Memories of Grandma are dancing in my head

My grandma is 82 years old. She has always been an amazingly generous giver. I really have no memories of her saying 'no' to me for anything I asked for. She served and served her family much of her life. I was lucky to be one of her three only grand-kids. I have great memories of spending every Christmas Eve at her house playing games and having a huge meal and waiting to go to the Midnight church service. And also every New Years Eve hanging out at her house eating yummy snacks all night long while we played pinochle and euchre card games. I also remember going to her house after school almost everyday when I was in Jr. High, we would eat cheese and crackers and watch soap operas on TV. I remember going to the Butcher Block with Grandma to get a few items and each time we passed by the bakery area, I would wait in anticipation for her to offer me a donut. (Cream filled chocolate covered)
Yes, I have many memories of my Grandma. She loved to play cards, sometimes we played scrabble, we would watch Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune and Tiger Baseball on TV. She came to almost every sports event I was ever in, and really anything any of us grand-kids did, she was there if she had a ride.
My grandma's house had an always open door as I got older, we could stop in anytime, day or night. She loved it if we woke her up for a visit. She would keep certain foods and drinks in the house 'just in case' we stopped by.
I lived with my grandma at two different times in my life. In 6th grade our family had a house fire, and we all lived with my grandma for 6 months. And in 12th grade, we were moving into a new home in town and the house wasn't ready yet and so again we moved in with grandma for about 6 months. Yes, I have many many memories of my grandma and of her house.
It was very sad 4 years ago when she had to go into Long Term Care for good. She moved out of her home and into a medical care facility where she can be cared for. It is so sad to me that I cannot visit more often. I really treasure the talks we had sitting alone in her living room, both of us crying and just enjoying each others company. She has always been a treasure to me. I think most people have special memories with their grandma's or grandpa's, and I am thankful that my three kids have wonderful grandparents. We really can't receive too much love, can we? I mean, as parents we want to shower love on our kids constantly, we want our kids to feel loved, accepted and special. We want them to have teachers, coaches, church leaders who love and treasure them, right? And so grandparents are just another piece to the puzzle. My grandma will always have a special place in my heart.

PS. I don't recommend all the donuts and soap operas, but I am just reporting the facts. :)

The Pros and Cons to being sick at Christmas Time

Pros:
1. Justin is off work, so I can actually rest.
2. I have an excuse not to have all my holiday treats made.
3. I have an excuse not to have my house clean.
4. Kids are being super nice to me and wanting to serve like never before.

Cons:
1. Missed out on sledding with the family
2. Missing out on family movie outing today
3. Missing out on all the extra cuddle time with the kids home from school.
4. Missing out on enjoying the special holiday foods.
5. Missing out on staying up late to watch movies with Justin.
6. Kids are so bummed that I'm sick and that makes me sad
7. Have a TO DO list that needs to be done ASAP in order to still pull off the 4 day Holiday trip to Michigan.
8. Wondering if we need to cancel the trip, and how in the world would we tell the kids.
9. Eating lots of raw garlic, onions, cayenne pepper, drinking lemon water, gargling salt water, etc, etc, etc...
10. Sleeping/in bed all day. (Is that a pro or a con?? At Christmas time? It's a Con)
11. Justin is off work, and we wanted to do fun family stuff together this week, so it is a pro that he is able to help me, but definitely a con, that during this time I am sick.

Okay, I guess I can see that being sick is not a favorite for this time of year. (or ever). I know that I am not too sick, but I really want to get better way quick and I don't want to spread it to anyone else, so I am quarantined in my room until this thing is over!

Recent Family Photos

2009 Christmas Letter

Hi Everyone,
Merry Christmas! I always look forward to this time of year. I enjoy getting Christmas letters from friends and family, so I am sending one out to my dear friends and family to say that we love you and miss you and we love to hear from you all! (PLEASE COME VISIT IF WE HAVEN'T SEEN YOU IN AWHILE)

This past year has not been an easy one. Deciding to home school or not was a big decision for us. We looked into moving, we looked into private schools, we looked into me working full-time to pay for private schools, me not working at all and home-schooling again, and finally we ended up trying the public school system again.
School is going really well. I am so thankful for my boys teachers. They are kind, encouraging and the boys love to get to school early and they haven't missed a day!

Friends are a big deal, for all of us. I am thankful for good friends for me and for my kids. I pray daily for the friendships they will form over the next 10 years. I pray that my kids will BE good friends and that they will have good friends. I know that when I am able to hang out with good friends for a few hours, I am energized and refreshed in every way.

