Catching Up....

Well, Im trying to catch up the week here in the Shannon household. It gets away from me so quickly these days. I am happy to report that I am basically done with this semester at school. Finally a breather.... I took my Spanish final this morning and think I did great on it! Such a relief to have it over with. It was a speaking final and I choke when I actually have to SPEAK a language. But the teacher was impressed and said that we (me and partner) were the best she had heard so far and she was already over halfway through the class! I have a History final on May 5th and then my Health and Diversity final which is no problem because our kind and wonderful teacher emailed the final to us and is giving us a week to complete it. Open notes and all!! I might actually end the semester with all A's...I think it will come down to the history final. Im a bit nervous....I might end up with a B+ in that class. We shall soon see. I have already registered for Fall classes as well. I am basically done with the General Ed classes required to graduate and this Fall I will start on my major classes which means lots of reading books and writing papers....I cant wait :)

Ive registered for Summer classes but they are both online so I wont actually have to go to school. Im looking forward to being home with the kids all Summer....(remind me of this post when Im in meltdown mode this Summer and praying for school to start again, ha ha :)

We have quite a few challenges already this year. I hope 2010 gets better. It seems as though every time we have a chance to get ahead financially, something comes along to knock us back down. It has been quite discouraging and emotionally exhausting but we are handling it the best we know how. Denver recently interviewed for a job with Boeing in South Carolina. Me and the kids would have remained here... Long story short, they offered him the job and he decided to turn it down for schooling reasons and of course because he couldnt bear to leave the kids. It might have been a good opportunity for him and he hasnt ruled it out completely....perhaps down the road a little more.

Well, I guess thats really all...nothing too exciting. Just some catch up news and a couple of posts below this one that are more entertaining!!

A Year in Review....

So, I didnt get Christmas cards out this year. And sadly, I havent taken many pictures this Christmas season. So, on the heels of many other friends, I am going to give a quick little review of our 2009.... We'll call this The Shannon Family New Year Letter!


Denver: The year has been mostly uneventful for Denver. He continues to work at Boeing and likes his job for the most part but continues to hope for something better eventually. He has been taking advantage of Boeing's tuition payment program and attends University of Phoenix for free. He is not too far away from finally receiving his Bachelors Degree in Business Management. From there, the plan is to get his Masters in Business.....he figures he may as well as long as Boeing is paying for it! He is a Sunday school teacher at our church, instructing the 12 year olds...I think. Sadly, Denver lost his Dad to cancer at the beginning of the year and that has been very difficult for him and his family.... we surely miss Don all the time. Denver's mom came out and stayed a month with us in August. We enjoyed her visit and I know Denver loved having her out here with him.

Vanessa: Well, my year has been a little more eventful. It started with a layoff from my job at Wells Fargo and then continued with the decision to go back to school instead of going back to work. I started school again for the first time in 18 years this past September at the University of Utah. My plan is to finish my Bachelors in English and perhaps a minor in Spanish and then teach at High School or Junior High. I figure if Im going to have to work I would like to be on my kids schedule. Ultimately I would like to be an Editor but that is a job that will have to be found later. I LOVE being in school and just finished the semester with a 4.0 gpa. Another big thing for me this year was the decision to run in a Half Marathon race. I trained for 4 months and in November I ran the Big Sur Half Marathon in Monterey, California. I took the kids and my mom with me and we made a vacation out of it. It was so much fun and gave me a big sense of accomplishment that I followed through with my commitment to run. I have since signed up for another Half Marathon to run in March of this coming year in Moab, Utah....sometimes I think I might be nuts because I dont really enjoy running but the end result is such a great feeling that Im getting hooked on it!

Alec: Well, we dont get to see him enough thats for sure but we see updates here and there and know that he is doing well. He is in High School now and will be turning 16 this coming year. Hard to believe that he was just 4 when we got married....time really flies. Alec is with us this Christmas and even though he is a big ole' teenager now, he is a good kid and nice to his siblings and that is a huge accomplishment for any teenager!

Ian: Ian had a big year! He turned 9 which according to him means that he should have a cell phone and an attitude. The attitude is definitely here but the cell phone wont be making an appearance for a couple more years. He is still a big sweetheart though and such a smart kid. He attempted playing Football this year and that was an interesting time. He was sure excited when it started but quickly realized what a commitment it was and how much hard work it required. He stuck it out though and even though he claimed many many times that he would never play football again, he has already announced that he is going to sign up again this next year! He is still in the ELP (gifted) program at school and continues to excel at just about every subject. Im so proud of all that he has accomplished.

