Holli and JD's Story

Thanskgiving

2011-11-28T13:32:00.000-08:00

Well, I promised photos for Thanksgiving but it was such a day that I didn't take any photos. Sorry! I will try to paint a picture with these words...LOL

Anyways, we cleaned and played Wednesday trying to get this small house ready for a lot of people. We baked our pies Wednesday night too. 2 Pumpkins, 1 Apple, 1 Lemon Meringue Needless to say we had fun! Thursday we got up late...6:00am and Jessica put the turkey in and KJ made some cranberry tea in the crock pot. After that Jessica started all the other cooking. Mashed taters, yams (2 kinds) frog eyed salad, Deviled eggs, Stuffing(in the turkey) Ham, Turkey, gravy, relish tray, corn, and rolls (made by our friends). We had the elders, Bob, and a new family in our Branch over. We had to get a table from the church to hold everyone. By the time everyone went through, it didn't even look like we had touched most of the food! This was the Elders first of three dinners. Bob was tired by 2:00pm and we sent leftovers home. Haylee and Adam and Jack stayed until around6:00pm playing games. Jack is 2 1/2. We had so much fun! We then visited two widows of the branch with pie. Lastly we had the missionaries back over for pie that evening. It was such a fun and enjoyable day. It was great to be in our house, to talk to family and to be able to get to know the new family more.

Hope all your Thanksgiving days were as wonderful as ours! Can't wait for our next blog...as it seems I might actually get back into the swing of keeping in touch again!

Halloween

2011-11-20T07:41:00.000-08:00

What a fun time of year this is. Our family is getting ready to be very busy with the Community Choir Jessica is singing in for Christmas, and all the things a Branch President gets to do in the month of December. We are very excited to be together as a family and build on the traditions we started last year. Holli is so excited for Christmas as she remembers last year well. Halloween was fun this year too. There is a book from the library about kids who dress up as bug superheros. Holli was butterfly girl and JD was bumblebee boy. We homemade most of their costumes and had such a blast. We went to the church party and then hit a few neighborhood houses. We still have candy left!

Our trunk for the Church Halloween party.
The back of their costumes.
Meet Butterfly girl who's powers are using her smart brain to figure things out and Bumblebee boy who is so tough with his stinger.
Our pumpkins!

One year later...

2011-10-24T08:54:00.001-07:00

I guess blogging is out of style! I just wanted to add some current pictures up for anyone who still might be reading this blog. I am going to try and start up again because this really is a good way to feel up to date with family and friends.

This is our family picture. It's not perfect but warms our hearts to look at those little ones! We took this up in the mountains near our house.

KJ took JD to his first Priesthood session. They looked so cute in their matching red ties and all!
During hunting season, Holli saw some deer out in the field and just had to shoot them like Dad did. So she took her bow, shot about 6 feet and was the happiest little girl on the planet telling everyone how she got to really shoot a deer.
This summer we got a tramp from a neighbor who was moving. The kids spent countless hours jumping on that thing. It has been great!!
Natalie and KJ are playing Wii. They are boxing and it's about 11:30pm! It was so funny to see them at it!

Some other things we've been doing. We have put in a deck out the back of our house, a walk way to it and the sliding glass door. We also did sod up front and put in Natural Gas. KJ's boot shop was put in during May and he is now moved up there. This winter we hope to really vamp up advertising and get the business very busy again. Holli and JD are growing like weeds. JD is talking some. This, That, Cat, Dog, and Mom and his favorite words right now. Holli is doing some preschool at home. She loves to do it and loves to learn the letter of the week. Jessica was released from Relief Society and is back in Nursery for now. Branch living is SO much fun... Hope to post more soon.

October doings

2010-11-11T12:25:00.000-08:00

The real side of Holli. She is so happy! So wild! So wonderfully 2.
Yes, JD is INSIDE the pumpkin! It was so big! Holli loved showing off her pumpkin!
JD was all about the "Icky" stuff inside Holli's pumpkin.
Once again, Holli would not help carve the pumpkins! Icky she kept saying.
We spent 1 1/2 weeks down in Sanford. Holli, Jed, and Porter all played so well together. In fact, we still are praying for Porter at prayer time and we play "Jed & Porter" with paper towel cardboard swords.
The Family at Halloween. JD was a hunter. Somewhere there was even an orange bib. Holli was a fairy for the pictures and a princess the rest of the time. (She wouldn't wear the wings anymore)
Holli went through a spell where she had to sleep on the floor. I told her one night that she had to start out in her room and if she woke up she could come into our room. I found her at 3am just barley inside our room, fast asleep. So asleep that she didn't wake up when I tripped over her!
Holli has learned that if she pushes her bike to the top of the ramp, she can coast down it. She has so much fun doing this. It's tough to learn how to ride a bike on dirt roads!
Wednesdays are long days for us since KJ has meetings that night. We pulled out the fort and set it up. I have to admit that once it was up, not much playing was done inside it. They'll play more in forts as they grow up.
Our first taste of foods. JD did ok with his first taste. Not nearly as good as Holli did, but we are up to eating 3 times a day and loving food! :)

Weddings, blessings, and the Zoo

2010-07-01T06:56:00.000-07:00

This last weekend was a busy one for us. Jamie, Jessica's sister was sealed to Taylor in the Jordan River Temple. She looked so beautiful and so happy. Congrats to her!The other big event for us was the blessing of JD. He was named Jay after Jessica's side of the family, Dean after the man in the picture below, and Johnson after his father. So full of meaning. And what a blessing he's been in our lives already! Thanks for everyone who was there and everyone who sent their love. That following Monday, we took Holli to the Zoo. She had fun looking at the animals. It was hot and most of the animals were sleeping, but the ones that moved around she loved! We can't wait to take her to Denver and see a bigger Zoo!

We love to get Holli and Kenzie together whenever we can. They are starting to play together and it's so much fun!
Holli didn't have a boring moment this weekend between all of Holli's Aunts, cousins, and Jessica's cousins, she played harder than she has ever played! Thanks to everyone!

JD's Blessing June 27th

2010-05-28T08:48:00.001-07:00

We are going to bless JD out in Utah June 27th @ 11:00am. This is during Cary's sacrament. Below is the address to the church. We will not be planning a dinner or get together of any sort afterwards so if you want to stay for all of church you can, if you need to hit the road as we will need to, please feel free to do so.

670 E 800 N
OREM , UT 84097

Two weeks and two kids

2010-05-26T08:48:00.000-07:00

Another go at the stomach flu for Holli this last week. We've all had it at least twice in the last month! Holli was so tired that she didn't even move once she went down. Her arms simply feel to the side. She's doing better so far and we really hope the bug has left her body for sure.Little man found his finger and started sucking away. This wasn't the first time either! Let's just say we will push the paci if he looks like he's going to be the finger sucker.

