Exhausted

Earlier I created a post about the month of February. Wow, it did not disappoint. This past month has been one of those dig through the laundry baskets of clean clothes to find your school uniform and other necessary items because there just hasn't been time to fold and put it away. Now, if you know me at all, you understand how hard this process has been because I am a finisher. If I start something I have to complete it, it just mentally bugs me until it is completed. That might give you a little glimpse into my mentality this month. UGH!
 I have been so overwhelmed this past month. I am not sleeping and I have a rash that is on fire all over my skin. I really hope that after these next two weeks, things will settle down. I have one of the two school talent shows under my belt, last one is next week with the preview being a week from today. Teesh and I  have all the scholarship applications in, I would say probably 7 more to go in the next two weeks. Parent Teacher Conference is this Wednesday and Thursday so that means hours of running around a huge school and talking to teachers. PTC's are so important so I do what it take to attend but it takes a lot of maneuvering with my family. Malia will go to two ballet classes that night since I can't be in two places at once. A friend will take my little ones and in between appointments I will take older girls here and there. My evening will begin on both nights around 4 and I won't be home till after 10. Hope I get a good nights sleep Tuesday and Wednesday.  Motherhood is exhausting!
Did I mention I am a mystery shopper? I have a love/hate relationship with it. I love the money as well as the feelings that I am an individual, but some weeks I am bombarded with shops. I view them as blessings I really do, but lately I have no time to give and yet continue to accept jobs. My boss approached me with a scheduling opportunity. Instead of performing the jobs, I will find people to complete the jobs. I have been doing it for two weeks now, I have to say I am liking the jobs better than scheduling. People are flakes! I am sorry, rude I know, but they are. They don't return calls they don't do what they say they will. What is this world turning into.?
Anyway, I only have a minute but I wanted to share because blogging always makes my heart feel happy and tonight I needed a little happiness.
I recently have lost a friend that I have enjoyed for several years. It is hard and makes me very sad. I don't even know what I did to create distance but they seem to no longer have interest in me.  I have my family and my husband and I love them, but friends are super important to me so this loss has been hard.
On a brighter side, I have recently met a neighbor who has been so nice and helpful to me. She invites me to do things with her and has offered to help in my oversheduled life. I consider her a blessing. Thank goodness for blessings. I could not have survived without her kindness. It always makes me feel loved when people call or stop in and say, "Hey, I have been thinking of you".

First week of Training

Sierra, Leticia, and myself are all registered for a half marathon in April. In order to be conditioned for this experience, you follow a 10 week rigorous training course. Basically, you run 4x's a week. Three of the runs are 3 to 4 miles with the last run of the week being your "long" run. We run our  "long" runs on Saturday since Sunday is a day of rest at our house.
Teesh and I train together, while Sierra runs with friends. We all have different paces. Look what today's run was in.

Rain or Shine we girls don't quit! One week down, 9 to go. We can do hard things little ones!

The Return

Austin, Chad's oldest son, returned from his mission from Oregon this past week. I was serving my mission when Austin was born. Full circle here. I was invited to the airport to witness the return. So touching! Brought back memories of my return many years ago and it brought the reality that I could/will be here in a year from June to send Teesh off. I can't imagine not seeing your child for a solid two years but of course you wouldn't want them doing anything else. Sit back and enjoy the photos I took of the reunion.

I love this shot. This is when Austin first stepped off the escalator. Lynette, the mom, raced to give her son a hug and Hannah, the sister, slid in right before. I love the pure joy on Lynette's face.

Austin hugging Kendall his other sister

Chad whispering, Welcome home son. I sure have missed you. Matt, another son, is the one wearing braces.

Hannah getting another hug. She and Austin are super close siblings. I love Adam's face. He is in the white and green and he couldn't be cuter.

Chad took this photo of myself and Austin. I was the only one on Chad's side to make it to the airport. I love supporting my siblings in congratulatory moments. Relationships are everything, it is the only thing we take with us into the next life.

Pure Joy!

 

Welcome Home Austin.

This is Chad's family minus Clayton who is serving his mission and will return in 17 months.

From Left to Right: Matt (15) Hannah(17)Lynette(mom)Austin(21)Kendall(13) Adam(9) and Chad(Dad)

Chad is my second brother and third child in our family. They live in Pleasant Grove, UT and he is a dentist.

What a great day.

