Winter in February

I can't see all work that needs to be done on our house because it is covered in snow

This is the view from my bedroom window

I can't see all the work that needs to be done at my store.

The roads are always more excited to drive on.

The frost is gorgeous, natures little bit of "Bling"

By this time of year people are itching for the snow to leave but they have come to a realization that this is Canada dumby, spring is a long way off. I decided to make list a few things that are really great about winter in February.

Attached and Aged or Fresh and Fancy?

Fresh and Fancy

Attached and Aged

I get attached to things like sick animals, kitty blankets, my neices and nephews, old windows and cars. I can remember lots of different cars we used to drive when I was young. A burgundy and white Suburban, a 13 passenger van and my very own 1971 Datsun. Right now I am quite attached to my 2001 gray Suburban. The boys call it "the bat mobile" because I killed some bats one night which got stuck in the grill and made for some really cool close up observations. They also call the car the "crash up car" because of some minor dents and break downs. Oh sure two windows won't roll down, the wipers work when they feel like it, it doesn't idle well, it has stranded us several times, we go through tires like crazy, 1 rear light is out and so is one head light, (we are a perditler's dream). But, I like the old girl. We have hunted in it, hauled lumber for the house, carried football teams, driven youth to dances, lent it out for a hearse (twice) and made some great family memories in it. After one particularily bad break down this Fall Russ surprised me with a new car-see above photo. But much to his dismay it sits in the garage because I am attached to my old gray mare. What to do ? What would you do? Drive old "not always so faithful" or pull the new "younger-looking" gal out of the garage. I might add that the new car has heated leather sets, an awesome entertainment system, gets much better mileage and drives sooooo nice, but hey, that's only if those kinds of things are important to you. So what'll it be? What do you think? Attached and Aged or Fresh and Fancy.

Well, yesterday the boys didn't have school so we worked hard all day on science projects. By the time dinner time rolled around the darn kids wanted to eat, the fifth day in a row. I myself was exhausted from trudging through the snow, timing children, and the worst, watching a 10 year old type. I decided to take the little workers out to dinner. I filled them up on hamburgers, fries and an ice cream treat. On the way home, the car was warm, their bellies plump and their body's and mind's exhausted. In the quiet car Bridger started telling jokes, 5 year old jokes. I think they went something like this. What did the 6 say to the 2? Boy you are little. Silence. What did one cloud say to the other cloud, you're not fluffy. Silence. On and on he went, each joke as funny as the one before. All the while the others sat quietly, I thought they were all asleep until he told this joke, What did the horse say to the pig? (you might think I have this backwards but wait) Hey fella, why is your face hairy? From the backseat finally a response. Caleb chimes in with a great ba -dum -ching!!!!! you know the sound of a drum after a funny joke. That made us all laugh which satisfied Bridger who decided to quit the comedy routine on a high. Caleb saves the day with wit and humour again.

It's funny how we are always reminded how much our children learn from us even when we aren't aware we are teachin'. Mckay loves football and loves to watch it. This weekend was of course the Superbowl. I really wanted the Cardinals to win mostly because I think that Mr. Curt Warner looks a lot like my very own Mr. Russ Jensen. That's beside the point. Anyway Mckay, Grandpa Gulbranson, Gulbranson brothers #'s 1,2,3, and 6 and their families, a teenage friend of Korlyn's and one very frightened non-relate family, brought lots of yummy food and came to our house to watch the game. After all was said and done about 30% of our crowd was excited the Steelers had won, the other 70% not so happy . Interviews were observed, happy fans were filmed and a whole heck of a lot of confetti was dropped onto the field. Then it happened my football loving son called out,"Somebody is going to have to clean up all that confetti." Ahhh, just like his Mom, stop in the merriment to think about who the heck is going to have to clean up all the mess. I love it.

Wedding Cake #?

I love creating these little works of art. This week I made another wedding cake this time for Chet and Angela Mecham. After 1 box of margarine, 1 tub of shortening, 18 cake mixes, 72 eggs, 14 bags of icing sugar, a pinch of salt, and hours of work Voila !!!! Thanks to my beautiful assistant Karli H and to my mentor Lauri O.

Things I'd Love to Do....but can't

Paint or Re-paint

I don't know what it is about fresh paint but it does something for me. Maybe it's my nose remembering the fun times I had at BYU-Hawaii while I worked with some great girls and good friends. We worked in the paint shop and painted road lines,houses, refrigerators and the mens dormitory. Anyway, My idea of a good spring cleaning is to repaint walls, in a new color of course. But... my wiser than I or is it tired of getting out the ladder, husband said, "NOPE", not this year. We've only lived in this house for two and a half years and I've already repainted three rooms. So, I'd love to repaint this spring, but can't, maybe this summer?

