The Good Life

Well, ‘tis been a season since I last wrote. Many things have changed…and changed for the better, I might add. I’m officially Jennifer DEAN (well, not officially in the Social Security Administration or DOT type of “officially”, but I’m still Jennifer Dean and I will change it soon, I promise! Man those government agencies have a way of getting “I promise’s” out of me!!) Marriage has been amazing. While, we haven’t been married long, we’ve been married well, and for that we are so grateful. We have definitely felt the blessings of making the decision to marry in the Temple and to remain faithful servants. I’m so very grateful to be a member of church that puts so much emphasis on the importance of marriage, family and service.
We moved a little bit northeast of Parker to the Southlands area of Aurora. It has been a nice move. Our new ward is amazing! We love the people and have found that we are fitting right in. We also love having our friends the McGregor’s in the ward with us as well. We also love that they’re one building away, so Wii battles and good dinners with friends have been abundant. Wes has just been called as the Cub Master and is still teaching the 6 year olds in the Primary. I’m working in the junior nursery with the 18 month to 24 month old kids. Nursery has been challenging. The last time I held or really even talked to a kid that age was about 19 years ago. It has been good getting to know the families through their precious little ones though. And I have to say, there’s not much better than when a little kid looks up at you and you can see the tears building up in his eyes and then the corners of his mouth start to droop, then he starts to look around and screams once he realizes his mom and dad are gone. I’m not talking a little scream – like contained to one room scream. I’m talking about a scream so piercing that the primary leaders in the adjacent room continue to check on you to make sure you’re ok…that’s right YOU not the child. But, they are darling! And, I have been called to the Nursery for a reason. I just have to keep remembering that.
Anyway, that’s really all that’s new. I’m hoping to be a better blogger, and also hoping to maybe begin a little Dean Family Blog, soon. Stay tuned…we’re not that exciting yet, but I’m sure we’ll be blog-worthy soon. Or we’ll just make stuff up.

Five things I’m grateful for –
Wes
The Temple
Being Married!!!!
Friends
The Southlands Ward

Top five songs I heard in 2009 (they didn’t necessarily need to be released in 2009 for me to hear them in 2009 – keep that in mind)
Sweet Disposition – Temper Trap
What’s the Attitude – Cut Chemist / Hymnal
Your Arms Around Me – Jens Lekman
This Will be Our Year – The Zombies (not the first time I’ve heard it, but kind of defined the year, so I’m putting on the list)
High Times – Landon Pigg & the Turbo Fruits (Good song, questionable message)

What Would You Do OO OO, for a Klondike Bar?

So, I’ve been sitting at my desk, staring blankly at my computer screen for the last hour trying to tell myself that a Klondike Bar is not worth the 250 calories packed into its new, thicker shell. I don’t know when I became a calorie counter, but for whatever reason, I’m doing it now and it’s like the cruelest, self-inflicted torture ever. Do you think if I wasn’t counting calories, I’d be noshing after this delectable little delight…NO! Not in the least. I’ve never even had a Klondike Bar. So, I’m sitting here, chewing on about 4 pieces of Stride and thinking seriously about gnawing on the corner of my monitor all because the guy who breaks the sound barrier when he breathes offered me a STUPID KLONDIKE BAR! Whew! Excuse my outburst. It had to happen. Anyway, I’m slowly backing away from the ledge and my thoughts are returning to the things I should be accomplishing today and not the chocolate-ly, ice creamy deliciousness. I can almost feel sanity creeping its way back into my brain. Ahhhhh, yes, sanity.

I’ve been thinking I need to start knitting again. I haven’t done it in so long; mostly because I never really learned how to stop. All of my projects have needles in the bottom of them just waiting to be finished; longing for finality. I’ve been inspired by the recent baby boom – or at least, pregnancy boom in my department. There are four, yes four women expecting babies within the walls of my department and since I hate shopping off of registries (they’re so restrictive…if I want to get your baby a superhero cape, I’m going to get it whether it’s on your stupid registry or not). I apologize for my belligerence. This Klondike Bar has me all tetchy. Anyway, I love giving hand made gifts. They mean something. I put time, energy and moderately hard work into creating something and I want to share that with someone. Three of the four women are having females, so I’d love to make little blankets with matching booties, and caps. Like my own little personalized layette for the babies. For the boy, a little baby cape…every kid should have a cape. Heck, every adult should have a cape. Anyway, I could knit these pieces up if I just knew how to stop. I’m going to learn. It’s going to happen.
Alright, I’ve weened myself away from the idea that a Klondike Bar is going to change my life and I should probably do something that involves working hard for the money. So, with that I’ll leave you with my lists for the day.

