July 2012 sounds like a GREAT month to me!

It is true, Baby Clark #2 is on its way! Nathaniel and I are SUPER excited, we had our first ultrasound today (10 weeks) and we saw his/her little arms and legs kicking and punching, it was an amazing moment! We also heard and saw his little heartbeat...I can't help it I've already fallen in love :) :) :) The midwife that I saw today was AWESOME! we got along great, I wish that I could see her each time (bad thing about the army, you generally see a different doctor at each appt., positive side to that is your bound to know the doctor that delivers your baby :)

WE CAN'T WAIT TO MEET AND HOLD OUR LITTLE BABY in July!!!

only a couple of holidays behind!

Camden and his friend Emily

Camden, the little dragon

The Group

Having fun frosting cookies after trick or treating.

We had so much fun this halloween. The Fun began the friday before when we went to our friends halloween party, it was AMAZING! The food was delcious, we had a donut eating contest, pin the tail (on some sort of animal, l.o.l), a pinata, and a awesome halloween story at the end. EVERYONE had to dress up and it was just a blast! The next day was our wards trunk or treating/chili cook off! The kids had fun parading around in the customes, us adults had fun talking and at the end of the night everyone had a blast trunk or treating! On Halloween we inviting my sister and her kids over and my friend Julie (how I call cricket from our oakcrest days) and her kids over and we enjoyed eating mummy dogs and fruit! The older kids had SO much fun trick or treating and getting candy and the younger kids (Camden and Emily) had fun but would much rather stop at each house and play with their friends, haha!

A splendid way to spend a sunny day

We are heading up to Mt Rainier...notice Camden holding my hand, he routinely DEMANDS to hold my hand as we drive in the car!
The beginning of our hike started by the most beautiful lake I have seen. It was SO calm he could see the reflection of the sky and moutains in it!

Camden and Grandpa The boys. Camden's favorite thing to do on the hike: throw rocks into the water...any water we came across for the matter...and Washington has quite a bit of water to say the least :) Grandpa is king of the mountain! This picture doesn't do the view justice, it was A.M.A.Z.I.N.G! Camden's favorite place to stop on our hike....we sat for awhile on the trail throwing rocks down the mountain...Camden could of stayed there all day if we had let him! We made it - Spray Falls! Mommy and little man!

On saturday Dad, Nathaniel, Camden, and I packed our hiking bags, strapped on our hiking boots and set out for some hiking in Mount Rainier! I was just a little bit nervous about how Camden would do on the hike since we didn't have a backpack carrier for him...but I had no need to worry...Camden ran/walked/and thoroughly enjoyed our FOUR hour hike! The hike was beautiful.... I sometimes forget since living in Texas that some places are SO GREEN! We enjoyed a spectacular view of Mount Rainer and a HUGE waterfall! Besides about 20 minutes of being carried Camden walked most of the time...and insisted (quite loudly) that he would walk the last mile all by himself!

If we are ever stationed here at Fort Lewis we know that we will definently be taking advamtage of all of the hiking this state has to offer!

making bread

Nathaniel decided one day that he was going to make some delcious home-made bread and the next time I looked over at him, this is what I saw! I guess Camden really wanted to see what Nathaniel was doing but Nathaniel needed both hands so he decided the best place for him was on his shoulders! Camden has such a GREAT daddy!

We are still here...and having fun!

Miss Cayleigh! This is Camden's adorable friend and the cute little girl of mine and Nathaniel's friends, Barrett and Liz Campbell!
The Fountain in Olympia - it was Freezing that day but daddy and Grandpa thought it would be fun, l.o.l :)

And I have to admit Camden had the time of his life!

Camden enjoying the great outdoors :)

"dad dont feed me to the horse"!!!

We are still having a great time here in Washington! We love spending time with family and Nathaniel, Camden, and I are enjoying a much needed vacation together :) It is beautiful here in Washington, but it does rain A LOT...but even with all the rain we have had we have still found plenty to do and some days we still brave the rain and head outdoors for some fun!

One day Nathaniel, Dad, and Camden headed out to the local church camp ground to check on things and to figure out what needs to be done for the day of service for their ward coming up! Camden had a great time putting the horse, swinging in the swings, and of course jumping into all the mud puddles....he came home soaking wet and quite muddy!

We also have enjoyed game nights with friends, visiting the children's museum in Olympia and the water fountain there as well :)

Nathaniel also had quite the scare this week! He took Camden to the local play ground one morning and in the split second that Camden was out of arms reach he slipt off the bridge and fell about 5 feet straight onto his head! Nathaniel said it was one of the scariest moments of his life and ran over to Camden, who thankfully was moving...and crying and wanted to play some more! Nathaniel decided it was a wise idea to come home instead though and we are both so thankful that Camden is ok!

play time

Camden hanging out on the bed he sleeps on at Grandma and Grandpa's house!!!

This is what happens when....

This is what happens when DADDY watches Camden in the morning while mommy sleeps in....He gets to hang out in his pajamas all morning and eat oreo cookies!!!!!

