5 Hansen Kids

Torin

2011-04-19T15:11:00.000-07:00

I'm starting with our newest baby, Torin. He was born on January 18, 2011, 4 weeks ahead of schedule. I had gone to the bank before my doctor's appointment and started feeling just weird, back hurting and just weird. I didn't think anything of it, I mean I was pregnant, weird stuff happens. After I got to the doctor I had to wait in the lobby for about 30 minutes. I started having contractions and they just kept coming and coming. I mentioned them to the doctor thinking "Oh, it's nothing, this happens to me all the time," but she hooked me up to the monitor just to be sure and then declared me to actually be in labor. Now the problem with this was that 1. I had never gone into labor on my own before (all my other labors were induced), 2. it was 4 weeks early and 3. I was scheduled for a C-section at 39 weeks. So I was against this labor thing. They wheeled me over to the hospital and started me on some IV fluids hoping it would make my labor stop. No luck on that one. The contractions just kept coming and coming. I laid in the bed wishing they would stop while calling first Shane to inform him he was having a baby today, my mom to catch the big kids so they didn't walk home to an empty house and Amber to beg her to keep my little boys since she was already watching them for what I thought was going to just be a doctor's appointment.

About an hour later the doctor came in and said since they weren't stopping they were going to go ahead and do the C-section and we were going to have a new baby today. I was very scared, but the doctor assured me that 4 weeks wasn't really that early and obviously this baby was ready to come or else I wouldn't be in labor. They wheeled me in for the C-section about an hour later and about 3 pm we had our 4th little boy. They let me see him just for an instant and then whisked him away to weigh him and do all that other good new baby stuff. Shane went with him and they sewed me up.

When I got to the recovery room the nurse there informed me that he had started having some trouble breathing, retracting or using extra muscles to breath and his oxygen saturations were really low so they had put him in an oxygen tent to try and help him breathe better. They told me he was fine, but of course I was very scared. I couldn't even go see him because I was still numb from the spinal block and my blood pressure was really really low. Shane went back and forth between me and the baby making sure both of us were okay. The doctor came and talked to us and let us know that if he didn't start doing better he would have to be flown to Tucson.

He didn't even have a name yet because we didn't know before he was born if he was a boy or a girl. I kept trying to wiggle my toes just so they would let me go down to the nursery. I finally got down there about 8 pm in a wheelchair so I could touch my baby finally. I knew he needed a blessing so we called my dad to come help Shane give him a blessing. He came down and we asked him what to do since the baby still didn't have a name. He told us just to call him Baby Hansen and the angels would work it all out up in Heaven. They gave him a blessing and within just a few minutes he was breathing easier. He stayed in the oxygen tent through the night and about 3 am he was finally on room air and doing well. They let him come down and be with us about 4:30 am and I finally got to hold him. We named him Torin Peter Hansen. He did well the rest of his hospital stay and went home with us a few days later.

What a testimony it was to me that Heavenly Father knows us and is aware of us at all times. Heavenly Father knew who my baby is way better than me even though he didn't have a name yet. Little did I know then that Heavenly Father would be looking out for this baby even more in a couple weeks.

back to blogging

2011-04-19T15:09:00.000-07:00

So I have decided that I will reenter the blogging world. I miss journaling my family's adventures. So here we go again.

First Day of School

2009-08-12T12:38:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day of school. Hooray!! Kiara is already in 2nd grade with Mrs Gonzales and Aidan is starting kindergarten with Ms. Gallegos. They were both very excited this morning. Stephanie even came over to do Kiara's hair before school. I'm glad to have them back at school but kind of sad they are growing up so fast. Things have been pretty quiet around here today.

Pictures (FINALLY) from the camping trip.

2009-07-20T16:14:00.000-07:00

Rowan Stephanie and her hurt ankle

Shane and a "super gigante" smore

Avery and Kiara in the stick fort

Aidan in his "office"

Avery and Rowan by the fire

Logan taking a nap by the lake

Kiara and the marshmallow

Aidan and 2 marshmallows at once

The Hansen 6 in our matching Bryce Family Reunion shirts

Rowan and Grandpa fishing at Big Lake

Avery, her dolly Kiley and upside down Minnie Mouse

Rolling Over and Rice Cereal

2009-07-13T15:57:00.000-07:00

Well it is official. My baby is growing up... He rolled over from his front to his back all by his self yesterday and then proceeded to try to scoot forward. We also started him on rice cereal this weekend. He thinks that is very fun. He has been trying to grab everyone's food lately and is very glad he has his own now. I'm not sure he thinks it tastes good, but he thinks it is fun to eat. He is such a cute boy and so fun. He likes to talk to everyone and is very generous with his smiles. He likes to be tickled and teased by his sister and brothers, but his mommy gets nervous when they aren't as soft as she thinks they need to be. The longer he is here the better it gets. Hooray for babies and especially baby Logan!

PS I keep updating this at work thus the lack of pictures. I will try to update it at home this week to put on pictures of Logan and the camping trip!

Bryce Family Reunion 2009

2009-07-05T17:09:00.000-07:00

The week before 4th of July we spent in Hannagan Meadow with my whole family. All my brothers and sisters were there with their respective spouses and kiddos. We had lots of fun and did our best to stay out of trouble.

On Monday we drove up going through New Mexico. It was a fun drive because Shane had never been that way before so we had fun seeing a new road. The kids did pretty good, even Logan managed to fall asleep after only 15 minutes of crying. We made it to the cabins my mom and dad had rented and all piled out of the car. The kids spent the next 4 days running back and forth from our cabin to my parents.

Here are a few highlights from our big adventure:

The Office: Andrew, Kiara and Avery built a fort out of sticks on Thursday. Aidan was inside and I asked him several times if he wanted to go out and help build the fort. He said no each time. Later that afternoon we were all outside and the girls didn't want Aidan in their fort and he was getting mad and wanting to knock it down. Of course we said he couldn't do that, so instead he walked over by the fire pit and proceeded to move some logs around to make an "office." Later when we went over to check it out he showed us his office complete with rock phone, log email and pine needle staples. After roasting marshmallows that evening his office turned into a resturant that served excellent pizza and ice cream.

Spotlighting: Every night some group of us went spotlighting. On the last night Grandma, Grandpa and Stephanie took all the grandkids (minus Dallen, Josiah and Logan). They had quite the time. Rowan was sitting on Stephanie's lap with his head and torso all the way out the window. Everytime they saw an animal all the kids turned on their flashlights and pointed them towards whatever they were looking at even though their flashlights didn't even reach out of the truck. At one point as they were driving down a road Aidan screamed "I saw something!!" My dad slammed on his brakes and they asked him what he saw. He said "a real piece of wood." So being a good grandpa my dad backed up and they spotlighted this piece of wood. He was very excited about his "real" piece of wood. In addition to the "real" wood they saw elk, baby elk and even a bobcat.

An Officinal Doctor: Aidan was talking to Andrew and informed Andrew that he was an officinal doctor. Andrew asked him if he had gone to school for 8 years. Aidan told him that he had gone to school for 9 years and not only that, but he was going to kindergarten next year! Whoo hoo, my kind of doctor!

Stephanie and the bear: Stephanie, Aaron and Carrie went on an end of the road trip and Stephanie had to get out of the car to clear a piece of wood off the road. Aaron got out to help her and they heard rustling in the woods. When they looked up they saw a bear heading for them. They take off running back to the truck yelling at Carrie to get back in the car. As they are running Stephanie falls and twists her ankle. Luckily they scared the bear just as much as it scared them and everyone made it back safe with only a twisted ankle to show for it.

Super gigante marshmallows: Before leaving for camping we stopped at Bashas to get milk. In there they had "super gigante" marshmallows which were marshmallows 4 or 5 times the size of regular marshmallows. We couldn't pass them up and took some up to the cabin with us. They were a big hit with the kids, though they took a long time to roast. Shane and Andrew even made smores with them ending up with a huge ring of marshmallow all the way around their graham crackers. We also had smores with pink marshmallows and rolos. Carrie even showed us how to put a hershey kiss inside a roasted marshmallow for even more yumminess.

Fishing for "Real" fish: We went fishing at Big Lake on Wednesday. The kids had fun casting into the lake over and over even without hooks. Only Carrie and Aaron caught anything during the day but later that afternoon all the adults minus grandma and grandpa and us went to the river to try again. Everyone managed to catch something on that trip and Andrew even brought his back to the cabin to cook and eat. Aidan tried some and told Andrew it tasted like real fish. I think Andrew was glad to know he didn't catch a fake fish.

Water Fight: When we got home the reunion got to continue since Elizabeth and Andrew came down to Pima too. On Saturday Carrie and Aaron decided we needed to have a water fight. We got out our old baby pool and my mom and Elizabeth got water squirters and water bombs to facilitate this fight. The kids thought this was wonderful. They sat in the pool and squirted their aunts and uncles, grandma and grandpa and mommy! I wasn't planning on being involved, but Aaron kind of dragged me into it. After a while my dad even came out. He grabbed the hose and was "watering the grass" by spraying all of us. Then he masterminded a plan to get my mom. On the count of 3 everyone, including the grandkids, ran and sprayed grandma. Needless to say grandma was very surprised and got completely drenched. After that the chairs on the porch weren't base anymore!

All in all it was an awesome week. We had fun being able to all hang out with no one having to run off to work or other responsibilities. Shane and I were glad we could play games at night and not be the only ones who had to go home to take care of kids. We just stuck all the kids in one side, closed the door and played games on the other side. Thanks to my mom and dad for setting it all up and being such a great mom and dad that we wanted to all get together!!

Aidan's Birthday

2009-06-20T10:28:00.001-07:00

This is a catch up post...

Aidan's birthday was also in May. He turned 5 on May 8. I think he had a great day. We put up streamers and decorations the night before and Shane had the awesome idea to put up streamers like a set of railroad tracks. He was very excited when he woke up to train tracks on the living room ceiling. We made him a regular cake because he wanted a drawing of Thomas and James (yes the trains) racing on it. He declared what we came up with "awesome" so that made me glad. During the day he had his friend Rye over to play and they had fun playing Thomas and Star Wars. We had grandmas and grandpas over for cake and ice cream and he was very excited to open his presents. So excited in fact that he just opened and opened and opened without pausing to look or let us see what he got! He was excited to get some coloring books and some more trains, of course.

I am kind of sad to see my little boy turn 5 and know it is time for him to go to kindergarten and leave me. He has been my buddy for so long. He always has wanted to be cuddled and held and wanted to be with me. Lately he has been wanting to be more with daddy and do the fun things daddys get to do like fix the car, work outside and just be manly. He even discovered the joys of peeing outside and takes any opportunity he can to try it out. My little boy is growing up. I am sure he will do great in kindergarten. He always has lots and lots of questions and really enjoyed preschool. I am excited to see where he goes from here. He is the sweetest guy. Happy Birthday Aidan!!

Things I don't want to forget about today

2009-06-17T23:20:00.000-07:00

1. Aidan putting on 4 shirts, one on top of the other. He told me he did that so that in the morning all he had to do was take off the top one and then he had on a clean shirt. What a timesaver! Maybe I should try it.

