The Johnsons

Natalie Can Stand Up.

2011-12-19T10:37:00.000-08:00

More Moab Pictures

2011-11-05T09:50:00.001-07:00

Playing with Grandma on a Sunday afternoon ... she loves to share things, from toys to bottles to her beautiful voice in the middle of church.

At the Visitor Center at Arches.

Five generation picture! Great Great Grandma Hatch, Great Grandpa Darr, Grandpa, Mom, and Natalie!

October

2011-10-26T14:05:00.000-07:00

October has been great! Natalie finally learned to crawl, eat more "solid" foods, climb up the stairs, and say "uh-oh." Still no "mom", but I guess maybe I should be grateful for that while it lasts. Brian's doing fabulously with classes and is most likely going to quit working at LDS Hospital in January so he can take, like, 40 credits or something and just get this schooling thing over with. We also went to Moab/Castle Valley for Fall Break and went to Arches - it was Brian and Natalie's first time there, and Natalie's first encounter with sand. The verdict: sand is okay if it's in the sun.

At Grandpa Darr's, she fell asleep in her Bumbo while everyone was talking. She looks just like her Great Great Grandpa McCain. Awesome.

A view from the rest stop. Arches is in the background, and the La Sal mountains farther back, which is where we eventually ended up. Right on top of that mountain.

She still doesn't exactly "crawl" - it's more like a gimpy scoot to wherever she can get. She always drags one leg. Because why move two legs when you only need to move one?

BIG NEWS.

2011-09-30T17:18:00.001-07:00

Natalie can "crawl". Pictures coming soon ... after she wakes up ...

August's Post

2011-08-25T20:00:00.001-07:00

August has been crazy - getting ready for first grade for the third time, getting Brian ready for school, and so on. That's pretty much it, but it took up the whole month. Some things we did in between:

We went to church ... so Mom could teach Gospel Doctrine three times ... boo ...

We went miniature golfing in the thousand-degree heat and one of us got to take of their pants ...

Kept up the attempt to walk without learning to crawl ...

We went to the Parade of Homes and saw what we will never have, including a room filled with balloons in the "Up" house ...

And we helped Sarah open her 18th birthday presents! Woohoo! Lots of fun!

We Made it Through July!

2011-07-26T19:20:00.000-07:00

July has been hectic but fun. Brian started a new job, both of our cars were in the shop for a several days getting a new AC compressor (the Mazda) and body work after hitting a huge tire on the freeway (the Volvo), and we spent a LOT of time at school getting the classroom ready.

Only three more weeks of summer! :(

Before

One day Natalie decided to take a nap, so we took out the "grass" (weeds) and put in some flower beads.

After

Natalie the Daredevil. She thinks it's funny that Mom's freaking out about her hitting her head.

We went to see the floats that were in the Pioneer Day Parade. Natalie was pretty smug at first.

Yay! We love giraffes!

Claire laughing at something in the distance ... probably an imaginary gypsy or something.

We also had our first trip to Ikea and she tested out everything from the beds to the trash cans.

Happy Independence Day!

2011-07-06T09:40:00.000-07:00

At the Farmer's Market in Salt Lake - not an ideal place for a stroller.

The fourth of July was fun. Natalie loves fireworks. A lot. We woke her up at 9:00 and took her to my school to watch the fireworks at Thanksgiving Point, and she stayed wide awake and got very excited every time she saw the lights in the sky. Brian's started a new job at LDS Surgical Center, so he gets to work days now (yay!), and there's only 6 1/2 weeks left of summer (boo). Natalie will be 7 months old on Friday! She's not crawling ... at all ... in fact, she refuses to be put on her tummy, but she stands really well, can hold herself up and propel herself forward - she just needs a tiny bit of help balancing and she can walk. So maybe she'll skip crawling, which we're not thrilled about, but oh well. She loves food and eats anything, and she's figured out how to take her diaper off.

