THIS WEEK

I am a party MACHINE!!!! Tonight: Throwing a party for a neighbor who wants to celebrate the paying off of her house. Tuesday: Helping to Throw the Relief Society Party. Wednesday: The calm before the Storm and Thursday: Office Christmas Party at My House. Needless to say, I won't be blogging much this week.

2 MONTHS of NOT BLOGGING

Here's a wrap up of OCTOBER/NOVEMBER:
OCTOBER:
2 birthdays-- Maggie turned 13, Matt Turned 11.
HALLOWEEN: Amy: Nurse; Maggie: A Dixie Flyer; Matt: Nothing, but I'll ask you last minute to get me a semi-costume. Turned out to be a Glow in the dark skeleton T-shirt. Actuall Kind of cool.; Katie: Black Kitty; Nate: Spiderman. Of course. Ben: Lion-- to match our Tin Man and Dorothy costumes that I made for our friends annual Halloween Party.
NOVEMBER:
Car Crash: Rob is in a crash creating $10,000.00 worth of damage. Incredibly grateful for good insurance and wonderful neighbors who have lent us their cars while we wait the 5 weeks it's going to take to get the car back.
Katie turns 8, has a birthday party, has Thanksgiving and is Baptized with her cousin Josh.

Now it's time to gear up for Christmas. Hoping to do 90% of shopping online. 1/2 of it done this morning between 5&6 a.m.

General Conference

This week was General COnference. My head and Heart weren't really in it like I know they should have been. I loved April's talks and can quote some of them from memory, but I am not feeling the same about this October's. Maybe that's a sign that I need to Really focus on them and listen again and again. Elder Christofferson's talk on a consecrated life really hit home to me when we watched it last night. I want to hear it again.
Thick skull. Needs Repeated washing in the Spirit to gain maximum effectiveness. Guess it's time to download to my ipod.

MOCKINGJAY REVIEW

I Just finished Mockingjay and I'll be very up front about it. I hated it. This book was simply too dark for my sensibilities. There was so little of redeemable value in it. Violence, aberration,manipulation and mayhem again and again. Even our protagonist made incredibly reprehensible decisions in the name of revenge. This is marketed as a Young Adult Novel and it makes me very sad that we are providing our youth with reading material that fails to exemplify nobility, truth, and right. I felt the first two books in the series-- while disturbing and visceral could be tolerated in the name of "Hope for a better future." The third is gratuitous violence with a flat ending. Very sad.
SPECIFIC REVIEW POINTS (Be warned-- May include Spoilers)
The hardest thing for me to accept is Katniss's complicity in agreeing to a final HG. It tells me she learned NOTHING despite the devastating effect all of the kills had on her mental state. THumbs Down.
Secondly, Mama's abandonment of K in her darkest hour seems the cruelest of all. LAME
Thirdly: COllins should have turned K's revelation about the rebel's involvement in the Prim/Children massacre into a redemptive moment a la Ender's Game. Instead, she assassinates Coin-- all but ignoring Plutarch and Gale's hand in the atrocity. And then acts as if she still has some feelings for Gale. Preposterous.
I think Suzanne Collins has forgotten what Young Adults Need-- Somebody who fights for truth, A loyal band to fight along with them, and A triumph of Good over evil. Definitely something Rowling got RIGHT~~~
One reviewer (a neighbor) stated that she felt Mockingjay was accurate in its portrayal of the aftermath of so much trauma. She may be right. It may be accurate. Doesn't make it good reading. I'm still trying to shake it off. I certainly wouldn't want my teenager or, heaven forbid, preteen reading this. Teens are already so fragile. Something like this might send them over the edge.

My One Weakness

Our family is currently watching a BBC Series that is beyond delightful and clever. It is called "Lark Rise to Candleford". In it, one of the main characters-- a single, professional woman-- has any number of simple pleasures. It is a running joke throughout the series that in each episode (something different each time) something will be "my one weakness." My family loves this phrase. Today I have been indulging in playing with MY one weakness-- Books.

When I first met Robert, one of the things that I was attracted to-- among his many other amazing qualities-- was his incredible bookshelf. Not only was it VERY TALL, but it was full to the brim and neatly ordered. Really---love at first sight. At the time I was a starving student with little disposable income. I could buy books for school and nothing else. Also, I had been raised by my mom in a library and I continued this practice throughout college. Until. I. Met. Him......

Robert vehemently believes that a book you can't underline, annotate, or reread is not worth reading in the first place. I have been much converted.
Now, you see, the original bookshelf that drew me to the man is assembled downstairs and the holder of my children's/YA collection which, if you must know, is expansive and has been filled by my other One Weakness-- shopping at thrift stores. While many members of my collection have neon pink price stickers-- they are nonetheless amazing and when my children run out of things to read-- I don't have to hop in a car. I just send them down to the basement. I LOVE MY COLLECTION.

But lately there has been no room left in the inn. Too many great deals and finds and not enough shelves. There are never enough shelves. Digressing again.

Anyway: Spent the morning getting the kids books in order and spent the afternoon cleaning out my bookshelves. Aaaahhhhh. There is empy space. Time to get more books :)

A Little Note About the Jensen Cafe

Marie and Julie's Blog about cooking inspires me. THey seem to an awful lot of entertaining and socializing. I don't take as many opportunities to do those activities as I should, but I have to cook EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. The drudgery, monotony, distatefulness of this chore you cannot know. I have very simple tastes. I would be content each night to have a salad with a little meat on it and some lemon juice as dressing and a little feta for garnish. My family, on the other hand, have varied and emphatic opinions on everything that passes their lips.