2. Rowan telling me he is a dinosaur at lunch, a rocket ship when he woke up from his nap, a pirate when he was playing with Aidan and a car any time he needed to run somewhere really fast all in the same day. But if you ask him his name, he is Rowan.

3. Logan giggling uncontrollably when I lifted lifted him up on my bed and tickled him in the super cute way only babies can.

4. Kiara finally being the super nice girl I knew was hiding under all the meanness of first grade. I'm glad she hasn't been hanging out with her friends for a few weeks and I got my nice girl back!

The Merry Month of May

2009-06-16T22:13:00.000-07:00

May was full of craziness and fun. Kiara had a dance recital, finished 1st grade and got to go swimming at the Safford pool. Aidan finished preschool and made a stunning return as the dancing Tball player. Rowan's finger got better, though it still needs band aids and lots of kisses from time to time. Logan has gotten lots and lots bigger with lots of smiles, giggles and plenty of attention from his big brothers and big sister. Rowan has even decided he likes Logan after all and worries greatly about him when he cries. And just in case you were worried all the crying cars at our house are also comforted by Rowan. He puts them on his shoulder and pats them to help them stop crying.

Aidan is enjoying Tball again and is doing much better at getting to all the bases. He has even joined the throng chasing and then dogpiling on the ball each time it gets hit. Thankfully he is still dancing on the bases making tball that much more enjoyable for us!! Aidan is very excited for kindergarten to start and has us counting down the days.

Kiara is already ready for 2nd grade so she can have a "brother break." As much as she loves Logan she is still convinced she needs a sister as soon as possible.

Our garden is growing humongo and hopefully we will have tomatoes, watermelons and corn galore! In other news, I started working at the hospital in admitting to try and make up for Shane's lack of hours. It is going well and I enjoy it, but I really miss my kiddos and my honey.

That is May in a few lines. Hopefully June will have a better blog, but since it is half over, I'm not holding my breath!

Little boys. . .

2009-04-29T19:20:00.000-07:00

I have officially decided that Heavenly Father knew what he was doing when he created little boys so strong. We went back to see Dr. Bryce today and he said Rowan's finger looks great, his nail should grow right back and he will more than likely have a totally normal finger after all of this!! I just can't believe it after seeing what it looked like before he sewed it back together. Rowan is doing great running around and moving his finger today after Dr. Bryce replaced his dressing with just a band aid. He said because he is so little the bone should be healed up in just a few weeks and he will be as good as new! It really is a miracle. I'm glad Heavenly Father was looking out for us and our little boy and his finger.

picture from the er

2009-04-28T09:20:00.001-07:00

Here is our brave little boy once everything was over. He is all hooked up and his finger is all wrapped up. I'm so glad he is okay! He is so cute, he is saying cheese in this picture!

Who Needs 10 Fingers Anyways?

2009-04-27T13:15:00.001-07:00

So on Friday night Rowan was outside with Shane working on the garden. Rowan was playing with Moly (the dog), giving her sticks to chew on. He gave her a stick and somehow his finger got stuck in her mouth as well. She bit down thinking it was just a stick and bit his finger too. The tip of his finger was hanging on by just a little bit. Shane jumped into action and got it all wrapped up and above his head to try to stop the bleeding. He then came in and informed me that we needed to go to the ER and he would probably lose his finger! Needless to say that scared me pretty good. We dropped off the big kids at Ren & Amber's and headed to the ER. The whole way there Rowan kept his hand on his head and I worked really hard to keep him from falling asleep.

At the ER they took x-rays and took us back to check things out. When they took off Shane's wrapping I was shocked to see that his finger was just barely hanging on. They looked at the x-ray and said that the bone was broken at the very tip as well so they called the orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Rex Bryce, to come in to check it out. He came in and reset the bone and sewed it all up and then wrapped his finger up really good to keep Rowan from moving it. I was surprised at how calmly he just sewed it back on like it was nothing. (He actually said he had just done a similiar procedure that morning).

Rowan was a trooper through the whole ordeal. Once Dr. Bryce told him the big light was a flashlight Rowan even smiled and helped him unwrap his finger. They gave him some medicine to make him sleepy while they sewed it up and he just did really really good! We will see on Wednesday when Dr. Bryce changes the dressing how his finger looks.

I guess with 3 boys I better get used to the ER. I was thinking how lucky we actually were that this was our first trip to the ER for an actual injury, but I have a feeling it won't be our last!!

Birthday Girl

2009-04-08T19:59:00.000-07:00

Kiara turned 7 last Friday. I can't believe it has already been 7 years since she changed our lives completely! I think she had a pretty good day. Shane was off and so he surprised her at school by going to lunch with her. She had a good time showing off her daddy to all her friends and then showing Shane her "cool tricks" on the monkey bars. Then I went to school to bring cookies for her class. That evening we had cake and ice cream with our family. My parents and Shane's mom came along with my grandparents and Aaron and Carrie. She was excited to open presents and blow out her candles. It was a fun party. She got lots of Hannah Montana stuff including Hannah Montana boots and a new CD. We are planning on going with Rebekah and her girls to the Hannah Montana movie on Saturday. (O the excitement!!)

Rowan and Kiara and the cake.

The cake didn't get to be as fancy as I planned since I got stung by a scorpion that afternoon and had to frost it with my left hand!

Rowan & Grandpa Clarence being pirates. Rowan ran around the whole party with his "telescope" saying "argh I'm a pirate". Occasionally he would also be a tractor.

My mom and Logan. I think this is the most she has gotten to hold him since she has always been on big kid duty since he has been here. I was glad she finally got some time to hold him though I don't think she is impressed that Shane took her picture.

Kiara, Aidan, Grandma Taffie and the new CD. If you notice the cereal box that isn't one of her presents, I wrapped her CD in the cereal box so she wouldn't know what it was. She was not impressed when she unwrapped it. She didn't want cereal for her birthday.Kiara really is a great girl. She is a super reader, a great helper, a daddy's girl through and through. I'm so glad she is part of our family though she can make me crazy at times. I don't what I would do if I had all boys. She has been through so much I am just thankful everyday that she is a normal little girl without all the problems she could have had. She also makes me so thankful for the temple and forever families. I feel so blessed to know that no matter what, she will be ours forever and ever!

Blessing Day

2009-03-31T09:06:00.000-07:00

This last Sunday was Logan's blessing day. We were super lucky to have almost all his grandparents there. Shane's dad and stepmom came up from Phoenix and Shane's mom came too. My parents and both sets of grandparents were there as well. It was really neat to have so many people come to support us. That is one of my favorite things about living here so close to family. Shane did a great job. I'm glad that is his job, I think I would be way to0 nervous. It was neat to have my dad, both my brothers and both my grandpas in the circle along with my husband. It was also nice that my uncles who live in town came too. We did miss Elizabeth and Andrew though in Utah. Afterwards we went to my parents house for dinner and a "party" according to my children. Anytime we have dinner at my parents it is a party! All in all it was a good day. I can't believe I have 4 kids and that there is enough room in my heart for all of them. It seems like Logan has always been here and we sure are glad he is here now!
Grandpa Kelly and Grandma Dar (Shane's dad & stepmom)

Logan in his prepoop outfit. (He managed to poop all over this and me just minutes before we left for church!! Ahh the joys of a newborn!)

Rowan

Kiara, Aidan & Rowan

We couldn't get one of all of them together.

Rowan wouldn't cooperate once we put Logan in the picture.

Aidan

Garden

2009-03-23T19:30:00.000-07:00

My wonderful husband has planted a garden this year. I cannot take any credit for it at all, except I helped pick out what to plant and I planted some seeds. Other than that, it is all Shane. He built a square foot gardening box out of spare fence building boards and then we put some black stuff down to prevent weeds from coming up. After that we filled it with good soil from the store since ours is pretty worthless. We planted corn, green onions, watermelons, bell peppers, tomatoes, carrots and pumpkins. It is so exciting to see the little tiny green plants come up. Shane is so good about watering it every day and the kids love to help him. I can't wait until we have fresh veggies to eat and can! We can make fresh salsa and have corn on the cob and watermelon!! Can you tell I'm excited? We have also planted 2 apple trees. It feels so good to make this house our own in so many ways. I love having a garden, planting trees, letting the kids run in the backyard. It makes this being a grown up stuff worth it!

You can also see my pretty fence in these pictures that my dear sweet man worked so hard to put up. Hooray for gardens and sweet honeys!

1 Month Appointment

2009-03-20T12:17:00.001-07:00

We just got back from Logan's 1 month appointment and he is doing great. He is up to 9 pounds, 14 oz. That is 2 pounds in just 3 weeks. I am excited he is growing so well and getting so big. The doctor said everything else looked really well too. He is holding up his head pretty good and looking around. It is so fun to see him really look at us and recognize us. Aidan and Kiara want him to play with his toys and laugh at their funniness. They just don't believe me that it will still be a little bit. I am just glad they love him so much.

Logan 1 month.

and a bonus picture of Aidan doing what he loves best!

4 is better than 3?

2009-03-18T18:18:00.000-07:00

I have to say that even though lots and lots of people told me 4 was easier than 3, I was not a believer until now. After my third baby it felt like life fell apart. We were outnumbered and I was completely outnumbered when Shane was at work. Four has definitely been easier (at least so far). I have one in school all the time and one in preschool 2 days a week which has helped. It has also been a blessing that Logan eats so darn good. Even with having a C-section things have just been easier. Hooray for that.

Everyone is doing really well. Kiara and Aidan have been super helpers, getting diapers, holding Logan so I can actually go to the bathroom now and then, and trying their hardest to get a one month old to laugh. Rowan has decided that the baby just doesn't exist. He doesn't want to talk to Logan or hold him or anything. Right now I have decided that is totally fine since Rowan picked up a cough somewhere. The only time he acknowledges the baby is when I am holding Logan and Rowan wants to be held. Then he tells me quite clearly to "put the baby down." Obviously, we still have some work to do there : )

I have been feeling good. My tummy is still pretty sore, but I have been able to get back to doing everything I need to do without too much trouble. I am enjoying being able to wear pants without elastic and my bed being so much more comfortable than it was just a month or so ago.

Logan is eating and pooping and sleeping just like a good little baby should. He gets gassy if I eat anything remotely spicy or gassy, but we have managed to work it out. Mexican food and me will just have to break up for a little bit. Don't worry though, we will reunite again someday soon (at least for my birthday). Logan seems really big to me even though he is just a month old. We will see on Friday just how much he has grown.

The one downside to all of this is that now I have this nagging thought that if 4 isn't so bad, why not try for one more girl. . . .

PS I will post more pictures after his doctor's appointment on Friday.