Evan: Evan has been finding his personality this year. Even though he is just 18 months younger than Ian, he couldnt be more different. He does really well in school and continues to amaze us at his competence in every subject. He is especially good at math. He loves animals still and he loves his friends. Evan played soccer this year with the Firebirds and enjoyed it very much. Everyone on his team has been in one of his classes since kindergarten so he was amongst friends. He is such a happy kid most of the time and has a genuinely sweet spirit about him.

Addison: Our little Addie has really found her language skills this year. In the past 3 months she has really turned into a little jabber jaws. She is ALL girl and loves everything pink. She loves makeup and hair and clothes and all things "princess-y".... She has an unbelievable memory and I am constantly freaked out at the thing this 3 year old remembers! I cannot imagine our family without her and love having this little girl in my life. I will miss her when she goes to school. She started dance classes this fall with "Miss Julie". She loves to dance and sing and had her first recital this December. That didnt go as planned when she had a bout of stage fright but it was still cute and fun to see her up there. Her favorite movie is "Mamma Mia" and constantly sings songs from the movie. If she isnt singing Mamma Mia songs, then you will hear her singing Michael Jackson. She is a sight to behold that is for sure!

We experienced some difficult times with Don's passing and my own Dad's heart attack a couple of months after that. Also, Job layoff's and financial strain definitely caused some stress but in the end I feel blessed to have what we do. Cant wait to see what 2010 brings!

Happy New Year Everybody..... here is a slideshow of the additional Christmas pics I took of the kids.

Changes......

Change is good right? I always have thought that as hard as it can be sometimes, change is necessary to keep life from becoming stagnate. So, with that, I am looking at the new President of our country with hope that his version of change is what we need. I was on the treadmill at the gym yesterday watching the inauguration on the TV above me and for the first time in my 37 year old life, I was struck by just how huge this transition is. I have never watched an inauguration before. Never cared about it really. I know that sounds horrible but I just never felt the need to watch it I guess. But, as I watched I was made aware of all of the tradition that surrounds the event.... I never knew that the new president goes to the church before hand as a matter of tradition. The old president leaves a letter in the oval office on his way out.....the procession and who sits where in the limousine all has significance..... So, I guess that even though I did not vote for Barrack Obama, his winning of the election has somehow caused me to become a little more educated and a little more appreciative of the transition. I was quite disappointed to hear that people....adults....actually had the nerve to Boo President Bush. Come on people, show some maturity. The whole world was watching you act like little children....you should be ashamed of yourselves really and it doesn't say much for Obama supporters and your intelligence level. I really hope that he (President Obama) lives up to his promises. I hope that he helps our country pull itself out of the muck that it is in right now..... I hope that this change is good.

On a more personal level, we had a big change or transition ourselves this week at our house. Our boys who are just 18 months apart are now in their own rooms. They have either shared a bed or a room for their "whole lives"....as Ian so dramatically put it.... So, we have a guest room that is too small for the queen sized bed that is in it. Considering the fact that we really don't have guests all that often and Alec is getting to the point where he isn't spending much time at our house anymore, I decided to give that room to Evan. I took apart their bunk beds and put Evans half in this "guest" room and then took the queen bed from that room and gave it to Ian since the boys shared room is the biggest room in the house. I then took Ian's half of the bunk bed and put it upstairs in Addison's room for her to sleep on. If/when we have guests, they can have Ian's room with the queen bed..... What this means now is that we are adjusting to sleep habits. Addison still sleeps with us so now I am trying to transition her to her own bed....so far 3 hours is as long as she has lasted in her new bed. We have to get her to sleep first and then put her in the bed. At some point she gets up and comes to our bed. Hopefully this will end eventually. Evan has had to adjust to sleeping without Ian in the room. This has been hard for him so we leave his light on until he is asleep.....but Oh how happy he is that he has his own room! I think it has shown him how much his brother means to him too. That is the best part about change, it helps you see the good in things that maybe you didn't appreciate before..... I suspect that Americans will eventually be able to recognize the good in President Bush as Obama makes his own mistakes. Rest assured he will....they all do.

September 11, 2001.......Always Remember

Never Forget........

Another thought....

