She's Joined the 2 Wheeler Club

You Go Kate!!!

All it took was a spring evening, some bug spray and determination and voila - Kate was off on her own!  She is by far, the most timid of the oldest 3 (case in point is that Ava was begging us to take her training wheels off while we were coaxing Kate into losing hers) so it took her a while to decide that she was up for the challenge.  Each time during the last year she would simply respond that "falling off of a bike hurts" if I ever broached the subject of learning to ride a 2 wheeler. Then in the last few months she learned that several of her friends had taken the plunge and become official 2 wheel riders.  I'm pretty sure that their tales gave her the needed courage to give it a go.

I only spent 5 minutes holding onto the back of her seat and little by little she gained confidence, first on the grass and then onto the big concrete circle at Heritage Park.  When it was getting dark and we needed to head home Kate just kept circling the field and laughing when we said stop.  Her record without stopping was a whopping 6 loops.  All Kate could talk about on the ride home was who whe could get to go bike riding with her.  Are you up for it?

Grandma Reichstetter

Today is my Grandma Reichstetter's birthday.  She died of lung cancer when I was only 9 years old and that still makes me sad every time I think about it.  There are so many things that I would have liked to have shared with her since that time.  Although I was young when she left the earth, these are a few of the things that I remember about her.

- She would waggle her index finger at me, feigning displeasure when I would sit in her rocking chair.  Apparently I loved the attention because I looked for every opportunity to hop in her seat (even if the arm on the chair fell off every time I touched it).

- She had a "secret attic" entrance in her closet that I found completely amazing.

- She could feed squirrels from her hand.

- She had a beagle named Holly that she loved dearly.  When Holly died, my Mom had to go and collect all of her belongings because it made my Grandma too sad to see them.

- She had a cookie tin in the kitchen and always made sure to give us some treats when we visited.  I remember buying her stickers to go on the tin that said "Keep Out" because we were always trying to snitch more.

- She taught me how to play solitaire.

- She could peel an apple in one long peel and on that note, made an amazing apple pie.

- She encouraged my Mom to put me in gymnastics because I literally rolled all over her house.

- She collected Hummel figurines.

- She had a beautiful flower garden in front of her house in the Oaks.

- Made the best creamed corn ever.

- I knew that she loved me and I loved to be around her.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all of the women in our lives! A very special "I love you" goes to my Mom, Mary Hansen and their Mom's, Grandma Reichstetter and Gramma Watters because really, our mothers wouldn't be the amazing women that they are without their Moms! Hope that this day was a great one for you all.

I HATE DOGS...but don't tell Jackson.

OK- So I had a dog growing up and I really loved her.  I don't know what happened between now and then but I've got to tell you that the love is gone.  All I think of now when I see a dog is work.  Buying dog food, taking it to the vet, taking it for walks, cleaning up the ENDLESS hair and now I add cleaning up dog diarrhea to the list.  Yes, I said diarrhea.  The D word is out and no less gross for it.  

We woke up this beautiful Sunday morning to a very concerned Jackson standing by the side of our bed.  In a blurry state I remember something about Bodie, bad smell, blood and diarrhea. Well that last word got me up in a hurry and we rushed out to see the damage.  I was very concerned myself when a horrific odor greeted me at the top of stairs but was grateful to find that at least the mess was pretty well contained.  While Jason took the kennel outside for a good hosing off I tried to keep Ava out of the remaining mess.  Jackson took Bodie out for a very long walk and then gave him a bath (Side note - Jackson has got to be the most fastidious, dog loving owner that ever was - well maybe 2nd to Grampa Hansen).  Anyhoo, after a cleansing bath Bodie saw fit to promptly relieve himself of the remaining contents of his intestines all over my dining room floor, living room and hall.  (I consider that a non-contained mess and was seriously unhappy at this point.)  If I hadn't been completely disgusted by the unfolding scene I might have actually laughed out loud to see Jason chase our continuously pooping dog while shouting, "No Bodie, No!"