The Story

2009-02-18T13:36:00.001-08:00

Here is the story of getting this little boy here. We went to be induced last Thursday according to the plan. They got me all hooked up and I was making some progress, but very slowly. It took me all day just to get to a 5. Every time they checked me they kept saying his head was still floating and just wouldn't get engaged in my pelvis.
About 5:30 I decided I wanted to go ahead and get an epidural since I knew it would hurt a lot more after she finally broke my water. Now this is odd for me since with my other 3 I was completely against getting an epidural and did it all natural. For some reason this time I just really, really wanted one. So they got me my epidural and everything is lovely. I can't feel any pain from the contractions, just some pressure and that is wonderful. About 8:40 she comes in to break my water. She breaks my water and it is just a flood of water. She kept her hand up there forever trying to make sure the cord didn't come out instead of his head. When she is finally satisfied that everything is okay they look at the monitor and with every contraction the baby's heartbeat drops into the 50s or 60s. Of course this freaks everyone out. They immediately stop the pitocin, give me a shot to stop all my contractions and the doctor announces I'm going to need a C-section to get this kid out now! So all the staff snaps into super fast mode and before I know it I am in the operating room and have a new baby. Everything went really well and he came out screaming which of course made me cry. It was quite the adventure.
We are both doing well now, but recovering from a C-section has been different than a regular birth. Logan is a wonderful baby, though. He is nursing well and sleeping pretty good. We are very excited to have him here. Aidan keeps giving him kisses and Kiara wants to hold him any time she can. Rowan is still on the fence about this baby, but hopefully he will come around too. We are so thankful everything turned out the way it was supposed to and everyone is okay.

Annoucing the arrival of Logan Karl Hansen

2009-02-17T08:22:00.000-08:00

The newest Hansen arrived at 9:29 on Thursday, February 12, 2009. We have a new baby boy to love. He weighed 7 pounds, 6 ounces and is 19 1/2 inches long. We decided to name him Logan Karl. I will post more about him and getting him here later, but now he is asleep and everyone else is gone, so I'm going to take a nap!

Let the countdown begin...

2009-02-11T11:15:00.000-08:00

My baby is on his way!! I went to the doctor today and my blood pressure was up, so they promptly freaked out, made me lay on my left side and then sent the doctor in to check me out. She did all her checking and said they would just go ahead and induce me since my blood pressure is up, I'm good and swollen and I'm already dialated to a 4. She would have sent me in today but they didn't have any beds, so she said call OB at 7 am tomorrow and hopefully go in to have a baby. If not tomorrow, then for sure Friday. So either way, I will have a baby by Friday!! Hooray, Hooray, Hooray!! I am so excited to meet this little guy and finally be not pregnant! Wish me luck!

My Brother Who Is Like a Bug

2009-02-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

Aidan has been very excited to have a new baby brother come to our family, but he also has another brother besides Rowan: "his brother who is like a bug." Now this isn't to say that this brother is a bug, he is just small like a bug. This brother has been with us for a while now, but has been becoming more and more important and defined. Apparently he lives in a house by Rowan's bed that has steps outside, but no basement. Sometimes his brother who is like a bug comes with us on trips to the store, sometimes he is sick, sometimes he has to take a nap. One day he was 80 years old so that he could have a driver's license and drive Aidan around. At church on Sunday he was 11 and had already been baptized. This has got to be the funniest imaginary friend I have met yet. He doesn't usually have a name. He has his own mom and dad and a sister who doesn't have any toys, just clothes and a bed. Aidan's brother who is like a bug has been a wonderful and very funny (at least to me and Shane) addition to our family. I can hardly wait to see who shows up next!

The Latest

2009-02-04T09:31:00.001-08:00

I am 38 weeks today! Only 14 more days (but hopefully less) to go. I have been back to the doctor twice. They think I may have preeclampsia, but my blood pressure keeps being good. I am just really swollen almost all the time. I am still having lots of contractions, but nothing regular enough to send me running to the hospital. I just keep hoping and hoping it will be soon. With the bedrest I feel like I have been waiting for this little one for a really long time. It will be nice to get to finally meet him.

In other Hansen news, we still have a job! Hooray for that. Freeport laid off over 1500 people this last week. It really is a scary time and we just keep praying to keep our job and for all the people who need new jobs that they will find them.

Valentine's Day is coming up and the big kids are getting excited to make Valentines for all their friends. We even managed to find Thomas the Train valentines for Aidan. I really want to make some trains out of candy for him. We will see if I stay that ambitious or not. Kiara's class is having a pizza party and the school is selling Valentine candy grams. I can't believe my baby is old enough to be doing all that fun stuff at school already! Valentine's Day is also the day of the groundbreaking for the new temple here!! We are so excited to have a temple so close. Everytime we drive past the temple site we talk about it. I'm sure it will be even more exciting as the temple goes up and we all get to see it!!

We are working on cleaning out and organizing our laundry room which has turned into a major job. I just wanted to be able to actually do the laundry, but now we have big plans. Shane is working on a workbench that will hang on the wall and can be folded up when not in use. I am excited because he can do his projects on it and I can fold laundry on it too. That will hopefully mean I only have to fold the laundry once instead of 3 or 4 times with the "help" of my little friends. I will post the after pictures, but not the before because it is bad!!

That's about all that's going on in Hansenland. Just waiting for a baby and hoping he will make his debut soon!

Doctor

2009-01-26T08:33:00.000-08:00

I went back to doctor on Friday and they officially released me from bedrest. The doctor said "Do Whatever," so that is what I have been doing but no baby yet. She said he could come anytime, but the baby is still really high so I will probably have to wait a while longer to meet this little guy. I just have to keep reminding myself the longer he waits the better for him. I keep having contractions so hopefully they are doing something so when I actually get to be in labor it won't last forever. Here's hoping!

December Pictures

2009-01-22T11:11:00.001-08:00

Pictures from the crazy month of December.

Here's Kiara Christmas morning very excited about a PINK book from grandma.

Rowan, Shane, Kiara and Aidan proud of their gingerbread house.

Andrew, Josiah and Rowan waiting for lunch after Aaron and Carrie's wedding in Snowflake.

Avery, Kiara and Carrie at the luncheon after the wedding.

Aidan and Rowan and their cowboy hats at the open house for Aaron and Carrie in Pima.

Freedom!!

2009-01-20T12:28:00.000-08:00

Well, almost. Tomorrow I will be 36 weeks and can officially be off bedrest. I am cheating at the moment but as long as I don't go into labor today then I can have the baby here and don't have to fly to Tucson! Thanks for your comments and support. Thankfully it hasn't been too long of a rest.

My kids will be glad to have me back. The boys have been going every Tuesday and Thursday to a friends house thank goodness. They go crazy with me just laying on the couch drinking gallons of water to try and fend off contractions. I think all of this was just triggered by our crazy Christmas holiday schedule with party after party after party. My body was just done. I feel much better now and hopefully this kid will hold off a week or so to let me wash his clothes and blankets and find a spot to put him in my trashed room. I really just want to get up and do a dance just because I can. I am getting so excited to meet this little person! Good Luck to everyone else that is pregnant too. Hopefully all your little ones will get here with no trouble!

Bedrest

2009-01-12T06:33:00.000-08:00

I thought I would update this real quick during my limited out of bed/chair/couch time. I have been put on bedrest because apparently this baby thinks he needs to come early or at least my body thinks he does. I keep having lots of contractions. After Christmas and all the craziness I ended up in the hospital for a couple hours while they tried to stop me from having contractions every few minutes. After getting a shot of yucky stuff they finally stopped and I am now on bedrest until 36 weeks (only 1 1/2 weeks to go). After 36 weeks they say I am okay to deliver. Of course, I figure after all this he probably won't come until after my due date just to make me even crazier!!

A Wedding

2008-12-15T11:13:00.000-08:00

This last weekend we went to Snowflake to go to my brother's wedding. Aaron (my brother) and Carrie are now officially husband and wife!! We are way excited to have her be part of the family and for him to be married. My parents only have 1 more to go now!

It was quite the adventure. We left Pima about 6:30 a.m. or so and headed to Snowflake. We had actually never been to Snowflake from this direction before so it was an all new drive for us, which made it kinda fun. We still made it really fast because there was no traffic. Luckily no one got sick on the windy roads. We left the kids at my aunt Daphne's house while we went to the sealing because we didn't want them out in the cold waiting for us and we didn't want poor Stephanie to have to chase all those kids around the temple. She was watching my kids, Elizabeth's 2 little ones and Ren and Amber's 1, so 6 kids in all. (Thanks again Steph!!)

After the ceremony we dashed back to get the kids for pictures at the temple. Unfortunately it was super windy and we weren't hanging around for any pictures. Plus they wanted me to climb stairs and I was already swollen and decided we would just hang out at the church and wait for lunch. The bride and groom stuck it out and got some pictures. We ate quickly and dashed back to Pima for Kiara's dance recital at 5:30. She did really good, but I think all of us were really tired by the time we finally got home at around 7:30. We got the kids in bed and just plopped on the couch. Of course, I started having contractions and my hands, feet and face were all swollen from the crazy day, so I drank a whole lot of water and went to bed.

We were so glad to go and see Aaron and Carrie get married, but what a whirlwind of a trip! It was really neat to get to go back to the Snowflake temple. We hadn't been there since it was dedicated and we were living in Flagstaff. It was also wonderful, as always, to remember the commitments Shane and I have made and be all lovey dovey remembering why we did this in the first place. It is so easy to forget in the midst of all the craziness of life that it was just joyous to remember that we love each other and that we love each other even more than we thought we did back then : )

Funny Random Pictures

2008-12-03T18:44:00.001-08:00

Some funny pictures I found on my camera when I was uploading birthday pics:

Kiara in the treehouse and Rowan with Moly in the backyard

Aidan and a train and Aidan's tongue

Rowan and Shane

Aidan ready to work

Rowan with lipstick on his arm (at least it isn't on his lips)

Happy Birthday to Rowan!

2008-12-01T12:13:00.000-08:00

Rowan's birthday was Sunday, Nov 30. He is now officially 2 years old. I have officially been crying about that for a while now. I think I'm having problems with my kids getting bigger because I also cried all the way through the primary program with my 2 big kids up there singing and sitting so reverently and saying their parts all by themselves. I would blame it on me being pregnant, but I'm pretty sure I would be crying about it anyways.

Back to Rowan, my 2 year old. . . . . I'm not sure he knew what was going on all day, except Kiara kept calling him the birthday boy and Aidan was so excited all day for it to be "night" so Rowan could open his presents. My mom and Stephanie came over (everyone else was sick or out of town) to see him open his presents and have cake and ice cream. Once we convinced him it was fun to open presents he really went at it. He was pulling paper out of bags and saying "TA DAH" like the paper was what we were all waiting for. He got some wonderful toys that make lots of noise and are therefore very cool. He also managed to put his fingers in the cake in several places while waiting for the candles to be lit. Aidan was very impressed he could blow the candles out all by himself and pronouced Rowan "big now." It was fun to see Rowan so excited.

I can't believe his is 2 already, but he is talking up a storm, knows what he wants and when and does everything he can to get it. He is quite the character and I can't wait to see what this next year brings!

