Christmas Post :)

I thought about skipping the Christmas Post because there's been so much going on lately, but Patty, this is for you since I know you've been waiting for it!

Christmas Eve: Every Christmas Eve we make treats for Santa. This year Santa wanted fudge. He made it very clear he did not want cookies. He wanted fudge. So we made fudge for Santa, and put out the traditional carrots for his reindeer.

Then we took a few silly pictures because we were hopped up on sugar from all the treats we'd been munching on for the days and days leading up til Christmas :)

Here's Courtney in front of our Christmas tree just before going to bed so Santa could come.

Christmas Day: And come, he did!! Courtney was a bit spoiled this year. The ONLY thing Courtney asked Santa for was MOON DOUGH. So Santa brought her puppy moon dough, and barnyard moondough.

She was SOOOOO excited about her new moon dough!


Then we went to Menan for our Ricks Christmas. Grandpa pulled the kids around in Shane and Melina's monster sled behind the 4-wheeler. (Tucker got a new toy for Christmas. I swear this dog is more human than dog.)


After Menan we went to Jeremy's brother's house for Christmas dinner. Then off to see his dad. And then back to his mom's house. It's fun being able to see everyone, but I long for the Christmas Day where we can just stay home all day in our jammies and play with our new toys instead of having to stick to schedules and be on the road all day. All in all, it was a good day!!

Goodbye Facebook

For those of you wondering (or have even noticed, haha!) why I can't be found on facebook, it's because I deleted my account. For me, facebook just wasn't any fun anymore. It was mostly just reading about people whining and boo-hooing and bragging and complaining and looking for attention and it was causing drama and contention and it really just wasn't worth it.

I figured anyone I truly care about and truly want to know what's going on in their lives, we share through blogs and email. That's all I need. No more sifting through people's crap about how much better they are than everyone else, no more listening to them whine and complain about mundane things, no more reading about who has to go to the bathroom and who's making what for dinner. Honestly, I don't care!!

So if you're reading this, consider yourself someone I honestly care about! If you want to leave me a comment telling me what you're making for dinner, that's fine!! I welcome all your comments on my blog, just not everyone else's retarded facebook comments!!

December Funnies

(Courtney eating anything I made)
Courtney- "This is the best you ever made!"
(Eating anything I bought)
Courtney- "This is the best you ever bought!"
(One morning while eating cereal)
Courtney- "This is the best you ever poured milk on!"

(me sick)
Courtney- "Mommy, you don't look so good. Would you like to read me some stories to make you feel better?"

Courtney- "Mommy, you're not invited to be a beautiful bunny."
Me- "That was a weird sentence."
Courtney- "Yep. But you're invited to be a beautiful beach ball!"

(Courtney walks in on me just finishing up cleaning her room)
Courtney- "Well what a pleasant surprise!"

Courtney- "Mom, can you put juice in my sippy? Mom, can you put juice in my sippy? Mom can you put juice in my sippy?"
Me- "Can you hold your horses?"
Courtney- "Nope. My horsies say 'Giddy up Giddy up lets go!"

(I burped)
Courtney -(giving me an expectant look) "Mom... what do you say...?....."

Courtney- "Santa has 7 dwarfs to help him give presents!"

Me- "How come you're still in your jammies?"
Courtney- "Oh, well, because I want to stay in them for a couple of whiles."

(Me placing a pasta dinner in front of her. She inspects it carefully)
Courtney- "Mom, this isn't for people to eat. This is for dogs to eat."

(Me running down the stairs for something)
Jeremy- "Don't fall down the stairs!"
Courtney- *sigh* "My mommy always falls down the stairs."

Courtney- "Last night there was a mouse in my room. She was a girl mouse."
Me- "What was her name?"
Courtney- "Her name was 'Come At My House' and she had a boyfriend."
Me- "Oh? What was his name?"
Courtney- "His name was 'Come At His House'. They slept in my bed because they were running away from the monster."
Me- "Well...that was nice of you to share your bed with them.." (slightly disturbed!)

