ahh...Christmas Memories

His face says it all...."He came!" Yes Santa found us & I hope he found all of you. What a Christmas it was....lots of hustle & bustle!
There was the visit with Santa at the firehouse.
This is as close to Santa as Seth wanted to get.
Of course we hosted the annual Christmas sing-a-long.

All who could play, & even those who couldn't, took a turn at the piano while Julie & Seth played the bells.
The lighting of the luminaries on Christmas Eve down main street, the Christmas breakfast & later Christmas dinner, "fajitas & pinatas by the ton."

We enjoyed it all. We love Christmas around here & we celebrate it to 'enth degree!

Hansen Family Christmas Letter 2010

"...maybe Christmas doesn't come from a store.

Maybe Christmas, perhaps,

means a little bit more." Dr. Suess

How many times can I do this? At least one more!

Annelie enjoys being a licensed driver and dates? There's always some boy at the door.

Niclaas has started basketball...it surely is his bliss.

Seth is learning so much from pre-school...Kindergarten teachers are you ready for this?

Eating up my time these days? The list is way too long. Between teaching pre-school, the Young Women, the kids & husband, I'm keeping up with my "heavenly throng".

Now it's Derron's turn, both ends of the candle he will burn...he works so hard for our family, we all support him happily! If it's a bow hunter you want to be, it's his archery shop you'll want to see!

We want to wish everyone a

Merry Christmas!

Our lives are blessed with your love & friendship.

The Hansen's

"These are a few of my favorite things"

I bet you're all singing the song in your head now...I know I am. Who doesn't love that song? Since the day before Thanksgiving I have been filling the house with all my favorite Christmas music. Julie Andrews' "My favorite Things" happens to be on one of my CD's...Annelie was listening & asked "Why is this song on a Christmas CD?" The conversation got me thinking of some of

my favorite things....

*early morning walks...(or as Mike calls them "death march at dawn")

*a GOOD diet coke with crushed ice

*decorating...for anything

*a great Suns game (which as of late are few & far between)

*mowing lawns

*scottish terriers

*listening to Elvis, when I'm alone & can sing out loud

*my husband's mood when it snows (he thinks it's romantic)

*doing home pre-school with Seth & Lacy (we made candy countdowns to Christmas)

*crafts with my kids, Annelie has a very untraditional tree in her room with bright krazy colors...this year we decided to make a "Whoville" village for it. It's been a lot of fun & I'm sure we will be adding to it as the years go by.
Now for some of the more obvious, but no less important of

my favorite things...

*my family & friends who make my life richer

*living in Joseph City...I love this town!

*my old house & the amazing people who build it (Nunna & Pumpa)

*working in my yard...it keeps me in shape

*making jewelry & anything with glitter!

*taking pictures

* new friends

I mentioned before that I love scottish terriers...years ago I had my little Curly Sue (some of you may remember the little black dog that probably chased your car as you drove past my house or past Hansen's Auto. You probably blurted out a few unmentionables as you swirved to miss her...luckily there was only one reported accident, that I know of. I'm sure I'll never forget coming home to find the speed limit sign in front of my house & my trash can flattened...it's OK Gerald...adot fixed it & I did appreciate the new trash can.) When she died I was so sad. I was certain I would never come across a dog like that again. Then over this past Thankgsgiving, my sister-in-law Kristi, we'll call her the "dog" match maker, told me about this little guy whose owners are moving to a place where they won't be able to take him. She showed me pictures of him & he looked so much like Curly Sue that I couldn't help my self...I said yes!

Let me introduce you to my new friend...Trance...he isn't a Scotty, he is a 4 year old miniature schnauzer...he is a cousin to the scottish terrier & looks just like them only longer legs. If you come by & he starts barking like a crazy dog...don't take it personal, he's still trying to get used to his new home & all the noises & new people.

Those of you who remember Curly will be pleased to know that...

HE DOES'N'T CHASE CARS!

Hope everyone is

Having a wonderful Holiday Season and enjoying all of...

YOUR FAVORITE THINGS.

The ghosts, goblins & ghouls were out & about this Halloween.... .....I caught these three ghosts hanging around my porch swing. They looked friendly enough so I took a few shots before they disappeared!