I swear, if this little boy didn't absolutely love his dog...  I tell you, there is no end to a mother's love! :)

Easter Fun

There were so many Easter activities that I held off from posting because it was too overwhelming.  The first of our 4 egg hunts was put on by our neighborhood association.  This was a pretty low key, yet fun event and according to the kids, it had the best candy! 

 

The next egg hunt took place at Camp Sunshine only a few hours after the first one.  They put together a lovely day for kids with cancer and their families.  The afternoon was jam packed with face painting, egg dying, a puppet show and arts and crafts for hours!  The event ended with an egg hunt, the likes of which I've never before seen.  They had so many eggs that within seconds each child's  basket was overflowing.  Ava was hilarious to watch because she only wanted to collect the pink eggs.

   

Our next egg hunt took place the day before Easter at one of Kate's best friend's house.  She and Emery have become such good friends and we just love to see them together.  It is wonderful when you see your child nurture a friendship with another sweet spirit.  In truth, Lily, Ellen, Kate, Ava, and Emery all play so well that the parents actually get to visit when we get together!  We love the Ryan's so much and are really hoping that they stay in Atlanta when their residency is over. Poor Jackson is the lone older boy at these get-togethers though... We think that when he's a bit older those odds won't seem quite so bad? ;) (except for the sisters part - that's just weird people!)

Lastly, Jason invited a couple over for dinner on Easter!  Now, although I was looking forward to having the Vellingas over, I was a little bit stressed about cooking for guests on Easter.  A holiday meal is a lot of pressure for a first visit don't you think?  In the end  I decided to cook a roast (Mom Anderson style) which turned out great (by some small miracle)!  Perhaps it had something to do with the 20 phone calls back and forth to her regarding each and every detail of the cooking.  Whatever the  reason though, I'm just glad we didn't end up ordering out for Papa Johns on the sabbath ;)  Unfortunately, our own egg hunt was a huge disappointment to the kids I think.  Jackson and Kate are obviously getting older because their comment was that the baskets were "way too easy to find".  I guess we are going to have to step it up next year!

In the Easter bunny spirit of things I have one last funny story.  The day before Easter, Jackson and I had a discussion that went something like this:

Jackson - "Mom, tell me the truth.  Is the Easter bunny real?"

Me - (After considerable internal conflict) "What do you think?"

Jackson - "I think the Easter bunny isn't real.  I mean, how ridiculous is that - a bunny running around to everyone's house and hiding eggs."

Me - "You are right Jackson.  Your Dad and I really hide the eggs and make the baskets but please don't spoil the secret for Kate and Ava.  Let them figure it out when they are ready."

Jackson - (LONG pause followed by a sigh) "What about the Toothfairy and Santa.  Are they real or not?"

Me - (Again with the internal conflict) "What do you think?"

Jackson - "I don't think the Toothfairy is real.  I mean, how ridiculous is that - a fairy flying to people's homes and collecting their teeth? Weird."

Me - "Well, what do you think about Santa?"

Jackson - "Oh, I think he's real."

Me - "Yeah, me too."  (I mean, how ridiculous is that - an old man flying to everyone's home in a single evening giving gifts to everyone.  I guess that scenario is the plausible one?")  

Maybe  I wasn't totally honest but I just couldn't let the magic die even if just a glimmer of hope remained that it was true.

Oh Lordy, Lordy, Jason's 40!

So the big guy turned the BIG 40 on March 29th!  Anybody who knows Jason knows that he is very young at heart even if he's technically over the hill. :)  I have to say that I don't think the number 40 bothered him one bit.  I have to remember that when I become old like him.  Hee-Hee.

The kids and I planned his gifts for several weeks and had such fun coming up with ideas.  We wrapped 40 gifts (both big and small ones) for him to open individually.  The gifts ranged from homemade gifts from the kids....

To the "Big" gift, which was a trip to Greece for just Jason and I!  We leave in October for a full week of fun in the sun.  Here is Jason pulling one of his very silly faces when he opened the plane ticket.  In truth he was completely surprised and for those of you that know what a snoop Jason is will appreciate how amazing it is to really surprise him.  I loved it!

