Red Dirt Hansens

Road Trip!

2011-07-18T16:36:00.000-07:00

Robert and I just got back from an awesome journey of the Pacific Northwest! Actually, we have been back for about a week and a half, it just took me forever to get this all put together. Here is a Day-by-Day:

Day 1: Idaho After spending Thursday night with Kristl and her family in Salt Lake City, we took off Friday morning, July 1st for Idaho. We visited Shoshone Falls, near Kimberly.

They call it the "Niagra of the West", but I beg to differ. I have been to Niagra Falls. It was pretty big, though. In April each year, they start diverting water away for crops, so it was only running at about 2/3 capacity. It was fun to see.

We visited the Twin Falls Temple.

I put the camera in the grass and set the timer so we could both be in the picture.

Then on to the Boise Temple.

I love how beautiful our temples are and how distinctively different.

Most of our first day was spent traveling, so after a long day of driving and dinner in Pendleton, Oregon, we crashed for the night in Hermiston, Oregon.

Day 2: Oregon On our way to visit the waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge, we stopped at a visitor center, where they had a raptor exhibit.

This is Jack, a raven. He can speak a few words, but he can't say "Nevermore". Dang!

This is Ferguson, a beautiful, majestic Bald Eagle. He was rescued after being hit by a car. He will never fly again, but he is being well cared for. It was great to be able to get close to this symbol of our great nation.

The drive up the Columbia River Gorge was so gorgeous! This is Latourell Falls, one of the dozens of large waterfalls in the gorge.

The view of Crown Pointe from the Vista House.

Mount Hood

This is what happens when you ask someone to take your picture. We asked them to be sure and get the waterfall in. Well, we meant the whole waterfall. Anyway, this is Multnomah Falls, probably the most popular one. And certainly the highest, at over 600 ft. total.

Okay, here is the whole thing. Use your imagination and picture us in front of it.

This is the view from the very top of the falls, looking down. Yep, I climbed the entire 1 1/4 mile trail, straight up.

Robert, gazing at the Portland Temple. This one was really hard to photograph! Too many trees.

Note: While at Multnomah Falls, Robert noticed that a young woman had on a BYU t-shirt, and Robert being the social guy that he is, struck up a conversation. Turns out she had been to BYU Idaho and was there visiting the Falls with her friend's family. We told them that we wanted to go to church the next morning and they told us about a really old chapel in Portland. So, we got our motel near that chapel so that we could just get up in the morning and go to church.

Day 3: Oregon and Washington Sunday morning we got up and went to church, before heading out for Mt. Rainier, Washington.

This chapel is almost 100 years old. It is huge! It used to be a mission home. It is so pretty inside with lots of intricate woodwork.

We got talking to the bishop before Sacrament Meeting, and when we told him we were from St. George, he laughed. He said that their new mission president was from St. George. We didn't recognize the name though.

For some reason, you just cannot do Mt. Rainier justice with a camera. It is massive! We drove up to the lodge and bought some fun gifts and wandered around in the snow taking pictures.

Now that's some serious snow! That is a wall of snow behind Robert. I couldn't believe that is was 107 degrees back home on the same day.

They get over 680 inches of snow a year.

More driving and we spent Sunday night in Tacoma.

Day 4: Washington We visited the Port Defiance Zoo in Tacoma. It's a pretty small zoo, but it was really fun!

Cool Tiger! I like how you can get within 3 feet of one of these big cats and not get eaten alive.

For the 4th of July, they painted these big barrels with colored cream cheese. The polar bears love cream cheese, and they love playing with the barrels. It was fun to watch them wrestle them in the water.

The day was warm, but the weather was great. We shared some Dippin' Dots and then went to the park nearby and had a picnic and a short nap in the shade.

The Seattle Temple.

We rode to the top of the Space Needle!!

The view of downtown Seattle from the Space Needle. After buying t-shirts for the grandkids, we drove to Bellingham, Washington to spend the night. We got to watch the fireworks in the harbor. It was chilly, so we wrapped ourselves in quilts and sat in our camp chairs. I don't think I have ever in my life been chilly on the 4th of July!

Day 5: Canada We crossed into Canada and boarded the ferry at Tsawassen. We were the first car on the ferry.

That's our car on the top left at the front.

The ferry was huge! It had a gift shop, a lounge and a cafeteria where we had lunch.

First on, first off, when we landed at Duke Point on Vancouver Island.

