T-ball

There is something so endearing to me about seeing my little boy in a baseball uniform.  We put E in T-ball this year and he's only got a couple of games left until the end of the season.

At first, he wouldn't hit the ball, run the bases, or catch the ball.  About half way through the season he decided to hit the ball, but he still wouldn't run the bases.  He has finally made the choice to do it all - hallelujah! 

The thing is that E is the kid on the team who is constantly playing in the dirt.  He has no idea what is going on with the game around him - or perhaps he just doesn't care.  Either way,  there are two things that he DOES know for certain.  1.) It's fun to play in dirt, and 2.) He gets treats at the end of the game.  He just doesn't seem to care about the rest of it.  And that's ok for now...it's T-ball.

But he sure looks cute in that uniform.  

Word Love

So I have this obsession with words. 

I am not talking about words in general.  I'm talking about specific, singular words that compel me to laugh, ponder, or anticipate a detailed story with which they belong to.  Sometimes I will hear a word and I won't be able to get it out of my mind for days.  And since I am completely improper, I usually appreciate these words more when they are used in a not-so-common context.


It doesn't usually help when I hear them at the mercy of someone with an accent either.  It's like the word takes on a whole new character of it's own.  For instance, when I say "cheerio" I think of what the little handsomes ate for breakfast this morning. But when I imagine Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice saying "cheerio" to Elizabeth Bennett (although it doesn't seem proper enough for that story, but oh well) .....see you get the idea.  A story comes with it.  


It seems like their are certain words in particular that, when presented, tell a story all by themselves. Words like,

• Shenanigan - a devious trick used especially for an underhand purpose 
• Mischievous - able or tending to cause annoyance, trouble, or minor injury
• Whimsical -  full of, actuated by, or exhibiting whims
• Triskaidekaphobia - fear of the number 13

Then there are words that make me think of the character of individuals......

• Stout - strong of character
• Forlorn -  sad and lonely because of isolation or desertion
• Mastodon - one that is unusually large 
• Lofty -  having a haughty overbearing manner 
• Beau - a dandy boyfriend (aka. my own Mr. Handsome)
• Lush - appealing to the senses (what Mr. Handsome thinks about me)

and of course there are words that make me ponder life in general.....

• Precarious - depending on the will or pleasure of another
• Vintage - a period of origin or manufacture
• Twirling - to revolve rapidly

 and then there are words that make me laugh and are just really fun to say like...

• Hullabaloo - uproar
• Chortle - to laugh or chuckle especially in satisfaction or exultation
• Smorgasbord - an often large heterogeneous mixture
• Skedaddle - run away, scram; especially : to flee in a panic
• Lackadaisical - lacking life, spirit, or zest : languid (this one makes me think of slugs...)
• Bauble - trinket, something of trifling appeal
• Jargon - confused unintelligible language (the language of the littlest handsome)

What is your favorite word?  If you think about it for a while it just might send your stout countenance into a hullabaloo.  


Heck you might even chortle:)

Betcha thought we died...

...but we didn't.  Yes, we are still here.  And as I sit here thinking about everything else I should be doing instead of writing this post and playing with my blog background, I feel a little silly.  Why did I commit so much time to this before?

 I'll tell you why.

Because it is a creative outlet.  Because it allowed me to record pictures and thoughts of who I am and who my family is.  Because it made me happy.  Because it gave me an opportunity to share my life with my friends and family.  And gosh darn it,  because I liked doing it.  So there.  Let's try this again, shall we?

For my first official post of 2011, I would like to start off by saying Mr. Handsome is just one of the most thoughtful people that I know.  (I'm calling him Mr. Handsome because, well, it's kind of vintage, kind of dashing and because that's just what he is and I like it.)  He has a reminder on his phone to send me memories throughout the day of our life together, which he does on a regular basis.  Today he sent me this picture, and it got me thinking how fast life goes.  It's as if this picture was just taken.  I remember looking at it the first time and falling in love.

I'm still in love.  Aren't they darling?  They are much bigger now, but I daresay just as cute.  I'm president of their fan club.  And this, my dear friends, is why I will continue to blog.

I'm not making any promises mind you, but I sure do miss having a record of snaps like these.  I think it's worth a try. So here's to the memories.  Eat your heart out Kodak.

California dreams made a reality

Hi there amigos and familia, Jake here. Big hi there and hellos  from the Golden coast. Yes, we finally made it to California. We have had issues with our blog and think we finally have all the kinks out.
Life is awesome. My Dad was incredibly kind and generous to take time off to come down to Texas and help us pack up then drive our life half way across the country. Emma and the boys flew to Cali so it was just my Dad and I. I loved it. Thank you so much Dad!! :-)
We got moved in just fine and are lovin' the new house. Quite a bit bigger than our last one....by a long shot. We even have a backyard that the boys love and a garage to store all of our junk. We live about a 2 blocks from our Church and are pretty close to everything we need.

