This is what happens when your kids wear the same size clothes.
I did NOT put that on him, he did it himself.
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March 13, 2009: I dedicate this post to Wendy, perhaps jessiewessie.com's
one true Fanatic. I haven't posted all week because I was tired of posting about gloom and
doom, but after posting so much gloom I suppose I owe the readers an update. So Seth went to
the doctor on Monday and he has double ear infections. He was given a shot of antibiotic and
then put on another one. I had no idea his ears hurt. The doc said on a pain scale he was
at 7 out of 10. Ouchie! So I guess he had the flu + the ear problems. Holy cow was he sick
and was I worried! He is just now starting to eat again and acting like himself. He is sleeping
lots and has horrible coughing fits, but at least I don't find him laying on the floor in random
places just staring and he no longer moans with every breath he takes as he's sleeping. Now
Maybe is sick. Not nearly as bad though. She was running a temp so I took her to the doctor
on Tuesday. Her ears were cloudy but not red and infected. She's also got the coughs and a
really bad runny nose. I have to clean her out so she can nurse and breath at the same time. He
gave me an antibiotic for her but I haven't filled it yet. She hasn't been messing with her
ears so I thought I would wait. I don't think she'll need it. I've been feeling crappy all
week too. My ears hurt and I'm too embarrassed to go back to the doctor for a third time so I'm going
to stick it out a little while longer. Do adults really get ear infections? I thought when you
hit puberty you were done with those. I know we've taken some pictures of the kiddos this week
but I think they're all on Ryan's phone so I'll have to post them later. Today we went to Costco
to buy milk and bread and fish. Ohhhhhhh...it was so nice to get out of the house and into a
store. I HATE being cooped up and I really havn't been anywhere except to the doctor's office
since Saturday. I cannot wait for a warm day so I can take the kiddos outside to play.
March 9, 2009: Happy Birthday Sariah!! Well, Seth is super duper
sick. He is so sick he was moaning with each breath he took last night and I was up the entire
night worried sick about him. He's been running a fever since Thursday night, has been
throwing up since Thursday night, and has eaten maybe the equivalent of a piece of bread (and
after each little time he has tried to eat thrown it up) and has drank a sippy cup or two worth of
liquid since Thursday night and has thrown all of that up. I'm telling ya, one sick dood. I called
my nurse friend this morning and she said I should definately take him to the doctor (yeah, I
shouldn't need someone to tell me that. I just don't want to be that mom...the one who takes
her kids to the doctor constantly and unecessarily) so he's got an appointment at 10:45 am. I
hope the doctor can do something to make my little buddy feel better.
March 8, 2009: Happy Birthday Brooklyn!! Still sick today.
Poor Sethie! I think Maybe is going to be next. She's starting to cough. Last night Seth's
temp was 104. So so sick. This time last year Seth had the flu too.
Last years flu
March 7, 2009: It's official. Seth has the flu. He's been
throwing up since Thursday night (why do kids wait and throw up in bed?). Wanna know the
sad thing? I still took Seth to his first day of swim lessons this morning. He wanted
to go and he was acting fine. He did so good. He learned how to put his head under water
and even jumped from the side of the pool and went all the way under. I was so proud of him!
Anyway, so here we all sit watching Horton Hears a Who. I'm coughing, Mabes is starting to
cough, and of course Seth is coughing like crazy. It is kinda nice to have a lazy day where
we are expected to watch movies. Seth's new favorite place to play right now is in Maybe's
crib. He can get in and out by himself. Ryan snapped this photo yesterday. You can't look at
it and not say, "Ahhhhhh, how cute".
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March 6, 2009: What did you do on your Friday night? Did you
have a hot date? Perhaps eat some good food, maybe play some fun games? Wanna know what I
did on my Friday night? Well I'll tell ya anyway. I mopped the kitchen/dining room TWICE.
No no, I'm no Kate Gosselin cleaning freak, I'm normal. Here's the story. Seth has been
sick for a week or so now. Last night he had a fever and threw-up a few times. Today he
threw-up three times...all in the kitchen. So after dinner was cleaned up I decided to mop
because ew, throw-up had been on the floor recently and I was just tired of stepping in little
sticky spots from leaking cups. Seth had been asking for a root beer for a while and Ryan
kept telling him no because he was sick and he didn't want him to throw it up and after Seth came to
me holding a can of it I told him he could have it because he was sick and hadn't really eaten
anything all day. Well, I had just LITERALLY placed the mop
in the pantry and was giddy because the floor was finally sticky free and was telling Seth I
would get him a sippy cup when I heard a noise. I'm not too descriptive with my words so I'll just tell
you. It was the sound of a root beer can hitting the floor from about ohhhh two and a half
feet and then the SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS as said can of root beer began spinning and spewing
root beer EVERYWHERE. It went EVERYWHERE. Three-quarters up the wall. Cabinets, appliances,
everything in the pantry, anything sitting on the counters and tables covered in root beer.
If you've been to my house you can visualize this when I tell you it even made it into the
top of the stairwell of the basement. The entire 20 seconds or so it took for the can to stop
exploding was in complete slow motion for me. I was yelling "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" at the
top of my lungs and Seth was, well, he was laughing....hard. Once I was able to stop yelling
and Ryan came to see the commotion and I saw him I wasn't sure if I was going to cry or laugh.
