The Hansen Handful

This is a little past due but I have to share...

2012-01-10T21:13:00.000-08:00

A few weeks before Christmas I got an early present in the mail. Well actually there were 3. I was so excited to open these!
And inside was gold! Well a piece of gold fabric. Those 3 boxes were full of fabric and other goodies. So I actually felt like I struck gold! On Thanksgiving, my Aunt Linda said she was cleaning house and wanted to know if I would give all of her fabric a good home. Well, of course!! At first it was one box, but then she kept finding more and more and it turned into 3! There was also a brownie mix, thread, notions, cute tissues, books and much more! I was thrilled and immediately started thinking of all the things I could make. So here was my first project.....

I always try to make an ornament with the kids each year. I was pretty stuck on what to do this year but then we were driving one day and I noticed all the cotton on the sides of the road just sitting there getting dirty and wasted. And then I thought of all the Christmas fabric given to me. So me and the kids collected some cotton and cleaned it up (don't worry, we did not go to a field and steal a farmers cotton. We picked up what was going to be discarded.) And then I grabbed all of the Christmas fabric and layed it on the table. The kids got to choose a shape, and pick a fabric. Then I sewed them together and they stuffed them with their cotton. They turned out simple and perfect and the kids loved getting involved! Lilly-candy cane, Anders-snowman, Elsie-kitty, Ivy-bird, and Ezra-tree. Thank you Aunt Linda for all of the wonderful fabric and for helping inspire our homemade ornaments this year! I think I might use the rest to make stockings and a tree skirt.

Some other projects in mind: dresses, and craft aprons.

This past week we had the opportunity to watch our nephews Thurston and Atticus. It was a houseful but so fun! They spent the night and the next day the kids decided to give me a break and 4 out of the 5 took a nap (Lilly was at school). Those boys were so cute. They constantly talked about Superman, Ironman, Spiderman and Batman. They even had little jammies that I was coveting for my boys. Atticus was so sweet and just walked around and played with a big smile the whole time. Thurston loved Anders Ironman toy and being outside playing with the kids. They had so much fun together and they slept like little angels at night. I wish I would've taken a picture! Atticus stayed in the same spot but Thurston kept rolling all over him in his sleep, lol. Now of course there was fighting, time outs, and some stress but nothing I couldn't handle. Thurston was a pro at time out! My parents picked them up the following evening and offered to take my older kids with them too. I had no problem sending them off! Aaron and I enjoyed a quiet evening with Ezra and Ivy. Ivy loved being alone!

Such sweet boys! I'm glad they feel comfortable staying with us. They even called me and Aaron mama and papa. Thanks for letting us watch them Kim and Ethan!

Anders turned 5 while they were here. I felt so bad for him that day though. He woke up at 4 am with a lot of pain in his knee. He couldn't walk, go to preschool, or play at all. He sat motionless watching movies most of the day. In the afternoon he finally started to hobble around but I think that was more frustrating because I wouldn't let him jump on the trampoline or ride his bike for fear that he would hurt it more. He looked so sad all day. But we ate cake and ice cream, blew up ballons and wore party hats. And of course presents!

Anders is my good boy. He just recently taught himself to ride a bike without training wheels. I thought teaching them to ride bikes would be torture, but he caught right on, practiced and took off. And he taught Lilly because he made her jealous and she finally built up her courage to practice by herself. He loves when I read him books, I will catch him pushing his sisters on the swings and taking care of them and Ezra. He loves attention and is just like his dad making jokes and being funny. He is very loving and my wonderful sleeper at night! He konks right out! He hates cleaning his room but will do most things that I ask of him.

Happy Birthday my 5 year old!
We love you!

Happy New Year 2012!

2012-01-02T21:19:00.000-08:00

We had a really fun new years eve this year. Kimber called me up and asked if they could come shooting and spend the evening with us. We had a blast.....

We lit some fireworks for the kids.

Smoked some fireworks. Actually I think the men enjoyed the fireworks the most. Aaron kept tossing black cats at Don, and Ethan ignored all warnings on the cartons.

Kimberlee's sister in law, Lisa, and husband, Don, are here visiting. They spent New Years Eve with us too and Lisa offered to cut my hair. I had not gotten it fixed yet, so I jumped on her offer. She did an awesome job! No more scraggly pieces, or blunt cuts. She layered and shaped it perfectly. Thank you so much Lisa! You truly are an artist!
I think Atticus and Thurston loved coming to visit cousins. Kimber made this yummy pudding cake after dinner.

Ivy and Elsie could not get enough of the sparklers. Lisa was so kind to keep lighting them for the girls.

They went shooting in the afternoon. For the most part guns are illegal in Australia, so it was a real treat for the Australians to go shooting. Aaron took them out and showed them how it was done. I love this picture of Aaron.

Ethan and Don

Aaron shooting clay pigeons with his shotgun. You can see the shell flying out to the right.

We ended our night by putting the kids to bed and playing games. We played a really fun game called "Identity". The girls won that. And then we played Balderdash. I won! We drank bubbly and even made it to 11:40 before Aaron and I crashed. Lilly stayed up a little bit and was our photographer. I forgot how much I love playing games. I have come to appreciate them more as I have gotten older.

I hope everyone had a great New Years! We hope to have a great 2012!

Merry Christmas from the Hansens

2011-12-27T14:37:00.000-08:00

We had a great holiday this year with Christmas Eve at the Hansens and Christmas day at the Whettons. My dad made all of these rubber band guns for all the grandkids. For some reason there was lots of laughing and crying after we opened them up. But the kids love them!

I hope everyone had a great Christmas. I tried getting cards out this year but it just didn't happen.

We look forward to the new year!

All I Want For Christmas is...

2011-12-16T20:07:00.001-08:00

My Two Front Teeth!

(Lilly just pulled her other front tooth out tonight. She will have to sing the song now!)

8 Miles....

2011-12-10T21:29:00.000-08:00

Is what me and my friend Sarah ran today. We felt like we accomplished something tremendous when we were done! We are training for a half marathon in January and we both agree that we can't train without each other. It would be so boring running those distances alone. Plus, it is so nice to have girl time and chatter away the morning. We have both signed up and paid so there is no going back now! Anyone want to join us? Kimber?

Catch up

2011-12-07T20:13:00.000-08:00

Lately it seems like we feel like this by the end of each day. I feel so busy these days! There is so much going on and I have to juggle all of these tasks with little ones at my feet constantly. Some days I wish they were just grown up already. But I know I will miss this time in my life so I need to try and relax and enjoy it!

Lilly finally lost her first top tooth (pictured super loose here). She wiggled and wiggled until it finally popped out. We haven't had to pull a tooth yet! She is such a good girl and my big helper. She got a part in her school Christmas musical and is so excited to be in it. I told her she needed to memorize her parts and read through the whole thing so she knew where her part was. She really took me seriously because last night she recited the entire thing by memory!

Aaron's brother Caleb got back from his mission recently. He is so positive and uplifting. It is such a joy to have him in Coolidge with us again. The day after he got back he specifically came over to play with the kids. They were thrilled and it was so sweet. We just need to find him a girl now!

So for Thanksgiving I wanted to run the turkey trot, but with Aaron's work schedule it would have made it difficult in the morning. So I finally decided to stay the night with my parents so I could be ready to go in the morning without too much fuss. They are only 10 min or less away from where it was being held. It is a treat for the kids to spend the night at grandmas and they bugged me about leaving til the minute we left.

The reason I share this picture is because I wanted to show that this is how I feel when I'm with my sister Kimber. (We are laughing about flexing our calve muscles or something). I have so much fun with her and she constantly makes me laugh. She's also fun because I can convince her to do triathlons and races me. I usually hear her cursing my name after a race, but I know she is glad I make her do them. So this is before the race getting ready to leave. My parents bravely watched my kids (including Ezra) until Aaron came. I couldn't have done it without them!

And this is after the race with the turkey. This guy runs the whole 6 miles in this getup. We also saw someone run the entire thing barefoot, and another run it backwards. There was also someone in a potato bag I think? It is such a fun race Thanksgiving morn.

So the lines to the bathroom are incredibly long all the way up until it starts. Kimberlee happened to see some permanent bathrooms a little trot away and I unwillingly go with her to check it out. She is a genius! They were totally empty while the other suckers stood in line for the port o johns!

Kimberlee was also very sneaky. She claimed that she had barely ran and that she would be hurting running this. But I guess her inner runner came out and she kept up with me almost the entire way and finished only a minute and a half behind me. She snuck up on me at the third mile and said she had been spying on me the whole time, lol!

Here's a little game called, "Where's Lucy?" We did "Where's Kimber?" as well but she is crouched down and the picture took right when someone walked in front of her. That would have been a hard one. I looked at the results and I think there were over 2000 people running it!

I didn't finish as fast as I wanted but I was top 25 for my age group and I think around 500th overall. Thanksgiving was spent with my dad's side of the family. I didn't get too many pictures that day but we had a lot of fun with the Whetton clan! The food turned out great and we enjoyed catching up.

Now onto Christmas! We started the festivities by decorating the house. It is so much fun to finally have the kids old enough to get excited and actually help.

Aaron and I did do a little black Friday shopping. But we can only go later in the morning so the crowds actually weren't too bad.

Ezra is showing lots of interest in eating (yay and boo). So I got him started early on my green smoothies. Lately this little boy is keeping me up ALL night. He is waking up every 1 or 2 hours and seems so fussy. He is 4 1/2 months now and he is starting to sit up and rolls everywhere. Unlike my other kids he actually likes the walker and will walk around in it. Relief for me! Lilly is also my relief as he is totally entertained by her. Oh the joy of older kids that can help!

Haircuts

2011-11-14T18:44:00.000-08:00

I made my first rag quilt! (inspired by my sister in law, Nicole) It took me forever to pick out the material. Our Joann's was pretty limited with their flannel prints so I finally picked out a corduroy for my main print instead of flannel. I think it turned out pretty cute! I made it for my cousin who is having her first baby.

I also made some rag burp clothes too.

At my cousin Malia's baby shower in Tucson.
And my new haircut! I actually had a student cut it and when it was wet it didn't look too bad, but when I got home and it was drying I started to see all of the flaws. It had no layers and scraggly pieces everywhere. At first I was panicked and was going to drive to the valley and get it fixed the next day. Easier said then done. After a few days went by I curled it and found I could hide it that way. It actually looks really cute curled so then I found no rush to get it fixed. It is still not fixed which forces me to do my hair daily. I am one to sling it in a ponytail everyday so force is good for me. Hayley curled it so cute this day. I will have to convince her to curl it again for me!

Anders needed a haircut so I let Aaron do a mullet for a couple days. Now it has turned into not cutting it for a few weeks until Caleb gets home from his mission. I told Aaron I could cut it anytime I wanted without him. But I'll let it stay til he gets back I guess.

Anders loves his mullet and goes around telling the world about it.

Halloween 2005-2011

2011-11-01T12:34:00.000-07:00

2005 Lillian's first Halloween

You would think with my first child I would have put more effort into her outfit, but I ended up using a Mexican dress that my mom bought her as more of a souvenir.
2006 7 months pregnant with Anders

2007 Alice in Wonderland
I made Lillian's dress.

2008 Scooby Doo

My dad dresses up in his stilts and skeleton costume almost every year. I'm so lucky to have such a fun dad. Notice our Mystery Machine behind us. All of our costumes are from the thrift store.

2009 The Incredibles! 6 months pregnant with Ivy.

2010-Spiderman, Barbie Cheerleader, Scarecrow, Cow, Gypsy, Austin Powers

Just barely pregnant with Ezra

2011- Fairy, Scarecrow, Princess, Tiger, Spiderman

Even though the themed Halloweens are a lot more work I think I will go back to them. They look so much cooler (90's slang) in my opinion!
I will have to look and see if I can find the Halloweens with just me and Aaron. I can only remember one time that we dressed up and did something. You'd think we would have partied it up without kids!

Goodman Family Reunion and October happenings

2011-10-30T21:38:00.000-07:00

It's 10:00pm, I'm dead tired, my back hurts, I should be in bed, but all I want to do is spend some time by myself. So I guess I'll blog! Warning: this is a long post.

Last Monday we took the kids to Wally world for FHE and picked out a couple of pumpkins. The kids are so excited to carve them and hopefully we will get it done tomorrow before Halloween is over. Sweet Lilly left a little note and picture next to her pumpkin. They are already mapping out how their pumpkins are going to look. I guess it's instinct because I remember planning that as a kid too.

Ezra has been smiling since a month old and I never get pictures of him. So here is our little man sticking his tongue out and smiling away.

Ivy loves to suck her thumb and rub anyone's head. She will see us sitting at the computer and jumps behind us to lay her head on our back and then proceed to stick her little fingers in our hair and play with it. Sometimes it's sweet and sometimes I have spent a really long time fixing my hair and I don't want her near it.

My friend Sarah is doing a preschool out of her home and Anders absolutely loves it. He feels so special just like Lilly getting to go to school. He even dressed up in a uniform like Lilly's his first day. They had a little Halloween party and had so much fun.

4 Generations

Okay onto the reunion. My uncle Pierce and his family planned and took charge of this Goodman reunion. We have not had one in YEARS. He has been building the FRC (family recreation center) for over 12 years now. I remember back in high school coming out and looking at the land and he offered a prayer about where to put the structure. So finally after so many years of hard work we came to enjoy the FRC with them. It was really awesome and so cozy inside. It is 2 stories with 9 bedrooms and a huge living area. I can't wait to go back!

They had a little store for the grand kids to spend their tickets at for good behavior. This was a highlight for the kids. They all tried to be caught being good so they could earn and go spend their tickets.

Lilly and Uncle Tony

You had the option of staying Thurs til Sunday. We decided to go Friday and stay til Saturday evening. We were the first cousins there and it was so fun because we got Tony, Julie, Barbara and Pierce all to ourselves. I have some really fun Aunts and Uncles. They just made me laugh the whole time and it was nice to catch up. My Aunt Julie is an open book and will talk about anything and tell you the truth about anyone. She is hilarious and I love talking to her.

Anders and Lilly playing with their spoils. The kids loved being there!

My dad brought a minute to win it game and I love how simple and fun those games are. You'd think our Whetton family cheated because we won the game!

My cousin Stephanie and I talked about making paracord bracelets at the reunion. She bought all the material and I taught everyone how to make them. They were a hit and before we knew it all the buckles were gone. Kimber even made Ezra one!

They had quads there with a wagon hooked up behind. I think the kids would sit in the wagon waiting for someone to take them. In the beginning there were only 3 cousins and out of 12 kids there were 9 girls and 3 boys. The boys being Anders and 2 babies. Those girls were hilarious sitting in the wagon chanting to all the places they wanted to go. They would chant "fire", fire!" and want to go see the trash burning. Then they would chant, "dead snake!, dead snake!" to go see the dead snake in the road. And then finally chant, "longer!, longer!" and try to get Aaron to give them a longer quad ride. They were cracking me up!

Julie brought some fun craft for the kids. Anders desperately needs a hair cut!

Okay onto our nights stay. This picture pretty much sums up how we all felt after that night. The floors were all concrete but had tons of drywall dust on them, and it covered everything you put on the floor. I found Elsie hanging out of her sleeping bag and then sliding all over it throwing a fit when she woke up.

Ezra and Ivy both started coughing the day before we left and they were pretty miserable that night with slight fevers and barking coughs. Aaron ended up sleeping on a recliner couch with Ivy next to him. I kept waking up to her falling off all night, hearing the recliner kick down so Aaron could pick her up and then she would cry back to sleep. I didn't sleep all night because I was worried about Ezra in the beginning and then he kept waking up from 2am on. Oh and other kids didn't go to sleep til late and all we could hear were little pounding feet above our heads. There was a hammock parked right next to Aaron's head by the couch. I got up about midnight and walked out to see glow sticks flapping everywhere and hitting the hammock poles. Apparently there were some girls still up. I think they went to bed after they saw me. Looking back I think it was pretty comical. But it was a rough night all together and it made the weekend feel kind of long.

I wish my parents and sisters would have came the night before with us but I am so glad they at least came for the day on Saturday. I missed that they weren't there with us. I was so grateful when my mom got there and immediately offered to take Ezra. I really needed a break from him and she would get him to sleep for me! And yes, I cut my hair short recently. But that's anther story.