I couldn't be more in love with work and with everyone I works with. What a huge blessing.  I feel so fortunate  to do this and couldn't be more happier.

Emma is super Mom running everywhere now that the boys are getting bigger and getting involved in more activities. She has been re-vamping the house with all sorts of goodness. Man oh man, I love that Chica.

Ethan is now in Pre-school and T-ball. He loves Pre-school. T-ball......well, we'll see how that goes. :-) He is a big Sunbeam and loves taking his new Book of Mormon with him to Church.

Beckham in two words: LOVES SHOES. Period. By 9:00 am he has tried on everyones shoes in the house. He loves to wear them on the wrong feet which makes us crack up and reminds us of he song by Lonestar called "From my front porch looking in". The part where they sing, " a little blue eyed blond with his shoes on wrong because he likes to dress himself".

We sure do love you all and pray that the blessings of Heaven (and Dr. Pepper with bacon) fall upon each of your homes.

Love ya mucho!!!

Los Hansen's

 (ok, so I thought we had all the kinks out and the entire stinking post with pictures and funny captions just got deleted, so i'm going to leave it as is, sure do love you all though)

This is just minutes before my Dad and I hit the road, leaving the Lone Star state. Man, that was crazy seeing the old apartment in the rear view mirror for the last time.

Emma leaving our apartment for the last time.

Graduation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Need we say more?

Our very last sunset in Texas.

The Oakland California Temple.

Emma's family has a tradition that when you are starting something new, you take a picture in front of the door holding a sign that says what you are doing. We couldn't find paper since everything in house was in boxes, so we used this pasta box from pizza hut we had the night before. Pretty ironic that I am starting a career of Health and Wellness holding a greasy pizza box.....and yes, that is grease on there.

Here is a picture of the Sanfrancisco bay from a distance.

Bats,boys, pumpkins and a Toy Story theme

It has been so nice here lately. Fall is in full swing, cool crisp air, pumpkins everywhere....it's just been awesome. We have been waiting for the cool weather to hit for a while and are now really enjoying it.We have been planning on attending the  famous Flowermound pumpkin patch since August and when it opened up October 1st, we were sure to be there. The boys had a blast. This place is amazing. Free hay rides, train rides, bounce houses and acres and acres of pumpkins. We bought 4 little Pumpkins and painted them that night. We're still cleaning up from it. It was a fuuuun day.
The following Family night we made bats with Googly eyes and hung them up in the dining room. They do a job making sure the boys eat all their food.The boys have been really Really REally REAlly REALly REALLy REALLY into Toy Story this year so we did a family Toy story theme for Halloween. Jake was a Green Army man, Emma was Jesse, Ethan was Buzz Lightyear and Beckham was a Barrell of Monkeys........(we had the Monkey costume from last year). Emma made Ethan an AWESOME Buzz Lightyear out fit which he thought was the coolest thing since skittles, and Beckham loved running around the house and the ward Trunk or treat talking like a monkey.
Sorry about the picture explosion, but we've been meaning to put these up for a while.

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Happy Belated Halloween and Fall to everyone

My Sister...

My sister Eliza ran her first marathon today.  26.2 Miles.  Blood, sweat, tears, training, sacrifice, passion, goals, drive, determination, CAN...these are just a few words that come to my mind when I think about her.  She finished in 4hrs and 18 minutes and said that the last 5 miles were the worst.  Did I mention she is currently nursing a baby right now too?  This girl is crazy.  And incredible.  And certainly not just because she ran a marathon.

When we younger Eliza and I were the "archest" of arch enemies.  We fought about everything from clothes to barbies to friends to who got to jump on the trampoline first.  If I remember correctly, we even threw a few punches at each other once.  The loathing was fierce.  It was real.

When we were teenagers things eased up a little bit because we didn't see each other as much.  She did her thing, I did mine.  There was still a clear and present enmity between us, but it was dormant.  I couldn't just push aside our past. 

Then, one day something happened.  And, like all lost boys and girls, we started to grow up.

 It took more time for me than it did for Eliza.  There were moments when I looked at her and it felt like she had just changed into a different person overnight.  We gradually started talking to each other.  Actually talking...I wasn't used to that.  It was weird at first, but slowly we built a relationship.  We reminisced.  We forgave.  We let go.......of a lot.  She initiated it all, so I give her all the credit.  She stepped forward and wanted to be my friend.  She made an effort.  I wasn't always the easiest subject to coerce into sisterhood.  In fact, sometimes I was downright defiant.  But she persisted; and she never gave up. 

