California Sun and Fun

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

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!

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!

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!

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!

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!

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?