I just like this picture of Kimberlee that I caught . It looks like she's dancing. Some other activities they had were get to know you games, shooting ( I shot my shotgun for the first and last time, JK Aaron:) and an auction. It was fun watching Aaron hit clay pigeons with his shotgun. I think it is so manly and I'm disappointed I didn't get any pictures! They also had a devotional and a trick or treat for the kids that night. My dad even got on his stilts with his skeleton mask. I didn't get one picture though because we were packing up and busy with kids.

Cousins!

I know this isn't a great picture but this is Pierce and Barbara who have worked so hard on the FRC. This is such a typical picture of Pierce rigging something up to work. We kept smelling something burning and realized the motor had burnt up on the ice cream maker. So what does Pierce do? He gets his drill gun and manually stirs that ice cream. And I am saying this in a complimentary way. He is by far one of my favorite uncles.

Some of my favorite memories are lake trips with my cousins. My parents were always taking us and we had so much fun tubing, cliff jumping, skiing, and swimming. One of my best friends was his daughter Aubrey. Me, Lindsay and Aubrey were glued together when we were kids. One of the things Uncle Pierce had was a para sail that he would take to Lake Powell. We had a blast camping on the beach! He would rig that para sail to the boat and us kids would stand hooked up to it 50 feet or so away. Three people would hold the sail in the back so it would catch the air and when they said "go" that boat would take off full speed and you had to run for dear life and pray that the people holding the sail liked you and opened it up for you. And everyone would try it from little kids all the way up to my Grandma Goodman! I think we were all dragged at least once. I look back and can't believe they let us do that! But it was so fun and we just love our Uncle Pierce! I hope we can be as fun and adventurous as our parents were.

So that was our reunion. I feel like I have been nonstop since Thursday. The kids were a lot of work but is was worth it. We got back late Saturday night and then I had a meeting early Sunday morning, and Ezra's been sick and I am so tired! Now its Halloween tomorrow and I'm helping with Lilly's school party, then we have to carve pumpkins and trick or treat!

Happy Halloween!

Camping!

2011-10-20T13:55:00.000-07:00

For fall break we decided to brave the woods and go camping. For only a two night stay it felt like all week that we were camping. The kids couldn't have been more excited to go. We met Aaron's sister Heather and her kids there along with a lot of other Mormons who like to camp (In other words: 70% old farts who I adore and 30%families our age).

As always, the drive is always an adventure. If I could put a sound clip in all you would hear is crying. We were a 1/4 mile from our turnoff to the camp and we had to wait 15-20 minutes for construction stuff on the road.

Home sweet home. We have a love hate relationship with this tent. It is a pain to lug and set up but so spacious and cozy inside.

Ivy was constantly getting into things. This was the hardest part about camping. I was always worried about where she had wandered off to or what she was getting into. Her favorite things to drive me crazy with: water bottles, marshmallow roasters, hand washing water (loved to take her shirt off and wash her own clothes), unzipping and running amuck in Heather's tent, and basically anything sitting on the tables. Nap time was hard, and bed time was even worse. She learned how to crawl out of her crib which she does all the time now at home.

The other kids were so easy and loved to play together. They made this table because ours weren't good enough and they could all sit at this one.

There was lots of coloring...

and a very fussy, gassy baby who wanted to be held the entire time. He refused naps to the fullest but thankfully slept like a dream at night. He was tough too.

Proof that I was there. But if I wasn't there then you wouldn't get all of these pictures.

Making felted rocks. Confused? I have no idea what the purpose of this was either but the kids loved their felted rocks.

We ended up camping next to a pot of gold. We met a nice couple by the name of Marsha and Kenny Petitt about our age. He made two log benches and had a rope swing for the kids to enjoy. The kids loved sitting on these benches over their camping chairs. Marsha was a wealth of knowledge and I picked her brain about herbs, muscle testing and anything else she wanted to share.

The camp was crawling with tarantulas! There were these boys who kept them in jars and took them home. They also let them crawl all over their arms and hands.

I was surprised to see Elsie and Heber hit it off. They would make each other laugh and I continuously found them chumming around together.

More proof that I was there and wasn't nursing the whole time. This is the swing he made. He even left it there for the next lucky family.

There was one morning that Aaron gave all the kids turns on the swing. He would swing them as high as he could.

Skit time by Halle, Conner, Alex, and Anna. This is the audience.

Even though we had a good time, I think I am good not camping for a while. Maybe til the kids are all above the age of 3.

"I made you a smoothie!" ( my favorite line from Kid History Episode 6)

I am proud to say that I have taught my kids to eat my kale and spinach green smoothies. I will even give Aaron some and he will say, "the kids ate this?" Which makes me even more proud because then I know they are healthy tasting. The kids beg for them and devour them. And then they beg for more! I like to add spirulina, super food, bananas, chia seeds, mango, strawberries, peaches, and coconut milk.

Ivy especially loves them.

My wittle smoothie girl.

Schnepf Farms

2011-10-06T09:46:00.000-07:00

Every year I drag my husband to Schnepf farms. I love the atmosphere and the kids love going to, but it is a wee bit expensive. This year we totally lucked out. It happened to be a training weekend or something and we were offered free admission and they would open up all the rides for us. They even refunded our tickets that said non refundable. It was seriously us and like 2 other families! Kimber's family came with us too which makes it much more fun. I did call about 2 weeks ago to find out if they were open that weekend and I was given a confimation that they were. So I didn't feel at all bad that we were freeloading it! They even let us ride the train for free and did the pig races for us!
Here we are riding the roller coaster back to back. Shorty bink Anders was finally tall enough to go and he wanted to sit all by himself.

In my opinion there is only one work to describe this ride, "Barf". I make Aaron go on these kind of rides with the kids.

This was the pig race announcer. He was so nice and fun to watch. Lilly finally won a pig nose!

This has nothing to do with Schnepf farms but the next day we went to the Coolidge Days parade. I came late and braved the parade with the kids alone but luckily found a nice spot next to my friend Natalie and her son. They did surprisingly well (of course catching candy is always a good incentive) and Ivy stayed right with us. I had to hold Ezra the entire time but I guess that is my life right now anyways so it wasn't that big of a deal.

I also ran the Coolige Days 5 K that morning. When I was running I kept looking at my watch and the time was really slow for me. I didn't feel that bad and thought my time would be better. Then when I crossed the finish the guy told me my time was 4 minutes faster than what my watch said. It was the time I normally get so I was so confused! Then driving home I realized I had forgot to reset my watch from my warmup and that is why I thought I was going so slow! It's funny how my time was really messing with my mind on the run. I should have just gone with how I felt.

I realize that I have never enjoyed running more that I do now. It is my escape and I feel so good afterwards! I am hoping to do the turkey trot on Thanksgiving. If anyone is interested it is on Thanksgiving day, a 10 K and it held in Mesa. Starts at 9am I think and is so much fun!

Paracord bracelets

2011-09-30T13:10:00.000-07:00

I have had a few people ask me about these bracelets. They are super easy to make. All you need are the buckles, paracord, and a way to melt the cord (lighter will work or they have special tools to do this as well). There are tons of tutorials out there and I have seen the materials on ebay. They are fun to wear and good as an emergency tool. Just throw them in your 72 hour kits!

Reunion, Reunion, Hansen Family Reunion!

2011-09-27T09:56:00.000-07:00

We spent our weekend with all of the fabulous Hansen family. Aaron and I have not been on an outing in quite a while so it was nice to get away and spend our weekend at Lake Roosevelt. A big thanks goes to Aaron's mom and dad for helping with Aaron's work so we could go. We couldn't have done it without them!

Aaron's uncle Mark has access to this beautiful little getaway right next to Lake Roosevelt. It has 8 houses and a nice lodge with an outside dining and sitting area. When Aaron and I were dating he invited me to their reunion here. I was a little surprised by the invitation and realized he liked me more than I thought but I declined. I was not ready to meet the gang yet. This is the fourth time since we have been married that we have been here.

It was fun sitting around and chummin with all the cousins that we don't get to see anymore.

This is the common area outside the lodge where we served food, ate, and sat around in the nice weather while the kids ran wild.

This is Elsie and Daisy. In my opinion Daisy looks very similar to Elsie with the same build, brown eyes/hair and cute personalities. They are 6 months apart and both the 3rd child in their families. I loved watching them play together. They were so funny. You can see both dads in the background lovingly watching their daughters.

Aunt Nancy was so kind to bring some things for us to do. We made aprons and paracord bracelets with her. The bracelets are a wonderful emergency tool. You make them to fit your wrist but there is about 7 feet hidden in them in which you can unravel them and have some strong cord handy. I made one for each of us and they will go in our 72 hour kits.

We were in charge of dinner for Friday evening. I took a picture to see how many people were crammed in that tiny kitchen.

Now for the best part: grandkid pictures!

Look at these sweet kids. I think they are all a little grumpy and wondering why we were taking so many pictures of them. If you spot my kids you can see them all looking especially unhappy.

The next best part: Our shirts! We did iron on shirts and kept them simple because they were time consuming. On the back it says HANSEN, but then underneath you will notice a number.It basically is everyones place in the family. Aaron is the 2nd child in his family, so me and aaron had a 2 on our shirt. Then Lilly had 2.1, Anders 2.2, Elsie 2.3 and so forth. I thought they turned out pretty good for iron ons, but I think we decided to have them professionally screened for the next reunion.

The only picture taken of me with our camera. I think Aaron refuses to take pictures.

Family planning meeting for the reunion in 2 years.

Our beautiful Hayley who always helps everyone with kids.

Kid craft time! Aaron's cousin, Jana, made some playdough and it was a little wet and stuck to the kids hands pretty good. They were loving it though! They especially loved when I asked to see their hands.

I just like this picture of Jana who was pretty much the coordinator for the reunion. You can check out her blog for more details on the reunion.

Playing games with the cousins.

Overall we had a great time. It was a nice place that the kids could run around and I didn't have to worry about them (except for Ivy of course). I gave them free reign and they did whatever they wanted the whole time. I think they really enjoyed that freedom for once. The food was good, the company even better and on another plus side the weather was perfect! The Hansens are a fun family to be with. It's too bad that the Hansen clan is growing out of this place. We will have to plan another spot for the next reunion, but we will always remember Lake Roosevelt!

Blessing Day and Come meet the newest Whetton Grandchild

2011-09-05T13:05:00.000-07:00

Every blessing day we seem to forget about pictures and I always have to dress the baby the next week in their blessing outfit to get a picture. BUT, we got the house and food all ready on Saturday and we were dressed and ready to go to church a half hour early! So there was plenty of time for pictures.

I sure love my spunky kids and their different personalities. I feel so blessed.

Four Generations
This was Anders blessing outfit. No point in buying a new one! The hat was so cute but didn't really fit his chubby head.

We had a really great day and thank you to all our family for helping with food and supporting us! We had a burrito bar with beans, cilantro lime rice, pico de gallo, lime chicken, cilantro, salsa, cheese, guacamole and avacado, mexican salad, Horchata, and the tastiest green chile pork that I have ever tasted. I am so grateful for a husband that knows how to cook (when he wants to:)). He made his first ever green chile shredded pork and it was seriously the best! Thanks babe! He also gave a really nice blessing and I'm so grateful for such a wonderful guy.

I love family get togethers!

And welcome Gavin Peirce Elmer!

He surprised Lindsay and Donnie by coming 3 weeks early and is doing really well. Love that hair!

Birthday Bash and a Hairball

2011-09-01T08:47:00.000-07:00

Kimber invited us over for Thurstons birthday bash. The kids couldn't have been more thrilled! Kimber fed us pizza then had a fun Australian game where every time you unwrapped a layer off the present a little toy came out for the child to have. Then we played pin the tail on the donkey and had some yummy zucchini cupcakes with coconut frosting. The zucchini came from her garden of course. Thanks for inviting us Kim! We had so much fun!

My beautiful mamacita

Ezra's trick at 5 weeks old! This is Aaron's favorite trick to do with the kids at about 4 months old and I couldn't believe it when he tried it so early with Ezra and he actually stood up! I think I about had a heart attack. He has been such a strong, hefty boy from day one so I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

And here's the hairball that Ivy coughed up one day. Just kidding, she actually twisted her hair up and made this huge ball. I wanted to cry cutting it out but it was the only way.

An experience

2011-08-25T18:15:00.000-07:00

We took Ezra to get the big "C" done the other day and it was quite traumatic for me and I can understand why they say it is better if mom doesn't watch. Since we didn't have him in the hospital we had to find a professional to take care of this. I hope everyone realizes what the big "C" is so I don't have to type it out and get lots of junk comments from it. Has that happened to anyone else? Anyways, we procrastinated (and even debated if we were going to have it done) and finally decided to do the brisk at 4 weeks old. Yes, that's right we had a Rabbi perform the "c". We had a couple of good recommendations from my midwife, one being a doctor who is highly sought after and the other being this Rabbi who does it with or without the Jewish ceremony. I also have my pediatrician that does them. After calling and asking some questions about the procedure we felt really good about going to the Rabbi. If you live in the valley he will actually come to your home, but we were so far out that he said we could come to his home.

So hopefully no one is weirded out with our decision at this point. He was such a nice man with a good spirit about him. He studied in Israel for a few years, got married, lived in New York for a while then moved his family out here to AZ. I am so mad at myself for not getting a picture of the Rabbi holding him! I guess I was a little stressed out most of the time and forgot. His method (which I just found out is used by doctors as well) is very quick and only takes about a minute. He also does not strap the baby down but has a pillow that we layed him on and dad holds him. I watched and tried to sooth Ezra by talking to him but I have to admit that I was getting a little woozy and couldn't watch anymore. It was hard seeing my baby cry and uncomfortable. Plus he was a month old and that makes it harder on them. I really couldn't rate my experience because how do you rate something like that? Plus I had never seen it done before so how could I judge? But Aaron having seen Anders "c" said he was happy with the experience and said he would go back to him. There was a point that we were waiting just to make sure he didn't bleed and the Rabbi wrapped him in the blanket and layed him on his shoulder to calm him down. Before long Ezra was sleeping in his arms and when I offered to take him he said he wanted to hold him still. It was very sweet. Naturally he was pretty fussy afterwards but soon fell asleep and we decided to get something to eat.

(Oh by the way, "c" are not cheap and if your insurance doesn't cover it then you'll be paying about 350.00!!)

So we decided to go to Charlestons in Chandler. I worked at Charlestons for about 2 years in Mesa. This is when Aaron and I started dating then got engaged and married. So I have some fond memories of that work place and I always enjoy going back for some good food. We were the first people in there but it quickly picked up with all the business men and women from that area. We had Ivy as well so we were dealing with her spunky self. So we ate and Ezra thankfully slept the entire time. Then it was time to pay and I started digging in my wallet when the waitress came and said, " Oh wait your meal is taken care of, you don't need to pay." I looked over at Aaron kindof confused and said, "What?" She said, "Yeah, it's taken care of so don't worry about it and your good to go!" I was kindof taken back that someone in the restaurant was doing this for us and asked her a couple times if she would tell us who it was so we could thank them, but she said she wasn't allowed to tell. So we sent the thank you with her and gave her a big tip. I was a little overwhelmed with the generosity of this person probably watching us eat and deal with Ivy.

As we got in the car we started talking about all the possibilities of who could of done it. Was it the single lady sitting next to us? Or the old man sitting in the booth who came in shortly after us? I joked with Aaron that is was one of the business women eyeing Aaron. Or sometimes the managers go to different restaurants to help out and it maybe it was my old boss? Who knows but it was appreciated!

1st Day of 1st Grade

2011-08-12T09:54:00.000-07:00

But first a pic of Anders with little Ezzy. Ezra is Anders little clone for sure.
I'm not sure I was quite ready to give up my Lilly. But here she is all grown up and in first grade. She was ready to go back and learn for sure! She loves her teacher and has already been picked as a star student. She received some bubbles for being so good!

I will miss my little helper at home.

We celebrated Elsie's 3rd birthday that same day. Lets see what can I say about Elsie...she is my fit thrower, very stubborn and very particular. But she also has the cutest laugh and can on occasion be so sweet and helpful. Happy birthday Elsie poodles!

My family indulged me last Saturday and came along with us to the Museum of Natural History in Mesa. It was not really age appropriate for all of our young kids and Aaron thought it was really boring but I was glad we went and I thought the kids had fun running around. I needed to get out of the house anyways and so did the kiddos. So here is my mom and two of my sisters. At 8 months pregnant, Lindsay was a trooper and came with us! We are so excited to meet her little boy in September!

I have been begging....

2011-08-10T13:15:00.000-07:00

for this hair to be cut.....

and this is what I get!