 I've known Eliza my whole life, and I know her well. I can honestly say that I have never met anyone else quite like her. She is truly one of the "pure in heart".  She is genuine, and good.  She's funny.  She's selfless.  She's kind.  She inspires me.  She has an eternal perspective, and her actions exemplify that.  I can't say that about some people I know half as well.

So Eliza, here's to you. I love you and I'm proud of you.  I look up to you more than you will ever know.  I forgive you for jogging ahead of me when we used to go running together in high school.  I know now, you were just training for your marathon.  You were ready before me, but you always came back for me and helped me to finish.  Someday, I hope I'll catch up with you.  But for now, I'm just glad to have a best friend to run with. 

I love you sis.

Emma B.

Picture This...

I have no pictures for this post. 

I know some of you don't care, but I'm a big picture girl.  A visual being.  Artsy fartsy.  So I just thought I'd throw that out there in case anyone decided not to continue reading my blog post because it has no pictures.

No?  Still going?  Well arlright then.

This last month and a half-ish have been crazy.  I'm talking insane crazy.  We had two back to back family reunions and we celebrated Jake's 29th birthday.   For his birthday I put a bunch of fun facts all around the house about the number 29.  Things like,

"29 is a PRIME number...and age!"

"There are 29 letters in the Sweedish alphabet...mmmmm, sweedish fish."

and "Jake, I'm sorry but at the age of 29 you are no longer elligible to audition for American Idol - I know it was a dream:)". 

Those are just a few....but I'm dorky like that.  We both are.  That's why we do it.  I hope he had a good birthday though.  The boys made his birthday sign this year with finger paints.  It was groovy.  Probably the most colorful birthday sign I have ever seen.  Loved it.  Love them.

After that the boys and I went to Utah for  back to back family reunions.  Before we left I put post-it notes all over the house in random places for Jake to find while we were gone. Most of the sayings were just inside jokes or favorite quotes from movies that I knew would make Jake laugh really hard.  I even put one on the inside of the toilet lid that said, "You're my #1".  I had no idea that a friend that came to stay with Jake (Jeremy) would be seeing it too.  I think it left a good impression.  Jake left ALL the sticky notes up.............and the birthday sign.

He loves us.

As far as the reunions go, they were intense! I don't think the boys have had that much fun in a long time.  We played with cousins, rode on a tractor, had olympics, went fishing and four wheeling, slid down a water slide, ate popsicles and waaaaaaaay to much food, sang in a talent show and partied like it was 1999.

I know what you're thinking.  You wish I had pictures.  Well, let me tell something to jew; so do I.  (Hint hint to anyone who has pictures of our family during the reunion that they want to send us:)

When we got back to Dallas it was 108 degrees plus humidity up the wazoo.  I'm not sure the percentage, I just know that when I walk outside it feels like I've stepped into a sauna.  BlllaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaH! So to be honest, I wish I was back in Utah - with Jake this time though. 

Scratch that. 

I wish we were in California.  Done with school.  And we had a backyard.  And we lived happily ever after. 

The End.


Picture that!

4th of July

Well for anyone that knows our family, knows that we are crazy for the 4th of July and being patriotic. And when we celebrate it,we go big. Matching shirts, face painting,crazy hair,BBQ's, fireworks, sonic 44ounce slushies, doing anything and all things American.etc... The works.

We feel so grateful to live in this Promised land of Freedoms, and for all those who have sacrificed and are sacrificing their lives for those Freedoms we excercise everyday.   Our Bro-in-laws Jon and Tom are currently serving and we are indebted to them and pray for their safety.

Here's some pictures of the day.

Beckham and Mom at the ward breakfastEthan "pounding" some bacon and sausage at the ward breakfast.Family picture while waiting for the fireworks.Emma's patriotic butterfly she painting in 2  minutes.Jake and the boys showing their hair colors.Watching the amazing stunt planes go by.Beckham being inspired by the stunt planes.First fireworks of the night with the Mom.More fireworks with the DadOur family glory shot while watching the finale.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY EVERYBODY!!!! GOD BLESS THE U.S.A! :-)

Jewlery give-a-way

My sister Emily is having another Jewlery Give-a-way. Out of all the jewlery that Emma has, her favorites are the ones off my sisters site. Enter the give-a-way below.

http://www.thevandykefamily.blogspot.com/

Diabetes

As some of you already know, I am a type 1 Diabetic.  I don't usually talk about my diabetes on this blog, but I recently found a bunch of other Type 1 diabetic bloggers and they inspired me to...well, share, I guess.

