Christmas and anniversary

When Nate and I got married two days after Christmas two years ago, I was just thinking about whether or not we'd be able to get through a wedding and Christmas in only three days. I didn't really think about the fact that we'd also have to forever celebrate our anniversary just two days after Christmas. Oh well I guess, too late to think about it now. So, our anniversary was low key and I have a feeling they will always be a little low key. We got to go to dinner and see a movie and I honestly can't remember the last time we have done that. Maybe a year ago? So sad, but movies and such have kind of taken a back seat to life. We're happy now just to get in an episode of Parenthood together(my favorite show) or an episode of Seinfeld together( Nate's favorite show.) I guess that's life at the stage of life we're in. So just getting to talk leisurely with Nate at dinner and getting to see a movie without having to pause it for Oscar, was a really nice treat for us. (Thanks to my grandparents for dinner and for babysitting!)

Christmas was wonderful. We got to spend it in flooded and rainy San Diego, with my grandparents and with Sally's family. It was awesome and I can't believe I am family now to the Shields family I've known for 13 years. I will post pictures as soon as I can borrow some from Sally since I didn't take a single picture on my own sucky camera of my child's first Christmas. I did however, have these pictures taken by my sister in law photographer Emilia. So enjoy these for now...



A few things about Oscar... He looks JUST like Nate. I rarely see any of myself in him right now. I see Oscar's face and it makes me think of how adorable Nate must have been as a baby too. People in public love to stop and squeeze his cheeks and he smiles at them like they're the only person in the world to him. He's a charmer already.



This little guy melts our hearts every day. He LOVES to laugh and smile. He's trying to crawl now doing the rocking back and forth thing on all fours. He knows his house and his bedroom and crys when he sees his crib or bedroom cause he knows it means bedtime. It's impossible not to laugh when he crys seeing his crib.

He loves to snort and grab my hair or Nate's chest hair. He has accepted his car seat as part of life now but doesn't like his high chair. He loves ALL food and likes to go #2 in his bouncy chair, I think it's the bouncing that helps.

After about 6 1/2 months of life, Oscar finally sleeps through the night. It was after he started eating baby food that he started sleeping through the night. Our big boy just needed some solids in his belly the whole time.

His bedtime is about 7pm and he hates life his last hour of awakeness, except for his bath. But, he still hasn't put together that he is the one splashing water in his face. He gasps and scrunches his eyes and nose when he gets water in his face. He's close to sitting up on his own but still not there yet.

He loves to growl and do really aggressive energetic/spastic movements that remind me of my brother when he was little. I don't know if this is his personality developing or if they are just baby things, but he definitely is displaying his boyness. We're just loving everything about our boy right now.

Merry Christmas

Nate's brother Eric took some cute family Christmas pictures for us. Hope you all get your Christmas cards from us in time. (Please leave me your address if you haven't already.) Merry Christmas from the Jensens!! We love you!

Oscar doing what he does best

I wanted to post this cause you can see his two front teeth. Plus you see how much he loves food. Please excuse my silly voice. He was so distracted by the camera string, he kept grabbing and pulling it.

do you hear what i hear

This is a little Christmas post I stole from one my favorite blogs/bloggers. I loved it so much I thought I should share it here. If this doesn't make you feel warm and in the Christmas spirit, I don't know what will...

One of my most cherished childhood memories is making plates of holiday treats. Every year my mother would emerge from the pantry, arms overflowing with typical ingredients like flour, sugar, chocolate chips, and other holiday only items like those little gold dragees that we used to top the sugar cookie Christmas trees .

Just as essential as to the baking process were the stack of 33s stored in the credenza next to the nativity set. I loved those Christmas albums. Some we bought but most were handed out in November at the gas station when you got your tank filled. They featured a potluck assortment of singers. I can picture the faces of Mel Torme, Doris Day, Jim Neighbors, and Mahalia Jackson smiling at me from the record cover. My sister and I belted along in Spanish to Jose Feliciano’s “Feliz Navidad” and giggled our way thru John Denver’s “Please Daddy, don’t get drunk this Christmas.”