A Mullet

Over a week old already?

2011-08-01T07:19:00.000-07:00

Upon request of my sister, here are some more pictures throughout the last week.

Ezra at one week old. The midwife came back for a check up after about 4 days and I don't think this boy lost any weight. He was 9 pounds already!

He looks so much like Anders to me. He is total Hansen!

Aaron took the kids to church a few days after he was born so we made sure to take a family picture while the kids looked decent.

Finally a picture with Grandma Whetton!

Best buddies (hopefully)

Proud pepper papa (an inside joke)

It must have been an exhausting day. My stubborn child pushed her bowl of food away and put her chin on her hands and started to pout. Then proceeded to fall asleep and was out for the night!

First bath by grandma. I always dread bath time with babies and I welcome her help.

Ezra's second mom. Lilly is always concerned about him and trying to help in some way. There is something about having girl first. Their little natural instinct kicks in and they are ready and willing to help!

Aunt Heather and Holly came by a couple days after he was born and he was holding his head up while he sat with her!

I am feeling really good at this point and recovery is going fast as usual. I'm already dreaming of running again. I am just loving this little boy! He is so sweet and hardly cries. I felt so good yesterday that I went to church and we made it the whole three hours! It felt so good to get out and see friends and look at something besides my messy house. The spiritual interaction felt so wonderful too. The last week has definitely had its ups and downs. No sleep and probaby not enough water caused me to have a breast infection on Friday. By the end of the day I felt like a train had hit me and all I could do was lay in bed a shiver. Nursing had some rough patches too with just trying to adjust. I always forget how painful it is and wasn't sure I would get through it but it is finally feeling much better and I don't have to wince the entire time he nurses. I don't really dread it anymore either. The nights are pretty sleepless, especially this morning and it seems like I I have to get right back up with the other kids as soon as I fall asleep. So yes there have been some tears and some impatient moments with the others kids, especially my little Elsie who only has two volumes. Incredibly loud and too soft to hear her. But Ezra is so fun to have and I love every moment with him. I feel so grateful for healthy kids and a helpful husband.

Okay so for the guessing contest I am going with who was closest. Lisa and Kimberlee were the closest on the date (the day before and the day after) and Janalee was the closet for the weight. I am thinking that I will have to wait to ship them until it cools off a little so they don't end up melted in your package. Plus I have make them:)

I can't believe school starts in a week!

Welcome...Baby Boy

2011-07-23T08:33:00.000-07:00

Ezra Whetton Hansen
Born July 22,2011 2:48am
8 # 12 oz 20 1/4 inch long

Ivy and baby brother. The only sibling that has taken a picture with him so far.

This is right after the birth and the midwife and her students are doing all the newborn tests on him. I had a really great labor and birth and we got to stay home this time! I started feeling mild contractions on Thursday evening about 5pm and realized at about 9 pm that it was the real thing. At about 11pm they started to get more intense and about 3 or 4 minutes apart so I called the midwife and had her come down just to be safe. I didn't want to call any family yet til I was further along so we decided to let everyone sleep. I stayed in the shower and the tub for the majority of the time. All I can say is that water makes such a difference when laboring. It really helps the contractions and makes them less intense. I was able to manage transition much better by laboring in the tub. Aaron stood by my side the whole time so I could tell him what I needed. He felt bad that he couldn't do more but I mainly just needed him there for comfort. About 2 pm I was laboring in the tub and a really strong contraction came and all of a sudden I heard and felt this "pop" sensation and knew my water had broke. I pretty much knew it wasn't long then and the contractions came pretty close together at this point. Time was totally distorted the whole time and everything felt so fast. Not long after I felt the urge to push and knew I was probably dilated to a 10 at this point. I didn't get checked the entire time, I was too afraid of being dispointed but everything went really smoothly and I really didn't need to be checked. I already knew and could feel exactly what my body was doing. I probably pushed for about 20 minutes and he was born at 2:48am in the water. The cord had been wrapped around his neck and the midwife had actually jumped in the tub with me to help the rest of him come out faster. He was a little blue but had a really good pulse. Sue eventually cut the cord so they could work on him out of the tub and she was totally calm and never made me feel panicked. He was wailing pretty soon after that so we knew everything was okay.

I called my mom right after he was born and they got here around 4am. I was so excited to show the kids their baby brother and when they woke up they could come right out and say hello! Lilly was the most excited. My parents stayed the whole day and made a yummy breakast, cleaned up, played with kids and helped with the baby. Aaron's family made us dinner that night and my parents took the Lilly, Anders and Elsie with them for a couple nights. It is hard for me to let others take care of my kids for me but I am so grateful right now for the break and peace and quiet. The Hansen have also helped us tremendously with kids and have already to offered to take them in the next few days. We have had other family members offer to take the kids as well and we are so grateful. We were also made a yummy french toast breakfast this morning by Hayley, and dinner was made for us as well. I feel so spoiled and pampered!

A water birth was an amazing experience. I have an awesome husband and a wonderful midwife group that helped me through it. It was still a lot of work, concentration, and there was still pain involved but being able to stay at home made it totally worth it. I could do exactly what I wanted and didn't feel pressure to get an IV, break my water, or get an epidural. I could labor and deliver in any position as well which was so beneficial!

I couldn't have done it without practicing my hypnobirthing and most importantly I couldn't have done it without my Heavenly Father's help. I read book after book about birthing and managing labor. I spent lots of time practicing relaxation and visualization techniques, and also tried to stay very positive in my mind and when talking with others. Lots of prayers were said and I want to thank everyone who said prayers or may have fasted in our behalf. We also didn't forget to have Aaron give me a blessing this time.

I am a total wimp when it comes to pain so I really believe in the power of these things and that we can do what we put our mind to!

My scruffy husband

Weighing the baby

Grandpa Whetton aka "Paca"
( I realize now that I don't have one picture of my mom and the baby)

The entertainment!

One of many guests

Just something I thought was funny.

2011-07-21T07:28:00.000-07:00

My sister Kimberlee called me on my due date the other day and said, "I was just calling to wish you a Happy Due Date!" Not sure about anyone else but Aaron and I thought that was hilarious. All I could say back was, "Thanks a lot!"

Not much happening. I went for a walk this morning and felt surprisingly good. So we will wait. A pregnant woman is actually not considered overdue until after 42 weeks so I keep telling myself that he is not ready to come yet. Something must need more time developing or Heavenly Father is not ready to send him. But I will admit I am a little more depressed every time I hear about someone I know having their baby already. My sister in law was due today and on Monday we get a text that her baby was born that morning! So lucky, plus it was a really fast labor!

So I'm not sure if anyone will have guessed the right due date. Sorry Adam!

40 weeks today!

2011-07-19T18:23:00.000-07:00

Hopefully not too much longer. I'm so ready to be DONE!

A Sad Day

2011-07-16T10:01:00.001-07:00

This is our little Olive. My first pregnancy was a miscarriage and we went and bought her shortly after to help with my grieving( I know it sounds silly, but she was a good distraction for me at the time). She is the first dog that Aaron and I bought together. When she was a puppy she had what was called "Puppy Strangles". So that is the reason for her crusty snout. Aaron had a scotty when he was single so he was partial to that breed and that was our reason for getting a Scottish Terrier.

Olive had 2 pure bred litters and 1 mutt litter which happened when she escaped from our yard one day.
She happened to be in heat at the time and that is the only time she has escaped from our yard. She was a good running buddy, protective of us and a very smart dog.

I had to throw a picture of our little one year old Lilly in there with all the pups. We were living at my parents at the time while we built our house in Coolidge.

We noticed a little while ago that Olive had developed a lump on her belly. Well the past couple of days Olive has not been herself and suddenly had a dramatic decline. In a couple of days she went from chasing cats and running around to barely walking. We knew she probably wasn't going to live very much longer, so we explained to the kids what was happening and took a few last pictures. You can see Elsie is very upset but I'm not sure if its about Olive.

One last picture with Mama. You can see in the background that we have been catching all of our little kitty friends. Don't worry they were taken care of and are safe at Animal Control. In all we have caught 17 cats.

Olive died yesterday. I started to cry when Aaron told me she was shaking and barely breathing. I think she was already gone but her body was still shutting down. I just hope she didn't suffer for very long. We had cousins come to visit for a couple days and they wanted to say goodbye to Olive as well. They all got to shovel some dirt for the grave.

Olive

Whelped: 12-27-2003

Died: 7-15-2011
We will miss you!

2011-07-12T12:05:00.000-07:00

No baby yet. I get tons of Braxton Hicks and occasional crampiness but nothing other than that. I am sure this baby will not come til around the due date just like Ivy. Not much longer! I literally feel like I am sitting around waiting for it to happen. On occasion I will get motivated to clean something like the toilets. There are certain things that I want to be done for sure before baby comes and clean toilets is one.

Other things on my list:
~Our bedroom clean and orderly
~Bleached bathtub
~Laundry for the most part done
~Kitchen clean
~Fridge stocked
~Rabbit cages built
~Kitties gone
~Mary Kay order done
~Homemade bread in the freezer
~More books read for summer reading program
~Appreciate our kids and give lots of attention and love
~I would say get lots of sleep but that is pretty much impossible since I have restless nights and I am not a napper

Also here is my list of guessers...
12th Jennie Whiting 7# 14 oz
13th Janalee 8#3 oz
14th Mindi Smith 7#12 oz
15th Holly Ray 7 #7 oz
16th Sarah Lowe 8 # 1 0z (you will have to give me your email or something because I'm not sure how to contact you. Aaron pointed out the house you grew up in the other day!)
17th Tracy Barney 7# 15 oz
18th Huth 7 #9 oz
19th Mom 7 #6 oz
20th Adam Mack 7#10 oz
21st Lisa Ferrin 7# 13 0z

It's Time to Play...What's the Birth date?

2011-07-01T15:40:00.000-07:00

Wow I can't believe the past few weeks have gone by as fast as they have. It's weird to think I will have another baby in about 2 more weeks!

So I figure it is time to do my usual game of "When will the baby be born? "and also guess the weight. So if you would like to jump in and guess then go right ahead!

Oh wait a prize! We all need incentive to play, right? Well of course it has to be homemade so this time I am giving away a good for your lips lip balm, and homemade body butter. All of these have mostly organic ingredients and are nothing but good for your skin and body. No petroleum, presevatives, chemicals or ingredients that you can't pronounce! I use my body butter on my face every day and it is the best moisturizer I have ever used. Never makes me break out, keeps me moisturized, and does not leave a greasy shine once absorbed. It also helps with stretch marks and aging! I will never buy a moisturizer again!

So I will give aways two sets, one closest for the birthday and one for the weight. Only rules are you can't guess the same date or weight as someone else:) and you gotta live in the U.S. (except for my sister Kiersten). Good luck!

And I just want to give a little shout out to my mother because it's her birthday! We celebrated by going to their house for dinner and what do you know it actually rained pretty good for about 15 minutes. They kids all pranced around like they had never seen rain in their life! It was pretty fun! And Kimbers Australian family is visiting for a little while so we got to see them as well. Oh yeah and we all pitched in and bought her a steam mop for her birthday. Now I just need to borrow it and convince Aaron that I need one!

Happy Birthday Mom!

2011-06-22T07:42:00.000-07:00

I have about 12 buckets in my pantry and the kids love getting them out and sitting on them. Lilly insists that she is potty training Ivy with them. "Ivy come sit on the potty!" and Ivy will come running. Although Lilly's intentions are good I had better not find potty in my pantry! But I think I can officially say that Elsie is potty trained. In my opinion they are potty trained when they go by themselves. Potty training Elsie before baby comes...check!
Aaron was working one Saturday so we decided to pay ma and pa a visit. We spent most of the day in the pool and the kids are little fish now. I took them to the city pool yesterday and I could confidently stick Lilly and Anders in the big pool (where I could see them) and go sit by the little pool with Elsie.

What's a post without a Father's Day pic? I tried taking one with Aaron but Lilly couldn't figure out the camera.

Pigtails! Ivy can finally wear pigtails and what is the best part about it? She asks me for it! Elsie and Lilly do not like their hair done but Ivy loves to suck her thumb and play with her pony tails.

Our sweet fuss fuss. She loves shoes, clothes, sleeping, animals, her blanket, swimming, any type of food, her water and her papa.

Some random things:

We still have all the kittens. I have won some of their love and a couple will come running to me when I come out. We found out that they belong to someone behind us and the moms had moved the kittens while they were away for a week. Now we know where to send them back instead of calling animal control.

We don't have cable but we do have the digital tv. Every once in a while the kids will watch Qubo and there are of course tons of infomercials. Lilly and Anders always come up to me concerned and say things like..

"Mom there is this thing called Lifelock that you can get and it will help you"

"Pillow Pets!"

"Mom we need to get that thing so Ivy can read"

and lately, "I hope we win the Home makeover!"

It's hilarious and I tell them to ignore the commercials but they keep coming to me telling me all the things we should get.

All of my friends seem to be having their babies and I can't help but feel jealous.

I crave ice all the time and my teeth are paying for it.

Our power went out last night and I was a little panicky when it wasn't turning back on. It made me realize just how spoiled we are. It turned on 30 min later. I'm such a wimp!

Kitties Galore!

2011-06-14T10:45:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I found a litter of kittens in our back storage yard. We persuaded them out, caught a couple and gave them tuna and water hoping they would stay a little longer. But the next day we found that the mom had moved them. We were kind of disappointed. Well I have noticed the back sensor light come on lately and the dogs were barking at the back fence like crazy the other day. So yesterday I went back there to check it out. It was still light unlike the pictures but I could not believe my eyes when I walked back there. I saw 2 momma cats and about 15-20 kittens running around all different sizes! They scattered when I came but I counted at least 15 before they hid.

I like cats so I was pretty excited. They kids were equally as excited and we stayed out there most of the night trying to coax them out. We finally got about 12 of them out when we brought out some cat food that we just happened to have.

We figure there are at least 3 different litters and they are all different colors and sizes. Ivy of course was going crazy and I wasn't too happy when I found her in a sand pile full of kitty poop! So who knows what we will do with them. They seem nice but skiddish and I think Hayley wants to adopt one. They are fun for now!

Summer Goings

2011-06-11T06:23:00.000-07:00

I really can't do much this summer and we are not taking a vacation so I have to come up with simple things we can do around here in AZ. Swimming is #1 and the kids are doing swim lessons for a couple weeks. We have been to one Harkins movie and it is a good incentive for the kids to behave and clean their rooms. We recently went to the AZ Mills Aquarium. My mom got a good deal through her work and it was a really fun exhibit but I don't know if it is worth it to go back and pay full price for how short it is. You can tell they put A LOT of money into it though. I would say it is worth going at least once. You can go through as many times as you want for the day. I walked through the mall after we were done and everyone else had left, and on the way out we decided to walk through again.

This is sitting in the 360 degree tunnel. Some of the kids were apprehensive about walking on the glass floor.

Captivated by the seahorses. They had tons of sea life. There were lots of varieties of fish, starfish, crabs (humongous and small), sharks, eels, jellyfish, rays, the cutest little nemo fish and every other kind of fish you have seen on Finding Nemo.

They had lots of places like this where the kids could stick their head in and be apart of the sea. My kids really enjoyed it and I was glad we went. My mom, Kimber's and Lindsay's family all went too. Definitely more fun when you go with family.

Yesterday Kimber came down for a visit and we went to the city pool. She was so good and took pictures. You can check out her blog to see some if you want. Our city pool is nice for me because it is within walking distance, and cheap. They have a square kiddie pool that the kids can have fun in and I don't worry about them. Aaron's family calls it the city ses pool but we go there anyways!

I think our next outing will be the Museum of Natural History in Mesa.

Thirty, Flirty and Thriving

2011-05-28T10:03:00.000-07:00

Never did I think I would be having a baby at age 30. My plan was to have another at 31 or 32, not the year after Ivy was born! But I guess I'm almost done and no going back now! So yesterday was the big 30th b-day. Aaron asked it I felt old and I said, Well, I don't think it's a good combination to be 8 months pregnant and turning 30 because I feel tired, rickety, and yes old. But I did feel good when our waitress assumed I was pregnant for the first time.
The day started off with one of Aaron's fabulous omelets. He has become the pro and they are the best omelets I have ever had. Full of spinach, mushrooms, bell pepper, onion, bacon, cheese, fresh tomatoes, fresh basil and seasoned eggs. So yummy!!

It was also Lillian's last day of school and they were having a beach themed party. So instead of her uniform she was able to wear her bathing suit and a skirt.

