Honoring Bill, who's honoring. . .

Bill's Father's Day request was to spend the day at the Fairview cemetery, so Dad, Mom, Maggie H., Nels, Rachel, and Meisha drove an hour or two down the road and found the pioneer burial grounds. There were at least six sites honoring six different families in Bill's family history.

*John William Pritchett (Maggie Ann's father) and his wives
*Samuel Napoleon Bonaparte Pritchett (John William's father, joined the church in Virginia in 1845)
*James Mitchell Pritchett (the venerable uncle who first joined the church in Virginia)
*Wilford & Emma Terry (Grandpa Wilford Hansen's aunt & uncle, the one he was probably named after) They had nine little babies buried next to them.
*Peter Niels Hansen and Marie Jensen (the first converts in the Hansen line)
*Maren Jensen (Mom to Marie Jensen)

We spent the afternoon getting to know these folks a little bit. Since we'd brought along family histories, it was easier to see how people were related and how long they'd lived in Fairview and stuff like that.

Meandering around a cemetery is very relaxing and thought-provoking. You can't help but think about why people do the things they do.


In other news. . . . This is almost a picture of Addie. Cody Forsyth tossed her just a bit too high for Maggie's viewfinder. She really does have a head.

Addie was the spotlight child in Primary today. In case you were wondering if she is All Girl or not, her favorite color is. . . pink, her favorite toy is. . . polly pocket, and her favorite food is. . . salad. . . with balsamic vinaigrette!

Max celebrated his 6th birthday at the video arcade (since the miniature golf and go-carts were rained out). In his first crack at the Price is Right Wheel, Max struck the jackpot of a thousand free tickets. Guess Mike and Vanessa can come back as often as they want for miniature golf and go-carts!

Vanessa did NOT fall down the stairs yesterday, though Addie still maintains last fall's event in her late-breaking news folder. It scared us too, Addie.

Mike created a lawn of lush beauty with the help of Ghostbusters Poison Packs (take that Lawn Zul!)


BJ & Maggie spent last weekend in Moab! In addition to seeing a number of spectacular arches, they discovered a new love: mountain biking!

BJ's Patio of Fire is THIS FRIDAY!!!!!!!!

Amelie's Aubrey found a dead baby bird in the driveway and tearfully asked Amelie what to name the bird before the funeral she wanted to give it. Amelie, who wasn't terribly into the idea suggested the name "Flappy," though the poor bird was apparently lacking in the flappy department. "Cooper, would you like to say a few kind words for Flappy?" Aubrey asked. Cooper gave the eulogy for Flappy the Baby Bird's funeral by unceremoniously poking the poor thing and shouting, "Flappy! Are you dead?"



One of these things is not like. . . . but they ARE all from Hawaii!!

Maggie started her new job as a ACT prep teacher at BYU this week, once again making science intelligible and irresistible to the average Joe. She also revamped the linen closet and gave each item a long-awaited place to belong.




Melanie covered the most miles of any Hansen recently, driving to San Diego ten days ago with Michelle, then touring a bit in Dallas (the site of this photo), on to Boston, and tomorrow to London by way of Switzerland. Europe awaits!

Nels passed his drivers' test this week. Bill has been dutifully supervising hours of driving to far-flung places to pack in the requisite 40 hours. Nels also scrubbed out the (mini) fridge and went to the Manti Pageant.

Rachel played her first Payson Band Concert in the Park tonight, the cutest little bassoonist you ever did see. She also served as the only Youth Camp Leader for our ward's girls camp this last week.

Mom and Dad -- the return from paradise

This is Mom and Dad, taking a turn at blogging the family site. We are glad to be home because we missed everybody, but when we remember Hawaii. . . well . . . Before the memories fade into the paper-moving that is our daily fare, we thought we'd post a few photos and give out a little advice.

