Jensen Family Blog

The Seattle Jensens - 2011 Year In Review

2012-01-04T23:10:00.000-08:00

Unfortunately our family blogging has been a little less frequent then we would have liked. If we would have, then there wouldn't be a need for an “end of year” recap. But, oh well...here we are. Sitting down and looking through the 2011 calendar, one common theme that we saw was “New” - there was a lot of new things we experienced which kept us on our toes, and moving fast...just like we like it! So, month by month here is a short recap of some of the highlights from 2011.

January
We kicked off the new year with Mike starting a new job. After 10 years with Daptiv, it was time for change and on the 1st day of the new year, he started at R2integrated, a Digital Marketing and Technology Agency. Based out of Baltimore, MD they started an office here in Seattle and have been growing ever since. The most exciting part for the kids is the fact that their office is right above Krispy Kreme in SODO.

February
We celebrated Kezie’s 6th Birthday on the 18th. She is full of energy, loves school, and her friends. Her favorite game to play is “store”, where she scans and bags just about everything in the house. I think we have bought the same book a dozen or more times.

March
In addition to celebrating another birthday for Steph :-) the exciting news was that Maddie had the opportunity to put on the Hope School uniform for the first time by joining the 5th/6th Grade basketball team. They were a little short on girls for the team, so they invited some eager 4th graders to join in. This was a great chance for her to play for her school, with friends and get ready for this coming season.

April
Maddie turned double digits in April, the big 10. She is growing up fast...really fast. She enjoys all kinds of sports, enjoys her friends, school, church, etc. In April we also fit in a few of our favorites, with a visit to the Oregon coast for Easter, and then the annual kids fishing derby at Maggie lake. Both were fun, as always, and we look forward to them again this year.

May
The sports theme continued into May as Maddie tacked on her 3rd sport, softball. This is her last year before they really start playing by the rules. She is on the fence if she wants to keep going, so we will see. We were also able to get Kenzie back into soccer, as she joined forces with a friend. She was a little scared to get back into it, but we are glad she did. Her first game...3 goals!! It is now her favorite sport :-)

June
The girls wrapped up a successful school year...Kenzie “graduated” to 1st grade, and Maddie moved on to 5th grade where she is most excited about, you guessed it..having a locker. In June, Steph also changed her working status from contractor to employee with AnotherSource. She is still part-time status, which she loves as it allows her to get the girls from school and have some time to herself.

July
Hola...Gracias...Muy Bien...Adios....Tequila - Just a few of the words that we got very familiar with on our fist trip to Mexico. We packed our bags and headed to Cabo with our parents and Steph’s sister’s family for 8 days. We enjoyed a ton of quality time by the pool, with drinks in hand, and tried to just relax. It was a great time and we look forward to going again sometime.

August
We celebrated a big milestone, our 20 year High School Class reunion. Our class was pretty small (only 32) but we had a great turnout over a weekend with day 1 at Beveridge Place, and day 2 a family picnic at Lincoln Park. Great to see how everyone has changed, or for those lucky ones, NOT changed. In August, we also enjoyed a week with Ben and Lauren, who were visiting from California. They stayed with Nana and Papa J while Jeff and Amy prepped for the arrival of baby #3 (Nathan). The cousins had a great time together, with time on the beach, Mariners games, etc.

September
After a fun summer, the girls headed back to school. Maddie moving to 5th Grade with Mrs. Hood, and Kenzie starting 1st Grade with Mrs. Hartley at Hope Lutheran. It felt like we extended summer just a bit longer as Ryan, Stacey and the boys were here for a few days as well. Luckily the weather was still nice and we were able to spend some time at the Lake, enjoying the “relaxation station.”

October
After taking in our very first Sounders game around Mike’s birthday in September, we followed that up with our October highlight which was attending the US Open Cup final, which the Sounders won! It was their third straight, and it was an awesome experience. We are all now kind of hooked on the Sounders, so we will probably be going to a few more games in 2012.

November
The big milestone in November was the Hope Auction on 11-11-11. Steph co-chaired the auction and helped coordinate the biggest event ever for the schools. All the hard work over the course of nearly 6 months paid off, as the event raised over $100,000. It might be tough to get her to sign up for it again soon, but she did an awesome job! For Thanksgiving, we enjoyed a great meal with great friends, and played in the annual Turkey bowl. A tradition we started a few years back that has steadily grown each year. Fun times!

December

Finally, as we reached December we headed into “busy season” - with holiday parties, tree cutting, school programs, work events, Santa Visits and family in town, we had it all. We made a joke, but partly serious, about how we would love to hire a video crew to follow us around over the Holidays. So many experiences, laughs, etc that at times are tough to believe happened, but they did. Finally, we wrapped up the month and the year celebrating our 16th wedding anniversary on New Years Eve.

No doubt that we are truly blessed. Our family, our community, our health, our friends, our jobs. We are thankful each and every day. We pray that you, and your families have a happy, joyous, hope filled New Year!

Making Christmas a bit brighter for another Family - Our Extended Family Tradition

2011-12-22T08:43:00.000-08:00

The Holidays are a time when traditions are both formed, and played out. Going to grandma’s house, baking cookies, cutting down the family tree, etc....and our family is no different. For as long as I can remember we packed up and headed to my Grandparents house on Christmas Eve for a BIG extended family get together. We shared food, fun, games, and of course gifts. As we got older, some people moved away and the crowd got smaller some yeara, but we still had our tradition of getting together and sharing the Holidays with each other.

After a number of years of just exchanging gift cards with each other, and following the passing of my Grandfather the summer before, we started a new tradition, a tradition of adopting a family in need and spending our time and money on making their Christmas a little brighter. We worked with our Church that helps hundreds of families each year, and picked from a handful of families that they felt would be the best fit for us. Over the years we have helped single parent families, families going through medical issues, and families that are homeless. Each has their own story and circumstances that we embrace and do the best we can make things a littler better.

Usually right after Thanksgiving we contact the Church to let them know we are “in” for another year and they give us a few options to pick from. This year, they started with one, knowing that our family would be the best fit to try and help. It was a family of 8; Mom, Dad and 6 kids - ranging from 2-16. They have landed on tough times, and have been living in a homeless camp. Their needs were minimal; some clothes, blankets, gloves and maybe a bag to put their belonging in.

So, let’s just stop here for a second. Can you imagine this? A family of 8 with no home...a bag for their belongings would be great?

When we heard this, we knew we wanted to help, but a family of 8 was big commitment. Even for our extended family, we were concerned if we could make an impact. Sure, all they wanted was a bag for their thing, but we knew we wanted to do more than that. We reached out to the family and everyone agreed that we COULD do this, so we made it happen. Over the course of the next few weeks, we accumulated clothes, toys, blankets, etc. We also went to a local custom print shop that was able to help us order duffel bags at cost. They also dipped into all their “seconds” and was able to provide even more clothes for the bags.

The above picture are the 8 bags filled to the brim with all their goodies the day before we delivered to the church to then get to the family. Seeing the product of our hearts coming together for another family was pretty cool. I can honestly say, that this is one of the best traditions we have started. It is something we will continue to do...and I would encourage anyone reading this to start this up as well. If you think it might be too much to take on, think through it again....you can make it happen!

A Long Overdue Update..."S"ummer Edition

2011-08-01T22:49:00.000-07:00

Well, this is kinds of embarrassing...just noticed that we have not posted a blog update since April. Yikes. To be honest, we really havent been doing much of anything..just a lot of sitting around, watching TV, etc. Pretty boring. Yeah right!

Where to even start....

Softball - Maddie played her 4th season of Softball. She has improved a ton year to year. This was the last year in the "development" league so she needs to decide if she wants to move up to 12U and play the real deal. We will see.

Soccer - We were finally able to get Kenzie out on the soccer field this spring. In her first game, what does she do...she scores 3 goals! She went on to score a bunch more over the season, and above all - she had fun! She is excited to keep it rolling in the Fall.

School - The girls wrapped up their school year at Hope. Maddie is now on to 5th grade (wow) and Kenzie moves up to 1st Grade (double wow). They love their school, their friends, the teachers, etc.

Summer - Well, the story here is that it is just now showing up. Where as a lot of the country has suffered from heat waves, the good ole Northwest has been basking in 60 degrees and cloudy. The joke is that summer usually starts on the 5th of July..this year it wasn't until nearly August. The good news is that the forecast is for a stretch of nearly 10 days above 70.

San Lucas - Technically it is Cabo San Lucas but I'm trying to stick with the S theme. Our big summer vacation was with the extended family for 9 days in Cabo. Other than a jaunt across the border to Tijuana back in 1994, this was the first time to Mexico. We stayed at Villa Del Palmar, just a few minutes from Cabo. Bottom line, we had an awesome time. Lots of sun, sand and sillies (wow, the S's are rolling). We look forward to making a return visit sometime.

Seattle Visitors - OK, I'm struggling to keep the S thing going now. We have been lucky to have a number of visitors come on through Seattle as well. Our good friends the Landskovs (minus Jeff) were out in June...and are back again (plus Jeff) now. We miss them since the left to Colorado last summer. Steph's Grandma and Aunt and Uncle just wrapped up a quick trip out for Steph's cousin's wedding. It was a great few days with them. Finally, as we speak, the Lakewood Dynamic Duo of Ben and Lauren are on their Northwest Tour. They are giving Mom and Dad a little break before their new little brother arrives at the end of the month. We always love having visitors, so come on out and visit!

Well, I think that will do it. It's funny how the summers seem to fly by. When we were kids, it felt like they went on and on. As always, we will try our best to stay a bit more current. You can always find us on Facebook or Twitter (http://twitter.com/mjtwit) for "real time" updates.

Adios!

March Madness - Jensen Style

2011-04-03T20:57:00.000-07:00

Seem like every month goes by faster and faster, but there is no doubt that this March was one of the craziest of all time. Yes, it marks the end of College Basketball season, dubbed March Madness, and for the Jensen house it was just that. Things started off with business trips for both of us, Mike to Baltimore for his 1st company meeting with r2i and Steph to California with Another Source. Our trips actually overlapped a bit and we were lucky to have the grandparents available to get the kids to/from school. Next on tap was Steph’s birthday weekend with lots of friends and family, including a surprise visit from our good friend Leighellen. The next couple weekends were packed full of School fundraisers, Friends Birthday parties, and basketball tournaments. Oh, actually the month started with a basketball tournament too...and Oh, it was non-stop basketball nearly every day!! Maddie had the amazing opportunity as a 4th grader to represent her school (Hope Lutheran) on the 5/6th grade team. With that came daily practices and/or games and a new kind of busy. Mixed in with all of that was also a practice for Spring Soccer, and getting Girls Softball kicked off. We knew heading into it, that it was going to be packed, but as it is all past us now, looking back we realize it was nutty! But in the end...it was totally worth it!

Maddie was coming off another great season with the local YMCA and we could tell that she really enjoyed playing basketball, so we she asked if she could play on the school team we wanted to encourage her to keep going. She, along with 3 other 4th graders joined the 5/6th grade team and did an awesome job. They contributed, were great teammates, and most of all had a great time. At the end of year tournament we were so proud when Maddie was recognized most for her attitude and her smile. She is one happy kid, and does everything with a smile...win or lose, basket or no basket, she just loves playing the game. We are looking forward to many more years in the bleachers, cheering her and her friends on...and next year we will be a little more prepared for the Madness that comes in March.

Another Successful Basketball Season

2011-02-05T17:39:00.000-08:00

It seemed like we just got started, but today marked the end to another successful basketball season for Maddie. Along with her buddy, Mikayla, they were the M&M's. Here is a picture of them after their big Win today.

It was great to see how much the girls improved this year...at the same time, they had no problem scoring baskets. One game we counted nearly 40 baskets made! Kinda crazy for 9-10 year olds. Maddie got off to a slow start in December when she wasnt feeling too great, but that barely held her back. She hustled all the time, was aggressive, learned to pass more (she likes to shoot), and most of all had a smile on her face. Something that even her coach pointed out today when handing out trophies. Speaking of aggressive, she even got a little experience going up against some girls that like to "mix it up" - and she hung tough!

We are super proud of her and her commitment to the game. We love her spirit and desire to get better. Tough to teach that kind of stuff.

2010 - The Year of CHANGE

2010-12-29T23:02:00.000-08:00

With our annual Christmas card, we typically have tried to include some sort of summary of the year’s events, but as the holidays approached we realized we needed to spend some time thinking through it more versus just whipping something together. Plus we needed some more time to come up with a creative way to describe the year that was, 2010. It might sound a little boring, and maybe a bit cliche, but in looking back there was one word that continued to come to mind when thinking of 2010, CHANGE. Granted, change is happening constantly - it’s the one thing you can count on...but for us, this was truly a year of change. To help describe it, we converted CHANGE into an acronym and thought of 6 words that describe our year.

Cherish - We use the word cherish to describe some key changes this year because it marked some milestones in our lives; After over 10yrs, Mike and Daptiv parted ways this summer. He described it in more detail here. At the same time, after a number of year focused solely on the kids, Steph got back into the working world doing recruiting for a company called Another Source, and loves it! Maddie (9) and Kenzie (5) are changing all the time and getting bigger every day. Hard to think that Maddie will be 10 next year! Great memories and experiences that we will cherish for sure.

Hope - Hope filled our lives a lot again this year. From a phyical perspective, Hope Church and School continues to be a big part of our lives. Mike is Chariman of the School Board and Steph helped with Sunday School and a number of other things (too many to count.) Emotionally, we felt a lot of Hope this summer as Mike went through job transition. We had a ton of support from friends and family as he started his journey to find something new. There was no doubt that Hope filled our family day in and day out this past year.

Adventure - Our year was filled with adventures as well. Mike, along with two friends, headed to the western outskirts of Vancouver Island to Bamfield BC for a open water fishing trip. 8+ hours of travel, 3 on a windy, dirty, bumpy road made for quite a trip...Oh, and they brought back lots of salmon and halibut that filled the freezer. Our big family adventure was to Disneyland in August. Our summer was wrapping up quick and on a whim we decided to book a trip to the happiest place on earth. 5 days at the park, where we also stayed at the Grand Californian hotel...right next to California Adventure. The kids had bunk beds, and we loved every minute of it! We are always on the lookout for fun family adventures.

