Veteran's Day

Today I am so grateful for those who have served our country, past and present.

"In war, there are no unwounded soldiers." -Jose Narosky

"We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude." -Cynthia Ozick

"The more we sweat in peace the less we bleed in war." -Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit

Today I am so thankful for Reese's service.

Today I remember my Grandpa Ken with

so much love and thanksgiving. He served in the Korean War.

Let's pray for our troops and let our veterans know

they are appreciated.

portholes

I bought these old fashioned licorice pastel candies the other day. I rarely see them. I was shopping by myself at Walgreens and when I spotted them I immediatly thought of my mom. She used to like them and bought them fairly often. I also remember them being in the candy dish at Grandpa Ken and Grandma Alma's. I bought the bag and ate half of them on my way home. The smell of those licorice candies, the texture, the sight.... oh my goodness! It so brought me back to hanging out with my mom!

Then, I went through an old box that has been taped up for probably seven years, in it I found my mom's signature on fabric... her script on fabric!! Surely I had received one of the greatest gifts. Throughout the week I thought, I know there are peepholes in heaven! As I spent a lot of time thinking of these moments when Jesus can call a loved one over to a small window for them to see the joyous occasions on this earth, my friend "Kristabelle" sent me an email message about an author, Randy Alcorn, who writes about heaven and how those who are with Jesus are able to look through a porthole of sorts. Of course now, I have to read this book. She wrote me about it in the exact week I had given the whole idea a lot of thought. I have just totally imagined Jesus motioning my mom over and saying "You have got to see this." And there she would see:

* How her husband, Grandpa Jim, is so proud of and crazy about about THEIR grandchildren

* Phillip's big smile (that reminds me of my mom and Uncle Jeremy)

* Phil being so good with his nieces and nephews

* Phil helping with the dishes after a big, messy meal my dad cooked (When my mom was alive she probably didn't think Phil would EVER be able to do dishes ;)

* Phillip's patience

* Matt being the life of the party

* Matt being so sweet to my grandmas

* Grandma Alma's 75th birthday celebration! And Grandma Dorothy's 90th!

* Matt being built like a Tiesinga and sometimes reminding us of Grandpa Ken

* Natasha and her grace and courage in handling the loss of Case------ I think those peephole moments must be so emotional! I am guessing my mom has Case on her lap, and then God allows her to look down and see what a wonderful mommy Natasha is and how she is preparing for this sweet blessing of a baby girl.

* Natasha being a fruegal, wonderful wife

* Natasha's amazing cooking and baking!

* Lesha's sweet relationship with my grandma Alma! And her being able to share her children on a regular basis with their great grandma --Did my mom ever know that her middle daughter and her mother would have such a bond?

* Lesha's being a loving, fun mom in Lynden being surrounded by people who know her story and know what a wonderful mom she had

* Each of her daughters as they welcome their babies into this world and thank God for the miracle of life

* Hazel squishing cake on Willem's face on her FIRST BIRTHDAY!

* Willem's pretending and creativity

* Merit's love for sports (SO Matt at age eight!) and his compassionate heart

Today I read Hebrews 11:16 and was once again reminded we are longing for a better country, a heavenly one and some day that country will be our home.

But for now, I am soaking up God's gifts and enjoying everyday with loved ones here.

Lesha, Mom and Grandma Alma

Matt and one of his many goofy faces

Baby Case!

Natasha and sweet baby Case

 

2 Corinthians 4:18 ¹⁸ So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen; for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Jansen Kids

There is so much I want to blog about. Can you believe I did not get a picture on Halloween of our three in their costumes~! Shoot.

I have had lots of moments of missing my mom lately and feel like a "mom post" is in order, but those just can't be rushed. :) So I will have to do some thinking on that.

When I have a day of missing her and feeling a little blue, I can't believe how these

kids can cheer me up! They are a ball to be around! And here are my two boys playing

football. A game Merit LOVES to play and a game Willem will play, because it

means he gets to hang out with Merit.

Hazel's personality is sooo fun! She is such a sweet girl! I love her

cuddles, her silly expressions, her curious mind!

My photo shoots lately have been so fun!! I love it that

 God has blessed me with this hobby/business. It really feels good.

Check out my photography blog, linked to this one. I will

be posting lots of pictures there over the next few weeks.

I'll be back!!

Costume Fun and More

Willem and Strawberry Shortcake - aka Addie are great friends!

The Let's Pretend Party at Happy Hearts sounded like a hit.

The children were sooo cute!!

I think that dalmation is adorable too.

I loved this popcorn costume! This is Jordan.

 Willem --- Dale Jr!

Then last night, Willem, Hazel and I enjoyed the Harvest

Party at church. It is always so

well organized and fun for the kids!

Willem was going for more of a spooky look!

Hazel was a sweet little love bug and I was a bee.

The following pictures I hesitated posting. The boys were baking with me and Merit cracked BOTH eggs.
Cracking eggs is both boys favorite part. Willem must have had a long day because he melted down. He so badly wanted to crack that second egg!  But look how quickly Willem turned it around. That is what is so funny about this kid. TOTAL tears and twenty seconds later, a great big smile!

 Last Halloween!! Oh I love this picture!

Ten day old Hazel.

The boys are so excited to go trick or treating tonight. I will

be back with more pictures. :)

Day trip, fun with my kids, handmade goodies, praying friends

Yesterday, Willem, Hazel and I took a little day trip. Heading to Wenatchee with these two and admiring sights along the way was so good for the soul. They both did very well and we had a great day! We hit Ross -- love that store, Old Navy, Target and Craft Warehouse. We rarely shop out of town. I think I have been to Wenatchee to shop once in the past year, so this was an adventure for us. Willem was excited to see all the fall colors, the towns we passed and the pumpkins and apples for sale alongside the road.
This little produce shop is sooo cute!

