Update and Mommy Thoughts

I love, love, LOVE being a mother.  This is definitely, without a doubt in my mind, what I am meant to do in life. The joy I feel through motherhood is unlike anything I could have ever imagined.  It is so immense.  Am I a perfect mother? No.  But I try my very best, and I hope my children will always feel my tremendous love, adoration and gratitude for them.  Though this stage of motherhood can be challenging at times, I am in no rush for it to pass.  I love my littles being little.  It is so fun to observe how precious they are.They are both so cute, sweet, happy, and fun! I love all of the funny things Jenna says, and how she looks out for all of us and enjoys serving, helping, and spending time with each of us.  I love how Ivy's smile takes over her whole body, how she coos and talks to us, and makes me feel so loved by the way she calms down from crying whenever I am the one to hold her, falls asleep easily in my arms, and is so snuggly.  I love my girls SO much! I am SO grateful to be able to spend so much time with them as a stay at home mom. I have so much fun hanging out all day with them. I am so grateful to be their mom!  These are my favorite years of my life so far.  I love being a mother. Here are a few fun pictures from the last month or so.

The Last 2 Months

The last 2 months, or 10 weeks I should say have been very busy.  A new addition to the family incorporates a lot of changes.  We have definitely had our hands full with family events, learning how to recognize and meet new needs, getting ready to start new things, etc. Jenna started preschool and dance class this week! Ivy is a very sweet little baby.  When she is not too tired or hungry, she is VERY wiggly and smiley. She has been patient with us as we have been learning how to recognize and meet her needs and Jenna has been patient as well with all of these new adjustments.  Jenna has been doing a lot of big girl things by herself and is a great helper.  Ivy has sparkly eyes, a big smile, and makes us all feel very happy.  We are very blessed to have two very sweet, happy, loving, fun little girls.  Here are some pics of the past two months.

Ivy Pearl, Our Darling Little Girl

Ivy Pearl Hansen is here!  She is now 3 weeks old.  We love her SO much and are so grateful and excited that she is part of our family!  She is a very sweet, lovable, cuddly baby.  The labor and delivery went smoothly, the hospital stay was great, and the first couple of weeks have been wonderful.  Hard work of course but very, very, very wonderful.  We love our little one so much!  Jenna is a great big sister and adores Ivy and is very sweet with her.  Here are some pictures from the hospital and when we first came home:

Sedona!

     We went to Sedona, AZ the weekend after Easter this year with Grandma and Grandpa Hansen.  We had such a wonderful time! Sedona is beautiful!  We hiked Cathedral Rock, and the West Fork trail.  Both were beautiful and very different.  Cathedral rock is supposed to be pretty difficult because there is a lot of scrambling required to make it to the top.  But Andrew carried Jenna through the tough parts, and I hauled our baby in utero and we made it!  It was one of my favorite hikes of all time.  Very exhilarating and beautiful.   The West Fork trail was beautiful as well!   I loved them both.  Jenna is a great little hiker!  Lucky for us she loves to go on hikes.  We call her our little mountain goat.
     One day, we went to a nearby town to the "Out of Africa" wild animal park.  It was really fun! We got to feed a giraffe carrots.  It came right up to our bus! We also got to see bears, tigers, lions, and more up close, there large fences separating us from those animals though. :)  They had a tiger show there too and we got to watch the tigers chase toys and jump into a pool and stuff.  It was a really fun place. We also went to the Grand Canyon one day, which was fun, but a little scary with a 3 year old because of all of the cliffs.  We did some shopping, swimming, and relaxing as well.  It was a very fun trip.  Jenna still talks about it.  Today, instead of playing, house or princesses, or church or school (some of her usuals), she was playing 'Arizona' with her toy dog Fido. :)  Here is a major picture overload.  I'm so glad we have so many awesome pictures to help us remember this awesome, awesome trip. :)
Cathedral Rock:

West Fork Trail:                                                                

Out of Africa Wild Animal Park:

Grand Canyon: