An Angel in the Outfield

Our precious little nephew Atticus returned to his Heavenly home this last Sunday after his valiant fight with brain cancer. This last four and a half months since his diagnosis have been agonizing for our family, I have to say. What a brave little warrior he is and we are honored and humbled to have this incredible spirit as a part of our family. He is truly an amazing force and has taught the world to walk in His light. We love him so much and it hurts to think how much we are going to miss him. So so SO much. We are so grateful to know that someday we will meet again and that meanwhile this incredible little boy is free to run and play and hit all those home runs he was known for just six months ago.

To read his incredibly touching obituary, go here: www.echansen.blogspot.com



We were SO  blessed to be able to go to Texas and visit Atticus just 10 days ago.
 How grateful we are to have spent that time with him!
I haven't had time to document our trip yet, and plan to, but meanwhile here are a few pictures...
(of the bizillions you know I took;)

My Father-in-law put on a Pinewood Derby! Atti looooves cars and so a Pinewood Derby race was so much for him!

Atti, Isaac & Lexi

Atticus was so cute with Lex. Very gentle with her!

..& Isaac (aka Chunk) is the sweetest baby in all the land. No joke!

 LOVE these two boys! And this girl!

They have this absolute dream place called "Bahama Bucks" in Texas that has the most heavenly sno cones...I've been craving another one since we went....It was DEEElicious!

The three amigos "racing" down the back alley.
Atti and Parker are about 18 months apart (just like their daddies), and Emmie and Atti just 8 months (Atticus is older). I've always thought these three look like they could be siblings.

Atti was always cracking jokes and always tried to have on a happy face during our visit, even though he didn't feel well. I just love him so much. There is such a sweet tenderness about this precious little boy that is impossible to convey in words. His sweet, smooth little voice is music to my ears and his maturity weeeellll beyond a four year old's. This little boy had (I prefer to say has, as I know his little spirit is near) more wisdom in his Being than most adults accumulate in a lifetime of many years. Even being so sick, he just radiated such a light.
 Of course he did.
Look at all the lives he's touched!
He was surely sent here with a divine mission.
  Saying goodbye the night before our plane left was one of the most excrutiating things I've ever done.
We knew it would be our last moment here on earth with him.
 Talk about heartwrenching.
He is one SPECIAL little boy!
{That description seems so inadequate.}
 I am so grateful to  Eric and Cindy  for allowing us to go out and spend that quality time with their precious son. I am beyond grateful that myself and Chris, and our kids will have those special memories and these pictures to treasure in the years to come.  

Building garages with blocks to house all his hundreds of race cars!

Hard to believe this was just last Christmas. We had no idea he was sick. Just 3 weeks later his diagnosis would come...

And this is just last September. He was so full of life. I'm so glad I took these pictures. SO glad. The picture on the right is how I picture him in Heaven now.
 Excited. Happy. Free!
We love you, sweet Atticus! I get so (so so so SOOOO) sad to think that my kids don't get to grow up with their amazing cousin, but then I am comforted to think of the angel in the outfield we have watching over them and what a glorious reunion we have to look forward to!
xoxo

Mother's Day

I am so blessed to have these amazing kiddos in my life. I love being their mom & am so grateful for the joy they bring to Chris and I.

On Mother's Day I woke up to some beautiful flowers (I failed to take a picture of them) and some awesome notes from my kids. I love it when they draw me pictures, and even more I love the smile they have on their faces when they present me with their masterpieces.

 It makes my heart happy!!!

While Chris was at a church meeting, Parker made me the following while I was getting ready, without any help!:

It says: "Mom I love yow and I  wal nevr stop luve n yow. Mom I love yow."
(Translation: "Mom I love you and I will never stop loving you".)
How PRECIOUS is that?! Not bad for a preschooler spelling things all by himself, ay?
And if you wonder what the picture is, he wasn't sure! He later decided the pink guy was an elephant with a pack on his back. I can see that! :)

Parker helped Emmie with hers (above). So cute!

And this was a special gift he made for me at preschool. He came home so excited, hiding it behind his back and told me he was going to hide this special surprise in his room until Mother's Day.
 And that he did.
The flower petals are made with his fingerprints.
 I absolutely LOVE it!

After church, we were sitting on the couch and my tricky husband had his "helpers" start presenting me with the following pictures they made:

This one says, "You are the cutest mom ever", and was presented with a Visa gift card to go shopping! Oh, how I loooove guilt-free shopping!
 (I bought myself some tangerine skinny jeans - in case you wondered;). Super practical, right?)

This one says, "Use this to get a treat", and was presented with a
 Roxberry Smoothie gift card!
I'm a little addicted to their "Green" smoothies. Have you had one?!
LOVE! LOVE LOVE!

This one says, "This will help you relax", and was accompanied with a gift card for a spa pedicure! (I haven't had a chance to redeem this one yet and it shows.)
My husband definitely knows me!
Better than I know myself sometimes!
 I am one lucky mama, and wife.
We just stayed home this Mother's Day as Chris' Mom was in Texas with our sweet nephew, and my Mom was living it up in Hawaii. It was perfect, relaxed, laid back day at home! Chris cooked dinner, and I even got a much-needed nap. It's been a crazy couple of months, so this was the perfect way to spend our day.

Lexi is 7 months

This little girl is 7 months old today!


She had her 6 month appointment
(yes, a month late even though it was scheduled 2 months ago) on Monday and it's hard to believe that this Chunka Love is only in the 14.03 %ile for weight, and 6.96%ile for height!

Oooh don't you just want to squish those little cheeks?!
You should see her thighs...they. are. the best!
{Live it up girlfriend, sad to say but thunder thighs don't stay in style forever. ;)}

She's not quite sitting up yet by herself.
We're working on it!
She's super wobbly but Chris and the kids timed her the other day and she stayed up for 6 minutes.
She spins herself around on her tummy as well as continues with her rolling to get where she wants. She has zero interest in cruising or standing yet. Hopefully it stays that way for a while longer!

She is the BEST baby and I adore every squishy little inch of her!

Easter anyone?

I guess it's about time I post about Easter!
I wish I could tell about how our holiday was calm and serene and focused on all things it should be, but in keeping it real, and like usual, our holiday was a fiasco.  Good, but trust me, a fiasco. No matter how hard I try to be on top of things, that just seems to be my life these days. And that is an understatement. ;) We are considering a move across the country to see if that will ease up on the chaos in our life. ;) I'm kidding. Maybe.

Showing off their new shades...

I was hoping to have the Saturday night Easter Bunny visit, but with Chris working until 7 pm, that was not an option. So Sunday morning the games began and the kids were very excited that the white fluffy guy had come. Funny, his handwriting looks a lot like Chris'...

Lexi's first Easter!
 I wish I had gotten a better picture of her, or one at all of just her in her Easter dress, but the following is all I managed before our mad dash out the door...:

Easter 2012

I did manage to catch a shot of this cute girl before her hair and dress were ruined (there is about a 5 minute window there...). But as for the other two, it didn't happen. Oh well. She actually had the beginnings of a nasty cold and Lexi was just starting her very first sickness (we spent the following 5 days home sick), so the three of us stayed home while the boys went to Sacrament meeting...

Then we were off to my cute Grandma's house, where it felt a little more like Christmas than Easter. There were multiple Easter baskets for each of my kids,treats that will last us to inifinity and beyond, and we even hit the jackpot with Easter eggs containing $10 for each adult...spoiled!

Next stop was the Hansens, where we enjoyed an Easter dinner and of course an egg hunt for the kiddos.

I was so exhausted this day that I honestly can't recall another detail!
 Good thing I have these pictures to help me remember.