SIL'S

 I just need to say how much I love my sister-in-law's.

I am as big a fan as can be when it comes to Clark men. 

Really, I am. 

But Clark women? I don't know how all those Clark men landed the girls they did.

Beautiful, intelligent, strong, talented.

 It also bears mentioning the female counterpart to Clark men.

Nat.

no words.

While we were in Boise we all spent the evening with Jannie talking.

It was my favorite evening there. 

My sister-in-laws are the best and most beautiful.

And I'm off to spend a weekend at the lake with two of them.

cheers!

fourth of july '11

One of the good things about a death in a family is that it brings families together.

For us it brought us together for the best Nate and Paige fourth of july to date.

Our day started with a small town parade, as any good Fourth of July should.

Melba's small town parade to be exact. 

It was fantastic.

 Loads of candy, one truck even threw out hot dogs?

I don't know... but the kids were into it.

we hung out on grass while the older kids braved the streets for candy catching.

we got great seats on a church lawn and kinda just hung around after the parade while everyone cleared out.

This happens to be the closest town to the original Zeyer (who brig's named after) homestead.

There was a Zeyer family float and loads of Coleen's family around. 

This is her sitting with her 'kissing cousin' .

She really has this Grammie thing down...

smarties? Brig will sit with you for ages.

After the parade we head over to the little fair that was going on. 

There were loads of fair-food vendors, little dinky shops, rides, and games. 

Coleen knows how to give her kids a good time.  She gave all the couples $40 and each kid $10 and said "go get some tacos" we all blew through that cash happily.

until...

Grandpa had to rescue Brig

because his mom thought it would be loads of fun and an incredible photo-op to have Brig sitting in front of his cousins in the green can?

well I was wrong.

but Grammie knew how to make it all better.

 yup. 

She just handed over her fully loaded coke.

needless to say he took it for a joy ride.

After the fair we tried to drive by the Zeyer homstead... with no luck

then Brig napped the whole drive home.

........

then the fireworks :)

we all headed to Mike and Sis's for dinner and fireworks.

It was perfect. 

Ordered-in food, fenced in backyard, upper 80's, 20 some odd kids, and

a firework show :)

It's very nice having 10ish year olds to direct the fireworks.

Leave it to me to get John Philip Sousa orchestrating the show and the kids marching.

what? I'm my fathers daugher :)

the kids were in heaven with popsicles aplenty.

And we walked away with only poor Cleo burning her hand on a sparkler.

We all thought it was pretty good odds considering.

But the poor little tuna :( she and her blistered fingers had to go home early.

please... 

Savanna banana was a perfect host to the Nate Clark family btw.

This is brig's headshot for Huggie's new diaper collection.

whew

THAT

Was our Fourth of July.

AND

God Bless America.

7/6/87

Well it was my birthday last week.

You know they really don't have that excitement anymore but they do still have a bit of a glow.

24

Doesn't seem like a monumental year for me. 25 will be more so.

It does feel good to get some years on my bones. I feel like I've been running ahead of my age for a long time now and my body is finally catching up. I've thought I was so mature and grown for the longest time. Why? It's so boring and so not the case. I like that I am a baby still. 

My favorite game to play now that I'm a grown up? 

"What I learned this year"

My biggest lesson learned this year is how to be alone. 

and to be happy alone.

Yes of course I have a beautiful family and I really haven't experienced the real "aloneness" but I've learned the "independent" aloneness. 

It has been a process but I suppose I've always been pre-purposed for it.

My brother aptly assigned me "Rupunzel" as my Disney princess because I could keep myself occupied alone in a tower all day.

I laughed really hard when I heard that.

but 

I'm happy with it :)

 This will always be my best birthday present.

Carie's friend took this shot and it just made me laugh.

I guess you could call that look plastered on both our faces "the williams sneer"

We are only who we are 

 we pass down only who we are.

Happy Birthday to me 

:)

Maree Rose Clark

 We had a tragedy in our family.

My sister-in-law Jannie had a baby girl born with Anencephaly.

They knew the condition of their baby girl early on and chose to carry their angel as long as they could.

Her arrival was difficult with plenty of curve balls.

She wound up passing in her mother's womb.

The most peaceful and comforting place for her I can imagine.

 Maree Rose Clark touched many lives.

But all are still heartbroken she is not here with us now.

The entire family made it to the funeral service.

We would not have missed it for the world.

It was only family at the service.

It was beautiful, intimate, and somehow uplifting.

Maree's brothers and sisters made her this beautiful quilt with personal notes addressed to her.

Jannie held her little angel for the duration of the service.

Her family sang to her 

her little cousins were there

and her bigger cousins couldn't keep away from her.

One of the most beautiful things about this experience was seeing the cousins.

For almost all of them it was their first experience with tragedy and death.

Seeing how affected each of them was; the curiosity in the younger ones, the hurt in the older ones, each one having this new experience. But through it all, they were right there next to her casket, not wanting to leave her side. 

I can think of no better farewell than this.

The older girl cousins were quite emotional.

But they stood together. 

The last part of the service was perfect.

Misty had gotten a balloon for each of the kids to send off with baby Maree.

It was an angelic sight to see.

Maree Rose Clark

June 23, 2011

We will remember you forever 

and can not wait till we are all together forever again.