The Mikkelson Family Schedule for this week

Thank you one and all. We have already had so much help, and such wonderful meals. Please feel free to come and visit anytime now that we are all home. Just all before you come so we can make sure we are ready. We are once again reminded of what an amazing family we have.

Love,

Shawn, Rischelle and "VAHK" (Victoria, Annika, Hadley and Kale)

Wahooooo! a BABY BOY

Dad in his space suit right after I was born.

Dad, Mom and me... What a team!

Kale Shawn Mikkelson  9 pounds 7 ounces 22 inches long

I'm a BIG BOY (our biggest)!

I didn't even cry much when I was born.  Just kind of looked around a lot.

Mom is happy to have me even after the "ordeal" I put her through.

My big sister Victoria is going to be a great baby sitter!

Annika is going to keep me laughing!

Hadley's happy she's not the youngest anymore.

"Grandma Grams" thinks I'm pretty neat.  I get to be the latest grandchild she spoils too much!

Mom thinks the food here is awful... and it is!

Look! Grandpa Sam is helping me learn how to palm a basketball already.

Grandma "C" thinks I'm swell.  I'm probably her last grandchild.  You know what they say, "last the best of all the gang."         J/K!

Thanks to all of you who have shown me and my family so much love and concern!  You have been so much help already. I look forward to getting to know all of you a little bit better.

Mikkelson family Pics

Our Favorite things to do as a family... Disneyland!

Last Picture we have of Ashley, Shellie, and Jon all together

Cade with wild hair at Easter Dinner at the Cards

Hadley and Kenya.  Look at those smiles and killer eyes!

Our sideways dog

Some more Mikk pics!

Our beautiful girls before church on Easter Sunday

Jaycee at Easter

Ethan being daring on the swing

Noah jumping at Easter

Victoria and Marce.  They took first as a group in their ballroom competition

All the trophies Victoria's ballroom team won (notice Rischelle in the back hiding her tummy)

Snow White, a tree, and our narrator in the Renaissance production of Snow White 

Ryder Pack cute as always!

It is a privelage to work!

It seems to me that so many people are trying to figure out how to get out of work. I can't say how frustrating it is to see people living off of our taxes who could work but choose not to. AHHHHRRRGG! I would submit it is a pleasure to be able to work. It is part of your inner self to be able to work at something and see a task completed. I think it gives most of us a sense of self worth. If you just sit around and watch TV or play video games all day you seem to get a sense of guilt. I believe we were born with a duty to work ingrained inside us. We are so fortunate to live in a country that allows us the freedom we need to pursue the job of our choice (not that we all work at the job of our choice). I think mine would be to work as a ride operator at Disneyland. Problem is I don't think it would match up to the income we need to live the lifestyle we like. Rischelle and I swear when we get old and "retired" we will work at Disneyland. She would probably work at the Teacups ride and I would be the slapstick commenting guide on the Jungle Cruise. Anyway, for those of us that are able, lets work and be happy we can!

What to do when you can't sleep

Why is it that you feel so tired one minute and then you are wide awake the next?  One of the worst things is when you know you have to wake up soon and that you should be sleeping, but you just can't drift off.  The more you think about it, the more awake you become.  I wish there was a way to unplug your brain and thoughts at night.  My problem is I might forget to plug it back in the next day, not that many could tell the difference.   Anyway, some of the ideas I have come up with to fall asleep are:

1.  Try and read in bed.  Problem with that is you keep your spouse tossing and turning because of the light on and the sound of pages turning.  

2.  Watch TV.  Yes, we have a TV in our bedroom.  I know a lot out there suggest that you don't have a TV in the bedroom, but my wife grew up falling asleep to the TV, so it works well for her, and it seems like the only way I can catch up on TV watching (mostly sports).  Problem is I get watching a show sometimes, which peaks my interest, and then I can't fall asleep until it's oven and then a new show starts.  Then I get into that one.

3.  Eat.  Not a good idea if you are trying to stay at a healthy weight.  Totally against Body for Life!  Plus then you have to brush your teeth again.

4.  Count to sheep.  Never worked for me.  I have got up well over a thousand, then I get bored and turn the TV on.

5.  Get up and exercise.  I have heard of people who do this, but I can't see it working for me.  It seems like it would just get my blood flowing faster and wake me up, not slow things down.

Anyway, I think sleep is one of the most crucial things to have for a well balanced and healthy life.  When I do get a good nights sleep, which seems to be less and less often, I always feel so much better though out the day.  Any great ideas out there on how to get your mind to shut off and sleep?  Sweet dreams!

President Hinkley

What a legacy left behind by such an amazing person.  I have always loved president Hinckley and will miss him so much.  I am not going to write about his incredible life and the many contributions he made to this often  dark world.  What I want to focus a few lines written lines on are the crazy religious groups, anti-Mormons,  that are planning on coming to President Hinckley's  funeral and picketing and raising a ruckus.  

What I would like to know is what purpose does this really serve in their minds?  Saving souls?  These are the same groups who picket general conference, they picket the Mormon Miracle Pageant in Manti, they picket new temple dedications, and so on.  They travel from far and wide at, I'm sure great expense, to challenge and degrade the beliefs of the church.  These are smelly, scary looking, foul mouthed people who do this in the name of GOD?  To illustrate this, I was with my little family last year at the Manti Pageant and of course they were in front of every entrance and so you had to have some exposure to their rantings and ravings.  Where was my freedom to not have to pass through them with my little family?  What a dark, evil, disappointing feeling we had as we shuffled though.  After the pageant we decided to pitch our tent at the public park in Manti, which is allowed during this time each year during the pageant.  What a disappointing shock it was to see that when we returned to our tent that night, which we put up earlier in the day,  we were surrounded by these groups of people in their tents and chairs.  Oh well, we were just going to sleep there and then leave first thing in the morning.  Wrong!  We had to lay awake for quite some time listening to their filthy stories, bad language, and all kings of rude comments about the patrons of the pageant and how they had one upped them in their bashing comments.  After quite some time, I was committed to shut them up physically, but my good wife talked me out of that.  After a while they finally settle down, after some encouraging words from our tent to do so, and they went to bed.  We were woken up the next day by similar rantings by a group that arose early.  That was it for us, we were packed and gone in about five minutes.  These people will always leave with our family a nasty taste in our mouths.  SCUM!  Despite this encounter with these anti-Mormon protesters, I would strongly recommend seeing the Mormon Miracle Pageant in Manti, UT.  Especially if you have not seen it in recent years.  It is way better than it once was, and you can hear everything, unlike the past.

Back to the point, couldn't their resources, time and energy be spent in the service of the Lord by, sending money, supplies and help to victims of tragedy.  Visiting the sick, feeding the hungry, building the fallen, should be what these folks are engaged in.  You know, like Christ did?  It's amazing to me how Satan can control people to do pointless things like this in the name of religion.