HISTORY

A Little History:
Our story begins in Pocatello, Idaho, circa 1972, when the lovely Debby Christensen agreed to a first, though fateful date with admirer, David Croshaw. Long story-short, he bade her follow him, and they went arm-in-arm to the Logan, Utah temple for establishment of an eternal family unit, Generation 1, on May 23 1973.

From their first blissful summer in Salt Lake City, educational pursuits took them to Provo/Orem, Utah, birthplace of Leslie and Rebecca, and to San Francisco/Oakland California, birthplace of Colin and Matt. Then, for establishment of livelihood, expansion of the tribe with Abby and Dana, and for raising/unifying of Generation 2, it was back to the roots in Pocatello for a rewarding sojourn.

In time, driven by a raging, but commonly shared sense of adventure and independence, one-by-one, Generation 2 escaped the homeland to distant regions of the country and the world, each ultimately developing their own tribal expansions by pairing with worthy mates and initiating Generation 3.

Now sensing fulfillment of their purpose in Pocatello, Generation 1 has also left those roots and transplanted to Cascade Idaho, from which base, they anticipate more abundant contact with The Posterity, Generations 2 and 3, in the future. That contact however, awaits fulfillment of a call to LDS missionary service in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, wherein they hope to help the state of the world by sharing the love of Jesus Christ.

So now, including Generation 0 (Grandma and Grandpa Christensen) home base includes Yuma, Arizona, Pocatello, Idaho, Cascade, Idaho, Vancouver, BC, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Spokane, Washington, Boise, Idaho, Los Angeles, California, back to Boise, Idaho, and on and on (Generation 3+) to infinity.

Our Mission Statement:
This is the blog of our eternal family unit. Initiated years ago, it served well as a journal, but even more so, as an archive of our personal interaction. It was a gathering place, a confabulation instrument, a unifying force for four generations of widely dispersed and progressively prolific posterity, and their valued associates. Though it served these purposes well for many years, it eventually took a back seat to new-kids-on-the-block, Facebook, and Instagram, and was sadly forgotten.

We now move to resurrect this blog with an added functional purpose of archiving the missionary experiences of Generation 1, of their movements and activities as they participate with The Gathering of Israel in the land northward. In so doing, we hope that via their own comments and posts, this blog will again serve to gather and unify the posterity and their friends.

As in the past, that the young and vibrant may know the old and tired, that enduring bonds may be fostered and maintained, that experience and encouragement may be openly shared, that posterity may embrace truth, and that hearts may be knit together, we must resist detachment despite our geographic divergence. We shall do so here.
_____________________________________________________________

Sunday, August 30, 2009

That is ONE TOUGH POODLE...



And here I was thinking poodles were wimpy. After seeing these, I change my opinion. Please laugh, then comment.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

You will LAUGH REPEATEDLY!

Please, do yourself some good and take a look at this page of a website. I am in LOVE with the free BMW.

In my parts, craigslist is not that hilarious, but the prices people ask for icky stuff is staggering. Here is a sampling of today's harrisonburg.craigslist...





$200 for that thing- clearly in a basement for over a decade...













same as picture just a beautiful sage green color.has a "tiny" tear on the backside that can easily be repaired, other than that it's in great condition

Price $350... uh no


So... we are STILL looking for a sofa. In fact- mine looked JUST like the one above, 6 years ago...
maybe I could sell it for $350


$100 (REDUCED)












Then there was the $40 baby leash/plush backpack to make it look less leash like...





PS- this is not looking like the torture I thought of them prior to this weekend after chasing around the mobile Asher. Sheeeeesh. Can we just leave the cat food/lamp/magazines/keyboard/mouse/router... ALONE?










Our Craigslist cracks me up... dont get me started on the requests for "NEED" for "FREE"

:-D

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Assignment from Mom

Hi everyone!

I was just reading the Ensign, and was thinking that one article in particular would be good for all of us to read. The title is, "What was the best marriage advice you ever received?" It is in the Questions and Answers section, and sometimes I don't read this, but I would like to suggest that each of you couples spend some time together and decide which of these suggestions would be especially good for you to implement to strengthen your marriage. Dad and I will do the same. We are so blessed to be sealed together. We need to do our best to preserve and strengthen our marriages. "The family is ordained of God."

