Changes in the making...

I know it's been about a year and a half since my last post but I figure it's never too late to write about our life. We have some major changes taking place right now and I wanted to document them.

In mid-December, right before Christmas, Ryan came home and said "What would you think about moving to Utah?" I was shocked, to say the least. We had always said we would never move to Utah. We have enjoyed our time living in other places so much we could never picture ourselves moving back there. A recruiter had persistently been trying to get in touch with Ryan about a job opportunity and Ryan had been ignoring his phone calls, deleting his emails, etc. because we just weren't interested. We were happy in Arkansas and things were going well with Ryan's job. Finally, he got through to Ryan and piqued his interest when he said the job was in Utah. After Ryan's friend lost his dad unexpectedly this past summer, it had been in the back of Ryan's mind to be closer to family. That's about as far as the thought had gone until this opportunity presented itself. A company based in Ogden, Utah called American Nutrition was looking to expand their brands of pet products and was hiring a Director of Marketing to get the ball rolling. The more we found out about the position, the more we realized this position was practically written for Ryan. He has had the perfect job experience and background and the opportunity would be doing what Ryan loves. Even the recruiter said he was a shoe-in for the job if he wanted it. Ryan had a phone interview via Skype right before Christmas. It got him excited and made him want the job.

Because of the Christmas holiday, it was a few weeks before Ryan flew out for a formal interview in Ogden. In the meantime, we were thinking and praying about this opportunity and preparing ourselves for the possibility. It was hard for me as I stressed and worried how it could impact our family and not be able to talk with anyone besides Ryan about it. Ryan flew out January 9th and they formally offered him the position the following Monday. The offer was all that we were hoping it would be and he turned his resignation in to Tyson the same day. It was a whirlwind few weeks as Ryan finished up at Tyson and worked hard to help me get the house ready to put on the market before he left for Utah.
The kids all handled the news surprisingly well. Addy and Halle each cried at first and were sad to leave their friends here behind but quickly warmed up to the idea and even got a little excited. Each child had their moment of sadness at different times and shared a good cry with me but have been stronger than I could have imagined and have embraced this new adventure. It was very difficult as we broke the news to our friends here in Arkansas. It has really become our home here and the wonderful people here have become our family. There were a lot of tears shed that first week or two (mostly by me). It's hard to explain how you can feel peace and know that something is right and at the same time be so brokenhearted to say goodbye. I think it was hardest for Ryan to say goodbye to his seminary kids that he has been teaching the last year and a half.

After Ryan had been in Utah two weeks, the kids and I took a trip out to visit him and look for a house. It was a crazy trip out with flight cancellations, an unexpected night spent in Houston, and having to split up on two separate flights to make it to Utah one day late. Overall we had a good time with Ryan but did not leave with a decision as to where we should live. No area we had looked in had felt right to me for our family and we left undecided. With some new ideas from family, Ryan drove up Weber Canyon to a new area called Mountain Green that we had not previously considered or even knew existed. He fell in love with the area and found a house he felt was right. I had been praying all week that the Lord would show us where we were supposed to live. When Ryan called to tell me about this house, I felt so peaceful and happy. I felt the Lord had shown us where he wanted us to be. The house he found was being built by a builder for his own family and would be done in 45 days. It was the perfect size for us and felt like it was everything we had been looking for. It seemed too good to be true and he was willing to sell it to us and build another home for his family.

Right now we have a contract on the new house contingent on the sale of our home here in Arkansas. I have prayed to feel peace if it is the right thing and my prayers have been answered. We have had showings that have all had positive feedback but no contract yet. We are praying hard that it will work out so that we can be together as a family as soon as possible. I should be stressed (and I must admit I am a little as the days go by) but I feel peace that it will all work out. The Lord has always taken care of us in the past and shown us where we are supposed to be and I have faith that he will do that again. The waiting is the hardest part. I know our timeframe and the Lord's are not always the same and it's not easy when we don't know how things will work out. We have done everything in our power and now we just have to have faith and wait. A good friend shared this quote with me when I told her we were moving: "Look forward to the changes in your life, for they will always be the catalyst of personal growth". That has definitely proven to be true.

