A Year in Review

As the first day of a new year, I am caught up in the resolution-making that has enveloped the nation/world. However, you've probably heard enough about that stuff, so for now, I'll just share our top ten best memories of 2013.

In chronological order, here we go:

1. Our Snow Day Maze: The kids had two snow days last January, so they got creative and built  maze of games. It was pretty awesome.

2. Running my very first mud run, then running my second with Rick.

3. Going on a Disney Cruise! I'll be honest, it took a couple of days for the kids to get used to the routine of it, and we may have had a couple of throw-up incidents, not to mention a concussion. BUT, the kids still talk about it all the time and keep asking when we'll go again. It's definitely on our "to-do-again" list.

4. Going camping with good friends: We made tinfoil dinners, roasted hotdogs, made s'mores, then had an awesome campfire breakfast. Doesn't get much better than that.

5. Spending time with Rick's brother's family in Oklahoma. They have a boat! (But the best part was visiting with them.)

6. Traveling to Oregon with family. Toured the Tillamook Cheese Factory, fished for crab, visited the aquarium, and ate authentic harbor pizza.

7. Spending time with Grandma and Grandpa Johnson here in Kansas City. We carved pumpkins together, and they got to watch the boys test for Tae Kwon Do advancement. Simple things are sometimes the best.

8. Starting a women's indoor soccer team! And then Rick felt so left out, he started a men's team. Alas, these ventures have been a stiff reminder (literally) of how old we are, but still, it's SO fun! :D

9. Taking a mini-vacation to Great Wolf Lodge. We loved swimming in their indoor park while it was snowy outside. The kids also loved the arcade. Though I almost wonder if the cable tv (and the Disney Channel) in the room wasn't their favorite part.

10. Spending time with Grandma and Grandpa Sumner over the Christmas break. The boys made boxes with Grandpa, and Grandma and I sewed a dress for Girlie:

Best Test in Tae Kwon Do

Last week Mr. 6-yo FINALLY tested for his green stripe belt in Tiger Tots Tae Kwon Do (we missed a testing round because of the cruise). He's always been our little gentleman, and he really gets the respect thing of Tae Kwon Do (even if doesn't always remember to use it at home).

Still, we were pleased (and surprised) when he was awarded "Best Test" this round:

You should have seen him bouncing off the walls when he got home. He was so excited! And seriously. The trophy is HUGE.

 

Congratulations Mr. 6-yo!! We're so proud of you!

Happy Birthday, Girlie!

So Girlie turned FOUR last week!

Instead of a big party with lots of craziness involved, we let Girlie invite one friend to celebrate with. First, she helped me make her cake:

She chose exactly what she wanted which was a pink cake with sprinkles. And she did the sprinkles all on her own:

 She had to wait for about forever before it was time to go, but FINALLY, it was time, so we took her and her friend to Build-A-Bear.

Girlie chose a pink kitty (big surprise) and named it Emily Cat. Her friend chose a pink princess bear and named it Princess Abby.

 

A quick stop at McDonalds where they promptly traded all their food with each other (Girlie gave away her nuggets for her friend's fries).

 

 

Then it was back home for some cake.

 

 

She made a wish, blew out the candles (with a little help), and we all ate cake.

 

 

And, of course, then came the best part of all. The presents!! Girlie knew about this one for over a month because it sat in the garage. As we carried it in, she ran and kissed it. "I LOVE my kitchen!"

 

 

Guess we did well. :)

 

 

Happy Birthday, Girlie!

Singing in the Bathtub

True, I have not posted here for about a year now. But I captured this awesome moment and wanted to share. Khyah was taking a bath, and belting out her own made-up song at the top of her lungs, so I couldn't resist catching a bit of it on film. Enjoy!

Shouldn't we all feel such joy?

Fourth of July Fun

 Since my parents were out visiting us on the 4th of July, I convinced my mom to do a run with me. Alas, I don't yet have a picture with both of us, but we had a great time together. We got up WAY too early to make the 40 minute drive to Cameron, Missouri to check in at 6:30.

I did the 4-mile run and my mom did the 2-mile walk. Her goal was to not be the last one in, and my goal was to run faster than an average pace of 9-minute miles (so a time of 36 minutes or better).

My mom was FAR from being the last one in. And despite the mistake of drinking a 64-oz soda the day before (for anyone planning to run in a race . . . , just sayin', that's a bad idea), I managed to run it in 35 minutes and 2 seconds. I even got 2nd place in my age group (2/5), so I got a nifty medal to take home.

