Our Hardy Home

San Diego Adventures II: Old Town San Diego & Mormon Battalion

2010-07-24T14:45:00.092-06:00

Next, it was off to Old Town San Diego &

The Mormon Battallion Historical Site

This historic site has been newly renovated and
their new high-tech multi-media tour is really cool.

We journeyed West with the Battalion

and discovered their hardships, perils and joys.

We also saw cool old cannons and Army muskets.

The family activities were really fun!

Like...

panning for gold!

"Look...a nugget! I've struck it rich!!!"

You can view all of Old Town from the Site Tower...

or pray...not sure why my children are doing this :)

Emily discovered she could wink intensely :)

You can drive a replica
U.S. Army covered baggage wagon...

or "jus' set a spell" on the veranda.

Either way, if you hang around long enough,

they enlist you and you become...

Honorary Members of the Mormon Battalion!

San Diego Adventures I: Mission Beach

2010-07-23T23:05:00.005-06:00

We had the most awesome time in San Diego!

We stayed in a lovely summer home with

Doug's parents & siblings.

It was fun for the kids to spend time

with Grandma & Grandpa Hardy,

Aunts & Uncles and Cousins!

Grandma & Grandpa Hardy,

Alexis, Jonny, Emily & Hannah

at Mission Beach

It was unusually chilly for San Diego this year!
But that didn't stop us from...

Doin' a little boogie boardin'...

A little body surfin'...

Cousins Tommy & Austin

Chillin' on the beach... (emphasis on chill!)

Aunt Jenny and cute cousin Sarah

Buryin' some cousins...
like Austin & Sammy

Flying a kite...

We decided if you were naughty,

you had to fly the "time out" kite haha.

Uncle Scott...

Bestest (yes, it is a word, I created it)
thing to do on the beach...

Sandcastles!

Bingo Bango Bongo!

2010-06-30T23:59:00.004-06:00

Alexis just asked me why I haven't

updated the blog lately.

I told her maybe it's because we've been busy with...

SUMMER FUN!

Our family plays golf using an interesting
scoring system called

BINGO BANGO BONGO

This is how the scoring works:

1 point for First on the Green

1 point for Closest to the Pin

1 point for Longest Put

1 point for Fewest Strokes

Bonus Points when Hannah Outdrives Somebody

Arbitrary Bonus Points as determined by Dad

Whoever ends the day with the most points wins!

Checkout these shots:

Hannah Monster Shot!

Alexis Pro Golfer

One More Time...

Nice Shot!

Doug's Drive...

On the green!

Emily...

Very nice!

Uncle Rob with Doug Commentary

Don't try this at home kids :)

Jonny Clip from 2009

With his eyes closed even!

What a Team!!!

Life in the Fast...um...Slow...um...Wrong Lane

2010-05-24T23:17:00.003-06:00

Heaven have mercy.

My Emily has her Learner's Permit.

When did she grow up???

I think her nose barely clears the steering wheel :)

Yikes! Was that a complete stop?

Oh good.

No indigenous law personnel in sight.

Watch out!!!

We almost hit this guy...

Good thing he was a bit aged.

He didn't even notice!

"Chill out mom!!!"

This is self portrait of me being

"Chill."

Yeah right!

Check out the exploded

blood vessel in my right eye.

Emily: See, we arrived safe and sound!!!
Me: I think I need a nap now...

To Be A Hardy

2010-05-17T23:35:00.003-06:00

We recently had a discussion
at the dinner table

on what it means to be a
Hardy

Many things were discussed.

We told our children

"You are a Hardy.

And that means something."

So what does it mean?

they asked.

We told them their behavior

reflects on our name.
We expect them to honor their name,
to never embarass themselves
or their family.

We told them the name
does not define the character.

The character defines the name.

I hope my children will always

be proud to be a Hardy.

We are so proud of them.

