The Clarke's

Florida

2012-01-03T13:43:00.000-05:00

Our vacation is winding to a close down here in Florida and we had the best time this year! Matt was healthy which was HUGE, weather was excellent and kids are finally old enough to have some fun! The pool and the beach were the biggest attractions everyday. In between, we went on bike rides, hit up some parks, ate a lot of seafood and Matt & I drank quite a few "adult beverages"! Putt putt was a first for us this year, they both loved it.

Kids are psyched to get back on the plane tomorrow and head back to Indiana. Matt and I, not so much. Happy New Year!

GO HOOSIERS!!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-18T12:32:00.004-05:00

Christmas came a little early this year as we are heading to Florida tomorrow. Christmas Eve at the Clarke's involved watching the Hoosiers take home another win & notes, cookies, milk and carrots for Santa & his reindeer. Aiden was so excited this morning to come out of his room and has not stopped playing with his toys all day long. We had to wake Ellie up but once she was awake, she was ready to go!! Now for round 2 in Florida. Happy Holidays!!

Breakfast with Santa, Gingerbread Houses & Christmas at the Zoo

2011-12-18T12:19:00.001-05:00

This was the first year we saw Santa without a child crying. Although Aiden choked on a candy cane which was very scary, he made sure to tell Santa everything he wanted for Christmas: diggers, real candy, zip up pjs, jake & the neverland pirates stuff. And on Ellie's list: a pink ball! Aunt Mary helped the kids make Gingerbread houses....or just eat a whole lot of candy in one sitting. Christmas at the Zoo was lots of fun and the kids were WILD!!

And the Christmas festivities have begun

2011-11-27T18:35:00.001-05:00

We had a busy weekend after Thanksgiving! We got up bright and early Friday morning to go see Santa at the Children's museum. We followed that up with picking out our first real tree as a family (Matt's first real tree ever!) Today, we brought out all the decorations and for the first time, the kids were able to help decorate the tree and they each wrote a letter to Santa about what they wanted for Christmas. We also managed to name our elf. His name is "Clarke". Pretty creative if you ask me.

Happy Birthday Ellie!!

2011-11-27T15:52:00.001-05:00

My little princess has turned 2. She definitely rocked the princess outfits this year but after her 2 year appointment, we determined she is not so little anymore. She is 36 inches tall which means she could be a 6 footer! Definitely catching up with big bro AJ...

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T20:13:00.003-04:00

We have had...

class parties,

school parties,

dance parties,

friends parties

AND trick or treating.

The costumes are dirty, the kids are high on sugar, and I am exhausted!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Fall

2011-10-27T14:07:00.003-04:00

Aiden started preschool this year.
It makes me so sad to see my "baby" in school but he is doing great.
Ellie, on the other hand, has entered the "terrible twos"!
If she wakes up on the wrong side of the crib....WATCH OUT.
We are knee deep in potty training with her.
She doesn't quite understand how to "poopy on the potty" yet.

Halloween brings a firefighter and a Supergirl princess from our family this year.

A Busy Spring

2011-05-22T19:50:00.007-04:00

There has been a lot going on in the Clarke house this Spring.
We have pictures to prove it...

Ellie in her Easter dress, searching for eggs at Mimi's!

The Mini-Marathon crew! Matt finished his first mini in 1:52!

Ellie is trying out Aiden's new grill. Thanks Solomon's!

All the kids at Aiden's 3rd Birthday Party!

Ellie at the zoo today!

Looking forward to a great Memorial Day Weekend with The Waelty's!!

First day of Soccer

2011-03-12T13:53:00.003-05:00

Aiden started soccer today. It was actually everything BUT soccer. They drove a boat, played with a parachute, threw the ball and did a lot of running. Whatever it was, it was cute, they had fun and were definitely worn out when we got home! Especially Ellie.

More pics from Florida

2011-03-12T13:48:00.002-05:00

Here are some pics from our most recent trip to Florida. We spent our time in the pool or at the beach.

Long overdue update

2011-03-11T11:09:00.003-05:00

This is very long overdue. We tackled potty training and won! Aiden is an A Plus at using the big boy potty. I think I annoy him by asking him too often if he has to go but he has had very few accidents, usually when he is in timeout or upset about something.

