Reflections and Whoville

Sami entered the Reflections contest this year at school. She is in Second grade and decided that she would enter an art piece that Nana made with her last year. Sami passed the school level and made it to District.

The theme was "The Magic of a Moment". Sami made her art piece out of paint chip samples and pieced them together to form a Butterfly. Good Job Sami!!

Sami's school had a crazy hair day. Sami happened to be sick that day, but requested that I still give her crazy hair. She asked to look like a Who in Whoville since it was around Christmas time. She went to see the doctor like this and also to the store. She thought it was the coolest thing. Poor girl, you can see it in her eyes that she feels crummy.

Dinosaur park

For UEA break from School, Grandma Brenda and Uncle Braden came and met Aunt Lindsay and our family (minus Matt) in Ogden at Dinosaur Park. We had a good time. It was around Halloween time so they had out Spooky Spiders and Webs along with ghouls and other funky noises.

Lindsay took Logan over to the Tyrannosaurus Rex to snap this picture. I LOVE IT!! Especially since Logan's shirt says Dinosaur Explorer! Logan is great at the Facial expressions.

This is the only picture I got of all 5 kids and I laugh everytime. We had a good time.

After the Park we went to eat at the Rainbow Gardens. Outside the restaurant they had these Butterfly chairs that the kids found and loved.

It's always fun to hang out with Grandma and Braden!

Zucchini Racers and Donuts on a string!!

We went to Lindsay's Ward party with her. They always do a Zucchini races and donuts on a string. My kids love going with Aunt Lindsay and enjoy the party. Lindsay is always roped into doing face painting, and does really cool designs on my kids.

Lucy said she wanted to be a kitty cat. So this was Lindsay's final product. Don't mind the half eaten cupcake Lucy is showing in her mouth.

In the Spirit of Zucchini racing, Eston decided that he really wanted to enter this year. So Lindsay bought him a truck at the DI to use and we used what we had on hand, a Banana. Since it wasn't a real Zucchini we colored it Green and named his entry, "The Flying Impostor and His Flying Truck". Eston kept taking first place and even challenged Lindsay's Bishop to a race. The Bishop is undefeated and almost lost to Eston this year. He held on by the skin of his teeth. 

Eston really wanted to make sure that I was represented with our winning car.

They also had donuts on a string. The kids LOVED this. Sami, Eston, and Logan really got into the spirit of this and kept their hands behind their backs.

But Lucy, felt as long as she didn't use her fingers and kept her hands in fists that she was still well with in the rules. It was quite humorous to watch them all.

Thanks for the fun Lindsay!

Hudson's 6 month Stats and milestones

Look who is climbing stairs! Hudson started to climb stairs around 7 months old. We are in trouble. He thinks that it is a game. He races over to the stair and tries to get up them before you can catch them. The whole time he is laughing his head off.

Hudson went in for his 6 month check up a few weeks ago.

Weight: 16 lbs.

Height:  26 inches

Hudson can't fall asleep unless he has one of these blankets wrapped around his head. He loves having soft things on his cheek.

Pretty darn cute boy. He is always so happy and mellow.

I feel so lucky to have this character in our lives. For the longest time, Hudson would do the downward dog and put himself in this piked position. Made us laugh every time. He has since decided that crawling is pretty cool. Hudson started to crawl, around 6 months, while I was spending a lot of time with my mom at her house the last 2 weeks of her life. It was a fun moment for everyone around in a serious and stressful time.

I can't believe how big this boy is getting.

Brigham City Temple Open House

We were able to take the kids to the Brigham City Temple Open House. It is always wonderful when we can let our kids experience those moments. So far, our kids have been able to go to 3 different Temple Open houses. Papa Dallas and Grandma Brenda called to invite us to go with them and Braden, Grandpa Leland, and Grandma Ila. We had a great time.It was nice to also be on one kid to one adult defense also.

Hudson really enjoyed the bus ride. He thought it was so fun to stand up and hold on to the back of the seat.

The bus was a favorite for all the kids.

I am glad that Brenda snapped this picture. It is a gorgeous Temple. It's always nice to have those precious moments of what Eternity will be like.

First Day of School Round Two

Today was Logan and Lucy's 1st day of preschool. They have talked about nothing else for the last 3 weeks. They keep asking when they get to have a party or when do they get to have homework. That day has come and I am so excited. It is just me and Hudson home two mornings a week. It's weird and nice.

The first day of school is written all over their faces in the pictures below.

