Our Trip to Utah and Summer Fun!

I headed to Utah with the kiddos last Thursday (the 19th) by myself... my poor husband had to work...I've been meaning to post about this trip but things have been crazy around here...there's so much going on and not enough energy to do it all!!!!:) But I am pleased to report that we had a blast and we spent time with my cousin Bonnie and her family, my good friend Betsy (we were roommates for a about 2 years in college) and my best of friends Timber and her two kids Denim Bleu and Blazen Trails!!!!:) We did lots of fun things and by the end of the trip Brielle was very much ready to come home. She kept telling me that she wanted to come home and that she missed her daddy...there has been too much going on lately, she is done with all the traveling and my poor Braden is too...and I have to say that I am too!!!!!! They were both so good during the drive there and back...I guess all of this traveling is getting us ready for what is to come...our move to D.C. (I think we are going to invest in a portable DVD player for the car for the drive across the country...it is going to be a CRAZY drive!!!!!!)

Doesn't she look so innocent in this picture?...

We went to the aquarium in Sandy with my cousin Bonnie and her family...it was so much fun...I had never seen an octupus in real life before and it was the coolest thing ever!!!! The kids had a blast pointing at the animals and Brielle was even brave enough to touch a snake!!!!!

Betsy, the kids and I went to the park, had lunch together, went to feed the ducks and we went to this cool museum at BYU. Brielle was able to name a bunch of the animals and both Brielle and Braden seemed to have no fear of any animal!!!

This is Timber's oldest...Denim Bleu!!!:)

AND Blazen Trails...he looks just like his daddy!!!:)

Timber was getting Denim ready for Sunday by putting rollers in her hair and topping things off with a pair of panties...I was laughing sooo hard...I was like "what are you doing to this poor little girl!!!" It was hilarious!!!!!

This picture was taken after a loooong day at the pool! I can't believe this is the only picture I took of us! I love this girl!!!!

A much better picture of us, last year when Timber came to Rexburg to see us!

Anyway, life is good and we have been enjoying staying home and going to play outside everyday. I bought a little swimming pool for the kids and they have been having fun going to the little playground area that we have in our apartment complex. It's nice to be able to enjoy the outdoors...by the end of the day they are exhausted and ready for bed....Braden is finally sleeping in the same bedroom with Brielle (he's been sleeping in his bassinet for way too long) They are getting used to each other and Braden is finally enjoying his crib!!!!:) We turned Brielle's crib into a toddler bed and now she is a big girl!!!

Braden has been loving life because now he can swing all by himself! He loves swinging...he could honestly swing for hours if it were up to him...

It's been awesome now that Braden can swing by himself because I can push both of them at the same time!!!!:)

I love watching Brielle and Braden show their love for each other!!! I love it that they are such great friends...they do fight...but they also have a blast together!

I finally feel after a long, long, long time like I have things under control...I think this move is going to be a BIG change for everyone, but especially for the kids...after this big change, I'm committing myself to fully potty train Brielle (with all of this traveling Brielle has digressed instead of progress in the potty training business, she was pretty much fully trained to go #2, we just needed to work on the #1, but now she's been telling me after the fact...) Braden has been a cute little character lately and has been putting Brielle in time-out! It is quite hilarious to hear him. We have been enjoying ourselves and I'm looking forward for this semester to end!!!!!! I have a group of fun students this semester and it will be sad to stop teaching...I will miss the student interaction and the teaching time, but I will DEFINITELY NOT miss all the grading!!!!!!:) Scott is MORE than ready to quit his job at Qwest and start medical school...in not too long, it will be the start of a new chapter for our little family!

Braden absolutely LOVES the water! He could be in the water forever! He is not a happy camper when it's time to go home!

Brielle calling daddy!!! She is always asking about Scott throughout the day..."Mommy, where's daddy?"