I have a friend and in her family each monday was spaghetti, tuesday-- tacos, etc. through the week. THey always knew what they could count on. I would probably scream from the monotony. However, there is much wisdom in this sort of schedule especially from the standpoint of mommy's sanity. We, also, have a list of tested favorites that work well. This list has about 100 items on it. We call it the Jensen Cafe. There are enough meals on this list to keep my family's tummies happy for sure, but instead of doing the smart thing and rotating through favorites, I experiment a TON. Too much. The result is many whines, moans, and looks of dejection at dinner. So you can understand my excitement when an experiment works out.

Yesterday I was faced with the most horrible of foods--- A bag of freezer-burned chicken thighs. It was truly unappetizing. Wanting to remove it from my freezer, but not wanting to waste I tried to think of a way to use it. Crock pot to the Rescue. I dumped a half jar of picante sauce and a 1/2 jar of mild enchilada sauce-- already in the fridge and taking up valuable space and threw it in my crock pot. Result-- Amazing fiesta chicken that Rob put over his whole wheat pasta and I made a salad out of. And there's enough left over for Fajita-like things on Thursday. Not gourmet-- but definitely everyday. Waste not, want not. and Meat+Crock Pot+seasoning=Winner every time.

JENSEN Top 10 of '10

As it is September, more of a new year for me than January ever was, I'm doing a post of the top 10 books in 2010-- Not that were published, but that I read. Keep in Mind that my 2010 is more like a fiscal 2010-- Starting in September of '09

#1: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society: This book makes me laugh out loud and cry the very next second. It is sweet and pure. Definitely my #1

#2: The Hunger Games: Wow! Very exciting, not-for-Youth YA Fiction that has you questioning if you could keep your values in life or death situations.

#3: The Lightning Thief: Really book 1 is the best. The others-- not so much. But love the mythology context. I like Percy Jackson for the same reason I liked The Work and the Glory and Fishers of Men-- I learned so much contextually that it didn't matter that the writing or storyline were a little thin. And you've got to love it when the home teacher asks who Achilles is and the kidlets know the ENTIRE story.

#4 The Tipping Point: I think Malcolm Gladwell is amazing. Two of his books make my Top 10 this year (because they weren't a series) He can tell a story like no other and give you the most amazing understanding of how things really work. I know that Freakonomics was kind of the first in this "Economics as social understanding" genre. And I like Freakonomics, too, but I think The Tipping Point and Outliers are better. Blink-- not so much. Tipping point is about what makes THINGS/MOVEMENTS great

#5 Outliers: See above-- Outliers is about what makes PEOPLE great.

#6 Freakonomics

#7 Scott Kelby Digital Photography

#8 Ella Minnow Pea-- Can't tell you too much, but DEFINITELY check it out.

#9&10 Wonder of Girls and Wonder of Boys: A must have for every parent.

KINDERGARTEN AFTERNOON PROJECTS

So, that which I intend to create/complete during my many afternoon minutes:

Jean Quilt for the Boys' beds
Cookie jar for the next wedding
Air vents replaced
Bathroom/ Laundry Painted
Hair Bows/flowers
Necklaces
Blinds put back on

Or maybe I'll just take a nap.

Inch by Inch . . .

Today I heard a very interesting quote that I thought was pertinent to so many situations

Inch by Inch, Life's a Cinch.

Yard by Yard, It's Really Hard.

In ways, it's pretty trite and cutesy, but in others, it's pretty wise. I always want to see the end. I spend lots of time hoping for something in the future and not enjoying the here and now. And sometimes when I look into the future-- because I don't know what it holds-- things seem dark or scary and very definitely hard. But if I really strive to enjoy the present, the moment, the journey-- I am easily contented and happy. Inch by inch. Moment by moment.

Below are some moments we had this Summer that were really great:

WE DID IT!!!!!!

Last Night we finished the Book of Mormon as a family. We have done a lot of starting and stopping over the past few years and, frankly, have not been very diligent. But last year we decided it was extremely important. I gave up my 6 a.m. gym aspirations (focusing on 9 instead) and every morning, in our bedroom, the three oldest would trek and we'd read. AND WE FINISHED!!! we celebrated with ice cream sundaes and we started over this morning with 1st Nephi. We love the Book of Mormon.

PRODUCTIVITY

Today is a momentous day. Okay. It won't actually be momentous until next Wednesday when Kindergartener's begin attending school, but we'll pretend that it is already here. I have five children in school. Thank you. I know. There is not enough face to contain the width of my grin. In addition to 5 children in school in the afternoon, I have one baby that, if carefully scheduled, will easily sleep from 12:45 (the Magic Moment) until at least 2:30 (When child #3 arrives home from his scholastic pursuits).
1 hour 45 minutes. 105 minutes. 6300 Seconds.

Of quiet time.

It's such a rare occurence. And, now-- it will be a daily one. So many words describe my feelings about this development

shock and awe

unimaginable--truly. I did not think this day would EVER happen.

Today was the first day. While Nathan was still hangin' with me all afternoon, I had to figure out a little Mario Bros. with him, make sure he had a pterodactyl chicken nugget, etc. But on Wednesday of next week our schedule will be thus:

Morning: Get everybody off to school. Drop Katie at the crosswalk, take N&B to the gym, run errands (hopefully not too many), Come home for lunch, drop N at the crosswalk, walk in the house, make a bottle, put B to bed, and do . . . whatever I want. Today it was folding the socks, cleaning the bathroom, cleaning out my sewing.

