It's Christmas Day!

Ok...so my old digital camera takes videos, but they aren't the best quality...I have been feeling so sad that my kids are getting older and starting to question Santa and all of those fun Christmas traditions. This is probably the last year all of our kids will believe, so I HAD to get their reaction when they saw what was under the tree for them on Christmas morning. You'll see in the video that Chase didn't see anything for him...his were all wrapped! HAHA! He was a bit irked, to say the least. I couldn't help but giggle at his reaction...cause I knew his big gift was awesome!

Playing in the Snow and Class Parties

Alright, I know I haven't been up to date when it comes to our blog. Once the kids got out of school, it was busy, busy, busy. We had snow to play in, cookies to bake, friends to go see, and lots of holiday preparations to make! So, I am down here (in our new basement office) trying to catch up!

First pics: I missed Amelia's Kindergarten lunch because I had a stinkin' sales meeting. But, I made it for Chandler's low key, 5th grade party and Abbey's loud and energetic 2nd grade party. Chase's class didn't "do parties" this year (dumb public school), so I didn't have to be three places at once...PHEW.

Second pics: Yes, we finally got some measurable snow down here on the plains. We had the warm clothes out because it was WAAAAY below zero the week before...got some good ones of the three younger kids outside. I am pretty sure Chase was near a computer or the XBox instead...

Family Time!

Here are a few pics from our days before Christmas (including Chase's 13th birthday!). It has been so much fun having Spencer, Leah and little SJ here with us! Maria was with us over Christmas too. Thanks Maria, for putting these pics on my computer! We miss you!

"Pickle in the Tanenbaum" and other holiday favs...

Soooo....Channy is the only one who had his Christmas concert documented...yes, I feel plenty guilty. At least the girls have many more concerts in the years to come...i am comforted with that thought...*gulp*.

Also, I am one of those mom's that show up when they SAY to show up....not an hour before to get the front row. So, that is why MY pics look like they are taken from a mile away...cause they ARE. Channy is the little white head on the top row in the black, red and white sweater. He also had a speaking part that he had to "audition" for...BIG TIME!

Oh, and enjoy the 2 min snippet of the big finale! We didn't think of recording the "Pickle" song with the all the movements and hand-pickles. SORRY!

Kids, Kids and more Kids!

What a party! We had a great time last night! Our home was filled with laughter (of all volumes), candy, gooey splats of frosting, chatting, and EATING! What great memories! As you can see, there are no pictures of Evan spouting steam from his ears...he even said "It wasn't that bad." HOLY SMOKES! I guess my day of preparation paid off. If Evan had a good time, then it was a success!

Trimmin' the Tree!

Ok, so the tree has been up since the weekend after Thanksgiving...but we're just getting around to making it pretty...Johnson Standard Time. The kids take an annual trip down memory lane as they pull their own ornaments from the box. It's fun and very interesting what they remember. I got Abbey on video telling her tale about Mom's and Dad's first Christmas tree. Amelia's name was picked out of Evan's hat to put the star on the top this year. That is a HUGE deal at our house for some reason...Although I'd like to see Ev heave Chase or Chan on his shoulders...the thought makes me laugh.
Anyway, tonight we are making graham cracker houses with 4 other families...at OUR house! Yes, Evan has expressed his concerns and I have done what I can to make him feel better....But, we ARE going to have 17 kids at our house (plus their parents). HAHAHAHA! I can't wait to post those pics! The best ones will be of Evan hiding in the corner!
Viva la mess!

Guitar Hero-Palooza!!

Oh, yes, my friends! It's time for the Johnson's to rock the Kazbah! We're shakin' our booties and singin' songs from some of the biggest Rock Legends! Watch out world....It's Johnsonz Video Clip time!!

Stringin' Popcorn!

Time to put the family to work! I've been wanting to get the popcorn strung for the Christmas tree for the last week...well, we can say that it didn't get done. Then......HERE COME THE JOHNSONS! Maria, Pa and Spencer arrived in Colorado on Saturday afternoon. Spencer gets to stay until next weekend. Pa and Maria are leaving tomorrow...time for them to earn their keep! ;) I escaped to the kitchen to make pumpkin choc chip cookies while they helped the kids string the popcorn. This year, I thought that we'd leave the fancy trimmings in the box and do a Kid Inspired tree. We're doing popcorn strings, torn fabric bows and ornaments that have been made over the years. I can't wait to see how it looks! I love Christmas!

Reunion Christmas Party

It's already time for holiday parties to begin! Every year, our community (Reunion) hosts a holiday party...with cocoa, Santa and crafts! Chase was at the temple doing baptisms and I couldn't find Chandler when it came time to take pics with Santa. He was too busy hangin' with his friends from school. Evan was on his way back from his cross country trip (driving from Georgia with his brother, Spencer and his 20ft moving truck).

Anyway, this party is always fun...I missed almost all of our "photo opps" because I was too busy chatting...I already have a lot of pics of those kids anyway. HA HA :)

So, here's to the start of the Holiday Season!

