Downtown 2008

This morning we are gearing up for our annual weekend downtown. We started this tradition a number of years ago, and have kept it going with the kids. We stay at the Sheraton where they host the elaborate Gingerbread house displays. The kids (and us) marvel at the cookie/candy creations. The weekend usually involves a carousel ride, a horse and buggy ride, a visit to the market...oh, and some shopping :-) Anyway, we are looking forward to another fun year. Weather is supposed to hold out for us (last year is snowed) which is always a plus. We will post some pics of all the happenings. Have a great post Turkey-day weekend.

Report Cards are in

Today was the day when 1st Quarter report cards came out and Maddie got all A's!!! Yes a 4.0. It was so funny, I was coming home from BBall practice and called home...Maddie answered and said in a sad voice..."Daddy, we need to talk when you get home" I am thinking, Oh boy..did she slap her sister or break something. When I got home, she sat me down in the living room, and showed me her report card. She was grinning from ear to ear. Now, it is just 2nd grade, but this was a great accomplishment for Maddie and we are very proud of her. She has set the bar pretty high now :-)

Recap and Week Ahead

Last week was a crazy week...we had something going on every day in some way shape of form. So, we were looking forward to the weekend. After a crisp morning walk down to Cafe Ladro (Maddie on her bike), we took the kids over to the McAllisters for a play dates. We had Mikalya over on Friday night for a dinner and a movie with Maddie, so Maddie and KK were excited to hang out more with them. While they played, we ran a few errands...just the two of us...and where did we go? You guessed it, Costco :-) We actually got some Christmas shopping done there, so it worked out well. The day wrapped up heading out to U village to try and round out our wardrobe for the family photo shoot on Sunday.

The Sunday photo shoot was a GREAT time. After going back and worth on what to wear and where to go, we headed out to Golden Gardens on a great sunny seattle sunday. For Mother's day this year, I signed us up with a photo shoot with Leighellen. With Christmas around the corner, we thought this would be a great time to do the shoot. Although a bit brisk, it was an awesome time. LE was great with our crazy girls and we are really looking forward to getting the pictures back. When we get them, we will be sure to post a couple here. Thanks LE!!!

Looking ahead, it is a short week with the Thanksgiving Holiday. Just a few days of work and a few days of school. Along with a nummy dinner with Mom and Dad Jensen we are looking forward to spending a little time with friends...maybe playing a little football, etc. Not sure if we will make it out for "Black Friday" shopping...depends if there are any crazy bargains out there.

We hope that everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving. Safe travels to all of you hitting the air or roads to be with family/friends!!

All done

We can officially call the trip to Cali complete by making it to in-n-
out. It is an absolute must have when coming to ca, az or nv.

Last Soccer Game of the Year

Well, we woke up on Saturday to some patches of blue skies, but by game time we couldnt avoid the rain. Lucky for Team Quicksilver, they play really well in the rain. It was Maddie's last game of the year as we cant make it for the official final game of the year. Maddie gave it her all and after 2 or 3 great shots on goal in the first half, she broke through, off a a great pass from her best friend Mikayla, to score an awesome goal in her last game. No surprises on this one..she drilled it home!!! We are super proud of Maddie and how she, and all the other girls, played this year. They played with good spacing, great passing, and worked well together. Here is a little video of our end of the game tunnel. Special thanks to Coach Erik for helping the girls do so well this year.

Here are a couple pics from today as well.

Before you know it...

We always joke early in the year that "It will be Christmas before you know it"...well guess what, it will be Christmas before you know it. We started going through our calendar, and starting with this weekend we have something going on all the way until Christmas. Not saying that is a bad thing, but is always seems to sneak up on us. In addition to busy weekends, this week marked the start of Bball seasons. First practice was on Wednesday and we have some more practices next week. It is looking like we will have a 7th and 8th grade team again, and all the kids are excited for the season. We will be posting updates throughout the season....go Eagles!

Exceeding Expectations

Well, a year's worth of work is finally over. Last night was the Hope School auction that Steph, Julia and crew have been planning for a long time. It was a year ago when Steph and Julia agreed to co-chair the event and suggested moving to this Fall. With these two in charge, there was not a lot missed. Every detail was accounted for, everything organized, volunteers lined up, etc. It all came to life yesterday. We started out with "car loading" at 9:30 and we finally made it home at 12:30am. It was a BUSY BUSY day...however, one that was an amazing success.

All in all, over $80,000 dollars was raised (gross)!!! Aside from raising a bunch of money for Hope, it was just a GREAT night. Everyone was excited, the venue was buzzing...the auctioneer even had to Shush the crowd 3-4 time because everyone was just enjoying themselves. We have been trying to lay low today and tie up loose ends here and there, but the buzz is out there that this was one of the best (if not the best) event ever for HOPE. We have heard that from a number of people, ran into people at the grocery store, received emails, etc.

Hats off to Steph who put everything she had into this to make it such a great event. It is extremely rewarding to see all the hard work pay off, and for it to be appreciated. Thank you all for your thoughts, prayers, donations, etc. We appreciate it, Maddie and Kenzie appreciate it, and Hope appreciates it!