Then I headed off to the Halloween Carnival with the goods! I really had a lot of fun preparing for the carnival this year. I volunteered to help my son Niclaas's 8th grade class with their booth. The 8th graders were in charge of the cake walk, again....so after watching parents' faces last year after their child won a whole cake & wondering what the heck they were supposed to do with it the rest of the night...I decided to change it up this year and make caramel apples instead...much easier to carry around! The painted cans were for a "Ping Pong Ball Toss". I filled a jar full of candy so that the carnival goers could take a guess at just how many pieces were in that jar. Whoever guessed....you guessed it, they would win the whole thing!

When Niclaas saw the jar he was determined to win it. He tried to pry hints out of me but I was strong....I had one small moment of weakness when I confessed to him that...."it is an odd number".

Here he is writing down one of his MANY guesses with two of his Hombre's looking on. He used the majority of his tickets to enter his guesses. Like I said... he was determined!
And what would the carnival be without this balloon twisting witch with her feather boa? You'll notice her apprentice by her side learning all of her tricks.

It was really a fun night. Great costumes & lots of fun & games at the carnival....and I know your wondering "Who won the candy jar?" Well......

Nic did!

There were 601 pieces of candy & one of his guesses was 599! Yeah, He was excited!
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Today's post is brought to you by the letter "X".

Getting close to "Z"! It's sooo exciting! We learned the letter "X" this week, they both wanted me to know that it is their favorite letter. I had hidden the special treat under this big letter "X". They had to look through these "special" glasses to find it! Then we took a little field trip out to the back field to check out the neighbors goats.

These two are a laugh a minute!

When I learned that Seth's little pre-school had been cancelled I was so disappointed, but as it usually happens, our disappointments can lead to the sweetest blessings.

Homecomings & Highschool Reunions

I can remember when the grown-ups would say..."I've been graduated longer than you've been in school!" I always thought those people were so old! So...now that It's been 20 years since I graduated highschool, does that make me old? I certainly don't feel old. This picture was taken during our reunion... obviously. There were over a hundred students in my class and... obviously they weren't all able to make the festivities..

Here we are... well some of us.

...and here I am with my handsome date... who is a great sport to hang out with me & my old friends & to hit the dance floor with me!
Here is my daughter & her date Dallin...they were off to hit the dance floor too!

Homecoming week for JCHS happened to be the week before my reunion...so we were busy with highschool activities of yesteryear & the present!

Here are some shots taken mostly from the parade. Homecoming is such a busy week full of activities like powder puff football, macho volleyball, class games & pep rallies of course. A new dress-up day was added this year. Along with the usual blue & gold day there was my favorite... 80's day, 70's day, nerd day & the new "fake injury" day! The kids had alot of fun with that one.Here are some junior classmen waiting for their float to arrive.

The 8th grade float was a nod to the Homecoming Royalty from JCHS history.

Nic is in his 80's get-up portraying his father who was Homecoming King 1989.

My truck carried the Junior Class Royalty. If you look close you'll see Annelie & her date!

I've decided that homecomings & reunions are all about making memories & then revisiting them years later. Somewhere in those memories of embarassing moments and the glory days I learned a lot of lessons. In highschool we can do some pretty stupid stuff. We can hurt feelings & not even know it. We can get our feelings hurt & never let it go. We can create friendships that will last forever & others that fade as soon as we throw our caps in the air. No one is more grateful than me that there is life after highschool, but I am grateful for highschool & my memories there and whenever I get to see my old friends...I will remember us young, full of energy with the whole world waiting for what we had to offer it.

Mary Mary quite contrary...how does your garden grow?

I love to watch things grow, although I admit watching your children grow is sometimes hard. I do miss so many things. I will never regret having been there for it ALL! What a blessing it has been for me to never miss a minute. This week I was there to watch my now 16 year old daughter get her driver's license & then of course I had to take a picture of her first drive to school the next morning. I always take pictures of "the first" of everything. (Nic hates this about me...poor kid) I'm so happy for her & this new independence that she has achieved. I can't help but remember the first time she felt that new independence. Annelie never crawled, she went straight to walking. I should have known then that she would always march or in her case, skip, hop & jump, to the beat of her own drum. Her future is so bright & I'm excited for her.