After our race, they held a kids fun run. At first, none of the kids wanted to do it. But when they learned that all finishers got a popsicle AND a bag of treats, well, they changed their minds. Brandt didn't quite have the idea of a race down. They said "GO!" and he just stood there.

We all shooed him forward, and he finally took off running. Rick cheered him on the whole way, but apparently Brandt couldn't hear what he was saying so he stopped and turned around. "What?!"

When we all shouted "Run, Brandt, run!" he got the idea and started again. Despite his stops and starts, he managed to pick up the pace and actually WON the thing. Yup, 1st place. Crazy kid.

Khyah wasn't really tempted by the popsicle, and she was going to sit it out on the playground with grandpa until she found out she got to wear a number just like mommy if she ran. She was still quite hesitant, so I had to run the whole thing with her. But she finished it and was more than content to get blue splots all over her white shirt with her popsicle.

London was in the upper age range, so he ran in the second race about the twice the distance. He ran hard and came in 2nd! The kid who won was older, so he felt pretty good about that. We were really proud of him!

After lounging around the park for a bit, we headed to Wendy's to get the free Frosties with the coupon that came in their bag of treats, then drove the 40 minutes back home. It wasn't our traditional 4th of July big breakfast, but it was so much fun. I especially appreciated doing it with my mom, and having Rick, the kids, and my dad there to cheer us on. Hopefully we'll do another one together next time we meet up.

Oklahoma Joe's 2012

One of the first things we did when we got back to Kansas City was visit our favorite BBQ place: Oklahoma Joe's. We got to go with the Swing Grandma and Grandpa who were out helping us unpack.

The kids all wanted Ribs. :)

Brandt needed Grandpa's help to get all the meat off those bones.

Eeep. Khyah in a white shirt and everything.

London had no problem cleaning those bones off! No wasted anything there.

I got the pulled pork (despite how it looks . . . I was only CUTTING the ribs for the kids. Really.). And see those people standing behind the brown wall? That is the line which went out the door. The ordering counter is actually in front of me and to my right. Yup. Long line.

And Rick, the man with the new toy, was our cameraman, so his order is not pictured. But for posterity's sake, he got the Smokie Joe Sandwich. And he may have sampled the ribs. ;)

Glad to be back in KC just for the BBQ! :)

Wall Art

We have a budding artist in our family.

It may or may not be a she. And she may or may not have blond hair and blue eyes, with eyelashes that she uses to bat her way out of trouble.

 Le sigh . . . 

Thank heavens for Magic Eraser.

Family Pictures 2011

While we were in Utah over Thanksgiving, my sister kindly took some family pictures for us. Not an easy task with 3 grumpy kids and 2 grumpy adults (from dealing with 3 grumpy kids), but she put up with us and even managed to catch a few good moments (and there weren't many!).

First, please note that these pictures aren't edited. This is not a photography site and if I wait for that, they will never get posted. Ever. So here we go.

How she managed to catch us all smiling, I'll never know.

I couldn't choose just one of Khyah. Her cuteness just has to be shared.

Brandt, Mr. GQ himself. Thank goodness we got one last picture before he decided to chop his hair!

London had school pictures done, but I liked the tie theme, so he had to endure a few shots, too. He was not happy. Man, if you could see all the moments around the pictures. These things are deceiving!

And finally the two of us. I made Becca take about a million pictures before I was satisfied. Good thing she loves me. :)

So voila! There's a family.

Thanks, Becca!

Loss

I have never been one to share my deepest anything abroad. I suppose I feel safer with my worries and sorrows buried deep inside me. I feel that I am protecting others from that pain, whatever it may be.

I don't say that my way is the best way. Nor do I say I've always been right in doing that. I am human after all.

That said, I've debated back and forth about sharing this post. About even writing it in the first place. But knowing we're not alone in this, and knowing that many people feel alone, Rick encouraged me to share.

This Christmas has been a somber one for Rick and me. A couple of weeks ago I got sick. Very sick. I was burning up with fever. At first I thought I had Strep throat. When the swab was negative, I figured it must be the flu.

It wasn't that either.

See, Rick and I had been keeping a secret. One we hoped to share just after the new year. After we had a chance to see the doctor. Hear the heartbeat. We were about 10 weeks along with what would have been our 4th child. Rick was sure it was another girl. I thought it would be a boy.

We'll never know who was right. Because that fever was a symptom of a miscarriage. We lost the baby the week before Christmas.

