Jenson Family

MLK and Oreos (Martin Luther King that is)

2012-01-20T21:06:00.000-08:00

I wanted my children to have a greater understanding of MLK day and our history regarding racial segregation. For family home evening we watched the Disney movie, "Perfect Harmony" which I thought was wonderful. Aside from the three older boys walking around all week singing, "All we like sheep,... have gone astray -aaaa-aaaa-aaaaaaa!" they really had an eye opener. They had no idea there were once issues of slavery and segregation. We threw in a little US history prior to the movie. We sat in front of the TV with our glasses of milk lined up on a cookie sheet catching drips (or on Dad's lap), dunked oreos and soaked in a little appreciation for MLK. I'd recommend it.

Primroses for Anna

2012-01-20T20:56:00.000-08:00

Andrew was invited to a birthday party for a little girl that has become his dearest friend in nursery. She was the reason he finally started staying in nursery. She is a sweet little dear. We went to town to pick out a birthday present for her and after looking at toy after toy after toy we settled on some play dough something or other. When we were leaving the store we walked out to find a rack with flats of primroses. Andrew stopped and said, "Mom, wait! I have got to get Anna this!" He knew exactly which flower and exactly which color. No toy could ever hold a candle to one of these. We went back and got the $1.49 primrose. I have never seen a child so utterly delighted to give a gift in all of my life. It isn't so much that Andrew has a crush on Anna, or that he thinks boys give girls flowers, but he sensed the pure beauty of the flower and new it would match the same purity which posses his sweet friend Anna. From within his little boy heart he knew this was the greatest gift. It was beautiful.

Whoop, Whoop 31!

2012-01-20T20:20:00.001-08:00

My Birthday! Complete folks with a delicious German Chocolate cake AND homemade frosting (toasted pecans, coconut n' all) YUm! Over Christmas vacation we managed to swing a few week long free passes to Club Northwest. Consequently, we have done a lot of swimming the past few weeks. We went swimming on my birthday and then had the Goff's over for games and pizza. We played "Jungle Jive" which is a fun game with a motion sensor that detects just how graceful you can jive. We ate, played, and the best part... went to bed before 10:00pm. Yes, yes, it is New Year's Eve. Yes, yes it is one of the 3 birthday's Jonathan hasn't had to work since we've been married. Yes, yes, I am an old fodder-dudder. Yes, yes I love it that way.

31 reasons I love me:

1. I have a lot of grey hair

2. I like to drive in silence. No radio please.

3. I don't like to watch movies

4. I prefer khaki's over levi's

5. I am a RAD boy making machine

6. I like dried plums

7. I'm a fan of fiber

8. I don't like to drink pop

9. When I do turn on noise Jenny Oaks Baker is my #1 choice usually always

10. I love listening to Conference talks on my iPad when I cook dinner

11. I hate stepping on crumbs, therefore I wear slippers ALWAYS

12. I don't like critters inside. I shed enough for the whole family

13. I take pride in pigs

14. There are few things I would rather look at than rows of planted crops

15. I love playing the violin and miss it when I don't

16. I love to plant seeds

17. I am fascinated by genetics and microbiology

18. I picked Jonathan

19. I hate being late for church

20. I like to sew

21. I like to sit and visit with old people

22. I love Visiting Teaching

23. I am a seeker of joy not fun

24. I like to thank people by their name. If I don't know the bag boy's name I ask him and then thank him specifically by calling him by his name and expressing gratitude. The same is true of any stranger. An expression of gratitude should always accompany a name. My Grandma Olsen taught my father that and he once taught it to me.

25. By #25 I'm out of ideas

26. I really like quiet and stillness

27. When I am alone with my children my mind races but I don't talk a lot. Actually that is something I would change about myself. Talk more, think less.

28. I'm not a fan of frivolity.

29. I'm practical

30. I am modest in the way I dress, always. There is no grey area, no cleavage (heaven help me) no almost modest. Keep it covered. Always.

31. I have always liked me. I like who I am. I like who I am trying to become. I like people. I sincerely don't think I have ever not liked someone. Ever.

Robot

2012-01-20T20:09:00.000-08:00

Life would cease to exist in our home on several accounts without an abundance of diaper and wipe boxes. The boys are really starting to fine tune their robot expertise. The latest robot attire was carefully designed to ensure full range of motion for all appendages. I was rather impressed. It took some trial and error but the the little masterminds managed to find an intricate design that enabled mobility and visibility. Masters...

Who else would you expect to find in the box? Naturally, Matthew.

A big fat whopin' mess.

2012-01-20T16:34:00.000-08:00

But it was raining. And they were BOARD. It was SUPER fun.

A cup of rice,

a teaspoonish of vinegar,

a squirt of food coloring,

ziploc bag,

and a shake-down.

Dyed, dried, and lined up. Ready for heaven only knew what.

Michael ate it.

Framed art

Matthew's fisherman

Adam's rainbow

The floor

Hair and everywhere

Andrew's rainbow mix special

Fish in the sea

Andrew really wanted a train, but it ended up a mountain of tears and his exasperated whimpering, "It's a monster truck, not a train!" I tried.

A dash of this and a sprinkle of that

Grandma VanBuren Turns 99

2012-01-08T16:11:00.000-08:00

Today is my Grandmother's 99th birthday. Can you imagine living to be 99 years old? What a remarkable accomplishment. Oh how I love her dearly. Grandma VanBuren in 99:

1. Dark ebony eyes

2. Always in a twinkle in those ebony eyes

3. Her garden full of green peas

4. Sittin' on her porch with a bowl of peas on my lap eating until I got full

5. The arch on the car port covered in beautiful climbing roses

6. The mulberry tree in her front yard

7. The irrigation ditch out front we would swim in

8. Immaculate carpet... always. She would walk into a room and the first thing she would ALWAYS do is use her fingers to pick up any small signs of anything on her carpet

9. Picking the mulberries and tracking squashed purple mulberries in on her white perfect carpet

10. Her creamy mac n' cheese

11. The dishes were always perfectly set, a beautiful table spread

12. Rolling eggs down the hill at Joe's Valley Reservoir

13. The bright glittery t-shirt she gave me for my birthday

14. Sleeping on her pull out couch and always rolling to the center

15. The clock that chimed every 15 minutes

16. The smell of Caress soap in her bathroom

17. The back scratcher in her tub

18. Roast and green beans

19. Driving in Grandma and Grandpas's blue car the Boise temple dedication

20. Eating butterscotch discs on that drive

21. The camper on the back of her truck we would picnic with at the reservoir

22. Her whacking Grandpa on the drive home from fishing and screeching, "Fred, you stay awake!"

23. Pictures of her in white standing in front of the Manti Temple

24. She was sealed to Grandpa in the Manti Temple

25. Called to serve in Manti with Grandpa as he was a sealer there

26. Her teeth sitting in a cup on the washbasin in the bathroom

27. Sleeping out in her camper on visits to Orangeville

28. Walking from her house to the gas station to buy a treat

29. Grandma's voice saying, "Oh, I'm alright."

30. The marble game that I would pull back on the knob and the spring would launch it into the marble and it would bounce around until dropping to the bottom. Over and over again.

31. The smell of her home. The smell that you can only describe as love because it was Grandma's smell.

32. Her lipstick lined up on her dresser.

33. Listening to old records.

34. Bright green pickles

35. Participating in Manti on my endowment date.

36. Sitting on the couch in my front room waiting for Grandma and Grandpa's car to come up over the hill and make their way down Bob Barton to our house.

37. The sound of their car rolling in the driveway.

38. Eating Chinese at the Chinese Restaurant

39. Post-um

40. Total cereal

41. Making Grandpa's famous carmel corn recipe

42. Visiting with her and Grandpa in their assisted care home in Payson

43. Her sunken eyes and non-responsiveness at Grandpa's funeral

44. Her complete comeback and turn around

45. Spry and sharp as a tack

46. Always referring to Jonathan as my 'Beau'

47. Eating mutton for the first time at Orangeville's 24th of July celebration

48. Waking up the stick on dynamite going off on the 24th of July each year

49. Her scary dark basement

50. Her telling stories about how Grandpa would kiss her good-bye every single day

51. Falling in love with grandma up by the old mill

52.

My time in Iowa

2011-12-27T21:23:00.001-08:00

This blog is for me. It is what became a part of me, forever.

I cannot begin to count the number of times I pause and think about the time that I spent in Iowa. Like 8-10 times a day, at least. I cannot think of a more remarkable place that exists in all of the world. The saints that live there are like no other I have ever known nor do I think I will find elsewhere in all the world over. There is a piece of my heart that was branded in Iowa. When sharing some of my sorrow with my mother about the choice to have moved back West she in her wisdom said, "Amber, don't be sad for having left, but be eternally grateful for the experiences that you had while you were there." Sometimes Mom's just get it. And so I share a smidgen of the miracles that exist in Iowa.

The Glow

On an evening not long before we moved we had several ward members come to help us work on the remodeling in our basement. It was Ruston and Curtis Ford and Keith and Malia Gray. Two of the most salt of the earth, hope my plot is next to theirs in heaven kind of families. As I walked outside that night I will never forget the color of the sky. It was so beautiful. The moon was visible but the earth just seemed to exude a warm glow that night. I shut off my flash and took some pictures hoping to catch wonder of that night.

Friends that made life Zion

Keith, Mr. Dremmel Ruston and Curtis Drywall team

Miss Malia, my visiting teacher, my companion in the cornfields. Who else would show up and wrap bottle after bottle of food storage with me. A saint in every sense of the word. I can't count the number of times she showed up just to help. It was remarkable.

Dr. Who & the Mietzner's - They watched ours, we watched theirs

Jonathan and I are the best babysitters ever. We were "babysitting" Cameron and DeEtte while their parents were out of town for a week. They were staying at our home but I dropped them off with my boys at the pool in town. After swimming Cameron had decided to walk home to his house really quickly before heading back to our place. While at home he managed to wreck his parent's truck. Oh what teenagers don't manage to get themselves into, in such a short amount of time. I'll never forget the tremor in his voice when I picked up the phone and I heard, "Is Brother Jenson there?" Cameron was terrified and knew the wrath of his parents was going to sting. Lucky for him he had a whole week at our house before his parents would return. They had a week to simmer down before they got their hands on him. We loved him at our place for the rest of the week. He spent a lot of pensive moments staring at the floor while staying at our place. Jonathan and I just laughed when we saw the damage because we knew all

too soon it will be our kids doing crazy teenager things.

Iowa Cubbies

Every summer,

tail gate,

brats,

the entire Ottumwa Ward,

humid as h***,

baseball.

To be continued.....

Adam's Christmas Concert

2011-12-13T21:45:00.000-08:00

That's my Adam

Melton the Warm Hearted Snowman - The first and second graders put on a play and Adam got to sing a solo part with two other kids in the school. He did a wonderful job. Adam loves to sing. He gets that from his Dad. He loves to sit at the piano while Jonathan plays and sing along. I think his favorite song right now is "Praise to the Man" that they learned for the Primary Program in church this year.

Gramps and Grams Olsen

2011-12-13T21:35:00.001-08:00

Oh how all of my scheming is really starting to pay off. I new the move to Oregon was good for something. Wendy's oldest son Dallas turned 12 this past week and was ordained a Deacon on Sunday. Mom and Dad came to participate in the ordination and lucky me, what airport did they fly into? Medford, of course. They had 4 days off from the temple and they made a mad dash of it. They visited me for day, drove to Redding to spend a day with Wendy, back to Medford to fly to Seattle to see Cindi for a day and then back home to the temple. It was marvelous to be able to see them. I remember so distinctly sitting so many Sunday afternoons in Iowa having a small twinge to be in on the Sunday treats at my parent's home or to be surrounded by family just visiting. Sunday I did. We spent Sunday enjoying one another's company, celebrating Dallas' birthday, eating Mexican and participating in the ordination. It was fun to marinade in family just a bit.

On Dasher, On Dancer...!

2011-12-13T21:29:00.000-08:00

We have had a rough couple of weeks with continuous colds and ear infections at our house. The past couple of days have been stay in jammies and survive days. The big boys were off to school and Andrew decided it was time to really get in the Christmas spirit. He constructed Santa's sleigh complete with a grocery sack full of toys to deliver to good boys and girls. We found a couple of Santa hats and he and I played Santa Claus in the kitchen while little Michael napped. Now it is quite a game the three oldest boys play. One takes turns playing Santa and the other two lay on the couch and pretend to be asleep. If they open their eyes Santa passes by, but if they are sleeping soundly he stops and fills their stockings full of toys. They have been such a hoot to watch pretend together.

