of his monogrammed baby bags had to do!
Clark is making his daddy proud...he's the first one "out of the gate".

From winter to spring in only a week...

2009-03-08T21:06:00.003-04:00

This was the weather a week ago:

This is what we got to enjoy today: After church this morning, we met my family to celebrate my grandad's 89th birthday. Drew took Clark afterwards to my parents' house to fish and I was able to get in a couple hours of school (college) work. Drew and Clark had lots of fun spending the afternoon together. I think one of Clark's favorite things was chasing the geese into the lake. They were not happy, but Clark sure had fun!

Snow in March is always fun!

2009-03-01T21:23:00.002-05:00

What a wonderful way to start the month of March! We had fun in the snow!

Fun with bubbles...

2009-02-28T13:27:00.001-05:00

Barnum & Bailey Circus comes to town...

2009-02-15T12:48:00.003-05:00

We took Clark to the circus on Friday night and we all had a great time. Clark loved the excitement and his favorite part was "the trash can" that blew out bubbles. I thought surely the first time ever seeing an elephant and a tiger would be his fondest memory...not a trash can! However, Clark had a great time and really LOVED the cotton candy, pizza, and ice cream.

Decorating for Christmas

2008-12-17T07:27:00.003-05:00

Clark holds his ornament proudly!

Clark put the first ornament on the tree. He loves the new Elmo ornament Peep gave him!

Drew helping Clark decide the best spot for his ornament

Clark wanted to help every step of the way while Drew worked to trim the tree and get it in the stand. As you can see, he was dressed for the weather!

Christmas Photos

2008-12-17T07:16:00.003-05:00

Clark in one of his cute Christmas outfits in front of our tree @ home.

We found an adorable sleigh @ Ashley Park that I thought would be a perfect photo prop. It didn't work quite so well. Something about the freezing temperatures might have been the reason!

I have no idea what he's looking at, but this is one of my favorites!

Clark discovered our music boxes when we unpacked our Christmas stuff. He has all 7 of them out on the rug (still as I'm typing this two weeks after decorating) and loves to line them up and listen to each one. It's very cute...I think Santa should bring him one more to add to the collection!

As you can tell from the pumpkins in the background, we start Christmas as soon as Thanksgiving is over! Clark loves his monkey with candy cane pajamas.

Christmas Cookies...

2008-12-17T07:04:00.004-05:00

Christmas time is always fun for me because I love to get the kitchen a mess with cooking/baking. Clark and Crystal joined in on the fun last night with our family's famous Christmas Cookie baking. Thank goodness Crystal came because I sliced my finger (for the 2nd year in a row) and she ended up doing most of the work. FYI: The whole process takes about 3 1/2 hours, so you can imagine what my kitchen and table (with about 150 cookies on it) looked like! Thanks, Cryckle, for helping. Clark has tons of fun!

Like I said, it took a long time and Clark got a wee bit bored. He had quite a time in the bathroom pretending he was a Charmin puppy!

Elmo @ Philips Arena

2008-10-11T13:44:00.003-04:00

Peep wanted to take Clark to an Elmo show @ Philips Arena for his birthday. This was his first time in downtown Atlanta. He had a ball!

When we got out onto the street walking toward Philips, Clark noticed a kid from his class on the sidewalk. We got to our seats and they had the three seats right behind us. Chael loves Clark (and I think he's beginning to like her, too)! I'm a little worried...

End of Summer Beach Trip

2008-10-11T13:34:00.004-04:00

A lot of catching up to do...

2008-10-11T13:24:00.003-04:00

We went to the lake just before summer ended. My parents (Peep & D-Dog), my sisters (Kim & Crystal), and my cousin (David), his wife (Kim), and their daughter (Bella) joined in on the fun at the lake. Thanks, Mimi, for letting us use the lakehouse!

Clark & Bella

Clark on his first tube ride...yes, he did fall off!

Bella, Aunt "Cryckle", and Clark

D-Dog teaching Clark to fish.

Drew and Clark on the blow up chair...it flipped also!

