So This Is Love...

I may or may not have fallen of the face of the earth (I have heard a time or two that NSL is just about Western Siberia). Even if I haven't fallen off the face of the earth, I have fallen in love. I moved into my place last Tuesday and have been here just about a week. I have loved every minute of it, and I am totally surprised how much I am enjoying my new digs. The highlight of my house: my bedroom. I don't know what it is, but I just love it. Crawling into bed at night (after my nightly ritual of a jetted, bubble bath) is just delightful!

On the flip side of all this love, I have had a surprisingly large dose of "bitter" in this bittersweet move. For the past three years I have had the wonderful privilege of living with Trent and Amy and I was a little caught off guard by the intensity of the tinge of pain in my heart when I moved out. One of my last mornings there, I walked upstairs to see the kids eating breakfast for the last time and Trent standing there telling me how sad he was I was moving out. I had to fight back the tears as I moved everything out and watched as my time there came to an end. They invited me into their home and made me part of their family. I have such special memories with each one of those little kids that I will always cherish. I couldn't have asked for a better living situation. I have become such close friends with Trent and Amy and have loved getting to know them so well and sharing so much with them. I wish I could fully express my gratitude to them as well as the feelings I have now of the loss I feel of moving out. Hopefully we all survive the transition.

Overall, I am so happy with the decision I have made. It was a long, tedious, stressful, overwhelming, and hard decision to make, but I feel I am where I am supposed to be. My house has quickly become my home and I have fallen in love with it!

Oh, What A Day...

Where do I begin? I wish I was better at describing my feelings to truly express the range of emotions I felt today. It was such a roller coaster day that my head is still pounding from the ride.

To sum up my morning, I was basically told that we had to close today in order to get the house and approval from the bank that owns the house. Along with this, I was told that there wasn't really much of a chance of closing today because we were waiting on a form to be corrected that they couldn't get back to us until Monday. I was faced with the decision to walk away from the deal and lose my $1500 earnest money or go through the approval process again and pay a per diem to the bank for every day of it, adding up to about $600 or $700. Quite the options, right?

Several hours went by and we knew if there was any hope of us closing it would have to have word back from the lender and have paper work to the title company by 2:15. It was about 1:30 when my real estate agent asked if I had made a decision about what I was going to do. I was stressed out of my mind and not quite sure what do to.

It was then that the miracles started. We got word around 1:30 from the loan processor that we got the corrected form to the right people and were just waiting to clarify some fees. If we could get that taken care of we could get documents done in 20 minutes. 30 minutes went by and it was getting closer to our deadline and I wasn't quite sure what to think. At 2:05 I got an e-mail that we were good to close and I should be ready to leave in about 30 minutes. WHAT? Yes, everything got cleared to close.

30 minutes later I was on my way to the title company and elated that things had finally come together...
I pulled up to the title company and started to feel a bit anxious...
It was only a brief moment of anxiety as the realization of everything working out set in and I was so happy. I had said a lot of prayers throughout the day, as well as my family, and my real estate agent...
I couldn't have described the excitement and relief that we all felt getting to this moment in the 3 month long process. I think Seth pretty much nailed it when we got to the conference room at the title company...
We met with Debra at First American Title and signed documents for the next 45 minutes. I thought I would feel some kind of apprehension in committing to so much responsibility, but I couldn't have felt better to be at the end of this process and be relieved of all the pressure of the situation. I walked out of the office as a HOME OWNER!!! It was an incredible feeling.
I can't believe how today turned out and all of the ups and down.

As I was driving away I had an overwhelming sense of gratitude for everyone who put so much effort into helping with this. My family for the endless phone calls with updates and hours of therapy and support, my great real estate agent who put up with so much from me and the other side of the deal, and my incredible mortgage officer and loan processor. Everyone put so much work into making this happen on such a short time frame. None of this would have happened without so many great people helping me.

I also couldn't help but to realize the Lord's hand in all of this. It really was a miracle that everything worked out today. I was overcome with the peace and reassurance that He is personally aware of me and the going-on's in my life.