This was Lilly on her first day of school. I would say she looks a little older and she grew a tiny bit. Elsie looks like a sumo wrestler.

This is her teacher Miss Gibbs. I had a really hard time picking Lilly up from school. Miss Gibbs has been wonderful and she is moving back to her family. I was really sad to hear she would not be back next year and it was a good thing I wore my sunglasses because I was totally teary eyed. Thank you Miss Gibbs for being such a wonderful, sincere, and caring teacher!! I was glad Lilly had a good experience her first year. She can read, write, add, subtract, and so many other things thanks to this wonderful lady.

Hayley babysat for us the rest of the day and we went and saw Pirates 4 and went to dinner. I like the other pirate movies better but this one was good as well. Then we went to Texas Roadhouse and I barely ate my dinner because I ate so much popcorn. I bought some much needed maternity shorts then we headed home where Aaron put together this yummy zinger cake covered in coconut.

I had a great b-day. Aaron bought me this awesome double stroller and he also thouroughly cleaned our red couch by vacuuming all the dust off and also underneath. That poor couch was desperate for a cleaning and I was dreading it. It's the little things like that, that I love and he is really sweet and thoughtful to me.
So here is to my 30's! We hope to have a least one more kid (maybe more), baptisms, Anders and Lilly will be in yw and ym by the end, more callings, firsts for the kids and hopefully lots of happy years!

Recital Time

2011-05-15T23:48:00.001-07:00

Lilly and Anders have been doing gymnastics and tap/ballet with these awesome lds ladies we know from the other ward. They looked forward to going every week and it was a wonderful and inexpensive outlet for them. They put on a recital at the end of each semester and this is their pose for the exciting night. It was a Blast from the Past theme and Lilly also had a cute poodle skirt for her second dance.
Grandma, Paca, and great grandma came to join the fun along with Aaron's sister Hayley. We were grateful to Peggy for watching Ivy so we could enjoy the show. It was a fun recital with lots of different dances and ages. It was a bit long at 3 hours but the instructors have already decided to split it up into 2 shows next time.

Lilly's school also put on their first talent show. Lilly's class decided to do their ballet dance for it the morning before the recital. It was a long hot day.

And today I got the chance to do music time for primary! My first time ever doing this and I have to say it was a lot of fun planning and getting ideas for it. Our sharing time was a little long so I didn't get to do all that I had planned but that was totally fine for me! I will have it as a backup plan just in case.

Some other things I have been up to.....I made my first body butter with lots of good for you ingredients. I have also made my own deodorant and lip balm and I love them all!

Lilly only has 2 more weeks of school and I'm hoping we can do some stuff before the baby comes. So here is my summer time list so far...

Harkins summer movies

Lots and lots of swimming in various pools

Museums

Aquarium in AZ mills (anyone been there and is it worth it?)

Zoo

Crafts

BBQs (I love Independence Day celebrations)

and anyting else that is inexpensive and entertaining!

What's on your list for the summer??

3 Ring binder Cover

2011-05-04T08:50:00.000-07:00

I have been meaning to post this for a while. I saw a tutorial for a scripture cover and thought, "Why couldn't I do that for my 3 ring binder?" I like good challenge when sewing so I decide to try it. I measured and cut out all the pieces then it sat for a couple weeks because I was dreading doing the handles. I knew it would be a little tedious but I finally pulled it out again and set to work. It wasn't too bad but it did take a while. After that it was pretty easy and I love toting this around at church!

Here is a side profile so you get the drift of what it is. I basically slips on the end pieces and there is an elastic piece on top that slips around the button to help hold it tight together. I made this thing barely big enough for the binder to fit but it works out great and I love having it handy instead of sticking it in a bag and having to pull it out 50 times. I plan on eventually putting a flower or something on the front for a little embellishment.

Here's a quick pick of all the Hansen grandkids minus the oldest. We had a after Easter egg hunt. Grandkids #18 and 19 are coming this summer!

"Diarrhea's since Easters"

2011-04-24T21:35:00.000-07:00

I think that is mine and Aaron's (and probably everyone else's) favorite line from Nacho Libre. It is seriously one of my favorite movies and we watch it whenever we need a good laugh.

Our Easter weekend turned out pretty good except for a few factors pertaining to my title. On Friday we helped my parents move into their new house. This was a good day and we got a lot done, but I sure ate really, really bad. 2 donuts, panda express, not enough water, chips, yogurt, tim tams and whatever else was easy and layin around. I thought I might regret it but wasn't too worried. Well we got home around 5 or 6 that night and I was feeling okay, but by bedtime I felt something wasn't right. I ended up being sick all night with some sort of bug. Almost 7 months pregnant and a stomach bug was not fun. I was so desperate I woke Aaron up in the middle of the night for a blessing. I felt soooo awful and so dehydrated. When I looked in the mirror in the morning I had blood vessels popped all over my face and in my eyelids. Not eating panda express for a while. The kids seemed fine except for some #3 incidents. I was so glad they weren't throwing up though. Of course a couple nights before Elsie threw up in her sleep and woke up in the morning caked. And of course she had to make a mess all down the side of the wall of our incredibly hard to move bunkbed. Still gotta move the bunkbed to get to it (sigh).

So Saturday I just wanted to lay in bed all day which Aaron let me do most of the time. But the kids were stinkers and getting into everything. I felt like a beast of a mom that day.

Besides being sore I felt much better today. I got to give the sharing time lesson on the resurrection and we had a wonderful Easter sacrament meeting. Then it was off to Kimbers for Easter dinner and a little egg hunt. They just got grass in their backyard and it is so nice outside!

Funny thing, Lindsay and Kimber both told me at separate times that they thought Ivy looked like Dobbie from Harry Potter. Not really the face just her outfit, skinny stick legs and overall size.

And Lilly lost her first tooth on Friday! This is probably no big deal to everyone else but I was so excited when it was all wiggly and finally popped out on Friday! And this is coming from me who absolutely hated having my teeth pulled. It was seriously a phobia for me as a kid and we have video to prove it. I don't think I lost my last tooth til 8th grade. So I was relieved that Lilly was so excited and anxious to lose her tooth. She wiggled on it for a couple days hoping it would come out at school. I would have but they didn't have school on Friday.

Anyhoo that was our Easter weekend.

And I'll end with a prego pick. As you can see it is irrigation swim time again. Ivy is no different and wants to roll around in it with the other kids.

Happy Easter!

What to Blog, What to Blog...Oh yeah, I've lost my hearing.

2011-04-17T18:24:00.000-07:00

One of my good friends from high school just got hitched and we made the trek to go to her reception. We came home from our ward campout that morning and it was a cold rainy day. Her reception had to be moved to a church building but I was grateful! This girl is such a good friend and I was teary eyed when I saw her. She has been patiently waiting for Mr. Right and her day finally came to receive the blessings from being sealed in the temple. I am so happy for her!

We got a new bishopric today! Bishop Frank Rowley was realeased and his son, Chad Rowley, was called as our new Bishop. So we still get Bishop Rowley but a younger version! Chad and his wife Sarah are our good friends and it will be an adjustment calling Chad "Bishop"! We are so excited and know he will serve the Lord and our ward well.

I got a new calling a few weeks ago. I am the 2nd counselor in Primary! I am very excited about this calling and it is so differerent from being in young womens. It is without a doubt a new challenge and I'm glad to be able to serve with my children.

So my biggest problem right now (besides Elsie telling me "no" to everything, sticking out her tongue and pooping her underwear twice a day) is that I am deaf in my right ear. I have been congested lately and my ears constantly feel like they need to pop. My right ear has always been worse and gets really itchy, so I decided to clean it out with some peroxide. Well now it is totally plugged and I only hear muffled sounds out of it. It is AWFUL! I talked to my mom and she thinks I have fluid caught in it. She had the same thing happen once and it took 3 months for her ear to finally clear! I think I will go crazy if it goes that long. I am always really careful when taking anything when I am pregnant and the best thing I think I can do for myself is get this congestion cleaned up and cleared out and wait it out. I don't even mess with herbal rememdies too much during pregnancy. I have been eating so horrible lately so I know that is part of my problem. This biggest issue with being deaf is that I don't know how loud or soft I am talking to people. So I try to talk softer to be safe and I find everyone is saying, "What?" to me all the time. Just the fact that my ear feels like it needs to pop is driving me nuts! Any suggestions that you may have, let me know.

General Conference and Wheatgrass!

2011-04-07T10:27:00.000-07:00

I was trying to make general conference a little more bearable for the kids this year so I printed up some activites that they could do while we listened. The kids made some standing figures of the first presidency with a pulpit which I thought was so cute. They set it up and would put the prophet behind the microphone when he was speaking. After conference I couldn't find it for the longest time until today. I looked up at my shelf and there they were sitting as a good reminder. The kids favorite thing to do was to color the ties and a picture of the apostles and first presidency. They would excitedly run to the computer to see who it was and what color tie they had on. Then I would write a little note about what they spoke on. We weren't trying to exclude the other speakers or make them seem less important but it was easier this way and I was trying to get the kids to recognize our apostles. Time to juice the wheatgrass! I love lifting the grass matt up and seeing all the roots underneath.

This is what it looks like when it is ready which is anywhere from 7-10 inches long. It seems like it wasn't growing much more after about 14 days and you can see there are longer and shorter pieces. But overall it looked good and ready to juice.

So after juicing one tray of grass it only amounted to under 1/4 cup. But with wheatgrass you don't want to drink much more than 2 ounces at a time because of its potency. If you drink too much you actually feel sick. I will grow these trays one more time.

This was the pulp of one tray. All that time and you get so little!

This was the second tray which was more than 1/4 cup. But Aaron had juiced a carrot to try and clean it out a little so maybe there is some leftover carrot juice in there.

Overall, wheat grass is very inexpensive to grow. The thing you will spend the most money on is the wheatgrass juicer which we already had. But a hand one will be around $50-$80.

Cost breakdown:

Wheatgrass book- There are many out there but I used The Wheatgrass Book by Ann Wigmore 11.95

Cafeteria trays- pack of six cost around $8.00

Organic hard of soft wheat- 50 lbs was $19.15 ( I use soft wheat for baking too) To grow one tray you only need about 1/2 to 1 cup of wheat so this will go a long way.

Kelp powder for added nutrients (optional)

Soil- I bought organic soil from walmart for $7.00 and you mix it with peat moss (also from walmart) for $6.00. For the little trays I'm doing this will last me a while.

Jar to sprout

Water

Time- about 2 weeks

Wheatgrass juicer- anywhere from $50.00-$500.00

Uses for wheat grass:

Nutritious drink

Cleanser and healer for the body

Eye wash

Pain and swelling reducer

Gargle for sore throat

Anti aging for skin

Rub in scalp for irritations or to repair damaged hair

Cuts, burns, poison ivy, sores, ulcers tumors, athletes foot, insect bites, etc. The list goes on and on. This is infomation from the book I bought so do your own research and see if wheatgrass is right for you!

Cheer up my day Visitors

2011-03-29T16:59:00.000-07:00

This is my good friend Smitty, or Preston from H.S. His wife, Mindi, emailed me a couple Sundays ago and asked if they could come and visit. Of Course! But only if you eat dinner with us! So they came bringing gifts and entertainment for the night. Totally cheered up my week and I loved that they brought Preston's sister Tessa. She is this crafty, creative girl (well so is Mindi) and I love looking at her blog (iheartzelbie.com). She sells lots of good stuff there too so check it out! This is their son Jude. This boy is so precious. Ivy is so jealous of his curly full head of hair, but that's alright, they are betroved and will marry as soon as Jude gets off his mission. They were born 2 days apart and now Mindi and I are prego together again! Mindi made me these gorgeous hair clips for the girls and I love em! She also had a shop where she sells adorable little girl and boy items. Check out babybizzles.com to see they other cute stuff she makes.

And here is an embarassing story...she brought these 2 cute black bows that had velcro to attach them. I guess I was thinking girly stuff and attempted to try it on Ivy's head. It would not attach and was too small and I was starting to panic because I didn't want Mindi to feel bad. Preston was sitting there watching me and said something about it being a for a boy but I thought he was joking. Eventually he said, "No really I don't think it will fit on her head and it's just for a boy" And then it hit me that there were 2 of them..one for Anders and one for baby boy. I felt sooo stupid! Of course they were little boy neckties! DUh! Aaron was sitting there watching me too and didn't say anything! Probaby laughing at me the whole time:)

I had another pleasant surprise last Saturday. My Aunt Julie called me up and asked if they could bring all the cousins over to watch the UofA game. They were at CAC watching Dillon in a track meet and were in the area wanting to be together to watch the BB game. Well of course! Aaron had just left for work that afternoon, and I had just got out a puzzle to start working on. I was in a bum mood and needed the entertainment! It was so fun and our kids loved playing together. Plus we got to catch up during commercials and they fed us. I love how Elsie is totally posing in this picture. She kept sneaking candy from the boy cousins and they were best friends from then on.

So sure, they didn't really come to see ME:) but I was happy to have them.

Corned Beef and Cabbage

2011-03-18T21:24:00.000-07:00

We were suppose to go camping this week but plans fell through so we bummed it at home. Aaron's b-day is on St. Patty's day and he grew up getting corned beef and cabbage as his b-day dinner. So that is of course what he requests when I ask what he wants. I don't care for it but I make it because I love him. Surprisingly it tasted a lot better to me this year. I cooked the meat for a long time and it was really tender so maybe that is the difference.
The kids die over birthdays and I found this cute little note and the door. Lilly kept trying to put it on the front door but I kept hearing Aaron tell her he didn't want people to know it was his birthday. So she stuck in on the back door.

We invited Hayley and Corey for strawberry shortcake and we had to water balloon bomb them as they walked over. Elsie is STILL potty training so don't mind the underwear shot.

I didn't get any pictures but we had the priviledge of having Aaron's famous cousin Janalee over for part of the afternoon. It was quite the treat for us and her kids kept my kids totally entertained. Plus Jana said all these really nice things about me on her blog. They are welcome anytime! My kids were talking about them all day today and they really wanted some "tousins" (as Anders would say) to come and have a water balloon fight.

I forgot about this picture but I was able to go to a bridal shower for one of my good friends from high school. I took the girls with me and of course Elsie did her usual fit when we got up to the door so I snatched the first cookie I saw and wisked her outside. Well I went outside to check on her and realized I gave her a black frosting cookie and she was totally covered. She looked like she had a little devil goatee and it was smeared all over her shirt. But she was happy.

And here is proof that Ivers is walking. I could watch her walk around all day. She sucks her thumb and either plays with her hair or holds a baby or stuffed animal in the other. She is so petite and precious and I LOVE this age!

I am just dying over this weather. It is so gorgeous outside and we sit and play outside happily all day. My wheat grass is doing great by the way. I planted it in some soil in a cafeteria tray a couple days ago, then covered it for two days and now it is outside getting some indirect sunlight. If all goes well it should be done in 7-10 days.

2011-03-16T06:55:00.000-07:00

I realize I have not blogged in quite a while. I have various reasons why and I'm not sure too many people blog anymore. So give a shoutout if you are still out there blogstocking! I do it all the time. So here are some updates.

Classice belly shot. Everyone likes a belly shot, right? I'm feelin good so far and so excited to have a boy. Aaron is trying to convince me to name him Horace. Yes that's right, Horace. It is a family name and I can imagine everyones reaction to it so let Aaron know if you like it or not. Of course I'm not worried about what others think:)

I have been a little bummed out lately and I know everyone would love an explanation why but don't worry they are no big deal things. I have decided to take on some projects to keep busy. One being wheat grass. I just soaked my soft wheat berries for 12 hours, now I will sprout them for 12 hours before I plant them. I'm very excited. Wheatgrass is SOOOOOO good for you!
I am also starting to sew again which is a hobby I love.
They kids got to be in our small town parade for their dance and gymnastics. They loved it but I think they would have loved even more to sit on the side and grab all the candy.

Another project...waskily wabbits. This a sweet little rabbit we bought who one day I had to save from 2 hungry dogs (named Olive and Taffy). Most embarrassing, exhausting 4 minutes of my life! Lets just say my stomach didn't feel too good after acting like a football player suddenly chasing every which way after 3 animals. I was sitting out watching the rabbit in the yard when all of a sudden I heard the dogs gate open. I couldn't take one step before they were on top of that rabbit. And who slyly opened it? Elsie of course.