Tomorrow? Who knows. There is no end to the possiblities that await me in my daily 6300 seconds of bliss.

Wagon Jumping

Okay! Vacations are over. School is starting in 10 days and I'm BACK ON THE WAGON. Which wagon, you may ask? The organize myself, watch what I eat, exercise regularly wagon, seek spirituality-wagon. The beginning of school is almost better than January for me. I love the newness, the OPPORTUNITY for growth.
I am so excited that Nate is entering Kindergarten. We'll hang out in the morning, go to the gym (they like the daycare there), run a few errands, eat lunch, go to school, put Bentley down for a nap and enjoy a blissful 2.5 hours of childrenlessness :). I can't wait.

An Hour Late At Night . . . Let's blog

I have to stay up til 12 so I can pick up Maggie from her party (sleepover, but we only do late-nights). I have nothing pressing. Well, I could clean the kitchen or fold some socks. . . or blog. I am thinking a lot about the woman's traditional role and traditional skills. The women of the home used to be very busy growing, preparing and cleaning all the food, medicine, etc. for the home. We've made a woman's job so easy with all the modern conveniences and we fill it with MANY other things. We forget that we are healers and educators.
I like herbal medicine. I think it has its place in healing. I think that home remedies and other alternative therapies can work in conjunction with modern medicine to achieve miraculous results. I don't believe that either side has the "best" way.

I love Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman because it shows how, even when you are a medical doctor, you may be able to learn much from plants, roots, herbs, ancient remedies, etc. I just bought the entire series. I am so excited to start watching it with my kids. I hope they love this clean, wholesome entertainment as much as I do. Next up: Christy, the entire series, Little House (I already have seasons 1-3); and Star Trek the Next Generation. OOOOPS. Digressing.

ANyway, I would love to feel energetic enough to start and maintain gardens-- vegetable, Cooking herbs and medicinal herbs. Right now I'm just not there, but I have high hopes.

Sad Days

I haven't really felt like blogging or FB'ing these last few days. I read the news that my friend from Alaska (a YW leader from many years ago) lost her daughter in a brutal stabbing. This news is beyond horrible and I have been struck by how trivial, how meaningless some of my blogging, FB'ing, etc. really is. I have nothing profound to say-- certainly nothing that will make anything better.
I am heartsick for this family-- very good people-- and I want to DO something, but can't. I just think about how devastating and long-affecting this will be. So much more than a tragic car accident or illness. Their suffering and hopefully eventual justice will be a public spectacle and none of it will bring their sweet daughter back. And my little problems, my whining, my opinion of Stephanie Meyer-- All of it is so beyond inconsequential.

I know that this family is strong and grounded in their testimony of the gospel. I pray that it will comfort them in the months and years to come.

ECLIPSE REVIEW

Rob finally got home and I convinced him to accompany me to Eclipse. We liked it. Lot of kissing. Bella not as insipid as she is in the book. Jacob better than in the book. Edward huge joke, just like in the book. Review over.

A Hamster Lost. A Prayer Answered.

I am the proverbial chicken. You know the one-- head cut off, scattered priorities, inability to focus and complete the most menial tasks choosing instead to escape into television/books/facebook (choose your poison) only to emerge to the same chaos. Yesterday was probably one of the worst of those days.

June, generally, has been like that. I spend the better part of the week either getting ready or cleaning up from major excursions (youth conference, Lake Powell, EFY, High Adventure). I do a million errands, spend way more money than I want to, have my older children babysit ALL day, come home exhausted, headachy, and crabby. Only to turn around and do it again the next week. July will be Girls Camp (This week) and Family reunions at the end of the month.

So today, scattered and crazy as it was I returned home with a migraine and go straight to my bed after taking an excedrin (which while delightful in its ability to remove my headache post haste, has the undelightful effect of waking me up at 3 a.m.-- Yay caffeine :{) Maggie, bless her heart, undertakes to lock up the house, get all the kids in bed and be absolutely sweet so I can get some rest.

BUT THE HOUSE IS IN DISARRAY SUCH AS HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN. OKAY, it has, but you know what I mean.



The excedrin wakes me up at 3 and I am (as I always do when I am awake in the wee hours) obsessing over any number of things (the house is so horridly messy; I have so much I want to do, but such limited energy; how to improve the state of the economy in general and the state of our business specifically; hope Amy's okay; gotta give a lesson on Sunday; who will our RS teachers be etc. etc. etc.) I am wide awake so I arise intent on cleaning the kitchen to give myself some hope for the future. Some forward progress.



I make progress. I discover the source of the bad smell (bad watermelon) I clear a path, I even start a load of laundry. That's where I discovered the situation necessitating the title of this post. Turbo's (Matt's newly acquired Hamster) spinning wheel was in the Laundry Room sink. We place his cage in the laundry room at night because his nocturnal wheel spinning is not conducive to sleep. For that matter neither is mine. Ooops. I digress. Usually I just parentheticalize. I did it again. Sorry.



Anyway. Turbo's wheel is off and there is a hole out of which he has escaped. I go down to Maggie's room (truly a microcosm of our entire house in it's entropy) hoping that she has borrowed him for the night and he is safe and sound. Not so. She undertook to clean the cage yesterday morning and her methods of securing said abode were insufficient. She forgot about cleaning the cage and he has, apparently, been an escapee for the better part of the day. On so many levels, AAAAAARGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!