A few "under construction" photos of the new house:

Winslow Half (how I got here)

If you told me a year ago that I would run a half marathon, I wouldn't have believed it.
I barely finished a 5k last November with Halle and I thought it was rough. I'll give you a brief overview how I got here. Back in January I joined a 12 week healthy habits challenge with some ladies in the area. It included fitness habits and, being the competitive person that I am, I wanted to win it. I barely ever missed a day and it really helped me to get into better shape. I was exercising 6 days a week and felt great. I was mostly doing videos at home but then I started to do an occasional run because I wanted to do an upcoming 5k with some friends from church. I never ran more than three or so miles leading up to that day.

At the end of April I ran a 5k with some ladies from church. There was a girl named Marci who was new to the area and we ended up running together in the race. She was a runner and I really wanted to stay up with her so I pushed hard and got my fastest time ever, finishing at 28:31. She thought we were a good match and suggested we start running together. She pushed me all spring/summer to run farther than I ever had before. She would just encourage me and say, "If you can do 4, you can do 5", etc. On July 4th she suggested we start off our day by running 10 miles. I really didn't think I had it in me but we did it. We actually even ended up running 11! The sense of accomplishment was huge. I had no idea there was a runner inside me.

After running 11 miles, I had the courage to sign up for a half marathon. I wanted to find one locally that I would have time to train for. In my search, I found one about an hour south in Winslow, Arkansas in mid-September. I'm a sucker for beautiful scenery and this small town is nestled right in the Boston Mountains not far from Devil's Den State Park. I knew it would be picturesque so I took the bait and signed up. I've never been one to exercise while on vacation but knowing that I had this race looming in the near future kept me motivated. I loved running in all the places we visited this summer: Denver, CO, Southern Utah, Highland, UT and Island Park, Idaho just outside of Yellowstone.





I could feel myself becoming a runner as I looked forward to my next morning run and how great I felt afterward. I also really loved running with Ryan, as he became my weekday running partner. It was really nice doing something active like that together.


As the race day drew nearer, Marci and I decided we should head down to Winslow and check out the course we would be running. I don't know if that was a good idea or not but what's done is done. We saw that the course was full of hills and half of it was on a rocky, dirt road. Truthfully, it really scared me. I didn't know if I had it in me to run all those hills.



My nervousness grew as race day approached. I was nervous about so many things. Would I hold Marci back? I knew she was too nice to run on ahead without me. Had I been eating well enough to sustain me? Would I be able to run all those hills? What if I had to go to the bathroom? I knew there was no turning back and I had to just do my best.

The morning of the race I was nervous but excited. Ryan assured me that I would do great. He and the kids were planning to be there at the finish line and I was really happy about that. I really wanted to show my girls, especially, that they can do anything they make up their mind to do. Marci and I arrived in Winslow, following a truck carrying some port-a-potties for the race. We had a good laugh about that. After a quick stop at a gas station restroom, finding parking, picking up our race number and another last-minute bathroom stop, we only had about 3 minutes before the race began. In hindsight, it was probably good to not have too much time to get anxious.