But the song that always gave me goose bumps as I rolled out sugar cookies was “Do You Hear What I Hear?” It was as if Bing Crosby were asking me personally, “Do you see what I see? Heather, do you see the star?” The song would stay with me as we loaded up the station wagon and delivered plates of cookies to neighbors and friends. On the drive home, I remember laying in the way back of the car (seat belts were optional in the 70s) and staring out the back window at all the stars, and feeling blessed by them. Each one a small echo of the star that shone on the stable, alerted the shepherds, and guided the wise men. “Yes,” my heart said. “I see what you see.”

Fast-forward 15 years to the hills above Bethlehem. A big part of the Jerusalem study abroad is to trace the steps of the Savior. One night we stood huddled in the cold as our professor talked to us about what it must have been like to be a shepherd on that night of nights. He read to us from Luke 2. “Yes,” I thought. “I’ve heard this all before. The taxes, the innkeeper, the swaddling clothes.” But to my surprise, the words from verses13-14 pierced my heart: “And suddenly there was with the Angel a multitude of Heavenly Host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” I closed my eyes and imagined I could hear the angels sing their message, voices full of joy and praise. On that hill, for just a moment, I heard what the lamb heard, and it warmed my soul.

Now I am the mom, hauling out the flour and dragees (Which are sometimes illegal in California–go figure.) and my ever growing collection of Christmas CDs. As we bake we take turns controlling the iPod. I let them play Glee’s version of “Last Christmas” and then I get to crank Judy Collin’s “The Cherry Tree Carol.” They are learning the lyrics to the carols and last night I heard the 8 year-old serenade her 5 year-old sister on the top bunk with the sweetest version of “Silent Night.” I listened in and wondered, do they know what I know? That though life is tough, there is peace to be found in the Gospel of Christ. Truly, He will bring us Goodness and Light.

motherhood

I saw something today that really affected me. I immediately cried when it happened of course because when I gave birth to Oscar I received these new ULTRA sensitive set of emotions. I don't know what to do with them, sometimes they seem unbearable. I can't watch any story on the news that involves a child being neglected, abused, or about the wrongful death of a child without becoming very upset. It will eat at me until I fall asleep if it allows me to fall asleep. I can't hear about the horrible things being done to children in the world without being consumed by sadness. I'd call it a curse except it's opened my eyes to the need for each of us to do good in the world and to make a difference.
So what I saw today was a mother that had no food to feed her 3 yr old daughter. She was at a government agency trying to deal with someone probably to be able to get food stamps. I have no idea what happened but she slowly starts raising her voice until all of a sudden she's shouting. She starts screaming in defiance saying she will not leave until they rectify the situation they had messed up. She was screaming about how they had messed up and how she had been in there every day for two weeks trying to see someone but that no one would see her. The employees told her to calm down and that's when she really lost it. She screamed "No I will not calm down! I have no food and I have a 3 year old daughter asking me for food! What do you want me to tell my daughter that's hungry! What am I supposed to tell her!?"
The sound of her voice ripped my heart apart. I could hear the desperation, fear, and determination of a mother trying to feed her child. The sound of her voice was something I'll never forget. I thought about what I would do if I didn't have food to feed Oscar, what I would or wouldn't do to take care of his most basic needs. It was overwhelming to even imagine the scenario.
I honestly don't know how these emotions just came as a package deal with the birth of my child. It's truly amazing. I can't think of anything more powerful than the love of a mother. So here's a video that I enjoyed. Here's to you mommas


It's 8 minutes long, just to warn you.

delicioso

Who doesn't love a good bag of nacho cheese Doritos? I guess there are some people that don't but I am not one of them. I like to indulge in Doritos about as often as I indulge in ice cream or frozen yogurt. But, these little fakies right here do the trick. No they're not Doritos, so don't expect a Dorito. Nate tried these and was angry because he expected Doritos. They definitely are the next best thing though, and will for sure satisfy any craving you have for something like nacho cheese Doritos.

The sad thing about these though is that their nutritional info is very similar to the real Doritos. The only thing that's better health wise is the amount of fat. I don't count calories but I was curious to see how many less calories were in these quaker chips, and the calorie intake is almost exactly the same as real nacho cheese Doritos. So I guess I can still have my real Doritos. But, just FYI these quaker things are pretty darn delicious.

the many faces of oscar

I can't ever seem to document this little boy's life enough since he changes daily. Sorry for the picture overload but it needs to be done. These first few pictures are of him in his little walker thing. He of course thinks it is for bouncing. He'll bounce the heck out of it even though it has no springs or any way he can get the jumping satisfaction he gets in his other toys




His shirts are always permanently wet like this from the uncontrollable amount of drool he produces. I used to try to put a bib on him all the time but I got over that quickly. It doesn't usually make him cold cause his body temperature is always sooo warm.