We went to Florida for Christmas break. This was a rough trip. I went down early with the kids. Matt stayed home to finish up a few things only to come down with appendicitis. He ended up joining us in Florida but was not able to enjoy the freezing cold weather as he was pretty much recovering on the couch the whole trip. Thank God we survived that one. The highlight of our trip though was seeing our cousin, Charlie. He was scared of us at first but then he thought we were pretty funny. We miss you, Charlie!

Ellie is all over the place these days. She is keeping up with her brother and has learned to fight back when necessary (or when not necessary). She is talking like crazy and although we don't understand everything she says, she understands everything we say!

We just got back from a quick getaway back down to Florida. This trip was much more exciting. The weather was great and we could not keep the kids away from the pool. Aiden is swimming by himself and Ellie has no fear when it comes to jumping in the pool. We had a blast! Aiden starts soccer this weekend with his "friends". This should be interesting...

Potty Training

2010-12-08T21:23:00.005-05:00

After pushing this off for quite awhile, I decided to tackle potty training with Aiden...on Thanksgiving weekend. I feel like I was talked into it by: (1) Erica, who believed I was waiting too long and he would be too old and "untrainable" if I waited any longer and (2) my mom, who was conveniently going to be out of town that weekend. The first 2 days were the worst I have ever been through as a parent. Saying I hated it is an understatement, it was pure hell. But, I realized it was because I made it that way. I was a freak of nature about the possibility of my kid peeing his pants??!! Who cares, clean it up and move on! Since the day we stopped using diapers, the poor guy has had only 3 accidents. He loves to pee and poop in the potty! That's not to say that he isn't addicted to Dora, Diego and/or a "special surprise" each time he goes to the potty!

Ellie turns 1

2010-11-14T15:19:00.005-05:00

I can't believe it's here...where has this year gone? My youngest baby is a toddler, how could this have happened so soon? We had a nice little celebration for her but I don't know if I'm happy about this milestone. My babies are growing up...

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-14T13:38:00.006-05:00

We have been loving the amazing fall weather here in Indiana. Matt and I enjoyed Halloween weekend in Bloomington trying to relive our college days. The football game was brutal but Mimi and Aunt Mary found Herman B Wells on campus and became "giddy". We were miserable on Halloween, but we put on a brave face for the kids! We had Superman and a princess in our house. Aiden loved it this year which was so fun for us. Bring on the holidays...

Clarke Family Update

2010-10-27T15:00:00.015-04:00

The Clarke's are coming off a busy summer and headed straight into a busy fall/winter. So I, decided to be the guest blog updater for the month of October...just to "help a sister out."

Jenni, Matt and the kids spent the summer traveling, hosting fabulous parties/reunions and hanging out by the lake. Here is a little photo update of the summer and fall.

In August, Matt and the boys headed into the Rockies for a 4 day backpacking trip to kick off Jeb's wedding weekend in Crested Butte.

Jeb & Sam's wedding weekend...

Cousin Charlie visits Indiana and Aiden goes tubing for the first time...

We celebrated the Watts Family Reunion in Cicero, IN...

Jenni and Matt cruise along with the Zac Brown Band...

And finally, these beautiful Clarke kids enjoying the Fall on the Pumpkin Train...

Kiddo Update:
Aiden is going to school 2 full days, which means naps on a cot. He seems to be doing really well, with the exception of the day he threw the baby against the filing cabinet. No big deal...teacher thinks it was his 2 year molars breaking (um, he already has those???). He has also made the transition to a "big boy bed." And after a few early mornings and turning the door around, he has made that switch really well!

Ellie is officially walking. She had been attempting to walk since ~8 months, but finally started full time over the past few weeks. Walking has caused a few accidents, hence the black eye in the pumpkin picture. But I am pretty sure, Ellie is going to be a bruiser. She'll be beating up Aiden in the near future so she handled it like the tough little girl that she is!

I miss the kids but the holiday's aren't far off...

