The Fam

Updates Finally

2009-09-03T15:17:00.000-07:00

So we have been less than impressive with out blog.. so here are the updates on our summer.. we love you all,
Gillian

My Birthday-- i choose to take the kids to the OC fair.. a blast for us all... food, games, rides.. what more could the kids want!

San Diego

2009-04-06T19:20:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics from our trip to Sea World and The Zoo. The kids are on Spring Break so we jumped at the chance to get away... it was a great trip.. a trip we all needed! family time

my 3 sons

cheesey smiles

monkey time

nasty snakes!

Drew is Nine!

2009-03-08T11:08:00.000-07:00

I really can't believe it but our boy is Nine. Everyday I am proud to say that Drew is my son. He is amazing in so many ways-smart, athletic, loving brother and friend, passionate, and already has his beliefs in God. I could go on and on as many of us can, but David and I are just truly blessed to have him as our son. This year Drew had a "big boy party" with just 5 friends and no younger brothers. David and I took all 6 boys to Boomers were we all had fun running around playing lazer tag, mini golf, rock climbing and of course video games! David and I on the way home (9:45 pm) were enjoying the conversation between all the boys and laughing about the fact that this party was just like the ones we had as a youngster.. about the kids and not the parents. It was fun for ALL!

we played boys versus parents-- i think David and I had just as much fun chasing the boys all around the place!

you think Drew wants back into first place?

We had a small dinner with Nana and Papa on his actual Birthday.. he loved it since he "got all the gifts he asked for"..

my furture CSULB Dirtbag?

Gifts from Bryce and Ryan!

Picture Day

2008-12-05T07:00:00.000-08:00

So we attempted to get our pictures done professionally for the first time.. wow what an ordeal. We were 4 for 5 with participation.. Ryan had enough after the first couple pictures and wanted to play with the pretend oven set the lady had there. We were able to get some really nice pictures.. she took over 600 photos! Here is a little sample of my favorites..

no more pictures!

my boys

i Love my man

GQ Bryce!

Hey Good Looking..

2008-11-05T18:52:00.000-08:00

check out the handsome boys below...

Bryce Kindergarten picture

Drew- 3rd grade picture

Disco Fever

2008-11-04T20:53:00.000-08:00

This year Dave and I decided to go to the boys school gala fundraiser. This year was a disco theme. Well i was able to borrow my dads 3 piece corduroy suit-- yes he still had it! and i then went thrift store shopping for me. We went with a great group of friends and had a blast. Here are the super pics..

dave, gil, kim and alani having too much fun!

Halloween

2008-11-04T20:41:00.000-08:00

This year was a great in regards to the kids and their decisions on their Halloween costumes. Bryce from the start wanted to be an officer ( of course I loved it!). Ryan then my default was a prisoner.. come on that was funny i thought. Drew was the hard one... at the store he could not decide then he found a scary face, reaper stick and black robe thinging- of that was fun. Ryan was completely scared of Drew and wanted nothing to do with him... then he wanted nothing to do with his costume-- that my mom made for him.

well here are the pic i have so far...

my little get away artist..

Ryan was very scared of Drew

my little officer of the law.. his belt got too heavy from the start so he had to use his fist to protect me!

Bryce at his school parade.. notice the real LAPD uniform!

Soccer Time Again

2008-10-08T19:22:00.000-07:00

Once again the soccer season is back. The boys are loving as much as ever. This year is the first year that the games really count for Drew. So to say it is intense is an understatement! WOW it brings back many memories of my mom yelling on the sideline :)

Drew and Bryce all Smiles

Bryce taking the ball the distance.

Drew doing his thing... and he does it great!

our little sideline cheerleader and biggest fan!

Bryce turns 6

2008-09-22T15:24:00.000-07:00

My middle boy is now 6. Time does go by too quickly. We celebrated by going to the Pirates dinner adventure on his actual birthday. Then on labor day we had over our closest friends and family for a small get together. Bryce wanted a guitar for his birthday, and with the help of our family we were able to get him a really nice acoustic guitar. He started lessons about 3 weeks ago and loves it, he is a quick learner she tells us.

We love you Bryce!

i let them have fun with the cake from Pirates Adventure

First Day of School

2008-09-22T15:17:00.000-07:00

The first day of school. The struggles to wake up the kids, get them feed and all dressed up... not in the Jensen household. These fine looking boys were so excited that school was starting that there was no such struggle. All smiles!