The race began and we were off. The first 2 miles were really hard for me. It always takes me until somewhere in mile 2 to reach my runner's high and there were several hills to climb before I got there. It was a struggle. Mentally, I was really worried and wondered what I had gotten myself into. I was worried I wouldn't be able to finish the race. The night before I had downloaded some new songs onto my running playlist and the new music really helped. Somewhere before mile 3, my runner's high kicked in and I was so happy. The hills were still very discouraging, though. Every time we had a downhill I kept thinking that I should enjoy it, but all I could think about was how hard it was going to be on the way back when I was exhausted and had to climb back up it. It was beautiful scenery for the most part and the road was thankfully shaded a good portion of the way by big trees on either side. I was trying hard to keep a steady pace and not slow Marci down. She stayed just an arm's length ahead of me for most of the race. Just after mile three, we left the pavement and hit the dirt road. I have mixed feelings about the dirt. In some places it wasn't bad and it was softer to run on than the pavement. In others, it was hard and rutted and full of rocks and I had to be careful with each step. I had to keep changing positions to find the best spot in the road to run. We high-fived at each mile we completed and finally we were at the half-way point. It was so nice to know we were half-way there. I knew I would be more tired the second half but I was also hoping the adrenaline of the impending finish line would help. I had stashed some energy beans in a small pants pocket and downed them at the turnaround. The hills on the way back were even harder. Some were so steep that people were criss-crossing down them to slow their descent. There were three hills that we had to do some walking up. They were too steep and our muscles were just too tired. Other than that, we never stopped running except for a quick drink of water at the aid stations. At mile 11, Marci needed a pep talk and it was nice to be able to encourage her like she had done for me all summer. My goals for the race were to run the whole thing and finish with an average of 11 minutes/mile or lower. For my first half marathon, I felt really good about it. The last mile was a very steep downhill to the finish line. It was my favorite mile by far and one of our fastest of the whole race. Crossing that finish line felt amazing. We had done it. I had run my first half marathon and survived. I finished just around 2 hours and 24 minutes.


It was awesome having the whole family there at the finish line. It was so great to see them and have them there cheering me on. I'm definitely going to encourage all my kids to run because of how much I have grown to love it.


My running buddy, Marci, has run several half marathons and said this was her most difficult by far. Ryan said he also heard several sponsored runners at the finish say it was the hardest half course they have run as well. I'm not sure if it was the best one for a first-timer but hopefully, every race should be easier after this. It may have been my first but it is definitely not my last. I'm glad I can say I "ran with the squirrels" in Winslow.

Falling in love with Norcal

This past July Ryan had to travel to San Francisco for work.  He decided it would be a perfect trip to bring his lovely wife along with him. Needless to say, I was happy. We found someone to watch the kids for a few days and we were off. As many of you know, Ryan grew up in San Jose so he was very excited to visit his old stomping ground and check out the neighborhood. It was a blast taking a trip down memory lane with him as he reminisced about his childhood memories and the fun they had. One particular place he wanted to visit was Super Taqueria, a Mexican food joint he remembered as being super delicious. Thankfully, his memory served him correctly and we enjoyed some of the best tacos ever. I actually went up and ordered one more because they were sooo good and exceeded my expectations. What's a trip without delicious food?

That afternoon we drove through the Santa Cruz mountains. It was beautiful but I was glad Halle wasn't with us or she definitely would have been puking in the backseat.

Santa Cruz. Beautiful beach, freezing cold water.

Walking on the beach at Santa Cruz. For the record Ryan is holding his flipflops, not an alien baby by its head, as this picture may make you think. When a friend pointed that out, we had a good laugh. 

Thursday we hit the Redwoods. I had never seen them before and Ryan insisted I wouldn't want to miss them. He was right. They are so magnificent and pictures definitely don't do them justice. Amazing. 

Later that afternoon we drove through downtown San Francisco and hit the tourist stops of Pier 49 and Ghiradelli Square. Alcatraz Island is in the distance. 

That night we enjoyed dinner at a restaurant right on the bay with a view of the Golden Gate Bridge at sunset. It was so beautiful. 

We had an amazing seafood dinner and Ryan even convinced me to try oysters. They weren't as nasty as I had imagined. I might even eat them again sometime. 

The next morning I had made a request to go for a run together across the Golden Gate Bridge and Ryan gladly obliged. It was foggy and a bit chilly and definitely super memorable. 

Pre-run

Post-run. It was only about 3 miles total. 

I totally fell in love with Northern California while we were there. The Golden Gate Bridge will always be a favorite landmark of mine. We never plan to live there but I would love to take a trip back there anytime. 

We had such an amazing time together. I always forget how much I love trips with just the two of us without our darling children. Even sitting in traffic was enjoyable because it was just us. I sure love this husband of mine and love spending time with him. I'm already pining away for our next getaway.