Much Love,
Erica

Charlie David Waelty

2010-06-01T09:03:00.003-04:00

Charlie has arrived! He was born Friday May 28 at 1:46 am. He is super cute (like his aunt) and he can't wait to meet me. I have to say, his mom is a rockstar. She went through great pains to get him here! Great job Erica. You had a great cheerleader in Nick and your amazing nurse. Welcome to the world Charlie!

Daylight Savings

2010-04-06T20:35:00.003-04:00

Ellie's Baptism was a few weeks ago and I feel like such a horrible parent because I didn't take one picture! I might have picked up my camera had I not been up until 2 in the morning (3 with daylight savings time) the night before celebrating Baby Waelty! Erica and Nick were here to support Ellie as her Godparents and so we had a party for them. It was so great to have them here but the weather was really bad so all we really did was eat and drink too much.

Easter

2010-04-06T20:22:00.003-04:00

Aiden had so much fun waking up to an egg hunt on Easter morning. His eyes were so big when he saw all his baskets filled with presents. As he collected eggs, he would open each one and either eat the "em m ems" or toss the "beams". His favorite part of the day was probably the baby that was "supposed" to be for sissy. Now it is his and he likes to feed it and put it to sleep and my favorite, talk about where it poops. I'm sure this is just a phase but I can see Matt get a little nervous everytime Aiden picks up that doll. Oh, the joys of parenting!

NYC

2010-04-06T20:05:00.003-04:00

Matt and I headed out to New York City for his birthday a few weeks ago. We had both never been so it was hard to catch everything we wanted to see in only a long weekend. It was hard being away from the kids but we had a blast. My favorite was definitely the Statue of Liberty but I learned a lot that I didn't know about the city. I'm intrigued and would love to go back to explore a little more one day.

Florida Part 2

2010-02-24T16:30:00.002-05:00

We survived our trip to Florida! We had the best weather the last week and a half and it ended up being a really great trip. Now that Im home I wish we were back, this weather is killing us. Aiden not only loved swimming but just to be able to run FREE outside was so great for him. I feel like he learned so much while we were there. He's like a little sponge, taking everything in. Ellie learned how to sleep through the night while we were down there. This make me sooo HAPPY. Now that we are back in the "real world", Aiden has started school and I am back to work. Life is back to normal. We just hope Mimi still wants to come visit...

Florida Part 1

2010-01-21T16:27:00.004-05:00

So we have been in Florida since Christmas Eve. The first 3 weeks were freezing cold. Aiden was able to go swimming one day. Some days we couldn't even go outside. Whose idea was this to go to Florida for 5 weeks with 2 kids and no husband?? Things have gotten much better in the last week. Aiden has been swimming everyday and I must say he is a little fish in the water. He loves it! He also loves the beach which is a big change from our trip down here last year. We have been to the zoo where he fed the Flamingos and "Mimi" is his new best friend. Well, she has always been his best friend but this has gone to a whole new level. I don't know what we are going to do in a week when we are home and Mimi is not there every morning when he gets up. Ellie is doing great. She is chunky as ever and almost sleeping through the night. I can't wait!!

Santa

2009-12-16T21:47:00.003-05:00

We made a visit to Santa this evening. Ellie enjoyed sitting with Santa. Aiden, on the other hand, was a different story. He does enjoy saying "Santa" and "Ho, Ho, Ho" but was not happy on Santa's lap. Maybe next year...

Ellie Dawson Clarke

2009-11-16T14:33:00.005-05:00

Baby Ellie arrived November 10, 2009 at 3:46 am. She weighed in at 7 pounds 2 ounces and 20 1/4 inches long. She came out with a full head of dark hair and big beautiful brown eyes. Matt and I feel so lucky to have 2 healthy kids and still can't believe we have a family of 4!!! Big brother Aiden is adjusting well and has been a great sport through all the changes...we will see what this week brings...

Summer...over??

2009-09-20T19:34:00.002-04:00

This summer was crazy, busy, and a lot of fun but I'm glad it is over....closer to the arrival of baby #2! Even though we have done absolutely nothing to prepare for this second arrival, we are closer to getting it out of me! No, we did not find out the sex (never thought so many people would be mad at me or not believe me for this!) No, we do not have a name picked out. And no, we do not have the nursery even started. Maybe I don't want the summer to be over...