Bryce could not wait for his picture

Drew is at the age were clothes do matter.. as does the way you carry your backpack!

My two gems all clean and smiling!

Sea World

2008-08-26T20:30:00.000-07:00

So we decided to go to Sea World since the older boys had been kindly reminding us that we have not been "in forever". The term forever out of the mouth of an 8 and 6 year old just makes me laugh. So after getting all organized from our vacation we jumped right back in the car for a day trip to San Diego. We got there at noon and stayed until it closed.. 9 pm! The boys all had a blast, as did David and I. The joys of watching your children be amazed by the wild life is a feeling that you never forget.

the boys checking out the walrus.

Dave, Drew and Bryce enjoying the walrus show. It was too cute watching them from a far. Ryan had fallen asleep and we were sitting in the disabled area.

Ryan loving the penguins, Drew and Bryce in a deep conversation!

My cute boys watching the Flamingos.. dontcha love Ryan's good side?

Feeding the dolphins is always a favorite for all. As an adult you just can't get enough of petting them!

Bryce and Ryan touching the starfish. It was to cute to see them both being gentle together.

To end the night we stayed for the "Shamu Rocks" show, and it actually did rock. This show is more jumps and music rather than learning about the whales. We all loved it and it was well worth the wait.

All smiles at 9 pm!

look hard, that is Shamu

Bryce and David all cuddled up.

Laughlin

2008-08-22T20:43:00.000-07:00

So just like every year we went to Laughlin with the family. This year, as always we were lucky enough to have Nana, Papa, Aunt Joanie, Uncle Keith, Josh, Sara, Elijah and Alethea join us: to to say we had a full boat was an understatement! This year the weather was great, 105-108 each day!

Ryan loved the rocks, he always seemed to be tossing them into the lake. Which is better than were he tossed them on day 2; which was my forehead!

Drew fishing as usual, and once again he was the only lucky one to catch some. You have to look really good under his right arm to see the great big fish!

Drew having fun in the lake as always.

Bryce looking as cute as always, and loving his vest with the cool whistle that Papa placed on there for "emergencies only"

Ryan, Aunt Joanie and Nana feeding the cute ducks that found their way to our beach.

Nana enjoying some lovin' from 2 of the 3, Bryce was swimming out to Pirates Island to see his Uncle Josh during this picture.

David and Bryce skipping rocks as boys will do.

David just trying to get Ryan not to toss rocks to close to others. Aim for the water little man!

Drew having his time at the wheel.

Of Course Bryce drove too, though he could not see over the wheel at first!

Bryce and Thea enjoying their cruise in the tube.

Drew and Elijah having as much fun, though Elijah seems to be enjoying it more in the picture.

Then I talked David into getting on with me, we laughed so hard our faces hurt. I looked at David and said "should we be doing this, we are 35 years old now and not as limber as we used to be". My dad seemed to be enjoying it a little too much, swerving and getting us outside the wake within seconds of me shouting "Hit It". It was good laughs for all.

.the real test came... falling! We got up and laughed some more, kissed and called it a day.

My man, handsome as ever!

Vacation Bible School

2008-07-05T17:36:00.000-07:00

Once again we had the kids in the Redeemer VBS. The look forward to it every year and this year was no exception. Here are some pictures from the performance at the end of the week. What makes me laugh is Drew is actually singing and having fun with it!

Ryan had fun watching them sing and of course was an angel the entire time.

July 4th

2008-07-05T17:13:00.000-07:00

This year once again was another amazing celebration. We first started out by doing the HB 5k and kids 1 mile run. Dave did a great job this year and I am very proud of him, considering last year he could not run it all due to his back. This year he rocked it and came in under 24 minutes, considering he had not ran over 2 miles in his training!

The boys did GREAT! Drew as usual finished in the top and Bryce ran the mile also even though he technically was supposed to stay on the 1/2 mile because of his age. Bryce has become a great runner and he wanted to run the mile run like his big brother. So Bryce actually finished not far behind Drew and beat a ton of older kids.

We finished the afternoon at some friends house where they had a huge water slide. The kids had a blast and it was a safe one were no one got hurt!

God Bless America.. we love you All!

Dave Turns 35

2008-07-05T09:24:00.001-07:00

So this year I gave Dave a Surprise Birthday Party... he actually never found out about it until he walked in the kitchen door instead of the front door :) one little oopps but oh well. The party was for adults only as you can see.. it was more of a flash back to college days as you can see!