Here are some key points to remember about Hawaii.
1) Forget what breathing experts tell you. Learn to breathe through your mouth so you can catch on quick to snorkeling in Hanauma Bay. Then the striped and polka dotted fishes and turtles are yours! And no sputtering and scraping your knees on coral that some people (!) have to do to get the hang of it! (Also don't forget to put sunscreen on the back of your husband's legs.)

2) When you go to the Polynesian Cultural Center (and you will because there is a magnet drawing you there the moment you step out of the airplane), you don't have to go to the luau. Oh, it's OK if you want to try purple rolls made out of taro, and real kalua pig. But the very best part of the PCC is the people you meet at the pretend villages. Because they're not pretend people. They are really from the places they're pretending. . . er. . . telling you about, and their stories are the most interesting part of the place. Invite somebody from the Fijian village to take you on the homemade river raft and talk about his family back in Fiji. Do the crafts they have in the villages and find out what those kids miss most about home. That way you can use the extra hours when everybody is busy eating to have a real treat. Eat luau back in Payson when you get home. Don't miss the Horizons show, though. It's guaranteed to surprise and impress you. The 2:00 p.m. show on the water is worth watching too. That's where this clip is from.

3) If you want to climb Diamond Head crater (the tallest mountain on O'ahu), forget the bus from Waikiki that takes you there. It doesn't even start running till 7:30 a.m., and the hike is gonna be a hot ol' one. Call a shuttle and git out there early! And wear real good shoes (unlike some tourists who try to wear their sandals because they forgot to bring any good shoes and end up walking back in bare feet and their husbands have to carry them piggy back out of the sticker patches).
4) When sunning yourself on the beach at Waikiki, keep one eye open for weddings that happen with no fanfare just a few feet from your hotel towel sprawled on the sand. If it's just the couple and the preacher, they might not mind if you take a picture of them, and they might ask you to take one with their camera. Cause maybe they changed their mind about not wanting anybody there.
5) Be sure to see the Honolulu Tabernacle. You can go there on Sunday for church just about anytime cause three wards meet there. It's got classrooms and stuff just like a regular building, except that the hallways are open to the sky! And instead of the chapel being where you expect, the center of the building is an open courtyard with green stuff and flowers. You get into the chapel through a door just like a classroom off the hallways! And what a HUGE resonant chapel it is! Also take a minute to look at the mosaic of Christ on the outside (the only LDS church with a mosaic of Christ).
6) When you go to Pearl Harbor's Arizona Memorial, you may get so wrapped up in the museum exhibits inside that before you know it, it's time for your movie and ferry boat trip. Instead, be sure to rent the little audio presentation and leave plenty of time to go outside and listen. That's where the best overview is. Also, go see the U.S.S. Missouri battleship first, so you have an idea just how big the U.S.S. Arizona that was sunk in the water beneath the memorial site really is. Then take a flower to leave at the Arizona memorial.
7) Don't bother paying beaucoup bucks to swim with dolphins. Just take a bus to the Kahala resort and watch them up close for Free! There are no crowds there and the dolphin trainers love to talk about the dolphins with you.


8)Enjoy the orchids on the garden wall at the Kahala resort (and everywhere else you go on O'ahu)!





9) Play the grand piano at the Kahala resort and smile when passing folk talk to you like you belonged there or something.

10) Spend an evening on the empty Kalaha beach, just you, the sand and the surf! MUCH less crowded than Waikiki! (And the bus takes you back for $2)






11) Parasail! (But follow all safety instructions! An experienced parasailer in Hawaii made headlines April 30 for dying while trying to dive in the water from 40 feet up-- I'm sure 40 feet seemed like nothing after being up 800 feet!!!!)

Flag Day!

DID YOU KNOW that our Great Grandmother Margaret Burt was NOT born on Flag Day? If you didn't know, she was born on the 4th of July, which is also a day about flags. But it reminds me of days like today; when all the little boy scouts get up and stick a flag in your lawn. It's like saying, "Thanks for being American, Grandma Margaret." On a more current-generational note, the Hansens are jumping this week.