It turns out I laughed. Good thing the little dood was there laughing otherwise it would have
been tears. You see, as I have complained in a few previous posts I too have been sick and
the thought of all that clean up was just too much. Oh well, at least it wasn't one of my
precious Dr. Peppers.
March 5, 2009: It has finally happened. I know the names of
all the Wiggles and I have decided that Sam Wiggle is the least creepy of all of them. Who's
with me?
March 4, 2009: You can't miss this extreme cuteness!
March 3, 2009: Once again I tried calling in sick this morning
but the boss wouldn't have any of that. I simply suggested that Ryan take the kiddos to
work with him today so I could rest. Geez, I don't know why he didn't go for it. Well, I
couldn't take another day of watching my kids watching TV all day long so we decided to venture
out. The past couple of days it's actually been quite warm, upper 60's, but the darn wind
ruined any quality outside time. So where do most stay at home moms go when they need to
venture out? Target. So off we went with an actual agenda. The kiddos needed swimsuits
for their aforementioned swim lessons. Luckily they were both a pretty easy find.
Seth tried on last years swimsuit and it just seemed a bit
tight. It didn't help that he was trying it on over some shorts. Seth has come really close
to being able to dress himself.
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Maybe's new suit.
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I got the one with the skirt because...well...I also have
chunky monkey thighs so I wear a skirt. I thought it was the kind thing to do.
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After Target I wasn't feeling too good so I thought lunch at Wendy's sounded nice. Mostly cuz
I wouldn't have to make anything or clean anything up.
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And now on to randomness. Look at the following picture. Look hard. Do you see it? Do you
see the beautiful hair that is Maybe's? Yessssss. Success! Proof that she won't be bald forever!
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Mabes is content to play by herself at the park these days.
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Have you ever seen anything so adorable? (the girl not the mom)
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We were walking home after the park and as we were approaching
the back of our house it just seemed so massive to me. That grass is a hill so from where
we were standing the house just seemed so incredibly tall. We really do live in an
incredible house with an amazing view and backyard.
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And to end my randomness here is a picture of my dinner the
other night. Isn't it just so beautiful? It was delicious as well. Who knew I could create
such a culinary masterpiece?
March 2, 2009: I tried calling in sick today but it didn't work.
I guess that's what happens when you're the mom. Seth and Ryan just finished being sick
so I guess it's my turn. I just signed the kiddos up for swim lessons. I'm so excited for them!
Seth had a good time last year when he was just 10 months old so I'm sure he'll love them
even more this year. Seth has been "trying" to take a nap for the last hour and now he's
standing at his door saying, "Mommy come out", "Mommy I done". So I guess I best go and get
the little guy.
February 24, 2009: We just got back from an hour and forty minutes
at the park. I can't wait for Spring!
First time on the big boy swings.
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Cakes
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Seth is hard core with his tats and guitar.
February 23, 2009: I called it! I didn't realize Seth had
a cookie with him last night when we put him in the car and so his side of the car is again filthy.
Oh well. Seth's favorite new question is, "Who's that?". "Who's that" refers to "who's that"
and "what's that". That's fine he's so curious except when we're watching TV he wants to know
who each and every person on each and every commercial is. You can imagine how quickly that
gets old. Tonight for dinner: Orange juice pork chops in the crocker. I love dinner I can
make in the crocker.
The snow is melting. Do ya'll know what that means? This is
the awesome view I will soon have from my back windows. They've shown up every year that I've
lived here.
February 22, 2009: Happy Birthday Jen Jen! Happy Birthday Aunt
Larae! I made some killer broccoli cheese chowder for lunch. Ryan made some killer bread
bowls to put it in. Seth was awake until 1 am this morning so he and Ryan stayed home from
church. It gave me some one-on-one time with the Mabes.
February 21, 2009: I went to a new grocery store today. Interesting.
I really felt out of sorts. The employees were super friendly. I like that in a store. We
ran into Uncle Nate and friends so me and the kiddos decided to eat lunch with them.
That was fun. Uncle Nate is friendly with a lot of old ladies.
Seth has been wearing me and Ryan's beanies lately. This picture is Seth at library
time wearing mine. I think he looks like a hoodlum...oh well. It keeps his ears warm.
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I bought Maybe two new pacifiers today. That was pretty uneventful news.
Yesterday me and the kiddos ended up at the park. We were out for a walk and Seth saw it and
was DYING to go so I said why not. There were lots of kids there and we ran into some friends.
Okay, so you have to understand that I forget sometimes that Mabes is 8 months old. I forget
that she's not a teeny tiny baby anymore. So, I put Seth in the swings and left Maybe in the
stroller while Seth had a giggle fest swinging away. Then it dawns on me...Maybe would LOVE to
swing. I had Seth in the swings when he was a lot smaller than her. Anyway, here's Maybe in
the swing for the first time.
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You're going to read this and think I'm totally lame...but when I looked up and saw both of my
babies swinging next to each other having such a good time I got a little teary. Just look
at those kiddos. They're all mine! I am so incredibly lucky.
