Fun but not relaxing :)

A few weeks ago I went on a little getaway with a friend and our FOUR kids. :) Several months ago my friend Sarah asked if I wanted to go with her to central Oregon to redeem a LivingSocial deal that she had purchased and been unable to use. She said we could take our boys, relax in the deluxe suite by the fire, maybe get some pedicures, etc. It sounded blissful and of course I said YES YES YES, I would LOVE to go!!!!

A couple weeks before we were to leave, she called me and suggested that we bring our girls with us.

Really? Hmmm. Well........I suppose.....

It's not that I don't adore my daughter, because I do. And it's not like I didn't want her to go with us, I just thought it would be SO different then if we just took the babies. Like, a lot more work different. Sarah really really wanted to take them though so I agreed (and secretly prayed she would change her mind, ha!!). I knew that we would have a good time, it just wouldn't be as relaxing as I might have liked.

I got to thinking though and our trip is a lot like parenting in general. It's a whole heck of a lot of fun but far far far from *relaxing*. Parenting takes effort. God didn't bless me with these kiddos to just hang out with and then send on their way once they turn 18. He gave me them to invest my time, love, energy and finances (right?!) in while they are still *mine*.

We had a great trip and priceless memories were created. I am so blessed to have a friend with kiddos so close in age to mine and everywhere we went, people would ask "did you plan to have kids so close in age". Sarah and I used to walk through the mall and people would ask us the same thing with our girls. Fun memories and still more yet to be made.

Everett and Benjamin. They are seriously the sweetest boys EVER.

The girls LOVED this statue of a chipmunk in our room. Emersyn named her Mary and we talked about Mary during the whole trip. It was funny.

Keeping her baby warm. It was VERY chilly!!

My beautiful babies on the shore of Suttle Lake.

Lifelong friends!!

Ellie and Ems at their first playdate, Ems was 11 weeks and Ellie was 7 weeks. I looked at this picture info and ironically, it was three years ago TODAY!

I feel like I have been so blessed with easy babies. (Knock on wood, I know Everett is still young). People see how old Everett is and comment on how tired I must be but if I'm tired, it's my own fault. My kid sleeps 8-9 hours a night, I cannot complain. The preschool age though is by far the most challenging age that I have experienced. But again, parenting is fun but not relaxing. I have been married for 8 years now and it has FLOWN by. I've been a mama for 3 years and again, it has gone by faster then I ever imagined it could. I am so burdened to pray that my parenting years won't fly by and yield no fruit. I am notorious for living vicariously through anticipating the future. I'll think to myself, "I really need to start working on reading more bible stories to Ems" or "I need to be better at taking pictures of Everett" and just thinking those thoughts almost makes me feel better to the point of then forgetting to follow through with what I planned. I don't know if that makes sense but I've been that way my entire life. I always have an excuse. It used to be "when I have a house of my own, I'll be more organized" or "when I lose weight I'll be more involved or confident". And in the meantime, time ticks on whether I like it or not and whether I achieve anything or not. But now, it's not just me that's affected, it's these two precious children that have been entrusted into my care. In my worst nightmares, I look at my teenagers and think, why didn't I take the time to invest in your future when I had the chance?

My daughter is a special little girl I a believe that God is going to use her to be a leader. However, there are times when I am dealing with a situation and I see the ugly things in myself shining through in her. Recently, she has become rather easily angered and it's like she'll go from zero to raging mad in no time. She gets frustrated with things easily and often times she's tired and that leads to aggression which pretty much brands her with a scarlet letter on her forehead as a child that hits or pushes. I am not saying that those behaviors are acceptable, because they aren't but more often then not, I project my own insecurities in parenting onto her and my pride is the one that issues a punishment, not my heart. I worry more about what other moms think of me versus what I know is right in my heart.

An equation that I have a tough time accepting sometimes is that good parenting doesn't equal perfect children. And also, making a poor choice doesn't equal a naughty child, it's a naughty action. Yesterday I had a rough day with Emersyn and she did something that made me really mad because she knew better and it upset me. I do my best not to parent in anger though, that is something I am very aware of in my life. I took some deep breaths and proceeded to head home. When we got into the house I had a discussion and told Emersyn, "you ARE a sweet girl and mommy will always love you. you just made a bad choice and because of that, you have a consequence. I know you can make a better choice next time" and that was that. No grudges. No further guilt. Emersyn IS a good girl and she deserves a mom that will have her back at all times, not just when she is being sweet and loving. That is always the hope of course, but even at her ornery times she is just as *good* as when she is on her best behavior.