Logan was so excited to go. He got to the school and talked with every one. I don't think Logan looked back once.

Lucy on the other hand was different. She was so excited all morning. She even forgot her shoes when we went out the door. Lucy was fine until it came time for the mom's to go and then she switched on the shyness. Lucy didn't want to let go of my hand. She made me walk her around. I introduced her to a bunch of other little girls and she still wouldn't leave my side. While I was trying to get Lucy to acclimated to the school a cute girl came up to the teacher that was near us and said that everyone had made so many new friends that there are none left for her. I called her over and told her that Lucy needed a friend. The girl took charge. She told Lucy her name was Annie and that they should sit together (kinda reminded me of Sami). I walked Lucy into the classroom to find a chair. The two sat down and Annie grabbed Lucy's hand. From what i was told they were still holding hands for quite a while.

This is the class at Miss Jenn's house before the school year started.

Sending Twins to school is fun. It is going to be interesting to see what they stick together for and where they will differ.

Mean time, Hudson and I will just enjoy our relaxation time.

First Day of Scool round One

Another year of school and another kid joins the ranks! 

Sami has started 2nd grade this year with Mrs. Bingham and Eston gets to join her with starting Kindergarten with Mrs. Martin. They are both so excited. Eston pretty much just pushed me out of his class the first day of school. He is so excited to be at "the big school" this year.

Now we just need to get the twins started next week!

Memories of Nana

My sweet mom, Robin Ann Peterson Pedersen, passed away on August 16, 2012 at home.

She had been battling colon cancer for the last 10 years.  I was able to spend a lot of time with her over the last 3 weeks prior to her passing and have many sweet memories (which i will write about in my personal blog.)

Our entire family was able to spend moments together throughout the 3 weeks she was in the hospital and on hospice. We were able to grow closer together and strengthen relationships during this time. It was amazing to see how many people said that she had changed or influenced their lives, and was so full of service.

My mom's passing is bitter-sweet. I am so relieved and full of joy that she is no longer suffering with pain and the effects of her Chemo treatments. I am thrilled that she is no longer exhausted and is in a better place doing the work that she loves and has a testimony of. My testimony of forever families and of this church have grown significantly. That gives me peace.

However, my heart aches for our daily phone conversations where I tell her about the tiny things that no one else would care to hear. She would always get so excited. My heart aches for her hand and influence in my children's lives and for the void that I can tell they feel from her passing. I miss my mom telling me that I am doing well and to keep going even though things seem hard.

My kids miss her every day. The twins ask me when Nana will be back from heaven to play with them. The older two just get quite when they realize that she is not there for the phone calls given when they have done something really neat. I miss my friend. 

I have an amazing husband who is patient with me, because he knows how I am feeling. She was his mom too. This whole experience has made me more grateful and appreciative of Matt and that we are sealed together with our children forever.

Sami's memories of Nana

(7 years old)

1. Sami loved getting to go to Nana's house and have sleepovers. Her favorite was when Matt and I went out of town and Sami stayed with Nana for 3 nights by herself.

2. Nana made it tradition to take Sami to get a Manicure and a Pedicure for her birthday each year. This was a highlight for Sami. She anticipated it each time. They then would go to the store and pick out a small present as well.

3. Nana was always excited to help Sami out with her school projects. Sami would go spend hours at Nana's house doing art projects and coloring. Nana would have a special project from time to time for her to do.

4. Sami loved making Nana's service deliveries to neighbors. Sami got to visit fun new people and also got paid for the job. It was a win win in her mind.

Eston's memories of Nana

(turned 6 years old 2 days after Nana passed)

1. Alone playdates for a couple of hours every few weeks. Eston loved his alone time with Nana.

2. The sleepover from the night before she went into the hospital. They had a really fun time. Eston got to go to her ward party with her. They then watch the The Muppet Movie together in Nana's room. The next morning Eston and Nana had breakfast together and then Nana said Eston could watch the cartoon Wild Kratts. Dad came and picked him up.

3. Nana would take Eston and all the kids to Chuckie Cheese for the August birthdays.

4. Nana bought Eston fun animal books because she knew he loves to read and loves animals.

5. Nana always had fun snacks for Eston.

Logan's memories of Nana

(3 1/2 years old)

1. Logan would call Nana everyday on the phone to talk to her. Sometimes it was 2-3 times. Nana always answered and took time to talk with him. This was a highlight for both of them.