Off to Butchart Gardens, near Victoria.

The gardens are awesome. I think you could spend all day here and not see all of them. There was a little gelato stand, so of course we had to try it out. Yummy!!

This is a Monkey Puzzle tree. We saw a few of these scattered around Victoria. I wanted to bring one home. Robert said no.

Here is a close-up.

Two things Robert has wanted me to see for years (since he visited Victoria when he was there with the National Guard). The Empress Hotel.....

....and the parliament building. We couldn't go inside because they closed it just 10 minutes before we got there.

Day 6: Back to the states. We caught the ferry back to Port Angeles, Washington. We made the mistake of not getting reservations, so we were put on stand-by with about a dozen other cars. As we inched up near the entrance, it did not look like we were going to make it (We would have had to wait another 5 hours to catch the next ferry). But they squeezed us on, literally! We were the last car on, and I had to get out before Robert drove on. No room to open the passenger door!

SQUISH!!!

That's us in the middle. Cars were stuffed in every which way. Walking between them to get to the stairs was nearly impossible. This was a much smaller ferry than the one we took the day before.

Mostly driving on this day to get from Port Angeles to Portland. We enjoyed a delicious Mexican dinner at Acapulco's and spent the night in Portland.

Day 7: California

Crater Lake was not on our list of things to do, but we were so glad we included it. It was a long, but worthwhile drive. It is the most beautiful lake I have ever seen, so pristine and deep blue. You could take a thousand pictures, but you would never capture its beauty.

Crater Lake is in the top of a volcano. There are several islands in it, but only two that are visible.This is the largest, Wizard Island. And it isn't very big. In the summer time, they take people out in a small boat to fish from the island. Individuals cannot boat on the lake. Because the road was still snow-packed, we could only drive about half way around. We did go to the lodge and have a chili lunch.

Driving down the California coast, we stopped to get a picture on the beach.

We had to get a picture of Robert with Paul Bunyan!

Probably my favorite part of the whole trip was seeing the giant redwoods. Robert is standing next to the bottom side of an uprooted redwood tree. This gives you an idea of just how big these things get.

The name of this giant is simply 'Big Tree'. 'Big' is too small a word.....this tree stands 304 feet tall, is 21.6 feet thick and is over 1500 years old.

A little farther down the coast we came upon the 'One-Log House'. It was made in 1946 from a 2100 year old redwood that was hollowed out. The wood that was removed from inside was enough to build an entire 5 bedroom house! It has all the comforts of home. Well almost, I did notice that there was no bathroom.

Robert driving through the Chandelier Tree.

There are actually 2 of these huge trees you can drive through......for a price. Pretty cool!

This is about as close as we got to the city of Clearlake, Ca. We took this picture for Kylen because he served part of his mission here.

We spent our last couple of days making our way home. We bought fresh fruit and vegetables from a fruit stand in California, spent Friday night in Reno, Nevada, (don't go there) and then drove to Salt Lake City to spend Saturday night with the kids before driving home on Sunday. All in all, we logged over 4100 miles on our trusty Pilot. And we had a blast!! We are already planning our next trip.

Photo Op!

2011-07-14T14:14:00.001-07:00

Earlier this year, Kristl had taken her children to Fotofly in Salt Lake to have their pictures done. They came out so well, I was determined to get all the grandchildren together and have them photographed. So on June 25, we all met at Fotofly. Here are the results:

Hmmm..... Not too bad for a first try, but........Where's Carley?

Now you're just fooling around!

And, we have a winner!

Except for Kylen's girls, all of the children had recently had separate portraits taken, so I talked the photographer into doing just Kathryn and Carley. Unfortunately, Carley did not want to cooperate. I just love this unhappy picture of her.

Kathryn was AWESOME!!

And how sweet is this?? Thanks everyone!

Cookie Monster

2011-03-11T21:30:00.001-08:00

Our sweet baby Kolton has discovered that those things at the ends of his arms are his hands and that he can actually control them if he tries reeeeallllly hard. He has just begun to reach for things. The other night Kaley was enjoying a delicious sugar cookie when I caught him trying to get it for himself. It was so cute. Get the determined look in his eyes!

In a Jam!!

2011-03-11T21:17:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, Robert and I decided to make peach-raspberry jam. We thought we should use up some of the tons of peaches in our freezer. We started at about 10 am and finished at 8 that night. We ended up with 85 jars!! Mostly pints. It will be interesting to see how long it lasts, especially since my children seem to make off with it every chance they get.