You Know You're Tired When...

Moments ago I peered from the kitchen to see sweet Ava's face resting peacefully on the arm of the couch.  She had definitely been tired so I wasn't surprised to see that she'd fallen asleep.  I was surprised when I walked in to the living room and saw that she had fallen asleep standing up!  She was so wiped out that she even stayed alseep while I picked her up and laid her on the couch.  Clearly our decision to have the girls share a room will have to be re-examined. :)

Little Lizard

This video totally captures Emmett's happy little disposition.  It also accurately depicts  how active this boy is with the sleeping being the only time I can find him still.  He also constantly sticks his tongue out like he's tasting the air.  It cracks me up.  Oh how I love my wiggly, little lizard!

Fancy Nancy

Ava is 100% Fancy and we love her for it.  She had some money to spend from Christmas and once she spotted this Fancy Nancy get-up in Target, she was in love.  Have you ever seen a cuter Fancy Nancy?

I particularly love that she had to wear her outfit even when she was riding her bike because really, every activity requires a little fanciness!  Ava never leaves the house without a little bling and a purse of some sort.  She loves to fill her bag with all sorts of treasures that have nothing in common except that they caught her eye.  Just another thing I love about her (except when I'm in a rush and waiting for her to fill her purse)!

Snow Day

As much as I wished the snow day had arrived on December 25th, we were thrilled when the snow began to fall on March 1st!  It snowed and snowed and snowed (at least by Atlanta's standards) and by then end of it all we had al least 3 inches of snow!   You can tell that we don't get much snow by the colorful outfits my kids are sporting.  We had to bust out our ski clothes (unused for the past 2 seasons) plus random winter coasts and piece together some semblance of snow clothes. It was hilarious!  The kids braved the cold for hours while the parents took shifts of 10 minutes at a time to enjoy the weather.  Here are my little bunnies (with a neighbor) making a snowbunny of their own!  

There was certainly ample snow for Kate to make a snowman of her own.  

To have a snowball fight.

To make snow angels and of course sled down our rockin' hill. 

 

It was such fun to hear the kids squeal with delight as they bounced around in the yard.  They were lucky enough to have the fun continue into Monday when school was canceled.  Yes, where we live they actually cancel school if there is a threat of bad weather so I was not surprised to wake up and find that although it had stopped snowing late Sunday evening, school was canceled on Monday.  So, we've had our snow fix for the year and in 2 days were are going to have temps in the 70's.  I love Atlanta!

Dallas Trip

When I realized that the kids had both the Friday before and Monday after President's Day off, I knew that I had to take advantage of that opportunity.  So, when I got a Travelocity update for $150 tickets to Dallas, it was a done deal. Kate, Emmett and I went to visit some of our favorite people, The Hatch Family, and Jackson stayed behind with Jason because he'd committed to a soccer tournament that weekend.  I was waffling about what I should do with Ava but in the end decided that I didn't want Jackson to feel bad about being the only one left behind, so she stayed.  Big mistake.  The day I was packing and Ava realized that she wasn't coming, she cried hard for over an hour - not a temper tantrum kind of crying but a real heartbroken one.  Through the tears she kept saying, "But I'm a good girl".  That about killed me and I had to tell her over and over again that she wasn't being punished and that she was going to have fun with Daddy.  Gratefully, she tired herself out and fell asleep on the car ride to the airport so there wasn't another tearful good-bye.

From the time we arrived in Dallas, Kate and Abby were attached at the hip.  They had the absolute best time together just hanging around and being silly together.  I just know that those two girls are going to be best friends forever. 

Sarah fell completely in love with Emmett and was the perfect helper the entire weekend.  She is going to be the BEST babysitter ever!

We were lucky to eat at Joe T. Garcia's, a famous Dallas Mexican restaurant.  The fajitas were yum, yum, yummy!