Sorry. so, recognizing that I need a little more faith I kneel to pray. Asking that if it be His will, we will find the little rodent before he climbs into some unpatched hole or unfinished electrical outlet and dies and rots, smelling up my house. Maggie and I begin cleaning the laundry room (it is now 4 a.m.) I am, of course, cursing myself and the state of the laundry room, my lack of organization, generally, and the fact that a hamster could live for years on the amount of food that is sometimes found on the kitchen floor. I google finding hamsters and someone suggests turning out lights and shining flashlights around, under etc. I figure it's worth a try and we do it. Within seconds Maggie finds sweet Turbo behind the entertainment center.

I SO DID NOT EXPECT TO EVER FIND THIS HAMSTER. But the Lord saw fit to wake me up (finding a nocturnal hamster in the middle of the day would have been so much more difficult), to answer my prayer, to restore my faith and hope in Him, to provide me with yet another tender mercy to add to the millions I already have, and to remind me that He is there helping me with the smallest of my problems if I will just ask. I guess that is worth getting up at 4 am for.

ANNUAL TWILIGHT MOCKING

Okay. I know I'm taking a risk, but am I the only woman who didn't see Eclipse with a huge group of other women at Midnight? Rob and I will go see it together. Hope that doesn't mean he's relinquishing his man-card.

In memory of my Crafting Days

I just saw on facebook photos of my friend's crafts. She has one little girl. I remember having one little girl-- albeit not for very long. I remember savoring the time I had to craft. I remember not running 25 places at once. Some times I long for that time again-- even though I also remember that being an even harder time.
Even though it's summer vacation I am busier than ever. I run from this class to that lesson to this responsibility to that and give so little to every one. I just watched the cake boss and I would have to say my life is just dirty-iced. A thin layer to keep the crumbs in, but no artistry or beauty. Just survival from crisis to crisis.
I desire more holiness and beauty, but throw those away for clean counters and folded laundry. Which might be, in their own way, artistry and beauty. I know so many moms who love summer vacation. That would not be me.
As we speak I have turned my back to write this post for the better part of 2 minutes. In that time Bentley has taken a brand new package of wipes and spread every last one of them about the room in the most amazing adornment.
I want to be frustrated, but then I see him naked except for a diaper (a blowout just minutes ago-- not a day-long experience) chatting with the kids downstairs in his way and it's all good. Mostly.

OKAY, in the mood to lighten the mood a little for my mom friends.

TO DO LIST

Laundry

NO TIME TO BLOG

Get ready: here are the excuses for NUMB (Not updating my Blog).
1. Relief Society-- Meetings every week, tons of phone calls, soothing bruised egos, and sad hearts and really getting to know our ward-- All in a days work.
ALSO: have not been released from activity days (2x per month) and doing that too.
2. Baseball-- 2-3 Hours per game. 2 times a week. It would not be an exaggeration to say that I wouldn't be terribly upset if I never saw another baseball again. But I will, so why bother saying that. . .
3. Running/Training: I joined my gym's biggest Loser contest because it was a phenomenal deal on personal training (18 one-hour sessions for $200-- I think a 75% savings). I train three days a week and run 3-5 times a week-- Sometimes on the same day. While I am feeling very hard core, and getting a very hard core :), I'm a little tired. On a great note, I am down 8-9 pounds (depending on the time of day). Not necessarily just from exercising, though. To quote my trainer:

"I can't out-train a Cruddy (not her words) diet. If you don't change the way you'll eat you'll just be sore and still fat."

We were speaking generally about the principle of diet v. exercise because we had been reading that 80% of fitness goals are related to proper diet, not exercise. Of course I have used this research to justify missing workouts-- I'm resourceful that way. This ends this week, though, as does baseball, and school, etc. So I'm glad for all that, but of course I've still got to deal with children. THIS IS THE YEAR WE UTILIZE SUMMER VACATION TO WORK AND PLAY HARD-- I always say this. But. I. Mean. It. This. Time. OOPs. Digressed.

4. PTA: After successfully dodging the PTA bullet all year (new baby excuses, etc) I'm in charge of the last day carnival, working on Next year's reading program, and HELPING with stuff that needs to be done. I actually like it. Weird.

5. PACKING, UNPACKING, PACKING, UNPACKING. Right this very minute I should be packing my food, boat, etc. to get ready to go to Lake Powell for the Second time. The first time we took Robert's Parents to Rainbow bridge. Today we're taking Robert's Staff to Rainbow Bridge. The man loves his boat, what can I say. This time, however, we're going without children which creates many opportunities for MommyPanic. That dread disease that no matter what (if they're with you or not) you can't stop worrying that they're OK. My mother-in-law will be watching them and the girls will be there all day tomorrow, but we'll see how tonight goes with Matt as au pair at Grandma's. Can you say Steep stairs. EEEEEEEEEEEKKKKK.

6. Photography and Digital scrapbooking, and all of its accoutrements. Rob said to me the other day: Think of how much you'd get done if you spent the time you spend on facebook on doing family slide shows and other great things. SO I have been learning Photoshop, playing with my camera and trying to be more crafty generally. All while trying to clean house. Yeah Right.

7. Reading: Just finished Percy Jackson series-- liked it for the great Mythology contexts, details, etc. Now on Fablehaven. Not hating it, but not getting through it very fast. Also reading the American Plague about Yellow Fever. Pretty good read, but hard to read in small chunks which is all I got.

OKAY, better go. I'll check in when we get back.

Small Bragging Moment

Every single pair of my pre-pregnancy Jeanage NOW FITS. Thank you very much. Let the Applause begin!

ALL DRESSED UP. . .