A Little Summer Fun

2008-07-25T10:39:00.007-04:00

Here's a recap of some summer fun we've had!

@ the lake:

Fourth of July festivities:

Picking (and eating) blackberries @ Peep & D-Dog's house!

Callaway Gardens:

Yet another week...

2008-07-17T12:08:00.004-04:00

The last week (and really the last month) has been crazy. Clark has been to school quite a bit because I have had to spend so much time on school work. Thank goodness he likes to go! My grandmother's funeral was last week and it's been pretty hard for me. She was 87 and lived a great life! That doesn't really make it any easier. ;(

Classes will be officially finished next Wednesday night after my last presentation/assignment and I am planning to enjoy a week and a half of NO computer time before school starts back! We're planning to head back to "Mimi's Lakehouse" this weekend and enjoy some time in the water. Clark is already excited about riding the jet ski and getting to swim.

Drew has been busy with plenty of work. His secretary (Mrs. Watson) is battling cancer, for either the 3rd or 4th time, and had to have an unexpected surgery in the intestinal area on Tuesday. We are praying for her recovery and I know a few extra prayers could only help.

Missing her already...

2008-07-08T22:04:00.003-04:00

Early this morning, my Nana passed away at her home. She was 87 years old and had been married to my grandfather, Crip, for 65 years! She meant more to me than the words I can think of to say...she was my Nana. We will miss her dearly and I know the days ahead don't hold the struggles she had been facing for the last few months, but it doesn't make losing her any easier.

What a busy summer...

2008-06-24T17:05:00.005-04:00

Things have been a little busy with us lately. After a weekend trip to the beach for Memorial Day and a wedding afterparty to help plan/decorate/execute, our summer was already off to a wild start. I went back to school the Monday after Alice's wedding and have been spending lots of time in front of the computer and in the car driving back and forth from Carrollton. Vacation Bible School started this week for the kids at church. Clark had lots of fun on his first night! And last, but not least, Clark LOVED swimming at "Mimi's Lake" this past weekend! We can't wait to head back to the water soon.

What a blessed Mom...

2008-05-12T14:42:00.003-04:00

Spring Break Fun

2008-04-18T15:10:00.004-04:00

We went to the beach for a little fun over Spring Break. We had a great time and Clark really enjoyed the water and the sand this time more than before. I'm counting down the days until we can go again!

Easter Fun

2008-03-28T15:15:00.003-04:00

Clark enjoyed the Easter Egg Hunt @ Cedar Grove. His outfit for Easter was adorable, but I forgot to take a picture. ;(

Here is a picture of Clark from two Easters ago!

Fun with Daddy's toys...

2008-03-28T15:09:00.003-04:00

A few weekends ago, we went to the "shop" to let Clark play with Drew's work stuff. He had a ton of fun! Here is a picture of him helping his daddy.

Enjoying time off

2008-02-22T13:01:00.004-05:00

This week has been our Mid-Winter Break. We have gotten lots of things done and plenty of rest. It's been so much fun spending time with Clark. He did go to school on Monday and Wednesday to keep up with the routine. When I picked him up from Mimi's on Wednesday afternoon, he had gotten a busted lip at school while he was "dancing", which is more like jumping around for Clark. It still looks pretty bad and is swollen, but he says "it feels better", so I'm taking his word for it. Besides the lip, nothing major has been happening. We've been enjoying Clark's entertainment. His latest sayings are... "well, first...." , "say aargh, Mommy" and "Thank you, God, for Avery. Thank you, God, for Hayden. Thank you, God, for Brodie" (and so on until he names everyone from his class at church as well as Daddy and Mommy). He is just too sweet {most of the time ;) }

Growing up...

2008-01-28T14:46:00.001-05:00

I better take advantage of Clark wanting to hold my hand!

Clark and I went to a birthday party on Saturday for Harrison from church. Mrs. Sally from church was there taking pictures and snapped a few of Clark. They are too sweet!

No fun being sick...

