Christensen Invasion

Last week, Ben's entire family came to visit (minus his 2 married sisters). There were 15 additional people at our humble abode. It was a little crazy, to say the least, but we had fun. Luckily when they drove out to see us, they towed a camper behind them so 5 or so of them slept out there. We were still pretty full to the rafters.

I could not believe the quantity of food. As the wife and hostess, it fell upon me to plan all the meals while they were here, although we didn't have to pay for all of it. (That surely would've broken our meager food budget!) I think they were all pretty happy to have a few real meals after eating sack lunches in the car all week. Ben and I also had to get used to moving a bit slower. With that many kids, it took us about 2 hours to get ready to go anywhere. We felt speedy for once. :)

After they arrived late on Wednesday night, we shoved off to Cedar Point early Thursday morning. One word: AWESOME. I'm a ride lover, and there was no shortage of thrill rides there. I think our favorite was Top Thrill Dragster. 120 mph in 4 seconds. Yes, 4 seconds. And 420 feet straight up? Yes, that's right. And what goes up must come down--at a 90 degree angle. Pretty wicked. The rides were so great that many times I was unable to scream...or simply ran out of scream on the descent. They were THAT big. E was a really good boy all day long. Ben and I were planning on riding rides for a short part of the day while he went with Grandma and Grandpa, but he fell asleep right after lunch and was perfectly content, so we were able to ride as much as we cared to. We felt pretty beat up by 8 pm and had to call it quits because we were so dang tired. We were able to take him on some kiddie rides and I was super impressed that they had 4 kid areas so you weren't stuck riding the same 6 rides over and over. It was a blast.

E's new t-shirt and stick from Grandma and Grandpa C

E and Auntie Em pointing to the ferris wheel (we didn't take him on that ride though...I was about to throw up I was so nervous at the thought.)

Thrilled on the boat ride. It had been a long day and he had been very good.

E sucking his thumb while playing with his pinky. (He instantly must get snuggly with mommy)

The next day, we all slept in late and had a few minutes to go mini-golfing at the hotel. E really liked the putter that was his size, and he got really good at putting the ball into the hole. Then we drove to Kirtland and had some church history fun. Ben and I liked it better in the off-season with a smaller tour group because they just gave better and more detailed tours and you could actually see stuff.

Miniature golfing at the hotel

The whole crowd (minus Brooke & Tim and their girls and Christine & David)

Tired lil' guy

The whole crowd in Kirtland

On Saturday we took the whole crowd to COSI. They all really liked it, I think. It was pretty busy on a Saturday, but I think we were all able to do everything we wanted to.

Fun facts for Jenny. She's always one to have a fun fact to share, so she was super excited when we discovered this whole list on the bathroom door at COSI.

How many Christensens can you fit in a phone booth?

Even though we wore everyone out while they were here visiting, we sure had a good time! We appreciated them making the drive and doing so many fun things with us.

The Melting Pot and Sleepy Boy

For my birthday dinner this year, Ben took me to The Melting Pot. It's probably my favorite restaurant of all time. I love the atmosphere, the food, and I loved being there on a date with my bestest husband ever without having to entertain my little guy during dinner with goldfish crackers and crayons. Thanks for the romantic evening out, shnookums. (You may vomit now.)

We tried to get some pictures together, but weren't too successful...

...until we decided to do individual shots.

And here's our precious sleepy guy earlier that day. He almost takes up the whole loveseat!

How Do You Capture A One-Year-Old?

Put something he wants in the hamper, of course.

You Light Up My Life

Old chandelier

The brass loveliness

Hooray for new!

Old kitchen fixture

New

New kitchen lighting. Yay!

Although we loved our old kitchen chandelier and brass lights, we decided to update things a little. Unfortunately I did not get a picture of the old fixture in the middle of the kitchen because my sweetie was so efficient that he got it down before I could. But you get the idea. We're very happy with our new lights.