Emersyn is my reminder of how much I need Jesus these days. And I am grateful to her for that and promise to do my best for her. Sometimes I have to remind myself, "YOU'RE the one who wanted to be a full time stay at home mom!!". I'm telling you, the working world is a piece of cake compared to parenting. For reals.

I'm rambling I know, but hey, it's my blog. I can do that. :)

I'll leave you all with a picture of my amazingly sweet and cute baby boy. I could literally black out from joy every time I look at this. My heart is overwhelmed with gratitude to God for giving me this precious precious boy.

Thursday Tid-Bits

Oh man, I have been a bad blogger lately!! It was so much fun blogging daily back in November as a part of the NaBloPoMo challenge...perhaps I need to challenge myself in this area! :)

Here are some random thoughts swirling around in my head this Thursday afternoon.....

*I have some thoughts I want to share regarding the conclusion of my "Anonymous" book study this Winter. What an incredibly powerful book that really spoke to me and has challenged me. These thoughts kind of coincide with New Year's type resolutions so I am hoping to have these thoughts typed out this evening to participate in Kelly's Korner's New Year Resolution Blog Carnival, why not? :) I love me a good Blog Carnival.

*Our church has a ministry for expecting mother's called "Expecting the Best". I personally was blessed by this ministry during my pregnancy through the encouraging note cards, prayers, emails and meals when Emersyn was born! The director is stepping down and has asked if I would oversee this ministry. I am just thrilled!!!!!! I believe that pregnancy is such an amazing time in a woman's life and such an opportunity to be prayed for and draw closer to the Lord. Thanks Erika for thinking of me!

*Emersyn got her "big" present from her Nana and Papa this week. It is a darling wooden rocking chair that has her name on it! It is truly a keepsake. I asked her Nana to write on the bottom of the chair so that Emersyn will have it forever.

*We are going to FINALLY take down our Christmas decorations on Friday. I just haven't had the energy to do it after work this week. I am excited to get it all put away and then get Emersyn's play kitchen put together. That was our present to her. I will be sure to take pics of her initial reaction to the kitchen. I think she will be sooooo surprised!

*Speaking of surprised, look how cute she was when we gave her this chair on New Year's Day from her Grammy and Grandpa and us.....

I *heart* personalized items!!

"Did you say this chair is for ME??"

"I LOVE IT!!!!"

"It's just the right size for cuddling Twin!"

*I forgot I didn't ever blog about our New Year's Day! I made quiche for the very first time and it turned out wonderfully! We had Brett's family over and every one was there. Brett's brother and sister-in-law had driven up from CO and surprised everyone. I am sure it made Brett's parents so happy to have all their kids and grandkids in one room. Everyone had a great day, there were Scrabble games played, football watched, and I even managed to sneak away for some smokin' deals at Gymboree! I wasn't able to buy Emersyn's dress for next Christmas in advance like we did last year but I did score some other cute clothes for her to wear this Spring. I made friends with a cashier there that always sneaks me a 20% off your entire purchase coupon, whoo hoo! It pays to be friendly! :)

The Jensens- New Year's Day

All right....I think that's enough tid bits for now. Plus, I have another blog to keep up with now too! :)

Happy Thursday everyone!

Webcamming!

One of Emersyn's favorite past times these days is webcamming with Grammy & Grandpa in Minnesota. It's extra special when Gigi (her great grandma) is there too! She totally knows that she can call them and sometimes when she is fussy, she will reach for the computer and be insistent on opening it. One day it clicked in my head, "I bet she wants to call Grammy & Grandpa!" Sure enough, I asked her if she wanted to call them and she gave me a big smile with her happy noise, not sure how else to describe the noise that she makes other then it is like a grunt mixed with giggle? Either way, it's pretty cute. :)

This past Saturday, Emersyn and I were waiting for Daddy to get home so we could go to our church's Christmas Concert and we decided to call Grammy and Gigi on the webcam to show them how cute she looked in her Christmassy outfit! :)

Emersyn thinks she's pretty sassy, getting to talk on the computer. See how pleased she looks with herself? :)