Five things I’m grateful for –
1. My new water bottle
2. My job
3. The Gospel of Jesus Christ
4. Klondike Bars
5. This beautiful summer we’re having in Colorado

Top five desserts of all time (not including Klondike Bars) –
1. Warm, Chocolate Chip Cookie Hand Pies
2. Special K Bars
3. Red Velvet Cake with Almond Flavored Cream Cheese Icing
4. Sharon’s Lemon Bars
5. Irish Brambrack

They may take my wicked awesome 45% off discount, but they'll never take my FREEDOM!

It looks more and more like I’ll be transforming into a lady of leisure in the near future. I’ve decided to leave my second job. My last day will be next Tuesday. There are several reasons for my departure; all of which I’ll share with you in a moment. Anyway, this will be the first time in several years that I have not held down more than one job. I’ve worked 60+ hours a week for what seems like forever. I’m happy to be able to spend my evenings at home doing the things I love to do which have been neglected for some time now. I can cook every day if I want. I can read and write and knit and crochet and bake and watch really crappy television and study and reconnect with old friends and make plans and take up a new hobby….OOOOOOOO, the possibilities are limitless. YES! I feel free…like William Wallace free. Like O.J. Simpson free (well O.J. of old, at least). Like Freedom Fries and Freedom Toast free. Knitting…I’ll knit for hours if I want. You know why? I won’t have anything else to do. That’s why (I almost added a “suckas” at the end there, but I think my Grandma reads this).
Needless to say, I’m more than excited. There are a couple reasons behind my decision to leave. First and foremost is because, I wasn’t happy. I was always tired, stressed, disappointed, etc. My attitude for the day revolved around whether or not I had to work in the evening. Most of my unhappiness stemmed from a very unfortunate incident in which somebody assumed my beliefs and took off with it. Imagining up fantasies of me being some awful, gay-bashing bigot, which of course, for those of you who know me or share my beliefs, know that the absolute opposite is true. What I’ve learned from this is when you know what’s right, when you know the truth and when you’ve been trusted with these things, you have to be ready, willing and able to look opposition right in the eye and say, “I love you.” That’s why I can sleep at night. Anyway, the other reason was because, although for a very long time, I felt like Heavenly Father had plopped me in the middle of a bunch of tree-hugging, fairy-worshiping, aura-reading, tarot card-believing, nut jobs (I mean that in the nicest possible way) for a reason, my time is done. I’ve done what I was supposed to do – whatever that was. Oh yeah, and there was the whole, I was going to have to start working Sundays. And selling face cream on Sundays in no way constitutes the Lord’s work. So, here I am standing for what I believe in and I’m almost a little proud of myself…I don’t know that I’ve ever really done that before, at least since I’ve stood for what I know is right and not just what I thought was right (there’s a definite difference).
So, here’s to FREEDOM (pretend I just yelled that in my best Scottish accent a la William Wallace, because I totally did in my head as I typed it).

Five things I’m grateful for –
1. FREEDOM
2. 42 year old knitting needles
3. Knowing what’s right
4. Sylvia & Alexia
5. Peace of mind (not the Origins product, but the state of being)

Top five memories of Origins –
1. Sylvia refusing my hugfest…a pretty amazing chase ensued
2. Alexia and I rapping it up old school style. Whatever happened to Salt ‘N’ Peppa?
3. Learning Southern hymns. “Ain’t it a Shame to Kiss the Boys on Sunday?” Never heard it? I suggest you look it up.
4. Meeting the Escoe family. What an amazing group of people. They have truly changed my life.
5. Seeing in Alexia what I always wanted to see in myself.

Those who have eyes to see will see...