New - No cars, houses or boats..Not even new pets. When we think of new we really think of new situations and new relationships. Having Mike at home this summer to hang-out with the family more was something totally new. Sure we had vacations, but it was a treat to have the entire family together. Meeting new friends, personally and professionally was also a big part of our year. Through school and church, as well as through professional networking, new relationships were formed. Finally, when we think of new, we think of new perspectives and understanding what is really important to us and how good we have it. So, while it’s easy to get caught up in new “things” - we are most happy with the new situations, experiences and perspectives that 2010 brought us.

Growth - With change comes a lot of opportunity to grow in many different ways. One growth area for us was when we had good friends (Landskovs) move away. We had grown very close to them, so that was a tough transition...but thank goodness for Skype and Facebook for the ability to stay in touch. Our girls are growing like crazy as well. Kenzie is about 3 inches taller than Maddie was at the same age, so she is sprouting up quick. Maddie is playing all kinds of sports; softball, soccer and basketball and loves to learn new things.

Exciting - There was a lot of excitement this year..probably more than we would have liked. Much of the excitement revolved around Mike’s job change, but the exciting part was the variety of conversations he had with so many different people and companies. It was exciting to see the various relationships being established and the opportunities that presented themselves. It was also exciting to have family visit during the summer, during the fall and now during the holidays. We always enjoy having family in town to visit and become tourists in our home town and hit all the great spots.

So, there you have it. 2010 was a year for change. Sometimes change can be scary, uncertain, and even difficult, but with it all we felt blessed to be surrounded by amazing friends and family that brought us through it all. We wish everyone a Happy and Healthy New Year!

Getting Involved Early

2010-09-30T23:05:00.000-07:00

Last weekend a long time friend Tracy Dart, and her team of walkers, set out on the Susan G. Komen 3 Day walk here in Seattle in support of Breast Cancer research. Their team collectively raised over 40K dollars through dontations, sponsorships, etc! Tracy is a 2-time survivor of Breast Cancer at just the age of 35. Being a long time friend, and someone our age, this has hit home as we have see her attack this head on and be a huge advocate for a cure.

So, when the opportunity came up to support Tracy and her team, we decided to help..and we being the entire family. During the fundraising phase over the summer, Maddie and Kenzie overheard details about the situation and wanted to lend a hand. They used their skills and interest in making beaded bracelets to make a slew of pink bracelets to sell at our family garage sale. Using materials we bought for them they, along with some friends, spent the time to make the bracelets for the sale. The first go around generated over $100! Later, at another fundraising event, they raised another $100. It might not seem like a lot, but for these girls it was a fortune. More importantly they felt like they were really helping and contributing.

Fast forward to last Saturday while Team Tracy was pounding the pavement on Day 2 of their walk. We made the drive up to Everett to be at a cheering station for the team. However, the station wasnt just for them, it was for the thousands of people walking. Walker after walker came by, with smiles on their face (despite the pain of being on mile 30 of 60), genuinely appreciative that we would take the time to be there. Right in the mix were our two girls, cheering, clapping and encouraging them to keep going. It was right after I took this picutre that it hit me...

Here are our two little girls, cheering on these people that are raising money for a cure to one of the worst diseases out there facing women, breast cancer...this is for THEM. It is because of what these walkers are doing TODAY that will give our two girls hope for a cure in the future. While I am hopeful that a cure will be found a lot sooner, the reality is it that it likely wont be for sometime, and who will benefit from the things happening now? ...these two little girls!

Clearly I hope they can avoid this all together, but I know by getting them exposed this now, they will continue to aware...they will continue to support...the will continue to have hope. Plus, if at some point in their life they become directly impacted by this disease, they will know that they can fight through it. So, we are excited that they are getting involved at this early age and taking an interest in supporting the efforts that they will benefit from in the future.

Time flies when you're having fun!

2010-09-25T22:17:00.000-07:00

Hard to believe that the last post here was "Goodbye June, Hello July"...and next week Oct will be here. Where does the time go? It has been a busy few months, and we will do our best to recap all the highlights from the last few months.

July - Friends and Family
Like we have the last few years, we headed to Maggie Lake for the 4th of July. We are always amazed at the amount of fireworks that this community puts together...the show goes on for hours, both on the 4th as well as the 3rd. We had visits from The Lakewood Jensens (technicall that was June, but oh well) as well as the Willow Glen Perrys. Always enjoy hanging out with family, and getting the cousins together. Lastly we had the chance to spend a few days with our friends the Landskovs at their cabin. Unfortunately, they moved back to Colorado in June, but made a trip back this way for some time at their cabin. We had an awesome time! Maddie found a new hobby...Kayaking!

August - Travel Adventures
In August we had a handful of trips. Mike joined two friends on a fishing adventure to Vancouver Island. It was a kind of fishing that he had never really done before, out on the open ocean. They caught Salmon, and our favorite Halibut. The "catch" filled the freezer and we are experimenting with all kinds of fish receipes. After coming back from that trip he then headed down to San Francisco for a conference. With his job situation it was a great networking opportunity. Only regret was that Steph didnt come down with him as he got to stay at the Ritz Carlton at Half Moon bay...right on the ocean..right on the golf course. However as a family we wrapped up summer by heading down to Disneyland for 5 days. It was a spur of the moment trip as we found great airfare. The weather was awesome, there were hardly any crowds, and we did EVERYTHING while we were there. It was a great way to wrap things up.

September - Back to School
After a busy labor day weekend, and celebrating birthdays, the kids headed back to school. Kenzie started Kindergarten, while Maddie is now a big 4th grader. Both at Hope, and both now full time..and both wearing uniforms! Kenzie loves every part of school, and Maddie is as sharp as a tack.

We also just wrapped up a visit from our relatives from Nebraska who came out to Seattle for the UW vs Nebrasksa football game. We had an awesome time with her cousins and their kids, all who stayed at our house. Little crazy, but the girls loved playing together, and we loved catching up. A tradition we always have is to go on the Duck boats...the kids love..and we love it. Always seem to learn something new about the town we live in!

Aside from all of this, we continue to fill our days with Soccer, School and Work. Mike updated his blog about his new opportunity with MangoSpring. It is part time right now, but we hope that with some of his help it will move forward and become full time by the end of the year. Steph is working part time doing recruiting/interviewing for AnotherSource. She loves the flexibilty, the opportunity to engage with people, and the team she is on. He boss, Marcie was just honored as one of the "40 under 40" by the Puget Sound Business Journal.

Well, that's it in a nutshell..Time flies when you're having fun, and we have been having a lot of fun for sure!

Goodbye June - Hello July!

2010-07-12T21:35:00.000-07:00

Wow...time flies when you are having fun. Seemed like just the other day the kids got out of school and we had the whole month of June in front of us. Now we are past the 4th of July, summer has officially kicked into high gear and we are just a few weeks away from August! Yikes!

June marked the end of a couple things. First, another awesome school year. Maddie finished the year with straight A's all 4 quarters. Steph and I are thankful for both Maddie's desire to learn and for her awesome teachers at Hope. We are also puzzled on where she gets it!! Kenzie officially graduated from Pre-School and is ready as ever for Kindergarten. She has a huge heart and love helping out whenever and whereever she can. Prediction for Kenzie's profession was a teacher and we can believe it. The other end, was Mike's 10 year long run with Daptiv. He bloged about it on his new blog (http://mikejensen.posterous.com/) and is taking it all in stride. Daptiv was a great place for him to get a ton of experience and he is excited about finding that next challenge. It couldnt have come at a better time with the summer in front of us and opportunity to be with all the girls a little more. He is actively networking and meeting a lot of great people so we are excited about what might be next.

In June we also went on a group camping trip with a bunch of friends. The same group where we have always had some kind of "run in" on our adventures. One time it was a huge rainstorm the day we arrived...the next time it was an ER trip after a knife/carving incident. This time, no major injuries, but the weather got us again. First night was great...second night was OK...but the next morning..the morning we were packing up and heading home..DOWNPOUR! Either way, it was a ton of fun with great friends. Later in June we also had the chance to hang out with the Lakewood Jensens who were up for their annual NW visit. We packed the days with fun times, and the kids loved every minute of it. I think all the cousins were up early every morning asking what was next. Our highlight was probably the Lincoln Park trip where the kids played on the ZIP line, worked on a little curve ball with Ben and enjoyed the swing set. Always great to see and hang out with family and the cousins!

As we moved into July, we hit July 4th weekend. Fingers were crossed that we would get some great weather for a change, but that was about 3 days late (just wrapped up some 90 degree heat). Either way we made the best of our time. Friday night we had dinner with Jenn and Tracy who were staying down at Hood Canal. It was a great time to catch up and make some smores. Saturday was the big Tahuya Parade. A parade where anyone that really wants to, can be in the parade. Usually some great "floats" that make us all chuckle.

There are hot dogs, hamburgers, ice cream, etc...An all American experience. It was great to have the Doerrs and the Millers there with us...so along with all our family we had almost an entire block of chairs saved on the parade route.

That night was a prelude to the Fireworks show for the 4th. When the 4th came, it was GO TIME....The folks on Maggie Lake spare no expense and really do it right. 2 1/2 hours of non-stop fireworks...and BIG stuff..no roman candles and sparklers...big stuff like Lake Union stuff. Anyway, it was a great show, and a great time. The girls even got a chance to get in the water...Weather didnt stop them!

Whew...so here we are. Post West Seattle Summer Fest (aka Sidewalk sale) and in mid-July. More family coming to town in the next couple weeks and then we are on the home stretch for back to school in August. Let's not get there too fast!

Watch out Golden...Here come the Landskovs

2010-06-11T10:23:00.000-07:00

We knew this day was coming, but goodbye is never easy. Today we said our final goodbye to the Landskov family, great friends that are moving to Golden, CO. We have grown close to these guys over the years, especially since Luke and KK are 1 week apart. They have developed a special little bond while growing up together. So, aside from the Moms and Dads struggling and sheding a tear (or two), it was tough to see KK start to cry as she said bye to her little buddy. We plan to stay in close contact with the Landskov, and although this goodbye was tough, we are anxious to see them again soon. We snapped this quick photo before we took off

Good luck Landskovs...we love you guys!

Memorial Day Weekend

2010-06-08T21:59:00.000-07:00

Better late than never, but wanted to recap our memorial day weekend trip to the cabin. We got a little later of a start since Maddie had a softball game on Friday, but it actually worked out well. We grabbed the early morning ferry and were up to the cabin by mid morning. It was a a mini-garage sale weekend, so while the crew was in the garage trying to move some high quality merchandise, I decided to take advantage of no rain, and headed out onto the lake to fish. My "vessel" of choice was the paddle boat.

I was surprised that no one else was out there, and the fish must have been hungry, because they were biting!

Then later in the afternoon, Steph, Maddie KK and I headed back out in the boat...and luckily the fish were still biting. By catching some fish, we had the opportunity to feed the resident eagles..yes feed the eagles. You have to check out the video below where the eagle swooped down to gobble up the fish we threw out there. This was actually the 2nd of 3 times we were able to do this. It was awesome to witness, and something we will never forget. The kids are still talking about it.

We wrapped up the only sunny day we had with a fire at the fire pit...Good times!

The San Francisco Treat

2010-05-20T22:46:00.000-07:00

Last week, we took advantage of a business trip to San Francisco to pack up the family for a short mini-vacation. While Mike was in meetings for a conference, Steph and the girls toured the great town of San Francisco with rides on the cable cars, a stroll on fisherman's wharf, a visit to the wax museum, etc. They had 1 1/2 days to wander the town and see the sights. Luckily the weather held out...it was actually nicer in Seattle the few days we were there.

After the conference was over, we all packed up and headed down to San Jose to visit The Perrys. It just so happened to be Haas' 3rd birthday party, so we couldnt resist the opportunity to stop in and celebrate. Stacey and Ryan threw a great "Garbage" themed party for about a dozen other kids... garbage was littered in the backyard, kids picked it all up (ok, most if it) there was a garbage truck cake and garbage bag races. One of the highlights for Maddie was that she was able to read the stinky story to all the kids...she did an awesome job, and many of the parents were wondering if she could do story time next weekend too! We had an awesome time (like always) and cant wait for the next time we can get together.

Maddie Turns 9!

2010-04-22T21:54:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we celebrated Maddie's 9th birthday. Like everyone knows, these birthdays are not just one day, rather they stretch out over many day..but hey, isn't that how you'd want it too! Things going rolling on Friday when she brought home her report card.....straight A's for the 3rd straight QTR!!!! Nice Job Kid.

We kicked things off on Saturday evening with a visit to old faithful, The Spaghetti Factory. Maddie has always loved this place (just like her mommy and auntie) so we got all the grandparents, and even great grandparent down there to celebrate.

On Sunday, we had a bowling party with Maddie and 15 other 8/9 year old girls!! Wow. The girls did great, and a fun time with it all. 2hr of bowling, homemade cupcakes from mom and sherbert ice cream...doesnt get any better than that!

Sunday night we met up with our friends; Jenn and Glenn and their two boys Owen and Ian. It was like 70 degrees so we headed to the beach. Although it technically wasnt another celebration of just her birthday, we had a great time playing on the swings, slides, and the whale.

Finally, on Monday, her actual birthday, Maddie had fun filled day. It started with a class field trip to the aquarium, planned I'm sure just for her birthday :-)...then later a ride on the Water Taxi to another favorite spot of hers, Red Robin. I think she likes all the attention and people singing to her!

We are very blessed to have such a great little girl. She has always been positive and we love that about her and love celebrating her birthday. Happy Birthday Binks!

Spring Break Recap

2010-04-16T23:04:00.000-07:00

Last week we had that chance to get a few days out of town with our good friends the Doerrs. In a last minute thought, I got a hold of Roslyn Properties and they had this house for rent at Suncadia. 4 bedroom, 3 bathrooms, game room, etc. Sounds like the perfect option for us. As luck would have it, the weather decided to act up. The night before we left, about 4 in of snow fell in the mountains, and in the morning tractions tires were required to get over the pass. We had to google what a "traction tire" is to see if we had them and if we needed to get some chains. As we pulled away from West Seattle, we had decided to make a pit stop in North Bend, and good thing, because I-90 had just closed! oh boy, here we go. By the time we got to North Bend, the pass had re-opened, and the snow had stopped...but as we looked over to the west a storm was looming so we decided to get going.

Our drive over the pass was pretty uneventful, with the exception of having to stop to fix our windshield wiper, which was literally barely hanging on. We rolled into Suncadia and found the house. It was exactly what we expected, and started to settle in.

