Gracie's Baby Blessing

Grandma and Grandpa Jensen


On Sunday we blessed Gracie. It was such a great day! She was so happy from the moment she woke up until she went to bed that night, it was like she knew what was going on and what a special day it was for her. Her dress turned out gorgeous thanks to Diane who made it for me she is a good friend of the family. It was like a liitle minature wedding dress! It was exactly what I wanted and more. I have always imagined my daughters blessing day and I always wanted her to have a beautiful blessing dress. The pictures don't even give it justice. We had alot of friends and family attend. Devin gave Gracie a wonderul blessing, it was really sweet. My dad and brother in law Luke said that when Devin was giving her the blessing she just stared at him the whole time and didn't even move a muscle, it makes you wonder what she was thinking. I always wonder what is going through that little head of hers because it always seems like they know so much when you look into their eyes! Then again I know she just loves her dad. She always just stares at him and waits for him to look at her and as soon as he does she just gets this big smile, its so cute! Everyone came over to our house after for brunch. Thanks to all of our friends and family who came and also for helping. We truly appreciate all of your love and support. I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful family and friends. We had a good time and there was so much food, alot left over too. After a long day and a three hour nap for all of us we went over to my moms because my little brother was being ordained a Teacher in the Aaronic Priesthood, we are so proud of him. It was a great and special day all around. I love having a little girl, she is the sweetest thing and is so special to me. She is the happiest little thing too. I love my little guy as well, he is such a great big brother and so proud and protective of his little sister. That night when we were saying Eastons prayers he said "Heavenly Father, thanks for being at Gracie's blessing today". It was so neat, it made me think......alot. Kids are so close to the veil it's incredible! I was really stressed out before just trying to get my house and the food all ready but everything turned out perfect! It was a special day.

Our little family


Daddy with his sweet little girl


Mama Jackie and Papa Mark


Me and Grace Girl w/grandma Jackie


Gracie and brother


Aunties and cousins (look at her yawning, it was a long day)




All of her Aunties


All the girly girls


My pretty little girl


So Happy!!!



Posing for the camera


My little Bro after being ordained with all his big sisters
and some of his nieces

TaLkIn TuEsDaY

Stay at home moms.......if you probably talk to anyone's husband they say "Easy" "What do you guys do all day anyway". I say we should get paid just like any other job. After working for so long and now I stay at home, I realize it's not all just R&R. It is so so much harder to stay at home with your kids than go to work all day everyday. Although both are not easy, staying at home is alot more work. An average day for me is feeding, changing diapers, making breakfast, lunch and dinner. Bathing, wiping bums, changing clothes, laundry, dishes, holding, burping, running errands with screaming kids or a child that runs away from me and throws temper tantrums in the store, and cleaning, cleaning, and more cleaning. I think it's fair enough to say this is most moms days give or take a little more! Anyway I bring this all up because even though it is hard and sometimes mundane I feel it is alot more rewarding for me anyway. There are days where I want to go back to work and it is hard but I truly enjoy staying at home. Alot of people have asked me if I like it and I think some thought because of my personality I guess or how I am I wouldn't enjoy it or like it but I do. Don't get me wrong when I first quit my job I was a little worried but mostly about that I would loose myself and become this other person that I didn't want to be. In some ways that is true but in all actuality I found this whole other person that I love being and wouldn't even have known or realized without all this. So needless to say I feel blessed to stay at home with my kids and that I have the opportunity to do it. I look at it as an opportunity because not everyone gets to do it that wants to. I love my kids and love being their mom and even though sometimes are hard and challenging, what I get in return makes it all worth while! There was this story that I once had and I need to find it and post it. It was about a mother and daughter talking and the daughter had just gotten married. She was telling her mom that her and her husband had decided to have a baby. Here is how the conversation went:

Mom: It will change your life forever and your life will never be the same

Daughter: I know, I know it will be hard and there will be days we wish we hadn't done it

Mom: That's not what I meant atleast in that way.....it will change your life forever in the fact that the love you feel and get in return is nothing like you will ever experience, you will never be the same in the fact that you will hear another child cry and you turn to see if it's yours, you will hear of another child missing or dying and not ache for that mother knowing the thought if you lost yours......