Me- "Courtney, you need to go get dressed."
Courtney- "I just rolled my eyes."
Me-" What?!"
Courtney- "Yep, cause I don't want to go get dressed!"

New Books!

Last Saturday, the Idaho Falls Public Library had a book sale. I got 35 books for $3.71! These books were 10 cents each, and they are AWESOME!!

The book on the bottom titled "47 Beavers on the Big Blue Sea" comes with a CD and they sing the book and do the voices and has a catchy fun tune! It's one of our favorites. (I save this one for towards the end when I've gone hoarse from reading and let the CD do the reading for me!)


I thought about putting them all in one box and wrapping the box up for Christmas, but then I thought she already has enough stuff to unwrap on Christmas morning. This'll be something fun for us to do until then!

Cinderelly Cinderelly

Jaz came over this morning while her mom was at the Dr.'s and she and Courtney had a ball! Literally... they dressed up in princess dress up dresses, went to the 'ball' where there was dancing to the ABC's song, and had waffles at the tea party table while watching Beauty and the Beast. And even though it's suppose to be for Christmas, I got out the VTech VSmile and let them play Cinderella. The new tote I made and the new games are wrapped up under the tree, but I decided to let her keep out the game system and 2 of the games it came with. She and Jazzy loved playing it!

Thanks For coming to Play Jazzy!

One Last Hu-Rah!

In with the snow, out with the swingset. Courtney wanted to get in one last play on the swing set before we took the swings off and put them in the garage for the winter so they wouldn't freeze and crack. Isn't she so darn cute all bundled up?

November Funnies

Courtney-"Twinkle twinkle little star....hey, do you ever wonder what I AM??"

(Jeremy driving)
Jeremy- "That's dumb."
Courtney- "Hey, you don't talk like that!"
Jeremy- "Or what?"
Courtney- "Or Mommy will drive home."
Jeremy- "And where will I be?"
Courtney- "You will get left right here all by yourself!"

(Me laying on the couch, Courtney covers me up with her favorite Duckies Blankie and hands me her favorite stuffed dog, Blackie)
Courtney- "I'm going to tell you a night-night story. Once upon a time there was a beautiful ballerina named Me. And we all went to the ball in beautiful ballerina dresses and I was prettier than all the other people. And then we played musical chairs. Night-night Mommy. Time for you to go to sleep." (kisses me on the forehead and leaves)

(Jeremy, Courtney, and I getting ready to leave for Wal Mart, Courtney wearing a princess dress-up dress.)
Jeremy- "You can't go wearing that."
Courtney- 'I'm THREE, and I'm WEARING THIS DRESS!" (and she surely did)

Me- "Why are you walking funny?"
Courtney- "My pull up is stuck in my butt!"

(Me about to lick the beater with brownie batter on it.)
Courtney- (frantic) "DON'T EAT THAT! THAT HAS RAW EGGS!!"

(Courtney running down the stairs wearing only a shirt.)
Courtney- "I went potty!"
(she throws her pants and panties in my face.)
Courtney- "Good catch!"

Grandma Hansen- (referring to Blackie) "Boys wear pants and girls wear dresses. Blackie is wearing a dress, so what does that make Blackie?"
Courtney- "A dog."

(Courtney put her Sleeping Beauty barbie dress on a boy Bratz doll)
Me-"Court, take that dress off of him! Only gay boys wear dresses."
(I leave the room and later come back when I hear this conversation between a girl barbie and boy doll in a dress)
boy voice- "I love you."
girl voice- "I don't love you."
boy voice- "Why not?"
girl voice- "Because you're gay!"

Courtney- "Mommy, you're one Hot Mama! I call you hot mama because Daddy says you're a hot mama!" (Jeremy has never used that phrase!) (continues calling me Hot Mama all night)

(Courtney eating chocolate treats)
Courtney- "You want some, Mommy?"
Me- "No thanks."
Courtney- "Yah, 'cause if you eat this, you won't be a hot mama."

(Courtney picks out 2 chocolate treats from snowman bowl later that day)
Courtney- "Here, we'll get two. One for me, and one for me...because you're on a diet!"