2008-01-14T21:00:00.000-05:00

It's been a long week. The first cough, which was already a bad one, began exactly a week ago. What a week for Clark. He: has had a fever on and off, watched tons of t.v. (one of the only ways to keep him still to keep his fever down), coughed a disgusting cough, said "it hurts", gave the response "no, Mommy" when I suggested that his eye hurt instead of the "I" he meant, used half a bottle of Motrin AND Tylenol, had plenty of cuddle time with Mommy in the middle of the night, had plenty of cuddle time with Mommy in the middle of the day, whispered when he felt really bad, enjoyed a day and a half (out of the work week) with Mommy and a day with Daddy, used an entire bottle of Triaminic recommended at the (first) doctor's visit, used plenty of band-aids to "make it feel better", took it like a little champ and told the doctor " I'm feelin' better" on the second visit when the doctor asked "How are you, Clark?", smiled when he took his first dose of antibiotic that took a whole week to get! A simple cold turned into a sinus infection and a "pus-filled" pocket behind his eardrum! I'm sure if you asked him, he'd say..... "I'm feelin' better"!

Merry Christmas

2007-12-28T12:54:00.000-05:00

We have had another wonderful Christmas spending time with family and eating lots of good food!

ALL of the Hammond great-grandchildren (which are under the age of 4).

From left: Bella, Jacob, Clark, Carston, Keiran, Johnathon, Matthew, & Calen
Memaw and Pop at the annual Christmas Eve dinner. It was at Lake Redwine this year since Memaw's house is under renovation for Pop's new bathroom.

Here is a picture of our mantel with the only two stockings that arrived on time!
Clark and D-Dog on Christmas morning playing with some of the toys from Santa.
Clark and Bella playing after the Hammond party at my mom's house.
Nate, Clark, and Bella playing with the Christmas village.
I can't figure out how to turn the picture...so just stretch your neck a little...it's worth it!

Clark likes Santa!

2007-12-04T09:30:00.001-05:00

Santa paid a visit to the church on Sunday. Clark sat in his lap and didn't talk to him, but we did get Clark to laugh.

Birthday Fun Wears Clark Out!

2007-12-04T09:15:00.001-05:00

On Saturday, after Clark's much needed hair trim, I took Clark to Hayden's birthday party. The kids were so cute trying to play together and at the same time claiming all of the gifts were "mine". I was afraid the whole way over that Clark would appear selfish claiming the gift was his, but was gladly surprised when the other boys did exactly the same thing. Some even helped him open his presents! Clark mostly did his own thing, climbing the mountain to go see the neighbor (which we don't know), going up and down the steps to the back yard, and hanging out at the end of the driveway (but not in the street). Here are a few pictures. Notice the one of Clark sound asleep on the way home. I forgot to mention that he had not had a nap before the party!

Did you know Cookie Monster takes naps?

2007-12-04T09:07:00.001-05:00

First, let me tell you that Drew has an oral fixation. He chews on straws, gum, paper, etc. So the other night we were sitting in the living room and I look over to see Drew with one of Clark's little Cookie Monster toys in his mouth. As I'm hanging up the phone, I walk over to see what he was doing and to my surprise, Cookie Monster's eyes are gone!!! I said, "Drew, Clark will be devestated when he sees this." His response: "I bet he doesn't even notice." Who are you kidding? A few minutes later, Clark sees Cookie Monster! He picks him up and kneels on the floor for a few minutes examining Cookie...he turns him over...upside down...all around. He looks intently at Cookie's face, which is missing both eyes, and begins to poke out his bottom lip when all of a sudden he looks up at us and says, "Cookie Monster sleeping". We both cracked up and Clark thought it was hilarious too. Little does he know that Cookie Monster is having an eternal nap!

Santa Claus is comin' to town

2007-11-27T07:21:00.001-05:00

Clark is ready for Santa!

Busy in the kitchen

2007-11-27T07:11:00.000-05:00

Notice: The left handed chef is at work in the kitchen. Clark loves to help in the kitchen, especially when he gets to sit on the counter to do so. He really enjoyed helping make pancakes and he thought the train pancake was the best.