HAR·DY

–adjective

Capable of enduring fatigue, hardship, exposure,

sturdy; strong; requiring great physical courage,

vigor, or endurance; bold or daring; courageous;

Origin:

1175–1225; ME hardi < OF, ptp. of

*hardir to harden, make brave

—Synonyms

vigorous, robust, hale, stout, sound,

intrepid, resolute, brave.

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-05-08T22:39:00.010-06:00

Happy Mother's Day!
I am so blessed to
have a wonderful mother. She and my
father raised 7 children. Anyone who can pull
that off deserves a tribute!! My mother
has taught me so many things. She taught me
the importance of hard work. She taught me
perseverance in spite of obstacles and difficulties.
She taught me to be kind and how to love. She
taught me to be honest.
She taught me how to have faith even when the world seems to be crashing down and all seems to be lost. She taught me to have a sense of humor. She taught me how to laugh and how to have fun. She taught me how to be a good wife and mother. I think the greatest tribute to her is hearing her own words of wisdom coming out of my mouth to my children and then repeated by her grandchildren. She is my inspiration. She is why I know that families are forever. I love you mom!

Cinco de Mayo

2010-05-05T23:58:00.004-06:00

Fiesta!!!

The Hardys know how to party.
(With non-alcoholic margaritas of course)

With all the Spanish going on around here,

we found it only fitting to have our

Cinco de Mayo party in style.

Las Hermanas

Dos Hombres

¿How do you say "brain freeze" en español?

Mexican Hat Dance

Some amigos stopped by

Mamacita

Olé!

Many Moons

2010-04-30T20:47:00.038-06:00

I Want the Moon sung by Hannah

Hannah's school class

turned the book Many Moons

into an original and entertaining opera.

They were aided by a grant from

the Utah Opera Company

to help pay for supplies and

provide a composer-consultant

to work with the students

in writing the music and lyrics.

Hannah performed the part of Princess Lenore.

She sang 6 songs that she helped write.

It was magical!

Called To Serve

2010-04-21T18:01:00.005-06:00

Elder Jonathan D. Hardy

has been called to serve in the

Nicaragua, Managua Mission.
He will report to the MTC on August 18!

He is instructed to bring

one suit...

lots of white short sleeved shirts...

and tall black combat boots... oh my...

He'll probably never see this beach :)

Largest rainforest north of the Amazon
75% humidity...

Jonny: "I'm headed to the jungle...awesome!!!"

Our Beautiful Swan

2010-04-18T22:20:00.009-06:00

Check out Our Beautiful Swan

Alexis as The Black Swan, Odile

These photos are from

Roger Sengthavychith's Photoshoot

Project Glassglow

Road Trip to the Temple

2010-04-14T20:09:00.003-06:00

Our Young Women recently made a road trip
to the Salt Lake Temple. (It was freezing!)

To get there, we played an awesome game of
"Paths to the Temple."

To play, you divide into car teams and take turns rolling dice.

Each number on the dice corresponds to a different direction.

Such as 1= Turn Left; 2= Go 2 blocks; 3= Make a U turn, etc.

The object is to see who can get to the temple first.

Everone got lost.

By 8 pm, it was clear

the best path to get to the Temple...

is a direct path.

The lesson:

You need to stay on the right path to get to the Temple

and not leave it to chance.

Afterwards, we went to the Lion House Pantry...

and ate Lion House Rolls and Honey Butter...

YUMMY!!!

I decided if I were stranded on a deserted island
and could only choose one thing to eat...

LION HOUSE ROLLS AND HONEY BUTTER!

Spring Break

2010-04-10T20:31:00.003-06:00

This week was Spring Break.

Most Spring Breaks we don't go out of town

like many do. Why? Two words:

BUSY SEASON

But even though Daddy is busy,

we have a lot of fun.

Hannah had a great idea this year...

She decided to plant a fairy garden.

Did you know fairies like pansies, honeysuckle,
& canterbury bells?

I didn't.

But Hannah knows everything there

is to know about Fairyland and the Fae Folk.

You could say she is an expert.

We also did great girl stuff like

shopping and eating out...

Love my girls.

Hannah had another exciting idea...

