Ahhhh the joys....

Just for "sentimental value", documentation of my own personal pharmacy:

No, I am not just letting myself go. Yes, according to many out there, Teage and I must be a bit "crazy". :) We are having another baby! No, we don't know the gender yet. And yes, we are going to find out. I am WAY to organized to do otherwise. :) Yes, we are super excited about adding to our precious family, but sadly no, I have NOT felt well enough to truly be really super excited. I am extremely grateful that we seem to be able to get pregnant fairly easily. And I am also very grateful that all seems well and heathly so far....well, the baby that is. :)

Things for me have been extremely difficult. Which I was honestly not expecting. :) I was definitely sick with the boys, but nothing could have prepared me for this. And YES, there is only ONE baby in there. I have really been trying to focus on my blessings right now and not dwell on the fact that for months straight I could keep anything down. I finally found a wonderful doctor (and nurse!) who trusted me enough to know my own body and prescribe some wonderful medicine so that at least I could function. Things were a bit scary there for a while, though I am so blessed to have wonderful family around to help me. I couldn't do it without them. Zofran has helped me tremendously, and at least I have been able to put a load of laundry in (and even fold it once in a while!), pick up after the boys, and even take the occasional shower (which I am sure everyone around me appreciates). I am thankful.

We should hopefully find out the gender in a few weeks, so stay tuned!!! :)

Celebrations

Over Thanksgiving our family escaped the snow and flew down to sunny California! Honestly, I hadn’t realized how much I missed the sunshine….I must have sat in one spot for a full 10 minutes just soaking it up and wondering how I had done without for so long. There were many reasons for this trip, but mainly because my grandparents are so generous! They flew the whole family down to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary with them, which also just happened to be Thanksgiving Day and my father’s birthday, all rolled into one. We had a big celebration with the whole family at G and G’s place in Palm Desert, which thankfully was catered so none of us even had to do dishes! What a life! Grandma and Grandpa were so giving and generous to us during the entire trip, and we had a fabulous time! We stayed in a beautiful hotel, went swimming, ate at some amazing restaurants, and just relaxed for the first time in quite a while. It was wonderful to be there as a family, not having any other distractions (like those pesky bills) to worry about for a few days. We really soaked it up the whole time we were there. Our amazing view from the hotel room.....jealous aren't you? :)
Lucas in his enormous bed (we put two queens together for the boys, with barriers on all sides)....it was hilarious!Auntie Lindsey and Dylan hanging out at the hotel
All of us on a gondola ride through the waterways at the hotel....we had the most terrific driver who chatted with us the whole time and loved the boys!

One really special event that we were able to go to with G and G as well is to the “Blue Man Group”! We prepped the boys for months, since Grandma got tickets in the very front row, and we knew how they did not like anything in masks. We had been watching YouTube videos, talking about going on our plane to visit the “blue guys” and trying our hardest to get them super excited about it. When we got there, they handed us our ponchos and then Lucas just about lost it. I was so worried we were going to miss the whole thing! But, we came prepared with their ear phones, and once those were on he was much better. Dylan thought the whole thing was pretty cool and wasn’t really scared throughout the entire performance. Lucas still wasn’t so sure, but at least stayed in his seat the whole time. The funny thing though…..after the performance, the group came out to the lobby to take pictures with the fans, and Lucas was the one who was all excited to get a picture with them, while Dylan was completely freaked out. J Overall, we had a fantastic time, and it was an amazing show!

The boys and I all ready for the performance!
Shaka!

Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Pfeifer!!! We had such a wonderful time and were very thankful to be able to celebrate with you!!

Halloween!

Or in other words, candy fest!
This was the first year that the boys really understood that they got to dress up, choose what their costume was, and go around getting candy from people they didn't even know!!!! :) The boys thought long and hard about what they wanted to be, and finally Lucas decided (beyond a shadow of a doubt) that he was Buzz Lightyear. So adorable, but not so easy to do for Mommy. :) Finally Teage found a cheap costume online that Lucas adored, so it worked out very well. And since Lucas was going to be something from Toy Story, Dylan had to join in as well. And since we already owned a hand-me-down horse costume, I convinced him that it was Bullseye! And honestly, he LOVED it! He wore that horse costume very proudly and didn't want to take it off. The two then decided that since they were Buzz and Bullseye, that Mommy and Daddy needed to be Woody and Jessie. Well, we tried (sort of), but in the end it didn't really matter. They just wanted to wear their costumes all day anyway and didn't really care what anyone else was doing. :)
We were able to go to our church Halloween function where the boys did a cake walk, and got to hang out with some of their other 3 year old dressed up buddies. And then Teage did take them out to a few homes in our neighborhood on the actual date of Halloween. The boys were so funny though! They enjoyed the candy (obviously!), but did NOT like going to strangers homes, so they did about 10 and were done for the night. The world series of baseball was on at home as well, which may have been a big draw for them to come back. :) And it was great for Mommy, who didn't have to go through a million pieces of candy and keep it around the house.
Overall, a fun Halloween for all of us. For the boys, dressing up and being Buzz and Bullseye for a few days (all weekend actually), and for Mommy and Daddy to see them in their adorable outfits having so much fun.

