Back 2 School

It's been 12 years since I didn't need to be home at lunchtime for either naptime, preschool or kindergarten...it's been 12 years since I had days all to myself. I never thought this day would really come, but it's here. All 4 of the kiddos go to school all day. They were all so excited to start this new year and see their friends again. Karlee started Jr. High...she was nervous about opening her locker and finding her classes...but no worries, she's got it down!

Rylee was ready to start the "Big Kid Hallway" at Sage Creek and she was so excited to have Mrs. Welch for her teacher (who also loves to play soccer!).

Audree is in 3rd grade...she is just growing up too fast! She has Mrs. Egbert for a teacher this year (one of our family's favorites!). She was so excited that the theme for their class this year was "Hollywood".

Spencer is starting 1st grade! He is such a good kid and always tries his best...he is going to love Mrs. Trevenen's class! After the first day he did say, "Man, that was a long time to be at school!". Luckily, Jack and Simon are in his class...they will have a blast this year!

St. George

Without a single day of the summer wasted we decided to head on down to St. George with only a few days left before school started. Always a good choice! Dad did a little work with Scott and the rest of us did some school shopping and hung out by the pool. The perfectly relaxing way to end a fabulous summer.

Demolition Derby!

We are just a little bit red-neck around here...and we love it! We love to hit the demolition derby in the summer. We were bummed because we wanted to go to the Spanish Fork derby...but there must be A LOT of red-necks around here, because it was sold out!! So, we made the trek to Nephi this time around and it was totally worth it! It was a little bit chilly for a summer evening, but we enjoyed the smashing, crashing and music. So fun!

Lagoon!!

This year our summer was so crazy that by the time we decided to plan our trip to Lagoon, nobody could go with us...such a bummer, but we still managed to have a GREAT time! This year was great because all 4 of the kiddos were big enough to go on all the rides they wanted to! Spencer was STOKED to go on the big rides and he LOVED them all! I popped a Dramamine and we all got to ride some rides together! It was such a great time and we hung out until they kicked us off the Terror Ride (where the creepy old guy kept saying, "Welcome to the Terror Ride, do not exit the car...we'll know if you do", and then laughed in a creepy and hilarious way!).

Camping!

Our annual camping trip was a big hit this year! Jake took his scouts on a campout earlier this summer and one of the other leaders introduced him to this cool and totally off-the-beaten path location. We didn't see another human being until the trip was almost over...so cool! It was also located next to a stream and had some great hiking. After hours of preparation we headed out on the big trip and I thought I was totally ready...then as we were cooking dinner I realized that I forgot the hot dogs...AAAHHHHHH!! Luckily, I packed some cup-o-noodles just as a snack, which became dinner. We cooked the water in water bottles and ate up, whew disaster averted. We enjoyed a relaxing night sleeping under the stars and then went for a hike the next day. It was a great hike with some cool views of cliffs and only one fall in the stream! Good times! Can't wait to do it again next year!

Pioneer Day

Pioneer Day started out with the Spanish Fork Parade...Audree and Karlee were both in it this year! Later that day we celebrated by going to the Mapleton Fireworks Extravaganza...so fun! We invited Aunt Sarah and her family to come and we also invited The Goldings and they made it too! We had a great time under the big fireworks and just enjoyed the beautiful weather and great company. Rylee was hit by a rogue firework (yep, we're that close to the action!)...but she survived and is only emotionally scarred! It was a great night to be a Clark!

The Year of the Boat-y!!

It has always been a bit of a dream of mine to one day own a boat. I grew up going to Lake Powell in the summer and it was some of my favorite times and one of my favorite places...Jake had the same experience. So, as a mother it has been something I wanted to share with my kids...and just as a person it's something I love to do! We decided to start saving up and looking for the perfect boat for us...it would have to be in our price range, it would have to seat enough people to bring friends along, it would have to be a V-drive (so we could surf behind it) and it needed the wrap around seating that we have fallen in love with! It was a long search with many disappointments along the way (people kept buying up the boats before we had a chance to see them!). Finally, we happened upon the perfect boat and we jumped at the chance. We named it "Boat-acious" and call it Boat-y for short. It has been SO much fun to play with it this summer...we have had it out on Utah Lake and at Lake Powell. We love to kneeboard (all 4 of the kids can do it!) and we love to surf (we are starting to get the hang of it!). It's the perfect family escape and with Utah Lake so close we can just jump in and enjoy it anytime the weather's nice. I can't say enough about how much I have enjoyed this new toy!!