"I want to get my ears pierced!"

Wow.

I guess she is not a baby anymore :(

But Hannah says she will always

be my baby♥

One of the traditions in our family

is Doug takes the girls

to get their ears pierced.

He started it with Alexis.

He went shopping with her one day

when she was two years old.

Little girl with Daddy

wrapped around her finger

asked to get her ears pierced (age 2!)

Daddy couldn't refuse.

(Mommy was so surprised, believe me)

Since then, it has been a tradition.

So Daddy insisted.

This is my big girl now...

Easter & General Conference

2010-04-05T16:39:00.006-06:00

I love when Easter and General Conference

fall on the same day.

What could be better than celebrating

the resurrection of our Savior

and spending time with our families?

Our family celebrates Easter with

many gatherings and traditions.

This year we started off our traditions with

Family Home Evening & Easter Egg Hunt on Palm Sunday.

Alexis & the neighbor's black chickens pose for the camera.

Doug's family gets together once a month for FHE.

It's great to see his siblings and their children.

Our kids have grown up with their cousins.

Jonny had a hard time finding his eggs this year.

He had a hard time finding his Easter basket too.

Could it be he has alot on his mind?

Emily on this chilly afternoon.

At least it didn't snow this day!

Hannah loves these traditions.

She's a believer in the Easter Bunny.

I asked her if she knew

the real reason we celebrate Easter.

She used some pretty big words like

Atonement, Crucifixion, & Resurrection.

I think she gets it. :)

I love that my older children still insist

on participating in dyeing Easter Eggs.

(I liked the UofU egg)

They wouldn't miss it.

Even if we have to do it at 11:00 at night!

Some very pretty colors turned out this year!

Cute boys supsercede the festivities sometimes...

The best part of Easter this year

was watching Conference with my family.

I loved what President Dieter F. Uchtdorf said,

"On this Easter Sunday, and every day,

as we contemplate with reverence

and awe how our Savior embraces us,

comforts us and heals us,

let us commit to become his hands,

that others through us may feel his loving embrace."

I also love cooking dinner for my family,

my parents and my brother.

Can you believe my football/wrestling/rugby son

folded these napkins for me on his own

to look like bunny ears?

He's a man of many talents...

I also liked how Elder Russell M. Nelson

spoke on "Generations Linked in Love."

In the end, isn't that what it is all about?

My favorite part of Easter...

...is family.

Where in the World is Jonny Going?

2010-04-02T19:13:00.013-06:00

The results are in and the top three guesses:

Germany, Japan, & Africa.

I could personally see Jonny in the Congo :)

The guesses:

Argentina Bible Belt, USA Salzburg, Austria Japan

Germany England California, Spanish Speaking New Zealand

Burbank, CA Peru New Zealand West Valley Liechtenstein

Grandma's House Germany Moscow, Idaho São Paulo, Brazil

Quebec Germany Japan Finland Tahiti

Somewhere in South America Africa Provo, Utah

Pocatello, ID Congo China Portugal, Lisbon Japan

North Carolina, Raleigh Phillippines Russia Brazil France

Asia Africa Peru Ireland Uruguay Scotland Italy Kansas

Sweden, Stockholm Mexico Spain Ireland Ontario

I asked Jonny what his guess is.

His answer:

Where the Lord wants me to go.

Good answer! ♥

Happy Easter!

Ready To Serve

2010-03-30T23:05:00.008-06:00

This young man is ready to serve a mission.

His papers are in. His interviews are completed.

He's been preparing his whole life for this.

He is ready.

His mama...not so sure she is ready.

How do I give him up for two whole years???

But it is what he wants. It is what the Lord wants.

It is what we want for him.

I've been telling him his whole life that he is a good boy.

Today, I told him he is a good man.

Jonny should receive his mission call

after General Conference.

We think on April 14th.

What a birthday week that will be!

Sure do love our Jonny.

Three Good Men

2010-03-26T13:33:00.005-06:00

These are three good men.

They released our Bishopric last Sunday.

It was bittersweet for my husband.

