Deck the Halls

My mama began collecting ornaments when Tick-Tock would give her ornaments for us kiddos, beginning when my sister was a baby. The tradition was perpetuated when we went to San Antonio as a family in November of 1993 and she bought ornaments-- one for each of us. This whole thing sort of came full circle when, in San Antonio with Lance, I bought my own ornaments for my future Christmas tree!

There are two of them-- the first one says,
"The stars At Night Are Big and Bright..."

and the second one says,

"Deep in the heart of TEXAS!"

Tradition and Texas pride...
They're beautiful things! :)

Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow!

As long as I remember, Grandma Jones has always had some sort of animal in the fenced in yard behind her house... on our last day in Arizona, we introduced Audrey to the Washburn's livestock!

There were moo-cows

And horses!

These equines were so great at posing for this photo-op!

Then we went to Tick-Tock's to pack up the trailer and everything at her house! Audrey was in fine form--- she was so excited when she figured out she could fit this ball IN her mouth!

Pretty blue eyes!

Here she is again, playing with the only other blue-eyed member of our family

While Daddy was on the roof fixing Grandma's solar panel, Kevin was in charge of getting the trailer all packed and road-ready!

The REAL reason we took said trailer up with us to Arizona is to bring these bad boys home. Dad's weight set dates back to his high school days... He's been wanting to bring them home for years--
Mission accomplished!

We so enjoyed Arizona this Christmas... There were a lot of wonderful memories made, I feel like I made a new friend out of my cousin Kari, Audrey learned how awesome Pine is, Mom learned how convenient a cement turkey pit is, Cam and Kevin added a lot of humor to the trip, Trevor was pleasant the whole time, Daddy got creative and MADE shadow boxes for mom's Christmas gift and decided to become a scrapbooker! Life is so good :)

"You're Never Lost When You Can See The Temple"

Christmas Lights on the Mesa Temple grounds are quite a sight. In a place with such beautiful lights and scenes depicting Christ and other events from the New Testament, you can't help but feel the spirit.








Saturday morning, Mom, Dad, the grandmas and me went to the Mesa temple. I have grown up admiring Mesa temple's lovely simplicity and beauty, and I finally was able to go in! It's even prettier on the inside!

Mesa's temple is on LeSueur street... How awesome is that!? :)

Group shot sans Daddy-- he was getting the car cuz it was super cold outside!

"You are never lost when you can see the temple. The temple will provide direction for you and your family in a world filled with chaos. It is an eternal guidepost which will help you from getting lost in the “mist of darkness.” It is the house of the Lord. It is a place where covenants are made and eternal ordinances are performed."

-Elder Gary E. Stevenson

Christmas Day

We spent Christmas morning at Tick-Tock's house, and we were so excited because Tanner also got to be there for our Christmas morning festivities!

This is the 'before' shot of the present room.

Historically, we were never allowed to go into Grandma's 'pretty' room EXCEPT for on Christmas. I still feel rather privileged when I go in her living room... and I still hear my mom's voice from my younger years echoing in my head, "Chelsea, no no touch!"

Cam's favorite thing from her youth was the kitchen set she got one Christmas-- so this year, Santa brought Audrey her very own kitchen!

Cam and Kevin got Rock Band to go with the Wii they got each other for Christmas! We were ALL really excited for this one!

Cami got a beautiful 12'' marble Christus statue from Mom and Dad

Tanner can now cheer on the Suns in his very own #13 Steve Nash jersey! He's a BIG fan of the Suns!

Tick-Tock gave Trevor and me snuggies. They are awesome!

Audrey got not one, but TWO Elmos this year. One that sings and talks when his mouth is opened, and a tickle-me-elmo. She was ecstatic... it was the cutest thing I have ever seen!

Uncle Scott compiled a book of letters my grandpa wrote him the last year of his life while Uncle Scott was up at BYU. This is the gift that topped them all this year. Daddy has loved reading all the things his dad did and thought. It is also proving as a good memory-jogger as he has remembered doing a lot of things with his dad as he reads what grandpa wrote about them!

This is the 'after' picture at Tick-Tock's. What a mess!

After a bit of a clean up, we headed over to Graandma Jones' for her Christmas day party with all the Jones clan!

The tree was decorated beautifully, and all the hard work we did over the summer was spread underneath it!

For the uncles, we put Grandpa's missionary picture next to the poem he wrote entitled Our Sons the Elders. Grandpa was such a great writer, and I think this particular gift meant a lot to his sons!

When mom discovered the teapot Grandma uses to boil water in was rusty, she decided to prevent her mom from ingesting all that extra iron in her daily callie and get her a new rustless teapot! Here she is with her cute red kettle!

