Our trip to Malaysia & Thailand

It's been a busy couple of months for us here in the Hanson household. In mid-September, we left on a month-long trip to Malaysia and Thailand. We left on our journey and flew to Chicago and then to Hong Kong, before landing in Kuala Lumpur, 30 hours later. Our flights back took us through Tokyo and Dallas. Sophie and Jack did very well on the plane and I think it's now safe to call them seasoned world travelers. They both enjoyed watching movies on the plane, exploring children's play areas at the airports, eating plane food and playing with the giveaway toys from the airlines (the international airlines, of course). We checked in our two big bags and two car seats and hoped for the best. Luckily, everything made it there and back.

In Kuala Lumpur, the kids spent time with my parents, sister and brother (who came to visit for a few days from Perth, Australia). They got to meet some members of my extended family, including their other great grandma. We visited many tourist attractions in KL including the Aquaria KLCC Aquarium, Petrosains Science Museum, KLCC/Petronas Twin Towers area, the Bird Park and more.

At the end of September, we took a vacation from our vacation and flew to Phuket, Thailand for my friend Gwen's wedding. We stayed at the very fun Sunwing Kamala resort and the wedding was held at the gorgeous Paresa resort, cliff side, at sunset. Sophie and Jack were both in the wedding and enjoyed the experience. The wedding was beautiful. Congratulations to Gwen & Len! In Phuket, the kids enjoyed their time at the pool and the adults enjoyed the beach-side coconut oil massages.

With the my family in Kuala Lumpur.

Eating dim sum with my Dad, Ah Ma (Grandma) and my sister Michelle.

Headed to Gwen & Len's wedding dinner.

Jack at Leanne's wedding photo booth.

 Bryan and the kids at the Kuala Lumpur Bird Park.

The kids spent LOTS of time doing sand art with Auntie Michelle.

A very cool-looking peacock at the Bird Park.

View in Phuket-- gorgeous!

Our resort in Phuket. The kids had so much fun.

Kamala Beach in Phuket.

Happy 4th Birthday to Sophie!

It's been 4 very fun years of watching Sophie grow from a little newborn into a sweet little girl. At her doctor's appointment last week, she measured in at 36.5" and weighs 28 pounds. Both of which are under the 5th percentile. She's creating her own growth curve! Sophie enjoys swimming, gymnastics, watching movies, camping in the backyard and riding her bike.

Last weekend, we celebrated with our friends and family at her birthday party. We had a big bounce house in our backyard and the kids enjoyed jumping for hours.

Another highlight was Sophie's delicious two-tier Disney Princess cake from Jack's Bakery.

Happy 4th Birthday to our little Sophie Lee!

Happy Independence Day!

Happy 4th of July!

Here's a picture of the kids all dressed up in their Independence Day gear.

Last weekend, Sophie and I camped out in the backyard. We had a fun time sleeping in the tent, telling each other stories and singing songs before drifting off to sleep.

Jack loved riding on the tractor at the Filo Family Farm.

Sophie and Jack, along with Carter and Cameron, enjoying their dinner outside on a beautiful day.

BWCA Trip

Here are some of my favorite pictures from my recent Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) trip. Jennie and I joined a guided trip that took us through Ely, MN to the Echo Trail, where we started at entry point #14, Little Indian Sioux River (north). We camped on Shell Lake and visited nearby Little Shell, Heritage and Lynx lakes. It was fantastic being out in the wilderness.

June 2012

We've been busy enjoying the warm weather and getting outside. Since school is out for the summer, Sophie attended a half day Abrakadoodle art camp. She was a little weary at first, but then loved it. She's already signed up for another art camp later this summer.

One of the things I love about summer are the art fairs that happen at least a few times a month. We kicked off the art fair season by going to the Edina Art Fair, at 50th and France. I wore one of the kids on my back the entire time, good practice for my upcoming Boundary Waters camping trip.

At the art fair, we stopped at Sweet Retreat to try  some of their delicious cupcakes. Jack loved it!

Here's a picture of Jack's new haircut and his shades.

To celebrate Grandma Linda's birthday, we went strawberry picking!

Here's a picture of us at Nickelodeon Universe. The kids love going on rides.

April & May 2012

It's been a couple of busy months in the Hanson household. We've been playing outside, going to the water park and keeping busy with Spring and Summer activities. For Easter, Bryan and the kids went to Bemidji to celebrate with family. We've had outings to the Minnesota Children's Museum, the Minnesota Zoo and of course, our annual pilgrimage to Omaha for the BRK shareholders meeting. The past week has welcomed a number of new babies into the world, including baby Brecker Nelson and Alice Hanson. Can't wait to meet them!

Jack loves to ride on Daddy's tractor and talks about mowing the lawn every day.

Sophie hanging out with a new "friend".

Brother and sister hugging.

Happy 2nd Birthday Jack!

Two years ago, my sweet baby boy Jack Bradley was born. This post is dedicated to him. I love you so much!

Here's a picture from his newborn photo session. Jack was born almost one week past his due date. Jack has always been a happy kid and is very good-natured.