Tons of soup mixes inside, homemade soaps, handmade jewelry, lattes, fresh produce. I wanted to get a few shots of this place. I hopped out of the car, camera in hand and took a pic of the front of the store. The store owner was getting out of his farm truck as I was taking pictures with a big goofy grin on my face. He said "WHY did you just take a picture of the entrance to this store?" He looked irritated. I explained that my children and I were on a day trip and I was getting shots of our adventure for a possible scrapbook or blogging opportunity. He looked "bugged". PEOPLE. Do these people not know that entrances to produce stands/gift shops are blog worthy. Well pal, you're welcome for the free advertising. :) I will say, as we were leaving with apples, tomatoes, fresh sourdough bread and a latte, he gave me a nice smile and we were on our way. Whitetrail Produce is worth your time if you are in the Quincy Area.

I picked up this coffee table a few weeks ago at Goodwill. It is super

sturdy, I gave it a coat of brown paint and had plans for it as a kids

table in our playroom. Yesterday on our shopping trip, I was looking for kids chairs, stools or ottomans

to work with it. The ottomans were at Ross for $19.99 each! YAY! Perfect for storage and they work as littlechairs to go with our thrift store table. Hazel prefers the blue

recliner, a sweet gift from Uncle Jim and Aunt Vicki.

I can't tell you how much time the kids have spent around this table

over the past twenty four hours!

I am going to activate my Etsy shop again. Please stay tuned! I hope to open it by November 5th.

These cards are a sample of some of what you will see.

I will offer handmade items that could be perfect Christmas gifts.:)

 Little Miss Blue Eyes LOVES being outside!

 Willem is quite the golf cart driver! He's got his foot to the pedal and he is raring to go.

I have been sooo blessed by FRIENDSHIPS this week!!!

I have asked for prayer for my sis Natasha and the sweet blessing to be born anyday,

for some things going on in my life,

for God's clarity... I love having friends who pray.

Treasure hunts, flank steak, life ;)

Let me tell you about a flank steak gone wrong.

Help. I try to be creative. I work at meal planning even with my completely random, haphazard personality. So, I heard my FIL say he often buys flank steaks and that if prepared well, they are so tender. Vance and Merit much prefer red meat and pork over chicken, so I am always trying to generate new pork and red meat recipes. I decided it might be fun to add flank steak to the rotation. I rubbed it down with garlic and pepper and marinated it in soy sauce and tobasco.  I let it marinate for about five hours. The marinade recipe I looked into also called for vermouth, but I am not sure I even know what that is. And if I had to make a trip to the liquor store, I would walk out with tequila and margarita mix and then my guess is my flank steak would have gone even more wrong. I am not a big drinker, but offer me a margarita and I won't refuse.

Anyway

Vance got home and said a "salty marinade" is never a good idea. And soy sauce is so salty. BUT, the recipe online posted by who knows who four years ago said it was flavorful and tender. So, I knew it would be. ;)

Cooking a flank steak isn't the easiest of tasks. I had plans to broil it, but Vance BBQ'd it and it was ok.

After a not so great dinner, I broke a plate in the kitchen and could hardly keep Hazel out while I attempted sweeping and spot mopping. Then a sink FULL if dishes was starring at me along with the boys dinner plates that looked almost untouched. So now, I need to know if you have a good flank steak recipe or a good crock pot recipe --- any old crock pot recipe. I love using my crock pot in the fall and winter.

Merit's team, the Chargers, won their last soccer game yesterday! Oh it has been an exciting season! This last game was fantastic! They have all improved so much. Merit scored 3 goals - he was so fun to watch. We have gotten to know the parents of Merit's team and we enjoyed lunch after the game at his coach's house.  I took engagement pictures yesterday afternoon -- a beautiful couple!
Hazel is at a fabulous age - toddling around, interacting, teasing us... she is SO fun!

Willem is my buddy! I love making memories with this sweet kid. 

I love fall.

 Always on the hunt for daddy! Hazel's sporting her new ADORABLE birthday coat from Grandma Alma

and her new darling boots from Gramma Adie!!

Aunt Lissa, I need you to trim these bangs! My mom tried and ummmm they're better but I need your help!
love, Hazel

 Fall of 2010 has been BEAUTIFUL! And one thing the boys and I enjoy about once a week is a treasure hunt! I will pick up a favorite snack at the grocery store or a pack of sports trading cards at Goodwill. I then draw a map with lots of instructions to be read as well and they HUNT! It is so fun!

 Willem needed a better view from half way up a tree!

                                                                TREASURE FOUND!
                                                  Now back up to the house to enjoy the loot!

sweet girl... with her new hair clip made by Auntie Natasha! And by the way, my sweet sis Natasha could have her baby girl any day. Please pray for them. We are so thankful for this baby girl who will arrive soon~

Celebrating Hazel Jane

Our little girl on her birthday!!

 Football fun!

                                                   Digging into the cake -- and sharing!!
Hazel loved her cake!! She has a sweet tooth. The boys loved celebrating her! Hazel, these boys adore you. You are so fortunate to have them.

                                                             How do you like it Will??

Is our baby really one? This is hard for me, but I know the next stage will

be wonderful. Tears before bed for me...

but what a fantastic day and what a sweet girl!

The evening ended with the boys trading football cards and Hazel and her new

baby doll watching.