A little light snow started to fall so we decided to head into town for some "supplies"...and by the time we got back to the house, there was a legit 1-2 inches of snow on the ground. The kids immediately threw on their snow gear (which was a last minute add to the list) and headed out to the golf course. The house was about 20 yds from the 4th hole, and a nice small slope..the whole 4th fairway was quickly covered and the kids got to work on their snowman!

By the AM, we had a good 4-5 inches on the ground, with some steady flurries....The kids headed outside right after breakfast and we played for HOURS. By early afternoon, the sun came out and we had a giant snowball fight before all the snow started melting away. With the sun out we headed out on a drive up to Lake Cle Elum and along the way we came across a heard of Elk feeding on the hillside. Our car missed them on the way up, but we snapped a few pics on the way back...pretty cool to see.

For dinner that night we headed to one of our long time favorite spots, Village Pizza in Roslyn. We used to always go there when we went rafting on the Yakima river. They are famous for having Trivial Pursuit cards all over, and more importantly honey for the pizza crust. We wrapped up the day by checking out the Suncadia lodge, which was also pretty cool. By that time, almost all the snow was gone, and the views were pretty amazing. This is a shot of the Cle Elum river from the back side of the Suncadia lodge...I started to get the itch to grab a fly rod and go fishing!

The next morning we had to up and out pretty early, but we had a small little delay when the power went out about 7am. We headed into town for a nice small town breakfast, then packed up and headed out. On the way home we stopped by Snoqualmie falls for a quick visit. Unfortunately there had been an incident with a lot of search and recovery activity, so we couldn't see a lot, but we got a couple pics of the amazing falls. An awesome couple days with great friend and family for Spring break.

Easter Beach Trip

2010-04-03T21:36:00.000-07:00

This weekend we set off on our annual trip to Gearhart, OR for Easter. Always a great time to get away, visit the coast, see friends, and of celebrate Easter. With the coast, you never quite know what kind of weather you will run into...could be sunny (one time it was like 80), could be (likely is) rainy, and for the first time this year, it was COLD. By Maddie's account it hailed 11 different times! Here is a look at the kind of storms that rolled in often.

I actually threw a hail ball at Maddie! Even with all the cold and hail and rain, we made our typical walk into "town" for coffee and goodies.

After a visit into Seaside to the arcade for some skee ball, we figured we HAD to make a trip to the beach some how, some way...so we drove onto it. There are a couple spots where cars are allowed, so we tried our luck and made it to the beach..luckily we didnt get stuck :-)

Like always, a great trip. This is fun area to come to and the kids love it...wish we could actually come down here more. Actually, there is a nice 5 bd, 2 bath house for sale right across from where we stay...just a cool 1.6M..anyone???

HAPPY EASTER!!!

Softball Season Starts

2010-03-13T14:25:00.000-08:00

Today marked the first day of softball season. This will be Maddie's third year, and she is super excited about the new season. Rob McAllister and I are coaching again and looking forward to another awesome season. This year the girls move out of what I call "T-ball" mode and start actually playing the game...outs, counting runs, pitching, etc. For many of the girls this is their 3rd year so they are ready to take this step. In general, at this age, I think they are all ready to start being a bit more competitive.

We have a great group of girls and families this year as well. There are 6 returning from last years team, 4 from another team, and then 5 new girls. A great mix I would say! There are two notable new girls on the team..The first is from a family where we got to know them when we went through birthing classes with Maddie...now 9 yrs later, the two of them are on the same team. The other, is a friend from Maddie's Pre-school class at Hope. With Kindergarten, they went to a different school just down the street, but a few years later, here we are.

We will post pictures throughout the year, as well as give an update on what the team name is once all the girls vote...this was their homework assignment after practice today :-)

Birthday Recap

2010-02-27T07:07:00.000-08:00

Kenzie wrapped up a full week of birthday celebrations. Starting with sharing with friends on Thursday, moving to her Doll Doctor party on Saturday, and wrapping up with family party on Sunday at the Spaghetti factory. She (and we) had a lot of fun turning five. We caught a few pics of her blowing out all of her various birthday candles

Happy Birthday Kenzie!

2010-02-18T23:01:00.000-08:00

Today little Makenzie turned the big #5. From the moment she got up, she was excited about her day. What may have been the most exciting for her, was that she singing the "5...5 dollar" Subway theme song to match up with her birthday.

The day was packed...from a birthday breakfast, to her shining star day at school, to an afternoon with the Nana's at Bellevue Square, to her birthday dinner with friends...we got it all in. Her birthday doesnt stop here...she is looking forward to festivities on both Saturday and Sunday, so this is technically her birthday week! We will post more pics and updates from all her activities.

Happy Birthday to our little ball of fire...aka...KK!

80's Recap

2010-02-06T09:59:00.000-08:00

Realized that we had not updated the blog since the 80's event last weekend so here it goes. The day started early, we were at the grocery store by 10, then to the gym by 11. We got all the big stuff setup before squeezing in a bball game for Maddie. After getting back from that the gym had been fully transformed into an 80's HS dance scene with balloon arches, game area, band setup, etc. We were able to get home, get our "Costumes" on and get back up for things to start rolling. It was awesome to see all the outfits that people put together. Here are a couple pics to give you a taste of it.

Overall the event was a great success, fun was had by ALL, and we raised a bunch of money for the school. It is always rewarding to be part of these kind of things. Thanks to everyone that helped make it happen! From donations, to giving, to helping, etc...It was a Great event!

The Final Countdown

2010-01-23T09:04:00.000-08:00

One week from tonight, we roll back the clock for the 80's "Hope School Rocks" fundraiser. This song seemed fitting for many reasons. If you havent got your tickets yet, let us know, this is going to be a great event!!!

If the embedded video doesnt come through, here is the YouTube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jK-NcRmVcw

Moving Downstairs

2010-01-20T22:06:00.000-08:00

Well, for the last few months Maddie has been asking about the possibility of moving from the top bunk, sharing a bedroom with KK, to the spare bedroom downstairs. Over Christmas she got new bedding, pillows, etc. and last night out of the blue she asked again if she could sleep downstairs...and after thinking about we said OK. Hard to know who had a tougher time with...Maddie, sleeping by herself...KK, now sleeping by herself...or Mommy, having her little girls sleeping separately :-) We are on night #2 and it it already a bit easier...Kenzie likes the idea that she has her own big room...Maddie is planning how to move lamps around, etc...while Mom and Dad just get more exercise walking up and down the stairs. We expect a few bumps here and there, but we are starting into a new phase. We'll keep you posted.

Back in the swing of things

2010-01-12T16:26:00.000-08:00

No, we are not talking about golf swings (although that sounds pretty nice right now), rather the day to day routines around here. After the hustle and bustle that was the Holidays, in a wierd sort of way, it is kind of nice to get back to "normal." Dont get me wrong, having family around, visiting with friends, parties, presents, no work, etc...is ALL GOOD. It can just get a bit hectic. Oh well, it is what it is. Like every year, we were blessed with a great Christmas and awesome New Year. This year did lack the "surprise" of last year with all the snow...and the kids (and us) were bummed we didnt get to see any around this year. We did our best to make up for it by heading up to the Hyak Sledding hill for some sledding with the Doerrs. As always a ton of fun, but it was almost a bust as they just havent had enough snow yet to really get the hill going. Luckily, they opened it up after about an hour there...In fact the kids were the "test sledders" for the park ranger. So, we can take some credit for opening up the hill for the hundreds of people that were waiting as well.

Our biggest "happenings" right now are 1) Maddie playing basketball and 2) Steph helping put on the Hope School Rocks Fundraiser. As for Basketball, Maddie is really enjoying playing ball. As Steph says, you can tell she is "passionate" about it as she is playing super hard. Nothing against Soccer, even Maddie says she still like Soccer, but Hoops might be here thing. She especially likes to shoot...a lot! So we are working on passing a bit more.

The other big activity going on is the Hope School Rocks fundraiser. Steph graciously agreed to be the "leader" of the event. It is shaping up to be a great time..80's themed with a live band, catered food, dancing, etc. A lot of people are helping out and it is going to be "Totally Awesome" for sure. The ultimate goal is to raise money for the school and what Hope is doing for kids and families. If you are interesting in attending, donating, or even helping...give us a shout!

The Last Decade

2010-01-02T21:34:00.000-08:00

In our last post we took a look at 2009, and while that in itself is packed, as we move into a new decade, we thought it would be fun to look back on the last decade. This is getting tougher and tougher to do as we get older (remember stuff), but here it goes.

1) The Y2K non-event - Not much to say here other than all the planning and preparation for the end of the world didn't happen...nothing blew up or malfunctioned. We just partied like it was 1999!

2) Madison - In 2001 we became parents with the birth of Madison Lynn. Her Auntie quickly gave her the nickname "Binks", and she has been a true blessing to us. She loves everything she does, and you can tell by the smile on her face all the time.

3) 9/11 - A day we will never forget, Steph was at home with Maddie and I was on the way to work when all everything started to unfold. I vividly recall our CEO at the time, calling a meeting and telling everyone to go home to be their families.

4) Boston trip - After Ryan and Stacey moved back to Boston, we took a great family trip to visit. Besides touring Boston, going to a Red Sox game, etc we all made it out to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. We wrapped that up with a trip to the "Big Apple" - our first time in NYC.

5) Kenzie - In 2005 we welcomed another daughter into the world, Makenzie Channer. She is our wild one, but also our little baby. We'll never forget the family photo shoot only 3 days after she was born...we still have those pics hanging on our walls.

6) Disneyland - Over the decade we were lucky to make a few trips to Disneyland. One of the first was when a good chunk of the family met in Long Beach for Thanksgiving and then went to the Magic Kingdom. We have made it down there a couple other times as well, once as a surprise for Stacey's birthday, as well as for Sheryl's 60th. We always love visiting Mickey and Minnie.

7) Hawaii trip(s) - Speaking of family trips, we also made a couple visits to Maui...our favorite island. The first was a great trip with Stacey and Ryan when Maddie was just 2...I'll never forget Maddie saying "Push it Uncle, Push it" while Ryan was driving...and rocking out in the car. The second trip was a big family getaway where aunts, uncles, cousins, etc all met in Maui to spread Grandpa Chew's ashes over Pearl Harbor. It was a memorable moment where we laid him to rest at a place where he almost lost his own life as a young man.

8) Vegas - Early in the decade we went on our first trip to Vegas...We expereinced the steak and eggs at 1am, and also spent quality time on the Golf course while the ladies were at the pool....we also made our contributions to the Vegas economy. Later in the decade, along with 3 other couples, we pulled off a surprise 40th Birthday getaway. The kids were at Nana and Papa's and we headed out on a 3 day getaway full of fun, laughs and all the other stuff that happens in Vegas..and stays there :-)

9) Grandparents - On both sides of our families we lost a few of our grandparents. Although it has been sad to see them go, we know that they lived long lives and are in a much better place. They provided us with so many great memories over the years and we will cherish them forever.

10) Parents turning 60 - Both our parents hit the big 6-0 during this last decade. We spent time in San Diego, Disneyland as well as the Oregon coast celebrating these milestone birthdays. We are thankful for their health and the involvement in both our lives, as well as our kids. They love there Nana's and Papa's.

11) Nieces and nephews - In addition to our family growing by 2, both our sisters and brothers grew their families in this decade. Jeff and Amy had Ben and Lauren, while Ryan and Stacey had Haas and most recently Felton. Growing up, we enjoyed our cousins so much, so it is great that our girls have cousins that that they can grow up with as well.

12) Coming Home - The last notable event of the decade was that we moved from Renton back to West Seattle. We called Renton home after we first got married since it was a nice in-between for both our jobs. However, we always wanted to try and find a way back into West Seattle where we both grew up. Luckily we were able to make that happen shortly after Maddie was born. Since then we have returned to Hope Church, Maddie and KK attend Hope school and we love everything about the West Seattle community.

There you have it, 12 notable items from the last decade. As we look forward to the next decade it is interesting, and maybe even scary, to think about where we will be in another 10 years. Maddie will be in college, Kenzie in High School, we will turn 40, our parents retired...and we have no idea what else God has in store for us. We will take it as it comes.

Happy New Year!

Looking Back on 2009

2009-12-16T22:09:00.000-08:00

Yikes....Where did the year go? It seems like just yesterday we were ringing in the new year, looking forward to all the exciting opportunities ahead in 2009. But here we are, December, a little over a week before Christmas and 2 weeks before we launch into 2010. Although we try our best to keep everyone informed about what is happening in Jensen household through our Blog, it is a tough job keeping up with EVERYTHING that is going on. So, this is always a great time to look back at the year that was and reminisce about all that happened....Luckily for us we do have a blog, because I'm not sure we could remember otherwise :-)

Makenzie - One word can sum up little KK....BUSY! This kid is nonstop 8am-8pm, go go go. In February she turned the big 4, and this September started P4 (PreK) at Hope. Kenzie loves to play store...all the time. The minute we get home, it is off to her cash register to pretend ringing up groceries, books, etc. I think we have bought all of our possessions about 10 times. With all that energy, we got her into a few different activities to see what might help channel her excitement. In the Spring she did T-ball at the Y with a couple of her buddies from school and really enjoyed it. After the first game where we had to run around the bases with her, she was sluggin it out like a big leaguer...fielding, well, that's another story. This fall we got her into Soccer, thinking that she can run run run...well, after the 1st game when she got elbowed in the head while in the middle of the pack (you know how 4yr old soccer is) it was tough to get her motivated. However, by the end of the year she was going after it, and mixing it up. The latest activity is a dance class with her friend. We always thought given her energy and flexibility, that gymnastics or dance might be her thing...so far she is really enjoying it and even has her own pair of tap shoes. Watch out Broadway! The thing that Kenzie adores the most is her big sister...Maddie is very patient (at times) with her, but they have a good time. They also tend to get on each other's nerves too, but hey, they wouldn't be sisters if they didn't. Kenzie is growing fast and it is hard to believe that next fall she will be going into Kindergarten.

