{2012}

Happy New Year, friends!

What an incredibly sweet year 2011 was for our family! We were blessed beyond words as we experienced a healthy pregnancy, we welcomed our beautiful daughter into the world, Chris switched jobs, I quit my full-time job to focus on growing my personal training business and throughout the joys, triumphs and struggles over the past year, our marriage has grown to be stronger than ever! We are indeed blessed!

I am so thrilled to see what new adventures and opportunities 2012 has to offer!

 Here's to a healthy and happy year ahead,

Kate

Regularly Scheduled Programming

All the Christmas decor is packed up, my meal planner boasts clean, healthy fare and, let's be real, the traffic is crazy! I guess that means life is back to normal, 5-day work weeks and all. But it's not all that bad as there's plenty to look forward to this month, like regular blogs!

So grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and perk up, because it's a fresh new year!

And speaking of new year, anyone have any good resolutions or goals for 2011?

A big one of mine is to relax more-sounds crazy right? I want to enjoy more of the little things; long relaxing baths, out-of-the-blue 'I love you's' and spontaneous walks with our dogs. This year I will strive to appreciate the goodness in every day.

image/via

Happy Twenty Eleven!

Happy New Year!! While I am gleefully looking forward to what this new year has in store, it is with a huge smile that I recall this past year. In so many ways we are abundantly grateful for the many good things the year brought us.

In 2010 we:

Bought our first house, which has been a desire of ours for a long time! It certainly took patience, but was worth every moment!

Bought a new car! A big one for us as we desperately needed a more reliable and family-friendly car.

Got a new puppy! Max has been a wonderful, even if a little chaotic, addition to our family! We just love the little guy!

I became a certified yoga instructor!

I completed my first half marathon!

Welcomed a new brother!

We witnessed our sweet friends get married!

The Giants won the World Series!!!!!

We took some really fun trips!

And overall prepared ourselves for a great 2011!! Can't wait to see what's in store! Wishing you heaps and heaps of blessings for the new year!

Overdue

Hi there! Whew, this last week of 2010 has flown by and I haven't even gotten to share about Christmas. What with Chris working like crazy, family in town and attempting to get even more done to our house before Chris' birthday and my Pampered Chef party in a few weeks, blogging has been a bit difficult. Don't worry though, that won't stop me from sharing a few pics!

I am always so thankful for the holidays. In addition to the obvious reasons we celebrate Christmas, I am always grateful for the opportunity to spend time with dear friends and family! And of course, it was wonderful having my Grandma and aunt here to celebrate with us!

I think it's safe to say that my husband made out like a bandit this year with the thoughtful and generous gifts from our family! Everything he received was perfectly suited for a new homeowner. As his power drill completely died just after we moved in, he got a brand new one, plus a Little Giant ladder system, a shop vac and a dremel. And not to mention all the other useful gadgets like a new level and such. And let me assure you, I've already had him put it all to good use working on a new project each night...and slowly, but surely it's all coming together!

I can't wait to share new pics of the house as we received some beautiful additions that I've been wanting like glass amber lamps from Crate and Barrel, a console and matching side tables for the living room and a beautiful stainless faucet for the kitchen {which is so amazing!}. Plus, Jeannine (Chris' mom) made pillows for the cozy room that say "warm" & "cozy", with her own drawings of a nest and "love birds"! It's wonderful to see everything come together and really feel like ours!

With out further ado, here's a glimpse of our holiday. Including Christmas Eve at Pop's, my parents for a crab feast {YUM}, Christmas morning at our house, then at each of our parents house's and Christmas brunch!













Now that you're all caught up, how are you planning to ring in the new year? We are having family over for some yummy fondue! Can't wait to toast to a brand new year! Have a good one!

Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much

Happy New Year, dear readers! Can you believe it is officially 2010? I am absolutely giddy with excitement, as the new year always brings with it a fresh, new perspective, a time for reflection and opportunities to set new goals!

