The Things You Hear

While making lunch for the kids today I heard them playing a game together. What game? I have no idea because it's a made up game with made up rules as they go along. Which is why it made me laugh to hear Lila say to Emmett: "You can't do that. That's not how you play. I wish you could but you can't" 

This morning Chris was asking Emmett what color soccer ball he wants and what his second favorite color is just in case they don't have his favorite. Graham then comes up to Chris and asks: "Dad, whats my other favorite color?"

The other day as I'm walking by them playing I hear Emmett yell to Calvin: "Calvin, get some balls!"  That one made me laugh out loud because I feel like later in life I may possibly hear the same thing being said only they will mean it in a completely different way:)

Sometimes they repeat what they hear on frequently watched shows. I heard Calvin say to Emmett while playing with trains: "Emmett, I'm very cross at you!" Then Calvin comes to me and says: "Mom, I was puffing down the tracks and Emmett put his foot in the way to stop my train."

They say your taste buds change overtime as you get older. I heard Emmett telling Calvin this: When I was 3, I liked to eat that but now that I'm 4, I don't. 

I often hear them say the cutest or funniest or most confusing things. Most of the time I forget to write them down, some of the time I share them with Chris but I hope years from now when they are big that one of these sweet memories come to mind. I know it will make me smile and remember these times. The time when all my littles were home with me.

Unwritten In

We recently celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary. I came across this card  Chris bought for me and has yet to write in or officially give me. It made me laugh because I can think of a few other times he has bought cards and never wrote in them or actually gave them to me. We've laughed about it before too so I decided to go on a hunt to find the other unwritten in cards. But what I found was card after card that had actually been written in. I'm feeling bad for thinking first of the few cards he didn't write in but overlooked all the cards that had beautiful messages of love, adoration and respect from my husband. This blog started out as a funny joke because we have actually joked about these cards that remain empty. However, it is now about how I want to first and always think of how wonderful and amazing my husband is. He is always doing things for me and works very hard to provide for me. He constantly is thinking of ways to make me happy. He never says no to me when I want something. He is willing to go on adventures when I want to but he doesn't. He helps to keep our house clean. He adores our children and helps take care of them with me. He honors his priesthood and is a righteous example to me and our kids. He is intelligent, hilarious, easy going, overly confident:), an accomplished chef, and an outstanding surprise trip planner. 

Chris surprised me with dinner at Ruth's Chris and tickets to Cirque Du Soleil 'OVO'. Along with a night away, just the two of us. Thanks to Katie for watching the kids:) It was perfect, all of it! Just what we needed!

 Our family has experienced a lot of change these past 8 years. We've done a lot of moving, switching jobs, and having babies. Sometimes all 3 at the same time. No matter what happens next, I know Chris is by my side and I'm by his. From the words of an unwritten in card (but in reverse), Chris, "to my husband who's still got it from your wife who still wants it!"

I love you.

Compliments

Sometimes you get the sweetest compliments from your kids and sometimes you get sweet and funny.

Calvin to Chris: Daddy, your the best toy buyer in the world:)

It's Super, Super Spooky!

Halloween is fun! I think it's fun to decorate, fun to dress up, and trick or treating with my kids is the best. 

Brownie Taste Test

Chris had waited long enough. He had to know, just had to know which is the best, store bought, boxed brownie mix. 

So today, he came with all of these:

That's right, 7 boxes of brownies!

And he started baking them right away! 

Our neighbors heard about the test and thought it sounded fun so we shared. 

The winner in our house is Betty Crocker Fudge Brownies.

Their house was divided between BC and DH. It was a texture thing:)

Now that it's settled, I can get back to eating healthy.

1st Grader and Kindergartener

Typically, I find the first time I do something to be the hardest. However, I did not find sending my kiddos to school this second time around any easier. I didn't bawl like last year, I kept my cool. But those familiar feelings were just below the surface. It's a mixture of emotions for me. Nervousness, excitement, and I really just miss them. However, they are always excited to go and that makes me feel better. Calvin is bummed he only gets to go for a half day. He really wants to eat lunch at school for some reason. It's gets better when we get in a routine. I'm positive they will learn and grow, and make friends. Here's to making this school year great.