Maddie - Well, where do we start with Maddie....It seems like she has grown WAY up this year. From her recent feat of getting her ears pierced, to being elected to student council, to playing 3 different sports, to getting a 4.0. In April Maddie turned 8, and this September started 3rd Grade at Hope. She loves school, her friends, her teachers and everything else that comes her way. She always seems to be happy no matter what. In the Spring Maddie started her 2nd year of girls softball and had an awesome time. Their team went all the way and won the "championship" for their age group. This Fall she was again on Team Quicksilver for soccer. Although she loves to score goals (don't we all) she naturally found a spot as a defender. Last year we were gung-ho on being goalie, but a rocket off her hand in the jamboree and she wasn't as much into that. Although their team didn't win a lot of games, they played hard each and every week and they got a ton better as the year went on. Now, Maddie is returning to our old stomping grounds, the Fauntleroy Y, for her first year of Basketball...or as we called it back in the day The YBA! For her birthday we got Maddie a basketball hoop, and between practicing outside and doing some day camps through School she is getting better and really enjoys it. Along the way in all these sports has been one of her closest friends, Mikayla. They love hanging out and having fun....but like I said earlier, Maddie loves all her friends. I think she could do something everyday with someone different.

Steph - The first thing that comes to mind when I think of Steph is dedicated. From the kids, to school, to church, to friends, she has dedicated her time and herself to making things better. She has a special gift to see how to make someones day...either through a phone call, an email, a Facebook post, a card, a special present...or more importantly just being there. This year Steph really took on the hobby of beads. Through a class at a local bead store she has developed an amazing talent to create beaded earrings, necklaces, etc. To the point that she is now getting "orders" from friends and acquaintances. She has always toyed around with the idea of starting her own little craft/specialty store, and I will continue to encourage her to do so. With Kenzie moving into Kindergarten next year the door might open a bit to think more about that. Be on the lookout! With her successful work on the Hope Auction back in Nov 2008, they and another local school have asked her to help coordinate their auctions, so that will occupy a lot of time in the coming months. One of the highlights of the year, was when her new little nephew, Felton, was born and she had the opportunity to go spend some quality time with her sister and family during the first few weeks of his life. Another highlight was her trip back to Nebraska to help her grandma prepare for a move to St. Louis. Although not the most fun, it was a time to be with her Grandma that she loves, and her way to help through her amazing organizational skills.

Mike - Hmmmm...since I wrote Steph's, I'll let Steph write mine...take it away. Mike is certainly the one that keeps us all grounded. With 3 girls, well, actually 4 if you count Josie dog as well, I don't know how he does it. Not only are we 3 girls, but 3 strong willed girls. We thank God everyday that he gave Mike an extra dose of patience. Maybe it isn't just a coincidence that work is requiring a bit more travel for Mike? :) He has been traveling about a week out of every month. His most recent trip took him to the Big Apple and not only the Big Apple but the Big Apple at Christmas. After flying a red-eye, one of his first stops before meetings was at the American Girl Store - with no girls along - to check some items off the Christmas list! Daptiv still keeps life exciting. It has taught us all a lot about change and the importance of adaptability. We are grateful for the 10 years that Mike has been there. He recently took on a new position as VP of Community Development. Mike loves technology and social networking and is eager to develop this new role. Quite often we joke that Mike's "other job" is School Board Chair at Hope - the girl's school. It too has taught us all about change and the importance of adaptability. We know that Mike was put in this role for a reason. Given the work changes and schedule, Mike decided to step away from coaching boys basketball this year but gets out their with the girls and their sports on a regular basis and still enjoys golfing and fishing whenever he can.

Friends, Family and Faith.
The three F's...three very important words that impacted our lives every day in 2009. We have been so very fortunate to surround ourselves with amazing friends. Friends that we laugh with, travel with, hang out with and genuinely enjoy our lives with. Coming back to Hope when Maddie was in P3 honestly changed our lives through the friendships we made. On the Family front, this year Grandma Cook(Mike's Gma) passed away after a short 4 month bought with cancer. Then, just recently, her husband Ray passed away quickly after suffering a brain aneurysm. Although we miss them, we know that they are in a much better place. In August, our family was blessed with a new little life - our nephew Felton. Steph and I have been lucky enough to see him in person, and the girls are counting the days to see him this Christmas. The Lakewood Jensens continue to make their annual summer visit to the NW and we really enjoy it when then come up. Maddie and KK love to hang out with their cousins, and we enjoy getting the whole family together when they visit. We are also extremely fortunate to have our parents in our lives and so close to us in West Seattle. We get together often both in town, as well as at the Channer cabin near Hood Canal. Faith wise, Hope Church and School continues to be a big part of our lives. Between School Board, teaching Sunday School, small groups, etc. Hope has emerged as our "third place" and we are excited about that.

We wish everyone a very merry Christmas and fabulous New Year. We hope that 2010 brings continued blessing to your families.

Downtown Trip - Maddie's News

2009-12-01T20:55:00.000-08:00

After an awesome Thanksgiving, we headed downtown for our annual holiday night. This was the first time we went the Friday after Thanksgiving, and it was crazy....fun crazy, but crazy. We will get pictures up later of all the festivities which included gingerbread houses, the Macy's star, carousel, tree lighting, shopping, etc. The exciting news from the weekend was that Maddie got her ears pierced. We have been asking Maddie for awhile if she wanted to get them pierced, however, like most 3rd graders, she wasn't too excited about it...for some reason, she was a-Ok with it this last weekend, so we went for it. We snapped a before and after picture, as well as a video. Maddie is super excited, and it taking good responsibility for keeping her ears clean in order avoid an infection...she is already planning what earrings she will start wearing in a few months.

And here is the video

Adopt a Family

2009-11-29T19:18:00.000-08:00

For the last few years, instead of drawing names and swapping gifts or gift cards, etc our extended families have adopted a family from our church, Hope Lutheran. This has been a great experience to help a family that is having some kind of difficulty..maybe a lost job, or suffering from illness, or even have recently lost a loved one. We have been able to provide for these families when they likely would have had NOTHING.

So, this year we are at it again. We received our family from the Church and we are super excited to make their Christmas something special. This year we adopted a family with 3 young kids and their Mom, who sadly just recently lost their Dad/Husband. The mom was a stay at home mom that is now struggling to find a way to provide for the family. The thing that strikes me the most when we get the "wish list" is that it is all clothes, blankets, socks, even underwear....all the "staples" that any of us probably take for granted...there are no iPods, or action figures, or toys in general.

This is a great time of year and we are so happy that we started this tradition. Not only do we love it, but the kids get it too and it helps shape who they are and we hope makes them feel more grateful for all that we do have. I encourage everyone to think about doing something similar.

Merry Christmas!

Giving Thanks

2009-11-24T20:49:00.000-08:00

This week is Thanksgiving...In case you didnt know that already. Besides consuming mass quantities of turkey, stuffing, potatoes, vegetables, rolls, etc. we take time to really think about the reason for season. Now, we could get all historical and think about that first meal with Pilgrims and Indians, but we would rather focus on the things that we are truly thankful for in our lives. We thought we would list just a few...and this is definitely just a few as we could go on forever with all the things that we are truly thankful for.

Friends - We have been fortunate to built some amazing friendships. Friendships that have led to so many great memories...of which will be Thanksgiving this year where we will be celebrating with our great friend the Doerrs...and playing in the annual Turkey bowl with the Landskovs.

Family - We are blessed to have our families so close to us and have them active in both our lives, but also our kids lives. This year, our extended family grew by 1 more with Felton's arrival. Steph and I have both been fortunate to meet baby Felton and the girls are excited to meet him this Christmas.

Faith - Since Steph and I were little, we grew up in the Church, specifically Hope, and we are thankful to continue to be involved there in a variety of ways as we raise our girls. Hope has, and will always, have a special place in our hearts.

Fortune - For us this goes beyond making money at a job...which don't get me wrong is a true blessing...and extends to things like Health, Laughter, Giving, Learning, Improving, Changing, Hobbies, etc. There are so many treasures in our life that make us feel amazingly fortunate.

Ironically, we cleverly summarized all these to start with the letter F. Which by the way is the COMPLETE OPPOSITE of Maddie's report card today...she earned straight A's for the 1st Quarter at School! Well done Maddie.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

San Jose Trip

2009-11-09T16:19:00.000-08:00

This past week I had the chance to fly down to San Jose for work; a conference as well as customer visits. Mixed in there, I also had the chance to visit with The Perry Family (Ryan, Stacey, Haas and Felton). They just moved into a great new house, and it was great to be able to stay with them and hang out.

Leaving town is always tough because I know that makes Steph's job even harder..layer into the mix a crazy amount of rain and strange weather and it can be really tough. Luckily we are surrounded by family and friends that make things a little easier (I hope).

The big finale was my flight back to Seattle on Friday night...for those of you in Seattle, it was day 2 of the thunder/lightning show..and guess what, I was right in the middle of it (at 20k feet!) the last 30min or so was crazy bumpy. We had come through the clouds and were over north Seattle when there was a bright flash, a loud pop, and big jerk of the plane..yes, lightning hit the plane. Probably the single most scary in-air thing I have experienced (that and an US Marshall tackling a dude and sitting on him in the aisle). There was this odd 5 sec quiet as we all determine if "this was it!" When all was well, there was some laughter and chatter to keep us occupied for final decent. Anyway, all safe now, and glad to be back home.

Thought I would share some pics I took while visiting...and a little video of Felton saying Hi to everyone :-) and Haas on his scooter!

Felton saying Hi

Haas on his Scooter

The Halloween haul!

2009-10-31T20:32:00.000-07:00

Sent from my iPhone

The Week: Friends and Family

2009-10-18T10:02:00.001-07:00

This week was a whirlwind of sorts for a variety of reasons. For starters, the kids were out of school all week as teachers has both parent conferences as well as a development conference our of state. We had our conference for Maddie...whew, we have some work to do :-) Just kidding...She is doing great. Mrs Norton is an awesome teacher and Maddie is really enjoying learning this year. For KK we had a family potluck night where we were able to meet some other families in a casual atmosphere.

Wednesday started to get a little nutty as Steph left at about 5am for a visit back to Nebraska where her grandma is packing up to move to an assisted living facility in St. Louis. St. Louis is where steph's uncle lives and there is a great facility for her grandma to move to. With steph out of town, and kids out of school, we had a bunch of great friend and family helping out with the girls. Wednesday they spent the day with Roberta. I think they not only had a great time with her, but also with Grace and Andrew (Roberta's grand kids) once they got out of school. Thursday we had one of their favorite babysitters, Katie, over in the morning...then Nana J took them in the afternoon. Mixed in there was a play date for KK with her friend Sara, for a Tap Class! The day finished off with Soccer practice and dinner at Pegasus on Alki. Friday, the girls spent the day with the McAllisters - their BFF's :-)...Maddie had an overnight, while KK spent the afternoon with her classmate Sophia. That night KK and I had a quiet night. Dinner at home, Slurpee for dessert, and a movie.

Times like these where we remind ourselves how blessed we are to have such great friends and family that our kids can be with. Other than a broken door at the McAllisters, I think they behave themselves pretty well-gulp! Sorry Rob, the girls are looking through all their play stuff for coins and money to help pay for what ever is needed to fix it. So far, they have about 9.58.

Steph gets in Monday night after her 5-6 days in Nebraska...Looking forward to having her home.

Start of School

2009-10-11T22:05:00.000-07:00

Well, school has actually been "in session" for about a month, but just now getting around to posting about it. The start of school has been great....Maddie now in 3rd grade and KK in P4. Both love school, their friends, learning, and Hope.

With 3rd grade Maddie is busy busy...her teacher is super tough (just kidding Mrs. Norton)...she has a good amount of homework, lots of reading time, weekly memory and spelling tests, etc. Right now she is reading a mystery book as she prepared for her 1st book report! She also was elected to Student Council a couple weeks ago.

Kenzie is in P4 with Mrs. Tornow. She is one of just 3 girls, but she loves it. Her best bud Lukie is there, and is making some new friends as well. This week we have a fun Pre-School family social which will give us the chance to meet other kids and families.

As much as KK likes P4, she is right on the coat tails of big sissy...and I think she wishes she was in 3rd grade too :-)

Gloria's Miracle

2009-09-27T09:45:00.000-07:00

Been meaning to write up a blog post about this for some time, but with Labor day, the start of school, family in town, and work travels...just havent had the time. (more on all those things soon) However, got a few minutes between sunday school and church this AM, so I thought I would "make it happen."

One of the greatest things that about this "story" that has happened, is exactly what I think Gloria would have wanted, and that is the fact that this story is being told and re-told over and over. Through the web, through face to face conversations, through blogs, etc.

About a year ago we bit the bullet and got a facebook account. Yes, only 1 year on that mammoth social networking site. In the "rush" that is social networking I began to find old friend from all walks of life..work, family, friends, etc. This included some of the guys that I played baseball back in the day. Since I played from the time was 9/10 all the way through HS, I had the opportunity to know a lot of different guys. One of those guys was Doug Strauss. My memory isnt great, but I distinctly remember being a cool, fun guy..always having a good time and great teammate. Like i have done with many others, I discovered Doug on Facebook and was re-introduced to some things that have happened in his life since baseball days, that I had heard about. His daughter, Gloria (1 of 7 kids) was diagnosed with a rare, uncureable bone cancer. Gloria's story, as well as the story of the entire Strauss family, was chronicled by Times Sports writer Jerry Brewer after he did a story about Kennedy HS basketball (where Doug coaches). Over the course of a year or more, Jerry, who was touched by this family, this litle girl, and her story...spent time with the family and this situation...until the final end, when Gloria passed away. Since that time, Jerry has been working with the Strauss' on his first book that brings their story to life. I wont go into a lot of details, because one of the purposes of this post is to encourage you to get the book and read for yourself.

OK, so I rambled a bit there, how does this related to now....Well, through the FB connection, Doug invited me to the book launch event for "Gloria's Miracle." I had seen it a number of weeks before, but never got it on the calendar. When the day of the event finally came, I just felt called to make it to this event. So, on the way I home, I called Steph and we said let's do it. After grabbing a quick bite to eat, we made it. There we had the chance to see Doug for the first time in probably 20 years...reminace about some of the common friend we have, get a book signed, etc. The main part of the event was to program of personal messages, readings from the book, musical performances, etc. We had to leave a bit early because the kids had school the next day, but we really enjoyed our time.

So, what the big deal...whats the punch line Mike? Couple things. First, you never know what people might come back into your life and for what reason. So, keep an open mind, look at the doors that might be put in front of you and be ready to go through them. Second, the kind of inspiration you get from a little girl that is faced with a life ending illness, but has such a positive faith-focused attitude. Again, i'm not going to go into a lot of detail because you need to read the book...and you can get the "full story" here http://www.gloriasmiracle.com/

It has been a blessing to be able to share Gloria's story and I hope you will take a look.

