Tacky Christmas Yards

I found this blog last year and thought it was pretty funny. The best part is reading the violations cited below each picture. Check it out!

Family Pics

I've really fallen off the blogging bandwagon lately and with my growing girth I am becoming less and less inclined to post pictures of myself...but this family pic turned out okay so I posted it, if for no other reason than to get out of my blog rut and move forward- so our readers don't forget about us.
Stay tuned for posts regarding a successful home science experiment and a story of our adventures with the A-Team.

Going private

I have decided to privatize the blog. It's sort of a scary thing to google your name and see your blog, with your family and basically your life's story pop up.
So please let me know if you would like access and leave me your email address, even if we don't know each other that well I won't think it's weird -I promise. (We all blog stalk right?) I will try to add most of my email contacts, but if you and I don't regularly email, please leave your address and I'd be glad to invite you.
Thanks!

Utah Sports

We were lucky enough this week to score tickets to the Utah vs. TCU game and also to the Jazz vs. Thunder game--thanks to the Backmans and the "Other" Johnsons.
The Blackout was probably the most exciting football game I have ever been to. I am majorly bummed that I left my camera in the car and was unwilling to go back for it. Seeing an almost full stadium of crazy Utes wearing black was awesome--and the fact that we won was even better!!--Thanks Mike and Whit!

Kailee, me (and my big 'ol belly) and Amy at the Jazz game

Aaron, Chris, and Thayne
--Thanks Kai and Thayne!!

Maine

I spent last weekend visiting my sister Lindsey, who goes to Bowdoin College in Maine, and also surprising my Dad who went to visit Lindsey but had no idea I would be there. Maine was the most beautiful place I have ever seen in the fall.

Me and Linds on the gorgeous Bowdoin campus

More of Bowdoin-I must mention that the place reminded me of Hogwarts for several reasons:
*The campus is full of really old castle-like buildings and cathedrals
*The studetents are all affiliated with social houses with names like Howell House and Quinby House
*The students eat every meal together in a large dining hall
*While walking through their student union building I saw a sign that read "Quidditch Tryouts"-no kidding. Apparently they hold a quidditch tournament every year. They run around on brooms while other kids try to knock them down while searching for a penny "the golden snitch" in the grass
*The kids there all have rosy cheeks and wear lots of scarves-one guy in particular was wearing a thick, long black and white striped scarf with a Bowdoin insignia

Breakfast at the Bruswick Diner

Walking in "The Quad"

Dinner with me, Tammy, Lindsey, her boyfriend Ben, and my Dad

Happy Halloween

 

Happy Halloween!

Chiquita Bananas

I don't know these dogs, but I received this pic in an email forward and was cracking up so I had to post it. Few things bring me sheer joy like seeing pets wearing ridiculous costumes-weird, I know, but remember I don't have kids----yet. Stay tuned to see Halloween pics of Ruby!

Think Pink!!!

Much to my surprise we are having a little girl!! We couldn't be happier!! We also got good news at our ultrasound that everything looks normal. It was an incredible experience to see the baby moving in there--we watched her do a complete summersault! I also felt the first fluttering of movement, probably because of all the poking and prodding. She is a very active little thing and was quite uncooperative when they tried to get pictures of her heart. Both the ultrasound tech and the doctor said we have a very mischievous baby. I wonder if that's any indication of her future personality?
We can't wait to meet our baby girl!!

What will it be?

We find out what we are having tommorow!!
I am almost certain that it's a boy...I'm not sure why
It could be that every time I tell someone that I haven't been sick at all they go on and on and on about how they puked their guts out with all their girls and had smooth sailing with their boys...although I must say that my mom was never sick with me, and my grandma had four girls and wasn't sick once with any of them...
It could be that I have an easier time thinking of girl names and I can all around just picture a baby girl better...so I figure it must be a boy

Either way we will be thrilled!!!

Oh and can I just tell you that we could've known last Tuesday!?! I originally scheduled my ultrasound for Tuesday, but Chris "couldn't come" because he couldn't "miss class" so I changed it to Friday...then last Tuesday rolls around and Chris was driving me to Trax and he hadn't showered or anything and I was like "you're going to school like that?" and he was like "oh I don't have that class anymore...it ended last week." I about died!

Anyway if you are one of the 3 or 4 people that read our blog, and if you read this post before tomorrow I'd love to hear your predictions!

Recent Happenings

I have been in a blog rut lately and haven't been keeping up too well. Sometimes laying on the couch all evening and then going to bed at 9pm sounds better than sorting through pictures and coming up with witty captions. So here's a pictureless post to inform you of a little bit of what we have been up to:

*We celebrated our 2 year anniversary in August!
*Chris celebrated his big 3-0 in August (Don't worry Hon, you've still got it!!)
*Chris' beloved mountain bike frame has graduated from being living room art, and now resides in the garage as a full-blown bike
*Some people may have wondered how I have been faring as a pregnant lady...and I feel a little sheepish to say that I haven't been sick once or had one wave of nausea...just major fatigue, the need to pee every 10 minutes, and occasional public drooling (it's a real symptom--I checked) I have been very lucky.
*After a bit of a debate we (well mostly I) have decided to find out the sex of the baby. We'll let you know in a week and a half!!