Then of course we had our family party for Dave the next day.... I love you David.. you are an amazing Man!

Ryan is TWO!

2008-04-28T14:51:00.000-07:00

Oh my, my baby is two years old. Dave tells me I need to stop calling him "the baby" and realize he is a toddler now. I am in complete denial, Ryan is too perfect and I wish I could stop time and enjoy him more.

We had a very small birthday party for him, at which point he just smiled at the cake and waited for his brothers to blow out the candles.

This year for Ryan is the year of Lightening McQueen. He is in LOVE with the Cars movie and all the cars. We decided to take away the trains and make his play area a little City for his cars... and now he won't eat or play anything else... all he does is play with his cars in his own little city.

The Cousins

2008-04-02T15:31:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we got together with the family. Since we had our favorite aunt in town and the boy's "uncle" Kyle (my cousin) it was a good time to get a picture of all the kids together.

Elijah is turning 7 and Thea is 2 1/2, and of course the other ones are the darling Jensen boys!

Spring Break

2008-03-29T11:58:00.000-07:00

This year we decided to go away for Spring Break and Easter and took the motor home to San Diego. We stayed at Campland on the Bay, which if you have never been there is right on the bay and has everything you could ever want (kind of like a hotel for motor homes!)

On Sunday we had our very own Easter egg hunt for the boys, they were so excited that they did not miss out on our annual hunt.

Ryan loved playing with the sea weed!

Our boys looking so sweet.. for a moment at least

the boys loved being swung around fast by David

our lilly white boys...

David and I had a blast too!

Drew's Birthday

2008-03-06T16:42:00.001-08:00

Our Boy is 8! How does the time fly by so quickly. He is so darn handsome, smart and athletic! How did David and I get so lucky. We took the family to the Discovery Science Center then had a small family party for him. He had a blast as did we all. Happy Birthday Drew, you are amazing!

Nana's Birthday

2008-03-06T16:27:00.000-08:00

For my mom's birthday I invited the family over to our place for dinner and cake... you parents know what it is like to have 5 kids under the age of 7 at restaurant! So instead we had a nice relaxing dinner at our place, and my mom had a great time enjoying her grand babies!

Holiday Pics

2008-01-07T18:17:00.000-08:00

So this year was by far our best Christmas ever! The boys were all healthy and even got along most of the time :) They loved all their gifts and most importantly they were very thankful for every gift they received. Here are some pictures from December..

The boys and I enjoying a night looking at the neighborhood lights

Dave and the boys opening their matching Chicago Bears hats...

Drew and I enjoying some cuddle time!

Bryce, Drew and I after Church... it would be complete if Ryan would have joined us!

Drew thanking Bryce for the gift he picked out for him, legos are always a hit!

Papa, Thea, Elijah, Bryce, Drew, Nana and Ryan all trying to look good at once, I realized that was a mission impossible task and gave up so this is the best one of them all.

Nana & Papa and the boys all looking pretty..

Ryan thinking he is all tough!

Best Friends

2007-12-18T18:44:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago we went to a birthday party / boat parade in the harbor to watch the boats drive past with all their lights. The boys had fun, I believe running around outside more than watching the boats though! We all tried to stay warm with the cold and raining weather..a whopping 50 something degrees I know.. but the boys had fun just being with their best friends.

As you can see Bryce and his best friend Chad can't get enough of each other!

School Pics

2007-11-27T18:13:00.000-08:00

So the boys came home with their school pictures today, and to say they were pleased would be an understatement! The loved having updated pictures in the living room, considering the one we have of Drew he has no front teeth and Bryce is only 3 or 4 in his!

Sunday Fun

2007-11-25T18:49:00.000-08:00

Okay so the Bears won today in overtime! so we are too happy... along with that comes happy

kids

and following a great meal comes some more together time in the bath tub..

Leo Carrillo State Beach

2007-11-25T18:36:00.000-08:00

We decided to go camping for our time off for this Thanksgiving break. We had been invited by some friends to go along with them making it nine families in all. We had a blast, we learned a lot (this was the first time with no hook-ups for our motor home!) and the boys got the chance to hang out with their friends "exploring" . Oh they had fun!