Summer Wrap Up

2009-08-31T22:10:00.000-07:00

With today being the last day of August, even though Summer is not "officially" over, it is starting to feel like it. The last few weeks have been pretty busy. For starters, we welcomed a new member to the family with the birth of our nephew, Felton Briggs. For obvious reasons, we haven't had the chance to connect much with the proud parents(Steph's sister Stacey and brother-in-law Ryan), but we hear from Steph's mom that all is well...and Haas is enjoying his new little bro!

A couple weekends ago, I had the opportunity to join 3 others on a trip to Bandon, OR...the home of Bandon Dunes golf resort. We played both Bandon and Pacific Dunes...two of the top 10 courses in the entire US. It was an amazing experience, especially since I played one of my best rounds ever given the conditions.

After returning from Bandon, we packed up the family and headed north to Semiahmoo for a few days. We were racking our brains for a place to go and we were glad that Semiahmoo came to mind. We enjoyed just walking on the beach, riding bikes, going on walks, visiting Langley, etc. On the day we came home we spent a few hours walking around the WWU campus with the kids. It was great to see how things have built up, and our old dorm rooms up on "the ridge."

On Wednesday we have our first official "back to school" activity with orientation. Maddie starts 3rd grade this year, while Kenzie is in P4, at Hope. Both are getting excited to be back at school with friends and their teachers. This week we are trying to get back into a routine of early to bed, early to rise, so that next week is not too big of a shock to the system.

Staying put...for now.

2009-08-13T22:32:00.000-07:00

We gave it our best shot, but after 3 full months on the market, we officially pulled our house off the market a couple weeks ago. Way back in February we found a new house just north of the junction, but in order to make it work, we of course had to sell our house. Although we had a TON of traffic through our house, and a lot of interest, in the end we only had 2 couples that were interested enough to make an offer...and in both cases I am not sure they understood that our house was built in 1910...and with that "vintage" everything isnt new. So, we took to failed attempts as our sign that it just isnt the right time. We think that there is still an outside chance that something happens, but it will have to be just right for us to think about it. So, for now, we are settling in, enjoying the house we do have, and letting the kids be kids! Josie came back from her "vacation" so it is nice to have her back to keep the raccoons and cats out of the back yard.

Where did July go?

2009-07-28T22:52:00.000-07:00

Holy flying months Batman? Where did July go? Realizing that this is the last week of July, yikes. Only 1 more month of summer vacation. Steph was out with the kids and hitting some of the back to school sales already...crazy!

Since the 4th of July recap, things have been fast and furious. We spent a great weekend at the Coaches Time Out conference in Vancouver. It was a great event (as always) and gave us a couple days on our own. It was refreshing to be driving in the car and be able to have a full conversation for more than 30 seconds :-)

The following weekend, I passed up my Sounders vs Chelsea tickets :-( for an awesome time with the Hope caravan in the West Seattle parade. Our new tradition of piling about 20 kids in the School Bus and handing out candy to the parade goers. This year SLHS was in front, followed by Hope Church, then us in the back. The cool thing was that Hope got 1st place in the "community" category, so we were really excited to be a part of it.

Spattered among the weeks have been Hope Softball games...a new adventure for me as I have not played softball since the 8-ballers back in 2001 when Maddie was just a little tyke. I had a lot of fun, and I think the girls enjoyed playing with friends, occassionally watching bits of the game, etc. Tradition was to always hit up DQ after the games with the team, so we all really liked that. As of today, we officially are done after a 3-2 loss in the playoffs. I managed to eek out a few hits here and there....and only tweak my hamstring a couple of time. I must be getting old!

This last week was a big milestone as Steph helped put on VBS at Hope. Her and Leighellen spearheaded the effort and did an AMAZING job coordinating the week. Over 150 kids and 50 volunteers were a part of the week. Steph led all the crafts and had a ton of cool ideas to pass along to the kids. Her creativity and organization skills were at their best.

Story of the month, and especially right now (literally) is the heat wave. We have had like 2 days with any measurable rain since June 1st....amazing. This week we are breaking records for the heat, with tomorrow supposedly flirting with 100!!! After that it "cools down" to around 90 over the weekend. As you can imagine, we have moved all our time at home to the basement, including sleeping. Not sure we could make it without it.

On the House front, there has been a lot of activity, but I am not going to write anything in case it might jinx it...All I can say is pray for some good mojo :-)

4th of July Recap

2009-07-09T13:43:00.000-07:00

We kicked off our 4th of July early this year by heading out to Maggie Lake on Wednesday. We were excited to get out of town for an extended weekend...and enjoy some awesome Seattle weather (80+ degrees every day!) Fireworks were already going, as we had worked the previous days on striking a deal on our house (more on that later). After our routine stop at the Belfair Safeway for some initial food, we headed up the cabin...the girls and I immediately headed for the lake to cool down...and Josie too...she LOVES to swim. Thursday we headed into town, and worked our way over to Trophy Lake for lunch where we also met up with Bruce. While Steph and Sheryl headed to the store for the "official" grocery store trip, Bruce and I and the girls stayed at Trophy lake and went fishing. As I have showed a number of times, I really like fishing here. Since it was so hot, the fishing was a bit tougher than normal, but we still caught a few in just a couple hours...and the girls love being the netters. We caped the day off with more swimming and a BBQ.

On Friday, more of the same....woke up late, took a walk around the lake, and swam some more. Nana and Papa J came up on Friday to join the fun and after some "fix it" help around the cabin, my dad was out in the paddle boat fishing. I think he ended up catching about 4 fish over the weekend...maybe the same one multiple times :-)! Friday night we had a chance to sleep outside in the tent for the first time..great night for it with it being so hot. We woke up on Saturday raring to go. We headed down to Tahuya days, where they have a great 4th of July celebration. The last part of the slide show below has some great pics from the parade...it is a goofy parade, but the kids love it because it is like a 2nd halloween with all the candy they get.

We got back to the cabin, did some more fishing, swimming, and relaxing. Below is a little video I took of the resident Eagle, doing his own version of "Fishing" this was the 3rd time he came down....pretty cool to see them this close.

That night Bruce and I joined in on game with the neighbors that took about 4 hours...it is like a West Coast version of horseshoes...kinda complicated to explain, so I wont. After that we watched the fireworks for 2 hours...yes, 2 hours of a personal fireworks show. There are about 3-4 groups that go all out.

Sunday we had a small garage sale to sell some furniture, and then headed home. Oh, and we had to wait in the ferry line for 2 1/2 hours!! Yikes. Oh well, better than sitting in traffic. Another great 4th!!

T-ball Season Finale

2009-06-27T22:57:00.000-07:00

Today was the final T-ball game of the year for Kenzie. It was a end of year celebration with the bounce house, hot dogs and a visit by the Mariner Moose. We got to the park at 11am and left about 2:30, so it was a full day. The weather was perfect for all the festivites, sunny and 75! The kids got medals as their "trophy" and all the kids love them...and the cupcakes! We had a lot of fun this year...Kenzie started to get in the "swing of things" after a few games...she actually has s pretty good swing and is pretty fast. We'll see where her baseball carrer goes :-) Special thanks to coach LE for a great season.

Father's Day Recap

2009-06-25T20:33:00.000-07:00

Probably one word can best describe Father's day this year...Baseball! Between the T-ball double header on Saturday, and then the awesome day at the M's game on Sunday, it was all Baseball. Yes, KK had a double header T-ball game on Saturday...a marathon 6 innings! She made it 5 1/2 :-)

Sunday we got up and headed down to the stadium at 10:30 for "Youth Baseball Day"...there were thousands of kids from all kinds of baseball teams there. Before hand, everyone had the chance to walk all the way around the outside of the field...the kids (including this one) loved it. When we worked our way around to Home Plate, I noticed that Maddie was getting a look from a couple staff people...they came up to her and asked if she would say "Play Ball" at the start of the game....Unfortunately, Maddie was caught by surprise, and in thinking that she would be announcing this in front of 30,000 people, she couldnt commit to it. Oh well. It would have been fun to see her do this, but I wouldnt want her to freeze up either! The game was great and we all sat with KK's tball team...and even saw the M's win in the bottom of the ninth. To top it off...after the game, the kids got the chance to run around the bases...they started at 1st and ran all way to home plate. I think we finally left the stadium around 5:30...so 6+ hours at the ballpark. From there we had a great dinner with Nana/Papa J and Nana/Papa C. It was a great day! Happy Father's Day!

Grandma Cook Tribute

2009-06-25T20:30:00.000-07:00

Hard to imagine it has been a couple weeks since Grandma passed away, wow..how time flies. Wanted to share with everyone a link to an online memorial that my Mom has setup. This provides a great way to share the entire message about her life, along with some great photos, and the opportunity for people to share their comments.

http://memorialwebsites.legacy.com/BarbaraCCook/homepage.aspx

"Great Grandma - Have a good time in Heaven"

2009-06-12T04:51:00.000-07:00

No joke....That was what Maddie wrote in her 2009 Yearbook from School last night...this is in response to the news that Grandma Cook had passed away. We got the call around 3:15 that quietly and peacefully, Grandma took her last breath and moved on to much better place. Steph and I were recalling that it was Kenzie's birthday party just 4 short months ago, where Grandma was complaining of being short of breath. The next week she was diagnosed with lung cancer, and further test revealed that cancer was spreading, and quickly. Since then, we have tried to enjoy as many memories as possible. The biggest being her 85th birthday party in early May. It was something that she desperately wanted to make, and she did. Below is a picture from the party, when we were all singing Happy Birthday to her. We will miss you Grandma!

Hello? Anybody home?

2009-06-07T21:08:00.000-07:00

Yes, we are here. It has been awhile since the last blog post around Mothers day. It has been a busy few weeks. Softball, T-ball, Open Houses, Hot Weather...we have seen it all. Maddie's softball team has made the shift to the playoffs. The majority of the season has been similar to t-ball where everyone hits, no one gets out, etc. With the playoffs, we count run, keep track of outs, etc. The girls won the first two games so the find themselves in the Championship game on Tuesday (Game is at 6:15 at Lincoln Park if you are interested). We are going to have a little fun and hold a family BBQ with the other two teams before hand. It will be a great way to finish up the year. While Maddie has been busy with Softball, KK is busy with T-ball. She is in the YMCA t-ball league that plays on Saturdays. She is slowly but surely getting the hang of it, hitting the ball good, and figuring out where to throw the ball. Bottom line she is having a great time. The girls are in the last week of school....Wednesday we head to Wild Waves for the end of year party, and the last day is on Friday. Wow..that went by fast...Maddie will be in 3rd grade (yes, 3rd) next year, and KK moves on to 4-year old Pre-School.

On the House front, it has been a little over a month since the house hit the market. We have had A TON of activity, with showings almost every day...open houses every weekend...and lots of people interested....but, no bites. We have been able to get an extension on our contingency, so we are still holding out hope that we can get a buyer and finalize our deal to move. We shall see...we have always said, if it is meant to be it is meant to be. We have lucked out with the weather while the house has been on the market...70's and 80's the entire time....we are excited to see summer coming early for a change, hopefully it will keep coming.

Lastly, as some of you may know, my Grandma (Grandma Cook) was recently diagnosed with cancer and has been battling over the last couple months. In early May, we had an opportunity to celebrate her Birthday with a lot of family in town. Since then, it has been tough. Hard to say how much time she has, so please keep her in your prayers.

Mother's Day Recap and House Hits the Market

2009-05-15T14:51:00.001-07:00

Last weekend was a mixed bag with all kinds of stuff going on. With the news that our contingent offer was accepted, following Kenzie's 1st T-Ball game (more on that later), we spend most of Saturday getting the house a bit more tidy for the coming week. Thanks to both mom and dads we were able to move out a few things to "de-clutter" and get the yard, etc looking pretty snazzy. On Sunday we ventured down to the Pike Place market for some good ol' market time, followed by lunch at the Steelhead Diner. It was a place that Steph and I saw this last December on our weekend downtown and it just happened to come to my head on Friday. We got a great table and the food was really good.

We (Steph) did some final cleanup on the house and we were ready for the broker's open on Tuesday. There were about 35 agents that came through and feedback was all pretty good. Since then, another 6 or so agents, 3 with clients have come through as well. So, the activity is there...Next big date is the classic Sunday open house from 1-4pm. Ideally we get some activity (i.e. Offers) from that Open and things go from there. We realize this is all out of our hands at this points and if it is meant to be, it is meant to be.

Here is our MLS Listing. Spread the word !!!

FOR SALE!!

2009-05-05T23:05:00.001-07:00

Since we dont have much going on and life was getting kinda dull around the Jensen house, we decided to shake things up a bit. We got word tonight that we came to mutual agreement to buy a new house about 1/2 a mile from where we are today in West Seattle. We have been looking on and off for a couple years, and when we saw this home, we had the feeling that this was the one. The sale is contingent on selling our current place....and quick. So, we are going to be spending the next few days getting the house ready to go on the market. Broker's open is scheduled for next Tuesday. If you know ANYONE interested in a charming, 3bedroom, 1.75bath home in West Seattle....send them our direction. Wish us luck, and pray that a buyer comes along so that we can make this happen. We love our house, and it has been a great for us, but with a couple growing girls, we just need some more space.

Once the MLS is up we will get that posted.

Maddie Birthday Recap

2009-04-29T16:33:00.000-07:00

Maddie made a visit to the office today and it reminded me that we had not recap'd Maddie's birthday weekend. It was filled from start to finish. It all started on Friday with a Friend party at Paint the Town. Twelve 8 year old girls painting pottery...Yikes!!! They had a great time, and it was a true sign of things to come. We then moved to Sunday, where the original plan was have the grandparents over for lunch/cake, etc. But them Maddie made a comment about, wanted to go to Mariners game...she is a big Griffey fan now...and since they were playing on her actually Birthday, we thought that was a great idea. So we packed up and headed to the game, parked a block or so away, got Kettle corn and enjoyed the game. With Maddie involved in softball she is actually getting into/understanding how it all works, out, hitting, etc. Kenzie on the other hand, well, she was about ready to leave by the 3rd inning. Oh well. After the game we topped of Maddie's bday with a trip to her favorite restaurant, The Old Spaghetti Factory. I think she would eat there every week if we would take her. We met the grandparents, and great grandparents there and she got the full Birthday treatment from the OSF.

Finally this last week, I was able to dig up her annual birthday pictures like we did for Kenzie last month. This took some looking into the digitial archives, but we found some. Enjoy...Maddie from 1-8...Happy Birthday Maddie!!!