There was alot more and it was way better than what I wrote I just need to find it. Anyway my whole point to this talkin Tuesday is just a little cheer and shout out to all of you mothers and especially stay at home moms for a job well done. Even though we all have days we feel like terrible mothers and wondered if we are doing the right things and where we went wrong or want to even "kill" our children, I know we all share the same feeling of yes even though it has changed our lives forever we would never take back any moment of it. Because when my four year old is constantly telling me how much he loves me and my newborn baby is always smiling at me my thought can only go to how lucky I am and the love I have for these little people is like nothing else! So yes mother hood has changed my life forever and I am great full for it because I think that I am a better woman and person for it! So to answer the question do I like being a stay at home mom??? Why wouldn't I!!!


PS I know I have written alot lately about motherhood I guess just because lately I love being a mom but don't be surprised if you get some posts in the near future about some bad motherhood days because I am not a perfect mom and I defianantly don't have perfect children!!

Posts

Ok so I have been a slacker about blogging lately but its not my fault. For one all we have is a lap top and Devin started his Masters Program so he has taken it with him every day to work and has been working on it every night because he had a 10 page paper due. So I have it for a minute now. I also can't post pics from Gracie's blessing until later because I left my camera at my mom's so I will post those later today!

TaLkIn TuEsDaY

So why is it after we have babies can't we look like super models??? I mean I think we atleast deserve it.....for one we carry a baby for nine months, get fat, stretch marks, saggy boobs! While your pregnant your sick, tired, emotional, moody, can't sleep, and just plain uncomfortable. Then my husband begins to tell me look at the bright side you don't get a period for 9 months, well ya! Hello did anybody think about the fact that you bleed for almost 6 weeks after anyway you might as well of just had a period. Then you go through some kind of labor and pain whether its a C-section or regular delivery (now that I have done both way rather have a vaginal delivery). Then if your a normal person after you have the baby you still look like your 5 or 6 months pregnant for a few weeks. Then more stretch marks and big nursing boobs which are sore and again BIG! Then after your done nursing they sag down to your belly button and if your me when you run down the stairs without a bra they flap against my skin. So don't you think after all of this we should have these perfect bodies as some kind of reward like a paycheck or something to get plastic surgery so you can look like a supermodel. Some of you I realize probably have no idea what I am even talking about....because A. you either got looking like you did before you got pregnant or B. you look even better than you did before you got pregnant. I hate reading the gossip magazines that say "FIND OUT HOW HALLIE BERRY LOST THAT BABY WEIGHT" or any other star for that matter....I don't need to read that to know that as soon as they can they are working with a personal trainer around the clock, and they can do that you know because they have like two nannies to help watch and take care of their kids while they are gone doing this. Then they have a personal chef that makes "good, healthy, prepared meals"so they can eat good too. If all else fails then they have all the money in the world to have plastic surgery and so they can pay whoever did it or knows about it off so they can't say anything. Then they go around saying "oh I have never done any plastic surgery, I just work really hard"! Uh huh sure ya did! Anyway the reason for my complaining is I feel like I am working hard and it's never going to go away....the baby weight or any weight for that matter. I am back to the weight I was before I had Gracie but that is not to mention I was still 15 lbs. over where I wanted to be anyway. I am trying to eat good and I work out about 4-5 times a week. Lets be honest though it is hard to eat good all the time and work out all the time with kids. Not to mention I hate some of the working out such as running. I am trying to run atleast 3 times a week but I hate it! I try to like it because I know it's so good to do but I dread it. As far as eating good lets be honest I would rather have a burger and fries everyday along with any kind of chocolate or ice cream!!! Instead of protein shakes, chicken, chicken and more chicken, oatmeal, eggs, and 100 calorie anything. I feel like it's all never going to go away but I know it doesn't happen over night and I have to be patient. The crappy thing is though I am realizing that if and when I get to where I want to be weight wise and size wise that I will still have big saggy boobs, a stomach that hangs over a big long scar from my C-section, along with no lower stomach muscles or firmness because it was cut in half, and also lovely lovely stretch marks! Isn't motherhood wonderful??? HONESTLY though if this is what it takes to get them here than it is worth it. I love being a mom and I love and adore my two kids. They were worth it and I would and will do it all over again for them. In Keltic mythology (I think but in mythology somewhere) mothers were considered heroes because of what they had to go through and endure with carrying a child and child birth! Mainly just because they were moms. I think that is cool to think. So I guess we just have to look at every scar, stretch mark, and imperfection as our battle wounds for going to war for getting these little angels here and how worth it it was.

