TO BED IN TIME, SAVES WHINE

Age 6 mo. here, Justis still sleeps with his dog and blanket. So cute!

I have recently discovered a universal truth in babysitting. Putting kids to bed on time saves tears and whining.

In the quest to be the best Nonna ever I have become very lax in my enforcement of bedtime curfews. This was not the case when I was mothering my children, but when "nonna-ing" grandchildren I fall victim to a "They're being good so what's the harm?" mentality.
My knowledge of child psychology (and physiology) should override such neglect of common sense. When a child stays up past bedtime, the facade of tranquility is bound to be short-lived. We now enter "The Whining Zone".
"I miss my mommy."
Children who are past the tired time quickly enter this zone with little to no provocation or warning. Favorite blankets, stuffed animals, degree of door opening relative to lights in adjacent rooms or the desperate need for sleepy time music is suddenly a crisis. No assurances or distractions can stop the tears.
Key to survival is NSF. The Nonna Sympathy Factor.
Although virtually unknown to my children, the grandchildren know just how to leverage their age, length of parent's absence and level of that day's obedience as key indicators to successfully stalling going to bed. Entering the Whining Zone means both players are losers.
So, "To bed in time, saves whine" are important rules to live by....no matter how old you are.

St. George - So HOT it's COOL

June 27, 2009 Ethan Michael Jensen

is baptised and confirmed by his dad.

Nonna introduces cream puffs
as a food group to Adam Michael (6 mo.)

Dan and I went to St. George, Utah to visit Michael & Jani, Ethan (8), Emma (5), Aaron (3), Adam (6 mo.). We always have so much fun when we go to St. George. People say that it is the up & coming place to be, and I must agree that it is so HOT its got to be COOL.

Most days it was 110+ and being a "dry heat" wasn't much of a consolation. We went to a laser game place, a production of Annie in an outdoor theatre and some great restaurants. Dan and Michael played golf at some amazing courses while Jani, the kids and I had quality time at the hotel swimming pool. We met Michael & Jani's friends and family and were impressed by what great people they are and how much Michael & Jani are loved.

The best day was when Ethan was baptised and confirmed on Saturday, June 27th. We are so proud of the special young man Ethan is and the choices he has made. There is another precious joy to see our son with his beautiful family knowing the same joy we have known as parents.

It was a special day, back in Washington as well. Laralei & Brian were about to receive beautiful Aelizia as their first born (see previous blog).

It's hard to believe that 8 years have passed since Ethan's birth. We shared his story with our missionaries many times as an example that the Lord is in the details and blesses us with little miracles to bring us joy.

Jani was due with Ethan June 28th, 2001. This was the same day we were leaving on our mission, so we prayed for a little miracle. We came to Utah a week early so Dan could teach a short seminar there at the Provo Marriot. As we were about to leave for Salt Lake we arranged for someone with a cart to help with our many large suitcases. We waited for almost an hour then called the desk to check...they had forgotten us but someone would come soon. We checked the room one more time as the phone rang. It was Michael! Jani was in labor and in the hospital about to have the baby! The only reason he remembered our room phone number was because it was one digit off his work number! He didn't have any other phone number to reach us with him , so without this miracle we would have missed out! As it was, we drove to the hospital, saw them for a minute and went to the waiting room. Within an hour Michael came out to tell us the happy news and we were able to see Ethan when he was only a few minutes old. The night before we left for Italy we skipped the special banquet and went to pizza with Michael, Jani & her family. I held Ethan several times. Finally, as Dan and I turned and left down that long hallway of the MTC Dan said; "Shall we not go forth in so great a cause". And we did.

We did it knowing that the Lord had blessed us to have this last choice experience. It will always be a testimony that the Lord cares about his children so much that he will oversee phone numbers and memory lapses to work for our good.

Aelizia June 27, 2009

Aelizia Laralei Jensen arrived a little early and had a few complications but we are excited to have that behind us and have her home with her mom and dad - Brian & Laralei. She was 6.3 pounds and her length is in dispute but I can tell you she has long fingers and toes. Her features are delicate and her little face perfectly round and innocent.

At birth she had severe anemia and had to be transferred to a hospital with a NICU to receive a blood transfusion. It was critical for a while but they felt the Lord's hand in guiding the timing, process and health professionals who did tests not normally done which revealed the problem promptly. Thanks to all who have fasted and prayed for her.

Brian and Laralei are so grateful to begin their family... I even saw Brian change a diaper! I love seeing the look on their faces as they hold her. It was worth the wait, they're a beautiful little family now.

Aelezia - we'll be calling her Ellie - make an even dozen of grandchildren for me. 6 boys, 6 girls...an OCD dream come true!

DALLAS - HOT LIKE A FEVER!

Dallas in June is hot, or did I have a fever?
My nonna services were needed for two families at once. Being the "out of the box" type of thinker I am I came up with a plan. I took Justis and Nia to Texas to be with Tori and Abbie so I could nonna sit both at once. Angel and Brad were only gone for a few of the 10 days so I can't over dramatize my bravery...but there was one contingency we didn't plan for: Strep Throat.
A day or two after arriving Justis didn't feel well. He seemed to have a fever and said his throat hurt so I gave him some Tylenol. He had a badly infected finger which we thought may be the cause of the fever. Soon, Tori and Nia didn't feel well. Virus alert!
It was 90+ degrees, it was hard for me to judge if I was hot, or fever hot. Pain killers/fever reducers are a miracle of modern science. They allowed me to continue my hectic schedule of cooking, swimming, playing and keeping the house picked up while Angel and Brad were gone. I felt terrible, but was loving the chance to be with the kids. Time to suck it up!
Angel had planned fun activities to do like a splash park and a huge jumping/slide kid's place all of which entertained and exhausted the munchkins. Dallas has a large aquarium where the kids saw sharks being fed, huge alligators and a jaguar (he wasn't sure what he was doing in an aquarium). Dallas is an awesome place for families. The pool in their condo unit is literally behind their backyard. No one was too sick (when properly dosed up) to play so we had a great time.
I was glad I could bring the cousins together.
After we returned home Andi took Nia to the doctor and she tested positive for strep. Wow! That explains so much. My blood tests were off the chart for bacteria, a sign I had strep, but I was fine by then. Angel became sick and she tested positive as well. I was gone by then so I couldn't make her jello:)
We had so much fun in Dallas, it was "hot"!