He thought this release would be wonderful.

Until a young girl handed him her tithing for the last time.

He just about lost it.

Over the pulpit he did. His wept freely and talked about how

the greatest part of serving is loving the people you serve.

Afterwards, he asked if I was embarrassed by his emotion.

How could he ask that?!

I married him because of his sensitivity.

He truly, deeply loves.

That is what I love most about him.

Besides, I told him:

Real men aren't afraid to cry.

The two most powerful words I know in the scriptures are:

Jesus wept.

It is its own verse in John 11.

And it speaks unfathomable volumes.

Compassion is defined in the dictionary

as a "human emotion."

I think it is better defined as a godly emotion.

We should never be ashamed of FEELING.

Hannah, however, is feeling great about Doug's release.

She has little memory of sitting with her father in sacrament

because Doug served in a former Bishopric

before we moved to our new home.

She is looking forward to Thumb Wars with her daddy!

Mornings

2010-03-23T09:41:00.006-06:00

Alexis AKA The Blur,

recently commented on how I have
so few pictures of her lately.

Could this be why?

This is what our mornings look like.

Everyone grabs a quick smoothie or sausage biscuit

and literally runs out the door.

What happened to breakfast with the family?

After the morning rush I feel like
we've been through a cyclone.

The house looks like we've been through a cyclone.

I remember our elderly neighbors

Earl and Hazel Kevitch. I miss them so.

Earl was a concert violinist for the Utah Symphony.

He would practice with his window open.

If I took the time and stopped,

I could enjoy his beautiful music.

Even at age 90, he still had it.

One morning was particularly hectic for the Hardy household.

I had driven in and out of my driveway

about a half dozen times in a 20 minute period,

running kids here and there.

Earl noticed.

I had pulled in the driveway,

ran inside the house to grab something I had forgotten,

slammed the back door and ran back to my car.

I started pulling out of the driveway

when I saw Earl in the rear view mirror.

He was standing in the middle of my driveway.

I slammed on my brakes and got out of my car

to see what was the matter.

Earl said, emphatically,

"Rush, Rush, Rush. You are always rushing!"

He was right.

That is what I do best.

Earl told me to slow down and enjoy life.

I have tried. Then life starts catching up on me.

But every once in a while, I stop to catch my breath.

And try to listen to the music.

First Day of Spring!

2010-03-20T14:46:00.002-06:00

Happy Spring Everybody!

What a beautiful day. The snow is melted.
Flowers are peeking.

Our little birdy is going crazy. I think he wants to be free.

So do we.

I think cabin fever has made us all a bit loopy.

Time to go outside and enjoy the sunshine and fresh air.

Spring is a sensory experience.

You feel it on your skin. You hear it in your ears.

You see colors that seem to have sprung up overnight.

The scent of spring is most powerful to me.

When I am permeated with the scent of hyacinths,

suddenly I am five years old

playing in my father's garden.

My father gave me hyacinth bulbs

for my birthday last fall.

I planted them in my front garden.

They were more than a birthday gift.

They were the gift of memories.

What's For Dinner? Easy Chicken Soup

2010-03-18T23:41:00.026-06:00

2 more days until spring!

So what's with the sniffles and the coughing?!!!

It never fails.

Just when we think winter is on the way out and

beautiful weather is on the way in....

it snows and then we all catch a cold.

Such is life in the Rocky Mountains.

So for dinner it's Easy Chicken Soup to the rescue!

It's mild for tender tummys. It's hot, comforting food.

It's good for what ails ya.

And it's easy.

Who likes to cook when they don't feel good?

I don't.

That is how this recipe was born.

And it makes a ton so you don't have to worry

about what to make for lunch the next day.

So throw it in the pot and snuggle up in your warm blanky.

Dinner is done.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2010-03-16T09:16:00.002-06:00

Alexis really kicks up her heels for St. Patrick's!

Grandma Weiler made her this leprechaun costume for Halloween one year. Alexis wore it to school once
on St. Patrick's Day to be funny and clicked her heels as she went down the hall.

