The Johnson Family

Disneyland

2010-03-26T18:52:00.000-07:00

We went to Disneyland at the beginning of March and it was the best family vacation ever. Bria hasn't stopped talking about it since and we can't wait to go again. Here are some of the highlights:

Space Mountain

Tower of Terror (Do you know any other 4 and 5 year olds that have dared to go on this?)

Splash Mountain (We had to bribe Bria to go on this one by promising she could wear a poncho so she wouldn't get wet.)

Teacups

Pixie Hollow

Mickey's House

Nana & Poppy with the girls

Standing in line for Finding Nemo

Jeff's best friend, Pluto

Mickey

Minnie

Incredibles (Everyone tells my mom she looks like Elastigirl - What do you think?)

Aladdin & Jasmine (By the way, the Aladdin show at California Adventure was the highlight of the trip for me....I cried 6 times during it because I was so happy)

Princess Tiana from Princess and the Frog

Bria turns 4!

2010-03-26T18:47:00.001-07:00

Bria turned 4 in February and had a fun birthday party and got lots of fun presents from her family. She is a little sweetheart and has a firecracker personality. We love you Bria!

Christmas Season

2009-12-29T13:02:00.001-08:00

Rachel had her first dance performance this December. She did an awesome job!

Bria and Rachel got fancy aprons from Grandma Becky that they love wearing and making cookies in.

We had a Christmas talent show at Nana & Poppy's.

My dad had melanoma removed from his face and look what happened! Ouch!

The girls were in the annual Rees nativity. Rachel was an angel and Bria was an animal from the stable.

We had lots of visits to Santa this year. This one was the best since they each got a real present from him.

And I got to start my lovely insulin shots. Fun!

2009-12-29T13:00:00.000-08:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Fall Update

2009-10-25T14:43:00.001-07:00

We went to see the Witches at Gardner Village. We invited Mckenna to come and she loved it, too. Here is Mckenna and Rachel with the witch on the bench. Bria was afraid of the spider on her staff so she wouldn't sit next to her. Maybe next year.

Here is Bria, Mckenna, and Rachel....

Bria and Rachel's favorite witch is "Witchy Poo". They talk about her all year long.

We went to St. George a couple of times. Jeff and my mom and dad did a 65 mile bike race last time. Here is my mom and dad coming toward the finish line.

Jeff took a wrong turn at the end, so I didn't get him in action. But here he is at the end.

Here they are at the condo just before the race.

Jeff taught Rachel to ride a two wheeler and now she can't get enough of it.

And Bria practiced hard on her scooter.

Bria now poses for the camera, too.

Here's our other St. George trip. We played at the pool a lot.

First Day of School!

2009-08-18T08:33:00.000-07:00

Bria started preschool and was sooooo excited. She has been talking for weeks about getting her own scissors and wearing her elephant costume for the Halloween party.

She has been wearing this backpack for days now getting ready for the big day.

I got to come with her on her first day and trace her shape and color a life size Bria.

Then we had a little mother-daughter date afterward at Arctic Circle for ice cream cones!

And I can't believe this one...Rachel had her first day of Kindergarten.

Bria gave her a big hug on the first day and told her "Good Luck".

Here's Rachel walking to school on her first day.

And here she is lined up and getting ready to follow her teacher into her class for the first time.
I was very proud of myself, because I didn't let any tears slip out (although I will admit I was choked up)!

Tapioca Pudding

2009-08-02T19:06:00.001-07:00

I made one of my favorite desserts the other night: Tapioca Pudding with whipped cream. Yummmmm! You have to eat it warm with cold whipped cream. It's the best.
Bria liked it and said it tasted like "chocolate chip surfboards".
Rachel hated it and said it tasted like "alien boogers".

I'm on a roll....

2009-07-08T21:34:00.000-07:00

We went to fireworks twice this year and the girls LOVED them!

Two of Jeff's brothers came into town with their families and we went up the canyon for a cookout.

The Johnson boys minus one

Bria, Rachel, and Aubrie waiting for the fireworks show to start.

The cousins

So long, Farewell....

2009-07-07T08:12:00.001-07:00

My brother Jeff, aka Froid, aka Uncle Shnoy Noy, left on his mission a couple of weeks ago. Here we are saying our final goodbyes. Rachel cried the whole way home and cried herself to sleep that night because she missed him already so much. It was sweet.