Song for Becky

2011-07-01T20:29:00.000-07:00

We LOVE Summer!

2011-06-27T13:19:00.000-07:00

Brian's 25th birthday is Wednesday, so on Sunday we had "cake" - sugar cookies - with Natalie's cousins. It was wonderful.

Natalie is great at taking pictures. She always smiles for the back of Mom's phone. Sometimes she gets too excited and spews red sweet potatoes all over her new dress 5 minutes into church, though.

We went to Melissa and Perry's wedding on Monday. Natalie had a great time dancing - she was the star of the show.

Getting So Big!

2011-06-19T20:35:00.000-07:00

Natalie can now eat solids, hold her own bottle, fit into size 3 diapers, and sit up by herself. We're happy and sad at the same time ... happy that she's developing well; sad that we have to spend money on babyproofing everything.

We went and saw Brian for Father's Day while he worked all day at St. Mark's ... luckily, no emergency c-sections, so that was a good present.

First time in a high chair!

Eating peas for the first time ... yummy!

Getting ready for church ... pre-hairspray.

Yay for Summer!

2011-06-12T08:55:00.001-07:00

Summer vacation is finally here, and Natalie is six months old! We went to the Balloon Festival in Springville and watched the parade, and we got a new car - a Volvo. Yippee!

Aaaaaaalmost 6 Months

2011-06-01T16:01:00.000-07:00

Natalie will be six months old in a week! She's doing splendidly - rolling over, still screaming (see her YouTube Video) and, hopefully, excited to spend 9 straight weeks with Mom!

Natalie Hates Having Her Head Touched

2011-05-15T20:18:00.000-07:00

Five Months Old!

2011-05-08T19:24:00.000-07:00

Things are just dandy here. Brian's working nights now, so we see each other pretty much Wednesday to Saturday. He seems to be handling the weird sleep schedule pretty well. We only have four more weeks of school - Alpine has to go until June 3, so that's lame. But testing is almost done, then we can focus on the good stuff: dinosaurs. Natalie is growing quickly and is super long for her age, which is five months today! She is especially talented at standing, and we're worried that she'll go straight from sitting to walking without crawling since she refuses to be put on her tummy. This week we should get our bedroom set that we bought over a month ago, so someday we'll have pictures of that. Hooray!

Natalie and I Have a Discussion

2011-04-26T16:14:00.000-07:00

Natalie Loves Her Giraffe

2011-04-22T13:32:00.000-07:00

Four Month Natalie!

2011-04-16T22:46:00.001-07:00

We Love Shoes.

Natalie is now four months old! On Wednesday we had the pure joy of taking her to get a bunch of shots, but now she's immunized, so take that Measles! She's in the 53rd percentile for weight and head size, and 88th for height. So she can be a model or something. This week we sold her dresser, our piano, my big bead collection, and other random things to make room for new furniture, so those pictures will be up someday ....

She fell asleep eating and holding her bib like she's some sort of overheated southern debutante.

This picture isn't upside down; I just took it from the edge of the bed. She started out about three feet away from here and I left her alone for about a minute, then she scooted away. She is quite pleased with herself.

Happy End of March!

2011-03-31T21:59:00.000-07:00

Woohoo! March is finally over! We got a new car this month and THE INTERNET, so we can stop mooching/stealing from others ... Natalie is finally able to grasp things she wants, when she wants, then let go. This includes hair. She's still sleeping through the night, but only if we put her to bed after 10. I am 24 (yay?) and there's only 7 more weeks of school!

How we found her after the drive to Springville.

Cool Binky Lines

Still Three Months Old

2011-03-24T19:30:00.000-07:00

All we are these days is crazy people who stare at an infant all the time. We bought a new car (yay!) - a Mazda CX-7. It's gray and pretty.

This is how we found her Sunday morning.

Bored during test drives for a new car.

Fun Tricks with the Baby

2011-03-24T19:28:00.000-07:00

Three Months Old!