Robert's Birthday Trip

2011-03-10T23:42:00.000-08:00

On Feb. 12, Robert turned 60! We decided to celebrate by taking a trip to somewhere we had not been before. He had always wanted to ride the Durango-Silverton train, so I gave him tickets for his birthday. We started out on Thurs., Feb. 10 in the morning and drove to the Four Corners Monument Navajo Nation State Park. It was freezing and the wind was blowing, but at least the sun was shining. We met the LDS Missionaries there quite by accident, and one of them just happened to be from Salt Lake City. He was so excited when we told him where we were from!

Here is a picture of Robert standing in 4 states at once. I'll bet NOBODY has a picture like this!

We drove on to Durango where we had reservations at the 120 year old Strater Hotel. It was so beautiful inside. 93 rooms, 10 floors, and one tiny elevator. But this hotel has been beautifully restored to its original decor. We loved staying there.

Friday morning we got up, had breakfast at the hotel and then walked a couple of blocks to the train station. While we were sitting in the station waiting to board, a class of about 30 noisy little first graders walked in. Fortunately, they had a car of their own. I daresay our car was much quieter. We rode the train about 15 miles up to Cascade Canyon where it was all snowy and cold. The top speed of this narrow guage rail train is about 15 mph and going uphill, I think even I could out-distance it. But this was such a fun ride. We had a car attendant that was very informative and entertaining and friendly. She was great. And, we got hot chocolate and pastries on the way.

Robert, inside the train car.

The canyon gets pretty narrow in places. This picture shows how close the train gets to the canyon wall.

Comin' around the mountain.

The scenery was sooooo beautiful! We could walk through the cars, into other cars. The one in front of ours was an open car. We would go out and get photos and then come back into our car where it was warm.

Look at that happy, handsome face!

Another shot of the close canyon wall. Our attendant told us that there are a couple of places where the train gets within 1 inch of the rocks. You kind of need to keep your hands inside the car.

I LOVE SILVERTON!

Oh my gosh, I fell in love with this tiny, quirky town! Can you see it neslted there at the base of the 14,000 foot mountains?? Silverton is home to about 1500 people in the summer time and about 500 in the winter. We spent Friday night at the Teller House Hotel. Another 100+ yr. old building. The people we met in Silverton were...... let's just say colorful. The 22 yr. old guy that served us our dinner was afraid of Mormons, that was kind of funny. I think he thought we might steal him away and force him into worship. He was reading a Glen Beck book, but I don't think he knew that Beck is a Mormon.

Ya, interesting folks, but look at these views!

Saturday, we drove to Mesa Verde National Park to see the ancient cliff dwellings of the Anasazi and Pueblo Indians.

Now, this was something Robert was pretty excited about, but I really didn't care if we saw them or not. But, it was his birthday, so I decided we would do whatever he wanted to do. This turned out to be one of the most awesome things I have ever seen! These dwellings are incredible. I didn't want to leave. Most of the dwellings were closed because it was winter, but we got some great pictures. And, we got to walk right to one of them with a guide.

After a yummy dinner at Lotsa Pasta, we spent Sat. night in Cortez and then on Sunday, made our way slowly home by way of Shiprock, AZ. It's just a big rock. Not really worthy of a picture, but here you go.

Anyway, it was a fantastic trip. We had so much fun! We would recommend this trip to everyone.

A Perfect '10'

2010-12-28T22:29:00.000-08:00

Our tenth grandchild, Gabriella Lea Nelson made her appearance tonight at 10:48 pm. She weighs 7 lbs. 7 oz. and is 19 inches long. She is going to be called 'Ellie'. I think she looks like Abby, but her dad thinks she looks like Matt. And Kristl thinks she just has a look of her own. Anyway, she is beautiful! I cannot wait to hold her tomorrow. And I am just itching to go upstairs and wake up her brother and sister! But, I don't think I will, it is almost midnight and I would like to get some sleep tonight. More pictures to come.

Celebrating 36!!

2010-11-08T17:44:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was our 36th wedding anniversary. We had a wonderful weekend celebrating! Saturday morning, we took off for Cane Beds. We rode the 4 wheeler from there to Mount Carmel, about 42 miles round trip. The weather was beautiful and the leaves looked like they were on fire.