Christmas Gifts for Teachers

2011-12-13T21:21:00.001-08:00

I am posting this blog because I know how thankful I was when my sister sent the idea to me. It is a really simple and really inexpensive Christmas gift for teachers. I buy my frames at the dollar store or other "cheapie" place, the crayons I buy for a quarter a box during back to school and I have a bottle of elmer's glue laying around at all times. I made them for Adam's kindergarten and 1st grade teachers in Iowa. I decided to keep the tradition going for our new Oregon teachers. Adam's teachers have always LOVED them. I really like to give them to them at Christmas because then the boys get to enjoy looking at them in the classroom for the remainder of the year. I have it down to where I can whip a frame out in about 30 minutes. Enjoy!

Michael's First Birthday

2011-12-01T22:05:00.000-08:00

The littlest peanut has turned one! Seven teeth, no crawling and strictly bum scooting, happiest child I have ever had. Michael is the joy of our home. He is a Daddy's boy and soooo completely loved by his brothers. He loves to watch the dog through the sliding glass door, take baths, go for walks in the stroller, and read books. He has the curliest hair of the all the boys. I have to keep cutting off little curls that grow up around his ears. What a dumplin'.

Ma and the boys with the train cake. I swore I wouldn't be one of those mothers that killed the latter children's birthday's, but I am. Here is the last minute version of what do I have in the pantry... marshmallow's and graham crackers.

You would think he had waited his whole life for that one gift.

In Matthew's kindergarten play group they made Christmas trees out of ice cream cones. He wanted to give his to Michael. Matthew was so happy to give him a special gift. Michael actually enjoyed eating it more than the cake.

Picking off the marshmallows one by one. I didn't realize what a distraction those little devils would be. By the time he was done with marshmallows, graham crackers, and M&M's he didn't want much to do with the cake.

10 Years

2011-11-17T22:47:00.000-08:00

Wahoo we made it! And by-jiggalahinks I think we enjoyed it. We had such great plans for our 10 year anniversary. There were endless places to go and things to do, but after considering our plans and options we decided to well, stay in town. I had one of my young woman come over to baby-sit and we went out to dinner. We found an amazing little restaurant in town called the Vine. The food was exquisite. I even had dessert. Simplicity really hit the spot for our 10-year.

We Got Booed

2011-10-18T22:52:00.000-07:00

After family home evening we were gathered around for scripture study when we heard a crazy rapping on the door. We all jumped a little at the late night knock but opened the door to find a pumpkin full of fun delivered right from the Boo himself. We rolled in laughter as we tried out all of the trinkets we unloaded. Needless to say bedtime was postponed an extra hour to get all of our fun in, but we laughed and laughed and laughed. It was one of those nights where such an unexpected treat really hit the spot.

The boys had a ball re-Booing tonight. We need to work on our approach just a little, and our hiding techniques, and our remember to take everything to the door the first time so we don't have to run out of the bushes, drop the remainder of the load, and knock a second time technique. We'll get it. We're Boo-ing in training.

We really got Grandma's goat. She was our best eyeball model. If I didn't know better I would think she secretly hides away in her bedroom practicing this unusual talent. Another gift we didn't know Grandma had.

Go COUGS!

2011-10-18T22:28:00.000-07:00

I would like to say that Jonathan and I had an amazing time at the BYU-Oregon game... but I would be lying if I didn't say it was a little crazy. We have this responsibility called parenthood which chugs with it 4 darling little pumpkins. Leaving them for any amount of time longer than an ol' hachoo in a hankie is a bit tricky. Not to mention the dead cell phone battery 1 hour after we left home, and the oil pressure episode coming down the mountain. Oh, and the no parking, stuck in crazy traffic post-game, and only $20.00 cash in the wallet spent it all at the pumpkin patch the night before detail. We made it, they did too, my backside was a bit frosty on the metal bleachers, what is football without a chill? BYU won.

Red

2011-10-18T22:17:00.000-07:00

We had a lot of trees in Iowa but they were all oak. Right outside our current front door sits a row of maple trees with the most beautiful fall leaves. This has been such a treat.

Jonathan may look like he is winking, but while capturing the color of the leaves the dog refused to come home, he was awoken from his snooze in the big brown chair, and beckoned by his children to retrieve the runaway pup. His contacts were fuzzy and the need for sleep way too close to the surface. What a dad can't fix, even one eyed.

And remember these? The blessed testing center.

2011-10-03T22:27:00.001-07:00

Organic Chemistry Revisited

2011-10-03T21:56:00.000-07:00

It is crazy to believe that 10 years ago I was sitting next to my honey in an auditorium of several hundred pre-med yuppies pretending to not just memorize the essential organic compounds, but to actually understand the mechanics of the compounds thus being able to explain any chemical reaction and the outcomes that would occur. Ya, right. I have to be honest, secretly I really wanted to understand the mechanics so you could throw any reaction at me, but the fact of the matter was that I was sporting a flashy new diamond ring, sitting next to the man I was about to call my eternal smooch and his sidekick cousin James (that I am truly endeared to) and dreaming of life as an old maid on BYU campus. Wow, how the last ten years have flown. Now we are crammed in our little rental home here in Oregon trying to wade through boxes of old treasures that we no longer need yet remain attached to. One such box of treasures held our old Organic Chemistry notes and exams. It was a riot to flip through our old notes. Will we ever actually NEED the piles of old papers... nope, but somehow we become sentimentally attached to such silly stacks of paper. I couldn't help but share a few. The notes are nothing but jibberish to me now, but they bring back such fond memories of a decade ago. Maybe if I preserve the memory and a few glimpses I can purge the stacks that go with it. Funny what we wrap our hearts around isn't it?

"Maximum possible number of stereoisomers due to chirality centers is 2n where n=number of chirality centers... Cyclic systems similar (odd - no exceptions)..." Yada, yada, yada....

Honestly, page 1088?

Bye Bye Baby Locks

2011-09-12T22:43:00.000-07:00

Ma chopped my hair just like my brothers. She has a thing about keeping it trimmed above the ears. Sheesh I can't even make it a year without the buzzer treatment. Style, flair, character... it doesn't exist around this house. It's all serious MTC business.

Sweet Drippy Harvest

2011-09-12T22:27:00.000-07:00

Way to go girls!!! The Carniolan bees have done themselves proud. We pulled out quite a stack of frames that were FULL of honey. We don't have an extractor yet so we have been nibbling on the honey that drips from the frames as it waits to be extracted. We will have to cut off the wax top of the comb to access the honey tucked neatly inside each hexagon. We anticipate getting up to 3 gallons of honey off from this single hive. The Italian bees have not done as well. We suppose that their original queen died and they hatched a superseder cell establishing a new queen. She has been subpar because the hive has not thrived. Either that or there are way too many man bees getting in the ladies way. Did you know all the honey comes from the gals? The boys really don't do anything at all other than occasionally donate a chromosome or two.

Michael's Love Affair With Warm Squishy Sweetness

2011-09-12T22:22:00.000-07:00

Laparoscopic Berries

2011-09-12T22:06:00.000-07:00

Blackberries have NASTY thorns but they are sooo yummy. I was on my way to do another picking and noticed Jonathan's pincher grabber thing that he brought home from the hospital some time ago. It is the most remarkable little device on the planet. I reach up and bring the berries to me instead of sacrificing my arms in through the thorns to go after the berries. It greatly increases my yield because I can reach the big plump yummy ones that no one else can reach. I have picked gallons and just canned up 7 quarts of pie filling. I cannot wait for dutch oven cobbler with those little devils.

I am finding it is quite the coveted item. While picking I had a nice gentleman drive by, turn around, and ask if I had a special tool for picking berries. I tried to explain it was a surgical instrument for performing laparoscopies that my sweetie pie brought home from the hospital. Limited edition.

Some Things You Just Don't "Get" When You're a Kid

2011-09-12T21:53:00.001-07:00

Like how terrifically terrible your aim is when you try to pitch a rock across the street, and well, miss. Miss the other side of the street but perfectly snag the sliding door on the van. What a shot little Ma-Mow. He was terrified and all I could do was hold my roaring laughter in. I wish now I wouldn't have tried so hard NOT to laugh. Is it bad that I find things like this absolutely hilarious? There is something about shattered glass that really gets my funny bone... Kind of like the time I was cutting my wedding cake and tripped over an electrical cord to the cake fountain, knocked my newlywed to the ground, plowed down the cake, shattered my crystal temple and found Angel Moroni at half court in the church house gym. Truly it was really, really funny.

Mother nature has been Matthew's best punishment. It gets chilly in the back seat when the windows are down, way, way down.

Don't Worry, They'll Come to You

2011-09-03T10:45:00.000-07:00

We left the house this morning to go pick blackberries. On the way out of the house we noticed the praying mantis Matthew caught a few days ago had escaped from his plastic container. We did a look through the house but couldn't find it so decided we would have to find it later.

Fast forward an hour post picking and I pit-stop to change Michael's diaper. As usual he had been playing like a gem in the middle living room floor. He can't crawl yet so I seldom worry about him putting things in his mouth because we keep things out of reach. Well, if you can't go to them, they will come to you. You know, things like a praying mantis. When I laid him down to change his diaper I noticed something kind of green and stringy in his mouth. I couldn't identify it at first. It wasn't until I did a swipe of the roof of his mouth that I found the leg and could clearly identify the other parts and pieces I had extracted. I didn't know what to say other than dry heave.

I'll spare you the pictures.

And to think, we all survived childhood.

Can you imagine how excited Michael must have been to have something crawling to him? I can only imagine the effort required to catch it, paw it from fist to fist and then devour. Wow.

You thought we would leave them behind?

2011-08-28T21:45:00.001-07:00

As I type there is honey dripping from frames into a bowl in my kitchen. To walk past it and get a scent of that sweet honey and pine frame is incredible. The honey is the sweetest I have ever had... almost too sweet if that is possible. Before breakfast this morning we went out to check on the hives. The frames were full and capped so we snagged a couple to get a few nibbles before we centrifuge the rest of the frames to extract the honey. Wow, so delicious. Wendy and her kids wanted to see the inside of the hives and while we were peeking we cut off a few chucks of comb and chewed on the wax. For some crazy reason my Olsen side of the family has a tradition of making scones when we all get together. We cannot wait to congregate at Darren's with greasy hot scones dripping with butter and sweet, sweet honey.

Yes indeed, the bees came with us to Oregon. The longer I live the nuttier I am beginning to realize I am. I think a lot of it has to do with the man I married. Oh, what he doesn't mange to get us into.

We have arrived!

2011-08-28T20:59:00.000-07:00

We made our way to Oregon and have finally managed to get our internet hooked up after two weeks of living here. What a roller coaster of events that have transpired in the past few months of the Jenson family. We went from firmly rooted in Iowa and in love with our lives to moving in the most unexpected way to western side of Oregon. When we first got here I wanted to cry for the first 4 days and had decided that I had made the most awful mistake in my life. I really was heartsick. Iowa is the most beautiful place on earth and even more beautiful than the area we lived in are the people that we left behind. I think of the dear associations we had with our neighbors, members of the ward and stake, people we got to know at school and just the good hearted people of Iowa in general. It is a hard place to leave. Iowa is special and we will always have have a tender place in our hearts for the goodness that exists nowhere else on earth like Iowa. What a source of absolute joy to have experienced the miracle of the midwest.

Having left such goodness behind it was difficult at first to gain a love or appreciation for Oregon. But when we moved here I distinctly had two impressions about our move. Firstly, I knew without doubt that in our regard it simply did not matter where we lived, it only mattered what we did while we were there. The kingdom of God needs to be built within the walls of our home first and then shared from there. We can make our home a sacred place in Iowa, in Oregon or in a thatched hut in Samoa. The second reassurance that came was the peace knowing that the Lord made Iowa and the Lord made Oregon and both of them are good. We were going to experience a new facet of the Lord's beautiful creations here on the earth. To top these two very clear and distinct impressions was the advice given to John Clarke, former president of Ricks College, from his parents. Over and over again in his life he was told, "John, make good where you are." And with that we have decided to make good where we are.

So, what do we love about Oregon thus far in these marvelous two weeks we have had here...

1. The gospel. It is the same no matter where you go.

2. BLACKBERRIES!!!!!! Oh my heavens to bessie you cannot fathom the number of berries that grow in this place. It is completely, entirely, out of my wildest imagination. Our second day here we abandoned unpacking and went straight to jam making. We have had muffins, cakes, jams, dried fruit leather and eaten and eaten and eaten until we are all sick. Michael loves the little morsels. He can squish them in his little 8 month old mouth and turn purple faster that wiener pigs in a greased pig chase. Andrew is the most faithful berry picking companion I could ask for and always says, "Mmmmmm Mom, these are good." Adam and Matthew have decided we live in berry land.