2011-03-15T16:16:00.000-07:00

Natalie is three months old. She's getting pretty handsy. She loves to watch tv and the fan and her aunts. She may be done with her screaming phase, which we have mixed feelings about - it was fun to hear her "communicate", but it gave us headaches. Brian starts a new job on Monday, still at St. Mark's, but this time in Labor and Delivery as a surgical tech working nights (boo). School is coming right along - only one more break (SPRING BREAK! WOOO!) and the year will be over. Whoa.

Babies Rock

2011-02-23T06:51:00.000-08:00

On Monday - President's Day - we had a miracle in that both of us had the day off. It was also the three-year mark of when Brian proposed that we get married at 11:00 at night in the freezing cold at Temple Square. So to celebrate, we hauled Natalie around in the freezing cold (but this time during the day). She had fun being wrapped in about 7 layers and we ate tacos and a grand time was had by all.

Natalie's Greatest Hits 2010-2011

2011-02-05T20:07:00.001-08:00

Having a baby is pretty cool. Natalie is 8 weeks old and has become very giggly and likes to converse with her toys. Her favorites are the ceiling fan, empty corners, her seahorse, her squeaky giraffe, and the cursed and ever-elusive yellow cat that hangs from her swing. She loves bath time, only wakes up once during the night - and not for long - and likes to grab hair. She is the greatest.

Day 2 of being home from the hospital - she's relaxed her legs by now, but she still likes to show off that she can get her arms over her head.

Natalie loves her swing (note the evil yellow cat on the right - her arch nemesis); she also loves flashing gangster signs.

Before she started all this giggling business, she generally had a look of disgust on her face. This is what we saw probably 60% of the time.

We might as well do something with all her hair. But giving her devil horns is all we can come up with.

Laughing either at dad or the fan - her two best friends.

She loves her giraffe - it was the first thing she would follow with her eyes (although she's not doing that in this picture), and the first thing that made her smile and laugh.

Natalie Pictures

2011-01-17T09:48:00.001-08:00

Christmas & Natalie's Blessing

2011-01-10T21:18:00.001-08:00

We had our first Christmas with Natalie. She made quite a haul:

Our Christmas presents:

On Jan. 2 we blessed Natalie. Lots of people came; we had tortilla soup. A grand time was had by all.

Natalie is Here!

2010-12-10T08:33:00.000-08:00

Well, she finally, FINALLY came! After a few obnoxious hours of contractions, the doctor decided that Natalie was just not in the mood to be part of the birthing process anymore, and we got to do an emergency c-section. It was quite the adventure. We went in at 12:54, and at 12:56, she was born! She is 6 lbs, 11 oz, and 20 inches long. And she has HAIR. At least for now.

Four More Days!

2010-12-03T16:21:00.000-08:00

At the beginning of the school year, I measure the kids with a piece of string and we keep it until the end of the year to see how much they've grown. This year, I measured my waist, and in three months I've expanded as many inches as 6-year-olds grow in a school year. Woo wee.

One More Week

2010-11-30T16:57:00.001-08:00

Hooray! Apparently I get to go be induced at 9:00 pm on Tuesday the 7th, so a week from today, I'll hopefully be able to pop my back. We'll see. It can't come soon enough, though. I was thinking that I regret not taking more pregnancy-tummy pictures, so I took one -

And now I don't regret not taking so many pictures.

Here is a picture from a month ago at a Halloween party - I was a skeleton or something, and Brian was himself from high school:

More Goings On

2010-10-15T18:14:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of the month, Brian went with our first grade class to the Zoo. He was the only parent to not lose a kid! Side note: don't ever take 25 six-year-olds to the super-hilly Hogle Zoo in the 90-degree heat in your eighth month of pregnancy. Speaking of which, I am huge:

Or at least I just look enormous. My doctor says I'm measuring "perfectly", and that everything else is going "perfectly" and he keeps referring to me as being on "cruise-control," which is all fabulous, but it means we don't get a 34-week ultrasound because it's not "medically necessary." Lame.

