Mar 06

The Animals Came Alive

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Just kidding. The animals didn’t come alive – the 2.0s and I were smart enough to go to the museum during the day. (What, you’ve never seen Night at the Museum? Well, WE have and WE played it safe.)

I’ve discovered it’s easy to keep the title of “BEST SISTER EVER.” No, I did not give myself that title. I totally earned it. Just ask the little girls, who proclaimed it today. (Sorry Alisha and Jessie. I’m the oldest, and I’m likely to keep it.) Today, the rest of our family (minus Logan, who had to study, and Alisha, who is busy in Utah compiling reasons that she should NOT move to Missouri) headed to Nebraska today to attend the Winter Quarters Temple. (Alisha, you can’t count the long drive to a temple as reason number 1309 because we are getting a temple in KC. Scratch that off your list.) Once a temple’s dedicated, you need a recommend to attend it, and little kids can’t get recommends.  You can find out more about temples here or here, if you’re curious. The temple in KC will have an open house for whoever wants to come see it before it’s dedicated.

Since Sam and Cassie can’t go yet, someone had to keep an eye on them. I volunteered and we decided we’d make a girls day of it. It was SO fun! The 2.0s put together a soundtrack for our adventures (iTunes is a wonderful thing), we put it in the CD player, and we were off to Kansas City. They got to check out my new office (loved it!), went to Union Station (to pick up my mail, but they thought it was the coolest building ever), to the Nelson-Atkins (my favorite museum in KC, which is now their favorite too), and to Miller Park (where we ate the picnic they prepared and they ran around for ages). It. Was. Great.

And the whole “best sister ever”? Don’t tell the girls, but I already know who really has the title. Here’s a hint – it’s a tie between four people. Alisha, Jessie, Sam and Cassie have me all beat. For now though, I’ll claim it. After all, isn’t that the point of being the oldest?

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Mar 01

Blue Eyes and Dark Hair

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I’m a sucker for both. In fact, it’s my hands-down favorite combination. And check it out – these little babies have it. Introducing Hershey’s puppies, now about three weeks old. Aren’t they adorable? Duke is missing from the picture – he will be the new addition that stays at our house. The rest of them will be looking for nice homes in a few weeks. Mom’s got to draw the line somewhere, right? (So if you’re looking for a puppy, let me know.)

I’ve always been jealous of that light eyes, dark hair combination. My 2.0 got lucky with some gorgeous hazel eyes and hair that’s getting darker as she gets older. Me? I’ve got Boring. Brown. Eyes. Such is life. My mom was a sucker for brown eyes – said she could just get lost in my dad’s. Guess that’s part of why I got so lucky. I can hardly complain. After all, it’s nice to have parents that like each other, and since she’s still getting lost in those eyes, I’ll deal with my own. Besides, my hairstylist says they’re my most captivating feature. I’m not convinced – either way though, Manuel Garcia at Naturally Salon gives a great haircut and a fantastic head massage. So barring a way to make my brown eyes blue, I’ll settle for silky hair. Kind of like these puppies.

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Feb 24

I Live in a Cold Place

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Beautiful, right? Looks can be deceiving sometimes. Well, I guess it’s not really “deceiving.” It IS beautiful, after all. But it’s also. So. Freezing. Cold.

You know, I ought to be used to this sort of thing by now. I grew up in Utah – Missouri shouldn’t feel that different. Here’s the catch though – I was born in Southern California. I think when you’re born there, you get an automatic gene that says “I. Love. Heat.” Whatever it is, I’ve got it.

All my love for heat can’t stand in place of my family though – and they live in this freezing place. In fact, this is part of their front yard. “Yard” is kind of a misnomer. They’ve got 25 acres of “yard.”

This beautiful place can be kind of dangerous sometimes. You know how I was supposed to take the Iowa Bar Exam this week? Well, it didn’t happen. Winter storm warnings, combined with actual winter storm conditions, made the risk just too high to travel the 3+ hours to Des Moines on Saturday, Sunday OR Monday. (The Iowa Bar examiners are pretty inflexible about “mandatory orientation” held on Monday. There is no getting around it. Even if you’ve taken 3 bar exams in the last 2 years and it would have been your 4th. If you can’t make Monday’s orientation, you won’t be allowed to take the Tuesday exam. You’re simply out of luck – and money.) At any rate, I made the choice to stay put. So you know what I did? I had that virgin mojito early.

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Feb 19

A Girls Night… PLUS “The Man”

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I was on kid duty tonight. A voluntary thing, let me assure you. I like spending time with my siblings. Since Mom, Jess & Logan wanted to go see “Dear John” (I already saw it and enjoyed it – I LOVE Channing Tatum), I offered to watch the kids. Reece was away on a camping trip (who goes camping in the snow anyway?), so it was the 2.0s , Wade and I. Dad is in Brazil, but he gets back soon, wahoo!