This post is mostly to document the events of the day, but I also hope it helps to share just how amazing things working out today is.

(And yes, I am a big enough nerd that I photo documented this.)

Happy 6th of July!

Monday was our belated 4th of July celebration. The whole Jensen crew (plus some welcomed others: Shannon, Karlee, and Justin). The evening was filled with wonderful food, good company, and an excellent firework show. I had my pleasure of some great one-on-one time with some of my nieces and nephews. I just love them all to pieces! I am not quite sure how I am going to handle the transition from everyday life with them to not seeing them so often. It makes me tear up just thinking about that.
Kids are everywhere with any Jensen gathering, but always so fun!
Grandma Teri is for sure in her element among her kids and grandkids. She just loves it all.
The boys were so excited for the fireworks, from smoke bombs, to crackle-ers in the bucket, to parachutes and the main event. Their faces in this picture pretty much depict their happiness.
There was lots of help with the fireworks, we just couldn't get them out and done fast enough for the kids.
Does this picture not scream "old people"? Just kidding, but it does pretty much illustrate the "grandparent" role of these two, and luckily they love it.
The night was capped off with an exciting firework display. The boys loved sitting on the curb watching. Their excitement for it all reminded me of the joy of being a kid, those were the days when the simplest of things were the greatest. I should work on seeing things in my life like that.
Overall it was a great night and so fun to get together. Trent and Amy sure know how to throw a party and are so nice to always share their house. I'm a bit nostalgic that it will no longer be my house and I don't get to be a part of their everyday life anymore. I was so lucky to get to live there for so long and be there to be involved with their cute kids so much. I am going to miss it all! (Can you tell I've hit the realization that this phase of my life is almost over? Sadness.)

Let Freedom Ring!

(* Disclosure: Picture OVERLOAD! And you're going to like it!)

Saturday, the 4th, Brooke and I headed up to the traditional 4th of July destination: Our Cabin. The ride was, as always with this girl, enjoyable.
We joined the rest of the group up there and were in for a wonderful day. One of my favorite surprises of the day: Horseback riding. The Neff's stopped by for a visit and let me and Jenny take a ride. I loved it, although a little hesitant when Jenny made them go trotting down the road, I might have fallen off and died, but still fun.

The rest of my afternoon was spent laying here reading...

...and relaxing...

... and loving the beauty, sounds, and calmness of my surroundings...

Sleeping Beauty finally awoke from her nap and joined me. We cuddled like two bugs in a rug (don't be jealous!).

Dinner time rolled around and little did I know what we had in store for the event. But it involved this cute girl...

These fun girls (note the twinner hair-do's, braids courtesy of Yours Truly)...

My cute mom (although, she was mostly the audience)...

We got a little crazy...

And then this happened. In order to get in the Ro-De-O Spirit, Jenny provided country music and shortly after, singing and dancing ensued. We all had our pseudo microphone and were loving every minute of it...

Almost as much as this guy, he was loving it, can't you tell? (So not amused)

The time came that we were off to Oakley...

We were so excited to be there! Cowboys here we come!

All the girls...

Shannon and Ashlee drove up to join in the fun. I was so glad they came to join us! They are some of my favorite people.

My beautiful sister Brooke!

The girls so excited for the rodeo to start.

The Crew: (left to right) Brooke, Me, Shanon, Ashlee, Jake, Candice, Jenny, and Karlee.

These two girls were so much fun to hang out with. Being almost 16, they were a little boy crazy and all those cowboys were making them so happy.

Loving the experience! I was so happy to be there with these two, they always make everything so fun!

Isn't she stunning? Seriously, I should learn to not take pictures next to her.

I love my mom! I was so glad to be there with her.

The 4th just wouldn't be complete without some fireworks!

The girls headed back up to the cabin for a sleep over after. Another dance party broke out during our midnight snack.

Overall it was a PERFECT 4th of July! I can't think of a single thing I would change to make it better! I love July and the celebrations, it just makes me happy. It also makes me appreciate the wonderful blessing it is to live in America and enjoy the freedoms I do. Being able to celebrate that freedom and honoring the many men and women who fought and died for that makes me so proud to be an American!

