Showered With Love

Today was an awesome day!!! My good friend, Alison, who I have known since high school, was so super sweet, thoughtful and overwhelming generous to offer to throw Baby Jaelyn and I a baby shower. It was so great to celebrate this special occasion with so many of my wonderful friends. I was pleasantly overwhelmed looking around at the friends who came and thinking about all the stages of life that I have acquired their friendships, some recent and some many years in the making. I feel so truly honored and blessed by each and every one of them and also the ones who couldn't make it. We are expecting Jaelyn any day and now I feel really good about welcoming her home to her new room, home and family! Thank you to everyone who made this day so special, for celebrating our newest little addition and for helping us get ready! I'm a lucky girl!!!

***I do have to mention that my friends Kristen and Kelly were also there, I just didn't get them in any pictures. Kristen injured her ankle, hiking earlier this morning, but was so sweet to come (in pain) to the shower. Kelly took her took her to the ER. She ended up tearing ligaments in her ankle and is in an air-cast, please keep her in your prayers.
***Also a special thank you to Jobey and Erin for helping Alison. You're the BEST!!!

Spideys

This is my Noelle, peacefully sleeping in our bed. I took this during her nap the other day. I couldn't resist how beautiful she looked. Noelle has had a rough week getting sleep, having been sick with a terrible cough. But we thought she was doing better having finally slept through the night in her own bed two nights ago. That was until last night, when she woke up around 1:00 in the morning screaming saying that there were "spideys" in her bed. (a.k.a. spiders). So Joe calmed her down and eventually brought her in to sleep with me.

During nap time I usually have Noelle just sleep in my room, in case Joleigh decides not to sleep, I can guarantee that Noelle will. So, we are getting ready for bed tonight and Noelle seemed fine, until we turn off the lights, except the closet light, and she starts crying that there are "spideys" in her bed. What?!? We tried to calm her down, turned on the lights and tried to show her that there is nothing in her bed. Then I thought maybe if we change her sheets that might her. We had some princess sheets and a pillowcase. We get the bed all made and she seems really happy. I tuck her in and she looks at me and says, "No spideys, just princess. I like princess." It was the sweetest thing. And she got in bed with a smile on her face.

I have NO idea why she would think that there are spiders in her bed. I'm surprised she even knows what a spider is. It really concerns me, but I pray that God protects her and that she have no more fear going to bed at night.

Long Week

35 Weeks

It has been a very long week. I have not been feeling good and definitely not feeling like myself. I guess it started on Sunday. I started having some pretty strong contractions. I have had Braxton Hicks contractions since about 5 months, which is exactly like the first two pregnancies, but these contractions were much more uncomfortable and at times painful. I have also been feeling light-headed, dizzy and nauseous. I found out that the contractions were getting much more regular on Monday after we spent the morning at Ikea, getting furniture for the girls' room. But when I sat down the contractions stopped. This has been going on all week. Whenever I started to do anything, standing too long or bending over, the contractions were coming on regularly, but as soon as I rested they would stop. I debate calling the doctor, but thought they would make me go to the hospital, only to tell me to rest. Knowing I had an appointment scheduled today, Friday, I decided to put myself on couch/bedrest and waited it out. Joe has been incredible, super husband and dad, taking Joeligh to and from school, grocery shopping, cleaning up, putting together the furniture for their room and so much more. It has been driving me crazy laying around knowing all the things I want to get done before Jaelyn gets here. It's funny when you are busy that all you want to do is sit around and rest, but when all I having been doing is sitting around, all I can think about is everything I should have been doing and getting done.

We met with the doctor this morning. He agreed with me that I need to take it easy, stay hydrated and prescribed Terbutaline, to help stop the contractions. He didn't seem too worried that Jaelyn was going to make an early entrance into the world, since both Joleigh and Noelle made it to 38 weeks. But we go again next week to see how everything is going. We also tentatively planned on being induced on February 19, so that is something to get excited about and a new deadline to get everything done by.

