Clark Chaos

Whats Up?!

2012-02-14T08:03:00.001-08:00

Well, we've had a lot going on...I just haven't been very good about taking pictures and documenting it! Karlee has been busy in the midst of cheer competition season...they took 1st place a couple weeks ago and she glowed for days!! It's so fun to go with her and hang out at competitions...she has 2 more to go this year! Audree has been busy learning piano (pretty much on her own!!) she has been practicing "It's a Small World" and wants to play it in the upcoming school talent show! Spencer has been enjoying the spring-like weather around here by taking me out to play soccer with him...it's a blast and he's quite competitive with me! Rylee has been playing basketball this season...and she is so competitive and determined! She is the team's leading rebounder and loves to play defense! In her last game there was a girl on the other team who was quite a bit bigger than everyone else...after she had frustrated a few girls on Rylee's team, Rylee begged to defend her! The coach put her in and she was all over that girl...she may be short, but she uses all her best skills!! We LOVE to watch her!

Karlee worked really hard on her science project this last month. We decided to do it on cheerleading! We tested which stretch would help get your toe-touch jumps the highest. Several girls on her team helped us do the tests and it turned out pretty good!! In fact, out of the entire 5th grade her project was one of the ones chosen to go on to the District Fair! Nice Job, Kars!

Today is Valentines Day! I was planning to do a big family dinner to celebrate...but, my Grandma Nemrow passed away this past week (which is sad for me, but good for her...she lived a long life full of family and she was very sick). So, I am flying out to California tonight to be with my family for the funeral. Anyways, I still wanted to celebrate Valentine's with the kids and Jake. So, I woke up early to make waffles, strawberries, bacon and juice for breakfast! We gave eachother Valentines and small gifts. It was a fun morning...nobody even seemed to mind getting up early! Here are the kiddos headed out to school for their big Valentine's Day parties! I will miss everyone the next couple days...but we are going to try out "FaceTime" on my new Ipad! I love you guys so much!! I am the luckiest mama in the world and I am so grateful that Jake is my very best friend! Happy Valentine's Day!

MLK Day!

2012-01-19T09:44:00.000-08:00

This year we decided to make the best of a day off school for Martin Luther King Day! Holly and Sam invited us to come stay with them at their family cabin and we all had the "Pass of all Passes" to ski for free up in Ogden. So, we hung out at the cabin (the kids had a blast playing on the Wii and playing board games) on Sunday evening and we woke up early on Monday morning to head out to the ski resort. Unfortunately, everyone in Utah with a "Pass of all Passes" had a similar idea...the place was packed...but we all had a great time! All of the kids got on the lift and we were impressed with how well they skiied...even Audree, who used to hate going skiing is now a big fan and quite talented! The kids loved having their cousins there to hang out with too...I think it may have made them a little braver as well! It was a great day and we were so glad we got to spend the day together! Of course, that night we headed home for our annual MLK get-together with the Ward family...no pics, but good times were had by all! We are so glad we have a reason to get together with them at least once a year...the chicken, watermelon and corn bread is always a treat! Thanks everyone!

Snow....Finally!

2012-01-08T09:48:00.000-08:00

So, this year has been surprisingly "snowless"! In fact, this was the driest December on record here in Utah. We have been living in a sunny icebox all month. So, when we woke up to snow this morning the kids could hardly wait to get out and play! In fact, the whole neighborhood was buzzing with kids in their snow gear (luckily the snow hit on a Saturday!). Anyways, the snowman and snow fort turned out great and the kids had a fabulous morning with their friends and the snow. It was so nice to have them playing outside again!

Christmas Day!

2012-01-08T09:35:00.001-08:00

Our Christmas Day was practically perfect in every way! The kids are so good not to wake us up until 7:00...so we even got a pretty good night of sleep! We all got spoiled rotten...we asked Santa to just surprise us this year (no big long lists of all the things we could ever want!)...and Santa delivered! Karlee was stoked about her new sewing machine, Rylee squealed with delight over her "fluffling", Audree couldn't wait to pull out her guitar and play us a song and Spencer was super excited about his Lighting McQueen race track. Grandma GiGi made all the girls adorable aprons and Spencer tried to fly in his new Superman cape! What a great morning! This year Christmas was on Sunday, so we went to church for an hour (which always sets just the right mood for Christmas day!) and then we just hung out here and at Grandma Clarks and played all day. Merry Christmas everyone!

The next week Grandma GiGi and Grandpa Nemrow came to visit us. We didn't get any pictures, but we had a great time with them. A dollar movie (Dolphin Tale), Trafalga, and just hanging out! We love when they come to visit!

Oh My Christmas-time Fun!!

2012-01-01T20:34:00.001-08:00

Well, let me try to catch you up on all of our December fun...it was WAY too busy to try to blog it all as it came and went! December was Clark Chaos at it's best and we made sure to squeeze every bit of fun out of it...so here are some of the highlights!
Audree invited me to come with her class to see the Nutcracker ballet on a field trip...what a fun day! We got to see it at the Covey Center for the Arts in Provo and they really did put on a great show for the kids (we loved the real snow that fell during the winter scene!). Audree was SHOCKED to find out that the lady with the kids under her dress was actually a MAN...so funny!!

Karlee worked hard on her wax museum project about Babe Didrickson during the month and she was really excited on the day of the big Wax Museum. Me and Spencer came to see her and she did a great job! It was a bit hard to make her look as "manly" as Babe was...but we pulled the hair back and did our best (Karlee was glad that Babe never wore any make-up!) Anyways, we were so proud of Karlee's hard work...I think Babe would have been proud too!

Audree has been a part of the Mapleton Children's Choir since September and has been practicing these Christmas songs from the beginning. It was so fun to go and see her big performance (which included a duet solo in the song "I Saw Three Ships"). She was beautiful and sang like an angel...it really helped put us all in the Christmas spirit...a big thanks to Aunt Sarah and Grandma Clark for coming to cheer her on!

The day after Audree's Christmas concert we were lucky enough to go to Spencer's Preschool Christmas Program! These preschool programs are some of our favorites! Spencer was as animated and funny as any of the kids have ever been! His favorite song was "I'm Gettin Nothin For Christmas"! It was so fun to watch! It will be sad that we can't go back to any more of Mrs. Wall's programs after this year!

A couple nights before the Big Day we had our annual Clark Christmas Party! We always look forward to this one! It was great...pizza, games, prizes, gift exchanges (including a hilarious adult white elephant exhange...Adam brought a rat in a cage!!) and Santa made an appearance! We even got the kids to do a nativity this year...Audree, as Mary, riding in on Millie, as a donkey, was a highlight!

And then, just a day before Christmas Eve we had some time and decided to head out for our first day on the slopes! This year...EVERY single kid wanted to ski and they are all doing it on their own! Jake and I are stoked...I believe it maybe one of Jake's proudest accomplishments.

My Baby is 5!!

2011-12-17T19:58:00.000-08:00

So, Spencer's birthday is actually tomorrow...but since Saturday is a better day to celebrate...we partied today! We decided to make this a family party and take him bowling! We bowled, had pizza and cupcakes and opened presents...I think the best present of all was letting him believe that he beat us all at bowling! Actually, he was pretty stoked about the Hot Wheels scooter he got, he said,"I've wanted this my whole life!" It was a ton of fun...one of the funniest things is that they celebrated his birthday at preschool earlier this week and he has been wearing his crown ever since...he loves that thing, ha ha! Also, on Thursday Jake and I took him out for a birthday lunch at the mall and while we were walking in to the restaurant he asked us, "Can you have the chefs sing to me?"...we laughed so hard and we asked the waitress if the chefs would come sing to him!! He seemed satisfied when the waitresses did it instead! So funny! We are simply smitten with this boy and couldn't be prouder of how he's growing up! Happy Birthday, Bubba!

One Great Saturday!

2011-12-11T13:35:00.000-08:00

December is so full of fun...sometimes it's overwhelming! This last Saturday we had plans to go to Karlee's cheer competition, but it would be done at 2:00 in the afternoon and we actually had the whole evening free! So, we decided to meet up after the competition and go see the lights at the temple! I am so glad we did!

Karlee's competition went great! She performed magnificently (nope, I'm not biased!). Her team took 2nd place and it was a blast to spend some time with Kars and watch her team! I am so impressed with how well she handles the pressure and she performs with grace and a professional attitude...what a kid!

Jake and the kiddos met us at the South Towne Expo Center and we headed up to SLC. We shopped around (we all loved checking out the cool gadgets at Brookstone) and got dinner at Applebees. Then we took Trax over to temple square...the lights were fabulous and we braved the 24 degree weather to check them all out. It was actually a relaxing and fun evening together.

Thanksgiving in California!!

2011-12-07T14:13:00.000-08:00

We made our annual trek out to California for Thanksgiving and it was a great time!! We stayed busy having fun with all the Nemrow clan...dinners, photo shoots, bowling (although it turned out to be "League Night", so we just played at the arcade), a night at the beach, swimming in the hot tub, a turkey-trot race in Long Beach (we even got interviewed and ended up on a webcast about the event!) and a great turkey dinner at Aunt Nancy's. We had a fabulous time coming up with our matching outfits for the turkey-trot (leopard headbands and stiped knee-high socks for the girls!) too. It was relaxing and fun to be out there and when we came home...Christmas time was upon us! I don't have many pictures from the trip because I really wanted to relax (not be the photographer!)...but here are a couple shots!

Sean and Jenny's Weddings!

2011-12-07T13:44:00.001-08:00

November was so jam-packed and part of the reason was that both Jenny and Sean got married within 2 weeks of eachother! It was so fun to be a part of both of their Big Days! I was lucky enough to be the photographer for both days!!

Sean's wedding at the Draper Temple was beautiful and we all enjoyed the dancing at the reception...some (Rylee) more than others (Jake)...but it was a great evening! Rylee and Karlee were finalists in the big "game" at the dinner and Rylee won the jackpot (money for the bride and groom!)...she was pretty stoked when Sean and Megan let her keep a dollar! It was great to spend time with the extended family and get to know Megan's family too!

For Jenny and Jordan's wedding, Spencer got to come to the Salt Lake Temple with us! It was a chilly day, but everything went smoothly and I think Spencer liked being there!! Jenny's reception was beautiful and completely different...no dancing this time...but enough yummy food to make us all sick!! We took advantage and enjoyed a great dinner, crepes, cupcakes and Magleby's chocolate cake!! It was another great day to spend time with family...especially Casey & her girls and Candice & Landon (only 10 days old at the time!). It's so great to have Jordan finally be official around here!

Dinosaur Museum Field Trip

2011-11-14T10:24:00.000-08:00

Rylee's 3rd grade class was going on a field trip to the Dinosaur Museum and I got invited to come along!! It's so much fun to go on these trips and see my kids with their classmates and friends...this was another fun opportunity! We got to see the
3-D Imax movie about dinosaur fossils and then explored all the exhibits. Good times! Rylee was really excited on this day too because she was voted the class "vice-president" the day before!! The class selected candidates and then voted and she was pretty stoked to be vice-president...you go girl! Anyways, I love this girl!!

Hooray for Halloween!

2011-10-31T17:39:00.000-07:00

Unlike last year...the weather has totally cooperated for Halloween this year...Hooray! The kids did their school parade and parties, I went and read Halloween stories to Karlee's class, Spencer had a pre-school party...it has just been a super fun day! Karlee and Rylee have been really excited because we told them that this year they could go with a group of friends instead of Dad. We set some strict ground rules, and since we know all of our neighbors we feel pretty safe(if there are any we don't know...they can't go there!). Anyways, it should be an exciting night!