We only have 7 more weeks (hopefully). I have my sub all ready to go, and luckily we have a two-week Christmas break this year so I only have to write about 13 days' worth of sub plans (hooray). The baby (Natalie) moves a LOT, especially at 10:00 pm, during what we call the "Baby Party". The Baby Party lasts from 10:00 to midnight and involves a lot of dancing, gymnastics, stretching and what I think is kick-boxing. It's always a fun party. Everyone is invited.

We also adopted the world's best kitten for a week. All he did was sleep. Here's a picture of him when he fell asleep while we were changing the sheets:

His name is Cow. He is adorable. But Brian, being the logical person he is, had the forethought to recognize that we wouldn't want a kitten in a few weeks when we're changing a screaming baby's diapers. So now he lives with some family in Woods Cross. I resent them a lot.

We also went for a drive up the Alpine Loop to see the fall colors. We like the fall.

Our House

2010-09-11T19:00:00.001-07:00

Here's the house we bought in February, with neat before-and-after shots.

Before

After - We got rid of that stupid black gate thing and the rocks in the flower bed and planted some things!

Also there's a cat that lives on our porch - it has a human face and talks.

___________________________________

Before

After - pretend that we've attached the lazy susan cupboards. We got a new dishwasher, oven, microwave, counters, sink, faucet, and we painted the cabinets and added pulls. Also we got blinds.

___________________________________

Before

After - We installed three new light fixtures and painted the top half of the walls gray.

We also got blinds for the windows and I made curtains! Yep. That's why the picture is from far away.

___________________________________

Before

After - we haven't really done that much in the bathroom, except we replaced this horrible, huge cabinet that we kept smacking our heads on with this much simpler and normal-sized one.

___________________________________

Before AND After ... there are sill stairs to the attic.

_______________________________

Before

After - we put in a ceiling fan so I wouldn't die. Also, we added furniture, so that's pretty sweet.

Oregon and Also a Baby

2010-07-21T12:36:00.000-07:00

We went to Oregon for a family reunion and Brian turned 24. Here is a picture of that:

Here is us being on the beach:

On Monday we found out we're having a girl! Here she is:

She is due December 7th. She likes root beer and she's the best.

2010-06-19T09:35:00.001-07:00

Brian graduated on June 2 and is "officially" a surgical technician, although he won't be certified until he finishes his externship. Still, he looks mighty fine in a blue gown. He refuses to wear it when we go shopping. He thinks it's embarrassing. Not me, though. I wear it when we go get ice cream.

Clark Gets Excited

2010-06-19T09:32:00.000-07:00

Goings On

2010-04-01T09:10:00.000-07:00

We haven't done very many exciting things in the last few months, but here's some things.

I'm 23.

We went to the color festival. Here's the before picture.

And here's after.

Eating Dippin' Dots at Trafalga.

Then we won a giant Krusty with our friends Kory and Marianne. Marianne really likes Krusty, as you can see.

And Clark is doing well. On Monday he somehow climbed out of his tank and fell off the counter and was running around the classroom, but the joke's on him! Now his tank has a lid!

Las Vegas

2010-02-15T14:38:00.001-08:00

Last week we got to go to Las Vegas. It was spectacular - we say Lance Burton float a Corvette, The Phantom of the Opera, In 'n Out, One Really Good Buffet (which we went to twice,) and lots of people gambling on the Super Bowl! Here is Brian in the conservatory at the Belagio, celebrating Chinese New Year (the Year of the Tiger) with all the other Asian tourists.

Also, we get to buy a (town)house. Here is a picture of that:

You should probably know that we're planning on getting rid of the satellite dish and black gate-door thing as soon as we close. Hooray!