Beekeep

It looks like so much fun and what a great way to trap a little bit of heaven for free. We have 320 acres of yummy wildflowers, clover and alfalfa fields, the bees would just love me and the boys would love honey butter on fresh scones. But... Russ is deathly allergic to honey bees, one sting and he's a gonner. I'll just give up on the bees and get my honey from my "honey".

Keep the Moose off my lawn

The moose have succesfully "trimmed" all of my birch trees for the last few winters. Moose love the tender new growth of birch trees. To date I have tried yelling at them, running after them arms flalling and screaming, chasing them in my suburban with the boys cheering me on from the back seat, and most recently I convinced Russ to shoot them in the butox with a shotgun, hey don't judge me, I like birch trees. Can you believe nothing has thwarted them? I'd love to keep the moose away but can't.

Size 6

I'd love to be a size 6 but can't and you don't need to know all the details.

Keep the Livestock in

I'd love to keep the annimals in the pen where they belong. Moose out, Horse and calves in. The Moose, Deer, and Elk jump the fences everyday to get to and from food. In the process the fence has taken a beating. We fix the fence in the Spring and Fall but it never seems to stay tight or effective. This morning I woke up in the dark and stumbled to the shower. While showering I had an eery feeling that someone was watching me. I am still not sure if I was worried for my safety or for their poor eyes but I was a bit freaked out. As I showered the sun peaked over the horizon and the room was lit with beautiful morning sun. It was then that I saw him, peering into the bathroom through the window. I let out a very convinving scream as my horse stood there watching me climb out of the shower. Even the sight of me in my nothings didn't seem to scare him back to the pen. So, first request when I see Russ this weekend, please tighten the pasture fence again.

People

I'd love to slap some people up-side of the head but can't. Is it just me or are people getting less bright? I am surprised by the things grown, church attending people do and the things they are teaching their children to do. That's my little rant for the day, now I must go repent. Anyway, sometimes I would like to slap some sense into people but can't.

That's it, my list of cant's for the day. I am sure I will think of more another time. Add some of yours, I'd love to hear them.

Well Water?

I am going to blame this post on well water because it's too painful to think about being a horrible mother. Bridger (5) had eight root canals this October and this week he started complaining that one of those eight teeth was hurting. By Tuesday evening he was punching his face, screaming and literally jumping up and down in pain. Tell me this, why do these things start at about 6:00pm when there is no prayer of finding a dentist? By 4:00 am we figured out that if he gargled with cold milk and I sat him upright on my lap, he could fall asleep and fall asleep he did. After two and a half hours of very restful sleep I was up an at 'em with the other boys. At 10:00 am (the time anyone in Canada arrives at work) I woke up Bridger and we headed to the dentist who told us that we would have to go to Vancouver (10 hr drive) to a Pediatric dentist and that he could get me a quick reference in only three weeks. Three weeks of screaming? A few phone calls later I had an appointment in Prince George but not until the next day. Bridger's tooth calmed down some and he slept pretty well all day. By 6:00 pm Wednesday night the pain started back but this time was accompanied by a flu. Now poor Bridger was in pain, had a fever and was throwing up, another crazy night. We were headed to Prince George (one hour drive) by 10:00 Thursday morning with bucket in hand and doped up on Advil. At 12:00 another root canal was done and Bridger, numb from forehead to chin, was finally sleeping well in a warm car heading for his bed at home. I was so relieved. When we were only ten minutes from the house Bridger finally awoke, he sat upright and said,"Mom, me and you have had two rough nights." I so appreciated that simple sentence, he had recognized that I had helped him and he was grateful. Being a Mom isn't always fun but I am happy to be doing it. And hey, Uncle Blaine, if you are reading this the other boys have good teeth so I'm not all bad.

Caleb

Caleb (10) has always been a very witty and funny little boy. He also has a knack for talking too much (where does he get that?). His teachers tell me he is very funny and usually makes the entire class laugh and hard to control. What to do ? Anyway, I was in the school helping out the other day when his teacher asked to talk to me (rarely a good sign). She recounted the previous days events with a red face, tears in her eyes and a strange giggle in her voice. "Yesterday, she said, the class was asked to list things that would not be allowed in the classroom. I wrote on the board as the kids called out , "knives", "swearing", "bullying" and "guns". At which point Caleb (who is all of 55 lbs of bones and sinu) stands up flexes his barely visible biceps and calls out, "except for these guns." Apparently the class was estatic and the T.A. had to leave because she was unable to stop laughing. We always enjoy Caleb's humor.

