A Very Sad Day in our Valley

On Wednesday February 4, 2009 one of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints burned down. Many of my friends are from here in the valley and their grandparents help build this chapel. Many were in tears as they watch the church engulfed in flames. The church was a total loss, but they were able to save all the important records and documents they needed and the library was also saved. Every time I drive by the chapel, I am saddened. I know that because we pay our tithing that we can and will rebuild the church, but for many it was a very sentimental church and many memories were made there. My friend and I went to the church after the fire had been put out and these are some of the pictures of what was left. My friends mother was able to capture pictures of when the church was on fire. I wish I could transfer them onto this post, but I haven't been able to figure out how to do that. It was a good thing that most of the church was brick because the fire was so intense. I am grateful for the organization of our church because in times like these instead of chaos, there is organization. All the members that attended church in that building have already been assigned to other chapels and everyone is happy to work together to make this a smooth transition. We truly are blessed to be members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

My little boy is growing up way to fast!

Tag, Tagaroo, Taggy, Tag-along, we love you so much! You are such a joy to have in our home and family! You always have a big ol' smile on your face and bright eyes that are full of life! I cannot believe that you are already 8 months old! Where has the time gone? Your big brother, Ty, loves to play with you and I know that you love playing with him. Whenever we come in your bedroom to get you out of your crib, your eyes light up when you see your big brother! It is so much fun to watch the two of you together and I know that you will be great friends and playmates! You love to crawl and chase each other down the hall, play in Ty's room with all his toys, or wrestle each other! I keep telling big brother that one day you will be big enough to fight back, but I don't think he gets it quite yet...I guess he will the first time you take him down!

You love to eat! Anytime anyone has food, you make a "B" line over to them and don't leave until you get something out of the deal! Most of the time you choke on it, so we don't like to let you try many things! You still only have 2 teeth, but I think you are working on getting some more in! I sure wish you would get some more teeth so that you could eat more food, but for now we will stick to yogurt and lots of milk!

You are starting to be more daring! You walk between one piece of furniture to the next and you take it like a champ when you tumble over! You love to explore things all around the house and get into anything you can! When your big brother opens the fridge, you are always there helping him get all the food out...mommy just loves it when you do that!

One more funny thing about you...you love music and you love to dance to it! You keep us entertained when we are driving in the car!

We love you Tag and we look forward to many more fun memories with you! Thanks for all the laughs!

I got Lasik, Ty got Strep, & Tag can Stand Up!

I had to throw this picture in! I was exercising and when I was done he put my shoes on and was going to go exercise! I wish I would of got the picture of him like this on the treadmill!

Ty with his swollen face...all he wanted was his momma!

Tag standing up and big brother there to catch him if he fell

All by myself!

No more glasses!! I'm so EXCITED and I just can't hide it!!

It has been a crazy week in the Jensen household! I was so excited to finally get Lasik and was able to do so on Friday January 2, 2009! Everything went great and I could see the next morning. It was really crazy because I have worn glasses since I was in the 3rd grade and now I can wake up each morning and see clearly! I keep going to push up my glasses and realize they are no longer there! It is like you want to try and read every sign you see or every clock you see from a distance to make sure it is really real! I LOVE IT!!! I recommend it to anyone who has to wear glasses or contacts! If I could wear contacts I might not have been in such a hurry to get the surgery done, but after I had my first child, I could no longer wear contacts and it has been torture to wear glasses! Anyhow, I am doing great and today was the first day I could wear make-up! Here's to the new and improved (I think) ME!!

The next adventure is Tag standing up on everything he possibly can and holding on for dear life! It is so fun to watch him! He loves to try and walk along the furniture and is getting better at it! When he first stood up he didn't know what he was suppose to do next and he would start to get frustrated, make this face of confusion, and then cry! It was the cutest and sadest thing all at the same time! The best is when he tries to stand up on the little truck Ty has and it starts to move and he doesn't know how it is happening! Then it topples over on him and he doesn't like that much! He is getting so big and I can't believe he is almost 8 months! We weighed and measured him today and he weighs 23lbs and is 29" tall! What a big boy you are, Tag!

The last adventure for the week was making a trip to Vegas to see the doctor! Ty woke up on Friday morning and wasn't his usual self! He wasn't feeling well at all, so we called the doctor and headed out the door (literally that fast)! We were there for almost 2 hours and he cried or moaned the entire time. Daddy stayed behind to watch Tag and it was a good thing. I had to hold Ty down while the doctor tried to open Ty's mouth and swab his throat for a strep test. Once again he had strep! The left side of his face was also really swollen, but the doctor didn't know why and couldn't see any puss draining from his cheek. She was a little concerned, so we are on a different antibiotic than the normal penicillin! This medicine covers more bacteria, so hopefully it will help his swollen face too! Poor kid had a really rough 2 days, but is almost back to his normal self today! I was very concerned and felt so bad, so I had Josh and Uncle Jacob give him a blessing! I don't know if he understood what was going on, but he sat there so revently and said "Amen" when it was over! Thank goodness for the blessing he was given and Tylenol because that is the only thing that saved us during those rough 2 days! It lowered the fever and made the pain go away, but we knew when the 4 hours were up because he would start to cry and say "owee, owee!" What a week it has been and I am hoping this next one will be better!