The Classroom

2009-09-10T20:00:00.000-07:00

Here is my room. The wall is red. You can see the Tattletale Frog there on the counter. He listens to all the tattletales that I don't have time/energy for - he's very busy.

Here's my desk and Clark's tank.

Here are the cubbies, the sink, and Clark in his tank.

This is half of the word wall and the books.

This is the calendar wall where we do the whole "today is the fourteenth day of school" thing.

Trip Back East

2009-08-24T18:59:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we had the "joy" of dropping off a massive truck to some guy in Ohio and driving all the way back. Despite running out of gas in Wyoming (the gauge was wrong!) and fishtailing and having to pass through the Indiana Turnpike, all went well. We go to stop by Kirtland, Ohio and Winter Quarters, Nebraska, too, so - bonus! Plus we ate a LOT and I read a LOT and Brian drove even more.

Clark

2009-07-19T21:12:00.000-07:00

"Look what we found in the park, in the dark.
We'll take him home. We'll call him Clark."

- One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

This is the classroom pet, Clark. We got him from a turtle sanctuary in Sandy (!). He'll spend his days at the school, and weekends and holidays with us, changing homes like a typical American child. He loves being in the sink or tub, always under a running faucet, and since that's easier to clean, that's where he usually is. We've taken far too many pictures of him because we don't have any kids.

Eating lunch (small deveined shrimp - yummers).

Trying to fit behind the piano. He eventually did it by turning sideways, and now there's a soccer ball blocking the entrance.

Clark likes to stand up, but always on one leg.

Find the turtle!

He likes to stay under the t.v. stand. One day he found some DVDs and a water bottle, which he somehow scooted away from the wall to make himself a fort.

Clark startles easily:

My New Room!

2009-07-01T18:58:00.000-07:00

Bask in the glory that is North Point Elementary.

Here's my new classroom ... somehow, I got a job here, and this is where I'll be teaching first grade next year. It's about a foot longer than most because of where it is in the school, right across the hall from the office and around the corner from the entrance. I'm ecstatic and overwhelmed and, frankly, pretty hungry because I spent all day buying supplies with the district purchase card instead of eating. It's the best.

First Anniversary!

2009-06-11T21:26:00.001-07:00

For our first anniversary, we went to San Diego and Ensenada. For anyone wondering how to get two people to Mexico for under $90 (less than one person's one-way ticket to San Diego ... we checked), here you go:

1. Drive to the San Diego airport long-term parking (Park, Ride and Fly is the cheapest).
Two tanks of gas: $50.00

2. Take the shuttle from the parking lot to the airport.
Free

3. Take the city bus (Route 992) from the airport to American Plaza in downtown San Diego.
$4.50

4. Get on the Blue Line trolley at American Plaza going to San Ysidro.
$5.00

5. Get off the trolley at the border and walk across. Find a Taxi Libre (the white ones, not the yellow ones) and take it to Tijuana Central (the bus station).
$6.00 for Americans :(

6. Get on a charter bus to Ensenada.
$20.00

Total: $85.50

AND it's even cheaper going back, because you get dropped off at the border and don't have to take a taxi. Anyway, we stayed at some pretty bizarre hotels and ate some of the best food in the world. We saw a huge flag, and went on a boat out on the ocean, and haggled for goods, and saw a place where the ocean hits the rocks and the water shoots up about 200 feet and sprays everyone. We rode tiny little buses all over and went to bars and ordered smoothies, and then we got bored, so we went to:

San Diego! We went to the Zoo, and Target, and more bars for more (non-alcoholic) smoothies, and Applebees (!), and the harbor to see the aircraft carriers, and swimming and the temple.

Lagoon

2009-05-31T12:09:00.001-07:00

We went to Lagoon on Saturday. We decided to expose ourselves to thousands of bikini-wearing, obese hillbillies at the beginning of the summer to inoculate ourselves. This picture was taken right after Rattlesnake Rapids, where we were all completely and happily doused in filthy water. But we did get to go on the Flying Aces (that one where you're in a tiny plane and you can steer it and try to run into the trees) right before they shut it down because the wind was too crazy and our cables were twisting and snapping. It was fabulous, even though Claire was terrified of every ride and crawled into a ball on the Ferris Wheel.