And just for fun, the big kids being silly before the party! They are good at the silly part : )

Thanksgiving Thanks

2008-11-24T19:42:00.000-08:00

I saw this on someone else's blog and am totally stealing the idea.

Things I am thankful for this Thanksgiving:

T: Tummies, an ever growing one that means our baby is getting bigger and bigger, little kid ones to tickle and kiss, good food to put in them.

H: Home, my wonderful little home that fits everyone in plus a dog, a cat, 2 gerbils and a fish with room for one more.

A: Aidan McQueen the car Shane Hansen. This 4 year old keeps me on my toes with constant questions about the letter A and how to spell Thomas's name and all of his friends names. He also is very excited about his newest baby brother.

N: 'nother boy: Rowan. He is the funniest almost 2 year old I think I have met. He is always pointing his finger and giving his "angry" face whenever anyone does anything he doesn't agree with. He gives great hugs and kisses and talks up a storm and then some.

K: Kiara. At 6 years old, she is so excited about school and everything new she can learn. She is gaining a love of clothes and shoes and wishes she could wear makeup, the girl I never was, but I guess I will be now!

S: Shane. I can't even begin to say thanks for all he does for me, but for now I am just glad he still loves me after being with me through almost 4 pregnancies and the accompanying hormones and cravings for endless bean burros.

G: Gifts. Giving them and getting them, of all kinds. Sometimes the very best gifts are the ones that don't cost anything, but touch your heart and make you remember.

I: Income, as in having some. I am so grateful Shane still has a job with the mine laying off people and the economy so shaky and crazy.

V: Very amazing world we live in, with kids who manage to survive with crazy moms, flowers that grow, rain that falls, rainbows that come, days that pass, problems that work out somehow and knowing that someone is in charge of it all, watching over us all.

I: Ice cream and the way it just seems to solve all sorts of problems. Kids don't want to help on clean up-bribe 'em with ice cream, sad-ice cream is a great antidepressant, happy-ice cream works for celebrating, pregnant? have some ice cream, it won't start labor, but you'll be happier about it!

N: next boy. The more I think about, the more excited I get to have another boy. Another boy to carry on his daddy's name, another boy to serve a mission, another boy to build forts, wrestle and just be smelly.

G: Grandmas and grandpas. I am so grateful we get to live here where my kids have 4 sets of grandparents within 10 miles. It is such a blessing for them to have such great relationships with not only their grandparents, but their great-grandparents as well. Plus, grandmas make the best babysitters!!

There are so many more things I am thankful for, it makes me smile just to think about all I have to be grateful for now and everyday.

Hooray

2008-11-24T18:37:00.000-08:00

I found out today that I don't have gestational diabetes, which means I can eat for the holidays however the heck I want!! Whoo hoo!! My 3 hour glucose test came back all normal. I guess the 3+ hours I spent in the doctor's office on Friday were worth it. So all I can say is bring on the chocolate pie and Christmas cookies. I'm pregnant right, I'm not supposed to be losing weight, right??????

the future. . . .

2008-11-19T11:11:00.000-08:00

The day you deliver, outside will be breezy. Your baby will arrive in wee hours of the morning . After a labor lasting approximately 8 hours, your child, a girl, will be born. Your baby will weigh about 6 pounds, 13 ounces, and will be 20-1/2 inches long. This child will have dark brown eyes and dark hair.

I found this prediction of what my baby's date of delivery will be like at http://pregnancyandbaby.com/pregnancy/baby/Madame-Zaritska-predicts-your-birth-experience-736.htm

I wonder if I should get excited because Madame Zaritska says I'm having a girl after all! And only 6 pounds?!? Amazing since they think I have gestational diabetes! At least good for a laugh!

I have to take it back...

2008-11-13T09:55:00.001-08:00

I decided I can't complain about being pregnant anymore because I just found out one of my friends from high school is having her second set of twins in 3 years! AHHH!!! Good Luck Leah and I know you can do it!! You really are the best and the bravest!

Less than 100 days. . . .

2008-11-11T11:38:00.001-08:00

Well, according to the little thingie on my blog I have only 99 days left of this pregnancy. I have officially decided that I suck at being a pregnant lady. I just dislike everything about it, except the fact that I will have a baby at the end of it. I think it is good that you forget all the stinky parts of getting a new baby or no one would have more than one. Of course, I keep remembering sooner and sooner with each kid I have. I have been worrying about labor already and reliving the pain in my dreams already. I may have to rethink my no epidural stance this time! I guess Heavenly Father is pretty smart to make women lose their minds again and again so that you think getting pregnant again sounds like fun! Only 99 days to go!

Halloween

2008-11-03T08:40:00.000-08:00

We had a fun and simple Halloween this year. We carved pumpkins on Thursday. The kids got a kick out of that, especially designing their own faces. Kiara wanted hers to say BOO and Aidan wanted a scary one. After Aidan's was done Rowan checked it out and started talking to it in his best scary voice. It was pretty funny to listen to him.

On Friday we went to our stake's Trunk or Treat at the Central ballfield (for the last year there since the new temple is going there!) and had fun saying trick or treat and eating hotdogs.

Kiara was a cheerleader, but at the last minute decided she needed to be something scary, so we opted for her being a dead cheerleader (or at least a severely injured one). I told her she fell off the top of the pyramid. Aidan was all for being a puppy again and since his costume still fit from last year, I was all for it too. Rowan was Tigger with a costume I got from my aunt. It was lovely not to have to buy anything at all this year in the way of costumes! They do look pretty cute, at least I think so :)

Kiara and her best dead cheerleader face

Aidan, the puppy

Rowan, the cutest Tigger I've ever seen!

My mom was all dressed in her witchy best at the Trunk or Treat to give out candy too. The big kids recognized her, but Rowan wasn't too sure. I think he recognized her voice, but she didn't look like herself at all. They got plenty of candy and were very happy!

With their jack o' lanterns

Joyous Things

2008-10-29T11:47:00.000-07:00

I was going through some old boxes from college and found a list Rebekah and I made of joyous things. We started it one day while she was visiting and I hung it on my wall and added to it until I got married. It had such things as the perfect pair of jeans, boys calling you, red mustangs, first kisses, looking at the stars, etc. I was thinking about all those things and decided I needed a new list of joyous things for this new point in my life. It would still include the perfect pair of jeans (although a few sizes bigger), red mustangs and looking at the stars, but it would have to have a whole new section for being a mom and wife. Here are some of the things on my new list of joyous things:
~the first time you feel a new baby kick in your tummy
~the first time you hold that new baby in your arms
~home from work kisses
~getting all the kids in bed before 8 p.m.
~grown-up movies
~sticky kid kisses
~days off of work
~ice cream
~chocolate
~kids all dressed up for Halloween
~dance recitals
~preschool
~the way sick kids just want their mommies
~dates
~fireworks
~cookie dough
~kids stealing cookie dough
~having someone to lick the bowl with me
~having someone just as excited about Christmas as me.

What's on your joyous things list? I keep thinking about what the General Authorities all seemed to say at this last General Conference: that we need to be thankful for all that we do have no matter what kind of other things are going on. Plus with almost 4 kids there are a lot of things to find joy in!

The letter A

2008-10-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

Aidan has a new obsession: the letter A. Ever since he discovered that his name starts with the letter A, he has been looking for As everywhere, in signs, books, on TV, everywhere. He asks all the time if words or names have As in them. He has discovered that everyone in our family has an A in their name but me. I cannot convince him that Celissa has an A in it because that really isn't my name apparently. My name is Mom and only Mom. However, lucky for me, he still likes me even though I don't have an A in my name. He doesn't make many exceptions. (He is asking me if Backyardigans has an A in it as I type this). Things and/or people without As in their name he doesn't like, so sorry to houses, trees, dogs, trucks, etc. He has been glad to find out that Thomas the train engine, Spongebob Squarepants and McQueen the racecar all have As in their names. Who would have guessed that A could be so wonderful or so important!!

A Wonderful Weekend

2008-10-14T08:21:00.000-07:00

This last weekend was very busy and very wonderful. It was fair weekend here in Graham County which is always fun. Shane took Friday off so he could go to the parade with us and see Kiara march. This was the first time she marched with her dance company instead of riding on the trailer. She did such a great job, staying in line and even dancing while walking. I was very impressed and she had a fun time. We made sure she was well hydrated to avoid any headaches that would ruin the day. After going to lunch we went home to take a nap and then on to the fair that afternoon. We looked at all the exhibits, especially the animals, got cotton candy and kettle corn and free balloons. Really, what more could you ask for from the fair?

Saturday Shane and I dropped the kids off at my mom's house and headed to Glendale for Shane's 10 year high school reunion. We stopped to do a little shopping and catch a movie before checking into the hotel. Then we got to take a nap before the party started. The party was at the hotel so we just went downstairs. Not very many people showed up, but there were some people there that he was glad to see. One of his groomsmen that I had known in college too was there and told us he is now in New York City building sets for the New York Metropolitan Opera. What a job! He had fun talking with old friends. The next morning we had breakfast with Shane's dad and then headed back to Pima. The kids had fun with grandma and grandpa running all over the town. Their cousin, Dallen, my brother's little boy had his first birthday party and they went to that and then back to the fair to see Kiara dance in the rain.

Monday morning I woke up early and realized that Shane hadn't left for work yet. I pushed him awake very worried that he wasn't at work and had forgot to set his alarm. He rolled over and told me to go back to sleep, he wasn't going to work today. It was a fun surprise to get to hang out with him on Monday too especially when he told me what his plan for the day was. He went and got the tractor, cleaned up the weeds and then finished the fence. The kids played outside all day long and I worked inside on some stuff I have been needing to do. By the end of the day, we had a backyard that was available to everyone. We even let Moly out. He didn't get the gates done, but he put some chain link we have across the gate areas so everyone can play safely back there. The boys got up and went out right after breakfast this morning even though it was cold.

Hooray for husbands and for backyards!!! I can't wait to plant grass and a garden in the spring.

PS I need to take some pictures to post. I just have been anti-camera lately for some reason.

Outnumbered

2008-10-01T20:11:00.000-07:00

Kiara and I are officially outnumbered. We are having another boy. That makes it 4 boys to 2 girls, a clear majority. O well, we are still prettier than them! I am getting even more thankful for our big backyard since now we will have 3 boys running and climbing and jumping and tumbling all over the place.

We were actually very surprised since I haven't been sick and seem to be carrying lower than the other boys. But I guess this baby just needed to be different and I don't miss the throwing up that I had all 9 months with the other two boys! The ultrasound was good. The tech was very thorough and checked everything out. Our little boy wasn't very cooperative moving all around, but he looks healthy and is obviously strong as he ran from the ultrasound over and over again.

Kiara is very disappointed. She was in tears for a while when we told her, but I'm glad we told her now as opposed to her finding out in a couple of months. We will have to work on doing special girl things since it doesn't look like she is going to get a sister. I'm glad Stephanie, my sister, is close by and likes to do girly things with her too. Shane says we can try again for another girl, but that also opens up the chance for another boy so I think I'm okay with being done at least for the moment.