Hey, It's 5:15 and I am ready to go running, but my partners are not here. That is so okay. I will happily go back to bed. Today I am babysitting my niece (I hope she likes me) and cleaning house. I'll need to be on my toes, though, cause I'm not used to having a toddler around.

If you watch a toddler at your house, she'll probably want a cookie.

If you give a kid a cookie, she'll probably want some milk to go with it.

Drinking the milk will remind her of her Kitty Ludwig, so you'll have to put some milk out for the kitties.

Going outside to give the milk to the kitties will remind the kid how much she likes to swing so you'll have to spend an hour swinging on the swings.

Swinging so close to the slide will remind her how much she loves to feel the rush of the yellow under her and the wind in her face, so you'll have to go down the slide a couple hundred times.

Using the slide will remind her of the slip n slide you did last summer so you'll have to drag out the slip n slide. . . . . etc. etc.

UNTIL YOU COLLAPSE IN EXHAUSTION OR AMY COMES HOME TO BABYSIT-- WHICHEVER COMES FIRST :)

my apologies to Laura Numeroff for slaughtering her literary style.

R.S. Visiting-- the Great Perspectivizer

Last night as a presidency we went out visiting. We had 2 appointments, but we ended up talking to 4 extra sisters in the process of walking around. It was so great. I came home so peaceful and zen-like. I love getting out of my house and being social. But I usually just stay inside and do my own thing unless someone invites me out. I'm realizing that when we pay attention to others something really magical happens-- our own problems are put in real perspective and the spirit calms your troubled heart-or makes us see that the things troubling our heart are really not so troublesome at all.
I needed that last night. I'm kind of addicted to R.S. Visiting now.

A soft answer. . .

Our family has placed a moratorium on one of our worst habits--- YELLING. There are many options for expressing disagreement: singing, whispering, but not yelling. We'll have to see how this goes.


But if you hear "You Are the Children Who Don't Do Anything" coming from my house, just know it's a parenting experiment in action:)

Less is More

While facebook is great fun, it does not create great writers-- just great snippeters. So, to that end, I am attempting to ramp up my BLOG presence and ramp down my facebook presence. Of course, each has its advantages, but I'm searching for the greater depth and permanence the blogosphere affords me.
Lists aren't exactly depth objects, but they help me organize my thinkings. Bear with me.

THINGS I DESIRE LESS OF:
* Distraction-- in the form of FB&TV
* Temptation in the form of choc. chip cookies, facebook, crafting supplies (for projects that never come to fruition.
* Drivel-- I let myself get hooked into poor quality or questionable entertainment because I "just need to have something on"-- A recent example. One show that I really like, I realize is probably not the kind of show I want to be watching. The other day it had a SUUUPPPER catchy song that was full of 2 words I don't really want my kids hearing or singing. I can't get it out of my head. EEEEEEEEK!!
* Noise-- in the form of bickering, continual media, etc.
* Clutter-- Today's impulse purchase is tomorrow's regret. This may not be true for everyone, but it definitely is for me. I nickel and dime myself to death buying small, stupid things and in two weeks throw it away. Such is the way of Stocking stuffers, easter baskets, birthdays, etc. THIS needs to stop.

I SHOULD REMEMBER MY MOTTO OF THE PAST:

Live Simply

Spend Less

Give More

Relief Society

I've just been called into the Relief Society Presidency. I am so excited to get to know the many great women in our ward. I am also mindful of the fact that to pull this off three things are necessary:
1. Organization-- Something I sorely lack
2. Discipline-- DEFINITELY NEEDING SOME OF THAT LATELY
3. Sacrifice-- on everybody's part, especially my family.

Should be fun. Will be fun. Hard work, too. Good thing, cause I was thinking I needed something to stretch me. Guess I got it.

Looking forward to this week:
Easter Barbeque on Friday
Maggie's Clogging performance on Friday
General Conference on Saturday and Sunday
Mom's Birthday on Sunday.

BUSY BUSY BUSY!!!!!

Random RANT

WHY are there NO CUTE baby boy clothes?-- There are so many cute little girl clothes, head bows, bands, and flowers and ABSOLUTELY NOTHING for boys but sarcastic sayings, tacky graphics and funky colors.

Little Snippets

NATHAN:
Nate, ever the sticky-backed paper addict, loves bandaids. I have, I admit, caved to purchashing them with characters on them. We currently own Cars and spider-man. As you might have guessed, said addict finds many excuses to need said bandages. Hence, the somewhat abusive-sounding family epithet: No Band-Aids unless the wound is DRIPPING BLOOD!!!!!. So today, as I am reminding the finish carpenter of the jobs he is finishing, I notice the bathroom drawer open and, inside, are the remains of every bandaid Nate has ever owned. His own personal stash. He and Maggie take after Mom.

Nate, again. I tell him Mr. Nicholls, the carpenter is coming over and later he says, "Mom, Mr. Quarter is here."

Nate is starting to read and can decode all words that have short vowel sounds and basic letter sounds. He can even read this stuff upside down YAY !!! Kindergarten registration is in 14 days. Even more yay!!!

KATIE: Katie is reading like a champ. She is sweetness and light embodied and we all just love her to death. Whenever there is a new girl at school, Katie plays with her at every recess and lunch. One little girl in church the other day prayed in front of the entire primary that she could play with her best friend Katie this week. I'm pretty sure I can name 10 different little girls that have the same little prayer in their hearts. Katie makes everyone feel like they're her best friend. And it's not a gender-specific trait. There are a couple of little boys that feel the exact same way about her.