Type 1 diabetes is a little bit different than Type 2.  Actually, it's a LOT different.  Roughly  90%-95% of most diabetics are Type 2 and have the "luxury" of controlling their disease - possibly even getting rid of it - through diet and excersize.  Although diet and excersize are incredibly important for me too, I have tested my blood sugar and had syringes stuck into my body since I was a 4 year old so that I could stay alive.  It's not a fun disease.  It dosn't go away.  Not to mention, it messes with your hormoneees (say it like on "My Big Fat Greek Wedding) your memory and your mood, among other things.  I get low, I get high, and I get downright crazy sometimes.  (Praise be to anyone who has ever lived with me;)   I'm kind of like Storm on "X-Men". 

*Fun Fact: Did you know that Halle Berry is a Type 1 diabetic?

About 9 years ago I decided to switch from manual injections to an insulin pump, and it's probably been the best thing I have ever done.  I have more freedom to eat when I want, to excersize when I want, to live more, well normally I guess.  It's rad. But it's also kind of weird - and a major pain in the backside sometimes.  I constantly have this machine inserted via infusion set somewhere on my body (perhaps I am more like the bionic woman or something?) and unless I want to go into a coma, I have to keep it that way.  Thank goodness for no more injections though!

Since I have lived with diabetes for 23 years now, my body has been through a LOT.  I've had the full array of issues, and within the past couple years my resistance to insulin has increased making it so that my body requires more insulin to survive.  Long gone are the days of "9N 7R". (My siblings might remember that dosage:) 

I think it's safe to say that Type 1 Diabetes is THE STINK.  But it's also bittersweet (no pun intended).  Life is good.  I have loads of blessings.  Plus, I've got some tricks up my sleeve. This disease will never get the best of me. And when I try not to focus on it, Diabetes can temporarily take a back seat.  It's still in the car, mind you, but it's in the back.  And it's quiet...............for a little while. 

At least we have a van.

The two best Mother's Day gifts I could ever ask for:

It's ok.   I know you're jealous:)

Happy Mother's Day

Last night...

I couldn't sleep so I got out of bed for awhile.  When I got back into bed, Jake rolled over and started breathing really weird like he was about to die or something ( what were you thinking...get your mind outta the gutter!).   It kinda scared me, so I gently tried to wake him up to make sure he was ok and this is what I got:

Me:  "Honey, you ok?  You were breathing really weird."
Jake:  (delirious) "I was running!"
Me: (confused) "Who were you running from?"
Jake:  (mumble)
Me:  (enthralled) "Babe, who were you running from?"
Jake:  "I was Elliot!"
Me:  "Who?"
Jake:  "Elliot!  I was running with Willow's baby!"
Me:  "..........You were "Elliot" from E.T......... and you were running........ with the baby........ from "Willow"?"
Jake:  (mumble)
Me:  "Jake?"
Jake: "Yeah!  I gotta go!"
Me: (chuckle) Ok honey, I love you.  Er......goodnight.

(2 minutes later)

Jake: (snoring)

Um.....ok Forrest!

(Dreams are so fascinating:)

The Perfect Storm

You know that quote from "The Office" episode where one day a year a bunch of paperwork has to be turned in on the same day and all the employees have to stay late to finish it because Michael won't do it, and Pam calls it "the perfect storm"?

Well, maybe you don't.

 But, every year in the beginning of April we have about a week and a half where A LOT is going on - and I've decided to call it the same thing..........The perfect storm.

Collectively, it is Ethan's birthday, my birthday, General Conference for our church, and Easter.  Also, Jake likes to make A REALLY BIG DEAL about all of these events.   A REALLY BIG DEAL. 

This year, all of these events happend within 4 days of eachother. Yeah. Jake took me to a hotel for a night out on my birthday with 0 kids (LOVE him - and thanks Sarah and Jeremy!), we had 2 Birthday parties, 1 egg-dying session, 2 Easter egg hunts, 4 sessions of General Conference, and a partridge in a pear tree.  Did I mention Jake gave me the kitchen sink for my birthday?

 Just checking. 

For E's 3rd birthday, we took him to the fire station again this year.  You wouldn't know it by the pictures, but he really loved it.  He hasn't stopped talking about it since we got home.  I made him a buzz lightyear cake for our family party, but we had to wait for Dad to get home before we could really celebrate.  Ethan was a little emberassed because half way through his party some friends came over that we haven't seen in awhile.  When he opened his Buzz Lightyear wings he was more bashful about wearing them than I think he would have normally been.  Silly little guy:) 

"You wanna piece of me?!"

-Buzz Lightyear

Little goober.  I can't believe he's already 3.