I WON!!!

I can't believe it!!! I won something!!! And not something little or dumb... Something VERY COOL!!!

I WON A DIAPER BAG!!!

And not just any diaper bag, mind you. A Ju-Ju-Be! These are seriously THE COOLEST diaper bags ever made! They are very well-made and smartly designed, and come in so many fun styles and prints! I know, I'm starting to sound like an advertisement, but I'm SO excited (in case you couldn't tell)!

Ju-Ju-Be decided that instead of giving away free diaper bags to celebrities (who can afford whatever they want), why not give them away to everyday Moms who maybe couldn't afford them and would probably appreciate them more. Thus the "Real Mom Giveaway" was born. They have a topic each week that you write a short response to, and then from the entries, they select a winner who receives a bag of their choice! It's pretty impressive to me that a company would be willing to do something like this in this day and age!

Bryan thought I was a little silly, entering every week, but I told him that I was going to keep entering every week until I won! I guess sixteen times a charm! Woo-Hoo!

Hannah and Grandma Anderson

Too beautiful to not share!

Hannah's Blessing Day

Dear Hannah,

Today was a very special day. It was your Blessing Day!

Many of our family, that were able to, drove or flew from far away to be here with you today. Your Grandma and Grandpa Anderson, Nana and Papa Thompson, and Aunt Danielle came all the way from Utah, and your Uncle Chris, Aunt Deb and Paiton came from Michigan. Other members if our family called to wish you well and your Aunt Jenny crocheted a beautiful white blanket for your special day. So many people love you, Hannah! I hope you will always feel that love!

You looked so beautiful today, Hannah. You wore a long white gown and matching bonnet that I have been admiring for almost 7 years! I bought it the very week I found out that I was pregnant with a girl! I was so excited to see you in it! It was stunning with your pretty dark hair and dark eyes and sweet smile. You also wore a silver and pearl bracelet with your name on it that I gave you today.

Standing in the blessing circle were your Daddy, Grandpa Anderson, Papa Thompson, Uncle Chris Christensen, and Eric Palfreyman. (Brother Palfreyman is a good friend who came to help Daddy give you a blessing when you were sick in the hospital.) Daddy gave you your name and a special blessing. I could feel the Spirit telling me that you are a precious Daughter of God. I feel so humbled that He has trusted your Daddy and me to be you parents and raise you here on the Earth. I will try to be the best Mommy I can be for you!

Today I feel especially grateful that Heavenly Father sent you to our family. Someday when you are a mother, you will understand how much love I feel for you and your brothers. It gives me just a small glimpse of the great love our Heavenly Father must have for each of us!

Always know that your Daddy and I are proud of you and love you very much!

Love,

Mommy

Andrew's New Career Plans

"Mom, I'm not quite a Ninja yet. I have all the moves of a Ninja. I'm as good as a Ninja. I'm almost as sneaky as a Ninja. I just need to be a little quieter. That's all I need to work on."

Washington, D.C.

This is what I expected to see when we went to Washington D.C. on the way to OBX - After all, we did arrive in time for the last weekend of the National Cherry Blossom Festival.

Unfortunately, the Cherry Blossoms had an early bloom this year, and we missed them by about a week. Darn! I was so disappointed! But we had a great time anyway!

We arrived late Friday night at our hotel, The Capitol Hilton (yay Priceline!). What a great location, only two blocks from the White House!

Logan wated to check out the bed first thing!

We were so excited to see everything, that we went out for a little walk that night.

I think we stayed out a little past Logan's bedtime!

In the morning, we went out to see the sights.

We tried to teach Andrew about all the monuments and the people they stand for, but I think he got all monumented-out!Andrew and Logan were good sports and posed for lots of pictures for us.

Logan was very upset that we wouldn't let him swim in the Reflection Pool.

We were able to see the National Cherry Blossom Festval Parade. Underdog!!!

We all got a kick out of the 3-D IMAX show at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum.

What a great city!

Jamestown, Virginia

Jamestown Settlement was really cool! In addition to the indoor museum and film, there is an outdoor experience which includes a re-creation of the James Fort, a Powhatan Indian Village, and replicas of the three ships that the English settlers arrived in. Each area has costumed guides to teach you about life during that time and hands-on experiences for everyone to try.

Logan, Andrew, and Summer trying on armor at James Fort.

Andrew learning how to tie a Powhatan fishing net.

The ships were my favorite!

The whole fam below deck!

This is a really fun place to take the kids! If you get a chance, check it out.

Jamestown is also really close to Yorktown and Williamsburg, which we didn't have time to visit, but you could make a whole vacation out of just these sites!

Two wrongs don't make a right, but two Wrights make an airplane!

Okay, so I stole that saying fom a T-shirt I saw in OBX; I thought it was so funny!

While in OBX, we visited the Wright Brothers Memorial in Kitty Hawk, where their famous test flights took place. It was even Wilbur Wright's birthday on the day we visited, so we got in free! Bonus!

I can see why this place would be perfect for testing gliders an airplanes, there is a nice high hill to launch from (Big Kill Devil Hill), a great stretch of field below the hill, and it's pretty windy up there!The thing that struck me the most during the visit was how grateful I am for those like the Wright Brothers who have that unbreakable pioneer spirit, who never give up on their vision, no matter what the odds.

The Glass is Definitely Half-Empty

Today sucked...... I worked from 6 a.m. till midnight yesterday. On the way home, I remembered that I had a 6:30 a.m. lecture. I wasn't going to go, but I felt I should attend (especially since I didn't go to the one last week) because it might help me with some study questions I've been working on. That being the case, I woke up early with less than 5 hours of sleep so I could drive to work on my day off for a 30 minute lecture that turned out to be of very little value. On the way home, this happened:

Luckily, the other driver was not injured, and I received only a minor abrasion on my forehead. Because it was 8 a.m., the sun was directly in line with the stop light, and I couldn't see that the light had changed. It was one of those moments that seemed to pass in slow motion - one of those where you brace yourself for the oncoming tragedy, just hoping that everyone will be okay.

On the plus side, no one was injured, the police were very friendly and didn't issue a citation, and our insurance company was very easy to work with (they even had an the appraisal guy out to our house within three hours of the accident).

On the negative side, I get to look forward to paying the $250 deductible and watching our rates double. FUN, FUN, FUN!!!