VSmile Tote

For Christmas this year Courtney is getting a Vtech VSmile and some games that go with it. The actual game system and 3 games were given to us about a year or so ago by our wonderful neighbors who's kids outgrew it (best neighbors ever!). So Courtney has been playing with it lately since she's finally old enough to understand and enjoy it. But everything was thrown into a wal mart sack: the game system, the cords that hook up to the tv if you want to play that way, and games just thrown about in the sack. That's not cute! So yesterday afternoon I sat down and made her this tote to keep everything together in a cute way!




The games given to us were Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, and Zayzoo School Pal. For Christmas, Santa is bringing her Tinkerbell and Dora the Explorer. So I had to make sure there were enough pockets and I made them deep enough that 2 games will fit in each pocket (should she get any more games in the future). Perfect! I think it turned out pretty cute : ) Not bad for just making it up as I go!

Thanksgiving Day

We started Thanksgiving Day at Oma and Grandpa's. They had a cute little table set up in the dining room for the little kids. Jazzy saved a spot for Courtney so they could sit together : )

The boys played...playstation, or Black ops, or Wii, or whatever it was they were playing...


While the ladies made crafts. Melina came up with a whole bunch of cute crafts, all we had to do was bring a thing or two and just show up. Thanks Melina!

Jazzy and Courtney painting their Christmas Ornaments....

While the boys are still staring intently at the t.v. screen...

All the grandkids (minus the two still in melina and katy's bellies) eating ice cream cones and watching the boys play...

And the women finishing up crafts.

After our Menan Thanksgiving, we went to Shelley for a "Jeremy's side" Thanksgiving. Courtney met her sort of-ish cousin, Carter, who is the same size as her, so they were glued at the hip playing together the entire time we were there. I thought about taking a picture, but my camera was buried at the bottom of my bag under all the Menan crafts!

We hope you all have a fabulous Thanksgiving as well!

12 Days of Thanksgiving

November 24, 12th Day of Thanksgiving

1. If you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more blessed than the million who will not survive this week.

2. If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation, you are ahead of 500 million people in this world.

3. If you can attend a church meeting without the fear of harassment, arrest, torture, or death, you are more blessed than 3 billion people in the world.

4. If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead, and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% of this world.

5. IF you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish somplace, you are among the top 8% of the world's wealthy.

6. If your parents are still alive and still married, you are very rare, even in the United States.

7. If you hold up your head with a smile on your face and are truly thankful, you are blessed because the majority can, but most do not.

8. If you can hold someone's hand, hug them, or even touch them on the shoulder, you are blessed because you can offer a healing touch.

9. If you can read this message, you are more blessed than over 2 billion people in the world who cannot read at all.

(author unknown)

12 Days of Thanksgiving

November 23, 11th Day of Thanksgiving

I am thankful for...the taxes I have to pay, because it means that I am employed.
I am thankful for... the clothes that fit a little too snug, because it means I have enough to eat.
I am thankful for... the partner who hogs the covers every night, because that means he/she is not out with someone else
I am thankful for...the mess to clean after a party, because it means I have been surrounded by family.
I am thankful for...a lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning, and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home.
I am thankful for...all the complaining I hear about the government, because it means we have freedom of speech.
I am thankful for...the parking spot I find at the far end of the lot, because it means I am capable of walking and that I have been blessed with transportation.
I am thankful for...my huge heating bill, because it means I am warm.
I am thankful for... the person near me in church who sings off key, because it means I can hear.
I am thankful for...the pile of laundry and ironing, because it means I have clothes to wear.
I am thankful for...the weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day, because it means I have been capable of working hard.
I am thankful for...my child who wakes me up in the middle of the night, and a husband who nudges me out of bed to tend to her, because it means I have a family.
I am thankful for...the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours, because it means I am alive.
(author unknown)

12 Days of Thanksgiving

November 22, 10th day of Thanksgiving: family get-togethers

I am fortunate enough to have my entire family close enough to be able to get together for the holidays and other occasions (minus Doug and Mallena and the girls since they decided he just had to be a doctor in Washington. Idaho needs doctors, too, Doug!). I'm blessed with a 'normal' family and while others may say otherwise, we think we are. well... Dad is questionable... but we're all one big happy family and I'm grateful we all like each other well enough to get together once in a while to spend time with each other : )