In other news....we leave for MN a week from tomorrow!! I am not ready!!! :) There is a LOT to be done before we go. It is kind of weird leaving on a Friday because this is my last weekend to get ready before we leave. I am not too worried about it. It is nice packing to go to my parents house where they have things in case we forget them, not like going to a hotel. :) I am really excited to have 10 days off with my husband and baby!! I am excited to spend a week with my brother too. Even though he lives in town, we don't see him too often with his school and work schedule. I am excited to see my mom who I haven't seen since Hawaii in September. I am excited to see my Grandma who I haven't seen since last Christmas!! And of course to see my dad who I just saw last month as a special treat! I am excited for Emersyn to sleep in my parents room which means we get to sleep IN!!! I am excited to finish watching Season 5 of LOST so we are caught up for the new season this January. I am excited to go to the Mall of America. All kinds of excitement brewing! :)

I got my hair cut this morning. It is really cute, I am happy with it. My stylist is a friend so it is always nice to get caught up with her. Her salon is about 45 minutes from my house which is a loooooong way to go but she gives me a FANTASTIC deal on my cut and color that it makes it totally worth it!

Tonight we are going to dinner to celebrate a friend's birthday. I am hoping Emersyn looks cute and is ready to go when I get home from work today. Daddy hasn't really figured out how to do her hair yet, hee hee. He puts cute outfits together though so for that I give him credit. I hope Emersyn does well at the restaurant though, she isn't a big fan of being confined these days....

This morning I woke up and it felt really really cold. I told Brett that I thought our furnace had liked turned off. Sure enough, he went downstairs and our thermostat said 55!!!!!!!!! FREEZING!!!!! Luckily Brett had put Emersyn to be in thermals AND fleece pajamas so she was good and warm when he checked on her. Apparently we need a new filter for the furnace so he is working on that today. Oh the joys of home ownership! :)

Well, enough rambling. I will leave you with a link for my new favorite Christmas song of this season, "A Baby Changes Everything" by Faith Hill. I can't hardly listen to it without turning into a sappy mess of tears. I hope you are blessed by it too. :)

http://www.cmt.com/videos/faith-hill/291605/a-baby-changes-everything.jhtml

Mommy's Assistant

Hi guys, it's Emersyn! Today I wanted to tell you about my part time job as Mommy's assistant in real estate. Because Mommy has such great clients, they usually don't mind when I tag along for certain business activities.

This is me, getting ready to give keys to my Auntie Tori and Uncle Andrew for their new house!! We are soooooo happy for them!

We had to wait a little bit for them to get there. So Mommy busted out the string cheese and camera and started taking my pictures. I told her that she needs to get some business cards for me to hand out to my friends, ya know, all official like saying that I am her assistant. She doesn't think that is neccesary. Rats.

This was my face after I learned that not only do I not get business cards, I also don't get PAID for my services!!!! (Unless string cheese counts I guess)

Uncle & Auntie's big moment.....


Playing peekaboo, enjoying the lovely hardwood floors, aren't they pretty?

Baby bloggers out there, do any of you "work" for your mommies too? :)

Just like her mama.

She goes into the kitchen cupboard, gets out my travel coffee cup, and walks around the house, so pleased with herself for *drinking* coffee....just like her mama.

She finds a gift bag and goes *shopping* throughout the house, putting various items in her bag. I asked her what she was shopping for and she brought me her bag. In it was a toothbrush, a plastic cow that I have literally never seen before, and one of my socks. She loves *shopping*...just like her mama.

Today in the car I cranked up some upbeat worship music and some movement catches my eye in the rearview mirror. I see my adorable daughter bobbing her head to the music and clapping her little heart out......just like her mama.

I give her a wooden spoon and a bowl and ask her if she will *cook* me something and she gets a silly grin and starts stirring her imaginary food in the bowl....wanting to cook just like her mama.

Whether I realize it or not, Emersyn is watching me and learning. She may be little but I am so challenged to live my life better, make it one that is worthy of mimicking. Being a parent is such a big responsibility. And it is a responsibility that I am SO grateful for. I am not striving for perfection, I know that isn't attainable. Just striving to be MY best.....

Blog Hop- Anything that feels good! :)

Today's blog hop theme is rather vague....it's pretty much anything that makes you feel good, like a story, joke, picture, etc. Well, there are couple things lately that have made ME feel good so here they are!!!

