Angel Ashlyn turns 6yrs. old!

Birthdays bring lots of JOY at our house. We love to celebrate all week. Today is our little Ashlyn's birthday, and I wanted to put together a little tribute to her.

She truly is a little angel, a very independent one mind you, however that makes us love her all the more. She came to our home after lots of prayer and fasting. We had to wait 3 1/2 yrs. before we were priveleged to have her join us.

She is a ball of energy and full of great ideas. She wants to be a pre-school teacher when she grows up and is always giving me step by step instructions on projects she thinks the pre-schoolers might enjoy. She has always been quite self-sufficient. If she could have, she probably would have changed her own diapers! All I have to do is say we're going some place and she has packed her favorite toys, gotten together a snack for the road, and done the same for Taylor. She leads us on every hiking trail, is the first one down the slopes in her sled, and doesn't hesitate to climb to the highest branch in any tree she can find. She loves to dance and sing, play the piano, and dress up (we own EVERY Princess dress!!). She always has a talent to share at each family home evening and loves to have us cheer her on.

Ashlyn is a social butterfly, and has friends around constantly. Her spirit adds much peace to our home, she is always the first to remind us to have family scripture study each night, and if we lose something, doesn't hesitate to pray for it's return. She is Taylor's best friend and would go to the ends of the earth for him.

Going through pictures of her life so far, practically brought tears to my eyes, it's all going WAY TOO FAST! Happy Birthday sweet pea.

We love you Ashlyn!!

All Is Well!!

So how did Parker do, you ask?? He had a GREAT TIME! Apparently they didn't build snow caves, but slept outside in their homemade "burrito". Parker said he was warm during the night, with his tarp over him, even though it was raining sleet all night. He even gave his favorite, fuzzy, warm blanket to a boy who was wet and cold. That's Parker for ya.

He said the beef stew was awesome, but he wasn't so hot on the oatmeal in the morning. I was so proud of him. He was as happy coming home as he was leaving even though his double wool socks inside his boots were soaked and he didn't own a dry thing! I quickly fed him some sausage, eggs, and hot chocolate and let him take a long warm bath in my jetted tub...I felt better anyway...oh, and you'll never guess what I unpacked from his backpack...DEODORANT? What's that all about, I have to pratically force it on him for school and church. Oh, well, good to have my boy back.

Do they do this EVERY YEAR??

What Was I Thinking???

OK, so I'll admit, I'm a little over protective at times with my kids, but only when I sense eminent danger, you know, like when we're hiking up a large waterfall, and the kids peer over the edge, or they decide to take the longest, most jump-filled sledding run at "the Bowl" in AF Canyon, etc.

Well, I happen to think camping in a snow cave in the middle of winter qualifies as well, but it seems to be a rite of passage for all 11 yr. old scouts. Who in their right mind would even think that would be FUN?? Apparently all of the 11-12 yr. old scouts and their leaders...anyway, I finally gave in, the pressure was too great. (Karl: he'll be fine, we all did it, boys love that kind of thing! Parker: not so much what he said, but how he bounded in the door following scouts, jumping up and down, waving his supply list.) What's a mom to do? He went, and now I'm praying he'll be warm and safe.

I did however threaten each leader with his life if my boy is not brought back with every finger and toe intact, and left instructions to not let him burn any clothing in the fire...I think Parker was thrilled to see his mom FINALLY leave the parking lot.
He did look really happy to be there, though. (probably because I bought him all his favorite treats!!)

Here's to SNOW CAMPING!

The "Con-man" rides the BOARD!

Today we went to Tibble Fork up AF Canyon, to sled and snowboard. It was a perfect day in the mountains, and we had a total blast! Connor is getting really good, check him out...

Sunday Togetherness

One of the benefits of having a 9:00am Sunday meeting schedule is that you get home at noon and have the rest of the day to play together as a family. The kids pull out all kinds of games, make huts in the basement and best of all, dad turns into a jungle gym...

P is for Popcorn!

Remember it's been "P" week? Well, I made up an awesome popcorn recipe that is super easy, and yummy (2 critical criteria). Here it is for those of you out there who procrastinate FHE treats until you need it...you know who you are...












Andes Mints Marshmallow Popcorn
1/2 C. butter (real butter is best)
1/2 C. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
20 marshmallows, or 1/2 bag mini.
1/2 C. Andes Mint Pieces or Andes Peppermint Crunch (seasonal)
8 C. popped popcorn (I know it costs more, but Orville Redenbacher's pops the best.)

Melt butter, add sugar and marshmallows. Stir and melt together. Add vanilla, and Andes Mints, let mints melt then pour over popped corn, mix, form into balls, and place on wax paper. It is very chewy and addicting!

The above picture was made with the Andes Peppermint Crunch.

Very Pinkalicious!

Pre-school Pizza Day!

Today was a fun pre-school day. (other than the "He's being mean to me..." "What happened?" "He wrote my name in PINK with the sidewalk chalk!" "Oh, you don't like pink I take it?" "No, it's a girl color!"....) The good news is that that's pretty much the extent of the "boy drama" we get, they were best buds five mins. later.
I'm teaching this week, and we are focusing on the letter "P" ("Hey guys, pink starts with 'P'"...didn't fly). Today we made homemade pizza, and created a craft that turned us into pizzas.
The boys were so darling, and had a blast rolling out the dough, and topping their pizzas.