Little man all clean from his first bath at home.

Holli helping Mommy give JD a bath. Holli was small enough that we did sink baths for a long time. This was JD's first and last sink bath. He didn't really like it either. Poor guy, but it's got to be done!

Not the best photo in the world, but a close up of this clean wide-eyed boy. We are all so in love with him.

Ok, so Holli has her days where she's not so in love with him. She has the hardest time when we go out in public and she's not the center of attention. We find that funny because she gets all shy when anyone notices her and we thought she didn't like the attention. Maybe it's just that she doesn't like JD getting all the attention. Most days though, she helps with diaper changes, wants to constantly "wrap" him up in blankets and burp clothes, and will give him pep talks when we leave the two of them alone in a room for a second. She's concerned when he cries but if we are holding him too much, she's not afraid to drag the car seat across the room and say "Baby in." It's so funny to see her drag it because it takes all her strength to do it!

Kj is as we write battling the stomach bug again. He thinks it might be food poisoning this time, but whatever it is, he's sick AGAIN! He's been keeping pretty busy though. Last night he got the garden tilled and the plan is to get a lot of yard work done this weekend.

Jessica is figuring out the way to get things done with two and has found that there's not a lot of free time in the day. Hence why this blog is getting done at 10:30pm! She feels great and loves both her kiddos so much. Kj has helped so much in the cleaning department while she is still trying to fit it all in. The only thing really lacking is the daily walks she wants to take due to the nasty wind!

Well, that's all from the four of us.

Jay Dean Johnson

2010-05-12T19:17:00.000-07:00

Here are the much anticipated photos of JD. I believe most of you already know the details, but here they are again.

Jay Dean Johnson 9 lbs 1.4 ozs, 20 inches long, 14 inch head and chest. He's got beautiful brown hair. His poor face was pretty bruised from delivery but is looking much better now. Jessica's water broke around 3:00am she thinks and we were out the door by 4:00am. Mike and Natalie came up and took Holli for us, which was great. The epidural never really worked to start but somehow was pulled out in the process so Jessica did the last 1 1/2 or so all natural. OUCH! For two people who weren't prepared to deal with that kind of pain (yes on both parties side) we made it. JD was turned sunny side up which caused a lot of the pain but at sometime, he turned back around. JD was pushed out in 5 pushes. Jessica was pushing as the doctor walked in because at that point she didn't care who was there or not, just that that baby was coming now.

We are home now and ready to get back into life. JD's doing great although slightly yellow. Just watching that closely. Kj is pretty tired but handling it all pretty good. Jessica feels great, a little sore still, but loving having baby out. Holli is curious about JD but is keeping a distance. When we are not looking she's talking to him or giving him stuffed animals, but won't really look at him when we are around. She's throwing some pretty good fits that we hope go away in a few days or so. She was given her own baby carseat and baby at the hospital and has to do whatever we do with JD to her own baby. It's very sweet.

Last few hours of being prego! On our way to the hospital.Poor little boys face was pretty bruised. Look at that chest!Sleeping so sweet. He's dressed and ready to come home.The first pic of the new family of hour. See, Holli's really not sure what to think.She wanted to hold him, until he was on her lap. She'll come around.It's hard on everyone. We all fell asleep in the hospital room just being together as a family.At home and happy. Holli actually crawled up all on her own.

Easter, Holli's Birthday and our poor car.

2010-04-16T04:05:00.000-07:00

March was a full month here in Norwood! Kj traveled to California for Marc's blessing. While he was gone, Holli fell at church and broke her arm landing her in a pretty pink cast. Kj hit our 8th deer since coming to Norwood and Jessica slid off the road on her way to church resulting in the car being totaled. We've been busy! On the fun side, Kj's gotten a few more boots in and has loved working out in his shop. Jessica's done babysitting for Uriah now, but still keeps Holli busy. She's still working on her blog and scrapbooking. We took one last long trip out to Utah to see the family out there. We all three around counting down the days until Baby can come. Our due date is May 24th but we are hoping for more like May 4th! April is turning out to be as busy as March with less bumps in the road. Easter was a blast this year too! Turkey season has started and we hope to be posting our long beards soon!

Holli, Shoes, and Kj

2010-02-11T08:23:00.001-08:00

It's been a few months since we've posted so here's what's been going on in our life.

At the start of the year, January 1st, Kj came down with the nastiest cold he's had. It lasted 4 weeks. About two weeks into it, Holli and Jessica came down with it. Holli didn't sleep much and so out of self preservation we would sleep in her twin bed propped up by pillows so she could breathe. By Thursday night she was breathing well enough that we decided it was time for her to sleep in her crib by herself. She cried for 20 mins, Dad tried to calm her down and she asked for "the Mama." After Jessica came in she jumped off her lap, patted her big girl bed. We asked her if she want to sleep in it and she scrambled up and laid her head down. We didn't hear from her the rest of the night! So just like that, Holli is in a big girl bed. She loves it and really has done w

As most of you already know, Kj has purchased the equipment needed to start his own boot repair shop! The Friday that Kj went to Grand Junction to pick it up, Holli was very excited too. At 9:30pm when Kj came home, Holli insisted that she go outside to greet Dad. 5 mins before Kj came home, Holli was all dressed to go outside, PJ's and all! She ran down the ramp, snow covered and all, to get her hug for Kj. It made his night. I guess Kj wasn't the only one excited!

Kj standing by his 'new' Landis Finisher! He rearranged his shed out back and loaded it all back in there. As you can see he already has some boots to repair and he's not even up and running! He has a patch machine, the finisher, and a sewing machine. We are going to order his supplies soon. He can't hardly wait to get going. He even may have a lead to repairing shoes for Simms! Everything is working out perfectly for him. He hopes to stay busy enough to work all day on Fridays and Jess hopes that he's not too busy to work more than that. He's going to be wonderful.

Holli and her Oreo's. She loves the middles...who doesn't.

It's not often that Holli will cuddle with Mommy.

More than 10 times a day we read Holli's current favorite book, How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night? She loves to ROAR at all the Dinos!

Wearing Mom's shoes and walking around in them. Such a big girl!

The Ultimate compliment to the chef is when you lick you plate clean. Sticky French Toast. Yes, we took a bath right afterwards.

Other than the above, life is wonderful. We stay busy with church and normal life. Jessica is feeling good and growing slowly. Congrats to Amy and David with their new little one and Jessica prays that all little boys are not that big!

Baby Blessing

2010-01-05T15:10:00.001-08:00

We just wanted to let you know that we are blessing baby in UTAH June 27th. That is the day after Jamie's wedding. We thought since most people will be there anyways for the wedding we could save on traveling and do it then. Time and place will come probably in May or June, ya know as it comes closer. The date is in cement and will only change if Jamie changes her wedding plans, which is even more in cement! Pass the word please!