And... my due date didn't change. HOORAY!!! I am officially due on February 18, 2009 which means I made it to 20 weeks!! Only 20 more to go. Luckily those weeks will be filled with holidays to keep me busy. Now we just have to figure out a boy name. Good thing we still have 20 weeks, it just might take us that long to agree on a boy's name.

A new baby, but when?

2008-09-26T16:09:00.000-07:00

We are expecting baby #4!! The only problem is we aren't sure when this baby is going to come. At my first appointment I was due December 27, then February 8 and now they tell me I'm due February 18. I seem to be stuck at about 17 weeks and can't seem to get any further. My frustrations are growing with each appointment since every time I go they tell me I am 17 or 18 weeks and expect me to be all excited that I'm almost halfway. Funnily enough, I'm not excited about still being 18 weeks after my third appointment.

Regardless of this frustration, the baby seems to be growing well. They have been able to hear the heartbeat without any problems at all my appointments and it is always strong. I am scheduled for an ultrasound on Wednesday to hopefully clear up the date issue and find out if we are having a girl or a boy. Let's just hope I'm not suddenly due in March now!

The kids are excited too, but divided on whether they want a girl or a boy. Kiara is all for a baby sister, but Aidan wants another brother. He says he already has enough sisters. Kiara, of course, is done with brothers and has vowed to stay in her room "FOREVER" if it is a boy. I would love to have a girl to even things up and Shane wants a girl too. Plus, we have absolutely no idea what to name the baby if it is a boy!!

I keep telling myself 4 can't be any more crazy than 3. Let's just hope I'm right!

Cheerleader!!

2008-09-17T16:01:00.000-07:00

Kiara is officially a mini Pima cheerleader now. The PHS cheerleaders had a mini cheer camp over a couple of Saturdays and last Thursday they got to perform at the Varsity football game. It was so dang cute. Kiara was really excited to go. The best part was that they were selling their old uniforms. Kiara looked so cute that I just had to give in any buy it. (at least now I already have Halloween taken care of for her) The pictures turned out pretty stinky, but trust me she was cute!

I don't think my brother was too thrilled about her cheering for Pima after he played football for Thatcher for 3 years, but o well. I guess my loyalities to Thatcher have faded as well because I am all for blue and gold now (NAU is blue and gold too)!

Hooray for husbands!!

2008-09-02T10:31:00.000-07:00

Shane just got back from spending 2 weeks in Utah for work. After 2 weeks of being a single parent and having to take out my own trash and feed the animals and put the kids to bed and about a million other things he usually does, it was wonderful to have him home.

We drove down to Tucson to pick him up from the airport and when we drove up and he was there my heart did a little flip-flop just like it used to when we first started dating. I guess even after 7+ years of being together he can still make my heart skip a beat. I threw the car into park and leaped out of the car to get my first kiss in 2 weeks. And then another one. It was wonderful just to hold his hand as we drove home.

The kids were also excited to see him. Aidan had gotten in big trouble just before Shane left and had told Shane he didn't like him anymore. When Shane called Aidan started telling him that he liked him again and when we picked up Shane, Aidan had to tell him over and over again that he liked his daddy again. All weekend Shane hasn't been able to sit by himself for longer than 5 minutes without a kid coming to sit on his lap or his wife needing a hug. I hope he got the message that we missed him because we really did!!

First Days

2008-08-19T15:32:00.000-07:00

The first days of school have now officially come and gone. Kiara's first day was actually 2 weeks ago, but those 2 weeks have been spent trying to fix our computer and then trying to fix our internet. Fun, let me tell you!

Kiara is in first grade now, in Mrs. Kempton's class. Mrs. Kempton's class is Kempton's Kingdom and she even has a castle in her classroom that the kids can play in and work on the computer in and read on. It is very fun. Kiara has been walking to and from school and feels very grown up. It makes things much easier for me. It is nice living so close to the school that I don't have to worry about her doing that. She has homework every night but Fridays and is actually loving it. We will see how long that lasts! Here is a picture of her on her first day in the outfit she picked out herself. Elizabeth made the headband for her while we were in Utah.

Aidan started preschool today with Mrs. Bryce and Mrs. Thygerson. I am very excited for him to go and be able to socialize with other kids his age. I thought he would be nervous but he just jumped out of the car and ran right in. Of course I then promptly started tearing up and had to call Shane to cry to him. Rowan was very sad his last buddy was gone too. Here is a picture of Aidan after he got done with his first day. You can see just how happy he is. What you can't see is his sad mommy taking the picture.

Rowan is very distressed that everyone keeps leaving him. He cries almost every morning when Kiara leaves for school and today he cried almost the whole way home after we dropped off Aidan. Apparently I just don't cut it as a play buddy. I am not nearly as cool as his brother and sister. I am glad that they are all so close though. I thought they were driving each other crazy all summer, but I guess they liked it more than I thought.

In other Hansen news, Shane is gone for 2 weeks back to Salt Lake to run more test work up there. He has only been gone a few days and we are all already feeling it. Aidan ended up in my bed last night and the night before Rowan cried most of the night. I have a feeling I am going to be very sleep deprived by the time he gets back. We are close to finishing our fence. If Shane ever gets a free weekend it will be done and I can let the kids free to run and run! Whoo hoo!!

Pictures

2008-07-28T14:06:00.000-07:00

Some Utah pictures and other pictures. I finally got off my lazy bum and uploaded them. Apparently the lazy days of summer have captured me in their grasp. I am the laziest bum I know these past few weeks. School starts in a week and a half and I will be back to not so lazy, hopefully, for my family's sake!

Rowan driving the car. He got in with the big kids and went straight for the driver's seat!

Josiah, Elizabeth's baby. A very smiley boy.

Cousins at the picnic. Front: Audrey's Shay and Wade, Kiara, Elizabeth's Avery. Back: Daphne's Brad, Audrey's Dane and Aidan.

Aidan doing a dinosaur dance in front of the triceratops head.

Shane and Rowan with the triceratops skull. You can see just how big it really is.

Rowan just being cute at the picnic.

Utah

2008-07-18T10:51:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. Things got a little crazy really fast. Shane came home about the middle of June and said that his work might send him to Utah for some training/testwork in Salt Lake for about a month. Then he came home and said they were going to send him for 2 weeks, but probably not until August. Then he came home about a week later and said they wanted him for 2 weeks and could he be there on June 30? So we made the quick decision for all of us to go so the kids and I could visit my sister Elizabeth who lives in Provo. He managed to convince Freeport to give him a rental car even though he drove up there and off we went. We stopped in Phoenix for a Hazmat refresher class he already had scheduled the Friday before and headed to Utah on Saturday. We made it up there without incident (except a few crying kids) and got Shane settled in his hotel room/studio apartment. Because it was an extended stay place it had a full size fridge, a stove, microwave and dishwasher. (I don't even have a dishwasher at home!!)

Sunday the kids and I went to Provo and went to church with Elizabeth and Andrew. We had a fun week with Elizabeth and her kids, Avery and Josiah. I hadn't got to see her baby, Josiah, yet so it was fun to see him. He is already 4 months old and thinks he is way bigger. He liked to put his little bum in the air like an inchworm and push himself forward.

For the 4th of July their neighborhood has a big shindig on the 3rd. They rope off a street and have a real block party. It was a lot of fun with a BBQ, music, dancing, fireworks and the "Rocket Chick," a crazy lady who dresses in a fireproof suit and rides her bike up and down the street with fireworks taped to her back and to her helmet. The kids really got a kick out of that. It would have been a great night except for my runaway son. Aidan rode off on his bike to the other end of the street looking for Elizabeth, but didn't find her and kept going. We found him about 20 minutes later 6 blocks away. It was the worst feeling I have ever had in my life. Thank goodness we found him safe and sound. In retrospect, I cannot believe that he would be the one to get lost. He is such a momma's boy and I never thought he would cross the street by himself. I won't make that mistake again! I didn't let go of him for the rest of the night and he was rather content to just stay on my lap.

Because we were in Utah we got to buy and set off our own fireworks. Shane came down from Salt Lake for the 4th and we had fun with the fireworks. We went to Pleasant Grove, where my aunt Audrey lives, to see their show and got to be pretty close. None of the kids, even Josiah, were scared of the booms and they all had fun.

While we were there we got to go see the triceratops (yep the dinosaur) that Andrew is working on putting together from fossils found in Montana. They had the whole skull together and it was really neat to be able to see actual fossils so close up. He gets to put them together and create bones that may be missing. We also went to dinosaur museum at BYU and the Bean Museum at BYU which has lots of dead stuffed animals that kids love. We spent lots of time at the park and at Target (of course!!) We also went on picnics, to the duck pond and to puppet shows at the library.

It was a great trip! It was so fun to see Elizabeth and actually get to hang out without having to worry about leaving so soon. I think Shane had a good time in Salt Lake. He got to walk around downtown by the temple every night and go out to eat with his corporate card. Freeport is even going to pay for our miles to and from Salt Lake. It was a really good deal for us. We only had to pay for food for me and the kids, which we would have had to pay for at home in Pima.

I will post pictures once I find my camera which is lost in some random bag. School will start in just a few weeks so now we need to get ready for that, whoo hoo, first grade and preschool here we come!

T-ball dance, lost teeth, swim lessons and macaroni

2008-06-05T20:46:00.001-07:00

That about sums up our last week in a few words. Aidan has been enjoying T-ball very much. The rest of us are also enjoying it because he is really hilarious. His dance when he gets to each base is the funniest thing on the field. Today we even had the other team talking about number 8 and his dance. Here is a video I took on my camera of his dance. I hope it works. It really is just hilarious. He is just so excited to be there on the base and so he just has to dance.

We started swim lessons this week. Aidan is very excited to get to be in the big pool. I think the lifeguards like him. Both days we have gone, he has had the lifeguard working with him laughing the entire time. He does a dance after he puts his head under the water, after he swims to the rope, just any time he can. I think he is telling her funny things too because he told me that he was making her laugh. Kiara is doing well in swim lessons too. She was floating on her back all by herself yesterday.

Kiara lost 2 teeth this last week. She was putting something away in the fridge and came to tell me that she had lost a tooth. I was checking it out and she had lost 2! The other one was still in the fridge when we went to look for it. The tooth fairy was slow on the job, but she finally made it and even left a tooth fairy note. Of course, Shane has decided that she is a bit rednecky because of her new smile. He has been calling her all sorts of lovely names like snaggle tooth and redneck princess. Rowan decided that he would find a new place for the leftover macaroni on his tray yesterday morning. He thought the best place for it would be in his nose. All of the sudden I look over and he is grabbing at his nose and making weird noises. I looked at his tray and saw another macaroni and I realized right away that he must have a macaroni up his nose. I jumped up and was trying to figure out what to do when he started sneezing. After about 4 or 5 sneezes it came shooting out. Thank goodness!! No more leftover macaroni for Rowan! It seems like my kids are getting progressively better at getting into trouble. I don't remember either of the other ones doing crazy things like him. I think he just wants to make sure I stay on my toes and never think I have this mom thing figured out.

