Tribute to President Gordon B. Hinckley

http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/200/5127/
My sister-in-law sent this to me. It is touching to watch.

Mommy and her boys...

I always have the camera, so i don't have very many pictures with my boys and I together. So, when i do get a shot with them I LOVE it! Mom, there are a lot more pics of the boys on http://ashspassion.blogspot.com/... Well, Tanner is walking. He finally decided to go for it and now he is walking all over the place. He still crawls every once in awhile when he realizes he can go faster that way, but you can tell he really likes walking. Gavin is just happy. He loves letting me take pictures of him...BUT he won't sit still for me. He likes jumping all over the place when i take the pics. But it makes for some fun pics! :)

7 little known facts about ME...

Okay, so i was tagged by my friend Amanda. I am sorry you guys have to read more about me, but here we go! I am tagging Ashley, Ainsli, Lauri and Dalyce !

1. I like to wrestle...mainly with Shane(And one time i had a wrestling competition with an old roommate in Logan). It is a great way for Shane to play rough when he needs to and it is a great way for ME to take my aggression out. Seriously, we look like wrestlers on the floor mats. Strictly wrestling people, that's it! I put up a good fight. I used to be a wrestling cheerleader, so i have seen there moves and my bro used to wrestle and he would practice on me, so i learned a bit. :) It really helps me relieve stress.

2. I am very afraid of the dark. I hate the dark. If i have to wake up in the night to go to the bathroom, i make sure i turn on every light on my way. Then when i have to turn the lights off on my way back to bed i get uneasy b/c i feel like someone is behind me! I'm paranoid . And i refuse to sleep by the door.

3. I have very vivid dreams. Some are very weird, but i have gotten to where i can interpret my dreams now and Shane's and Holly's. Some have been so vivid that i wake up thinking it is real and with some the feeling from the dream stays with me for a few days.

4. When i get put on the spot, i completely freeze up. If i am asked a question that i know, i will forget it with the snap of a finger and then look like a complete idiot. Something about being put on the spot makes me completely freeze over. strange.

5. I never iron anything. Ironing is something that i would never think about doing unless my clothes look incredibly wrinkly...even then i would probably just put it in the dryer. Since we have been married i could probably count on one hand how many times i have ironed.(4 yrs.) Shane is just like me though. I would never notice wrinkled clothes on another person. I just don't pay attention to it.

6. I am a person of change. I like change. I like a change of scenery. I need variety in my life. I have lived in a lot of places and when i think of actually settling down in just one place eventually, for more than ten years, it makes me nervous. It makes me nervous b/c i don't know if i would be able to handle living in the same place for that long.

7. I do not like talking on the phone. I pick up the phone only when i have to. I try to avoid the phone as much as possible, which would explain why people have a hard time getting a hold of my cell phone...b/c i don't keep track of it and never know where it is. The problem is, people get offended, i think, b/c i am bad at returning phone calls, but it isn't personal. I just don't like talking on the phone...BUT most of the time after i get on and start talking i end up enjoying it. Lauri, my best friend, knows exactly what i am talking about! :)

My pictures...my passion

ashspassion.blogspot.com

Mom, you need to post pictures that you have been taking! We need to discuss our photos and what we are learning! Hurry it up!

Me or Him?

What is his name? Shane Alan Jenks
How long have you been married? 4 years
How long did you date? We dated for 3 months and then got married! WOAH!
How old is he? He is 27...we are only 10 months apart. :)
Who eats more? Shane for sure, except maybe at dinner i can eat as much as him. :)
Who said I love you first? Shane did, in spanish. I LOVED when he spoke spanish. sexy!
Who is smarter? Book smarts, Shane definately. :)
Whose temper is worse? We both can get pretty steamy, but over different issues. :)
Who does the laundry? Shane does majority of it, but i try to help. (i hate doing laundry)
Who does the dishes? I do most of the time. Shane helps a lot on the weekends! It's nice.
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do. I refuse to sleep on the side closest to the door.
Who pays the bills? Shane
Who cooks dinner? I do. Shane will help on a few occasions.
Who drives when you are together? Shane. I can't drive with him in the car. He is a horrible backseat driver.
Who is more stubborn? I don't know. He is way stubborn, but i have to admit that i am.
Whose parents do you see the most? About equal. Maybe mine one more week out of the year.
Who proposed? He did. But i had the temple date set before he proposed(and he didn't know)
Who has more friends? We share the same friends.
Who has more siblings? Shane. He has 2 bro's and 2 sisters.
Who wears the pants in the family? I say we both do. We are pretty good at being equal with that. One day i wear the pants and the next day he does. Some issues he wears the pants with and some i do. It just depends on situations. Ultimately, i do. :)
Now, I expect to see this on the following blogs... Lauri Davis! , Latham's, Sweeney's, Hatsuho

President Hinckley will be missed...