Blue

2010-01-05T05:12:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that we went to the doctor yesterday and saw our healthy little boy. It was pretty obvious he was a boy! We are pretty excited. 20 more weeks to go!

Christmas

2009-12-25T10:55:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas to all! Here are some fun pictures from our Christmas!

We were teaching Holli about baby Jesus and Christmas. She thought it was pretty neat to play with the animals.

Stockings! What's in there?

She pulled out a blue car and curled up with it after she had pulled everything out. How sweet.

Santa gave Holli a Kitchen which she loves so much.

Grandma Janet made the beautiful quilt. It was so funny because Holli sat right down on it and wanted a ride. Can you tell what we do at home?

KJ really wanted a book, I know, A BOOK! Hunting trophy antelope. He was in heaven.

Holli giving loves to her new puppy dog. So cute.

It didn't take Holli long to figure out how to rip all her gifts open. She was very good. She was in toy overload by the end of the pile of gifts but she loves all her knew gifts. She needed some down time afterwards. We ate breakfast and she ate 4 scrambled eggs and a good helping of hash browns. We guess that all the excitement made her hungry.

We send our love to all the family we can't be with. May the spirit of Christmas spread to all of you and thank you for all the wonderful gifts!

Between hunting season and ice fishing season

2009-12-16T16:21:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm having trouble with the new way blogger is uploading pictures so sorry if this page does not make sense. Here is what we have been up to the last two months. Halloween was fun with Holli. She at first thought the pumpkins were so yucky! Finally she did touch it and had fun.

We decorated our Christmas tree this week and yes you do see it laying on it's side! It was too heavy for the stand that we have so it feel as we were putting the star on. It's snuggled up in the corner right now leaning slightly backwards. It's the nicest real tree we have gotten although Jessica is still holding out for a fake tree someday.

Above are pictures of both our birthday's. We kept them low key but fun! And below is the first snowman Holli made. The snow was not good packing snow so our little man was only a foot and a half tall. Too cute!

Digital Scrapping Made Fun. Jessica's new Blog

2009-12-10T09:58:00.001-08:00

Hello family! Jessica has started a blogspot for digital scrapping. She just started building the site this week so there is only one post. Basically, there are two reason to go to this blog.

Jessica is going to blog about all the different angles and properties of digital scrapping. She will find the best deals on Amazon and post them. She will talk about techniques, products, and programs.
Every time a customer or potential customer clicks on a link from her website, it will take them to Amazon.com. There is a link at the top of the blog that takes you to Amazon.com'sweb page and from there you can search anything you want. All purchases made, Jessica will earn a commission on! This is called affiliate marketing and she is very excited about it. There's a link to the Kindle Store and also a link to the MP3 page.

Please check it out, give suggestions, and have fun. Become a follower of the blog as Jessica dives into the world of digital scrapping and get updated information as she posts it. Like she said, you don't have to be in the market for digital scrapping to visit the page. Make her blogspot your portal to Amazon.com. Thanks!

http://digitalscrappingmadefun.blogspot.com/

Fall Photos

2009-10-29T08:42:00.000-07:00

Life after hunting season has been wonderful. We just have been waiting to be able to announce our big news of baby #2 coming. KJ has been busy cleaning up the yard for fall and doing his church calling. He has been busy helping pick up the slack from sick mommy. He's been wonderful. Holli has fared really well as well. The above pictures were taken down in Nucla. She had so much fun with all the leaves.

Christmas Drawing

2009-10-18T07:04:00.000-07:00

Last year we all agreed that drawing names for Christmas was the way we all wanted to go. Please let us know if this is still the tradition we want to carry on. This is this years list. Dollar amount is determined by each family. Can't wait for Christmas!!!

Clint-Steven
Cary-Amy
Steven-KJ
Amy-Lori
KJ-Clint
Lori-Cary

Hunting is our life

2009-09-22T11:09:00.000-07:00

Please excuse me as the photos are all out of order. I don't have the energy to organize them. All I have to say is...it's been hunting season around the Johnson home.

KJ, Holli, and Jessica went hunting with a friend from Montrose, Ted. This was the buck that Ted shot. HUGE!
Jessica's Dad came up all during muzzeloading. This was the doe he shot. Jessica wasn't able to get anything, although she had so much fun!
With all the hunters out there, we didn't want Holli to be a target. While we tracked the doe, she wore orange too. And yes, she had so much fun.
This is only partially what we got from our garden this year! Once hunting season is over, it's canning season.
This was taken after KJ shot his buck. She wanted so badly to touch her Daddy's bow.

This is the buck KJ shot with his bow this year. Still in the velvet. This was the biggest buck he's shot yet! This was a fun hunt for him as he really snuck up on the bad boy and got him! You should ask him to story sometime. Holli and I were around for it too!
Can you see the deer in this photo? KJ had snuck up on this guy. Unfortunately, the buck heard and saw him. He played the whole "You don't see me" bit. Amazing photo!
When provoked, Holli's hair is retaining some curl. Hope as it gets longer, more stays.
Jessica's mom and sisters came up for a few days. We went shooting a fishing. My sisters caught some fish. Even Holli fished. At first she had a stick with a bobber attached to it. Then she realized that we weren't fishing that way and complained. Se had to find some real line and attached some power bait to the end. The would cast the bait and pull it back in just like the other girls!
KJ was replacing the brakes on the car. We had to run inside for a moment and Holli decided to finish the project her self. She would pick a tool up from the box, bag under car, put the tool back, then get another tool. How sweet.

Playgroup

2009-08-11T15:22:00.000-07:00

Holli hosted a play group on Saturday. We have pools set up with jell-o, cooked noodles, and water. They kids stripped down and wet to town. We had 4 kids show up this time and hope to have more as we continue to do this. Here Holli and Uriah eat the jello-o rather than play in it. Uriah did find the joy later of lathering it all over his sticky body! Holli ate so much I think she got a belly ache from it.Tub of noodles. THere was a slide that the boys loved to slide down. You can't see it here, but Holli was just about play grouped out by now.Holli and Connor ridding the 'tractor'. The kids followed KJ around everywhere. They must have had too much mommy time and not enough man time. Cassy and her son Connor came up and visited for a weekend. It was so good to see them and for the kids to play together.

May and June (a must read)

2009-06-30T13:01:00.001-07:00

We have been so busy these last few months, so busy that we haven't kept up on our blogs. So here are some highlights from May and June.