We're baaack!

2009-06-09T12:30:00.000-07:00

Here is the Johnson family alive and well.

My brother, Jeff, got his mission call to the Sacramento, California mission. He leaves on June 10th. We will miss teasing and tormenting him.
Everyone was supposed to guess where he was going before he opened his call. I definitely won as you can see and am still waiting for my promised prize.

Danny and Kristen (my brother and wife) had their first baby in January. Her name is Mckenna and she looked just like Rachel did as a baby. She is an awesome baby, hardly ever cries. Lucky parents.

Bria turned 3 years old in February. She is such a little sweetheart. She loves cuddling and is also addicted to the computer game Jump Start.

We got a new puppy in February named Nala to replace Chloe who is in doggy heaven (long story).

Easter

Easter egg hunt with Grandma Rees and cousins.

Jeff and I went to Hawaii with my family. We left the kids home and had a relaxing getaway!
Here we are getting our Matsumoto's Shave Ice. We went there almost every day.

Here's Scott and Jeff about to attempt surfing.
Jeff drinking from a coconut. It looked cool, but tasted nasty!

Here we are in Waimea Falls. For all you Lost fans, this is where Sawyer and Kate dived in and found the briefcase.Jeff and I at Sunset Beach

Rachel turned 5 in May! She is starting Kindergarten in 2 months. I can't believe she is so old. She is the peacemaker in our home and is an awesome sister to Bria!

Rachel got to go to Build-a-Bear and bring a friend for her birthday. She LOVED it!

We visited Grandpa Rees and Grandma & Grandpa Knudsen's graves on Memorial Day. My dad sets up pictures each year around each grave so you can remember what they looked like. I think it's a great idea.

Rachel graduated from Preschool!

Update

2008-11-08T15:43:00.001-08:00

The following posts have our lives in a nutshell for the past three months.

We went trick-or-treating....

2008-11-08T15:33:00.000-08:00

We carved pumpkins....

2008-11-08T15:29:00.000-08:00

Rachel had a Halloween party at preschool.....

2008-11-08T15:27:00.000-08:00

I got a haircut....

2008-11-08T15:25:00.001-08:00

We went to the park.....

2008-11-08T15:22:00.000-08:00

Jeffy had a Birthday.....

2008-11-08T15:20:00.000-08:00

We went to see the Witches at Gardener Village.....

2008-11-08T15:14:00.000-08:00

And the girls went to the Zoo with Nana!

2008-11-08T14:56:00.000-08:00

It's a dog!

2008-08-04T20:55:00.000-07:00

I finally gave in to all of the pressure and said "Yes" to getting a dog. Shocking, I know. Here is our new puppy, Chloe. She is a Yorkshire Terrier, and I must admit, very cute. So far, having a dog is not as bad as I dreaded. She is very cuddly and likes to be held. And obviously the kids and Jeff adore her. However, she does yap at night quite a bit. We're working on that.

Johnson Family Reunion

2008-07-22T20:59:00.000-07:00

We went to St. George this past week for a Johnson family reunion with Jeff's family. We had tons of fun. Here are some of the highlights.....

Making homemade ice cream. Here's Josh kicking around his can. I love this picture with a classic Rachel tantrum going on.

Zions National Park
Our Fam

Jeff and Bria in the Virgin River

Emma, Bria, Rachel, Maddie, Aubrie

Jason trying to look buff

Red Cliffs
Jeff and Bria making their way to the trail

The family swimming in the natural springs

Rachel, Maddie, and Emma playing with frogs. Rachel hasn't figured out how to pose for pictures yet. I love her fake smile. Hilarious.

Rachel and Bria sharing the frogs

Crashing at the condo after all of the fun in the sun

Blowup waterslide at Britt & Jared's house

Me looking like a pro at basketball even though I have no skills

Treehouse Museum

2008-07-09T08:14:00.000-07:00

We went to the Treehouse Museum in Ogden the other day and the girls were in heaven. We went with Rachel and Bria's cousins: Whitney, McKenna, Lauren, Madeline, and Emma. It has different countries with dress ups and books everywhere and lots of activities to do. The kids loved it, especially Maddy, Rachel, and Emma. They made me take a picture of them in every costume. Here are a few of them.