This is a Jones grandchild and great-grandchild must. I'm pretty sure if we looked hard enough we could find a picture of every single one of us as babies playing with our reflection in the mirror above Grandma's couch in the living room. Now Audrey has one!

These kiddos were too cute playing with and watching the cows in the field behind Grandma's house! We all LOVE our cousins!

And here we all are Christmas night! The festivities of the day sure did wear us out- but spending such a special holiday with such special people simply can't be beat!

Merry Christmas!

"He Stuck in His Thumb, & Pulled Out a Plum..."

The Jensen family, every year on Christmas Eve, participates in a gift exchange called 'Little Jack Horner' in which every family member brings a predetermined number of gifts, each one under five dollars. These gifts are all wrapped, they all have a string attached to them, and they are all placed in a big box with the long string sticking out from underneath the lid. The idea is everyone takes turns pulling a gift out of the box by its string, opening it, and showing it to everyone. These items should all be useful, some are funny, some are things people use every day, and some are nostalgic! When all the gifts are pulled out from the box, the trading 'floor' is 'opened' and the bartering begins. This is where the real fun happens. This year, we had out Jack Corner exchange after our Christmas Eve party at Tick-Tock's and we got both grandmas involved, as well as Beau and Tanner. We had such a wonderful time!

Here Cam and Kevin are, attaching the long strings to their gifts

We had two big bins full of presents-- there were more than 100 of various useful items in them!

Mom got a key chain with the AA slogan on it:
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
Perfect for her! ;)
Kevin got a sword... He looked like a little kid again while he was holding it!

This was the highlight-- slime that looked and felt like water, but stuck together like slime. So awesome!

This loaf of white wonder bread was meant for my dad who is a white-bread-aholic. The irony here is my Grandma Jones pulled it from the bin. She despises white bread and its lack of nutritional value! Needless to say, she was quick to say yes when Daddy traded her for it!

We had a lot of fun with Jack Horner-- Thanks to the Kevin's Grandma Sanders who came up with the fun and festive idea!

Little Jack Horner
Sat in a corner,
Eating his Christmas pie.
He put in his thumb,
And he pulled out a plum,
And said, "What a good boy am I!"

Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving Delights

On Thanksgiving Day we’re thankful for
Our blessings all year through,
For family we dearly love,
For good friends, old and new.For sun to light and warm our days,
For stars that glow at night,
For trees of green and skies of blue,
And puffy clouds of white.We’re grateful for our eyes that see
The beauty all around,
For arms to hug, and legs to walk,
And ears to hear each sound.The list of all we’re grateful for
Would fill a great big book;
Our thankful hearts find new delights
Everywhere we look!By Joanna Fuchs
I really was rather lame this year as far as pictures go, but despite the lack of photographical doccumentation, Thanksgiving 2009 was a huge hit and a delightful success!

This year, Thanksgiving began for me on Wednesday November 25th when Lance and I went over to Grandma Clark's for his dad's family's Thanksgiving celebration! Lance was most looking forward to Grandma's sweet potatoes topped with marshmallows... Unfortunately, when she was pulling the dish out of the oven to top it with the fluffy white treats, the dish fell onto the tile floor and shattered. Sweet potatoes were everywhere! Lance and his dad were both heartbroken!

When Aunt Johnny, John, Kim, Chandler, and Kristi arrived, the kids ran off with Sarah and Stephanie to play while Sheryl, Kim, Belva, Aunt Johnny, and I finished gathering everything for dinner, then John said the prayer, and we dug in! I brought a spinach salad with strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, candied pecans, and poppy seed dressing- I think everyone really liked it! My favorite, though, was the bruschetta Kristi made!

The night progressed with some rousing games of JINGO where Lance and I, combined, won ten dollars in quarters! Then we played Disney Scene It... I pretty much rocked it-- me and the preteen girls!

It was a wonderful night that wrapped up with hugs and goodbyes 'till Christmas time!


The Thanksgiving holiday progressed when we went to Mamaw and Granddad Sublett's for a turkey day lunch Thursday morning. Everyone was there-- Neva and Leonard, Tony and Lori, Rhonda, Bennett, Jake and Haley, and Sharon! I brought the relish tray... This family sure does love their green and black olives and baby gerkin pickles! Lori made her chocolate cream pie and coconut cream pie. Because Cam hates coconut, we never have it... So it was really was a treat to have such a delicious homemade coconut cream pie!

