Winner Announced!

And the winner................of the movie night with me............1/1/01......….…iiiiiisssssssss…………………TAMI!!!! congratulations and thanks to all who played.

GIVEAWAY!!!!

Everyone seems to be doing giveaways on blogs. I know this because Tami has found and entered them all. So being the "Trendy" person I am, I am doing a giveaway as well. To enter simply post a comment on this post. The prize will be a movie night for you and a guest. The winner will be randomly* selected.

*winner has allready been determined abandon all hope any who enter. Entering may cause uncontrollable vomiting and diareah. If pain lasts longer than 4 hours please consult your doctor.other side affects may varry and may include, but are not limited to death. Void to all who enter unless they have permissions as blog authors on this blog, and wherever prohibited.

Our Baby Sits!!!

Merry Christmas!

Santa

Just for Giggles!!!

Pictures of all my babies at 3 months old.

Brianna ..................................... Mikayla



David

Uh oh. Ben just caught me and he is none to happy.

Not sure why Ben needs to find the largest blanket in the house and wrap the smallest member of the family in it.

Peacefully sleeping on the couch now, but sometime tonight Ben will put him in the cradle still wrapped in the massive blanket and then around 2 a.m. I'll get frustrated I can't figure out how to get David out.

Early Intervention

Ben and I have decided to do early intervention with Mikayla. At 21 months (this Sunday) she will have a three word vocabulary (more, ball, up).

After playing with and watching her play and asking me LOTS of questions they came up with percentile ranks for her. They said the normal range is from 12% to 95%. Don't know how they got a base for them, but I thought they were interesting.

Mikayla's Percentile Ranks
gross motor 84%
fine motor 98%
cognitive 62% (learning tasks)
receptive language 75% (understands)
expressive language 1% (uses)
self help 50% (since then she has learned to take her own shoes off)
social emotional 87%

We know she just has a delay and that she will talk. People tell me that she'll talk, don't worry about it, but that isn't want I want to hear. I know they mean well and are just trying to reassure me and I appreciate it, but I already know that she'll talk. I want to hear her talk. I want to hear her say momma. I want her to find her voice and discover the joy in talking. I want to hear her. Selfish, yes, but 'tis the season.:)

I took Mikayla to get her hearing and vision tested today and couldn't take Brianna with, so I left her home. I cried almost the whole way to the development center. Brianna is my little sidekick and goes EVERY where with me. I seriously can not have a baby shortly before she goes to school.

Lets just say it has taken me a while to get back to "normal" hormone levels. I was super emotional for awhile there (sorry Ben), but am feeling more in control. And to prove it I no longer cry when Ben gives me a candy bar as a surprise.

Hopefully with help, Mikayla will speak soon. Perhaps I'll have a change of heart when she's never quite, but until then I'm getting her help.

Twelve

Since there are 12 days to Thanksgiving, I thought I would share 12 things I'm thankful for. These are coming in no particular order, well just as they pop into my head or were taken on the camera.

Cold and sore throat medicine with sleep aides.

Snowy days. The office is dead and Ben doesn't have to go outside and work.

David! We love having both genders. He adds soo much joy to our lives. We are very grateful we got him to be our son.

Everyone who has given us something to help with our surprise boy. Grandma Johnson gave us the lion onies and I love it! Ben's fav is the shirt from Loralee.

My visiting teachers who come faithfully every month, according to my memory. I love my visiting teachers.

My sewing machine Ben got me. I thought I'd just use it for simple mending. Silly me. But I love seeing my girls in cute jammies I made.

Mikayla! She is so silly and brightens our days. You would think that at 12 weeks old the novelty of David would have worn off, but no. She loves her siblings and we love watching it.

Strollers. They have a magical way of making everyone happy.

Super quick and easy dinners that are also yummy. Chili cheese dogs is a favorite here. Also grilled sandwiches with tomato soup.

Our new and improved couch. It's comfier then it looks.

Baby boy blankets. After my LITTLE break down so many people gave to us and I'm very grateful.

Brianna! She keeps us honest and on our toes. We are so proud of her. She is such a big help with so much.
Ben! I love him deeply and am incredibly grateful for everything he does for me.

There is so much more that I'm grateful for. The list could go on and on.

I truly hope that everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving!

50 Days

Just to go with my new background and to give everyone a chance to get out and get me something nice and thoughtful... there are 50 days to Christmas!

Halloween Costumes

Brianna wanted to be a fairy and Mikayla had to be one too.

Ben didn't want David to be a cat so we settled on Superman.

Trick or treating! Brianna was devastated that I forgot the wings at home so I ran to the store and bought new ones (at lot faster then the forty minute drive home to get old ones). I think the original wings were cuter, but the girls were super excited to get new ones.

Looking cute at grandma and grandpa's house while eating candy.
All my kids were adorable flying around!

We hope everyone had a fun Halloween. We sure did.

Playing in the Snow!

Today I took Brianna out in the snow to play. We had a blast so Ben decided to take the girls out after Mikayla's nap. Anyone notice a difference?

Is it a guy thing to not bother with coats or just my husband thing?

Mikayla's first reaction to the snow was to duck her head. Ha ha! Like that would stop it from snowing on her. I love her, just wish she would speak so I'd have an idea of what goes on in her beautiful, little head.

People Drawings

On Sunday Brianna drew her very first recognizable object! A smiley head with hair, arms, and legs. When she colors in coloring books she tries to stay in the lines. It seems like the change occurred over night. From random scribblings to people. We are so impressed with her drawings lately. Brianna is amazing! I love her!

