Ander's 1st birthday

With so many family and friends nearby, Ander's first birthday turned into quite a party with about 20 guests -- though you wouldn't know it because the few pictures that were taken were of Ander (These are courtesy of Jeanette.).

We had a box of hats that guests could choose to wear with Ander wearing the crown as "King of the day." I made frog cupcakes for everyone, which made Ander giggle when he saw them all on the table. He was mostly interested in squishing the frosting through his fingers and ate very little. In fact, I'm a little disappointed he didn't get more messy, but we have plenty of years to look forward to for that.


He received some fun toys, like this one where the balls go in the top, travel some switchbacks and come out the bottom. He also got a Rockin' Pony (in the photo on the left side) that he loves to climb on and rock back and forth (from Great Grandpa Bill and Shirley). He also got some new clothes, and his first computer game with an accompanying child's keyboard, a tricycle for kids his size, and a toy that blows balls in the air and scares the very intriqued Ander each time.

Stressed out Metros

So here is one more reason confirming that the move to Arizona was a good lifestyle choice -- less stress. Check out the "Stress Rankings for Top 50 U.S. Metros" -- San Francisco/Oakland is 11th, Phoenix is 48th.

Check it out... 30% of folks in SF/OAK pay a mortgage of more than $3,000 (only 5% of Phoenicians)! Crikey!

Yes, it's snow -- and a rainbow

Today -- Feb. 4 -- is pretty cold and a storm has kept it moist most of the day. Some of the rain has turned to snow on local mountains, like this one near our house.

But within minutes, the clouds shift again and a glorious rainbow appears. There's gold at our home on 77th Place -- love.

Static cling

The winter air has made everything static-y. Here is Ander hanging upside down with his hair all pointed to the couch. Shane was rubbing his head back and forth to see how much we could get it to stand up.

Apache Trail, Part 1

In an effort to explore this beautiful country, we ventured out on the Apache Trail, the road the men used to haul materials to build the dam for Apache Lake. It is State Route 88, one of the only roads I have been on that, as a state route, is still only a dirt road.

It was beautiful. We traveled through some vast open spaces, like the area where you see our family photo and the one of Laurie. We also traveled through some gorgeous red-colored canyons (a la Sedona) and some narrow by-ways.






We happened upon a canyon which made a nice stop to stretch our legs (we were traveling only about 25-35 mph).

From Apache Lake, -- where we also stopped, but no photos -- we continued on to Roosevelt Dam/Roosevelt Lake where the road was once again paved.














We had lunch in nearby Globe, a historic (and still operating) copper mining town at the roadside El Rey. Then it was homebound on the freeway -- a much faster ride.

Apache Trail Part 2

In the canyon, we were in the shadows and, subsequently, very cold.




















They don't build guardrails like this anymore - how about a few mud bricks to help keep you from going off the edge?
If you look closely, you can see Laurie in her red sweatshirt waving from the right edge of the bridge.

We should be in therapy.

There are a number of significant life events that psychologists say predictably trigger increased stress and anxiety as a person adjusts to new circumstances. Rather than just take one of these events at a time, this year, we decided to really pile them on.

New baby. On February 11, we were blessed with a healthy boy – Ander Dawson Chlarson – who joined our growing family just three days shy of his daddy’s birthday. My parents were in town only 5 hours when they got the call that we were headed to the hospital for delivery. Ander’s arrival brought lots of family visits. Virginia came out from Sacramento within hours. Great aunties Becky and Hazel came out together in April as did my parents who just couldn’t stay away any longer (it had been 2 months, after all!). July 4th, great grandpa Bill and Shirley were visiting friends in N. Cal and met him. We also traveled to Oregon in late March, visiting sister Teresa & Chris in Springfield and cousin Deb in Portland.

Moving. But, alas, our 700-square-foot cottage in San Francisco was just too small to hold the 4 of us. Ander’s crib and belongings were tucked into a corner of the living room and the only room that had any privacy was the bathroom, which was the size of a bread box. How we managed to store 2 moving trucks of stuff in that little place, I’ll never know, but with help from family and friends, we packed it all up and moved to Mesa, Arizona in late July – the hottest time of year. I had lived in San Francisco for 15 years, Shane had been there for 7. The move to Mesa was a cultural and temperature shock (for me… Shane was happy to be “home”). But living in a house with a room for everyone, a garage, and floorspace to spare is heavenly. And the swimming pool down the street helps, too.

The move also allows us to see family more frequently. Since July, we have seen grandparents Chlarson and brother Jerry in Page; cousins John & Tamara in Anthem; greats Hazel & Howard and Bill & Shirley in Prescott; and aunt Jeanette and cousins Barb & Rob here in the Valley. Sister Kim & Brian came for a visit in September and many of those mentioned above made an appearance at the Lake Alamo Thanksgiving campout.

New School. Laurie, who was visiting her folks in Colorado for most of the summer, missed the move and had to adjust when she arrived just a few weeks before school started. She had gone through much transition herself in the last two years, from a small middle school in Mancos, Colorado to her freshman year at a 700-student high school in San Francisco and, now, a 2,400-student high school in Mesa. She took to it like a fish to water though, claiming, within two weeks, that she loved Mesa and was happy about the move (she had been dreading it since the beginning). She has found a group of friends and is enjoying her high school experience as she continues to explore herself. But, boy, as a teenager, she sure keeps us on our toes! Throw Ander in to the mix and we’re headed towards insanity!

New Jobs. Both Shane and I have found new work. Shane is hauling fuel and has a schedule that allows him to pick up Ander from daycare, be home in the evenings and share Saturdays with us. This is a blessing since most new drivers are relegated to evening and weekend shifts. I found a communications/writing job with the Arizona State University Foundation, the fundraising arm of the university, and am enjoying my new job.

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. To all of you who live in our hearts, though you might be miles away, we send you our love.