Colorado

2009-09-20T19:22:00.002-04:00

Matt hit the mountains in late July for a "guys only" camping trip. Based on the stories and pictures, they had a great time. Aiden and I met them in Vail on their return for a miniature family reunion. We then returned to Denver to hang with the Solomon kids for a few days. Thanks so much to the Solomon's for their hospitality!

July 4, 2009

2009-09-20T19:10:00.003-04:00

The party returned again this year on the lake 4th of July. We had great friends and great times the whole weekend. The most amazing part was that Aiden slept through the band playing in our backyard and the fireworks!!

Next Stop...Phoenix

2009-09-20T18:56:00.002-04:00

June, 2009

After a trip to Vegas for work, Aiden and Mimi met me in Phoenix for a nice relaxing getaway (or at least as relaxing as it can get with a 1 year old!) We had a great time at the Hamilton House in Sun City. Aiden played in the pool and loved exploring through the rocks and watching the bunnies run by. We also enjoyed catching up with our friends, The Burns' They made the trip all the way to Sun City to see us. Thanks Kristin and Grayson & The Hamilton's!

Waelty Wedding

2009-09-20T18:42:00.002-04:00

May 14, 2009

Our summer began with a trip out west for Erica and Nick's wedding. The location was Murphy's, California. Erica planned the perfect party and was a beautiful bride. Good times were had by all! Thanks Erica and Nick!!

It's been a year already??

2009-04-28T09:12:00.003-04:00

This year has come and gone and now we have a toddler running around our house. Matt and I had too much fun celebrating Aiden's birthday yesterday and Aiden got way too many toys! This has been a great year and we look forward to many more to come. Congratulations Aiden!

Is Winter Over Yet??

2009-02-26T20:53:00.004-05:00

Matt and I took Aiden to Florida this month to get away for a few days. The first day we hit the beach and Aiden was scared of the waves. The second day he loved the water but was scared of the sand. By the time we left, he loved both. Mission accomplished!!

Erica and Nick came to visit last weekend. We had a busy weekend but it was a lot of fun. I think Nick had a little too much fun in Indiana...

Sledding

2009-02-01T11:36:00.003-05:00

The blizzard of 09 hit Cicero this week and we took to the front yard for a trip in the sled.

Crawling???

2009-01-24T19:50:00.002-05:00

Aiden finally did it this week...he started crawling. But is this really considered crawling??? I don't know. Whatever it is, Aiden now has the freedom to go anywhere he chooses....stairs, outlets, cabinets. It's time to babyproof!

Happy New Year

2009-01-11T19:56:00.003-05:00

I can't believe we are in 2009! Time flies when you're having fun. We had a blast with Aiden over Christmas. We hit up an "ugly" sweater party and had an excellent first visit with Santa! Aiden's favorite gift was his radio flyer wagon/walker. He loves to get in and go for a ride around the house at high rates of speed. I really do feel like he is about ready to crawl but I feel like I've been saying that for about 2 months now! Best wishes in 2009.

Baptism

2008-11-17T22:39:00.003-05:00

Aiden was baptized this weekend. Although he was cranky the entire ceremony, Matt and I both appreciate all of our family and friends showing up to support Aiden. We had a great time! Erica and her NEW fiancee, Nick, flew in from California for a very short weekend but we made the most of it. We are hoping Nick isn't regretting his decision to join our family. Brown chicken brown cow. Thanks again!

Six months already!!

2008-11-02T20:43:00.003-05:00

We had a great October and a great Halloween! Aiden got his first two teeth. He is putting everything he can get his hands on in his mouth. We went for his 6 month appointment last week and all is well. Only 3 shots this time! We had a great visit from Amy and Hunter from Colorado. Aiden was a puppy for Halloween. We put the pumpkin right in front of him and gave him a piece of chocolate and he was so happy. Matt took out the boats today....it was a sad day. Enjoy the pics!

Bring on the teeth

2008-10-05T20:06:00.008-04:00

September was filled with some exciting adventures. We headed down to Bloomington for Aiden's first IU football game. We actually never made it into the game so I guess it was his first tailgating experience! We hope to get down there again before the end of the season and take him INTO a game. We also traveled to Colorado for our cousin, Sydney's, baptism. It was a quick trip but well worth it as Aiden got to meet some more family members.

