Everything Jensen

I was herding my bouncing, exuberant kids out of the allergist office when another mother stopped me in the lobby. She was there with her beautiful daughter, probably around 10 years old, looking forward to an hour of skin pricks and blood tests. "Do you know how lucky you are?" she asked. It wasn't a frivolous question, tossed lightly in the air. There was real feeling and urgency behind it. My voice cracked with emotion when I answered, "I do." Only one in ten kids outgrows a nut allergies. Adelaide beat the odds. This kid is a rock star.  This one too! Lucky. Blessed beyond measure. Today, a huge burden was lifted from our shoulders. There are the small things, like being able to eat out, enjoy more social events and not having to buy special brands of food. Fewer eye rolls from people that can't be bothered. And, then there are the big ones.... like sending Adelaide off to kindergarten without worrying that she'll come hom...

It's spring! Well, not really, but kind of. It's always spring in San Diego. But, in the past month, the local nurseries started bringing in their new "spring" selection of fruit trees and flowering shrubs. It is finally time to put a little color in our dirt patch. When we purchased our new home, the yard had been untended for years. Overgrown jacaranda trees brushed the roof tops, tree roots pushed the sidewalk up, rose bushes were all thorns and no blooms, and weeds pushed up through yellowed sod. We ripped it all up, preferring a dirt patch to a thorny wilderness. But, now the nurseries are stocked, and we're ready to plant! Our homely little dirt patch.  (Matt's chopping up old tree roots.)  Little helper! Her big job was to put the  dirt back in the hole once the tree was in. When in So Cal - plant an avocado tree!  Lemons, limes, kumquats, mandarins and figs!   Drink up little tree, and make us lots and lots of ...

Kids are hilarious. HILARIOUS. The other day, Adelaide walked into the kitchen with a somber face... and an outfit... well, Melinda couldn't keep a straight face. Poor Adelaide sighed and sighed as she tried to get Mom to understand the seriousness... it's serious MOM.... of the situation. Mom, I am going on a VERY serious  and scary adventure. A bad guy has been  hurting some of my ancestors. Don't worry,   will be okay. When he sees me,  he'll be all, "I don't want to girl."  And then I'll throw something at him. The big clown nose was nose armor... Melinda asked. Don't worry, Adelaide made it through her serious, VERY SERIOUS, adventure. The big guy split in half when she threw something at him. Then she used the couch to time travel back home in time for dinner. Whew! Eleanor's imagination is just as active as Adelaide's. The other night, when asked to go brush her teeth, Eleanor announced that she couldn't open...

Happy New Year! We celebrated with pancakes... and it was delicious! Happy 2015