New things

Spring is officially here. 80's are in our forecast this week and we couldn't be happier, except Steve of course who mourns for snow (weirdo). Anyway, I went to Earl May yesterday and asked the experts for plants that are extremely hard to kill. And this is what I got:


Our lilac bush with tiny lilac buds on it...STILL alive from last year. Ha!!!

Things I don't know the names of. But last year that flower bed overgrew with flowers so I cut back on the number of plants I put in this year. That lily grew back from last year! Accomplishment!!!!

The most beautiful shrub I've ever seen! So I bought it. Mom helped me plant it and the girls got in the way, but we managed success.

Our funny little house from the front minus the fruit trees. I couldn't span wide enough.

Hanging flower basket

From the front porch

One of two barrels

This is Olivia's first soccer game! I was too busy screaming to take many photos. She scored two goals and no one went the wrong way! Steve wore Olivia out the morning before the game by taking her on a two hour hike so she was a bit tired by game time. But she pulled through and was a soccer prodigy...if you ask me.





This is Sophie's new Victoria Beckham inspired hair cut. We are in Target for our celebratory post hair cut shopping experience. I have new hair as well but no photo as of yet.

Crazy Victoria

Well, these are just a few things we've been up to this week in Clarkland. True to my promise, here is my weight loss status update: (you will notice I backtracked two lbs. in the past two weeks). Back on track this week with a loss though!

Goal: 50lbs.
Lost so far: 15.5
Lost this week: 1.5
Lbs to go: 34.5
Goal date: August 19th

In other news, I recently applied for a job in the intensive care unit at Mercy. I got a call back yesterday and an interview scheduled for Monday at 9:15. I'm very curious about this job. I know it would be stressful but wicked fun if you ask me. The more drips I hang the better....that being said, I want to be placed where God wants me to be. I don't know if this is it, so I'm praying for STRONG direction either way. So please pray that my interview Monday is either really good or really bad. That's the first time I've prayed for a bad interview. The perks to this job are that they do self-scheduling, meaning nurses say when they want to work and they get it for the most part. This is a HUGE plus to me seeing as how my children and my schooling get in the way of a no-schedule-conflict life. My current job continues to screw me over in this area. The second plus is that it is full time nights. No more switch back and forth and screwing up my mind and body. Just a constant screw up of my mind and body. :) But in all seriousness...a better shift to be in for me so far. The third and most important perk I can foresee in this job would be fulfillment of my dream to do something that matters. I find myself caught up in gossip and pettiness lately (unwantingly), and I think its because people have time to do so on our floor. I don't want time for that. I want to care if my patient is going to live or not instead of who said what about whom...etc. I'm looking to help out where needed, and lately, I'm not feeling too needed where I'm at. I may have a complex about wanting to make a difference, but honestly rings true through writing and that's that.

So, pray if you will please. I want to do the right thing. Happy planting season to you as well.

Happy Spring all!!!

Mel green thumb with fingers crossed Clark

These are my confessions

Usher....love him. Anyway, I need to confess something because I'm living in denial. What better way to do this than to make it known via blogger? Now I'm held accountable by you. Thanks!

I have slid the past two weeks with my diet and exercise and I feel like a total slob. Riding the wave of my high flying 16 lb. loss gave me a false sense of confidence and comfortableness...I felt better in my clothes, better in my life, pretty much overall better in every way. I've tried to figure out why I chose to sabotage myself these past two weeks and I'm not sure why. But I do know that I want to get back to the daily grind, back to self-control, back to self-love...it is an overwhelmingly happy place to be. So, let's forget (but not completely) the past two weeks and let's move on shall we?

Dear self:

Here are the reasons you and I want to lose the rest of this weight and be healthy:

-I want to not have diabetes or heart disease
-I want to be a good example for my daughters
-I love to run and I want to do that without dying
-I love to swim and I want to do that without making others want to die when they see me in my swimsuit
-I want to focus on my children when we're out and not how much cellulite I have on the back of my legs
-I want to enjoy shopping (I already do 16 lbs. lighter. Imagine 50!)
-I want to be comfortable with who I am
-I want my spirit to match my physique
-I want to honor myself and remember that I deserve to be healthy, I need it.