This is a little later in the day. If you read my very first post, you'll know why Clark is wearing a different shirt... the syrup smell lingers on and on and on...

Is this not the cutest lion you've ever seen?

2007-11-27T07:04:00.000-05:00

Here is Clark in his Halloween costume...at the only stop we made on Halloween night,Mimi's house, and at church for the Fall Festival.

"Just when I'm getting the hang of it..."

2007-11-14T21:32:00.000-05:00

We don't do Halloween too big around here. We did do the normal pumpkin carving, Halloween stickers everywhere, orange and black decorations, adorable costume (as a lion), and of course practiced new seasonal words. Clark loved pumpkins and for some reason he was into spiders. So, when I asked if he would like to taste apple cider the other day, he just looked at me like I was crazy and said "more apple juice, please Mommy". He liked it, but it seems that the Halloween words have been mixed in with the Thanksgiving words and apple cider is to Clark "apple spider". I'm sure he thinks I'm the crazy one for calling it cider when we worked so hard to get from "pider" to "spider".

Clark shows his loyalty to the Dawgs

2007-11-04T12:19:00.001-05:00

So...we've been working now for many months with Clark on the Georgia cheer. For those of you who don't know how it goes, keep reading. Every time we started the cheer, Clark would say some part of it or do his favorite part, the barking at the end. Since we've been working on getting the cheer, we always praise Clark and laugh and encourage him when he does any part of it. Last week during the Georgia/Florida game we were all very excited and Clark went around saying the cheer...the whole thing. He has really enjoyed doing this at random times over the last week (to my satisfaction and encouragement). Until today...in church...during a prayer...he starts saying the cheer...not only once...but several times in a row...with me laughing (trying as hard as I could not to)...and telling him "we can't do that in church"...but it didn't work...and he kept on.....

"GOOOOOOOOOOOO Dawgs! Sic 'em! Roof! Roof! Roof! Roof! Roof!"

Although I was a little embarassed, I was such a proud mom (of what looks like a loyal Dawg fan at the ripe old age of two)!

So here it goes...

2007-11-01T21:14:00.000-04:00

I'm finally doing it. This is the first official blog of hopefully many to come.

The reason I've decided to do this is not because of the forever nagging of others to start nor the envy of others' ability to write. It's not even the adorable pictures and videos of kids that I've spent hours looking at. It happened today when I was attending a writing workshop. We were "learning by doing" and the assignment was of course...to write...which I'm not so great at. However, I just let the pen flow and...out it came. The assignment was about writing to the senses. We had 5 minutes to write and of course when the time was up, I was not finished. It seems that writing about Clark could be the answer to getting me to enjoy writing!

The presenter read us this book (which I can't remember the title) where each chapter began with "let me tell you about . . ." That was exactly our assignment. So...

Let me tell you about Clark:

I see a blue-eyed, blond haired boy that looks more like an angel that anything I've ever seen. His bangs hang just over his eyebrows and his "pretty little mouth" looks perfect in every way (Memaw, that's for you!). His smile lights up his entire face and when he's sleeping, there is no more perfect sight! Is it possible that everyone thinks he looks as angelic as he does to me?

I hear his giggle when we play chase or hide and seek. His subtle grin slowly turns to a laugh, which gives way to a shriek that takes every bit of what his tiny little body can give. Music to my ears!

I smell syrup on his cheeks even after his face and hands have been washed (a half dozen times). I eventually realize the smell may be lingering on his shirt instead of his hands and face. School peers teach all kinds of things. One of which is to wipe your hands on your shirt. Why waste paper towels when you always have a shirt?

I taste Goldfish, raisins, Nilla Wafers, Smarties...I'm willing to take almost anything he's willing to share. His sweet little hands pick up one at a time; He wants me to savor every bite (and I do). Every single fingerful is special because I know if he's willing to share the things he loves the most, his heart is already growing in the right direction.

I feel his gentle hands as he pats my shoulders during a hug. There is warmth in every part of me, from each corner of my heart right down to the tips of my toes. All feels well with the world!