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February 20, 2009: Today I cleaned out the car. I don't know if the car
had a smell, but I assume it must have with all the stuff I vacuumed up and the old spilt milk I washed
out. How embarrassing...I had smelly car. It's really not that big of a deal because I rarely take any
passengers with me just because with two car seats there's not a lot of leftover space. However, the cousin Nen
recently drove it and I was slightly embarrassed at the mess. Well no embarrassment here anymore! It is clean...at
least until the next time the boy rides in it.
I love my car. Seriously, true love going on here.
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February 19, 2009: The girl turned 8 months old yesterday. Wow,
she's been around for 8 months. We are so lucky. The boy went on antibiotics again this afternoon. I think
he has taken them every other month since fall. Hum...perhaps there's a correlation between
starting nursery in the Fall and his sickness's. We spend a lot of time watching TV. I hope
it's due to the cold weather. We don't always watch TV. We go to the library each Friday.
We put on snow clothes and play out front. Yesterday Rilyn played with us. Several neighbors
and me talk about getting together. Someday we actually will. Or perhaps we won't. I made stew
for dinner last night. We're eating it again tonight. For being super ghetto Allen's has a
delicious bakery and I got some delicious french bread to eat with the stew. My stew had
onions and celery in it. Ryan's didn't. I often make two batches of everything...one for
me and Seth and one for Ryan. Sure it's extra work but it doesn't feel like it because I'm
doing for someone I love.
The Girl, Brand new
February 17, 2009: Valentine's Day was a super duper day. Ryan booked
two babysitters so we could spend most of the day alone together. First, we woke up and exchanged our
homemade Valentine's, had a small breakfast and got ready for the day. Our first babysitter watched the
kiddos so we could go out to lunch. We had such a nice time with no sticky fingers touching us begging
for food or having drinks spilled all over us. Then babysitter #2 (aka Grampa) came so we could go to the
movies. It was pretty funny when Grampa showed up because he was wearing the exact same shirt as Ryan.
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Valentine's didn't end there. The cousins came over and after putting all the kids down we watched "An Affair
To Remember". Ahhhh...I love that movie. It was a wonderful day spent mostly with just my sweetheart.
February 12, 2009: 4 bedrooms, 3 1/2 bathrooms, 1 living room, 1
family room, 1 kitchen, 1 dining room, 1 laundry room. Please tell me why a house that is as
spacious as ours always seems too small. I know there are families bigger than ours living
with less so I am grateful for what we have. Perhaps it's just the cold wintery days and
feeling cooped up that has me going stir crazy. Also, what is so appealing about 'mom and dads'
bedroom? For some reason a certain little boy is constantly bringing stuff into our room. I
am so tired of tripping on toys in the middle of the night and trying to figure out which
clothes (his and ours) are actually clean and which ones he pulled from the dirties. Sometimes I
feel like I must be doing double the necessary laundry for that reason. Oh well. How would
I fill my days if I didn't have so much laundry to look at and think about doing?
February 11, 2009: I suppose today I will just write about randomness.
I'm not sure I really have much to share. Life has been uneventful, yet busy. The other night
I took Seth to the Wal-Mart and called it a date and today he still mentions his Wal-Mart date.
As mentioned before I have been painting the house. In my attempt to spruce up the house I have
been trying to decorate a little bit. Here's what I've come up with in the kitchen so far.
I think I'm going for Cafe in Paris. That's right, I said
I think. I'm not really all that great at the home decorating thing.
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I'm particulary proud of the flower arrangement I made.
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Mabes all warmed up after her bath the other night.
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Speaking of Mabes, what an awesome little girl. Her hair
is quickly getting longer and fuller. For some reason she doesn't roll over. She has
done it before so I know she can. She's started babbling more coherently (if that makes
any sense at all). It sounds like she's said ma-ma-ma and da-da-da. She definately has
a voice. She's our very loud child.
I decided we've been eating out way too much so I've started
cooking every night (that would explain the previous dinner menu post). I've actually had
a lot of fun trying out new recipes. They've all been winners so far. My absolute favorite though
was sweet and sour pork and chinese fried rice. Oh my gosh it was good.
On to myself. Just recently I have lost enough weight to
fit into a lot of my clothes that I haven't been able to wear since shortly after we got married.
It's so fun to have a wardrobe again. I now weigh less than I did when I got pregnant with
Seth and I'm real close to my wedding weight. Why am I rambling on about my weight you may ask?
I know you folks don't care. It's more because it has felt nostalgic wearing these clothes I
haven't for so long. I look at them (so many of them are from high school and college days) and
I feel 23 again. When I picture myself I still see a 23 year old then I see what actaully
stares back at me in the mirror and I see someone much more aged. I know I'm not old, but I'm always
sooooo tired, have no energy, haven't been out on the town without the constant stress of "are
my babies okay" since Seth was born. Motherhood has aged me. But in my mind I will always
be 23. I wonder as I look at these clothes if I need to grow up and dress my age. What does someone
my age dress like? I sure hope dressing my age includes my Cocoa Puffs shirt.