Karlee wanted to be something beautiful...of course...so she is Miss America! Rylee wanted to be something spooky, of course...so she's a zombie. Audree wanted to be something sweet ...of course, so she's a bunny! Spencer just wanted to be a Monster Truck...so boyish! We had fun creating all of their costumes and I think they were all happy! Jake and I went with the "Jersey Shore" theme and transformed ourselves into Snooki and "The Situation"...we've never even seen the show they are on, but we have seen them on Late Night shows and felt inspired! Happy Halloween!

Pumpkin Carving

2011-10-31T12:08:00.000-07:00

Jake and I are like big kids when it comes to carving pumpkins...we love it and get right down into the thick of it with the kiddos! Rylee was the trooper who got the messiest this time around and Audree was the one who wouldn't get near the goopey stuff...anyone surprised??? Nope...sounds just about right! Rylee just kept saying," Halloween is my favorite holiday!" while she scooped out the goop! Anyways, Karlee and Spencer helped out too and we think we have a pretty spooky set of pumpkins to greet our trick-or-treaters this year!

Pumpkinland- part 3

2011-10-27T13:34:00.000-07:00

So, this is the 3rd and last time that I have gone to "Pumpkinland" with Mrs. Wall's preschool(I can't believe Spencer will be in kindergarten next year!). It's always good times and somehow we always manage to have great weather! Spencer, his buddy Caleb and I had a great time with his class exploring the corn maze, playing at the playground, seeing the animals and visiting the spooky alley (not so spooky, really). Anyways, I feel so blessed that I can do these things with the kids and I just love seeing them with their little school-mates!

Octoberish!

2011-10-19T08:50:00.000-07:00

October is ALWAYS a crazy month for us...photography business is busting at the seams! I have 6 weddings in 6 weeks...including bridals and engagements for most of them, plus 5 family sessions and 1 corporate event! That's just on top of Booster Club meetings, PTA meetings (I'm the PR rep for the school this year!), gymnastics for all the kids, Audree's choir class, Young Women's activities (I'm the Beehive advisor), helping at school in the kid's classes, and I currently have 5 little boys over at my house for Spencer's weekly playgroup (I can hear them having a blast on the trampoline as I type!). Laundry, dishes, cooking, decorating for Halloween, making Halloween costumes and actual mothering activities happen somewhere in there too. Did Jake want me to be a wife too??! Anyways, now that I have verbally vomited my calendar to you...I feel much better!

What I really wanted to share was our trip to the pumpkin patch! It's an annual visit to the pumpkin patch here in Springville and the kids watch the pumpkins grow all summer and look forward to picking their's in the fall! We got some great ones this year and had a fabulous time hanging out...what you can't see in the pictures is the giant booger on Spencer's shirt...yep, as soon as we got there he did a huge sneeze and apparently thought his shirt would double as a tissue. It was pretty gross...so we just zipped up the hoodie and continued on! When we were done at the pumpkin patch we headed out to go ice skating for the evening (we've gone like 3 times since Karlee's birthday because we had so much fun there and our Pass-of-All-Passes gets us in free!). It was a nice evening to just hang out together as a family!

My Big Girl is Big!!

2011-10-01T11:46:00.000-07:00

Karlee turned 10 years old this week...seriously I have a 10 year old kid...how in the world did this happen??? I remember when I had all these babies, I didn't think they would REALLY grow up!! She is growing up though...and she is growing up to be such a fabulous young lady! For even numbered birthdays we do "friend parties"...so this was something she was very excited about. She wanted to do a tea party, a late-night party or go ice skating...so we sort of just combined all those ideas into one!

Karlee made butterfly placemats that they could decorate at the party and she folded fancy napkins and placed them in cups. Then we made fancy raspberry punch and appetizers for everyone when they arrived. (tea party- check!) Then, after cupcakes and presents we headed out to go ice skating (ice skating- check!) and the skate session was from 7-9:30 (late night- check!). We packed all those crazy girls into the van, rolled down the windows, blasted the radio and sang at the top of our lungs till we got there! The ice skating was a blast and they even had the BYU vs. Utah State game playing on a big screen...so even Jake and I got to do everything we wanted!
AND...BYU won...so I will be getting a foot massage tonight (that's me and Jake's favorite type of bet!)

Anyways, when the party finally ended and everyone was back home, Karlee said it was the "best party ever!"...so, mission accomplished! It really was a fun evening and it was so reassuring to see how sweet and fun her friends are...what a great bunch of girls! Karlee you make us proud everyday and we couldn't love you more!

Tuacahn- Little Mermaid!!

2011-09-30T13:16:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we had the fantabulous opportunity to go to St. George with a big ol' group of Clarks and see the Little Mermaid at the Tuacahn! We always LOVE to go see the shows down there and it's even better when we get to go with lots of great company! We stayed down there to swim, eat, and golf for a couple days too. We are so glad that we got to escape to the warm south and we just had a great time! The kids have been really improving their golf skills this summer...impressive!! Plus, we even got to go to Village Inn for a birthday breakfast with Karlee...she's 10 years old now...yikes! Thanks to everyone who came with us, I know it made her day! Here are some photos from the show...it's always fun to meet the cast and take photos at the end of the night!

School Picture Day

2011-09-14T09:30:00.000-07:00

I am a really mean mom and I don't buy school pictures...c'mon I am a photographer...I buy the class photo for memory sake (and so they can point out the boys they like!). Anyways, today I got them ready for picture day and decided to take my own photo before they left! Spencer wanted a turn too...so, here are their "school pictures" for this year!

Block Party!!

2011-09-12T11:29:00.001-07:00

Our house is convienently located exactly across the street from our church...which was quite convienent for the ward block party this past weekend! Our front yard became party central and as far as ward parties go...this one was a huge success! The kids had a great time hanging out with all their friends at the dump tank and the bounce houses...face painting, bean bag tosses, balloon swords and flowers, lots of food and a just a good time overall. There was an ominous storm that passed by, but it couldn't stop the fun! It's so great to have a neighborhood full of great friends and ward members...we just love it here!

I love being a soccer mom!

2011-09-07T10:17:00.001-07:00

I have wanted to go cheer on a soccer player of my own for as long as I have been a mom! I love to watch my girls do their dance, gymanstics, karate...etc. But something about having a little guy on the soccer field just makes my heart happy! I am afraid that I am already too tough on him to "get it"...but he does make progress every game and most importantly...he is having a blast! We have discovered that he isn't very motivated by money...we have tried to bribe him with quarters...I think he's holding out for dollars! Anyways, his team is the "orange cones" which makes us laugh every game and he has some great little buddies on the team! We have tried to teach him the fine art of "throwing an elbow" and the "stiff arm"...he's great at using them on me in the backyard...but a little timid when it's a kid his own size (although at the end of yesterday's game he tried a little elbow move...there ya go)!! Anyways, we just love this little man and couldn't be prouder!

Onion Days!

2011-09-03T09:13:00.000-07:00

There are times when I reminded that I live in small town Utah...last night we wanted to get out and do something fun with the kids and it came to our attention that Payson City (about 10 miles south of us) was having their annual "Onion Days Celebration". Only in Utah would a small town spend 3 days celebrating the onion! But I guess we are just one of the small-town kind of families because we LOVED every second of it! They had a great carnival (and if you know one thing about my husband and kids...it's that they love a great carnival ride!) and then the city put on a suprisingly fabulous fireworks show!

So, we headed out to dinner at Arby's, made a pit stop at the Dollar Store (for glow sticks) and drove down to the old Payson park! We had a great time at the carnival...there's always great people watching at these things! And when darkness started to fall we headed over to the baseball fields where the fireworks were going to be. We played with glow sticks, ate too much licorice and layed directly under a GREAT fireworks show! Jake said it was the perfect way to end our summer and I would have to agree!

Happy Back 2 School Day!

2011-08-22T15:10:00.000-07:00

The girls have been SO excited to get back to school...and after a fabulous summer, I was ready to send them back! They got up at 6:00 a.m. and could hardly stand to wait until 8:25 to get on the bus! They all reported that it was the "best day ever" when they got home and it seems that it was the perfect beginning to a great year ahead! Spencer and I will have to find ways to fill our days together...I am afraid he will be so bored just hanging out with me all day! His preschool starts in 2 weeks...that will help a bunch! Anyways, here we go again!

Monster Trucks (said in your deepest manliest voice)

2011-08-14T19:25:00.000-07:00

Spencer has been in love with anything fast and big his whole life...everything from bullet trains to jets to Monster Trucks to dirt bikes. He can't get enough of the boyish loud and fast things out in the world. He says Bigfoot is his favorite (and he won't say the words Monster Truck, Bigfoot or dirt bike without using his most manly deep voice...so funny!) So, when we found out that there was going to be a Monster Truck rally in Salt Lake...Jake absolutely HAD to take him! I was jealous that I didn't get to see the look on Spencer's face when he saw them up close...but Jake tells me it was priceless...and it really did need to be "man-time". I took the girls out for a night on the town in Salt Lake (we did Applebee's and the Clark Planetarium together!). It was a great evening and we all came together for ice creams at the end of the night.

Summer Campout!

2011-08-12T09:56:00.000-07:00

Last summer we went on our first family camping trip...the kids have been begging to do it again ever since then! Our summer has been so busy that this last weekend was our first opporunity to do it! We decided to tryout a campsite this year instead of just finding a spot in the wilderness...we loved the hiking at this place, but we did decide that we missed the seclusion we had last time. Next time we will know exactly what we're looking for...always a learning experience! Anyways, we played games around the campfire and had s'mores (of course!) and we did some great hiking. Rylee brought her butterfly net on our hikes and frantically tried to catch every butterfly we passed (and there were tons!). She had a few successes and was SO excited! At one point on the hike Audree said, "Mom, you can see the prettiest things when you are in the nature!" When we came home and asked the kids what they would have changed about the camping trip they said they would have like a LONGER hike (which is surprising since they were begging to be done after a couple hours). We just had a great time hanging out together and remembered why it was so fun...hopefully we can do it again soon!

Lake Powell- woo hoo!

2011-08-01T08:53:00.001-07:00

We were all so excited to go to Lake Powell this year...the kids were counting down the days for several weeks. I was actually a bit anxious about it because I have heard of WAY too many drownings this summer (including a close friend of mine's child)...but I decided we can't live in fear, packed up the best life-jackets I could find and we headed out! I am happy to report that it was a great trip and we all had a blast! Karlee and Rylee got up on the knee-board and waterskis without any trouble (I even got up on the kneeboard and skis...for the first time in 11 years...I was stoked!). Spencer tried out the tube with Quincy and they loved it! We all just enjoyed relaxing, swimming, a bit of cliff-jumping (well, me, Jess and Megan had to practically get shoved...but we jumped off too!). The water was perfect, the weather was fantastic and the boats worked a fairly high percentage of the time. Glad we went, can't wait to go back next year!

Fun at Home!

2011-07-14T14:21:00.001-07:00

We had some friends over for a fun watery afternoon! Good times were had by all!

Fourth of July!

2011-07-12T07:49:00.001-07:00

I am slacking big time on the blogging lately...we've just been SO busy...do I say that every post? Anyways, the 4th happend on a Sunday this year...so, of course, the festivities lasted all weekend! Plus, Sarah's family came into town and we played at Lagoon for a day and then at Seven Peaks for a day (I didn't take my camera...just wanted to relax and enjoy!). Karlee and Rylee LOVED the big roller coasters with Dad and Spencer tried out some bigger rides and LOVED it too! Right before the 4th my Mom and Dad came to visit us for a couple days and my mom helped me make the girls some skirts for the holiday. I thought they turned out really cute! I was proud of myself for being so crafty! It was so fun to spend time with them and finally meet our nephew, Alex...precious! We enjoyed all the usual activities, parades, BBQs, pinatas, fireworks, golf and family...we loved every second and barely had time to sleep for a week straight! We are trying to get back to normal life for a couple weeks before we head out to Powell. Anyways, here are some pics of all the fun!