Lake Powell

Last week I got to spend three days basking in sunny Lake Powell, courtesy of our friends, the Becks. Unfortunately Chris refused to miss school, but I didn't want to miss my one opportunity to actually wear a bathing suit and get some sun this summer. My doctor said "no waterskiing" but I found plenty of other things to do. It was a fabulous trip! Thanks Ashley and Clay!!

Reunited

Last weekend I reunited with my big sister from Delta Gamma that I haven't seen in nearly 8 years. She was sweet enough to treat me to a delicious lunch at Cafe Trio. We felt like we were in a time warp circa 1999. It was a blast to catch up and so fun to now be back in touch! Thanks Brittany!

Happy Fall!

I have been so sad about the end of summer that I forgot how much I love fall.

A few things I love:

*The crisp feeling in the air
*The smell
*The changing leaves
*Going on drives to see the leaves
*Wearing sweaters and jackets
*Drinking hot cider
*Halloween candy hitting the shelves
*Eating lots of soup
*Knowing that the holidays are on their way!

Baby Johnson on the Way!!

We are very excited to be expecting a little one in March!! The baby is due March 21st and we are thrilled!!

We had our first ultrasound this week, and although the baby is only the size of a kumquat (that’s what they tell me in the books…what in the world is a kumquat?) it was amazing to see a little being moving around in there and to see the strong heartbeat.

I am also excited to have escaped the wrath of my sister, who has been harassing us since we got married to “produce a cousin...or else…”

Yeah for babies!

Home Sweet Home!

Well, our short three months in Michigan have come to an end and we are thrilled to be back in SLC! The first thing Chris wanted to do (besides see family and friends) was mountain bike, so he has been on three rides already...

and the first thing I wanted to do was eat at my much missed Cafe Rio, which I took care of yesterday...and will probably take care of again later this week...

We missed our friends and family so much and we can't wait to catch up!!

A Puppy Sleepover

This cute little guy is Grady, Ruby's puppy friend from across the hall. These guys like to play out on the grass together and Grady's owner mentioned that he feels so bad because he works all day and this poor little guy is home by himself, with no potty breaks for 8+ hours. Why have a puppy? Since I am home all day I offered to take Grady on our morning walks and to come get him when we go out to play ball. When I went over to get him I found him in this filthy, small room with no food or water. From now on Grady is spending his days at our place. And maybe some of his nights too. His owner went out of town last night and we ended up having Grady sleep over. Chris and I felt like we were hosting a sleepover for young children, with the breaking up of midnight wrestling,and such. I gave Grady some of Ruby's food and he chowed down twice as much as Ruby usually eats in about 30 seconds. I'm growing attached to this little puppy and wish we could adopt him and give him the kind of life he deserves.

Chicago

We spent last weekend with my cousin Kat and her husband Mark in Chicago and Nauvoo. It was so much fun!

Downtown Chicago was awesome! We met up with Mark and Kat and they watched Ruby for us while we went into the Chicago Museum of Art, which is free on Thursdays and Fridays during the summer! How cool is that? Then we walked around and Chris pointed out all the buildings featured in Batman: The Dark Knight.

A favorite painting by Seurat. It was awesome to see it up close...and for free!

A crazy bicycle brigade came charging down the street, stopping all traffic. It was nuts!

We got to see Frank Lloyd Wright's home and studio. Chris is fascinated by all things Frank Lloyd Wright.

Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House

Nauvoo

Us in front of the beautiful Nauvoo temple. It seemed sort of funny to take pictures in front of the temple with our dog--but all dogs go to heaven, right?

Walking around outside the pageant...I was a little nervous that someone was going to tell us we couldn't bring Ruby, but alas...all were welcome. Lots of people wanted to come pet her. Look at the smile on that dog's face!

Chris, me, Kat at the pageant. The Nauvoo Pageant was awesome! The stage is set so that you can see the temple in the background. As the pageant was ending, it had gotten completely dark and then while the cast was singing some beautiful hymn I can't remember the temple lights up on cue...aah it was cool.

Some flooded out little town in Iowa that we drove through to get to Nauvoo. It was very sad to see abandoned houses, wrecked beyond repair.

Our cute doggy, posing for the camera again.

I've always said "Golf is not a sport"...