Frosty The SnowWoman

Because we got so much snow Saturday night, we told Courtney we could make a snowman. So we got all bundled up and started rolling the balls. We got the bottom 2 balls stacked when Jeremy started shaping them together to make them stick. I made a comment to Courtney about how Daddy was making a "Shapely" Snowman, which turned into a busty snowman...Which then turned into Jeremy getting creative and wanting to make a snow sculpture! (She doesn't have a head because he said he wasn't that creative and it would just fall off or look dumb) So view this as a piece of headless art! Like the David statue with no arms or head....


She wasn't officially "nekked" until I made the comment that he should put a bum crack in the back. I was totally kidding! ... he put it there...and then it froze when he tried taking it off.... so there it stays, i guess!


I told Jeremy to do this so I could take a picture of it. I know right now my side of the family is laughing, but i'm sure there are a few heads on Jeremy's side shaking in disapproval. But you know what, the fun of being an adult is that you can do whatever you want : )

12 Days Of Thanksgiving

November 21, 9th Day of Thanksgiving: Work

With the economy the way it is, and with so many people losing their jobs, I am very grateful for the work that Jeremy still has. It isn't as much as it used to be, and the pay is about half what it used to be, but it's still work. We are able to heat our home and feed our family and for that I am truly grateful. I heard a quote today that said something like, "You can always look to your right and see somebody who has it better than you...but you can always look to your left and see someone who is worse off than you." Something to think about.

12 Days of Thanksgiving

November 20th, 8th Day of Thanksgiving: Our Home

I am thankful that we have a place to call our own, our haven from the outside world.
Now if only we could get through the craziness of being up in the air if we're staying or moving! I'm not quite as thankful for the unknown : )

12 Days of Thanksgiving

November 19, 7th Day of Thanksgiving: incredible neighbors

We are blessed with the most amazing neighbors. Tonight one set of neighbors came over and brought us all this meat. He had just gotten a cow and had it butchered, and they wanted to share it with us. These are the same neighbors who, when last Christmas the transmission in our car broke and we couldn't afford a new one (nearly $100+) they gave us their "Christmas Jar" change, that paid for the entire thing. My heart is just full of love for this wonderful couple. Courtney and I always bring them home-baked goodies, but it doesn't seem nearly enough to express our gratitude to them. So today's post is for them : )

12 Days of Thanksgiving

November 18th, 6th Day of Thanksgiving: friendships

I am thankful for friendships that come in all shapes, sizes, and ages. I have 2 of the best friends on this planet who we all email each other at least once a day just telling each other what's going on in our lives. The three of us support each other, laugh and cry with each other, share struggles and hardships, and celebrate the joys and happiness. These two wonderful friends of mine have always been there for me and have helped me to be a better person. I love these two girls!!


I am also grateful for Courtney's little friends, her two best friends being Jazzy and Isabelle. (Which we don't see much of Isa these days, play date Megan!!) My heart just melts to see Courtney with these little girls and seeing how happy she is when she plays with them.

12 Days of Thanksgiving

November 17th, 5th Day of Thanksgiving: my mom
I somehow managed to luck out and get the GREATEST MOM EVER!! I am so grateful for my mom and everything she has ever done for me. I would not be who I am today without her. I remember having the greatest childhood with my 4 siblings and 2 fabulous happy parents. She would even go out in the backyard and play 'fruit basket' with us...which involved lots of running around! I don't know how she managed to have 5 kids and still have so much energy to play with all of us! She is truly an amazing loving woman and great example to me. There is nothing she wouldn't do for her family and I hope to be just as great a mother and person as she is.