So not only have I not been feeling well this week, Noelle has been sick too. She started with this cough that has got so much worse, chest congestion, and a constant runny nose. We also think she may have a bladder or urinary tract infection. She has been such a trooper, still the same happy kid, until she starts to cough. You can tell that it hurts her and she starts to cry. This heartbreaking, especially knowing Noelle, to see her sick and in pain. Joe is at the doctor with her right now, which is making me feel guilty, because I have never ever missed one of her appointments. I anxious to hear how the appointment went and most importantly to see her feeling better.

I'll keep you updated on the health and well-being of the Jensen household. Thanks for reading!

A Little Getaway

Joe and I just got back this afternoon from a quick little getaway to Rocky Point, Mexico. Joe needed to go down there to shoot some video for a friend's mission organization, One Mission. I have mentioned in previous blogs about our friends, Brittany and Dustin, who are living full-time in Rocky Point working for the organization. One Mission is having a fundraiser in a couple of weeks and Joe is helping produce the event and therefore needed some video footage.

It was definitely a working trip for Joe, but we were able to have some fun together too. We dropped the girls off with my parents Thursday night, so we could get an early start Friday morning. We didn't leave as early as we would have liked, but still made it down there by lunch time, even with getting pulled over by the Mexican police. We have never, ever had any problems down on Mexico, so long story short, Joe was going just a little fast in town and the police said we needed to pay the fine at the police station, but Joe talked him into just paying the officer $20 right then and there, and we were on our way. No big deal.

Besides Brittany and Dustin being there, some of our other friends, Jason and Tina Law and Jon Hill, were all there to work on the video. It was great to hang out with everyone and the best part was getting to stay at this amazing condo, right on the beach. Some friends that Brit and Dustin have made, have this condo and let us stay there. It was beautiful!!!

I was able to relax, take some naps, eat some great food, hang out with friends and just enjoy being with my husband. What more could I ask for, especially being 8 1/2 months pregnant!?!

All the Jensens

We celebrated Joe's brother Josh's birthday a day early on Friday. It was also our last chance to see Jeri before she went back to MCC. Her Christmas break flew by, but it was great to see and spend time with her and we were able to create some great memories.

We met over at Joe's dad's house for a delicious dinner and yummy birthday cake. Josh got a little help from Joleigh to blow out his candles, which was pretty cute. Afterward we played a new game, called Whoozit, it was a lot of fun. Playing any game with Joe's family is always a lot of fun!!!

Before we headed home we took some family pictures. I try to take as many as I can for Jeri to have to take back with her, so we also took some silly ones too.

So Happy Birthday Josh and we will miss you Jeri! Spending time together makes us so thankful for our family!!!!

Our Snow Trip

We had the most wonderful weekend with our family. Joleigh has been begging to go to the snow. She has never been, but knows all about it from watching all her shows this past month. We were just going to go up for the day, because we couldn't find a place to stay, but at the last minute I remembered my good friend's parents had a condo in Flagstaff. We got the keys and headed for the snow, with Joe's brothers, Josh and Justin and his sister, Jeri. Everyone was excited to be together and create some fun family memories. The whole way up there Joleigh was talking about building a snowman, making snow angels, and catching snowflakes on her tongue, it was precious. When we arrived, there was so much snow on the ground, so we immediately got on our warm clothes on and started playing. We did everything Joleigh wanted to do and even got to see the snow fall. It was beautiful! We were able to play and relax and just enjoy being together. I couldn't have asked for a better time, except maybe not being so pregnant, but everyone had a great time and it was a wonderful way to end a wonderful week with Joe!

Joe's Week Off, Continued

Day 5 - Friday
Another fun day was ahead. We woke up and decided to head to the mall for some lunch and a little play time. We ate at one of our favorite places, Miracle Mile.
I know it's not good for you, but it is oh so good! Joe got his New Yorker sandwich, I got The Straw (mmmmm) and we got the girls a grilled cheese kids meal, but told them they could only have their treat if they ate their veggies. Noelle wasn't a fan until she saw the cookie that was hers if she finished her broccoli.