4 Years of Growth and Happiness...

Scott and I had our 4 year wedding anniversary on the 18th. It's crazy to think that after 4 years we have 2 children! Our lives sure have changed!!! I'm going to reminisce a bit (for journaling purposes)...Scott and I met in a Spanish 201 class for return missionaries where I was the T.A. I truly feel like the Lord definitely let me to that class in so many ways...I won't go into detail but I know I was led to meet Scott. He was always so polite and so hot!!!!:) Then I found out that he danced and that made him even hotter!!!!: We started talking at the library and I wish I could have recorded our first conversation. It was an instant connection. I always thought that he was just too good to be true. I had dated so many weirdos at Ricks/BYU-Idaho...nice guys...but just nothing like Scott...I wasn't even thinking that I was going to meet the man of my dreams that summer of 2003...I really thought I was going to graduate and go to Vegas to do my student teaching and find a teaching job there and in a few years go to graduate school, I had a lot of "other" goals...and I honestly didn't think I would start dating such a stud, let along get married...we have such great memories of that summer...the way that everything happened was perfect...about 1 month into dating Scott decided to broke up with me and I honestly just about died!!!!!!:) I lost 5 pounds and cried everyday for 2 weeks!!! I was devastated...I think he got scared that things were getting too serious...ha ha!!!!! He wanted to date other girls and I was like, "OK, fine, you go and date and I'm going to go have fun too", I went out on tons of dates and he went out on one!!! ha ha ha!!!! About 3 weeks later, we were back together...we got engaged in December...I went to Utah to do my student teaching and drove every weekend to Rexburg to see him!!! I cried every single time when we had to say goodbye! I finished my student teaching and we got married in June. I have special memories of our wedding day, I wanted our main focus to be the temple...we had a wonderful sealer. I remember being sooo nervous but when we entered the sealing room a feeling of calmness came over me and I knew that this decision to marry Scott would lead both of us to progression...it was a very special moment!!!! We went to Denver to do summer sales...we also have great memories of that summer!!! We got pregnant with Brielle the following summer (2005) when we lived in California (summer sales again) I was incredibly sick with morning sickness, it was horrible!!!! Scott worked his tail off that summer while I just laid in bed all day long!!!!!

We had Brielle the following year (2006) on February 9th. Those are memorable and exciting times for our family. Parenting totally changed our lives. Brielle was the most beautiful little baby girl I have ever seen (I'm definitely biased!!!!!) I pushed for 3 hours!!!! Thanks goodness for epidurals! I think I would have literally died without one! Three months later we found out we were pregnant again!!!!!!!!!!! I cried for 2 weeks straight and was in MAJOR denial!!! Scott was my strength and always told me that everything was going to work out...I couldn't have done it without his constant love and encouragement...I remember feeling soooo exhausted to the point where all I wanted to do was sleep but I had a 3 month old baby to care for and love and hold...those were crazy times for our family!!! And I was also working that whole time...when I had Brielle I took 2 weeks off and went back to work (the same when I had Braden)...I remember having to sit down often while teaching because I was still soooo sore...my little Braden was born 3 days short of a year after Brielle was born. We called Justin and Stacey at 3 in the morning because I was ready to have this baby, he was born at 10:27 am February 6th...I pushed for 20 minutes and he was out!!!!:) I love my little boy and both Scott and I are grateful that things happened the way that they did.

We were three...not for long...I was 3 months pregnant in this picture...

Now, we are a family of 4!!!

It feels like Scott and I have grown so much...being married and having children makes you grow up...adding children to the equation just changes your perspective, now we are not just worried about ourselves but we have other lives that depend upon us!!! I'm grateful that Scott and I are able to go through this mortal experience together...we are such great friends...I love that about our relationship...we can talk for hours...and we just get each other...he just gets me and I just get him...our vision for our life is the same. Marriage is a blessing and it is wonderful...it is not always easy but we experience so much happiness among the trials that sometimes come our way. I never completely understood when married people said that they love their spouses even more now than the day they got married...I always thought, "oh that's neat to be able to say that." Now, I think I have experienced that, I love Scott much more deeply than I did when we first got married 4 years ago...I hope it continues that way forever!!!:)

We are back from D.C....

Oh man! What a trip!!! We left to D.C. last Wednesday to go find a place to live...Brielle stayed with Ryan and Kara (I will forever be grateful for them and Kara's willingness to help us out so much) We took Braden with us...quite the experience...he was sooo good considering the circumstances, I was grateful for that, but it was still crazy!!! We drove to Boise to catch our plane and our flight was delayed about 40 minutes so we missed our connecting flight in San Francisco to go to Baltimore...I was FUMING!!!! They sent us to Los Angeles and we had a 5 hour wait!!! Our plane left at 11pm and got to Baltimore at almost 5am! Yeah! Not fun at all!!!! When we finally got to Arlington (my mom, brother and sister found an apartment there) it was almost 8a.m the next day!!! We were exhausted!!!

We had a few appointments that afternoon to go see places...the very first place we saw was a very cute condo 3 bedroom 2 bathroom in Fairfax, Virginia for $1600 a month!!!!! INSANE!!!!! On Friday, we saw some other cute and trashy places for about that price or more! It's all about location there so they can get away with charging so much money just because it's closer to D.C. We debated between the condo in Fairfax and a house in Maryland (thanks Daij for sending the info on that house!!). Waaaay cute house, with a backyard, it was huge and well kept for $1650 plus all of the utilities (gas, electricity, water, garbage, mowing the lawn, etc, etc.) about $250 to $300 a month. After giving it much thought and consideration we decided to take the condo in Fairfax. We only have to pay for electricity, so our total every month will be a lot less expensive! Although, we fell in love with the house in Maryland, I think the condo will meet our needs just fine and it is in a really, really, cute community. We have a play area for the kids right behind our place and it is about a 40-45 minute commute for Scott to GWU. We drove so much and saw about 7 places in total. The traffic is insane there, that whole area is HUGE!!!! Soooo many people, sooo many trees and soooo much traffic.