We went camping over Memorial Day weekend. Holli did so good. We left the house around three pm and didn't get into camp until 11:30pm! There was a lot of "sight seeing" done over the 7 hours. Holli did so good in the truck. We gained a stronger testimony of prayers in the face of danger. We were overlooking a steep canyon in our truck with 6 inches of mud and a large hill behind us. Let's just say that we made it back up the hill when in reality we shouldn't have. It rained a lot which only added to our memories. We went our friends the Kings.

June also brought KJ's and Jessica's 6 anniversary. KJ bought Jessica some much wanted items for her Cricut. She loves them! Jessica bought KJ some arrows for this fall. He was for the first time ever surprised at his gift. Jessica had him thinking she hadn't had time to get them! We also went fishing with Mike and Natalie in Lake City. We caught some chairs, and yes even some fish. Can anyone see anything wrong with one of these photos? LOL! Holli had a rough day at the lake because of the wind, but KJ and Jessica had a blast! We planted our garden again this year. We put a lot of effort into digging and putting more soil on top. Once that was done all three of us braved the rain and planted. Holli did pretty well most of the time. She loved getting dirty. It seems we were having a contest to see who could get the most dirt on them. It was a three way tie!Jessica's Grandparents visited on their way to Avon for their two week stay. They stopped in Norwood for a few seconds (which Jessica so happy they could see her house) then all of us went to Ouray for dinner. Holli was teething and didn't have a very good time. Poor girl. Jessica on the other hand was thrilled to see her Grandparents!

Father's Day! The second gift in six years that Jessica was able to surprise KJ with. He wanted a grill that he is not ashamed off. (He hid our other one around the back of the house. Outer Darkness!) With the heat, KJ is going to get a lot of use out of this one!It was time, Holli's first hair cut. Bangs! She looks so much better with the locks cut. She's growing up!

Aunt Jamie is here again this summer. She is working in Telluride and loving Holli, although thus far we have been gone as much as she has been here. Rumor has it that she is going to come to Sanford with us for the 24th of July!

This is a photo of KJ fishing Blue Mesa. Beautiful!

Girls Camp was last week. Jessica was over all the hikes and did a fine job. She hopes to be able to do it next year too. Kj camped Mon, Tues, Wed, and Friday. He had to work Thursday. It was a BLAST! Holli stayed the week in Gypsum with her Grandparents Jays. She did very well we are told. We don't have any photos yet, but will post when we get them. She was very happy to see us again. We dropped her off Sunday and didn't get her until Saturday. Thanks for taking her Mom and Dad!

Well, that's all for now. We will post soon again, we promise!

More Turkey Hunting

2009-05-18T12:20:00.000-07:00

Jessica's Dad had the opportunity to come to Norwood twice to Turkey hunt. We saw a lot of turkeys! The first weekend, Mom, Jenna, and Jade came as well. It was nice to get out and have a day with my Dad. The second weekend, just Dad came. Thanks Dad for coming!
Holli decided that Grandpa was an ok guy right before he left. How cute!

Day 2 without Daddy

2009-05-12T19:49:00.000-07:00

To keep the kids busy during their grumpy time, I chased one of the kids with the other kid in the laundry basket. They thought it was so funny. Once my legs turned to jelly, I pushed them both on the kitchen floor. They liked this just as much!
Holli's briefcase. She carries this all over the house like it is so important. To her, it is! See you tomorrow, Daddy!

Day 1 without Daddy

2009-05-11T20:43:00.000-07:00

Good morning Holli! She looked so cute with her messed up hair and oversized PJ's!We planted wild flowers today. I hope that they grow! We missed you Dad! See you soon!

Swiming Pool

2009-05-06T19:55:00.000-07:00

We bought a small swimming pool at Target. Holli loves playing in it!

We lathered on the SPF 40 and played. By the way, use swim diapers! Love the big butt!
Holli pushing over Uriah. She loves having him over, but they do act like siblings! I guess God just forgot to give her one. :)

Pure Joy!

Colored Pudding, Peaunt Butter, Honey, and Holli!

2009-05-06T19:16:00.000-07:00

Evenings are very rough around our house. Holli is done rough housing but still demands mom's full attention. Today, we decided to give her something messy to do and see how that affected the mood. We dyed vanilla pudding blue, green and red. Then we plopped peanut butter and honey onto her plate. This kept her happy and entertained for 30 minuets!!! Then there was the bath to clean her up, 10 minuets. Afterwards, her and Uriah rand like wild banshees around the house for another 40 minuets. Lets just say she begged to go to bed and Mom is sleeping while writing this, BUT THERE WAS NO CRYING HERE TONIGHT!

Bedtime story

2009-05-06T18:48:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time, there was a chocolate pudding snack pack. He was just sitting in the pantry, minding his own business when, RIP. his top was pulled opened. He started to panic as he was carried away from his warm and dark home. His fears were calmed when he saw that there was a responsible adult feeding a one year old. He sat back to enjoy the ride. BUT something happened that he never thought he would see...The responsible mother turned her back!!!The HUNGRY one-year was determined to finish her snack and took control over the feeding. The Snack Pack once again relaxed seeing that the child was going to be nice and easy on him. Then the responsible mother turned back around to see the mess that her daughter had started. She said, "Ah, what the heck" and put the child into a booster seat. The child ate, and ate, and ate. THEN SHE...

Played, and played and played...

Smeared, and smeared, and smeared...
resulting in one of the biggest messes seen by the Snack Pack EVER!
The moral of the story is that the messier the child is, the happier she is, and that just makes life fun!

Turkey's! Holli! Turkey's!

2009-04-30T07:26:00.000-07:00

Holli is standing and walking now! She is still pretty stiff legged, but it is so cute to watch her walk! She is standing up with out help from couches or chairs. How fun! She wanted to know what I was doing behind the camera! So innocent.

Colton and Holli down in Sanford over General Conference weekend.

Papa playing ball with Holli. Balls are her favortie things!

Holli in nursery. She loves going in there. Family photos! Jessica's Turkey. Beautiful. Holli even petted the bird. We thought she would be kind of freaked out. She's a hunter in a making.

KJ's turkey. He called this turkey in and BANG! He was so excited. You should ask him the story sometime. It is a good one! We are so proud of him and all he does.

Holli loves to read. She will hide away in her room, pull off all the books, and read for 30 mins. It is so cute.

We go to the park often. On this trip she learned to slid down the slid, all by herself. I don't think that she really enjoyed it, but she kept doing it. Freedom is a wonderful thing!

Easter

2009-04-17T09:09:00.000-07:00

Easter was fun for us this year! This was Holli's second Easter, but we don't count last year! We put six plastic eggs on the ground and let her find them. Inside were some YoGo's and a piece of Smarties. She was so excited to crawl to each one and shake it!
Look at those chompers! She has 5 1/2 teeth now. One top one keeps coming in and blistering back up.

Oh yeah, I have a new hair cut. It's so easy with this little one.