Tolmie State Park

Nathaniel took us to Tolmie State Park and it was Beautiful! I LOVE LOVE LOVE all the trees here in Washington! Camden had a blast throwing rocks into the water....which thankfully he didn't run into the water like he did the other day (BUUURRR). We didn't stay for to long because Camden was a bit sick and decided (and made it known quite loudly) that he would much rather be home in his nice warm bed for a nap. But we still enjoyed our little visit!

Seattles Children museum and pikes place

Mommy and Camden at Pikes place in Seattle

Camden driving the bus

Camden's favorite thing about the museum was the water...of course

Daddy and Camden at the space needle!

The other day Nathaniel, Camden, and I headed into the city for some fun! We enjoyed a walk through down town, passing the space needle and several water fountains that Camden of course wanted to jump into! We had a ton of fun at the children's museum where Camden got to pretend to be fire fighter, a bus driver, and a chef, he also enjoyed "grocery shopping" and exploring little cities! We had so much fun! We then went to pikes place and had a delicious lunch of the best clam chowder I have ever had and we also had a great time exploring the market! One thing I loved in the market was the fresh flowers, they were amazing and SO affordable - 5 dollars for an amazing bouquet!

Pumpkin picking

Which one to choose.....

Family picture

Grandpa and Camden

I choose this one mommy!!!

Hanging out with the boys.

Yesterday Grandpa took us to the local pumpkin farm! We had a great time petting goats, pigs, and a baby cow! Camden loved the play ground there and we all had a great time on the hay ride and choosing out the perfect pumpkin! The best part though was watching Camden try and pick up every pumpkin, even the ones that were bigger then him!
After the pumpkin farm Grandpa treated us all to a delicious dinner at Panera Bread, YUM YUM!

What we have been up to lately:

Dawson and Camden at the carnival

Camden eating his first bowl of cereal....he's had cereal of course...and a cup of milk, but I was finally brave enough to try this out! He loved it and of course ate it all up!

mommy and Camden playing at the Maybourn Childrens museum (he drink the water before I could stop him and we are pretty sure that led to the three day long yucky tummy!)

This is what we think of daddy's driving!!!

Daddy and Camden riding the asian horse!

Camden wasn't a fan of sitting on the oragantun!

Whitney, Nahaniel, Sarah, Camden, Mommy, and Dawson!

We've definently been enjoying all the time Nathaniel has had off from work, while his block leave doesn't officially start until this weekend, he has only been working for a few hours in the morning, which leaves the whole afternoon to have fun! Camden and I took Nathaniel to the zoo to show him all the fun we had there while he was in Iraq! We also enjoyed the Maybourn Childrens Museum in Waco, a week long visit from my mom, get together's with Nathaniels buddies from Iraq, swimming, the carnival, and a welcome home to our husbands BBQ at our friends house (that was delicious!)

We are now super excited to be flying up to Washington this weekend to spend the next couple of weeks with Nathaniel's family....WE CANT WAIT!!!

Some of the best things in life are:

Whitney and Camden checking on the cookies we made! They were super excited for them to be done so they could "eat them up"

I'm so glad when daddy comes home...

We are so excited to have Nathaniel/Daddy home! The night we went to pick him up was SO exciting, I could hardly believe that one whole year had passed AND while we missed him more then words can describe, Camden and I actually had quite a great year, I feel very blessed that our first delpoyment experience was so positive!

When the unit returned, they flew into the airport on post and turned in their guns, etc. while all the family member waited at the parade field. The estimated time for their arival at the parade field was 11:45 p.m.! It was very late at night, but you would never of guessed because everyone had SO much energy! So 11:45 comes and GOES, then midnight comes and GOES, and I am getting even more anxious and excited! Finally around 12:15 a.m. we spot the white buses pulling up to the field and everyone starts screaming and cheering! Camden also pointed at the buses and SCREAMED, "DABA DUBA DA" and was Super excited :) The soldiers then march off the bus in formation and are behind the buses and everyone SHOUTS, "MOVE THAT BUS", the buses then move and the soldiers start marching onto the field, at this point I couldn't contain my excitedment and I burst into tears and thought to myself: He made it home SAFE, all the emotions and fear I bottled up inside of me came out and I just felt such happiness it is indescribable. The soldiers are now standing in formation in front of us and their is a prayer said and a little speech and then the soldiers are released and EVERYONE runs onto the field. Camden and I are looking for Nathaniel and then I turn around and there he is coming up to us with the biggest smile on his face, I just run up to him and hugged him and cried and then hugged him and cried again, haha! Camden went straight to his daddy and has been his little side kick ever since!