Crazy Week.......

Well I made it a whole week without Easton and 5 days without Devin. Last week was a little nuts but it has slowed down for a minute. I stayed at my mom's for a few days while Devin was gone because I am a BIG WHOSE! I had fun though without the boys, I got to spend alot of one on one time with Grace Girl and have fun with my mom and the fam. We went one day up to Taipan and bought Halloween decorations (it was my mom, Jamie, Kylie, me, the babies of course and Hunter who missed his sidekick Easton) and then after my mom took us to eat lunch at Cafe Rio. (thanks again mom for getting the tab). Then after my mom and I went shopping at the South Towne Mall. It was so fun in the past I never got to do stuff like that on a "week day" because I was always working. Then I went to a movie with some of my girlfriends and sister Jenessa one night. We went and saw "The Women" and believe me the name says it all, there was not ONE single man in the whole movie, not even in the extras. Then on Thursday I went home cleaned and scrubbed down my whole house, went to Relief Society and put together 72 hr. kits. Friday I got my hair done (thanks Kyz you always take good care of me) and then headed up to the airport to pick Dev up. Then we went straight from the airport to Monica's (Devin's sister) wedding party thing up in the canyon. After that came home and got ready for bed. Devin's parents spent the night so we could all get up and go to the Temple Sealing the next day. So Saturday that's what we did and then went to dinner as a family after. Then to finish it off Luke and Jamie blessed Hallie on Sunday. I finally got Easton back tonight and I sure did miss him. He is so funny when I talked to him on the phone while he was gone he just kept saying "mom tell me more" he wanted me to keep talking to tell him all about what we were doing and what he was missing out on. I swear tonight when he came back and I talked to him, it was longer than a week since he had been gone because he looked even bigger and he was using new words that I have never heard him say before. Also while he was gone he learned from one of his uncles how to have a "thumb war" so he wanted to play that with me all night. Well it's good to have my family all back now and I wish I could say that life was going to slow down but it seems like it will be another busy week.

Stayin at Grandma's......

So when I stayed at my mom's while Devin was gone I took alot of pictures of Gracie. I am just so in love with her. She is such a happy baby and everytime I see her little gummy smile it makes me melt. I love her big eyes and her chubby cheeks, sometimes I just want to eat her!!!



Hangin with my homies.....

The Pre-Wedding Party!

Stevie and Monica


Devin's mom Debbie, Me, Moe, Britt, and Karalee


Me and Moe





Feeding each other the cake


The wedding cake (Dev's mom made it)

Monica's Temple Day

The Happy Couple






The Pretty Bride





















The whole
Fam and Devin and I in front of the Mt. Timp. Temple

















All of the brothers and sisters with spouses. Us all eating dinner at Mimi's Cafe............Gracie out like a light. (so I actually got to enjoy my meal for once)







The temple day was beautiful. Devin's grandpa sealed Monica and Stevie and it was really nice. It was a great day, they were both so so happy! I am happy for Moe and I love that she is my sister in law and I am glad she has brought Stevie in our family. I have gotten to know him really well, he is such a great guy and loves Monica so much, she is a very lucky girl! Congrats you guys we are so happy for you.