12 Days of Thanksgiving

November 16, 4th Day of Thanksgiving: Jazzy
Jazlyn is Courtney's cousin and best friend. She is pretty much her other half. Courtney absolutely loves her, and asks every day if Jaz can come over to play. If we're headed out to Menan she has to make sure that Jaz is going to be there. I am so incredibly grateful to Melina for passing along Jazzy's clothes that she has outgrown. It has been an absolute life saver for us, as money is tight these days. Plus it makes it much easier to get Courtney dressed if i say, "But this was Jazzy's favorite shirt! She loves this shirt!" then Courtney will put in on in a heart beat!

12 Days of Thanksgiving

November 15, 3rd Day of Thanksgiving: The Temple
More important to me than anything else on this earth is the Temple and the many blessings our family receives from it. I'm thankful for our 'forever family', that we are sealed for eternity, and I'm grateful for the knowledge we have of this gospel and the opportunity we have to raise our family in it.

November 14, 2nd Day of Thanksgiving: The Best Husband Ever
I am so thankful to be married to the best husband ever. Even after almost 7 years of marriage, he still opens my doors for me, holds my hand, and kisses me goodnight. He always has our family's best interest at heart and works hard to provide for us so I'm able to stay home with Courtney. I couldn't ask for a better one!

November 13, 1st Day of Thanksgiving: My Little Artist

Courtney is the sweetest little artist I know. She is so thoughtful and giving, she's always wanting to make art to give to someone. We actually have her art work hanging on our neighbor's refrigerator right now : ) I am so grateful for my sweet little girl, she is the absolute world to me and I wouldn't trade her in for anything!

So Proud of Courtney!

I am so proud of my little girl. All summer I've been teaching her service by taking her with me to deliver goodies to our neighbors and such, and today we took it a step further.

I found a family on craigslist who has a 3 year old girl. This family literally has nothing. The mother owned one pair of knock-off croc shoes and only had one sweatshirt. No winter coats, no warm clothes, no toys for this little girl, they had NOTHING.

So I talked with Courtney and told her about this little girl who didn't have warm clothes for this winter and who didn't have any toys to play with and I asked Courtney what we could do to help her. My heart just MELTED when Courtney said she wanted to share her clothes and toys with her. So we gathered up a whole bunch of baby dolls and toys and some jeans and long sleeved shirts (clothes i had gotten at garage sales or such- none were from Jazzy- don't worry Melina, you'll get all those clothes back!!) I also gathered together some of my sweaters and a columbia coat I had posted on craigslist to sell and some shoes for this mother.

So Jeremy, Courtney, and I loaded up all this stuff in our trunk and set out to find this family's house. We drove past it 4 times because we were looking for a HOUSE. An actual house, my heart just broke when we saw the address spray painted on what looked like an old abandoned cinder-block shoe box. This could not possibly be the place, could it??

I knocked on the door and a lady cracked it open and stuck her head out. I asked if her name was Danielle and she said it was, so I asked her to come outside with me. Jeremy popped the trunk and we gave all this stuff to her. Just the look on her face was priceless and so heart warming.

After we left, I told Courtney how proud and happy Heavenly Father was that she helped this little girl and her mommy. And I am so proud of her, as well. At just 3 years old, she understands the concept of service and loving and giving. She was more than happy and willing to share her things with someone in need. It was quite the humbling experience.

All Mixed Up, but it's great!

If you're looking at my blog and are a little confused, just know it's okay! Yes, I have Christmas music, yes I have a Thanksgiving background, and yes I have Halloween pictures posted just below... but really, it's okay! I'm just in that "in between" stage! Just give me a few weeks and we'll be full blown Christmas! I can't wait! Until then, my blog shall sit, all mixed up : )

Happy Halloween!!

We started our Halloween out with our traditional jack-o-lantern carving on the 29th : )

Here's Jeremy's 3 Skulls

And Courtney's Skeleton and Cat (She's very talented.)

And my Haunted House

Courtney's costume was originally an angel costume...

But then about 20 minutes before our ward trunk-or-treat I decided to let her true colors show, so I dug up her costume from 2 years ago and borrowed the horns and tail.

After the trunk-or-treat we went to Five Guys for dinner.

The next day (oct. 30) we did the door-to-door trick or treating. Since Grandpa Hansen wasn't going to be home that night, he brought Courtney's treat to our house. Or should i say TREATS.

