Happy Birthday Mada J

 

Happy Birthday Mada J! We had a super fun birthday celebration. We all went to Nicklecade, played games and won tickets until our hearts content, well at least until we ran out of nickels. We got Chick-fil-a for dinner…yummy! After dinner we played more games at home and goofed off until it was time for cake a presents. Evan’s parents, Evan’s brother Alan and his wife Susan, my parents, my sisters Julie and Rebecca and families all came over to enjoy Mada J’s birthday and homemade ice cream cake. It is really nice living close enough for family to come over and share in Mada J’s special day

My Guitar Hero...

 
The answer is Yes. For those of you who are wondering that is Evan playing Guitar Hero in our room. I get a huge kick out of how excited he gets playing Guitar Hero. I can't say that I share the same enthusiasm for the game, however if is Rock Band I am all in. We both really enjoy sitting on the bed rocking out. By having a X-Box in our room we don't have to fight the kids to play. Evan and I have decided that he is 12 and I am 13. He is younger because he can do somersaults over the bed and not get sick. Yep, that was the big deciding factor. What can I say, I love my man.

Olivia the Photographer

 

Olivia loves to take pictures. No, I mean she really LOVES to take pictures. These are just a few of many pictures that she randomly takes around the house. I am not sure what her obsession with pictures is, but I continually find pictures of the house and people at her eye level. I've gotta tell you her eye level view of me is not very flattering.

Happy Birthday Emily!

 
Happy Birthday Emily! Wow…that about covers it. Emily and Jenaveve (Julie’s daughter) share their birthday celebration. Emily’s birthday is the day before Jenaveve’s, so it ends up that we will party for at least 2 days unless one of their birthdays falls on a Sunday. That was the case this year, Emily’s birthday was on Sunday, so we started the festivities on Saturday. Julie and I were originally concerned that Emily and Jenaveve would feel gypped having their birthday’s so close. I guess we did a good job in not letting that happen. As it stands now everyone wishes their birthday was next to someone else’s, so that they could have a 2 or 3 day long party. Opps…I guess we over compensated. There were activities times 2, ice cream cake times 2 and we are all tuckered out times 2. Needless to say all had a very good time, especially the birthday girls.

Snowboarding!!

 

We got our snowboarding season passes!! We are all so excited to go snowboarding. All we need is snow. Gary and Emily are good enough now that they won’t need lessons anymore. Xander is almost to the point of being done with lessons; however Mada J. and Olie will probably still need lessons for at least half of the season. We do love to snowboard, it is a great activity that we can do as a family. It is so cute to see the little ones racing down the mountain on snowboards. I thank Stefano for teaching me how to snowboard all those years ago. I am so grateful for Evan for being willing to snowboard with me; however he is almost better than me already. Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

Medusa

 

I know that this picture will give most people the creeps, but I just thought it was awesome. I really enjoy Evan and Gary's snake. She is very graceful. She kills her prey so quickly. It is because of this snake that I will actually touch a mouse/rat. I hate mice & rats, so I am not at all sad to see the snake eat them. She is such a good snake.

 

Maybe I just like her so well because she likes to snuggle with me.

Wonderfully Amazing

 
...is the phrase that comes to mind when I think of my new in-laws. They are the most wonderful group of people. I feel so grateful to have become part of their family. Very few people are blessed to be a part of one wonderful family and I have been blessed with two. It is amazing that everything they have been through, they have been able to open their arms and hearts to me and my children accepting us as their own. Their love and kindness has not gone unnoticed or unappreciated. I have been over whelmed by their great efforts to include us in their lives. I need to send a special thank you to Nettie for creating her new blog. I have logged on everyday just to see pictures of her and her awesome family. I love all of you very much. Thank you for making us part of your family.

My Gary Son

 
When did my son get so big? I was just looking through our wedding pictures and I found this picture. He is such a wonderful boy. It wasn't until I truly looked at this picture that I realized that my little boy is now a young man. where does the time go? Life is too short not to embrass every moment we have. All together too soon all our children will be grown and have families of their own. I hope that my kids know how much I love them

Bear Lake

 

We love Bear Lake! This was our third time to Bear Lake this year. There is nothing better than waking up early and getting onto the lake when it still looks like glass. It reminds me so much of home and going up to Lake Chelan. Those are some of my fondest childhood memories. I hope that my children will have those same memories about Bear Lake. We love tubing. I think the kids almost enjoyed as much as their dad. Evan is a tubing animal. You see the picture of the tube almost vertical on the lake? Yep you guessed it...that is Evan. He can hold on longer than anyone that I know. We are hoping to go back up to Bear Lake a couple of more times before the end of the season. Yeah for tubing!

