2023 History

 Jensen Family History - 2023

Jase, Ellen, Evan, and Eli

Compared to last year, this year was a lot less eventful. That has been quite nice for us, though, because we have been able to settle down and establish some roots. Ellen and I both work for the same companies we did last year, with some changes to our roles. We are also still renting in Herriman, Utah. It has been nice to stay put after all the moving around last year! We’ve had the opportunity to get to know our Ward and neighborhood a little bit better and made some new friends. It is hard to think back to the beginning of the year, but in January, Eli received his baby blessing! He was born all the way back in October of 22’, and I almost forgot his blessing got pushed to this year. I guess that is just how it goes when you have a NICU baby. The last time we weighed him, in November, he was almost 23 lbs. It is crazy to think he was 4 pounds at one point!

Around March, it became apparent that Ellen wouldn’t be able to keep up with all of her school assignments and work responsibilities while also taking care of the boys every day. So, we decided to hire a nanny! Her name is Meri, and she comes twice a week to watch the boys. This allows Ellen to work in the office, or quietly in her room as needed. The boys love her so much, and they always have so many fun crafts to show us after nanny days. Having two nanny days each week allowed Ellen to take on additional work opportunities. She now assists more colleagues in the office, taking on responsibilities such as managing life insurance and retirement investment applications (including ROTH conversions) and providing support for any other needs they may have. This has proven to be a valuable opportunity for us to increase our income.

This summer, Ellen and I had several friends getting married; and all the weddings were around the same time. We helped with a wedding for Ellen’s sister, Lexie, and her husband, Jameson, as well as a wedding for Ellen's mission companion, Hannah, and her husband, Ben. We were also able to be in Summer and Logan’s wedding, our great friends from Saint George who met in the same YSA we did! I was a groomsman in one wedding, Evan was a ring bearer in another, and Ellen was a bridesmaid in all three! We wouldn’t have had it any other way. It was so awesome to be close to our friends and family during their wedding season and to be able to watch them all make such a big life step.

Evan celebrated his second birthday in July, and Ellen couldn’t resist throwing a big party for him. We celebrated with family, neighbors, and friends! For the entire first year of Evan's life, Ellen has been trying to get him to love dinosaurs. His whole nursery was dinosaur-themed, along with many of his clothes and toys. However, between his first and second birthdays, he has grown quite the toddler personality; and with that came new favorite toys…cars. Yes, Evan loves all kinds of vehicles, so his second birthday party was naturally car-themed. He absolutely loved his party and all of his presents! We have plenty of toy cars and trucks around our house now, more than we know what to do with!

In September, I was able to receive a promotion and a raise at work. Because my company is growing quickly, I was able to grow into a leadership position early. I am now the Formulation Team Lead! I was very excited about the opportunity, and I hope I can continue growing into greater leadership positions. I still love science, but I have found that I don’t necessarily want a career in research. Luckily, my current occupation allows me to stretch into new areas. I hope to continue enhancing my skills to their fullest extent, enabling me to pursue my passion for leadership. In October, Ellen and I had the opportunity to go to Mexico with Ellen’s boss, Kaden, and his wife, along with another one of her coworkers. Good job, Ellen, for earning this trip! It was basically a honeymoon 2.0, and we had so much fun there! I’m kind of stingy when it comes to travel and probably never would have paid for this, so luckily, Ellen earned it! It was a great vacation. I definitely need to be a little better when it comes to spending on travel. Also, in October, we had Eli’s first birthday party! We celebrated his birthday in Saint George during fall break. We were able to have both sides of our family and a few friends there! He had his own cake, and Lexie took professional photos for us, which turned out absolutely adorable!

Last but not least, we had one of the most amazing accomplishments to wrap up the year. Ellen has been hard at work since starting her Masters program last August. This year, she decided that she just wanted it done, so this summer and fall, she doubled up on all of her classes! That’s right, on top of all the extra work she took up, she doubled her school load. Having our nanny, Meri, definitely helps, but she is just so incredible for taking on so much. Now, that hard work is paying off, and Ellen will be graduating with her Master's Degree in Professional Communications this December! I can’t wait to see so many doors open to her, and also for her to not have to worry about homework anymore. Our family is so excited for her!

We continue to teach primary in our ward and have received additional callings as well. Ellen now leads an activity days group, and I was recently called as an assistant ward clerk. We are learning so much, and we love living here. It is so much fun for us to live so close to Ellen’s family and a lot of my siblings. We do, however, miss St George and all our friends and family down there. We hope they will consider moving closer to us in the future years! We are so grateful for all of the wonderful blessings we continue to receive each year as we grow our little family. God truly is good, and we feel like we have become better people from all the experiences he’s given us to live through. We still have much to learn as we strive to become better spouses, parents, children, friends, employees, and ward members. We hope that we can keep improving ourselves as we move into next year!

Love, The Jensen Family