Speaking of things growing...I have a lot growing around here! Everything from pumpkins & sunflowers to little minds. I've been home pre-schooling Seth & my niece Lacy. Alicia & I have partnered to prepare these bright & clever little minds for kindergarten. It's been a lot of fun & I'm really enjoying it.

Future Prom Committee Chairman.

Lacy loves to make everything pretty

Fortunately for Lacy we haven't enforced any kind of dress code...yet.
Future class clown.

This is Seth's alter ego he has created...he calls him "Sheeby".
We have had to establish a rule...
No "Sheeby" at pre-school!

The tomatoes are ripening & these two pumpkins planted themselves. I was surprised to see them growing...must have been seeds left from last year. I love surprises like that!

biggest swing in arizona

Just wanted to post this video of my crazy little brothers. Like many others who grew up here, these two perfected small town fun. With the budget to bring to life all the ideas they dreamed up when they were kids, they come home as often as they can to play. It's not unusual for one of them to end up in the emergency room. They set out this weekend to create some more memories. After tearing up the terrain & Cory's leg on their dirt bikes, it was off to the Chevlon Canyon to try out this stunt! Crazy boys...it's a good thing they have very patient wives & good insurance!

I love this time of year... the harvest. There's just something so satisfying about planting a seed & watching it grow into something that you can then pick & make a meal out of. I feel a little like the "Little Red Hen".

I also love the monsoon weather. I love watching the clouds roll in in the late afternoon. It reminds me of being a kid & putting a jar out in the rain to collect rain water. Little did I know I would someday live in the house where the previous owner took collecting rain water to a whole new level, storing it in jars in the basement & serving it on special occasions. Early in my relationship with Derron, Nunna invited him over for Sunday dinner & told him to bring me with him. As we crossed the street to her house he turned to me and said, "If the water in your glass is kind of brown don't worry, it's just rain water". I thought he was kidding until I sat down to eat & sure enough my water had a slight brown look to it. Ahh memories...that is a fond one, it makes me smile when I think about it, for alot of reasons.

Anyway...It is also the time of year that parents look forward to & kids don't...back to school! It's just me & Seth again. He has one more year with me at home. I've taken on a new venture...home pre-school. I am enjoying it. He's a bright little boy & anxious to learn. When the teenagers come home they ask what he's learned & he's so proud to get out his worksheets & show them off. Time is really flying by. The 16 year old will gone before I know it. It has been such a blessing for me to be home with my kids & watch them grow & really be a part of there little lives...every minute of it. I wouldn't trade it for anything...even those days when they make me krazy.

This will be a really precious year with Seth & hopefully we can make some fun memories. Here is a good start. I was hanging out laundry & the ditch was running full.

Lucy (the dog) loves to play in the water & Seth decided to join her, so I had to leave the laundry for a minute & go grab the camera.Inside the house Seth is my little helper. Monday is cleaning day for me
& Seth loves to push the buttons on the washing machine & he also loves to scrub the toilet with the scrubber. (I'm sure that won't last)

These laundry pictures show what I call

"Divide & Conquer"!

I divide & conquer the laundry & usually by the days end Seth has divided & conquered me!

Update!

Cat's Creations has FINALLY been updated...click on over.

HANSENPALOOZA!

If you plan it...they will come...and come they did!

First on the list of activities was for everyone to meet at

"Pumpa's Porch Swing to pay off your pawn",

( no navajo rugs please). I think he might be a Hansen...what do you think?

Next on the agenda was crafts in "Nunna's backyard", for the women folk of course. The men folk headed down to Clarence's pond for fishing & fun! I'm a woman, so I was making crafts.
I think Nunna would be proud.
Then it was on to lunch & a chance to cool off at Tanner Park.

Dr. Miller showed us how it was done. ...any guesses? C'mon this one is easy! His mother wears a gold skirt!

After dinner all the little kiddies swung the

Original Pinata Stick

to bust out some treats! And boy did the feathers fly!

Uncle Floyd decided to change it up a notch & filled his pinata with feathers!

They were everywhere!

To close the whole thing down, in true Joe City style, we headed to the badlands for some "redneck fireworks".

It was a great day...

Thanks to Elizabeth & her family for all their hard

work & planning, you all did a great job!