February 2, 2009:
Sunday: Chicken & Asparagus Risotto
Monday: Seafood Lasagna
Tuesday: Leftovers
Wednesday: Sukiyaki
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: Leftovers
Saturday: Sandwiches
Sunday: Hawaiian Chicken
Monday: Potato Cheese Soup
I'm curious...what do y'all eat for dinner? I know I know, post would be so much better
with pictures but by the time I think about it the food doesn't look so presentable. I'll
work on it.
January 27, 2009: Sorry Fanatics for my lack in keeping up with
the website. Life has just been too busy to sit here and write. So you'd think I'd have
lots to write about, but I don't. However, I thought I'd throw you out some bones so here you
go in no particular order.
One of the reasons I've been so busy is I've been painting
the house. I started with the half bath, moved to the dining room, then kitchen, then last
night Ryan helped me do most of the living room. I'm so impressed I've been able to do this
all while taking care of two babies. Anyway, the reason I mention this is for the following photo.
What's under your fridge after 5 years?
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Seth must have gotten ahold of the camera.
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How long is it okay to put Brother and Sister in the tub together?
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Diapers...soooo many diapers. When I see pictures like this of
myself I see how tired and aged I have become. I wouldn't trade it for anything though!
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Ryan's company Christmas party.
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Yummy burgers.
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Super yummy breadtwists Ryan made.
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Cousins playing together at the park (Rilyn, Taylor, Seth).
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Grampa Johnson, Rosie, Ellie, Maybe. Try and get them all
to look at the camera at the same time...I dare you!
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Seth's most recent haircut. Such a handsome dood!
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Isn't she just so darn cute?
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January 9, 2009: Geez, where do I begin. I'm so far behind on updating
what our family has been doing. I've come to realize there's just not enough time to do everything I would
like to do and so updating my website usually takes a backseat. Anyway I've got lots of pictures to share to
make up for not posting pictures for a while.
Christmas!! I know I posted about my lack of enthusiasm for the holiday
this year but on Christmas morning I was so excited and had a wonderful day. We started at our own house, went up
to be with the Sorensen's for dinner and gift exchange and then up to Gramma and Grampa Johnson's to finish the day. I don't really go for the whole
wake up at 4:00 am and tear into presents because I want the magic and anticipation of Christmas to last as long
as possible. We didn't start opening presents until after 11:00.
Seth's Christmas breakfast (fancy, I know).
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We finished reading from our scripture chart before opening presents.
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Not a bad picture of both kiddos.
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Uncle Nate spent Christmas morning with us. Thanks Uncle Nate!
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My favorite present of the day. It was a total surprise. Thanks Santa!
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You know Seth likes this present because he rarely smiles like that.
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Mabes was soooo cute when she opened her Cabbage Patch Doll, Nancie. Her
and Nancie are best friends.
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Gramma and Grampa Johnson's
Seth and Ellie were excited to see each other.
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You wouldn't know it looking at Uncle Nate and Unlce Nick's faces, but these two must
be brothers...look at how they are standing.
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Mom and Seth
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Mom and Mabes
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Dad and Mabes
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What baby doesn't think the paper is the best part of Christmas?
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I know this isn't the best quality picture, but I thought it was
funny that Maren was so hungry so was more interested in eating Mabes than smiling for the picture.
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Seth trying out his new snowpants, mittens and boots.
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We really did have a wonderful Christmas day. It was long and busy
but we loved every moment of it. We're just sorry we couldn't be with the Indiana cousins because we sure missed them!
Thanks to everyone who made it a special and fun day!
Moving past Christmas...
Seth looking handsome.
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I finally started Mabes on solids. Don't let this picture fool you.
She is not a big fan of anything I've fed her yet.
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Alright, start judging us as parents. We got home around
9:00 pm the other night and there was so much fresh beautiful powder on the the ground and I couldn't resist.
We bundled up the kiddos and went playing in the snow. Just playing wasn't enough. We decided to take
Sethie sledding out in our back yard (thanks Nen for watching Mabes). I told Seth we were the coolest
parents ever because all the other little kiddos his age were in bed.
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Isn't he handsome? I actually took this picture because
of the hairdo he was sportin'. Look closely. How does one sleep to wake up looking like that?
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Mabes sportin' her vintage yellow pants. I think
she looks super duper cute!
December 22, 2008: Sorry, another pictureless post. We just
got back from Mabes' 6 month check up. She is weighing in at a whopping 18 lbs 13 ozs and is
26 1/2 inches tall. She's definately topping the charts for weight. When Sethie was her age
the Dr. was worried that his weight was too low so Mabes wins in the weight category. The doctor
said there's no rush to start her on solids so I think I'm gonna wait. Nursing exclusively is
just so darn easy and convenient. She's healthy and well and we're sure lucky to have her in our
family!
December 21, 2008: I'm not sure a lot of people are willing to admit this, but I have had
a hard time getting in the Christmas Spirit this year. All things Christmas have really been a struggle for me to enjoy and usually
I am totally excited and can't wait for Santa to bring me a jazillion things and I love guessing my presents for weeks before and I love
shopping for others and I'm totally organized and on top of things. This year, it's a few days before Christmas and I know there's lots
to be done still but I have no desire to do these things. There are a few reasons I can think of that have caused me to feel this way
(I'll keep those private), but it's just a drag. Oh well. Enough complaining. I don't want to drag anyone else into this Grinch like mood
I'm in. I have had a fun time watching Sethie discover Christmas and all that it entails. On a happier note, here's a few pictures of
the cute ones.
