What time is it? Summertime!

Yep, all the way off, baby!

Swan Lake...Swan Pond at La Caille

Yesterday when we were returning from a wedding shower in SLC, Alex insisted that we would do a quick drive-by the La Caille restaurant. If you are not familiar (like I'm not) with this restaurant, it is an EXTREMELY expensive French restaurant. Alex is the only one in our family who has dined in there. He is proud to say that he had "Escargot with Artisan Bread" while having an exclusive meal with other fellow French students. I had never even been inside the gated area, and I was totally impressed by the landscape, the roaming animals (we saw these swans..also black ones, bunnies etc.), the quaint cottages, the expensive cars parked on a nice lawn, and the main restaurant building. What a gorgeous place! Maybe one of these days we even get to go inside and have a nice meal.

If left stranded, my MacGyver only needs two things

I have noticed over the years that when Rod is fixing things, that there are only two things that he frequently uses.

A wire hanger. It has SO many uses that I can't even list all of them here. The latest use was to dig out the bird's nest out of our dryer vent. Just know... when in doubt, use a wire hanger.

A white sock. This is the best tool Rod has discovered.

Here are the many uses of the best invention, ever:

- cleans spills (any spills: blood, oil, soda, water)

-a snotty nose gets a good wipe with this baby

-shines shoes

-shines and cleans floors

-plugs things

-good insulation on camping trips

-work as substitute for gloves

-good storage (goggles, shoes, iPod, water bottles, guns)

-ice pack

and many, MANY more..oh yeah, and covering for your feet

Memorial Day sale and Family event

We had a busy weekend. Saturday morning Alex and I went to three basketball games in West Jordan High. The drama started when the opposing team coach was kicked out of the game, and him chasing the ref around the gym for 5 minutes. Finally the coach left but the ref was distracted for the rest of the game.

Rod returned from Mexico on Saturday afternoon. He had a very successful week there.

Saturday night we went to see the new Indiana Jones movie. It was good but not as good as 1 and 3.

Sunday morning we drove to SLC to witness Kristy and Peter's baby Joshua's blessing. Rod's oldest sister, Lexia was there with her family, and Rod's youngest sister Liz and her fiancé, Brad were there.

Sunday night we went to the Williams to play games. Men won (I'm sure cheating was involved).

It was raining all day on Monday, so our plans went up in flames (golfing, gardening etc). Rod took Alex and Elle to a movie in the afternoon while I baked and prepared for the bbq later in the evening.

Monday night we spent at the Williams' having a bbq with lots of family (their family) and friends and food. Then the Williams' came to our house to watch the Transformers movie, which they hadn't seen before. Yea for surround sound!


Last Sunday when we were driving around in Salt Lake, we came upon this sign at the Larkin cemetery. Perfect time to advertise a sale at the local cemetery at Memorial Day, don't you think?



Liz and Brad, the happy couple to be wed on June 5th.

"Alooohaaaa" in 14 days

We will be doing the Hula in Maui in 14 days.

The Jonas Brothers make you dance

Last night after YW the Beehives came to our house to watch the American Idol finale. When the Jonas Brothers took the stage, so did Misty and Rachel. They were rocking out like you wouldn't believe. It was so fun to watch. Fun girls.

Essentials for a good night's sleep

I have noticed that the older I get the less I tolerate Rod's cell phone calls at midnight or his 2am TV watching. So, I have come up with the "essentials" list of what I need every night so I can have a good night's sleep.


Ear plugs are a must. The foam kind are the best because I can squeeze them and they slip into my ear canal just right, blocking all the noises out. Don't let them drop on the floor because your pet will eat them. Something about the ear wax that makes them tasty, I guess.


Eye shades will block the flickering lights from the TV. ESPN is especially horrible with all the sport scenes. That will drive me absolutely insane without these handy shades. I'm thinking about blocking the ESPN channels altogether.



Good mattress. I have still yet to find a mattress that has a place holder for my boobs and stomach when I sleep on my stomach. I could make millions with that invention, I'm convinced. I mean, simple cut outs into the mattress...how difficult is that, mattress maker men!

Fan in my room is a must. Especially in our bedroom. With the old windows letting all the hot air in during the summer, the fan will keep the room nice and cool. It also helps to block out the annoying snoring noises, if I happen to lose my ear plugs.