This was hilarious. You can't see but Anders was sleeping at the table waiting for dinner I guess. Ivy's favorite thing to do is suck her thumb and play with her or anyones hair. Well a big head of hair was sittin right there so she took advantage. Did I mention that our fuss fuss if finally walking?!!! This is my favorite age when they are small and barely walking. Like a little old lady shuffling her feet. So cute.

Last week also marked our 9th anniversary. 9 years? Where did all that time go?

And We're Having a........

2011-02-27T19:16:00.001-08:00

And we are thrilled to be having another boy!

Celebrate!

2011-02-23T20:57:00.000-08:00

I was wondering why I felt so happy and less stressed today. Then I realized that we had an entire day of NO accidents! I'm sure tomorrow will be a nightmare but I will relish today.

A Birthday Do

2011-02-19T06:53:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Ivy's birthday with a little cake. She was a little reluctant to even touch it at first. She probably couldn't believe she was getting a big piece of cake all to herself. Every time she would eat a piece, that same hand that picked it up would go to the back of her head and rub the residue all in her hair. Every time! It was hilarious!
Other than that she ate it pretty clean.

After Aaron got a little coaching from his dad on how to catch a gopher, he finally caught the one that has been eating my basil and making its home in our kumquat. Hallelujah!

A Great Healthy Living Giveaway and my first homemade lip balm

2011-02-12T09:14:00.000-08:00

There is this great giveaway over at Simple Healthy Tasty. This girl has healthified her and her family's life and I am so impressed by the recipes she comes up with. All dairy and meat free! She's amazing and I use her recipes and advice all the time. So click on the button and check it out.

I also made my first lip balm yesterday! I can't believe how easy it is and I don't think I will buy chapstick again. Most chapsticks have yucky petroleum in them anyways. So here is my Orange Cocoa Coconut lip balm.
Ingredients:

Coconut Oil, Cocoa Butter, Sweet Orange Essential Oil, and Beeswax. That's it! If you are interested in how to make your own lip balms go to mountainroseherbs.com and look for their recipes.

Giveaway over at babybizzles!

2011-02-08T15:38:00.000-08:00

You could win! Baby giveaway over at a friends blog...

babybizzles.com/2011/02/giveaway/

A Bittersweet Day

2011-02-07T07:51:00.000-08:00

I was released as the YW president yesterday. It was an emotional day and I will miss working with those wonderful young women!

Here's my first mutual activity with the laurels. I have heard that 3 of them are engaged?

They threw a baby shower for me when I was prego with Ivy. So sweet.

Ahh, girls camp. I was so excited to be able to go the first year even though it was just a couple nights.
It's been a wonderful 2 years and I have learned so much. My testimony has grown and I have learned valuable leadership skills. I have always been more of a follower than leader so I think this calling was more for me than anything. It was tough having 2 babies while in yw so it will be a relief in that respect. Aaron has been very supportive and I'm grateful to him for letting me leave a nursing baby so many times. We will see where my next calling will take me...I'm guessing primary teacher?

Some other news we found out yesterday was that Aaron's brother, Corey, found out where he will be serving his mission for the next two years! He will be serving in Columbia!!! He leaves in April and we are so excited for him!

Today is Ivy's birthday as well. I cannot believe she is 1 years old already! I went ahead and snapped a pic just now so sorry for the raggedness. She is totally entertained with a pair of jammies right now and that is what is drapped around her.

And the last bit of news is that we are expecting again! I am 17 weeks and due in July. We were quite surprised when we found out but are very happy. I was hoping to have a little break not having to be pregnant or nursing but I guess the Lord has other plans for us and we feel very blessed.

2011-02-02T08:43:00.000-08:00

I haven't blogged in while so I guess I need to update. It will probably be a boring post...

Lilly had her 100th day of school. We collected 100 things and put them in a bag. This included straws, rocks, shriveled kumqats, sticks, zip ties, and stuff like that. She had a fun day.

I have had this dilemma with all of the girls flower clips for their hair. They have been sitting in a basket in a heap for a while now and I could never seem to find what I needed. I wanted to make something for them but then a lightbulb clicked on in my head of what I could use. My mom made this ribbon board for Lilly when she was a baby and I could never get the hook to stay on in the back and it would always fall down. So I put it on a bookshelf with pictures and Lilly would always take the pictures out and pull in down. Very frustrating. So it has been sitting out of reach until I realized I could use it for the flower clips. It is perfect and so cute!!! I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner! Thanks mum!

Ivers is standing like crazy and so ready to walk. This little petite thing will be 1 in a few days and has taken a few steps but that's about it. One day she will just get up and walk I know it! She also started sucking her thumb a few months ago which is very bothersome. The other day the kids pulled out a pacifier and I couldn't believe it but she took right to it! She loves that thing and even though I hate the thought of her sucking a pacifier at this age it is better than her thumb. So I mainly let her have it at night when I can't control the thumb sucking. She is also getting all sorts of teeth and so cranky! Her favorite thing is to suck her thumb and play with my hair. Very cute but also very annoying:)

Australia is getting pounded with rain again. There is a huge hurricane hitting land right now which if this hit us it would cover 3/4 of the U.S. That is how big it is. I'm worried about Kier once again.

But crazy weather and crazy things are happening all around us and we gotta keep our guard up! It is freezing in AZ right now and the nights are in the 20s!! Some things have been on my mind.

So once again I encourage everyone to get your 3 month supply of food and water then start working on your year food storage.

Think about what you would do if our power was out for a week...

The stores shelves were completely emptied.....

The water supply was cut off........

Are we ready to fend for ourselves?

Kiersten, Recipe, Snow, and Chickens

2011-01-21T10:10:00.000-08:00

I guess it's time for an update. Kier is doing great and they are starting the rebuilding and cleanup process. She sent us an email and their house never flooded and they have been volunteering to help clean up homes and other areas. Her testimony of food storage and being prepared has grown immensely and if you know me and Aaron this is thrilling to hear! We very much feel the need to have food storage and other prepardness items especially in times like these. I urge everyone who will read this to pray about how you need to prepare your family both physically and spiritually. The news may make everything seem like things are getting better but we still have to get through a lot more.

Anyways, so we are happy to hear they are safe and watched over.

So onto my favorite condiment at the moment. Cilantro Lime Dressing! I put it on quesadillas, burritos, tamales, salad, dip it in veggies, whatever! It's good and good for you so here is the recipe. You can tweek ingredients according to your tastes....

I like to use my little cuisinart but you can use a blender or big cuisinart too.

1/2 to 3/4 bunch of cilantro stems and leaves cut up
about 1/2 cup Grapeseed oil Vegenaise (Dairy and Egg free, wonderful alternative to mayonaise)
2-3 garlic cloves ( I like mine garlicky)
juice of half of a lime
here is the only unhealthy part and I will find a healthy alternative soon....1 tsp hidden valley ranch dressing mix powder. I love this stuff but its not very good for you since there is MSG in it.

Blend together and add small amounts of rice milk to thin it. Just add enough to make it less thick and to your liking. And there you go! Enjoy!

We decide to take a little trip to the snow on MLK day. Mount Lemmon seemed like a good choice and so after a rough start getting there we made it and had a great day! Kimber and Ethan wanted to join us and it was so fun. Elsie couldn't get enough of the sled as well as Ivy. Anders loved it too but it was frustrating getting up the hill. Lilly would rather slide on her but then go on the sled. But she was fine playing on her own and dragging Thurston around.

I knew with Ivy crawling that we needed a dry spot to sit so we brought a tarp and portable propane heater. It was heaven and I'm so glad we brought it. All of my kids snow clothes are from thrift stores by the way!

I thought this was a cute picture of the Kroks. Atticus was so good but he had a hard time walking around in his big pink boots her borrowed from us. So he would just stand there all cute watching everyone. They are such good boys and I get to watch them all weekend! I'm so excited! We wouldn't have made it without Ethans help!

Had to make a snowman. Lilly's best friend.

The snow was really wet so the kids got cold fast but they had fun since snow is a luxury and treat for them. It was a long day but well worth it.

These pics are out of order but the Hansen's have had an excess of roosters so we decided to practice butchering them.

After Daniel cut the throat they still wringle a lot because of the nerves and blood went everywhere including on Elsie! It was pretty gross but that is what happens. They got through about 2 chickens and realized they weren't doing it completely right so they will do the rest later. We didn't eat the meat either because it was tainted with something they accidentally cut. Oh well.

Australia Flooding

2011-01-12T07:29:00.000-08:00

I don't know if anyone is watching the news but parts of Australia are completely flooded and getting worse. My sister Kiersten lives in the Brisbane area and they are experiencing it right now. This is record rain that has been termed, "end of the world type rain". They even had a small tsunami! Basically it is serious. I talked to her yesterday and she said they live on a hill so they should be safe but they are not through the worst of it yet. They can't go anywhere including work. They went to the store to stock up and it was a mad house. Here is a part of her letter to me, I hope she doesn't mind but I think it is important to realize that is can happen to anyone...

"We went to the grocery store yesterday after work to do the weekly shopping and it was a mad house! We waited in line for 30 minutes. All the water was gone, all the batteries were gone. So I've been filling up any water bottles and vases I can with water. Its funny because a couple weeks ago, I was telling Heath how I wanted to get our food storage going and just buy $5 extra a week of food. And I've also started on my 72 hour packs. They aren't finished so I failed there (luckily we don't have to evacuate our house), but we have enough food to last us for the next couple weeks, plus we have my sister in law up stairs that has a bigger food storage built up. We are just not sure when grocery stores will be able to stock up again. My testimony of food storage, and listening to a prophet has grown immensely! I just wish I would of listened sooner."

My mom emailed me this morning and told us that the power has been shut off and they don't know how long til it is turned on again. They are also housing a family in their stake who lost their house in the flood. So we can't talk to her right now and we are worried. Even after it is over who knows how long til they can buy food again. I just hope they will have water. If you remember, please keep the people of Australia in your prayers.

Anders turns 4

2011-01-07T09:17:00.000-08:00

Anders turned 4 in January so we started the day off with some friends over and little debbie cakes to share. I forgot how good those things are.
For dinner he wanted crabby patties (hamburgers). Aaron was working late so I grilled up my first hamburgers. Not too shabby and the kids loved them!

Present time! Anders has been dying for a camera so we got him the kidizoom one.

Now that I am looking at the pictures I see that the knife is looking a little menacing next to him! I did not let him cut the cake.

Aaron still wasn't home by the time I went to mutual that night so he missed out on the festivities. I have to say it was hard getting everything done myself and I was starting to lose steam and patience by the end of the day, but it was worth it for our little boy. He is now in Sunbeams! Finally!

Happy Birthday Buddy boy!

Youth Pioneer Trek!

2010-12-31T12:30:00.000-08:00

We had the privilege of being in charge of the candle workshop for our stakes youth pioneer trek. Aaron younger sister Hayley had the chance to go. Their mom made all of Hayley's pioneer clothing and I thought she looked so good!
Our helpers the Randalls. We had pretty sweet setup with our ez-up and warm stove melting the wax. There was a huge storm here in AZ the day the kids set out to trek. During the day wasn't bad but the kids had a HORRIBLE night. It was pouring rain, windy and so cold. Everyone I talked to said they stayed up the whole night just trying to keep the rain and their tents off of them. I guess many tents broke during that rain storm and the kids were miserable. But when we got there in the morning they were surprisingly upbeat and genuinely seemed happy to be there. The day of our workshop was so windy and cold but our ez-up had sides that gave us a cozy little area. The kids loved filling their candles with the hot wax so it would warm their hands. Aaron even let a couple of them dip their hands in the wax to make a cast.

Some of the young pioneers. There were about 140 kids and 18 ma's and pa's.

This is Hayley's family

Here is one of Hayley's full outfits. She even had homemade bloomers and a secret pocket! Isn't she adorable?!

I have been so stressed about this workshop the past couple months and I was so happy when we were done. Overall it went smoothly and it was nice to get a break from the kids and go see the youth. I was especially happy to be out of that cold wind and felt bad for the kids having to endure a very cold 20 degree night. But they will learn so much and come back better people. They will appreciate everything so much more . I know I do!

Holiday Catch up

2010-12-23T06:06:00.000-08:00

I guess it's been a while since I posted so here is a catch up. I basically went through my camera and went through the last month or so.

The kids were dyin to build a fire so we had an FHE in the backyard. We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows and enjoyed the fire. Anders lips look botoxed, don't you think? They look so voluptuous.

The junk Christmas tree went up. We call it a junky tree because we like a variety of ornaments with old and new kid stuff hung. No perfect, themed tree for us! Just throw them on there kids! Sorry so fuzzy.

My little camera only takes decent pics in good lighting. But here is the table all decorated for Thanksgiving with my family. We backed it off a week so Kier and Heath could be there!!

2 of the cooks. Everyone made some YUMMY food!

My first undercooked turkey! My mom said it looked done but they don't tell you to check the temp in the thighs for nothing. They were pouring blood. But the breast was done. Aaron also smoked his first turkey. It was delicious!! Until we all got sick with our bug and couldn't stand the sight of the carcass and smell in the fridge.

We celebrated Lilly's birthday with my family a week early. Her cake is a pie and then she opened presents. My sweet 6 year old.

It looks like Aaron is taking the picture but I'm just on his lap. My parents and Kimber's family met Heath and Kiersten where they went snowboarding in Park City. It was all fun and games until my dad biffed it and cracked his ribs and Kimber slammed her head on the ice. Luckily she was wearing a helmet but it was really scary. She kept saying the same things over and over so they took her to get a scan. Everything looked fine but they noticed that her suture from her accident never completely healed together. She is fine now but it's probably best for her to stay away from those sports. She even had a big crack in her helmet that they noticed later. A couple years ago Kimber was in a bad horse accident and hit her head really bad. They had to do surgery and release the blood that was filled in her skull. It was scary and we weren't sure if she would make it. She came out if it totally fine and had a baby that same year. Amazing! So we are all sitting her watching the snowboard video. My mom even went and was the best out there. On skis of course.

Ahh, my Ki Ki is here! Heath and Kier are here til the day after Christmas. Way too short but it is so good to see them. The last time we saw them was a year and a half ago at their wedding. They are the designated babysitters! Maybe I'll send one back to Australia with them.

We went to the temple lights together. It was such a nice night we didn't even need coats.

Kimber and Ethan

DAW
I just love the beautiful temple lights.

Then we went to our Coolidge Light Parade. It was actually pretty fun. Our ward had a float that was really well done and there were some other amazing floats done by the people of Cool town.

Lilly's real birthday. I can't believe she will be baptized in a couple years. I'm feeling inadequate in our teachings so I need to step it up so she will be ready for that big day!

I made Lilly a little robe that I was so excited to give her. To my delight she wears it all the time with her slippers.

Happy 6th b-day Lil! We love you!

Now onto our big Hansen Christmas weekend. We celebrated a week early because David was here for 2 weeks from Afghanistan. The boys had to play b-ball of course. So I went and watched and took a few pics. Not too many fights this year.

While the guys played b-ball the kids decorated gingerbread houses. Always a hit.

Our neighbor sold us his shed for cheap and the only way to get it to our house was to roll it. It was quite a feat. We were so grateful for all of Aaron's brothers and brother in law to help us. Thank you men!

I love this picture! Heather is the one that pulled this gathering together. She is the planner and always makes everything fun.

Some of the fam waiting for dinner. I wish I would have gotten more pictures. I didn't take one of us unwrapping presents. Peggy made all of us these amazing first aid kits. I love mine and have been wanting to make one for a while. We also went caroling, played games, watched movies, ate, did crafts and played on the kids quad.

Overall it was a great weekend and it was nice to see David. And the food was amazing as usual!

I am so busy the next week. Our stakes youth pioneer trek is next week and I am in charge of our wards workshop which is candle making. I pretty much have everything ready but I'm nervous about the wax getting melted and the overall delivery to the kids. I also have to help a yw get her stuff together, glue all the wicks in the cans, individually bag the pine, find pots and ladels for the wax, experiment and make a candle, finish the yw's christmas gifts for sunday, make tamales, finish shopping, clean, and finish getting ready for Christmas. Oh yeah and taking care of 4 kiddos. So much to do, so little time!

Sorry no Christmas cards or family pic this year, but I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas as we celebrate the birth of our Savior!

Ugh, fun times

2010-12-08T14:21:00.000-08:00

Yesterday
9:40am- Anders throws up on the floor. Had to cancel a playdate with a friend scheduled at 10am.