Daddy showed her how to open them up to find the stuff inside. YoGo's use to be her favortie, but now it is Smarties. She had an Easter Dress, but while in Nursery, she made a mess of it! We had a whirlwind of a day and so the Easter Bunny didn't come until about 5 that night.

Holli's Birthday

2009-03-17T06:54:00.000-07:00

Holli has found Bubbles! She loves them, although not out side yet. I think when I clean my carpet next, I won't seed soap! This is Holli helping out make her cake. A little later in the process, she finds that she can dip her fingers in the frosting and eat it. It was her birthday and she ate A LOT of sweets that day. She loves to sit on the counter and play while we cook.

She loves this toy from Great-Grandpartents Bartholomew!

Daddy bought her some touching books. She loves books. Right now, her favoirte things are books, balls, and bubbles!

Her Birthday Cake. She is our litte ray of sunshine so I made a sun cake. This is the first cake that turned out well. I have a video of her eating it, but I will have to figure out how to load it. I will post that later.

All in all, the day was very good. She loved all of her gifts and can't wait for the parites that we will have at the grandparents. We can't believe that she really is ONE!

This week

2009-02-10T11:43:00.000-08:00

Holli is feeding herself a lot these days. The other day we wanted to know if she could bite off a bannana instead of cutting it for her. She put the entire bannana into her mouth! (We gave it to her in forths) She ate it in nothing flat! We have gone back to cutting it for her. She loves eggs! She likes them better without the whites, but eggs are eggs! The first day she ate 3 egg yolks! Devoured!

Holli dumped all of her toys out and played king of the mountain!

Snow

2009-01-21T13:39:00.000-08:00

Holli likes the snow. Jess took Holli up to see KJ when he was ice fishing. She went sledding and liked to sit in the snow and explore it. We are going to try again this next weekend and see how she does sledding again. We did good until Jess dumped her. OPPS!

Take an Unyeilding Stand

2009-01-20T07:00:00.000-08:00

Got an email with this in it and felt it was good to share.

"Nephi taught us a powerfully simple principle in recounting his father's dream of the tree of life. He described a strait and narrow path leading to a tree and a great and spacious building. . . . From all appearances, the people inside seemed to be having a great time. What an indelible image of temptation. In Elder Neal A. Maxwell's words, 'The laughter of the world is merely loneliness pathetically trying to reassure itself' ("Cleanse Us from All Unrighteousness," Ensign, Feb. 1986, 19). . .

"President Boyd K. Packer has recently emphasized this guiding principle: 'However out of step we may seem, however much the standards are belittled, however much others yield, we will not yield, we cannot yield' ("The Standard of Truth Has Been Erected," Ensign, Nov. 2003, 26). . . .

"The time has come when we must take an unyielding stand. We must shore up our spiritual underpinnings, listen to the prophets of God, and follow their counsel."

Random photos with a whole lot of Greats in them!

2009-01-08T13:00:00.000-08:00

Over New Years, we went and visited Jessica's Grandparents down in Arizona. Of course, the main attraction was...Cabelas! Her is Holli having fun posing in front of the Elephant. Jessica's uncle Bill. Going back reminded her of how much she misses them.

Great-Grandparents Bartholomew with their favorite Great-Granddaughter. (ok so it's there only so far!) They took care of this smiling baby so that KJ and Jessica could get a date together. KJ enjoyed getting to know Jessica's family and Jessica just loved being there.

It is funny, but this is Margret Jackson...KJ's Great-Aunt. She is in the same ward as Jessica's Grandma. On Sunday, we went over and talked for awhile. What a wonderful woman. She is doing very well down there.

KJ, Clint, Mike and Steve show off with their shotguns. A lot of dead clay pigeons! Holli with Great-Grandma Coleen.

Holli has a hat just like Mckenzie does.

Holli with Great-Grandma Johnson

Holli with Papa.

Holli is wearing her beautiful Christmas dress. The green looks so good with her beautiful hair. She looks so sweet in this photo. She is sweet.

Licking the pot clean, like a good little girl.

Santa brought this phone so that Mommy and Daddy could have theirs back. From the smile on her face we think she likes it. We still don't have first grabs at the phones!

The car ride to Sanford was a very good one. Holli learned the joys of picture taking. She let Mom take 100 photos of her to pass the time. Holli can't seem to do anything unless she has her tong hanging out...reminders her of Great-Grandpa Bartholomew.

This is an outfit that Great-Grandpa Brooks gave Holli. She is showing here how much she loves her feet too. She loves to hold them, suck on them, splash with them and walk with them!

More of Holli

2008-12-11T16:12:00.000-08:00

Holli's first time at the park. She loves to swing! Baby Holli in Daddy's hat.

She was so tired one day that when she woke up from her nap early, we let her cry herself back to sleep. We were right about her being tired because she fell asleep sitting up!

Holli's first time with Santa. She just looked him wondering who he was. Not a single tear.

This was right after we went to get our charlie Brown Christmas tree. Poor Holli looks scared between us.

Christmas Drawing

2008-12-08T08:13:00.000-08:00

Every year we draw names for a family. Last year we did a $25 limit on each family, but this is up to whoever has your family. We propose that we have a set rotation so that we know every year who we are going to have and we don't have to draw. Since the family was scattered this year for Thanksgiving, KJ and Jessica put together this list for this year. Please let us know if this works.

Clint fam-Cary fam
Cary-Steven
Steven-Amy
Amy-KJ
KJ-Lori
Lori-Clint

Then next year it will look like this.

Clint-Steven
Cary-Amy
Steven-KJ
Amy-Lori
KJ-Clint
Lori-Cary

Where's Holli

2008-11-04T14:23:00.000-08:00

Where's Holli?Peak-a-boo!

Where's Holli?There she is!Where's Holli? Peak-a-boo!
Holli loves to pay Peak-a-boo. She loves when mom or dad leave the room and suddenly reappear. Then sometimes she likes to hide herself! Almost always can we get a huge smile...even if it has a paci in it!

Happy Halloween

2008-11-01T13:53:00.000-07:00

Holli was a bear for her first Halloween. She looked way too cute! We did not go anywhere. Mike and Natalie stopped by and took us out for dinner for an early birthday dinner. We could not get Holli to smile in her bear suit.Holli and her friend, Uriah. He was a biker dude. This is the little boy that I babysit.We tried to draw a little nose on Holli, but she would not sit still long enough for us to do it. And this is all the candy that was left after only 1 trick-or-treater came by. We bought candy that we do not like so that we would not be tempted to eat it. Now what?

Silly Holli

2008-10-30T15:25:00.000-07:00

Holli is always a treat! We laugh daily at what she does. I think that we are going to laugh even harder when she starts talking. Here are some of our favorite moments from the last week.