Opening Day at Maggie Lake

2009-04-26T22:09:00.000-07:00

This weekend marked the opening day of fishing season. As is our new tradition, we were up at Maggie Lake for the Opening Day kids fishing derby. The community reserves opening day for the kids, with a little help from adults. As we were heading to bed on Friday night, we asked Maddie,"OK, so we will get up at 5am?" to which she answered..."Ummm...how about 6?" So, 6am it was...alarm was set...poles were rigged up. 6am came early, but we loaded up the boat and headed out on the lake. After about 30 minutes, we settled into a spot and made a short cast of power bait with the brand new $14 Big5 spinning rod...suddenly the line starting peeling away...partly because this new fancy rod didnt have the drag set, but mainly because we hooked into a big boy. After finally getting the drag set, and luckily not losing the fish, we were able to haul it in to the boat. You should have seen how big Maddie's eyes were!

Not to be left out, after we got the big one in, we (I) headed back out to get a fish for Kenzie. OK, it wasnt quite as big, but KK loved it!

With fish in hand/bag, we headed over to the park for the official measurement. Maddie's fish came in at 18 1/2 inches, and Kenzie's was 9in. With Maddie's we thought we had a chance to be in the top 4, however, in looking at the sheet, there were 2-20in fish on the board...but in the end, Maddie's fish placed 3rd in the age 5-8 category. In the 4 and under category, an 18mos old caught a 19in fish...umm, sure. Anyway, they had a great time, and loved getting their trophies and candy bars.

So, opening day was a success. We had a great time....never hurts to catch a big one for once.

Play Ball!

2009-04-15T22:48:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow marks the first regular season game in Maddie's softball season. Last year was her first year playing softball (after 2 years of t-ball), and this year she is the "veteran" on the team along with her best buddie Mikayla. We have a total of 9 girls this year, so everyone will get a lot of at bats and play every position. Maddie is becoming quite the athlete as she approaches her 8th birthday (this Sunday). Today she participated in her first basketball clinic and she has been practicing her dribbling in the back alley when it is sunny out. Rumor has it that she might be getting a portable hoop for her birthday (hopefully she doesnt check this blog at school.)

Aside from Softball season starting up, we just returned from our annual trip to the Oregon coast for Easter. This year we had a packed house with 11 adults and 5 kids. The kids were 1, 2, 3, 4, and 7. It was a a bit crazy...but fun. The weather cooperated for us on Friday and Saturday, but Sunday was a down pour all day, and for the drive home. Stacey and Haas flew up for the weekend so it was great to spend some time with them. Here is a slideshow of pics from the weekend:

Maddie's Thoughts

2009-03-29T22:18:00.000-07:00

Tonight, like every Sunday night, we settled in as a family to watch Extreme Makeover Home Edition. We started watching this as a family a couple years ago, and we really enjoy the messages, the stories, and I guess the goodwill it shares. It is not uncommon to see a few tears shed. Tonight was a special 2 hour edition...probably a little too long for Kenzie, and Maddie was starting to fade as well, but with Spring break this week, we let them stay up for it. About 1/2 way through the show, we noticed that Maddie had taken a notebook and cleared out some of the scribble pages and was writing. We can always tell, because she asks for help in spelling some words. Anyway, after the show was over, she wanted to share a "song" she wrote called "Life is Happy." This is ALL HER. We had nothing to do with it, which makes it even more special to hear. We asked if we could put this up on the Blog because it meant sooo much to us to hear her thoughts...our only wish to her (and we told her)...is that we hope that she always feels this way :-)

Life is Happy

Things are happy, so is Life. I love it every night. Life is very happy!

God gave me Life so I love it and I cry life is so happy!

I Love my Life.

Since this is pretty "deep" we thought we try to uncover what all made her life happy....and see what was going on in that little, almost 8 year old, head. Here is the list she rattled off:

1) Everything

2) Family

3) Church/Sunday School/Jesus/God

4) Nice Home

5) The Cabin

6) Friends

7) School/P.E.

8) Sports (Softball, Soccer, Basketball)

9) Nice Neighborhood

10) Arts and Crafts

11) Animals

Pretty Cool.

COOKIE TIME!!!

2009-03-25T13:17:00.000-07:00

OK...calling all Sweet Tooth fans, here is your chance. Your chance to have 2+lbs of pre-made cookie dough at your fingertips. When that urge is there to bake some cookies, simply scoop, bake and eat. How easy is that!

Maddie's School is having a fundraiser where they are selling Otis Spunkmeyer (I love that name) cookie dough. They also have, pretzels and brownies. There are about a dozen different types and all are $15 each. We have about two weeks (April 7th) to collect as many orders as possible. So we need your help. Here is a link to the "brochure"

If you have any trouble accessing or viewing the brochure we can send it to you via Email.

Of course we would love everyone to buy multiple tubs, however, there is 1 snag. When the orders come in, they come to us....so as much as we would love to have those of you in California, Arizona, Louisiana, etc. buy a few items, it might be a bit tough getting 3lbs of frozen cookie dough to you. That being said, another idea is that you buy a Tub as a donation, and we will find a local group that could benefit. A WIN WIN WIN situation.

So, that is it. After looking through the brochure if you find your mouth watering for a cookie, simply drop us an email (mjandsj@comcast.net) or give us a call and we will work out the ordering details. Again, we only have a couple weeks, so hurry while supplies last!!!

March Snow

2009-03-15T22:01:00.000-07:00

Well, there is A LOT more to report on, but we just had to get out there some pictures and video from the surprise we woke up to this morning. I guess we heard that there was a chance of snow, but these flakes were HUGE.

View out the front of the house...

View out the back of the house....

Videos of the monster flakes....

ON - TO - STATE!!!

2009-02-28T07:29:00.000-08:00

The chant was loud last night at the Saint's two playoff games last night. It brought back some memories for when we were in HS and had the chance to go to State. Both they boys and girls were in Winner to State/Loser Out games...it was all on the line. Steph, the girls and I decided earlier in the week we were going to head down to support the teams...in fact, the AD at Hope and Assistant Coach for SLHS talked with me after Church last week about getting a rooter bus of Hope 7/8th graders to go as well. So, with the help of Cary and Kristin, I rode with 11 7/8th graders down to the game in the Hope school bus....while the kids, Steph and Julia went in a bit more comfortable car.

The games were reallly great. The boys won their game...a bit nervous throughout, but they were clearly the better team and put it away late. The big news from this is that Brett promised the team he would get a Mohawk if they won...I will have to get a pic of that! The girls game was probably one of the best games we have seen in a really long time. It was back and forth...SLHS was down 7-9, then they came back to lead by 1 at Half. SLHS built a 9 point lead at one point in the 3rd, only to have TBS come back and take the lead. The girls came back to take the lead and after some clutch free throw won by 3!...All the students stormed the floor to celebrate...pretty cool!

They are off to state in Spokane next week after they play for seeding today. I was thinking about it, and it was 20 years ago when I had the chance to go to state and we won 8th place....Let's hope this year's Saints can come back home with some hardware.

Jr. is Back!!

2009-02-20T20:41:00.000-08:00

Well, I have to be honest...I knew he would be back! I knew the minute that he was released by Chicago and he no longer had the big contract and they had a chance to get him on the cheap...or cheaper. I have to say that I am pretty excited that he is back in Seattle. It was pretty cool to see how much he appreciated the fans when he was here last year, and that he made statements about wanting to retire here.

I remember when I was in HS and he first came the M's...then when his Dad came to play with him...and when they hit back to back homers...and finally when we came flying around 3rd to beat the Yankees in 95...or how about 8 straight games with a home run. I was a huge fan. I collected all his Baseball cards...even rookie cards ;-) I even have bought the Ken Griffy Jr candy bars. Actually, in anticipation of some time like the present, I wrapped up two and put them in my parents freezer. Over 15 years later, and a even with a new fridge, they are still there...We actually unwrapped them last year for some reason.

So, all I have to say is welcome back Jr. I am not sure what the year will bring, but I am still a fan...as our a lot of others here in Seattle. I dont think you will have any problem making that extra incentive money for attendance :-)

Kenzie Birthday Eve

2009-02-17T22:59:00.000-08:00

Well, it is Birthday Eve for Kenzie. Today was her shining star day at school. Steph made a batch of Mikey Cookies dipped in Chocolate for the P3 gang. Kenzie was a little under the weather yesterday so we weren't sure if she was going to make it, but she was a trooper. We were going through our digital library of photos and pulled out a picture of her 1st, 2nd and 3rd Birthday. We will add a 4th in a few days.

Brand New

1st Birthday

2nd Birthday

3rd Birthday

LEST Recap

2009-02-15T22:03:00.000-08:00

OK...so I kinda missed the Day 2 recap, so we need to wrap it all up here.

Day 2 was "Zoo Day" as we have started to coin it. It started with an early breakfast at the hotel then off to the Gym for the Semi-final game for Gold. We were playing a team from Montana that was a lot taller and faster, but we felt good about our chances. I'll spare you all the X's and O's and cut to the chase...we lost a close one. We came out with a lot of energy but about 1/2 way through the 2nd qtr, we lost a key player to injury. From there they pressured us and we never could quite recover. The loss put us in the game for 3rd place the next day.

Meanwhile the blue team, who won on day 1 (but couldnt advance) played another great game. It was back and forth the whole game, and they ended up winning by 1 point! The coolest part was that since the team they played couldnt make the game the next day, they allowed our guys to play for Consolation. They were super excited.

The girls team also had a great day, coming out on fire and never looking back for their 1st win of the season. The Win kept their hopes alive for 3rd place in their division. Drama also performed, as well as spellers, piano, etc....it was a "Zoo" of a day two!

Day 3 was all about "Victory"....except for the Boys Gold team. The guys played Zion, a team they beat earlier in the season, and although they came out strong, seemed to get sidetracked by a number of things. It didnt help that we lost the same key player to injury again in the 2nd possession of the game. We just couldnt manage anything on offense, and they were hitting almost everything they put up. So, the Gold team went home with nothing :-(

The Blue team on the other hand played by far their best game of the entire season. They showed a ton of patience, took good shots, played great defense, and in the end were victorious to capture the consolation prize! 3 days, 3 wins...and a trophy! The story for the tournament was our girls team, who just the day before earned their 1st win of the year, also played their best game so far and won 3rd place! They were SOOOO excited.

After all the BBall was done, we headed over to the Concordia campus for the awards. Drama took 2nd, Grant got a blue ribbon in Piano (and we think 1st overall, since his name was announced first), 2nd in spelling, Consolation in Knowledge Bowl, etc. Overall a very successful LEST.

LEST means the end of the bball season. Cary and I had a fun time coaching. Every year is always a bit different and you never know what to expect come LEST. Definitely have to thank Steph for all her patience since this is pretty time consuming with practices, games and then the tournament.

LEST Day 1 Recap

2009-02-12T21:13:00.001-08:00

After heading down to Portland after school yesterday, today marked the first day of the Tournament. Our Gold Team (8th graders) played in the morning. We played against a team from California that our Blue team lost to last year (by a lot). So, we didnt know exactly what to expect. The guys came out and played an awesome game, with a lot of energy and we raced away with the game. We were a bit worried when we learned just before the game that our starting center had cracked open his head diving into the swimming pool the night before and was at the ER until 2am getting 13 stiches...Yikes! Luckily he didnt have to play a lot and had a chance to rest. The win puts the Gold team into the Semi-finals against a team from Kalispell MT. Wish us luck!

The game of the day was when our Blue Team (7th Graders) played against Peace Bremerton. It was right after the Gold game so we raced over to the other Gym to watch. When we arrived we were down 8-0 and fell behind by as much as 13-0. It wasnt looking good. However, the team rallied back, played SUPER hard and was able to get the lead on two free throws with 46sec left. We made one last basket after a turnover to put the game away...Might have been the most exciting game I have seen in a long time!

Unfortunatley the girls team didnt win their game. We didnt have a chance to watch it, but they played hard and gave it their best. They play for the consolation tomorrow.

That's it for now. More tomorrow.

Major Catchup Needed

2009-02-04T11:10:00.000-08:00

The other day I happened to notice in my browser history http://seattlejensens.blogspot.com and it dawned on me...Ooops! It has been a wild few weeks since the last post about Super Kenzie...I love that picture BTW! I hope that this weekend we can get some updates out on a bunch of things, like....

Disneyland
Boys BBall
LEST
Family Promise
etc.

I am thinking that the new years' resolution should have been to blog more routinely...maybe we can make that our February resolution. Check back soon.

Super "M"

2009-01-18T20:30:00.000-08:00

For the first time in a long time we had a "laid back" weekend. Even then, it was full of activities. Saturday was party day, with Kenzie going to her first party for a classmate...then Maddie heading to a party in the evening for a good friend. Kenzie's party was a "Superhero" theme, so when we got up on Saturday we dug through the dress up box to find all the key elements to her costume....she was Super M. We caught Kenzie trying to fly off the couch.

This week we get ready for our trip to Disneyland...We are looking forward to getting away to some warm weather and some good times with Mickey and the gang.

Here we go...

2009-01-10T10:46:00.000-08:00

Well, the new year is in FULL swing. Back to work, back to school, back to the routine. We had a great holiday season with family and friends. The snow was the big highlight of the season, providing the kids with an early Christmas break. The trip to the cabin over new years was a blast as well given all the snow up there...well over a foot.

As we enter the new year, it is a time of moving forward. Steph and I continue to stay busy with school board stuff, Steph is active with Maddie and Kenzie's school as "Room Parent", Mike is busy with work and Basketball, etc. January and February will be busy with a Disneyland trip (definitely more on that as it happens) as well as our annual trip to LEST Hope School. We wish everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year.

Here are a collection of videos from around the new year and Christmas.

KK with Mickey Mouse Playhouse

The New Music Team

Sledding at Maggie Lake

Mike as Clark W. Griswold III

Mommy and KK

Surprise as Maggie Lake

2008-12-30T22:12:00.001-08:00

We will get an update out soon about Christmas, but wanted to share some current happenings. Today we woke up early and headed up to Maggie Lake for New Years. We thought there would be a chance for some snow on the ground since the Hood Canal area tends to get a bit more snow....plus last year provided some snow. Well, we had a big surprise when we pulled up...nearly 12in of snow on the ground. That would not have been so bad, but they had just plowed the roads, so there was about 3ft of ice/snow blocking the driveway. So, we ended up spending the first hour digging out some tracks so that we could get the cars in. From there we hit the hill by the cabin with the sleds. Below are some pictures, as well as two videos of the sledding runs...including Haas with Ryan!

