Santa Claus

On Christmas Eve we go to Grandma Jensen's house for family dinner and presents. This year Santa Claus came too. Landon wasn't too pleased by his earlier encounter with Santa so we were happy that no tears came this time he got to sit on his lap. Everyone got to sit with Santa and get their gift from him. We had a great evening with family.

Christmas Happy Dance

Corinne got her Christmas wish from her Grandpa Bear. She loved that he came to visit, and he brought with him the gift that she wanted....Dance revolution game. We hooked it up while Grandpa was still here and Corinne danced away. Landon thought it looked fun so he joined her. Corinne is looking forward to improving her dancing skills.

Locks of Love

Corinne did it again. She gave her hair away to Locks of Love. I participated in this with her two years ago, but I doubt I'll do it again. I am sure my hair will start turning gray with having three kids and they won't want my hair anymore. Corinne's hair on the other hand is beautiful and she enjoys giving it away so another little girl can have pretty hair too. I must admit though, it kills me to watch them cut it all off! This time they got 11 inches.

Holiday visitors are here!

This week has been a very interesting one. We were very busy at the beginning of the week with gettin gthe house cleaned and preparing for Christmas. I got most of the odds and ends of shopping done and picked up some gifts that were delivered to the store on Tuesday. We had a nice Relief Society program where Brian spoke on Tuesday night. Wednesday morning we had a scare. I woke up and I had started bleeding. We called my doc and he got me in that afternoon for an appointment. An ultrasound showed that the placenta was still attached and the baby is in good shape, but I was placed on bed rest for a couple of days. That is no fun, and for those of you who know me well, it isn't easy. I was very grateful to my friends and family who took good care of me during the days, and Brian, Corinne, and even Landon took good care of me too. I still have to take it very easy for the next couple of weeks, cause each time I stand up I have some contractions.









My brother, Matt, and his family came into town on Saturday from Alaska. We are so excited to see them. We all got together and practiced for our musical number we sang in church today. We sang O Holy Night and it was fun, but we missed having Jake there with us. Then later on this evening we got together at Tommi's grandma's house for a birthday celebration for Mattie. She turned 3. Corinne loves to have her cousins here and it is so fun to watch Landon and his cousins play together, being so close in age. This coming week will be another busy one, with my dad coming and Christmas programs. I promise to take it easy. Pictures will come tomorrow when my camera battery gets charged.

Christmas Nativity

This week was a busy one with holiday shopping, but mostly, I was busy helping with our Annual Live Nativity and Food Drive. The youth in our ward combined with the youth in a neighboring ward to put on this pageant. It is quite the production, with city gates, shops, music, live animals and the manger scene. Hundreds of people came and donated food. I was in charge of the angel choirs. This is our third year and I was grateful that this year it wasn't raining or snowing as it has in years past. It was still freezing but the angels sounded great and I think it will continue to be a tradition for years to come. It is a very neat way to get into the spirit of Christmas and have a wonderful experience by recreating the night in Bethlehem.

Trimming the tree and other decorating tips

We put our tree up last week, but the last "fun" ornaments were still left to put on the tree. Corinne helped me with them while Landon slept. It was much safer that way. Corinne was feeling jealous of all my ornaments, since I have all of mine since the year I was born, and she has just six. We'll work on her collection.
Some other decorating occurred in our house this week. I was getting ready to go with Corinne to the orthodontist when Landon came in with all this dark red stuff on his face and in his hair. He smelled a bit like chocolate. I went on a search to find what he got all over him. I found an open tube of lip gloss...my chocolate flavored kind...in the family room. He was putting on make up like Mommy. I had to laugh and grab the camera. Then I had to hurry and put him in the shower. Boy! Lip gloss is hard to get out of hair, especially when his hair is so light.

Oh, in case you were curious, my retainers still fit and Corinne will need braces, but not for a couple of years.

We got our Christmas letter out this week so you should have received one. Hopefully you enjoy the blog and our Christmas family update. We love you.

Happy Birthday!!

It was my birthday on Sunday, which causes some logistical obstacles to parties. Brian and I both had callings at church and Landon was still under quarantine for his spots, even though he looks and acts like he is fine. After church we got some pictures taken of the family so we could send off our holiday letter. I think this was the winner.

