----------andersen-------------

Recents

2011-04-22T19:30:00.000-07:00

At our house, there's been a little...

Pen Eating ....

Chair tipping....

Soccer Playing...

and costuming...

What's been going on at your house??

Thyssen Scott

2011-03-17T16:02:00.000-07:00

Thiss little guy has made my life so fun over the past 4 years. He came out screaming and that should have been my first clue as to how passionate he is. He is so loving and sensitive, yet also very energetic and rambunctious. He loves to trick me and tease me and loves to make a crowd laugh. He gets his feelings hurt easily, like if Belen runs too far ahead of him, or if he is last at anything. He isn't naturally confident, but gains confidence as he masters a skill. He is a huge question asker and wants everything explained to him in detail. He is obsessed with how old people are and always wants to talk about death. He is great at memorizing. When he was 2, we were out to eat and he saw a 6 as our table number and told me that if I turned the 6 upside down it would make a 9. He knows his numbers to 20 and all his letters and sounds. I think he may have a photographic memory.. he never forgets....anything. He has such a happy-go-lucky personality and loves making friends. His preschool teacher told me that he plays with all kids equally, so I guess we could say he's an equal opportunity friend. He gets a little overzealous at times and we have to reign him in or focus his energy elsewhere. We love this little guy and are so happy he is in our family. Happy 4th Brithday Thy-guy!

Belen's 6th Birthday!

2011-03-09T20:17:00.000-08:00

I figured I better post Belen's birthday from December, since it's already Thyssen's bday in a few days. She had a Build-A-Bear party this year. She loved every second of it.. it was very cute. She got a little overwhelmed when she went up on the landing and overlooked the workshop. The entire workshop sang to her and she didn't smile once.. it was a bit much for her to take in. It was a crazy rainy-stormy day, so it was nice that most of her friends braved the weather to come. We were supposed to open presents and have cup cakes outside afterwards, but because it was so rainy, we ended up giving out the cupcakes to go and going out to pizza. I'm glad she got the party she really wanted and that it was such a special day for her. You only turn 6 once!!

Put Me In, Coach!

2011-02-27T17:03:00.000-08:00

It's T-Ball time! This is Thyssen's first season and he is loving it! Okay, well, to be honest, he wasn't loving it to begin with, but now he that he's felt the glory of running home after a good hit, he's loving it! Watching a game of T-ball is so much more entertaining than watching a game of baseball. The game lasts for an hour, and each player gets to bat, hit, and score. There are no outs and no score. Dads/moms can stay on the field to help their little player stay in position. After each ball is hit, they all go running after it, and sometimes end up in a dog pile trying to get it! It's hilarious. Also, after they hit the ball, they either stand there to see where it goes, or they run after it.. the coach always has to remind them to run to 1st, and which direction first is in. I love that thyssen is enjoying himself, leaning some skills, and gaining some confidence. Yay to T-Ball!

Fashion 911

2011-02-27T16:59:00.000-08:00

This girl LOVES to accessorize. Here, she's modeling her bracelet, her brother's neck tie and her sister's socks. She pulls the look together with a modern green and yellow pacifier. Can you say fashion diva??

Shannon's Bachelorette Party 12/2010

2011-02-18T11:00:00.000-08:00

We had a super fun weekend for Shannon's Bachelorette party!! We started it off by going to Glen Ivy hot Springs Spa where we covered ourselves in mud, got slathered in green goo, and lounged around like we had all the time in the world. It was fabulous! We then headed out to Riverside (I know, doesn't sound very exciting, right?) BUT, we stayed at the Mission Inn, which was the most beautiful place. It was Christmas time so the entire hotel grounds were decorated. Not just a few lights, but crazily decorated to the max with anamatronics and all. We had a great time walking around, eating, and as you can see... by the end of the night, things got alittle crazy in the hotel room.

Knotts 2010

2011-02-18T10:49:00.000-08:00

Every December we take a trip to Knotts Berry Farm with Skip's parents. Skip's dad is a retired policeman and Knotts offers discounted admission during the month of December each year. We always look forward to this outing and this year didn't dissappoint. We spent the morning in Camp Snoopy doing rides for the kids, then we did the log ride- Gina included.. she didn't getting sprayed in the face with water, but she did fine with the drop at the end. Skip went ona few big rides and then we had some fried chicken and went home. I love that you can get your fill of Knotts in about 3 hours and be done with it. It's perfect for little ones. We had a great day.

November 2010

2011-02-18T10:41:00.000-08:00

Skip and I got a special date night in November. Skip's been a long time fan of Pink Floyed and our friend, Mike Durham, was nice enough to give us his company tickets to see Roger Waters perform The Wall (Pink Foyed's most famous album). We had access to a luxury suite as well awesome floor tickets. It was a great night out. This is us, at Staples Center, in front of "The Wall" which came crashing down when an airplane crashed into it and exploded. Pretty cool! We cherish any time we get alone together, but this was the best date we'd had in a while. :)

October 2010

2010-11-12T14:35:00.000-08:00

Trunk-or-Treat, Trick-or-Treat, School Halloween Parade, Aunt Kelly & TJ, Lego Store, Pumpkin Patch, Tea Party Photo Shoot in the backyard, Aunt Thorey, Aunt Trena, Nonni & Papa (not pictured), Grandma, and, of course, Disneyland

September 2010

2010-10-11T20:45:00.001-07:00

September flew by! All of the sudden, it's the middle of October! I really have no idea of what's happened in the last 6 weeks, it's all a blur.. but here's a bit about the things that were on my camera :)... so they must have really happened.

My cousin Drew got married on a big boat and I got a cute pic of my mom and Aunt Patti.
I found matching dresses for all us girls to wear

Melinda and Thorey

Thyssen started preschool and loves his teacher, Miss Root. (or Miss Woot, as he says)

We hung out in Seal Beach with Aunty Shannon

Gina had a FUN birthday party. Brad let Grady go down the water slide... he loved it!... kinda.

Thyssen's action shot.

Dad and Skip got in a HUGE water (or ego) fight.

Gina got her first taste of a juice boxDo I really need to say anything here?

I'll try to get a better handle on October!!

Baby G

2010-09-17T11:48:00.000-07:00

Our favorite little redhead turned 1 on Sept. 3. It's a tradition in my family to have a big first birthday party, so that's exactly what we did. Gina is the cutest most adorable little girl I could have ever hoped for. I feel so blessed to be her mommy and while it makes me a little sad too, I am very excited to see her grow and experience the person she will become.

Here are a few facts about Gina

She almost always has puckered lips when she is talking.. so much so that I call it her signature look.

She says about a dozen words and can pretty much copy any word you try to teach her.

She LOVES and I mean LOVES babies.. real or dollies, doesn't matter. She almost had a heart attack when we went down the dolly isle at Target the other day. She was screaming, "bebe! bebe!" "mama! bebe!"

She loves taking trash OUT of the trash can.

She is VERY demanding and knows exactly what she wants and when she wants it. Our 2010 household motto is "What baby wants, baby gets"

She is tiny.. around 25th percentile for height and weight.

She loves buster, our cat, and tries to climb on him, pull his tail, and pick him up.

She loves to kiss and be kissed and loves to blow kisses.

She is constantly walking around the house talking gibberish and dropping toys here and there along the way.

She tries to hang with the big kids, but usually ends up being knocked over, hurt, and crying.

She wakes up every morning around 3, yelling, "mama! mama! mama!" for about 20 minutes then goes back to sleep until 6.

She loves to eat and nods in approval when something yummy is placed in front of her.

She is a mama's girl through and through, and I wouldn't have it any other way!

We love this baby SO MUCH and are excited and thankful for every moment we have to spend with her.

Happy Birthday Gina!

