Happy 5th Birthday, Hunter!!!

Hunter's big 5th birthday party was held on Saturday, 28 January... and it was a great day for our newly five year old and his buddies. Of course Hunter had requested certain friends to come along, so I sent out the initial text (no cute invitations from this household this year). Well, those friends have siblings and parents... and then I'd run into others and think "oh, we can certainly just invite another friend" (WHO DOES THAT SOUND LIKE?)... and in typical Jen fashion, the guest list had sorta expanded. So you can imagine the knot in my tummy when I woke up on Friday morning and the temperature had dropped by what seemed like 5 degrees and the rain was practically horizontal. "Hunter," I stated, "you'd better start praying that God brings good weather for your birthday party tomorrow." It was my only hope - there was absolutely no way we'd be able to squeeze the now 30+ people into my house... So pray he/we did.

And on Saturday morning - as you'd expect - clear skies, bright sun, and summer temperatures! PRAISE GOD!!! We had much to be thankful for! And... much work to do before the guests arrived at 11am.

 After creating his super fun train cake last year (as per his request) I figured I was up for anything he'd throw my way (funny how one successful cake can inspire such confidence). So when he said he wanted a monster truck cake I had no doubt I could deliver. But it was Tony's contribution and steady hands that really turned this into a work of edible art!! And you can tell by Hunter's expression - it was good!!!

If you want to read more about his birthday OR our time with my parents, check out our blog: www.familyclarkchronicle.blogspot.com

Wish we could celebrate your birthdays too!!!

Oh and now that he's five - he's eligible to start school and I'm homeschooling him this year... so the adventures continue!!! 

Roughing It...

Here's a bit of my original blog about Leo Carrillo - with some added photos just for you family folks!!! Thanks for the great memories those few days!! My kids absolutely loved 'roughing it' with you guys! Thanks for making it easy for us to ease back into family life in CA - we loved hanging out with you!!!

Throughout my childhood we would finish off the summer with a bang - our annual family camping trip to the beach!!! I loved this week (and not only because my birthday usually landed during it and I could really ensure my tan stuck before school started)!!! Long days were spent bodyboarding, body surfing, taking naps in the sand with salt stuck to my shoulders, playing card games and hanging out til "the best time of the day" when the sun just started to lower and the breeze would turn just cool enough to make the trip up the hill more bearable. Of course, those were the days when I didn't have to prepare meals, the only person I had to bathe was myself and I could sleep in if those younger cousins didn't make too much ruckus!!! I guess those days are O-V-E-R!!! But... finally, after all these years, we did get to join the family for another one of those camping trips!!! This time, I went as a parent... and I still loved it!

We didn't get our usual place in San Clemente, we went north instead to Leo Carrillo State Park - where everything was a bit different, but still familiar enough. It was a great chance to hang out with my cousins and their kids... Hunter was surrounded by boys to learn from (read "push and be pushed by") and Helena got her share of cuddles and exploration time too. All in all - pretty much the way I remembered it - loaded with laughs!

Of course when you go camping you need the same amount of stuff if you're going 3 days or 10, so my dad - the professional packer - worked his magic again to load it all up for us. Then he said good-bye and kicked back in his cozy house for a couple of nights! Smart man!

It was great to see both grandparents doing this still - thanks to Amber & Jason's tent trailer that made it possible for them to sleep.

It was fun to hang around the Ford family and all their boys! Hunter loved Mason & Luke (names he can still remember). We enjoyed hearing about their past year on the East Coast and look forward to having them join us in Asia... hopefully we'll get to visit each other within the next year.

There was a little hill we got to climb - thankfully this one was just for fun - we didn't have to carry all our gear up and down. Once Hunter discovered he could climb, though - look out!!! He was loitering around the rock for the rest of the afternoon!!

This beach was quite a bit more rocky than we're used to - but it made for an interesting walk later in the afternoon when the tide went out. The kids found plenty of crabs and starfish to keep them entertained for a bit.

Now here's a smart cousin - instead of basking in the sun, Stephen was hiding from it... perhaps he's a NZer at heart too!?! It was great to have him & Aunt Monica come down to the beach for the day! Thanks for making the trip!

Definitely a familiar sight - Grandpa catching some zzzz's at the beach!

I'm glad some other things don't change...

like those card games at the beach...

Grandma's Tootsie pops in the afternoon (Hunter only had one - that I know of)....


walks to the candy store (Hunter got sand toys instead)...


special pancakes for breakfast...

as well as all the junkie, sugary stuff you never get to eat at home but for some reason we eat because "we're camping"...


service with a smile...


family devotions and the armor of God...



and plenty of time to just sit and chat around the campfire.

Yep, these are the familiar elements I associate with "camping" - the things that make it such a pleasant experience in my book.




This was the first time, though, that I watched what the kids did -



What I didn't see was Sean getting bonked in the face with a metal shovel... but he did... and the poor little guy had to get several stitches to contain it. I'm just glad it wasn't my son who was holding the shovel!!!