After our door-to-door trick or treating in our neighborhood, we went to Menan to do the trunk-or-treat with Jazzy at Oma's ward. Then we went back to Oma and Grandpa's house and had pizza and a movie. Courtney and Jaz were drawing on the chalk board and Courtney drew this dog. I love my little artist!

Two days of trick-or-treating brought many many goodies and left me with one tired exhausted little girl with lots of sugar buggies.

Today is Sunday, Oct. 31, the actual true day of Halloween. I celebrated by taking down all the halloween decorations and declaring the holiday finally over! Whew. We can't wait for Thanksgiving!

October Funnies

(Talking about the hyena dogs at the zoo)
Courtney- "Sometimes when the Melina dogs bark, it sounds like they're laughing!"

Courtney- "Mommy is pretty, Oma is pretty, Jazzy is pretty, Melina is pretty, but not Brigham. He's just a boy."

(Me nagging her to go potty before she has an accident)
Courtney- (exasperated, rolls eyes) "Jeez, Mom, you're a nightmare!"

(Courtney kept getting out of bed, being naughty, grabs a witch's broom)
Jeremy- "Courtney, get in bed or I'm going to beat you with whatever is in your hand!"
Courtney- (throws down the witch's broom) "I'm going upstairs to bed where it's safe!!"
(*side note, Jeremy was totally kidding!)

(driving home from being in the mountains)
Courtney- "Daddy, you're an antelope, and I'm a monkey."
Jeremy- "What is Mommy?"
Courtney- (whispers) "A hippopotamus."

(after hearing a bang in the kitchen)
Courtney- "What in tarnations was that??"
Me- (laughing) "What did you just say?"
Courtney- (dead serious) "I SAID, what in TARNATIONS was that?!"

(Courtney and I in backyard on lawn chair relaxing, Ruger slobbering and licking on us)
Courtney- "Boogie, get your slimey self away from me!"

(Me squeezing Courtney super tight)
Me- "I love you, I love you, I love you!"
Courtney- "Oh Mom, you just squeezed out a little pee!"

(eating dinner, Courtney spits out her first bite)
Courtney- "Mom, this is NOT the best you ever made!"

(Courtney in bathtub)
Courtney- "Look how I swim like a duck."
Me- "Wow, where did you learn that?"
Courtney- "Oh, well, my teacher just taught it to me."
Me- "Your teacher? From where?"
Courtney- "From school."
Me- (completely baffled) "When do you go to school?"
Courtney- "Tuesdays and Thursdays at 2:00"
Me- "Oh... and what's your teacher's name?"
Courtney- "Miss Emily"
Me- "Really... well how do you get there? I've never taken you to school before!"
Courtney- "Oh, well, I just get on my bike and ride really fast on the roads."
Me- "All by yourself?"
Courtney- "Boogie comes with me."
(continues to tell me all about everything the fictional "miss emily" has taught her.)

(In tub, examining feet)
Courtney- "Huh... I have grandma feet."

(still in tub, holding rubber ducky under water and squeezing, causing bubbles to rise, and laughing)
Me- "What was that?!"
Courtney- "Oh, It's just my ducky's toots!"

Courtney- "Someday I wish I could be big like you."
Me- "Someday you will be, and then you'll be a mommy."
Courtney- "Yah!"
Me- "And what will I be?"
Courtney- "A freakin' old hippopotamus!"

Baby It's Cold Outside!

I don't think Courtney understands that cold= unpleasantness, so after about 30 minutes of pushing her on her swing set with both of us bundled up in gloves and coats and hats, I had to pry her little hiney off the swing set and lure her in with the plan of play doh. I, in no way, describe myself as an artist, so don't judge my work too harshly!

Courtney's "Callipitter"

Then she wanted a birthday cake. Here she is blowing out her candles and making a wish.

I asked her what she wished for and she said a pink castle with a princess.

(don't judge the princess...she doesn't photograph well....)
Not too shabby, I say. And it sure beats losing my fingers from the frigid temperatures outside pushing her on the swings!