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Sunday, January 24, 2010

The Dells

This year we got to take a summer vacation with all of Matt's family. We all decided to meet in Wisconsin Dells because it really is such a great little vacation spot. Melissa and Alan and their kids, Josh and Alli, drove over from Utah, and Jen flew into Chicago. Grandma and Grandpa drove over from Iowa with Jamie. We got to stay in a little cabin at the Wilderness Resort, which has a ton of both indoor and outdoor swimming pools and water slides. As you can imagine, we have a TON of pictures of this fun trip, but I just wanted to highlight some of my favorites. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for making these great memories possible!

Here is the cabin we were able to stay in. It was super nice and perfect.

Besides water-slides the Wilderness Resort had a great indoor playland and climbing area.

Here are the kids making plans for their "attack" in the ball pit. There are huge air-soft guns that you can load with soft balls and shoot at anyone in the play area.
I believe this is the "target," who is having just as much fun as the kids I might add.
The adults got a little grown-up game time in.
Aunt Jen was being a good sport---the kids loved wrestling with her.
Aunt Jamie gave many a piggy-back rides during our stay.
While we were all together we celebrated Josh and Emma's summer birthdays. Josh will turn 8 this year and Emma will turn 9.
Just takin' 5 (or maybe 20).
Of course swimming was the favorite activity of the day. I swear if we let them the kids would have stayed in the water all day and night.
This is Parker's kind of swimming. He had great fun filling up his bucket over and over.
Caitlyn is playing a little water basketball, with the help of Uncle Alan of course.
Alli is testing out one of the waterslides.
Ah, yes. No swimming trip is complete without a little (or big) water gun fight.
This is one of my favorite pictures....cousins make the best friends!
Emma getting ready to spend some time in the wave pool.
They emerged from the black hole alive!
The water skiers at the Tony Bartlett show were amazing! I mean who can do that?
This is the horn guy. He seriously could play any song on these horns placed all over his body.
"Patiently" waiting for swim time.

PS...I don't have a picture but we also went and got our pictures taken in one of those old time photo shops. We all got dressed up as old time "gangstas" and the kids had a ball. The pictures turned out so cute and fun. Definitely a classic.




Quick Trip

We made a quick trip to Iowa before the summer got started and one of the kid's favorite thing to do is take a trip to the children's museum.




Saturday, January 23, 2010

Mom's Day

Ok, so I am feeling like a really bad mom because it was mom's day at Caitlyn's preschool and I totally forgot my camera---so sorry Cait! But, we did have an amazing time spending the afternoon together at her school. Among our activities were a hand massage, making matching bracelets, planting a flower, eating yummy pretzels and juice, and last but certainly not least reading some of her favorite classroom stories. It was a really special day and I am so glad we got to spend it as mom and daughter. Her preschool also gave each mom a copy of this great story that I thought I would pass along...just something to think about.

The Invisible Mother
It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone (or even on the toilet) and ask to be taken somewhere.

Inside I'm thinking, "Can't you see I'm busy?" Obviously, not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all.

I'm invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more; Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, "What time is it?" I'm a satellite guide to answer, "What number is the Disney Channel?" I'm a taxi to order, "Right around 5:30 PM, please."

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude---but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going; she's going; she is gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package and said, "I brought you this."

It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: "To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees." In the days ahead I would read---no, devour---the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work.

No one can say who built the great cathedrals--we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, "Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it." And the workman replied, "Because God sees."

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, "I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on , no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become."

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on.

The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, "My mom gets up at 4:00 AM and bakes homemade pies. Then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table." That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to hi friend, to add, "you're gonna love it there."

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Great Job, Moms!

Decisions, Decisions

After much pondering, fasting, and prayer, we made the decision that Matt would apply to graduate school and attend full time if he was accepted. Actually, Matt really has been trying to get his MBA for a long time, it just seems like other things kept taking precedence (ie, kids, new job, and moving). It is kinda funny though because our whole married life we have said that we never wanted to have five kids and have him trying to go back to school for his MBA. Funny how life never seems to go according to OUR plan though. So, with FOUR kids we are starting this new phase of our life. Matt applied to lots of places in the Chicago area, but his hope was that he would be accepted into the University of Notre Dame's MBA program. Growing up in the midwest, he always thought it would be great to attend ND. Unfortunately, his GMAT scores had expired so he had to retake the GMAT, which meant a lot of hard studying and lots of prayers. But, it ended up to be a blessing in disguise because he did much better the second time around. So, a couple of months and interviews later, we got the good news...he was a an official "Domer," he was accepted as an MBA candidate at the University of Notre Dame! He will be attending their two year program full time, so we put our house on the market and are hopefully heading to South Bend, IN this summer. The kids took the news of the move better than expected, but I don't think they really understood that we won't be coming back to our neighborhood, and with the housing market in a huge slump right now, we could almost guarantee them they would be able to finish out the school year and spend one last summer in Illinois---that was a great relief to them. So, with lots of faith and a little bit of luck, we are hopping on the starving student wagon hoping to be in a better place at the end of the ride. Wish us luck!