Summer 2010

2010-09-11T17:38:00.000-07:00

Going through all the pictures from this summer has made my head spin! I can't believe how much we did and I'm not even showing it all here. I had a few weeks this summer that were so jammed packed with fun things, that I had to purposefully plan a day here and there to stay home, do laundry, and keep up the house. It was pretty crazy, but I bet that's how my summers will be from here on out!

On June 12th My Mom and I took Belen to see the Lion King at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. Belen LOVED it! It was a blast. Nonni bought her the CD and a few cute lions from the play. Her favorite song on the CD is "I Just Can't Wait to be King".. probably because it's about being the boss and not having to listen to grown-ups :)

We celebrated Grandma's birthday on June 14th by going out to Pei Wei and having ice cream cake at her house. Unfortunately later that day Grandma suffered a small stroke and was hospitalized for a few days. She has almost fully recovered and it was a huge blessing that she came away from that experience so well. We are so happy and relieved that she is doing so great!

On the night of Milo's birth, I babysat Magging for a bit and of couse had to get a cousins in the tub picture!

We had too many pool parties to count at Thorey's house. I really really really love her pool!

Sam and Owen came to stay for a few days and we went to the Santa Ana Zoo with Nonni and Papa.

Gina a Maggie have matching pjs... Gina's looking a little gansta in this pic and Maggie's looking a little scared!

Again at the zoo... The safari squad

Maggie and Papa at the zoo.

Belen and Thy did swimm lessons for 8 weeks. Thyssen took about 7 of those weeks to start to like it.

We went to the bay with Julie and Regan.

Belen planted and grew her first pumpkin

Just a cute pic of Daddy and baby G

Gina sporting her cute headband that Julie made

We went to the Science Center in LA with Julie and the kids. Belen, Thy and Regan went in the tornado tunnel.

Collin LOVED this button that made a rocket shoot into the air.

Baby Milo entered the world!!! He is such a cute little chunk!

We went to Soak City with Lauren.. she worked there this summerand got us in for almost nothing!! I didn't get a pic of her because she was too busy running my kids around!

We went to the Stake Pioneer Picnic.. Thyssen and Belen enjoyed watching the play.

We went to the Aquarium with Julie and the kids... we got in free with Julie's pass.. it was awesome!

If it weren't for this little guy, we wouldn't have done so many fun things this summer! Thanks for always letting us join you on your outings, Collin!

My momshot of Gina...

Sisters

We went to the Aquarium AGAIN :) with Shannon! Doesn't she look like a mommy here?

Shark jaws!!! aaahhhh!!

Grandpa's birthday was in August, I made him a German chocolate cake.. yum!

Belen's celebatory firsty day of kindergarten lunch at Wendy's

Daddy reading Belen a book on her first day of school

Daddy and kinder-girl

Ms. Meylor and her smartest student :)

B and T on Day 1 of school

Mommy and B outside the classroom

At Belen's school

Thyssen loves to dress up. He even sleeps in character!

Belen almost missed the first day of school due to a shingles out break. Very strange.

Belen made it to the diving board in swim! What a little fish!

MAY 2010 Mono Village

2010-06-06T14:06:00.000-07:00

Skippy spent a lot of time up in these woods when he was a kid. His grandfather and dad happened upon this place about 30 years ago and it fast became a favorite family vacation spot. Mono Village is located to the north east corner of Yosemite. It is right outside the town of Bridgeport off the 395 fwy. We stayed in a cabin for 3 nights and had so much fun enjoying the outdoors. The kids had no TV and there is no cell reception up there. They played outside ALL day, got dirty, and had a blast. Skip fished with his dad and I had the fun job of carrying Gina around in the baby bjorn. She and I were bosom buddies the entire trip, to say the least! It was very refreshing to be outside and away for a while.. can't wait to go back!

Mama bear and cub taking a morning nap in the tree.

On our hike to the Trout ponds
Grandma and Grandpa's cabin in the background
Our cabin

Awesome HUGE log
Proud Grandpa fisherman
Bundle of Joy
Belen's Horse Beautiful scenery, cute kids.

Getting ready to fish
Another shot of the cabin My bosom buddy and me
Fisherman Skip

April 2010

2010-05-02T17:56:00.000-07:00

Belen lost her first tooth at age 5 giving us a very exciting start to the month!

I got some cuddle time with all 3 of my little babies
We had fun with the Presleys at The Grove

Skippy took the kids for an ice cream treat....

Grandpa and Grandma took us to the petting zoo/pony rides

Got to meet up with these fun girls at Disneyland.. the last time we were all there together was gradnight 1997!

Happy baby Jules

Highschool would have totally sucked without these ladies! I love you gals!
Belen and I had a makeover night.... We looked awesome!
Regan turned 6! Julie planned an amazing Alice in Wonderland Tea Party.. Mad Hatter, Queen of Hearts and all!

Thorey's baby, Gwyneth JoAnne, aka Winnie, was blessed in Lake Forest.

We got to do a run-through with our Mother's day outfits... it's the first time I have been able to match with the girls.. love it!

The growing Schulze Family... baby Milo's blessing will be next :)

The Happy Bauer Family with their new additionWe also had a fun party in Palm Springs celebrating my mom's 60th, but of course I didn't take any pics:( AND I am awaiting some AWESOME Kelty pics (www.steepstreet.com) from our first steepstreet photo shoot! That concludes the month of April; I hope you all had a great month and wish you all a wonderful May!

MARCH 2010

2010-04-06T15:38:00.001-07:00

We started out the month with the birth of my newest niece, Winnie. She was born on Skippy's birthday, the 3rd and weighed in at a hefty 10lbs, 12oz! Big fat cute baby! Thorey knows how to grow those big babies!

Then, we celebrated Skip's birthday at his parents' house. I made him the hershey's chocolate cake... SO GOOD! It's the recipe on the back of the cocoa powder- the best!
Grandma and Grandpa took the kids to ride ponies and pet goats

Thyssen's favorite part of the whole thing was the washing station.

Thyssen turned 3! He had his first real little kid birthday party.

I thought this was a cute pic of Mandy and Penny.. showing off thier cute hair clips.

All the party kids.

We celebarted on his actual birthday at ChuckECheeses. The Presleys came along, but I wasn't very good at getting pics that day!

We've (meaning Skippy) have been working on the backyard, getting it all pretty.

It was hot enough to go to the beach!

hung out with the Schulzes at Dland

got to be apart of lifting some spirits...

Gina fell asleep in the high chair for the first time.

Skippy tried his best at eating 5lbs of burger and fries...

Doing good in the beginning...

almost half way...

he did amazing! He said the grease from the meat was getting to him.

Some of the spectaters...

What was left over... had he finished all of this he would've gotten the glory of a pic on the wall, a tshirt, and his meal for free. Instead, he had to pay $17 to feel REALLY sick.

February 2010

2010-03-04T19:04:00.001-08:00

Let's see.. where should I begin? February was really filled with colds and ear infections, but who wants to see pictures of that, right? So here's only the fun good stuff that happened this month.

We started off the month right by going to Dland with the Schulze's.

Maggie let Gina borrow her nice warm hat...

Gina had her first taste of rice cereal at 5 1/2 months.

We did Dland again with the Presley's.. I love that family so much!!! Daddies and boys in line for Buzz
Belen did her second month of ballet.... she wants to try tap next.

Belen has been saving for the Ariel and Eric wedding dolls... she finally got enough money for them after winning 20 bucks from choosing a winning square on the super bowl spread sheet. Not exactly the principle I wanted to teach her when I told her she'd have to earn her own money to buy them, but hey.. the girl won fair and square.

Grandpa and Grandma came over and trimmed up the yard. You can see Grandpa way up in the tree.. he's got the tree climbing skills of a 13 year old- remarkable.
Belen fed her demonic baby alive some "food". That doll is seriously so disturbing.
Yes.. we did Dland for the 3rd time when Jill came to town. That little Hannah showed my kids a great time!