Did anyone watch the Kentucky Derby yesterday? Is anyone else as upset as I am over the fate of Eight Belles....the 2nd place horse? It has made me physically ill and I cannot stop thinking about it. I even had a dream about it last night (this morning tecnically). Denver is wanting me to be more rational about it considering the horse was bred to race but I just find it so brutal and unfair. I know that those horses are WELL taken care of.....but it still doesnt feel right. Obviously if both of her ankles broke, she shouldnt have been racing. She was a 3 year old Filly and from what I have been reading her bones were still technically developing so the stress of this "great race" literally killed her. They euthanized the poor horse right there on the track! She fell right after she crossed the finish line. She completed her task and then collapsed. Ugh. Well, I dont want to open a can of worms but I dont feel good about horse racing as a sport. Money always becomes the motivator for men, who then in turn push their animals to perform. Yeah, its not dog fighting, or cock fighting, but it is still making animals work hard so that men can get paid. I dont know...... sad stuff.

Living Under a Rock.....

You know, I realize that living in Utah can sometimes feel like a protective glove. Even though bad things happen here too, it still feels minor compared to some of the stuff you hear about in the news. Today Im feeling really upset about an article I read on People.com of all places. Apparently Ive been under a rock because Ellen Degeneres claims that this story sent shockwaves around the nation. As I read the story I felt sick to my stomach. Homosexuality is a very sensitive subject. One that is hard for me to speak about because I feel strongly about it in both directions. One thing that I am completely certain of though is that NO person on this planet deserves to be treated with hate and disgust no matter what orientation, religion, race, sex....etc. Human beings have a right to live as they choose. We were given free agency for the express purpose of living and learning and making choices. As a parent, I read this story with heartfelt tears for the parents of this young boy. For any of you that havent read this story or have not heard about it, a young boy gave a Valentine to another boy....asking him to be his Valentine. The boy was 15 and he was shot in the head by the 14 year old boy that he had a crush on. Is that unbelievable? It breaks my heart. It scares me. It makes me really really angry. That is really all I want to say about it. Here is the video on Ellen if you want to watch it. Make sure you pause my music player at the bottom of my blog so you can hear her speak. and here is the link to the New York Times story about it.....

No more Romney....

Well, so much for my poll. Today Mitt dropped out of the race for President. I must say I was a bit dissappointed. Although I hadnt decided for sure who I was going to vote for, if he were on the ballot, I would have probably voted for him. I trust him the most. I dont always agree with him but almost always. I really dont like McCain at all so I may be voting democrat for the first time.....we'll see. Anyway, Im removing my little poll since half the people that visited my blog today didnt bother voting anyway.....:)

I got sad news today about my cousin. Johnny passed away last night and he was just 30....he has had a difficult life for sure but always had such a big heart. He always wanted to be everybodys buddy and even though sometimes it was obnoxious, you couldnt help but love him back. When we moved to Arizona a few years ago, I was left alone to unpack our UHaul because Denver had to go back to Utah for a couple of weeks. Johnny was going to help me unload the heavy stuff but first I had to go to the bank because I wanted to pay him a little for helping me out. When I got back from the bank, Johnny had unloaded the ENTIRE uhaul by himself and was sitting on my couch watching TV when I got back. He petitioned the neighbor to help him with the heavy things. I couldnt believe it. I was so grateful to him for that because I had 2 little boys to deal with by myself and it just made my day. So, thanks Cousin, for being so kind to me and I hope you are at peace.

I just got done unloading and putting away a massive amount of groceries......I think Im going to look into home delivery! Anybody out there utilize home delivery service? If so, leave me a comment as to how it works out for you. I would love to know if you feel it is worth it. My problem is that I shop at Super Walmart for groceries. I really hate going there but we seriously save SO MUCH money. I just cant justify going anywhere else. Which is why I dont know if home delivery would even be an option for us. Anyway....just some thoughts for today.

President Gordon B. Hinkley.....

While I was a work last night, I heard through water cooler chatter that President Hinkley had passed away. I found it very difficult to concentrate the remainder of my shift as my thoughts drifted to this man and the life that he led. A few years ago, I read his biography....thick as it was... and was so touched to learn about the full and unselfish life that he has lived. He is truly the definition of servant even though he held the highest of positions in my church. Every person growing up has a particular Prophet that they relate to and consider "their prophet".. President Hinkley was mine. He was kind and witty and dedicated to making the world a better place. He was loved by so many people....members of our church and non-members. Few who have met him can say anything bad about him. I havent heard a single story of someone meeting him and not instantly loving him. I know and understand that he is in a better place with his sweet wife but I cant help but feel sad knowing that there will be no more talks from him in my lifetime. I am so grateful to have known him in the small way that I did and for the influence he has been on my life. More than that, I am grateful for the church that I belong to and know without any doubt that I am in the right place.