MATT: Matt is getting ready for Baseball season. He and his neighborhood posse rotate from house to house playing football at this one's house, basketball at another and Baseball in between. He excels in school. He is an incredible author. Some of the stuff I read at school blows me away. He is witty and insightful and just a tad bit tongue-in-cheek. He will make an incredible political essayist someday. Now if we can just improve his chicken scratch he'll be ready for 6th grade.

MAGGIE: Maggie is destined to be a film-maker or novelist. She has the most glorious imagination and the ability to describe it to others. She is stunningly beautiful and is growing so much that somebody in church the other day had the gall to suggest that she is taller than me-- prompting a shoes-off -in-the-foyer-back-to-back moment. Her height is an inevitability, I know, but not one that I expected to occur for another 3 years.

AMY: At 14 going on 25, Amy shoulders much of the housekeeping/baby tending load around the house. She is trying to earn money for EFY and is working very hard to complete her Young Women personal progress. We have to remind Bentley on a regular basis that Amy is "Not the Momma".

BENTLEY: Punkin will be 8 months next week and is army-crawling all over the house, necessitating a renewed floor-cleaning vigilance on our part. He is at one moment ornery, fussy at the other flashing us the sweetest, toothy grin. He gives us the raspberry constantly and we all ADORE him. He is, however, much work-- for everybody-- and, as such, will probably be the last of his kind. His nicknames are: Dictator, Rajah, General, Commandant, etc. You get the picture.

GAIL: My life is a series of rotations. One in which I begin many projects, another in which I put them off, and a third in which, for my sanity and self-esteem's sake I push myself to finish them one after another. I am currently in that mode. As well, i am getting spring fever, desiring pretty flower beds, weed-free backyards, and a clean home. So I am being semi-productive. I have also started running again pretty steadily. I can't say that I love it, but I am training for the marathon, and I love knowing that I've got something I'm striving for. Also, I am trying to lose a few pounds, but am having a hard time getting away from chocolate.
I've been reading a little bit lately-- the Hunger Games and Percy Jackson series. I can't help it. I love YA Lit. I have also read "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" which I cannot recommend enough. I may even do a blog entry about it. Mostly, I'm just trying to find joy in the journey, instead of looking to next big thing or expecting that I'll be happy when this or that trial or deadline is over.

ROBERT: Robert's firm has just shed two partners and moved offices. They have been busy, along with legal work, designing letterhead, purchasing signage, engineering a website, remodeling the building and reinforcing their client base. Additionally, he is designing and building an uber-treehouse in our backyard. Each free evening is filled with hammering, sawing, measuring, figuring, and other such stuff. He is counting the days until the water is warm enough to fire up Coby-- the boat.

HOUSEWORK-- CALORIES BURNED

Doing laundry
73
Making the bed
68
Cooking
85
Washing the dishes
78
Ironing
78
Dusting
85
Sweeping
112
Vacuuming
119
Scrubbing the floors
129
Rearranging furniture
204
Yard work
170
Washing windows
102
Washing the car
102
Gardening
136
Mowing the lawn
187
Raking
146
Shoveling snow
204
Carrying a small child (up to 15 lbs.) up and down stairs
289

TO DO LIST

We are cleaning house for the family members that have such an orderly home. EEEEEK. While we love to see them, it is ALWAYS a stress to have them come, because my house, while generally neat, is not particularly clean and now I must ACTUALLY DO all the work that I haven't yet done for a while. I keep putting it off because it is off-putting. And yet, I will be so glad and proud when it's done. If only housework really did burn calories. Then I might be more excited to do it.

SURVIVAL PARENTING

I have facebook friends who are trying out cloth diapers, homemade baby food, etc. etc. If these friends knew what kinds of things I let slide in lieu of insanity, they might turn me in. For example: my kids sleep in their clothes sometimes-- not because I like it, but because I don't check. I send them to bed and am just super grateful they're there, that I don't ask questions. Looking a gift horse in the mouth, you know


We sometimes have cereal for dinner.
The year before they go to kindergarten usually spend LOTS of time in front of media.
I am, at this moment, CRINGING at these confessions.
I buy bread from the store-- and like it.
I don't often shower before --5 pm
The Wendy's drive up people totally know me.
I once paid my kid NOT to enter the science fair.

The mother who takes pains to endow her children with good habits secures for herself smooth and easy days. On the other hand, she who lets habits take care of themselves has a weary life of endless friction. The mother needs to acquire her own habit of training her children so that, by and by, it is not troublesome to her, but a pleasure......(Charlotte Mason)

I could probably take a lesson or two from Madame Mason about consistency and order. But I guess you just do what you can do and hope, in the end, they become the people you wish for them to be despite their dirty clothes, messy rooms, and rumpled tresses. Because they also have tickle spiders, inside jokes, trampoline games, and good memories. Hopefully, too, they'll learn the pleasure of order, the thrill of learning, the satisfaction of work, and the hope of a better tomorrow that They are in charge of creating.

OBSERVATION

I just read a guest editorial in a newspaper. It was extremely well-written, logical, intelligent. It was just what I would expect from this person-- the guy in my senior class voted "most likely to succeed" He had scholarships begging for him, colleges wining and dining him. He finally settled on Stanford-- of him we would expect nothing less. At the end of this editorial was the tagline: "-..,so and so is a lifelong Alaskan resident and works in a local motel."