We celebrated his big day with a party at Build-A-Bear Workshop at Ridgedale. It was fun having all of our friends and family over for lunch. Jack made a teddy bear and Sophie made a yellow duck. Our friend Denise also posted about Jack's birthday party here.

A few weeks ago, we took a staycation to the Water Park of America and stayed at the adjoining hotel. The kids had fun playing on the water slides and they especially loved the bunk beds in the hotel room.

The weather has been so nice outside lately. We've spent lots of time outside playing with sidewalk chalk, bubbles, bikes and cars. Jack loves being outside and it's always a challenge to convince him to come inside.

Happy 2nd Birthday to my baby Jack!

Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of our friends and family! We've had a wonderful and fun-filled year. Some of the highlights include two trips to Walt Disney World, numerous outings to the Minnesota Zoo and the Minnesota Children's Museum, road trips to Omaha, Duluth, Brainerd and Sioux Falls, eating our way around the Minnesota State Fair, starting our new Friday family movie night tradition and spending time with our beloved family and friends. We hope you've had a good year and that you have a safe and happy holiday season. See you in 2012!

November 2011

Another trip to Walt Disney World! Bryan, Sophie and I had a wonderful trip to Orlando. We were accompanied by some of my friends from work. We spent the first four nights staying at the Pop Century Resort. It's a value resort, so less frills. But I did appreciate being located pretty near the cafe area and within a few minutes walk of the theme park bus stops. We spent time at all four parks. Lucky for us, the Epcot Food & Wine Festival was going on while we were there and we had a Disney dining plan as part of our package, so we were able to eat our way around Epcot-- YUM! It was Sophie's first time at Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. She enjoyed the Toy Story Mania ride, watching all of the shows and meeting characters. But her favorite part of the trip was probably just being able to go swimming in the lovely heated pools at the resorts. For the last three nights of our trip, we moved over to the Coronado Springs Resort, where my work conference was held. During those days, Bryan and Sophie spent their time exploring theme parks and hanging out at the resort. Jack stayed home with Grandma. I've already promised to bring him next time!

Stress-free Disney travel tips

Epcot Center (yes, I know that's the old name)

We've been so lucky to have taken two trips to sunny Orlando, Florida within 10 months! And we've learned a thing or do about traveling to Disney World with kids. If you're planning a trip to WDW soon, here are some tips that might help you out:

Schedule breaks into your day

Sophie did so much better when we took 3+ hours off in the middle of the day to return to the hotel room, take a nap, go for a swim and relax. It also gave me time to do some laundry, take a shower and rest my feet.

Bring in-flight entertainment

Bringing the iPad on the plane was a great idea. I bought Sophie a pair of child-size headphones, installed some videos and downloaded a few kid-friendly apps. It entertained her for quite a while. If that's not an option for you, on our last trip, we brought along a few small toys, a coloring book and some crayons. We also made a Cheerio necklace to bring along on the flight.

Rent or bring a stroller

Sophie in the CARES Harness

On our previous trip, Magic Strollers delivered a fabulous double stoller to our resort the day we arrived and picked it up on the day that we left. It was all done through the bell hop and the company sent me a text message when the delivery was made. The stroller reclines completely and it features an extra large sunshade. We liked the stroller so much, we ended up buying the same one when we got home!

On our most recent trip, we brought along out Maclaren Volo stroller. Weighing in at only 9 pounds, it is a perfect travel stroller. It was durable enough to withhold being gate checked and folded up quickly when we needed to board a bus. The small basket underneath held a water bottle and change of clothes for Sophie. The only downside of this stroller? Since it's so lightweight, it tips easily if you have anything hanging from the handlebars.

Should we bring a car seat?
If you're planning on renting a car, yes! On our previous trip, we rented a minivan (hot!), so I bought a hand truck/dolly to schlep our two car seats through the airport. It folded down flat and stored easily in the airplane's overhead storage bin.

On this trip, since we were staying on-property and using Disney transportaion, we used the CARES Harness for the fight. It's FAA-approved for take-off, landing and everything in-between. I was never even questioned by the flight attendant, but I had along the FAA certificate, just in case. The entire harness was easy to install and only weighed a few pounds, but unfortunately, since Sophie was sitting upright and strapped into her seat, she could never get comfortable enough to take a nap.

Disney's Coronado Springs Resort

Some great planning websites
If you have a Disney-related question, chances are, the folks on DISboards have your answer. Their companion website, WDWinfo is also helpful for planning.

MouseSavers gives vacation-planners updated coupon codes for car rentals, tips on picking the best dates to go to WDW and steals on off-property resorts.

TouringPlans is the company website to The Unofficial Guide Walt Disney World. The best Disney-related app is the LINES app, providing you with up-to-the-minute wait times for rides and other attractions. It's worth the membership fee! The guide is the best that money can buy.

Have fun!


What I'm looking forward to the next time we go back to WDW :)
- staying at the Art of Animation resort (opening May 2012)

- the new Fantasyland at Magic Kingdom (scheduled to be completed in 2013)