Happy Looooove Day!

Emphasis on the loooove :)  The kids were so excited for Valentine's Day to come.  We spent several evenings last week with the school kids making their boxes to take to school.  We spent one afternoon so Zeke and Olivia could decorate sacks (they were feelings left out).  We spent Saturday afternoon writing on cards and taping candy to each one.  The kids trying to secretive and making two extra - one for me and one for Michael.  We decorated cookies Saturday and Sunday and made a plate to take to Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Spencer.  We also made fried pies to take to them.  Today I am making more because all this giving away depleted Michael's stock pile :)  Zeke and Olivia just finished their very exciting party.  They opened their sacks, ate all their hershey kisses, drank some juice they got to pick out at the store and had a heart dhaped sandwich for lunch.  That was most exciting for Zeke because turning the sandwich into a heart cut all the crust off so he didn't have to!  Next we are going to town and they will get to sit nice and quiet while I get my haircut (yeah right).  Then we will get the kids from school, go to the park with the dog, practice piano and do homework and then head out for a romantic dinner at McDonalds (with and indoor playland)!  Michael is working today so I won't see him until 10:30 tonight.  I may as well make it a fun day for the kids.  I can think of better places to eat at, but for kids, McDonalds is as good as it gets!  Then we will have piano lessons and some Valentine cupcakes.  Hopefully they will all come off their sugar high before bedtime and all will be back to normal by tomorrow!  Again, yeah right!

I am, though, very grateful for all those I have to love in my life.  Michael is my true love and I am very lucky and blessed to have him as my husband.  He works hard and does his best to take care of us.  Though his new job requires him to be gone a lot more,when he is home, he makes sure he is a part of us and our days.  My children are next on my love list.  Some days I want to send them to a boarding school, but most days I can't get enough of them.  They are funny, kind, creative, spiritual, thoughtful, helpful, beautiful, precious and I love them with all my heart.  There are so many others to love - grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, friends - I could go on all day describing each person and why I love them and how they have blessed and changed my life.  They are in Minnesota, Tennessee, Colorado, Canada, Idaho, South Dakota, South Africa, Utah, Japan, Ireland, England, Wyoming, California, and more.

So, to all of you whom I love and cherish - Happy Looooove Day!  I love you!

Single Mom

I am three days in (two and a half actually) to my nine days as a single mom.  It's really not as bad as I thought it would be.  Michael's new job has taken some getting used to.  I can only talk to him on his lunch break and that's only if he calls me since I don't know when he will be taking his lunch break.  I do miss my random conversations with him.  Luckily I have a dog now and I can have random conversations with him.  Then I can interpret his noises as the answers I was looking for and do whatever it is that I want where as I don't have as much freedom to interpret Michael's answers.  There are times, however, that it is frustrating.  Like when the kids have activities to go to.  I don't get to just load up the one kid with the activity and drop him/her off.  I have to load up all the kids and take them all.  It's okay usually, but sometimes they don't want to go and I don't want to take them!  There's also the many hours by myself.  I get a little bit of time (30 minutes) at night while Michael is eating and getting ready for bed that I can follow him around and tell him all the things I have saved up for that day.  There is also an hour or so in the mornings that he is home but I am busy helping Dillon with piano, getting breakfast ready and trying to make sure everyone is ready to go to school.  That cuts in to any conversation time I might would have with Michael.  I miss it.  I love his days off.  Even if I have nothing to say to him I like having him there just in case I do have something I want to say.  I miss him most in the evenings.  When I am trying to get things settled down for the day or when I wish I could jump in the car and run to the store or to get my hair cut and not have to bring every one with me.  Eventually he will be going to a two week on one week off schedule and that will be even more adjusting.  Some of those two weeks he won't come home at all.  I am looking forward to nicer weather so that when that happens I can go on adventures with the kids.  Zeke is already planning a 10 day trip to California.  Why?  Because he's never been there and he wants to go.  I told him maybe...probably not for ten days but maybe for a few.  That satisfied his needs and he is getting excited for it.  Between dance, piano, cleaning apartments, moving, errands, birthday parties, church activities and everything else I get run a little ragged at times.  I am not trying to complain or throw a pity party.  I am very grateful for his job and the opportunities it will give us.  It is a blessing that we never imagined we would have.  It makes me all the more grateful when Michael is around.  The help that he gives me on his days off are great.  The conversations are wonderful.  His company is the best.