A few highlights this month. The hard core thumb sucker is now rolling over. He likes to sleep on his stomach now. We also started eating veggies this month. His favorite so far are carrots. After a few temper tantrums and an excessive amount of drooling, we believe the teeth are starting to come in. Bring it on!

Dylan has arrived

2008-09-10T22:47:00.003-04:00

Our newest neighborhood buddy has finally arrived! I can't believe how big Aiden looks next to him. Welcome, Dylan! You are too cute.

August

2008-09-10T22:17:00.004-04:00

It was a busy August. Aiden started eating cereal! Sometimes he loves it, sometimes he hates it, sometimes he just wants to sleep right through it! We also had a visit from the Solomon's all the way from Colorado. Aiden got to meet his newest cousin, Sydney. We had a great day on the lake with big brothers, Corbin and Will. Corbin had an "insane" time tubing behind the boat. We took a trip up north for Labor Day weekend. Aiden was excellent for his first "so-called" camping trip and more lake time. Matt went to Cincinnati last weekend for the Cubs/Reds game with a group of guys. Good times were had by all. More to come...

The Boys

2008-08-02T20:49:00.001-04:00

First Big Trip

2008-08-02T18:30:00.003-04:00

So we took a trip to California to visit Aunt Erica a few weeks ago. Aiden had lots of firsts. His first plane ride, first hike, first swim, first trip to the cabin, first winery....

It was really great to spend time with Erica and Nick and the Bierman clan. We especially enjoyed the napkin eating contest. Good times!

3 months later and...

2008-08-02T18:18:00.003-04:00

So we have finally finished the nursery! It was ready to go before Aiden was born but we had nothing on the walls. We couldn't figure out what we wanted to put up. Thanks to Mimi and Aunt Amanda, we have some really great personalized wall art that looks great in the room. Thought you might like to see some pictures of the finished product.

July 4th

2008-07-06T21:10:00.003-04:00

Happy 4th of July! We had a great weekend on the lake. Aiden was a first time participant in the "Fauxlympics". Events included flippy cup, beersketball and beerpong. Aiden was Team USA but we aren't quite sure which team won. Hudson and Aiden once again did a great job on the boats, making it a lot easier for all of us to have fun! They did get into the cooler though...

A Long Day's Work

2008-07-06T20:58:00.002-04:00

Aiden met Dad for lunch at his office last week. He enjoyed all the love and attention the girls gave him. He was simply exhausted by the time we left!

Zoo Day

2008-06-19T22:13:00.000-04:00

Aiden and Hudson took their first trip to the zoo today. Dea and I had a blast visiting all the animals as the boys slept! Aiden did manage to stay awake for the entire dolphin show. He followed it with a major "blowout"...threw away our first outfit today!

Most Frequent Visitor

2008-06-19T22:06:00.000-04:00

Aunt Linds seems to find me wherever I go...

Future babysitters

2008-06-19T22:01:00.001-04:00

Kyah and Karis were here for a visit last week and will be moving down to Indy in a couple months. Hopefully, they will be ready to babysit...

Hangin' with the boys

2008-06-19T21:53:00.000-04:00

Aiden hung out with his friends, Harrison (11 days older) and Hudson (1 day older) a couple weeks ago for a cookout. All were well behaved!

Just Pics

2008-06-19T20:04:00.000-04:00

More pictures...

Im a blogger...and a mom!

2008-06-19T18:34:00.000-04:00

So I have officially entered the blogging world! Aiden James Clarke was born April 27, 2008. At 7 pounds 5 ounces, he arrived a week and a half early. We have had so much fun these past 2 months. Although Matt and I are both sleep deprived, we feel like he is growing by the day and we don't want to miss a thing. Aiden has met most of his family (Aunt Erica came all the way from California!) and friends (his first friend, Hudson, was born the day before he was), taken numerous boat trips and today we took our first trip to the zoo. He missed most of the exhibits but did stay awake for the entire dolphin show! I have posted a few pictures from the past 8 weeks...