"I hope that all of you will remember that on this Sabbath day you heard me bear my witness that this is God's holy work. The vision given the Prophet Joseph in the grove of Palmyra was not an imaginary thing. It was real. It occurred in the broad light of day. Both the Father and the Son spoke to the boy. He saw Them standing in the air above him. He heard Their voices. He gave heed to Their instruction.
"It was the resurrected Lord who was introduced by His Father, the great God of the universe. For the first time in recorded history, both the Father and the Son appeared together to part the curtains and open this, the last and final dispensation, the dispensation of the fullness of times.
"The Book of Mormon is all that it purports to be—a work recorded by prophets who lived anciently and whose words have come forth "to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations" (Book of Mormon title page).
"The priesthood has been restored under the hands of John the Baptist and Peter, James, and John. All the keys and authority pertaining to eternal life are exercised in this Church.
"Joseph Smith was and is a prophet, the great Prophet of this dispensation. This Church, which carries the name of the Redeemer, is true.
"I leave you my testimony, my witness, and my love for each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen."
President Gordon B. HinckleyApril 1, 2006, Sunday morning session of the 176th Annual World General Conference (newsroom.lds.org)

He will be missed dearly.

I've been inspired...

I'm still practicing with my camera in manual. I find out something new each day, and the more i find out the more excited i get about taking my passion for photography a lot further than just taking pictures of my boys. I am so excited about the idea of one day taking pictures for people. This is actually a goal of mine that is attainable! For so long i have wanted to be a nurse, but it would just be too hard to do, being that we have 2 kids and Shane is in dental school. Well, when i first thought about the idea of being a photography(i got the idea from seeing what Sabrina does) i just knew that this was something i have to do. I LOVE it. Everything in me is saying, Go for it! I have found that taking pictures is a way for me to express myself, express what i am feeling... i love trying to capture feeling in a picture. I love taking pictures that seem to tell a story. I fell upon a photographer's blog who has been completely inspirational for me. Her pictures are EXACTLY my style and what i hope to achieve one day. And it is funny b/c her logo is "Inspired Images." I have been inspired and i cannot wait to see where this can take me. p.s. i know my practice images aren't great, but i am learning. It is so frustrating taking pictures inside the house b/c the lighting is so bad. I wish it was summer! Like Gavin's dirty face in the top pic's? :)

Daddy-son outings...

Well, it has started...the boys are doing their own guy outing's. Shane came home from school early yesterday, at about 11:00 a.m. He had told Gavin the day before that they were going to have a slumber party together the next day(which was last night). Well, when he got home Gavin and Shane both decided that they wanted to go see a movie at the theater instead of having a slumber party. They went to watch The Bee Movie. They went to the store before hand and got a lot of candy. They came home and said they really had a lot of fun. Gavin said, "i watched busy bees and we ate candy and pretzels." Anyway, it was their first real outing together and i was excited for them. It was so cute to watch. I enjoyed some peace and quiet while they were gone b/c Tanner was down for a nap the whole time. It is nice to have quiet all to myself every once in awhile. I might have to encourage more daddy-son outings. :)

Just playin around...

Holly came over to hang out with the boys and I today. Thank goodness! I am already tired of winter and already need another vacation! Anyway, i decided to whip out my camera and experiment in manual mode. I actually really enjoyed using manual mode, and learning different things i can do to make the pics more interesting. Anyway, here are just a few fun pics i took of us.

No Rest for the Weary around here...

I made my yummy dijon basil chicken for dinner, with a baked potato. I was excited to be able to sit down and enjoy a yummy meal. In the middle of the meal Gavin started making these weird loud noises with his tongue. Then Tanner thought it was funny so he decided to join in. It was so loud and i just kept telling myself, "oh my goodness, the day is almost over" repeatedly in my head. Well, suddenly, Shane decided to join in with his own noise. Before i knew it i was surrounded by 3 apes making their little chants. It was really quite distracting. I could no longer enjoy my meal. I started feeling sorry for myself actually. "Can't i have some human interaction? What is going on here! Please, stop!" Well, they finally decided to quiet down. Now i think about it and it really is funny. But, what is it with guys making noises? I have two older brothers and all growing up they made sooooo many weird and obnoxious noises. Anybody else have brothers who did this?!

Sooooo cute...