12:30pm- Over at Peggy's and Ivy thows up all over Elsie's hair and shirt and proceeds to throw up everything undigested from breakfast. Still happy baby though. Poor Peggy had to wash out Elsie poodles hair while she threw a fit.

1pm-Ivy throws up again followed by throwing up every half hour. So sad to see her get weaker and weaker,but at least she will cuddle with me.

2:20pm-Ivy is still throwing up. Get a call from the school nurse that Lily is sick. Gotta load up the kids and get her.

2:25pm- Getting ready to walk out the door when Anders throws up all over the floor again. Call Peggy and ask if she'll watch the kids real quick.

2:35pm- Pick up Lilly.

2:40pm- Get a call from the school nurse again that she accidentally gave me one of her papers. GRRR. Was almost home and now I need to go back. Had to stop on the side of the road on the way so Lilly can throw everything up. Gets all over hers and mine shoes.

3:10pm- Aaron finally gets home to help. Anders stomach is hurting, Lilly falls asleep, Elsie is great, Ivy is still upchucking every half hour. Can't put her down for a nap and have to hold her constantly.

6pm- Same story with the kids. On the phone with my dad telling him that me, Aaron and Elsie are okay. Hang up the phone and then Aaron gets sick with the works.

7:30 pm- Ivy is finally done throwing up. Anders and Lilly have thrown up once or twice. Elsie still good. Aaron getting worse.

8pm- Ivy is put to bed. I'm on my knees praying that me or Elsie doesn't get sick. Kids just got out of the bath when I hear a big wet sound. Elsie is throwing up.

8:30-2am- Elsie throws up every 30-45 minutes. I have to sit on the couch with her waiting to catch the mess in a bowl.Anders and Lilly thankfully went to bed around 10pm peacefully. I'm starting to feel nauseous in the middle of the night.

2am- Still on the couch with Elsie trying to get some sleep. She is finally done but I'm not feeling good and have a pretty rough night. Thankfully I did not throw up. Poor Aaron has a rough night and still has to do the paper route then work in Florence til 4pm.

I feel pretty crappy and tired today. Anders threw up a couple times but the other kids are doing great and all took some good naps giving me a break. I don't think I will make it to mutual though. I'm sure Aaron is super tired and weak. But I am so thankful that mine didn't turn into what the kids had. Heavenly Father was looking out for me.

A little about Elsie Poodles

2010-12-02T08:03:00.001-08:00

Here is my Elsie. She is incredibly stubborn. Everything has to be exactly her way or the tantrums start. I help her to an extent but I cannot feed her tantrums so most of the day she walks around growling and crying at me trying to get me to break. Yes some days I just can't take it and break but I desperately try to stand my ground. It is so hard trying to keep my patience. It is so hard trying to smile through it and be positive. Potty training is a nightmare when every time I try and put her on she throws a fit. Even a treat as an incentive won't make her budge. Most days I don't know how I'm going to get through it and I feel like a failure.

On the other hand she is my quirckiest kid and makes me laugh all the time. She has the funniest expressions and does the funniest things. She can be incredibly sweet and loves kitties. I have also learned tricks around her tantrums and being positive is always the best way. So it is good training for me.

I have heard over and over that I was a difficult child, and she looks exactly like me so I guess I am getting it all back? But I love her and it is also her age that is a contributing factor so we just need to get through this stage. Sigh.

Picture Time! Everyone's favorite thing to do....

2010-11-30T07:29:00.000-08:00

My good friend Rachael Olson took my kids pictures and here are some of my favorites...

It's always a joy trying to do anything with Elsie.

Lilly age 5

Anders age 3

Elsie age 2

(Luckily she calmed down right at the end and we caught some good ones.)

Ivy 7 months

I was on my death bed this day. I was so sick and couldn't believe I got myself out of bed to do this. Aaron didn't realize how sick I was until he got exactly what I did. Yeah, he felt pretty bad for not giving me any type of sympathy or help:), but what do you know, he still got babied while he was sick (a little).

I did not take any Thanksgiving pictures this year. But the food was spectacular at the Hansen's and we had fun being together. Aaron's mom and dad were so nice and watched the kids the next day while Aaron and I went out on a much needed date. We went black Friday shopping and I loved spending every minute with Aaron without kids at our feet. We were gone from 8-3 and it was wonderful!!! Our kids are finally at an age where they get excited for Christmas and decorating. They got Aaron to get the tree down and everything was decorated within a few hours. I can't believe it's that time of year again!

Casa Grande Ruins

2010-11-16T21:15:00.001-08:00

Coolidge is home to the Casa Grande Ruins. We have lived here almost 5 years and I have never been. It was free admission on Veterans Day so me and my sister in law, Huth, took a little trip with the kids. It's a pretty amazing site and so cool to see how these people built their homes and lived.

Triathlon 2010...We Did It!!

2010-11-08T15:10:00.001-08:00

I don't know about Kimber but I had so much fun this year! Here we are setting up and getting ready to go. I started the day off really well by sleeping in and Kimber and my dad woke me up with their pounding on the door.

I'm going to give you the extended edition so you feel like you are right there with us experiencing the triathlon. If you don't know it is a 400 meter swim, 10 mile bike and 3 mile run.
We are both pretty concerned about where our meal ticket is for after the race.

There was over 400 participants and it took us an hour to get in the pool. Kimber and I kept baby stepping ahead of everyone. I think this was the worst part of the triathlon. Having to wait in anticipation forever.

Oh yeah and here is this guy. He has no shame! I don't know how he was able to come out looking like this! My dad loves capturing pics like this. I could have swore we saw a pregnant girl in line too.

We are almost up! I have to admit that my training for the swim started at the triathlon. I hadn't even touched the pool.

My dad got this great pic of us together in different lanes. Kimber whooped me in the pool.

Now for the 10.2 mile bike ride. Kimber says that she wouldn't have been able to do the bike with out me but I feel the same way about her. The bike is not very easy for me and it was so nice to have someone to ride with this year. It went by so much faster.

Our faithful cheerleaders (minus my dad)! They were troopers staying out there with 2 kids each. It was a lot of waiting around on their part.
But we loved the support!

Jello legs! If feels so funky getting off the bike. My feet are numb and I feel like I'm about to fall down any minute. I'm really starting to wonder how I am going to get through the run.

But the run is my event and after the first 400 meters it's no problem and I start passing people left and right.

If you look close you can see I am trying to pass the girl in the pink shirt. She could hear me coming and did not want me to pass her so she started to kick it in. She gave me a run for my money but in the end I caught her. He He.

It feels so good to finish!

Here's my Kimber not far behind!

We did it! I like to try and flex my flabby arms. Overall I completed it in 1 hour 23 minutes which is actually slower than two years ago. Oh well, maybe I was having too much fun. Lastly I have to thank my dad for coming out in the very beginning, taking pictures, and waiting the whole time to get those few snapshots. After the race Kimberlee said she wouldn't do that again, but I know we will back. Thanks for your support Kim!
And of course thanks to my wonderful hubby for letting me train and participate.

Next up...turkey trot Thanksgiving day.

Happy Halloween

2010-10-31T21:52:00.001-07:00

Nothing fancy or matching this year. Here we have a genie, a cow, Austin Powers (won a prize), Spiderman, Barbie Cheerleader, and a scarecrow.

Now for a sad/funny story: A little girl came up to me and asked if I was a genie. I said "yeah sure, make a wish". Little girl sincerely: "I wish my whole family could be here tonight." Me: Embarrassed and wide eyed not sure what to say in front of everyone and this little girl."Uh okay I will try". And I quickly turned around and started fussing with Ivy, vowing I would not ask any more kids to make a wish.

Overall it was a good night and the kids had fun.

Back to the pioneer days and super tonic

2010-10-29T06:10:00.000-07:00

Our disposal broke to our main sink the other day. So now that there is nothing it can drain into I can't use my sink or dishwasher. When we were building our house I insisted on having an island sink with a disposal. My persistance paid off because that is what I am washing dishes in. I realize how much I am spoiled by a double sink that I can rinse in and a dishwasher. This is basically one big sink that I have to wash and rinse in causing the water to rise higher and higher. But I'm not complaining and it's good to realize how much I take for granted.
Lilly is such a good sister to Ivy. She will entertain her in the backyard by giving her rides. It's been so nice outside lately that this is what I have them do while I make dinner.

Remember this. It's been a month and now it's time to harvest on the new moon.

First get a big bowl and strainer and dump some juicy pulp in there.

Get a glove on and start mashing out the juice. They glove didn't really matter because the juice still found a way in and my hands were burning.

Now you have your pulp and juice.

Get a finer holed strainer on top of a funnel and start pouring it in to get the last little bit of pulp out.

Now you have your super tonic ready to take when you feel that sore throat or sniffle coming on. I dumped my pulp in our garden so I didn't fell wasteful. Hopefully it will keep the pests away. You house will also smell very pungent for about a week, but I like the smell.

The Gilbert Temple Construction Site

2010-10-25T14:17:00.000-07:00

You are all so smart! Yes, members are being encouraged to go and take a family picture at the construction site. So that's exactly what we did!

Construction site?

2010-10-24T19:35:00.000-07:00

Anyone want to guess where we are and why we might be taking a picture in front of a construction site?

Oh and one of my last posts where I asked if anyone could guess what Aaron's little blue notes says...this is what it said (in case anyone was wondering)

"Thanks for being a 10 cow wife...I luv u...Aaron"

It was a relief society activity where I was speaking on exercise and the theme was "How to be a 10 cow wife". Aaron was trying to make me feel good and a little less nervous.

Hard Core Training for the next 2 weeks!!

2010-10-22T22:45:00.000-07:00

Me and my sister Kimber officially signed up for the Casa Grande Triathlon a couple days ago. Kimber wouldn't have it though and told me I was going to do the triathlon with her. I had gotten her all psyched to do it and then when I started backing out she got me all fired up again and we're in it now! I'm a little nervous because I haven't swam or biked once this year. I have consistently ran though and my bike is now fixed (thanks babe) so I can ride. Then I asked my friend Bethany if she wanted to get out there with us and she enthusiastically said yes! So now there is three of us and it should be fun and I'm getting more and more excited. I just have to get my bum in gear now and get on the bike. I don't really care about the swim and I pretty much sidestroked it the last time, but it's the bike that I struggle with.

Some other events I am going to attempt to accomplish:
Mesa Turkey Trot-Thanksgiving Day (10K)
Half Marathon-end of January

I needed to write these goals down so they seem more real to me! So if anyone wants to join us for a triathlon November 6th let me know!

New Do

2010-10-15T11:09:00.000-07:00

But first I thought I would show Elsie's attempt at getting into (or is it out of) her crib.
I have been wanting to cut my hair shorter for a few months now. I was at my moms and decided that I was going to go for it and wanted my hair cut right then! So Kimberlee helped me find a picture of a hairstyle and I went looking for someone who could cut my hair right away. I lucked out and found a really sweet lady who knew what she was doin. She straightened it but I couldn't wait to see how my curls looked. I am happy either way! (Elsie is potty trning and is therefore allowed to only wear undies. Just had to explain her ragamuffiness)

I've Never Seen Her More Distressed

2010-10-05T20:47:00.001-07:00

I ran my 5K on Saturday and I did better than I thought. It was a lot of fun and I even got a trophy. So I came home and Lilly and Anders were so excited to see that I had won it. Lillian especially loved it and was walking around with it to which I told her, "Don't play with it or you are going to break it". She just smiled back and I kindof forgot about it. Well, about a half hour later I went to look for her and she was on her bed in tears. She look like she had a really bad stomach ache or was hurt or something. I asked what was wrong and she wouldn't say anything. I persisted a little further and she finally said she couldn't tell me. I was starting to get worried because she was so upset. I left for a minute then came back and tried once again to get her to tell me what was wrong. I realized that she wasn't hurt and I was laughing because she was still upset and afraid to tell me what was wrong. Finally, she sheepishly said, " I broke something"'. I then realized what had happened and I said with a smile, " Did you break mama's trophy?" I was still kindof laughing because she was so sad and worried that she broke something that she thought meant a lot to me. She nodded her head to tell me that she had broke it. I assured her it was okay and immediately called Aaron to tell him what happened. I laughed about it the rest of the day!

Brownie points to who can guess what Aaron's little blue note to me says...

2010-10-01T17:39:00.000-07:00

Thank you for all of your kind words! But really, these young women are molding me!

I need to clarify something about the Super Tonic...this is not my recipe. Wish it was but if you google Super Tonic then you will find a few recipes but the one I used is by a man named Tom Harrelson. We would originally buy it from Dr. Shulze (herbdoc.com) but it was 28.00 for 2 oz! So for 28.00 I can make about a half gallon or more. No brainer there! And anyone can make it since they aren't super hard to find ingredients. I tried to buy everything organic but the horseradish and habeneros are hard to find that way. Horseradish is not common in the grocery store either but you can find it at sprouts.

Tomorrow I am off to run a 5K!

2010-09-29T21:41:00.000-07:00

I don't normally share personal/spritual thoughts on my blog but my heart feels really full tonight. We had our Evening of Excellence program tonight and I just have to say that we have some really special Young Women. I found this idea one day of making "Belief Boxes". What we had the girls do this year in addition to diplaying their personal progress experiences and projects was to decorate a shoe box . We asked them to think about their testimonies and what they really believe in. Then find a scripture and decorate their box around their belief any way they wanted. I wanted these girls to bear their testimonies without thinking they were. The night was amazing and even though is was more work and and extra effort, it was well worth it. I was teary eyed with every presentation. I watched them get up with nervous hands and some fear in their eyes, but they presented like they were pros and I know it was the spirit directing their speech. They have to endure so much peer pressure and some don't have supportive parents, or they are just coming back into the church. Some have been raised in the church and still have to search for that truth. They are being attacked at every angle but yet they still fight for what is right, come to church, go to mutual and do personal progress. They stand as witnesses of Christ. These YW are AMAZING and I really look up to them. I'm bawling right now just thinking about these girls and I love them all very much. We also have a very good bishop. He is a very righteous man and leads with the spirit. I lived in Safford while I attended high school and I had the priviledge of having this very same bishop as my bishop. It's kindof funny that our paths have crossed again and he is once again my bishop.

Anyways I don't express my feelings as well as I like but I felt and am still feeling the spirit very strong right now and had to share.

2010-09-26T21:32:00.000-07:00

Meet my latest herbal concoction...Super Tonic. This is basically equal parts of garlic, onion, ginger, habenero peppers, and horseradish chopped finely and covered with Braggs apple cider vinegar. This will sit from new moon to new moon and will be shook as much as possible til then. When we were putting it together we realized it wouldn't fit in one- gallon jar so we dumped it in a bowl to mix it then separate it into two jars. I very, very stupidly was in a hurry and mixed it with my hands. Habeneros are stinkin HOT and my hands were on FIRE the rest of the day. I didn't dare touch my eyes and I think I antibacterialed my hands for this winter. I don't have to wash my hands again after that! This stuff is great though. It is so good for when you feel a sickness coming on and will nip it in the bud.
Nothin better then getting pushed around in a basket. Little Ivers got her first tooth yesterday. HALLELUJAH!

We started some seeds the other day. They are just starting to pop up and I love going out and looking at them all. I can't wait for them to be planted and grown.

This is about half of what we started. I can't decide if I like winter or summer gardens better, but either way they are a joy to see and work and eat.

It's Finished! Well, Almost

2010-09-22T15:33:00.000-07:00

We finally got the bunk bed in Lilly and Elsie's room and I couldn't be happier with it. I have some touch up work to do but other than that it is finished and Lilly loves it! I am lovin the drawers to keep shoes, socks, pj's and toys. And of course we managed to sneak some food storage behind the bed. Ahh, I love to look back at a completed project, plus it was free and I didn't even have to buy paint. We had plenty left over from the playhouse and the other rooms.

See that chest over there to the left. I made that when I was a laurel as one of my projects. My dad helped me build it and I guess you could call it a hope chest but it was never used as one. And on the left is a little bookshelf that my dad made. He was going to get rid of it and I sentimentally clung to it and told him "NEVER! It will have a place in our home. " And here it still resides.

Some projects I have been working on

2010-09-10T19:08:00.000-07:00

First of all, we call this little thing clutchy girl. She always has her hands clutched like she is bracing for something scary to happen. Or maybe she is going to be a very prayerful girl. Still no teeth, crawling like crazy, loves her mama and no one else, is petite but very strong, has trouble eating solids, and is my sweet kwissie girl.
There are a lot of pregnant women in our ward right now so I am in the sewing mood and decided to whip up a dozen burp clothes to go with a little outfit. Something homemade but yet super easy and simple. Still deciding whether or not I want to make Halloween costumes.