Africa: dressed as jungle animals

Bria kept herself occupied with puzzles.

Putting on a play at the castle theater....Rachel was Cinderella.

Mexico: They made tissue flowers to put in their hair.

China: Ni Hao Emma, Maddy, and Rachel!

Great Britain: Alice in Wonderland, and Beatrix Potter's characters

Bria befriended a donkey in Germany.

Germany: Three blind mice.

School: Learning their ABC's

Under the Sea: Cute fishy faces!

On the reservation: How!

Hospital: Feeding the newborns.

BFFs

2008-07-06T15:54:00.000-07:00

Rachel and Bria have been best buds lately. They go off together and play "Kung Fu Panda" and Legos and just have fun with each other. I always wanted a sister growing up and I am so glad that they have each other.

oh crap

2008-07-01T20:01:00.000-07:00

I need help. Please disregard the previous post on how happy I was about potty training. It does not take 3 days. It does not take 10 days. I am sick of cleaning up poop. I need tips on how to get a child to not be scared to poop in the potty. Swift replies would be appreciated.

The Potty Training Blues

2008-06-22T15:39:00.000-07:00

Just Kidding! I was blue yesterday and the day before, but we finally have success today. I decided to potty train Bria this weekend using the 3 day method from a neighbor. It didn't look good at the end of day 2, but everything clicked today. No accidents and she told us like 6 times she needed to go, and then actually went in the potty. I am crossing my fingers that today was not just a fluke. Bria has been so cute about the whole thing, she is very excited to be a big girl now. Good Job Bria!

Happy Birthday Rachie!

2008-05-16T14:29:00.000-07:00

Rachel turned 4 years old last week and we had a Fairy birthday party for her. All of the girls at the party got to play games and earn parts to their fairy costume. Everyone got a fairy flower crown, a wand, wings, and a gift bag with other fairy stuff. Rachel had a blast and loved being the center of attention, of course.

A special thank you to all of the friends who gave Rachel all the cute gifts. I can't believe how nice all the gifts were. Rachel was in heaven.

Scott is Home!!!

2008-05-05T20:49:00.000-07:00

Scott came home on Friday from his mission. He served in the Porto Alegre South Mission in Brazil. We were all very excited. I was curious how Rachel and Bria would act, but they were both all over him. Rachel kept saying, "My Scotty, my scotty" and wrapping her arms around his neck. He looks the same and is not "missionary weird". You know what I mean.

Wow, I am short.

The bros....Jeff, Scott, Jeff (with Rachel), Danny

Thanks Kristen for the pictures....I stole them from your blog!

13.1

2008-05-05T20:17:00.000-07:00

I ran the Salt Lake City Half Marathon a couple of weeks ago. It was um....fun, I think. Actually, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Our camera stopped working right when I was crossing the finish line, but luckily Kristen had her camera there, so I'll post those pictures when I get them. Thanks to Jeff for your support with my training and to Danny and Kristen for coming to see me! That was a great surprise.

Here are the Hansen's, Dovetta and me at the finish. Dovetta and I ran together the whole way. During the hard parts I blamed her for getting me into this in the first place.

Jeff and me at the finish

Twampoline Fun

2008-05-05T20:08:00.001-07:00

Bria loves jumping on the tramp, or as she calls it, "twamp". She asks everyday to go out and jump. I usually have to chase her around the tramp to get her off, so it's a pretty good work out for both of us.

The Terrific Twos!

2008-03-18T09:46:00.000-07:00

Bria turned 2 on February 7th this year. We had a birthday party for her at Bajio's with all of the family. She had lots of fun opening her presents and being the center of attention. We have definitely noticed she is now behaving like a typical 2 year old. Lots of tantrums, screaming, and yet she still has us wrapped around her finger. We Love You Bria!!!

FYI

2008-03-16T20:54:00.001-07:00

If anyone was wondering, yes we are all still alive here. I have just fallen off the blogging wagon for the past 4 months. My intentions are to climb back on within the next couple of weeks. More to come.....

Toe Pick!

2007-11-22T20:09:00.001-08:00

One of our family's favorite activities lately is going to the Olympic Oval to go ice skating. Both of the girls LOVE it. Rachel likes being pulled around the lap and Bria just likes skating between our legs in a little area. There are a bunch of families in our neighborhood that come with us so it is a lot of fun because there are lots of us there.