I feel like i have a lot to tell about what Gavin and Tanner have been up to. I will start with Tanner. He can walk on his own just fine, but he is too afraid to do it on his own. He can walk from Shane to me and from me to Shane just fine, but that is the only way to get him walking on his own. I was holding his hand the other day and he was just standing there. He let go of my finger and just stood there on his own, looked at me with a big smile and just stood there for the longest time. He was so proud of himself. His new thing is climbing up on the chairs and then climbing onto the table. It is so funny. He is saying the words : milk, sick, uck, tickle, momma. It is funny that "sick and "uck" are already in his vocabulary. Most people wouldn't recognize what he is saying, but i do b/c i am the momma. :)
Next is Gavin. Gavin is hilarious. I was telling him yesterday about how Grandma Jenks is going to come out and watch him and Tanner for 6 days during the summer while mommy and daddy go bye bye. He was excited and was asking me, "is she going to take us to the park? Is she going to take us to the store?" I replied yes. He said, "is she going to take us to the zoo?" I said, "i don't know. She doesn't know this place like we do, so she might not be able to. She might get lost. We will have to make her directions." He said, " Ohhh, i better help her." Yeah, you can help her. "aahhhh, i better hold her hand." It was sooooo sweet. Then today he cried when we dropped him off at primary so after church Shane asked him, "were you crying?" Gavin said, "yeah." Shane asked him why. Gavin replied, "Because i lost you." So sweet. His new thing is saying, "i better" before everything he says. "I better go to the bathroom.... i better go tell daddy....i better be quiet... i better go show him my picture." I am so enjoying my boys right now. :)

Watching and waiting for daddy to get home...

These are two separate occasions. He always watches for daddy out our front window. When Shane rides his motorcycle, Gavin always runs to the window, opens the curtains, waves to Shane as he drives off. It is really cute. When Shane does get home Gavin says, "Daddy's home! Daddy's home! Let me open the door for him!"

Precious Face...

Both of these pictures are of Gavin watching his morning cartoons. When he is watching them there is nothing i can do to get his attention on me. :)

The Return of Chicken and Rice...

Okay, a few of you want to know how i cook my chicken. I really don't do anything! I just cut it up in tiny pieces and cook it over the burner. After the chicken is basically cooked i throw in broccoli with it or peas...you can throw anything in! Then we put it over rice and pour some General Tso's sauce over it. OR i cook chicken in the crockpot all day, after all cooked i shred it up and add teriyaki sauce before we are ready to eat.(i actually got this one from Anna Jackson) Throw it over rice and wah lah. It is sooooo simple, but it really does taste good. One more recipe i have is called Dijon Basil Chicken. This chicken is soooooo tasty and good. Here is the recipe...
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup dijon mustard
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar
3 TBS. chopped FRESH basil(if you use dry basil use 1-2 tsp.)i recommend fresh.
1 TBS. minced garlic
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
Mix all ingredients together(set aside some sauce before adding chicken, to spoon over chicken when serving!) Add chicken breasts, marinade for at least 1/2 hour or for several hours. In case you didn't know, you can throw the sauce and chicken in a freezer bag to marinade it. Broil 5 minutes on each side. It is very tasty! Enjoy

My active little one's...

Chicken and Rice anyone?

We have to be very careful what foods we buy b/c we are on a TIGHT budget. There is one meal that we eat all the time for dinner... Chicken and rice. We eat it so much now that we actually love eating it. It tastes really good, plus it is healthy so it makes us feel healthy! :) Anyway, we eat it so much now that everytime i talk to my mom on the phone she asks me "so, what are you fixing for dinner?" The reply is always the same, "Chicken and rice." We both laugh about it, but she gets more amusement out of it than i do. Plus she can relate b/c when they were in medical school they ate a lot of tuna and minced fish sticks. Now that is GROSS! Anyway, I am sure by the time we get out of school we will be sick of chicken and rice. So, if we invite you over for dinner i hope you like chicken and rice b/c that is probably what will be on the menu. Does anyone else have a story about eating the same thing over and over again?

Some pictures...

Here are just a few pictures of my boys.

Typical...