She finished her broccoli and they both enjoyed their cookies.

Afterwards, we went to the play area in the mall. The girls love this place.



We had fun for awhile, until it became overrun with giant kids, who were running, jumping and pushing the little kids, this made me so mad and it frustrates me when parents don't supervise their kids. I guess that's what happens when we come during Christmas break. So we left.
Our next destination was Trader Joe's to do a little shopping. The girls love to go there and push their little carts around. Joleigh also thinks its funny that the store has the same name as her Daddy.


Later in the day, Joe went to the movies with his sister, Jeri. Then they brought home cheese pizza and wings, as well as cheesecake, which I was craving (such a wonderful husband). The girls had so much fun playing with their Aunt Jeri!



There is much more to come on our special week with Daddy!

Joe's Week Off, So Far...

Joe has been working so much lately, so we have all been looking forward to the week after Christmas, knowing Joe would be home with us. Here's what we've been up to.

Day 1, Monday

We had a lazy morning, then decided to head to Desert Ridge to have lunch and do a little shopping. The weather was perfect and we ate outside, then found some really good sales.

Later that night we celebrated Joe's brother, Justin's birthday at their dad's house. It was a great family day.


Day 2, Tuesday



We had another lazy morning watching cartoons and snuggling on the couch. We promised the girls we would go to the park after their naps. When they woke up they were ready to go. There is a park close to our house, across the street from the church, that we usually go to. Joleigh loves the swings, she has since she was little, so she spent almost the entire time there. Noelle loves to climb and slide. They had such a fun time doing their own thing, but it was great to be there together and be outside. After the park, we went to Johnny Rockets. We have talked about wanting to go there, but this was the first time we have brought the girls. They loved it from the time we walked in. They tried on their paper hats, colored in their book, and cleaned my change purse out of nickels as they chose songs for the juke box. They were so well behaved and ate so good that they were rewarded with a chocolate malt. I was so mad that I didn't have my camera, but Joe was able to take some on his phone. I'm glad we have some pictures at one of our new favorite places. Another great day!


Day 3, Wednesday


When we all woke up, Joe and I decided it was time to clean up and pack up the Christmas decorations. We, with girls help, took down the tree and boxed everything up. There is no sign of Christmas at our house. It is kind of sad just how fast the time went, it really seemed like we just put everything up. Oh well, I just look forward to next year. After our lunch, we all tried to take a good nap, knowing it was New Year's Eve. We left the girls at my parents and met up with some friends, the Bloodworths and the Schimidts, for an early dinner at the Yardhouse at Westgate. We had a great time catching up with them and devouring 1/2 priced appetizers. Actually Joe and I were the only ones technically devouring our food, you know me being 8 months pregnant and Joe just liking to eat good food. After dinner we walked around for a little while, then all went our separate ways. Joe and I went to the movies to see Yes Man, with Jim Carrey. It was a really good movie, even though there were a few parts that I could have done without. We grabbed some coffee and sat outside. There was a lot going on at Westgate, including a dance party for the kids and their parents. It was so cute watching them, but it made us miss the girls. At 10 pm, midnight in New York, they did a count down and a balloon drop. The kids all popped the balloons and it sounded like fireworks. We stayed a little longer, but were ready to head home. We picked up the girls and came to watch the ball drop at midnight on our couch.

It is still mind blowing that another year is over and that it is 2009!!! When I think about this past year and all the changes in our life and then look ahead to all the changes coming this year, I am overwhelmed but ultimately super excited to see what the future holds.

Day 4, Thursday
Shockingly we all got to sleep in until 8:45, which was awesome! I decided I need to get a little organized, especially in the girls' room, so that was my mission for the day. I need to find a place for all their new stuff and get rid of some of their old stuff. This took all morning, but finally I could see their floor, which hadn't been seen in a week. Joe worked in the backyard and watched Iowa football. We just woke from our naps and just plan on staying home for the rest of the day. It has been so wonderful having my husband and the girls having their daddy home!