2. Logan loved kissing her and hugging her. Nana would always make sure to give a kiss.

3. Nana took Logan and everyone else to Disneyland. She made sure that she took him on his favorite ride while there.

4. Logan would ask me every morning he woke up if we could go to Nana's house. He just loved to be around her.

5. Logan loved going on walks with Nana and getting a ride on her scooter.

Lucy's memories of Nana

(3 1/2 years old)

1. Nana helped Lucy learn how to spell her first and middle name "Lucy Mae".

2. Lucy and Nana would go on walks with Lucy and they would pick flowers.

3. Nana would watch princess movies with Lucy in Nana's room.

4. Lucy loved going to the store with Nana. Nana would take her on scooter rides while we were there.

5. Lucy loved the princess books that Nana would read to her

My memories of Hudson and Nana

(7 months old)

1. Nana loved that his name was H. Burke. 

2.  Nana would always get excited over Hudson and his infectious smile.

3. At the end, Hudson was a calming influence on Nana. She would be having a lot of anxiety and I would bring Hudson over. Nana would instantly laugh and smile and pull him into hold and cuddle with him. Hudson would start laughing and she would feel better for a small period of time.

4. Nana was one of Hudson's biggest cheerleaders whenever he made a milestone.

5. Nana would sing Hudson a lot of songs, which he loved. His favorite was the Itsy Bitsy spider with the wrong words sung.

Time to make new traditions and memories, but make sure we always remember these ones.

We miss you Nana! Till we meet again!

Oh, The Places We've Been . . .

I had a random thought the other day. Actually, I have many random thoughts, but this one was about Matt and me and the places we have lived. Occasionally my kids will ask about where we lived when they were born or other events that have happened. I thought that before Matt and I add more to the list I should document where those places have been and get pictures for memories sake.

This was mine and Matt's first apartment together I moved my stuff in over Christmas break 2003. We call it the Nevada apartment because the apartment was on 2002 Nevada Street #10 in Salt Lake City up by Foothill.

This is the apartment that Matt was leaving in when we met. We kicked his old roommate out so that I could move in.

We lived in the upstairs in the top right corner in the back. We loved it there. We probably would have stayed longer if little kids were allowed here. We moved from this apartment in April 2005 when I was 8 months pregnant.

We loved our ward so much that we wanted to stay in the same area. So we moved up the street into a 3 bedroom basement apartment. Our address was 1930 1/2 Foothill Drive, Salt Lake City. Who has a 1/2 in there address. We lived there a month before Sami was born. we brought her home to this apartment.

We ended up having some good friends move in above us. We had good times here until April 2006. We decided to move again to save money since I was 5 months pregnant again with #2 and tried to save money.

We moved to a 2 bedroom apartment in Sugarhouse at 1159 E. 1700 S. Salt Lake City.  Eston was born 3 months after we moved in. The apartment was down a little private street toward the back. We had some good friends from Architecture school that lived there as well. The kids would end up outside almost everyday to  ride bikes in front of the house with the other neighbor kids. We had a cute backyard that Sami and eventually Eston had fun exploring. (I don't know who's cars these are.) We could have stayed here for a few more years because we loved the house and the area, but found out we were expecting Twins. We couldn't necessarily fit all of us in here and had to move quickly. We moved in July 2008 to North Salt Lake.

We lived here only a year. The address was 799 N. 400? E. North Salt Lake. The Twins were born 3 1/2 months after we moved in here. It was in a small little area next to the LDS Regional Center, but felt very crammed with 6 of us living here. It was hard having Sami and Eston play outside here because of the cars coming up and down and the tiny backyard. In October 2009 we moved into Centerville. We wanted to save some money and get more space. I was not pregnant this time. I know that is a shock since the others all had that as a common theme.

We moved into this Twin home in October 2009. It was 2 weeks before the Twins 1st birthday. I love my current ward and neighbors. This new place has been a big blessing in our lives. The Twin home has 3 bedrooms, a big living room, and a big family room downstairs. Just perfect for our family. In February 2012 Hudson was born while we were living here. 

It is fun to look back at the 5 homes we have had in a period of 8 years (6 years when we moved in) since we have been married and think of the fun memories. I look forward to our future homes and those new memories.

SLACKER

I realize I have been MIA for a while pregnancy and a 5th kid can do that to a person. I have decided that I need to be better and work on this family journal again. I am going to be updating and back peddling on things forgotten. So. . . If anyone still checks this, your boredom can now end. . . Or at least change a little. There are posts that are back dated so if you want to see what we have done in the last year you will have to scroll back between past posts. Wish me luck . . .i am going to need it! I

Mother's day 2012

For Mother's Day this year I was able to get updated Family pictures taken of our family. I really wanted a nice one of all 7 of us Clingers!! Thanks to my great neighbor, James, we accomplished that.