My grandparents came to visit us Thanksgiving weekend. Oscar loved them a lot. He's in my favorite outfit here: his bed time crayon fleece zip-up sleeping sack. It's the coolest thing for babies. It's like a snuggie for babies except there is an enclosed sack type of bottom to make sure their legs and feet stay nice and toasty inside. This crazy guy throws all his blankets off at night so we needed to find something like this. Every time I put it on him we can't stop calling him the little crayon.



We had our first family Thanksgiving at Nate's parents' this year. Everything was so yummy. This is one of our few family shots.


Stole this one from Nate's mom. Brother's and their babies. That's Mabel, Oscar's cousin only 2 months younger than him.



Oscar on Thanksgiving going to town on the sweet potatoes from my plate. He loved them. He wasn't a fan of the mashed potatoes though. He has officially eaten his first Thanksgiving dinner.





Oscar doing what he does best, laughing like crazy. I'm pretty sure he got his giggles from me. He thinks almost anything you do is HILARIOUS. It's pretty great, we love that about him. I was trying to get him laughing hard like this so I could get a picture of his two teeth that came in a few days ago.


Can you see the two bottom teeth right next to each other? That's the best picture I could get. He's been pretty uncomfortable because of them, but they look so cute.


This is his adorable little head of hair. He looks so darling. I thought he was cute when he was bald, and I didn't even really realize how bald he was until he got all this gorgeous hair. We love it. He has a cowlick on the top back of his head just like Nate does. It swirls around right there and makes his hair stand up straight in the back. He really couldn't get any better. Thank you Brenda & David for the high chair he's sitting in! We love it and it's been soooo nice having it since he started eating.

delicioso but not domingo

I keep meaning to post the pictures of my treats for the Sunday posts but I forget every time. So here are the deliciosos but not on Sunday. I blew it and forgot to take a picture of the finished product of the pies. It's really hard to remember to document while you are in the middle of something. That's the way all of my life is. Poor Oscar doesn't have as many pictures as most first children do.


It's pie season but I just can't muster up the energy to make a whole pie from scratch so I made up these mini cheesepies. At least I think I made them up, let me know if someone already came up with this idea. I don't like to spend all day making food so I opted for the Pillsbury box dough that you just add water to. It's ready to be rolled out in like 1 minute.



I also don't enjoy spending more money than necessary so I mixed fresh blackberries that were on sale for $0.88 and a can of blueberry pie filling with some cream cheese. That's why I called them cheesepies.




Line cupcake pan with dough, fill with mixture, top with more dough, then bake according to boxed pie crust directions. They were delicious, and one was more than plenty to satisfy my sweets craving. So sad I don't have a finished product picture cause they were so cute and tasty looking.



These I found all over the internet and I thought they were pretty cool. I had leftover candy corn and orange and black food dye from Halloween so this was an inexpensive treat for me. Just make your own sugar cookie and frosting recipe and pipe out frosting in orange and black for the legs and eyes. And the candy corn stays on because you spread some frosting underneath it on the cookie.



And since I was running with the non-Sunday delicioso theme, I had to post this. It's one of my favorite commercials. I know it's not hilarious but I laugh every time, I just can't help it.

oscar at 6 months

Oscar in his red high tops


Today was his 6 month birthday so here are his stats from the pediatrician visit today. He also got 5 shots while he was there and found out he had an ear infection. I think he's also cutting some teeth, so he's had a really rough few days.



If you click on the picture to blow it up, you'll see percentages next to his weight, height, and head circumference. However, instead of a high 90's percentage like the others, the height category has only an up arrow and no percentage. That is because his height is literally off the chart. They brought out the growth charts that tracks the normal margins of growth on a curve and where he's been placing, and he's outside the margin limits every time. My little basketball/volleyball/soccer/football/baseball player is growing just like his daddy did and he's looking sooo much like him lately. We love him so much. He has grown some really cute hair over the past month and he officially has brown eyes. His eyes are so much prettier than mine though because they're this pretty caramel color and mine are pretty close to black.