I just stocked up on herbs and decided my herb/cookbook cabinet needed a little makeover. This would have been better with a before picture but here is the after anyhow. Feel free to click on the picture to get an idea of the cookbooks I like and the herbs I use. I love a freshly organized space and I keep going back to look at it.

Aaron's sister Hayley was ready to get rid of her bunk bed and what do you know, we were ready to transition to a bunk bed. As said before this would have been better with a before picture but I will have to settle with a picture of it being taken apart and painted. It had white wash on it (which I dislike anything white washed) and was kind of beat up with nicks, coloring, and some lettering in the wood. So we wanted a fresh start and sanded away then gave it a fresh paint job. This is a pretty nice bunk bed that is solid wood and has 8 DRAWERS!!!! A bunk bed with storage? What more could you ask for? Oh yeah, it was FOR FREEEEE! (Adam Sandler's Bedtime Stories)

Aaron was a good sport and helped me sand all Labor day. After all, "we have to labor on Labor day", as he likes to say. I will post a finished product once it is all put together.

Another project is my dehydrators which have been sitting outside collecting dirt and grime. They desperately need to be cleaned!

A visit to Papa's work....The Haunted Courthouse

2010-09-02T19:44:00.000-07:00

Aaron has been doing some remodel work at the Florence courthouse. It's a pretty cool looking building and we decided to go visit him one day after school. I love the clock tower. It reminds me of Back to the Future. There is glass all underneath the clock like a lighthouse and I got to go up and take a peek.

I love the tin ceilings!

Hate the carpet. Hopefully they will replace it with wood floors. The ghost was kind enough to take our family picture.

This is the scary basement that is crumbling apart. There are rumors that there are ghosts in this building so we kept telling the kids to keep a lookout. I think Anders sees one.

Three judges giving my sentence...

Some neat ol wall paper. It even had a fuzzy texture to it! I love the dark wood in this room too.

Aaron thinks this is the old jail and I bet they hung people here. It was kindof creepy being down there.
Supposedly the show Ghost Hunters has been here to check it out.

The old courtroom.

Anyways it was kindof fun going and seeing what Aaron has been doing. It will be neat to see it completely remodeled. I am loving that Aaron works so close by!

What the?

2010-08-21T05:38:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning I awoke at about 2 a.m. to a funny noise and something warm on my arm. Being kindof dazed and half asleep I pictured Aaron next to me holding Ivy and she was spitting up on me. Then a few seconds later I reached my hand over to feel who it was and bolted awake realizing it was Anders throwing up all over my bed and me! Then I spent the next 30 minutes taking my bedding apart piece by piece to rinse it out and throw it in the washer. Then I had to shower throw up boy and myself. I stuck him back in his bed with a sip of water then tryed to go back to bed myself. He came in 15 minutes later saying he threw up again. Luckily it was just on his pillow.

Then this morning about an hour ago I find Anders in my bed AGAIN, throwing up AGAIN. What is going on here?

I guess on a more positive note it was better he threw up in my bed because his bed is made up of food storage and would be a pain to clean. (Sigh)

Some breakfast recipes

2010-08-19T08:25:00.000-07:00

Lilly and I survived our first week of school. When I picked her up the first day she looked kindof dazed and wouldn't really say anything. We got home and I was trying to get things out of her when she all of a sudden broke down and cried, "I don't want to go to school all day!" I started to cry right along with her because she was so distressed! I had been trying to gear her up for all day kindergarten letting her know that she wouldn't be home til before dinner time. Well, she finally realized what ALL DAY meant. She is doing good now though. We have had a couple mornings where she tried to stay home but I threatened her with time out all day and no playtime or tv. I know she has fun at school so I have to remind her of that. This is her best friend who she talks about all the time.

This is a variation of my daily smoothie I like to drink. It was inspired from simplehealthytasty.blogspot.com
2 cups water
2 handfuls spinach
blend well
Then add your favorite frozen fruit
I also like to add coconut milk to make it creamy
and chia seeds for added nutrition (not the infomercial seeds)
Chia seeds are a superfood that aid in digestion, nutrition, weight loss, leveling blood sugar, and help with endurance for athletes
Coconut cream on top
place a can of thai coconut milk in the fridge overnight
scoop out only the thick stuff (save the clear milk for your smoothie)
whip together like whip cream
whip in a sweetener and enjoy a healthy alternative to whipped cream
I could drink a smoothie in the morning and be filled til lunch

Wholesome Pancakes:
1 1/2 cups freshly ground whole wheat flour
1/2 cup raw wheat germ
3 tablespoons sucanat, honey, or sweetner of your choice
1 tsp real salt
1 tsp baking soda
4 tsp aluminum free baking powder
handful of oats
handful millet
1/4 cup flax seed oil
2 cups rice milk (or milk of your choice)
2 eggs
Mix all together and throw on the griddle
Add some coconut cream on top for added flavor with your favorite syrup or jam

Mmm Mmm Good, Healthy Ice Cream! Well, I actually just tell my kids it's ice cream

2010-08-15T20:16:00.001-07:00

One can Thai Coconut milk
3-4 frozen bananas
Handful of frozen mangos

Blend in a blender until smooth and enjoy this creamy dreamy treat without the dairy or refined sugar! And yes, your kids will think it's ice cream for breakfast (or dinner)!

My babies are growing up

2010-08-09T09:46:00.000-07:00

Lilly started school today, sniff. But I bravely held the tears back and walked her into her classroom. She had a little bit of a nervous face but I assured her that I would be back to pick her up in the afternoon. I kept trying to let her know that she would be gone all day a little before dinner time. I'm not sure she quite understood ALL DAY. But we have never seen her get out of bed so quickly in the morning and I know she is very excited. They wear uniforms at her school and I couldn't be happier about it. I don't have to argue with her about what she is going to wear or how she should match. Plus I think the uniforms are so cute! I tried to get her to pick out a cute paisley, vintage looking lunch box, but I finally had to walk away so she would be able to pick out her scooby do without my influence. Anders got an old school transformers lunch box. I will have to get use to Lilly being gone all day. After all she is my little helper with Ivy.
And yesterday Elsie turned 2! So we had the family over for lunch and dessert. Here is all 9 of the Whetton grandkids!

Elsie is sporting grandmas outfit she gave her with her Jesse doll, Wonder Pets DVD and play block.

I'm on a little bit of a health kick lately so for her birthday treat I made a dairy and refined sugar free peanut butter and chocolate pie. I compromised and allowed whip cream to sit atop my healthy dessert. I thought it was pretty delicious especially with my coconut milk ice cream! You can find these recipes at http://simplehealthytasty.blogspot.com

Elsie loved her Jesse toy when she opened it up and had the cutest surprised look on her face. (Not meaning this picture) So now that I have a child in school I'm sure time will fly by even faster. I'm anxious to see how Lilly does today!

Great Grandma

2010-08-01T16:20:00.000-07:00

My pictures didn't upload in the order I wanted so we'll start from here. We went to visit my grandma on Saturday who lives in Tucson. We decided to take a trip to the Tucson zoo. I have wanted to take the kids all summer so the nice overcast day worked out perfect. I love this zoo because the animals are so close and are usually always out and about. I think we saw every animal active, even the turtles! The kids loved going and Elsie was gasping at everything. It was so cute!
We got a wheelchair for my grandma who is 92. So what is wrong with this picture? When we brought the wheelchair out she looks at it and says, "I'm not sitting in that. Those are for old people." So we had to be quick and tell her that Anders wanted to sit in her lap. She only bought that for half the time then decided to walk and let the kids ride. It was slippery and kindof rainy and I was so afraid she was going to fall!

We couldn't go to Tucson without stopping at Eegees. Aaron gives me this disgusted look every time I mention Eegees. But hey, you like what you grow up with right? Anders was so loving to my grandma. He wanted to be by her, talk to her and give her kisses and hugs all day. It was really sweet since most of the time he wants to play fight with everyone.

Kimber and Ethan came with their kids too. Thurston and Elsie cracked me up the whole time. They are such characters.

I love my grandma. She is an example of faith and love and we are so blessed to have her. I selfishly hope she can be here on earth for a little while longer.
Thanks for the great day mom and Kimber!

2010-07-25T20:32:00.000-07:00

So my kids are totally different swimmers. They dive for toys, swim from the wall to me, hold their breath, jump off the ledge and swim to the steps and whatever else! They go nonstop.
It all started when I found this lady who did swim lessons for two weeks, an hour a day for only 20.o0 per kid. Totally cheap and totally worth it! She did such an awesome job and has turned my kids into fish. In fact, we went to our ward pioneer day party at the city pool and the kids jumped off the diving board for the first time to Aaron. The next try they were jumping off and swimming to the ledge by themselves. I love that they don't fear the water anymore. It makes swim time so much more enjoyable.

Did I mention that my sister Kimber is back from Australia and is here to stay!!! Her boys are so adorable and Thurston is loving being with his cousins. Elsie was stung by a bee so she came in to watch a movie and Thurston wanted to be by her. He is such a lovie boy and constantly wants to touch her.

Elsie was a little on edge after getting stung but also did not like being smothered. I love this picture because he is cautiously watching her while carefully taking a piece of popcorn.

And lets not forget National Geographic! Are you confused? This is what we have been calling Ivy after finding out that she has what is called a Geographic tongue. For a couple months I have noticed Ivy with ovals on her tongue that would move, get bigger, disappear, and change shape. It didn't seem to bother her so I waited to see what it would do. Well, finally I decided to figure this thing out and took her in. And that's what it is. They don't know what causes it, it shouldn't bother her and she will have it the rest of her life. And she got a new nickname from it!
She is somewhat sitting up and is so close to crawling. She will rock and then kindof hop to move herself. So cute and I love this age.

Dinner

2010-07-19T21:07:00.000-07:00

This is what I fed the kids for dinner tonight and guess what? It was a hit and they loved it. I saw this idea somewhere, somtime ago and decided that tonight was the night to try it out. They thought it was the coolest thing to get to eat dinner like this and they each tried every single thing. I originally saw this idea for snack time.
So click on the ice cube tray and try to figure out what everything is. Hint: everything is raw except for one cubicle. Let's see who can guess them all correctly!

2010-07-14T22:47:00.000-07:00

The other day Ivy was in her swing and Lilly was in there watching her while I was busy doing other things. Lilly comes into me and says, "You need to come get Ivy, she's stuck." I didn't hear any crying so I told her to get Papa since he was closer. I keep doing what I'm doing and Lilly comes back and says that Papa won't listen and I have to come get her. I brushed her off again and it wasn't until the third time that I realized Aaron wasn't going to get her and I needed to see what was going on.

This is how I found her. Hanging halfway off her swing just chillin. It was hilarious and she wasn't even crying until she heard my voice! I tried to get Lilly to fess up and admit that she had tried to get her out of the swing, but she stood her ground and said she didn't. I have found that Ivy is a strong baby. She isn't sitting up on her own yet but she is really close to crawling. My kids don't crawl til they are 7 months at least so 5 months old is pretty early for her.

2010-07-07T07:07:00.001-07:00

I had the pleasure of driving some of our YW to camp this year. We have 15 girls that went which is a lot of girls and I am so happy that so many of them chose to attend! The only problem with driving the girls is that I had to take Ivy. She nurses exclusively and the trip was too long to leave her. But the drive up was okay. She fussed for a little while and eventually fell asleep for about 20 minutes out of the 2 + hour drive. They let me stay for a little bit to help the girls get settled. It was so fun walking around my old camp where I started my first 2 years of young womens. It was hard leaving and I was so envious of our camp leaders getting to stay for the week.

I was thrilled when Ivy fell asleep as soon as we started driving down the mountain. I thought the trip back might not be so bad. I grabbed an eegees on the way through Tucson and headed for the I-10. Not long after being on the I-10 one of my worst fears came true. The traffic slowly came to a standstill. I called Aaron to see if he could look up what happended and I guess there was a bad accident and I just missed the Ina exit to escape it all. It was torture. Ivy had woke up before I got on and before long she was screaming her head off. I have always feared being stuck in traffic by myself with kids. I even started to panic a little wondering if we would be stuck for hours on the freeway, if I would run out of gas or the car would overheat, I didn't have much water in the car and it was very hot outside. I was so mad at myself for not preparing better. After about an hour we made it to the next exit. I made Ivy as comfortable as I could during that time and we finally pulled off the freeway to fight with the detour traffice. Ivy basically screamed and cried for most of the drive. It took me 4 1/2 hours to get home and I was bawling by the end. My back hurt, I was tired of hearing Ivy and I'm sure her little body was getting achy too. It was awful and I will never put Ivy through that kind of drive again unless I have another driver with me. It also made me realize no matter how short or long the drive is that we should always carry enough dringking water (at least 2 gallons), snacks, water in case a vehicle overheats and an alternative route or plan.

2010-07-05T22:08:00.001-07:00

I'm off to take the YW to girls camp tomorrow! It will be a nice break and I can't wait to go back to my old girls camp on good old Mt. Lemon!

Look What I Won!!

2010-07-01T10:35:00.000-07:00

It came in an adorable little box...

Isn't it Sweet?! My friend Tessa is very creative and decided she wanted to do a giveaway and give these beautiful neclaces she made. The flower is made out of an old necktie! She is an artist and crafter and comes up with the most creative creations. Take a look over at makelikeatreeandleaf.blogspot.com

Thanks Tessa! I love it!

No Nap!

2010-06-25T05:12:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things about kids is the funny places and positions you find them in when exhaustion takes over. I found Anders like this the other night. I would say he is my best sleeper and lately has been putting himself to bed.

Lillian is by far my worst sleeper. I blame my inexperience as a new mother. I would find her in the funniest positions because she wouldn't nap and slept terrible at night. Her naps were non-existent before the age of 2.

Isn't she sweet?

My favorite age is 12-18 months when they are waddling around.

What I have been up to lately...

2010-06-12T21:52:00.000-07:00

We have a peach and apricot tree which were completely covered in fruit this year. I mean branch breaking full. So for the first time ever I canned, and canned, and canned some more. This is like 4 or 5 days worth of non stop canning. We knew we were going to go camping and the fruit needed to be picked and stored so I went for it. Hopefully everything is canned correctly.

We probably picked 4 or 5 boxes worth of peaches. I wanted variety so I made peach: butter, nectar, jam, and halves. I also made some apricot butter but I'm not even close to finishing our apricots. Altogether we canned about 40 quarts. Oh and we made tons of peach leather which is so addicting. It is basically blended with a spoonful of honey. Can't get much healthier than that!

I came home from running and saw Ivy intently watching Aaron mash some baked potatoes for the kids. He said she had been staring for like 10 minutes! I guess it's time to try some solids for her.

I guess I better mention that our second camping trip went great. No intestinal problems for me at least and I think the kids are finally cough free! Good to be home though.

Get Ready for a Good Laugh

2010-06-04T21:57:00.000-07:00

After much deliberation we decided to go camping over memorial weekend. I had found an herb that really helped the kids cough and throwing up, but we were still skeptical because they still acted a little cranky.But we decided we needed to get away and enjoy some time with friends. Now keep in mind that they story I am about to tell was quite traumatic for me (maybe a little graphic), but I am now able to laugh about it and I am giving you permission to laugh as well. So here we go...

We left late on Friday and it was a long drive so we didn't end up getting to the camping areas til about 10pm. Being memorial weekend there were no spots at Airplane flats and it was dark so it was hard finding an alternative. So we decided to pull off on a little spot off the road and camp for the night. Instead of setting up our big canvas tent we set up a little two man tent and pulled the seat forward in the car to make a flat spot for me, Ivy and Elsie to sleep. Elsie was so overtired at this point and being stuck in the car she was having a really hard time with all these adjustments. It's hard enough sleeeping somewhere other than home anyways. So I was going to make Elsie sleep in the seat in front of me but she threw this major fit for an hour. I got Ivy to sleep and with a prayer in my heart and trying my best to hold my anger I finally sat over Elsie, and in a firm voice I demanded that she lay down and go to sleep. Exhaustion was setting in and she actually calmed down enough for me to stroke her hair and get her to sleep. At this point I was wondering how the rest of the weekend was going to be with her and wondered if we should just go home that night. But Aaron and I decided we would see how the next day would go. Thinking Elsie would sleep the rest of the night I layed down to get some sleep. Well about 1230am I jerked awake to a bump and Elsie crying. She had fallen in between the door and the seat and started to cough because she was upset. I grabbed a cup in case she threw up and made it just in time to catch it. And from then on every half hour I would wake up to her making this horrible throw up sound and I would get ready with the cup or catch it in my hand. At one point Ivy woke up to be fed. Yeah, that was fun trying to deal with both of them. It went on all night til 5am when Aaron came to relieve me. I crashed for a couple hours while he held her. It was an awful start.