Two Wheeler

Yea! Caitlyn is so ecstatic that she can finally ride a two wheeler like all her friends! Actually, it was a couple of her friends, Emily and Taylor, who taught her how on her little bike. They kept working everyday after school until she finally got it. Good job, Caitlyn!





Friday, January 22, 2010

Pug Party

Aunt Jen came all the way from Utah with her pug, Samson, to go to a pug party downtown. These pug parties are a huge deal and people attend them with their pugs from all over. The kids were very excited to see both her and Samson and couldn't get enough of him. They all went with her to the party and had a great time seeing all the pugs in their costumes and generally just seeing sooo many pugs together at once. It was a great experience! Thanks for sharing!


I Put Ketchup On My Ketchup

Yes, this picture is exactly what you think it is...Parker is DRINKING ketchup out of the bottle. I literally turned my back for 2 seconds and when I turned around this is what I saw. One of those make-u-gag mom moments. I guess when you need more ketchup, you need more ketchup, right? All I can say is his Aunt Amy would be so proud....she who puts ketchup on cottage cheese and doesn't mind a ketchup sandwich (bread + Ketchup) every now and then. Bottoms up?!


Sunday Jam

When I was growing up my family spent pretty much every Sunday at my Grandparents house, along with lots of my cousins. We had dinner and then while the adults would sit and chat the kids would entertain themselves. We did all kinds of things like jumping on the tramp, going on adventure walks, and making up games in the basement. Today, we are lucky and my kids get to see one set of their grandparents every Sunday. While they love spending time with them and eating Grandma's "homemade" lasagna, we don't live by any cousins so the majority of the time the kids just hang out with each other. One Sunday Caitlyn and Emma made up a little performance to Aaron Carter's "That's How I Beat Shaq," and set up the play room for their "audience" (the rest of us). Here it is for your viewing pleasure.

Big Brother

Doesn't Parker make the cutest big brother? No, I am not pregnant...which Matt is very thankful for. :) For me it is more of a bitter-sweet feeling. Yes, raising kids is definitely a lot of hard work, but they are so darn cute they make it all worth it. There is nothing sweeter than hearing your child say at bedtime, after a crazy, busy day, "I love you, Mom."

Caitlyn's Creation

Caitlyn made this beautiful seashell creation at preschool and we enjoyed seeing it on display in our house for many months. Unfortunately with 4 kids in school it is just impossible to display and keep everything they create at school, so when it is time to display a new creation we take a picture of the old one so they can always remember what it looks like. A picture takes up less space and makes it a little easier for the kids to "recycle" some of their projects.

It's Just A Phase

Parker is definitely thinking this particular bowl of Lucky Charms are magically delicious. In fact he couldn't get enough and I just thought it was hilarious that after he licked the bowl clean he had a little marshmallow on his face. Don't you love this stage of toddlerhood---the every time they eat they make a giagantor mess that requires some major clean up?

One More Time

Grandma and Grandpa Jensen put on a little easter egg hunt at their house too. Everybody was assigned a certain color and got to find all their plastic eggs of that color. The kids thought it was great cuz they weren't worried about not finding any eggs and as an extra special surprise some of the eggs were filled with a little moo-lah...possibly the one thing better than candy. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!

Easter Morn

After the hustle and bustle of the Easter Bunny, it is so nice to get ready for church and spend the day thinking about the real reason we celebrate. We are so grateful to our Savior for his atoning sacrifice for us and we know that because of his suffering in Gethsemane and his resurrection we have the possibility to return to live with our Father in Heaven. And through, faith, repentance, and keeping the commandments, we can and will be together forever as a family because of our Savior's atonement.

Yes, as long as they will let me I will dress them in "matching" outfits...it's just one of my little OCD obsessions.


Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Happy Easter

Our Aunt Amy got to stay with us this Easter weekend because Grandma and Grandpa were house hunting in Utah. Each of the kids got to dye a dozen easter eggs, which I am considering maybe doing a week before next year cuz they always end up with more dye on their hands than the eggs. Especially Parker, he was loving throwing the eggs into the dye and then removing them with his hands...I think his hands were blue for about a month. Of course the Easter Bunny came and brought lots of goodies and other fun stuff in the baskets and the kids had fun finding all 60 colored eggs.

Easter Egg Hunt

Our neighborhood has a crazy-big Easter egg "hunt." Although, "hunt" might not be the right word...basically it is just hundreds of plastic eggs spread over about four lawns and 20+ kids dashing around trying gather as many eggs as their bags could hold. Yeah, there were soo many eggs we had to graduate from easter baskets to grocery bags. Thanks to all my great neighbors for making this fun memory possible!