Mabes' first time in the high chair even though she hasn't eaten any solids yet. I just
thought I'd see how she likes it. She turned 6 months old a few days ago and we really should start her on solids but I'm delaying it
as long as possible because it sure is nice just to nurse her and not worry about jars of baby food and such. It's more of a lazy
thing than anything. Also, she's so chunky I'm not too worried about her getting nutrition.
All dressed up in their Christmas best. So we couldn't get a picture of them
both smiling at the same time so I chose the picture where Seth was smiling since I have so many of Mabes smiling. It was a miracle
that he was willing to sit next to her and let us take any pictures. They are both looking up because I'm behind the camera
man trying to make them laugh.
December 20, 2008: Last night I was Forever In Blue Jeans
with Mr. Diamond himself. Merry Christmas to me! I went with my mom-in-law and we had a super
fun time. I didn't make it back home until 2:30 am! I don't have any pictures unfortunatly so
sorry for a pictureless post!
December 18, 2008: HAPPY JESS-MAS EVERYONE! Confused? Look Here. I can't
remember for sure but I think Jess-mas was created in 2004. I'll check my sources and let you
know if I'm wrong. Jess-mas has nothing to do with Christmas and is in no way competing with
our Savior's birth. Jess-mas is simply a fun, donut filled day created by the donuts #1 fan.
Jess-mas 2006
December 6, 2008: We've had a busy weekend starting last night
by attending The Living Nativity here in our town. When the three wise men came out on stage
Sethie started saying, "Wise Guys Wise Guys". I thought it was hilarious and couldn't figure
out how he knew about the wise men. Turns out Ryan told him they were "wise guys". Afterwards we got to pet a camel, Seth
sat on a donkey, and pet some sheep. The camel was so fun and surprisingly soft. Then this morning
we went to the children's parade downtown. It was very cold but also very fun.
Parade
Ward Christmas Party
Taylor, Jess, Rilyn
Seth making a friend
Seth upset we took him from his new friend
December 2, 2008: I woke up from a little nap
this morning to Seth handing me my glasses. If you can't tell the frame is
severely bent. Having a one year old is awesome (said dripping with sarcasm). I
really do love the little guy, just not all of his destruction. I love those
glasses so much and was even willing tape them together so I could keep wearing
them. No worries though. The eye glass lady was able to bend them back, with the
warning that the metal can't handle another twisting and will break pretty
easily. Sigh.
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December 1, 2008:
Maybe
Like Father Like Son. I did not plant the magazine.
I put Seth up on the pottie and went back to check on him and found this.
BYU Superfan
Not for the squemish. I just couldn't pass
up the opportunity to document my chunky monkey Maybe.
Seth didn't want to take his nap so we fed
him lunch instead. He didn't get very far.
We spent Thanksgiving with the Johnsons. We did
a progressive dinner starting at our house and ending up at cousin Brindy's. It was a good
day.
A rare picture of Ryan's parents and aunts and uncles (Dee and Dale,
Terresa and David, Brenda and Tom).
Seth and his cousin Taylor hit it off really well
on Thanksgiving. I've never seen Seth have so much fun playing with another kid before. Taylor is
only 6 months older than Seth. Here they are playing a little "Ring Around the Rosies".
So now I get to brag a little bit. Seth has always
been very good at talking. He said his first word at 6 months and has really never stopped. He's saying
sentences and knows more words than I can count. I'm just gonna say it...My Sethie is a smartie
pants. Not only can he speak really well, but he knows and can sing most of the alphabet and can even
recognize letters such as 'S', 'H', 'Q', and others. Remember, the kid is only 19 months old. To really
brag about my kiddo here is a video of him counting to 10. Yes, he can count to 10. Can we say
medical school by the age of 8?
Maybe's doing really well also. She is my little
drool factory. I haven't seen any teeth yet so I'm not sure they are coming anytime soon. Perhaps
she's just ready to eat some solid food. She can sit up by herself, supervised, because she will
still fall over after a bit. I can tell she is really enjoying her new skill. She is getting
more interactive and likes playing with toys and loves being read to. She certainly is growing up fast!
We start them early around here with computers. Actually, when I walked
into the room Mabes totally looked like she was working hard on a document but then when she saw me
taking her picture she smiled at me.
I've decided that we win for the very first tree up this year (POST THANKSGIVING. VERY IMPORTANT
TO NOTE THAT IT DOESN'T COUNT UNLESS IT'S AFTER THANKSGIVING). I woke up on Friday morning and Ryan
had already put the tree up. I was shocked and excited. I think the real reason he did it was because I was
threatening not to do a tree this year because it seems like I do all the work each year and it makes me
grumpy. Anyway, because the tree was up it kicked in my Christmas spirit and I spent the rest of the
day decorating.
Our house from the outside.
Even Teddy dressed up.