Then Corinne was asked to sing at the nursing home for their church services. The evening was nice with family over at my mom's house. Mom made my favorite, Apple Juice Chicken, and we had my favorite cake, pineapple upsidedown, for dessert. It was a good birthday and I heard from my whole family.

Seeing Spots?

We woke up on Thanksgiving morning and while bathing Landon we noticed some spots on his back and his arm. He has been immunized for the chicken pox, but according to the docs, he could still get them. The nurses also said he could get a very mild case of them and still be contagious. We checked with all the family to see if they wouldn't mind being possibly exposed to the mystery spots and we were able to get together and celebrate Thanksgiving. Plus, Landon didn't act as if for one second he was feeling sick.

I was in charge of making my famous apple pies for Thanksgiving. I like to cut designs in the top of the pie instead of the normal slices to make it more original. Here is my pie with a turkey on top. It was a hit!

Snow!

We got our first snow today. When we woke up this morning it was falling pretty well, but staying true to Boise weather, it was gone by noon. We had to get up early to feel the cold snow. Winter is here!

Having Fun

It rained most of the week in Boise. We needed it badly, but we had some warmer temperatures too, so no snow yet. We got a lot of shopping done for Landon's Christmas since there were some good sales this week. I taught the cheerleaders their dance for the annual show at Mom's school. I am sure it looked funny as a pregnant lady was bouncing around with the cheerleaders. :) We went to get pictures of Landon this week since I have been a slacker with that, especially compared to the pictures I had taken of Corinne. They will be back on December 5th but I have an example of how we didn't have him pose. He found out how to work his tongue.

We had a little fun with the neighbors this weekend. You see, they are U of I fans and we of course cheer for BSU. As anticipated, Boise State beat U of I and we made some "condolence cookies" for our sad neighbors. We told them we knew they must be feeling upset after the big rivalry game so we made them cookies to help them feel better. We can be stinkers sometimes, but all in good fun. They said they'd be making black and gold cookies for us next year...but I don't think so.

Have a very happy Thanksgiving everyone! We love you!

Put me in Coach!

Landon has always had a good arm. When he winds up to throw....you had better be ready. Today, he is trying to master the other end of the deal. We caught some of his first official catches on a video clip.

Time to Boast a Little

This week was not very eventful in the Jensen house with the exception of an outbreak of eczema on my face, and sorry there won't be any pictures of that. Thankfully it is a lot better now. My boasting will have to come in the form of a pleased parent. Corinne had quite the week. She brought home a beautiful school picture. I never had a great school picture and even after P.E. here is how her's turned out.Gorgeous, right? Then at her ballet class, her teacher stepped out of the room to come and tell me what a delight Corinne was and how beautiful and smart she is. Her teacher just wanted to tell me how glad she was that Corinne was in her class and how she is the natural leader of the group.
Lastly, we had Parent/Teacher conferences and got her report card. It was very good....All A's. Her teacher was also so pleased to have Corinne in her class. I am a lucky parent.

GO BSU!!!!

So...we have an arrangement in our house. In even years we go and see a BYU football game, and in odd years we go watch BSU. We introduced Corinne and Landon last year at BYU where the Cougars creamed Utah State 38-0. Landon learned to clap and Corinne got to see the size of what Brian calls "a real football stadium." Here are some shots of last year.

This year Landon still loved football and he clapped and cheered with us all. Corinne enjoyed getting up close to local stars as she watched Ian Johnson run for a touchdown and gave a high five to Buster Bronco. We watched BSU whip up on San Jose State with a score of 42-7. It was exciting and fun to be so close to the famous blue "Smurf Turf", and it was a beautiful day for football!

