Emersyn's First Thanksgiving

Our Thanksgiving started off with a surprise! Brett’s brother Brandon and his wife Marcy drove up from San Diego on Wednesday evening and showed up on our doorstep at 9am Thanksgiving morning! They didn’t tell anyone that they were coming up and we were so happy to see them. Emersyn hadn’t met them yet and we weren’t sure when they were going to get to see her.

They had driven all night so they decided to try to take a nap while we got ready to go. We had Thanksgiving at Brett’s apartment clubhouse, which is very luxurious and had plenty of space for the 25+ people that were coming to sit. It is hard to find homes in the family that will seat that many people comfortably. Plus, since Brett works there, we were able to use an extra oven in a vacant apartment for all the cooking that needed to be done. We got to the clubhouse around noon and that is when the party got started. I didn’t get near as many pictures as I wanted to because of how busy the day was but oh well, Lord knows we make up for it on other days. J We ate dinner at 3pm and it was delicious. We headed out at about 7 and went home. Emersyn was pooped from not really having a good nap all day so we tried to put her to bed and watched “Fred Claus” with Brett’s family. Emers was so tired that she was fighting sleep so Brett and I didn’t really watch much of the movie but from what I saw, it looked cute. We just love Christmas movies.

Emersyn's Thanksgiving Nap
Hanging out with Great Aunt Babe
Great Grandma and Great Aunt Babe having a Thanksgiving chat with Emers

Friday we slept in a little and then ventured out into the Black Friday madness. I was saddened by the frantic feeling in the air. We got flipped off in the parking lot of Macy’s for no apparent reason. I heard a news report of a man getting trampled to death at a Walmart due to frantic shoppers. Two father’s shot and killed each other at a Toys’R’Us in California. Seriously, is that what Christmas has come to???!?! It makes me want to boycott the whole thing, except that I do truly believe that Christmas is special because of what it was originally intended to celebrate, Christ’s birth. Yes, I love the music and lights and such, but all the materialism and greed has really put a sad spin on the holiday. We are determined to teach Emersyn that Christmas is about Jesus’ birthday and not about presents. I suppose we will still do the Santa thing but Santa will only fill her stocking, we have decided not to give her gifts from us. Emersyn is an extremely blessed child and she really has no needs that aren’t met, either by us or our generous families and friends. I do think presents are fun but I am not going to support the idea that just because it is December 25^th, she needs to have 100 presents to open.

Okay, that is my rant. Anyways, we did partake in the Black Friday madness and got a digital frame that is now on our mantle, flashing the cutest pictures of our baby girl, as well as some neat pictures of us and our families in general. We got a really good deal. We also are on the hunt for a toaster oven but haven’t found the right one for the right price yet. Friday night we had leftover turkey made into a casserole type thing with Brett’s family and then hung out and watched tv at our house so that Emersyn could go to bed in her crib.

Today I am relaxing after a busy couple of days. Brett and his dad are going to watch the Civil War tonight at our house and I am going to finish decorating our tree and house. Brett started his new job today downtown. I am so proud of him and so unbelievably thankful for this promotion. God is so good and He always provides for all our needs.

Thankful......

....for nap times which allow me time to update my blog! :)
.....for a loving God who cares for me and has provided for me in ways I could have never dreamed of.
....for an amazing husband who is truly my best friend. We are having so much fun in this new chapter of life as parents and when I look at my daughter, my heart swells with love for both her and her daddy.
....for the cutest baby girl in the world. I never truly understood the love that a parent has for a child until I became one. I can't believe how beautiful and smart and smiley and loving that she is and to think, I housed this perfect little creature in my belly for 10 months!!! I am so thankful that is she healthy and my life has taken on a whole new meaning.


....for wonderful supportive parents who I have grown to love on an even deeper level since having Emersyn. Every day I look around my home and am reminded of their generousity, whether I am changing diapers that they have provided, dressing Emersyn in clothes they have bought, etc. I am so thankful that they love my husband like he is their own son, thankful that they love my daughter more then I think any grandparent has ever loved a grandchild, and thankful that we have such a neat and special relationship that no amount of miles between us could ever penetrate.


Okay, Kleenex break, gotta wipe the eyes. I am so emotional after having a baby!!!

Thankful...

....for a beautiful home that the Lord provided to us when we had no idea how we were going to get. He continues to provide each month that we pay that mortgage too! :)
....for Brett's promotion. We knew that the Lord really wanted Brett at Riverstone Residential for whatever reason and it is neat to see that start to really pay off. Brett was promoted into management at a property downtown and starts there on Saturday.
.....for friends that are a blessing to me and inspire me to be a better person.
...for loving family, from my in-laws to aunts and uncles and grandparents. I am so happy to be able to share my daughter with so many people who love her and are excited to be in her life.

There are so many more things I could say but it is so hard to put into words. All in all, my heart is bursting with gratitude this time of year and it is my goal to always remember to be thankful, even when Thanksgiving has passed.

Have a wonderful holiday everyone! Blessings from the Jensen family to yours. :)

Visit to Boise!!

Yay for amazing friends!!!

I kind of see myself in Emersyn in the picture above. Riley is too cute with his sweet smile!!

So fun to be mama's together!!!

I think he likes her!!

Daddy was soooo excited to fly with Emers!!!