At first we said we’d have a “girls night plus Wade.” He quickly corrected us – we were going to have a “girls night plus THE MAN.” And we did – a little popcorn, a movie, cupcakes and some nail polish. (The Man skipped out on the nail polish.)

This isn’t the first time this week that Wade has cracked me up. Mom and I were hanging out at the table while all the boys were being their usual crazy selves.  I said we needed to think of a word to describe them – without skipping a beat, Wade had one. “Sexy.” And then he walked out of the room.

Can I just tell you I love my life? Really, how could I not?

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Feb 08

Leila Shea Law, LLC

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You probably know it already, but I’m a lawyer. Normally I wouldn’t bore you with the details (it’s not YOUR job to deal with them after all), but I’ve noticed an awful lot of people end up here when they search for “Leila Shea Law, LLC.” If you’re one of those people, welcome! You are on my personal website. My law firm’s site is at www.leilashealaw.com.  (For some reason, my blog ranks higher up in a google search than my business website.  I’m working on that.)

If you’re here visiting, let me introduce myself.* My name’s Leila Shea Christensen and I’m the owner of Leila Shea Law, LLC. I practice exclusively in family law, and I’m licensed in both Missouri and Kansas.  (I’m licensed in Nevada too, but I do all my work out here in the Midwest.) I grew up in Utah, went to Brigham Young University (for both undergrad and law school), worked in Vegas, and then moved out near Kansas City. And no, I did not get a serious case of wanderlust in order to move here – my parents and six (of seven!) siblings up and moved on me, and I finally followed them. (We’re working on getting my last sister out here, don’t worry.) Oh – and I am the oldest. My brothers and sisters will tell you that I never let them forget it. Now that I live here, I can’t imagine living anywhere else.  Kansas City’s a gorgeous place and I love it. I especially love it when it’s warm – this whole freezing thing is not really me.

I’m crazy about great food, working out, salsa dancing, speaking Spanish, and making cupcakes. Reading’s one of my favorite things, and I’m always in the middle of a book. I love all sorts of music, think art museums rock, and enjoy going to movies.

My law firm’s located just a block from the Family Courthouse in Kansas City at 2526 Holmes, Kansas City, Missouri 64141. Reach me at 816-471-1000 anytime.

*The “official version” of my bio can be found at www.leilashealaw.com. You’re getting the informal version if you stick around.

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Jan 30

Just Wait ‘Til We’re Out With Someone We Actually Want to Kiss

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Normally I don’t blog about my dates. I consider it bad form. You see, my family has to deal with the fact that I blog about my life. (Yes Dad, I’m still going to blog about our family, much to your chagrin.) I don’t think dates sign up for that kind of intrusion.  So great dates, bad dates, bleh dates, good dates, mediocre dates, horrid dates, fantastic dates… I leave them all alone when I’m blogging. Even if I could tell some great stories. ;)

This week I am making an exception. I went on a date that I have to blog about. And I went with not one, but TWO handsome guys. We didn’t do anything expensive. We didn’t drive very far. But man, we had a great time.

These are the gentlemen:

Flattering pictures of both, I know. You recognize them now, don’t you? Logan and Reece. AKA Manly Men.

So how’d I end up on this date? Well, first of all, I hadn’t eaten much all day. I had a caramelized apple cider for breakfast/lunch and wheat thins for dinner. Caramelized apple cider is fantastic. And I am addicted to it. But it is not very filling. Wheat thins are not a very good dinner. When my stomach was contemplating all this (and loudly protesting the day’s events) I announced to my brothers that I wanted to go someplace and eat something totally unhealthy. So we went out. They opened the car door (after fighting about who got to do it), let me pick the music in the car (easy, because we all agree on loud country music), and didn’t mind that I had the heater full blast (in Missouri, I am always cold). We went and picked up some beautiful greasy cheeseburgers at Sonic. And then we drove to Wal-Mart and ate in the parking lot.

Classy, I know. Reece is the one who coined it “date night.” We hung out and laughed our heads off. And then Reece made the observation of the century – “This is so fun already! Just wait until we’re out with someone we actually want to kiss!”

The. Date. Was. Awesome. And maybe one of these days we’ll all go out together – with people we actually want to kiss. But if we do, you won’t hear about it. Remember? I don’t blog about those dates.

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Jan 29

I Am Not A Computer Genius

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But my law firm site is now up! It is not perfect yet, but it’s done enough for my office move to Kansas City on Monday. Wahoo! Take a look – www.leilashealaw.com.

PS – I promise to blog more later. This weekend is full of boxes and moving. Normally, I wouldn’t plan for anyone to move their apartment AND their law office all at one time, but when you live above your office… It’s going to be a busy weekend.