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November 17, 2008: This happened a while ago and I've been meaning to scan the document (with Ryan's permission)
but you know, two babies under two. Anyway, it was a little tense in our house because it was night time and both kiddos were
screaming as Ryan was changing diapers and I had had a really hard long day and so I wasn't going in Maybe's room to help Ryan with the kids because I just needed
a few minutes to breath. As soon as the diapers were changed Ryan brought the babies into our room where I was and walked out and slammed the door, or
so I thought. He had brought the kids to me because he needed a second to breath but I thought he was really mad at me for not helping and that's why
he slammed the door. I put the kids to bed by myself and then went back to our room feeling really bad because I thought Ryan was really mad at me. A
few minutes later he comes up and acts as though nothing is wrong. Long story short, he wasn't mad and he didn't mean to slam the door. Our window was
open and that's what made the door slam. So I got upset and he had no idea anything was wrong. I'm sure every married couple has little misunderstandings like this. I'm not trying to air our dirty laundry, I just thought that
what he handed me was too funny.
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November 8, 2008: Today marks the one year
anniversary of Ryan's brain surgery. I cannot express enough my gratitude to
Heavenly Father for allowing me and the kids more time on earth with Ryan. He is
such a blessing in our lives. The kiddies adore him and he is a wonderful
provider for all of us. We may not be millionaires and never will be but we
already have much more than we deserve. As I think back to that awful time in
July of 2007 that we found out about Ryan's "tumor" (I'm calling it that to make
things more simple. If you don't know what I'm talking about refer back to the
Archives link.) I think of what a dark and dreary day that was for us. Many
tears of fear were shed from me and I looked at my then 3 month old baby
wondering how I can do all that I needed to do alone. I've never before known
what it meant to actuallly feel the prayers of others until I knew that people
were praying for me and my family at this time. Ryan and I had decided that we
were going to do another procedure instead of the brain surgery which was a lot
simpler but as we went to the temple to confirm our decision Heavenly Father
strongly told us both that we needed to go with the more difficult and painful
surgery. I don't want to know what would have happened this last year if we
didn't excerise extreme faith and follow the Lord. I didn't know at the time
that everything was going to be okay just because we knew surgery was the way to
go. I remember a few hours into the actual surgery I was in the waiting room and
I just couldn't take it anymore. I wanted to stand up and just scream. The pain
and fear of what I was going through was too much. I was pushed to my absolute
limit. It was then that the most clear voice came to me and said, "Ryan is fine.
Everything is going to be fine." I felt arms wrap around me as this was said. I
was immediately calmed and a feeling of peace came over me that I hadn't felt in
many months. I cannot and will not ever deny that there is a Heavenly Father who
created us and watches over each and every one of us, members of my faith or
not. As an update, Ryan is still doing pretty good a year later. As far as we
know he lost no functioning or memory. He does occasionally have pain in his
head where the "tumor" was. Last night it was pretty bad. It's not a headache
but a pain. I think I'm going to have him go in for a follow-up appointment just
to make sure it's normal. Like I said, we have truly been blessed far beyond
what we deserve. Oh, sorry for no photos with this post. If you want some just
go look at the Archives page.
November 5, 2008: Aw man! Seth has bronchitis.
He isn't acting sick though. It's more of an aw man because I have to remember
to give him his antibiotic twice a day and am constantly fighting him to wipe
his nose and I just realized I had one of his boogers on me. Gross! I told Ryan
I don't want to be the mommy anymore. Anyway, here's our happy
family.
Maybe
Seth
Ryan
Jessica
So in the last few days Seth has
started speaking in small sentences. It floors me because most 18 month olds I know
barely know three or four words. So some of his sentences have been, "I see ____." (obviously
he tells me what he sees), "I need ____."(tells us what he needs), and there's another one that
he uses quite frequently but we can't think of it and he's not awake so I'll have to wait until tomorrow.
What a smartie pants! Here's a video of Seth eating dinner and having a conversation with mom and
dad tonight. Enjoy!
November 1, 2008: What a fun Halloween we had!
It all started a week ago Saturday with our ward chili cook-off and
trick-or-treat. Me and Ryan spent the Friday night before chopping and sauteeing
and seasoning so we could enter chili into the contest. The ward only gave an
award for first place so we have no idea where we placed. It doesn't really
matter because me and Ryan had a blast cooking together. Halloween itself was
quite busy. We started out by dressing up and going to storytime at the library.
Next it was off to dad's office for trick-or-treating, games and donuts and
apple juice. This gave the kiddos a chance to see their uncle Nate. After the
office it was off to Gramma and Grampa Johnson's for a quick visit. Gramma
Johnson took Sethie to a few neighbors' houses for some trick-or-treating. Last,
it was home for some neighborhood trick-or-treating and handing out candy. We
gave out all but a few pieces of candy and came home with more than we bought so
we feel like we had a good Halloween when it comes to candy. I think Halloween
is so fun. I used to like the scary aspect of it but now that I have kiddos I
just love all the fun activities and a chance to use my sewing skills (thanks
mom!) to make fun costumes.
Ward activity
Storytime at the library
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Daddy's office
Gramma and Grampa Johnson's house
It is so hard to get Sethie to smile for pictures so
Gramma was dancing behind Grampa who was holding the camera and that's why we are all looking up. I had
to post this picture to prove that Seth does indeed smile.