I was recently looking through one of my old notebooks that I filled up with opening story lines, quotes, advice, etc. I guess you could call it a journal, minus the typical narrative that goes along with journaling. Anyhow, I stumbled upon this little gem that I received from my seventh grade health studies teacher, who by the way, was the worst health studies teacher ever…mostly because he taught us more about television sitcoms then he taught us about the health benefits of celery and the dangers of herpes; although he did have excellent taste in both television and film. Either way, he gave me this piece of advice on September 10, 1994 : If you want to do something, just do it. Even though it sounds like a Nike ad, it’s super true. I’ve sat around so much wondering what to do with my life…why don’t I just do it (do I have to pay Nike every time I say that?)? Now, I have no idea what IT is, but that’s all worked out in the details, right?


Anyway, I love looking through my old notebooks. They muster up feelings of nostalgia and…well, really its just nostalgia. Seventh grade was weird. I don’t necessarily want to remember all of the feelings associated with it. I made the A team in volleyball, ran a wicked fast mile and wore stretch pants…YIKES, I know! Ugh, they had the little stirrups on them too. Double YIKES! So, I guess this will be my unofficial endorsement of journaling for my posterity’s sake. I’ll make an official endorsement at a later date…you know, when I’m better at journaling and when I’m qualified to officially endorse things.

Five things I’m grateful for –
1. Funny movies
2. Time spent with those I love
3. Red Rocks
4. Summer in Colorado
5. Sure Things

Top five concerts I’ve attended -
1. Prince – Civic Auditorium, Omaha, NE
2. Red Hot Chili Peppers – Civic Auditorium, Omaha, NE
3. The Killers – Red Rocks, Denver, CO
4. Widespread Panic – Red Rocks, Denver, CO
5. The Brian Setzer Orchestra – Sokol Auditorium, Omaha, NE
** Honorable Mention : Big Head Todd and the Monsters – Sokol Underground, Omaha, NE

Betrothed

"Come, let's be a comfortable couple and take care of each other! How glad we shall be, that we have somebody we are fond of always, to talk to and sit with." ~Charles Dickens



Five things I'm grateful for -

1. Wes Dean
2. The Temple
3. Wes Dean
4. The Temple
5. Wes Dean



Top five things I'm looking forward to as a wife -
1. Cooking for my husband
2. Reading scriptures with my husband
3. Holding hands with my husband
4. Praying with my husband
5. Progressing with my husband

Oh yeah...I'm getting married!

Ode to Moms-to-Be

I can't speak for all females, but one of the things that I look forward to the most is being a mother. Since mother's day isn't super special for me yet, I'm trying to focus more on what motherhood will look like for me when the time comes. I recently read this little jewel from one of my favorite prophets (well, they're all my favorite) :

"No matter what you read or hear, no matter what the differences of circumstances you observe in the lives of women around you, it is important for you Latter-day Saint women to understand that the Lord holds motherhood and mothers sacred and in the highest esteem. He has entrusted to his daughters the great responsibility of bearing and nurturing children. This is the great, irreplaceable work of women. Life cannot go on if women cease to bear children. Mortal life is a privilege and a necessary step in eternal progression. Mother Eve understood that. You must also understand it…” “Much is said about the drudgery and the confinement of the woman’s role in the home. In the perspective of the gospel it is not so. There is divinity in each new life. There is challenge in creating the environment in which a child can grow and develop. There is partnership between the man and woman in building a family which can last throughout the eternities.” -Spencer W. Kimball

President Kimball just tells it how it is, doesn't he? I love that he said there is "divinity in each new life." Divinity! What an amazingly beautiful gift it is to bring another being to mortality. The joys and perils of motherhood are equally great, but nothing will be better for me than knowing that I am helping another to return to our Heavenly Father.

I know there are many out there who are trying to have children, and I commend you all for your willingness to bear children in what can be a less-than-stellar world. We all will be incredibly loving and amazingly beautiful mothers in our own right. This is just one more example of how we as women, truly are a divine group and I am so thankful for my role and destiny as a woman. I'm thankful to all of you women out there who have been and continue to be amazing examples of motherhood, femininity, grace, charity, beauty and everything else that constitutes womanhood. Since I'm feeling a little sappy, I'm just going to say a few words about those women whom I love and learn from the most!

Sylvia - EVERYTHING! You are amazing and I love you as if you were my mother. You've taught me so much and you have been the most perfect example of a mother to me.

Steph - Your smile and fun outlook is going to make you a wonderful mother. You have a gift that your children will cherish and learn from.