I also really enjoyed hearing Leonard's war stories! He was a US Navy Communications Technician in Japan, and my grandpa Jones was a US Navy Communications Officer-- they both had similar stories, and it was really fun to hear them from someone Lance admires so much!


After lunch, we headed over to my house for my family's thanksgiving dinner! I couldn't wait for my mama's yamstown sweet potatoes with the sugar crumble on top. We also had Lion House Rolls, Green bean Casserole, Garlic mashed potatoes, two fried turkeys, and Lance's new favorite- homemade Cranberry salad!

The rolls and the cranberry salad

My mama put together this beautiful flower/cranberry arrangement

We were thrilled to have Grandma Jones and Grandma LeSueur with us this year!

Here I am with two of my favorite boys!

Two of my favorite boys got a little too close over the break... uh oh!

And of course, Audrey entertained everyone with her 'grown up' Thanksgiving antics!

Here she is, reading to Grandma LeSueur

And with her new car that becomes a means of her walking when it's flipped up. Watch out, mom and dad... She's going to be walking soon, sans push-car!

Another notable event of Thanksgiving was the Lenox covered vegetable dish Mom got as an early Christmas present from the grandmas, Cam and Kevin, Daddy, Trevor, and me. She's wanted this piece that matches the rest of her china forever... She loves it!

Thanksgiving was amazing. Lots of friends, food, family, and memories-- I sure am going to miss all these traditions next year...

An Ode to Texas Living

Here it is, November 17th, and we just turned the heater on for the first time this fall/winter. With 61* as our high and 43* as our low today, we realize we're very fortunate-- and that it isn't even actually cold-- especially when we hear our Utah friends have been playing in the snow since Saturday! Ahh, God bless Texas... This is my kind of weather!

In other news, both Grandma Jones and Grandma LeSueur are coming to visit tomorrow! They'll be here when I go through the temple on Saturday, for my birthday on Monday, Thanksgiving on Thursday, and we get to have them with us 'till the 3rd of December! I couldn't be more thrilled!!

This was taken last thanksgiving just after we saw "The Nutcracker" ballet at the Majestic Theatre in downtown Dallas!

Can't wait for this year's adventures! :)

Blessed

So, I was "blessed" with really weak teeth... Luckily, I was really blessed with an uncle who is an amazing dentist, and a family who has the means to get my teeth in 'working order'.

After a hellacious experience with a dentist from our ward in Plano, my parents decided to fly me up to Arizona to get my teeth mission-ready with my uncle's help. When he told me another apicoectomy would not be necessary and my other tooth would not have to be pulled, I just about cried because I was overwhelmed with joy. Dr. James Hamberlin with Red Mountain Endodontics redid the two root canals on the right side of my mouth. Uncle Scott did the rest. The total was just under $3000-- a lot of money, yes, but THOUSANDS less than what the dentist in Plano was saying things would cost.

Because I had such a miserable experience with the left side of my mouth (barbiturates, throwing up, crying while hoping to die on the cool tile floor by the toilet, sinus fluid draining through the hole in my gums, not remembering a full week of my life, etc.) I packed mostly pajamas, planning on being out of commission for the entirety of the week I would spend in Arizona... But I was wrong, which was a definite blessing- because we did a lot of great things that week!

I spent the first half of the week at TickTock's house. It is here I discovered her AMAZING Broccoli Salad and red chicken. She's quite the chef! I also watched the Martha Stewart Show and learned how to bake croissants... Who knew it was such a lengthy and involved process!?

Grandma, Beau, and I went to Applebee's for dinner on Friday where we took advantage of their 2 entrees with an appetizer for $20. What an awesome deal! This picture was taken after we ate!

The second half of the week, I spent with PapaBama, and we wrapped and finished up what little preparations we had left to get her all ready for Christmas! On the 16th was Grandpa's 1 year anniversary of moving on to his immortal state, so we went to Mesa Cemetery where we met up with Kim & Eric, Tyler & Kristen, their kids, Blake, Wes, and Mack & Lisa. We placed roses at his grave site and sang "Families Can Be Together Forever". We also visited the graves of Clinton, Clayton, Hannah, Charlene, and Alan Mark where we left roses as well. I feel so blessed to know of the plan of Salvation, I feel so blessed to understand the eternal nature of families, and I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful family that I will always be with.

Here we are at IHOP- After discovering this awesome restaurant in Dallas, they were eager to take me to the one in Mesa!

We had a lot of fun, and at last, my dental evaluation is filled out and sent into Salt Lake!

It shouldn't be much longer 'till I know where the Lord wants me to go for the next year and a half! I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to serve a mission... Truly blessed :)