3. Peaches for $0.10 a pound. Yes you heard me right. I got up at 5 AM Saturday to be in line at Harry and David for cheap, succulent peaches. All day yesterday was spent blanching, slicing and freezing. Canning comes in the morning. Honestly 270 pounds of peaches for $27. Outrageous.

4. Sisters!!!! Miss Wendy is only 2.5 hours from me as determined by her mad jont to Grants Pass to join me in my peach party. I have family nearly within spitting distance. It is going to take a bridle and reins to keep me focused. I think Cindi will be only 8 hours and Ryan is 7.5. Hooray.

5. BYU Cougars!!!!! Yep, got tickets to the Oregon game in October... just a mere 2.5 hours away. Go Cougs!

6. Medford temple is only 30 minutes away. We went to do sealings yesterday. It is a beautiful temple but a small one. I have to be really honest about this one, the proximity to the temple is a blessing but I'd be lying if I didn't say that a gargantuan piece of my heart was left behind in Nauvoo. Some things just can't be beat.

7. Weather, wow it smells good here in the morning. I wake up, open my windows and it smells like fresh, yummy, new, been camping air. That kind of air doesn't live in Iowa. It just smells good here.

8. The Rogue River. Grants Pass survives off from this beautiful river. We have been walking down by the river and played in parks along it several times. The outdoor recreational opportunities here are unparalleled. We can't wait to get our hands on a few more of them.

9. We are CITY SLICKERS... at least for a time. We are renting a home in town with yes people, sidewalks and paved roads! The first day the bikes hit the pavement both the boys lost the training wheels and they are speeding little demons now. I distinctly remember as a child being so envious of friends that lived in town that could ride their bikes and I remember longing for the opportunity to ride a bike on ANYTHING besides gravel. Well, my bambinos felt the same way. They are in two wheeled heaven here.

Now, there are a few things I don't love about Grants Pass, but we aren't going to worry about those because we are making good where we are and it is good. The Lord really won me over with all those blackberries. I have never seen anything like it. However, when the earth is cleansed and perfected I am going to ask about a thornless variety.

Chicken pox, poison ivy, remodeling, moving to Oregon

2011-06-26T19:03:00.000-07:00

oh, and selling a house. So blessed.

Here They Bee

2011-04-14T20:33:00.001-07:00

So our little family embarked upon an adventure today. It is quite fun, a little exciting, and somewhat suspenseful. We have joined the ranks of beekeepers! Jonathan decided some time ago that it would really be fun to experience the life of a beekeeper. It has been an interest for him for quite some time and we finally are trying our hand at things. If this goes well I am afraid it may be time for his next project... chickens. We'll take this one critter at at time. Below is a smattering of pictures in no particular order at all. I will try to narrate with the help of Mr. Michael sitting here on my lap as I type. Ah hum...

This is the one casualty of the day. Matthew behaved exactly as I expected Matthew would behave. He was absolutely 100% fearless of any bees. When we went to pick our shipment up he jumped in the back of the the truck that had 100's of thousands of bees buzzing freely about and tried to pick them up. Upon my suggestion that that may not be the best idea in the world he decided to pick a flower and lure them with it. He did and was toting bees all around the yard of the nice gentleman that we picked the bees up from. Later in the day he got a good stinger in the thumb. But was not deterred.

In order for the bees to survive before the nectar starts to flow in our area we have to supplement the bees with sugar water. This is Jonathan pouring syrup over the feeding trays. The wooden trays float on the sugar water. The bees land on the wood, suck through the slats, try not to drown and go about their business of caring for the brood and making honey.

This is a lone bee on the outside of our bee crate. We spray them with sugar syrup before we dump them in the hive so it makes it a little more difficult for them to buzz around.

Each of the hives has approximately 10,000 bees with 1 single queen. The small box that Jonathan is hanging on the frame holds our little princess. She is shipped separate of the other bees. Once they are in the hive we can turn her loose and let her start laying thousands upon thousands of little eggs for us.

A bee buzzing Matthew's head. He liked it.

This is the little box that the bees shipped from California in. We got one hive of Carniolan bees and one of Italian. This is Adam dousing the Italians with sugar water before we attempted to dump them into their hive box.

Matthew's bee friend on his arm.

This is after they have been sprayed down. We open up the box and start dumping the 10,000 little darlings into the hive.

Matthew holding the Carniolan queen bee. She was big and black.

The bees come shipped in these nice little boxes with a can of syrup to plug the hole on the top of the box. We had to pry out the can then dump the bees. This little can is a puny appetizer. Bees consume GALLONS of sugar water in just a few days before the nectar begins to flow. (In other words before lots of things are blooming)

Buddy, the boys, and bees.

Matthew decided the box of Carniolans was going to be his own personal hive. He was attempting to open them all by himself. We are slowly establishing a few bee rules.

The painting and prepping of the bee hive bodies prior to the bee's arrival.

This is a picture of the foundation that the bees will build their comb on. It is a plastic sheet covered in beeswax. I cannot begin to describe the scent that loomed in our kitchen all day. We had dozens of new soft pine frames filled with these sheets of beeswax foundation. It was pine and sweet, sweet beeswax mixed together. It was so unbelievably delicious I honestly wanted to nibble on them. That was a stupendously unexpected treat to smell all day long.

Some of the frames we glued and hammered together.

And there you have it. We have 2 hives... approximately 20,000 bees. We are praying they will survive and some day we will be eating lots and lots of sweet succulent home grown honey. Wish us luck!

Oh Sweet Iowa Home... How do I love thee, let me count the ways -

2011-04-11T12:23:00.001-07:00

Birds

Popcorn popping

on the apricot tree

Strawberries

Raspberries

4 boys n' balls

Garlic

Chives

Turkey Vultures

Peas sleeping... for only a bit longer

Climbing Roses

Sweet Succulent Fall Flower... I don't know your name, but I love you

Garden path

White Pine

Mulberry

Spider webs

Coral bells where they aughtn't be

Sunshine on Green Grass

Path past the ravine

Animal clouds

Little boy bird houses

Tulips

Rhododendrons

A Taste of My Own Medicine

2011-03-27T16:42:00.000-07:00

Last night Jonathan got a call a little after ten to do an inter-thecal block for a laboring woman in Centerville. The drive to the Centerville hospital is about 40 minutes from our home. He got dressed and ready, I said goodnight he and headed out the door. A little after 2 AM he got home after placing the inter-thecal and crawled into bed. He had almost fallen asleep when the phone rang again. Centerville - she had failed to progress and now was needing to go to a C-Section. Back in the car he went for his second trip to Centerville to do the spinal on the lady. Some time after 5 AM he was back to bed the second time. Unbeknownst of his long night I woke feeling rested and ready for a happy Sabbath. He was a little sluggish on the draw and in fact didn't get up with the 7 AM alarm for P.E.C. (What a slacker...) It wasn't until after church when we finally had a few moments to talk that I found out he had made two trips to Centerville and didn't really sleep last night.

I just laughed. I was clueless to his phone ringing in the night, him coming... going... talking to nurses. I slept... well, dang hard.

Only now do I have a twinge of appreciation for his comments in the morning that go a little like this... "Wow, that was a great night. Did the boys all sleep through the night?" And through bloodshot eyes I wonder to myself, how is it humanly possible for him to be unaware of the 5 wake-up sessions I had with 3 different children.

It's all about selective hearing... his is buzzing, mine is whimpering. But ya know folks... we get r' done.

Matthew's Apprentice

2011-03-27T16:19:00.000-07:00

Andrew has learned everything he knows from his big brother. The one that he calls Ma-Mow.

Ma-Mow has a gift for helping.

Seven

2011-03-27T15:49:00.000-07:00

A rainbow with a pot of gold at the bottom was Mr. Adam's birthday request this year. He got it, along with a handful of friends to go bowling with. They had a great time ripping the balls down the lanes and eating lots of pepperoni pizza and eating cake. This was the first I had met a few of Adam's school friends. It was fun to get to know "the country kids" the secretary at the school remarked that Adam hung out with. Ya, they're a little country... cowboy boots and ball caps. But awfully cute little fellas.

When the boy's parents asked what they could get Adam for his birthday I really had to think on it. Adam loves fish, fishing and reading. He loves to receive toys, but he doesn't actually play with them because he doesn't want them to get broken. He's is an intensive steward of everything he owns. He gets that from his Dad who still owns all of his childhood toys. He ended up with a building set, a few new footballs, a yo-yo, a watch, a few books, and a few other silly toys. I gave him a journal which he loves to write in. He's my bookie child and I love it. He has read the Magic Tree House Series up to #37 more times than I can count, has just about cleaned up all of the Secrets of Droon Series and I'm debating if I should start him on Harry Potter. If it has words he reads it. The other day he was reading the paper and he said to me, "Mom, did you know that there is real war going on?" I love him. His current WPM is over 200 and cruising.
Andrew and Dad got in on a little bowling fun with the ramp.
Michael watched and got called a little girl several times. A very common mishap in this adorable little BOY'S life.

Happy birthday Adam!

Mom, that's just unacceptable

2011-03-27T15:46:00.001-07:00

Matthew asked me a question and I gave him an answer. His response,

"Mom, I'm sorry, but that is an unacceptable answer. You'll just have to try again."

Ha!!!!!!!!

If You Chance to Meet a Frown...

2011-03-18T14:51:00.000-07:00

Aunt Becky is expecting a baby girl very soon. We are SOOOO excited for her! My sister Wendy bought me a baby girl bedding set before Adam was born. I tucked it away thinking it may get used... four boys later I decided to pull it out of hiding and at least let someone that knows they can get some use out of it have it. So Michael got a glamour shot on a girl blankie and we boxed it up for Aunt Bepee.

Mommy, READ!!

2011-03-18T14:45:00.001-07:00

You gotta love the spike at the top of this child's head.

Grandma Jenson gave the boys the "Big Yellow Songbook" several years ago. It is a two year old magnet. Andrew grabs it crawls on my lap and yells at the top of his lungs, "READ!" In other words - sing me these songs! When Mom doesn't he makes a nest and reads them to his bear friends.

Michael's Blessing Day

2011-03-18T14:32:00.001-07:00

Michael's Blessing was a beautiful day. He was blessed by his Dad on December 26, 2010. Michael is a blessed spirit and addition to our family. I think my favorite part of his blessing was the promise that he would be a peacemaker in our home. In his few short months of life I have seen this promise begin to unfold. He evokes tender feelings of love from each of his big brothers. I love to watch the older boys be the big brothers. They are so tender and so sweet. It makes me want to never stop having children. I wish that all of them could feel the joy that comes from being the big brother. Unfortunately... there is a little thing called reality that exists in our home and all good things will some day come to an end. So for now we are enjoying our little dumplings especially on days like today when Adam comes to by bedroom and says, "Mom, Andrew is white." Huh? Ya, have you seen how far an entire bottle of baby powder can spread? Ask Andrew. He has a gift for "dusting" his bedroom. I should introduce him to Amelia Bedelia. The whole house was baby powder fresh!

Birds

2011-03-18T13:49:00.001-07:00

I went to get my camera this morning when we were eating breakfast because the weather has turned a touch warmer and a few of our bird friends are returning. There was a brilliant cardinal that perched on our deck and I wanted to get a picture of it. By the time I got my act together it was gone so we settled for finches and a couple nuthatches.

I love the nuthatches. They live their lives upside down. I don't think I have ever seen one perched on the side of a tree up-right. I LOVE LOVE LOVE to watch these silly little birds.

Adam built a bird house last year and we finally got it hung up. Jonathan and the boys spent Saturday afternoon at the conservation center building a new bluebird house. When they hung up the bluebird house out by the garden they hung Adam's birdhouse in the pear tree that sits outside of our bedroom window. This picture is for you Adam... who has waited a year for his birdhouse to be hung. Now... we just need birds.

A Gray Day In Io-Way

2011-02-22T07:37:00.000-08:00

I decided to turn off my flash and take a few pictures of Michael during his nap. It is a typical gray day in Iowa in February.

I love to watch the grip on the binki slowly become less and less until it tumbles to the side of his cheek in his bed.

As for Andrew, he has been sick with another fever the past two nights. He woke up this morning got some love from mom and went right back to bed. He is a lover of his bed when he is sick.

The engineer spent the morning on the carpet in the living room. I came in to find his cars lined up in this fashion. I spent some time looking at them and he pointed out that these cars were being worked on in the car shop.

A closer look revealed a head attached to the piece in the center. The little people were carefully tucked under their cars working on them. I just had to smile. Matthew's imagination is a continual delight to me.