Let it begin...summer that is!

2011-06-29T21:41:00.000-07:00

We have been too busy to keep up the blog...3 weeks ago we went to St. George for 2 days, we came home and I left for Girl's Camp 2 days later... the night I got home from Girl's Camp we left for California (while we were there Jake and I had a fabulous overnight adventure at the Ritz Carlton!), the morning after we got home from California we did a garage sale at the Clark's, Monday I had a wedding to photograph and my parents came into town to visit for 2 days and now it's today...deep breath...tomorrow Jake's sister Sarah comes into town and we have plans all weekend to celebrate July 4th with the Clarks! Woo Hoo for Summer!

St. George was just a little escape. Jake had to work down there...so we went down to catch some rays! While we were there Spencer learned to swim without his life-jacket and Audree became quite the little fish without hers too! We spent a LOT of time at the pool! It was a quick stay, but relaxing and fun for all of us!

Girls Camp was a great time...it was my first time doing camp in tents! We went on a crazy hike that was supposed to be 2 hours, but ended up being 5 (most of the time in SNOW!). I spent a LOT of time french braiding, it felt like being back at home! It was great to spend time with my beehives!

California was fabulous as always! Hour after hour in the pool, some time at the beach, hanging out with family....good times. The kids had their first sleepover at their cousins house while Jake and I escaped to the Ritz Carlton for a night (we loved taking my mom's convertible to drive around Newport Beach!). We gave all the Nemrow men speedos to celebrate Father's Day...that turned into quite the event...I promised no photos on the public blog...but man was that a kodak moment! The beach bonfire with s'mores was a great time too! What a week!

I gotta run...more chaos to be had...fun, fun, fun!

Summer Has Arrived!

2011-06-06T14:43:00.000-07:00

How do I know summer has officially arrived?? Spontaneous water fights and Audree's birthday...that's how!

This water fight broke out on our first summer day that hit 80 degrees...woo hoo!

I can't believe Audree is 6 years old...in fact, I keep talking to her about how she's turning 5 and she has to keep reminding me that she's turning 6! Anyways, she wanted to have a friend birthday party at Jumpin'Jacks...so we did cake and presents at the house and then headed over for some jumpin' fun! It was a great little party and she was excited to have her friends celebrate with her! I love this little kiddo...she always likes to chat with me at bedtime about her day, she is such a great reader and a beautiful dancer and she is always ready for a big snuggle...what more could a mom ask for?

Dance Recital Season!

2011-05-26T08:59:00.001-07:00

It's the end of May...must be time for a dance recital! Rylee and Audree decided to make the pictures before their dance recital a big of a session! They were hilarious and kept coming up with funny poses...I had to put them into a collage...they make me laugh! I love these girls! They both dance perfectly at their recital...I get teary eyed everytime I watch these kids perform (and they seem to perform a LOT)...I wonder when that will stop?? Well...summer here we come!

Audree Graduated from Kindergarten!!

2011-05-19T15:32:00.000-07:00

Today was Audree's last day of kindergarten! She has had a great year...she learned to read, she has learned to add and subtract, she has loved recess (not to mention a little boy named "Gibson"!), she is quite a "smarty-bo-farty"...at least, that's what we call them around here! She also enjoyed having 4 of her great friends in her class this year...Rylee, Brianna, Katie and Danielle all live within a block of us, are in our ward and are also in Audree's kindergarten class! We are very proud of her and all that she is accomplishing...and we are so proud of her for graduating from Mrs. Porter's class.

OH, and Spencer was really excited that his best buddy, Caleb, was there today! They played on the playground while their big sisters graduated! What great buddies!

Spencer's Sad Foot

2011-05-15T08:06:00.000-07:00

While I was brushing my teeth the other day I suddenly heard Spencer crying downstairs. When I came down to check on him he said he "sat on his foot" and it hurt. I figured it fell asleep or something and didn't think much of it. Awhile later I noticed that he was seriously limping and still complaining that his foot hurt...he didn't switch feet and he isn't a complainer, so I thought it was a little strange. By lunch time he wouldn't walk at all...I figured that after his nap he would be fine. He took a good nap and then I heard him upstairs yelling down for me to come get him...I said, "Why?" and he said, "My foot hurts!". Dang it, he really was hurt!! I had to carry him around all day or he would cry because he couldn't walk...we called Grandpa Dr. Jim and told us to come in. Based on where it hurt, Grandpa thought he had broken his foot...so Spencer was super-brave while he had an X-Ray. The X-Ray didn't show any broken bones...whew, so we assume it's a good sprain. Grandpa put a splint on Spencer for a couple days and by the next morning Spencer was running around with that splint like a normal crazy guy! I am glad he didn't have to have a cast for 6 weeks...he has been begging for this splint to come off since day 2...it's only been 3 days, but we are hoping the splint will be ready to come off today!

Zoo Trip!

2011-05-10T09:38:00.000-07:00

I was excited that Jake made arrangements to help with Spencer so that I could attend Audree's kindergarten zoo trip this year...that is, until the weather report! The trip was scheduled "rain or shine"...and of course, we got rain! It poured the whole day...luckily we had ponchos galore and kindergartners don't seem to mind being cold and wet! It was actually pretty fun...the animals were alert and fun...we really liked the baby elephant and the giraffes! Besides the weather, it was a great day and I was really glad that I got to spend the day with Audree!! She is so funny and had a great time with her friends! When I got home I found out that Spencer and his daddy had a great day too...lunch at McDonald's and lots of "man time". What a day!

Rylee's Baptism

2011-05-10T09:11:00.001-07:00

My sweet Rylee turned 8 years old and was so excited to be baptized! She wanted Uncle "Seanie" to perform the baptism, which we all thought was a great idea! She was surrounded by her family (she truly has such a great support system and so many great men around her!) and many of her friends were there too! She was baptized in the same dress that her Grandma, Mom and Big Sister were baptized in! Besides the fact that she said the water was freezing, it was a wonderful day! Later in the day she had a dance competition and danced like a star! She is growing up so fast and we are so proud of her!

Easter Time!!

2011-04-29T09:54:00.001-07:00

Happy Easter Everybody! Our Easter was great...full of "Peeps" and baskets and hidden eggs. The kids were so excited...I think they woke up earlier for Easter than they did for Christmas!! The girls loved their new sparlkly headbands and Spencer was a huge fan of his new "Monster Truck". Later that evening we had a yummy dinner at Jim and Judy's with the Clark family...the wiffle games were a big hit! Warmer weather would have been nice, but you get what you get and you don't throw a fit...good advice from our favorite pre-school teacher!

Rylee's 8th Birthday Party!

2011-04-23T12:16:00.001-07:00

Rylee had a hard time deciding what to do for her big 8th birthday party...it came down to deciding if boys would be invited or not, finally we decided on a "late" night/pajama party with just the girls! We had her friends come over for pizza, cake and games and then we watched "Princess and the Frog" until 9:00! The girls were so cute and had a great time...they were all pretty sleepy by the time we took them home! Rylee came up to me when the party had been going on for only 10 minutes and said, "Mom, this party is already a hit!!"...so cute! Her birthday will continue for 3 weeks since her "real" birthday is next week and her baptism is the week after that!

The Egg Drop!!

2011-04-23T11:58:00.001-07:00

Jake has had plans in the works for 2 years waiting for Audree's kindergarten egg drop! The big day arrived and Audree proudly carried off her packaging foam "box" with egg inside. The idea is to package your egg so that it can be dropped off the roof without breaking...truly the dad's get more into this than the kids!! There are always parachute packages, creative packages (decorated like presents or Humpty Dumpty) and unfortunate packages (you can hear the crack when it hits!)...this year ours worked perfectly and Audree was a happy camper. Jake did everything in his power to be there to see it...really he did NOT want to miss the big drop...unfortunately traffic was not in his favor this day. He missed the drop by 5 minutes but came to see the results. Great job guys!!

Spring Break- we're outta here!!!

2011-04-17T13:35:00.000-07:00

As usual, it snowed at our house during spring break this year...luckily for us, we weren't at home...we were in sunny St. George!!! Hooray!! Jake worked while me and the kids hung out at the pool, went shopping (the kids later told me that was their least favorite part of the trip) and went hiking in the red rocks. We went out to eat and went to see "Hop" at the movie theater (not a great movie). It was relaxing and warm...so perfect...except that Jake had to work too much (we just want him to hang out with us!!). Anyways, it was great...my favorite quote from the trip came from Rylee. As we were eating lunch and about to head back home I was asking all the kids what their favorite part of the trip was...when I got to Rylee she said, "Well, I can tell you what my least favorite part was" so I said, "Ok, what was that" and she replied, "When you asked me what my favorite part of the trip was!". Alright Little Miss Attitude!! Anyways, it was a great little escape...I only wish it had lasted longer!

2nd Grade Farm Day!

2011-04-06T12:45:00.000-07:00

Today was Rylee's 2nd grade Farm Day field trip. Miss Sayers really wanted me to come take photos because she has asked me to put together a movie of all their adventures at the end of this year. So, I gladly came along and enjoyed the fun with them. Rylee was so cute...she brought along a journal to record her thoughts and what she learned...I saw her write things down like, "I think I smell cow poop!" and "There is a pig called a blue butt". Anyways, we had a great time and I was so glad to get to come spend some time with Rys!

Hike the Y!!

2011-04-02T20:50:00.000-07:00

We have been planning for weeks to Hike the Y this weekend because Casey was coming into town to visit and really wanted to go with us and the kids! My kids were stoked and have been asking daily when we were going to go...the day arrived, Casey made it into town, we were all ready to go...but unfortunately Casey wasn't feeling well. The rest of us decided to go up and enjoy the beautiful spring day...but we really missed having Casey come with us. It is always a good hike and gets the blood flowing for sure...it was great to get to the Y and have a little lunch! The kids had a blast hanging out with their cousins and it was a great workout! Thanks for the fun guys!

School Talent Show

2011-04-02T20:37:00.000-07:00

Karlee and Rylee participated in their school's grade level talent shows this week. I think they were more nervous to perform in front of their friends than they are to perform at their big competitions! Anyways, they both did fabulous! They were a little bummed that they didn't get chosen to perform in the big school-wide talent show this year...but they both took it in stride and were good sports about it...to be honest, I was glad to just move on...we are still getting through competition season!! Besides, they both did the school-wide talent show last year and it's good that other kids got the chance this year. I couldn't be more proud of these little performers of mine...

*Notice that Rylee is missing her shoe in 2 of the pictures. You can see it laying on the ground behind her...She felt like a true professional when her shoe fell off because she just kept on dancing!! I had told her that if her hat fell off just to keep going...but it ended up being her shoe?! Anyways, she is so funny to me...what a cutie!

Pirate Preschool

2011-03-30T11:48:00.000-07:00

When my kids are 3 years old I always participate in neighborhood preschool groups. The kids love it, it's free, we keep the groups small and I think it gets them ready for "real" preschool when they are 4. I really have loved doing it for each one of the kids. This has been Spencer's year!

I had the kids over here this week for my turn and I realized that I have one more turn at our house and then I will be done...not just for the year...but forever! It's moments like this when I reflect on how they are growing up and these "stages" will pass quickly by since I had them all so close together. Anyways, this year has been fun because I chose all the boy themes...I have never wanted the "boy themes" before! We did dinosaurs, trains...So, today we had letter "X"...which is totally the hardest letter...except we made it "X" marks the spot day...PIRATES!

We had a treasure hunt, made Pirate hats and played "Who's got the gabloon?"...it was great times! Oh, and Audree has afternoon kindergarten, so she loves to participate in our preschool when it's at our house! I think I will love to look back on these memories of their little preschool groups and I feel so blessed to have such great neighbors to do this with!

Crazy Saturdays...