Once again, I love how friendly my kids are to one another.

We spent Mother's day weekend, and Sami's "7th" birthday up at Bear Lake. I LOVE going there. It is really relaxing and brings back many childhood memories. We went 4 wheeling and had a fun little birthday party. We even started to teach Sami how to drive the 4 wheelers, (with us on with her).

Hudson Burke Clinger

On February 2nd, 2012, Matt and I went into Intermountain Medical Center to have a scheduled C-section. We welcomed Hudson Burke Clinger. It was a sweet experience 3 + years ago I would have never thought I would be back to experience a birth of another child. I also thought I was good with the 4 kids I had. We learned that what we have planned and what the Lord has plans sometimes don't match up. Having 4 kids under the age of 3 1/2 was quite a challenge enough for our family that we were done. I later learned this decision was based on being overwhelmed after the twins were born.

We gave every baby thing away and were excited for the new chapter of our lives. However, when the twins turned 2 I started doubting our decision. I would have realistic dreams about another baby almost ever other night and whenever I went to the Temple I would have an overwhelming feeling that we should have another.  I couldn't argue with these feelings much longer. Matt and I decided that we should follow these promptings and started praying for another baby to join our family.

I told Matt that he needed to take one last pregnant picture of me since we were down to the last hour of me being pregnant.

At 7:58 a.m. Hudson joined our family. This is the first time that we have taken pictures in the operating room. I cherish every single one of them. Thanks to Dr. Kimball Lloyd everything went well. When they pulled Hudson out they said his shoulders were so broad that they had to wedge them out. He is a thick baby. We are just glad that our Groundhogs baby didn't go back in when he saw his shadow.

Hudson weighed in at 9 lbs. 2 oz. and was 22 inches long. He is my biggest baby by almost a whole pound. Sami was the second biggest at 8 lbs. 5 oz.  followed by Logan at 7 lbs. 12 oz. Eston was 7 lbs. 8 oz. and little Lucy at 5 lbs. 13 oz.

Also another first for us was to have Nana come  in to our room within minutes of Hudson being born. she got to spend those early morning first moments with us, including your bath. It was fun for me to share this with her since we weren't sure Nana would be healthy enough at this point in her cancer to enjoy this.

I always love the first picture that we take with Matt and I holding our new addition. I also almost always look so good and healthy. I think that it is because I am still sitting pretty on all the drugs from the surgery.

My hospital stay was pretty uneventful compared to when I had the twins. I did have to have a humidifier and breathing treatments because I had come down with a cold the night before I went to the hospital and coughing right after a major abdominal surgery hurts beyond description. The treatments helped.

These next two pictures are out of order but who cares. Grandma Brenda had taken Logan and Lucy back to Idaho with her for the week and Sami had gone to school that morning, so Eston was the lucky one who got to come with Matt to pick Hudson and I up from the hospital. He was grinning from ear to ear the whole time he was there.

I love this cute picture of Hudson all snugly in his car seat with his cute hat.

I one thing on Hudson that I couldn't get enough of was his squishy ears. They looked all smashed together. 

Hudson had a problem with his Bilirubin. They referred to it as Coombs positive. The night before we were supposed to go home his levels had risen, so they gave him a bili-bed to sleep in for the night. I looked like a glowing baby, "Glowing Hudson" is what I called him. The lights did the trick and brought his levels down. We were able to go home without any lights.

The morning I went to the hospital to have Hudson, Lucy started to throw-up. She had caught the flu. Poor Lucy didn't get to see her brother until he was 2 days old. We usually get a picture of the whole family at the hospital together put were unable to this time because the flu went through our whole household so the kids were not altogether with us there. In fact, Eston threw up in front of the nurses station on day 3.

This is one of my favorite pictures. There is nothing like brotherly love. I have a feeling these 3 are going to get into a lot of trouble together down the road. Logan was so proud of his baby brother that he wouldn't leave his side the entire time that he was visiting. If Matt had to take Hudson in his bassinet to the nursery, Logan would help push and then wouldn't take his eyes off of him until he was back in my room. Logan would refer to Hudson as "my boy."

I couldn't imagine our family without Hudson and am glad we have him. We are a family of 7. WOW, that is a big number!! I love it!!