Sleep Over/Down

Little Benny ready for the movie

Little E enjoying the mattress in the morning

The other night we had an urge to be fun, so Ben decided to blow up the air mattress that we usually use for camping and put it in the front room. Growing up, my siblings and I would have "sleepovers" in the family room, which meant staying up late, eating popcorn, and watching a movie, with the big kids on the couch and the little kids on the floor. Ben's family also did a similar thing growing up, but they called it a "sleepdown". So whatever you may call it, that is the general idea of what we did. We used to do it in our apartment in Logan fairly often, but we'd drag our queen-size mattress about 3 feet and it would be in the family room. :) I must say though, I must be getting old, because the air mattress just doesn't do it for me. Both of us were really sore when we woke up. E had a great time playing on the mattress in the morning. It was big fun.

Hocking Hills

Our sad/sick little guy. He woke up with croup the night before, but after taking him to the doctor, he slept great. I think the humid night air did him good.

Some of the group

The gimp posing in front of the disabled persons sign

The boyz

The boyz + me. (I don't look so great. And I promise I'm not pregnant even though I look extra-wide here)

E throwing rocks into the pool of water. Also notice his wet pants at the bottom...He made a break for it as soon as Ben set him down. He only got his shoes a little wet.

You thought I was never going to post about this, didn't you? Ha, well here it is. We went camping a few weeks ago at Hocking Hills. It probably has the most rugged terrain and is the closest cousin to any kind of mountains in Ohio. It's very pretty, and the campground was very similar to the ones we frequented in Logan. (We miss Logan, and all the great people there. You know who you are.) We had a great time with the other families that went, and got to know a few a lot better than before. We screamed our guts out at Rocky hiding in the brush, chased a few humongous raccoons away, frequently checked our legs for giant daddy longlegs, and sang a few songs around the campfire. Things went a lot better as soon as little man-beast went to bed. He went down fine, but was kind of a crabby-pants because he was sick the night before with croup. He didn't wake up once during the night, which thrilled me to no end because I had visions of us waking up every camper within a 50 mile radius. Thanks for all the fun, everyone. We'll have to do it again soon.

Fourth of July and Uncle Michael's Visit

E watching the fireworks. He kept reaching for them and babbling about them.

A nice lady took this picture of all of us at the parade

Sneakily eating another tootsie roll.

He loved gripping his little flag. But he didn't wave it once. He stabbed things with it. Does that mean we need to burn it?

Who is that blind-looking woman holding Emerson? I think she's related to that blind man with the sunglasses in all our family vacation pictures. :) (Love you Dad)

As you can tell from both my boys' expressions, the parade was great. :) Actually, Ben wasn't crabby, but he didn't realize I was taking the picture. Emerson WAS crabby.

He also entertained himself by finding his belly-button lots of times. He just figured out that it's always hiding under his shirt.

E was loving life as he got to stand on the ledge and reach his skinny little arm through the holes.

Outside the Columbus Clippers game. We discovered these windows as we were forlornly walking away from the ticket window. And they were FREE.

These pictures are not in the order I wanted them. Grrr. We had a great time with Uncle Michael. We took him to German Village, Graeters, a Clippers game, OSU campus, and of course to the Hilliard parade. Thanks for coming to visit, Michael. I'm still trying to figure out your joke/riddle about how to get out of the house...:)

The Fourth of July was more fun than I thought it would be. I was honestly pretty sad that we weren't going to be in Utah for the fourth, because I love being with my family and I love sharing my birthday with Brad and having two cakes to celebrate. But it was still good in Ohio. We went to the Hilliard parade as I mentioned before, and it was kind of disappointing. There was not one float to be seen. Nor more than 2 pieces of saltwater taffy. They threw Dubble Bubble. Really? Who likes that stuff? I guess at least they threw tootsie rolls and even threw some flavored ones in to mix things up. We were really sick of little league baseball teams by the end of the 1-1/2 hr. parade. But it wouldn't be the fourth without a parade. Then we came home and hung out and let E play in his pool for awhile. Then we invited our nice neighbor and her dad over for a BBQ and had to bring it inside because it started to rain. E was super tired so we put him to bed at his regular time and let him sleep until fireworks and then we got him up when it was time to go. It worked perfectly. He loved the fireworks and was good the whole time and went right back to sleep as soon as we put him in bed without a sound.