2011-03-28T15:38:00.000-07:00

I remember when we used to sit around our house with a bunch of little babies and wonder what to do on a Saturday...that isn't a problem anymore!! The kids are growing up and getting so busy with all their activities and I have to admit that I sort of LOVE it!! It's so fun to watch them all do their thing...I'm just a proud mama! So, this Saturday was no exception...

Jake needed to go help his Dad at Lake Powell(not as fun as it sounds...it was freezing cold...no boating or swimming on this one!). They had to do some maintenance on the houseboat so that we can go have a blast this summer! Thanks guys, we can hardly wait for July! So, it was me and the kiddos running around to everything this weekend...no help from the daddy!

We started the day at Karlee's cheerleading try-outs! She is trying out for next year's team...she did GREAT! She landed a standing back tuck and a layout for the first time!

As soon as that was done...we headed to Rylee's first dance competition! She was so excited/nervous! Judy and Jenny were a great help with the little kiddos and came to watch Rylee's performance...she danced like a serious hip-hopper! Work it Rys!

Everything went smoothly and we made it to all the right places at all the right times. We stayed for Rylee's awards ceremony and she was STOKED to get second place and a trophy!! We hit Chuck E. Cheese for some dinner (always a good time!...thanks Judy!) and on our way home we stopped by Karlee's gym to see the results from her try-out...she made Level 4!! Audree and Spencer were troopers all day (especially since we had a Leapster and an Ipod Touch and a huge bag of Starbursts to keep them entertained). Whew...

No School!

2011-03-18T10:31:00.000-07:00

What do we do when school is out for a day?? NOTHING!! and it's wonderful! Here are the kiddos at about 11:00 in the morning today. I lOvE it when we all gather on the big bed to wrestle, tickle, make dog-piles and be silly! So here's to a great lazy Friday!

Check Mate!!

2011-03-09T12:42:00.000-08:00

Several weeks ago Rylee came home from school all excited and waving a piece of paper in front of me. She was begging me to sign her up for a chess tournament. I don't know how to play chess...it's too complicated, just a bit of checkers is right up my alley! But, I knew that Jake is pretty good at chess and the two of them would have fun playing together. So, I asked Jake to teach her and prep her for the tournament (which he gladly agreed to) and I signed her up. She had about 3-4 weeks to play and prepare...honestly her interest came in spurts, but she was excited and nervous when the day arrived. The way the tournament worked was that she played 6 rounds, each against a different 2nd grader...they got 1 point for a win, 1/2 point for a draw and 0 for a loss. Anyways, she ended up winning her first game...FAST...and we thought that was pretty impressive. After that she lost 3 games, and had 2 draws. Some kids there have been playing on teams and with clubs for years...so it was an interesting mix of people and abilities. It was a LONG day (the tournament lasted 6 hours!) and she was bummed when she lost some of those games, but in the end she said it was fun and she'd like to do it again next year. We'll see if she's really interested later, but it was fun to go and cheer her on! My favorite thing about the day was that the tournament was filled with mostly super-smart little boys and my Rylee...with her hip hop hat and bright colored ensemble stood out like a sore thumb, but she didn't notice a thing and loved the competition. Anyways, I was glad to spend my Saturday hanging out at the chess tournament with my Rylee!!

Dr. Seuss's Birthday!

2011-03-04T12:19:00.000-08:00

So, the other day was Dr. Seuss's birthday and the kids were celebrating at school. They were really excited because it's the only day of the year that they are allowed to wear hats to school and they were encouraged to wear silly or fun hats if they had any! Well, Rylee, of course, came up with the idea of making their own silly hats. I had absolutely NO input on these and couldn't help but laugh at their creations...Karlee's isn't too crazy, a bit of white paper with some lines drawn on it. Rylee's, on the other hand, was quite elaborate! I don't think the photo does it justice...although the monocle (made out of a minature magnifying glass) was my favorite aspect...there was also a white feathered bird on there, some patches of packaging foam and a plastic monkey hanging off the side. I wasn't sure if they would actually WEAR these hats when the time arrived...but they proudly put them on and strutted out to the bus...after school they claimed that their hats were well-appreciated at school. I LOVE THESE GUYS!! Anyways, I had Spencer's preschool group here at our house that morning (we had a great day of T for Trains!) and completely forgot about Dr. Seuss day by the time Audree left for school...luckily a kid in her class had a hat to share with her, I am such a slacker mom! She wasn't real happy that we forgot to send her with a hat, but she has since forgiven me...

Snowshoeing Field Trip!

2011-02-26T19:39:00.001-08:00

Last week I had the opportunity to go with Karlee and her 4th grade classmates on a field trip! I always love going on these trips...I didn't have my camera with me when I went with Rylee's class to the orchard in the fall ("Watch out for the deer poop!")or when I went with Audree's class to tour downtown Springville in the fall either ("Here is where we grind the meat in the grocery store. Anyone want to try some?")...but those were great trips too! Karlee helped me remember to bring the camera this time, so we got some pictures. This trip was snowshoeing (which I have never done!) up Spanish Fork canyon...besides eating lunch while sitting in the snow (my bum was numb!)... It was a fun day and I am SO glad that I can do these things with the kids ("Making jello in the snow is so cool!")! Thanks for letting my come Kars!

Cabin Trip 2011

2011-02-24T11:39:00.000-08:00

We were so excited for our 4th annual trip to the Ward's cabin with the Nemrow side of the family this year! It's always one of our favorite things we do during the winter! Unfortunately, this year most of the Nemrow's weren't able to come with us, but Travis, Katie and Bristol didn't want to miss it and neither did we...so it was on! It was a shortened version (just 2 nights) with only a few of us...but we had enough fun for the whole crew! It was the usual hot cocoa fest with tubing and hot tub thrown in for good measure...a Jazz game on tv one night with a good Jenga game going on...some book and magazine reading....some games on the Itouch...creating a half-pipe tube run down the driveway (even the dark of night didn't stop us, we kept tubing under the porch lights!)...riding the snowmobiles...Jake taking extreme tubing to the next level (and a crash for the ages!)...dancing to some tunes in the cabin...just general good times! We are so glad we went and the kids have been asking incessantly when we get to do it all again...next year I hope! Anyways, here are some photos...Katie and Travis thanks so much for joining us! (p.s. Jake and Travis- you owe me big time for not posting any pics of you in your speedos...I was tempted to introduce the world to "Tuxpedo" and "Tigress"!)

What We've Been Up To!!

2011-02-15T10:37:00.000-08:00

It seems like life just keeps on keepin' on around here. I haven't had anything extraordinary to blog about lately...so I thought I'd just catch you up on what's been going on.

First of all...Audree is quite the artist. She LOVES to color and draw. But I didn't realize until just the other day that she might take that talent to the streets...maybe she's a "grafiti artist". Unfortunately, If she does take her work outside she will be caught very quickly, since she never forgets to leave her signature on her artwork. Like, when she decorated my living room the other day! What a little stinker! Don't worry, her little brother confessed to the crime with her...in fact, he even said, "Yep, we did it when you were making the soup!". AH HA!

We also have been working hard on Karlee's first science project. We decided to test out which Orbit gum flavor lasts the longest. It was a fun project because for a week, every night after dinner the whole family took a piece of gum and we all timed how long the flavor lasted! It was a fun little project and here's how the board turned out when we were all finished!

Then we had a really great Valentine's Day! The kids all loved their class parties at school! Then we had a little family party in the evening, pizza for dinner and Valentine's for all! What Rylee was really excited about though was the "date" she had that evening! Rylee absolutely LOVES to go on Daddy-Daughter dates (and Jake is really good to take all the kids out on these individual dates fairly often!). So, she brought home some free tickets to a "Flash" (NBA d-league team that plays at UVU) game. She asked him if he would go on a date with her on Valentine's night...I obviously had no choice but to give up my date and let them go...she was so excited and talked about it for days! They had a great time, but Jake said all she wanted to talk about was other guys!! Ha Ha!

A Day on the Town!

2011-02-01T11:49:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday we decided to head out for the day...about this point in the winter we start to get really tired of hanging out inside and watching tv. We were going to take all the kids skiing...until we read the paper and saw a model train show happening at Thanksgiving Point. Spencer saw the picture in the paper and REALLY wanted to go see the trains....plus, Audree wasn't thrilled about skiing. Unfortunately, Karlee and Rylee were stoked about skiing...what to do? Well, we decided to split up for awhile and meet up at Grandma's hot tub later!

So, I took the little ones up to the "Train Show" and Jake headed up the mountain with the big girls! The train show was just a whole bunch of model train set-ups and a bunch of vendor booths...Audree, Spencer and I were entertained for about an hour. We really liked the big "Thomas" train that went fast and the enormous lego world (really, it was about a 30 foot by 30 foot display completely built out of legos!)... and then we decided to go get some treats! It was a fun little outing.

I don't have pictures of the girls skiing, but Jake took some video for me and they are doing GREAT! We are just excited to see them really enjoy it!

The hot tub was a great end to the day too...thanks, Judy for keeping it hot and ready for us! What a fun way to spend a winter weekend.

A trip, A funeral, A wedding...

2011-01-16T14:11:00.000-08:00

So, it has taken me a couple weeks to blog this because this family has had the Flu for a week! 5 out of 6 of us (Jake is the lucky escape artist) had the Flu last week and it was awful and it lasted forever!! We have all recovered and I think I am ready to get back to the grind.

So, after Christmas we headed back out to California (we have been out there a LOT the last year!)...this time for my Grandpa Nemrow's funeral and Brooke & Kyle's wedding. This trip was not about relaxing in the sun. Luckily we had lots of new toys and such to keep the kids busy in the car.

The funeral was a nice day to remember my Grandpa. There was a great turn-out...all of his kids, almost every grandchild and many great-grandchildren were there to pay their respects. My Grandpa Nemrow was a character...a great story-teller, a loud man, a lover of college football and he really loved his family and was so proud of them. All of this was mentioned...nobody mentioned that I was his "favorite grandchild"...but I will let it slide this time! Anyways, he will be missed and I am glad that we could be there for his funeral.

Brooke and Kyle's wedding was a actually a lot of fun! It was a lot of work to be the mother of the flowergirls/ringbearer, a "bridesmaid" of sorts and the photographer...I was running around like a crazy person! It was a bummer that I was so busy running around I didn't have a chance to chat with everyone who was there...but I made sure to take some time out to hit the dance floor! Rylee was the "queen of the dance floor!" and rocked out all night...we all did our best to keep up. Karlee caught the bouquet and Spencer caught the garter...and then the two of them shared a great little dance! Anyways, it was a fun evening and we are all glad to have Kyle as part of the family! Congratulations guys!

Christmas Day finally arrives!

2011-01-05T12:03:00.000-08:00

After a full month of activities, traditions and festivities of all sorts the big day finally arrived! I guess the kids have been pretty good this year because Santa made a stop at our house and spoiled these kiddos rotten. It was a perfect morning. We spent the day relaxing, playing games, putting toys together, charging our newest electronics...when I say "we" of course that is everyone except Jake...he spent the day sleeping...I guess we all did exactly what we wanted! Spencer even got his first "big boy" bike and he picked it up in minutes (unlike the months we spent teaching his big sisters to ride). What a fun day!

Clark Christmas Party!

2011-01-05T11:11:00.000-08:00

We all look forward to this family party all year! Which is why Karlee was SO BUMMED when she woke up throwing up the morning of the big day! We kept trying to get her better, and she just wouldn't pull through. In the end, me and Karlee stayed home for dinner...she kept it down and so we went over to see Santa, play Christmas Bingo and then we headed back...the rest of our clan stayed at the party until 11:30 at night...it was quite a "hoppin' partay"!

It's a SNOW DAY!