Gina started sitting in the stroller like a big girl.
We caught the tail end of snow day at the park with Shannon.

I got a really great laughing shot of Gina
And... the grand finale..... Gina is big enough for Belen to hold her in the tub so I can get all 3 of them at once!! Yay!... and I love how aweful this pic is... it's a new fav of mine!We also went to Maggie's fabulous 1st Bday party... but of course I forgot my camera- you'll have to check Trena's blog for pics :)

January 2010

2010-02-05T09:59:00.001-08:00

I am going to update on a monthly basis this year, which means I'm going to have to be a lot better at taking pics of all our happenings.. so... here it goes!

Our January happenings (or at least the ones I got pictures of)

Popcorn for Family Home Evening Belen and Thyssen discovered our lemon tree in the backyard. We made lemonaid and of course Belen wanted to sell it. She made $2.70 from the neighbor across the street!

She's saving up for the Ariel/Eric wedding dolls.

Thyssen got a new hairdo ala Skippy
Gina got even cuter... Belen "babysits" for me when I am doing stuff around the house

It rained and rained and rained!

Thanks Julie and Regan for the fun rain gear!

Non pictured events: Thyssen started a gymnastics class, Belen started Ballet again, we had visits from Nonni and Papa, and I also have to add that I mowed the lawn for the first time in my life ever! I think it may have been my last time also.

December

2010-01-13T17:02:00.000-08:00

I wanted to upload a few pics from December and didn't realize how much we actually did this last month! The only thing I didn't get pictures of is Christmas... I know, I know.. it;s kinda the biggest thing we all do in December but I went to get my camera out on Christmas Eve and the battery was dead.. so that's how that went.

Took a family trip to one of our fav's.. El Burrito Jr. in Seal Beach
Belen was a horse in the Nativiy scene for our ward party.. I made her headband- she was a pink flashy horse.
Gina was Blessed at the beginning of the month

Skippy made lots of fires to keep the house warm

We partied at Trena's house a few times.. Mama and Gina livin it up

Shannon babysat so we could go Christmas shopping...

Belen had her Brithday Celebration at Buca... they misspelled her name.. Pelen.. B sounds a lot like P over the phone- I can't really blame them. Last time she was Helen so at least this is something new!The Gang at Buca
Ricky and Shannon had a personal invite from Belen...

We babysat cutie-pie Charlotte..
Gina turned 3 mos. on Dec. 3rd
Nonni, Papa and Mama took Belen to see Suessical the Musical for her birthday
We went to our neighbor's Christmas Ice Skating Party.. Belen didn't get off the ice for 2 hours straight- not even for hot chocolate and cookies..

We had a very fun month!

Some Stuff

2009-12-15T16:22:00.001-08:00

Here are a few pics from November.
This is my cute niece, Maggie at Disneyland.. Thyssen was cracking her up and I got a good shot of her teeth!
oops... sideways pic! At Dland in front of the big Christmas tree
At the school across the street from Skip's parents... I have no idea what they are talking about, but Gina and Skippy look cute.
My niece, Charlotte. We took a walk to the park with her.. isn't she so cute? She makes me feel so special because she claps at everything I say!

Belen and Thyssen having fun at CA Adventure.

Baby Gina

2009-09-06T10:28:00.001-07:00

Gina Rosemarie Andersen

September 03, 2009

7lbs. 11oz. 20in.

strawberry-brown hair
Practically perfect in every way!

The Baby is Coming!!

2009-09-01T10:50:00.000-07:00

Thursday!!

NOT on the Move!

2009-08-28T09:05:00.000-07:00

THE NEW RUMORS ARE TRUE......

The Andersens are NOT moving!

On the Move

2009-08-06T11:17:00.000-07:00

Yes, the rumors are true....

The Andersens are MOVING! I know, I know, it's crazy, but with Skippy starting law school in San Diego, we just got to go! We were going to try the long distance thing where he would come home on the weekends, but we decided that would be WAY too hard. We found a nice apartment with great amenities and it is super close to the trolly stop for Skippy to go down town to school. We are going to REALLY miss our family and friends up here and our ward. We'll be officially gone twoards the end of the month. We'll be back up here at least a few times a month to hang out.. so don't write us off completely! Here's a pick of Belen and Thyssen "helping" us clean things up and pack...

Summer Fun

2009-07-30T18:26:00.000-07:00

We've been trying to stay cool this month..

Which means playing in the water every chance we get.

Thyssen tryed to get Belen....
Just like a good big sis, she got him back about a hundred times worse!

Youth Conference

2009-06-30T07:34:00.000-07:00

Skippy and I were chaperones at Youth Conference this year. We were the parents of the "John Taylor" family and were in charge of 10 teenagers. It was held at UCSB and we stayed on campus in the dorms. We had a ton of fun, but came back exhausted! It was a great experience and it was fun to watch the youth have such a great time.
Skippy showed up the teens at the dance...

Bryce and McKenzie busted a move...
Our John Taylor children- they were a nice group of kids.
Making our neck-beards. John Taylor was the only prophet to have a neck-beard so we capitalized on that when we had to make up a song about him.
Me with some of the girls from my ward.

It was so great and I know that these youth will remember this weekend forever.

The Ponies Came to Preschool!!

2009-05-30T19:33:00.000-07:00

A photographer brought a pony to Belen's Preschool....

I pretty sure I've never seen them happier...

Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique

2009-04-27T20:09:00.000-07:00

I've always said that Regan knows how to party. This year for her 5th Bday, she invited Belen to get a Princess make-over at Disneyland! The girls couldn't have had a better time. They were pampered by Fairy Godmothers and Julie made them matching tutus. It was a little girl's dream come true! Thank you to Regan's Poppi for treating us! It was truly magical!

Check out Julie's blog for more pics, too!

Poor, Sad Maidens

Getting Started.....

Make-up time!! They also got to take home all their make-up!

A little sprinkle of Fairy Dust....

And we get a beautiful princess!!

The Happy Princesses!

Thanks again Julie, Regan, and Poppi! We had a GREAT time!

Belen's Birthday

2009-03-01T17:05:00.001-08:00

I finally got around to sending off the thank-you notes from Belen's Birthday party (which was in January). That's just how my life is right now... I think everyone understands, right? I'm sure I'm not the only busy mom out there :) Here are the pics from her party- she had so much fun!! Thanks to all her little friends for making it such a great day!

Family Vacation

2008-12-21T15:35:00.000-08:00

(the view from Ben and Jessica's living-room windows)

Here are some pics from our UT/Vegas trip this year. We had such a fun time visiting friends and family. We stayed with Ben and Jesse and had a blast. I love their boys, it was so much fun getting to know them more. Thyssen clobbered Mag every chance he got and gave him a new nick-name of "nus" (noose) because he can't say Magnus. He followed him around the house yelling, "Nus!! Nuss!" Belen went back and forth between Uly and Gar as to who she paid more attention to. She loved having 2 boys to play with all week. We also visited Skippy's sister, Kelly, and her family. Her boys are so sweet to Belen and her youngest, Garrett, 2, was so cute and always asking for soda.

So, the weather: At first, the cold was very shocking, but after the 2nd day, I was completely use to it. I really didn't expect that. It snowed for us the last few days and we extended our trip because of it. Belen loved the snow, Thyssen HATED it. On our way home, it snowed in Vegas and so we extended our trip one more day there too. We stayed with Jill and Don and finally got Hannah to smile and giggle at me after 3 days. Her nick-name for SKippy was Doopy. Love it! Here are all the pics.

Taking a break at the Vegas Outlet Mall

At the park by Jill's The Breakfast Club Belen and Thy's first snow-trip Bundled Mag Thyssen and I feel the same way about being in the snow. Belen and Uly got the "all-you-can-eat" snow-deal. Liberty Park Temple Square Right before this pic, I asked B and U to hug... (awkward!!)

