Dad's funeral

I was thinking about my memories of dad and I had a lot of them come to my mind but the one that stood out the most was Christmas 1994. Brent had been gone a lot, traveling for work and so I was home alone for long periods of time with the three girls. I really was having a hard time, I did not like being alone and that Brent had to travel so much.  To this day I dislike it so much when he has to leave on his trip every month and I think it has to do with the fact that he traveled so much before.  Anyway, one night I was home alone putting the girls to bed (I had all three girls at this time) when there was a knock on the door.  When I opened it, dad who was the Bishop and the youth of his ward were standing there.  They had gone caroling and dad thought it would be good to come to my house even though I was not in his ward (I lived very close to mom and dad's house). I think he was inspired because it really made me happy to see them there, Brad, Nathan and Matthew were there, they were right in front of the group. 

Grandma had a great idea, that the grandkids color and write messages on dad's casket. Here is Conner and his cousins writing on the casket.

Parker

Ashley's message

Brittany's message

Alison's message

Parker's message

Conner's message

The kids at the viewing

James and Ronan at the viewing

At the cemetery a few of the cousins sitting on a bench

Lexi's cool picture on the casket

Picture of the cousins at the luncheon

Utah trip-part one

We went to the Bridal Veil falls in Provo- Conner loved it

My friend Glory Harris just happened to be at the Bridal Veil falls at the same time.

Ashley and I went to the City Creek Mall in Salt Lake

The hospital where James had surgery was very nice

We went to a Park in Saratoga Springs that had this really cool piramid

Ronan

Helping Conner

Ever since Conner was a baby he has had issues with eating.  Unfortunately we were a bit naive.  When he started to eat solid food he had a hard time.  He hated eating, he eventually would eat but a lot of the time he would throw up his food. We thought he would outgrow it.  I found foods that he liked and would eat.  When I tried to introduce new foods he would scream and not eat.  I found that if I mixed his food with blueberries he would eat it, still I would have to be careful because he would gag and throw up.  One day he was so angry and crying so much that he pushed back and broke his high chair.  That is when I decided to feed him while he took a bath because he would throw up almost every time and while in the tub he would play and be distracted while I fed him.  It was so hard on us and it still is.  Dinner time is miserable for us.  The thought of dinner makes me want to cry, because we can never sit together, Conner hates the smell of food and we can not sit next to him.  I seriously thought he would get better but he hasn't.  I called the pediatrician and they suggested an occupational therapist.  When I looked at their website I read about "Dysfunction in sensory integration" and one of the symptoms is picky eater. I want to cry because I feel bad for him and yet if that is what he has I am happy that finally something can be done. I want him to get better, I want this battle with food to finally be over. It has consumed our lives ever since he started eating.  Dinners revolved around finding something that he would eat and then getting him to eat it!!!  Dinners at our house can take sometimes more than 2 HOURS.  It so stressful that I don't like cooking anymore and I HATE DINNER TIME.  The worse part is people don't understand that he is not just a picky eater, it is more than that.  It is so hard for him and it hurts to see him suffer like that. Unfortunately this is starting to affect him in other ways, some kids at school don't like him.  Conner is a sweet boy, he is caring and loving and I don't want him to change.  It hurts so much when he comes home and tells me that his classmates don't want to play with him or that they call him annoying.  In an effort to help him we took him to a psychologist and she said he had some OCD issues.  She wanted to treat him with hypnosis. That is when we decided it is better to take him to an occupational therapist.  I can't wait to meet with the therapist and be able to finally help him!!

Fourth of July 2012

On the Fourth of July we went and parked near the Magic Kingdom to watch the fireworks.  They were awesome!!

Conner and Anthony waiting for the fireworks

Our dad Bruce Hanson

Our dad Bruce Hanson passed away this morning.  We can not express what a sad day it has been.  We are thankful to him for his example, for being such wonderful father and grandfather.  We are thankful for the times that we were able to spend with him this last December and again in March.  He was able to go and bless Reagan.  These are the last pictures we have of him.

Sorella Alison Hanson's blog

I started a new blog for Alison.  While she is on her mission I will post pictures, letters and emails that I will get from her to keep the family informed.  The blog is called sorellaalisonhanson.blogspot.com

New calling for me

A few weeks ago while we were at the temple as a Presidency, the Stake RS president told us that she was moving to Tampa.  We were all in shock!! I loved serving with these women.  I learned so much from them and this calling came at a time when I needed it so much.  My mom had just passed away and having these three ladies in my life to help me grow and teach me was what I needed.  They truly loved me, and they showed their love for me all the time.

Last Sunday the Stake president met with Brent and I and I was released and called as the Stake Relief Society 1st counselor.  I am excited to work with my dear friend Johanna Lopez who is now the Stake Relief Society president and Peggy Snow who is also an awesome lady!

A trip to the ER

These pictures make me sad.  We had to take Conner to the ER early Saturday, at 4:00 AM and then again Sunday morning at 6:00AM.  The poor kid has the croup and could not breathe.  It is so sad to see him struggle to be able to breathe. Kids this age normally don't get the croup, they are too old to get it, even the doctors said it.  But because he had asthma as an infant he is prone to get these coughs.