Court of Honor

What a night! Last night was Chase's Court of Honor in Brighton. Evan is currently somewhere in Tennessee, so he missed it! But, the kids and I made it with plenty of time for Chase to be in the Color Guard. He is getting to the age where he is starting to care about the way he looks...and last night it took him 15 minutes to get ready! Usually, he just throws on whatever he can find, buttons it half way, slips on two different socks and then slides on his sandals (cause they are the easier to put on, he says). Not last night! So, not only did he get himself all spiffy, but he earned one merit badge (Fingerprinting...Evan's idea for a fun one at merit badge college)! We have around 6 mostly finished...but not in time for last night. I currently work in the stake with the cub scouts, so this merit badge stuff is a bit tough for a simple girl like me. So much to go and do, think about, track, measure, record, etc. Chase is our guinea pig...poor kid. His Scoutmaster (the big blonde guy in the pics), Eric, told a story of how Chase stepped in a frozen puddle next to his tent at their campout a few weeks ago. His feet were freezing! When Chase went to change socks, he realized that he only put in ONE pair...so what did he do to improvise? He wrapped his two extra pair of underwear around his feet! When he showed his leaders, they bust out laughing! Who wouldn't laugh at seeing a tall, skinny boy with two pair of tighty whities wrapped around his ankles! SO CHASE!!
I just wanted to write about how proud we are of Chase's efforts and how he never complains about doing his scout stuff. He had a great night last night. And he is looking forward to the Scout Ski Trip they are taking in a few weeks! GO CHASERS!

Colorado Turkey Day!

Our old friends, Jon and Jen Kroff, invited us over for Thanksgiving! It was quiet, relaxing and so much fun to be with our friends. Although we DID miss being part of the Stephens' action, it was nice to have such a low key holiday. The best part of the afternoon was that we didn't hear from our children for hours! It was great! We enjoyed a fabulous meal and then the kids watched Chrismas movies, played video games, and battled each other on PC games. Jen and I sat on the couch to talk and peruse the BLACK FRIDAY deals! Too bad all of our $$ is going to getting trim and doors installed for Christmas...shhh...don't tell the kids! :)

So, here are a couple pics of our Thanksgiving memories!

It's BARBIE GIRL Time!!

Ok, so we had a tough time actually GETTING the Barbie Girl from WalMart...their site to store system STINKS! It took us 26 days to receive Abbey's bday gift. But, OH BOY! It was worth the wait! Abbey and Amelia were glued to the computer for an hour...If you don't know what a Barbie Girl is, well, you are missing out! There is a new website called BarbieGirl.com and it's like a virtual world for girls. The Barbie Girl plug-in unlocks the best part of the website, like a Beauty Shop and a clothes boutique. You can buy/sell things and decorate your own room. According to Abbey and Amelia it's "so cool!"

Brighton Turkey Trot

Oh, yes! It's Turkey Trot time! Ev ran the 5k without me, but he would have left me in the dust anyway! His new PR is 21:05! WAHOO! He rocked! At the start line, Ev found his three friends: Mike, Jon and Ian. They all came in within a few minutes of each other! Ev took 3rd place in his age division and came in 31st out of 250 runners.

It's Official! Abbey is Clean!

What a fun weekend! Mema and Pepa surprised us on Friday night by showing up at our doorstep! We were so excited! Everyone played on Saturday (while Tami worked) and took care of the little details for Abbey's baptism. What an amazing experience to have our daughter choose this path...all on her own. Her Daddy had trouble keeping his emotions inside...what a softie. The Relief Society room was packed, too! We had incredible support from our ward. Abbey was baptized with two other children: Hannah Brown and Mason Leavitt. We had planned a HUGE dessert party after the baptism, but the Leavitt's daughter threw up in the parking lot and the Brown's had family in too, so it kinda fizzled out. Dad walked in with 10 pizzas...boy was he shocked to just see a handful of us! We ended up eating most of them and delivering the others to our friends.

It is always so fun to have our family here! Thanks to everyone that travelled to Colorado! We sure missed everyone else, too!

Punkin' Pickin' Time!

So, its that time of year again...we always wait until a week before Halloween to pick our pumpkin. The kids played in the "cornbox" while Evan and I searched for the perfect pumpkin! It kept them busy, but ewwww...Germ Infestation! Bring on the Hand Sani...

We have been lucky that the weather is so beautiful!

(By the way...Chase isn't in these pics because he was BANNED to the car...for being a sassy tween!!)

We're Covered in Dust....But We LOVE It!!

Oh, yes! We're finishing our basement! We started the process with a dream and a couple bucks in the bank...now look at where we are! It's almost ready for paint and carpet! We passed our drywall inspection yesterday with flying colors. The Mud/Tape guys are coming today. We are so excited to add this living space to our home. We're gonna have a family room, bathroom, storage room, office, kid bedroom and study alcove. And we'll have space to put family when they COME TO VISIT...hint, hint.

Pic #1: Looking into the family room from the hallway by study alcove. The holes in the wall are for Ev's "Special" electronic components...pieces of equipment that cost WAAAAY more than any shoes/sweaters/earrings that I have ever purchased...They will now have a permanent home...in the hole. The TV hangs on the wall to the right of the hole. It was an angled wall, so Ev and his ingenuity added plug-ins for a TV. I asked for a place to put a mini fridge...I hope that it fits in the little hole underneath... I begged the framers to add an arch in the hallway too...looks like it paid off! (Well, and I might have bribed them with brownies too...)

Pic #2: A portion of the study alcove (looking into Chase's new room). We'll have a built in bookcase with a desk along the wall. Evan wired our basement to be a Gamer's Paradise...so I'm sure we'll have some major network hook-up around there too.

Pic #3: Our home office...FINALLY! Our little desk was up in our Room of Romance (aka Master Bedroom). Not so romantic with bills and the humm of a computer...

Abbey's Birthday-palooza

Oh, yes! Our Abbey D is 8 years old! We rented out the local Wagon Wheel Skate Center and invited 20 of her bestest friends! Holy Skating Party! Between the Hokey-Pokey, pizza and cake, I think we partied like only THE AWESOME JOHNSON'S can!!
BY THE WAY...Abbey's baptism is scheduled for Saturday, November 3. EVERYONE is invited! ;)

We're Bloggers

Ok, since the entire family is Blogging now, we had to get in on the action! This is a great way to find out DETAILS on everyone without spending hours on the phone. LOVE IT!

Stay tuned for more info from the Johnsonz!