Misc Pictures

Maddie, Hass, Ryan, and Kenzie Sledding

Haas and Ryan Sledding

Santa Visit

2008-12-21T22:24:00.000-08:00

Today we braved the constant snow to head downtown to visit Santa. This is a 35 year tradition for Steph's family and with Ryan making it into town this AM, we headed down. The wait was only about 45 minutes or so, and it marked the 1st year where we did not have one of the girls crying!!! Haas on the other hand didnt care for it. Here are a couple pics.

Here is a video of the girls telling Santa what they want for Christmas.

Jingle Bell Rap

2008-12-21T08:57:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, Seattle got slammed with some more snow yesterday and overnight. And of course we headed right out into it. Ethan was now in town so he came over and we walked/sleded up to the junction and when asked where they wanted to go, the girls said "Talaricos." We will post some more snow and pizza picture later, but we had to share this video with everyone. Kenzie was with Nana J a week or so ago and when she came home that evening, Nana said "Have Kenzie do her Jingle Bell rap" Rap? Are they watching "Yo MTV Raps" over there? Anyway, pretty funny little video.

Snow Day Recap

2008-12-18T21:18:00.000-08:00

Well, what a day. We got the word early that school was closed after waking up to a bit of snow. That "bit" turned into nearly 7 inches throughout the day. It just wouldnt stop. Here is Makenzie, with Maddie in the background talking about the early snow.

We then headed out into the white stuff to a great little coffee shop just a block or two away. We snapped a few photos of that adventure, and here are a few others from the day that show ALL the snow we got.

Later on, after a nap, a long conference call for work, and just hanging out, we ventured out to a small hill just a block away to do some sleding. Here are a couple videos of Maddie and Kenzie enjoying their sled ride.

Maddie's Ride

Kenzie's Ride

SNOW!!!!!!

2008-12-18T10:45:00.000-08:00

Well, after a ton of speculation and disappointment from weather
forecasts, the snow finally hit today. Thunder snow started about
5:30 and it hasn't stopped. So far we are at 4+ inches! This is a
pic from our short walk over to C&P for coffee....more to come later.

And a few hours later:

Snow Fun, Cookie Fun and Cold

2008-12-15T20:58:00.000-08:00

While we wrapped up our Holiday parties on Saturday night, we were greeted by the first snow of the season. Saturday night we got about 2in of the fluffy stuff, and the cold temps kept it around all morning. Maddie was up at the crack of dawn ready to get out and play..so after some hot chocolate and breakfast Maddie and KK bundeled up and headed out. Here is a short video of the fun...with Josie in the mix as well.

Later on Sunday, Steph held her annual Cookie Exchange. This is the second time where the event was impacted by weather. Luckily a good group of people braved the roads and made it to the event. Steph really enjoys this time and I think everyone that came enjoyed it as well. Here are some pics of the cookies as well as Maddie and KK in the Snow.

Finally, we are bracing for more cold and more snow. Today the high was 25, overnight lows are in the teens. Since the roads are frozen, school started 2 hours late today (and tomorrow), so Christmas Vacation came early for KK, while Maddie is coasting into the Holiday break. Forecast is for more snow on Wednesday/Thursday and Saturday...but, this is Seattle, so you never really know.

Lights, Basketball, Meetings, Parties...Oh my!

2008-12-11T09:59:00.001-08:00

Well, it is officially that time of year. We are running around like crazy and enjoying every bit of it! This past weekend we got the tree and put up light. Important note, I picked the only hour of the weekend where it was raining to put up light..nice timing. Special little surprise when I got up on the ladder...the gutters were packed with leaves, so had to take care of that as well. Basketball is in full tilt, with these few weeks before the Holiday break busier than ever. Each team has two games a week, some home, some away. Monday the gold team played and won, the blue team played away and lost. Today, gold is home and blue is away again, but we hope both teams come out on top. On top of all that there were Council meeting, Board Meetings, and Task Force meetings. However, in looking forward to Friday and Saturday it gets way easier...only 4 parties in two days! Yikes!!! Oh well, it wouldnt be December, and it wouldnt be Christmas if we werent busy. I do appreciate Steph for her patience and support with Bball and all these meetings. Also, for grandparents that love hanging out with their grand daughters. Maddie and KK are all set for a sleep over and cookie baking with Nana J on Friday while we go to a 2 of the 4 parties. Thanks!

We hope everyone else is having a Crazy time of year...because this means you are having fun :-)

Menashe Christmas Lights

2008-12-01T19:07:00.000-08:00

Thought we would share a picture of the annual Menashe Christmas light
display...they have a done a great job again!

Top Floor, Shopping, Gingerbread Display and the Marathon

2008-12-01T12:33:00.000-08:00

This past weekend we had the chance to continue our Holiday tradition of spending a weekend downtown. This year's trip was a bit sooner than previous years, but that turned out to be great for a number of reasons. First, it was the only weekend available :-). Second, it was a bit warmer than later in December..in fact we rarely wore our coats this weekend. Third, we had the opportunity to see some things that we don't normally see.

We arrived downtown around Noon and checked in to the Sheraton. First question was "Do you want a lower floor or a higher floor?" Without hesitation, Maddie burst out "Higher Higher". So we got a high floor...in fact the highest floor...in the new tower! Great view looking North. After dropping our stuff off, we headed out (and would not return until after 9pm.) We worked our way though downtown, a number of shops, the Market, etc. Had lunch at Cheesecake Factory, got mini-donuts at the market, and watched the tree lighting at Pike Place. We headed back toward Westlake for a ride on the Carousel before going for a carriage ride. These two are the kids favorite part of the weekend, hands down. After watching it snow in Pacific Place, we headed to Nordstrom's cafe for dinner. Finally made it back to the hotel around 9 and we were tired. The kids a little bit more energy, but not much.

The next day we got up early to watch for our friends Leighellen and Sharman run in the Seattle Marathon. Since we were downtown early this year it worked out great to cheer them on. We were at mile marker 1, so early in the race. Everyone was at a great pace and enjoying the mild morning weather. We saw LE first, then Sharman later. It was REALLY cool to see 12,000 people running through the streets. After the race, we grabbed coffee, breakfast, another carousel ride and some more shopping. We wrapped things up about 3pm and headed home. Within about 5 minutes, the girls were fast asleep in the car. I had told Steph that it would only take 10 min.

Thanks to Mom and Dad Jensen for watching Josie over the weekend. I guess she had a little run in with a pack of Raccoons! Kenzie want to know all about it since she is very very very interested/concerned about raccoons. We had a great time. Congrats to LE and Sharman on a great accomplishment. Below is a little slide show of the weekend. Keep an eye out for the Gingerbread creations. This is an annual thing they do at the Sheraton and the creations are always very cool...This year's theme was Superheros. Happy December!

Downtown 2008

2008-11-29T09:03:00.000-08:00

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

2008-11-25T22:25:00.000-08:00

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

2008-11-23T20:21:00.000-08:00

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

2008-11-14T14:45:00.000-08:00

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

2008-11-08T20:27:00.000-08:00

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...

2008-11-07T21:11:00.000-08:00

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

2008-11-02T21:10:00.000-08:00

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!

The New Classroom(s)

2008-10-27T11:00:00.000-07:00

This morning we had the chance to be there for the "dedication" of the new classrooms up at Hope. It was almost like an Extreme Makeover moment, as Lisa and staff "got the key" on Thursday and spent all weekend getting moved in. Kenzie's preschool class moved from the church basement into their own room...while Kindergarten moved right across the hall. The 8th graders moved to a new room upstairs (they had been on table in the fellowship hall), and the 1st graders moved back to their room. So, as you can tell, a lot of moving and shakin' the last few days. I was able to snap some photos of the new Preschool and Kindergarten rooms as well as some of the activities. This was a HUGE milestone in the Church/School building projects...next step is to finish off the new driveway and playground while also finishing off the connection between Church and School.

She shoots...she scores!

2008-10-26T14:17:00.001-07:00

This weekend marked a milestone for Maddie....after weeks of hard shots, missed shots, hitting the post, Maddie finally broke through and knocked one in. She has been SOOO CLOSE the last few weeks, and as it goes, this goal was probably from one of the harder angles than any other shot she has taken. But she took her time, sized it up, and hit it through. She actually surprised herself! Not sure if this will open the flood gates to become a scoring machine...probably not....but it was great to see her hard work pay off. Way to go Maddie!

The Final Countdown

2008-10-15T11:38:00.000-07:00

No, I am not talking about the popular 80's song, or the movie...Rather, the home stretch to the Hope Auction. The Jensen house is all a-buzz with Auction activity. Steph is doing an AMAZING job with this. She is clearly putting her talents to use and doing something tremendous for the school.

Today is the unofficial/official deadline for donations, but between you and me, more great stuff will come in. If you have it in your heart to donate something, just let us know. Maybe there are some Hawks or Dawg fans out there that want a little tax write off by donating some tickets..while also saving themselves some more agony! Reservations are still flowing in as well, with a number of table captains (people who commit to filling a table of 10) still out there.

This has been an amazing experience to see it all come together, the tremendous generosity from families and the community, and all the support of parents/family. It will be a great event..for sure.

Hard Fall

2008-10-05T21:40:00.000-07:00

No, I am not talking about the sudden wind and rain storm that hit Seattle this weekend. Unfortunately, it was a scary fall that Maddie had today after Church. This weekend we were watching 2 of the 3 Doerr kids so that Cary and Julia could celebrate their Anniversary and her Birthday...and after morning waffles we headed to church. With the construction at Hope we have been up at SLHS gym. After Church, the kids do their thing, running around and playing. While we were talking I glance over to see Maddie tumble off of a 6ft high ledge. Her arm/shoulder/side braced her fall...but it didnt look good. After a few minute of thinking we were heading to the ER, we (I) calmed down and everything looked to be A-OK. She escaped with a scrape on her chin and cheek, and a big scrape on her arm. VERY VERY Lucky.

Ironically the message today about Faith, talked about Faith in the good times...the fact that she escaped with no injury I would categorize as "in the good times"...a little bit more of a drop, or different angle, and she could have been really hurt. The key is that in the good times, we need to take the gifts were are given and share them with others. So, as we digested all that happened today we talked with Maddie about how she is going to share with others after receiving her gift...and us as well.

The Week(end) in Review

2008-09-22T11:51:00.000-07:00

Last week wrapped up the first full week of school for both Maddie and Kenzie. By Friday, Maddie was drained, and Kenzie couldn't wait to go back on Monday. The weekend was GREAT..mainly because we didn't do much. There was no Husky game to watch and be depressed about :-), plus it was a cold/rainy day on Saturday. The only thing on the plate was an afternoon soccer game for Maddie. She played the entire 1st half as Goalie and she really enjoyed it. Of course, like her dad, when asked why she replied "Because I dont have to run back and forth all the time!" To her credit, at this age it is constant back and forth, almost like a good tennis rally. Although we arent supposed to keep score, they did win! Mikayla led the team with a hat trick in the 1st half. They are starting to play really well together and might be on a roll!! Sunday was another laid back day with Church in the morning, Seahawks in the afternoon (I predicted 35-13, so I was close!), and then some friends over for dinner. All in all a great weekend. Now we just have to hope that Fall doesn't come on too quick and we can squeeze some more sun out!

Weekly Plug: Remember it is Hope Auction time. Hope Lutheran, the School that Maddie and Kenzie attend, and the school that Mike, Steph, Jeff and Stacey attended, is having their auction on November 1st. We still have room if anyone wants to attend, and we can ALWAYS use more donations. If we want to contribute just drop us an email at mjandsj@comcast.net and we will gladly talk more. If you are reading this...think about it, as we are trying to do everything we can to make the event a success, and you can help!!!

1st Day of Pre-School

2008-09-15T21:10:00.000-07:00

Last week, Maddie had her day, today was Kenzie's day. She officially started pre-school. We started the morning with breakfast and pictures on the front porch (look familiar?) Then headed out to school with backpack loaded and a big grin on our face. KK was a little timid at first as there was A LOT going on...new place, new faces, lost of comotion, etc. In just a few minutes she warmed up with all the activities in the classroom. We snapped up a bunch of pictures of her class that you can see in the slideshow. As you can imagine she is excited to go back tomorrow!!!

Pre-School

2008-09-14T12:59:00.000-07:00

Today is the day before the first day of pre-school for Kenzie. She is READY!!! Last night she gave a performance that we thought we would share with everyone. Check back tomorrow for 1st day of pre-school pictures.

First Day of School

2008-09-11T11:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the official first day of school for Maddie. After the back to school BBQ the night before (featured here on WSB), she was ready! With the long summer we had to be deliberate about wake up times, eating breakfast, etc. Day 1 went off well...Day 2 was a bit more of struggle, but she will be fine. Today is the first FULL day, so we will see how it went. Here is a slide show of pictures from the 1st day. As you will see KK was ready as well...here official first day is on Monday, so we will have another round of pictures then.

New School Year - Hope Auction

2008-09-08T21:40:00.000-07:00

After an extra long summer, the School year is almost ready to start. As you might have heard, Hope is undergoing a bit of remodel, so we ended early and are starting late to accommodate the construction schedule. Maddie's first official day of school is Wednesday. She will be in 2nd grade. Meanwhile, Kenzie's first day will be on the 15th. She will be in P3. Both are super excited to start up school! Tomorrow we have the "Back to School BBQ" at SLHS, followed by orientation back at the school. We will be extra busy tomorrow as I get to give the "Welcome" message, and Steph will be talking about the Auction

So, speaking of Auction. Time to give the plug:

Steph has been hard at work with this year's auction. With our experience helping put on the SLHS auctions in 2005 and 2007, she decided to help make it happen in 2008 with Hope. This is a perfect job for her with her amazing organization skills. It is going to rock! Anyway, the event....It will be on Saturday, November 1st at the Hall at Fauntleroy. Her, Julia and the slew of great volunteers met today to get all the invitations stuffed and ready to be mailed. So, be on the lookout. However, if you dont get one, and are interested in attending, just give us a call, email, etc. Tickets are $50 and it is shaping up to be the best Hope Auction ever.

If attending wont work out, we are also looking for donations. From physical items, certificates, tickets, experiences, services, etc....anything will be accepted. Give us a call, or drop us an email and we will be happy to coordinate pickup of whatever you willing to donate.