I had to include a pic of the random flowers (if you can call them that) that were outside of our hotel that I admired everyday and talked to Ryan about every day. He was sweet to humor me and not get too annoyed with my constant babbling about this cool plant. Anyone know what it is?

Out West 2012 (aka the longest blog post ever)

This summer we made a crazy, long, fun, memorable trip out West. This is pretty much going to be a photo dump so prepare yourselves...

The youngest 4 kids and I drove out to Denver and stayed a couple days with the Favero clan. As always, we had a great time and are so glad they are on their way to having 4 girls and 1 boy just like us. Here's the Wilson/Favero cousin lineup at the pool minus Addy, who was home attending volleyball camp. We missed her. 

It's always a tea party at Grandma Patsy's and the kids loved it. Claire, especially, was out here all day having tea parties with the teddy bears.

Making yogurt parfaits for breakfast with Grandma.

Ryan and Addy flew in and joined us in Utah and we headed up to Yellowstone for a Hansen family reunion. 

Claire loved the little bridge over the creek at Margie's cabin. Notice she is showing her love for NW Arkansas, thanks to my good friend, Hayley. It was so fun to see all of my cousins who are now grown and have families of their own.

The creek was a big hit with the kids. Crazy Halle,  as per usual.

Heading out to raft the river. I promise Ryan was more enthusiastic about this than he seems in this picture. What a great dad. 

Fun times on the river. Addy's kayak ended up being more of a dingy. We all had a good laugh about that, except Addy. I will admit the relaxing float trip I had imagined was a lot more paddling than I anticipated. 

We got to know our darling niece, Alice Claire. We pretty much fell in love with this sweetheart and wish we lived closer so we could see her more often (and her awesome parents, Dave and Jacki). 

Cousins Addy and Luci. These girls are growing up too quickly.  We are so happy Miss Luci was able to join us and wish her whole family could have been there. We missed you, Scott and Stin!

Our last day we bribed the kids (with lots of candy) to try and get a cute cousin shot. I think we succeeded.

Mia, our resident butterfly whisperer. She played with this butterfly for at least 10 minutes. It could fly but it just wanted to land on Mia, probably because she is so sweet.

After the reunion, we drove down to Southern Utah to attend the funeral of Ryan's grandma, sweet Grandma Tobler. We were so happy we were able to be there and see all of his extended family that we hadn't seen in so many years. This is Claire swinging on the swing in Grandma Tobler's backyard after the funeral. 

It was fun spending time in Hurricane and La Verkin, the twin cities, and having some good cousin time as well. I enjoyed a nice run early that morning From La Verkin into Hurricane and back before it was too hot.

We spent so many hours in the car, the kids were getting restless. Addy took one for the team and allowed Claire to do her makeup to distract her from her restlessness. Pretty sure she earns big sister of the year for that one. 

We spent a day in Salt Lake and visited Temple Square and the Conference Center and the new City Creek mall. We were so happy that Grandma Leah could join us for the day. 

I love this picture. Pretty sure neither of them knew I took this one. Hope she stays this close to her dad as the years go on. 

We spent an evening up the canyon with the Wilson cousins and grandparents. The kids got SO incredibly dirty it made me laugh. You can see the dirt on the side of Luke's face. Needless to say, they had a great time. 

Claire enjoying a teddy bear tea party all by herself.

I took the youngest three over to the Highland Splash Park one afternoon. It was a super fun park reminiscent of a real creek or river. Luke and Claire especially loved it. Claire kept dunking her head in the water.

I enjoyed running all over in all the places we stayed. This was my last morning run in Highland, Utah before we headed home the next day.

The last leg of our trip. We left Denver first thing in the morning as the sun was coming up. Pretty much the longest day ever. It felt like we would never get home.

It never felt so good to see this sign and know we were only minutes from home.

All in all, we logged a ton of miles on the car. We were gone almost three weeks. It was the longest trip we've ever taken. But we had a great time and are so glad we were able to make so many memories and see so many family members. It's a trip we won't ever forget.