Hallie's Baby Blessing

Baby Hallie isn't she beautiful!

Kylie & Ire, Jamie & Hallie, Me and Grace girl
Now with Mom (grandma) and Nessie
Devin, Gracie, and me minus our cute little boy!
Again all tuckered out from another long day!!!

TaLkIn TuEsDaY

So I wanted to go off on annoying, opinionated people. People who are always giving you unneeded and un-solicited advice. People that think they know it all and are always trying to tell you that they do. Sorry if I am being a hypocrite right now because I know that at some point in my life I have been one or all of these things. Ok so things like....you should put socks on your baby, I like your hair better darker, you should grow your hair out, you shouldn't drive so fast, you talk to much, you shouldn't wear so much make-up, you shouldn't eat that, your baby should be on a schedule, your kid should go to bed at a regular time.......blah blah blah blah. These are just a few of the things I have heard through out my life as a teenager, wife, mother, daughter, friend, sister, and acquaintance. I think I have about heard it all. I am so sick of it. I am not perfect; person, wife mom etc. I am not a great cook, my house isn't always clean, I don't know how to sew, I don't have food storage, I can't dance or sing, my son isn't always in bed on time or sometimes even before 10:00 but you know what it's ok, it's my life and it works for me. People should know not to give advice unless it is asked for and keep your opinion to your self unless you are asked to give one. I don't know everything I am learning as I go just like everyone else. I get so sick of how "they" say this is what your child should be doing right now and you shouldn't let your child do that or they will grow up to be a serial killer and this is how your marriage should be. Who are "they" anyway??? All I know in the short years I have been alive that I do not know everything and just when I thought I knew something I find out something new or there are other tricks or ways to doing everything. I think we all just do the best we can when we can and that's all you can ask for. So those that freely give out there opinions and advice on how things "should" be maybe take a step back and realize what might work for you may not work for someone else. Also there is a reason why it is called an "opinion" it 's because it is not a fact or anything proven to be so. So next time when people feel like handing those out too maybe they should make sure that is wanted in the first place. Now I do realize that this was a bold statement but again also an opinion. On a lighter note I am glad at the point were I am at in my life and thanks to all my friends and family who have loved and supported me along the way. Also most importantly for not judging me. So thanks for all your dang opinions! lol Thanks again for listening to another crazy rendition of Amy's talkin Tuesday!!

Life...or something like it!

So Devin left me last night until Friday to go to California for his masters program. He decided last year he wanted to go on and get his masters in Criminolgy. So he is doing an online program through the University of California Irvine. I am really proud of him but it will be a long and hard 2 years. I will also be like a single mom because he will work all day and then come home and shut himself in a room to do school all night. I guess it will be worth it in the end and school is very important to him! Easton then left me today for a week, he went with Rhone to Oregon for a family Reunion. So its just me and Grace girl. Who by the way is now sleeping 12 hours at night. So I put her down anywhere from 7:00-8:30 p.m. and then whatever the time was I put her down at she wakes up 12 hours later. She is such a good baby. She is also smiling all the time now and she is starting to laugh too. She has the sweetest little personality and is so happy! I love when she "talks" and "coos" at us because she gets so excited and flares her little nostrils like she is trying so hard to tell you something. I am really enjoying her. It was about this time with Easton that I had to go back to work so I felt like I missed out on alot with him. So I am taking every day with her and trying to love and enjoy every minute of it. Other than that life is just the same day in and day out but I can't complain because I don't think I could have it any other way.

Kids are so a "matter of fact"

So Devin just loves to tease Easton every morning before he goes to work. Dev is always saying to Easton his stupid little saying's (that only Devin could think of) like "are you part of the club". So the other morning he told Easton (joking around) your out of the club and then left to work. So just a few seconds after he left, Easton was telling me how upset he was that his dad said that he was "out of the club" so I said Easton why do you even listen to him and he said "because I have ears", I thought that was not only funny but very true!