Steph and I feel very blessed to have attended Hope and that is why we are passionate about giving back and helping out....and to make it be that special place for our kids. So, we welcome any help you might be willing to offer. Hope is on the verge of some great things and we appreciate all your support.

Birthday Weekend Eve

2008-09-01T22:32:00.000-07:00

The Big 3-5 for Mike is tomorrow, so we spent the labor day weekend over at the Maggie Lake Cabin. We headed over on Saturday AM..we were the last car on the ferry after picking up Cafe Ladro and Original Bakery. We decided to take the scenic drive into Belfair and go the Cabin around Noon. The weather wasnt the greatest, but we made do. Josie immediately headed for the lake, while Maddie and KK got on their bikes. On Sunday, Nana and Papa J headed over. Weather was kind of iffy, but not before we got a lemonade stand all setup. By the end of the Day, the girls racked in 9.50 from passers by. Kinda cool, they had the Maggie Lake Tri-athalon...a swim across the lake, a bike ride, and a walk twice around the lake...Ironically we were just thinking about something like this a couple weeks ago...when it was 90 and we were in the lake all day!

So, I thought it would be cool to get my Dad up to Trophy Lake for his birthday (9/5) so that he could catch some of those nice trout. He, Bruce and I headed up and go there about noon. We fished for about 3 hours through sun, rain, thunder and very picky fish!! Finally, as we were about to pack it in, Dad finally got into a lunker...actually we had a double. I had just hooked a fish and it was stripping line off my reel like crazy, when he yelled "I got one too!" Unfortunately, right when he got the fish in and was ready for the picture, the fish flopped out of his hands, and flopped another time right back into the lake. I was able to keep the grip on mine and we got this picture of the two of us together. Anyway, good times!

oh...here is another one that I caught as well :-)

Thanks to Steph, the Girls, Bruce, Sheryl, Mom and Dad for a great birthday weekend!!!

Josie's New Friend

2008-08-29T22:15:00.000-07:00

Thought we would post a few pictures of Josie's new friend, Luna. The Landskov's picked up their new family member last night and we stopped over for a quick visit. When we got home, Josie was sniffing us like crazy...It will be fun to get her and Luna together.

Wild Times

2008-08-23T09:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the Daptiv Summer Picnic and for the 2nd year in a row we went to Wild Waves. It isnt your typical company picnic, but it works out pretty well as they provide a BBQ lunch on the top part of the park, and then just let us go for the rest of the time. As we were getting ready to head out, we got a call from the McAllisters wanted to see if Maddie could play....Maddie and Makalya are best buds, so we know Maddie would miss out...so we said, hey why dont you come on down to Wild Waves. They (and many others) still had tickets from the end of School when the Wild Waves trip got rained out. That sounded like a good plan so they decided to come. Then we were thinking...hey the Doerrs have tickets too, wonder if they want to come. After a couple calls, they were in too. So, we had a full day in front of us now. The crew all hooked up around 2:30, then Rob came down about 4:45. We went on rides, water slides, wave pool, etc. The weather was perfect, around 75, and it was a blast. Here are some pics from the fun. Nothing like those last minute events...good times!

More Trophies

2008-08-23T09:18:00.000-07:00

Had to share another picture from the adventures of Trophy Lake. This time it was strictly a fishing expedition, as we stopped there for lunch on the way to the Cabin a couple weeks ago. It was like 95 out and the girls rode out on carts and watched me fish....and also helped net a few that I was able to catch....like this one.

Diving Board

2008-08-14T22:24:00.001-07:00

Well, summer finally is here. Seattle is soaking in high 80's low 90s for the next few days. This weekend we are heading out to the Cabin for a few days which will be a lot of fun with the hot weather. This will probably be the first hot weekend out there, so we will be doing lots of swimming.

Tonight we also did some swimming thanks to the invite from the Doerrs to go to the pool. It was a great night hanging out, staying cool and watching Maddie do her first jumps off the diving boards!! Here are a couple videos of the action. You can also see how she has come aloing with her swimming. She did great! Of course, little sister now wants to go off the diving board too :-)

Maddie off the High Diving Board

Maddie off the Low Diving Board

XXX Rootbeer experience

2008-08-10T09:44:00.000-07:00

Ok, now that I have your attention :-)

Seriously, we hit the xxx rootbeer drive in issaquah last night. Here
is a pic of giant root beer float we shared. They also had a huge
gumball machine that the girls loved. We also got to sit through the
heaviest rainstorm we have had in a long long time. Probably about 20
min of pounding rain.

Comings and Goings

2008-08-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

First off, hard to believe that June and July are past us. It seems like just other day Maddie was getting out of school at the end of May and we were looking forward to a really long summer. Time flies when your having fun.

Last updates were around the parade, but it has been a busy few weeks since parade weekend. We have had visits from Great Grandma Cattau and Stacey and Haas (will post pictures later) where we spent some time at the cabin.

Our inconsistent weather still lingers....It has been pretty average, but we occasionally get up into the high 80's or even 90. That temp around here just doesn't work well with no AC. Luckily we have a built in AC unit called "The Basement" last night we all slept in the basement to keep cool.

We did the school supply run last night. Maddie is getting ready for 2nd grade and Kenzie into PreSchool-3. KK is excited, asking daily if she is going to school. Speaking of school, the construction is coming along, maybe a bit slower then we would all like, but it will be ready....it will be ready...everyone say it....it will be ready!!

Finally, we had a little shake up in the family car situation. Last week we traded in the "SS Jensen" - as my co-workers call it, for a new Chrysler Pacifica. The SS was getting up there and with every repair is was getting more expensive....not to mention the $100+ to fill up the tank with gas. This is a bit smaller for us, but we bought a Thule Topper (or a Rocket Box like some friends call it) that will hold all our "stuff" when we go on a trip.

That's all for now...

Parade Recap

2008-07-20T16:17:00.000-07:00

Well, we had a great day yesterday as 1st time participants in the WS parade. A couple weeks ago, I was meeting with a consultant for the school and we were talking about marketing, our under utilized buses, etc, and the light bulb went off....Lets roll the buses in the parade with the Church float. Fill a bus with kids and show our school spirit. We rushed to get a couple banners made up and recruited about 12 kids to ride the bus. All in all it was a great success, we showed our school pride, and for those that were on the parade route that attend Hope, were also proud. Nana J was a spectator and was able to get these pics and the video below. Special thanks to Steph who walked the parade route and made sure I didnt run over any kids!

Needless to say I think we have established a new tradition!

In line for the parade

2008-07-19T10:52:00.000-07:00

Our first time in the parade....more pics to come!

Vacation Recap: Part 2

2008-07-17T21:47:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the delay in our part 2 recap. After a great time at the Oregon coast, we headed back to Seattle for the night and then headed out to Maggie Lake for the 4th of July weekend. Ryan, Stacey and Haas were in town so we had a great time hanging out, fishing, golfing and swimming. When we got there in the afternoon, the kids immediately headed for the lake with uncle. We also headed out in the boat and caught a couple trout during the evening bite. In fact Ryan caught the first trout on powerbait...everything else has been on the fly. On day 2, Ryan and I headed out to Trophy Lake for golf. The crew met us for lunch and then we "had" to squeeze in some fishing :-) I think I mentioned before that I really really like this Golf/Fishing experience. Here is the picture (thanks to Maddie - who also netted it for me) of the Hog that I landed. For you fly-fisherman, this was on a 4wt rod, with a dry fly!!!

Friday was also the 4th and we enjoyed an awesome fireworks show on the lake. The "show" went on for probably 2 hours with some pretty sizable fireworks. It was almost like being at the Space Needle...ok, maybe not.

On Saturday, the Jensen crew headed up for the day. Upon arrival Ben and Lauren were all over the fishing. We caught probably 40 perch...it was a blast. We then battled the rain, yes, Rain on the 4th, and headed to Tahuya Days parade. After Burgers, Hot Dogs, Ice Cream bars and a cool little parade we headed back to the lake. Luckily the rain had stopped and the kids wanted to go swimming again. The cousins really enjoyed playing together.

Sunday we just kinda hung out...we head back later to avoid the ferry lines. This concluded our vacation. We did a lot and had a ton of fun. Now, we are ready for summer to start!!

Back to the routine

2008-07-07T08:14:00.000-07:00

Quick "mobile" post before the part 2 vacation recap. Heading back to
the routine today. Here is a pic of the view from the water taxi
heading over to downtown.

Maddie starts cheer camp today and Kk has swiming lessons. The end of
our vacation and the 4th were a lot of fun at the cabin. Lots of
pictures to share.

Vacation Recap: Part 1

2008-07-03T10:44:00.000-07:00

Vacation started out on Friday with a visit to Arbor Heights pool with the Doerrs. We had nummy BBQ burger, salad, etc. Swimming was great....KK is getting pretty brave at jumping right in and Maddie is getting better and better on her swimming. Sunday we then headed down to Portland to visit the "Portland crew." Lunch with Caroling and Lisa, followed by a visit to Janet's house to see Charlotte, Christopher, Katie, Roland, Paul and Brett....Oh by the way, we picked up Stacey and Haas at the airport in Portland....The Perry clan is heading up for the 4th of July...More on that visit in part 2. We had a great visit, and it was great to see Brett and the rest of the crew.

We stayed the night in downtown Portland at the Benson Hotel. Cool hotel with confy beds. On Monday we did a little shopping, grabbed lunch then headed out to the Oregon coast. We stayed at the "Wood House"...the house we stay at every Easter. We were meeting Nana and Papa J as well as Jeff, Amy, Ben and Lauren there to celebrate some milestones for Mike's Parents. June was there 40th wedding anniversary, August is Nana J's 60th birthday, and September is Papa J's 60th birthday. Since Jeff and family were going to be in town we figured this would be a great way to celebrate. The weather worked out great. It was warm (for the beach - 70ish), and hardly any wind. The kids had a BLAST playing together...at the beach, baseball in the yard, riding bikes, you name it. Took lots of pics, and I will post the slideshows later. Here was our final group picture.

Happy Anniversary and Birthday(s) Mom and Dad!

The Heat is on!

2008-06-28T17:08:00.000-07:00

Well, summer has finally arrived. Technically, it just started a week ago, but with our wet/gray spring, everyone here in the NW was looking forward to some Sun. Thursday and Friday hit 80, and this weekend we are looking at around 90. Next week, the 4th of July week, it should be close to 80 as well. It is a welcome dose of Vitamin D that us pale folk need.

This week we are going to hit the Oregon coast with Family as well as the Cabin for the 4th. Check back for pictures of all the fun. Happy Summer!

The Impromptu Weekend

2008-06-22T22:34:00.000-07:00

With all that is going on, we actually had nothing planned this weekend. The only things we had on the agenda were; remove the root balls (more on that later) and Church/Church meeting on Sunday. However, our weekend was as busy as ever, and a ton of fun!

Friday was a the first day of summer and the weather finally cooperated for us. We actually hit the 80 degree mark. So, while in line for the water taxi to come home Steph calls to tell me that we are heading to Arbor Heights pool with the Doerrs. The Doerrs became members last year and they have asked us to go a few time and we really enjoy it...Thanks Doerrs! We grabbed some sandwiches, chips, "beverages" and enjoyed the 1st night of summer at the pool.

Saturday was our day to get some yard work done. We bought an auction item last year where a family from SLHS will come and re-do an area of your yard/garden. We decided to use this opportunity to take out the 3 big Rhodies. We started on this a few weeks ago by hacking off all the branches....as Steph said, our neighbors were probably laughing at us with our "prune" job. It was my take to pull out the remaining root balls. Easy enough...no big deal...yeah right! 2 hours later I finally got them pulled out. The girls, even Josie, were right there helping. So, after all that we went in search of some nutrition and headed to Jamba Juice. After that, off to trader joes. On the way home we decided to stop in at the Meyer's house to drop off the Video from Lisa's 40th b-day. A short visit, turned into a long visit, and dinner with the Meyers. We had a great time talking about all kinds of things (mainly the Church meeting the next day.)

Sunday we rolled out of bed at 9am...Kenzie actually woke us up....and we headed to 10:30 church. With the construction on the Church/School, church is actually at SLHS. After the service, was the annual congregational meeting to approve budget, etc. As some of you may know, I recently took on the role of Chairman of the School Board at Hope, so I was preparing to talk on a couple topics in front of everyone. I'll admit I was a bit nervous given it was my first meeting, and there were some hot topics to cover. In the end it all worked out great...I didnt fall on my face in front of everyone and we left with the Sun out. From there, on a whim we decided to grab Spuds and head over to the Doerr's house. We hung out, had a couple "beverages" and chatted about the weekend of last minute get together.

It was a great weekend.

Summer at Huksy Deli

2008-06-17T22:34:00.000-07:00

Wanted to share a few pics from our visit to Husky Deli. The first one might make you "scratch your head" but this was a funny. As we are sitting at the counter, little Kenzie is looking at the window and whispers "That man doesnt have a lot of hair!" Kids say the darndest things! The last picture is from tonight...we took the McAllister kids out for a couple hours so that they could get ready for their trip to Cancun. Nothing like Husky Deli in the summer...now we just need the weather to catch up!

Groundbreaking

2008-06-17T22:27:00.000-07:00

Playing a little catch up here....

Here are a few pics from the Hope Groundbreaking event on June 1st. This is an exciting time for the Church and School as things are getting torn apart with the plan that it will all be back together for the start of school in September.

End of the Softball Season

2008-06-05T23:03:00.000-07:00

Well, we started the season with Hail, Wind and Rain, and we ended the season with Wind and Rain and Cold. Yes, it is June 5th. The softball season ended with a final tournament where we played outs, counted runs, etc...a real game. On Wednesday, we won our first game and made it to the championship! Today, we fell behind early and then rallied back to within a few runs, but we fell short. In the end we got 2nd place. It was a great season..Maddie did awesome all season. She has become an great fielder, on top of a great hitter. Today she almost took my head off with a line drive! Here is a slideshow of her during the year, as well as a couple videos that Papa took tonight of two of her at bats. As you can see in the last one, Maddie had a great time too!

Hard Grounder to Shortstop....Safe at first!

Grounder to Second....yer' Out!

Mother's Day Video

2008-05-22T08:12:00.000-07:00

Yikes...need to play some catch up again. Here is the Happy Mother's Day Video I mentiond would get postetd....only a couple weeks late :-) Have to give a "shout out" to Little Haas who turned the big numero Uno (that 1 for those of you dont know Spanish) this week! Happy Birtday Haas!