19 years

Today is our 19th Anniversary! Wow! Many moons ago, when we were both college students, we decided to marry. We chose President's Day weekend to allow us a three day weekend. We had a short little honeymoon and then back to the studying.  With marrying on a holiday weekend, that means we also get to celebrate each year on a holiday weekend (some good, some bad but mostly good) Because of our all-expense paid-trip in April, we decided to go easy on the celebrations this go around (Who am I kidding, we always take it easy on our anniversary celebrations) Just seems like something always comes up to gobble the extra moola we could have used, oh well such is life.

Anyway, one of our favorite places to go is Off Broadway. Groupon had a BOGO so I snatched those tickets up in a real hurry and began to make plans for our glorious upcoming event.
Morning of the 18th, I woke to my three favorite treats on my pillow, piping hot crepes in the kitchen next to a beautiful card. Corby wrote down some of his favorite things he loves about me. So tender! He definitely made up for his lack of on Valentines Day(more on that post) The day was pretty normal, Corby worked on taxes while I put the finishing touches on the upcoming school talent show.
Malia and Teesh made dinner for the girls while Corb took me out. When we were getting ready to leave he asks, "Where do you want to eat? Sizzler? Cafe Rio? or Arctic Circle? Nothing screams true love like those restaurants. He had coupons which is why he suggested those choices. Love my frugal hubby, most of the time;)
I opted for Zuppas. Gotta love their Wisconsin Cauliflower Soup, YUMMY! We enjoyed a nice light conversation of our budget and how it is working currently and then headed off to downtown to see Doctor U.
We didn't want to have to pay for parking so thought if we found parking somewhere in the free zone then hopped on traxx we could save a little money. We drove around and quickly found free parking and only a half block from a traxx station, Booyah!
We walked to the station and realized the tickets were still in the car so back to Lila the Lexus, we should have known then what was in store for us later on this evening. Foreshadowing I have to say, deep thoughts.

We waited at the traxx station listening and watching the characters that were with us. Wow, what a cultural experience this was, must bring children to see how some live.
After about 10 minutes of waiting the train pulled up and we got on. It was awesome being dropped up right in front of OFF Broadway Theatre, perfect planning Corbster.
The play was awesome. It was a spoof on Doctor Who. Neither Corby or I have seen Doctor Who but with the luxuries of internet readily available at your finger tips, we researched what we needed and quickly educated ourselves for the upcoming entertainment.
The play did not disappoint! It was hilarious. I love laughing so hard my cheeks ache. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. When the play was over, we crossed the street and patiently waited for the last train to come pick us up and take us back to that half block from our car destination. We waited. We waited. We read the schedule verifying that we had a train coming. Yes, yes last train of the evening coming 10:18. We had plenty of time until we realized it was a holiday which meant traxx were running on the Sunday schedule. Hurray for holidays, kind of, we were stranded there with no ride back.
Corby suggested he leave me and walk the 7 blocks back to our beloved Lila but I would have nothing to do with that so we began the trek. Pioneer children sang as they walked and walked and walked........
Now 7 blocks isn't the problem here, I love walking and exercising the problem was all the characters that were out at this time of night as well as the temperture. It was cold, thankfully I had my coat which I normally opt out and leave in the car. Blessing!
We saw homeless people settling in for the evening. We were approached for money and cigarettes. At one point, there were so many homeless people around us we were definitely out numbered. As we sped up our pace we caught up with one gentlemen that was screaming and all bent out of shape because of his crackers. I held my purse tight and prayed we would be alright. After what felt like forever, we finally made it to our vehicle, jumped in, turned on the heat and locked the doors. Whew, safety! So let this be a lesson, just pay the couple of dollars and park close to your destination especially on your anniversary celebration.

When we arrived home our garage door was locked, now that is odd. We gently knocked but no one came. Corby went around to the front and just then I hear Sierra unlock the door and run away. Weird! As we walked in we were greeted with this......

The girls had made us sugar cookies and cards. It was a great surprise. The little ones were tucked in bed and sleeping soundly, the house was tidy(just the way I like it before hitting the hay each night) and my girls were happily conversing. Perfection I tell you. The cards were thoughtful and keepers for sure. We said prayers, hugged and all retired.
19 years seems like forever and in reality is a pretty long time! We have had our ups and downs along this journey, but I'll take it. I love my family and with the good comes bad and that is OK because we have each other and that is all that counts.