We had such a lovely time in Boise last week, thank you Tiffany for being such a wonderful hostess!! Emersyn got to take her first plane ride with Daddy which was very special. He held her for the entire flight and they had a good time snuggling and looking out the window! J On the way there, there were only 39 people on the plane so we had our own section. On the way home, they said that the flight was pretty much full. After Brett and I got into our seats, I told Brett to sit on the aisle and I would sit next to the window and nurse Emersyn. Sure enough, we ended up with the only seat in the plan that wasn’t occupied!! The flight was full of lots of men and they would come to the back and see me feeding Emersyn and awkwardly look away and head back up to the front of the plane to find a seat. I was so proud of myself and my strategy!! Hee hee.

The Langfords have such a nice and comfortable home. We spent most the time just hanging out there, playing with the babies who seemed to be avoiding each other based on their schedules. Once Emersyn would wake up, Riley would get fussy and go down and then once he woke up, Emersyn was needing to take a nap. The evenings usually worked out and they were able to get some quality time in together, as they should seeing as their future marriage is impending. J Tiffany and I even got to have a girls day on Saturday and go out shopping. I found some really good deals at Old Navy, including a very patriotic little bathing suit that I am pretty sure Emersyn is going to look DARLING in next summer and it was only $1! 4 of July pictures here we come!! Tiffany got Emersyn the CUTEST little sweater dress too, I can’t wait to see her in it!!!

Now we are back home, finally settled after a month of off and on travels. It felt good to go to the grocery store, knowing that we are going to be home for good! We are so excited for Christmas, in fact, the tree is going up tomorrow! We are doing it a week early, don’t judge us! We just got our first fake tree last year and I am so excited to get pictures of Emersyn helping us decorate it! She is going to LOVE the lights too!! Thank you Lord for my little baby and giving her to us in time for the holidays!!

Tuesday I met up with an old friend at the mall, Sarah. We went to jr. high and high school together and just reconnected via facebook right before I found out I was pregnant. We got to meet each other’s babies and it was too fun! Ellie is only about 4 weeks younger then Emersyn. I am looking forward to getting to hang out more and journey through this motherhood path together!

Ellie and Emersyn, bonding in the women's lounge of Nordstrom! :)

My brother is going to MN next week for Thanksgiving. I am really happy for him and my parents but just a tad bit sad that they will all be together without us. We will have a nice time with Brett’s family though and also plan to go over to some family friends for dessert later that evening.

Today Uncle David is coming over and we are going to lunch with Emersyn, courtesy of my amazing mama. She is so sweet and considerate and constantly inspires me to be a better person and mother.

Have a great week everyone!!

Smiles!

I am happy to say that I think Emersyn smiles more for me then she does anyone else. Her favorite time of day seems to be after her "breakfast" in the mornings. I feed her, change her and then act like a silly mommy, smiling at her like a goon and in return, she smiles back and often coos while smiling! I am smitten, what can I say?

Two Months Old!!

My little lady turned two months old on October 28th, I can hardly believe how fast the time has gone!! We went to dinner with her Nana and Papa to Old Spaghetti Factory to celebrate. She dozed through much of the meal but I am sure she still felt celebrated.

Emersyn continues to change on a weekly basis. We went to her two month dr. appt. on Thursday and she weighs 12lbs exactly. She has grown another two inches, putting her at 24 1/4 inches, which is the 97th percentile for height. Her weight is 79th percentile and her head is 67th. So overall, she is a good healthy sized little girl!! She eats like a champ (obviously!) and is doing well both nursing and taking a bottle. It is fun to be able to pump bottles for her and let other people feed her.

Her latest fun milestones include cooing and "talking" to us. Her most alert time is after she has eaten and has been changed. She smiles all the time and is a very happy girl. One of her favorite things to do is lay on Mommy and Daddy's bed because she gets to lay on her side when we are there. She loves laying on her side, she just sucks her binky and looks very content and happy. She is kicking her arms and legs a bunch and discovering her hands, she likes sucking them as seen in the picture above.

Today she is at her Nana and Papa's for the afternoon. I know that they like to spend quality time with her so I asked if they wanted to hang out while I cleaned up the house a bit. I miss her so much and can't wait to pick her up in about 3 1/2 hours. I know she is in good hands but I still miss her!!

Next week on the 12th, we leave to visit my best friend and her husband and baby!! It will be fun to go on a little getaway with Brett and Emersyn and also get to visit with our friends! Boise is such a nice flight too, it seems by the time you take off and get your drinks, you are descending and getting ready to land!

On Halloween Emersyn was a ladybug. We took her down to Albany to visit her great grandparents. Her Great Grandma Stanton lives in an assisted living facility and Emersyn was the star of the show at lunchtime. We had to stop at every table in the lunch room because people wanted to see her. Half the people thought she was a boy but that is to be expected when she is dressed in something gender neutral, although a LADY bug to me sounds like a LADY. It was really fun though and I knew that she would light up so many of the old people's day. Plus, her great grandma got to show her off which is always fun too. After that we went over to her other Great Grandparent's house and hung out there for a bit. Halloween night we stayed home and didn't do much. Next year I am sure we will go out to a mall or something and trick or treat but this year we enjoyed a quiet evening at home.

Have a great week everyone!