When we came home from dropping Lila and Calvin off, Graham threw on his 'pack pack' and said 'I'm goin' to school, mom'

Whoa, Baby...#5!!!

It always starts in the middle of the night for me. Early, like 3am early, I started having contractions. Which is an awkward time because then I have to wake someone up to come watch my kids. Fortunately Chris' parents said we could call them anytime. So we did and they came. Chris and I went to the hospital and of course the contractions slowed down. It was a familiar situation. So, after being lectured by a jerk, I mean the nurse, for not being registered with a doctor even though we had just moved to town 2 weeks ago, we left. All day, contractions would come and go. Nothing regular but definitely painful. My mind plays tricks on me because I think I know what to expect but what if this time is different? Anyways, Chris and I were able to spend the day together since the kids were with Chris' parents. We were able to relax, do a little shopping and that night we had plans to go to dinner and a movie. Well, after dinner I had enough and we headed back to the hospital. This time a much nicer nurse was there:) I hadn't changed much but they let me stay anyway. We had enough time to get settled and to choose a name. Chris and I can't seem to agree in advance about names. Anyhow, labor progressed quickly. I did get an epidural which offered a brief moment of relief. Then all of a sudden it didn't. The rest of delivery was PAINFUL but quick, relatively. 

Ross Aaron Johnson was born at 11:30pm on March 26th, 2016.

 I'm so grateful for a healthy pregnancy, labor and delivery. It's amazing how much pain I have had to go through to bring my children into this world. Pain like no other! Five different times! That is how much I want them and love them. 

I don't know exactly how life with five kiddos is gonna be but I know I love them all and am so lucky to have them. I'm also blessed to have such an amazing husband and father to my kids. I can't imagine doing all this without Chris by my side. 

We were all so excited to meet Ross and he's just so cute and cuddly. I feel overjoyed but look exhausted in this picture. I'm sure that's how it will be for awhile.

Love you Ross, and I'm so glad you're here!

Trick or Treat Scooby Doo!

 My kids are big fans of Scooby Doo, so that's who we were for Halloween. I like opportunities to improve my sewing so I altered a shirt to make Daphne's, I mean Lila's costume. I am pretty impressed with myself and it was fun to see the kids get excited for their costumes. Chris is always a good sport and he even decided to paint his hair. The color is barely noticeable but the effort was much appreciated:)

Happy Halloween from Fred, Velma, Daphne, Shaggy, Scooby Doo, and Scrappy!!

Moving is a lot of Work

I don't know if we will ever stay in one place for very long. At least that's what it feels like some times. We had to say goodbye to South Carolina because Chris' office was shut down. Fortunately, he was offered a job by a co-worker who left D3 and is now the hiring manager at a company in Indiana. That's right, Indiana. Never did I ever think I would be moving to Indiana. 

I remember when we first moved to SC and people would ask us if we were here to stay, we kind of hesitated saying yes. Mainly because it was our 3rd move in 2 years. Even though there wasn't anything in the foreseeable future that would make us move, I never felt we would stay in SC for very long. It took moving away to completely realize how great Simpsonville/Greenville, SC really was. Downtown was charming. It wasn't a huge city and therefore lacked the horrific traffic. Plenty to do and not far from major cities that offered bigger venues for sports, concerts, and such. Absolutely beautiful! Chris would disagree because he was allergic to SC, but I think it had the perfect weather. I'm used to the humidity, so while it was cumbersome at times, not a huge negative for me. Fall colors were amazing to witness each year. Snow was possible but not expected, at least more than one snowfall a year and it was there and gone before it became annoying. The city shut down completely at the idea of snow, ice, or really cold temperatures. Which is funny but also refreshing. Loved it!! 