Eagle Court of Honor

My oldest brother, Brad, lives in Logan, UT. He has four daughters and two sons. His daughters are all out of the house, married and raising their families. Brad, like us, had a large gap between family one and two so he has these two boys he is rearing now. Bryant is 14 and Bryce 13. Brad's family has always been one of those families you look up to and admire. Brad and Teresa just seem to know how to handle each situation. I follow their example often in my parenting.

Bryant earned the rank of Eagle in the Boys Scouting Program so we headed North to show our love and support at his court of honor. I don't know much about the scouting program but I do know that this is an incredible accomplishment especially at the age of 14.
Well done Bryant!

Malia was in Jackson Hole all weekend with her friend, so she wasn't with us but the rest of us and a stow-a-way headed to the great city of Logan. While we were traveling, I kept thinking this is Leticia's home in 6 months. It isn't that long of a drive only a little less than two hours! Who am I kidding, two hours is forever when you are missing your sweet Teesh LaReesh.

Bryant with his mom and dad receiving his award.

Mom and Dad get an award too!

The quilt in the background was made by my mom for Brad. It is all hand embrodiered. Talk about a keep sake. This is an amazing gift. I wish I had a picture of the whole thing. There is an eagle in the center that is all handstitched. My mom is beyond wonderment to me. She has suffered from rheumatoid arthritis my whole life. Her body crippled and yet nothing stops her. I hope to have the endurance my mom portrays even when it feels impossible.

Teresa always goes above the norm with everything she does. So cute decor and refreshments. Everything matched. The popcorn was red, white, and blue. The white was my favorite since it was covered in white chocolate.

See our stow-a-way we brought. Connor, you silly boy! You can hide but not for long.

Brad's family minus sweet Katie, Dan and little Emelia. Dan is doing his residency for becoming an anesthesiologist.  They live in Vermont. Beginning from left: Dan holding Landon, his wife Cambria holding Stella, Bryant front and center his brother Bryce to the right side, sister Alyse in yellow coat with her husband Jake in blue. Teresa in red sweater and Brad to the right. Sister Rachael with husband Chet to the right of Brad. Amazing family!

This is a pretty amazing little trivia for you. Brad and all his sons-in-law all achieved the rank of eagle and Bryce should get his eagle in 6 months or so. Something to be proud of for sure in my opinion.

Rachael, Bryant, Cambria and Alyse. Cambria has her arm around Katie so she can be in the shot too!

It would not be an Ellis gathering if basketball didn't get introduced. This was so sweet! Rachael and Chet played with Bria, Ada, and Stella keep away. The little girls were giggling so hard.

Bria with a free shot running her heart out.

Stella and Ada wondering where the basketball went. Stella calls Bria and Ada her cousin friends. My poor little girls who are playing with my niece's children will never understand how they are related. Who cares we are family, right?

Brad teaching the girls how to jump for the ball. They were all laughing so hard trying to figure out this impossible task.

Then the simple keep away game evolved into a full on girls against boys basketball game. Watch out Ada you are in rough territory.

What a fun evening we had. So fun to spend time with cousins. Connor is from a very tiny family so as he continues to meet our large herd he gets more and more shocked. Holy Multiplying and Replenishing I say;)

Valentine's Day

February 14th, the day of love. The day of flowers, chocolates and anything else to show your true love, appreciation. At NPA, we don't do parties so it has been many years of not worring about valentine boxes and candy. But this year, with my little ones in preschool, the boxes and candy must be made. It was fun to help Bria and Ada produce their valentine holders. I helped a little but for the most part they were the authors.

I just love these little faces, so innocent, most of the time. What joy feels my heart to be their mother!

When the boxes were complete off to bed these little ones ran. Excited for what would come the next morning. Excited they should be, I had some great things in store for everyone.

The girls woke to this.....................................

Pink heart shaped homemade pancakes and grapefruit. I began this tradition multiple years ago and the girls just love it. Bria isn't so sure about the pancakes being pink, but I reassured her they taste the same, so she gave it a whirl and whala she liked them as much as traditional. Silly little Breeta!

I was super happy the pancakes turned out so well, some years they stick to my mold and it is the thought that counts.

I bought each of the girls their favorite candy with a card. I decorated the cards and wrote heartfelt messages to each family member.

I bought the family a new Wii game. I have had so many friends tell me how much fun this is so we we will try it out.

Bria loves Scooby Doo so when I found these cards I just couldn't pass up this opportunity to see her smiling face. Gotta love morning hair! oh and sorry Corby I cut your head off. This photography business is harder than it looks. I must take a class when life s-l-o-w-s down.