After a quick breakfast we found another spot and set up camp. Elsie was an angel ALL day. I couldn't believe it and realized that the weekend might not be so bad after all. I felt a little sick that night when we went to bed, but other than that the kids slept great and we were doing pretty good in our setup.

The next day we went to a creek and the kids explored while we ate some lunch.

They had so much fun here and it was beautiful.

Boys will be boys. Aaron was pretty proud of this picture.

Here are the girls getting their hair done by Sarah.

Okay so now to the even better part. After we got back from the creek I was feeling this urge to get to the bathroom. As soon as I got out I ran to the outhouse. I'll just say it wasn't good and I didn't quite make it. The rest of the day I had pretty bad diarrhea, but I felt okay. By the evening I felt better and thought it was subsiding, so I ate a good dinner of chicken and potatos with cobbler afterward. Sarah intoduced me to these fizzy skittles which were yummy and we played some cards and other games. The night seemed to be going pretty good.

Well, Elsie was not having an easy time getting to bed that night. She ended up vomiting all over her bed before she went to sleep around 11pm. I was not feeling good at this point and the diarrhea was coming back full force. IT WAS NOT A GOOD NIGHT. Every 15 to 30 minutes I was running out in the middle of the woods behind our tent to, well you know. Sometimes without shoes, sometimes feeling nauseous, and oh lets not forget about Ivy and that I am her only source of food. It's bad enough when this happens in the comfort of your own home, BUT IN THE WOODS!! It was cold, dark and there was no toilet. Just me, the trees, and the worst case of diarrhea I have ever had in my LIFE. And there was nothing I could do about it. No medicine, we couldn't go home and Aaron joined me out there at some point. Oh and if anyone knows me, I HATE to throw up. I will do everying in my power to prevent it. Well not that night! I knew I wasn't going to feel better unless I got everything out of my stomach, plus I was having the worst fizzy skittles burps. So I decided to stick my finger down my throat thinking that would do the trick. Nope, I had to stick my finger down my throat like 10 times before I could only get out half of what was in my stomach. The other half came out a little easier like 2 hours later. It was awful and total torture for me to do that.

I FINALLY started to feel better at about 5 am in which I could sleep a couple hours before having to go to the bathroom again. As soon as I was up we started packing and we got out of there at about 1030am. I just wanted to get home. We warned everyone to avoid behind our tent because there was toilet paper scattered everywhere.

When I got home I weighed about 5 or 6 pounds less and looked like death. But interestingly I don't regret going, it's just one of those things that tend to happen. Just don't ask me to go camping anytime soon (which we actually are suppose to go again here pretty quick). I may be staying with Elsie and Ivy at home.

Hopefully you got a laugh out of my misfortune. I still can't believe that happened and hope it never happens again while I am camping.

The End

The last of my 20's

2010-05-27T23:33:00.000-07:00

I turned 29 today. Just one more good year and as my sister in law, Kristen, says, "I'm 29 forever."

I feel like I have accomplished a lot so far, but hopefully I'm around a little longer to accomplish even more.

~I'm feeling a little creakier.

~As I'm trying to type this I have one eye trying to unfocus.

~I've accumulated quite a few spider veins.

~I can easily fall asleep at 9pm but usually fight it to have some alone time.

~Naps are sounding better and better (coming from a person who NEVER naps)
~I still like weird cartoons..newest favorite: The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack

~Still immature in many ways

~BUT I am trying to learn to be a more postitive person

~I have a blessed life that I too often take for granted

~The kids are driving me nuts at the moment,but I'm grateful for them and wouldn't trade them for anything.

~I have a very tolerant husband who I'm pretty sure loves me unconditionally:)

Overall I am happy and life is good.

So my birthday started out with Aaron making me breakfast. Then Aaron and the kids showered me with sweet little gifts like ankle/hand weights for exercising, a camping lantern, goodies, and the new movie Sherlock Holmes.

Then I cleaned up a bit so I could come home to a clean house later that night. We met my mom at Texas Roadhouse where they made me sit on a saddle while everyone yelled, YEE HAW! or something like that. It was graduation night so it was kindof busy and I was embarrassed. Ivy was so scared of the YEE HAW that Aaron had to take her outside to calm her down. My mom treated us to dinner, thank you mom!

Then my mom picked the kids up from Aaron's sister and we headed to Corey's graduation. Ivy was so overstimulated by people and especially noise (as you can see from the picture). She is conked out right now from the wild night. My poor parents. Elsie threw up from coughing 3 times, and Anders pooped his pants. It was a good night to leave them wouldn't you say?

So here is to another year! 30's here I come...

Cuckoo for Coconut « The Family Herbalist

2010-05-21T13:48:00.000-07:00

So I have had a few questions about my obsession with coconut oil. I use it mainly in food and besides loving the taste I have learned that it is a healthier oil to use. I do not use it exclusively because it is pretty expensive, but I have heard that the unrefined coconut oil has higher fatty acid content which gives it a long shelf life. Because of its antifungal properties I was able to use it to rid Ivy's thrush. A much safer alternative. Here is an article that I found on coconut oil. You can read for yourself and see what all the fuss is about.

Cuckoo for Coconut « The Family Herbalist: "Cuckoo for Coconut
March 5, 2010 by Natalie Vickery"

A few things

2010-05-20T16:41:00.000-07:00

My bucket of Gold came today. Love my coconut oil, Mmm.
Look who I found rolled over for the first time today. She is 3 months old now and sooo sweet.

I caught Elsie just in time with a sharpie writing on her arm. Only one line, phew! Then she lifted her shirt and I found her belly scribbled on. It's taking forever to come off!

It's summer irrigation time again! Yay for the kids! Stinks for me. It's like a big swimming pool that I worry about and then it's muddy for a few days in some spots. I'll just have to work on my tan while the kids play.

No More Vomit

2010-05-12T22:25:00.000-07:00

Since Saturday night at least two kids have been throwing up all the way til today. Anders and Elsie have had this horrible cough for over 2 weeks now and they cough so hard they tend to throw up every time. I'm so over cleaning vomit up. I'm about to go insane from the smell. As a kid and even as an adult I have a phobia of vomiting. And a phobia of coughing because I think it will lead to vomiting. So I guess I have the best of both worlds now, right?! Lilly threw up all night Saturday, so we skipped church Sunday, then the other two started up and we wondered if we were going to make it to the Gila Valley open house on Monday. Lilly was better and Anders and Elsie acted fine until they started coughing so we decided to just go. Well, I had to hold a cup under Elsie every time she coughed, but other than that it was okay. So here we are in my old neighborhood looking at this beautiful temple with some family!

You know those chinese fingers traps. That's what Lilly did with a cup lid. It was pretty funny watching her cry and still try to watch the movie. The points where the straw goes in was poking her in either direction and I kept trying to tell her to pull it off fast. She didn't believe me so I did it.

I'm praying that the kids get better by this weekend!

Mother's Day 2010

2010-05-09T20:56:00.000-07:00

Look what I came home to!!!

Just kidding, this was actually all the roses our young women put together for our mother's day fundraiser on Saturday. But I don't need Aaron to do something like this for me to feel special on mother's day. He makes me feel special all the time. Mother's Day weekend actually started off with Aaron taking Anders on a very important trip. Fathers and Sons of course! This is a good time for Papa and son to bond and be together and I'm glad they had to opportunity to go. Here they are tossing an egg together (which I hear is a tradition?)...

I think Anders had a lot of fun having Papa all to himself and the chance to go camping. I just felt bad that he had a terrible cough that he had been battling the last couple weeks.

I would like to mention my wonderful mother. We spent Sunday with her by making her dinner and talking with my sister Kimber in Australia. It was a nice day and I love my mom very much! My dad took this picture while we were there. She was helping watch the kids by the pool and decided to fill it up. The other week we were sitting outside watching the kids stick their feet in the pool when all of a sudden Else goes in head first. Without thinking my mom jumps onto the steps with Ivy in one arm and pants getting soaked. I jumped in too and before I knew it my mom was grabbing her by the leg pulling her out of the water while I grabbed the top half of her body. Elsie is not the only child my mom has rescued. I remember when we were little living in Tucson and a lady came running down the street screaming to our door. The lady was holding her infant who was blue and not breathing and knew my mom was a nurse. She had laid her baby to sleep on a water bed and of course the baby rolled and suffocated in the crack. My mom knew exactly what to do and immediately did rescue breathing. The frantic mother watched my mom save this little baby while an ambulance rushed to our house. I even remember the baby coughing up blood and coming back to life. Just a year or so ago my mom was approached by the mother and told her that her daughter, who my mom had saved, was getting married soon and introduced them. She had never forgotten my mom and was grateful to that day. I know there are countless people who my mom had influenced. She is hard working and dedicated. I love you mom!

My wonderful honey started my day by making me the best veggie omelet. It had all my favorites; tomatoes, spinach, green onions, and basil. There was also hash browns with my favorite herb, cilantro, and a little 'cutie' orange. He also whipped up some chocolate milk. I was very impressed with his first time omelet! I love how Ivy is eyeing my food. Oh, and I also recieved some Sees Candy, Mmm. I don't have high expectations for mothers day. All I want is a little help with the day to day things like dishes, meals, and kids. He did exactly that.

The weekend had started out pretty rough with me and the kids being sick (and me at some point saying under my breath that I was done having kids), but it always turns out all right and I feel so privileged to be a mom. We for sure want a few more if Heavenly Father will allow us.

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms!

Spring is Here!

2010-05-05T08:41:00.000-07:00

Look what's hatching at our place....

The kids want to go over to Nana's every hour to see the new chicks. I think we are up to 21 little chickadees now.

Nice!

2010-05-04T05:10:00.001-07:00

Ivy slept 10 straight hours the other night! So why did I still wake up a little grumpy?

A first for Anders

2010-05-01T21:45:00.000-07:00

I really should be finishing my YW lesson for tomorrow but I can't help but blog about this little first.

I have 3 sisters so having a little boy (and being married to a man) has made me learn a few interesting things about the male gender. I was watching a friends kids the other day when they came in from outside and asked if I would go out and watch them go down the firemans pole. I happily said yes and went outside to see the 6 year old boy, Connor, goes down first with ease, then Lilly, then the little 4 year old girl, Hailey. Then I see Anders sitting up there with a look in his eyes like he needs keep up with all the big kids. He is also looking worried that he won't be able to slide down like everyone else. I'm pretty sure this is the first time Anders has attempted the firemans pole. I'm sitting on the swing holding Ivy and trying to encourage him that he can do it and he'll be fine (I'm laughing right now just trying to type this). So he's sitting on the ledge, leans over and grabs onto the pole (mind you he is the shortest of the bunch) and with legs spread and sticking straight out into a V he pulls his little family jewels right smack into the pole (sorry, still laughing here). And I know for a guy it's really not funny and I bet it would hurt a girl too, but I just couldn't help but immediately laugh. He had this surprised look on his face like he didn't know what happened, then slowly slid down the pole. As soon as he hit the ground the pain kicked in and he bent over and started to cry in pain like any male would do in that situation. I felt so guilty as I was laughing trying to comfort him, but it was so funny. I even wish I had the video camera. I told Aaron when he got home and he just laughed too. So that was a first for little Anders and I'm sure not the last.

Fudge Update

2010-04-21T22:15:00.000-07:00

I guess I forgot to mention how good this was. The kids watched me make it with eager eyes and after the first taste all they wanted was more. I compare it to the girl scout cookies, Somoas, but without the actual cookie. Aaron really liked it as well. So the next day I didn't mention it to the kids and slowly savored it all day by myself. I let Aaron have a few more bites of course. And there you have it! Delicious!

Fudge

2010-04-20T21:00:00.001-07:00

Sorry for the fuzzy picture, but I decided to make some healthy fudge. I have wanted to make this for a while and, Jana (Aaron's cousin), motivated me to make some tonight. I started with a recipe but in the end made up my own.

Ingredients:

1 cup Honey

1/2 cup Unrefined Organic Virgin Coconut Oil (or plain coconut oil if you can't find that long mess)

1 cup Toasted Carob Powder

3/4 cup Coconut Milk Powder

1 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (or your favorite nut)

A handful of unsweetened coconut

Cream the oil and honey together, Add everything else and chill in a container! It will seem oily, but once you chill it it will harden. Takes maybe 10 minutes? And can you tell I love coconut in all forms?

I get most of my ingredients from Azure Standard, but I'm sure you can find them at Sprouts or any health food store. Leave me a note if you are interested in Azure. They have yummy organic, healthy foods at great prices!

I also attempted to make Kamut pasta tonight. It was really dry so it was kind of a flop, but I'll work on it. Google kamut and the other ingredients (especially coconut oil) I've listed to find out all the health benefits they offer. And don't misinterpret me for a health nut. I'm on a little kick, but for the most part I still have my weaknesses:)

Blessings Galore!

2010-04-18T17:06:00.000-07:00

Ivy was so excited to be blessed
She could hardly contain herself!

What a blessing this little girl has been. We are so glad she is ours and I am so grateful for a husband who is worthy to hold the priesthood to give our family blessings in many different ways. This may sound funny, but Ivy did not come cheap when she was born. She is priceless so it really didn't matter how much, but bills still have to be paid and it was a stressful time. We have savings for emergencys like this but we didn't want to dip into our savings completely. I prayed to Heavenly Father that we could find other ways to pay for her hospital expenses. Tithing was paid first and everything seemed to fall into place after that. We have had side jobs pop up, family support, and other monetary blessings come our way. I really believe and have a testimony in the power of paying tithing and following our prophets counsel to avoid debt. He really does look after us and listens to our prayers.

Haircup (As my kids would say)

2010-04-08T16:23:00.000-07:00

My hair has been needing some attention for quite some time now, and these pictures are making me realize just how ratty tatty is was.
First of all, I decided to let my roots grow out. Gross I know, but I refuse to dye it again. So I'll wait to cut it off. Second, my hair is really curly so in this picture it is half straightened and looks really bad. This is the longest my hair has ever been.
And now, the result! Still bad roots but I can live with them for a little while longer.
Feels so good to have those ends cut off!

Easter!

2010-04-06T14:58:00.000-07:00

My mom, dad, sister Lindsay and her kids all came over on Saturday for a day of Easter festivities. We decorated cupcakes, painted and dyed eggs and had an Easter egg hunt. My mom brought over all sorts of crafts and yummy things for the kids to enjoy. They were in heaven!
My Lilly

The hunt!

On Sunday we had another Hansen get together for David. The kids colored more eggs and had another Easter egg hunt>>Here is Tom the turkey. Tom loves people and goes crazy whenever we are outside sitting around. So we decided to let him out and walk around us for a while. He does this funny thing where he drags his wings and makes a stomping noise with them. We never knew what he was doing until he tried to hop on top of poor cousin Porter. Yes, I think it was a mating thing.

Hansen Family

2010-04-02T09:30:00.000-07:00

Aaron's brother, David, is being deployed to Afghanistan soon so he came down to spend a week with the family. We decided it would be good to take a family picture before he left, so here we all are minus John and Caleb. David thought a camouflage picture would be appropriate!

Alright Kimber, Here You Go...

2010-03-24T14:30:00.000-07:00

Proof that she is smiling and not just from gas.
Oh and I started running again! I got on the track today and a breeze brought that track and grass smell up to my nose. I felt like I was back in Safford on the Bulldog track. I love those smells.

All that hard work the past 6 weeks has finally paid off!

2010-03-24T09:06:00.000-07:00

SHE'S SMILING!

The End of the Gopher

2010-03-22T02:12:00.000-07:00

This happened a while ago, but I thought it was really funny. During the time Aaron was hunting for that gopher he came in one day and said he had just talked to his brother Corey. Well I guess Corey was out washing his car and all of a sudden this gopher pops out of a hole near him. Corey saw it and the gopher saw him and immediately showed it's teeth and started to charge him a little. In his defense, Corey took a step towards the gopher and kicked it. It flew a few feet and dropped dead. I couldn't believe it! After all the work and time Aaron had put into trying to kill this gopher! HA! We'll just send Corey out next time we have a gopher problem (which by the way is neverending).