We had such a fun ride!!

We even explored a haunted cave! Okay, it was just a water tunnel under the highway, but how interesting does that sound??

That night we had a delicious dinner at Wild Willie's Grill in Springdale. We spent the night at the Cliff Rose Lodge, thanks to a former classmate and friend of Robert's. Thanks Dale, your place is fabulous! We will tell everyone to go there.

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-01T20:55:00.000-07:00

Is there anyone else out there that is as glad it's over, as I am? We took Logan to church yesterday and I thought we had mistakenly taken a baby kangaroo. He was everywhere! And he could not shut up for more than 3 or 4 seconds. Robert was about to take him home several times, but I kept thinking, "If we can just make it through Sacrament Meeting, then we can let the Primary deal with him." I did give them fair warning though. Anyway, you cannot beat these fun pictures.My friend Kristen rescued me and made these adorable costumes for my little grandsons. This is about the cutest elephant I have ever seen! And where would an elephant be without a..........

PEANUT!

This is our little Kolton. Kristen made up this pattern herself. Oh, and she had so much fun making these two costumes, she said that if anyone else would like, she would make them again. Hahaha! No way! Just kidding!

After our Trunk or Treat, we headed on over to Kelton and Amber's neighborhood for more candy.

Amber made both of her kids' costumes. This is Natalie and she is "Princess Peach" from Mario Kart. I wish I had gotten a better picture of her, she was sooooo cute!

Now, Drake, well it's obvious what he is, but this little boy marches to the beat of his own drum. Get the hat, lanyard and rubber fireman boots. He is such a corker!

And here is Dr. Kelton Hansen. Turn your head and cough?????

So, Happy Halloween everyone!!! We hope you all had as much fun as we did. And now, let's all start getting ready for Christmas. WooHoo!

NICU

2010-10-04T15:02:00.000-07:00

Well this is not what we were expecting. Saturday morning, Kolton was put under bili lights for a high bilirubin. Very soon after, he was moved to the NICU because they discovered that he had an unknown infection. Kaley came home yesterday afternoon without her little son. Here are some pictures.

Binary Baby 10 01 10 11 11

2010-10-02T12:20:00.000-07:00

He's here!! Kolton Kody Buhler made his appearance on Friday, Oct. 1, 2010 at 11:11 am. Weighing in at 8 lbs. 2 oz., he is 21 1/4 inches long. He is so cute! Of course he gets his looks from his mom's side of the family. Kaley had a pretty hard time bringing him into this world. They were considering doing a C-section but she was such a trooper. And after 16 hours of labor and 2 1/2 hours pushing, he finally arrived. We are so happy to have him, but we are sad that he can't come home today. He is in the nursery under the bili lights. So, hopefully, tomorrow. Isn't he adorable!?!?!

Eye of the Needle

2009-08-20T20:37:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, Robert and some of his hiking buddies did the ultimate hike. This one is called "Eye of the Needle" and he says it was quite a challenge, but the beautiful scenery was worth it.

Lots of beautiful waterfalls.

Wet suits not required.......if you want to freeze, that is.

The "Eye" is a hole you have to rappel through.

You can see it just to the right of the log.

Robert successfully squirmed through!

More logjams and waterfalls.

Nature's awesome art!

Another great picture of the "Eye".

Robert, is that you???

Happy 58th Birthday Robert!

2009-07-16T21:28:00.001-07:00

February 12 was Robert's 58th birthday. We celebrated at his mother's since she was ill and in bed. The day before, I told her that I had a secret I needed her to help me with. She was pretty good at keeping the secret from him. The next day, I brought balloons and a cake over before Robert got there.

He acted surprised, even though I am pretty sure he knew what was going on.

What a good sport.

I got him a singing card. His mom got a kick out of that.

As her gift to him, I got 58 shiny new pennies and put them in a little container and tied it with a bow. She always liked to give coins to her kids and grandkids for their birthdays.

She was pretty tickled.

Because of the oxygen, we could not light the candles, so I cut flames out of some orange ribbon and taped them to the candles.

Couldn't help including this picture of Kody.

My baby is all grown up!

It's hard to say goodbye....