Following Through

I can't sleep because I'm thinking about this. I've been thinking about this a lot the past several days. Its kinda random, but I'm hoping to get more sleep by getting it off my mind.

I think I irate Ben with this, but I strongly believe that if you agree to something you should follow through with it. And I hold him to it. Brianna does really well with doing what she agrees to do. I'm happy that she will tell me no when she won't do something instead of yes to get me to leave her alone (annoying sometimes, but good).

Racing, keep me awake thoughts are of those who said they would do/get/give something and then didn't. Feelings are hurt, trust is gone, and apologies are never made. I want my kids to understand this and to learn the importance of keeping your word. It sounds like I'm a nagging momma, but sometimes I let them finish what their doing or with Ben on his own time frame.

Now I'm left wondering if I've hurt some one's feelings by not keeping my word. I hope not, but if I have I'm truly sorry. I NEVER want to hear the words, "I don't believe you" told to me. Especially by my own family. I will defiantely be making sure I keep my word and follow through.

Roseola

Roseola is a childhood disease. I've heard of chicken pox, fifths disease, measles, and perhaps a few others, but now I am familiar with roseola.

Mikayla has had it.

David

David has finally figured out his nights and days. I now miss our pajama parties in the middle of the night - he told me all about heaven and I told him over and over how crazy we all are about him. We just can't keep the smiles off our faces around here.

Yesterday

Yesterday we were invited to attend a nephew's baby blessing up in Logan. To help us save gas money we decided to carpool with Grandma and Grandpa Johnson in their van. I packed everything the night before so I would be less likely to forget anything (forgot birthday present last trip up). Thankfully the grandparents showed up bright and early. Grandma ended up spending the morning brushing hair, getting jackets on, and other odds and ends to help out. One question remained. How to transport the jello salad I made without it melting in the car? With some quick thinking I grabbed a garbage bag, threw the ice packs in and placed the salad on top. My other idea was to use a dresser drawer (we lack a cooler to fit a 9x13 pan). We loaded up and took off.

I sat in back with the girls and we played games and talked. Upon reaching Ogden I noticed Mikayla was acting weird and was squirming a lot in her seat. I reached over to discover that she was soaking wet from her juice. I had forgotten to put a valve in the sippy cup. She was so uncomfortable and miserable. As we drove past Willard Bay Brianna said she had to go potty. We stopped at the Walmart in Brigham City. I found a size 6 shirt on clearance for two dollars for Mikayla and a sippy cup with a valve. Grandma and Brianna went potty then wander the store finding something to take. While nursing David, I realized I forgot to wear nursing pads and the bra I wore didn't absorb any milk. Not wanting to spend more money than already, I used the hem of my shirt to soak up the puddles. Did that all day. After our quick FORTY minute stop we were on the road again. We made it to the church house and heard an incredible blessing. The girls happily colored on the floor while Ben and I relaxed and listened to testimonies. I love how our girls do everything together and do it the same as the other one.

Our nephew is adorable! We love him so much! We had fun at the luncheon and were very grateful to be able to have participated in the events of the day. A few hours later we were ready to head home. In the canyon we drove through a cloud. Brianna thought it was very exciting and had to take pictures of it.

As Ben was driving he started hearing a noise as he accelerated and the engine started feeling sluggish.

We took the Pleasant View exit and parked in front of Smith and

Edwards cowboy supply store. The van was broken and we became stranded. The men folk there had to look at the engine. Not sure why. While the other men folk we called had to diagnos the problem over the phone. Not sure why, either. After making pick up and towing arrangements the witty banter began to help ease stress. We all decided that next month we will be throwing Johnanthan a surprise birthday party in the Salt Lake Valley.;)

After an hour and some minutes of waiting the tow truck showed up and grandma and grandpa went with their van. We were left in the parking lot. We were so grateful for the Johnson's having blankets in their van. We waited almost thirty minutes for Ben's parents to show up in their blazer and the Frisby's borrowed van. We are so grateful for their kindness in lending their van. And we were very excited to finally be headed home again.

While we were waiting Brianna let us know she had to go potty. I had my first experience of teaching and helping her to squat. There was NOTHING around us. So we went behind the stinky dumpster. And to help pass the time we tore apart a roll and threw it to feed a seagul. The girls thought that was a blast. Mikayla got really excited when the bird came near. We also enjoyed a little bag of m&ms that I had in my bag. Brianna let me know this morning that she had a lot of fun waiting.

After our ride showed up, we took off for grandma and grandpa Johnson. We found out that their engine went and they now need a new one. Ben was now driving the Frisby's van and we decided to take the Legacy Highway because it wasn't our gas, right! The van was going on empty when we neared our home and we jokingly told Thomas we weren't going to fill up so he could get stranded too! After FOUR and A HALF HOURS we were home.

And to end the day I got to rock Mikayla to sleep until I gave up then Ben took her to bed. Mikayla is my little attachment and I love her dearly.

Sorry this post is so long and choppy. I tried to do just highlights of the day.

Stinker 3

We have ZERO pictures of David smiling because I'm a poor photographer and every time he sees the camera he just stares at it. But today I did manage to get a little video of him smiling and laughing. We're all crazy in love with him!

Does anyone want to make me an apple crisp? It sounds super yummy right now.

Wonderful Sunday

We were able to name and bless our beautiful son on Sunday.

We love having a son and getting to know the joys of a boy.

And to end the day, the girls and I enjoyed a delicious watermelon from our garden.

It was an amazing day. Thanks to so many for sharing it with us. We love you all.