Tuesday Tell All: Childhood Summer Memories

In a previous post I had stated that I had a perfect childhood. And I'll stand by my statement forever. It was a simple, blissful, carefree, magical time filled with so happy moments I seem to lose count. My only wish is that my own children can say the same.

I remember.....

Running through the sprinklers and splashing in our green plastic turtle pool, complete with ultra-mini slide.

My dad mowing my Great-grandma Goldthorpe's lawn and then treating ourselves to a KFC picnic.

Going to the Hogle Zoo nearly every Saturday when my dad was in medical school.

Riding in the child seat on the back of my mom's bike on long rides around our neighborhood.

Playing on our metal swing set in our backyard and hanging upside down on the U-shaped bar forever.

Cruising on the driveway in my pink, white and light blue Big Wheel that would click each time the wheel spun round.

Flying kites with my dad at Liberty Park.

Sleeping out in the backyard in my Grandpa's old tent with Jessica Willies and then having it POUR rain. It leaked and dripped inside and we had to head for the shelter of our home in the middle of the night.

Making clover necklaces, bracelets and even earrings.

Learning to ride my bike on Star Crest Drive and being so jealous when Greg got his training wheels off first.

Swimming lessons followed by Glade's fried food and Oreo shakes.

Discovering my love for a Tigers Blood Hawaiian Shaved Ice.

Happily mowing the lawn for $5.00- it was the edging by hand part I didn't enjoy.

Working at our Salt Lake ward's tomato farm up in Davis county. Even to this day, when I smell a tomato plant, I think of that place. They used the money from selling the tomatoes to fund our ward's budget.

Riding the creaky old white roller coaster, the Colossus, the Tidal Wave, the Wild Mouse, Dracula's Castle and Magic Carpet rides at Lagoon. When ever I am outside in intense heat surrounded by asphalt, it makes me think of those hot summer days at Lagoon.

A day out boating on Utah Lake in my Grandpa Nance's old boat. We would pack up the big red cooler for a day of fun. It wasn't the most reliable old thing and nearly gave me a panic attack or two when it stalled out in the middle of the lake. We stored in on the side of our house. It had a thick canvas cover and had a musty smell when you climbed in. I found a treasure inside the jockey box when I discovered a pair of my grandma's old sunglasses. They were brown plastic cat shades with green lenses. I wore them on Halloween one year when I wore a poodle skirt and my dad's high school Letterman's jacket. I still have those glasses downstairs in my cedar chest.

Or the time my dad wanted to take us carp hunting on Utah Lake. My little brother fell off the log bridge and was soaked and soon found ourselves in the middle of quick sand type mud. I had to be pulled free by my dad and lost one of my shoes when the mud slurped it up and it disappeared forever. We still laugh about that one. Carp hunting was something my dad did with his dad and brothers growing up.

Watching hundreds of my brother's baseball games.

Playing softball and having my dad as my coach. We would play catch on the side of the house with my dad and I would pitch to him.

Helping in the Salem snack shack selling treats, cooking burgers and making snow cones the year my mom was asked to run it.

Art City Days parades in June followed by a BBQ at my Grandpa and Grandma Nance's home. Grandma always makes her baked beans and tuna macaroni salad. My favorites!

Hanging out at the Felix's cabin after the parade playing their pinball game and hunting for golf balls in the brush at Hobble Creek Golf Course.

Hanging out with the Larsen's in August celebrating my Grandpa Larsen's birthday.

Spanish Fork Fiesta Day parade on the 24th of July. I got to be on our ward's float when I was in first grade. A few years later our ward sold balloons and I loved walking the streets as a vendor. Then going to the rodeo later that night. The bull riders are amazing!

Driving for six hours to Lake Powell's Wahweap marina with the Swenson, Klug, Penrod, Garbe, Hales and Probst families. We would stay in a hotel, get on and off the lake each day, eat at McDonald's every morning, at a restaurant that night and even caught a movie now and then.

Spending a week at Aspen Grove three different summers. We lived in a little cabin with no kitchen or bathroom. We all ate in the main mess hall and did awesome crafts with leather, beads and wood and hiked to a waterfall. We even went with the entire Nance family one summer.

Launching the jet skis on Utah Lake and spending hours riding them laughing and smiling the whole time.

Making potions out of water, food coloring and various vases with Leslie Argyle in her kitchen.

Taking Josie Swenson's Barbie dream house out in her backyard for some outdoor girl time. I never took my Barbies outside at my house.

Watching our neighbors fireworks that had been illegally purchased in Wyoming on the 4th and 24th of July.

Being at Stadium of Fire when Mr. T, Bob Hope, and The Beach Boys performed. The most memorable event was when they lit a million firecrackers off at the same time and huge, hot explosion and small mushroom cloud followed. I am SURE they didn't test this one out before hand and were horrified at the very dangerous outcome.

Hunting for wild asparagus with my mom on the back roads.

Checking out books at the Spanish Fork Public Library. That place had a very distinct smell, like mildew and dust. Sometimes my mom would love laminate primary or preschool items while we browsed. Salem was too small to have their own library. When I was a bit older, I read Jane Eyre one summer. Great book.

Going to Drive In movies in Springville where you had to put the speaker on your rolled down window. The sound was terrible and we often had a hard time staying awake for the second show.