I think I get caught up in the festivities of the Fourth of July without thinking about why we're celebrating, but I really am grateful to live in this country. We have so many opportunities and I'm coming to understand more and more how Heavenly Father prepared America for everything that needed to happen to afford us the liberties we enjoy. I'm grateful for all the soldiers who have sacrificed to keep our nation free. I'm grateful that I'm so blessed to live in America.

Birthday

I had strawberry shortcake for my cake on my birthday. But this is just the naked angelfood cake. (And yes, it has 5 candles on it, but it's supposed to be 23...Ben's idea.)

My sweetie lighting the candles

Ben's brother Michael who we were happy to have around to celebrate with

My presents (I'm sitting on one of them too. We finally got patio furniture instead of our tacky camping chairs.)

My birthday was good. We went to Waffle House for breakfast since Michael was visiting and he couldn't leave without experiencing it. Then we went to the movie Up and I absolutely loved it. Ben was kind enough to take Emerson out of the theater when he freaked out. We got out Emerson's kiddie pool during the afternoon and laughed at his little bod in his Elmo swimsuit as he dumped water everywhere with his little bucket. Then we had a nice evening at home with a Papa Murphy's pizza while watching Independence Day. We are planning on going out to dinner for my birthday this weekend as well when we can leave E-man with a babysitter. Thanks Benny, Emerson, and Michael for making my birthday so fun even though I was away from home in Utah. :( And thanks for all the phonecalls, cards, and presents that everyone sent. You know who you are and that I think you're the best.

Happy Birthday!

Yay. I'm 23.

You Can Do What?

This is nothing spectacular, mind you. I was just sitting at the table, wasting my time at the computer while supervising Emerson eating his breakfast when he began loading some dry Kix cereal into his little bowl and flinging it around. He's such a little spaz it made me laugh (inside though...can't be encouraging his naughtiness). When I looked over at him he began pointing at the Kix box sitting on the table and saying "That. That." And I asked "More?" and he proceeded to do the sign for more! I'd like to think that the reason he hasn't done this too often before is that he's just stubborn. Like how he pretends he doesn't understand "no"? Yeah. Like that. So I gave him more Kix and he started whispering. Just babble-whispering...but it seemed like he was plotting. Something big. Like maybe flinging the Kix off his tray one by one instead of all together in the bowl. But really, how did he learn to whisper? I thought his voice only came in one volume--LOUD. Where was this whispering voice at church yesterday? Like when he was yelling "stop it!" at me when I wouldn't let him run free. (It sounds more like "topid" but everyone knew what he was saying...and one of my friends complimented me on how clearly he speaks. Of course he speaks things like "no!" and "stop it!" clearly. Not the other things I say to him like "I love you".) I'm afraid he's also learned the word "no". He has said it a few times before but we weren't sure he really understood what it meant until yesterday when he very clearly used it when I asked him if he wanted his stroller unfolded. He said "no" and proceeded to push it around folded up. I thought it was maybe a mistake so I helped him unfold it anyway so he could load stuff in the stroller and he got mad and threw himself on the ground. What kind of beastie is my sweet little almost 15-month-old turning into? I love him and think he's the cutest thing in the world of course, but I can't wait until he goes to beautiful, glorious nursery. I'm glad he's learning and I'm a little bit in disbelief that he's learned so much in his short little life. It's really made me realize though that I've got to be careful about what I say and do because he does understand and is watching all the time.

Nod Your Head

Emerson just discovered that nodding your head means yes. So sometimes he'll nod without an accompanying "ya" but most of the time the "ya" is there.

What Does A Doggy Say?

I've been a little panicked lately that my child can't make animal noises. So we've worked a little and now he can do some :) (I really haven't been that worried about it, but I'm happy he can recognize a dog at least.) In the past week every time he sees a dog in person, a picture of a dog, or hears a dog barking, he stops and does his little "ruff ruff ruff!" or rather "bup bup bup!".