Since this has sort of been our summer of new and different things, Chris agreed to take up tennis (something he vowed he'd never do since the one time we played when we were dating--and I beat him) and I agreed to take golf classes with him (something I vowed I'd never do since forever). Now I have always made fun of golf as a sport, simply because it doesn't seem that one has to be athletic at all to be good at it...boy was I wrong. Golf is hard! I thought having a bit of hand-eye coordination from growing up playing tennis would help...it didn't. All of the other people in the lesson would be thrilled when their balls got near their target or when they hit a particularly awesome shot (these were all beginners, mind you). I simply was thrilled to make contact with the ball at all. And I gave the grass a severe hammering in the process. I was making more divots fly than golf balls. The pro giving us the lessons sort of gave up giving me one-on-one direction when he realized how hopeless it was.
All this being said, I'm sorry I ever made fun of golf.

A Weekend at the Lake

A fellow intern of Chris' and his wife invited us to their lakefront house last weekend. We spent the weekend hanging out, eating out, playing cards, playing with our dogs and just relaxing. It rained most of the time we were there so we didn't end up swimming in the lake, but it was still a great getaway and we had a BLAST--The perfect cure for a rainy afternoon was a matinee of Batman, which we have seen twice now. It is THAT good!

Walking around this neat artsy town on Lake Michigan called Saugatuck. This picture doesn't do it justice.

The view of the lake from the Powell's back yard. It was so beautiful!

Me and Ruby on the porch of their beach cottage.

{Disclaimer: Michigan's humidity is not a friend to my hair. I am well aware of this...}

Chris and his New Love

Chris and his new mountain bike frame...somehow I just don't understand...

Chris on the set of GMA

Well Chris survived The Big Apple and here he is on the set of GMA with "The Big Cheese." A professional cheese carver carved a sculpture of the signing of The Declaration of Independence out of a 2000 pound block of cheddar cheese as part of the new Cheez-it campaign--those of you who may have missed it, unfortunately didn't miss much. It was a very busy news day on the 3rd with the Colombian hostage situation, and there wasn't time for the actual interview and unveiling--I guess that's part of show business. It was a bummer to say the least...but Chris, his team, and the cheese made another stop in Philadelphia where they had a few successful PR events and were able to get some local news coverage.

Here is a shot from behind the cameras---ya know, just to prove he was there.

Chris on Good Morning America

Be Sure to tune into Good Morning America on ABC tomorrow morning (Thursday the 3rd)!!
Chris is working for Kellogg this summer doing marketing for Cheez-It crackers. One of his projects has been to lead the PR campaign for the brand. The PR campaign will be unveiled on Good Morning America tomorrow. He has promised it will be very big and very cheesy (I don't know if he means that figuratively or literally).
I am a little worried about Chris going to New York. When we were in Chicago he was walking around downtown mouth agape, staring up at the skyscrapers exclaiming "Shazam!" Luckily I was there to keep him from getting into too much trouble. Who will take care of him now? I am just going to pin his plane ticket to his shirt and hope for the best.

Passive Agressive Pup

Here is Ruby posing sweetly by the blinds she tore down when we left her alone to go to church last Sunday.
We thought she had warmed up enough to being alone that we could sleep in until 8 and forego her morning walk before our 9am church. And we did deviate from our normal routine by accidently leaving the bedroom door open when we left...silly us. I guess it's possible that the cheap things came down by accident, but their bent and chewed up condition lead us to believe she did it for spite. We thought we had seen the worst of it when we came home a few days ago to an empty butter dish sitting on the counter...not so...oh and the curtain you see in the picture is actually our disassembled shower curtain.

The Old Ball n' Chain

And by that I mean Ruby.
Let's just say this spoiled dog has barely left our sight since we have arrived here. The tennis ball symbalizes endless games of fetch or "Ruby tennis" as we call it (we use a raquette to hit the ball so she has to run farther and gets more tired) and the leash symbolizes the endless walks she requires ( 2 or 3 per day). It sort of breaks our hearts to leave her alone in the apartment so we plan most activities around things that are outside or dog friendly. She does make a great referee or ball girl when we play tennis.(picture and post to come)

South Haven Beach, Lake Michigan

We took a short drive today to a town called South Haven and went to the beach for a little change of scenery. It was sunny and warm and it felt, looked and smelt just like the ocean! It was hard to believe that it was fresh water. The surrounding town was very charming and felt like Southern California. Because it was Sunday, the only one that swam was Ruby. We look forward to going to the beach again on a weekday when we can all swim. Also, it's fairly windy there and looks like the perfect place to fly a kite.

Live from Michigan!!

Well 4 days and 2000 miles later we have arrived!! We had to drive through Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana to get here!! This shot was taken from the car, but it documents our very happy arrival into Kalamazoo, where we live!!

(These are out of order, but whatever)The Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri

Another shot of it...

Me and my cousin, Kat

Kat and her husband Mark are interning and living in Chicago and they were kind enough to put us up for our last night. We had a blast hanging out with them in downtown Chicago.

We spent our last leg of the trip driving north of Chicago through Lake Forest, IL where my dad used to live. Between that and seeing the sights of Chris' mission it was a heavy dose of nostalgia for both of us.