Gavin's newest thing: Reading while he goes to the bathroom. It is quite funny. The other day he said, "mommy, i have to go pee pee. I need a paper." I was like, "what? huh?" Anyway, it was funny. He caught me off guard. Also, Gavin started Sunbeams. He did pretty good. Our ward here had a transitioning class called moonbeams that he was in for a little while to prepare him for Sunbeams. He did so good. I saw him walking in the hallway back to his class from primary and he had his arms folded, walking very upright with a bouncy walk. He was feeling like a big boy - like a proud big boy. It was so cute to watch my little guy start sunbeams. He likes to tell us what he does... "we learned about Jesus. We sang songs." I think he tells us the same thing every week, but it is so fun hearing the same thing each week. We have an amazing ward here and i LOVE the spirit that is felt each week...I have learned so much from my friends here in the ward. They are all amazing examples to me. Through all of the hard times i have been through over the past year, i could not have asked for a better ward, better friends or better aquaintances. I know Heavenly Father has been looking out for me and my family. I know that it is by no coincidence that we ended up here.

Hhhmmmmm...

I have to give a talk in Sacrament meeting on the 20th. They found out that we still haven't spoke in church yet and we have been here for a year and a half, so they jumped right on that one!!! Anyway, i must say, i hate giving talks because i get so nervous. If anyone has a remedy on how to make the butterflies go away, please tell me! But, i love speaking at the same time b/c i love learning more about what i have to speak on, and i love feeling the spirit the entire time that i prepare for it. Feeling the spirit is the BEST part. I know when i am on the right track while preparing because i feel the spirit strongest during those times. Often times i think to myself, "is this even good? people are going to be bored. everyone already knows about this." But, i just try to have faith in what the spirit is telling me as i prepare, even if to ME it seems dull, maybe it won't be dull to just ONE person. :) Anyway, now that all my Ohio friends know that i am speaking, maybe just show up to church after Sacrament meeting. Save yourselves....save me from the huge crowd! thanks! :)

Please tell me i am not the only one...

I have been thinking a lot about babies lately. I have been watching The Baby Story on TLC, and i have been thinking about the idea of having another one, BUT BUT BUT when i think of the REALITY of it ALL and try to get the "ohhhh what a cute baby" out of my head, when i think about the torture of being pregnant, i then realize that there is NO WAY in heck i want another one for quite some time. Tell me i am not weird. It seems like i hit a point to where I naturally get this baby urge, but it doesn't mean that I WANT to have another one yet. It is so weird to me b/c my body is getting this urge, but my heart and mind are telling me NO WAY. My husband thinks i am getting this weird urge b/c i see a lot of girls at church who are pregnant. I SERIOUSLY don't want another one yet, so why am i getting a baby urge?! It is so annoying. Can anyone relate?!

Guess who is Finally TRYING to walk!...

Our little Tanner baby. He started taking his first steps yesterday. Holly and i were working with him while Shane was at school. He took about 4 steps on his own. Shane got home and we both worked with him on it and he took at most 5 steps in a row. He feels so proud of himself. It is so cute. He really does have strong legs and could easily take off on his own, but his overly cautious attitude is holding him back. It is alright though b/c when he does start walking i am gonna have to watch him even more! woah!

Just a few pics of our daily activities...

At bathtime the boys love playing with the running water. Gavin is pushing Tanner around in his Tonka truck. Gavin and i played chutes and ladders. Gavin and Tanne had a lot of fun throwing tennis balls around and chasing them.
I have to say how much i love my boys. My grandpa passed away yesterday, and for a few days before we knew that it was coming soon. Everytime i was feeling sad my two little boys were able to bring a smile on my face and cheer me up momentarily. They are so precious. They are such lovers. I am so grateful for them. Sometimes i wonder if i will get a girl. My mom and sister seem to think that i will have all boys and sometimes i wonder if they are right. I was thinking about it at church and the thought came to my mind... "Someone is looking out for me. When these boys get older they are gonna love their momma(they already do) and they are gonna be protective of me(they already are) and treat me like a queen." I know that is true.

Global Warming...

Talk about global warming! Either that or my friends brought back the nice California temperatures with them! Today is 62 degrees! Oh my goodness it is so nice! Gavin and i went in our backyard and played on the swingset. Auntie Holly enjoyed it with us for a little while. He also tried out his bigwheel for a little while. When i lived in Oklahoma, in the winter it would snow and melt the next day. That is my kind of winter. :) That is exactly what has been happening here, and it sounds like everywhere in the U.S.A.

Just a few things...

Okay, first item on the list...

1. We have illustrated stories of the BOM. I was reading one of them to Gavin the other night. We started talking about Jesus and i tried telling him how much Jesus and Heavenly Father love him and how he can pray to them and how they listen. You can't see them, but they see you and listen. Then for some reason it must have made him think of Santa because randomly he said, "I like Santa." I was like, "you do?" kind of puzzled why he thought of Santa. Then i talked about Jesus again. Gavin then interrupted me and said, " Does Jesus have any candy?" haha. It was soooo funny.

