Congratulations Mike!

Mike probably won't appreciate me posting this, but I'm just so proud of him! He always works hard, but Mike has worked especially hard while in grad school and being named a Hawes Scholar is an outstanding recognition.

Great work honey, we love you!!

BYU Marriott School names 2011 Hawes Scholars

Brigham Young University's Marriott School of Management has announced eight MBA students as its 2011 Hawes Scholars. The honor, which carries a cash award of $10,000, is the highest distinction given to MBA students at the school.

“Our students are known for their desire to accomplish great things, but not at the expense of others,” says Craig Merrill, MBA program director. “We see this manifest in the way they serve each other. The Hawes Scholars are recognized by faculty and their classmates as excellent examples of personal achievement and service within the MBA program.”

The 2011 Hawes Scholars are Benjamin Capell from Orem; Edgar Cheney from Rexburg, Idaho; Michael Christensen from Leawood, Kan.; Brian Clegg from Salt Lake City; Caio Correa from São Paulo, Brazil; Adam Cuppett from Wilmington, Calif.; John Hancey from Rexburg, Idaho; Kelsey Harris from Kaysville, Utah; and Jennia Parkin from Colorado Springs, Colo.

Students and faculty nominate and vote on each year's Hawes Scholars. Final selection is made by the Hawes Scholar Committee and is based on academic performance, leadership maturity and a commitment to high ethical standards.

Named for successful corporate executive Rodney A. Hawes Jr. and his wife, Beverly, the award was created in 1998 to recognize the accomplishments of graduating MBA students.

The Hawes Scholar Award is one of many initiatives made possible by the Hawes Endowment, a gift of more than $2 million used to facilitate the growth and enhancement of the Marriott School's nationally ranked MBA program.

Rodney Hawes, a Baker Scholar from the Harvard Business School, and Beverly Hawes wanted to create a tradition at the Marriott School that recognizes and rewards excellence among students entering the business world.

Hawes served as chairman and CEO of Life Re Corporation, a leading provider of life reinsurance in the United States. He is a director of the W.R. Berkley Corp. In addition to being widely recognized for his expertise in financial matters, Hawes has a reputation for integrity, hard work and community service.

Although Michael Keith Christensen is a twin in a family of 11, he never has problems standing out in a crowd. A sports enthusiast, he lists completing the Kansas City Marathon as his crowning athletic achievement. He shares his OBHR skills by running the MBA Sherpa program, a peer-led mentoring group that helps first-year students secure internships. Christensen has twin boys of his own as well as two other children. He now embarks on a new journey as a human resources generalist with the Kellogg Company, feeling well prepared for responsibilities such as recruiting, employee relations and workforce planning. "I believe the Marriott School has provided a great training ground for acquiring life skills that will allow me to lift and lead those around me not only in a corporate setting but also perhaps most importantly, in my civic, religious and family responsibilities," Christensen says.

Basketball Baby

One of the best parts about being in Provo is...the basketball! Especially now, it's all about the Jimmer Show! I'll admit, he's amazing to watch, yes he really shoots from there. Did you know that Superman sleeps in a Jimmer Jersey? Unfortunately, Jimmer ended his BYU career tonight at the sweet 16. It's been a great year watching the cougs and of course...Jimmer!Second to Jimmer, MBA (Mostly Balding and Arthritic)-- Mike's intramural basketball team! Currently four rounds into the tournament and playing strong! Yes, Mike's the shortest person on the team- it's a very tall team!
Next up, Start Smart Basketball for all three boys! We had this great idea to sign the boys up for basketball, which requires an adult for each child. We were a little outnumbered with only two parents and three boys, but went for it. Unfortunately, the schedule we were assigned didn't work for Mike. He could only come to one practice, which meant I was seriously outnumbered! Meghan was kind enough to come to a couple practices and somehow we managed the other times without her. I'll admit, I was happy when it was over! It's hard to be at the passing station trying to pass to all three boys who are learning to pass! Balls everywhere! Regardless, it was a good experience.


We were out of town for team pictures, but we kind of had our own little Christensen team.
We hit the Creamery after the practice that Mike made it to, one of our favorite outings!

We've taken the kids to a few games, usually when tickets are $1 a piece. Ya, we go all out, tickets on the very tippy top row! This particular game was fun because we had 4-5 other MBA families join us.Occasionally, Mike and I get a babysitter and enjoy a game without the kids, way more fun!

So, with all this basketball in my life I hate to admit that I didn't fill out a bracket this year! I always fill out a bracket, but somehow it just didn't happen. I hope I will still be accepted in the Christensen family. Here's to more basketball for years to come!

Amelia Turns One!