The other day she found the toilet paper Jess had out and turned around to find this! The demolition of the house is starting.

Holli some how got her animal on her back and was letting him take a 'ride'. If only she could crawl! She loves to be placed on the rocker and just 'chills'. Life does not get better than this.

Although Holli cannot crawl yet, she is good at pushing herself backwards, and Jess found her trapped between the table, wall, and T.V. How in the world she got back there, is still a mystery.

Holli can suspend herself on her toes and then gets upset because she can't go anywhere from that position. Since this picture she has gotten her knees under her, but gets even more upset because she seems to know that she should be mobile in this position, but can't get 'er done. She is very determined to make it work.

Hunting Craze

2008-10-21T09:47:00.000-07:00

Well, the hunting and harvesting is done. KJ did very well this year. This here is his antelope. It is a very large 15 inch buck. He scored about 77 inches total. We are very proud of what he got. Heck, we got more meat out if it than some deer in the past! He used his good 'ol 7 short mag. I don't care what anyone says, that is a dang good gun! Now the talk is on about how to mount the animal.

Here is the buck he shot with his bow.
And here is the bull that got away last year and that he found this year! He was sad that it got away last year but relieved to know that he found it this year! TALK ABOUT HUGE!!!!
I shot a little doe this year as well. Us girls went around Norwood all dressed up in our cammo.
But by the end of the day, this little girl was all hunted out!
Earlier that day we put this bear in front of here to see what she would do. Normally she lays down with it and flops that bunny ears around. She looked at us as if to say, "Can I really play with it like this?"
OK, I will play with it.Now, you're sure that I can?YUMM! These feet taste so good.We, are just good buddies now!

September/October

2008-10-13T17:00:00.000-07:00

Doe a deer a dead dead deer. Dad Steven and I during their muzzeloading hunt here at Norwood. Now the work really begins.

Hey, look at KJ's farmer's tan. Crazy eh!!! :)

This is a beautiful picture taken by Kj while hunting one night. No he was not hunting at night, just driving out from another day of pondering "Where the heck are all the elk".

Mom and dad would you like me to paint you a picture
Holli where on earth are you at. I can't see you. KJ with his buck in Eads. Not to shabby. Ok, he fell 3 inches short of the trophy books.

Holli, isn't it a little early to be on the bottle? There was an empty bottle laying around and Grandpa was holding Holli and she grabbed it and put it right to her mouth. So, we started her with a sippy cup and she loved it. (There was not Mountain Dew in the Sippy Cup.)
Holli is rolling everywhere now. We will walk out of the room and find her hiding in all sorts of different places!

Just an update

2008-09-22T07:26:00.000-07:00

Jess visited Gypsum for a week over Labor Day. Grandma and Holli loved every second together! Here it looks like Holli is having a one on one with Grandma about the hardships of life! Holli loved when Grandpa would come home and take over. She looks so small in this photo.
And this is a typical day, Holli loves to pull hair! And sometimes but the end of the day, so does Mom.

It is sometimes hard to get around with two babies like this. I just needed to run across the street with some stuff for my neighbor and so I "stuffed" both babies into the Stroller. They did not mind at all! Holli's first food! Rice cereal, YUM! She ate it up and loved it. She also loves carrots and bananas. She did really well eating at first and even slept 8hrs...once. Then for two weeks to wanted nothing to do with it and now she is eating again. It is so much fun!
Like I said, she loves carrots and we can't get the food to her fast enough so she tries to help.
This photo just cracks me up! She is so happy and looks more round in the face than she really is. But I love this photo.
KJ has been hunting a lot this month. We don't have photos of him as they are on a friends camera. He shot his buck already and he has been good to eat! He has been busy with his calling as second councilor but loves it. Jess has LOVED nursery. She just was called as Seminary Teacher as well and had her first class this week. It is home study so the kids just meet once a week. In October we go to Sanford and then onto Eads for antelope hunting. The weekend after is Jess's season. If anyone wants to see us, we are booked a month ahead. We look back and laugh at the days that we use to sit at home and try to find something to do! It is a shame that we humans need any sleep!

Holli is rolling from her tummy to back now. She is rolling after toys that she wants to get. The funny thing is that she does not realize that she can do it, so sometimes she rolls over onto her tummy and gets upset that she can't get to her back. If we leave her long enough, in her fit she rolls to her back and all is good again!

2008-07-29T21:29:00.000-07:00

KJ, Holli, and Jessica went on their first ever vacation! We started out the trip with a orthodontist appt in Pagosa for KJ. He is to get his braces off in November! We hope at least. Then we spent the night in Sanford. KJ and Mike went fishing and the girls went shopping. We went to Denver Saturday night. The hotel was scary and so were the people, but it we were able to sleep in and get on our fight to San Diego. Jess was very nervous about the fight and how Holli would do, but she was great. Slept in our arms most of the way. We even flew over Norwood and saw our little sub-divison! We stayed at Amy and David's. THANK YOU to them for letting us invade! We went to the beach a few times, went to my cousins wedding, visited the area that KJ went on his mission to and came back on Friday. We stayed the night at Jessica's home in Gypum and drove home on Saterday. What a wonderful trip!

Here, Holli is proped up by blankets and playing while we ate. It did not last long as she is still a little too small.
Aunt Cary came just before we were to leave for Denver. We were so glad to see here again!This is Holli's first visit to the beach. She really did not know what to think of it. We let her stand in the water and on the sand.After a while she just wanted to cuddle, which is always ok with Mom and Dad. She is the best and cutest baby ever!We all went out to the pier by Amy's house. The girls liked watching the fishers and the waves. It was so clear in the ocean. Beautiful green and blues.Two perfect baby feet. Look at the beautiful waves in the background. This was at Coronodo Beach. Have you ever seen a cowboy at the beach? I laughed at the fact that Holli and I were barefoot and KJ was in his boots!My Aunt JoAnna. She was the mother of the bride. Grandpa Jay got to rock Holli to sleep while we waited for the bride and groom to come out of the temple.Great-Grandpa Ray spent some quality time his favorite great-grandbaby.Home in Gypsum, Grandma Janet holds Holli while Mom and Dad sleep.

Josh and Rico smile as we chat before we leave to go home.

2008-07-17T10:53:00.000-07:00

In the mornings, Holli comes back and sleeps with us for an hour or so. I was getting ready for church one Sunday and found these two just like this.
Holli loves her Aunt Jamie very much. They both love to just 'be' with each other. Sundays is Aunt Jamies day with Holli. She takes her while KJ and I nap and when Holli is hungry, I feed her and she goes back to Aunt Jamie.
Our branch put on a big 4th of July event for the community. Here Nephi speaks of his freedoms.
I sang a song to open the program up with two other ladies. This photo here is of me singing karaoke with my friend Cindy. There is a first for everything.
Tummy Time! She still does not like her tummy, but every once and a while she has a good day and will play for a few mins like this.