Pink Toilet Water

2011-02-14T08:24:00.000-08:00

I wanted to give Jonathan an extra special Valentine this year. I got up at 4:30am to feed Michael and stayed up to fix breakfast and decorate the kitchen for Valentine's Day. In my preparations I wanted to be sure to be the first to wish Jonathan a happy Valentine. I cut out a huge heart and wrote happy Valentine's Day on it and taped it to the inside of the toilet seat. A few drops of hot pink food coloring in the toilet water and a swish with a bamboo skewer from the kitchen I had one happy hello-good morning-gotta know you're loved valentine. I was rather giddy waiting for him to find his Valentine, however, I neglected to consider one major factor. I married a health care professional. You know... the individuals that get trapped in the O.R. for hours on end and develop bladders of steel. The ones that go to bed at night and stop and ask themselves if they have been to the bathroom all day. Yes, one of those kind of health care professionals. Up with the alarm, into the shower, out for a delicious breakfast and never once lifts the toilet seat. What a futile attempt. The boys however, got a kick out of it.

I hear Adam get out of bed and head to the bathroom. He lifts the toilet seat and I hear nothing. A few moments later I hear him back in his bedroom, "Matthew, wake up. You have got to come and see this!" I hear both of them in the bathroom discussing the peculiar nature of the toilet water. Adam comes out the kitchen and says, "Mom, I REALLY need to go to the bathroom, but um, the water, it's a... pink." I couldn't help but laugh. I told him he could go to the bathroom. Matthew didn't want to miss out on the fun so simultaneously they went the the bathroom. Adam comes back and declares that he doesn't want to flush because it is so awesome. I told him this is one Valentine he doesn't get to keep and to FLUSH.

We had our usual raspberry french toast for breakfast and this year it was accompanied with gargantuan rice krispy treats. Yummers and loves to all.

Matthew's 5th Birthday

2011-02-06T15:06:00.000-08:00

Life is like a hurricane here in Duckberg

Race cars, lazers, aeroplanes, it's a duck's world

Might solve the mystery and re-write history

Duck Tales Woo-oo!

Unfortunately you can't see how high above the ground he is here... but it hurt when he landed.

a-Mum

A-uu

Even the 2 year old has it memorized by now. Mr. aMazing Matthew turned 5 this year and boy was it aMazing. Matthew got the much loved "Duck Tales" DVD's and we have watched all 9 hours of episodes since it was opened. Who doesn't love Uncle Scrooge? We just can't get enough of the series. To celebrate the exciting day we again took a trip to Jumping Jim's Jungle. We went on Friday after Adam got home from school. The boys loved it. They loved it so well that I was unable to take pictures of them loving it because they were all moving TOOO darn fast.

Matthew's birthday actually fell on a Sunday this year which was a little painful for the guy. Friday was Jumping Jim's, Saturday was mom making homemade marshmallow fondant for the first time with the scout troop at home trying to create a castle fondant cake with all 10 hands helping while Dad did a merit badge conclave all day the church with his own troop, and AT LAST Sunday was eat and presents. Few! Glad we survived Saturday to see Sunday.

Matthew is an engineer in every literal sense. The child's mind NEVER rests. He would sleep with a screwdriver if I would let him. He wants to build, create, take apart, and conquer EVERYTHING. I love it. I love how impossible it is for him to tell a lie, or even a partial fib... like when I ask if he dried his hands after he washed them. His face crumples up and with all his strength he tries to keep it straight, but his eye crinkles and the fib tries to come out but his face rats on him before he can even say it. I love that about that kid. I love that he can't hold still... NO MATTER WHAT! There does not exist a still bone in his body. Even when we sit on him he can't be still. It is no wonder the child is as skinny as a rail. He can climb ANYTHING! He is always the brother that is sent to shimmy up the side of the fridge to sneak treats or climb the tree to tie the rope. Like all of us are guilty of doing, he loves to brace his hands and feet on the wall in the hall and climb up so his head hits the ceiling. He doesn't use the stairs of his bunk bed. He climbs on the desk next to the bed then climbs over the side. Likewise on his way down he just jumps and lets it all fly. We all know when Matthew wakes up because he greets us with a thud every morning. He is so skinny but so STRONG. If he gets hold of your arm it takes a crowbar to get the little wiry monkey off. He is in every sense aMazing Matthew. I just love him to death. He loves baby Michael and calls him a little cutie pie. He LOVES, LOVES, LOVES to play Dad's iPad. He just recently defeated the evil Dr. Porkchop for the first time on a Toy Story 3 game and has now officially entered the ranks of manhood.

Oh how we love our Ma-Mow.

Duck Tales - Woo-oo

The birthday blow

Ummm... it decided to rest on the Sabbath as well and got a little slumpy through the night

Quiet evening

2011-01-26T19:32:00.000-08:00

So Jonathan is at the hospital tonight taking in house call. He doesn't have to take overnight call away from home very often, but tonight it leaves me alone. I should be hauling in more firewood to fill our wood box for the night, but I don't have to gumption to bundle up and go outside for wood so instead I sat down at the computer. I don't think it is going to get any warmer... I just hope to get a little more gumption. I am thankful to have not had a furnace this winter. The boys have learned to work with their dad hauling wood and it is good for them to contribute to the affairs of the home. I would be lying though if I didn't say that I am overjoyed at the knowledge that next Monday we are having a new furnace installed. The thoughts of having a warm home at a regular temperature make me smile. I look forward to a few beeps and buttons and having warm air. I also look forward to coming home from church to a warm house. I tend to cook dinner in my coat on Sunday's. The fire is usually out by the time we get home from church. However, last Sunday I realized that we had spent a good portion of the day at church. This realization came when I was sitting to feed Michael for the third time that day at the church.

The cat snuck in the house when the boys and I were at a meeting at the school tonight. We came home to water splashed all over Adam's dresser and an empty fish tank. We will work on some replacements tomorrow.

A few of my favorite websites are: www.ideasforpreschoolers.com and www.theprovidenthomemaker.com. They are worth looking at if you need some fresh ideas.

Andrew went to bed with a fever. He just started crying in his bedroom. I guess this is my call for gumption. Time to love and haul wood. Good night.

Michael's Blessing Tux

2011-01-04T19:58:00.000-08:00

Jonathan's mother is wonderful x's 10. For each of the boys she sews the most adorable little white tuxedo for their blessing day. I have loved dressing each of the boys in their tux's. I will never forget when Adam was blessed in Provo hearing my nephew Tyson lean over to his dad and say, "He looks like a little composer." A handsome little composer may be a more accurate description. I would toast this little guy and eat him with jam if I could. I just love the little peanut.

I LOVE Andrew's Hair

2011-01-04T19:49:00.000-08:00

This is my poor child that walks with a continual spike atop his precious head. His two cowlicks collide up top on the peak of his head and point straight to heaven. Occasionally when he wakes in the morning he has a few others that have joined in on the fun. I love seeing him come walking into the kitchen with bed head. It makes me smile every time. How can you not love this noggin'. (The orange juice in the eye interrupted our usual jovial morning.)

30... right on track

2011-01-04T19:24:00.000-08:00

Growing up I envisioned what turning 30 would be like and I have to admit it is everything I imagined it would be. My oldest sister Cindi always refers to my phase of life right now as "being in the trenches." That is exactly it... living, loving, and thriving in the thick of raising 4 strippling warriors - with the eternal bonus of their Dad by my side. With utmost gratitude I must say that at 30 I am living the life I always dreamed. And feel honored to do it.

My birthday cake this year consisted of the last cupcake left from the refreshments we took to a baptism. It was German Chocolate so I was happy. We skipped candles this year. That's what happens when you turn 30.

I did get two of my very favorite things... slippers that I wear everywhere everyday. I got some last year for my birthday and have worn them out. These beauties are this year's replacement. I hate the feeling of walking on miscellaneous treasures on the floor. Crumbs on my socks makes me crazy and so does walking in wet spots. I keep my toes toasty and my socks free and clear - even in the dead heat of August.
My second favorite is Bath and Body Works yummy smellies.
Grandma wrapped a gift for me which was a beautiful journal and picture. The homefront hid the gifts in a duffle bag and pulled it out for the party. Jonathan is usually a meticulous and BEAUTIFUL wrapper. However, this year he was working like a dog getting a new sub floor laid in our hall bathroom and didn't get things wrapped. I reassured him I would much rather have a toilet than pretty paper.

Note: I am still waiting for a pink towel to call my own.

Headed Home At Last

2010-12-05T15:28:00.000-08:00

We had to stay in the hospital for a FULL 2 days. It seemed like an eternity but when I finally was ready to go I gave Jonathan a call to come and pick us up. His response, "Well I have quite a few things to finish up around here but when I get a minute I'll come." WHAT!!!! I hear my mother in the background, "Well I'll go get her!" I don't think lightening could have moved faster. At last we were headed home.

Michael 2 days old

2010-12-05T15:22:00.001-08:00

This delivery was really an easy one for me. Consequently we had lots of down time in the hospital room. Here is Michael at 2 days...

Michael Sobieski Jenson

2010-12-05T14:02:00.000-08:00

You know having a child is exciting, it is exhilarating and so anticipated. I couldn't be happier to have a perfectly healthy little boy to wrap up in my arms. But along with this small little person flows an abundance of blessings that can be described only as remarkably humbling. To hold a noble and great one and to feel my own life cradled in the hand of the Lord reaffirms the reality of God's plan for us here on earth and the purity of our purposes. Seldom have I felt such peace knowing God is real and I am his daughter, a literal child of God myself living a life filled with His love and blessings. Humbling. Truly humbling.

So - a snitch of the birth story and few of the blessings along the way:

2 Am, 3:30 Am, 4:30 Am contractions, then nothing. 9 AM, 9:30 AM, 10:00 AM... more regular, then less regular, then harder and stronger then nothing. All day on Tuesday was a roller coaster of contractions back and forth in regularity. They were all definitely STRONG contractions but were abundantly lacking in regularity. Around 5 PM when I decided they were coming every 7 to 10 minutes I decided to make some calls and find a place for my children to stay for the night. Adam headed to the Mietzner's in Bloomfield so he could get to school in the morning and Matthew and Andrew to the Grey's in Ottumwa so they would have play friends. We ate dinner and farmed out the kids only to find the contractions were now 20 to 30 minutes apart and not regulating. Jonathan had to be at work Wednesday morning and we really needed to get a baby here before 6 AM. What to do? We headed to the hospital and decided to have them check to see if there was any hope of having a baby within the night. With a little patience and pitocin we managed to get our December 1st baby here at 3:12 AM.

Mom and the boys before we loaded up and headed out on our drop-off route to the hospital.
The last picture taken of Michael warm and snug as a bug.
The homeless hobos that were graciously taken in by ward members. Time and time again nurses at the hospital would ask where the other boys were and if we had family there to help. They were astonished to find that we didn't have a lick of family within 1300 miles and that G & G Olsen were still two days from arrival. What I couldn't explain to them in a brief conversation is the family that we have within our ward. How can you explain to someone the consecrated meshing of lives that occurs within members of the church? The bearing of one another's burdens, the lifting of hands (or tummies) that hang down, and the love that exists among people that you call your brother and sister. It is humbling to be a part of something so pure, and to be among people so like the Savior. We were readily blessed.

This handsome specimen is my own personal anesthetist. I take him with me where ever possible. He fulfilled his promise of being a good one to have on hand. After Dr. Coleman broke my water to help regulate contractions and get things moving Mr. Jenson pulled on the ol' latex and started a betadine rub down. In a matter of moments Jonathan had my epidural placed without a lick of pain. I was quite impressed with his services. This is the first of our boys that he has done the epidural for and a mighty fine job he did.

...so fine in fact that I found myself catching up on a article on Lion House rolls in the "LDS Living" magazine that arrived in the mail that day.

The epidural slowed me down just a titch so I had a few boluses of pitocin to rev up the contractions and with just a couple pushes Mr. Michael was born:

Wednesday evening Jonathan brought the troops up to meet their new little brother. They were so excited to hold and love and kiss him. Andrew was particularly concerned about Michael's belly button. He kept saying "Ow-ee baby button. Ow-ee button."

Andrew and Matthew's first glimpse.
Adam was so excited to share his good news with his class at school. His teacher said first thing in the morning he made the announcement. During the day at school each of his classmates made personal cards to send to the baby and his teacher sent a card and a new book for Adam to read to Michael. Adam was ecstatic to share his treasures with Michael. He was a little disgruntled over the suggestion that he change poopy baby diapers made by a few classmate. Little does he know such a suggestion will shortly become a reality.

WARMMMMMM FALL

2010-10-28T22:01:00.000-07:00

Andrew and Matthew chillin' in the leaves

My three dumplings... although I am the only one that looks like one.

Matthew

All fall... DOWN!