Finally!!

This weekend was the longest weekend I can remember.  Michael was really sick all weekend and we were trying to move.  Olivia also got really sick and just barely missed a trip to the ER with croup.  It was kind of scary.  She slept out on the couch with Michael Friday night, both of them sick as dogs.  Around 2:30 she settled down.  Saturday morning we started moving.  Thank goodness my brother stayed in town to help.  I felt bad that he missed a weekend with his family but we were so thankful to have his help.  We also had two others from church show up.  The weather started out okay but them it started snowing and blowing.  Since it got so nasty we just had them help with the things that we couldn't get on our own and then let them go home.  That afternoon it cleared up some so Michael and I went back and got another load.  I dropped the kids off at my parents house and Spencer came back and helped us unload.  By that time we were wiped out.  Michael was so sick he could hardly stand up straight.  We put beds together and then Michael stayed home to rest while I went to my parents to eat supper with the kids.  They stayed and watched a movie so I came back home and unpacked.  Michael went to bed.  On top of Michael and Olivia being so sick we also had Zeke and Maddi sick.  Makenna had been sick on Thursday.  The rest were okay.  Sunday I went with the kids (except Olivia) to church.  It was a nice day.  There were a lot of nice people there.  Monday it was back to school.  Michael was feeling somewhat better.  We went back to our old house and got some more things.  Then we spent a lot of the day unpacking.  After school we went to Rock Springs to get a few things and take the kids out to dinner.  They had gotten free kids meals from Wingers and had been waiting for Michael to be home to go with them.  Tuesday we finished at the other house and worked some more at our new house.  Tuesday afternoon Michael stayed home with Zeke and Olivia and waited for the Direct TV guy to show up and hook up our TV.  I went to Rock Springs and got our new dog.  He is a 3 year old beagle named Jack.  The kids live him.  I do too.  He rarely barks.  and does really well with the kids.  They even had him ride in the car with us today to take them to school.  Today Michael is back to work for nine days.  Everyone is on the mend.  I am still trying to get everything put away and get it looking more like a house than a garbage dump.  Things are coming along but it will still be a little while.  This morning I spent forever outside trying to get a dog house up to the front of the house.  There was one down in the back yard (when I say down, I mean it.  The yard slopes so that the back of the house is a walk out basement.)  Anyways, this house was solid wood and so heavy I couldn't lift it - at all!  I was determined to get it up the driveway though.  I pushed it over the snow, ice, dirt and rocks and finally got it up on our driveway.  Occasionally it would get stuck on something.  I would have to go to the front, put my arms in the door, squat down so my elbows were resting on my knees and lift up onto my toes to get the house up high enough to get over the rock or whatever was in the way.  I'm sure the neighbors had quite the show if they were watching.  If they were watching I could have used the help!  Anyways, I got it so now Jack has a house up front so we can put him outside when it's not too cold.  Michael will have a fit when he sees what I did.  I was quite proud of myself and ate a few Cadbury mini eggs in celebration of my big accomplishment!  So that was my weekend. I am now single mom for nine days but I look forward to the five days off!  It will be a long weekend for the kids too so we will be able to spend some time together.  Things are finally going to settle down and we will feel like we are here to stay.  It is nice to have that in the future!  I signed four of the kids up for baseball last night.  That will start in April.  Another thing for them to look forward to.  So, all is well with the Christiansens and now we can relax and begin to enjoy our new home.

Maddi

Well, Maddi had her final testing this morning for GATE (Gifted and Talented).  She passed with flying colors!  I am so proud of her.  She will get to start Monday.  She will be so excited when she finds out.  She said both of the girls (Maddi and Makenna) are exceptional girls and they are so excited to have them in the district.  The  one who gave Maddi her test this morning said she is a really hard worker and did a great job.  Getting into GATE also means that Maddi will get to go to Jackson Hole this spring on a 4 day retreat.  It will be a great experience for her.  She has a couple friends that are going as well so that will make it that much more fun.  Anyways, happy day at our house today and I am one proud Mama!