2011-01-05T11:01:00.000-08:00

So, for the first time any of us can remember (including Jake, and he's been around awhile now)...school was closed for a snow day. The storm covered the roads with about 2 feet of snow and when we woke up we got a text message from the school telling us school was cancelled...then we checked the district website just to be sure and it was official! It was the last day of school before Christmas break...so the only bummer was that the kids missed their parties and Karlee missed doing her class Christmas play...but who can complain about staying home and hanging out? So, here's how we tried to fill our day...

Of course, we made a snowman...we couldn't find anything for eyes...so we just gave him some sunglasses!

We had some friends over for lunch...Hotdogs anyone??

And, my personal favorite of the day...this one made me laugh all day...Karlee, Audree and Makayla played...school! Yep, they had the day off and the best thing they could think of to play was "school"...they are hilarious!

Dance Recital and a SNOW DAY!!

2010-12-21T08:23:00.000-08:00

Last night was Rylee and Audree's dance recital...they were so adorable in their costumes!! Isn't Rylee's hip hop outfit so "Rylee"?? I loved it...and Audree looked like a tinkerbeel ballerina! We got there in time to have a front row seat and we were so excited that Grandma and Grandpa Clark could come to watch with us! They both danced perfectly and I couldn't be prouder of their great work!

Also, a huge storm is passing through Utah right now and today is the first "snow day" (school is cancelled!) that I have ever heard of while living here! We have had over 18 inches in the last 24 hours at our house...I usually don't appreciate the snow...but during the week of Christmas I think it's quite festive...so I am actually enjoying this beautiful Christmasy weather! The kids are very excited that their Christmas break just increased by one day...except Karlee...her class was supposed to perform a Christmas play that she wrote with her best friend. The class chose their play to perform and today was the big day...oh well, we'll just have to play in the snow instead!

Spencer is 4 years old!

2010-12-20T13:54:00.000-08:00

I am so sad...my baby turned 4...I LOVE 3 year olds and that part of being a mommy is over...lucky for me, these kids are still great even as they grow up! Anyways, we did the usual celebration for Spencer's big day and it was such a fun night! All the Clarks came over for a soup and chili dinner (I love that dinner on winter nights!). Spencer opened his presents...which he loved! Let's just say there were lots of cars, trucks and trains involved...his idea of perfect!

There was cake and ice cream and then we headed out to the lights!

I don't know how we did it...but somehow we managed to squeeze all the people in this photo into one truck! We had a great time driving thru the lights! It was actually a warm evening...so a bit more enjoyable than in years past! What a great evening...thanks for coming everyone...and Happy Birthday, Bubba!

Christmas Festivities!

2010-12-20T13:35:00.001-08:00

Well, we have been so busy having fun that I haven't had a chance to sit down and blog about it! Here's some of the stuff we've been up to...this is the short list let me assure you!
We decorated some cookies ( I would like to say that we "made" them...but honestly, I bought the dough at the store...we just decorated them!).

We had Spencer's preschool party here at our house!! We had fun with a book gift exchange, playing Christmas Bingo, reading some Christmas books, decorating penguin masks and eating cookies! The kids were so cute...it was a good time...later in the day Spencer said to me..."The kids at preschool thought you were the teacher today...but you are just my Mom!"...so funny!

It's been snowing...a sure sign that December is upon us! The kids don't care if it's snowing...the swings are still fun!

We made it to the mall to see Santa...everytime we find the chance to do this it seems to be at the end of a long and busy day...hence, my kids look like orphans...I always feel bad because some of the kids in line are all dressed adorable with hair done perfectly and we look like we dragged the kids out of bed...oh well! I guess the kids don't care, and neither does Santa!

Karlee's First Cheer Competition!!

2010-12-12T12:44:00.000-08:00

What a busy day we had yesterday! Karlee had her first cheer competition and, of course, we all had to be there! We packed up and left by 9:30 in the morning...she didn't compete until 12:15 and then the awards weren't done until 2:00! She did amazing and I couldn't be a prouder mommy...she makes my cheerleading exploits look like a joke...it's so fun to watch her!
I put a video of Karlee's routine on You Tube...If you want to watch her in action!!When you watch this clip you will have to watch carefully to keep your eye on Karlee. She starts the routine in the middle, tumbling toward the front. She is at the front center during the jumps and the front center for the basket-toss stunts. Hope that helps! Just copy and paste this address to watch! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X1lF6YGo5M

After the competition we decided to head up to Salt Lake and enjoy the lights at Temple Square! We had an early dinner at Applebees and shopped the Gateway for awhile (the lights on the tree there are amazing...they change to the music). We rode Trax (Spencer LOVES the train!) over the Temple Square and enjoyed the choirs and lights. Besides having to find bathrooms about 7 times during the evening (seriously!) it was fabulous! We also witnessed literally 4 engagements happen at the lights within minutes of eachother...apparently not a very unique place to get engaged...so funny!

Thanksgiving Festivities!

2010-11-30T15:21:00.001-08:00

Before we headed out for our usual Thanksgiving trip to California...we headed to the bowling alley with the Clarks! Luckily, we had a chance to see Casey and Dave's family before we left! We all had a great time and it was fun to be together and watch the kids bowl like pros!

Just a couple hours after the bowling was done...the car was packed, a bed made on the floor of the van and we started the drive to California. I have to say that taking the kids on these trips has gotten SO much easier the past year!
Our Thanksgiving Day started with our newest tradition...running a Turkey Trot...we did the run in Long Beach this year. The only bummer is that I never get to run it...I have the kids, but everyone that ran had a great time and me and the kids cheered them on at the finish line!

Thanksgiving dinner was delicious, as usual, and we all enjoyed hanging out at Nancy and Bob's house...Spencer and Bristol especially loved dancing with the singing decorations (except when Bristol touched Spencer's singing turkey and he yelled, "Bristol...stop touching my chicken!"). Uncle Bob took Jake and Spencer for a sweet ride in his hot rod too...Spencer could not have been more stoked! Unfortunately, the evening ended with a 911 call to the ambulance. Grandpa Nemrow had to be taken to the hospital with a congestive heart failure episode...he is doing much better now.

The trip was FULL of photography sessions for the family, Brooke's bridal photo shoot, Brooke's bridal shower and family activities...never a dull moment. Jake even took the kids to Scandia (their favorite!!) with Travis and Bristol while I attended the shower. The kids were even great helpers when we did Brooke's pictures at the beach...they loved to hold the flowers inbetween shots! It was a great trip!

Kids Photos

2010-11-20T19:37:00.000-08:00

Today I took our family pictures so that I could put together a Christmas card...I decided to use the button on my camera that will let me run into the pictures. I wasn't sure if that would work...but I actually like how they turned out. I don't want to post the pictures I am using on the Christmas card...I want everyone to be surprised...but here are some of the individual photos of the kids...I love these guys! Oh...and I put one of Jake and I on here too...enjoy!

Singer Extraordinaire!

2010-11-14T13:33:00.001-08:00

Today was the ward Primary Program during sacrament meeting. Rylee was assigned to sing a solo during one of the songs. She had practiced quite a bit. Daddy was nervous that she would try to sing opera-style (she has a tendency to do that at home) and Mom was just nervous that she would be too nervous. But Rylee rose to the occasion. She sang like an angel, it was sweet and beautiful...I cried like a baby and could hardly contain my tears for the rest of church. I am so proud of her. I don't know why I ever worry about my kids in these situations...so far, they have always fought the nerves and done great! Of course, once we got home and I told her I wanted a picture of her singing...it was back to good old crazy Rylee...got to love her!

Spooky Halloween Weather!

2010-10-31T16:24:00.000-07:00

This Halloween we had a great time dressing up...the kids each picked their own costumes...Spencer was very excited to be a monkey (so appropriate, don't you think?), Audree wanted to be a beautiful fairy with wings, Rylee (I am sure you couldn't guess...) wanted to be a witch and Karlee wanted to be Cinderella (the Cinderella wedding dress was on sale, so that's what we went with and she was very excited about wearing Mommy's veil). Jake and I decided to go with a Nacho Libre theme...and Jake's mustache was probably my favorite thing about the whole night!

About 30 seconds after we took these pictures (literally!) a crazy, tornado-like, hail storm came tearing through the city! We had to wait awhile to start the trick-or-treating. Jake took the kids out in the van for the first little while until the storm calmed down, then they finished trick-or-treating in the traditional manner...freezing cold walking! They all enjoyed a fresh batch of hot cocoa when they arrived back home!

I think it's pretty cool that here in good old Utah when Halloween falls on a Sunday...everyone just automatically celebrates (including trick-or-treating) on Saturday. It was great not to feel like we had to choose between keeping the Sabbath and celebrating! Even thought the weather would have been a LOT better, everyone just did the Saturday thing, no questions asked, I love it!

What is Bubba up to??

2010-10-27T10:19:00.000-07:00

Spencer is my favorite age right now...3 years old! I think they are SO funny and sweet at this age! This morning he ran into our bedroom excitedly yelling, "It's my birthday!"...here's the story. A few months ago he asked when his birthday was and I told him it would be when there was snow. Last night we got our first dusting of snow and this morning the lawn was covered. He woke up, saw snow outside, and figured out it was his birthday. He was pretty bummed when we told him it wasn't his birthday...although, we're thinking maybe we should just celebrate his birthday at the first snowfall every year since his Dec. 18th birthday is such a bummer. Hmmm..I'll have to let you know about that!

Yesterday Spencer drew his first self-portrait. He was very proud of himself! He came in to show it to me and with tons of enthusiasm explained,"Here is my eyes, this is my bellybutton, and these are some rocks!" pointing to the circles within the circle. I couldn't help but be very excited for him and give him a huge hug! I simply love this guy!

OH, Rylee actually did this self-portrait first (the one that inspired Spencer's). She is so funny too...my favorite thing she said this week was..."Hey Mom, the mountains look like a pile of muddy buddies". Muddy Buddies are those chex cereal treats you make with chocolate and peanut butter and then coat with powdered sugar...the mountains were dusted with snow that day. Only my Rylee would make that observation...food is such an important part of her life...especially food covered in powdered sugar!

Pumpkin Patch!

2010-10-23T10:49:00.000-07:00

It's a family tradition to head out to the local pumpkin patch and pick out our pumpkins every year...the kids watch the pumpkins grow all summer (as we drive down the road) and get really excited when the patch opens up! We have been SO busy lately, but found an evening to head out between dinner and cheer class. The kids love to pick pumpkins, but they also love the hay piles, maze and corn kernal pit. It's beginning to feel like Fall around here!

Ahhh...Ahhhh....Ahhhh (said in your best Tarzan impersonation!)

2010-10-16T11:45:00.000-07:00

So, we just got back from a fabulously relaxing weekend in St. George! The kids had a fall break on Thursday and Friday...so we headed out Wednesday night with a big surprise. We didn't tell the kids where we were going, but we had tickets to see "Tarzan" at the Tuachan theater. The kids were so excited when they figured it out and we had amazing seats for the performance. It was the best production we have seen down there yet...really, the show was so entertaining (lots of flying around and monkeys!)...the kids were enthralled the entire show! After the show we met up with Sam and Holly and their kids who happend to have tickets to the very same show!! The kids loved meeting all of the performers afterwards!

While we were down there we did a LOT of swimming (hooray for warm weather!) and bit of shopping (mostly because Jake forgot his work clothes hanging up by the door back at home...so he needed clothes to work in!) and too much eating! Before we headed home Sam and Holly invited us to go to a "rock climbing park" with them in town. We had never been there before and thought it sounded fun...and it was! The kids had a blast climbing and exploring and besides twisting my ankle we all had a great time(actually the ankle didn't even start to hurt until after we left...so we all had a great time while we were there!)

Then we were so hot and sweaty that we had to go for one last swim before heading home! As we were about to head out of town we realized our car was over-heating...so a quick stop at a car repair place (just a bit of water in the radiator did the trick) and we were off to home! What a great little escape...just what we needed!

