I am soo bad about keeping up here but....

between chasing kiddos, trying to find a job, trying to find "me" again, a couple of roadtrips, & another death in the family it has been crazy.

Rachel is now over 5 months, loves talking with big brother, being held, and learning about how to eat cereal & baby food as well as the occasional sweet. You can see she is quite the busy little gal. She has be to SLC, Corpus Christi, & will probably squeeze at least one more trip of sorts in before the year is out. Her favorite two toys are links & her frog that hangs off the car seat handle. She last weiged in at nearly 15 lbs. & was 2 ft. tall.

Nate adores baby sister as long as she is not stealing mom's attention. He says all sorts of words now from "snack" to "treat" to "Cass, Cass" - his cousin's nickname & "K K" short for his aunt Katy. He climbs everything, loves coins from dad's pizza tips, & has a newfound obsession with anything the resembles a sticker - which is another word he can say.

Brian is doing wonderfully in school though quite burnt out from doing school & work & dealing with all the craziness here at home. He just recently was a pallbearer at great-grandma Halden's funeral (Sally's mom's mom). He & Nate love to roughouse but he also loves moments holding Rachel & talking to her.

Sally is trying to keep her head attached. She recently helped plan her grandmother's funeral, started job hunting, volunteered herself for a church calling that needs filling, & is trying to find a happy medium between sanity & insanity.

Sorry I've been MIA

Sooo... Nate is now 2 & terrible - j/k - he constantly is amazing us with the new things he is learning! Tonight we tried putting him in the big boy bed again & after some serious tears he finally realized mom & dad weren't gonna rescue him & fell asleep in his bed.

Rachel is almost 4 months now & 14 lbs. last time we checked (about 2 1/2 wks ago). So only about a 13 lbs difference between her & Nate. She is quite the demanding little gal but oh soo sweet. She thinks that she has to be either eating or being entertained if awake. She hold her head up wonderfully , is facinated by the tv & most any sound & somehow manage to survive without too much complaint her big brother's attention.

Brian & I are the same ole' same ole' crazy parents - Brian - bless his heart has sooo much on his plate these days but he does it all so well. I am soo blessed to have such a wonderful man & am certainly proud of his decision to go back to school & how well he is doing. I am just a SAHM for now - I have trying getting back into the workforce but have had no such luck & unless I got a really good job it wouldn't be worth it anyway so I just go crazy here at home. I am also reviving my interest/love of scrapbooking as well as a new love for stampin' thanks to my friend Linz.

Well, I am falling asleep as I right this so I think I shall call it a night & continue my thoughts tomorrow.

Halloween Pics

Here are the Halloween pics I promised before. Isn't our little monkey the cutest?


Sally

Finally...

A much needed update for those who actucally read this.

*Rachel Leigh made her arrival Jan. 22 at 2:05 am weighing 6 lbs 10 ounces & 19 inches long. She arrived in all nautral style - that is - mo had no drugs - just daddy & a doula to help mom work through the pain. We love having her here & she has made the sweetest addition to our little but ever growing family

*Nate is loving having a little sister though today - on Valenine's day of all days - he showed his first signs of serious sibling rilvary but throwing his cup at Rachel, stelaing her bottle out of her mouth & hitting her. On the other hand - he is alreay trying to say her name which I think is a good sign.

*Sally- is trying to figure out how to balance 2 kiddos along with everything else. Please tell me any trade secrets you know.

Brian - is a jack-of all trades. He surived one semester with all A's & B's , continues his full-time schooling, works part-time & comes home to a harried wife who then has his help with all sorts of stuff from dinner to trash to babies & he is such a good sport about it!

We should have pics of Rachel soon to share as well as a updated family pic. For now - this one pic of Rachel at 1 week old will have to do.

All this madness

Between pregnancy, chasing a active little almost 20 month old, trying to enjoy the holiday season there is little time for much else and yet wekeep trying to squeeze more in.

Brian will soon be out of school for the holiday season (last day - the 15th & won't go back till the 8th) & we have some ambitious plans during that time for various fun activites as well as necessary preparations for the arrival of this baby girl. Brian keeps doing wonderfully in school & scored 100 on another test today. He plans to spend most of his coming weekend - when not working - studing for exams - which are next week.

We just met with a doula-in-training tonight & she is going to help us with the birth of this baby for FREE & I am THRILLED about that. I am currently 33 weeks pregnant & there is no such thing as comfortable anymore. We are pretty sure now that we will call baby girl - Rachel Leigh. Last night we also toured the L&D floor of the hospital where I will be delivering - soooo exciting. At least Brian knows where to go now.