A Cold Day in...

Haha!  It's freezing today!  There was so much I needed to do after having two sick (not really, more fake sick) boys home yesterday but I couldn't bring myself to go anywhere!  The wind chills are down in the negative 30's and the real temp hasn't reached 0 yet.  We spent the day inside.  I packed a few things and ate a lot of chocolate.  It made me happy until I had to enter it all in on my food log.  Now I have to eat lettuce the rest of the day!  Michael was glad that his work was in the shop today.  Tomorrow's temps will be similar and then it will start to warm up (meaning it will get above zero instead of staying below).  Hopefully it will warm up enough to get things moved this weekend.  If we ever have to move in the winter again I am going to go on strike!  In Hawaii!

Moving

Well, it looks like things have finally come together.  I got the keys to our rental yesterday.  Michael has next weekend off so we are planning on moving then.  This week will be a busy one for me.  Michael works until Thursday night.  Maddi has piano Monday night, Olivia has dance Tuesday and Dillon has piano that day too.  Makenna has piano Wednesday and both older girls have dance Thursday.  The landlord has also hired me to clean some of her apartments.  I am supposed to start on one tomorrow.  I also have to pack up our belongings and get everything ready to go this weekend.  I'll have to get all the utilities, phone and internet switched, get a moving truck to load with and once again do a forwarding address to all the necessary people and places.  I have been sick last week with a cold and now the kids are starting to get sick too.  Hopefully our health will hold out for another week.  Then we can all settle into our new surroundings and be sick together!  I am excited to finally be able to get somewhere and unpack.  We have had boxes piled around starting back at Thanksgiving!  I hope that soon I will be able to look around my house and have some other kind of decorations than brown cardboard boxes!

GATE

Well, I got word today that Makenna made it into the GATE program.  She will start next week.  Maddi has one more test to take but the teacher is sure she will make it as well.  The girls are both excited for it.  If Maddi does make it (which I hope for her ego's sake she does) she will get to go on a 4 day retreat to Jackson Hole to the Teton Science School (or something like that).  There will be a lot of hands on learning and it is a great opportunity for her.  Makenna will get to go next year.  We missed the fundraiser for it but hopefully the school will help us out on it so we don't have to come up with all the money for it.  Anyways, that's the excitement in our house right now!

Still Hanging in There

It's been a week or so since I posted.  We are still here.  We are still in boxes.  I am a mess, but hopefully things will change soon.  We have found a place to rent.  It's nice.  It will fit all of us.  It has somewhat of a yard.  It's expensive.  And, it's on the other side of town.  We tried our best to find something on this side of town but had no luck.  So we are going three miles away to the other side of town.  New church.  Possibly new school, but we hope not.  And not in walking distance to anywhere but church and new school.  It will do though.  It's only for a year or so then we will be able to buy something in an area that we want to be in.  Other than the boxes making my life a complete mess we are doing good.  The kids are doing great!  They really seem to like school.  Maddi and Makenna both excel in school and are being tested for the GATE program (gifted and talented).  Hopefully they will be accepted so they can be a little more challenged in their school work - especially Makenna.  We have piano lessons, dance lessons, grocery shopping, visits to museums and grandparents, playtime and a McDonald's with an indoor playland in Green River and Rock Springs.  Life continues to move on.  We adjust and adapt as necessary.  I will settle down in a few weeks when we can get moved and finally unpack our belongings! Michael is liking his job.  He just got done with a long weekend and now he is back to work for nine days.  We will miss having him around but we know at the end we get him for 5 days straight!  (Poor Michael :) !)  I have pictures and other things I want to blog about but I have to find my cord so I can download to the computer.  Hopefully that will happen soon.  Until then, this is where we are at in life....