While everything cooked, they played "pizza guy". Leave it to kids to create a game out of ANYTHING!

Heather Learns a Lesson

Ok, so everyone knows the number one rule when it comes to serving in church callings right? If there's a calling out there that you really would prefer NOT to have, DON'T say it out loud. In fact try not to even think it, because "you know who" will hear you and see it as a wonderful opportunity for you to LEARN and GROW. Well, I said it and it happened. The only calling I really didn't want came my way...are you ready? Primary Chorister for BOTH Junior and Senior Primary!!! (prior to me, they had one person for Jr. and one for Sr.) AAAAG! It was the first time I started to cry during a call. I just couldn't help it, I was sure the open cub scout position was mine. Not this time. I had to quickly back peddle when the 2nd counselor (seeing my obvious stress..) asked, "do you need some time to think about it?" "No, no, I said through the tears, I'm sure I'll be just fine." I went home and sobbed in my husbands arms. I've since called one of my closest friends, who has served in this calling for 8 years in the past, and begged her to mentor me. My other friend brought over cute pink, white and chocolate cupcakes and I'm feeling a little better. Go forward with FAITH, right??

Oh yeah, Taylor was looking through the Sunday paper and ran across a picture of a stressed out mom. He cut out the picture and said

"Here's a picture of a mommy, do you want it?" He must have thought I could relate to her today. It made me laugh.

Snow, Snow, and More Snow!

We were inundated with lots of snow the past week. Actually I love it! I love the fires in our fireplace. The boys love starting them...Connor spent about 10 minutes perfecting the "Teepee" fire. I love the hot chocolate, (I'm addicted) and I love just having an excuse to sit on the floor and play with Taylor and his Geo Trax train set. The kids had a great time gathering their friends and heading to the church to sled and build snow forts. Someone in the ward was even pulling sleds with their 4-wheel drive and the kids hopped on. I have to admit though, I'm VERY grateful for a snowblower. I've spent many hours in the past, shoveling snow, and though it's good exercise, (I think?), I'd rather do step aerobics or yoga in a warm environment.
I was recently released from serving in the Young Women program. I've been in for over 3 years and have loved it, but I'm ready for a change. I've been with the Young Women for over 14 years of my almost 18 years of marriage and look forward to other opportunities, not to mention free Wednesday nights!! Woo hoo, tonight was my first night to stay home when my 3 oldest kids left for YW and Scouts.

2008...Priceless!

2008...PRICELESS! Top 10 (ya gotta have a top 10 for the year..)

10. Having lunch with old H.S. friends (Dan, Russ, & Carrie) and laughing our heads off for 2 hours.
9. Going to Montana for a family reunion, and reconnecting with some awesome relatives. (Glacier National Park wasn't bad either...)
8. Finding 2 rubber rafts at a garage sale (killer deal), then taking them down the Provo river a few times last summer with the kids.
7. Finding an awesome desk for our study, to replace the, um..banquet table.
6. Watching the thrill on Alyssa's face when she got the part of the Wicked Witch of the West for the school play this coming spring. (after working sooo hard!)
5. Taylor FINALLY got on the growth chart! 1 percentile, but on the chart nontheless!
4. Getting a new van (technically last Dec.) with a DVD screen. Vacations are so much easier!
3. Seeing my husband happy and doing awesome in his job at Intermountain. So proud!
2. Going to Las Vegas with Karl, meeting his co-worker Jose, and hanging out with Jose's wife Jeni for 3 days while the guys were in meetings. The 4 of us had a total blast!
1. My little sister Allyson getting married to magnificent Matt in the Salt Lake Temple!!

Karl's top 10:

10. No major back "blow-outs".

9. Summer parties in the backyard.

8. Alyssa takes Geometry in 8th Grade!!!

7. Summer vacations with the family.

6. Near completion of the "Fort" in the backyard.

5. Buying a new Vespa 150 LX scooter.

4. Two months of pleasurable evening scooter rides (before the accident and the cold weather).

3. Climbing Lady Mountain, in Zion National Park (note the exclusion of the s in Zion) with Alyssa, Parker and Connor.


2. Riding my scooter with the kids.

1. Riding my scooter with Heather on a cool evening date!

Joy in a New Year!

Last LDS General Conference (Oct. 2008), President Thomas S. Monson shared the story of an airman who was shot down over North Vietnam. He was held prisoner for 2 yrs. and was given an opportunity to write a letter to his family, but needed to stay under 25 words. He wrote: "These things are important: temple marriage, mission, college. Press on, set goals, write history, take pictures twice a year.” Pres. Monson then counseled us, "Let us relish life as we live it, find joy in the journey, and share our love with friends and family."


New Year's "goal" set and accomplished: the blog. "Write history"; does this count?? "Take pictures twice a year"; I think I'll surpass that by at least a thousand..., "relish life as we live it and find joy in the journey." Hopefully documenting our many adventures and antics will uncover many "joys" along the way. Finally, "share our love with friends and family"; come take a peek into our lives and know we love you.


Anyway, this is what I hope to accomplish with this blog. Thanks also to the encouragement of my amazing sisters in law. Thanks Steph, MelissaK and MelissaC. You guys are my blog heroes!!
Ok, so sit back, relax and enjoy a ride on the Jensen Journey!!