Visiting the Wixoms: Here's Garrett- and then Aunt Kelly and Belen.

I didn't get a pick of TJ and Alec.

We ate at two places Skippy found on his fav. show-"Diners Drive-Ins and Dives"

Lone Star Taqueria, and Moochies

T hanks to the Vegas Vuongs and the UT Stiers and Wixoms for showing us a good time!!

We love you guys!

Fall Happenings

2008-12-03T17:33:00.000-08:00

So, we started off our Fall season with a little trip to the pumpkin patch in the mall parking lot. I really want to go to a REAL pumpkin patch some day, you know, one where pumpkins actually grow, sawdust is naturally found, and there's no sign of any bounce-houses.

Next stop on our Fall adventures is Halloween. We went to the Palm Springs Ward Halloween Party with my parents, grandmother, Trena and Aaron. It was a very good time. Belen walked in the costume parade and won "Most Beautiful" She was very excited to get her own container of candy. The kids also trunck-or-treated and got way more candy than will ever be eaten. Thyssen has such a huge head that his hood was too tight and it squished his face and it was hard for him to open his eyes all the way. He looked pretty funny all night.Aaron finally exposed his anorexic diet: One gummy crabby-patty a day.

We went to a really cool air-show but got there too late and missed a lot of it. We also had to walk over a mile to get there from the parking lot and it was hot and muddy. Once we refreshed ourselves with slushy lemon-aides, we were all smiles once again. We are totally going again next year, it was really cool.

We started feeling the Christmas spirit and made a ginger-bread house for family night. It turned out pretty ugly becuase I had to use left over orange frosting from halloween when we ran out of frosting.. but, hey, it still tasted delicious!

Yesterday we started decorating the house and Belen decorated her very own tree- When I told her to stand next to it for a picture, she said, "Mom, what do you want me to do? This? or this?" and she started stricking poses. I was cracking up- Too much America's Next Top Model?? What do you think: high-fashion or commercial?
We've had a lot of fun experiencing the change of seasons this year and hope you and your family are enjoying the spirit of the season too! Merry Christmas!

Upload

2008-10-03T19:37:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know, I've gone back to work for this school year. This means that I will only be updating my blog every few months and each entry will have a TON of pictures. I FINALLY uploaded my pics so here's what we've been up to the last few months.

Belen and Cody still love eachother

Belen and Thyssen still love to eat.
We traded in this (actually dumped it in the ally, but you know..)
For this- a 42inch Plasma (it's awesome!)
Hung out with T-n-A
Admitted Belen to rehab.
Took 2 good mom-shots of Belen

Played with cousins at Nonni and Papa's
Forced Uly into a floaty boat

Walked Belen down the isle

Turned in Skippy to Gang Intervention
Watched Thyssen fall and bump his head- AGAIN- he doesn't even cry anymore.

Made some cute stuff for Thorey's Shower

Ate some good stuff at Thorey's Shower
Took a cute picture of my then prego sister, Thorey

(who had a beautiful baby girl last Tuesday!)

Well, that's our story- see you all again in a few months!!

Happy Times

2008-09-23T20:39:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of Thorey (my big sis) and me at my bridal shower 8+ years ago. Yes, that's me about 30lbs ago :P I love this pic because our faces actually look alike.. We look like sisters!! (no one ever thinks I look like my sisters, so this picture is very exciting for me) Anyway, Thorey is expecting her first baby one week from today and I've found myself so excited about it!! I was at work this morning and I was in such a good mood because every few minutes, I thought about Thorey's baby being born and it made me so happy!! I can't wait to meet little miss Bauer! Oh, and Thor- we can use this pic as our inspiration to get back to pre-baby bodies :)

AND- Trena is expecting a GIRL!!! It's baby mania!! LOVE IT!

pics, pics, pics

2008-08-21T15:16:00.000-07:00

So here's what's been going on with the Andersen kids this last month.

Daddy-daughter double-date to the Angels game.

Skippy and Jason had a ton of fun with thier little dates!

Go Angels!!

Trips to Seal Beach to get the BEST tacos at EBJ (El Burrito Jr.- try it!!)

Friend's Water Party
My children ALWAYS get along perfectly...
Belen and Eli- He's smiling for me!! It's a miracle!
(this cute boy will never smile for my pictures)

Prego Sisters

Trena (3months) Thorey (8months)

Belen Ballerina

Belen is taking into to Ballet through parks and rec. Her teacher is so good. The girls get to pretend to be a different character every class and there are always props they get to wear to go with the characters. It's so fun to watch!

The local watering hole

We met our old neighbors at the kiddie pool. Jack doesn't like being told "cheese"

Mount Whitney

2008-07-15T20:04:00.000-07:00

Dave, Casey, Skippy, Justin, Jeff

Back in January, Skippy decided that he wanted to accomplish hiking Mount Whitney. He has his eagle scout and was an avid back-packer back in the day (just ask him about Teenage Mutant Philmont Backpackers) So, he put in for the permit and was so excited when it actually came time to go. (Excited to carry 3 days worth of supplies on your back while hiking to 14, 500 feet??- I don't get it either) He packed all his gear, got new boots, and dusted off his sleeping bag- all the while Belen asking him if she could go camping too- she loved the idea of wearing a backpack and sleeping in the sleepingbag. He left Thursday night and started hiking on Friday. He did great until he hit about 12,000 ft. Then the altitude sickness started- altitude sickness is the worst possible feeling- nausia, vomitting, dehidration, dizziness- yuck. But, did he give up? NO! He persevered with the help of his friends and made it to the top. He can now say that he has puked on the top of Mount Whitney- not many people can say that. I am very proud that he stuck it out and made it to the top and accomplished hiking to the highest peak in the Continental US. Good job Skippy!!

On the trail

At the top , after the 3rd barf- looking good, Honey!

Momshots

2008-07-09T17:22:00.000-07:00

Here are some of my recent momshots. I have been trying to use some of the features on my camera like shutter speed and zooming and whatnot. I also have been working with filling the frame with my subjects (kids) and lighting, as I just read abouit on Jessica's blog. I took Jessica's momshots advice and started to read the manual for my camera. I had a few realizations: One, that I have no clue how to operate my camera, two, that my camera is pretty rad and it does a lot of stuff. I think that if I learn one new thing a week, I will now how to successfully operate it in about a year. Anyway, I hope you enjoy my little set of momshots!

4th of July- Statue of Liberty down the slide
Eli Wagstaff's 3rd Bday party
At mother's beach last week- I like how I got Belen in the background.

A great shot of Luke- but it's immpossible to get a bad shot of that kid- he's so darn cute!
Mean Lady Liberty- pre-street bike parade
If you are interested in trying to make your momshots all they can be, I whole heartedly suggest reading Jessica's momshots blog for tips and inspirations.

NEW YORK

2008-06-26T14:33:00.000-07:00

"Skippy! You just graduated! What are you gonna do now?"

"I'm going to New York!"

So here's what you can accomplish in NY in 5 days with out 2 little tag alongs.

-Yankee's game
-Wicked on Broadway
-tons of site-seeing
- loads of eating

On a sad side note- we forgot our nice camera, so we were forced to buy a few disposables. It was absolutely humiliating taking pics with a disposable camera... So here's what we got with our little 35mm disposable with limited flash and no zoom:

A scary theater somewhere off of 42nd street

Times Square- if you look straight down from the P in Pontiac, you can see Skippy.
The tour bus- it was crowded and at one point, the tour guide was scolding some poor boys over the microphone. Yeah, only in New York.
A VERY exciting Yankee's Game. Instead of guys walking around selling treats and hot dogs, they walk around selling beer... THAT'S why their fans are so crazy! They're ALL drunk!
To Skippy's disappointment, we didn't see any Rockettes.
Famous Ray's Pizza--- SO GOOD!!!
Lady Liberty- She's big, She's green.