A Few Blocks Away

We have lived away from family for 6 of our 10 years of marriage.  Now we are blessed to be back in close distance to them.  Right now it seems strange because it has been so long since we could just swing by on our way home.  I feel like we are on vacation and I keep waiting for the day to come when we have to pack our bags up and head home.  Then I remember that we don't have to do that anymore and for those that are still a few hours away, we don't  have to do it with such a long time in between.  I love it!  My kids love it!  I even think Michael loves it, although love might be a strong word for him!  This morning I went to my parents' house to use their bowflex after I had dropped the older kids off at school.  To my surprise my mom was home.  She had taken a sick day from school.  She was in the middle of trying to make room for a new and bigger kitchen table.  It involved moving an upright freezer to a new room, moving shelves, taking a door off it's hinges and taking the old table downstairs.  I got to help with all of that and show off my handyman skills by not only knowing how to take the door off the hinges, but being able to do it too!  The whole time I got to visit with her and talk about life and anything else that popped into my head.  I did get my workout in and after being there for three hours we went back home.  I loved it!  It has been so long since I have been able to do that.  I didn't realize how much I missed it until I have been able to do it again. My parents love it too.  It has been so long since they have been around their grandkids on a regular basis that they are just soaking it up too.  We are over there almost everyday at their request.  With Michael working late now, it is nice to have them here and for them to want us in their home so much.  I never knew I would love being just blocks away. It has been so long and I have learned to just do things on my own with the kids even if it was hard.  It's nice to have a little extra backup and a few extra hands to help or hug kids when needed!

The Move

Well, we made it to Green River.  We left Tuesday morning (the 28th) and headed west.  About two hours into the trip my brother called me and told us we needed to drive straight through instead of breaking it up into two days.  There was a storm headed to Green River and if we didn't keep going we would end up in the middle of it.  Not exactly what I wanted to hear but we did it.  We got in about 3am.  I was tired.  We had been driving for 18 hours.  We got a few hours sleep and then headed over to our house to start unloading the truck.  .  We did some that morning and then waited until the evening to finish when we had more help.  My brother, Sam, was there with his family.  The kids had fun playing with their cousins.  Aunt Janiel helped watch the kids and Sam helped unload the truck.  We got it all done before the snow got too bad.  The kids spent the entire weekend playing with their cousins.  They had lunch one day and McDonalds (with an indoor playland), went sledding one day, played basketball at the gym one day, and had a few sleepovers and grandma and grandpa's.  Sunday we went to church.  Monday was the first day of school.  The Backpack Fairy, once again, stopped by our house and left the kids something to make their first day a little more special.  Michael had left for work early that morning so I took the kids to school and registered them and then got to meet all their teachers.  Dillon's teacher is a Vikings fan so he was happy right away.  Zane's teacher seemed very nice and had a spot for him picked out.  Makenna's teacher greeted her with a big hug and that made Kenna's day and Maddi got the only male teacher in the school so she was happy too.  They all seem to be liking school and adjusting okay.  Having Grandma and Grandpa around certainly help.  My mom has started teaching piano lessons to the ones who want to take.  Maddi goes Monday night, Dillon goes Tuesday night and Makenna goes Wednesday night.  Dad has taken the girls to some girls basketball games and they have fun with that.  We have gone swimming at the rec center which is only a few blocks from our house.  Makenna has already gone over to play at a friend's house and Zane was invited to his first birthday party.  The house we moved into we were intending to buy.  However, the bank that owns it decided not to cooperate so it went into foreclosure this week.  We are now looking for a different place to live.  it has been a little stressful just because we are having to still live out of boxes since we will be moving again shortly.  It's hard to feel settled when you can't unpack!  Rentals are hard to find around here, especially for a family our size.  We did find one that we will be able to move into in a few weeks.  It is more than we wanted to pay, but it keeps us in Green River so the kids don't have to switch schools again and it has a yard for the kids to play in.  We will be on the other side of town from where we are now, so there will be no walking to school, parks, stores or grandparents but we are only a few miles away  and when we are able to buy a home we can come back over to this side of town.  So, that is the update on the move and where we are in our lives right now.  Michael's training should finish up this week and he will be able to start his real work and schedule next week.  He is excited for that.  All is well and while we miss our friends in South Dakota and Minnesota, we are very glad to be here near family.