Yes, I have spent numerous nights looking like this woman here. If this is also your story, ear plugs definitely help. You may even try to stuck the ear plugs into his nose, or stuff the mouth full of them. Kick on the side of his ribs seem to lessen the snoring, as well.

The most important essential is that my husband goes on a business trip and I don't need ear plugs or eye shades, and my slumber will be peaceful for at least a little while...until the hubby comes home and I need to dig out the whole arsenal again. But for this week, I get to sleep without distractions. Ahhhh.

End of an Era

Last night we had the last farewell party with the Wildcats team. All the players and their families came to celebrate. A few of the players who were not on the team anymore also came. It was a bitter sweet night. Rod did such a great job with these boys. He tried to raise them as great men while competing in soccer. I think he succeeded.

Go crazy, boys!

Summer belongs to Alex

After a long day's work doing a service project at the Jr. High and then working on the sprinklers with Rod, Alex took a well deserved break, and laid on the front yard with a hose in his hands and just sprayed water into the air, and let it fall on him to cool him down. It was a nice 90 degree (32 degrees Celcius) day, so the water felt so good. I remember doing this same thing when I was little, except, I laid in my bed and I would purge my lips so the spray of spit would fly in the air and fall on my face. Not quite the same effect, but the idea was the same.

Alex spying on the neighbor kid, Jared, for some water fight action. Jared got soaked to the bone, thanks to Alex. See the evil look on his face. That's never a good sign.

Summer is almost here, and I must say that I love our neighborhood for that. We just have this special place where the kids can run free and easy all day and all night. Can hardly wait for it!

Before and After

Holy crap....I did it!

We had a Young Men and Young Women activity last night, and the plan was to hike to the Y Mountain in Provo. I have never done it before, even though we went to BYU for 5 years. So, I know myself and hiking is not my preferred mode of exercise (nothing really is, except swimming) but being a good sport at the time, I said, sure, I will hike it up. Can't be that bad, right?

After the fact, it wasn't that bad. I was just winded at every switchback (there were 12 of them). It took me an hour, exactly, to hike up to the Y. It took 25-30 minutes for others. I'm in bad shape! It took 20 minutes to hike down. Surprisingly I'm not sore at all today. Now I can cross off this event from my list of "things I will only do once".


That's where we are heading. All the way to the "Y".


Some of our young women and Alex.


VICTORY!! I'm sitting on the "Y" exhausted but happy that I had it in me to hike it all the way up.

Young Women and Young Men on the rock on the way to the "Y".

Beautiful view from the "Y" Mountain towards Utah Lake.

A new device to torture teenagers

To get ready for Alex to turn 13 next month, we decided to get a jump start on the teenager years, and have this special device to be installed now.

Dr. Jorgensen getting ready for the installation

"What Alex? I can't understand a word you say. Must not be THAT important." This device comes off when he turns 20.

The Essence of Norway

My Mother's Day was so great, once again. I didn't have to lift a finger. Even though our traditional "breakfast in bed" didn't work out this year because we had to go to Ali's homecoming at 9am, I got breakfast, nonetheless, at the kitchen table...and it was yummy. The dinner didn't work out either until Monday night, but that was all prepared again by Rod and Alex. Great steaks!

For Mother's Day I requested to receive a bundt pan (can you believe I didn't have one!), and one of my all time favorite perfurmes "Laila", or as the bottle promises, it is the Essence of Norway. Next time when I go to Norway (not just the airport bathroom), I expect everything to smell like Laila.

Now I can bake like crazy with my new pan, and while doing that, smell like Norway.

Last Soccer Game as Wildcats

Wildcats played their last soccer game on Saturday against Wizzards. We lost the game 4-1, and placed 4th in the league. The sad thing is that the Wildcats have played together for the last 5 years or so, and the team won't play together ever again. The coaches will move on, and the players will move on. It is a sad, sad day for all.

Jr. High Choir Concert

Last night was the Jr. High School Spring Choir Concert. It was wonderful and the kids performed well. They have a very talented and disciplined choir director. (Alex has a black arrow pointing to his head in the picture).

There were 4 boys singing in the choir that also belong to the Wildcats soccer team, so while they sang, the team was playing in the semifinals. No subs, and a player short, we lost 4-1 to the # 1 team in the league. We are now going to play for 3rd place on Saturday.