Valentine's Day was super fun thanks to Anne and her uncanny ability to think of the perfect thing for everyone.  The

 kids all got giftcards to Target and we spent a really fun afternoon with them while they shopped to their hearts content.

It is wonderful to spend time with friends that no matter what you do it is fun.  The kids all just hung out and played in yard for hours on end, creating a "Cool Kids Clubhouse" and making contraptions like this one.  What in the world?  Well, at least they had fun and so did I!  We already miss the Hatches like crazy.  Can't wait for the next trip. 

Emmett's Blessing - February 8th

I am woefully behind on my blogging.  After looking back at the 2007 blogging book I really appreciated the memories that I had recorded.  So, this year I may not always be spot on with my blogging but I am going to document those important events in our lives.  This is after all, the best journal I've ever kept.

Emmett was blessed on February 8th in the Brockett Ward.  It was a special day for many reasons not the least of which was that he shared his blessing day with my Mom's birthday.  The weekend was a total whirlwind of fun and family with both sets of grandparents making the trip out to Atlanta. My Dad arrived on Friday early morning and we were able to catch up and visit. Ava took him out to her favorite "hot lunch"  spot, The Grove.  Shortly thereafter, Mom and Dad Hansen and Mom Anderson arrived on the scene. 

Saturday morning the guys went to "Flapjacks and a Flick" at the local movie theater where they watched the Pink Panther 2 and ate pancakes to their hearts content.  The ladies headed over to the nail salon for a mani/pedi together. 

This was Ava's first experience at the nail salon 

and although she had a hard time sitting still, I think that she really loved every minute of it.

Kate, on the other hand, is a seasoned veteran and knew exactly what colors she wanted.  Purple for the fingers and pink for the toes!  Being the kill joy that I am, I suggested that she reverse the two in light of church the next day and she reluctantly agreed.

Sunday was a wonderful day - hectic and harried  but wonderful!  Jason had to leave early for a bishopric (church) meeting so I had to rally the troops alone.  I had the bright idea to get some pictures before the blessing which made us 5 minutes late for church.  Classic.  I do love this picture of the 4 kids though.

We made it though and Jason gave Emmett a wonderful blessing.  We were thrilled to find that one of Jason's childhood best friends, Garin Hess, was in town and came to our ward for church.  It was wonderful that he was able to take part in the blessing. 

Here are a couple of my favorite pictures of the little man in his raw silk blessing gown (or dress as Gramma Hansen calls it).  

This is Emmett just before church began.  Fed, content and happy.  He slept for the entire 3 hours of church.  

Of course, he woke up as we were getting into the car and decided that he was indeed hungry.  Look at that bottom lip!

PC or not?

Three times now I have had people tell me that Emmett has "chinky" eyes!  Yes...they all said "chinky".  Seriously now, who says things like that.  I am not in the least bit offended or shocked that they think his eyes are slanted but because they each used a term I have always believed to be a slur.  I am wondering if I am mistaken about this though because one of the people that made the comment was actually an Asian girl in her early 20's.  Even if it isn't a slur, I honestly can't imagine myself ever using the word.  But just for the sake of argument, does anybody know the answer?  

As a funny aside, this weekend one person gently asked in a round about way "what my heritage was".  My reply, "Scandinavian and German".  Their reply, "Hmmmm.  Nothing else?  Really?"  It made me laugh and hey, at least they were polite. 

All Smiles

As previously posted, Emmett has found his voice and is easy to smile.  He reminds us a lot of Jackson at this age in that his arms and legs are always moving.  Apparently he's got places to go. 

The smiles come toward the end of the clip so hang in there.  Enjoy the cuteness Grandma and Gramma!

Blogging Book

Grandma Hansen won the favorite Christmas gift award, when she made a book out of my blogging from 2007.  The tears flowed as I looked back over that year and all that we went through as a family.  The book is something that I'll treasure forever.