2009-07-16T21:10:00.001-07:00

Grandma Rose had been ill for some time, but in February, we noticed that she was sliding fast. We took her to the doctor (against her will) because we just could not watch her suffer any longer. She ended up in the hospital that very day (again, against her will). She was in advanced liver failure. She pleaded with us to take her home so that she could pass away in her own surroundings. We did. Rose Madora Peterson Hansen, born June 1, 1923, passed peacefully into the next life on March 4, 2009. It is hard to explain what a blessing it was to stay with her and care for her over the next few weeks. It was our chance to give back some of the wonderful service she has always shown everyone else in her lifetime. Thank you, Rose, for being such a wonderful, gentle mother-in-law and for sharing your family with me. I think about you often and miss you so much. I know that you are happy being with Grandpa Clare again. And I know you watch over your family. I know that we will all be together again someday. But for now, it's not goodbye, just "see you later".

Some last pictures with Robert's sweet mom.

She sure was proud of her kids!

I hope they call me on a mission....

2009-07-16T20:09:00.000-07:00

Kaley's brother-in-law Morgen was called to serve in the Texas-San Antonio Spanish speaking mission. Morgen lost both parents when he was a little boy, and he wanted to leave for his mission from St. George. He had been living with an aunt in Oregon until he graduated from high school. He had been attending our ward. When it was time to go to the temple, we just thought we would accompany him to the St. George Temple, but we soon found out was closed for 2 weeks. By the time it would reopen, he would have to be in the MTC. So we loaded up and went to the Las Vegas Temple.

Former Bishop Daniels and Current Bishop Cooper went with us.

Do we look like proud parents?

Morgen wanted this special night picture of the temple.

Now, he has been in San Antonio for about 2 months.

He is an awesome missionary!

Grandkid Photo Shoot

2009-07-16T19:52:00.000-07:00

We had all the grandkids together on Saturday, February 7th, except Logan of course. We did not get him until March. So, we decided (Robert decided) to do a photo shoot of them. It was hilarious trying to get all of them to look up and smile. We should have gotten a video of the adults, it would have been pretty entertaining. We never did get a smile out of Kathryn, but when the camera was finally turned off, she was full of them. What a bunch of sillies!

Dumb girl, leggo my ear!!

Kathryn has finally had enough.

Prima Ballerina

2009-07-16T17:55:00.000-07:00

I missed Abby's dance recital in May, but I was able to go to one of her dance lessons earlier. She was by far the littlest ballerina, but she was so fun to watch!

The teacher put stickers on the girls' right hands

so that they would know which one to use.

Just waiting to begin.

Yes Abby, we are watching.

...and point, and...

Baby, take a bow!

Little Fish

2009-03-12T21:00:00.001-07:00

When I was in Salt Lake City in January, I got to go to Abby's swm lessons.

This kid loves the water!

I kind of think she likes her teacher too.

Cabin Fever

2009-01-09T11:05:00.001-08:00

This year (Oh, I guess I should say last year), I decided to do something different for Christmas. It seemed that none of our kids had anything in particular that they wanted, so, instead of on presents, I spent the money on a cabin rental in the mountains. I searched for weeks trying to find something big enough for our ever-growing family, and also something I could afford. I first looked at cabins in Brianhead. They were awfully pricey, so I tried near Zion National Park. I found a couple of beautiful cabins that were just newly finished and just the right size. Robert and I went up to look at one and I instantly fell in love. So, on the 23rd of December, we went up, taking two vehicles loaded to the top with food and toys and anything else we might need. Robert even bought a beautiful Christmas tree just for the cabin. The kids and their kids began arriving that night and pretty soon the house was filled with yummy smells and happy kid noises. It was amazing. There was about 8 inches of snow on the ground when we arrived, but it snowed for the next 2 days straight and we ended up with over 2 feet. It was so fun to sit in front of a warm fire and watch the beautiful snow outside. On Christmas Day we even went outside and sat in the jacuzzi during a snowstorm. It was so fun, and I think Abby loved it. It is a funny feeling sitting in 100 degree water and having snow fall on your head. All of the kids had a great time riding the 4-wheeler. Robert even pulled the kids on sleds and tubes with the 4-wheeler. We had a big turkey dinner on Christmas Day and the next night Kelton smoked a ham for us, it was so good! Friday, we drove down into Zion National Park and got some great pictures, I don't ever remember being in the park when there was so much snow. On Saturday, the rest of our kids arrived and even the Jacks came up for the night. Robert treated everyone to buffalo burgers at the Buffalo Grill and we headed back to the cabin for our last night. We played some cards and then fell exhausted into bed. We came home on Sunday after cleaning up. All in all, I would say it was a great success. I hope we can do it again.