Standing

2008-07-11T11:15:00.000-07:00

Holli has decided that she likes to stand now and this is her preferred position. We will try and sit her down and she fusses until we stand her back up. She is so skinny and small that it seems funny to see her standing so wobbly.

More of the cuttie

2008-07-08T21:14:00.000-07:00

Sorry that we have not posted anything in a while. Holli is getting so big. Here are some photos of her over the past few months. I can't believe that she is almost 4 months old now!

This one is when Megan passed through with Jed and Porter.
I just love how much she loves her baths already. Sometimes we will spend up to 30 mins in there. She is starting to splash on accident now.
Another thing that she loves to do is to hang her head upside down while on your lap. Granted now she is too big to really lay on my lap like this anymore. She will stay like this for a long time, just looking around!
Now, if this is not the best smile ever! She loves to smile and is starting to giggle a little bit. She is cooing at us telling us little stories. She talked to me the whole way through Wal-Mart the other day.
We have been having some night troubles. Some nights she goes to bed just fine, some nights she has to cry some before going to bed, and others she does don't go at all. This is a photo of us after a night of not wanting to sleep at all.

Holli's blessing

2008-06-09T07:45:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad hold their little one. She did so good while she was being blessed. No tears there! A close up of Baby Holli. She looked so beautiful in her blessing dress. The undershirt was made by my mom from material left over from my wedding dress.
Papa was so excited to come and see Holli. She did so well sleeping in his arms.
Jamie, Jess, and Mom pose for a pretty photo.
4 generations. This is my Grandparents Bartholomew, my Dad's parents. There were 4 generations on both sides there but we did not get a photo on Kj's side.
Thank you so much for everyone coming. It was such a special day for us. We had a lot of fun and we are grateful that everyone wanted to join in on this day.

Video of Holli playing

2008-05-22T11:41:00.000-07:00

I was trying to get the best video out of Holli but at 2 months she is a little camera shy. We took 10 vidoes and this is the best one. We sure love every little thing that she does!

2008-05-06T15:55:00.000-07:00

A lot has happened this last week with Holli. Two Fridays ago Kj and Holli were laying in bed both trying to wake up while Jess was taking a shower and Holli rolled from her side to her belly! She has been rolling from her back to her side for a few weeks now. Jess did not believe that her baby could be doing this already until Sunday when Holli was put down to sleep on her side and Jess found her on her stomach. Mommy freaked out as Holli's neck is not strong enough to move around if she could not breathe!

Then last Friday, Kj was holding Holli and talking to her before we went out to a friends house and the little stinker smiled at her Daddy! Mom has been trying to get Holli to smile for a few weeks now, and who does Holli give the first smile to...Dad. Mom did see it as she had a feeling that this was how it was going to come down! Thank goodness. Holli is smiling more and more every day and one of these days, we will get it on camera.

Kj is gone at a Lineman school in Grand Junction this whole week. We are going down there to spend some time with Uncle Josh and Mom later this week although.

We wanted to post some information about the blessing of Holli. We will be blessing her in Naturita over Memorial Day Weekend. Natalie has obtained some rooms for all the family for Saturday night. We will try to do something with the two sides of the family on Saturday depending on when everyone is coming in. Sunday church starts at 10:00 am although I think that we should arrive a little early if we want to have every one sit together. Sacrament is first and will get out at 10:55. We are planing a dinner for everyone after church on Sunday. Please let me know if there are anyone will be staying or come longer than just Sat/Sun.
"No more photos!"
Holli trying to lift her head up. She does NOT like being on her stomach.
Holli being tired after trying so hard.
It has been cold, and Jess does not like to light fires...wonder why...and so we wear hats on the colder days. She is so CUTE! We can't get enough of her.

Kj last interview

2008-05-01T12:27:00.000-07:00

When we posted that KJ was done with his apprenticeship...we failed to mention that he had one more step, the interview with the BIG bosses. This was done on Tuesday and they passed him with flying colors. He is so relieved that it is now officially on paper. He received a certificate, really neat belt buckle and will receive a nice coat with his name on it. We will get photos when they all come in. Thank you again from Jess and Holli for all the you do to support our family, KJ!

Helpful Hints From the Now Wise Woman

2008-04-22T06:10:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to pass on some helpful hints/lessons that I learned yesterday.

Don't empty ashes into a plastic container...even if you think they are cooled and you have seen someone do it a hundred times!

Don't put those ashes next to your front door.

Have a fire extinguisher in your house because you never know!

If you smell smoke...find it...don't just figure it is coming from the neighbors woodstove.

If you have the prompting to look out your front door and you can't figure out why...do it anyways.

Know where the garden hoses are even if it is still half winter.

Don't have your house insurance premium be $1,000!

From the above you can tell what happened to me yesterday. I thought I was being productive for one of the first days since Holli was born and I ended up spending an hour getting the fire out and the rest of the afternoon stressed out about what had happened. Everyone was fine...except the porch, front door, and a lunch box that was left outside over night.

Random Pictures from the last 3 weeks

2008-04-17T16:45:00.000-07:00

Holli loves her Mobile. She listens to the music and watches the lights flash. This is where she spends a lot of her awake time...still only a few hours a day.

This was the first dress that she wore to Young Womens. She looked too cute for words and Mom loved dressing her up! Girls are so much fun.

Just a picture of Mom and daughter in Gypsum. Aunt Jadelyn loved Baby Holli and wanted to hold her every chance she could.
This is a picture of Kendra, a neighborhood girl that Jessica is very good friends with.
Tiny Little Feet. I can't get over how very small she is. I know that she is going to grow fast, but I love her so small. She has Jessica's feet and every chance Holli gets, she sticks her feet out..just like Jessica.
Jessica spent a week at her parents house and oh how much fun it was! Here is Grandpa Robert and Holli cuddling on the couch.
KJ and Holli like to take naps together in the recliner. Many nights have been spent in this chair with both parent when Miss Holli won't sleep well in her bed.

Easter

2008-04-17T16:32:00.001-07:00

Mike, Natalie, Lori, and Jordan came up to Norwood for Easter. Holli was given a little outfit that said "My first Easter". At the time, I did not think that she would be able to wear it as she was to be born weeks after Easter but, it worked out that she could. It was so big on her...but she wore it!

2008-04-17T13:51:00.000-07:00

Life in Norwood is wonderful. At the moment, we are having problems getting this program to upload our photos. I will continue to try until we can upload some wonderful photos of Holli and us.

It is Turkey season right now, and most of KJ's thoughts are towards that. He has been wonderful and stayed home a lot in spite of it being hunting season...to be with Holli.