Nate has now learned to say "yard" & we are working on him mastering the art of saying "grandpa" & "grandma" so he can show off to the grandparents locally at Christmas & the ones out-of-state when they come to visit when the new baby arrives. He has also been sleeping in a big boy bed now for almost 3 weeks now & is doing a GREAT job of staying in there all night. We are really proud of him.

Anyhow,
Hope you enjoyed!

The Hansons

ARGHHHHHH

Can I make my fustration anymore clear? I will NEVER again get a cell phone for anything other than an emergency. Let's just say my experience with cell phones has been less than plesant. Let's say overcharged. Lousy customer service. And bad reception in areas that "supposedly" have coverage.

With that said - I am currently stuck in a stupid 2 year contract with Sprint that will cost $200 per line to cancel early. Is it just me or is that a tad absurd?

Anyhow - sorry for the rant.

Just had to get that out!

Sally

Does this really work?

Yeah! It did! This is my first time sucessfully uploading pics to my blog. This is a pic of my & my "little man" Nate in June at a "water park" in St. George before our move. The was a couple of weeks before I learned I was expecting again & though you can't tell - I was skinny then!

I will try to upload some Halloween pics later!

Sally

A new adventure

I am now classifying myself as a homeschooling mommy. I know - I must be crazy, but I have already started Nate on a program that is prepatory to introducing him to reading as it introduces the alphabet, shapes, colors, & specific themes. I am really having fun with this & I think Nate is too. (I think I spelt all that right - maybe I need to work on my spelling)

Sally

Did we tell ya we're in TX now...?

We are. Hehehe! Life is crazy & tough, but overall good so here's the lowdown:

Brian - keeps quite busy with 16 credit hours plus working about 25 hrs a week at a nearby Pizza Hut as a delivery guy. Meanwhile he puts up with the demands of a tired, cranky, & expectant wife & son. He has made some friends at school though & low & behold - he "hangs" with the guys sometimes!

Sally- is waddling about very pregnant with a little GIRL - yes - a girl! YIPEE! She spends her days chasing Nate, whining about pregnancy, & trying to find at least some small part-time job until the baby comes. She is very happy to be nearby her family once more though they still tend to drive her a tad crazy. She is quite nervous about this upcoming birth mainly due to the fact that it will be at the same hospital where Brian Jacob - our first & stillborn son was delivered so she is working on squelching those fears.

Nate - is now 18 months as of Monday & just a bundle of joy & energy. We keep talking to him about but baby coming but he seems to have no clue as to what that all means. He now "meows", "clucks", tries to say crackers & books, lives to play in water, chase kitties at grandma's & play with cousin Cassie. He is also getting accustomed to nursery & for the most part really likes it.

Baby girl- is driving momma nuts with her antics in the womb but we are sure she knows we are just thrilled to know she is coming & can't wait to meet her.

That's all for now!

The Hanson Clan

The Madness Continues...

Well, we just got back in the wee hours of Sunday morning - about 1:30am MNT time from our week long trip to TX to visit my family & make some preparations for our move. Needless to say - nothing went as planned. We arrived the day before Mother's Day & that was fine & dandy. However - after seeing my best friend & her family (they blessed their new baby that day - Baby Austin) we proceded to go home & get sick. Yes- Brian & I got sick & later int he day Nate joined us. The short of it - we got preisthood blessing & by the end of day Monday were doing much better. We did some scouting out of the TSTC campus & housing while we were there. Brian also did some testing that was required before he could start classes this fall. We also were slapped with the reality that we had forgotten to budget for books, his tools, & out-of state tuition (we forgot that little detail). Still though- we do have a good bit of cash socked away for the move & school we figure between first semester, hosuing costs to pay our deposit & get everything hooked-up, & the move it will probably cost somewhere in the ballpark of $5-6 thousand. We have about $3. SIGH!

Meanwhile- we have to packup, I have to step it up a notch to meet my business goals since that will be some of our bread & water while there. Brian also has to get the paperwork going for the GI bill & finiancial aid! UGHHHH!

Anyhow -

More to come!

Sally

As we speak..

Brian is busing snoring away as is Nate. I should be sleeping too but I am trying to figure out the logistics of uploading pics from our digital camer to the computer so I can share them. For some unknown reason it says there are no pics on our memory card when I know for a fact that it is full. I am also distressed because we seem to be missing a memory card which pics I am not sure I have uploaded.

Anyhow - these past few weeks have been crazy. We rang in April with a bang on the 8th with a b-day party in honor of all of our b-days since Brian, Nate, & I all do have April b-days. Many of Brian's family came for the occassion which made it quite special. Also- on the 6th - just a few days earlier while in the care of Grandam & Grandpa Hanson - Nate took his first steps. He loves to walk most anywhere now & does it quite well.

We also took a trip to SLC area this weekend to be with family & also for me to spend this past Friday night with some online friends! We had a great time but are glad to be back home!