Christmas Cookies for Santa

2009-01-05T21:00:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve, Kristl started rolling out the dough to make sugar cookies for Santa Claus. Of course, Abby had to help. She was just chattering away with her mom when after a few minutes she got kind of quiet. I looked over at her and she was rubbing flour all over her face. She wasn't laughing or acting silly, she just had this look on her face of complete bliss as she smoothed the soft flour on it. I tried to get the video camera in time to catch her, but I missed the funniest part. We we all laughing so hard it was difficult not to let her see us. So, here is the video I got: (Turn the music off on the right by clicking on the little pause button. Then you will be able to hear the video.)

At the beginning you will hear Kristl tell Abby to "sneeze toward daddy". She had just gotten some flour up her nose and had sneezed all over the dough.

Brrrr Baby...It's Cold Outside!!!

2009-01-03T14:56:00.000-08:00

We had enough snow
in the back yard...

...for Natalie and Drake....

...to do some serious sledding (okay, serious if you're 3).

Snow in St. George??

2009-01-02T21:14:00.000-08:00

Yep, it snowed in St. George a couple of weeks ago. And not just a few flurries, this was the real thing. We got about 4 inches over night, it was beautiful. School was canceled the next day, December 17. Now, for those of you who live with this every day during the winter, you are probably wondering why school was closed. Well, a lot of students come in from outlying areas and because the roads had not been cleared, the busses could not bring them in. This only happens about every 10 years down here, so we are just not prepared.

Natalie, Meet Santa

2009-01-02T14:22:00.000-08:00

On December 6, we had our church Christmas breakfast. Near the end, Santa showed up as usual. But, Natalie was just not to sure about the jolly old man. We could not get any pictures of Drake because he was not going to take any chances and had a death grip on the underside of his dad's arm as Kelton tried to sit him on Santa's lap. So, this was the only picture we got.

Just give me some time....

2008-12-01T19:50:00.001-08:00

Okay, I know that things are out of whack here and I am tired of fooling with it. So I will try to get some lessons on how blogger works and then I can come back and fix it. I have looked at all of Kristl's, Adrienne's, and Amber's blogs and they are amazing. I thought something was better than nothing at this point. But I promise I will work on it to make it much cuter.

It's About Time!! A NEW POST!!

2008-11-30T05:56:00.000-08:00

Ya, I am a complete slacker! I have great intentions, but as you can see, I just don't get it done. Well, it is Sunday morning, 6 am. , Kody has just left for work and I cannot go back to sleep. So this seemed like a good idea. Hmmmm, now where to start. Since I last posted, several things have happened. Ya, we got Raven, and then we gave her away. She was crazy! She was so attention-starved, she would literally attack whoever came out the back door, and by the end of summer she had grown to about 5 times her original size and weight. So after much careful consideration and with the help of Amber, (it was her children, mostly, who were getting attacked), she has a new home in Kanarraville with a couple of very nice gentlemen. I miss her, but, not much. I still really miss Jax. Last night I told Robert, "I need a pet". He said, "Okay, go get one." We just don't have much luck with dogs, we had Jax the longest, 4 years. So I think I might just put that on hold for a while.

Mighty Matt!!

July 3rd brought us our second grandson, Matt. After having a very tiny, petite, and still petite at 2 1/2, Abby, Kris and Rich have a big, chubby-cheeked son. He has the sweetest bedroom eyes and the prettiest smile you've ever seen.

Number 6?

In September, Kaley got a call from Dallas, Texas that her nephew, Sage might be available for adoption, and was she interested? She and Berni were very interested and so started the process. It has seemed like a long haul, but hopefully they are nearing the end. We made a trip down in October to meet with Social Services and we got to spend 3 days with Sage and his wonderful foster family. Everything has gone very smoothly, the home study and the background check are finished and now they are just waiting for the word. We are hoping they will get him before Christmas, but that might be a miracle. But hey, isn't Christmas the time for miracles?? This will give us 3 grandsons and 3 granddaughters.

Sage will be two on December 21. He is so sweet and so smart. He has some developmental delays and is socially way behind, but I think he will catch up quickly with lots of love and attention. His foster mother, Heather is amazing with him and she keeps Kaley up to date on everything that happens.