Mom and Dad: In Hawaii. Snorkeling. Swimming with sea turtles Singing with the Payson Civic Chorale. They also went hiking, saw the temple, and went to the Polynesian Cultural Center. Are we jealous? Yes. Are we glad they finally got a vacation all to "themselves?" Also yes.

Mike:

BJ: 19 more days until Patio of Fire.

Amelie: Had a funny Aubrey moment. The post will come when she emails me the artifact. It will surely be an heirloom.

Maggie: I made cornbread from scratch. I also finished my last clinic session with my little speech client. I worked with him by myself for the first time this week. I was nervous, but it was just great! Maybe I won't quit and become a bartender after all!

Melanie: So this is just surfacing, but Melanie received a prestigous nomination at BYU in March. It looks like this. She also accompanied for a recital, and is surviving her busy busy term before she escapes to Europe. Her trip begins this week.

Nels: He passed his written driver's exam, and he begins road tomorrow. He spent this weekend hanging out out at Payson's Relay for Life(sound familiar, Em?).

Rachel: She also passed her written driver's exam, and she took the ACT on Saturday, too. What a grueling weekend! To top it off, she submitted a story for the 3rd round of a peer-judged writing competition.

Maggie Chu: Is back in Taiwan, or "hell" as she calls it, since her parents are making her wear a mask to ward off swine flu and enroll in English classes (for the same purpose?) We took her to the airport on Friday. Maybe it's a good thing: just in time for Flag day.

Pictures you are wanting to see

So family, this week I received a veritable dearth of updates. Hm. Have we cryogenically frozen our lives? I doubt it. In the meantime, I snagged these pictures off of Meisha's facebook album. Thanks, Meish! These are pictures of the Sunday after Easter. You'll like them.

We had some special guests at dinner: Luci and Eddie Amorim. They are the grandchildren of Athos and Maria Alice Amorim--a couple taught by DAD when he was a missionary in Brazil 30+ years ago. They came to deliver a letter Dad had written to his mission president the week before he left the mission field. Eddie told us that his dad had found it as a missionary and had given it to Eddie before he left to serve. This letter is the only written document Dad has from his mission, since he lost his missionary journal 20 years ago. We felt really priveliged to have the two of them at our dinner table.

Grandma and Grandpa Tensmeyer were also in town for a U of U reunion of Grandpa's. Amelie and Cody had also managed to make it down from Idaho, so we got a four-generation picture of Grandma, Mom, Amelie, Aubrey and Sara. Priceless.

Brother Johnson brought his horses out, and Dad had a heyday. He looks so dashing. Cowboy Bill.

These pictures weren't taken that Sunday, but let's just say they were. Amanda and BJ are fun and funny.

And Rachel is just aDORable.

Grandpa's Birthday!

Grandpa Hansen turned 81. He told me. That's how I know. The wonderful thing about getting together for his birthday was that all seven of us were in the same place! This hasn't happened since 2006, when we got our family picture taken in Idaho. Back then, Cooper was trying to launch himself out of his mother, and Addie had no hair. As for Sara, she was just a twinkle in her mother's eye. (Who thought up that phrase? It's ridiculous.) We celebrated Grandpa's birthday at Aunt Loreita's house.

We also got to see Uncle Neal, Matt, Kristina & Brooks, and their kids Austin and Savannah

Loreita and Neal have a fantastic playhouse in the basement that uses the space underneath their stairs. Loreita has a little door and window painted into the wall.

Addie found Kristina's old dance outfit in a toybox. She wore it for the rest of the evening.

Outside of Loreita's house there is --or WAS--a giant white flower bush. It probably has a proper name. We don't care, because it's gone. Look:

"You want your Mommy, don't ya?!" --Aubrey, during the BJ takedown

Find Cooper.

Someone got Cody. I think that's when it all ended.

Chris Melear came with Melanie.

Mike's Family. Addie still has that hot outfit.

Amelie's Family. They need two pictures to adequately depict them