Christmas 2008

o

r





Christmas this year was such a busy and crazy time for our family. We headed to grandma and grandpa Jensen's home in Alamo on Tuesday the 23rd. We had a wonderful time with the family. We stayed up really late on Tuesday playing games...I love playing games, so I had a great time. The kids were really tired, so we finally headed to the hotel. On Wednesday the 24th, we headed to the mountain to take the kids for a ride through the snow on an old car hood! They had a blast and Ty even loved it. It was the funniest thing because he started to fall asleep (you can see it in one of the pictures) and it was all he could do to keep his eyes open. Jared took the older kids on a really crazy and fast ride...grandpa went too slow for the older kids! I think grandpa was nervous the entire time and wanted to make sure his grandkids were safe. We were all worn out by the time we got home and a little hungry too. We started our Christmas Eve program a little later than planned, so we shortened it a little bit. My sister in law (Karen) and I were in charge of the program because of our music abilities. She played the guitar and I led the music. We did a little program that incorporates the scripture story of Jesus' birth along with Christmas songs. Then I read a story, "The White Stocking" and then gave each family a white stocking to put up for the Savior. We each wrote on a piece of paper what gift we wanted to give the Savior for the next year and when Christmas comes next year, we will go over our gift in our families and see how we did. Then to end the program my brother in law found this story, "A Soldiers Silent Night" and played it for us. Let me just say that a lot of us were in tears by the end of the story. I felt so grateful to the soldiers throughout history who have fought for the freedoms we enjoy in this country. I thought of all they sacrifice to keep us free. I cannot even imagine being away from my family and especially during the holidays and knowing that I may never see them again. It was a touching story and I think I will make it a tradition to play it each Christmas Eve as a tribute to all the men and women who have fought to keep my country free. On Christmas morning it was so fun to watch the excitement and anticipation in all of the children. It was especially fun for Josh and I this year because Ty understood what was going on and was so excited to see what Santa brought. Josh was downstairs recording so we could get the expression on Ty's face when he saw all the presents under the tree. He was so excited about the little red wagon that Santa brought and his classic car too. In fact, he didn't want to open anymore gifts after he got his classic car. He cried when we made him open up the rest of his gifts. The same thing happened after he opened the truck and trailer that he got from Grandma and Grandpa Jensen. I swear that kid will never have enough trucks, cars, trailers, or anything else with wheels! He LOVES them! As Uncle Seth was getting the classic car out of the box, Ty did this little dance like he had ants in his pants...it was too fun to watch. Tag was alseep for all the festivities, but he woke up towards the end and we let him open his presents. He got a few toys and he has enjoyed having them around. He likes his new toy that spins, lights up, and plays music. He also enjoys the new toys he can chew on! He had fun, but I think he was confused as to why all the kids around were a little "crazy!" Josh was excited about the new shooting head phones I got him. He has been wanting some for awhile, so it was a perfect gift. I was happy because I was getting Lasik for my Christmas this year and he built me shelves in all the closets. We are running out of places to store our food storeage, so I decided we should use all the wasted space at the top of the closets! We all had a great Christmas! I think the kids were a little tired because Christmas day was hard on them. They didn't want to share their new toys and didn't play very well together! The next day we had a good time just chatting, playing games, eating, and watching the kids play! Everyone got ready to go home that day and were on their way home by that evening. Our family wasn't leaving until Saturday evening, so we had a blast staying up and playing Scum with Josh's parents and Ticia and Mike! We stayed up until after a 11:30...if you know the Jensen family at all that is incredibly late! It was a great time and I have learned that they all cheat and to never believe a word they say while playing cards! On Saturday we helped clean up the house, made jerky, and I helped Karla fix her laptop. It was a good day and Ty had a blast with his dad and Grandpa! It was freezing outside, but he didn't care! All he wanted to do was ride in the backhoe, the truck, motorcycle, or 4 wheeler! He loves Grandpa and Grandma's house. He even got to help brand one of Grandpa's calves. It's hard to see the picture because of the smoke from when they brand the calf! We left about 5:00pm and were exhausted when we got home. The kids left with runny green noses and bad coughs, so the week ahead of us was lots of fun. They still have the cough, but the bright green running from their nose is finally gone! I love Christmas, but I am always happy to put away all the decorations and get my life and home back to normal. Ty still talks about going to Christmas parties and Santa Clause bringing toys and I tell him, "When you are 3 Christmas will come again, but we have to wait a whole year!" I don't if he really understands what that means, but he now says, "I be 3 at Christmas." I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year! I am sorry this post is so late, but it's here now!