Nate in his red high tops. I don't think Nate was even a year old in this picture. Longest legs you'll ever see.

diamonds in my arizona rough

Warning- I am NOT making any statements or stances on where I stand politically on my ideas of illegal immigration, because I myself still have no idea.

Scenario 1:
Tonight I paid a visit to one of Mesa's little nuggets of gold, Rancho Grande Super Market. It's a full size SUPER Latino super market that boasts freshly grilled carne asada Saturdays outdoors, an amazingly clean environment, an impressive selection of Latino groceries, a delicious freshly made to order take-out section, great music, and THE FRIENDLIEST smiles and customer service in the west. I first asked a teenage girl where I could find some "masa preparada" (ready made dough) for tamales and she KINDLY and HAPPILY guided me with a huge smile to the area where I could find some. I go to check out and one of the best things happens. A woman cashier in her 50's not only assumes I speak Spanish, (never happened to me in the U.S.) but talks to me in Usted which is our equivalent of ma'am or sir. She sincerely and sweetly asks me how i'm doing with a big smile on her face.

Scenario 2: Immediately after Rancho Grande I go to Target. A teenage girl is my cashier. The customer ahead of me asks how her day is going and she proceeds to complain about how she has to work on a Friday night. This is her direct quote, no joke: "There are plenty of old people that work here. You'd think they'd sign up for the Friday night shifts, but noooo, I'm stuck here on a Friday night instead."

I had no other option but to contrast the two situations right away. I mean they literally happened one right after the other in the same night. The only thing I could think of was the state of our economy and the gratitude most people have or should have for their employment, whatever it may be. I thought of the illegal immigrants that stand outside on Broadway Rd. waiting for work. You've all seen them in your own city somewhere probably. Every morning they are out on the street at 5am, if not earlier, waiting for their next gig where a stranger determines their pay and their work. And they keep going out there every day! That Target teen employee made me realize, even in these days of a national %10 unemployment rate, I still don't see any U.S. citizens out there competing with the illegal immigrants on Broadway. I've known some of those guys to make at least $10 an hr and they pick up jobs pretty consistently sometimes if they're good. So why aren't any U.S. citizens at $10 an hr skill level out there competing with them?

Scenario 3:
A situation close to home has completely been blown out of control. I wish I could give the history of this situation so that you could understand what's really going on, but that just wouldn't be right. After a long time of unemployment, some people we know have been offered an opportunity for employment in the same field as their previous career. They have not pursued or taken advantage of this opportunity at all. However, they are now PUBLICLY frustrated and disappointed with us for not doing enough for them.

After thinking about all of these different scenarios, it's really hard not to think about the all those illegal immigrants I see on Broadway everyday. They've become the talk of our state and the talk of the nation. After these people we know decided to voice their disappointment and frustration with us to others, I became extremely frustrated for the takers in life. All I could think of were the people who take, complain, expect, demand, etc. It made me so mad that even with the financial state of our country, and the state of every other country in the world, that people are still unwilling to work and expect to not have to work too hard. And then I thought of those guys out on Broadway Rd. waiting for work and they lightened my anger.

I remembered those wonderful workers at Rancho Grande Super Market, my co-workers at the Red Iguana who will be life long bussers at a restaurant, and the guys that stand out on the street in many cities waiting for work every day at 5am without any expectations, and they really brightened up my day. Their work ethic and gratitude has become a little diamond in my Arizona rough and i'm really grateful for them today.

this is halloween

I wanted to go with the garden theme but Nate couldn't decide what he wanted to be until saturday morning so I had no time to make him a costume. He is a rushed version of a giant rake, Oscar is a garden gnome, and I am a sunflower. I made all of our costumes. Oscar hated his hat of course and kept eating his cotton ball beard. We didn't do much since Oscar started to unravel at 6pm and was in bed by 7, but it was fun to get in the spirit.











This is my spider web cake for my domingo delicioso entry. I baked it for our church halloween carnival. I didn't come up with the idea. I just copied a spider web cookie recipe.

oscar loves to bounce

Oscar's been loving playing with the little toys on his play chair that his uncle eric gave him, but he hadn't discovered that he could bounce in there until a few days ago. As soon as he figured out he could jump in there on his own, he's been bouncing non-stop.
it's the best to hear the little repetitive thumping of his feet on the floor.