I miss it. I miss the friends we made while living there. I miss our house. I miss our gym. But I know we will be settled again some day. Here's to another adventure in the books!

Lila Goes to Kindergarten

I cried, I cried a lot when my baby girl started school. Not just the first day, either. It kind of took me by surprise because I was also happy for her to start this next adventure in her life. Lila has been  ecstatic to start school and 'learn stuff', as she puts it, for the past year.  As we worked at home to prepare for kindergarten, she constantly asked to learn more so she would be ready for school. She even got excited when she would see a school bus and talk about how she would ride one of those some day. All her enthusiasm has helped me cope with the idea of her being gone 6+ hours a day. I know she will excel in school because that's what she does. I love her love for learning. She amazes me everyday and I'm excited to see all that she will do. 

Halloween 2014

Happy Halloween from Spiderman, Firestar, Iceman, Buzz, Cinderella and Prince Charming:)

Rochester, Palmyra, and Niagara Falls NY

I've learned to jump at opportunities when they come. So, when Chris was asked to interview for a job in Rochester, NY, I was quick to ask if we could all go. Fortunately for us the company he interviewed with allowed us to drive and reimbursed us the expenses rather than Chris flying. Amazing right?!!! I was so excited that the 12+ hour drive didn't sway me. Rochester is one of those places I haven't ever really thought about but I love NY and it was close to Palmyra and Niagara Falls. Two Places which I was dying to visit. With little time to prepare or stress about the long drive, we were off. The drive was long but beautiful. Our country is full of awe inspiring views. The kids did as well as expected and it was a great time to spend together as a family.

We stopped a few times for phone interviews Chris had scheduled with other companies, so we didn't make it to Rochester the first day. We did get there in time for Chris to prepare for his interview while me and the kids had fun at the Rochester Zoo, ate lunch and played at a park. I didn't get pictures from our stay in Rochester but I remember thinking it had it's charm and it seemed very clean and manicured. Even downtown. That night we went to a recommended "family" restaurant, called 'Dinosaur BBQ'. It was a local favorite that seemed more like a bar. I'm not sure why it is deemed as a family restaurant and I'm not sure what dinosaurs had to do with it but it was delicious.

The next day we were ready early, ate breakfast and hit the road to Palmyra. The weather was perfect. Sunny and slightly chilly and crisp. I love the fall! We took the tour of the Smith family log cabin and then the house they built after. It was amazing to be in the place where so many important and sacred events occurred. I don't know if or what my kiddos will remember from this trip but they were interested in seeing everything. We then walked to the Sacred Grove and that was a tough one. I mean it was glorious and just as I imagined it would look like. There's something about having to yell, but not trying to yell to your kids to stop running, stop yelling, etc. that kind of takes away from those contemplative moments. Typically I would try to get through whatever quickly but I did not want to rush through this experience. It was incredible and even though I was a little distracted with my hooligans, it was still a wonderful, happy moment with them. 

Poopy diapers, lunch time, and much needed naps made us leave and make our way to Niagara Falls. While Palmyra was more than I expected, I must say both Chris and I were a little underwhelmed with this 'gigantic' water fall. It was great to see and maybe we would have felt differently if we had taken the boat ride that is at the bottom. Instead we were at the top looking down and I just thought it would be bigger. Still enjoyed seeing the site I've always heard about and the area was also breath taking. It was a long drive home and we were tired from doing a lot in a short amount of time. It was a great experience.

Here's pics from the trip:

 

Apple Picking with Leigh, Ben and fam

Fun times at Sky Top orchard, especially since Leigh, Aidan, Arynn, Ben, Lizz, Mizu, and Kai joined us this time. I've talked about it so much they had to come and see it for themselves. I don't think they were disappointed. They might however, have been surprised with how cold it was. Good thing Leigh had a stash of beanies and gloves in her car:) Even though it was cold, we still enjoyed the beautiful scenery while picking apples, ate the delicious apple cider doughnuts, and had fun on the tractor ride around the orchard. We were having so much fun I only took a few pics.