I love all of you.

Mom/Debby

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Divine Cosmic Creation -- The Ultimate Purpose

From the combined perspectives of the Hubble space telescope and The Pearl of Great Price. There is some serious order out there.


Matter Unorganized....

And the Lord said: Let us go down. And they went down... and they, that is the Gods, organized and formed the heavens and the earth. (Abraham 4:1)




And God Spake unto Moses saying: Behold I am the Lord God Almighty, and Enless is my name: for I am without beginning of days or end of years... Wherefore look, and I will show thee the workmanship of mine hands; but not all, for my works are without end, and also my words, for they never cease. (Moses 1: 3-4)



And...Moses cast his eyes and beheld the earth, yea even all of it; and there was not a particle of it which he did not behold, discerning it by the Spirit of God. And he beheld many lands; and each land was called earth, and there were inhabitants on the face thereof. (Moses 1:27, 29)




And by the word of my power have I created them, which is mine Only Begotten Son, who is full of grace and truth. And worlds without number have I created...And the first man of all men have I called Adam, which is many.(Moses 1:32-34)


For behold, there are many worlds that have passed away by the word of my power. And there are many that now stand. And innumerable are they unto man; but all things are numbered unto me, for they are mine and I know them. The heavens, they are many, and they cannot be numbered unto man, but they are numbered unto me, for they are mine. (Moses 1: 35, 37)


And as one earth shall pass away, and the heavens thereof even so shall another come; and there is no end to my works, neither to my words. (Moses 1:38)







And Moses beheld the world and the ends thereof, and all the children of men which are, and which were created; of the same he greatly marveled and wondered. [Thus contemplating the magnitude of God's creations, observable only through the power of His Spirit,] [Moses] said unto himself: Now for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed. (Moses 1:8,10)

And it came to pass that Moses called upon God, saying: Tell me I pray thee, why these things [creations] are so, and by what thou madest them?... Be merciful unto thy servant, O God, and tell me concerning this earth and the inhabitants thereof, an also the heavens, and then thy servant will be content. (Moses 1:30, 36)

In his Messianic Psalm, David pondered the immensity of God's creations and like Moses, wondered: "When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?" (Psalms 8:3-4)

To Moses' query the Lord provided a concise, but compelling response: ...For behold, this is my work and my glory--to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.(Moses1:39)

David's Psalm reached a similar conclusion: "For thou hast made him [man] a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet." (Psalms 8:5-6)

In latter day revelation, the Lord declares that those sufficiently faithful in this life "shall be gods, because they have no end; therefore shall they be from everlasting to everlasting, because they continue; then shall they be above all, because all things are subject unto them. Then shall they be gods, because they have all power, and the angels are subject unto them." (D&C 132:20)

He created it all for us, that we might earn immortality and eternal life.

But what of our imperfections, our mortal weaknesses and our carnal tendencies? How can He, or we possibly justify our sufficiency?

In His perfect love for us, our Father's perfect plan encompasses even those impassable barriers:

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Observations of a 6 year old...

My conversation with Grace in the car today:
We see some guy jogging down the street

Grace:  That looks like David, the one we met at Grandma's house.  He is so fun.

Me: Yeah, Abby's boyfriend David.

Grace:  Abby isn't so fun anymore.

Me: shocked  Abby is totally fun!!  You guys love playing with her!

Grace:  I know, but it's because of those shoes on her feet.  They are SOOO boring...

Children, they can be so fickle!!!

Happy Birthday Crystal





I know this will be brief (David and I are on our way to temple baptisms with our ward) , but HAPPY BIRTHDAY CRYSTAL. You are a blessing to our family, and we all hope you have a wonderful day. Crystal, sorry I don't have more pictures. I especially wish I had a picture of you now with your darling hair. If you have a picture, anyone, add it.


xoxoxo Love,


Debby and David

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Have any of you heard about NieNie?

You really should. I just learned about her through David's sister's blog. About a year ago, this woman nearly died in a plane crash. I started reading her blog today and just couldn't stop. I laughed, and I cried. It was beautiful. I am inspired by her strength, courage, and faith. She recently posted a picture of herself for the first time since the crash.

Come see her, and read her story here. And bring some tissues.