When I reached young women's, I spent a week every summer up at camp Koholowo in Payson canyon in a sleeping bag, in a tent one year, acting in skits, practicing first aid and other very fun activities.

Cruisin' up Payson canyon to our spot by the river where we would roast marshmallows and hot dogs.

Skipping rocks across the pond with my family. I was amazed when my dad could make it skip 5 or 6 times.

Climbing on the roof with my dad helping assist him with the swamp cooler. You would need to unwrap it and then take the hose and add water. The best place in the house on a hot summer day was in the hallway where the swamp cooler would blast its wet, cool air.

Frying ants with my brothers and dad with his extra large and powerful magnifying glass. If we were really lucky we could blast them apart using a firecrackers or bottle rocket. We also would start newspaper on fire too.

Catching grasshoppers in our hands and getting that awful brown ooze from their mouth on your fingers. We would rip their legs off and feed them to the spiders.

My mom's lovely flower hanging basket on the front porch when we lived in our first home in Salem.

Playing kick the can in the front yard with the neighborhood gang. We would all wear black and it was very competitive. We also had a great time playing survivor shots when we were older.

Killing wasps with tennis racquet's and finding the biggest nest with my dad in the Oaks behind our house. My dad has since upgraded to these awesome high power wasp spray killer.

Schwan's Ice Cream. (We still indulge in that one all year round.)

How happy my mom was when we moved up the street and didn't have to look at our neighbors extra weedy and messy yard. That would KILL me now too.

Going to movies at the Huish in Payson.


Seeing the ends of my hair turning green from chlorine. I had to use this crazy smelly brown shampoo to get rid of it. I think we eventually just chopped most of it off.

Golf lessons at Gladstand with Greg and some other neighbor friends.

Tagging along with my mom to Brad and Jeff's early morning swim team practices in Payson. Sometimes we would head over to their one way main street and check out fabric or buy some beads to make necklaces.

Buying fresh watermelon and at least a dozen ears of corn or more from a road side stand.

Raising baby tadpoles in a plastic Sunkist Fruit Gem container. My dad brought them home from the golf course. They turned into these tiny, perfect little frogs. We fed them goldfish food and eventually released them at the pond. (Probably providing a dinner meal for the various fish and birds there.)

Enjoying Big Stick Popsicles with my dad. I still love them and buy them for my kids.

Having long, competitive croquet games with my family in the backyard. Watch out when someone became a 'killer'. We show no mercy!

Making popcorn in the air popper and loving adding lots of butter and salt and then watching some video we rented while we all laid on the floor with pillows.

Playing in the warm summer rain and laying in the gutters soaking it all in.

Starting in Springville and driving up to Camel's Back and then following the entire Alpine Loop across the mountains. We finished the day with lunch at Chuck-A-Rama in Provo. I was amazed as I looked up at the impressive mountains that we had traveled across them all.

Digging my daily bucket of weeds.

Playing miniature golf at Trafalga and bowling at BYU on many, many Saturdays.

Hiking up to Timpanogos Cave.

Swinging so high on the playground that the chain would bend and then jerk when you came down.

Running around the pond in the Salem Fun Run and winning a blue ribbon when I was young.

The pancake, eggs, ham, orange juice and milk breakfast served by the Salem City Council the morning of Salem Days.

Being in the Salem Days pageant and riding on the riverboat across the pond in my white and green dance costume.

When I got into sixth grade loving that I got to wear my new school clothes and see my Spanish Fork friends at the pageant. (I'll admit that I've been back as an adult and that thing is painful to sit through!)

Seeing the signs in July for the city yard sale to raise money for the Salem Days firework show. (They have since discontinued that- but their firework show is still going and is awesome!)

Playing tennis by the pond with my dad and brothers.

Playing a mean game of Hearts with my family. You had to play 4 hands, switching cards 3 times and keeping them once. It was a true joy to win!

Running around with sparklers on the 4th of July and writing my name in the dark sky.

Making the most incredible match box car city with Greg and Wade Knapp in the Swenson's enormous mound of top soil when they built their home. (My parents later bought that lot and built their current home there).

Playing with our Rambo action figures with my brothers and using string to lower them down the circular staircase in dramatic rescues and battles. (We got these on clearance at Toys-R-Us and they were some of the best toys we ever owned!)

Gathering all my mom's silk plants and creating a huge jungle in the loft for our Definitely Dinosaurs.

Driving our match box cars on the felt/pellon city my mom had traced and painted. I have since traced hers and made my own for my kids.

Long bike rides around Salem and even to Spanish Fork where we stopped at Berry's to indulge in the world's best french fries.

Getting Slurpee's at one of the many 7-Elevens around.

How we would watch re-runs of Gillian's Island, I Dream of Jeanie, the Beverly Hillbillies and Gidget until my mom pushed out the door to enjoy the beautiful weather.

Floating lazily in our inflatable rafts around Salem Pond with Leslie Argyle with a sack lunch and wishing my mom didn't insist we wear our life jackets at all times. I really did keep that thing on.

Like I said, GREAT TIMES! Hard to believe that now I'm the mom helping create and shape my own children's memories. I think I have a lot of experiences to draw from. I think my kids will be just fine.... they key is hoping they just remember it all!