Andrew toppled over time and time and time again. I couldn't believe how intuitive it was for him to run and play in the leaves. He lingered long after his brothers found other things to explore.

Mowers comin'!

Adam's Geronimo jumps

Who's the bigger cheezer?

Poor innocent dog.

It has been a remarkably warm fall. We have had weeks on end of perfect weather and nothing but 100% sunshine. What a gift it has been. We should have spent more time outside working and less time working on the inside of our home. Oh well...

By the way, where am I in all of these pictures? I do exist. I am alive.

Gotta Get a Bigger Bed

2010-10-28T21:53:00.000-07:00

I have decided our bed is a four man bed. Heaven only knows what will happen when Mr. Jenson #5 shows up. Why is it that everyone is in PJ's except Papa Jenson? Could it be that we all slept through the night and he had just come to bed for the morning? Come now, who sleep for more than 20 minutes before rushing off for work for the day?

Keeping the Home Fires Burning

2010-10-28T21:40:00.000-07:00

It is 11:45 at night. What is your hubby doing? I wish I could say that I have contributed to this year's mounds of firewood, but I would be lying if I said I have done much more than bounce a few logs off from my big belly. Currently I am sitting inside our warm home hearing whack after whack after whack. This is what Mr. Jenson does in his spare time... you know the hours between 10:30 PM and 2:00, 3:00, or 4:00 AM? The pictures don't do justice to size of mounds he has sawed down, cut, hauled, chopped and stacked. P.S. folks... I married a remarkable man.

Things Aren't Always What They Seem

2010-10-28T19:57:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday my Dad was set apart as a counselor in the Twin Falls Temple Presidency. We are excited for his new call to serve and know he will do a remarkable job. My parents have known about his calling for several months but the rest of us were a little slower to jump on the bandwagon. Let me explain...

These past few months have been a bit of a roller coaster ride for my Dad. Several months ago he was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism and not long after that discovered he had several blockages in his heart that would require a quadruple bi-pass surgery. Due to the embolism doctors were afraid to do open heart surgery for fear that they may dislodge the embolism in his lungs. He has been in and out of doctors offices, referred to doctors all throughout the United States and been trying to decide what to do. After my parents had decided to go ahead with heart surgery I was visiting with my mom on the phone. They were in Utah for a doctors appointment and she mentioned that they had just been and purchased my Dad a new while suit. Due to the complicated nature of my Dad's surgery my thoughts were, "They really think he is going to die. My Mom wants to be certain he has a nice new white suit to be buried in so they are fitting him with a new one just in case he doesn't make it." They on the other hand are thinking, "We have got to hustle things along. We have 6 weeks before we start in the temple full time, Dad needs a white suit that will last the next 3 years while he is serving. We won't have time after the surgery to get things fitted and we have to be up and running ASAP!"

See what I mean... I had the man dead and buried and they had him on rush order to serve for the next 3 years. I guess the moral of the story is you can't judge a book by its cover, nor a man by the color of his suit.

Ottumwa Ward Hay Ride

2010-09-21T18:45:00.001-07:00

Susie Wright is one of the most hospitable, genuinely lovable people I have ever had the opportunity to know. She is an older sister in our ward that has a farm in the middle of nowhere Iowa. Her and her husband Sam time after time graciously offer their home for a million reasons. We have been there to have raspberry french toast for brunch every month for over a year, picked hundreds of ears of the sweetest corn ever known to bag and freeze, hauled off with loads of sheep manure for compost, helped bottle feed lambs and kittens, and spent hours enjoying our ward family at the annual ward hay ride. Sam is not a member of the church but is wonderful and open to the ward descending upon them time and time again. I hope I grow old like Susie. She is one of my life's heros.

Our sweet Susie.

Here is a little run down of the 2010 hayride. We were an hour late (can't stop a plumbing job mid-way) but still managed to spend over 3 hours playing at her place.

Andrew loved the "ho-sies!" He was climbing the fence to get in and pet them.

Adam and Sam Zimmerman made each other sick going round and round on the tire swing. Adam told Jonathan we have definitely got to hang up one of those at our place.

See what I mean. Susie's place is pure bliss.

I think Andrew may have found his first crush. Drew and him were buddies all night.

Ma and the boys aboard the wagon.

Mr. Matthew

The Wright's farm hundreds of acres of corn. We rode along through the fields. It was really pretty.

This is my enemy. Brother Duker has decided to claim the coveted Boy Scout marshmallow cross bow as his own. Although I saw it first and wanted it worse than him. He believes his contributions as popcorn sales rep. give him dibs to it. I however, as the Scout committee chairman believe it should me mine!

After we roast hot dogs and pot luck we take the hay ride. Sam pulls us around and Susie preps the home front with hot cocoa and smores upon our return.

Smore on one side of the fence, adventure waiting on the other...

No longer need goggles to run the garbage disposal

2010-09-20T20:14:00.000-07:00

What to the untrained eye may appear as two white pipes running along a wall is actually a 4PM-7AM non-stop work session and the removal of goggles from my kitchen drawer. Okay, I didn't really have goggles in the drawer but I was tempted many times.

Bless the dear sweet skin on the fingers of my husband. I have gotten a very forceful back spray each time I use the garbage disposal since we moved into this house. I flip it on and wet treasures come flying out of the opposite sink. Apparently it had much to do with how the disposal was vented. Well, while plumbing the basement he installed an entire new vent line for the upstairs kitchen. He started this project at 4PM and finished as the boys and I were waking up the next morning. There wasn't much left of his hands from the PVC cement and many other fun things he did (I was asleep I didn't see much of it) but my kitchen sink runs like a Rolls Royce. He reinstalled all new pluming under the kitchen sink, re-plumbed the dishwasher and vented that sweet thing like nobody's business. It has never looked, ground, or sounded better AND I don't have to wipe off my face every time I use the garbage disposal. Oh that sweet man. The only unpleasant treasure was the abandoned putrid mouse nest he uncovered in the wall behind our dishwasher. That left much to be desired. By like a good man he took care of that along with the venting. Once again, just another project in the past few weeks by Mr. Jenson.

My Dad asks... "So is Jonathan a plumber or an electrician today."

2010-09-20T19:41:00.000-07:00

Well in this very moment I would call him the cable guy. He just finished running and installing new phone lines and cable lines through the house. When we moved in we were the proud owners of one single solitary phone jack. Now we have phone, ethernet and cable running rampant through our home. Now we just need a TV and cable service to go along with those wires... not likely any time soon. This past weekend I would have called Jonathan more of a mason. He completed the plumbing in half of the basement and we poured cement over his handy work. While the cement has been curing he has re-wired the basement outlets and light switches and hard wired the fan in our bedroom. (The pull chain busted inside the fan. Due to our absence of A/C our only source of survival at night is ceiling fans. In order to keep the fans going and turn out the lights we were having to unscrew the 5 light bulbs. A little tricky for a short pregnant lady.) Following are a few pictures of his work in progress:

I would label this picture "Mr. Manual Labor." You see in order to completely redo the plumbing in the basement there was a lot of cement that had to be removed, old pipes taken out, old drains removed and filled and new lines put in. This is Mr. Jenson during one of MANY MANY MANY cement removal sessions. Notice the fine white coloring of his hair. This happens each time he puts in another "session." The fine cement ash spreads very quickly and thoroughly throughout the house. A few days ago I asked Adam to take something downstairs for me. He opened the basement door took a few steps down and said, "Mom, there's a cloud in the basement." Yep, that's a usual around our house. I used to dust. Until the cement removal ceases I think I shall start dating the blind slats each time I walk by and draw smily faces on the piano.

These are Jonathan's cave man tools that he retreats to his cave and makes lots of noise with. This particular session was the removal of cement in the closet under our stairs... yes there are pipes looming everywhere.

Through the fine haze you can see a patch of dirt that was once old plumbing covered in cement. After Mr. Manual Labor dug it all up and laid new drains and plumbing it will someday be the drain work for my new laundry room. I was really sad to discover that all of the plumbing work had been covered by dirt before I got a picture of it. Under this trench lies much blood sweat and tears. It was soon covered with cement.

This is a glimpse of the man cave.

This dazzling picture is just for kicks, and yet another project of a few weeks ago. Due to the removal of various walls and the design of our new bathroom we (I say we... Jonathan) had to relocate the clean out on our chimney stack. He cut a hole in the cinderblocks and moved the clean out door here. I missed how he did it, but he did a good job relocating the hole and filling in the old one. Just another day in the life of Mr. Jenson

Three In One Morning... Our Best

2010-08-30T20:30:00.000-07:00

Matthew perched and concentrating very hard as one by one the monarchs crawled up his arms and neck to take flight from his head.

With all of our butterfly hatching three emerging on the same morning was our best. We only had one cocoon that didn't survive to become a butterfly. All the others made it. I was surprised how many we actually saw metamorphose. It makes me feel a little more guilty smashing butterflies with my car now that I know the effort required to become one. It has been an amazing miracle for all of us to watch egg after egg hatch, grow, spin, sit, and emerge. I have a feeling we may have a few more rounds of this in the years to come.

"Mom, our caterpillars turned into raccoons!"

2010-08-24T20:20:00.000-07:00

When Matthew's very first caterpillar made its cacoon he came running into our bedroom in the morning and yelled, "Mom, my caterpillar turned into a raccoon!" Dad's response was, "Wow, those are some caterpillars." For the life of me I cannot get him to call it a cocoon. It doesn't matter how hard I try, or how many spin their little magic. According to Matthew they are raccoons. The funny thing is Adam calls them the same thing half the time. Oh these sweet little boys.
The monarch cocoons become very translucent just before they are about to emerge. You can see the butterfly under the very thin outer shell. It is SO AMAZING TO WATCH THEM CHANGE!

The Last of the Swallowtails, the First on the Monarchs

2010-08-19T19:44:00.000-07:00

The morning that we woke up to find our last black tiger swallowtail had emerged and said goodbye to it we also discovered the arrival of our first monarch. I love the monarch cocoons. They are so beautiful. I have never looked closely enough at them to see the small specks of gold that surround their cocoons until we started hatching them.

This is a picture of three of our critters at work. The first butterfly to emerge, one in its cocoon and the other as Jonathan says, "tying his back end to the lid."

Adam's Black Tiger Swallowtail Greeted Us At Breakfast

2010-08-13T19:35:00.000-07:00

There is something about a beautiful butterfly sitting next to an empty cocoon that is very thought provoking over a bowl of cheerios in the morning. The power to change, the empty tomb, miracles, unfound potential... The Lord did a number with the metamorphosis of butterflies. Waiting for us at breakfast at last was Adam's butterfly.

It was interesting to me to watch the butterfly's wings dry as it slowly became more active. The other interesting thing is that they always climb upward towards the boy's heads. After we watched it for awhile and were confident its wings were dry, we took it out on the deck and let it fly.

The Beginnings of the Butterfly Project... Matthew's Emerges

2010-08-05T19:10:00.000-07:00

I can't count the number of times as a child I caught a caterpillar, put it in a jar with a stick and hoped with all my little girl heart it would turn into a butterfly. All those years I failed to get one solitary butterfly to emerge. Needless to say I was a little skeptical when the boys wanted to try, but I was awestruck with the results. Adam and Matthew were helping me in the garden when they found several caterpillars munching on my dill. I told them to pull them and they informed me they were going to keep them. We put Matthew's caterpillar and Adam's caterpillar in a jar and decided to try our hands at cocooning. I was shocked when within a few days Matthew's had munched enough dill weed to form a crysalis. Adam's did likewise a few days later. We waited and waited and waited. Matthew's turned brown and I thought after being brown a good week it was a gonner. I was so surprised to find otherwise.

We had spent the entire evening outside as a family hauling mulch around our fruit trees. Jonathan had shredded several huge limbs that had broken in a wind storm and we were needing to get the mulch on. We worked like dogs. We were all tired, hungry and dirty and came in to find within our jar had emerged Matthew's first little miracle.

The success with the first two black tiger swallowtail caterpillars turning into cocoons spurned us on to try our hands at monarchs. This is the monarch set up on our countertop. We found several milk weeds with various sizes of caterpillars and eggs and tried our hand at hatching.

What Cha Call It?

2010-07-16T18:53:00.000-07:00

Call it missionary mass production, frog catching bonanza, where stinky feet meet...
I call it an answer to prayers very close to my uterus. Yes, my prayers for "missionary opportunities" have been answered - with Elder Jenson #4 on his way.