Welcome Jimmy!

2010-10-11T08:32:00.000-07:00

Well, Swimmy (our goldfish) has been a member of the family for about 5 months now and we felt that he deserved a better home than the mason jar he has been living in. So, we went out and found a proper bowl...and while we were at it...we found him a friend. "Jimmy" had a sweet red mohawk and we couldn't resist him. We were afraid Swimmy might not appreciate sharing his new home...but the 2 of them seem to have hit it off and all is well. So, Swimmy and Jimmy continue to entertain us and are the perfect pets for this allergy-prone family!

Karlee is 9!!

2010-09-26T20:41:00.000-07:00

I can't believe a whole year has passed since her baptism! Karlee is growing up into such a beautiful girl and we had a great time celebrating her big day! When I asked her what she wanted for her birthday she literally told me that she wanted a hula hoop and a six-pack of root beer. Who am I to argue? So, we had planned to go as a family to Trafalga to celebrate and decided we would bring her best friend, Makayla, with us. Karlee chose for us to go to Applebees for lunch and then we headed out to Trafalga!

Lucky for us, the summer weather has held out for a little longer than usual. Trafalga was warm and not very crowded...perfect! After a couple of rides we hit the bumper cars and got completely soaked...so then we hit the miniature golf course to dry off!

After a sweet game of golf and a little rock climbing we decided to head home for presents and cake. Karlee got an outfit and homemade blanket from Grandma GiGi and a perfect best friends necklace from Makayla...and of course, a hula hoop and rootbeer from Mom and Dad. It was a great day and a great start to being 9!!

Introducing...

2010-09-20T20:34:00.000-07:00

Well, I'd like to introduce you to the soon-to-be newest member of the Nemrow family. This is Kyle...as you can see, the kids are already making him feel like family! We are so excited that Brooke and Kyle are finally officially engaged! We are all glad that Kyle is just as unique as the rest of us and think he will make a fabulous addition to the family! Congratulations guys!

Also, this is how I found Rylee dressed the other day...her "fashionista" ways always surprise me! I love this kid!

Tonight Karlee had a cheerleading fundraiser dinner...it was their first chance to perform their competition routine for an audience. She was so nervous because her best friend, Makayla, and her family were coming...Grandma and Grandpa Clark came...and Brooke & Kyle were all there to support her. We are so lucky to be surrounded by so many people we love! She did a fabulous job and made us all proud! I wish I had more photos...but the place was packed! Thank you so much to those of you who could come...it really meant a lot to us!

Bub's First Day of Preschool!

2010-09-08T09:04:00.000-07:00

Today is Spencer's first day of preschool and he was SO excited! I guess I am lucky because all of my kids are pretty independent and love to go to pre-school...they don't miss me a bit! He was happy to wear his favorite "Dino Bites" shirt and new shoes and carry this bag (which is almost as big as he is!). He is there now...I can't wait to hear all about it when he gets home!

Lake Powell 2010!

2010-09-07T11:22:00.000-07:00

Lake Powell is simply one of my favorite spots...something about that lake makes your forget about everything at home and simply enjoy and relax. The Clarks invited us to come on the houseboat for the Labor Day weekend and we were so excited! Besides the boat breaking down (I don't believe I have ever been to Lake Powell and had a fully functioning boat the entire time)...we enjoyed every minute! We parked the houseboat on this great little beach, we hiked and explored, jumped cliffs, swam (and swam and swam), cruised around on a rental boat(which we lovingly called "McDonalds" because of it's yellow and red motif), soaked up the sun, ate (and ate and ate), and just hung out with some of the people we love most. Another favorite activity on these trips is sleeping under the millions of stars...even though the wind was a bit crazy at times, it kept the sky clear for nighttime viewing. What a way to spend the weekend!

The tatoo contest was a highlight of the trip! Candice's lovely roses growing up her stomach, Jim's dinosaur on his neck ("So redneck!"), Jake and Sean's assortment of tats...good times!

Audree's First Day of Kindergarten!!

2010-09-01T08:01:00.000-07:00

Wow! 3 kids in school...I always knew it was supposed to happen, but I am not sure I believed it ever would. Spencer was sad that she was leaving, but he took a nap that lasted almost the whole time she was gone (just as I had planned, perfection!). Audree rode the bus with 7 girls on our block and there were 5 other girls her age getting on at 2 other stops...there are a LOT of little friends around here for her! Aren't they adorable? Anyways, she came home on the bus with Karlee and Rylee (who took very good care of their little sister...picking her up from her class and holding her hand the whole time) and Audree loved every minute. She has been telling us all about the games, rules and school tour ever since she got home! I love this kid and I think she's going to make a great Kindergartner!

We made this backpack for Audree to take to school...when I was painting her name on it, I had it looking great and then as I was finishing up...I totally stuck my hand in it and smeared it. It was a great opportunity to teach Audree about "happy mistakes"...we just smeared the silver name all over to make sparkles and re-did the name in purple over it. She is such a perfectionist, but she was very excited to learn that you could have "happy mistakes"...I think it turned out alright in the end!

Pure Craziness!!

2010-08-24T12:11:00.001-07:00

You're probably thinking that since I haven't posted anything in almost a month it means that nothing has been going on...actually, my friends, it is quite the opposite! I am not sure if I have even taken a breath during the month of August! It has been jam-packed with fun! Lots of photography, getting the kiddos ready for school, a girls-night-out with some childhood girlfriends (Sheralyn and Jenny...love those guys!), a one-day trip out to California to see my Dad get set apart in the Bishopric (that was really fun because I totally surprised them when I showed up at church...thanks to Blair and Shanna my partners in crime!) and the last 10 days I spent in California too!

Jake had to fly to Virginia for a week for work...I had nothing to do here at home that week...SO...we drove out California (he flew in and out of there for his trip) and I got to hang out with my family and the kids for over a week...we had a blast! Here are some pictures to catch you up!

One of the days we met with Sheralyn and her kids to feed the ducks and turtles at the park. The kids had fun getting to know eachother (my girls decided that the boys were "hot" and have debated over who gets which boy ever since...and the drama begins!)

We did a LOT of swimming!! In fact, Audree and Spencer both learned to swim without lifejackets this trip and it was always more fun when Garrett and Mackenzie came to swim with us!

One morning we went down and got muffins at "The Shoppes" with GiGi and then went to the "falls" to cool off.

One of the afternoons GiGi came with us and we hit the Santa Ana Zoo...it made the Utah Hogle Zoo seem like an African Safari. It was pretty much a couple birds, a whole bunch of monkeys and a plastic cow (I am not even joking about the plastic cow!!). It was fun and we wasted a couple hours there, but I don't recommend it. Also, Audree was NOT happy about the dirt that kept creeping into her flip flops there...oh the drama!

On our last day there (Jake returned and we got to hang out for a day before heading back!) Blair and Shanna took us out to Canyon Lake to do some skiing and boating! Karlee and Rylee waterskiied and had so much fun...Karlee swears she did a jump over some wake! Jake took a turn and showed he still has some skills and I got up and fell over a couple times (and paid for it with soreness the next morning!). We did a lot of eating and swimming around and generally just relaxed...thanks for a great day guys!

There was also a day at the beach (which I would rather not remember...got soaked by a rouge wave, traffic, screaming children, etc.), Jake and I went to the gun range with Blair and Shanna, we went out for a yummy pizza dinner with Travis and Katie and Mom and Dad, I got to visit my Grandma Nemrow with the kids, we watched some movies and just had a great end-of-summer extravaganza!

Then today...school started...summer is done. I can't believe my Karlee is in 4th grade and Rylee is in 2nd (Audree starts kindergarten next week). Can't wait to see what this year will hold!

LAGOON!!

2010-08-02T15:19:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of the summer we came up with a plan to keep the kids reading and doing their basic chores everyday. We created a chart and if they filled it each day we would go to Lagoon at the end of summer. Well, summer isn't quite over, but Sarah and Brady came to town and wanted to hit Lagoon...the kids have been so good at doing their chores and reading everyday that we decided to go with them! It was a HOT day ( I must have refilled the water bottle 10 times during the afternoon!) but the kids didn't slow down for a second...they ran (with Jake by their side) from ride to ride for the whole 9 hours we were there! They loved every single ride they went on...the girls were only bummed when they were too short to go on the biggest rides! Spencer and Kade had a blast together and are now officially best buddies (it was hilarious to watch their little conversations together). Sarah (who is expecting baby #3) and I (I literally got nausus just watching all the rides there)didn't get to enjoy the rides, but I guess someone had to watch all the little kiddos. Good Times!

Pioneer Day Weekend!!

2010-07-25T14:20:00.000-07:00

For years now we have talked about taking the kids camping...I always felt that we should save that adventure until the kids were old enough not to eat dirt and I wouldn't have to bring diapers. This year the stars aligned and we got excited to head out into the wild. We bought a tent and picked a weekend. Jake had a day off work because of Pioneer Day and it worked out perfectly. We just headed up to Rock Canyon (about a 20 minute drive)...we were going to go to Payson Canyon until we heard there was an aggressive bear up there (it actually was shot by wildlife officials while were up Rock Canyon). Anyways, we were going to head to a campground, but when we got there is was closed and the sun was setting...so we found a great spot off a dirt road and set up camp. I think it's really cool that we live just 20 minutes away from seclusion in the mountains!!

We enjoyed a campfire with s'mores, the kids searched for treasures, we watched the stars come out and then hit the tent. Besides a deer that freaked us out (we used Jake's keys to push the lock button on his truck...the lights and horn got that deer running!) we slept well and woke up to doughnuts around the campfire the next morning. We took the kids on a hike to a great lookout point, had lunch and packed up to head home. It was the perfect little escape! The kids absolutely loved it and Jake and I actually had a blast too. We will be doing that a lot more often...hopefully with friends next time!

It's the Fourth!!

2010-07-06T14:14:00.001-07:00

We just LOVE this holiday! This year might have been even better than usual...because the 4th fell on a Sunday the holiday was spread throughout an entire 3-day weekend! We enjoyed the 3 days to the fullest...well, Spencer and Audree both came down with a fever and unfortunately were unable to fully enjoy, but both were feeling well enough for some of the activities. The BBQ's, fireworks, parade and time with family were fabulous. Thanks to everyone who made it happen...the homemade ice cream, pinatas, and fireworks were much appreciated!

Spencer absolutely loved having his cousin, Kade, in town! They were buddies and would get so excited to play together...wish we saw you guys more!

Rylee didn't let a moment with her cousins go to waste!

Karlee wanted to help me capture all the Fourth of July festivities!

Daddy and Bubba had fun hanging out at the BBQ!!

Audree is always full of charming faces!

Oh What a Feeling....

2010-06-29T20:59:00.000-07:00

Remember those old Toyota commercials..."Oh what a Feeling...Toyota!"? Well, here's Jake with his new baby. Jake has been eyeing this truck at a car lot for about 9 months...it's sort of like Michael J. Fox in Back to the Future and his big black truck...well, finally the stars aligned so that we could fulfill all of Jake's truck dreams. He says he was never worried the truck would sell before we could get it because it was meant for him...and to be honest, I actually think they look alike. Anyways, he is giddy over this truck and I love to see him so happy...oh, and Spencer is pretty stoked about it too!