I don't like being sick...

 
Why is it that this medicine tastes so bad? It burns all the way down. Do they think that the burning sensation makes you feel better? I am beginning to wonder if it is all a ploy to make you think that it is working when in reality it is just burning your throat out. Yuck! If I ever make a cold medicine I will make it taste like cherry otter pops.

I cut my hair....do I like it yet?

 

Well, I did it. I cut bangs. I shook my head when Rachel cut bangs, I tried to ingore that Rebecca cut bangs and then I realized that I am...OLD! I was determined not to cut bangs, after all that would be a hairstyle that I would have in High School. That is when I realized that I have come to the age where I am watching the hair styles of my youth (that went out of style) come back into style. Ok, I will admit it... I kinda like it... does that make me less old or just desperate to stay young?<

School starts...oh my, I have a 6th grader!

 
School starts...again! I find that I dread school. I wish that the kids were alwayas off track so that we could play. I think that the girls were slightly more excited about going back to school than the boys. They all wanted to have their hair done in sponge rollers the night before the first day. I don't know how they got any sleep! I remember my sister Rae and I getting our hair done in those yucky pink sponge curlers. We never could sleep. There is a bright point all the kids, except for Mada (unfortunatly she is still going to Whitter to school), will be off track on the 18th for 3 weeks. Yeah!! More playing!

Kawasaki Disease

Rebecca's son William came down with Kawasaki Disease, it is extremely rare. I was shocked at the serious nature of this disease. Please if you have children under the age of 5, especially if they are boys (it is more common in boys) follow the link below. They are unsure if it has any genetic correlation, but there is a possibility. Keep an eye out for the symptoms. Gratefully due to Rebecca and Chris' diligence they caught it early and William will make a full recovery. Thank goodness for answered prayers.

Information on Kawasaki Disease

Christensen Family Reunion 2008

 
Yeah for family reunions!! We had so much fun at Bear Lake with Evan's family at the end of July. I was good to see everyone again so soon. I have gotten use to seeing everyone about every 6 months and I realized when we got home that it would be quite awhile before we all got together again. Thanks to Jenny and Steve for the great job in preparing, hosting and then rearranging for our family. We really appreciate it!! We miss everyone already and are looking forward to the next family gathering.

Camping at Strawberry

 
We went camping over the 4th of July weekend at Strawberry. This was our first experience camping there. I've decided we are "City Camping" kind of people. When we go camping we take our Weekend Warrior, we do not go camping in tents. Tent camping is for those who did not inherit the "Jardine" back. This was our 3rd or 4th time camping this year and I was starting to feel that we were becoming quite good at camping. I have realized that I can't go camping if the restrooms do not have showers. I need a shower. I also decided it is imperative to have shade. Strawberry has no showers and no shade. This is the only picture that was taken and that was because Olivia took it while we were watching a movie in our Expedition.

Mountain Bike Race at Sundance

I thought I would try my hand at updating our blog. Things are going very well with all of us. I have the best wife in the whole world! I know that some other people may think that they have the best wife, but I really do. Anyway, we are all marching along and enjoying the warm weather. I participated in my first mountain bike race this year at Sundance. It was pretty fun, although I didn't do quite as well as I would have liked. I forgot how much I missed the summer and the warmth that comes along with it. Work has been busy and not very exciting. Sarah has been working hard and we are both very excited for our upcoming Christensen Reunion over the week of the 24th. All of the kids are looking forward to getting out of school in the next few weeks. Madalynne is out already and is enjoying her summer vacation. Hope everyone is well and look forward to posting another update soon.

Thanks Daddy for the back...

 
I am obviously my father’s daughter. I defiantly inherited his genetics for back problems. All I can say is Superfun! My husband was right, it is not normal to be in pain from sitting or lying down. Apparently I have a herniated disc and a bulging disc. Can I just say Ouch! Luckily it doesn't look like I will need surgery, especially since I just ran a 1/2 marathon with this back injury. No wonder it was so painful when I was training and during the race. Sometimes, I am not so smart. I will need to go to physical therapy twice a week. Our insurance will cover 20 visits, with a co-pay of course. I do not savor the cost. I have been once and the exercises seem like a combination of Yoga and Pilates. I think that I incorporate those into my workouts and see if makes any difference before I go back to the physical therapist. If it makes it better then I don't think I will go back. I guess we will see. Wish me luck...