UMMMMMM! what happened. I certainly expected this person to be a doctor (I think that's what he wanted to do). It's just extremely interesting to me how some people fail to live up to their potential. And how sometimes I feel as if I am failing to live up to my potential. And interesting also, and sad, that some people seemed to have peaked in High school. Now that I've written this very judgmental paragraph I realize the same could be said about me by people who don't use my same measuring stick-- Legal education ends up wiping noses and bottoms. But as I look at my children--in the most objective way possible, of course--I see beautiful people, inside and out, intelligent, compassionate, and (for the most part) sweet. Definitely time NOT WASTED. But if I ever write a great editorial, evidencing my intelligence, the tagline better be: Gail Jensen spends her time managing her extensive dispute resolution practice-- Jensen, Jensen, Jensen, Jensen, Jensen, Jensen, Jensen, and Jensen as well as numerous other executive and administrational duties. Instead of -- she wipes noses and bottoms.

Gail on Education

I have a couple of readers whom I highly respect that have chosen a different educational path for their children than I have. I respect that decision like you wouldn't believe and regularly mention that I don't have the patience or the discipline to be a home educator. That being said, I feel that my children have really benefited from being educated in a public setting. This debate is widespread among people I know. I am quite good friends with a number of people who have chosen a philosophy of homeschooling. Because of my friendship with these homeschoolers, and their genuine desire to seek learning for themselves, I have often found myself attending their classes, symposia, etc. They are genuine in their desire to provide the best for their children. AND, they often disapprove of my choice to educate my children in the public schools as if I don't care as much about my children as they do about theirs. One time I had a father tell me after seeing me at a program "I didn't know you home-schooled" in a truly condescending way. This particular person was continually getting on my nerves and I snapped back: "Do I have children in my home? Then I guess I am a home educator" ZING!!! but not terribly nice.
HERE GOES GAIL'S PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION:

I don't homeschool. I actually think my kids have benefitted from the creativity, discipline, intelligence and insight of the over 25+ adults that have mentored them in the last 8 years. They are incredible readers, compassionate citizens and have friends of innumerable backgrounds, and philosophies. I am involved in my child's classrooms and I keep their education from being "conveyor belt" by choosing their teachers (when possible) volunteering extensively in the schools, and knowing what they're learning. I salute those friends of mine who choose to homeschool. In many situations it is the best thing for the child.

I cannot.

I think my kids will be OK. True, they may have to deal with unpleasant temperaments-- both on the playground an in the classroom. They have to at home, too, and they'll have to when they become adults and are employed. They may also be exposed to people that have different values-- yep. I hope so. If I teach them well enough, they might even be a light to the world. Finally, their education may have holes-- that's why I'm here. To teach them what I know, what I've seen and how I think life should be lived-- to be responsible adults. Oh, yeah!! Because I'm their parent and really love them.

Even if I do send them to public school.

2 years today

Two years ago today my dad Passed away. It was pretty sudden and unexpected. I don't think I still feel the overwhelming grief that I did those first few days, but I miss him in so many other situations. Like when I go to do a puzzle, or see his very distinct handwriting, or hear his voice on the answering machine that has never been changed, I realize what a void there is in my life. I miss my Dad.

MY NEW MANTRA

I AM
MINDFULLYandPURPOSEFULLY

ELIMINATING

NUTRITIONALLY VACANT FOOD

Instead of I am "Dieting", I am changing what I eat because when I eat too many processed foods I don't feel as good as when I am eating foods in their natural, fiber-rich, salt-free state. I am trying to be faithful in Using Myfooddiary.com which is an amazing, worth-the-$9-a-month tool. I have only dropped a couple of pounds. But in the past it has brought me amazing results. Now I'm just trying to figure out how to deal with weekends which are my biggest downfall.

Just a note: Dove Dark Chocolate Promises are not nutritionally vacant as they contain anti-oxidants, etc. Guess I'm going to do some real research on Dark Chocolate benefits.

BTW: Here is a list of 14 superfoods that should be in everyone's diet.

Beans -- reduce obesity
Blueberries -- lower risk for cardiovascular disease
Broccoli -- lowers the incidence of cataracts and fights birth defects
Oats -- reduce the risk of type II diabetes
Oranges -- prevent strokes
Pumpkin -- lowers the risk of various cancers
Wild salmon -- lowers the risk of heart disease
Soy -- lowers cholesterol
Spinach -- decreases the chance of cardiovascular disease and age-related macular degeneration
Tea -- helps prevent osteoporosis
Tomatoes -- raise the skin's sun protection factor
Turkey -- helps build a strong immune system
Walnuts -- reduce the risk of developing coronary heart disease, diabetes, and cancer
Yogurt-promotes strong bones and a healthy heart

For When We Limit ourselves . .. .

LOVELY BONES REVIEW

OK. I will risk offending some of those who liked this book. I read the book last year and expect that many will want to see the movie. I haven't seen the movie and probably won't. If you haven't read the book, it's the story of a 14 year old girl speaking from beyond the grave about her murder and the effect her murder has on her family. It includes quite a lot of the father and sister trying to prove their suspicions about the neighbor.
There are no suspicions about the identity of the killer. The main character knows who killed her and tells you from the beginning-- making all of their detective hijinks incredibly scary.
I cannot recommend this book for one reason. It offended my spirit. That's not to say that it wasn't well-written or innovative. It was all of that. But the first 10 pages of this book in which Susie describes her demise was chilling and horrific and, frankly, more than I wanted to handle. I finished this book. But then I had to get rid of it. I didn't even give it away to the DI because I didn't want anyone else reading it. I guess I'm a lightweight when it comes to violence in literature. My college professors might have said that I was "Sheltering Myself", closing myself off.

