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Jodie Clark 
The Clark Family
Katie, Jodie, Tanner, Emmy, Matt & Hayden
We are grateful for so many prayers that have made the miracle of my healing possible!
**ALL NIGHT CANCER WALK 2008**
Journal
Thursday, December 25, 2008 7:41 PM CST Dear Family and Friends:
Another year has come and gone, it is great to hear from so many of you through Christmas letters and cards, and like many years past, this is the best I can do. I wish you all a Merry Christmas from my family to you!
We enjoyed our first calendar year in Texas, but were rocked a bit by Hurricane Ike. Most of you know by now we did fine, about $5000 in damage to our fence, shed, and landscaping, but nothing compared to the devastating floods or rain damage that many of our neighbors endured. Some people just across the street lost enough shingles that the 2' of rain caused their drywall ceilings to collapse causing a lot of damage. However, stuff is over-rated, and we are all just happy everyone we know is safe.
Our kids are growing up and becoming more and more outspoken and wise (so they think!) Here is a quick summary of what we have all been up to this year.
Matt: I continue to enjoy my job here in Texas. Because the weather is better, fishing is more a year round operation here. As a Special Agent with NOAA, National Marine Fisheries Service, I have learned to investigate and patrol the Forest Gump shrimp fleet, the red snapper fleet, and the large recreational fleet of boats that fish in the Gulf of Mexico. I get to take out our work patrol boat at least a few times a month which I really enjoy. I have also spent countless hours continuing to rebuild our 1978 29' Bayliner Bounty Cabin Cruiser boat (THE LAJOLLA) that our family has taken out about 6 times last year. Usually if I take it out, something breaks or I find something that never worked and spend time fixing it. It is running much better now after many hours and new parts. I have also been busy in our young men’s organization of church ages 14-15 (Tanner's age) and am the Boy Scout Leader for that age of boys. We have really enjoyed doing activities. I love to come home and spend time with Jodie and the kids, and have even found time to do a little fishing.
Jodie: Jodie is now the bionic woman, she has had a shoulder replacement this year due to some bone complications from past chemotherapy treatments. She did this in July, and she is now doing great. She even used that arm to go bowling one night which I found amazing. Before her surgery, she could hardly even sleep or get dressed due to the pain. She also remains cancer free as of now, and that is also a miracle. Because she can now sleep better, she can now do much more, and despite other cancer complications, is very busy and active. I know she wishes she had a pain free normal life, and wishes she had more energy, but I always compare her to being on oxygen near death from cancer and chemotherapy so it is a miracle from God to us. We also were able to take a cruise to Jamaica and Mexico this March. She recently completed a really neat cookbook with recipes some of her girlfriends from church. She compiled them all and changed the fonts, graphics etc, and had Kinko’s make them into an amazing cookbook. She loves to do projects like this.
Tanner: Tanner is now 15, and is a freshman in High School. Seems like only a few years ago he was our only toddler. We recently visited our house in Utah for Thanksgiving and had the pleasure of seeing many old friends where he was born. It was great, but as a typical teenager, he could care less! He is attending ECHS or Early College High School a building on San Jac Junior College. He gets bussed from our neighborhood high school to ECHS. He does high school classes in the morning and Junior College classes in the afternoon. When he graduates high school he gets his 2 year associates degree from San Jac the same day. He recently competed in another robot building/driving competition that he built at the Johnson Space Center (NASA/ HOUSTON WE HAVE A PROBLEM). Now that is an opportunity he would not have gotten in Anchorage. (At last check, he is still not girl crazy yet, but is as tall as I am almost and wears a size 12 shoe!).
HAYDEN: Hayden is now 12, and is girl crazy! We are trying to keep him locked up and off the phone until he is sixteen but what are we supposed to do when we drive down the road and hear 4 girls scream “Hi Hayden…..” When we evacuated to Florida for the hurricane, Hayden could usually be found in his mirrored sunglasses by the pool with three or four girls he met. He also played football this year for his junior high. TEXAS HAS QUITE A SCHOOL FOOTBALL PROGRAM!! They have two seventh grade teams and two eighth grade teams (like 7A and 7B, 8A and 8B). This was his first year playing, and he loved it. He also also taken up the baritone tuba and has become pretty handy on in the school band! We loved his Christmas concert.
Emmy: Emmy is a quiet sweet little girl (unless she is angry) who is now 10. She is a joy to be around (unless she is angry) and loves to play with her friends. She is currently trying out basketball right now, and is also growing up. She loves to go on bike rides, and loves school. She is also very responsible and will make a great babysitter when she turns 11. Every time she is around a mom with a baby or young toddler she is right there to help. (She only gets angry once in a while).
Katie: How I describe Katie. She is now 8, and in 2nd grade. She is a ball of fire. She is always talking, always busy, and acts like she is 14. Loves to call me on my phone and talk to me about important issues around the house. She is also has some melt downs once in a while that could win her an “Oscar” if there was a category for “Most Dramatic in a Family.” She also has a singing voice that will melt your heart, even if you consider yourself pretty tough! She is my swimmer. She swam with me in the pool almost every day this summer, and loves to be on the LA JOLLA with me. (She and Hayden are true sailors).
PEBBLES: Yes, we have a new addition to our family, a new puppy for Christmas. Her name is pebbles, and I finally gave in after 10 years of begging. The kids got their dog. (I have fallen in love with her too). She is cute, quiet and NOT housebroken ( I will take two out of three). She is a six month old miniature Dachshund with a terrier or retriever mix. The kids screamed so loud they scared her to death in her crate when they first saw her. She was ready to go back to the pound!
All in all we are doing great, and enjoy Texas. We wish you all a Merry Christmas, and hope you will stay in touch wherever possible. Call or email us at either samatthewclark@yahoo.com or the clarksinak@hotmail.com
Love the Clarks in TEXAS!!!
Read Journal History
Hospital Information: Our Home Address
4517 Biscayne Bend Lane
League City, TX 77573
Home 281-724-9135
Links: http://www.caringbridge.org/ar/mikemiller Mike Miller
http://www.caringbridge.org/tn/rhondajulian Rhonda Julian
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/jodieclark Jodie's New Version
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