Boo!

2007-11-05T10:31:00.001-08:00

Rachel and Bria loved Halloween this year. We had a neighborhood "Block-or-Treat". Everyone went to one block in our neighborhood and stood out on the sidewalk to pass out the treats as all of the kids walked around the block. It was nice because you got like 4 treats for every house you walked by. Rachel was an elephant and Bria was a caterpillar (she refused to wear her hood). They both had lots of fun and got lots of candy.

Here is Rachel at her preschool Halloween party that day.

Here are Rachel and Bria at Grandma and Grandpa Johnson's house.

Here is Bria offering me all of her candy, which I gladly accepted and ate.

Go Joe!!!

2007-10-16T10:42:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we went to St. George with my family. I am very proud to show the pictures of my dad running the St. George marathon. Go Dad! He hurt his back, so wasn't even planning on running more than a mile or so, but he started, kept running, and finished! We were all very proud. Also, we need to recognize my mom, who made it 13 miles, but hurt her knee really badly and had to stop. Maybe I'll buckle down one of these days and train to do it with her next year.

Here he comes!

Here is Dad running past the condo on mile 22.

Yeah!

Dad and Mom at the finish.

Here is the family at the finish line.

Emergency Preparedness

2007-09-23T16:54:00.000-07:00

We dropped by my parents' house this weekend and they were doing an emergency preparedness drill. Three loud explosions went off and then everyone was supposed to grab their 72 hour kits and sleep out in their yards. We roasted marshmallows and hung out with them for a bit (Thanks for the pics, Kristen). They all ended up sleeping inside anyway, but my mom said it was a good chance to realize if they would be prepared in a real emergency.

Zoo

2007-09-09T13:49:00.000-07:00

We went to the zoo this week now that the weather is finally cooling off. We invited my mom and the girls loved seeing all of the animals and running around together.

Rachel and Bria in front of the camels. Bria's skirt was falling down all day long. I guess she's not big enough for it yet.

Almost there....

Bria and I combined are about the size of the gorilla. Is that bad?

Rachel and Nana on the train. The train was definitely Rachel's favorite part.

Bria getting ready for the train ride. Don't worry, I held her in my lap while the train was moving.

Here we are in front of the zebras. Bria was not happy about being held. She wanted to walk around the whole zoo. She has way more energy than I do.

Bria watching the giraffes.

Rachel trying to stick her neck out like the giraffes.

Rachel also loved drinking from the lion's mouth. We had stop at all of them to get a drink.

First Day of School

2007-08-17T10:43:00.000-07:00

Rachel had her first day of Preschool this week and she was really excited. It was orientation so I got to come with her. She loves her teacher and we drew a life size picture of her. After, Rachel and I went out for ice cream. It'll be fun to see the new friends she makes and the fun things she will be learning.

Hangin' Out

2007-08-05T16:37:00.000-07:00

One of Rachel and Bria's favorite things to do is to get a snack and sit on the bottom stair together to eat it. Here they are chillin' and eating their goldfish. I really enjoy the times the play together nicely because you never know at which second the claws will come out on each other.

Swimming Lessons

2007-08-05T16:28:00.001-07:00

Rachel has really been enjoying taking swimming lessons this summer at the rec center. She practices blowing bubbles, stomach floats, back floats, and jumping in the pool. She's finally starting to get more daring and now jumps in herself and goes under the water. We will be sad when the outdoor pool closes at the end of summer since we also go frequently during the week.

eclipse

2007-07-31T15:54:00.000-07:00

The third installment of Stephenie Meyer's series is coming out next week (August 7) and I am really excited to go and get the book. I just got my hands on the first two of the series, (Twilight and New Moon) and I could not put them down. I didn't think vampires were my thing, but both of the first two books were addicting. I recommend them for anyone looking for a good read.

Fireworks

2007-07-25T13:21:00.001-07:00

We went to see fireworks with Chad and Heather's family on July 4th. We all camped outside of Cougar Stadium while Stadium of Fire was going on. It was really fun and both girls loved the fireworks show. Bria got scared when the jets flew past but she got over it. Chad and Heather's family came back a week later to visit again so that was fun. Jared and Caleb also came into town and we all went boating at Rockport and had another sleepover with the kids. Rachel is very confused and thinks that her cousins live here now.