First T-Ball Game

2008-05-27T20:43:00.000-07:00

So, I'm supposed to be working, but there are no jobs, so I thought I would quickly put on a post about Aidan's first T ball game. It was hilarious, to say the very least. We got there and had to change into his neon green shirt and put on his hat. He refused to let me put his hat on straight, he had to have it pushed a little sideways. Then when he got up to bat, he did really good hitting the ball, but then got "lost" on his way to first base. (That is what he told me afterwards). It looked like he decided halfway there that he needed to go get the ball instead. He successfully got there, eventually. Then as he ran the rest of the bases he had to skip every few steps. While on the base waiting for the next hit, he danced and spun his hat around on his head. He also entertained with various dances while in the field. I'm not even sure he knew the other team was batting. He definitely had fun and we had fun watching him. Aaron decided he couldn't claim him, but I thought he was great and totally Aidan, having fun and being happy no matter what!

Sorry for no pictures, I just got a job. Better go make some money. I will post pictures soon!

Dance Recital

2008-05-21T10:33:00.000-07:00

Kiara had her spring dance recital this past Saturday. She did really well. They danced to a song from Lilo and Stitch and then to Jukebox Boogie. She had a lot of fun. I can't believe she has been dancing for 3 years now. It was fun to see her in a bigger class and not the littlest class anymore. She did really well and was one that everyone was looking at to see what to do. She is so funny though because she is concentrating so hard that she forgets to smile.
Kiara is on the far right and the girl next to her is her friend, Cheyenne.

I keep feeling really old the bigger Kiara gets and the more things she does (It probably doesn't help that Shane feels it is his personal duty to point out how close to 30 I am getting). Today she is going on a field trip to the Safford Pool and was so excited. She had her kindergarten program on Monday where they talked about all the things that they had learned. She really has learned so much this year in kindergarten. She can now draw pictures and then write a whole sentence telling what the picture is about. She can read simple books and tells me all the time what things say that I can't believe she knows. She was really blessed to have a great teacher, Mrs. Thygerson who was so patient with her socialness. She was also lucky to have found some good friends. One of her friends, Cheyenne's mom took over as the kindergarten aide in January and she has been wonderful too. Cheyenne and Kiara have had fun going to each other's houses after school and having tea parties and the other day they were even skateboarding. They are even in the same dance class. I'm glad she has found such a good friend.

In other Pima news, Aidan started T-ball. He has to work on running the bases without holding hands, but otherwise is doing well. He can hit the ball really well and was even catching the ball at his last practice. Rowan is doing well too. I can't seem to keep him out of anything. He climbs on the table, on the top of the couch and anything else he can. It is hard to believe that he isn't even 18 months old yet. 2 more weeks and nursery here we come!!

I have been working hard on a little yearbook for Kiara's class. Her teacher gave me copies of all their pictures from the year and I put together some scrapbook-like pages on the computer to make a book. It turned out really good. I hope all the kids will like it. Shane has been working evenings for the past few weeks trying to get a project done. The equipment he needs is only available in the afternoons/evenings so he has to go in then. It has been a nice change to have him home in the mornings for a little bit. I think he likes the lunches I send with him better than the ones he throws together when he leaves at 5:30 in the morning.

Happy Birthday to Aidan McQueen the Car

2008-05-13T13:04:00.000-07:00

Aidan's 4th birthday was last week on Thursday. I think he had a good day. We had grandmas and grandpas over and had cake and more importantly presents. He was very excited to get a Thomas the train hat, Thomas toys, Cars sheets and some dollars. I made him a Thomas cake as requested and it turned out pretty good. Lucky for me that cupcakes make perfect wheels seeing as how I keep having to make things that go for Aidan's birthday cakes.

Some thoughts about Aidan: He is my little buddy. We have gotten to hang out together a lot since Kiara has started going to school and various other things. It has been fun to go to the store with him and watch Thomas movies and play Thomas or Lightning McQueen in the window. He is completely a boy. He loves trains, cars, tractors and anything that is big and can knock stuff over. He has decided that his name is not just Aidan Shane, but Aidan McQueen the Car Shane Hansen. In fact if you ask him his name that is what he will tell you. I can't wait for him to learn to write all of that name! He has been the quiet one in our house for a long time. He also is wonderful in Primary. His teacher always is impressed with how reverent he can be. At home he may be quiet, but he is the one who is going to get into something. He doesn't ask me to get him something, especially if he thinks I will say no, he just gets a stool or a box or both and gets whatever he has his little heart set on. I always get nervous if I haven't seen him for a little while. He is getting ready to start teeball and swimming lessons and will start preschool in the fall. What a guy!

My Fence Heroes

2008-04-28T14:36:00.001-07:00

Saturday we had a fence building party. Shane has been trying and trying to get our fence up since we moved in. We have a humougous backyard (We have 1/2 an acre of land) but we are backed right up to the canal which makes letting kids run outside a little difficult. So Saturday Shane's dad, his friend Cliff, Shane's uncle Pete and Shane's nephew Shay, along with Dar, Shane's stepmom came to Pima to help us work on the fence. They, along with Shane and my brother Aaron, got a whole heck of a lot of work done. They worked really hard in the hot sun and left with sunburned faces and sore muscles, but left us a lot closer to a finished fence. This is a big thank you going out to them!! We love you guys!!

Shay, Rowan and Grandpa Kelly walking in to take a much needed water break.

Shay, Uncle Pete, Shane and Dar discussing their plan of action.

Rowan taking a break from his hard work

My honey

2008-04-10T16:01:00.000-07:00

I just couldn't resist posting this picture of Shane. He will most likely kill me if he sees this, but since he never looks at my blog I will hopefully be safe. This is Shane all the way through. He is so willing to do anything to make the kids laugh and be happy. He was trying to get Rowan to smile for a picture so he let Rowan take a picture of him being silly. He loves the kids and me so much, we are really, really lucky to have such a crazy guy in our lives! I love this crazy man even with his tongue sticking out!

A Haircut

2008-04-10T14:08:00.000-07:00

Shane has been bugging me for a couple months to cut off Rowan's curls and I finally had to give in this week. I've been putting it off and putting it off because Aidan's curls never came back. My baby is no longer a baby, he is a little boy. (Deep sigh). Somedays I wish they could just stay little forever. Today I gave juices boxes to the big kids for snack and had to give him one too and he drank it without making a mess. (Even deeper sigh) I guess he really is getting big.

6 YEARS OLD!!

2008-04-10T13:46:00.000-07:00

Kiara is officially 6 years old. Well, actually she was 6 last week, but then she got sick so blogging was put on the very back burner. I can't believe how fast she has grown. It really seems like not that long ago that I was pregnant with her and scared out of my mind to be a mom. Now that she is 6 and in kindergarten with a whole new world open to her, I think I am even more scared to be a mom. Thank goodness I get to grow up with her.

Just a few thoughts about my little girl. She is such a joy to have in our house. It is never, ever boring with her around. She is a little princess, a drama queen, strong, brave, kind, a social butterfly and never afraid to tell you how it is. If anyone breaks the rules, even mom and dad, she is the one to make sure we know about it. If I am sad about anything she is the one to come give me a hug and tell me she loves me and how glad she is that I am her mom.

She is drama all the time and can make me crazy, but without her our house would just be boring. She gets Aidan to make up shows with her, dress up with her, do naughty things with her and just have fun. She has never wanted to sit still and be cuddled, even when she was a baby. She always wants to be doing something whether it is being outside drawing hopscotch or going to the store. Kindergarten has been so much fun for her this year because she has gotten to exercise her social side a lot. She is a such a good friend. If someone doesn't have anyone to play with a recess, she goes to play with them. She will come home and tell me she played with someone new just because they didn't have a friend today.

She may be the complete opposite of me, but Iwouldn't trade her for anything. She has been through a lot and I'm so glad that she has made it through all her medical bumps without any change in the little girl she is supposed to be. Thank goodness she is mine and Shane's for always.

Happenings in Pima

2008-04-01T08:11:00.000-07:00

As the weather is getting warmer we have been spending more and more time outside. In fact, I can't seem to keep them inside. Aidan keeps escaping outside leading to Rowan escaping too. They just want to be outside so they can dig. We got some extra dirt to level out our front yard before putting grass in and the piles are now full of holes that have been dug by bulldozers and shovels. Shane is working hard on getting the backyard fenced in. Aaron has been helping him which has made it go a bit faster. I will be very glad when that is all done so I can send them all outside to play in the dirt without worrying about cars or canals.

We had a good Easter. Shane's sister, Kim, and her kids came up to stay with his mom so they all came over for an Easter egg hunt on Saturday.

We spent all this weekend outside too, having a yard sale and playing. It was nice to get rid of a lot of stuff and have my laundry room back. Now I can actually do my laundry which may or may not be a good thing.

Rowan has discovered the joys of sunglasses. He wants to wear them all the time. Of course, part of it could be that we think he is so darn cute when he has them on and make a big deal about it. But hey, he is pretty cute.

Spring Break!!

2008-03-14T15:02:00.000-07:00

Disclaimer: Very long post with unashamed plugs for 2 of my favorite things!

Last week was Kiara's spring break from school, so we decided to take advantage of it and go on a trip to San Diego. One of those timeshare companies had offered us a deal, so we decided to just go ahead and take it and sit through the presentation and then enjoy the rest of our time there. We went on Monday and went to the timeshare thing. Because our baby had not taken a nap, he was very, very cranky and the guy could barely talk to us at all. We told him we were not interested and after some more crying by Rowan, he sent us on our way after only 30 minutes of his 2 hour presentation. We were never more happy to let Rowan scream : )

Tuesday we went to SeaWorld. I had never been before and I thought it was wonderful. The kids and Shane had a really good time too. It was so hands on and just plain cool. The kids had fun at the tide pool where they got to pick up starfish, touch sea cucumbers and see other stuff close up. They also liked getting to touch the rays. We came right at feeding time so they even got to feed the rays. The sharks were also a big hit. We got to go right under the sharks so they were swimming all around us. That was really neat. The penguins and polar bears were also favorites. We didn't go see Shamu's show, but we did go and see the killer whales in their tank. They swam right up to the glass over and over. That was the first thing we went to see and we had to pull the kids away to go see the rest of the park. All in all, in was a really fun day. I was so impressed by everything SeaWorld had to offer. They even had special diaper changing rooms and nursing rooms. They wouldn't have been important to me before, but as a mom I was really impressed. Rowan even enjoyed himself. He liked touching the critters and he really liked the sea lion show we went to see. I was pleasantly surprised that even Rowan had a good time. Another thing that it has over Disneyland is that it has Pepsi instead of Coke. When we went to the sea lion show, they even had an otter bring 1 of the trainers a Pepsi. I was very impressed and asked for a Pepsi otter for my birthday. Shane said he would see what he can do.

Kiara touching a seastar.

Kiara and Aidan in front of some really big shark teeth.