7 Frogs at the Amphibi-"inn"

2010-07-09T20:30:00.000-07:00

We had a waterline outside of our home break that Jonathan had to dig a 2 foot trench to uncover and work to repair. Amidst the repairing we had several significant rainstorms that filled this 2 foot deep by 6 foot long trench with water. It didn't take long for 3 little boys to discover that a muddy wet hole is the ideal place for a frog to hang out. Due to such a life altering discovery we are yet to fill in the hole. All summer, each morning after it had rained and even when it hadn't the boys sprinted outside to see if there were any beady little eyes lurking at the top of the water hole. They found that putting the hose down under the water on one end of the hole and turning the water on flushes the frogs out and makes them easier to catch. On this particular morning we had seven captured frog friends to play with. After the boys find them they stuff them into a compartment under the seat of a little toy train that they ride on. They fill the compartment with grass and worms and keep their frog friends there. They have found, however, that a heavy rock is needed on top of the seat to keep the frogs from jumping up and flipping the seat up enough to hop out.

Andrew can be a bit of a frog squeezer rather than a frog holder so he tends to cheese it from the sidelines.

Now if you want to really have a good time with 4 fists full of frogs line up an old dump truck, angle it just above the dog's water dish, wet it down, and race frogs down the truck bed into the pool below.

I'm telling you, if you're a frog lover this is heaven.

Weeds

2010-06-22T20:20:00.000-07:00

Two weeks of no weeding in the garden led to many weeds while we were away. I made the boys help pull yesterday morning.

While weeding Matthew stopped and said, "Mom, we need to stop following Heavenly Father."

Mom, "How come?"

Matthew, "Because He never stops making WEEDS!!"

Yup. It's all part of the plan little buddy.

Free Fishing Day In Iowa

2010-06-22T19:51:00.001-07:00

The first weekend in June is free fishing day in Iowa. The Conservation District hosts a fishing derby for kids. We were game for a little friendly fishing competition and decided to go until 5AM when we woke up to severe thunderstorms. We waited them out until 6Am and decided to go in the rain anyway. We got to the lake and they decided to call off the derby because of lightening. We wanted to fish anyway so we fished in the rain for several hours and then things cleared off. It was worth the soggy investment because Andrew caught his very first fish. No joke he reeled it in all by himself. It was the most unruly reeling I've ever seen but he did it. Every time I tried to help he would scream and say, "No, no, no!" Look at that HUGE sunfish. Way to go little man.

Fisher Lake

Where the Wild Things Are

2010-06-22T19:23:00.001-07:00

We have had a fabulous past several weeks. We made our yearly jont to Idaho to visit family. As usual it was much quicker than we had wanted but what time we had we loved. When we got back to Iowa we found much was alive and thriving. The beans were ready to pick, the wild black raspberries were flourishing and the jack-in-the-pulpit was glistening a beautiful green. Jack-in the huh? Yes, jack-in-the-pulpit. Let me tell you a little bit more about this beautiful plant. It has a glistening green head and turns a scarlet red in the fall. A few others interesting things about it - it contains calcium oxalate, the salt of an acid that is used in bleaches and rust removers. The strength of the acid is 3,000 times stronger than acetic acid found in vinegar. When consumed it is described as an inhumane burning sensation that feels like needles jabbing into the cheeks and tongue. It causes swelling of the mouth and throat which in turn can lead to death. These newly discovered facts make sense tonight after Matthew spent three hours last night SCREAMING after eating what I thought was a wild black raspberry with an ant in it. When we went to pick more berries today he showed me what he actually did consume... one small kernel of a jack-in-the-pulpit. He said it was green and looked like corn. Yup, it does.

Mr. Jack-in-the-pulpit himself.

I suggest you take Matthew's word for it and avoid consumption.

However, the wild black raspberries on the other hand we whipped up into a nice little tart for dinner tonight. This I would recommend consuming.

Shucks and Yummers

2010-06-01T11:23:00.000-07:00

Late Sunday night we were discussing what we were going to do for Memorial Day. Jonathan decided it was officially going to be a REAL vacation day and we were going to just have fun. He had declared the lawns can wait, the weeds can grow and we were spending the day doing something besides yard work. Plans included getting up early to pick strawberries (okay, there are a few things that can't wait... but the 2 gallons of berries for jam is worth it), out to eat for breakfast, a family flight in the Cessna for the first time and a visit to his great, great, great grandfather's grave that died on the Mormon trek not far from our home. Sounded wonderful... until 3 minutes later when he went outside to water the dog.

I was washing my hands and suddenly the water pressure dropped drastically. I heard Jonathan dash in the back door and run downstairs. I went to figure out where the water pressure had disappeared to when I went downstairs to find Jonathan shutting off the main water line and... water gushing from the ceiling in the basement. Did we have some struggles watering the dog? Yup. The water line to the outside had busted and we had a large bit of a problem. It is Tuesday afternoon and my last shower was Sunday morning before church. My next hot remains unknown.

So how did we really spend our Memorial Day? It wasn't entirely dashed to pieces. We did get up and pick a plentiful batch of berries. We did go to breakfast and we did get to take a family flight. The other 6 hours were spent gathering plumbing supplies at Menards (the Iowa version of Home Depot) and the evening and wee hours of morn were spent reestablishing COLD water to the house. HOT water has a very indefinite re-entry (new water heater, gas lines run to the house etc. etc. seem to be a few thwarting factors). All I know is that I am grateful for a whale of an ambitious hubby. I am not ambitious. I seek peace and serenity in my life. He zips around in a plane one minute and plumbs the house in the next. Me, well I try not to throw up on the plane ride and I'm a really good PEX tool holder.

Yummers... alas the berry patch is alive!

The aviation service at the airport tows the plane out of the hanger for us.

Buckle up wee laddies!

This is the Cessna. There are four men that are part owners of the plane. Last week Jonathan bought his first share in a plane. So we are now 1/4 owners of this 1963 Cessna. He got his baby and I get mine the 5th of December. His was cheaper.

Jonathan making all of the pre-flight checks... gas was a thumbs up.

Toothless Joe Jackson here loves flying with the papa.

There are only two seat belts in the back of the Cessna so Adam and Andrew got the share. The little guy was sick of not being able to see anything so he took matters into his own hands and wiggled his way out. Adam is my VERY cautious child. He was clinging to Andrew to make sure he didn't go anywhere.

There's the house, and the neighbors white garage. The stone walkway goes through the flower garden on the way out to the garden.

Es mi casa y jardin.

Mr. Magoo graduated from backseat observer to on deck master flyer... in a matter of 4 minutes.

Look Ma, one hand.

He really wanted to get ahold of the throttle, but ya gotta draw the line somewhere.

The keys...

If you remember correctly we have a bit of problem staying awake in lulling environments. See entry on the John Deere.

Similar struggles in the back seat.

Alas we made it home safely. Happy Memorial Day.

Kindergarten Relay Days

2010-05-24T20:05:00.000-07:00

In lieu of track and field the kindergartners here have a relay day on the high school track. It was a great day. The K-2 kids all rotate through different events throughout the morning. They don't have to sit and wait for the other classes to complete their "events," instead they just move to a new activity. Adam loved the day. The kindergarten kids get to have an egg relay, hoppity horse races, popsicle breaks, bounce house fun, face painting, and a 100 yard dash. Each of the kindergarten classes tie-dyed class shirts and then then had them printed with "Class of '22" and the name of each kid in the class. It was the first I had ever processed the fact that Adam will graduate in '22.

Popsicle break with Trey and Hannah. These are two of his good buddies... honestly though, in kindergarten who's not a buddy?

Adam had a serious fan club...

Adam and one of his monster hops. Unfortunately his team didn't take top hops but he gained a little.

Face painting.

Andrew trying to figure out what in the heck in on Adam's cheek and why it is not coming off. This was a great source of perplexity for the little guy.

Smoked 'um!!!!

The kindergarten jack-o-latern at the end of the day.

What Cha Eatn'?

2010-05-24T19:53:00.001-07:00

Hummmm???

Blank Park Zoo

2010-05-17T18:31:00.000-07:00

Jonathan had an IANA (Iowa Association of Nurse Anesthetists) Meeting in Des Moines a few weekends ago. We decided instead of letting him go alone we would tag along as a family. The kids and I spent the day at the zoo while Daddy-O spent the day at meetings. I found it was a little tricky herding 3 kids and running a camera and stroller at the same time, but I managed to get a few pictures.

While we were in Des Moines we stayed at the hotel that Jonathan's conference was held at. It had lots of yummy food and a pool. We swam and swam, ordered pizza to the room and even got to watch some T.V. shows. The boys were thrilled to death to have a T.V. with cartoons because it has been a really long time since they have watched anything besides a DVD. We had a splendid good time. Andrew was in love with the glass elevator and the thrill of riding up and down from the 6th floor to the pool on the bottom floor. We had a great enough time we might just tag along for the next IANA meeting.

Man of the House

2010-05-16T21:12:00.000-07:00

Andrew has become our do anything, go anywhere, you name it climb on it little man. A few days ago I had four tomatoes on the counter ripening for salsa. My darling little Andrew wanted a closer look. He pushed a chair up to the counter and ripped each tomato off of the vine. Upon further exploration he decided he wanted to taste each one. He took a bite out of each tomato and spit each chunk out on the counter. Deciding that he didn't love the taste of tomatoes he pitched each gnawed on tomato in the fish bowl on the counter hoping the Beta might like the taste better. Jonathan walked in the kitchen to find four floating tomatoes and a murky fish tank. He took out the tomatoes and told me about it as he was leaving for work. Not to feel defeated, Andrew waited for Dad to leave for work and then climbed back up on the counter and put the tomatoes back in the fish bowl where he was bound and determined they belonged. Mom found then a few hours later. This time I moved the tomatoes.

Matthew, what are you going to be when you grow up?

2010-05-16T20:42:00.000-07:00

"An engineer, because I can make anything. Right Mom?"

"Right on, kiddo."

As you can see the tinkertoy arrows are in hand and the armor has offiically been constructed. Without any help from his mother Matthew has created a masterpiece of defense.

It works a little better if you keep your arms down.

In the past month my little engineer has explored every orifice on his noggin. Let me explain.

Nose: (Upon Mom's inquiry as to why his finger was so far in his nose.)

"Mom, I was just curious to see if it would fit."

"Did you put something in your nose buddy?"

"Ya, I was curious if my gum would fit in my nose."

"Do want some help getting it out?"

"Ya, its stuck."

So mom gets a flashlight and sees what looks to be a speck of blue way up in the nostril. With a pair of hemostats mom was able to extract a 3 inch long rolled wad of gum. Yes it fits and no we don't put things in our nose. Check.

Ear: (Reading stories with mom in the big brown chair last Sunday afternoon.)

"Mom, I think I have a fly in my ear."

"Really, I don't think flies fly into our ears very often. Is your ear owie? Is there something in it that is hurting?"

"Ya."

So mom pulls out the flashlight again and sees what looks like wax. So... mom squirts warm water in the ear to flush it out but it is not flushing. Post flush -

"Mom, I think I may have put something in my ear."

"Matthew, do you remember what you put in your ear?"

"Ya, I think it was a rock."

"Do you know where you got the rock?"

"Ya, I found it during primary and stuck it in my ear while we were singing."

"Matthew, we don't stick things in our ears."

So at Andrew's 18 month check up the next morning we ask Dr. Miller if she thinks she can get the rock out. She takes a look and believes she can get it. When she leaves the room to get a water squirting machine -

"Mom, I think I am getting really nervous about this."

"Good. We don't stick things in our ears."

Dr. Miller had just the squirting tool to get the rock out. Upon assessment we discover the rock was actually in fact just a hard dirt clod. Don't worry mom, it would have come out eventually. Check.

Throat: (Upon hearing gagging and choking noises upstairs Mom runs up to meet Matthew on the stairs running down. Tear in his eyes and pain on his face...)

"Matthew, are you choking, are you okay?"

"Ya, Mom but it really super hurts"

"Did you swallow something?"

"Ya, but it is stuck right here."

"Do you want a drink to help you get it down your throat?"

"No, it hurts to badly."

"Do you know what you swallowed?"

"Ya, it was one of those end pieces that is shaped like this."

"Buddy we don't swallow tinkertoys. They can make us choke. We don't put things in our mouth that aren't food."

We are hoping it exits a little easier than it entered. But we still haven't seen evidence of an exit. Check.

We are praying he leaves his eyes alone.

Its a Guy Thing

2010-05-16T20:28:00.000-07:00

There is something about a John Deere that speaks to the soul of man. From the earliest recognition of the sound of a mower each of my "4" boys have been addicts. What is it about the ridder that draws them... well I don't know I'm not a man. HOWEVER, I do know that that old Deere is a saint of a babysitter.

We have officially outgrown Dad's lap so we now tow the clan on mow days.

Is this not the face of bliss?

Hey! What's all of the raucous about and where did the lull go? The littlest lad usually crashes aboard the Deere. After several years experience we have found they are able to outgrow the lull, but a man this small rarely departs awake.