Speaking of "Oh what a feeling"...I had to post this picture to go with this story. Jake has been teaching Spencer the fine art of "peeing like a man" recently. We haven't been too concerned about this...even when he openly peed at the beach, we just laughed it off...there weren't many people around. So, the other day we took the kids to Seven Peaks for the evening. The kids were running around the kiddie pool going down slides and swimming around in their life jackets...Jake and I were just sitting on the side chatting away. Suddenly, we heard snickers and laughter all around us...Jake turned and said, "Oh wow, Ash...look at that!"...and there he was...our little guy...standing in the center of the kiddie pool, on a platform, all by himself. Pants around his ankles, life jacket secured, back arched hard and shooting for the moon. Yep, he was peeing a stream about 3 feet in front of him, right into the pool. The men around the pool were laughing hysterically and the life guard said, "I thought it was a watergun at first!" Jake ran over and helped him pull his pants back up (I was too embarrassed to go over). Jake said,
"Spencer, we don't pee in the pool, dude...just trees." to which Spencer replied, "Dad, I didn't pee in the pool...I got out." Jake swears the whole incident was one of his proudest moments. Priceless.

California Sun and Fun

2010-06-21T15:03:00.000-07:00

We just returned home from a FABULOUS trip to California. My parents rented a beach house and let us come hang out with them for 3 days...we were on the beach about 8 hours everyday! We had a weinie roast with s'mores on the beach one night and Jake caught his first wave and stood up on the surfboard! We all had some sweet tatoos to wear and enjoyed choosing our style and body part to decorate! Jake turned the girls into sandy mermaids and there were plenty of sandcastles. It really was completely relaxing.

When it was time to leave the beachhouse we headed straight to Sea World! Mom and Dad came with us and we all enjoyed the shows and touching the manta rays (well, Audree and Spencer didn't exactly enjoy that part). We got soaked on the river ride and Karlee and Rylee were a little freaked out by the big roller coaster. It was gorgeous weather and not crowded at all...fun, fun, fun!

Back at my parents house we heated the pool to 80 degrees and swam for 2 days straight! Mackenzie, Garrett, Shanna, Mackenzie, Bristol and Travis all joined us from time to time in the pool and we all had a blast.

One of the nights Jake and I went to a shooting range with Blair and Shanna. It was me and Jake's first time shooting a hand gun...it made my heart pound, but by the end I had a pretty good shot! We had a great time and now Jake is ready to get a gun of his own! Thanks for a great evening guys!

We also went to see Toy Story 3 with Blair and Shanna and the kids. Garrett and Spencer sat by eachother and were hilarious! We ate tons of yummy food (including some incredibly large pork chops!), enjoyed some great company, and feel rejuvenated. I love vacations!

Surgery

2010-06-21T14:58:00.000-07:00

Today I performed surgery on a bunny, elephant, kitty and 2 pillows. Everyone is recovering well and seems fluffier than ever. Even I am impressed with how well-disguised the scars are. Here's hoping they will all sleep well tonight!

Audree is 5 years old!

2010-06-11T20:13:00.000-07:00

I have been a slacker of a mom...Audree's birthday was on the 5th and I am finally getting around to posting these pics! Audree has been SO excited about turning 5 and being ready for kindergarten. For her birthday she requested that we go to Seven Peaks as a family and then go home for cake and presents. Seriously, how easy is that??? I was willing to do something more exciting...but this is what she wanted...wish granted! We had a blast at Seven Peaks and then came home for chocolate cake with chocolate frosting (Audree's request) and then she opened presents (a doll house with accessories...she was in heaven!). I love this girl!! Audree loves snuggles, playing pretend (especially playing kitty with Spencer) and she is an incredibly picky eater. She is quite the singer, in fact, today she followed me around the house all day singing songs (most of which were not even in English) and keeping me company. I just love this kid! Happy Birthday, Audree!!

Summer has Arrived!

2010-06-03T13:19:00.000-07:00

Summer has been very slow to arrive this year...school got out 2 days after a huge snow storm! We have tried to be patient, but we REALLY want some warm weather to enjoy. Finally today we hit 80 degrees and the kids thought it was time to ACT like summer! So here is how we celebrated!

End of the School Year Activities!

2010-05-28T20:39:00.000-07:00

We have been busy trying to keep up with the kids and all of their end of school year activities this past week! The school year always ends with a bunch of fun chaos! Rylee's 1st grade class had "Pet Day"...and since we aren't "pet people" at this house...she had to call upon Grandma Clark to save the day! Grandma, Jenny and Candice were so nice to drive a kitty down to Rylee's class. Jenny even arrived with some fresh kitty scratches from the drive over...thanks Jen! Rylee was so excited to share the kitten...she really does have such a sensitive side!

Audree ended her pre-school year with a fabulous performance! I love how animated she is when she sings! She was sad to leave Mrs. Wall and Mrs. Darling, but she is so excited to go to kindergarten!

One of the end of the year activities at the elementary school is called "mini-society". The 6th grade students put on a society with booths...they sell things and hold contests, etc. The younger students earn money with good behavior to spend at the "mini-society". This year Karlee came home with hot pink hair and candy...Rylee came home with green hair and "swimmy". Yep...she ignored all of our "no pets" rules and brought home a fish. Well, I was feeling generous and when I went to get Swimmy some food (I can't just let the thing die in a jar!) I also decided Swimmy looked lonely...so I got him a friend. This is where the story starts to sound a lot like one from my own childhood...the next morning the water looked murky, so I decided to clean it out. I poured the water out and caught the fish in a strainer and put them under running water while I re-filled the jar. I poured them back into the jar with clean water...only Swimmy floated to the top on his side and I quickly realized that the water I ran them under was really warm. I killed Swimmy!! Getting him a friend must have been inspiration, because that little guy is the only one who lives here now...Swimmy has gone to a better place. Mom...I totally forgive you for killing my fish in 4th grade!

Last night Audree had her spring dance recital. She was a star to me! She smiled and danced perfectly! I had fun doing her hair in this fancy updo...so I had to show you all how it turned out! She looked like a princess and I was so proud of her!

Planterium Fun!

2010-05-23T19:47:00.001-07:00

Sorry for the terrible pictures...my point-n-shoot is not an indoor/low-light camera! Anyways, we had a chance to visit the planterium at BYU for Audree's pre-school field trip and it was a blast! Audree loved playing connect the dots with the stars to draw pictures and Bubba was in awe of the dark room filled with the moon and stars. We loved the "hot dog" constellation the best! The trip was during lunchtime, so even Daddy got to come with us! It was a great time!!

Boys Toys!

2010-05-09T20:43:00.000-07:00

Here are my 2 favorite boys playing with the newest boy-toy at the house. Spencer begged for weeks to find his lost Thomas Train...we searched everywhere and couldn't find it...so I gave in and bought him a new one ( I am such a sucker for his sweet pleas). Now he won't let it out of his sight! These 2 boys put together a sweet track today and had fun playing trains together. How can you not love these guys?

Homemade Playdough!

2010-04-30T14:32:00.000-07:00

Audree said she was bored today...so we made some playdough!

Rylee is 7!!

2010-04-30T11:51:00.000-07:00

This time of year it seems like we all get older all of a sudden around here. While our birthdays are spread throughout the seasons...they start coming fast in the late Spring! Rylee is the first and we always have a great time celebrating her big day.

We decided last year to institute a "every-other-year" friends birthday party. So the kids get to have a "friends" party on their even birthdays and a family party on their odd ones. I actually think this is pretty generous because growing up I only got "friend" parties on my 8,12 and 16th birthdays.

Unfortunately for me, Rylee remembered that when Karlee was 7 she had a "friend" party...so we had to compromise this year. We decided that Rylee could take one friend to go get their hair and nails done at the salon and then come back for cake and ice-cream. Everyone was happy with this arrangement.

So, yesterday I took Rylee and Alyssa (her adorable friend from school) to the salon and they loved getting all fancy! They were so funny...they both had planned to wear skirts, flip flops and matching hair bows...and showed up looking so fabulous! After getting all fancy at the salon we headed home where Grandma and Grandpa Clark were waiting with the rest of the crew for cake and ice-cream. When all was said and done Rylee said, "This was the BEST birthday EVER!" She was so cute and just loved everything about her big day...she thought it was really cool that even her karate coaches wished her a Happy Birthday!

Busy...busy...busy

2010-04-27T12:48:00.000-07:00

I have had so much to post about, just no time to do it!! Let me try to catch you up...I don't even have pictures for most of this!

Karlee and Rylee performed in the school-wide talent show 2 weeks ago. They were amazingly brave and did such a great job! I tried to take video to post on You Tube for those of you who might have wanted to see it...alas, the camera's battery (which I swear I charged all night) was dead when we got there. I was super bummed that I had no record of this event.

Karlee tried out for a competitive cheer team at her gym last week. They have asked me to put her on one of these teams the last 2 years and I finally gave in. There are 3 levels of teams and she made the Senior team (the highest level). She astounded me with a perfect 10 round-off/backhandspring/back tuck at her try-outs and she really is quite talented at this stuff! I am very concerned about the amount of time and money we will now be pouring into this team...but she is so excited and worked really hard to pull her grades up so that we would let her try-out...I have no choice but to let her do this! Wish us all luck!!

Karlee also had a city-wide 3rd grade track meet (all 3rd grades attend this field trip and everyone participates). It was on one of the few warm days we have had and so Spencer, Audree, Jake and I all went to cheer her on. We didn't expect much...but she won 2 of her races and we all got a little sunburned! Oh yeah, and Spencer threw a rock at my face while we were there. I now know what it might feel like to be stoned...hurty. Sometimes that kid just doesn't think before he does things. It was a great day to relax and hang out at the track...plus...I remembered my camera that day!

Then Karlee had a school singing program the other night (really the last couple weeks have been all about Karlee...the other kids will have their turns here shortly I am sure). We all went and listened to her sing songs against violence...we all sang along since she has been practicing these songs at home the last couple months!

At Christmas my Mom gave the kids a large butterfly house along with a certificate to order live larva and grow butterflies at home. We sent for the larva once Spring came and spent several weeks watching them turn into caterpillars, chrysallis and then butterflies. I can't believe we didn't kill any of them! We kept the butterflies at home in their little habitat for about 2 weeks and finally let them go the other day. They were really gross to grow (nature at its best), but we enjoyed the experience. Here's what they looked like!

Here's the kids when we let them go free!

One last thing...I just had to share this photo of Spencer's shoes. We finally had to get him a new pair of shoes because he started using his feet as brakes when he rides his trike around. I am just afraid I will be buying him new shoes every couple of weeks at this rate! What a stinker!

Forts

2010-04-12T14:43:00.000-07:00

Forts have created a love/hate relationship in our house... I hate them and the kids love them! They are a mess! Everyday the kids promise to clean it up when they are done (an empty promise at best since they can't fold blankets)...and everyday I end up cleaning them up at bedtime. Perhaps I should take more time to get inside and enjoy the forts myself...but...I don't. No matter how I try to get them to entertain themselves in some other way...the forts keep appearing. I guess I will just have to teach the kids to fold blankets!

Easter Buddies!

2010-04-07T13:26:00.000-07:00

We had a great Easter weekend! It was so relaxing since it was General Conference weekend too! We hung out in our pjs and ate WAY too much candy. The Easter Bunny was generous and brought shirts, sunglasses and a fun outside toy for each of the kiddos...then we ate cinnamon rolls for breakfast...when I planned breakfast I didn't think about the fact that we would already be on a sugar high from the baskets...so the sugar intake for that day was enormous!! Anyways, it was a great day!

Talented!!

2010-04-03T08:47:00.000-07:00

Karlee and Rylee were excited to participate in the school talent show this year! There is a grade level show and then the top 3 of each grade are chosen to go on to the school-wide show 2 weeks later. So, yesterday was the grade level performances... Karlee did a gymnastics/dance routine and Rylee did a karate demonstration. Of course, I was proud of them and thought they were the best...but they were REALLY excited when they were both chosen as top 3 performers of their grade to participate in the big school-wide show in 2 weeks! I am glad that they both made it and one didn't have to be sad...I will have to let you know how it goes when it's time for the big one!

This is Karlee and her adorable best friend, Makayla. Makayla did a great clogging routine!

Here's Rylee looking fierce!