"Remember me at Harold's Square...."

My personal favorite: Little Italy... I need to go back and spend about 4 days just going from restaurant to restaurant.

Empire State Building- our hotel was just around the corner- it made for a good beacon when we were lost.

Gray's Papaya Hot Dogs... YUM! it's a hot dog/juice stand in Greenwich Village

BTW-there was some great shopping in the Village and in SOHO.. I just needed some girls to do it with.

Ground Zero- it was pretty sad to see the giant hole that was once huge buildings filled with people.

I have to say that while being with out the kids was fun and we were able to accomplish a lot with out them, we missed them terribly. We were so excited to return home to them.

GRADUATION !!!!

2008-06-18T07:04:00.000-07:00

It all started about 3 years ago with a conversation like this,
"Honey, why are you taking classes at LB city when you just graduated from Devry?"
"I don't know"
"Okay, are you just trying to spend as much time as possible away from me?"
" I really hate my job and don't want to work in telecommunications and think I want to get a degree in History and then go to law school"

Well, here we are, 3 years later- Skippy graduated with honors from UC Irvine with a BA in History. He has loved every minute of going to UCI and will truly miss it. We have gone through many trials and have witnessed many miracles along the way. We have had so many people bless our lives with service to make this goal attainable. It's amazing how our families have really supported us in this, we have the best families! I am so proud of Skippy for deciding to do this. It took so much courage for him to quit his job of 7 years and to let go of being the manly provider of the house. (If you know Skippy, then you know how hard that was for him). He has gained so much faith and self confidence, I am just so happy for him.

Friday night we attended the Latin Honors Convocation- Skippy graduated Magna Cum Laude (he has a 3.92 gpa) What a smarty-pants!

Skippy and the Dean of Humanities- She LOVES him!! - Who doesn't??

Skippy and his proud parents. We couldn't have done this without these people- They've given our family a wonderful home to live in. Thank you Mom and Dad!

I made these cute shirts for the kids for graduation day-
If you can't read it, it says, " My dad graduated from UCI with honors- what did your dad do?"

Proud wife and 2 cute kids.

Belen said, "When I get bigger and I'm 4, I'll go to school and get a medal too"
My mom and Grandmother with the Thy-guy. My dad was there too, just didn't get a pic. Thanks for all your support through the last few years- we love you!

We took everyone to Sonny's down in San Clemente. YUM YUM!

The look-a-likes

Aren't we cute??

Thanks to everyone who has helped us out through the last few years. We're giving you all a year off and then we're gonna have to ask ya for another 3 years :) LOVE YOU!

Just some bath-time fun...

2008-06-15T14:16:00.000-07:00

Aunt Trena

2008-06-15T13:59:00.000-07:00

Aunt Trena and Belen had fun making sugar cookies the other week. Belen got a Starwberry Shortcake cook-book from Nonni (my mom) and she had been dying to make something from it. I loaded the photos in reverse order... oops.

Grandma Andersen

2008-06-07T13:59:00.000-07:00

When Skippy and I were first married, we use to go visit Grandma Andersen at her home in La Habra where Skippy's dad grew up. We would look through old albums, hear stories of Denmark, WWII and her escape to the US with her young family. We always took her out to The Hungry Bear restaurant and then go to Rite-Aid for ice-cream. As the years went by, she slowly started forgetting who I was and Skippy would re-introduce me at each meeting. She was eventually diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. The thing that keeps me from being too sad about it is that she is happy. She is always happy. Her English is gone, and her danish is scrambled and broken so it is pretty hard for her to communicate. She seems to still recognize Skippy and his dad and she loves to see the kids. This picture is us visiting her about two weeks ago-(in her care-home in HB) she had so much fun watching Belen and Thyssen. Her face just lit up as soon as she saw them.

Here's the whole family

Belen and Great-Grandma- age difference: 90 years

She and Belen were playing a game, it was really sweet.

President Bush Meets with President Monson

2008-05-31T11:23:00.000-07:00

SALT LAKE CITY 29 May 2008 President George W. Bush met with the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints this morning at the Church’s headquarters in Salt Lake City.
This was President Bush’s fourth visit to Church headquarters and his first meeting with the new First Presidency. President Thomas S. Monson, along with his two counselors, President Henry B. Eyring and President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, visited with President Bush for just under an hour.

“He meets with [the First Presidency] regularly and thinks that they have a good role to play in America, in terms of spreading the word of love,” White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said yesterday, as reported by the Salt Lake Tribune. “I don’t think the president would ever pass up an opportunity to meet with the president of the Mormon church.”
Over the past eight years, President Bush has maintained a close relationship with the Church and its leaders. In 2001 he followed in the footsteps of his father, President George H.W. Bush, by inviting the Mormon Tabernacle Choir to perform at his inauguration.
In 2002 the president was greeted by the First Presidency before he attended the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympic Games. He made subsequent visits to Utah in 2005 and 2006.
In 2004 President Bush awarded former Latter-day Saint leader Gordon B. Hinckley the Presidential Medal of Freedom in Washington, D.C.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is politically neutral but has friendly relations with many leaders of government in the United States and internationally. Mormon leaders encourage Church members to seek out candidates whose values and positions reflect members’ ideas of good government. The Church’s 12th Article of Faith states that Mormons “believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.”
Many of the meetings Latter-day Saint leaders have with government officials focus on humanitarian and community needs, including ways to strengthen families. In 1995 the Church issued a proclamation regarding families that called “upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.”

Beach Season

2008-05-22T08:28:00.000-07:00

Our friends (The Morrow Family- Brant, Andrea, Tati, Hailey) were vacationing in Mission Beach, San Diego last weekend so we met them down there for a nice warm day at the beach. Belen and Thyssen had so much fun with their girls. We stayed on the sand for 3 hours and I think the kids would have stayed even longer.
Brant helped Belen and Tatiana dig a toddler-sized hole.
Here's Hailey hanging out in style
Here's Thyssen just having too much fun!
Here's Belen deciding which toy to go with

Daddy and Thy-guy
oops, I put this pic twice... good thing it's fun to look at cute kids!

We had a really fun day. Thanks, Morrows, for letting us crash a day of your vacation!!

New Look

2008-05-20T09:41:00.000-07:00

If you want a cute free template that doesn't mess up your links or pics, go to www.thecutestblogontheblock.com There are a bunch of scrappy sheek looks to choose from. And, the directions are super easy to follow. The best collection of free backgrounds I've seen- check it out!

visits and pics

2008-05-05T08:58:00.000-07:00

Jill came to town for a chiropractor's convention so we met up with her and Hannah at the park. Hannah took to her roll as a girl very well, as she really enjoyed pushing the stroller around!

Belen was a little peeved because I didn't let her run all over - the park was very crowded and I couldn't see her well enough. Note her pushing me away in the picture....
Hannah having fun feeling the wood chips.. she also was very generous and gave lots and lots of handfuls of it to her mommy.
Hannah in the swing- she didn't like the lack of control-floating through the air- sensation.
Mommy to the rescue!
I couldn't get a pic of them both standing, but Thyssen is a full head taller! Hannah is the only person he'll beat out in size, poor little guy!

We had fun seeing Jill and Hannah! We miss them terribly!
Maybe one day we'll live close again! Love ya!

2008-04-28T21:05:00.000-07:00

I stole this pic from my cousin's facebook page. It's a typical stier gathering.. probably Christmas '86. I am on the far left, half cut-off. Thorey cracks me up with her animated walklie-talkie face. When I look at these pics, I get over come by laughter, love, and morning for those fun days. Our parents did such a great job at always getting the cousins together and I realize now how important that was. I'm so thankful that I grew up loving and knowing my cousins. Trena, Hannah, and Kelty aren't shown here, they were probably off perfuming the new-born kittens....(another story for another time)

Tagged by Trena

2008-04-21T19:22:00.000-07:00

High School Times

In High School From: 1993-1997

Who were your friends? Jill, Emily, Eric, Trena, Merilee, Krystal, and all the office ladies

What sports did you play? Nada- I was anti-sports back then.