I think I have become a small town girl because I was feeling a bit claustrophobic there. I hope I get used to it, I think I will...there's sooo much to do there! And both Scott and I were particularly impressed with the people...everyone is so friendly and helpful. Scott and I are excited for this change even though there are times when we both have no idea how we are going to make it!!! Thank goodness for student loans. Everything is so expensive there...so we are just praying to Heavenly Father that I won't have to go to work...my children need me...I don't want to miss out on the little things that they do everyday...we are relieved that this trip went like planned and that we will have a place to live when we get there in July!:)

We went to a Peruvian Restaurant with my family, we had a fun time! There are so many Peruvian Restaurants in Arlington, Scott and I are sooo excited!!!! Peruvian food is the best!

Braden was so tired from the trip, he was cuddling with his tío Kem. I love you Kemchu, thank you for being a good uncle to my kids.

This is the entrance to the condo, the arrows are pointing to our windows. We are in the bottom floor. It will be nice not to go up stairs with the kids.

The whole condo has hardwood floors.

The kitchen...my least favorite part of the condo...oh well...it meets our needs and someday I will have a nicer kitchen.

The master bedroom.

Summer Time!

I'm so glad it's summer! That's all I have to say! I think the kids are loving the nice weather too!

I forgot to post these pictures last time from Nya's graduation.

Brielle & Braden

Lots of Fun and Lots of Driving!

Last Thursday morning I headed to Utah with the kids for my little sister's graduation...the kids did really well, considering I didn't stop at all during the 4 hour drive. They were a bit "anxious" to get out of the car by the time we hit Salt Lake. Braden screamed at the top of his lungs from there to Provo...Brielle kept telling him, "Bwaden, STOP cwying!" Brielle was a happy camper as long as the Hairspray soundtrack was playing! She knows the words to a lot of the songs! I had a smile on my face while she was singing...I have to say that it is the cutest thing ever to hear her sing to those songs...however, that's all she wanted to listen to, if I changed the CD she would tell me, "mommy I want Hairspray songs pleeeeeease", by the end of the trip I was getting sick of Hairspray!!!!!!

Nya's graduation was neat! It was a bit long for the kids. But it was sure special to see my little sister graduate from high school. I was 8 when she was born and I still remember the day she came home. She was the cutest little baby and I remember helping my mom change her diapers and making bottles for her. When Nya was in second grade we discovered that she was deaf in her left ear, she has no hearing whatsoever in that ear. Her right one is perfectly fine. We also discovered that she had some learning disabilities. Many people in the schools told my mom that she would never graduate from high school. But this woman (my mom) NEVER took no for an answer, you have no idea!!! She has battled with the school districts in Miami and Provo to get Nya the attention and the individual help that she needed! My mom amazes me! She's always encouraging Nya and setting high expectations for her. So, this graduation for Nya is quite the accomplishment. She is a really good girl and we love her so much! She is a trooper and we are sure proud of her!!!

My brother Kem is back from his bike ride across the United States! It was so fun to see him!

We went to feed the ducks at a pond close to BYU campus. We were all so scared that Brielle was going to jump in the water with the ducks, she seriously has no sense of danger...my mom kept chasing after her and I'm so glad Kem caught this specific moment with my mom and Brielle! Brielle thought is was hilarious that my mom was chasing after her and was laughing so hard when my mom caught her!

I drove back to Rexburg on Saturday then headed to Boise on Sunday afternoon and stayed with the Anderson's (one of my favorite families in the whole world!!!) My citizenship appointment was on Monday at 8 in the morning. I got 100% on my test and the interview went well. The interview only took 10 minutes!!!! Can you believe it? All that driving for 10 MINUTES!!!!!! Oh well...I guess it's all part of the process...I take the oath on July 24th! They asked me 5 questions on my test:

1. What is the capital of the U.S?
2. What are the 3 branches of the government?
3. What is the highest court?
4. Why was the civil war fought? (when the lady asked me this question I don't know why but the first thing that came to my mind was voting rights. I knew it was wrong but instead of rethinking it to myself that answer just came out. The lady looked at me and said "think again". Then I was like DUH!!!! It was fought to free the slaves!!!!!! What a dork! I can't believe I said voting rights!!!! Oh well, I still got 100%!, I think I was nervous!!!)
5. What is the name of the national anthem? (no, I didn't have to sing it!!!) :)

So, there you have it! I answered, signed some papers and that was that!!!!

Again, it looks like June will be a busy month at the Jensen's...Scott and I will be flying out to DC next week to look for housing...I hope we find something affordable and nice....wish us luck!!!:) Then, the following week is our 4th year wedding anniversary wow! 4 years!!!!...then...I go to Utah to meet up with my best friend Timber, who is driving from New Mexico...so it should be a fun month!