Meanwhile we are getting excited about our summer coming up. Brian is going on a camping trip with his brother Rick, & his best friend, Jacob the second week in May while Rick's wife (Angell) & their kiddos hang out with me & Nate. The 2nd Sat. in May we plan to leave to fly to Waco from Vegas for a week visit with my family in preparation for our move there & Brian going back to school!

Well, that's all for now!

I better get some shut-eye as Nate is normally up by 6am lately!

Sally

Mommy in Denial

As the weeks have flown by this new year I am discovering that suddenly - my baby- will soon be celebrating his 1st birthday. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I am not sure I am ready for such a milestone! Sure enough though - it will come & go. He is continually amazing Brian & I by his antics, brainyness (is that a word?), & his overall sweetness. No - it doesn't get much better than this.

Signing off for now -

Sally
Mommy to her soon-to-be 1 yr old

Random Ramblings of a Wife & Mother

So- as my world would have it - my hubby is better (he had a cold) & now Nate & I are sick. Nonetheless - fullspeed ahead. I have a block party to make happen, MK parties to hostess coach & hold, a baby to help teach the joys of a sippy cup to, & a dear hubby to get a date night with. Not to mention the fact that just is just a few of the things on my to-do list. And that is not counting the millions of to-do's running around in my head orthe fact that I actucally expect myself to be supermom/superwife. No - I think I have finally given up on that ideal. No - I think more importantly I will just try to please a loving Heavenly Father & me. If I just try my best there - I think the rest will fall into place somehow & even though I am a demanding wife & inpatient mom - maybe the sweet men in my life will still love me somehow. Yes- actucally- I think they do. Wow - can any woman be more blessed than that?

Signing off for not till our puter is up & running again at home -
Sally

Daycare Drama

Sooo- to save up some extra money for our move & school - we have decided that I will work at a nearby daycare - within walking distance. Today was my first day training & I spend a little over 4 hrs there. The work was pretty easy though a tad draining at times. However - the hard part was leaving Nate in the baby room. I knew he would not be happy & I felt outta sorts without him underfoot or demanding my attention. As much as I know he did cry I still think it was harder on me than him.

We survived however & had a joyful reunion at the end of my training.

Sal

Can life get any crazier?

Let's see - okay - so I know I have it way easier than so many others but I am going insane. A lot of it is my own dang fault but I kinda like insane since it keeps me from battling my depression. Sooooo- I am building my own businesss as a Mary Kay Independent Beauty Consultan & truly having such fun doing so, Nate just had tubes put in his ears & will be 1 soon, Brian is a workaholic some weeks it seems & getting stuff around so he can go to school this fall, we are preparing for a move near the end of the summer, & we are both busy with church callings - (we are ward missionaries & I am also on the enrichment committee).

Time for fun? What's that? We are making it a goal to have date night once a month & now we just have to make time to accomplish some other family resolutions which will help us have some more down time & quality family time!

I just love being busy - really I do!

Sally

I just love great deals

My dear friend Jennifer just hooked me up with a car seat for Nate. It is one of those high dollar suckers too- a Britax - I think that's how ya spell it! Anyhow - she needed to find a home for it. HSe was gonna give it to me but considering how those things cost over $200 & we would have had to pay at least $70 or more for a car seat I told her I had to give her something fo rit so we settled on $30 bucks! Is that awesome or what?

Jenn - if you're reading this - you rock!

Sally

So I was stressing for nothing...

Nate's surgery went off without a hitch even though I didn't go to bed till nearly 2:30 am. I am sad I didn't bring my camera. They had us put him in a cute gown with tigers that are sleepy on it. They also had cute little slipper socks for his feet.


I was practically in tears as I handed him off to the nurses. Those few measly minutes of surgery dragged on forever as we waited & I was really ancy. Brian just laughed. When they finally called us back to the recovery room & rolled him in I was near tears again. I shed a few as he fussed & I picked him up to comfort him.

He's fine though - now mom just has to recover from it all!

Still can't sleep....

But I guess I should try since I do have to be up again in just a few hours. Sigh. My brain just won't shutdown either.

Can't sleep

I am so nervus about this whole surgery thing though I know it is really a minor procedure. Sooo...I am still wide awake.

Hope someone is getting some sleep!

Sally

Go figure...

I was sooo happily relieved when I was recently called to be on the enrichment committee. I was so afraid since I had head form the ward secretary that he thought the bishop wanted to meet with me about something RS related & I was sooooo afraid I was gonna be called as a teacher.


Well- it's all backfired. I got a phone call late tonight from one of the new RS counselors & she asked me to teach a lesson later in March. I nearly DIED!

Oh well- what could I say.

I said yes.