I love first birthdays, they make me so nostalgic! In my head, I replay exactly what happened one year ago at every moment. I remember going into labor with Amelia (10 days after my due date!) while coming home from Park City. That evening I wanted to get a few groceries and so I quickly ran to Smith's and bumped into our neighbors. I was trying to breathe through contractions without it seeming obvious.

When Amelia was born she looked huge to me! She outweighed all her brothers by 2-3 lbs. I remember how good it felt to finally hold her in my arms, not in my belly! I love the time we spent together in the hospital. It was quiet, peaceful, delightful. Mike was gone a lot with the boys and school, so it was just me and Amelia most of the time, so fun!

I reminisced our baby girls' first year of life as I looked through pictures from the last year. I can't believe how quickly this year has passed.











We had a great day celebrating Amelia's birthday! We started with blueberry pancakes, which she loved! She was a lovely blue mess, but so adorable!
Mom and Dad C., were kind enough to come to Provo to celebrate with us. They showed up early evening and we had nice dinner and then opened presents. With three big brothers around, Amelia had plenty of help ripping into gifts.
The most-loved gift was a little kitchen for our little girl. She loved it, and so did the boys!

Mike made me one of my favorite cakes for my birthday, banana cake with raspberries and lemon cream cheese frosting! Amelia devoured her piece and so I decided to make the same cake into cupcakes for her birthday.

It was fun to have grandma and grandpa here to help celebrate this big birthday for Amelia. We've really tried to make the most of living near them for these last couple of years. I will be heart broken to leave them!

We adore our little Amelia! Here are a few tidbits about our sweet girl!

Amelia is incredibly happy, if she's fussy, you know she's not feeling well.

At nap time or bed time, I lay Amelia down and she just giggles! Then she'll play peek-a-boo with her blankets for a little bit and then finally wave goodbye as I leave the room. I always wonder if she's going to cry when I leave because we've been playing, but she never does! I guess she's just happy to lay down and have some peace and quiet!

Amelia gives the best open mouthed kisses, but you have to be careful because sometimes she get's too excited and her kiss has a bite to it!

Amelia started walking the week after her birthday and is now cruisin' around. She's just started climbing furniture and the other day I found her on top of the kitchen table!

Amelia says, "uh oh" and "bye bye" and when she's done eating, she throws her arms out to the sides and says, "Done!" If we're not fast enough, she then starts throwing food!

Amelia loves her brothers! When they are playing Star Wars, Lion King, house, etc., she is right along side them. She's their Princess Leia.

We have a step stool in the bathroom that's two steps up, perfect for Amelia to climb up and play in the sink. She loves to get in there after someone has washed their hands and then she plays in the bubbles still left in the sink.

We love our sweet and happy little Amelia! Happy Birthday!

Peter Pan

Last year we learned that our dear friend, Shelby, would be the lady for costumes for BYU's production of Peter Pan. We immediately said we wanted to go, and our boys didn't forget about it! When we got back from the summer, they kept asking when we'd go to the show. At Halloween, we had received some money to get a yummy Halloween treat and Tanner immediately said, "Let's buy tickets to Peter Pan with this money!" So cute!

The long-awaited day finally arrived and we were excited, despite the lack of smiles from T&R in the picture below. The show was excellent! We had a great time watching the show, they loved it!

After the show, we had dinner at the Creamery with A&G and family, as well as the Lingenbrinks. I think it was an event that lived up to every expectation!

More Birthday

January seems to be our month for birthdays! After Christmas, my boys were asking if we could put up our "January decorations." After Fall, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, the house seems empty come January. We've decided that our January decorations are our birthday decorations!

We kicked off my birthday celebration by having dinner with April and Glenn at PF Changes the weekend before. We (Andrew and I) had a lovely joint birthday dinner at Mom and Dad C.'s home. And then the actual day of, April and I got babysitters and went to Thai Pan Trading and bought...nothing. We then celebrated as our own little family, complete with homemade coupon books from my boys!

It's always fun to see how long we can stretch the birthday celebrations out. Not bad this time around!

Can't Decide!

I thought I had finally made the decision to go private, but now I'm back and forth on the idea. In the meantime, here are a few posts that were in the que. I'll keep you posted if I end up following through on the private thing.

On another note, tonight we were at Mike's parents' home having dessert when Grandma generously offered Andrew a corner piece of brownie. When Andrew said he didn't like the corner she said, "That's great for me, I love the corner piece!"

Mike then said, "Andrew, you just got Jimmered!"

Without missing a beat, Andrew responds, "Ah, Fredette about it!"

I asked Andrew to say "Fredette about it!" and this is what it looked like! Funny guy!