It was a wonderful experience! We too enjoyed the company of good friends and some much needed relaxation away from the "city life"

Apple Farm

2007-11-07T16:40:00.000-08:00

We had our annual Apple Farm trip this year. After a bit of a disappointment, our usual apple farm had no apples left due to the drought! The kids still had some fun at the village. Though it seemed as though at one time or another I always had a kid crying we did salvage out some good pictures!

Halloween

2007-11-07T16:27:00.000-08:00

So this year the mom's decided to dress up for Halloween. After our boys all wanted us to dress us as Star Wars ladies we opted to make our own Hippie Costumes. We tied dyed our own tees, went to the salvation army to find some Nice skirts and then accessorized! I think we looked great!

as for the kids... wow the energy level was high. We had pretty much all Star Wars.. all the boys were one character or another and we even had the cutest little Yoda ( no not Ryan, our friends daughter!) Ryan was a Chicago Bear football player of course!

First Cruise

2007-10-01T12:30:00.000-07:00

So we did it..we left all three boys at home and went on our very first cruise. David and I, along with Patty and Dana (our good friends) had a blast. We left our lovely children in the care of Nana and Papa, and Grandma, and we were off. We left Friday and returned Monday. The weather was good, considering we had received word it may Thunderstorm and shower..nice try Dallas Rains....the weather man was wrong as usual.

We left from Long Beach and went to Ensenada and back. While in Ensenada we took a 15 minute drive to the Blowhole. It was vey pretty and clean down there! Much better then in town. We picked up some gifts for the boys..a mako shark head and 2 slingshots! You know boy toys!

Having fun at the Blowhole

David and I enjoyed some much needed alone time..it is amazing how just 4 days alone, with good friends to boot, can make you appreciate each other more.

Da Bears

2007-09-15T12:07:00.001-07:00

This year we had the great opportunity to watch the Bears play the Chargers in San Diego. We decided this would be the first game we would bring Drew to watch and enjoy it with us.

WE took the train down to San Diego with Vince, Jim and Leah. It was a lot of fun and it seemed like 2/3's of the train were Bears fans which made it even more fun.

Drew loved seeing the Eagle flying around the stadium before the game. It was an amazing sight.

all smiles before the game... too bad they had to lose!

Dave and Vince each cheering on their own teams.

Soccer Days

2007-09-15T11:45:00.000-07:00

With the fun of summer coming to an end it means soccer season has begun. This is the 4th year for Drew and the 1st for Bryce.

Drew and Bryce all smiles before their first game. I do believe they are some handsome little boys

Drew scoring in the first 10 seconds of the game. He really is a great player, and knows a lot about the game at such a young age. Our little Super Star!

Bryce showing he has some moves too!

Fun in the Sun

2007-09-03T20:00:00.001-07:00

What do you do when it seems like 100 degrees in Huntington? Not go to the crowded beach that is for sure. Turn on your sprinklers and let the kids run wild.... they had a blast and my beautiful grass was watered too! Nice deal!

Bryce's 5th Birthday

2007-09-03T19:46:00.000-07:00

Bryce turned 5 on Friday, August 31. The day started off hard since he was running a low grade fever, which kept him out school (nice start). But by 1 pm he was feeling just fine so the party still went on. We kept it very small and Bryce had a ton of fun with his cousins and close friends.

Bryce was a little embarrassed during cake time!

Everyone enjoying Ryan going down our slide backwards .. what a little show off!

First Day of School

2007-08-30T16:04:00.001-07:00

Yippee school finally is here...Drew of course was very excited and could not wait to see all his friends and meet his new teacher. Bryce in the morning stated "I am not going". That was at 7:30 am, he did not start school until 12 pm! When it came time to bring him to school and do the dreaded drop off he was perfectly fine. Now I on the other time was not! Expecting the worst and getting the best was a nice shock, but not being needed was another story. They do really do grow up too fast!

Ryan home alone.. and a handful he is

Annual Family Boating

2007-08-30T15:47:00.001-07:00

Once again we went to Laughlin for our annual family lake trip. Not to our suprise it was 112-117 degress every day, at least some days there was a nice breeze! The boys had a blast and loved being on the lake all day long.

Papa teaching Ryan how to drive the boat.... we were in the Marina that is why he does not have his favorite item of the week.... his life vest!

Drew and Elijah enjoying time on the tube.

Papa and Bryce driving the boat at top speed

Nana and Ryan trying to cool down, it was like a cool bath!