There. I got all that off my chest and I can refer back to it now. I'm inspired to do this by my friend Debbie's blog who I found today through Amy's blog who I met through Amy...anyway...she is also on the weight loss expedition and blogs about it nearly every week. I think I might need to do that as well. A constant reminder to me, a constant update to you, and an accountability (I do not want to have to post a 6 lb. gain for the world to read about). But I will...if it keeps me accountable.

My goal: 50 lbs. by August 19th
Total weight loss so far: 16 lbs.
The rest of the way= 34 lbs.

I've got a ways to go. I'll let you know where I'm at when I weigh in this week. Until then...keep me accountable. Just say no to going out to eat and milk. Milk is my obsession!!!!

70 something

Today is the most beautiful day we've had all year! It's 70 something out there, the sun is shining. Not a cloud to be seen. Sophie and I are having a "stay home day" as she calls it. I've hung clothes out on the line for the first time of the season. Rosie did not attack me the whole time like last year. She did not drag them off the line as I turned my back either.

Sophie painted a beautiful picture, rode her bike, jumped rope, rode the scooter and made a house for her puppies. I manually tilled a big spot in the back yard to try to regrow grass and Sophie helped me cover up seeds. We cleaned her room and organized things. I put away laundry. And while it seems that none of these things are extraordinary, as a combination..they are the makings for a perfect day.

As she sleeps, the house is quiet and my windows are open. There's just a little breeze. The buds are opening on my lilac bush and fruit trees. I could get used to 70 something.

Neither a doormat nor bulldozer

The wise are mightier than the strong and those with knowledge grow stronger and stronger. So don't go to war without wise guidance. Victory depends on having many advisers.
Wisdom is too lofty for fools.
A person who plans evil will get a reputation as a troublemaker. The schemes of a fool are sinful; everyone detests a mocker.
Wisdom is sweet to your soul. If you find it, you will have a bright future, and your hopes will not be cut short.
Fools vent their anger, but the wise quietly hold it back.
Pride ends in humiliation, while humility brings honor.
~Proverbs

These Proverbs spoke to me today. Cut short, dishonored, plotted against, unfairly treated. It happens to us. How do we respond? What is the difference between being a push over and being assertive? One answer from an excerpt in my study Bible:

"Assertiveness means that you let others know your true thoughts, feelings, or desires about a situation."

It does not mean doing so by manipulation or threat.

"You are not apologetic for what you want, either by the way you talk or by the way you act."

Assertiveness is not to be confused with aggression.

"It's a firm, polite expression of how you feel, think, or of what you want. At the same time, it must be a demonstration of respect for the other person. You make no attempt to belittle him or to have him do something against his will. But you don't permit him to force his will on you....You're neither a doormat nor a bulldozer, but a person who has opinions, feelings, and wants that others need to take into account."

This has been a struggle for me. I apologize immediately after speaking my mind. I ask if it's ok that I said no. "Can I put a giant lawn gnome in your yard Mel?" SURE!!!
Me later: "I hate that gnome. Why couldn't I just have said no?! I hate that person who asked me if I wanted the gnome. They are so annoying. How dare they ask me that?" I glare out my window through a tiny slit in my curtain in vain....:)

That was semi-fictional but still a representation of the way of living I've come to know, lately to become aware of. And I'm hurting myself through this. I've got it all wrong. So thank you Bible, for opening to your own page and having it be exactly what I need. I used to be surprised....

Easter

Happy Easter everyone! Because I was on call at work, I had to stay in town, but it turned out great because I didn't have to actually go in and we got to spend some good time with family. Sickness has gone around the Powers/Bailey/Clark family though and Amy and Hannah were sick and Olivia woke up sick on Saturday morning. She was acting like she had strep so I took her to the doctor right away (as to avoid the entire weekend at home with a sick kid or an equally unfun trip to urgent care later on..). Her blood count showed a big infection but no strep. So she won herself some Amoxicillin. Later in the day and two doses later, she was back to her old self.