I am thankful for good health. As many of you may know, we do things a little different here most of the time. We drink organic raw cows milk, use organic raw butter, cheese and eggs. Use only organic, grass-fed meats, we juice vegetables a couple times a week to drink fresh carrot, red beet, kale and celery juice. We use virgin coconut oil (from the Philippines) for all baking and cooking. We use raw honey or agave nectar in place of sugar. And Justin and I use sprouted wheat bread. We don't eat pork. I try to make as many things as possible from scratch so that we know what's in them, and we try to eat tons of raw vegetables and fruits. Now after saying all that, I will add that I love chocolate and ice cream. And I have diligently searched for healthy alternatives. I buy this block of dark chocolate (made with all good ingredients) and so I love to make chocolate covered raisins, chocolate covered almonds, anything I can dip in chocolate I will try it. And I love organic ice-cream. Now we are not fanatics. We will eat whatever you feed us if you invite us over, or if you take us out to eat, and we splurge on holidays or special weekends, or when Honey Nut Cheerios are on sale. But, we have made a decision in our life to study, research and then apply what we believe will help us stay in good health. We take some supplements, drink lots of water and try to get lots of sleep. I exercise, and Justin has just started to again also. We are doing it together in the mornings. So far so fun! Regarding the kids, of course I want my kids to eat healthy, but I don't want to be a control freak over everything they put in their mouths. I want them to learn to make healthy choices on their own and I want them to enjoy meal time. So I try to provide healthy meals and snacks in as normal and fun ways as possible.

Five Star is still growing and reaching many youth. Justin would probably work 100 hours a week if I would let him. It is a hard balance, when you love what you do, and when it involves helping people, especially middle school kids, it's hard to shut off your passion at 5pm. It has been great for me to have the chance to help Justin some. With both boys in school I have a few free hours each week to help out at the office. Also, Justin leads a group at Manowe on Monday nights called "Adventures with God". I am hoping I can be apart of it at some point.

Justin is an incredible dad, really the best. Cameron, Jalen and Miah are so lucky. Justin and I are so different, and sometimes what he does drives me crazy,(like watching Saturday morning cartoons for two hours with the kids instead of cleaning out the garage) but the time and care he gives our kids is priceless. They love wrestle time, dodge ball time, coloring, and playing Risk with their daddy. Miah loves her special dates with daddy, and the boys love the one on one outings as well. Justin is doing Cub Scouts with the boys twice a month. Now, for those of you who know Justin, you know that Cub Scouts is not Justin's kinda thing. He is all about soccer, basketball, football, etc. Now Cub Scouts teaches some great things, but Justin is so not into all the crafty things.... but the boys love it. So for now, Cub Scouts it is. Maybe in a few more years, basketball will take over.

Miah is growing up. She turns 5 years old in a couple weeks. She is so ready for school, and she is so fun to be with. She has a very crazy sense of humor, a very tender, sensitive side, and slight shy side (when I'm not around) and she makes the most out of her place in life as the youngest child, only girl, and baby sister.

Cameron is so creative, gifted and detailed. He loves being organized, getting his homework done, and having friends over. Cameron did a 2-week wrestling camp, which he loved. Cameron is starting his first business. Dog-sitting. He loves dogs and loves to make money. Hopefully it will be a good fit for an 8 year old.

Jalen is really into wild-life, especially tigers and snakes. The main thing he wanted for Christmas or his birthday was a pet snake. Jalen likes school because of the people, but he isn't really into reading, writing or arithmetic. He likes Gym Class and Birthday parties.

About me...
I still love to work-out, but my mind-set about it has changed a lot from 10 years ago. I am much more balanced, (meaning I exercise much less than I used to), and I do it to be healthy, to prevent injuries and to cope with stress.
We are Dave Ramsey fans, but more importantly we are trusting God daily with our finances!
My best friend in all the world is my Justin. I love him more and more each year, and I am excited to celebrate our 14 year anniversary with him on the 23rd!
My favorite moments each day are cuddling and hugging my children. Miah and Jalen are still very into cuddling and Cameron does the big, long hugs. There is no better feeling than when your kids run to you with open arms, hold on tight and don't let go.

Few of my favorite books from 2009
1. It's Your Time by Joel Osteen
2. Soul Revolution by John Burke
3. Driven by Eternity by John Bevere
4. Divine a novel by Karen Kingsbury
Along with lots of others that I read this year... I love to read, all sorts of stuff. The library is my friend.

I really believe that 2010 is going to be a great year, filled with God's blessings and God's favor. There may be some rather big changes happening... but that is all in God's hands and I choose daily to trust Him and follow where He leads.

Merry Christmas to all!
Jenny, Justin, Cameron, Jalen and Miah