Who woke me up!

Stuck

2010-05-16T20:22:00.000-07:00

Adam: "Mom, come here Andrew is super stuck and can't get out!"

Yep - stuck. Serves the little monkey right.

You Found a What and Put it Where?

2010-05-16T19:44:00.000-07:00

Mind you I have been through a period of not feeling overly terrific... After Young Men's each week Jonathan is usually home shortly after 10. Feeling horrible and not sleeping well for weeks I decided to head to bed shortly after 10 and decided I wasn't going to wait up. Around 11PM Jonathan decides to come home. He came in our bedroom and beckoned for me to get up and come with him out to the garage. I wasn't going. He promised it was worth the effort and I wouldn't be disappointed. I was skeptical. He reminded me how much I loved him and that I really should follow him to the garage. I decided to give in and trudged to the garage. I stood there not completely convinced this was worth getting out of bed when he opened the trunk of the van and like a shot out swooped a huge barred owl. Stunned by the sudden swoop Jonathan says, "Holy cow... it can fly!" So here's the story. On the way home from the church Jonathan drove past an owl that was sitting in the middle of the highway. Driving past he was intrigued that it just sat there and didn't move. Peeked by curiosity, he stopped turned around and drove by it again. It still didn't move. So he turned back around again and slowed down next to it. He was concerned that it was going to get hit in the road so he tried to kick it a little with his foot and encourage it to move to the side of the road. It just sat there. Stunned by its response and feeling bad for it he really wanted to move it from the middle of the road. Then he had a brilliant thought - maybe he could just sneak up behind it, grab it and then move it to the side of the road. It was a great thought until the realization that owls can turn their head 180 degrees and the likely hood of a "sneak" was slim to none. However, if you know Jonathan you know that he was willing to take the risk. He walked up behind the owl, picked it up and sat it on the side of the road. Wow, that went well. He watched it for a few minutes and at the point when normal people would drive off, wait I don't think normal people turn around and stop for owls, anyway, when I would have gone home he got thinking. He works with a surgeon that is a falconer and has spent some time helping injured birds of prey. Sooooo Jonathan thought he could take the owl home and then take it to the surgeon. Well if you can pick an owl up once surely you can pick it up twice right? He open the back of the van reached down and grabed the bird set it down in the back of the van and quickly shuts the tailgate. I guess now the only thing left to do is drive home and show the wiffie. Am I the only one that would have had a twinge of concern driving in the dark of night with a bird of PREY? PREY would indicate that they are the ones that typically prey upon other critters with deathly sharp talons. Suppose Mr. Owl prefers flight over a scenic trip in the family van and gets a little flustered. Could we have wrapped it in a blanket, tied a jacket around the wings, left it on the side of the road na - just pitch it in and head for home. Soooo needless to say Jonathan was a bit surprised when it FLEW out of the van. He knew I would enjoy seeing it as I am one of those geeky bird watchers that walks around with binoculars wrapped around my neck carrying Sibley's bird identification book for fun. We have multiple bird books that we keep in the kitchen for any spottings. I know nerd. Anyway, this was quite amazing to see the owl fly around the garage. I grabbed my book and we ID'ed it. It was even more amazing to see the owl swoop up into our attic above the house and not come down for a week. I would dare say even more amazing than that was to watch Jonathan spend countless attempts to climb into the attic and retrieve the bird only to be thwarted by tight corners and insulation. And even more down right dazzling was the owl poop that soon spotted the entire garage, did I mention it had pooped in the back of the van on the way home? Ah, didn't think so. Alas, after being captive in our attic for a week it finally departed. It was indeed fun to see. It was also a little nerve wracking loading up the kids in the van. I like to nibble on my children who's to say the owl wouldn't have similar thoughts? Nonetheless, he can indeed fly and has gone.

Adam's First School Play

2010-05-07T19:33:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Piper's Kindergarten class put on a stellar line up of plays to dazzle their parents and proud families. Adam did a stupendous job on each of his parts. His roles included:

Fish in "The Beautiful Butterfly"

Narrator in "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"

Cheese in "The House That Jack Built"

He spoke loud and said those lines proud. Little by little he is coming out of that little Adam shell. Way to go Adam-O.

Adam plays the villainous fish that swallows the mouse that begins the chain of events that causes the King to drop his robe and run around in his Royal Underwear. What an evil fish!

The mouse, the fish and dove.

The fish lurking in the waters prepared to snatch up the unsuspecting mouse.

Adam and Kara Greiner were the narrators for "Snow White." She just so happens to tug a little on this wee lad's heart

Have you ever seen finer cheese?

Histamine

2010-05-07T18:56:00.000-07:00

I have never been as ill in my life as I have been the past 4 weeks. Since moving to Iowa I have developed catastrophic allergies. Not just the itchy watery eyes allergies, but the take over your entire life, close off you airways, do not sleep for 3 weeks, eyes swollen shut, develop bronchitis, strangers on the street ask if you are okay allergies. It has been down right, miserable. This is a picture of me going outside. In case you are wondering those are swimming goggles and yes, I'm wearing a tuberculosis mask. It is almost more than I can take to be inside so on occasion I brave the spring that has sprung and step out of doors. Take something for them you say... Oh, I have trust me I have. You can see how well prescription drugs work.

I must admit, the month of April has been extremely humbling for me. I have realized that even the mama has limits and it is okay to say no. Before being SOOO sick I had agreed to make all of the costumes for Adam's school play, "The Beautiful Butterfly." That was much more time consuming than I had anticipated. I also had agreed to watch a friend's little girl for 6 weeks while she covered maternity leave for a gal. My plate was a lot too full and I was sick and spread thin. It reaffirmed for me the importance of staying focused of the weightier matters of being a mother. Simple things like laundry and dinner aren't as simple as they appear when they all go undone for days in a row. Scrubbings toilets and cleaning showers really is of value. The vacuum is a beautiful tool when it is used. Most importantly, the blessing of health and being able to work long hard days is so often counted as a curse and not a blessing. I feel so blessed to have had my paradigm refocused.

Haiti Day 5 (Tuesday, March 23rd)

2010-04-04T21:08:00.000-07:00

Remember those promised improvs? Well, it may be a little tasteless so skim and forgive if you are offended. The week that Jonathan spent in the hospital he worked very closely with a team of volunteers from Italy. The physician that came with the Italian group was an OB/GYN. One of the main problems that they were experiencing was the lack of stirrups to support the legs of the women. With a little clever thinking they found a few I.V. poles and tied the woman's feet with ace wrap bandages for support during a D&C. I don't know if I should be proud of Jonathan for coming up with the suggestion to ace wrap the woman to the pole, but deep down inside I'm sure she was thankful... at least the surgeon was.

Jonathan assisted Dr. Shepherd with a Z-plasty on the foot of a young boy that was malformed congenitally.

The Z shaped stitching was sewn by Jonathan following the surgery on the little boy's leg.

Haiti Day 4 (Monday, March 22nd)

2010-04-04T20:50:00.000-07:00

Being in Haiti with limited resources was the cause of much improvisation. This is Aaron trying to cut an O ring from a rubber stopper to use on their oxygen tanks. It started out as a good idea but after much work this great idea proved to be fruitless. However, do not be discouraged, you will yet see in days to come some very clever usage of resources.

A blurry picture of what might have been.

This young Haitian boy had to be at the hospital without his mother. He was having a difficult time being alone, scared and battling the pain of burns. Jonathan spent his available time singing to and holding the sweet little boy.

In good hands.

Thousands of miles away, Jonathan's oldest son was celebrating his 6th birthday on this day. What a gift to know that on such a day if he couldn't be holding his own son, he could be caring for the son of another.

Haiti Day 3 (Sunday, March 21st)

2010-04-04T12:34:00.001-07:00

Sunday morning Jonathan started out his day with some dressing changes on this little boy that had received significant burns on much of his body. He showed up sporting sunglasses. Jonathan took care of him several times throughout the week.

In case you were wondering Jonathan is in fact not a surgeon. The fact that all of his medical training specializes in anesthesia had little relevancy in his volunteer efforts in Haiti. He and Dr. Shepard worked side by side on several cases. Aaron and Jonathan would take turns scrubbing in for surgery and providing the anesthesia.

Quick - "Say, Cheese!"

This poor little critter died the night he was found by the uneducated entomologist. Jonathan and Aaron were terrified by this poor wee little millipede. He had the potential to be such a great friend for the two foreigners, but instead he was tragically mistaken as a vicious centepede and was unjustly squished to death. Poor harmless lil' pede. Rest in peace.

Haiti Day 2 (Saturday, March 20th)

2010-04-04T11:57:00.000-07:00

Up and running...

Saturday was Jonathan and Aaron's first day in the hospital. Jonathan was helping out in the E.R. that morning when a woman in O.B. was in need of help with the delivery of her baby. There weren't any doctors available so having seen a kid or two born Jonathan decided he could hack this one. (I don't think he had a choice in the matter.) In the panic of delivery he was beckoned to the O.B. wing and there he delivered his first baby. Little Mr. Haiti was born healthy and well. Here is a snapshot of the delivery team with Jonathan... a CRNA, two nurses and an EMT. Welcome little one!

Jonathan and Aaron with their anesthesia machine. Feeling sleepy?

O.R. bed #1

O.R. bed #2

The stockroom for the O.R.

Haiti Day 1 (Friday, March 19th)

2010-04-04T11:10:00.000-07:00

Jonathan and Aaron left DesMoines on March 18th and flew to Houston, TX and then on to Miami, FL. They spent the night at the airport in Miami and prepared to fly into Haiti early Friday morning. Jonathan called me on Friday morning before they boarded their flight. I didn't know for sure when we would have the chance to chat again so I was glad to be able to tell him I loved him before he hopped on the plane. The flight into Haiti from Miami was only a couple hours. Upon arrival in Port Au Prince, Jonathan and Aaron were in for a bit of a culture shock.

"Well, we made it. It has been a long day. We arrived, got our luggage, and then we waited for our ride for a couple of hours. Haiti doesn't observe daylight savings time, so we are actually on the current Central Time Zone. That will be nice so we don't have to adjust again. Anyway, when our ride arrived, we had two people who approached Aaron and I holding signs with "Notre Dame" on them, and they took our luggage and helped us get to the car. Well, after the luggage was loaded, they told us that we each needed to pay $20.00, which we understood was the fee for the taxi. Unfortunately for us, they were just asking for a tip for carrying our luggage (I didn't try to converse in French because they were speaking Creole and a little English), so we "tipped" them each $20.00, and then they left. We didn't realize we got "took" for at least 30 minutes when I was talking with our taxi driver and asked him about it. He told us we tipped them "too much". As if I didn't know that already!! Aaron and I just looked at each other and laughed because we were so dumb! Anyway, we made it here to our residence around 2:30 PM and we are very hot and sweaty, but that is to be expected. I have been able to communicate with a lot of the people in French, which has been a great blessing. We will be starting in the OR at 7:30 am tomorrow. We probably won't have a heavy day tomorrow, but we hope things will pick up at the first of next week.I sure love you all! Give the boys great big hugs and kisses from Dad and let them know I love them too. I'll try to update you daily if I can find someone who will let me borrow their computer."

Here is Aaron upon arrival at the Port Au Prince Airport. They were looking for those promised signs, "Notre Dame."

Just outside of the airport people lingered along side the red fence watching the comings and goings. Here's the papa.

Jonathan and Aaron stayed in the Notre Dame Filariasis Residence. Standing on top of the residence they were able to look out over the town of Leogane. Pictured above in one of the countless "Tent Cities" that has become permanent residence for the natives living there.

Children playing soccer.

The big orange, white and blue tent is the hospital. There are six different wings. The operating room was located in the far back left wing. It housed two beds. It was air conditioned and where Jonathan and Aaron spent 99% of their time while on the island. The other wings of the hospital were for O.B., ER/admitting, recovery etc.

Time for bed boys... After many failed attempts trying to get the mosquito net over the bed and one mattress that was located on the floor, Jonathan and Aaron gave up and ended up throwing both mattresses on the floor. Jonathan rigged the net to hang from the above ceiling fan and there they slept soundly.

2010-04-03T20:52:00.000-07:00

Dad was headed to the pizza and priesthood session of conference tonight so it was just Mom and the boys for dinner. Me, three happy campers and tacos with spanish rice. The Easter Bunny brought Matthew a candy ring this morning and he really wanted to eat it. I told him he was welcome to eat the candy ring just as soon as his dinner was gone. After 2 hours of tears, complaints, moans and groans, the relentless mother and even more relentless Matthew were still battling over a smidge of rice and taco. Exasperated that Matthew was not getting his way he finally turned to me and said, "Mom, you ruined my life!"