Tag is 7 months old!

lkTag turned 7 months old yesterday! I cannot believe how fast time has gone by! He is such happy little guy and so much fun to be around. He has 2 bottom teeth, loves to scoot across the room to various things that he sees, and loves to eat food! Mom and dad love to snuggle with him in our bed before we put him to sleep in his own bed! He babbles lots of crazy things and now says "da da or dee dee" depending on the day! We love little Tag so much! He and daddy do this fun trick...he is a lot stiffer than Ty ever was so it works really well with Tag. He still loves to bounce and seems to have a "perma grin"! He loves his older brother and anytime Ty is close by he tries to wrestle with him or slobber all over Ty's head and face! It is the cutest thing to watch. I have a feeling they are going to be best buds and get into all sorts of ruckus when they are older! We took Tag on a ride in the old Chevy last night as it was raining and muddy and he love it! Looks like he will be just like his older brother in the truck area! We love you Tag...thanks for all the laughs!

Thanksgiving In Oklahoma

Lovin' on my boys!

Josh was happy to shoot a doe with his bow!

Mike and his doe!

y

My best friend Mel and Me

Taylor and Ty

Playing dress up...Ashylnn, Brent, and Ty

This year it was our turn to spend Thanksgiving in Oklahoma with my family. We had our plane tickets bought and paid for (we got a great deal), but then the company called and said they would no longer be flying to Oklahoma after October. I was soooo annoyed! I looked for tickets, but everything was way more expensive than our orginal tickets, so we decided to make the 18 hour drive. I am happy to report that it went really well! We left at 3:30 in the afternoon and the kids slept most of the time. Ty didn't take his nap, so he was asleep about an hour after we left. Tag is still at the age where he sleeps a lot and that was so wonderful. They woke up for a few hours and then fell back asleep for the rest of the night. We drove all night and arrived in Oklahoma at 11:30am. I know the kids were ready to stretch their legs, but they did super on the drive there! Josh and I took turns driving and that is how we were able to drive through the night. I must say that it is worth it to travel through the night when you have little one:)

We had a wonderful time in Oklahoma, but it went by way too fast. I was so excited because I was able to see my old roomate and best friend from college. Mel, Tom, Taylor, and Max all came to my parents house and were able to stay and visit for a couple of hours. It was so much fun to see their family again. Mel and I had a blast together at OSU and we haven't seen each other in some time, so I was so happy that things worked out the way they did. Before they left we got these cute pictures of Taylor and Ty hugging each other! We've decided that they are "meant for each other!" The cousins had a lot of fun together for the most part. You know how it gets when they get tired...tempers flare and kids get mean! No, they really played great together! My mom kept all our dance, show choir, etc. outfits and the kids use these as their dress up clothes! We had to steal a picture of Ashlynn and Brent in the dress up clothes! Brent, this will be used against you when you are about 16:) Ty was lucky and got out of his clothes before the picture was taken! The kids loved playing outside and had a blast jumping on the trampoline with Aunt Brita and Uncle Mike. They also loved the horse swing...I think Uncle Drue was really good a pushing them high in the sky. Of course, what would Thanksgiving be like if the boys and dad didn't go hunting everyday? This is one of the reasons that all the boys come home at this time of year...to go deer hunting on dad's land. They had a lot of success and all of us were able to fill our freezers full of meat for the year! What a blessing that is! I know that everyone got at least one deer, but I am pretty sure that Josh was the only one who didn't get a shot at a buck! Maybe next time. I went hunting a couple of times, but didn't get the job done. I had this buck in the perfect position, but I didn't a dumb thing and he got away. Now it just haunts me in my mind. It is always fun to go and enjoy the beauty of the earth and all the creatures! We also had a girls day and that was great fun. We headed to the Oklahoma City for a day of shopping, pedicures, lunch, and a movie! It was lots of fun and it's always nice to bond with each other! The guys got to stay home and watch all the kids...this is what they get for hunting so much. They had a great time with all the kids. They took them to McDonalds for lunch and then went out to the land for the rest of the day! There were some minor things that happened...kids falling into sticker patches, but other than that they had a wonderful time and had some great fathers watching out for them. Dad was so happy that all his grandchildren were out at his land! This really meant a lot to him. Thanksgiving was delicious, but my tummy was just to small to enjoy all that food at once. It was fun to nibble on the leftovers for the next couple of days! We had a wonderful day and I really loved the Family Home Evening we had afterward. This year has been a special year for our family and the things that I was thankful for this year were: Our family being sealed together for time and all eternity and Tag being born healthy and strong. I will never forget 2008 and all the wonderful blessings that have come our way this year. It was hard to say goodbye to everyone and I am just so excited that we will reunite with everyone in May for our family reunion. I love my family so much and I wish that we all lived closer! I had a wonderful time with each of you and look forward to many more years of fun times!