A Tale of the skinny pants

It was a somewhat sunny morning when I opened my eyes to realize that it was yet another morning I had to get out of bed, and go to work. Rod had been up for hours with an early morning visit to the gym at 5am. All of a sudden I heard a lot of commotion from the guest room. Rod keeps his suits and pants in the guest room closet, and after a while he emerged with his nicely pressed khaki pants on with a huge grin on his face. "I haven't been able to fit into these pants for years", he said. To demonstrate, he turned around and showed me his butt. It was droopy. I was genuinely happy for him, even though I wanted to flip him off. How can't I have some of that will power? I want to wear my skinny pants to Maui, oh wait, I don't have any.

29 days until Paradise.

Awkward Wednesday confession

I have been holding onto this moment when I can actually tell you about one of my deep-rooted secrets. It actually didn't manifest itself until this week, and I don't think I can hold it in anymore.



-This has been going on for the last 20+ years now since I was introduced to it.
-Many of you probably know about this secret, and will be happy that I come out with it.
-I have denied myself too long.
-I can blame one of my friends who re-introduced me to it about a month ago.
-In the past, I could hardly stand for it.
-It used to disgust me.



Yes, the secret is out.




My deep-rooted secret is that




I think I like





PEANUT BUTTER

Wildcats win again!

Alex had a quarterfinal soccer game last night, and we beat the Santos team 4-0!

YEA us, again. Now we are going into the semifinals tomorrow night against # 1 team in the league. I must say, we are doing well, because we went up a year this year, which means that we are playing in the U14 boys league, where most of our players are either 12 or 13. Carsen, for example, is still 11. So, our boys can definitely hold their own against bigger and stronger boys.

Must see movie of the summer!

IRON MAN. You MUST go see it, but make sure you will stay until the very end of the credits. Very seldom you walk out of a movie saying:"That was a great movie". Iron Man will make you say that. I promise you. Go see it.

Friendly and Sporty Weekend

We had another fun weekend with lots of sports and friends.

Friday started early with a luncheon with my old friend, Nancy from the BYU Health Center. We worked together for 5 years while I was going to BYU in the early 90s. She is a fabulous friend. We also share the same birthday. One year we traveled to Southern CA to watch BYU and UCLA play a football game. That was such a fun trip with her.

Nancy flirting with a little boy behind me.

Saturday morning started with a soccer game at the Complex. The grass was crunchy and slippery. We beat Crew 4-1. YEA us! We advance to the quarterfinals that will be on Tuesday. Stay tuned for that score.

Here Alex is in full action.

After our Saturday soccer game, we headed up to the Bingham High School in West Jordan. There we watched a Jr. High basketball game. 7th, 8th and 9th grade players played in the tournaments.

A player from Park City sitting on the bench.

Because we were low on lingonberry jam, black currant juice and köttbullar (meatballs), we went to Ikea after the basketball game. Had a delicious lunch with salmon and meatballs. Then shopped the fun market place. Alex loves Ikea's four-wheeling shopping carts, so he was having a fun time wheeling all over the place.

Alex going backwards with the shopping cart, narrowingly missing all the glassware.

Sunday we went to the Williams for Taylor's 20th birthday party. I made my bread pudding to act as a birthday cake (Taylor's favorite, or as Alex calls it Taylor's kryptonite). Everyone loved it, once again. I'm telling you, it is a hit. Four grandkids kept us entertained. We just love the Williams' and their extended families. And have you seen Sharon? She looks fabulous!!! So does Katie, by the way. These two sisters are going to waste away soon. I have to keep them in bread pudding, you know, the low calorie alternative.

Ali's home

Last night we went to the Williams to see Ali. She got home from her mission in Brazil just yesterday. She looks so great and happy, and it is good to have her home again.

Ali and Alex hugging each other after 18 months. We just love Ali so much.

Happy May Day!

When I was growing up in Finland, there were a few sure things that happened every year around May day.

1) People got hugely drunk.
2) There were balloon vendors everywhere. I seldom got a balloon!
3) It usually rained.
4) Communists had a parade with red flags and singing songs praising The Soviet Union. Our family would go and watch the parades.
5) My mom wore her high school graduation hat (yes, it is a tradition still today).

6) Donuts and "sima" (citrus drink that had been fermented) were plentiful.
7) Funnel cakes were yummy.
8) Happy people walking all over the city (if it happened to be a sunny day).
9) A Men's choir singing on the steps of the city hall.

So, what tradition did I bring to this country?

Yep, you guessed it...

Donuts. Made them yesterday. This morning, hardly any left.