What kind of car did you drive? My first car when I turned 16 was a nissan 200 sx, 1980. It was the ugliest car I've ever seen. Then I drove my dad's old Ford truck, then a honda CRX

On Friday Nights, what were you doing? Hanging out at WalMart, Best Buy, and various fast food locations.. Driving around taking turns doing silly dares. Going to ska and punk concerts... getting Jill's car broken into.... That was a cold drive home!

Where you a party animal? Well, how do I put this, NO I'm pretty sure I never went to one party in high school that wasn't my, Trena's, Emily's, or Jill's birthday... although I remember Jill in a towel at one of them...

Where you considered a flirt? That would probably be considered my "sport" in high school.

Where you in band, orchestra, or choir? no, no, no No talent there.

Where you a nerd? No, I was way cooler than everyone else... they just didn't know it.

Did you ever get suspended/expelled? I was the master ditcher.. I only got caught twice.. once freshman year and had to do Saturday School (which is where Jill and I really became friends) apparently standing in the middle of the quad when everyone else has gone to class is not a good hiding spot. The second time was JR year and we had to spend a period picking up trash. Other than that, I got away with murder!

Can you still sing the fight song? I didn't know it then, I sure don't know it now!

Who was your favorite teacher? Mr Baker- he still has my picture up!

Where did you sit during lunch? On the outdoor stage mostly, fond memories of passing around Jill's big ziplock of Lucky Charms.

Name of the School? Hesperia High and then Sultana High (Sultana opened my JR year)

School Mascot? The Sultan AKA Jaimie Messinger

School colors? Teal and Black

Rival School? I have no idea, Hesperia High, I guess.

Did you go to prom? Yes, I had a great time... My parents went too! -My dad was the Assistant Principal of my school, so he had to be there, but I loved it!

If you could go back and do it again, would you? no way

What do you remember about graduation? My dad giving me a kiss and hug as he handed me my diploma. That memory is really special to me.

Where did you go for Senior skip day? I don't remember. I did so much skipping that it all kind of blurs together.

Favorite memory?I have a really bad memory, but I remember picking up Jill every morning Senior year and wondering if her hair would be wet or dry... you know, she started that whole messy pony tail phenominon. no joke.

where you in any clubs? I think Eric tried to get us to join Library club at some point. And I went to one key club meeting, but then I realized that key club was doing a bunch of service projects .... I thought it had more to do with keys.

Have you gained some weight since then? yes.. Let's just say I was really skinny then and I'm not so much now. But trying to get back!

How many fights did you get it? Almost one with the school slut. She approached me and if Jill wasn't there, I probably would have punched her.

Who was your high school sweetheart? Jill, Emily, and Eric. I had a boy friend or two, but they don't count. Actually, Jill holds the key to my heart, literally.

Are you still in contact with him/her? Yep, not Eric so much.

Do you still talk to people from high school? Jill and Emily

Where did you work in high shcool? Carrows and Fanzz

What were your grades? Bs and Cs with an occasional A.. you can't expect more with all that ditching, can you?

What was your dress style? Ska, Punk- My basic outfit: blue dickies or jeans with a white tank and a belt with a K on it.

What year did you graduate? 1997

That was way too long of a survey and I even cut out some of the questions..
I TAG JILL, EMILY, CHANDA, JULIE, JULIE C

To: Mom Love, Katie

2008-04-15T22:40:00.000-07:00

Belen's "flower garden" in the front yard.. this is her favorite spot.

Yum! Red Velvet Cupcakes!

Playing at Rossmoor Park

Fun with Mama in Palm Springs.

Born Free!!!!

What can I say?? My kids LOVE to be naked!

Carl's Jr. Play-Place

First time at the Dentist... she did such a great job!

Another naked Palm Springs pic

The look on her face says it all.....

Isn't biting into an ink-pen funny??

We went to the Santa Ana zoo to watch the sheep get sheered.

McKenzie... Is that you???

2008-04-15T10:50:00.000-07:00

Hey McK, when did you start modeling for Bill Me Later?? Hehe.

I opened an email from them, and there you were!!

No, Thyssen, No!

2008-04-09T13:36:00.000-07:00

So yesterday I was blow-drying my hair and Skippy was on the couch near our back door. He was half paying attention to the TV and half to what the kids were doing outside when he heard Thyssen gagging and Belen yelling, "he's barfing!!" Skippy ran outside and saw crying Thy with mud drooling down his chin. Now, little Thy Guy has been known to be a dirt eater for some time now, but it's never been this bad. Skippy ran him into the bathroom and I quickly washed his mouth out. There was so much mud in there, I couldn't believe it! I just kept scooping and scopping.. he stopped crying as I was getting all the mud out of his mouth, I think he was relieved. When all was said and done, he was fine, and hopefully he won't contract worms from this (I can't even think about how discusting that would be)... yuck. And, come to find out,- not to be too gross- but...... dirt is a great laxitive!

Here are some other little things ThyGuy has been up to...
-constantly crawling under the desk and turning off the power stip of the computer!
-unrolling the toilet paper
-throwing every toy he can into whatever receptical he can find, trashcans, empty boxes, open drawers, etc.
-pointing at things he wants and saying a stream of bable.
-biting!
-stomping his feet when he doesn't get what he wants fast enough.
-clapping at himself for no apperent reason
-climbing on and off of the fireplace
-just being a cute baby!

Clarks

2008-03-31T10:28:00.000-07:00

I have to say, I love Clarks shoes. They are the most comfortable shoe I have ever worn. I learned about them from my grandmother, who has great taste in shoes. Yesterday, I was getting something out of the pantry and when I stepped back, I noticed that the middle -inbetween-you-toes part of my flips broke! I couldn't believe it! Clarks are supposed to be really well made. I had just gotten these flips back in August (I bought them on sale for like $30) and had only worn them about a dozen times. I decided I should go to the website and see what they say about repair and whatnot. It basically said that they don't repair, only replace. Well, I called the number today and spoke to a very nice Jersey woman and she had me go on the website and pick out a new pair! How awesome is that?? I got to pick out a new pair of 74$ flipflops for free!! And they are being shipped to my house by friday! I am so happy with this company.. it's nice to know that they stand by thier product. Oh, the bonus is that she's not making me mail back my broken pair (which they usually do), so I am going to take them to a shoe repairman and have them fixed! It's a win/win for me today! Yay!

My new FREE Clarks- cute, huh?

Updates

2008-03-19T00:21:00.000-07:00

I updated my lay-out and in the process I deleted all my links to everyone's blogs...aarrgg! I've done my best at rebuilding my links, but if you see that you are missing from my list, let me know! I didn't leave anyone off on purpose, it's just late and my brain function is limited after 10.

Kinda Fixed

2008-03-17T18:31:00.000-07:00

I followed Ben's advice and opened the side of my computer. I also cleaned all the little fans and now it's running at a normal temp!! Yay! I think that if I were to close the side, the temp would get too hot again so it's not all the way fixed, but it's good enough for the time being. So, I was finally able to upload pics from birthdays! Skippy's was the 3rd, Thyssen's the 11th, and mine the 14th. It's March madness birthdays here at the Andersen home. Here are pics from all the festivities.

Thyssen's First Birthday!!

All the little tots tried their hardest to break open the pinata... finally Skippy stepped in and finsihed the job. Thyssen slept through the pinata...luckily, he woke up just in time to do cake and presents. He totally knew exactly what to do with the cup-cake. He picked it up and went for it! He ate pretty much the whole thing.