1/2 Marathon

 
We decided to combine a grueling 1/2 Marathon, a camping trip and Jardine sister reunion into one big party. We thought it would be fun to take all the kids and go camping the week before the 1/2 Marathon with the end of the trip ending the same day as our race. Did I mention that we also took two of my niece's friends with us??? Off we went excited about the upcoming race and fun to have with all the sisters and kids. It never seems like a small army when we are together. However, thinking about it there was a lot of us, 7 adults and 16 kids. We did get a little nervous about the weather. We checked the week before we left and it look like it would be a nice early June weather, however, we do live in Utah...stay ten minutes and the weather will change. Change it did. The first couple of days were nice, and then it was all downhill for the next 5 days. Ferocious rain storms, snow on the horizon and a dare from yours truly to Julia and her friends to go swimming when it was only 50 degrees outside...what can I say I am an awesome aunt. With many trips back into Logan for supplies and heating apparatuses, we survived, just in time for the race. Ahhh, the race, a story in it of its self. When my sisters get together they or should I say we believe that we can conquer the world. With only 12 weeks to prepare for the race Rebecca convinced Julie, Rachel and I to run with her. I was still suffering from back pain and so my training didn't start for another 6 weeks. Of those six grueling weeks I was sick 2 of them, one from over training and the other was the week that we were camping. Every day after my run with my sisters I told everyone that my sisters were killing me... and they were. I counted it up and I ran a total of 10 times before the race. The day before the race I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to run. Miraculously, I felt really good the day of the race. Half way through the race Julie and Rebecca said that I was pushing them too hard. I admit it I was laughing to myself. Rachel by and far in the best shape of all of us danced to her iPod the entire race. I could hardly walk after the race, but I felt a little vindicated that I was able to push at least 2 of my sisters; after all they had been pushing me for the last 6 weeks. I have a new goal train until I am able to dance with Rachel while we run the next 1/2 marathon.

1st Camping Trip in the new trailer

 
So, for those of you who didn't guess our first camping trip envolved snow and freezing temeratures. Needless to say we didn't get out of the trailer much, mainily to cook and go to the bathroom. Not the best time camping, but we did have a lot of fun.

Our new trailer

 
WOW!! We can hardly wait to go camping. We decided to purchase this trailer knowing that it would enable us to take more vacations with less expense. We are so excited to go camping next weekend with Rebecca and Chris next weekend for William birthday!

We traded in our mini-van

 
We decided to trade in our beloved mini-van for something with a little more strength. Can I just say, I love this SUV/truck? I am pleased to finally have a vehicle that can haul something besides kids. I have wanted to be able to pull boats or trailers for years. I don't mean to say that I didn't love my Sienna, I loved it. However, this truck is like the Sienna on steroids. The only thing I don't love is its gas mileage, but I do love that it takes midgrade instead of premium.

Wedding Pictures

So, I would like to have some great reason as to why I haven't updated my blog. I would like to use the excuse that I just got married. I am not sure if that applies to the second time around. However, I can say that I have undoubtedly married the best man in the world. He is a GREAT husband and a GREAT father. I have to tell you that I feel a little bit like the Brady Bunch, with 3 boys and 3 girls and the cheesy fact that the only steps that are in our family are in our house leading to the upstairs. Evan is the father that our children have waited for. Just last weekend he and Gary went fishing with the scout. Gary was so delighted to spend some dad/son time. We are really enjoying a little family and eachother.

Invitation

We approved our proof for our invitations We are going to be up for a couple of nights addressing them. Each step is exciting! I know you are thinking that I am insane to be excited to address envelopes….well I’ve got news for you… I am but for totally different reasons. However, if you were in my shoes about to marry the most wonderful man in the world and quite possibly the universe you would be to. I am most defiantly the luckiest woman ever! Evan is quite simple put…wonderful!

Engagment Photos

Oddly enough this is only one of our 482 engagment pictures. I am not sure if our photographer was just happy to take pictures or if we were just happy to have our picture taken. Either way we are happy!