Eagle Project

We have a wonderful lady in our ward that has given us encouragement to finish Jens' eagle project. Jens is collecting soccer gear and hygiene kits for boys and girls in Cases Grandes, Mexico. We will be collecting for the next several days. We wanted to be completely finished and started to deliver to our charity in Ogden by Dec. 7

Here is the list of items in case you want to donate
Used or new soccer items:
cleats
socks
shin gaurds
balls that still hold air
jerseys
shorts

Included in the hygiene kits are:
soap
toothbrush
toothpaste
washcloth
comb

Tympanomastoidectomy

Can you say that three times fast? That means eardrum replacement and cleaning out of your tumor in your mastoid. Here is today's patient. He did really well. I wish I could post a video of how grateful Jens was to the nurses. Every 5 minutes he'd say "Thank you so much." It was cute. He repeated twice that he was mad that "they didn't tell him when they were doing the surgery"...once right when he got out and then a couple minutes later. It was kinda funny... Here is the patient.

Masquerade

The Masquerade Ball is a Spanish Fork dance. Ummm...but Jens goes to Provo High....you say. His cousins who recently moved to Spanish from Arvada Colorado, Miquel and Erica brought over a huge box of fish crackers with something written on the box.

That's it...now what?!

He got a bowl and poured all the fishies in and found some little pieces of paper that had words on them. He had to put the words in order.

In case you can't read it it says..."Out of all the fish in the sea, I want you to go to Masquerade with me" All the bottom words were just to throw him off. It was quite tricky at first. A couple days earlier Jens was invited over to their house to "get to know Rachael". They did know each other. It wasn't a blind date.

This is how Jens answered: He got a huge bag of dum dum suckers and put a ton of the suckers in a ziplock baggie and wrote on some paper I'd be a dum dum not to go to Masquerade with you. He cut the paper in puzzle pieces and put those into an envelope and tucked it into the bag of suckers.

The costume assignment for this group was Disney characters...Jens and Rachael were Hercules and Meg.

Here are the dance pictures; November 1. He was to be at Erica and Miquels house by 5. I went too (of course) not only to take pictures but to be with Sheryl my SIL. It was so fun...I'm so glad I went. We found a great costume which I embellished all the leather looking stuff and sewed the silver cape on.



Front row: Miquel and Derek (Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl) Ashley and Shad (Tinkerbell and Peter Pan) Back Row: Eric and Ashley (Prince Charming and Cinderella) Erica and Jeff (Maid Marion and Robin Hood) Rachael and Jens (Meg and Hercules)
Cousins Miquel, Erica, Ashley all holding Jens
After pictures they went in and had a wonderful dinner...the choices were spaghetti and meatballs OR chicken alfredo serves with cesar salad, breadsticks and a lovely beverage. Miquel and Erica made the main courses while Ashley and Rachael made the breadsticks. Cheesecake for dessert. Each wrist was attached to the wrist that was sitting next to you. That was a really fun part to watch and video. After the dinner they played some outside games and went inside to watch Sixth Sense then went to the dance. Came home before the dance ended to finish the movie and have dessert. Fun fun times!
Just in case you're wondering...most of the girls knew they would be eating with some difficulty so they changed their clothes and then changed back right before the dance.

All the boys Eric, Jeff, Shad, Jens, and DerekAll the girls: Ashley, Miquel, Erica, Rachael, and Ashley

I know prayer works...by Jens

This story was requested when we learned about Julia's prayer story...

When Jens was around 8-9 years old he found a bird out in the park across the street from our house. He was always finding lost birdies and wanting to take care of them. We had had in the past several cockatiels and knew how to take care of those birds. All wild birds are the same aren't they? On this particular day he came home with a baby birdie who couldn't fly very well. Knowing how to take of birds he knew right what to do. He got out our old cage and put some bedding on the bottom of the cage and filled the food dish up with bird seed. He wasn't eating at all and I suggested that maybe he didn't like seed and was only accustomed to worms and bugs and he wouldn't do very well with us taking care of him. As much as I love having birds around and as much as he was looking forward to taking care of the birdie he reluctantly took the bird back over to the park. I went about my business at home while he took the bird back to the park. Around an hour later he came home with tears in his eyes. I asked if something had happened to the birdie. He told me that he didn't know where to put the bird. If he put it on the ground some animal might get him...if he put him in the tree he might not know how to fly away should a predator come. He was lost in knowing what to do. So he took the little helpless birdie and went and said a prayer and asked where he should take him in order for him to be safe and be able to live. He thought about just putting the bird just in the crook of the tree where it wouldn't be too far for the bird to fall yet away from any walking animals. He felt good about his decision and decided to leave him there. But leaving the helpless bird was very hard for Jens He connects well with animals and loves veterinary sciences. For me though, it was the sweetest most caring sentiment ever. For him to feel so powerful about this little birdie to ask Heavenly Father where to leave the bird, I was immensely touched. We talked about how the bird would know how to feed himself and that he made the right decision.

My RULE!

I think that I'm a pretty easy going parent...sometimes too much...just look at my house. But I must have this rule. Jens has been so good to agree and not balk at it. He has great friends that also concede. I promise, their wives and their kids will appreciate this! I wish that I had more pictures of when I went on dates so I'm taking the initiative. If it were up to him, he wouldn't take any pictures except the ones that cost 500.00 at the dance and you get dumb themed posed ones.