Gone Camping

2007-07-22T20:17:00.000-07:00

For my birthday all I wanted was some good old fashion family time. So after asking Cathy if we could borrow her RV, and getting the yes from David we were off. Since it was so last minute in the sense of reserving an RV campsite, I literally choose Lake Cachuma by looking at a map.

To say we had a great time would be an understatement...it was a wonderful trip. The older boys loved just running wild, and Ryan loved having full run of the RV and outside. I enjoyed the nights sitting by the fire with family making our smores and roasting marshmallows. But of course I loved having some time for good conversation with just David next to the fire and drinking our wine..oh so relaxing!

Don't look Grandma..Ryan's at the wheel

Our Cute little guys.. staying still for a picture for Mom

Playing with your brother can be so much fun.. especially when you are playing Star Wars with baseball bats in a field of dirt!

Having Fun by the fire

and of course David doing the dirty work!

Ryans 1 Year Pictures

2007-06-15T10:41:00.000-07:00

Well we just got back Ryan's One Year Pictures...and isn't he the cutest little one you have ever laid you eyes one. We could possibly be a little biases, but who cares.

Fishing with the Guys

2007-06-12T16:44:00.000-07:00

This past week David went on a Guys trip to Mammoth. Since David is not the "fishing" type this was a totally new experience for him. He went with our good friend Dana and his friends and family. As you can see it was very pretty and he did catch a few fish! I think he may have smoked more cigars than he caught fish to be honest though!

Mothers Day at the Beach

2007-05-13T17:55:00.000-07:00

Today was a great Mothers Day! We rode our bikes down to the Pier and enjoyed lunch while listening to some live oldies band. The boys had a blast and loved the freezing cold beach water. The best part was there was no nagging about being tired on the ride home! A fun and relaxing day for us all.

Happy Mothers Day to all!

Mommy and Me Day

2007-05-11T10:59:00.000-07:00

Today was "Mommy and Me day" at Bryce and Drew's school. Being that I could not be in 2 places at once, Nana went to Drew's for me (Thank-you Mom). It was a wonderful day for Bryce and I, it was some much needed alone time for us both. He was so happy and excited to show me everything and to play with me on all his toys. At the end, the kids gave us a little box for "my money or rings" as Bryce had said. It is so beautiful, painted with pink paint with cute buttons on it, definitely a keeper!

An overall wonderful day, as I was able to make it to the end of Drew's also, were he gave me a book about myself! Both funny and sweet!

Thank-you Boys for a great day!

Ryan Turns One!

2007-05-11T10:50:00.000-07:00

Well this past year has been nothing short than amazing. We had some life changing decisions and by far the best one was to have this little rascal! Being born 8 weeks early has not slowed him down at all. He is taking about 6-10 steps on his own, then gets so happy he falls. He is still on the growth charts, may it be on the little side, he still is on the charts at least!

Thank-you to all our family and friends for your help and support throughout this year. We are so blessed.

Love,

The Jensen's

LAPD Graduation of Class 9-06

2007-04-28T20:50:00.000-07:00

Friday was a big day for myself. I graduated 43 outstanding recruits to join the ranks of the Los Angeles Police Department. What made it more special was the fact that David, the boys, and my parents were there to watch me graduate them. It was an emotional day just to see how far these recruits have all come, and to have my loved ones there made it a day I will never forget

Guess who is almost One!

2007-04-23T18:21:00.000-07:00

Can you believe it? this Saturday, April 28th will be Ryan's First Birthday. It is amazing how time sure does fly. He is doing great and has been cruising along furniture for some time now. He has yet to try on his own, but as soon as he does I can see him running to stay with his big brothers.

Beach Fun

2007-04-23T18:15:00.000-07:00

Bryce & Mom went for a fun bike ride to the beach this weekend. It was very cold but we had fun just being together collecting shells. We brought sea weed and shells home for Drew {in Mom's backpack :) }

It was a wonderful morning for us both

Baseball Season

2007-04-23T16:57:00.000-07:00

We have really enjoyed watching Drew play baseball this season. He is also very lucky, because Daddy is his Manager too! Drew is doing really great this year, someday we see the Big League in his future.

Welcome Aboard

2007-04-23T16:48:00.000-07:00

Well after much asking, we have chosen to finally come aboard the new wave on communications. We have an official blog page now! Please understand this is all new, so don't expect much at first from us.

We hope you enjoy our pictures and updates and we will try to keep it updated for your viewing pleasure.

Our love,

Gillian & Family