I am so thankful for the wonderful friends I have here in Texas, they made this deployment a positive experience, and for those days that weren't so positive they gave me the sanity I needed to keep moving forward! I have no doubt in my mind that Heavenly Father guided Nathaniel and I to this neighborhood! I am also so thankful for my family, for the encouragement they gave me and for the many times they let me come home and visit for an extended amount of time :) I'm very thankful for a wonderful little boy, he is now 18 months old and I still look at him and can't believe how blessed I am and how in love I am with him! But most of all I couldn't of done this deployment without a wonderful and loving husband! Nathaniel might of been halfway around the world but I never stopped feeling his love for me, he was so supportive of me.

This first deployment was a success....BUT I am still going to cross my fingers that we dont have to go through another deployment anytime soon, l.o.l :)

Today is the day!

It is almost time for Camden and I to head out to pick Nathaniel/Daddy up! I can't remember the last time I had these many butterflies in my stomache! It still seems so surreal to me that he is coming home!

so sooooon

Nathaneil with his friend Jared - Iraq

It's interesting how a whole year can seem to fly by while the next few days seem like an eternity! That's right, Nathaniel is almost home and what a year it has been. I was reading through my journal the other day and I read an entry right after Nathaniel left for Iraq and it said: I was given the advice make this next year a time for you to thrive and not just to survive.

I am very happy for those words because they helped me through the next year and now that I look back on the year Nathaniel was in Iraq it is a great memory...don't get me wrong I missed him so much some nights I would just curl up in bed and cry myself to sleep, but thankfully those moments were far and few inbetween because I had made the commitment to myself to thrive over the year.

Camden and I had a great year, from celebrating his first Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Camden also learned how to sit be himself...crawl by himself...walk by himself, and is now running around like a big boy. We had a wonderful time visiting friends and family. We had FHE every monday night with our friends who's husbands/dads were also deployed. Every wednesday we go to play group in our neighborhood. I take much needed time and work out at our gym while Camden goes to the wonderful child care that they have! I have also come to realize over and over again how lucky I am to have such a wonerful husband, who cares so much about his family, who loves the gospel and is worthy to hold the priesthood. I feel so blessed that he is excited for more children to come into our family because he understands the eternal nature of the family :) Some people have said: I don't know how you do it, a year is so long, I just shrug my shoulders and say, you can do anything for those you love.

But I am not going to lie, even though this past year is full of great memories, I know that his next year is going to be EVEN better!

But in the end I am going to savor every second I have with just Camden and I, as we anxiously await (with butterfly's in my stomach) the day I get to run up and hug (and kiss!) my best friend, my wonderful husband.

Big boy bed

My little (or not so little) boy is growing up! A few months ago my friend moved her boy to a toddler boy, he is one year older then Camden and I thought man I am happy that Camden hasn't learned how to climb out of his crib yet and that he will be in a crib for hopefully another year! you see in a crib he is trapped, I don't have to worry about him hurting himself while playing in his room in the middle of the night....it was a comfort...and then three weeks ago, my wonderful and adventerous 17 month old learned how to do what I was dreading, he climbed out of his crib! My first reaction: I laughed with him and hugged him because he was SO proud of himself when I opened his bedroom door...my second reacion: A fear of him breaking bones! So I knew the time had come for him to get a big boy bed! Last week we went shopping and bought him a twin mattress and box spring! As soon as I set it up he loved it, I thought hopefully you love it as much when I take away your crib and make you sleep in it kiddo! First night comes: We do our usual bedtime routine and by 8:30 I tuck him into bed, we read a couple of stories, I kiss him and hug him and tell him goodnight and then I cross me fingers! Next thing I knew it was 8:30 in the morning, he had slept 12 hour straight, WAHOO! The next test came at nap time, I wondered if he would sleep as well in a bed that he could get out of when it is light outside..he slept 3 1/2 hours! He has transitioned to sleeping in a bed wonderfully, he never gets out of his bed until after his nap or in the morning, usually around 8! I can't believe how lucky I am to be a mom to such a wonderful little sleeper!

Camden with his cousin Whitney.
Camden having fun!

There is a wonderful place here called WAZOO'S! It is a huge indoor play place with a bunch of bounce houses and is the perfect place to go in the middle of a HOT texas summer! Camden loved jumping all around and I loved watching his excitement!

Retreat

Waving goodbye to his mommy...he is becoming quite independent!Just chillin'

One of the great things about the army are the retreats they put on. There are several kinds of retreats...family retreats....spouse retreats...but this last weekend Camden and I went on a retreat for "families of deployed spouses"! It was Great and we had a TON of fun! The retreat lasted three days and it was the perfect get away for us! Another benefit of a retreat is that it is completely...FREE! They pay for your hotel room and food...and the food on our retreat was quite delicious. YUM! Our retreat was at the T Bar M resort and it was the perfect location, besides being beautiful, it offered plenty for us to do when we weren't in class! The classes we attended were based on "the five love languages of children", and one of the best quotes the Chaplain said was, "parenting is not a democracy it is a benevolent dictatorship". The classes were great and besides learning a lot I realized how much I love being a mom and many ways I can become a better mom to Camden!

It was a great retreat...but I am excited for the next retreat we go on that will include Nathaniel!