Hansen Christmas

Christmas was crazy. It was weird to go back to Provo and it felt like we were still living there honestly. But just out of bags: which was even weirder.
Before we went to Standrod, my sister Tosha came to meet Mr. Miles. She has three kids.

Remi loved Miles and he loved her just as much.

Tosha's little girls are so cute! They look so much alike. This is Ashtyn 

I love Miles' face here, and Remi just looks so happy to be holding him.

Finally cousins meet. Little Trey and Miles. Future besties.

I have always loved my nieces and nephews, but it has so much more meaning and I love seeing them interact with my baby now, its fun starting something new, like a person....

This little person is so full of personality, and I love watching him change and grow. Here he is at Christmas time in these Gap Halloween Jammies...I'm a sucker for sales and these Halloween jammies don't even look like Halloween until you get up close they are little mice with capes and pumpkins. But they were only 3 dollars so I'm good with cheap quality. Oxymoron. Discounted good quality. There we go. Brad calls these his pioneer jammies: maybe because of the color? I'll never know.

Here we are on New Years Eve. That is Echo my sister on the far left and her boyfriend best friend McKay. He leaves for the MTC on Wednesday, and after that he is serving in the Lubbock Texas mission. That's right, her boyfriend is coming to Lubbock!!!!! How crazy is that? So we will be having him over for dinner, cuz we love him.

Sally didn't want her picture taken, but she is wearing two items that came from me and both have very awesome stories. First is the hoodie, I bought that at Old Navy when I was a freshman in college. Such a cool story. Sorry, not really, but the pants are a whole awesome story.

You see I felt so proud of myself for going and buying these jammie pants for all my sisters for Christmas one year. Everyone was trying them on and they started fighting about not wanting the green ones (there were red ones too). Then they were saying things like, "I don't want the green ones, they are ugly." And "Fine I won't have any because I only want the red ones."

Then I burst into tears and ran into my closet (walk in) and shut the door and just cried. 

This was before I was married PS, long ago.

And they were all freaked out and came in wearing the green ones and saying sorry and that they loved them. I guess I just had a break down and thought that buying 7 pairs of pajama pants would make them love me more or something. Best $80.00 I've ever spent when I saw Sally wearing them this Christmas years later, and the green ones none the less.

My mom was sure to pour us all Sparkling Grape and Apple Cider while we played cards.

That's a tradition for us non alcohol drinkers.

I wanted a picture of Miles with all my siblings at Christmas (that were there) so I started with Ian.

And this is what we got folks. Such a character. When I was engaged to Brad he said to me, "So is Brad slowly becoming a Hansen?" (My maiden name)

And I said, "Well I am going to become a Clark now."

And he burst into tears and ran out of the room.

I followed him and explained to him that I am still Brittany Hansen Clark, and I will always be his sister, and yes Brad was becoming a Hansen, he just wasn't going to change his name, and when he gets married (that lucky lego lovin star wars girl) she will change her name to Hansen too.

He was just sobbing like someone had died. It touched my heart that he cared about me like that.

I loved watching him and Ian take care of Miles, they would run upstairs (3 floors) and check on him for me, and they would play with him and hand him his toys over and over again. Such good uncles.

Landon is my brother closest to me in age and in spirit. We are close, he and I have been besties since babies, 15 months apart and he always has been there for me. So now that his wife is pregnant with a boy due in June, I couldn't be more excited that our boys will grow up together and be best friends.

Lad is just younger than Ian and he loved Miles. They thought he was the best and were always taking care of him (I said that already). 

Oh this is Landon again, he loves kids and they love him.

This is my brother Tanner, Miles loved him so much! I never thought anything would tug at my heart strings like watching my brothers love my little baby, and him loving them back. Tanner has three kids now-his wife just had a boy in January little baby Leif, and he is adorable and I can't wait for Miles to have a little boy cousin party.

Tosha: Baby Trey 2012

Summer: Baby Parker 2012

Me: Baby Miles 2012

Tanner's wife Amanda: Baby Leif Jan 2013

Landon: Baby boy ? June 2013

AND JUST TODAY WE FOUND out my sister Hannah is Pregnant with her 5th due in September. She has four girls.

So hopefully...

Hannah: Baby Boy!!?!?!?! Please! Sept 2013

She sent us this cute pic today. Love Hazel aka #4. But I have a soft spot for Halle #3. She just says all the right things to make me crazy about her! Like: Miles name is too long, let's call him Mile. (She's 3) Or, "Miles has Bwad's boobs"

Or, "Brittany Miles is crying, I think he misses Bwad."

Love her.

Six boys in a row!!! We can do it!

This is my little brother Ammon. He is older than Ian and Lad.

He is autistic, and how we got this picture is a miracle. Right after this he whipped up his right hand and it went right around Miles neck and he was in a choke hold by Ammon. Good thing Landon is stronger and stopped it quickly. 

He was making sounds and closing his eyes most of the time he was holding Miles.

Or screaming and biting his hands. Also you see his hand on Miles' hand?

He loved biting Miles' hands. Not hard, just putting them in his mouth and biting down. Nothing Miles isn't used to.

 Normal autistic stuff.

Now this is Faith, and she had the Chicken Pox, and I don't know if we gave up or just thought Miles wouldn't get them...oh how wrong we were.

She was so sad when we cut the cake and found out it was a boy, she just cried.

Here she is telling me how she didn't want me to have a boy at the cake cutting party.

"But I didn't want a boy!"

She isn't saying this now that's for sure! She can't handle not holding him or playing with him.

Miles loved my dad. The first time he met him just gave him a big smile. And my dad will hold him and play with him for hours. 

Here is Faith loving Miles-she was so funny, when Brad came he would tell her to get away from Miles, and when Brad left Faith would kiss him and hold him, then Brad would walk in and she would pretend she wasn't touching him. Hilarious.

My dad for as long as I can remember always brushes his hands against baby's cheeks, and I loved watching him do it to Miles. He would do it and say, "So handsome you are."

Oh Hi Brad who needs a haircut. (Don't worry, he got one shortly after this-we know its time when he starts doing the Beatles comb over).

Sally was really tired and didn't want to be in this picture but we made her, and Miles was ready to be done with pictures at about this time.

But we kept going. Echo is the first one to get him to laugh when he was 2 months old. Lucky Echo, you will forever have that branding, and that's a tough one to beat....watch out other aunts (Chelsea is also in the running for favorite aunt).

Group picture, this is about where I started crying.

Brad was rushing me to go, and I said to him firmly with tears in my eyes, "This is really hard for me to leave my family. So we will go when I am ready to go." He then said, "Okay muffin, sorry, take your time."

Chandler and Ethan are my little brothers who grew up too fast and we used to not want them on our bball team, now we fight over who gets them, but they were at early morning bball practice and we waited for them to get home, and they were both exhausted and didn't want their picture taken.

Miles was happy to be held by his uncles. I think Miles may have gotten the same genes Chandler got, blonde blue eyed. I'm not complaining, I think blonde blue eyes with some sprinkled freckles will be adorable.

Ethan got the dark hair blue eyes gene, which is equally cute.

Ethan kept having sleepy eyes, and these two pictures look the same, but if you look at Miles, you will see that they are different.

Ethan just couldn't get his eyes to cooperate.

My mom was crying before we left. Something about being away and not being able to see everyone once a week is hard. It's hard to say goodbye, but it makes us savor and appreciate the time we do have with them. Here I am tearing up writing this. I love my family more than anything and they are my best friends. 

Clearly I have a lot of friends, given my amount of siblings. And I love them all so much!