Happy Valentine's Day

Sierra squeezed in enough time to get in our pictures

I have to explain these flowers, they were purchased a few days after Valentine's Day. I was a little disappointed on Valentine's Day to find not one family member did a thing for me. No cards, no notes, not a thing. I actually cried. Lately, I am an emotional wreck, hormones I'm guessing because I have never been like this. I don't expect a lot really but a homemade card or my favorite candy bar would have meant a lot. Bria could sense my sadness and asked what was wrong. I told her I didn't get a valentine and it made me feel sad. So next time she was with her daddy, she encouraged him to purchase these flowers. She was all smiles as she brought them in to me and presented her valentine. She told me I did not need to be sad anymore. She is one in tune kid! She also made me a valentine that just melted my heart. I love 5 year olds, they are so darn precious and adorable.

She wrote the word Love several times. The drawing in the right hand corner is an elephant. See his trunk and tail.? What a priceless gift she provided me. Thanks Bria, for being so loving and giving me a valentine.
To Corby's defense, which truthfully I am still so hurt but he did make up for it on our Anniversary a few days later, he was planning to get to the store and just ran out of time. I say what day is Valentine's each year? Does the day change each year? Huh, you had time just waited too late my man. Move on, get past it, we all make mistakes. Do again next year and we will have a boxing match on our hands my dear sweet loving companion. Love you Corby!

Ada wanted in the picture. She is so silly the expression she can manuever. I love my tulips and they are blooming so beautifully. Kind of makes me have a little spring fever.
All in all Valentine's Day was memory making. I love my family.

Pushing 50

Happy Birthday Corby Earnest Hansen

Hey, how does it feel to be 41 pushing 50? Corby is fairly easy to please, most of the time. For his birthday he has a true love of chocolate covered marshmallow items(which I promptly forget each year, btw) Each year, his mother pulls through and will purchase these above said items to save my bacon, whew!
Well, this year would be different than the rest. I will remember the chocolate covered items, I will! While at the airport, doing my monthly mystery shops, I went to Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and saw the chocolate covered snowmen. I knew this was a must have so proceeded to purchase items and tuck them nicely away in my secret hiding spot(that I think everyone but Ada knows about) for the 9th of Feb to arrive. Malia wrapped the gifts and the excitement grew. I couldn't wait to see Corby's face when he opened the snowmen. We had a great day by beginning it with French Toast and sausage. Malia had a ballet meeting and the other girls basketball, so our birthday celebrations began around 1 other than breakfast. Sorry Corby but that is the life of a busy teenager, toddler family!

We had a great day just hanging out and enjoying each others company.  Bria couldn't stand it a minute longer so we let the birthday boy opened his gifts.

See the excitement in his eyes.......his favorite!

Then the worst possible thing that could have happened, happened. The best gift ever turned out to be a huge flop. The chocolate covered snowmen were not chocolate covered nor snowmen. They were snow puffs. I didn't read the box thoroughly, just trusted the employee and this fantastic gift ended up being glorified marshmallows, plain marshmallows without powder coating to help them melt more evenly in your hot cocoa. Are you kidding me? What a situation..............................but

because Corby is such a good sport we all had a good chuckle. I can't believe I spent over $6 on a bag of marshmallows. Seriously! Who spends that much money on marshmallows? They better be coated with gold for that price. Thank goodness Corby has a sense of humor;)Maybe next year Corby you will get your chocolate covered snowman!

I believe, as well as our budget believes, in being more practical than frivolous. So Corby's next gift was awesome for us but probably not for most.

 

what says true love more than windshield wipers peeps. Yes, that is what I purchased for my man for his 41st b-day. He loved it!!

Dark chocolate covered truffles with orange and raspberry....Delish!

We had his choice of lunch, White bread with white sauce with tuna fish in it. It was something his mother made for him growing up. It was different, but hey, I am just the one who follows through with orders on birthdays. After lunch we worked on college scholarship applications then went to dinner with our friends, the Tuckers. The Tuckers have two little boys ages 3 and 16 months. Sierra and Connor were our babysitters for the evening while we went to dinner. We then came home and sang happy birthday and let Corby blow out his candles. Bria was so good to put the candles on for us. Thanks Breeta for all your help.

Can he blow out all those candles?

And he did it....all his wishes will come true, Yippee!

Don't you love my photography skills, nothing screams happy birthday more than a bunch of pans hanging in your face. Oh well, it is the thought that counts, right!