Halloween

Halloween was interesting this year. Corinne spent the evening at her dad's, but we got to go and make a craft at school and walk in the Halloween parade. I was in charge of the craft this year and we made little pumpkin spiders. Corinne picked out Landon's "Doctor Little" costume and Corinne was "Princess Jasmine." Everyone was surprised at how Landon kept his hat and mask on. He loves hats, but the mask was really hot. We liked seeing all the fun costumes in the parade at school and being with Corinne for her party. Landon even did a little trick or treating that night to our neighbors. He would say "treat" all the way up the walk and when they'd open their doors he'd just stare. They would give him a treat (which he thought was amazing) and after they closed the door he'd say "thank you." We'll have to work on his timing and presentation for next year.

Zoo Time

Brian had the day off of work so we decided to take Landon on his first trip to the zoo. Landon liked the animals and was able to spot them pretty well. His favorite though was the giraffe slide and the tiger seat. We'll probably wait 'til he appreciates the animals a little more before we get a membership at the zoo, since you can find a slide at our park. Next year we should be getting a giraffe and some lions at the zoo. Maybe that will interest Landon more. We liked the bear and the tigers. Cool stuff!

We Have Pumpkins!

It is such a fun waste of a good pumpkin! We got one carved for each of the family members. From left to right, the pumpkin artists are Grandma Anderson, Brian, Tammy, Corinne, and Landon/Tammy/Brian. After we lit them to see how they looked we blew out the candles and let Landon help. Then, whenever Landon saw a pumpkin, he blew as hard as he could at it to see if the light would go out. Most people had little electric or battery lights so he wasn't successful, but it was funny to watch him blow hard at the pumpkins.

Landscaper for Hire

Landon loves to help Daddy in the yard. It was time for some fall clean up and to get rid of the tomato plant so Landon went out to help. It was a chilly day so he made sure he was wearing his hat. I wonder if we should pay him?

How do you like them apples?

Corinne said she wanted a big, tall, fat one. Landon thought they were apples. Landon thought we had found the biggest apples he had ever seen. He didn't know yet what pumpkins were all about. Then he had some fun with the mess found inside the "apples" and he wanted to help make faces in them. Corinne is getting better at making the faces and carving them out. We have a few more to carve before we are all done so we have a complete pumpkin family. Happy Halloween!

North to Alaska!

Brian and I had the pleasure of going on a cruise with his family to Alaska. It was so much fun and absolutely beautiful. After some rough seas we arrived in Juneau on Monday morning. It rained in the morning but cleared up for us later. We went on a tour of Juneau and we were able to see our ship across the way. We also saw about a dozen eagles and the famous Mendenhall Glacier.

The next day we spent some time in Skagway where we rode the train up through the Yukon Pass. We rode through the mountains on a narrow railroad that had you a couple of feet away from the sheer mountainside and another couple of feet away from the cliffs on the other side. Waterfalls were everywhere.

After our train ride Brian got to go on a wildlife excursion to Haines. Haines is famous for its eagle population and Brian got the chance to see why. While standing in one spot, he saw 21 eagles, but the real treat was seeing the bear along the banks eating fish. Brian went on the excursion with his brother, Dean, who has some professional camera equipment. Brian had his nice binoculars so the other people on the excursion wanted to know which magazine they worked for. While the boys played I pampered myself with a massage and facial at the spa onboard the ship.

The next day we sailed though a narrow pass to Traci Arm Fjord. All around us were icebergs of the most brilliant turquoise. We went all the way in to see the galcier and watch icebergs calf off of the side. Gorgeous!

A place we wish we could've spent more time in was Ketchikan. It is such a pretty little town. We were able to catch the lumberjack show and walk around town to see some totem poles. We were quite fortunate not to have it rain on us while we were in port. It rains about 200 inches a year in Ketchikan but not on us!

Apparently, I was in charge of providing the entertainment for our family on the cruise. After being hypnotized, I gave everyone a good laugh by dancing around the stage and making funny faces. Then I participated in the "Princess Pop Star" contest, which is the cruise's version of American Idol. I won the first qualifying round and got to come back for the finale. Against some tough competition, I sqeezed out a victory! It was very fun and exciting to be in my "element." I was grateful for the support of my fans and family.

All in all, we had a great time. The food was awesome, and there is no way we could eat that way on a daily basis for a long stretch of time. We met some really nice people and had a great time with our family. We were also glad it was over so we could be on dry ground again and go home to see our kids. It is an experience we will never forget!