Trick-or-treating back in our own neighborhood
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October 28, 2008: I took the kiddos to the Living
Planet Aquarium today. It's not that big but there were some neat things inside
such as three types of jellyfish, sharks, eels and a sting ray petting area. I
think sting rays are absolutely disgusting so I had no part in petting them
which means Sethie missed out on it too. Perhaps next time daddy will come with
us and help Seth with that. I liked how in front of all the aquariums they had
built a ledge so little kids could see too. It made taking both kids by myself a
lot easier. Also, it wasn't too crowded so Seth was able to run around and
explore a little on his own. They had a whole section dedicated to the Utah
water ecosystems so it was interesting to see what's floating around in our
lakes and rivers. For $8 I think it was a fun couple of hours for me and the
kids and would recommend others go and see it at least once. Remember for those
who have been to great aquariums such as The Shedd Aquarium not to have your
expectations too high. I really didn't take many pictures because, well, I had
two kids under two to take care of.
It looks a little dumpy on the outside but it's pretty nice on the inside.
A boat that let's you drive out onto The Great Salt Lake and learn about different things.
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Jellyfish
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Mabes was there too!
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Afterwards I took the kiddos for a hot dog on a stick and lemonade
Mabes again!
October 26, 2008: Here's some pictures from tonight's October Sorensen Family Party.
Maybe and my cousin Chloe. Mabes is just 3 weeks older than Chloe.
The boys playing piano: Seth, Batman (aka Nathan) and Noah
Hmmmmm....I thought I took more pictures than that. Oh well.
Well, here's a picture from last nights ward Halloween party. I did take lots of pictures there but I don't
want to ruin the Halloween costumes surprise so I'll post those pictures later. However, this one of Ms. Rilyn
Johnson is too cute not to post.
Rilyn Johnson
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October 20, 2008: This morning both kiddos had their well baby checks. Since
both needed shots Ryan came with me. Seth is doing great. He weighs 27.6 pounds and is 33 inches tall. The doctor
was surprised at how much Seth could talk and was using some more difficult words. After the doctor
gagged him when he was looking down Seth's throat Seth said, "choke". What a smartie pants. Maybe weighed
in at 16 lbs. 6 oz. and is 25 inches tall. She's 95% for weight and 75% for height. He said she's also
doing great. I love uneventful check-ups. Both kids cried when we layed them on the table to get their
shots but as soon as we picked them up they both stopped immediately. I think it's so funny they are more
concerned about being forced to lay down then to be poked by sharp needles. Anyway, it's not fun to
have to have two kids get shots in one day but I'm glad they're little troopers about it. I couldn't get either
one of them to let me take a decent pictures of their bandaids. They both have them on both of their little (or
not so little in Maybe's case) legs.
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October 19, 2008: Yesterday our family went to
Hee Haw Farm. We had a ton of fun and hope to make it a yearly Fall
tradition. We spent about four hours there so we did so much more than the pictures I have posted
below. If you live near this place you really should take your kiddos.
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This huge hay slide was Seth's favorite attraction
at the farm. The steps to get to the top of the slide were hay bales and me and Ryan took turns carrying
Seth to the top slowly because we're old and carrying a baby as little kids were running up past us. I
sure felt old and out of shape. I sure can't wait until Seth can do these things by himself, although
then what will be my excuse to go down the slide? I must admit that I had as much fun as Sethie did going down.
Even Mabes and Mom got in on the fun. Yes, Mabes is sitting all by herself.
It really is quite fun to sit in a huge pit of corn kernals.
I'm pretty sure goats are Seth's favorite animal. Anytime
we go to see animals he seems to like to touch and watch the goats the most. It was hard to get him out
of the goats shed. There were chickens and pigs and a calf as well but Seth didn't seem to care. In fact,
the calf was sorta sitting in Seth's way of finding a goat so he simply grabbed the cow by the head and moved
its head out of his way so he could move along. I love that Seth is not afraid to touch the animals.
What a big boy riding the train all by himself!
The last activity of the day was a hay ride out to the pumpkin patch. Seth
picked out his very own pumpkin. I've spent the last day convincing Seth not to take a bite out of it.
October 17, 2008: Our family went out to dinner
tonight. Seth's meal came with a fun little dessert. It was a cup of chocolate
dirt with a gummy worm. There was chocolate EVERYWHERE after Seth insisted on
feeding himself. Seth's shirt and pants were covered in goo and neither me nor
Ryan wanted to pick him up so I did what had to be done. I stripped the poor boy
down to his onesie (thankfully he was wearing a onesie) and tennies. Lucky us we
were sitting in the far back corner of the restaurant and so Seth proudly walked
out of the restaurant oblivious to the chuckles from the fellow restaurant
patrons.
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Perhaps the only picture of me and my babies together
October 15, 2008:
Seth refuses to smile for pictures.
Here's what Mabes was up to today.
October 14, 2008: Seth has been trying for a
while now to jump and tonight he finally got both feet off the ground. Yea for
Seth! On a not as fun note, we are all sick and or getting sick or getting over
being sick. Ryan woke up Sunday feeling crummy and took the day off work
yesterday. Last night I started to feel crummy and both kiddos now have the
sneezes and runny noses and did not sleep well last night which means I did not
sleep well last night. Ryan is so great though and let me sleep in until 2:00 PM
today while he took care of the kiddos. I'm very grateful because I'm not a very
nice sick mommy. Also, our hometeachers were suppose to come tonight (we've
already rescheduled from last Tuesday) so we once again had to ask them not to
come. One of the teachers is in Culinary school and brought us by these pumpkin
cheesecake bars. Mmmmmmmm.