Wednesday we went to the beach. We got lost going to Coronado Beach, but ended up at Imperial Beach, which was wonderful. It also gave us a chance to see how real people actually get to live on Coronado Island. It was just us and the surfers for a couple of hours. Kiara and Shane went looking for shells and came back with a whole bunch of them. Shane even found 3 sand dollars. Aidan was content to dig in the sand and make towers for his bulldozer to knock down. He even was so kind as to knock down my sand castles too, just to save me the trouble. He's just a nice guy like that. Rowan was very excited to be out of the car seat and out of the stroller and had fun crawling, walking, digging and doing anything else he could in the sand. After we had been there a couple hours, Rowan fell asleep and took a good nap on the beach. We may just be raising a beach bum. There were lots of surfers there to watch and it was a relaxing, fun day.

Our beach bum.

Shane, Kiara and Aidan wading into the waves.

Rowan heading for the water.

On the way back to the hotel after the beach, the kids were completely wiped out and crashed in the car. This is just how tired they were:

Ok, well Rowan wasn't that tired because he snoozed on the beach

Another really cool thing that we found in San Diego was the coolest Target ever!! We had forgotten a few things, of course, so we went looking for a Target. We found a Target with 2 stories, an elevator, an escalator and an escalator for your cart!! Needless to say we were very impressed. We almost took pictures, but decided that might take our love of Target into the realm of crazy obsession. It was a lot bigger than any that we had been to before and we found lots of stuff on clearance! Yay for Target!!

The kids enjoyed staying in a hotel and even managed to sleep in the same bed without killing each other. It probably helped that they were exhausted by the end of every day. They liked riding in the "alligator" as Aidan called the elevator and took turns very nicely about who got to push the buttons.

We came back Thursday, but stopped at the San Diego temple on the way out of town. I had heard from lots of people just how beautiful it is, but now I can really appreciate it. It really is beautiful. Shane and I want to go back with a babysitter or by ourselves to be able to go inside. I am sure it is just was beautiful on the inside.

Now we are back to the real world with lots and lots of dirty laundry, lots of shells and tons of great memories. It was a great vacation and everything went wonderfully. I am really glad we went and can't wait to go back again! Thanks for reading all the way to the end of this crazy long post.

Pictures

2008-02-08T12:26:00.000-08:00

I have been meaning to post these pictures forever and finally remembered. These are some of the pictures Leah Davis took for us when she took our family pictures. I went to high school with her and she has started taking pictures and is just wonderful. She followed the kids around and just let them be kids and got great pictures doing it. I couldn't believe she got Aidan to smile for a picture, but she is a really a miracle worker! Thanks again Leah!!!

I feel like she really captured the kids.

Here is Kiara: America's next top model in the making!

Aidan who is all about the fun and never sits still if he can help it.

He is also always happy and just enjoys life to the fullest.
Rowan who is all smiles
and a daddy's boy!
I put the black and whites on just for something different. Hope you like them. You can see some of Leah's other work at her photography blog at http://leahdavisphotography.blogspot.com/.

My Yellow Sponge Dilemma

2008-01-31T17:38:00.000-08:00

Everyday I have an ongoing struggle with myself about the joy that is Spongebob Squarepants. My kids and husband think he is just the best thing there ever was. I disagree wholeheartedly. I think he is completely riduculous. Now you would think that I could just say that we're not going to watch Spongebob, but here is the problem: All my kids, even my 1 year old will sit and watch Spongebob happily allowing me to actually get something done. (In fact, they are watching Spongebob right now) They were all sitting on the couch and Spongebob came on and all 3 of them started dancing and Kiara and Aidan started singing the song at the top of their lungs. When Shane is home all 4 of them will sit and watch it. Don't even try to talk to any of them during Spongebob.

I guess my dilemma will continue, or I will just get over it and spend 30 minutes on myself everytime their favorite yellow sponge comes on...

Bathtime

2008-01-16T08:48:00.000-08:00

Rowan really likes to take a bath. In fact if he has to get his diaper changed before getting in the bath, he gets incredibly upset and does his best to get back to the bathroom.

One day I took him in the bathroom with me while I was filling up the tub. He kept lifting up his leg trying to get in the bath. I was sure he couldn't get in without my help and turned around to get something off the counter. I heard a splash and sure enough he had jumped into the bathtub clothes and all. He was very proud of himself and happy as could be because he was in the bath.

After getting his clothes off and giving him a bath, I took him in the living room and set him down to get Aidan into the bath. I was chasing down Aidan when I heard an odd noise. I went back to the bathroom and guess who was in the bath again: yep, Rowan. Ahhh bathtime!

Birthdays, Christmas, snow and fun

2008-01-15T12:42:00.000-08:00

So, finally here is an update. I got a new camera and then lost the software to get the pictures to my computer and then I got busy, but here is an update at last.

We have had a fun couple of months. The end of November brought Rowan's first birthday. It was so much fun to see him open presents and remember how just a year before I had been dying to just not be pregnant anymore. He has grown and changed so much. I am always amazed that so much personality can fit into these little bodies our kids come in. Rowan is such a mix of Kiara and Aidan. He talks and talks and talks like Kiara, but he is into everything and more like Aidan. He likes to climb onto the couch and look out the window at whatever is out there. He especially likes the train and lucky for him it comes at least twice a day. He refuses to really walk still, but he knows how to do it. He likes to stand in the middle of the room and clap for himself until we all join in. His second year will be full of even more adventures, I'm sure.

After Rowan's birthday, Shane had his birthday. We were excited to go see a movie together and I surprised him with a Star Wars book that covered all the Star Wars movies and had really neat inside info on the movies.

After that was Christmas, or as I like to call it a whirlwind of craziness. We got to go to Great-grandma Hansen's party in Phoenix 1 weekend. There the kids got to play with some cousins and explore Great grandma and Great grandpa's tree in the backyard while mom and dad got to chat with family. The next weekend we went to Uncle Steve's in El Frida and had a party with Shane's mom, sister, and aunt. Then it was Christmas here in Pima with the Bryces. It was the first time we had all been together since Aaron left on his mission, so it was very exciting. We also got to meet baby Dallen, Ren's baby for the first time. They got to my mom's house just in time for Dallen to play baby Jesus in the Christmas Eve play. Shane, Andrew and Ren were wise men, or as Shane put it "wise guys". I think wise guys is probably a bit more accurate. Aaron took up his old role of donkey and Kiara and Aidan were Mary and Joseph. Avery was an angel with Elizabeth and our angel was "great with child" as well. (Elizabeth is due in March with baby Turley #2). I got to be the shepherd and even Rowan had a part as the sheep.

Santa found our house and the kids were overjoyed. Santa and Mrs. Claus were exhausted in the morning, but it was worth it for the happy faces and hugs and kisses.

Santa even remembered to bring something for Moly!

Just when we thought the fun of Christmas break was over, Uncle Aaron and Aunt Stephanie went up to Mt. Graham and brought a present back for Aidan and Kiara: a whole truckload of snow. They had fun jumping in the snow and having a snowball fight until the snow was all melted.

School started back up last week and Kiara was student of the week. She had lots of fun being the line leader and getting to be her teacher's special helper. She also got to bring in pictures of her and her family and got to bring a special snack for Friday.

That is about it, I believe. Hopefully, I will be able to keep this a little bit better updated now that I found my camera software and got it all set up :) Thanks for reading!

The newest addition to the Hansen family

2007-11-19T18:07:00.001-08:00

No, not a baby, but a kitty! Meet Cooper, the cat:

Last weekend we had a yard sale at Shane's mom house. A lady came by and was buying something and was holding a kitten. We commented how cute the kitten was and the lady said "You want it? It's yours!" We, of course, said no, but after she let me hold it I was sold. Shane was against it, but after being tag teamed by me, his mom and the kitten lady, he really had no chance. I felt bad, but not so bad that I wanted to give the kitten back. I had to promise to give him a bath and clean the litter box and he said I could keep him!!!

So now we have a kitten, Cooper, in our family. He is already very well loved by everyone. Rowan follows him around and Cooper plays with Rowan. Rowan is actually really soft with him. The one we have to watch is Aidan. He likes to throw Cooper and pick him up by the tail. Cooper gets him too, but I'm still not sure it is a fair trade off. I'm not sure what Moly, our dog, thinks of him, but hopefully she will get used to him. The first thing Kiara wants to know when she wakes up and when she gets home from school is "where is Cooper?"

Shane won't admit it yet, but I think he likes Cooper after all. While I am working at night, he and Cooper sit on the couch and watch TV and I can hear Cooper purring all the way over at the computer. I think they are destined to be good friends whether or not Shane ever admits it.

Tractor Ride with Uncle Aaron

2007-11-19T17:50:00.000-08:00

My brother, Aaron, got a parttime job driving the tractor to clear cotton fields for a few weeks. He gets to drive the big tractor, so being the cool uncle that he is, he invited his nephew to come ride the tractor with him. Needless to say Aidan was overjoyed at the idea of getting to ride a big tractor. Not only was this tractor bigger than grandpa's, but it has a door and windows and cool things in the back. This was 1 little boy in heaven!

The hat Aidan is wearing is one just like Aaron's. Aaron bought it for him and now they match. One of these days I will convince Aaron to let me take a picture of both of them together with their hats.

Here is a picture of them driving off into the sunset, literally. Aaron says the best part of this job is that he gets to see the sunset every night. (He works from about 4 until about 10 every night after working construction! He is definitely staying busy!)

Madam Hildegard and my new pets

2007-11-01T21:43:00.000-07:00

Every year on Halloween my mom (who teaches 1st grade) goes home early and a substitute teacher comes to class to teach. This teacher makes a witch's brew and gives out pumpkin cake. It is a good thing Madam Hildegard is so willing to come to my mom's class every year. Here she is with her favorite kindergartner.

I hope my mom still likes me after seeing that I posted this picture! She is so much fun and her costume gets better every year!

For Halloween, I got a new kitty and 2 new puppies. I made the boys' costumes and happily, they turned out better than I expected. The pictures are not what I wanted, but they were all way too excited to go trunk or treating.

Kiddos

2007-10-25T19:33:00.000-07:00

Kiara went to a birthday party last Saturday where they got to go have their hair, makeup and nails done. She came back all beautiful and very happy. Here she is posing with her pretty hair.

She wanted to pose with her birthday blower, so here you go. She is quite the photo queen.

Today the baby woke up and I needed to finish something up, so I asked Aidan to go talk to Rowan to keep him happy. When I went in there, this is what I found:

Aidan climbed in and kept Rowan happy. They were having fun in there. Aidan is already teaching Rowan how to jump on the bed.

Sometimes I forget all the good things about being a mom in the midst of the diapers and the dishes and the messes, but things like this really do make it all worth while. If only I could hold on to these pictures and times a little bit better!

Rowan meets Oreo . . .

2007-10-19T22:12:00.001-07:00

We were trying to get the laundry room cleaned out and Rowan kept getting in the way. So I put him in the high chair and gave him an Oreo. He had never had one before, but as you can tell I think they will be great friends for many years to come.