Here he is eating his cereal his bouncer and he can't stop bouncing for one second.

domingo delicioso - halloween treats

candy corn cupcakes. i'm sick of cupcakes but i needed something easy and fun for a church event.


white cake batter from box. split it in half after you make it and dye one half orange, and one half yellow. spoon in yellow into cupcake shells and then orange on top. and voila


white caramel corn. make your own popcorn in the pan without seasoning. add salty roasted peanuts, candy corn, reeses pieces. melt a bar of almond bark vanilla (white chocolate stuff) and pour it over mixture. mix it up and let it set on a cookie sheet. then eat.

I love Nate. Do you? Show me then

Nate doesn't surprise me with roses or chocolates randomly. He does however melt my heart when he brings me treats from work like these...



Because of these kinds of things he does for me, I really need to help him out in something big and I will need all the help you and friends can throw my way.

Nate LOVES


That's right, he LOVES The Amazing Race. And because he loves it, I love it too, and it is now our favorite show and an exciting part in our week. I had never watched it before Nate, so I can understand if you haven't seen it. But you're gonna wanna watch it as soon as possible, i.e. Sunday nights at 7 pm PST.

Anyway, Nate and his brother Dave have been wanting to apply to be on the show for some time now but haven't been able to make a video of themselves yet for the application. If you know these two brothers, you'd know they would WITHOUT A DOUBT win the 1 million dollars if they could just get picked for the show. (unless they were to get bad luck with sucky cab drivers or something) I, however, willingly admit that I could never make it past one challenge in one episode. I'm not sure if my navigation skills could even get me to the airport to make it to a challenge let alone win one. Nate and Dave though are the ultimate team to be reckoned with and here's why:



-They're both very inteligent AND street smart
-They're quick thinkers and don't panic, but excel in a fast paced bind
-They're AMAZING with direction and knowing where they are and the fastest way to get there
-They have savvy minds and think outside the box
-They're natural athletes and can handle any of the physical challenges
-They have no fears of heights, bugs, speed, weird foods, etc. They're fearless
-They're fast
-They're polite and courteous
-They're respectful and appreciative of other cultures
-They've lived in other countries and are experienced in getting themselves around abroad and using foreign currency (this was a problem last season)
-One speaks Spanish and the other speaks Portuguese
-They're funny
-They're a good physical pair being that they're men and their height differences and different strengths give them a really good leg up on their competition
-They're good dancers

(here they are on our wedding day. dave was not supposed to be holding flowers.)




And there are plenty of other things that I just can't think of right now, but the point of this list is for you to help them out on creating their concept/idea for their 3 minute application video. I need you to brainstorm hard because as Dave said the other day, "You have to already be a celeb these days to be on reality t.v." Which is kind of becoming true, so they need all the help they can get. I think they need a "schtick," you know like "their thing," and all I've been able to come up with is playing up their height difference and that they're Mormon. All the teams on the show kind of have to be given a title. There was a duo of acapella singers, there are two girls that are doctors, there's a father and daughter whose a beauty queen, and then there are the asians. That's what everyone calls them, the asians. I know it's not PC, but it's what happens on the Amazing Race.

(here are the asians)


And "the asians" just so happen to be my absolute favorites. I don't know what i'll do if they get kicked off. They are a father and son team, Michael and Kevin, and I love them so much. I usually have a perma grin when they're on, and they've even made me cry once. I want them to win the million this year.

Anyway, my Nate needs your help. This is something I know he would and could win. He at least deserves to make it on the show and experience the fun challenges and the traveling with his brother. I love this guy and he has got to make it on the show. So please send me your ideas, please please please. We need to catch those producers' attention. If we use your idea and they make the show, we will compensate you in whatever way you see fit.

Grandparents and Max come to visit

My grandparents and my brother came to visit for the weekend. They were excited to see Oscar. It also happened to be my birthday on Sunday so it ended up being a great weekend to have them here to celebrate.













So happy Max came. Love my brother and Oscar loved his uncle.


I'm so mad about this. This is the first time Oscar is trying cereal and the camera decided to run out of memory without letting me know until I uploaded the video to the computer. So all you get is a total teaser of about 7 seconds.