We have some funny traditions for St. Patrick's. We're not Irish but we have alot of fun with it! Our traditions include the littlest making an elaborate leprechaun trap to capture the wee fellow so we can find out where he has hid his gold. Did you know leprechauns like peanut butter? I didn't :)

This year, Jonny has constructed some lethal contraption with a mouse trap that will beat the tar of the poor leprechaun. Somehow, every year the little blighter gets away. He pranks at great lengths, turning the milk green and causing general havoc throughout the house.

Luckily, the leprechaun spills his gold everywhere and in the strangest places. It used to be chocolate gold coins, but the little laddy has upgraded to real gold coins. It is shameless bribery I know, but the older kids are already asking, when is St. Patrick's?

The Fort

2010-03-12T23:35:00.007-07:00

Do you remember building forts as a kid?

I do.

My brother Rob and I would build fantastic forts.

They were our secret hideouts.
A place to dream and imagine.

I would read books for hours.

We would sleep in it at night.

I thought we were THE master fort builders.

Until now...

Hannah

(with a little help from mechanical engineering major Jonny)

built this fort while we were out to dinner tonight.

I didn't even know we had this many blankets.

Theirs kicks on any design I ever had as a kid.

This fort includes a big screen tv and refrigerator.

They even used the treadmill
as a working drawbridge at the entrance
to fend off encroachers.

Maybe we will have Family Home Evening

in the fort Monday night.

We can begin with...

"And my father dwelt in a tent."

What were your favorite childhood projects?

Iron Chef Hardy Home

2010-03-03T23:52:00.046-07:00

2 Chefs. 2 Dishes. 1 Victor.

Ok. Maybe we watch too much Food Network.

You'd think my family was obsessed.

Hannah claimed she made the best
Peanut Butter Sandwich
& Banana Dessert

Jonny said he could do better.

It was a Hardy Throw Down.

Hannah won big on presentation with her clever

PB & Banana heart shaped sandwich.

Jonny won big on taste with his

PB & Fresh Strawberry Sandwich

grilled to perfection.

But Hannah came back huge with her signature dessert:

Hannah Banana Surprise!

(the surprise is buried marachino cherries...YUM!)

Jonny hand dipped his banana in melted chocolate

and barely made the clock...3...2...1...!

In the end, Chef Hannah prevailed!

What's For Dinner? Sweet Sweet Chili & Sweet Corn Bread

2010-02-28T23:45:00.004-07:00

What's for Dinner?

I get this alot.

More times than I can count.

They may not want to talk about their day,

what happened at school or at work.

But they're always ready to talk about dinner.

When the answer is:

Sweet Sweet Chili and Sweet Corn Bread

Their reply: Sweet

This is a very mild and sweet chili.

It can be spiced up with onion, garlic and

maybe some oregano, if desired.

My kids like it just the way it is.

I like to make the Sweet Corn Bread in

Heart Shaped Muffin Tins.

There is a funny story behind these.

The first time I made them a couple years ago,

I was so excited with how they turned out.

I turned to my son, Jonny, and held them up

and said, "Look what I made!"

The muffins went flying

off my platter and behind the stove.

Jonny laughed.

I cried.

But now we all laugh.

Because, even though I tried my best

to retrieve all the muffins,

I know there is at least 1 petrified muffin

behind the oven that somebody will find oneday.

And they will know that someone in this household

baked with love ♥.

NIGHT LIFE OF HANNAH: Part 3

2010-02-25T23:41:00.011-07:00

Hannah was supposed to be asleep.

She decided to make this Music Video instead.

I think she is hoping to beat out Beyoncé

for next year's Grammy

for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance :)

"HAPPY"

NIGHT LIFE OF HANNAH: Part 2

2010-02-22T19:12:00.019-07:00

Hannah was supposed to

have cleaned her room this day.

Daddy was supposed to

be working on his computer in his office.

(He likes to play games on his new

fancy smancy Droid phone)

Hmmm....

I should label this video "Busted!"