Here are just some other cute pictures of some kids that I think are pretty cute. (I may be a little biased, but . . . )

My friend, Leah, who is an aspiring photographer (a very good one!) just took some pictures for us today. I can't wait to get them back. She is so fun and did so good with the kids. She was hopping all around and even got Rowan to smile in some of the family pictures. I can't wait. Thanks Leah!!!

The Fair!!

2007-10-19T21:57:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was the Graham County Fair. Shane took Friday off and we pretty much spent the weekend at the fair. Friday Kiara was in the parade, so we went to that. Elizabeth, Andrew and Avery were all down for Aaron's homecoming talk so they got to come too.

Aidan and Avery had fun waiting for the parade, playing in the dirt and checking out the trees and pinecones and rocks.

You can barely see Kiara in this picture. I don't know how to make it zoom up, sorry.

Friday afternoon we went to the fair to check everything out. Kiara had entered cookies, cupcakes and some drawings in the fair. She worked really hard to decorate the cupcakes all by herself and she got a blue ribbon on her cupcakes and her cookies. She got a participation ribbon on her painting and I think she was more excited about that one because it was red white and blue! The kids and Shane rode on the merry go round. This picture is kind of blurry, but I think you can tell they were having fun!
Saturday we went back to the fair so Kiara could perform with her dance group, Precision Dance Company. They did an excellent job. Tonya Larsen does such a good job with all the girls. I still can't believe she can get 3 to 5 year olds to dance so good. She is amazing!!

Cowboy Missionary

2007-10-05T19:44:00.000-07:00

So my brother, Aaron, made it home safe and sound and so did my parents. A hurricane/tropical depression/storm blew through Veracruz while they were there so we are glad they made it back safe. It was a fun trip to the airport. All my family that live in the Gilbert/Chandler area came to the airport too, so Aaron had quite the welcome home committee. We had to wait a long time for them to get through customs because they came straight from Mexico City.

Kiara and cousin Marci waiting

Cousin Jacob, cousin Bryce, Aunt Bev and Aunt Jodi

We were standing there with our signs and people kept asking where the signs for them were. When they finally came out Aaron looked just the same - cowboy hat and all! I guess this is what you get when you cross a missionary and a cowboy:

I can't believe my baby brother is a returned missionary! I look at Aidan and think he looks just like Aaron did when he was little. Aidan has decided he is going to go on a mission and tell people about Heavenly Father and Jesus just like his uncle Aaron. When you ask him where he is going he says "I go on mission" I guess that means he is willing to go wherever the Lord sends him : ) He also wants to fly on a plane to his mission. I can't believe that someday I will hopefully have 2 missionary boys. Having Aidan talk about going on a mission keeps reminding me what a huge responsibility I have to teach him so he can teach the people he is meant to bring to the gospel. Now Aaron has to figure out life in the real world again and without a companion!

In unrelated news, we also went to Kiara's neurosurgeon appointment while in Phoenix. The doctor told us something just wonderful. He said she is doing so well that she doesn't need to come back to see him for 2 years as long as she stays well. Shane and I did a happy dance all the way out of the clinic! After so much worry over her it is so wonderful to finally have some good news and nothing new to worry about! I think I better do another happy dance just because I'm happy thinking about it!

AARON!!

2007-09-26T12:39:00.000-07:00

My brother, Aaron, is finally coming home!! He has been on a mission in Mexico and he is officially done with his mission as of yesterday. My parents went to Mexico yesterday to pick him up and they are going to tour his mission and come home Monday. Shane and I and the kiddos are going to take Stephanie, my sister, and go to Phoenix on Monday to meet the plane. I can hardly wait. Kiara is excited to make a welcome home poster. She has already picked out the stickers she wants to put on it for Uncle Aaron. Aidan hasn't seen Aaron since he was 1 and Aaron hasn't got to meet Rowan yet, so it will be way exciting to see him. Then we are going to stay in Phoenix because Kiara has a doctor's appointment at St. Joes on Wednesday. We will spend Tuesday shopping or doing something fun and not working or stressing. Can you tell I am excited?

a brand new room . . .

2007-09-18T11:05:00.000-07:00

Well, Kiara's room is officially all pink!! We painted her room a couple of weekends ago and I finally got curtains up on her windows and on her doorless closet. We also found a bedspread to match on clearance at Wal-mart-o. She is one happy camper. She, of course, wanted it pink. So we did all the walls pink with dark pink flowers stamped on 1 wall. When we did it, Shane kept saying he felt like the pink was going to take over our whole house. Her room is really pink, but with the furniture back in there it is better. We had lots of fun doing it. Now it is on to the boys' room. Their room is bigger, though, with more stuff, so we will see how it goes.

We have also been doing more house stuff. Shane bought a nail gun and got to work on the fence. If he could just get a free weekend or weeknight he could get a lot done. O well, eventually we will find some free time. Shane cleaned up all the weeds again Saturday. With all the rain we are really wishing we would have just planted some grass instead of letting the weeds grow. We have all sorts of plans for this winter including finishing the fence, putting in a sprinkler system, plotting out a garden and whatever else we can afford. I am working like crazy to try and afford to get our house fixed up how we want. Like my dad says, it just takes time and money. You usually have one and not the other. Right now we don't have either, but eventually we will.

This last picture is just because I think my baby is cute : )

1st day of kindergarten

2007-08-10T09:30:00.000-07:00

Wednesday was Kiara's first day of kindergarten. She was very excited to go and I think had fun. She said on Wednesday that it was boring sitting at her desk, but on Thursday it wasn't boring. We'll see how Friday goes. She is buying her lunch from the cafeteria today. She was excited about that too.

Aidan was very sad that he couldn't go to kindergarten too. He has had to bring his backpack everyday when we walk Kiara to school and then again when we go to get her. He also wanted his picture taken too for the first day of school, although I couldn't get them to look at me. The baby was way more interesting.

2007-08-05T19:42:00.000-07:00

I know it has been a long time since I have updated this. Nothing really exciting has happened, at least not anything I've taken pictures of : )

We recently went to Utah to visit my sister Elizabeth, her husband Andrew and daughter, Avery and my brother Ren and his wife Amber. It was a long trip, but we had lots and lots of fun.

On Sunday we went to Bridal Veils Falls which was about 15 minutes from Elizabeth's house. We went on a short walk and got to see this waterfall. There used to be a restaurant at the top of the falls that you got to by ski lift, but it was closed. That would have been a fun place to eat dinner at.

This is also at the waterfall. All the kids were just dying to climb in the water!

On Monday we went school shopping for Kiara and then went to BYU. We got to see Andrew's art studio and some of the pieces he was working on. We also went to the Monte L. Bean Museum which is a museum at BYU that has all sorts of taxidermy animals. This is Aidan and a skunk.

This one is a baby cougar going after a porcupine. They had all sorts of animals including the head and neck of a giraffe, a grizzly bear, lions, tigers, and the heads of rhinos, hippos and more! The kids and their daddy had lots of fun in there. This is Aidan and Avery with their fireman's hats at the Pioneer Day celebration in Provo on Tuesday, the 24th.

On Wednesday we went to Salt Lake City and visited the temple and Temple Square.

Shane took some great pictures of the temple and Shane and I got to go to a session while Elizabeth and Andrew were nice enough to be in charge of all the kids for us.

After we did a session we walked around Temple Square, went to the visitor's center and then went to the conference center, right across the street from the temple. The conference center was huge. Our tour guide said it was over a million square feet plus the 300,000 square foot parking garage underneath. It holds a lot of people which is good for conference.

Another neat thing about the conference center was the roof. The roof doesn't look like a roof at all. It is like a little park up there. This waterfall starts at a fountain on the roof and flows all over the roof and then into a waterfall down the side of the conference center.

Here is our picture that proves Rowan was at the temple too : ) There was so much water at Temple Square the kids were very excited. This pretty fountain is in Temple Square.

All of us on the roof of the conference center. You can see the temple in the background.

All in all it was a fun trip. We liked hanging out with Elizabeth, Andrew and Ren and Amber. It was definitely worth the long road trip!!

Camping at the Cabin

2007-06-04T21:29:00.000-07:00

Last weekend our family, Elizabeth & Andrew and Avery and my parents and Stephanie all went up to my grandparent's cabin to spend the night. We all had a fun time enjoying the mountain and making s'mores.

Kiara, Avery and Aidan enjoying their hotdogs on the porch.

Here is Aidan getting ready to make s'mores. Can you tell which part is his favorite?

Kiara and Avery making sure the marshmallows don't get lost.

Elizabeth, Andrew and Avery roasting marshmallows.

And Aidan enjoying his s'mores. Enjoying them a lot!!

At the end of the trip: Happy, tired and very, very dirty!

Let's Scare Mommy. . .

2007-05-28T21:01:00.000-07:00

Here's a couple of pics of Rowan sitting on Aidan's dresser. Shane thought he would fit just perfect there and he did. Of course, now Aidan thinks he should be able to sit up there too : )

Dance Recital

2007-05-22T21:44:00.001-07:00

Kiara had a dance recital this last weekend. Here she is all ready to go. She was really excited because she got to wear makeup again. She did 2 dances. One was to Boot Scootin' Boogie, (see cowboy hat pic below) and the other was to the Lollipop song. She got to use pom poms for that one and has now decided she wants to be a cheerleader and the other day she told me that she would cheer for Aidan when he plays football. Sounds like a plan to me :)

She is the one on the far right. Sorry for the not-so-good pictures.

Carrots

2007-05-14T12:34:00.000-07:00

So, here's the question of the day. Which one is which? One is Aidan eating carrots and one is Rowan eating carrots. Can you tell?

Tractor Ride

2007-05-11T13:53:00.000-07:00

A couple of weekends ago our weeds were really getting out of control, so Shane borrowed a tractor and scraper from my dad and took care of them. Aidan was really excited to get to ride the tractor with his dad.

It didn't take him long to do the front yard, but the back yard took a while. You can see just how high our weeds were getting. Thank goodness we had access to the tractor or else this would have taken us forever to clean up.

When Shane first brought the tractor over Kiara told me "princesses don't ride tractors" and didn't want a ride. After watching Aidan for about half an hour she finally changed her mind. I guess princesses ride tractors after all.

Aidan's 3!

2007-05-09T09:37:00.000-07:00

Aidan is now 3 years old. He had a good birthday watching SpongeBob, playing in the rain and mud and eating lots of cake. We got him a 3 car racetrack and his grandma got him a lowrider that has its own hydraulics and bounces just like a real one. He thinks it is great. My grandma and grandpa got him a dumptruck to play with outside. It is already covered in mud.

Aunt Stephanie with Kiara and Aidan. If you ask Kiara, Stephanie is her "favorite" aunt. Of course, she is the only aunt Kiara sees all the time.

Blowing out candles on his "Mack" cake. He wanted a cake that looked like Mack from the movie Cars, and this is what I came up with. He was very excited. Everyone ate the cupcake wheels first. I used a loaf pan to make the trailer. I was glad it turned out so well and he was happy.