Yes.

I'm okay with that.

LEST you think that I am a habitual naysayer, I have just finished book one and an deep in book 2 of "The Hunger Games" which, to be fair, has some violence. But it was engaging and full of great commentarial undertones and I recommend it highly.But not to young kids.

MORE CUTE BEN!

Baby Update!

Bentley just had his 6 month well check just weighed in at 18 lbs 11 oz. He is super duper healthy and received a flu and H1N1 shot as well as myriad other shots. He rolls over back to front an front to back and smiles at the world. He loves music and bells, playing with the wipe package and paper and Watching TV. We have decided we'll keep him.

Getting My Craft On

So, lately, I have been dying to get back into my sewing machine, beading, card-making-- anything. This week has been a banner week for that kind of stuff. I've made it a priority and, so, it's gotten done. I made a car seat cover and a cute minky/ribbon tag blankie thing (technical, huh). Then I made a minky blanket for my good friend who admired Bentley's. Then today, really just trying to be 1/10 as cool as Sandy, I mod-podged really cute paper onto a Large letter J. I have never mod-podged before. It's cool stuff. AND I have been reading. Lost Symbol-- liked it not so much. But I am enjoying the Hunger Games.

BOOK REVIEW: LOST SYMBOL

Okay, so I loved the DaVinci Code. I freely admit this. I am a sucker for symbols and making connections, etc. I didn't even feel like it was too blasphemous. So I had high hopes for THe Lost Symbol. I was disappointed. Dan Brown's strength is his ability to make symbols accessible. He can explain a symbolic relationship in words that are enlightening. This strength, however, is better suited to a history channel documentary than a novel. The Lost Code is a disappointing jumble of Freemasonry, American History (though, those were the interesting parts), "thought Science" and gratuitous violence. Brown's antagonist is vicious, demonic, relentless, and without remorse for his evil. The DaVinci Code was not near so gratuitously violent. Brown may truly be a One-hit wonder . His works make good movies probably because they are highly edited.

I am interested to research the freemasonry and american History, but I certainly do not need a masochistic killer to learn about it. I am truly disappointed.

Oh, and just a note: Brown mentions religious practices from many religions that are off-putting. He mentions the Mormons "Baptizing of the dead". For those readers of my blog, especially non mormons: -- the text ought to be-- "Baptizing for the dead", which is something entirely different. Mormons believe that all mankind, both those living and those who have gone before should have the opportunity to have the ordinance of baptism and that the Lord has provided a way for living people to stand in as "proxies" for their ancestors so that their ancestors may have all proper ordinances done for them. So live people are baptized for and in behalf of their ancestors.

Interesting note, also: This practice is mentioned in the New Testament in 1 Cor. 15:29 Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead? (King James Version of the New Testament) Clearly, the Mormons weren't the first to believe that people would be resurrected and need baptism to return to heaven. ANyway, just thought I'd clear that misinformation up.

I'd give the Lost code 3 stars for the really good information on freemasonry, but only 3 stars for the gratuitous violence and strange "New World" religion/science emphasis.

Gail's Year in Review

What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?
Had a 6th Kid
Saw Wicked
Paid almost as much in parking as the hotel cost per night in SF
Got a smart phone
Texted regularly:)
Used an Inhaler
Drove a new car
Had my new car hit-- buy not my fault
Slept in my master bedroom and showered in my master shower, though we've lived here 4 years
Completed a major remodel of our home.
THERE IS SO MUCH MORE THAT I WANT TO DO IN 2010 THAT I HAVE NEVER DONE BEFORE!!!!!

Did you keep your new years' resolutions?
For many years now, I have been failing to keep them. Not for lack of desire-- mostly for lack of follow through.

What are some of your resolutions for 2010?
Speak Up, but with integrity and understanding
Patience
Orderly and scheduled home
LOTS MORE FUN!!!!

Did anyone close to you give birth?
Great friends, running partners, but no family members. DARN!!!!

Did anyone close to you die?
My uncle Ed passed away this year.

What countries did you visit? NADA

What states did you visit?
California. 2010 Will be different

What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
More peace and laughter in my home-- mostly my responsibility

What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
July 17, of course. The day senor Screamer joined our little family.

What was your biggest achievement of the year?
This has not really been a great year for achievements. I look to 2010 for a new beginning of forever.
What was your biggest failure?
Failing to change bad habits of communication and laziness.

Did you suffer illness or injury? yes.

What song will always remind you of 2009?
Haven't got one this year

Compared to this time last year, are you: much happier, richer, nicer? some yes, some no.

What do you wish you'd done more of? Played, had fun

What do you wish you'd done less of? worried, stressed

How did you spend Christmas? With family in SG and then with family up north.

What was your favorite TV program? Biggest Loser

What was the best book you read this year? 1776

What did you want and get? Healthy baby and a DSLR Camera

What were your favorite films of this year? Fireproof

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? MORE PLAYTIME with my Husband.

What kept you sane? I don't think I am.

What drove you insane? Bickering

What political issue stirred you the most? ultraconservative media getting stirred up over every little thing.

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.
Life will move forward no matter what-- but YOU must choose to make it enjoyable.
What are you most excited for in 2010?
Nathan starting Kindergarten and learning to read, Katie getting baptized, Running the Marathon again, Travelling, hopefully; Living on the lake this summer, Senor Screamer learning to express frustrations in other ways; Taking tons of incredible pictures.

What are you least excited for in 2010?
Amy turning 14; Matt going to intermediate school; driving the big girls up to DH every day.