Well, we all have our good moments and our bad. November was a gloomy month in our home. At 13+ weeks I lost another baby. This baby was our 6th late term loss since Bridger was born. My doctor and several specialists were certain that they had my issues figured out. A genetic blood disorder called Factor V Leiden causes my blood to clot more that a "normal" persons. It also causes clots to form in the placenta or cord and cuts off the blood and oxygen supply to the babies. I and the doctors were positive that a daily heparin injection would keep my blood from clotting. However, it was not to be. We have learned not everything we want is the same as what Heavenly Father wants for us. We hoped for another baby, the boys prayed fervently and blessings were given but we are thankful for what we have and with or without another Jensen, we are happy and very blessed.

Winters a Comin'

We've yanked out the garden, put up the hay and pulled out our coats and gloves, now on to the wood haulin'. When we built the new house we put in geothermal which both cools and heats the house through coils of water in the ground (don't ask, I couldn't tell you) but we also put in a wood burning fireplace which has both cooked and saved our bacon from freezing. We love the crackle of the fire on the cold days and the red glow in the evenings and those of you who know Russ know he just plain can't stop making fire. So before things get too cold we chop and haul wood for the winter months. It may look like I don't do any work around here but hey, sombody has to take the pictures and be the boss and there has to be some sort of perk for being the only girl in the house.

Grim and Gruesome

EEeeeEEEKKKK!!!! Halloween, another one of Russ' favorite holidays. Russ' idea of the perfect Halloween is to buy lots of his favorite candy, take it home,dump it in a large bowl, shut off all the lights, hide in the basement, pretend you're not home and commence to eat all the candy. He's a bit of a stick in the mud at Halloween. However, the boys enjoy it and it gives me a chance to fire up my sewing machine and get creative. this year the boys made things easy...well fairly. Mckay attended a youth party where you had to come dressed as a Lord of the Rings character and aside from making a helmet out of an old hard hat and gluing hair on his 12 year old chin, Gimly was a cinch. Caleb was even easier as a hippie and Bridger was glad to have hand-me-down pirate paraphernalia . Then... Coleson made the strangest request of "A man with no head." I thought and thought and came up with a great idea and as always Russ made my ideas a reality. Coleson made a pretty good headless guy and got rave reviews at the town fireworks that night. Thanks to my stick in the mud for all the help, we love ya.

Back to School

Summer always has to come to end. Usually I am ready for school to start but this year I was a bit sedate to see my boys climb on the bus, maybe it's because for the first time in twelve years I don't have anyone home with me. Mckay began 7th grade, Caleb 5th, Coleson 2nd and Bridger is in kindergarten. I'm not one for change especially when it comes to my boys, but as Sir Winston Churchill reminds me " There is nothing wrong in change if it is in the right direction." Certainly they are headed in the right direction toward school and hey, maybe this change will point me in the right direction of finishing the laundry, actually organizing my quilting fabric and a few more subtle improvements I need to make.

#26 and #31

The Jensens love football and this year both Mckay (#31 ) and Caleb (#26) did well. Mckay's team took second place in the league with Mckay running the majority of the touchdowns, the kid has wheels. Caleb's team didn't do as well but they had fun and we are pleased to say that in the end Caleb did a fine job and earned the team trophy as Most Sportsmanlike. I happen to be very partial to Caleb's coach who sacrifices a lot of time to help the team learn some confidence, learn football and have fun. Coach Jensen, I love you.
GO VIKINGS !!!!!!!!!

Camping 2008

Each year we set family goals. In 2008 we all agreed that our family goal was to camp a lot in the summer and I can say that we definitely accomplished the task. Russ worked two hours from home all summer so we packed up and followed him to Canyon Creek Campground in Hixon. While Russ worked the boys and I camped, rode bikes, swam in the creek and lazily read books. We had sooooo much fun. In the Evenings Russ ate dutchoven dinners around the campfire with us and we played card games in the trailer. The showers were warm, The weather beautiful, and the company was pretty darn good too.

Kasey and Mckay June 2008

Kasey and Mckay June 1996

Summer 1998 ish

Celebrating a birthday together.

A milestone was met this year. Mckay turned 12 and was ordained a deacon which coincidently happened on the same day his uncle Kasey, who Mckay idolizes, gave his mission farewell talk. Mckay celebrates his birthday one day after Kasey's, actually only 40 minutes later than Kasey's and Mckay is still disappointed that I couldn't have hurried just a little faster. Mckay will dress like Kasey, play football like Kasey, cheer for the same NFL team and hopefully serve an honorable mission like Kasey. Anyway, this was an important day and I was so proud of both my little brother and my not so little boy.