Our fun trip to the farm to pick out "29" pumpkins! Well....not really that many, but that is what the boys kept telling us!

Buzz and Bullseye in the flesh!

CF Walk 2010

I absolutely love working with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation every year in honor of Jolene. I feel empowered to be helping, even in just a small way. This year I was again on the committee for our annual Great Strides Walk in Snoqualmie, which was held in September. And thankfully, I had many friends who were willing to volunteer to make this day possible. My great friend Lindsay Rowlands came to stay with me the night before so we could make it early to the walk the next day and set up. She was such a huge help, we couldn't have done it without her. Everyone who came to volunteer stepped up and helped in every area asked, and as always, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation staff are amazing! The walk was wonderful and we ended up raising over $30,000 to finding a cure for CF!!!! I am so thankful for all who participated this year in any way, shape, or form. I feel so blessed to help in any way with this foundation, and so grateful for those who are behind me 100% all the time.
The walk was wonderful, the food was wonderful, and we couldn't have asked for a better day!
Go Team Jolene! Raising the funds to FIND the cure for CF!!!!

Linds and I ready to go!

The boys with their thumbs up, ready to start the walk!

Some of our amazing Team Jolene members! Thank you all!!! We had a wonderful day!

Happy Birthday Jesse!

Happy Happy Birthday Uncle Jesse! Macaroni and cheese, with chicken nuggets dipped in ranch for dinner. Just for you! We love and miss you!

My Mariner Fans

I took advantage of a beautiful day a few weeks ago to get some pictures of the boys in their Mariner gear. They were so sad about the season being over and I wanted to capture their love and excitement for the sport and the team they love so much. They actually did well and sat for me for quite a while. I love some of these shots!

Camping with the Christensens

Will there ever be a time when I don't feel like I am trying to catch up???

Probably not.....anyway....

Months ago, back in July, Tawna and her family came up from Utah to go camping with the rest of us as a end of summer Christensen "reunion". We all drove out to Lake Cushman and camped for two nights. This was the first camping experience for my boys also, and they didn't exactly know what to make of it at first. Thankfully, they had all of their cousins to play and have fun with the whole time. We didn't do anything fancy, just hung out by the fire, played at the lake all day Saturday, ate a ton of food, and had fun as a family. I am not the biggest fan of camping, and married into a family who loves it, so I had to suck it up and enjoy myself! :) And I did. I loved watching all of the kids hanging out together, floating on the lake with Daddy, playing in the waves, roasting marshmellos.....we really did have a great opportunity to relax and have a wonderful time together.

Mr D just hanging out by the campfire...

Little Miss Maiya

Did I mention that we ate a LOT of food? :)

All of the Christensen cousins actually looking at the camera at the same time! Amazing!

Go Mariners!

Mariners Vs. Yankees, July 10th 2010

Just a few days after we got back from Hawaii we had the once of a lifetime chance to go with my Dad's family to a Mariners' game. And not just any Mariner game. A Yankee vs Mariner game. And not just any Yankee vs Mariner game. A Yankee vs Mariner game in a luxery suite!!!! This was amazing! Especially for my little family who is currently obsessed with the Mariners, and someone like me who has always adored the team (yes, even when they lose!). :) This suite was fantastic, I kept looking around waiting to see someone famous! :) This was the life! We got to go in the ballpark through a special entrance, had a private inside room that was catered, and a whole outside area all to ourselves to watch the game. My Dad's brother and his family flew all the way up from Reno especially, which was such a treat since we hadn't seen them in a few years.

We had an amazing time. We cheered, we ate, we laughed with our family non-stop. The boys were in heaven, and Teage and I just kept talking about how unbelievable the suite was and that we were ruined for life. And, the best part, the M's crushed the Yankees!!!

It was overall an amazing day!

Jose Lopez after he hit what would be the game winning home run!

Another amazing highlight....the Mariner Moose came up to the suite to personally meet the boys (though I think it was just as fun for my Dad!!!!) They were in awe!