I was so happy with the book that I wanted to create a book for 2008 and one of Kate's blog too.  I was so disappointed when I went to Blurb's site and found that they no longer had access to Blogger's accounts though.  For those of you that don't know, you can literally download your entire blog to Blurb and then you simply arrange the text and pictures to your liking.  Well, good news!  Blurb again has access to blogger so you can easily create your own book.  Blurb is very user friendly and easy to navigate so check it out if you are interested.

Growing Like a Weed

Emmett had his 2 month doctor appointment yesterday and he's definitely been doing his share of growing. He is in the 50th percentile for each area of growth. These are the stats:

Weight - 11 pounds 4.5 ounces

Length - 22 3/4 inches

Head circumference - 15 5/8 inches

Emmett began smiling 2 weeks ago, cooing and trying to "talk" back when we talk to him. I am amazed at how his gummy little smile melts my heart. The whole family is gettting a kick out his increased responsiveness and the kids try so hard to get those smiles. Emmett also began sleeping in his crib and wakes twice at night for feedings (can I get a whoot-whoot?). In other news, he is in 3-6 month clothing, loves car rides and is fascinated by his crib mobile.

Two months have flown by and we continue to feel so blessed to have Emmett as a part of our family.

PS-Emmett is wearing his blessing gown in the picture in case you were wondering what I was doing to my child by dressing his "like a girl". Fret not, he is normally dressed appropriately, this was the only smiling picture that I have right now.

Sagamore Math Tournament

Can you think of a better way to spend your Saturday morning than sweating it out with math problems galore! I'm quite sure that I wouldn't have chosen that path when I was 9 years old but I'm certainly not Jackson. He has been looking forward to the annual Sagamore Hills math tournament for weeks and even passed on a Dynamo swim meet to be able to attend.

Gratefully, he was rewarded by making it into the top 25 finishers and competing in the finals round. We sure were proud of our little math whiz...He must get it from Jason!

1 Month Visit

Emmett had his big 1 month visit on Monday, the 12th and he is growing like a weed! Here are the stats:

Height - 21 3/4 in

Weight - 9 pounds 13 ounces

Head Circumference - 14

So, in the last 3 weeks he has gained 2 and 1/2 pounds and grown so much that his newborn outfits don't fit him anymore. Sigh... (At least he's still smaller than Jackson was at birth.) During these first 4 months they change so quickly and I'm really trying to slow down and enjoy it all. Even those late nights wakings aren't nearly as difficult as they were with the other kids. While Emmett hasn't proven to be my "easiest" baby, I think that I am really enjoying this stage more than ever before!

Insurance

I just got a letter from Viacord, a cord blood banking center, telling me that Emmett's cord blood harvest was successful. They need to have at least 100 million nucleated cells for a transplantation and they counted 881 million in the 121 ml collected - putting us in the clear. Now, while we are not planning on EVER having to use this, I know that like all insurance policies, just having the plan will ensure Kate's cure without relapse.
I have to put a plug in for Viacord who has put together a program called Sibling Connection. Any parent with a child on active treatment is eligible for free harvesting and storing of the new siblings cord blood for 5 years. What a wonderful thing to do for families with a child with cancer! Thanks Viacord!

Merry Christmas!!!

I hope that today everyone found a bit of joy as you celebrated Christmas. We have had a great time together with relatively few squabbles even. :) Jason's parents are visiting and we are having a great time with them. I am pretty sure that my kids are wearing them out but they don't let on and in fact, seem to keep up quite well.
Last night we had an unintentionally, hiliarious Christmas Eve. The kids and I spent a long time making sugar cookies for Santa. By the time we were finished it was late but we'd promised to reinact the Nativity story. So, we busted out the felt puppets that I'd made back in Ann Arbor and went to town (no pun intended). During the course of the next 1/2 hour, Ava stepped in Santa's plate of cookies, Jackson knocked off one of Baby Jesus' eyes, Kate and Ava were crying and by 9:45pm we were begging the kids to go to sleep! Mom Hansen said that it was so typical of family gatherings that she was having a hard time not laughing. In truth, it was very funny and definitely the stuff that memories are made of.
I hope that fond memories have been made for you and yours this holiday season! Merry Christmas!