TaLkIn TuEsDaY

ATTENTION BLOGGERS: Now I do realize that today was Talking Tuesday but due to technical difficulties from an unplanned illness (thanks to my four yr. old that was sick last week) there will be no talkin Tuesday this week, mainly just due to the fact I don't feel like talkin! Stay tuned for next week which will be your regularly scheduled program of Talkin Tuesday. Thanks for tuning in.......until next time!

Gracie's two month stats

So little Gracie is not so little anymore. I took her to her two month check up on Tuesday. She weighed in at 11lbs. 1 ounce (60% for weight) and was 22 inches long (30% for height) so pretty much she is short and fat. Its ok though I love my chubby Grace girl. Having a girl has been so much fun. She is starting to really look at us and respond. She smiles all the time now and has even laughed a couple of times. Everyone time I see her big gummy smile it just make my heart melt. I also love it when she "talks" to me with her little cooing. She gets all into it with her nostrils flared and all. She is such a sweet baby. Easton is so in love with her and is such a great helper and big brother. He has this cute little voice he talks to her in and she will smile at him all the time too. Her favorite is when he grabs her little hands in his hands and claps her hands together, and we say "Yeah Gracie". She always smiles at that. The best part is she has been sleeping through the night now for the past three weeks. She will go down at 9:00 and wake up anywhere from 6:00-8:00 in the morning. It has been wonderful. I didn't know that I would love her this much and be so crazy about her, to be honest I didn't know what I would expect but it is nothing like I imagined it's better. I always thought that I didn't care if I ever got a girl but I am so thrilled that I did.

Lake Powell Trip

Labor day weekend we went to Powell with Devin's family. We stayed on his grandpa's house boat. It's not the most luxurious house boat but it's better than beaching it! (the house boat was probably built in the 60's mind you). We still had a really good time and pretty decent weather most the time. Not to hot or to cold which was great when you have a 2month old baby. I was really worried and had anxiety about Gracie not staying on her fantastic sleeping schedule but she did great, didn't even phase her! Devin pretty much fished the whole time along side with Easton. Who also played with his cousin Tate in the sand, water and along with their bumper boats their nice Uncle Jorgan bought them. I also couldn't believe how daring Easton was too he would jump off the house boat and even go down the slide all by himself which I was even afraid to do. He was a little fish. He also caught his very first fish ALL by himself as well. It was a Catfish and Devin was never more proud. (I saw his eyes get all watery). I got a little time to myself while Devin and his mom would watch the kids for me. I got to go swimming and on the boat a few times. We also went around on the tube which was fun, my father in law drives like a maniac throwing me off the tube giving me extreme whip lash. Only one swimsuit malfunction the whole trip exposing my ugly big white saggy bare breast to my sister-in-law and soon to be brother-in-law. So embarrassing I probably won't ever live it down. We had alot of laughs and made a ton of new memories. I am thankful for such great in laws. I also had a very neat spiritual experience as well. Thanks to my father in laws great devotional he held Sunday morning. He made everyone go around telling about spiritual things that have happened to them this year. I was really touched by everyone's comments but mostly by Stevie's my soon to be brother in law, he really inspired me and left me with alot of shed ed tears. It was a great experience, one I will never forget. Who knew that one Lake Powell trip could be left with so much diversity!





The amazing sunrise...I am obsessed with taking pictures of Sunrises and Sunsets


Fishing Buddies!!!


Sleeping Beauty (thanks Jen for the cute outfit)


Easton in his motorized bumper boat that his uncle bought him for his birthday!


The ugly Carp they caught


Easton fishing with his Spider Man fishing pole off the back of the house boat!


Only smiles when there is a pole in his hand


Devin proud of all the Catfish he caught


My chubby little girl (I like to call her Devin Jr.)


My little guy and me! (Don't let me scare you to bad without the makeup)


Our little family on the last day!