1) Saving money!!!!

Look at all this loot! Courtesy of Rite Aid ad this week in the paper.

Allergen Block $9.99
Simply Saline for Children $3.99
Simply Saline for Adults $3.99
Comtrex Cold & Sinus $3.99
Breathe Again $7.99
Honey Lemon Natural Throat Drops $2.49
Gentle Nature Eczema Cream $8.49
TOTAL

$41.93

But did I pay $41.93 for all this stuff?? NO!! After my rebate comes in the mail (and I have done it before; it's legit) my grand total for this pile of products will be $5.49. Everything was free, except for the eczema cream that had a $3 rebate off of $8.49.

I realize that posting a picture of such exciting items like saline spray might qualify me for dork status. I am alright with that. At least I am a thrifty dork! :) I actually went into Rite Aid to look for Benadryl for Emersyn (they had none for babies, darn it) and then saw all this free stuff and had to have it. I don't even know what the Allergen Block does but heck, it was $9.99 regularly so it has to be good for something right?? Hee hee.

2) Sweet little girls watching a fire in the fireplace while cuddling with their teddy bear makes me happy which makes me feel good. :)

3) Cooking dinner for my husband makes me happy!!!! Last night I tried a slow cooker recipe and it turned out simply delicious. This picture doesn't look the most appetizing, I will be the first to admit. But it tasted fantastic and made my house smell like a home. :)

Slow Cooker Chicken Recipe:

Chicken Breasts (I used three medium sized ones)

1 Can of Cream of Chicken (can be lowfat)

1 Can of Cream of Celery (can be lowfat)

3 stalks of celery chopped up

One bag of mini carrots

One packet of Lipton Onion Soup Mix mixed with 2 cups of water

Toss all ingredients into slow cooker and let it work it's magic! You can serve over rice or pasta. I think next time I make it, I might toss in some yellow potatoes to use as a side. Its really flavorful and even Brett liked the carrots and he normally hates veggies (pray for him). Last night I just made acorn squash as a side.

Maple Roasted Acorn Squash

2 Acorn Squash, halved and seeded

Coarse Salt and Ground Pepper

Italian Seasoning

4 Tablespoons of Butter

4 Tablespoons of Maple Syrup (you can also use honey)

Grated Romano or Parmesan Cheese (optional)

Preheat oven to 450. Place squash, cut side up, on a baking sheet lined with foil. Season with salt and pepper. Place 1-2 TBSP butter in each cavity and 1 TBSP syrup. Sprinkle herbs in cavity. Roast for one hour or until very tender...baste at least twice during cooking. Top with cheese. I forgot to do the cheese last night but it was still soooooo good. Brett didn't love it. He said it was a texture thing.

Other things this week that make me happy/feel good: finding out that Brett gets THREE weeks of vacation at work starting next year, hallelujah!!!; watching Emersyn take 8ish steps last night and sharing the special moment with my mom and brother via Skype; all the amazing things I am learning in my Esther bible study and girls book club; and the fact that Fall is here, the leaves are changing and I am more in love with my husband then ever!!

What is making you happy this week? :)

Hawaiian Vacation-The End

Hi everyone! Tired of Hawaiian vacation photos yet? :) The reason for my posting of all of these is because we are going to be printing out Emersyn's first year blog book and we wanted to include these pictures and memories since they were a part of her first year celebration. Not officially, but in our minds! :)

Emersyn watching the amazing koi fish pond!

Hungry fishies!!

Emersyn and Grandpa dancing and snuggling while we waited for the koi fish feeding to begin. They feed the fish every day at 9am and again the evening. It is quite the sight to see!

Emersyn got her own little cup of food to give the fish!!

Brett fed them from his hand...I could hear them sucking the food from his palm! GROSS!!!

Emersyn enjoying the good life one last time. This was the morning that we left to head home to Portland.

"Do we really have to go home Mama? I like it here!!"

Emersyn has decided to learn to play the ukulele. We are going to nurture and encourage this new found hobby. :)

"If you're happy and you know it..."

"Could someone show me how to use this thing?!!"

Our flight home was not nearly as successful as our flight there. Emersyn was restless and only slept for about 45 minutes. We were VERY anxious to land back in Portland.

Daddy snuggling with Twin and Emersyn.

THE END!!