Saturday night, we all went to the 5:00 kid friendly service at church. We assumed (wrongly) that this service wouldn't be as busy or full as the other services (dead wrong) and we arrived at an early time, 4:40. (NOT actually as early as everyone else). The sanctuary was FULL. Now, I'm not sure of the total seating capacity for the worship center, but it is stadium like seating AND they set up chairs in the aisles as well. So, we decided to sit in the eating area where they had tables set up already. As we walked from table to table, I'd look back to my family and say, "Does this look good?" And as I looked back down to the once empty table, it was then full before my very eyes. These were cutthroat church tactics! So, we quickly grabbed a chair and protected what was ours and waited for worship to start. A few minutes into our waiting, a church guy came to the microphone and let us know that this particular seating area was for the upcoming dinner, not for overflow seating for worship. But he then asked for a show of hands to see who was here for worship and who was there for eating. Seeing we were all there for worship, he said, "worship comes first" and in a few seconds, we had live feed from the sanctuary. This is why I love our church. As annoying as the large crowd may be, this church never loses sight of what is first and foremost important...God, worship, togetherness. The kids were supposed to sing on stage, so they improvised and all the kids in the eating area turned worship center got up on the smaller stage and did their thing. We even got the added bonus of early Easter eating as we listened to the pastor. It was a great Easter worship, and despite the gargantuan nature of this church we call home, we love it very much, and will continue to call it home.

Sunday morning, we headed over to Grandma Jan & Grandpa Darrell's house for an easter egg hunt and dinner. The girls had a blast looking for eggs, cleverly hidden by Shawn, and they came out with a ton of loot. But best of all, they had a lot of fun, and it was a lot of fun to watch. Our Easter dinner was fabulous, with roast beast (as we call it), ham, mashed taters with mashed cauliflower (actually very good), beans, homemade rolls, salad, fruit, etc....all made dairy free and low fat to please all (except those not on a diet or lactose intolerant), but there were none of us in need at all. I love my family, because we all adapt still, to each other's needs, and at the same time, have a blast doing it. After lunch we all took naps in front of The Wizard of Oz....all of us except for the girls who were hopped up on acid, I mean candy. I am very thankful for my family, and even more thankful for the gift of Easter, that all our sins are taken away by our Lord. As Pastor Mike says, "It changes EVERYTHING." And it really does.


Sophie's pre-Easter kid manicure



Egg hunting photo op

At church

Bam & Darrell's

Cheesy kindergartener

A team

In the dryer vent? Really?

Easter dresses

Early morning glory...

Happy Easter everyone!

Soccer momma

Olivia had her first soccer practice yesterday in Polk City. She is playing on the age 6 and under team and got paired with her best friend Taylor, which she is stoked about. I was a little worried as I watched Olivia tackle Taylor and roll down the hill before practice. They are a troublesome two...but they did alright.

Olivia likes to make every experience a fun one, so she jumped up and down constantly and danced around while getting directions, but other than that, turns out little miss Livy is a soccer natural. She was fast and quick with her feet, and even stole the ball from the coach when told to. We're so proud of her, and we're anxiously anticipating her first game. It's going to be hilarious!! Stay tuned...


"Pictures, Mom? Seriously?"


Yay for soccer!!!


Soccer mama


Soccer momma


Chilly first practice

I'm snow over it

April snow showers bring.....ANGER!!!! Just kidding. We decided to make the best of it. So the girls played outside while the neighbor boy pelted them with snow chunks and I prepared a nice tea (cocoa) party for the girls for when they froze enough to come back in. They were happy as clams to get back out in the snow. Steve slept in the chair. I watched like a mother bear waiting to pounce and teach the neighbor boy a lesson....but I didn't attack. I decided that this moment was a life lesson for these city girls. Don't you remember the feeling of getting pelted in the face with an ice chunk? It's part of life. So I stood back.

Our tea party was fun. I washed the tiny tea dishes and we had cheese and strawberries and cocoa. Afterward, the girls picked out their favorite Barbie movie and our day was complete.









I have a school project due tomorrow that is supposed to be an aesthetic representation of our overall health and well-being. So, I decided to paint my first painting of my adult life. Here it is. The ball of fire represents me. The dark clouds surrounding me, my past negative feelings of unhealthiness and illness. The ball is heading to a brighter horizon of health, improving as it goes. It's no Picasso, but I enjoyed doing it. Thanks to Mom, who drove to meet me to give me a new art set. Thanks Mom! It was an enlightening experience....



Here's to upcoming Spring...which is actually coming...I know it!!!