2. I lost a lot of hair after having Tanner. My hair has been thin and it has been making me nervous because i wasn't sure if i was going bald or something. Well, when i went to get highlights in my hair my stylist told me that i have tons of little hairs that are growing back in. I was sooooo excited to hear that. I guess that would explain why i feel like i have all these little hairs sticking up all over my head. I look like i've been electricuted, my husband says. :) She told me that maybe next year i will want to cut my hair to sort of even out the look, otherwise i will look like i have thick hair on top and stringy hair towards the lower part of my hair. My plan is to chop my hair off in June next summer, but let's see if i have the guts to do it when the time comes. :)

Out of Gavin's Mouth...

This morning we were eating breakfast and here is what happened...
Gavin said "Mom what is that?" pointing to the glade plug-in. I said, "It makes our house smell good." He said, "oh it does? I can smell it." He puts his nose up to it and sniffs. I said, "oh you can?" He said, "I sure do."
Then we hear a crash of something. He said, "oh no, what happened mommy?" I said, "i don't know." He said, "I better go see. I will be right back." I hear him ask daddy, "what happened daddy?" He came back in the kitchen and said, "the toys fell. That's what happened." I said, "ohhhhh, okay."
Then we were about to leave to take Shane to school and he was in his pj's and i planned on leaving his pj's on. He said, "mommy i need to get dressed. Change me mommy." I told him that we are going to leave him in his pj's. He said, "i need shoes mommy. I need to put my shoes on." I told him that we are going to carry him to the car. He said, "I need my jacket mommy." So, i put his coat on him.
He has been coming up to me lately, while i am sitting, and he puts his arms around me and holds me and says, "i like you mommy." I tell him i like him too. Then he says, "i love you mommy." I tell him i love him too. Then he starts playing with my hair and caressing my head. Then he rubs my belly and says, "you have an ouwy mommy?" referring to my surgery i just recently had. I say, "yes, i have an ouwy, but i am not hurting anymore." He says, "ohhhhhhhh," in such a gentle, high-pitched and concerned way while he continues rubbing my belly. He is so sweet. He is so concerned for everyone.

Hugs and more HUGS...

Gavin kept insisting that i take pictures of him hugging Tanner. Here are just a few out of 20 that i had to take. It was really sweet. He loves to take care of his little brother.

Winter Storm Warning...

Later afternoon yesterday we were put under a winter storm warning. It snowed a lot and almost looked like a blizzard outside. It went on for about 10-12 hours i believe. I got a phone call from Holly, my sister, last night asking if i could pick her up from work b/c there was no way her car would make it home. I went to pick her up at about 11:00 p.m. Since we have a 4-wheel drive and brand new tires i felt safe. I have never seen the roads of Cleveland look so empty! Everybody that was on the road kept fish-tailing and doing 360's on the road. The snow was so thick. Anyway, i picked her up and dropped her off safely. We are supposed to get more snow today, but his weekend is supposed to be in the 40's. Hopefully that will melt away our snow in our driveway b/c we don't have a snow shovel anymore. Shane was shoveling a little last night and the thing just bent in half. I was surprised by how many people i saw at midnight shoveling their driveways.
In other news, Shane is back at school today...back to studies. I can't believe we are so close to being done with our second year. We will be third years. I feel like we just got here!!!! CRAZY!
Gavin has picked up singing big time. :) I listen to Josh Groban's CD Awake a lot. He picks up on the music fast b/c he sings along to a lot of the songs...especially the song "You are Loved(Don't give up)....he sings really loud to that one. I wish you could see it. It is so cute. We like to dance to that song while we sing it.
Tanner has picked up walking, but he has to use a little walker thing he got for Christmas to help him learn how to walk. He uses that thing to get around the house now. It is hilarious how much he uses it. I made popcorn yesterday and instead of crawling into the other room to get some he had to get his walker and walk himself into the room.

The New Year

School starts tomorrow for Shane. I am not too thrilled about it. I will like getting back into my routine, but i like having him here with me(most of the time). :) It has been very blizzardy out today. I wish i were in sunny California right now. I am sorry for those of you who are coming back to Ohio from a nice warm place. We will have to get together when you get back. I very much dislike this part of the year- January through April. There is usually not too much to look forward to and the boys and i are stuck in the house for those months. For my emotional well-being I need the sun to shine, which won't happen much for the next few months. I hope i don't go crazy! I just have to think about things to look forward to for the year.... 1. D.C. trip 2.Riviera Maya trip 3.Going to Idaho 4.My parents coming to visit ... This is what i will be thinking of when i am going nutso during these next few months. Wish me luck! Pray for me(j/k).