Jessica is still loving being home. This new full time job is the most rewarding job she has ever had. She is starting to feel like doing more things around the house, but most of her time is still spent holding and feeding Holli. She loves it to death!

Holli is still growing so fast. She is focusing on faces now, following sounds, and waving her hands more. She weighs about 6 1/2 pounds and is starting to outgrow the preemie clothes! We can't wait to be able to post more photos of her!

Holli this week

2008-03-30T20:03:00.000-07:00

Daddy's first kiss from his Daughter. KJ was trying to burp her and she kept trying to suck on his check. It was so cute.
The honeymoon period is over. On the last blog we mentioned how Holli does not really cry...well she has found her lungs. It is a good thing really, but Mom and Dad feel so bad when she cries and we can't figure out what is going on. They say babies just cry for no reason sometimes, but that is hard for a parent who wants to make everything perfect! Holli is doing wonderful although. So are her parents. Jess just holds her little one all day and it is hard to get motivated to do anything. KJ works long days and still instits on getting up at night with Holli. He is a wonderful parent.

Holli's is all dressed up to go to town. We dressed her up for Jessica's trip to Telluride to clean out her desk. This was a very hard thing for Jessica to do. She never got the closure she needed since Miss Holli came early. It is very hard to leave a job that you love very much. This little girl helps heal the heart.

This was after her first bath at home. She did not like it at all, but KJ was able to calm her down by holding her like this. She is just so small when you put her in her Daddy's arms.
Holli's first Easter outfit. It was so big on her, but she looked so cute.
We don't know for sure, but we thing that our baby has a belly ache. She was finally calmed by laying her on her stomach. This is why we don't get anything done in the day.

Holli Marie Johnson

2008-03-20T09:45:00.000-07:00

As most of you already know, our little Holli has come home! KJ and I have seen enough of the Montrose Hospital. All of our nurses were WONDERFUL but we are so glad to have our baby at home where we can hold her when we want and without having to ask permission. She is doing very well. She is breastfeeding in a modified way and we are still trying different things to make it more efficient. She is such a calm baby thus far. She does not even really cry when she is hungry, just fusses. We are learning what different sounds mean and what to do. KJ is such a proud daddy. He comes home and the first thing he does is kiss me and then finds our daughter. He is such a natural with her. He has a lot of concerns, as does mom, but over time, we hope to calm those. My wonderful mother was here until Wednesday mid-day. It was so nice to have her second set of hands and support. I miss her now more than ever. Kj has returned to work and is glad to have something to do. I have never been so glad that he has Fridays off now that I am here and even showering is time consuming. Thank you for all the prayers that were offered and all the calls of support. Here are a few photos of our angel.
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2008-02-25T09:43:00.000-08:00

Here are some photos of what we have been up to. Kj and Mike went to Lake City to the annual Ice Fishing Tournament. Kj and has been so excited for this trip that once again sleep has been hard to get!! For Kj Journeying out, Jess bought him a gas powered ice auger. The boy has almost everything he needs for ice fishing now!

Over President's Day weekend, we traveled to Denver to see Denise go to the Temple for the first time. She was so nervous, but felt it was so right. It was so good to be able to share that moment with her. Thank you!

Buster has learned how to play with a football. We have to admit that some evenings, our entertainment comes from watching Buster try to "get his ball."

Lastly, Kj set up a few more things in the baby's room. The swing makes jungle noises and after we turned it on, it took hours to get it to stop! We kept thinking it was done, and then out of no where we would hear random sounds. We need to download some instruction books as most of what we have, we have been blessed by obtaining by hand-me downs.

On a side note, Jess is trying to do her scrapbooking, and we don't have any photos of Thanksgiving. If any of you have some photos of us over that weekend, will you please email them to us. Jess is trying to get this part done before this little girl comes. Thanks and love from Norwood.

2008-02-12T18:46:00.000-08:00

There is a lady in Telluride that saves wild animals. This is a 22 year old Mountian Lion named Ruby. Ruby came into the bank for all of us to see. I was really uncomfortable sitting next to a stinky wild animal. Ruby is tame and has been in captivity since birth, but I am not convinced that she would not attack. The comment my co-workers said over and over is that I don't look comfortable without my gun. They are right!

ice fishing with jess

2008-02-09T20:37:00.001-08:00

A fun day at the lake!!!
This is the fancy ice hut that has saved my bacon a few times when the wind is really bad.
Boy Howdy this is fun. It is also not that cold (as you can tell)
Jess with her lunker (not really hahaha )

2008-02-05T19:15:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Kj. After one year of school, four years of his apprenticeship, he is finally DONE! He took his final test today and received an 89%. This test was 200 questions and covered the last four years of study. He has studied very hard. Last night he could not even eat he was so anxious about this test. He has a few more hours to put in and he will officially become a Journey Line Technician. (It takes over 8,000 hours on top of the book work)I am very proud of what Kj does for our family in providing. He has spent more time in achieving this status than a full time 4-year degree student does. If you get a chance, give this hard working boy a call and say congrats!

High Speed Internet!

2008-02-03T16:36:00.000-08:00

HELLO FAMILY

We have finally found the world of high speed internet! We have spent more time in the computer room doing stuff on the internet that we could not do before! We figured that it was time to create a blog...whatever the heck this really is...and start staying in touch better. (Thanks Lori for the help.)

Life here is wonderful. Norwood has gotten so much snow and then twice as much wind to blow it around. All Jess has to say is let the heavens open and get it over with by April. April had better be a dry month.

Kj had his surgery two Thursday's ago and is doing very well. He was in a lot of pain the first few days but was able to do a lot of sleeping and relaxing. By Tuesday night, he was ready to get out of the house and DO something. Tuesday he even tried fishing. Only a true fisherman is out ice fishing 5 days after hernia surgery! He went back to work on Wednesday doing light duty. The doctor said that if something hurts, then don't do it. Otherwise, he is free to do whatever. Again that includes lots of ice fishing.

Jess has felt really good these past few weeks. Her belly has 'blossemed' as her co-workers call it. Baby is moving around and gaining force. Only 10 weeks more to go now. We finished the baby's room this weekend. Her parents came up to help move heavey things, paint, and motivate. Jess was soooo tired by the end of Saturday, but can't walk past baby's room without stopping and looking in. She just feels so complete knowing that baby has a place of her own.

We have a busy next few months coming up. One trip to Denver as our friend Denise goes to the temple for the first time, one trip to Sandford to see Grandma and Papa, Ice-off for Kj, Ice fishing tournament, youth dances, and a few baby showers for Jess and a few for her friends.

Kj shot this deer this fall with his bow. He was so happy. Now we have a wonderful mount of his anterlers on our wall. He really is a nice 3x4 in the velvete.