Empty Nest? (Almost)
Kelton and Amber and kids are moving out this month. It has been fun having them with us, we really enjoyed being able to see their kids every day. But they really need a place of their own. We will miss them. Our house is so quiet and so clean. And, I can put something somewhere and it will actually be there the next morning when I go to get it. So, now all we have is Kody and he will be gone after he graduates in May. He hopes to leave for boot camp (Marines) in June. It will be so strange, we have not been alone for 32 years. I think I could get used to it.

Meet Raven

2008-05-06T14:57:00.000-07:00

Raven is a 7 week old black lab/golden retriever mix that weighs about 12 pounds and has HUGE feet. It just so happens that she is also my surprise late birthday/early Mother's Day present. Kody gave her to me last night. And yes, I was surprised. I just gave away my Sheltie, Jax about 2 months ago at Robert's insistence, so what the heck am I doing with another dog??? She is really cute and very sweet, but puppies are a pain. Amber and Kelton like her, Natalie and Drake love her and even Robert seems to like her. Maybe it's because she is a "Real Dog". Oh brother. Kody is hoping to take her hunting when she grows up. I think she is going to eat us out of house and home. Anyway, I named her Raven because when I was in the seventh grade, my English teacher gave us the assignment to memorize and recite 10 verses of our favorite poem. My favorite was Edgar Allen Poe's 'The Raven'. I did it!! Have you ever read 'The Raven'? Try it. Also, she is black so it makes sense that she should be called Raven. Wish me luck.

White Pockets

2008-04-21T21:25:00.000-07:00

Saturday, April 19, we drove out to White Pockets to ride 4-Wheelers. I really don't know where White Pockets is, somewhere in Arizona, I am usually talking or sleeping on the way out there, so I could not tell you how to get there. But, it was an amazing ride and a beautiful day.

Locke and Carol Sue Ettinger, and Tony and Trudy Whitney get ready for a long day of riding and sight-seeing. We rode over 70 miles that day.

I love this picture of White Pockets, the color of the sky is so unusual.

Robert, Trudy, and Jo stand at the top of these cool formations-----

---while Tony Whitney and Clyde Postma find themselves at the bottom of an abyss.

Robert thinks he is 'King of the World' when he is out in the sticks.

This cool formation, we call the Seashell, or the Corkskrew. It doesn't look very big here, but go down further and see the pictures of us inside.

Robert and Me.

Tony and Trudy looking like newlyweds.

Locke and Carol Sue in the Corkskrew.

Clyde and Jo Postma, can you believe she actually got him to sit still???

We rode all the way to......ummmmm......okay, it's just an overlook. This is part of the Grand Canyon. If you bring the picture up big, you will see the cool bridge, which Robert cannot remember the name of.

More Grand Canyon.

This was Robert's favorite picture. Look how cool the change of color of the river looks where the Paria joins with the Colorado.

All in all it was a fun day. We had a picnic up here at this overlook. The wind was really blowing and threatened to blow us over the side. But we ate our sandwiches and treats, enjoyed the view and then took off for home. We left at 6:30 in the morning and got back home just before 8 at night. And when we go back we will return all the sand we brought home with us in our shoes, socks, clothes, hair, and on our skin.

More Katie

2008-04-11T14:17:00.000-07:00

Abby meets her new day-old cousin. She thought she was interesting for about 2 minutes, then she just wanted to play with the hospital equipment.

Friday, April 11, on Katie's second day home, Nana decided to strip her down and get some cute newborn pictures. Adrienne was getting some much needed rest, and Katie cooperated for the most part. Anne Geddes eat your heart out!

She's Here!!

2008-04-08T20:34:00.001-07:00

Kathryn Paige Hansen arrived tonight at 7:13 pm. She is picture perfect, weighing 6 lbs. 7 oz. and she is 18.5 inches long. We are so excited after waiting an extra week for her. Kylen is sure a proud dad! Adrienne came through like a champ after an initial 'C-Section' scare. Mom, Dad and Baby are doing just great. We will put some more pictures up as they come.

Walking the Walk

2007-05-11T07:47:00.000-07:00

Ya, it's a little blurry, but look how excited he is!

He Did It!!

2007-05-11T07:42:00.000-07:00

Friday, April 27 was a monumental day for Ky! After taking time out for a mission and military service, he finally graduated from Utah Valley University. He earned his Bachelor's Degree in Technology Management with a construction management emphasis. That's him in the middle of the picture.