Fold Your Arms

Emerson has been doing really well at folding his arms for prayers, and he'll randomly do it throughout the day. He did it the other night when we were watching a movie. I guess maybe because it was dark and he was in his jammies so he thought it was time for bed? So I know my voice is annoying in the background and that it's pretty ridiculous to try to get him to fold his arms when it's so obviously not a reverent time, but it shows his personality pretty well anyway. Oh, and when he looks like he's running in place, he thinks that means he's jumping really high. I wish I could see what he pictures himself looking like.

Peekaboo

My brother Scott requested that I post some videos of Little E on the blog so he and Ashley could see him in action. They haven't seen him since Christmas! A lot has changed since Christmas. There will be a lot of movies in the next few posts, so sorry if you hate movies. You don't have to watch them.

Discovering the Stroller

Here is the video of Emerson discovering the stroller Grandma J sent. Now before all of you start judging me for letting my son have a stroller, let me explain. It's a blue stroller, and it's ok if my son develops his nurturing side. And he likes to drive it around and puts stuff in it to carry. And it makes my life a lot easier because it keeps him occupied for so long. And maybe, just maybe, he'll stop making all of the little girls cry when he goes over to play because he finally has one of his own and doesn't have to steal theirs anymore.

Happy Father's Day!

I know this post is a little late, but I wanted to make sure I posted about the wonderful fathers in my life. First, my own dad. I've always looked up to him and wanted to be like him. Making him proud of me was always so important to me. Not because he made me feel like I had to do things to impress him, but just because I respect his opinion of things so much. One of my favorite things to do is watch him play with Little E. He's such a great grandpa and has a special connection with E. I always looked forward to seeing my dad at soccer games and I loved going to sporting events with him too. I was extra excited when I was voted SBO President of my high school because I was going to be in student government just like my dad. One of my favorite things about my dad is his sense of humor. He's very funny and I love laughing with him. My dad is very generous, smart, kind-hearted, and fun. (Yes dad, you ARE fun even though you think you're not.) I love you to pieces!

My father-in-law, Tom. He has been the one to make me feel most welcome into the Christensen family. Whenever we see them, he's the first to give us hugs and tell us he's glad to see us. Even when the rest of the family wasn't too sure about me, he could see the catch I was. :) He's also a good father and grandpa. He has taught Ben a lot of things that makes him a good father, and I'm very grateful for that. We love you Grandpa Tom!


I have thoroughly enjoyed watching Ben become a better dad every single day. I can tell that Emerson admires him and gets so excited when he walks in the door from school. He loves teaching him things and showing him how to do things a little boy should know how to do like drive toy cars and feed ducks and play outside. Ben is a very loving father and husband. He shows his love by working hard and spending time with E and me. He often takes Emerson and occupies him while I fix dinner even though he's had a long day too. I love laughing with Ben too. Nothing beats talking about something stupid and then laughing until we cry. We love you, Daddy!

Bunny Fountains

Little E with spittle coming out of his mouth.

The little man (These first two pictures were taken by Candice. You can tell by the quality that they are not mine.)

(Emerson and some little girl who got in our picture...actually that's emerson's big sister that we never told anyone about.)

There are these fun little fountains not far from where we live and they're called the Bunny Fountains because there are these huge statues of dancing bunnies at the top of the hill overlooking the fountains. It's a really fun and nice little park. We weren't sure if Emerson was going to like it or not, but he did after he watched the other kids playing. He got really sad when the fountains got big and made a loud noise, but other than that he thought he was pretty big stuff.

My Whole Foods Experience

Sigh. I had to go to Whole Foods to get citric acid because it was an ingredient in something I was making and is very hard to find. It was awful. If I wasn't convinced not to go organic before, this sealed the deal. The more preservatives I have in me, the longer I'll live I figure. Plus why would I want to pay $20 for a tomato? A high maintenance tomato, for that matter?