Happy Anniversary Shannon!

How lucky can I be? It was about one year ago that I met my dearest friend, and other half, Shannon.

We aren't really sure how it happened, but one fateful night at FHE I gave Shannon a ride, not knowing each other, and it started us down this wonderful road of friendship. We instantly became close friends and felt like we had been our whole lives. Most people in our ward thought that we had joined the ward together and had known each other before because we just clicked so well. When asked how we know each other we simply say "we have the same life." Not sure where that came from, but we are just so alike in so many ways that it just seems the easiest way to explain our unusual friendship.

Shannon is one of those amazing people that just draws you to her. She has the kindest heart, strongest spirit, silliest side (if you ever get to see it, your in for a treat), contagious laugh, and all around just an incredible person. Just being around her makes you happy and want to be a better person.

This past year we have both been through a lot, both on our own separate roller coasters of ups and downs, and we have been able to see each other through them all. I can't count the many times that Shannon delivered a much needed phone call, treat, visit, kidnapping, or night out just when I needed it most. She seems to have a knack for knowing just what I need, which is just one more thing that makes her such a good friend.

One of my favorite things about my friendship with Shannon is her initiation into my family. My family is a huge part of my life and Shannon has been absorbed right into that. Invitations to family events don't often come without a disclaimer to invite Shannon as well. She has become one of us (whether she likes it or not) and I think that all parties involved have benefited greatly. I know she is a good friend when she can survive a whole Thanksgiving weekend in St. George, multiple Sunday dinners, and countless family activities with the Jensen's.

I don't think that it is very often in life that we are able to find such a connection with someone. There is something so comforting in the understanding we have of each other, that even if it goes days (and sadly enough weeks) that we don't see each other, our friendship continues to thrive and beat on like we had seen each other the whole time. Shannon has been one of my greatest blessing this past year and I probably wouldn't have survived without her. I know the Lord is truly aware of me when He blesses my life with people like Shannon.

This next week our lives will both be taking different turns as we are both moving. I into my new house (Yay!) and her into an apartment in Salt Lake. No longer will we be in the same ward or a quick 3 minute drive from each other. Luckily I know that despite the change, Shannon will still be (and always will be) one of my best friends.

Me

I have been feeling a bit reflective lately and I am not sure if it is due to the large impending changes coming in my life or the basic nostalgic of life continuing to rush forward.

So this is me. Jill Jensen: 23 years old, graduated from college, about to buy my first house, and wondering how I got here.
I’ve always looked forward to milestone in my life and thought I would never get there:

- Turning 16
- Graduating high school
- Moving away for college
- Graduating college
- Buying a house
- Getting married
- Having kids

I have been surprised how these things have just kind of happened. I keep moving forward in life and once I hit a milestone, I look back and fathom how I even got there.

I am not where I thought I would be at age 23 or what position I thought I would be in while buying my first house. Throughout the whole process of buying my house I have had constant reminders that I am doing this alone (and it is a big burden to carry independently). I think most girls (especially of the Utah Mormon decent) hit those moments, days, weeks, months, maybe years, of wondering if not being married and not having kids is an automatic indication of failure. I am the first to admit that I have had those feelings at times and wonder when it will be my turn. I guess, I have hit my moments lately of thinking that despite my many accomplishments, I still need to lose my “single” status to be successful.

I may not be where I thought I would be, but I can’t look at it as a failure. I have experienced so much since high school and grown to be who I am today. I know that I will be a better wife and mother some day because of them (being a live in nanny of sorts for 5 years might help a bit). I have had my share of up and downs, and while I hated the pain of the downs, I know I have grown the most because of them.

My mom has always told me, “happiness is learning to be happy in the stage you are at in life.“ There are days I wish I could go back to the carefree days of childhood and times I wish I could fast forward to being married, but I know I need to make the best of where I am right now. So even though my life not be going according to plan, things are turning out pretty good. Life continues to surprise me and although sometimes I just want time to stop, I am excited about the things that await me.