The only thing I wanted for my Bday was to watch the Electrical Light Parade. We went to DCA with Trena & Aaron, and Mandy & Kids. It was a fun time, exactly what I wanted!

Thanks Aunt Trena for braving the dangerous and exhausting treck all the way to the front of the park to get the girls their popcorn!

stupid transformer computer

2008-03-13T23:43:00.000-07:00

So, from the outside our computer looks really cool, like a transformer. Skippy built it with the help of my computer savy brothers a few years ago. It was built to be a good gaming computer, fast, with great graphics. It looks really rad, but it's not acting rad. It's been overheating, a problem we've had to rectify in the past. The awesome computer doctor guy we like is no longer in business because he got a real job, so I've been on the computer for 2 minutes at a time for the last couple of weeks. I have just enough time to view my emails before it gets too hot and I have to turn it off again. Anywho, I finally stole Skippy's lap-top away from him so that I could do some blogging and commenting. So, who knows when we'll get it fixed, this may be my last entry for a while... I'm bummed too because I have 3 birthdays to blog about. I've been feeling tempted to try and fix the computer myself... hhhmmm... I wonder if I could do it. Trena, can I borrow your Mrs. Fix It tool box??

Family Outing

2008-02-19T20:45:00.000-08:00

We took advantage of the holiday Monday and went on a family outing to the Huntington Library and Gardens. It was Thyssen's first time in his big-boy carseat. He loved it!
I set my camera on a big rock in the Japanese Gardens and got this family pic, not bad, eh?
Belen and Thy guy had a lot of fun being outside all day. Out of all the pretty gardens and flowers, Belen's favorite was the Desert garden! She stopped and stared at every cactus and oohed and awwed at all the little needles. She's totally got her mommy's desert blood!

Thy Guy

2008-02-10T14:03:00.001-08:00

Our little Thy guy...

We love him soo much!! Here are some cute/funny recent pics that Trena just sent me.

At the Cerrritos Mall- I ONLY feed my kids healthy and organic food.
At Dland- the guy at the Roger Rabbit ride told me that Thyssen had to sit on the seat and not in my lap... It looked so funny- his little face was struggling to look up and see everything the entire ride. It was sad but cute.

Twighlight Books

2008-02-05T23:10:00.001-08:00

I have been completely involved with this searies. I started the first book last Monday and finished it Friday, then I just finished the second book in two days. Every spare thought I have involves these books. I have seriously been thinking about the charcters and been genuinly worried about their welfare... will Bella become a vampire? Who will she choose in the end- Edward or Jacob? Will Charlie find out the truth? Will Edward kill Jacob? Will Jacob kill Edward? Will Victoria kill Jacob? I could go on and on, there are endless possibilities... I am thirsting for the last book, I can't wait to read it, yet, I am already feeling sad that this exciting adventure is coming to an end. I can take comfort in the fact that it is being made into a movie and I will be able to relive it on the big screen. ohhhh, Edward!!!

http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/

Tagged by Meghan

2008-02-05T22:17:00.000-08:00

What is his name? Scott Thyssen Andersen aka Skippy
How long have we been married? 6 1/2 years
How old is he? 32- 33 in one more month!
Who eats more? He does, hands down.
Who said I love you first? I did, I was a little stalkerish when we first got together.
Who is taller? We see eye-to-eye
Who sings better? It's a toss-up
Whose temper is worse? His, I don't really have one.
Who is smarter? I am more witty, but his memory is better.
Who mows the lawn? He does
Who pays the bills? I do
Who does the dishes? I do
Who cooks dinner?He does- he's soooo good at cooking!
Who drives when you are together? He does, he's totally mocho that way.
Who is more stubborn? I'm not stubborn :)
Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? it's even
Who has more friends? He does, he's way more friendly than I am.
Who wears the pants in the family? He usually has the final say

Jill, Emily- You're it!!!

She's So Brave!

2008-01-18T15:33:00.000-08:00

Belen has always been scared to death of all the characters at Dland. Whenever we see a character she says how she wants to say hi to them and take a picture with them, but when the time comes for her to go near the character, she freezes up with fear. I totally understand this because I am.... I mean.... was, the same way. So anyway, we were in toon town a week ago and she spotted Mini walking towards a photo-op. Belen took off running after her screaming "Mini!! Mini!! Stop!!" I, of course, ran after Belen. So there we were running through toon town chasing minimouse and I knew that once we caught up to her Belen would chicken out and just want to stand and stare. So, we caught up to mini at the photo-op and got in line to meet her. The entire time in line I was giving Belen pep-talks about how nice mini is and how happy she is going to be to see Belen, etc. Well, it was finally out turn and Belen ran right up to her and gave her a big hug! I was so proud of her for not being afraid. Am I jumping the gun to think that maybe she'll like Santa this year?

Stuff

2008-01-18T10:45:00.001-08:00

Well, I started subbing again. I did two days this week, 4th and 5th grade. I subbed at my old school so it was really fun seeing all my old co-workers. It's weird because when I'm at work, I think.. wow, I love this, I don't mind it at all. Then when I'm at home with the kids, I think, wow, I love this! I never want to work! I guess as long as I keep it a few days a week I'll like it.. a little time for me to do what I love but still be able to be at home with my kids most of the time. I applied for an on-line teaching job and I'm just hoping they have an opening... then I could do what I love- in my pj's!

Belen had her birthday party a few weeks ago- here's some pics from the festivities.

Christmas Day

2007-12-30T19:27:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Christmas Day at Skip's parent's house in Rossmoor. Belen got her princess bike and blew out birthday candles on a pumpkin pie, how festive!

Happy 3rd Brithday, Christmas baby!
Grandpa Clause and Thyssen

Grandma Clause and Thyssen

Christmas Eve

2007-12-30T15:48:00.001-08:00

A few pics from Christmas Eve at my parents' house in Palm Springs. For the first time in years, we had all five of us together with all our spouses and kids. What a great time!

This isn't the best picture to show it, but Mama is Thyssen's favorite person.. he cries if she walks by and doesn't pick him up!

Papa in the spa with 5 of his grandkids.

Chris and Alicia... I miss your faces already!
Belen and cousins celebrated her birthday... yum!

Seeing the lights on Candy Cane Lane with Nonni and PapaWe had all the grandkids dress up for the manger scene as Nonni read from the Bible. The boys got a little confused and started giving baby Mag a blessing... Pretty funny! The Stier Family caroling tradition lives on..... Ben's Family, minus baby Mag
Skippy, Brian and Chris just pouring with Christmas spirit

Catching up on weeks of pictures.....

2007-12-30T15:11:00.001-08:00

Princess Wishes on Ice!

Bishop Durham from our old ward was nice enough to get us tickets to Disney Princess Wishes on Ice. We took our friends, the Ellsworths and had a great time! Carina and Belen have birthdays just weeks apart so it was a nice birthday treat for both of them.

Belen and Carina in a 3rd Birthday hug!

Whoohoo! Laundry time!

Thyssen has really been enjoying the spin cycle lately... he reaches in and tries to grab the laundry as it tumbles around. That darn glass is always in his way!

Viva Las Vegas!

We went to Vegas and visited some of our favorite people. I've known Jill since 4th grade and became everlasting friends with her in high school. She and her husband Don are chiropractors and live in Vegas with their new little baby-girl Hannah.

Here's Thyssen playing with Hannah... He's 2 months older, but Hannah is gaining on him.

Skip and the kids at the park by Jill and Don's house.

And here they are... the very photogenic- Jill and Don!

We went to a new out-door mall and it had an awesome playground in the middle of it.

Regan's Christmas Party

2007-12-06T22:39:00.000-08:00

Today we went to Regan Presley's Christmas party.. No 3 year old can throw a party quite like Regan. She is such a gracious little hostest. She had ornaments to decorate, cookies to frost, and a stocking exchange. We had a great time. Thanks Regan! Merry Christmas!