We rang in 2010 with Chris' family, enjoying fondue, champagne and games! And this morning my darling husband and I are hanging out at Panera, where I am sipping a delightful hazelnut latte and reflecting on this past year. And what a wonderful year it was! As I try to recall every highpoint it brought, I am simply overwhelmed. All I can say is praise God for being such a faithful and incredible God! The phrase that come to mind is "Live well, Laugh often, Love much". Without a doubt, this was our 2009!

Chris and I have so much to be thankful for and such sweet memories from this past year! Do you realize that we can no longer say we were married last year? Wow, that really makes us pros at this whole marriage thing..only kidding! But in all truth, with each month that has passed since we became husband and wife, I realize how much we continue to learn about each other and more importantly, how to love each other with the love of Christ.

As I do with every new year, I am finalizing my list of personal goals for 2010. I should mention that this too fills me with pure delight! Setting, and most importantly achieving goals, is one of my favorite things to do. I cannot express how much joy it gives me. Hmm, maybe that's why I love personal training so much, as helping others set and meet their personal goals gives me equal pleasure!

I hope that the closing of 2009 also fills you with wonderful thoughts and hope for what's to come in 2010!

And now friends, I shall get back to my sweet husband, who is getting antsy for my attention (even though he too is on the computer)!

Much love and Happy New Year from the Hansens!

image via wisheskisses

What a year! Bring on 2009!!

As we have rung in the new year, I am filled with excitement and wonder of the many new adventures and trials we will face this year, but I must admit I am a little sad to see 2008 in my rear view mirror. I would like to take a minute to reflect on the past year and share some particularly wonderful things that have happened.

1. Well, the biggest and obviously most exciting thing would be Chris and I getting MARRIED!! This, by far, was the highlight of our year! I would do every single moment of planning again (even the stressful parts!) I cannot imagine sharing my life with a more amazing man and having the most incredible wedding to remember!


2. Our Honeymoon! Ha, we would! Besides the actual day, and night, of our wedding, our honeymoon was the most wonderful week to take a breath and celebrate the huge commitment we had just made to each other. Plus, when else will we be care free enough to order room service almost every morning?!


3. Finding our apartment and making it our Home. This is something I have been dreaming about for years! Seriously, we have been so fortunate to find such a great apartment where we can have Abby. No matter how great the places are that we live in the future, we will never forget our first real Home!


4. Our trip to Chicago! Not only was this our first married trip, but such a cool opportunity for Chris to spend with my family. We had such a blast!


5. Our friends getting engaged and married! I absolutely adore weddings! What a blessing to take part in such a happy time with those we love! I can't wait to see what beautiful brides Emily, Stacey and Jessica make this year!


6. Learning to be frugal. While maybe not the most fun thing in the world, understanding the responsibility that comes with taking care of ourselves has been a really cool journey. Besides, we're Newlyweds, surely we can find things to do without spending money:)

7. He ups and downs that come with "real world" living. This past year, Chris and I have really learned what they don't teach you in school. We have had some real disappointments with jobs and some great victories. Thankfully, we can come out of the year saying, "We're in a good place".

8. Celebrating our first holiday season as a married couple! This was, hands down, our best Christmas together! Being able to start our own traditions as a family is such a wonderful thing!


9. Getting to know the intimate things about my husband. Don't worry, I won't get too personal, I just mean those things that you can only know about a spouse. Even though we dated for five years before getting married, there were things I didn't know until the last six months. I think that is pretty cool:)

10. So, this last thing actually happened at the beginning of the year but I feel is important to mention. My internship at Cooper. I could not have asked for a better internship. I took so much away from my time there and the experiences I was able to have. I am truly thankful to have worked with the Best!

Hopefully you too have had a year full of happy memories! Now I guess it's on to another year full of opportunity and I am excited! Every year I make goals for myself. This year my list is a pretty hefty one:) The biggest physical goal is to complete the Chicago Marathon!!! I can't wait to start training!

Wishing you a year full of fresh starts and new adventures! Bring it on 2009!