"There is in every true woman's heart a spark of heavenly fire,which lies dormant in the broad daylight of prosperity; but which kindles up and beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity." -Washington Irving

REALLY WHITE TEETH

ok, so I was looking at family pictures and Abby, Debby and Leslie have the most gorgeous, gleamingly white teeth. Do tell (pretty please) your pearly white secret!

Seriously! Your teeth are so white!


PS, I have looked at the photos at least 2 times a day since they were uploaded, I really love looking at them!

I love the one of Alex and Leslie in the romantic dipping embrace, the one of Abby and "little?" David with the sunset behind them not looking at the camera, the petti-skirts and the girls :-D
Grandma and Grandpa, particularly, when grandma is getting a kiss, ALLLLL of Becky and Ray's, the one of Dana and Jason and the squirmy kids (looks like dog pile on Colby), and the one of Colin and Lori with Jackson covering his eyes. I also like pretty much all the ones of Asher and Valerie. What a special collection those photos are . I can hardly wait to be able to post them and print them and share them with others.

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

For Next Year's Family Reunion

Everyone will be waiting in line to try this one!

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Do As I'm Doing



Look at these cute boys.


And these cute girls.


And this great family...




Friday, August 7, 2009

Year One

Time flies. It's hard to believe our little Cole is already one year old. Since the day he was born he has made our home a happier place. His bright blue eyes and big smile will always make our days brighter. We are so grateful he is our son.












































Thursday, August 6, 2009

Does this look familiar to you?!



Valerie is going to see her dad for the first time since Easter weekend and he is buying her some school clothes... Anyway, we were looking at some of the things that are popular now and this is from JCPenny. I am like SERIOUSLY I should have saved her my middle school things. She actually has some (ridiculous) shoes with the "shades" on them that she spent her last dollars on from the great American Girl sell off.

And then there is this:






Valerie bought it at the beginning of the summer with her AG money and I REMEMBER doing a dance routine to "True Blue" by Madonna in 6th grade wearing an outfit almost identical.









Anyway, is anyone else seeing a return of the totally awesome dudette 80s?

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Perfect!

I read Pastor Ryan's blog every time he updates. He is one cool dude. He cooks, he is an amazing photographer, he has tons of colorful tattoos, he LOVES his family like the best kind of man should AND he is a pastor. He is the daddy to a new baby boy. Read what he has to say about that. It made me smile repeatedly.

PS, he had a great post about tithing last week. One of the comments was spot-on "The way a person feels about tithing says a lot about their attitude toward money." Profound, I tell you.

Actually, I was wondering (randomly) if David ever found his lost hearing aid 2 years ago?

Also, was someone saying that GPAs are adversely affected by facebook? That puzzled me, so I looked it up (not on SNOPES) and could not find anything about it except "dont get addicted" advise columns, BUT! I did find that it INCREASES work productivity. Whodathunk? I have been on since 2005 when it started up, but I never really spend too much time on there, however, half my family is on now, and high school friends... it has been really neat looking at people's families!

There was another random thought, but it has been replaced by emptiness. More later, I am sure.




Monday, August 3, 2009

Nuestro Segundo Aniversario

Someday we'll have a blog of our own where I can post my cheesy posts and not bother anyone. Until then, you'll all have to put up with them.

What a crazy-fun ride the last 2 years (plus 1.5 of dating) have been. It's emocionante to think about where we've been during the last few years, not just physically but spiritually, mentally...all of it.

Here's our list (in alphabetical order):
Anxious, USA
Bangkok, Thailand Cancun, MX
Cascade, ID
Charlottsville, VA
Cleveland, OH
Ciudad Juarez, MX
Content, MX
Excited, Asia
Frustrated, TX
Grateful, Alwaysville

Happy, ID
Hermosillo, MX
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Hopelessly-in-love, CA
Hong Kong
Humbled, MX
Laredo, TX
Los Angeles, CA
Maui, HI
Miami, FL
Monterrey, MX
Nervous, FL
Nervous, MX
Oahu, HI
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
San Antonio, TX
San Francisco, CA
Sao Paulo, Brazil
Tired, Everywhere
Tulsa, OK
Washington D.C.
Worried, Oftenville
Yuma, AZ

As crazy as it's been, I wouldn't change anything. I hope our adventures continue forever! I love you honey! Happy Anniversary!