I'll be honest, this has been hard. A lot harder than I thought. I still get teary at the smallest things. Lyrics in a song. End credits of a movie (we used them for name ideas). Reading the Christmas story. All those things that reminded me that we used to be expecting a baby. That now we're not.

I don't write all of this so you can be sad, too. But somehow I hated the idea that no one would know about this baby who was supposed to come to our family. I wanted others to remember, too.

Don't worry about saying the "right" thing to us. We'll be okay. We'll move on. We're just sad.

Anyway, all this raw emotion has left me needing an outlet, so I wanted to share a poem. In truth, I debated sharing this, too, because I feel so exposed. And for the record, I don't claim to be a poet. So here we go:

Loss

Bright hope for the future
Nestling deep within me.
Love growing stronger each day.
Each moment.

Though months away, the scenes play in my mind.
A new infant filling our home with warmth and joy.
The awe of tiny fingers. Tiny toes.
The little cry that doesn’t seem real.

In my dreams I hear it.
I wake in the night to prepare a phantom bottle.
First smile. First tooth. First step.
The unknown dates already written in my heart.

Then the world---my world---spins. Twists.
In directions I can’t control.
And my dreams are shattered. Like a family heirloom crashing to the ground.
Shards surround me. Cut me. Hurt me.
Impossible to gather the pieces. No matter how hard I try.

One slip, and it’s gone.
Like rain drops in the dirt.
Like tears on my pillow.
Like blood down the drain.

Blood that won’t stop.
Choking me.
Drowning me in anguish for the dreams that are gone.
The hopes that lay in a drunken mess on the floor.

Yet new dreams will come.
New hopes.
But never this one.
Never quite the same.

Nor would I want that.
I’ll keep that place in my heart for the baby I never held.
Except in my dreams.

Naughty or Nice?

I discovered this fun Santa site where you can check your naughty or nice rating. We had fun reading about our kids:

London

Overall, niceness outweighs naughtiness. Was good a lot last month! Politeness often good, but has room for improvement. Could help around house more instead of watching so much TV. Expected to move even higher up "nice" list.

Brandt

It was a pretty good year, so we'll go for a "Nice" rating. A few naughty marks for excessive junk food, not going to bed on time and nearly forgetting someone's birthday. Really tried to keep up with household chores, though. Extra credit for smiling a lot. Is kind to senior citizens. Keep improving!

Khyah

What a great person and friend! Definitely a "Nice!" Wonderful job of always considering others. Hands out compliments regularly. Knows the great importance of "please" and "thank you." A good role model. The main suggestions for improvement: eat more veggies and really wash those hands!

What list are you on?

Christmas Tree 2011

On Saturday, we decorated our little, fake Christmas tree. It's so much fun decorating it because we only have enough space to put up the important ornaments. This year, we added an ornament from the Kennedy Center, France, and Switzerland to our collection.

As we decorate, we tell the kids about each ornament before we let them put it on the tree. We even talk about the ones we've lost in tragic kid-cidents. Hawaii and Disneyland will not be forgotten! Someday we may even replace them.

London is getting to the point that he knows the stories. "I know. I know!" he complained often. But I think he secretly liked hearing the stories anyway.

First we pulled out the jingle bell snowmen. These are the kids' favorites, I think.

Taking turns:

Brandt choosing just the right spot (which may have been just the right spot for the ornament he put on right before this one, too).

London pondering what to do next:

Daddy putting up his special doctor ornament:

When we pulled out our Steamboat Springs ornament, I asked the boys if they had ever seen one of these before.

London said, "Yeah, in Shrek."

I asked him if he knew what Shrek used it for.

London said, "Ummm . . . he went there to read a book?"

Yes, London. You will fit in nicely with the Johnson and Sumner men. ;)

Okay, that was a picture from last year, but I wanted to give you a visual. ;)

Me rearranging (shhhh!):

Then it came time for the star. It took lots of help to get it up:

And voila! Our tree:

London was feeling a little picked on that I made him come back to be in a picture. And Khyah was very worried about him.

Then we remembered that we hadn't started our Star Wars Lego advent calendar yet, so we pulled it out and the kids huddled around. (Turns out, waiting until Dec. 3 to start was a smart thing. No arguing over who got the first Legos!)

We love decorating for Christmas! So many wonderful memories of all our adventures over the years.

P.S. Don't tell anyone, but we used a Costco-size box of Cup-of-Noodles to heighten our tree. Wonderfully effective!