If I keep rolling my "XY" dice just the right way there will come a time when the door will shut behind Mr. Priesthood and Pizza and Lil' Priesthood and Pizza 1, and Lil' Priesthood and Pizza 2, and Lil' Priesthood and Pizza 3 and Momma Mia will have a whole pot of supper and only the dog to torment while the menfolk are away. Here's to hoping that day is still very far off and I can ruin a few more of Matthew's nine lives.

The Foot of a Child Speaks a Thousand Words

2010-03-22T21:00:00.000-07:00

Saturday we woke up to 4 inches of snow. The boys piled on their snow clothes and went sledding on the hill in the backyard. Adam was particularly proud of himself as he was able to sled down the hill, on the trail through the ravine and partially up the other side without hitting a tree. Let it be known that his distance and path traveled is not only guarded by angels but presently the Jenson Family record for least injury and greatest distance traveled through the ravine.

Today, however, not even 48 hours later we woke to green grass, birds singing and spent the day outside playing baseball without jackets. When I came in the house to fix dinner I turned to see Matthew coming in behind me decided that he has a particular gift of expression.

This friends, is spring in Iowa...

Haiti Email #3

2010-03-22T20:07:00.001-07:00

Hello Again from Haiti. Today was a very busy day. However, it was a
lot of fun. I am sending this from an iPhone so I won't make it very
long. We did six cases, and lots of ER cases. We are tired, but
alive and well. I love you lots. Have a good night. Me!!

Happy Birthday Adam

2010-03-22T19:20:00.000-07:00

Wowza the kid turned six today. Having a child that is 6 is a defining moment like turning 30 or dying your hair not because you want to but because you have to.

We celebrated Adam's birthday last week before Jonathan left for Haiti so today was quite a mellow day. Adam request Oreo's for his birthday school treat. So he enjoyed them at school and then came home and quickly pulled the leftovers from his Lightening McQueen backpack and enjoyed them again for an after school snack. The only thing missing was the Chief Dunker in Command... I would say we will save some oreos to share with him, but due to the junior dunkers having been taught the art of oreo-dunkery by a the Chief Dunker himself I doubt there will be any t0 share by the time he returns to his command post. Amidst the "black cookie" birthday indulgence the phone rang... who better to wish a 6 year old boy happy birthday than Gramps and Grams. Thanks for the call.

At six Adam:

1. Has lost 2 bottom teeth and 1 top tooth.

2. Has mastered the art of saving everything and keeping all things in mint condition. There is not a toy, trinket or paper that he does not genuinely take good care of.

3. Has started a bird book where he writes down the name of a bird, draws and colors it, describes the young, the nest, the egg color, what they like to eat and fun facts about them.

4. Will conquer his fear of being in front of people and even thinking about speaking by giving his first talk in primary next week.

5. Is Andrew and Matthew's best friend. Adam is a nuturer. When the tears start to flow the little guys always turn to Adam knowing he is the first one to put his arm around them.

6. Loves to play baseball and basketball.

7. Is as anxious to plant a garden as his mother.

8. Obeys with exactness the first time he is asked. Adam does exactly what he is told when he is told to do it. Always. He came to earth with a VERY obedient spirt.

9. Hates drips when his hair is combed with water.

10. Has a secret crush on Kara Greiner.

11. Loves oreos and yogurt.

The Birthday Party

2010-03-22T15:00:00.000-07:00

Gifts:

1. Handmade swords from Matthew

2. 2 Backyardigans Movies

3. Basketball hoop

4. $10.00

5. Wal-Mart gift card

Cake:

Rainbow Castle

Party Fun:

Family bowling. The first time this family has been bowling since it's establishment in 2001.

Dinner:

Blueberry pancakes. Would Adam have picked anything else?

The Hold-Up:

The unanticipated 5 hour hoop assembly time.

It was a Happy, Happy Birthday even if we did celebrate 10 days early.

Sunday, March 21st - Email #2

2010-03-22T08:08:00.000-07:00

Well, it has been a very interesting few days. Today, I did my first scrotal appendectomy. The surgeon this week is letting Aaron and I assist with the surgeries while the other one does the anesthesia. We have been taking turns scrubbing in and assisting with the surgeries It has been a lot of fun for the both of us. Things are going well. I have lucked out and had hot showers both mornings, I am sleeping well, and I don't think I have received any mosquito bites. I don't know how I am going to give away all of the things I brought though. We have been constantly warned not to give things away because of the mobs that develop. They say it is a matter of personal safety. I guess we will see what happens. Our team has been very interesting and a little whiney - at least among the nurses. Aaron and I are glad that we are apart with the surgeon. We work with everyone, but at the same time, we don't have to have the constant interaction because we are in the OR. Also, the OR is really the only air conditioned area in the place, so we are truly spoiled.

I am glad that you guys are having so much fun. Sorry to hear that it snowed again, but I sounds like the boys made the best of it. I laughed when I read your emails. I didn't cringe about the drill bits, but I wonder how you did that. I believe the hammers are all in the bathroom downstairs. I do cringe to hear you bought a sander at Menards. I have been wanting to get one, but I worry about the quality at menards. What brand did you buy - I hope you say Bosch or something good (not Masterforce). Anyway, well live with it.

I hope you have a good week. I'll try to email often if I can.

Love Ya,

Me!

Friday, March 19th - The First Email from Haiti arrives

2010-03-22T08:07:00.000-07:00

Hi Dear,

Well, we made it. It has been a long day. We arrived, got our luggage, and then we waited for our ride for a couple of hours. Haiti doesn't observe daylight savings time, so we are actually on the current Central Time Zone. That will be nice so we don't have to adjust again. Anyway, when our ride arrived, we had two people who approached Aaron and I holding signs with "Notre Dame" on them, and they took our luggage and helped us get to the car. Well, after the luggage was loaded, they told us that we each needed to pay $20.00, which we understood was the fee for the taxi. Unfortunately for us, they were just asking for a tip for carrying our luggage (I didn't try to converse in French because they were speaking Creole and a little English), so we "tipped" them each $20.00, and then they left. We didn't realize we got "took" for at least 30 minutes when I was talking with our taxi driver and asked him about it. He told us we tipped them "too much". As if I didn't know that already!! Aaron and I just looked at each other and laughed because we were so dumb! Anyway, we made it here to our residence around 2:30 PM and we are very hot and sweaty, but that is to be expected. I have been able to communicate with a lot of the people in French, which has been a great blessing. We will be starting in the OR at 7:30 am tomorrow. We probably won't have a heavy day tomorrow, but we hope things will pick up at the first of next week.

I sure love you all! Give the boys great big hugs and kisses from Dad and let them know I love them too. I'll try to update you daily if I can find someone who will let me borrow their computer.

Love,

ME!

Going vs. Coming

2010-03-18T18:48:00.000-07:00

I was a little curious to see how Jonathan coming home would compare to him leaving... So I snapped a few pictures before he left. We were fortunate to find out that flights going into Haiti don't charge baggage fees. Jonathan was able to tote along four bags with him. He took his personal essentials and some medical supplies and with the rest of the room we decided to put in some clothing, toys, markers, hygiene items etc. for him to give to people in his tent hospital. When we realized that he had a little space left we told Matthew to go and pick out some of his toys that he wanted to give away to the kids in Haiti. He was VERY generous. My bedroom exploded and there was a bit of disappointment when everything Matthew had wanted to give away wouldn't fit in Daddy's suitcase. Maybe another trip.

Booked it-

2010-03-03T19:28:00.000-08:00

When the earthquake hit Haiti Jonathan and I felt a need for him to offer service if at all possible. We looked into him volunteering with Doctors Without Boarders but found that the length of commitment was longer than what he could offer so we put good intentions on the back burner. Last Sunday he got a call from our dearest friend, Aaron Thornton, that trudged through anesthesia school with Jonathan. There was an opening for another anesthesia provider in a surgical team that will be leaving the middle of March. He was cleared to go and he booked his tickets today to fly into Port Au Prince. He will be serving in Leogane which is actually just outside of Port Au Prince but was the epicenter of the earthquake. We are excited for him to go and volunteer. Jonathan speaking French will be a wonderful blessing in trying to communicate with the people there. The scripture in Esther 4:14 continues to come to my mind when Esther was prepared... "for such a time as this." How thankful I am that Jonathan has lived his life following the words of the latter day prophets. That he served a faithful mission and took the initiative to "be smart." Through his obedience he is prepared for such a time as this to "succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees." (D&C 81:5)

Here's to hoping he comes home without malaria.

Broccoli From Below

2010-03-03T19:25:00.000-08:00

Dinner Tonight -

Mom singing a happy spontaneous song: "I'm the meanest mom in the world! I put lots and lots of broccoli in your dinner. And you get to eat it even if you don't want to. 'Cause I'm the meanest mom in the world."

Matthew: "Mom, you follow Satan. That's a bad choice."

"Adam will you read me a story?"

2010-02-22T09:07:00.001-08:00

I love having another reader in the house. Every time Adam brings home new books from school he sits in the big brown chair with Matthew and reads him story after story. It is their favorite little time together.

The Basement Begins...

2010-02-22T08:56:00.001-08:00

We have the most delightful bathroom in our basement. It is gigantic and has an enormous whirlpool tub. There is room enough for the whole family to take a dip in it. When we moved in we thought it would be a fun addition to our lives but began exploring just a touch before we bathed. Much to our surprise located just about the tub and several inches to the left of the hook that hold the shower head is our main circuit breaker box. Yes, not a niffty shelf for shampoo or soap or even a small closet for towels, but rather the mother-load of all electrical comings and goings for the home. What a welcome friend to find lurking behind the curtain in my shower. It was so carefully concealed behind a small little curtain when we moved in and not remotely disclosed upon our purchase of the home. We were ever so delighted. So we have begun... the remodel. We have big plans for this luxury tub, but we intend for the pool party to be located just a but further from "Warning - High Voltage. Warn Children of Risk of Death from Electric Shock."

Happy Valentine's Day

2010-02-22T08:46:00.001-08:00

Valentine's Day is one of my very if not very favorite holidays. I love it from top to bottom. This year I decided to give Jonathan an ultra huge valentine. We have had snow covering the ground for months and I decided to take advantage of it. I went outside in the middle of the night and spray painted the snow with a huge Valentine message for him. I was so excited! He always leaves really early on Sunday mornings for church and He would get a really big Valentine. I was tempted to run inside to grab my camera and see if I could pick up the message with the flash during the night but figured I would take a picture in the morning. My hands were FROZEN and were starting to hurt so I went to bed. Much to my dismay in the few hours of sleep from execution to Jonathan leaving just enough new snow had fallen to cover up my message. I was so bummed!!!! Maybe next year. We had to settle for our traditional raspberry cinnamon french toast (which is the best recipe to exist among mankind) and lots of hugs and kisses.

Happy Birthday To You!!

2010-02-08T10:42:00.000-08:00

Mr. Amazing Matthew celebrated his big number four birthday on Saturday. We spent the morning at Jumping Jim's Jungle with the McQuivey clan. They have three boys as well. The boys jumped, ran, tagged, tumbled, and bounced at least 15 large pepperoni pizzas worth of calories out of themselves. It was a blast. Lunch was a quick jont away from the Jungle to Burger King with all 6 boys. I had two women stop me and ask if all of the boys were mine. They couldn't believe how I must have felt to be so outnumbered. I assured them that only half of the crew was mine and only if dreams come true will I be the mother of a basketball team plus one sub. They couldn't tell if I was serious or not. After lunch we went back to Jumping Jim's and jumped until poor little Matthew was so tired he couldn't take it any longer. We packed up, said good-bye to the McQuivey's and headed for home. After naps we celebrated with dinner, a Bulldozer cake, and presents.

For weeks Matthew has been asking for a real crab for this birthday. I was feeling hesitant at first but I finally decided to break down and get the kid a hermit crab. I could never have imagined what a hit a wee little crab could be. Crabby is the joy of Matthew's life. He has never been so happy about anything that has ever happened to him in his four years of life. It was fun to see how happy a small crab could make one little boy.

Be Not Weary In Well Doing

2010-02-07T20:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Sabbath.

Have I Done Any Good in the World Today?

2010-01-31T19:44:00.000-08:00

I believe in a prophet of God. Just as in ancient Biblical days God spoke to men and women on the earth through His servants the prophets. I believe God continues to speak to men and we are not left to wander on this earth without a loving Father in Heaven's constant watchful care. Such care and guidance I believe can be felt and received through the man God has called to served as His prophet today. God's chosen prophet on the earth today is Thomas S. Monson. This is just a nibble of what the Lord would have us ask of ourselves as revealed through His servant the Prophet.

Have I Done Any Good in the World Today?