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Jan 24

A Mile in His Shoes

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Obviously, these shoes are not the same size. No, it did not take a genius to figure that out. (If you couldn’t tell, perhaps you should get your eyes checked. Just a suggestion – worth what you’re paying for it. I’m not an eye doctor after all! But I DID try and line the backs of the shoes up in this picture, though it’s not super clear. Heels are complicated sometimes.) You’ve seen one pair of these before – the black shoes are mine, and they love to go dancing. This weekend, I took them salsa dancing. It’s the first time I’ve gone salsa dancing in over 3 years. But they almost didn’t make it!

You see, my brother Logan hasn’t been to a night club EVER. When we decided to go dancing at the spur of the moment, silly me failed to check that he had the appropriate footwear and we happily took off for Kansas City. He was wearing TENNIS SHOES. Well, technically, they were futbol shoes. But whatever you want to call them (Spanish speaking shoes or not!) they got him turned away at the door. I even used my best pleading look with the bouncer. Total fail. I am out of practice!

Enter the beautiful size 15 shoes you see in the picture. (Note to you – the brown shoes are the size 15s. My black shoes are a size 6. Please. I’m 4′10″. Think about it.) After the total fail with the bouncer, I texted a friend to tell him that I. Was. Not. Happy.  (Actually, what I think I texted was “I. Am. So. Mad!”  But you get the idea.) I was sad, but I wasn’t going to buy Logan a pair of dress shoes so that we could stay and dance. My friend’s 6′4″ – I knew that there was no way he and Logan would wear the same size shoe. And they don’t. But my friend came through and saved Logan’s life. No, Logan does not wear a size 15. But these shoes worked to get into Casa Grande and I danced the night away. And Logan can now claim he’s walked a mile in my friend’s shoes…

And just so you know – I tried them on too. If you want to get specific, I went about 2 steps. Definitely not a mile. But who’s keeping track?

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Jan 16

This Whole Country Thing Was Just An Accident

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You’d think that was me talking, right? After all, I didn’t plan to move out to the middle of nowhere where it’s normal to get your eggs from the backyard. Technically, it’s not the backyard – it’s the chicken coop.  But you know how I feel about technical. I was an English major, remember? Maybe I shouldn’t bring that up – maybe then you’ll be expecting some Jane Austen quality work. Forget it. This is a blog.  So back to the post…

This was Reece talking on our way home the other night. (Right before our car started smoking. Yikes. Dad, Reece and Logan fixed it. Manly.) When Reece lived in Utah, he liked country MUSIC. The rest of it – boots, hat, Carhart jacket, chicken coop, cows, guns, pigs, etc. – were not exactly on his radar. I mean, take a look at him. Does THAT picture look like a country boy waiting to happen? I think not.

(Reece is the boy in the picture. The only boy. Duh.)

But check out the afters… and before you ask, YES, it is the same boy. But I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t recognize him. After all, I didn’t! No, I’m not kidding. When I came out to visit after the “transformation” a cowboy came up to me to hug me in the airport. I thought that was rather forward of him. And then I realized it was Reece. Ooops.



The Cowboy Casanova has arrived.

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Jan 08

I Am Not a Marshmallow

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But my brother Logan has decided that it’s my new nickname. Maybe it’s because I keep wrapping myself up in fluffy blankets and hats while I’m inside. A girl’s got to survive freezing temperatures somehow, right? If I’ve got to become a marshmallow to make it through this winter, so be it. Maybe the marshmallow look works for me – take a look and judge for yourself. (And no, I did NOT cut off all of my hair. It’s underneath my beanie – I’ve discovered it’s warmer that way. Yeah, I’m full of helpful hints for staying warm.)

I think freezing temperatures have decided to follow me – when I moved to Las Vegas, it got the first snow it had seen in 30 years. (Yes, 30. Thanks very much. The kids in Vegas got a snow day for less than an inch of snow. Amazing.) Now that I’ve moved to Missouri, it seems like I keep hearing that this is “unseasonably cold.” My brothers and sisters have had snow weeks. (For more than an inch of snow. More like tons of inches of snow. And yes, that’s the technical measurement.)

This is the slightly more sophisticated marshmallow look. I know, I am totally kidding myself – this isn’t a look I’d take anywhere outside of the house! Oh – except I guess posting it online really takes it out of the house. Like to anywhere in the world with internet. Oh well. Enjoy. But know that if I actually walked outside, the beanie and the sweater would have to be the same color white – not winter white vs. white white. And that you wouldn’t catch me in glasses unless I was in front of the computer. Or the piano. Or reading a book. Okay, I admit it – given all the possibilities, you just might catch me in glasses. But NOT in a non-matching beanie/sweater combo.

One thing that I DO love about freezing temperatures is that you have the chance to wear lots of fun clothes. I’m a fan of lots of scarves, great sweaters, and fantastic jackets. I love rich colors, wavy hair, and dark lipstick. Winter’s the perfect time to pull off the cute layered look.  For today though, I’m content to be a marshmallow. Hot chocolate anyone?


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