McKenna Family

Here are some of the sweetest pics ever of our little angel. We visited the Mesa Temple while we were there (hoping to see our cute niece, Jess, who is an amazing missionary right now). We missed her and were so sad but know she is so special. We love to read her weekly emails and hear about the amazing experiences she is having. The Lord truly does bless those who trust in him. Meili really enjoyed being at the temple and loved seeing the statue of Christ.

January 30, 2011 This year was the really big one for Russel. Unlike me, he welcomes the years with open arms. I'm starting to really dislike the birthdays and think they come around way too quick....BUT I am still MUCH younger than Russel so I'm not even close to 40 yet! For the last couple of years I kept just thinking I'd do this really big surprise party for his 40th... after all, I did a big surprise party for his 30th. But as the time started approaching he made many comments about how he didn't want a big fuss made, etc. But of course everyone says that, right? Well, not with this boy. He truly means what he says. So I started thinking about his 30th and realized that while we had a blast and it was a great party, I remember him feeling uncomfortable as the center of attention. So this year, I gave him exactly what he wanted....no fuss....well in the "surprise" fuss realm. Instead we planned a fabulous weekend to sunny Arizona and it definitely...

It's hard to believe my Abi is now 12 and already a Young Woman! We couldn't be more proud of our sweet little girl. I think the best quality about Abi is her heart. Even when she was a little girl, she had this big heart and wanted to be a friend to everyone. One thing I have always admired about Abi is that she is kind to everyone. It is second nature to her to find someone that needs a friend and be that friend. She is very sensitive to the needs of others and doesn't follow the crowd if it means making someone else feel left out or excluded. I've watched her for many years and always wondered if that characteristic would wear off eventually but she is true to herself.....that is who she is. She is very loving and kind and loves to see people smile. She is an amazing student and works hard in school. She is musically talented and truly enjoys playing the piano....although at times the practicing gets to her a little. Abi's priorities are exactly where they need t...

Christmas is my favorite time of the year. I love the special spirit and magic that we feel in our hearts. This year was even more special and complete with little Meili being home with us. What sweet moments we have had as we have watched her experience many new things during the Christmas season. One of her favorite things included the Christmas lights. I remember one night Russel and I got the Christmas trees out (YES we have fake ones), so that we could decorate them the following Monday for family night. When Meili got up I talked to her a little bit about the Christmas tree and then turned on the lights. Her eyes lit up and she started clapping. From then on, she would go around and plug in any garlands, trees, etc. that needed their lights on....even in the middle of the day. It was too cute and I knew she could feel that special spirit that we all feel at this time of the year. Christmas morning, the kids of course were up at the crack of dawn (well before that too but we would...

Every year we spend Christmas Eve at my parents' house. It's just tradition....the Hansen family party is always Christmas Eve. We have the traditional dinner and have many traditions that we look forward to each year. We have many recipes that we love to make on Christmas Eve and add new ones occasionally too. We have the kids act out the nativity which is always quite comical and special at the same time. And of course we always do the pajama thing too. We had a wonderful time and headed back to Logan just in time to set out cookies and milk for Santa. P.S. Meili wanted to be the wiseman......I think the simple silver crown was more appealing that being wrapped up in yards of fabric :)

This is a tradition that we started last year and we love it. We decided we wanted to do something that was for just our little family. Even though grandma and grandpa live close, we really wanted this time to be a focus on just the kids. So we let them pick where we eat and then we find a hotel to stay in for the night which they think is fabulous. The lights were absolutely breathtaking as always and the kids love to wander to each of the different nativity scenes and guess what country they are from. Last year was bitterly cold but this year was sooo nice.....almost balmy.....well almost. We got back to the hotel around 9:30 and the kids got in PJs and turned the TV on just in time to start The Polar Express. It was perfect timing and the kids really enjoyed seeing it again.....for some reason it's more fun at a hotel. We had a great breakfast at the hotel the next morning and then Russel had to run back to Logan to see some patients. But Grandpa was awesome and came a...