We Need to Travel More.

2009-05-25T21:23:00.000-07:00

We copied this off Marianne and Kory's page. Because we're unoriginal.

101 Things

At least one of us have done the bolded items:

1. Ridden in a train - Brian
2. Slept under the stars - Both
3. Played in a band/orchestra - Brian
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower - Both
6. Given more than you can afford to charity - Brian
7. Been to Disney World
8. Climbed a mountain - Both
9. Held a praying mantis - Both
10. Sang a solo - Brian
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch - Brian
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning - Both
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables - Both
19. Had a letter to the editor published - Julie
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight - Both
22. Hitch hiked - Brian
23. Taken a sick day when not really ill - Both
24. Built a snow fort - Both
25. Held a lamb - Both
26. Gone skinny dipping - Brian
27. Run a Marathon
28. Seen the running of the bulls
29. Seen a total eclipse - Both
30. Watched a sunrise - Both
31. Hit a home run - Brian
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language - Brian
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied - Julie
38. Been on a draw-bridge - Both
39. Gone rock climbing - Both
40. Received a traffic ticket -Brian
41. Sung karaoke - Both
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant -Brian
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight - Both
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing - Brian
49. Been a story on the news - Julie
50. Seen a wild mustang
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling - Brian
52. Kissed in the rain - Both
53. Played in the mud -Both
54. Gone to a drive-in theater - Both
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class - Both
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching - Julie
63. Received flowers for no reason - Julie
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma - Brian
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check - Brian
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy - Both
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial - Julie
71. Eaten Caviar - Both
72. Pieced a quilt - Brian
73. Stood in Times Square - Julie
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job - Both :(
76. Won a contest - Both
77. Broken a bone - Brian
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle - Brian
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person - Brian
80. Published a book
81. Been in a cave - Both
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper - Both
85. Read the entire Bible or other religious book -Both
86. Visited the White House - Julie
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating - Brian
88. Had chicken pox - Both
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous - Both (Brian - Keannu Reeves; Julie - David Letterman)
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one - Both
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person - Both
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit - Julie
98. Been to the top of the Gateway Arch
99. Been stung by a bee - Both
100. Seen Mount Rushmore in person
101. Learned to play an instrument - Both

Yay! 62 out of 101!

Real Salt Lake Game

2009-05-24T22:42:00.001-07:00

Ha ha ha ha! We got to go to a Real Salt Lake game! It was the first sold-out game of the season (we were there early, obviously), and also the first home loss! As part of our continuous lucky streak, Xango gave out samples of their juicy stuff. I drank mine, then Rory's, and spilled a bunch on my pants.

After halftime, Josh (Rory's buddy) demanded to sit next to me. I was also too shy to buy a pretzel because I had a crush in 8th grade on the kid selling them. Truly, a fantastic time was had by all.

Graduation

2009-05-01T22:31:00.000-07:00

Huzzah! I graduated! I'm officially finished with my bachelor's degree! It was a fun day - we got to see all of our friends, and even ended up eating at the same restaurant after. It was sad since it'll be the last time we see Marianne and Kory for a few months, but mostly we're just happy that this part of school is over.

(Jill Sumsion, Me, Marianne Longenecker, and Haley Hales & Twins)

Our Easter Eggs

2009-04-14T14:28:00.000-07:00

2009-04-11T23:08:00.000-07:00

We have a blog.

2009-04-03T09:43:00.001-07:00

We are being technologically advanced and filling the time of having no job by writing a blog. Hooray!

Things to be excited about:

1. Julie's student teaching is done!!!
2. Brian has new rims on his car!
3. Conference?