Regan used more sprinkles than frosting

Abby showing off her creation

Nicholas just being cute.
Eli trying to move his cookie out of the way so he could finish eating his frosting.

Brooked placed every sprinkle just so

Belen took this very seriously..

I didn't get a picture of Lauren- but I love you!

Don't forget to Moisturize!!

2007-12-06T22:26:00.000-08:00

So, Belen walks into the bathroom while I'm doing my make-up and she's got huge gobs of lotion in her hair. -- Five minutes ago I told her no more lotion, but stupid me didn't put it out of reach. Then, as I'm wiping it out of her hair, I hear Thyssen start to cry.. hhhmmmm "Belen, did you put lotion on Thyssen?" "no mommy" I went into the living room and found Thyssen absolutely covered in lotion, he had rubbed in into his eyes... ouch. I started to reprimand Belen but then realized that I needed a picture so I acted nice for about 5 seconds to get the picture and then I scolded Belen and put Thyssen in the bath. He's never been so soft. Notice Belen rubbing the excess lotion into the carpet... so helpful.

UUGGHHH! and other ramblings

2007-11-29T22:40:00.000-08:00

So, Mandy and I went to the aquarium on Tuesday.. but do you think either one of us remembered our cameras? Of course not! Mandy and I are so not good for each other! We are both way too forgetful and flighty. And, I'm not allowed (per Skippy) to keep my camera in my purse anymore becasue that's how the last one got lost. So now I never remember to bring it anywhere..

I digress... we had a fun time and the girls were actually a lot more interested in all the displays than I thought they would be. Luke had fun running around and and saying "duh duh duh duh" at everything. Poor Thyssen stayed in the stroller almost the entire time.

I am so excited for Christmas this year! The entire family will be at my parent's house and I can't wait to see all the grandkids together. Maybe we sill actually get a big family photo!! For some reason big family photos are impossible with our family.

Belen found her presents in the closet the other day and she said, "Mommy! What's all this for me?" I then had to explain to her that I have to wrap them all up and put them under the tree... then she proceeded with a zillion why questions. Gotta love 3 year olds!

TAGGED

2007-11-10T22:25:00.001-08:00

So, Trena tagged me, and I have to say I'm happy about it.

Six intersting things about me... I'll try to make it interesting.

1. At age 16 I was asked in a job interview what my talents were.... so, I showed how I was double jointed and turned my arm around in a complete circle... if you were wondering, I didn't get the job. My interviewing skills have improved slightly since then.

2. Going off of that last one- when my hand is planted flat on a surface, I can turn it around in a complete circle. When I put my arms out straight and lock my elbows, my arms look freak-ish.

3. My whole life I was told that I had a heart murmur and went to cardiology appointments every year until I was 18, and wasn't able to participate in sports or over-exert myself in any way... then when I was 22 I went to a new doctor and found out that I actually don't have a murmur and my heart is completely normal. go figure.

3. I was born on my mom's birthday.

4. I am one out of five kids that does not have curly hair.

5. I'm a natural teacher.

6. I'm silently/internally competitive, like my dad.

So, KARA!!! Tag, you're it!

A Princess Pirate and Her Parrot!

2007-10-31T20:32:00.000-07:00

Belen had a great time trick-or-treating.. although she just stared at the people and said nothing when they opened the door. Thyssen was over his costume in about five seconds. I made Thyssen's costume with my limited skills... but I loved Belen's costume! I have to give a little shout-out to Julie Presley for making it last year for her daughter.. she's sooooo talented! It's inspired me to want to take a sewing class... I really want to be the type of mom that hand makes her children all their costumes and mends their clothes.... Why does that seem like a far-off dream to me? Anyway, we had a successful night and we're doing it all over again on Saturday for our ward party. Wanna come? Happy Halloween!

A few new pics from the week

2007-10-26T22:16:00.000-07:00

My parents came to town today and so of course we went to Dland!We got there at 1 and we had a great time and were totally worn out by 5. I love living so close and having a pass.. it's so fun!

Our family actually went to the pumkin patch this year! Well, it's a California-Style pumkin patch- the pumkins are lined up in the dirt as if they were in a patch and there is a small carnival attached. Anyway, we got a family picture and that's all I wanted.

A few cute pics at Atlantis park with Luke and Penny.

Big Boy

2007-10-23T18:08:00.000-07:00

Thyssen can sit up by himself in the bath!! Yay!!! It's so much easier to bathe the kids now. I don't have to use his bothersome bathseat anymore and he and Belen can splash and play now. It may not seem like anything that exciting, but it's huge for me!

Temple Night

2007-10-20T13:09:00.000-07:00

We actually got to participate in our stake temple day! I think it's a first for us. My parents came to town because of my cousin's wedding reception and so they were here to babysit- perfect timing! We had a great time and really felt the spirit and the wonderful comfort that the temple can bing. Thanks mom and dad! On a side note- I may need to get a new temple dress- my bust was just about popping my buttons open! I had to keep my arms folded the entire time- everyone just thought I was very reverent. Let's hope that these babies shrink a little post nursing... it's just getting rediculous.

Good Day!

2007-10-15T14:11:00.000-07:00

It's on these rare days that I feel like a well-accomplished mommy... Got laundry going, floors clean, grociery shopping done, kids fed and napping, life is good. I love days like this when everything just comes together... Yay me!

I'm Stuck!

2007-10-01T21:56:00.000-07:00

So this is how I found Thyssen the other morning... I could hear him crying and when I went into the living room to get him, I couldn't find him at first. When he saw me he started smiling and giggling in hopes that I would pick him up. I had to walk away to get the camera and he started to crying again, and when I got back and he saw me again, he put on the happy face. It might be mean to toy with his emotions like that, but it's really cute.

Zoo Monkeys

2007-09-28T21:11:00.000-07:00

This is Belen and Jack at the Santa Ana Zoo... this is right befire she got scared of the loud screaming monkeys. She and monkeys don't have a good track-record and these crazy monkeys didn't help. The second picture is one I tried to take of her infront of the oh-so-scarey monkeys. Besides the monkeys, we had a nice time. It's kinds of a sad little zoo, not many actual zoo animals, but there was a big playground and a farm- yes, a farm at the zoo.

Generations

2007-09-12T20:02:00.000-07:00

Here are three generations of Andersen men. Note the pale Danish skin and red hair (well, if any of them had any hair, it would be red). So cute! It's all up to Thyssen to carry on the Andersen name! Good luck little buddy!

Feeling Thankful

2007-09-12T19:50:00.000-07:00

Our family is just feeling thankful today for this home we have to live in and for the wonderful people who are letting us live here :) Belen has such a good time playing here, running up and down the side walk and walking to the neighborhood park to play. We are truly blessed! Thanks to everyone who has helped us out over the last few months. We love you all!

It's my party and I'll cry if I want to....

2007-09-10T19:37:00.000-07:00

Today was Penny's 3rd Bday party and she spent most of the party in the house watching cartoons and sulking. I think all the friends and people there was a bit too much for her to handle. She had a great time opening gifts, though!! She is so cute... Belen had a great time celebrating her little friend.

We're in!

2007-09-06T16:52:00.000-07:00

We have moved in now and are very happy!! The house is almost all the way fixed up and is starting to look more like a home and less like a tool shed. We went to the new ward and loved it.. there are a lot of young families and Belen already made a little friend. We went to Dland yesterday for the first time since summer started, ate giant corn dogs, and visited with old friends.

The Waiting Game

2007-08-29T15:11:00.000-07:00

Well, we officially have less than 10 days until "hackett house" is finished. That's when the shower doors go in.. So, we might be able to start living there by this weekend! We can't wait to have our own space again. We will also start the new ward then too. When we are all moved in we will have a huge blowout party to celebrate.. be on the look-out for invites!