Here's Spencer thoroughly enjoying the talent show! I do have to admit that by the time we sat through 2 grade level shows (approx. 2 hours) he was DONE!

And this is Audree a couple days ago...she put on a fabulous fashion show for me. My favorite part was at the beginning when she was the announcer and she said, "Ladies and Gentleman...please turn off your cell phones for tonight's fashion show!" Classic!

SUCCESS!! and a milestone

2010-03-26T11:49:00.000-07:00

After 8 1/2 years of daily diaper changes (about half of that time I had 2 kids in diapers)...the unthinkable has happend...it's over! Yep, Spencer is potty trained. There were some tears shed and a pair of underwear or two were thrown out...but it went fairly quickly. He was motivated by a toy car that sat on the sink staring at him for days and by nightly presents for dry pants. I waited awhile to share the news for fear of jinxing it...but it's been about 10 days and for the last 8 he has even been dry at night! It's nothing short of a miracle in my book. Doesn't he look all grown up (and skinny as a rail)in his "big boy underpants"??

I have to say that I have reflected on the whole thing (no really, it's a big deal!) and feel so excited to move on to this next phase of motherhood...we also signed Audree up for Kindergarten this week...they are all just moving on to the next step in their little lives and I am so excited to be their mom for all of this! Sure, I will miss crawling babies, snuggling in a rocking chair, using a binky to make them quiet...but I still have a few years of playing Dr. Mommy, squirting them with the hose, and reading books to them at bedtime...and I am sure when that passes I will find things to love about the next phase too. I just LOVE where I am and I LOVE being their mom!

Rylee Phelps!

2010-03-21T12:22:00.000-07:00

Rylee competed in her first big karate tournament this weekend! She looked like Michael Phelps by the end...winning 2 silver and 1 gold medal! She loves the chimbara (fighting with sword-like sticks)...that's what she won gold in! I was so super bummed because they told us the tournament would last 1 hour...so I planned my photo shoot that for after the tournament would end...I did NOT want to miss it! Then they didn't end up calling Rylee to compete until 3 minutes before I had to leave...next time I will leave LOTS more time...Daddy video taped it for me...but it's just not the same. Luckily, Rylee forgave me and I am so proud of her!

Winter Weekends!

2010-03-21T12:15:00.000-07:00

So 3 weeks ago we discovered a free way to take the kids skiing...the rope tow at Sundance...hooray! We have spent the past 3 weekends skiing (Jake even convinced ME to ski this last time...a HUGE accomplishment on his part). The kids are LOVING it and we are just enjoying being together and trying something new. We are impressed...they can each come down the little slope by themselves (Even Spencer, although he likes riding on Daddy's shoulders better)...Karlee and Rylee are getting rather adventurous as the hill gets easier for them.

After an afternoon of skiing we all love to come back down the mountain and hop into Grandma Clark's hot tub to relax! What a fabulous way to spend our Saturdays!

Preschool Dino Trip!

2010-03-15T16:07:00.000-07:00

We love to visit the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point...so when Audree's pre-school was going on a trip there...we jumped at the chance! Me, Spencer and Audree all headed up and enjoyed all the exhibits...especially the floating paper tubes, giant shark head and digging in the sand! After the museum we enjoyed lunch at our favorite spot...JCW's! What a fun way to spend the day together!

The adorable girl next to Audree is her friend, "Boo"! They go to pre-school and dance class together...they have almost as much fun together as me and her mom do!

My Little Chicken Nugget

2010-03-10T15:26:00.000-08:00

Spencer has coined his own little catch-phrase lately...and it cracks me up! He says "Chicken Nugget" about anything and everything.

For example, when I put him to bed, instead of saying "good night"...he says, "Chicken Nugget".

When we are driving down the road and he sees a big tractor he says, "Wow! Chicken Nugget".

When he feels a little silly he says, "Mom, you're a chicken nugget!".

When he sings a song he knows he will replace random words with "chicken nugget".

Sometimes when he just hasn't had anything to say for awhile he will simply blurt out, "chicken nugget"!

This kid is hilarious to me...I really will miss having a toddler in the house here soon. Don't get me wrong...I am ready to move past the whole diaper, sippie cup, tantrum stage...but they really are so fun at this age!

It's a Big Deal...

2010-03-03T21:47:00.000-08:00

Well...First of all, Rylee has been wanting to lose a tooth for about 2 years now (ever since Karlee started to lose hers). She has had a somewhat loose tooth for a couple months now and just in the last week or so it has gotten a lot more loose. I still thought it had some time. So, anyways, tonight she wanted me to tie some floss to it so that she could tug on it (I didn't think this would work...it never has before). I underestimated Rylee's determination though and after I tied the floss to the tooth she YANKED on it as hard as she could and that tooth came flying out! I totally laughed...it bled like crazy because it still had some root left on the tooth...but she couldn't be happier! Congratulations Rylee!

Also, I feel bad because with Audree's dance and Rylee's karate there are "performance" opportunities where I can tell you what they've accomplished, but Karlee's cheer class doesn't really have anything like that. She has been really excited lately because she goes up into something called "extensions" and just this week she learned to do a twisting dismount. She sure loves that class and I have a blast watching her! So, here's a little picture of what she's been up to. Go Kars!

The weather has been hinting at spring this last week and we have enjoyed some spurts in the sunshine. It's been FABULOUS to go outside and breathe fresh air. Audree's big accomplishment this past week has been learning to pump herself on the swings! This is great news for her and also great news for those of us who have been pushing her on the swings the past few years! Hooray for Audree!

One more thing...Spencer is killing me! That boy couldn't be less interested in going on the potty. I am not sure how to motivate him...he's so laid back...and he is just completely content being changed. He really likes getting all comfy on the bed, putting his hands behind his head and waiting for us to make his "bum all shiny". He doesn't like having dirty diapers...but if he must, he will just deal with it rather than go to the potty. I adore that kid, but we've got to get this started...any ideas would be great!

Rylee's a Movie Star!

2010-03-01T12:53:00.000-08:00

This week Rylee was the "Star of the Week" in her 1st grade class. Her teacher asked us to do a 15 minute presentation about Rylee. It could include a poster about her, show and tell some of her favorite things, etc. We decided to put together a little movie about Rylee to show her classmates...since I already have all of our pictures in digital form...it was actually the easiest thing to do!

I thought some of our friends and family might enjoy this look back at Rylee growing up. So, I posted the movie on YouTube. Here's the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9luhOuR6Ifc if you'd like to go see it! Just copy and paste that link into the browser or go to www.youtube.com and search for Rylee Clark 2010. Anyways, watching this makes me cry everytime...she's just growing up really fast and I love this kid! I hope you enjoy!

Man Time and Girls Night Out!

2010-02-27T20:49:00.000-08:00

Tonight we decided to split the girls and boys up for a night on the town! The boys wanted to go skiing...Jake was so excited to take Spencer out for his first run on the slopes! Jake is especially proud of his boys tucking form on the hill, and Spencer was always excited to get back on the lift! They can't wait to go back out again soon!

After a couple runs... Spencer needed a little rest and decided to chill right there in the snow!

The girls night wasn't so successful...we got stuck in some nasty Provo traffic and were late to our movie "Princess and the Frog" at the dollar movie...it was sold out by the time we got there. We ended up going to a girls dinner out at Quiznos and a Red Box movie at home. We still managed to have some fun together and loved hanging out in our jammies for a little movie.

Prarie Day!

2010-02-24T11:33:00.000-08:00

Karlee was really excited about Prarie Day at school...and even more excited when she found out Grandma Clark had a perfect dress she could wear. This day at school was supposed to give them some ideas about how school was back in 1875...she thought it was funny that they had to put their nose on the chalk board for 10 minutes if they were late to class, she liked how they sat with their chairs in rows and she especially liked that they ate their lunch in the classroom altogether. Thanks to Grandma Clark and Aunt Holly for making sure the dress got to us in time for the special day...don't you just love how big that bonnet is on my kids tiny head??

Crazy Busy...

2010-02-16T13:18:00.000-08:00

The past two weeks have been so much fun...but after all that running,driving and playing...it's nice to be home and trying to settle back into a routine!

A week ago was our annual Nemrow Family trip to the Ward's cabin. It was a blast!! Relaxing, crazy, snowy and toasty all rolled up into one great 3-day weekend! The adults had a wild time extreme tubing while Grandma GiGi played Valentine's party with the kids at the cabin...then we did some fun tubing with the kids, snowmobiling (the night time adults ride was my personal favorite...I had to bail off the snowmobile one time, I guess my snowbile skills need some work!). It was so fun for Spencer and Audree to have Mackenzie and Garrett there...they were in heaven hanging out with their cousins! We had WAY too much hot cocoa, lots of chicken quesadillas, a few too many corn dogs and a bucket of licorice...so there was plenty of food around. Brooke taught Shanna and I some sweet dance moves and everyone shared their best moves for this year's movie (every year I create a movie from our trip...they are always quite entertaining!). The hot tub capped off our evenings and yahtzee games were always going on. It really was a perfect escape!

After all that fun, we used the following week to clean up and prepare for the next weekend. On Friday we headed out again...this time we headed south to Las Vegas. I was scheduled to take my cousin"s (Clayton Allsop)wedding pictures...and since Ron Carter is such an amazing friend and always gets us stellar deals on hotels we decided to spend the weekend playing in the sunshine down there! The kids were so good the whole trip and just loved hanging out together. While I did the wedding, Jake took the kids swimming, watched a movie and took them and out to pizza for dinner...what a great Dad! The next morning we opened our little Valentine's and then headed out to a local park (it was like 70 degrees outside...hooray!) where we played an intense game of toilet tag together, then we went swimming again! We packed up and headed home Sunday evening. It really was a great time and so nice just to be together! Thanks for a great weekend guys!

Quilt!!

2010-01-27T19:43:00.000-08:00

For the record, I am NOT a quilter. It is hard and my single attempt in the past was a disaster...it ended up in the garbage (along with all the tools necessary to try again). So, this quilt happend by accident.

I have a hard time finding home accessories in the colors I like (yellow and purple), so I decided to make some pillows to go with my couches a couple months ago. I just guessed on how much fabric I would need and I estimated super high and had TONS of fabric left over. So, after the pillows were done I thought it would be fun to make a quilt to match...maybe not fun...but I thought if I could actually do it then it would be nice to have.

It took me several months to have the time and desire to do it, but the time came it took a few days, but it's done! If you're a quilter...don't look too close, there are some major problems...but considering my past I am stoked with the finished product! My kids love it too because I got a super soft fabric for the back! Anyways, ta-da!

Activity Days...and something scary!

2010-01-21T12:02:00.000-08:00

Tonight was Karlee's Activity Days etiquette dinner. She was supposed to invite one of her parents to come with her and so I got the lucky invite! We had a blast sitting by two of our best friends (Amber and Makayla Golding)and trying out our manners. It was a bit tricky at times to remember all the rules....especially at a spaghetti dinner...but we were so fancy, we never forgot to put our pinkys up! Anyways, thanks for inviting me Kars, it was fabulous to have a girls night out!

Also, Spencer has had a new dilemma lately. His imagination has been running wild and he seems to be scared of everything! Honestly, he is currently terrified of hairs on the shower walls...if there is a hair on the shower wall(which there usually is with 4 girls and their long hair living in this house) he screams and cries like something is attacking him! It is hilarious and frustrating at the same time. He also has been waking up several times a night scared from dreams or the passing train. He suddenly became scared to be upstairs by himself too. Anyways, we are trying to make him a tough boy...but I secretly love the big hugs I get when he's scared...so I am sure he will outgrow this stage and in the mean time we will deal with his imagination as it comes.

I love how when I went to take a picture of Spencer being scared for the blog...this is the face he made! Then, of course, the girls had to have scared pictures of themselves too! Don't we look frightened?