Here is my rule: You MUST come back with your date to our house so I can take a picture of you two. And I can see her and meet her too. I don't care that that's the way it is in society that the boy just picks up the girl and takes off. Especially since I only have boys. I'm already missing out in all sorts of ways, not having any girls. **I must make a disclaimer...even if I had girls I would still want ALL my children to come back for pictures. I wanted my mom at every birth. (Although Brian's mother could have been there if she'd wanted to)

There are more boy-ask-girl dates/dances than girl ask boy dates. The girls' family usually is the one that you go see more often. I never went back to my date's house for any kind of meeting. They only saw me from the pictures that he brought home from the school a couple weeks later when it was all forgotten about that he set on his night stand until the next date dance. Every boy-ask-girl date can include a 30-45 minute session of me taking pictures. They can plan for that, right before the dinner reservations. And I know that as they all leave in our van that they are all saying..."Whew, that's over, now the fun can begin."

I'm not alone in this "foolish thinking"... Austin who is Jens's really good friend, his mother also has 3 boys and 1 little girl caboose. Austin's mom feels the same way. We take pictures together. Jens and Austin usually end up going in the same group.

Here are the buddies for this year's homecoming attraction: Jens and Chelsea, Austin and Kayla, Maurice and Chelsey, Ian and Zoe.

For their day date they went to make pottery at Color Me Mine. Jens has been here before with other groups and it's a fun little memento of the date, although expensive. Dropped off their dates to get ready and went to dinner...oh excuse me...take pictures with my mom and then off to dinner at Macaroni Grill. After two meals of fettuccine alfredo with grilled chicken, they went to the dance. You can't end the date just on that though, you have go and watch a movie that is scary at someones house.

Jens and Chelsea, Ian and Zoe, Maurice and Chelsey, Austin and Kayla

Jens's Homecoming 2008

Some of Wendi's sweet pics of Jens and his date Chelsea as they gathered to leave for dinner & dance.

I think it was Macaroni Grill. Chelsea is a very nice girl Jens has known since elementary school and was part of the homecoming court. An attendant or something like that.

Good music and good friends

Our friends Mike and Kelly invited us to a Kalai concert up at the

Thanksgiving Point outdoor amphitheater.

Wendi and Kelly

I loaded up my camera and Adi and I went on a little walk down to Provo Bay about 2 miles south of our house to get some good cat-tail/reed/bog shots and the puppy in action.

We walked as far as we could without sinking up to my knees in mud but Adi didn't mind. He dove into the mud like he was born for it! To see these larger go to briansmith.smugmug.com and click on Brian's Gallery. They're at the end of all the pics.

Someone wants "EWE" to go to Homecoming with him!

Jens asked a girl named Chelsea to Homecoming a couple weeks ago. He wanted to do a theme with "ewe" and have a lamb asking her. I added the difficult treasure hunt. Making 4 sheeps each with a letter of his name "J" "E" "N" "S". Each directing her to the next clue. The first lamb was sent to her during one of her classes. It was a soft medium sized beanie baby. He has known Chelsea since junior high and is a good friend. I didn't take any pictures of the asking sheeps but did take some pictures of her answer which was "no".

Just kidding...

One night last week (Jens was gone) Brian and the boys heard a strange and kind of scary noise outside. He described the noise as someone baaaaaaaaing and got scared and told the boys to take Adi (our vicious gaurd puppy) outside to kill the predators. The boys got Adi ready and opened the door to find this ferocious cake outside our door. Wanting Jens to find it himself they left it outside for him to find himself. Later though when Chelsea noticed that noone was taking her masterpiece inside she came to the door herself and made sure that it was safely taken inside. This is where they left it...on the ironing table.

Jens was excited because he loves cake. He started eating the legs and upon finishing them he said...

"this is enough...I can't eat all this and I can't wait to find the answser." He started rumaging through the cake to find the prize.

You can see (barely) the straw looking thing directly right of the fork.

Do you have a permit for those guns?

Why yes officer...as they flex their massive muscles...

My little hunter. Christian has had a great ym leader in the past. He has really been a great example to him and to all the other ym in the ward. Lets just call him Sunshine. I think that he got this nickname at one of the camps where they went swimming. He might have been a little tan challenged. Brother Blackhurst has taken Chrisitian hunting with him several times. He's gotten two deer in the last couple years. This year C-dawg drew out for dear, antelope, and elk.

Antelope....check. 55 lbs.

Elk and deer...within the next 2 weeks

Christian got his first "antelo" (see story below) this past weekend. Brother Blackhurst took Christian and Brian hunting this past weekend. Spent the night on Friday night and Saturday morning they saw their fourth "antelo" and shot him. When they came home later Saturday night we called a meat packing place and had the meat turned into jerky. Sunday we dropped the animal off. We'll just call the very nice helper that met us at the meat packing place "Juan" and this is where the name of "antelo" comes into play. As we arrived he was patiently waiting for us outside his business and asked us if "we were there with the antelo?" Christian and I looked at each to make sure we understood him correctly. We will get the jerky sometime this next week. We also have a neighbor who took the head and will mount it. Soon we will need a whole room for all the trophies. Who knew having boys would be so fun!

C Jane is wonderful!

I just want everyone to read this blog. I have just been following the most recent developments of this family. I am slowly going through old posts of both girls. Funny how small this world is. C Jane is a sister of our club admin Page. I love Page. C Jane is an exceptional writer. Both "Nie Nie" and "C Jane" are so uplifting. I hate when I go a day without reading.

Gone Fish'n