Saturday Morning Fun

I got to go shooting this last Saturday. SO MUCH FUN! There were 8 of us and that means there were a lot of different guns to choose from. My favorite to shoot were the 22 pistol and the 22 rifle. However, I got to shoot a shot gun for my first time and I actually hit three clay pigeons out of the air! I was so proud. What a fun morning. I grew up shooting every once in a while, but I have grown to enjoy it so much more than I remember growing up.

No way...

I went to a movie the other night and as I was walking out I heard a voice say "Miss Jensen". I was a little confused at this because I teach in south Orem, not the Pleasant Grove area, so I figured it couldn't have been one of my recent students. The voice didn't sound familiar...I turned and immediately recognized the face behind the voice. It was one of my students from my first year of teaching eight years ago. His voice had changed quite a bit since I last seen him, as had his appearance. While I used to be about a foot taller than him, he is now 6'2! I hadn't seen him since he was in fourth grade and he just finished his junior year. I know... it's hard to believe that my first year students will be graduating next year. That ages me a bit... ha ha!

I was SO happy to see him. Just last week I randomly ran into his dad who also recognized me and came up and gave me a big hug. I was thrilled that he remembered me and he was willing to call out to me even though I was in the midst of a large group.

It is times like this that make teaching all worth it. It is the best job in the world. I had a special spot in my heart for this particular student and seeing him truly made not just my day, but my year!

Beginning of Summer Barbeque

To celebrate the start of summer, I threw my first backyard bbq!! I recently bought my own grill and a fun patio set of chairs with an umbrella and we figured it was time to utilize them. The evening was a fantastic success. It was just the start to many wonderful summer barbeques!

I actually bought a pretty small grill, so Josh brought his big one over as well. They cooked some burgers on his and we did all of the hot dogs on mine. It was a great system. Here is Jake, Kari and Trent lining up for some good grub!

Gina, Blake, Megan, Michelle and Katie...

This picture is one of my favorites. I love these girls so much!

This picture is hilarious in my mind. Jen posed us all and told us how to stand to catch our most flattering side. I do have to admit that I like how the picture turned out! Thanks Jen! Ha ha...

Scott and I like to hang out with these four (Jen, Josh, Craig and Morgan) a lot. We started taking pictures and got a little bit silly...

They weren't pleased when we tried to take their cookies away for the photo... ha ha...

Check out that smolder... you think they got that from Flynn Ryder?

My friend Danielle came down from Salt Lake to join us. She is one of my three "biker chick" friends that I go to Moab with. One of my favorite people!

What a great night!!

Memorial Day Adventures

Over Memorial Day I went with Scott to Fillmore to see where he grew up. It was a day full of adventures. This picture was taken in front of a rock known as the Iron Curtain, but Scott's family refer to it as "Slobber Rock."

This picture actually shows the rock... can you see where the nick name came from? The rock is lava rock that cooled in a dripping formation that looked like slobber!

We hiked to some sweet Indian hieroglyphics that Scott and his siblings would hike to when growing up.

On our way back from our hiking and four wheeling adventures, we stopped and Scott shot a few "rock chucks". After which we went and sat in some well known hot pots that were the perfect temperature.

This picture is taken in front of his house.

Scott grew up on a dairy farm, so he grew up with 300 cows behind his house and lots of farm land. First thing in the morning, we went on a little four wheeler ride and I got a tour of the farm. It was so much fun.

The calf pens were probably my favorite. They each had their own little house and they were super cute.

Pretty much the weekend was amazing!

Feeling Appreciated

Wow. Do I feel special? Check.

Yes, yes and oh yes!

This last week was teacher appreciation week, but there were so many things that made the week special and wonderful.

It all began with my sister Jody (who is one of my all time favorite people) flying to town. I am the recipient of an award for Alpine School District called the "Accent of Excellence" award. I was only allowed one guest at the banquet and Jody flew in just for the occasion. We spent days just playing, shopping, running and taking a break. Wow. So fantastic.

The banquet was on a Tuesday night and since Jody was the only one able to attend with me, I was able to get together with my other family that lives close to celebrate at a restaurant on a Monday night.



Tuesday was the banquet and Jody and I got all gussied up. Jody curled my hair and Aly did our makeup.






They gave me a beautiful corsage at the banquet. One of my students attended and paid a tribute and my principal and his wife were in attendance.





One of the sponsors actually presented the award after the student tribute and I had to also say something.











The rest of the week was teacher appreciation week, so I was spoiled for three more days. One day all of my students decided to give me flowers... metaphorically. They decorated me and had a great time. We give each other flowers (metaphorically) all the time in class (something I learned in the schools in Africa) so they decided to give me some flowers this time.





Then they decided to give me real flowers too! They each brought one single flower to create two beautiful bouquets. Another day they each brought me a piece of fruit to fill a huge basket. The PTA fed us wonderful catered food, which sure beat my usual cereal lunch.

Probably the best gift I received was a binder made my my teacher aide. She had all of my students write me a letter and draw a picture to accompany it and she put it all together in a nice book entitled Team Jensen. What a week!!