2007-07-12T22:25:00.000-07:00

So we went to Harry Potter on opening day and saw the Order of the Phoenix. My dad makes an event of it each time a new movie comes out. The whole family comes and my dad gives us money for food and tickets to the IMAX viewing. The cool part this time was that an hour into the movie we got to put on our 3D glasses and watch like a half hour of it like that. It was by far the best one yet in my opinion. But I also loved that book the best. I'm rereading the sixth book to get ready for the last book coming out. I'll be sending Jeff to stand in line at midnight to get our copy of the book. Can you say nerd?

Fun With Cousins

2007-06-29T07:22:00.000-07:00

Heather and her kids came to visit this week. We've had a lot of fun with them. We went to Wheeler Farm and fed the animals and played in the treehouse.

Here's Rachel feeding the ducks. She was pretty cautious because last time she went to Wheeler Farm, a duck bit her finger. She still loves telling the story. This time a turkey bit Peyton's finger. Who knew Wheeler Farm was so dangerous.

Rachel and McKay have been buddies the whole time they've been here. Here they are riding the "horse".

Here's McKay, Peyton, and Rachel in the treehouse.

Cute Hannah loved going up and down the treehouse. We had a hard time getting her to leave.

Bria just liked wandering around doing her own thing.

Our First Campout

2007-06-24T14:06:00.001-07:00

We took our first camping trip as a family this past weekend up to the Spruces in Big Cottonwood Canyon and had a great time. We went with a bunch of families from our ward. Rachel loved playing with all of the other kids. She and Bria were the only girls with 11 other little boys to play with. Those are good odds! It looks like Rachel even found a boyfriend! Bria had fun, but you wouldn't be able to tell because every picture we took of her she was giving her signature crusty face. By the time we got home the girls were exhausted and dirty...but we now have a fun activity to look forward to again.

Rachel Turns 3!!!

2007-05-16T07:32:00.000-07:00

Rachel had her 3rd birthday on May 11th. Instead of having a party, we took her to Build-A-Bear. She loved it. She made a teddy bear and named her Stephanie. Family also dropped by to give her gifts and wish her Happy Birthday. She got lots of fun things and had a fun day. Happy Birthday Rachel!

More Outdoor Fun...

2007-05-02T10:40:00.000-07:00

Rachie loves riding her bike around the block. I push Bria in the stroller and Rachel cruises along on her little trike. We got her a bigger bike for Christmas, but she couldn't figure out the pedals. So, after visiting Jared and Britt, we got the idea of doing a little tricycle first. Rachel loves that she is coordinated enough to pedal.

Walking....Finally!!

2007-05-02T10:32:00.000-07:00

Bria finally started walking a couple of weeks ago. Jeff calls it more of a waddle. She's still pretty slow, but she gets around. You gotta love her toothpick legs trying to hold the rest of her body up. Good job Bria!

Fun at the Park

2007-05-02T10:24:00.000-07:00

Rachel and Bria love going to the park. Swinging is definately Rachel's favorite, even though it makes her paranoid mom nervous when she goes too high. It's always a challenge to actually leave the park.

more posing...

2007-04-20T13:59:00.000-07:00

Photo Shoot

2007-04-20T13:52:00.000-07:00

Here is my attempt to become a professional photographer (yeah, right). We learned some photo-taking techniques at Enrichment, so Rachel and Bria became my subjects to work on. I'm going to post these beginner shots now only to see if I can get better in the future (hopefully a lot better!)

More Easter

2007-04-20T13:47:00.000-07:00

Easter morning was fun, too. Bria woke up with a great hairdo.

Both girls were pretty excited to see what the Easter bunny brought. Rachel especially loved the bubbles she got and Bria loved her stuffed bunny.

Easter

2007-04-20T13:40:00.000-07:00

Rachel and Bria went to their first Easter egg hunt over at the church the day before Easter.

Cute Dad

2007-03-29T12:26:00.000-07:00

Here's Jeff reading the girls their favorite book, "I Love You As Much." I recommend it for all babies...they love it....and it's cute.

2007-03-29T12:18:00.001-07:00

Rachel and Bria on a spur-of-the-moment photo shoot at the mall

2007-03-29T12:18:00.000-07:00

February 7, 2007
Here is Bria on her 1st birthday stuffing her face with a birthday cupcake.