And nobody would've seen this one coming - ole David was bit in the leg by a dog - on a leash - while its owner was talking to the ranger... crazy!!! He and his nephew had some quality bonding time at the urgent care center where they both received stitches... after a couple of days they were both back to normal again... YIKES!!! Camping can be dangerous!!!



The kids all practiced sharing... Hunter being a major recipient of this practice.


We christened my parent's brand-new monster 'vacation home with closet'. It had two sections separated by a zipper door - as well as a little zip up 'closet' - pretty snazzy! Had our luggage allowance not been so tight already we would've been pretty tempted to purchase one of these babies for ourselves! Anyway - the kids and my mom slept in one room while Tony & I slept in the other. It worked out pretty well! And when dad came up for the night - they stayed elsewhere (though Hunter would've loved waking up to see Grandpa too).

I must say - this is not a familiar sight... that's right - he's flossing!!! Well, he's stringng the floss between his teeth!!! Wyatt sees a lot of this role-modeled by his mother, who you'd agree has a beautiful smile!


and a beautiful tummy!!! Congratulations again, Emily & Dane!

The tree swing was great fun!!!

Wow... I do not think I ever got my nails trimmed while camping - Nicole doesn't let the details slide just because they're away from home!!!

Katelynn was a great big cousin... Tanner was so well taken care of!

David was demonstrating his tech range... that's a banana in case you were wondering! Ask him, he's a self-admitted low-tech guy (though I think Amy probably keeps him up-to-date more than he thinks)

On our second morning the family wasn't in such a hurry to get to the beach - so a group of intrepid explorers went for a nature walk up into the hills.

It was fun hanging out at camp with Sally & Grandma too!!! And that crazy hand and foot game that Aunt Francine & my mom still talked about (the part where we went out before they even put any cards on the table - have you heard about that one? you probably will...)!!!

Ever notice people all have that same 'puffy' camper face? Is it just too much fresh air?!?

Finally, it was time to say good-bye! And this was good-bye to my extended family until the next time we return back to the USA. Thanks everyone for helping us ease back into the swing of camping... we had a great time!

A Bonefide Bonfire

While we were home, one Sunday night at Grandma's house Aunt Francine threw out the idea of a cookout at the beach... so Wednesday night rolled along and so did about 30+ relatives for a 'spontaneous' bonfire!!! It was a perfect evening for such an activity - sunny with low wind and plenty of food.

When Mason wasn't running down the coastline catching waves, he was nearby building sandcastles - what a trooper - it was a bit chilly out there...

as Grandma & Grandpa seem to think!

Stephanie and her sister-in-law!!! Welcome to the family, Amanda!!!

Uncle Paul - enjoying that pre-hotdog moment and a bit of quiet (since the kids have already started in on theirs)

Helena loved Grandpa's kite.

Hunter and Helena tried to get as much time in with Great-Grandma while they could!!!

Madie & Anna having fun in the sand.

My dad's always got some new way to improve cooking methods... here's his latest firepit hot dog roaster for perfectly toasted hot dogs and no lines or scorched finger hair.

Helena loves her Grandma... and her Aunt Aunt Francine. (I haven't figured out what to have the kids call my aunts/uncles... any suggestions?)

These are a handful of the 4th generation... you can see why Hunter had such a great vacation!!!

With everybody gathered together, they sang Happy Birthday... to me!!! Wow... what a treat!! We got to celebrate my birthday (a few hours early) with a bunch of my rellies at the beach! Growing up, we'd often be camping during my birthday so I was spoilt with attention (and the rest of the gang was spoilt with cake & brownies on the night) and had my favorite folks around me throughout the day! It's been a long time since I've been around for my birthday, let alone on the beach with the extended family... Thanks for making it special!!!

And the cake was pretty tasty too!!!

Grandpa had the best seat in the house and just watched all the shenanigans from here.

Aunt Amber was giving Hunter lessons in how to toast marshmallows - those little puffs of sugar we all love so much!

Okay, contrary to popular belief... we did not deprive our son of many delectable delights while on this trip. Though this particular evening he was digging through chip bags, handling melons in the fruit bowl and practically ripping hot dogs out of the hands of innocent by-standers which made it look like he'd been deprived of much more. He's too funny!! Sorry to those of you who's plates he violated!!!

Steph wasn't satisfied with the s'more... she went for my birthday cake too!! Actually, I wanted s'mores so I needed a bit of assistance on the cake! I love Stephanie - there are always plenty of smiles and laughs when she's around... well, when I think of it - most of the time with all of the cousins there are lots of laughs (but I still do love you, Steph)!!!


Look at that monster moon!!! I was struck again by how big the sky looks here in CA... mostly because the buildings aren't so tall and it's pretty darn flat. Most nights we could see the sunset and the beautiful pink, orange and purple clouds overhead; unlike Taipei where we usually just see buildings.