Jenn C - I just love you and and I often think of you when I'm epitomizing women on this little blog of mine. You will be an amazing mother someday - hopefully soon.

Ahslee - You're already mother to a bunch of 20-something girls, so you've got the late-teen angst ridden phase done and over with. You will also be a wonderful mother to a bunch of little rays of hope and sunshine.

Jeane - Your kids will be the smartest kids in the world. They'll come out speaking proper English and will never end a sentence with a proposition. They will be so loved and so blessed to have you as their mother.

Cassie - Oh man! I so want our kids to play together! I can't wait to see you as a mother. You will be incredible and inspiring and wonderful and every other good adjective that exists.

So, Moms-to-be, this is our year! Happy mother's day to you all and may you all find joy in the idea that we are divine and that one day we will "bear the title to that sweetest word ever lisped by human lips, that most loved, most sacred appellation ever coined in speech, that holy, precious word—Mother." - Joseph F. Smith

Five things I'm grateful for -
1. Mortal Life
2. The Gospel of Jesus Christ
3. Love
4. Eternal Perspective
5. Time Travel

Top five mother's of all time (in my humble opinion) -
1. Mother Eve
2. Sylvia Escoe
3. Charmaine Turner (or grandma)
4. Evelyn Irvin (or great-grandma)
5. Sarah, Hannah, Mary, Elisabeth, Eunice, Rachel, Sariah and all of those divine mothers who have come before us.

"A mother's happiness is like a beacon, lighting up the future but reflected also on the past in the guise of fond memories." ~Honoré de Balzac

Can you hear me Major Tom?

On my way into work this morning I came across the most amazing intersection in all of the greater Denver area (I-25 and Hampden for those of you not in the know) and saw two of the most hilarious / sad things I’ve ever seen in my life.
So, I’m just driving along and end up at the stop light at the top of the intersection, much like every other morning and I see this new sign. It’s one of those really neat bright poster board signs that I used to display science projects on…anyway, it has this written across it : “LARGE WIFE SALE – SHE MUST GO!” What?! So I busted a gut laughing and then felt bad that I was laughing at this poor woman’s misfortune, so I looked the other way, away from the sign and I see a homeless man panhandling on the side of the road. Typically, there’s always somebody on this corner and I usually am able to spare a couple dollars or at the very least my lunch, but I had nothing today and even if I did have a dollar or two or my usual turkey on wheat with an apple and carrots, this guy didn’t want it. You see, his sign read, “Spaceship broke down, need money for parts.” So, then I laughed a little, because well, it was funny. The guy saw me laughing and we made eye contact and he gave me a big toothless grin and then he shook his head a little in amusement and I shook mine back in admiration and I went on my way and he went on his way and the large wife, well, I don’t know where she went, but if you’re in need of a large wife, I wrote down the phone number.
Anyway, I don’t know if the space man was just being good-humored about his really sad situation or if he seriously thought his ride to the Final Frontier was in need of repair, but I realized that he taught me something pretty valuable today. He taught me that sometimes, all we can offer somebody is a genuine smile or a good-natured laugh. More often than not, we pass by folks without so much as a smile or making eye contact or doing the “Dude Nod of Acknowledgement” (come on, you know the nod), but it’s something we can offer somebody for no cost at all and it makes both parties involved feel better. I promise. Sometimes, somebody taking the time to acknowledge my existence with a little smile or by making eye contact makes all the difference. The space man made a difference for me today.
As for the photo, I’m not super environmentally conscience, but I’m fairly convinced that this family is solely responsible for any and all damage done to the ozone layer in the early ‘90s. That’s a whole lot of Aquanet, and it’s exactly what my hair looked like post-mullet phase circa 1991. Plus, it's really hard find a spaceship photo that isn't completely creepy or mega-nerdy.
Anyway, I hope you all are doing well!

5 things I’m grateful for –
1. Temples
2. Stake Conference
3. Reverence
4. Love
5. 5 Minute Hug Fests

Top five jobs I wanted to have as a child –
1. Middle Linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers
2. Professional Tap Dancer
3. Pediatric Cardiologist a la My Girl 2
4. Captain of the Good Ship Lollipop
5. Farmer’s Wife

“The space man says, 'Everybody look down, it’s all in your mind.' ~ The Killers