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October 13, 2008: So I did it. I know there were many out there who
thought I'd never be strong enough for this, but it is done.
Before:
During:
After:
The after pictures really aren't that great but it is so hard to take pictures of Seth. Those of
you who live close by will see just how handsome the little dood is with his new haircut.
I didn't actually cry at the hair place, but yesterday and this morning while I was thinking about doing
it I shed a few tears. I enjoyed washing his hair this morning and running my fingers through his beautiful
curls one last time. Here's a few random pictures. In the first Maybe and Maren showed up to Gramma and Grampa
Johnsons in the exact same outfit. Too cute.
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Ellie, Sethie, Maybe, Maren
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Sethie giving the baby on TV a high-five. He's totally
into high-fiving right now. We have a statue of Christ in our living room and he often high-fives Jesus. He
also is teaching Maybe to high-five. What a cutie.
October 12, 2008: It has been so long since I've taken the time to update the website. Life is just flying by and I'm afraid I'm too busy to sit and enjoy and remember the good times. My kiddos are growing up way too fast. Every mother knows and understands the conflict of wanting our children to grow and hit milestones, but at the same time stay little and cute and innocent. There are moments each and everyday that I want to forget, mostly the times where I wasn't as good of a mother as I want to be, and moments I wish I could hold onto forever and never forget. There isn't always time get the video camera out and tape these precious moments. There is the look between brother and sister that shows at such a young age they adore each other and will forever be friends. Seth went to nursery for the first time today (if you don't know what nursery is just let me know and I'll fill you in). It's a good thing because he's ready and I know he will have such a good time, but for some reason it just made me cry. Not tears of saddness. It's really hard to put into words what the tears were for. Perhaps it's just a reminder that time is not standing still but pushing forwards and all too soon the stresses of caring for my babies will no longer be mine. Anyway, here's some overdue pictures of what's been going on with us Johnsons.
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I often send Ryan pictures at work of something
cute the kiddos are doing or just a picture of them to hopefully brighten his day with a little message
that says "hi daddy" or "I love you daddy". On this particular day Ryan sent the kiddos a picture back.
It was funny. Ryan is such a hard worker. He goes to work each and everyday never taking a day off unless
it's to take care of the family and comes home and works some more taking care of me and the kids. We are
so lucky to have Ryan.
I was excited to see this picture of me and Ryan. Not that
it's a particularly fabulous picture but it's a picture of just the two of us. Having two small kiddos
really seems to take over life. This picture reminded me that our life together started with just
a boy and a girl who fell in love.
This is the moment Seth learned to drink from a straw.
Thanks Jen Jen for the idea.
I don't always get a lot of face time on my own website or
in the pictures in our house so I wanted to post this one holding my sweet Cakes to prove that I do exist.
Ryan turned 32 on September 8th. It's amazing to me. I don't
think he looks his age at all. Also, I met Ryan when he was just a boy of 24. Is it possible we've known each
other for so long? I guess so because I can hardly imagine my life before him. So Ryan likes candy so
he got a big bag of candy to take to work, some t-shirt transfers because he enjoys making his own t-shirts, and
a half gallon of World Class Chocolate. This year Ryan told me a sweet story about how he became such a fan
of World Class Chocolate. He wasn't very old and his sister Megan worked at Baskin Robbins. Ryan went
in one time and she suggested he get that flavor. It's been his favorite ever since.
Seth enjoyed eating Ryan's birthday cake more than his own.
Uncle Nick took pity on Seth who had rubbed cake into
his eye and cleaned him up. What a good uncle.
Mabes chillin' in the green chair.
A very rare picture of Sethie smiling.
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A sweetie.
Sethie learned how to open doors recently and somehow being able
to open doors correlates with not wanting to sleep. I was having trouble getting Seth to take a nap so
I gave up. I guess sometimes you just have to wait out the kid. On a different note, in the picture Seth has
some ravioli's on his tray. Those are the Gerber graduates ravioli's and Seth would not touch them. I don't blame him.
They looked pretty gross.
Seth loves playing at Gramma and Grampa Johnson's house.
Speaking of Grampa, he let Seth have a container of ketchup. He thought it
was funny. It was everywhere, even on Seth's socks.
This is how Seth rode home after Grampa gave him the ketchup.
We have a family tradition of going to the Utah State Fair
each year. It was a lot more fun this year because Seth was old enough to enjoy it. I thought it would
be fun to let Seth ride a pony and I'm so glad he did. I didn't know if it would scare him but he LOVED it.
He was laughing and smiling the whole ride.
I decided I want to do more with the kiddos so I took them
to the petting zoo at Thanksgiving Point. Nen and cousin Rilyn met us there. It was a lot of fun. Seth
had no fear of going right up to the animals and he even beeped a mountain goat on the nose.
This is exactly what it looks like. Seth sitting on a cow.
Seth and Rilyn in jail.
Another pony ride for Sethie.
Cousin Rilyn having fun on the pony too.