by Melissa—2003.09.12 @ 1349
I, too, am excited about our new and enhanced website and will try to keep it up to date with news and events from our lives. There is much going on in the Derek Hansen family. We are happy, healthy, and growing!
Derek is still busy with the MFA program here at Southern Utah University. We had a fun summer attending the plays. He usually works from home so we love having him here with us, although the kids can be quite distracting. We are looking forward to our internship next May, and the adventures that are to follow!
I am kept extremely busy with Elise and Isaac, but I love being a mother. I can't imagine doing anything else with my life-- the sacrifices come easy when there are such rewards as these! That's not to say I don't get tired or need time for myself, but I'm so happy doing what I'm doing!
When that precious free time does come around, my activity of choice is reading. My interests vary; sometimes I love a good novel, sometimes educational topics and news, and sometimes church books and articles. I also love to design floor plans for our future home (who doesn't love to dream?), play the guitar and piano, run, and write. I like to cook, too, but get enough of that during the day that I don't usually do it in my free time. :)
Elise is very much 2 years! She loves to talk (along with other, not so tame ways of expressing herself.) The funniest thing she says is subsituting "need" instead of "want." (Somewhere she picked up that "need" is a more compelling term.) So she "needs" fruit snacks and "needs" to stay up and play, and "needs" to go outside. She loves to do puzzles, play with (and in) water, watch movies, and play on swings and slides. She also loves to color and draw, which requires special attention, because she's still learning not to draw on things besides paper. She also loves Isaac and does a good job of entertaining him. And most of the time, :) she is very gentle with him; comforts him and holds his hand. She is a true joy and the entertainment of our home!
Isaac is now 8 months and a very happy, inquisitive baby. He loves to smile and laugh, and above all, eat. Just the site of food gets him excited and rather whiny. He has 2 teeth with 3 more poking through. He has yet to start crawling (and no rush, says mommy) but sits up and somehow gets a hold of things seemingly out of his radius (my grandpa Chapman would have said he has a "far-reaching" effect). And of course, everything goes straight to his mouth. He also loves to watch and laugh at Elise. He is a joy to take care of!