So I put on my game face and enter the store with Emerson in tow. I pick out a shopping cart that doesn't appear to have been made out of recycled materials, but probably is. I immediately feel out of place as I come across a man with bleached blonde dreadlocks signing to his deaf son. Their clothes are of earth tones...and mine are not. My clothes are not handwoven and made of hemp or flour sacks. Theirs most likely are. But I press on. I see that the store is clean and very nice looking and actually smells good...surprisingly like meats marinading. I slink past the salespeople as they try to ignore me and my brightly colored happy clothes and immediately become overwhelmed at all the (expensive) healthiness. I feel so saturated with soy products that I almost feel myself turning into a block of tofu. The fiber is seeping through my skin and is making me feel *ahem* cleansed already. I am at a loss as to where I may locate the ingredient I'm seeking. Every employee I see is pierced, tattooed, dressed in earth tones, and looks as if they are homosexual...and they probably smell like B.O. although I did not get close enough to tell for sure. I wander past the natural baby toys that are brown and tan. (Sorry, but I don't want my baby to go blind because they have no visual stimulation, so I'll just keep buying my toys in color, thank you. That is why our ward had us make colorful wall hangings. They said it was so the poor African children have something to look at and won't go blind.) I roll my eyes (sneakily) and then furtively glance around to make sure I wasn't caught. I pass the natural body care with dry shampoo and health supplements the consistency of molasses that you're supposed to drink. I finally get up the courage to go to the customer service desk and politely ask, without too much enthusiasm, where I might find the ingredient I'm seeking. The nice lady calls over a girl with, you guessed it, dreadlocks, a nose ring, and no make-up. Boy do I feel guilty for showering and putting on makeup this morning. She takes me over to the bulk food area and tells me they keep the citric acid under the counter because it isn't organic. Geez, what a coincidence that I ask for the one thing in their whole store that isn't organic. Bet they didn't see that one coming from the girl with the non-earth tone clothes, gel in her hair, make up on, with baby also in colorful clothes. And...after all of that, they were out. Completely out of citric acid. A gallon-size container, and they're out. Really? Seriously? Can I see the container? Grrr...The trip isn't a total loss because I remember another item I need for a bread recipe I got from a girl in the ward. I go to the check out line and stand behind a woman buying primarily produce and watch her bill come to $161.00. Wow. I'm about to put my item on the conveyor belt, but then I see the dividers between orders are made of recycled bits of plastic and kind of look like plastic vomit so I rebel and hold my item and hand it directly to the cashier just to spite the plastic divider. Ha! I showed it! The cashier rings me up and to my relief, they take credit cards. I wasn't sure if I'd have to pay in wooden coins, rocks, or locks of hair, but they take plastic just like any other grocery store. After that I went to Babies 'R' Us and was relieved to be in a happy colorful place.

Park of Roses

We spent this morning preparing for my friend Candice's baby shower, then I had a great time this afternoon at the shower while Ben and Emerson went and did manly things because there was too much chick food around. This evening we went to the Park of Roses to snap some photos with the Richards. I tell ya, Mike and Candice have quite the artsy eye(s). The new picture adorning the top of our blog is from them. (Thanks guys!) It's so nice to have a picture of the three of us! Any time you need subjects to practice your photography skillz, we're up for it. Because Mike, I know you want more pictures of Ben to hang up in your locker at school. :)

Some of the cookies I made as favors for the baby shower

The shower food

Ok so this is kind of a dumb picture that I took because there are NO roses in it and the park has like 13 acres of roses. But Ben and Emerson are cute, so I guess it's not a total loss.

Yes, I do stop every once in awhile to smell the roses. (Lame joke, I know.)

Just For You, Priscilla

This is me (far left) with my best friend Priscilla and my sister Natalie. We all had matching Jasmine Jammies and they were the COOLEST ever. I was sad I wasn't able to find any to give to her for her wedding. :) Wouldn't that have been a surprise for the wedding night? Ha ha...