Our whole group, minus Uncle Rich (thanks for taking the picture!!) :)

Mr. D

My little man Dylan is such a comedian right now. He never fails to crack me up, even when he is trying to be difficult. :) I feel like the minute he turned three he felt like he had a free pass to just talk talk talk talk talk all the time! But, I honestly wouldn't have it any other way. I love to hear his sweet little voice, asking me every question under the sun, and why mommy? all the time. He loves to chat about his day and his accomplishments, says "look at me!" constantly if I am not paying close enough attention to his latest project or feat. He also has so many funny questions or sayings, I feel like I am always having to write something down so I don't forget his cute personality! For example, there is a game on my phone that he loves to play and it uses numbers to help them draw a picture. One of the pictures is a ukulele, and every time it comes up he asks me, "Mom, is this a looky-lady???" Hilarious!!! I have to try not to laugh every time. :) I just love this little man!!

And yes, he really did fall asleep in this picture.....it was so sweet!

Hawaii, Part 3

Our last few days in Hawaii were really special. We truly valued every single day that we spent in the sunshine with our family! Day 6 was a long, but wonderful one. We got up early that morning and went to the City of Refuge, which was only a few minutes down from where we were staying. This "city" is now a national park, and sea turtle sanctuary of sorts. It was literally a place of refuge for the Hawaiian people and an old religious site.....in the old days if you broke some sacred laws or made the chief angry, you were usually sentenced to death. The only way that you could survive is to make it to this city before your pursuers got to you first. If you made it to the City of Refuge, you were safe, "home base" if you will, and all prior crimes would be forgiven.

We spent the morning reading and seeing the history of this beautiful place, and take some great pictures with the family. Afterwards, Teage, the boys, and I went and found our own personal tide pool area, and literally spent almost two hours just hanging out in the shallow water, throwing rocks, looking for shells, and watching the ocean just a few yards away. It was a wonderful peaceful afternoon.

The twins with the twins

The whole group minus myself at the site of the old city

Once the boys were down for a nap, my brother, stepmom, and I went back to the City of Refuge to take some pictures of a sea turtle who had come on shore to rest in the sunshine. There is a rule there that you can't get within a certain distance to the turtles, so all of the animals feel extremely comfortable coming onto the shore. They know no one will disturb them. We were able to take a ton of pictures, which of course is one of my very favorite things to do!

Isn't he cute?

That night we took some family pictures at our Hawaii house as well. We all dressed in our Hawaiian best, wore beautiful matching leis, and smiled for the camera, hoping that the boys would cooperate. :) We actually did end up getting quite a few great family pictures, even with me clicking a remote while trying to pose with the boys the whole time! And afterwards, dinner out for one of our last nights in the beautiful state of Hawaii.

Poor David....we were making fun of him all week for not finishing his food, so I think that he felt like he needed to show us up the last night with all you can eat pasta! :) Go David!

Day 7 was simply amazing. Our house was just above Captain Cook bay....a historic and beautiful landmark, where there is no street access what-so-ever. That morning, there were dolphins swimming in the bay, so my wonderful stepmom took the boys for us, and Teage, myself, my brothers, and sister all went down and rented kayaks to go into the bay and over to the Captain Cook monument on the other side. This is also a sight for some of the very best snorkeling on the big island, so thankfully we were able to take our snorkel gear as well. :) Since we were such early risers (thanks Dylan and Lucas) :), we were the very first ones to tie our kayaks up to the billowing trees, take a walk around to the Captain Cook monument, and get into the water. We also arrived before all of the site-seeing boats, so we had the place all to ourselves. What an amazing sight it was!!!!!! The most fish I have ever seen. And since there is no access to that side of the bay besides a full day hike, or kayak across the bay, the fish are not afraid of people and will swim right beside you the entire time. I have never experienced anything like it. Teage and I literally spent about 15 minutes in one shallow spot near the rocks, surrounded by hundreds of bright yellow fish going in and around us, coming so close that we could reach out and touch them. It really was an amazing sight. All of us then spent a little time and ate lunch over there as others were arriving, and played out on the big black rocks near the water before kayaking back to the other side of the bay and going home. We had a fabulous time!

You probably can't read this, but it is a plaque that says "Near this spot, Captain James Cook met his death, February 14th 1779"

All of us at the Captain Cook monument

I know this is also hard to see, but I absolutely love this picture. Sean took it at the edge of this very elaborate tree covering, with myself, Teage, Lindsey, and David standing in various places throughout.

Grammy and Papa, thank you so much for all that you have given us, on this trip and always. We had so much fun with you and really cherished each day in our beautiful Hawaiian paradise! The boys still talk about it and want to be back as well. :) They loved being there with all of our family. We appreciate you so very much!!!

We miss you Hawaii!!!!!!! :)