My New Blessing...and some fun Stuff

This Saturday my dad arrived in Red Deer with this beautiful piano. It is my Christmas present and I can't think of anything better! It is wonderful to have a piano in our home...it makes it a home. The boys love it already and I cannot express in words the gratitude I feel to my parents for this wonderful gift. I have started teaching 2 pupils so far and hope to add more. I've also decided to start on the journey to completing my RCM accreditation. Which is basically completing my two grades of piano exams and theory exams. It's going to be a long journey...my fingers and my memory are rusty but it's something that I want to do for myself and for my family.

If you don't already know it I'll let you in on a little secret...I love fall. And I love to take pictures of my kids with leaves. I took these the other day at a local Red Deer Park where we had a picnic with Leslie and her kids. I love them all...

Kinsey graduated from college on Sunday...we went to Calgary for the ceremony and we are so proud of her! It was awesome to see her cross that stage as a college graduate. We also got a few family pics that are fun!

Life is good...

Life As I Know It...

I have been writing and re-writing this post in my head for the past 3 weeks. And every time I think I am going to be able to write it down and get it all out and reconnect with everyone...something comes up - boxes to unpack, babies to settle, Thanksgiving dinner, etc.

Let me start off with thanking everyone who helped us in any and every way over the past 6 weeks as we finished the mortgage papers, packed, renovated, packed, cleaned and moved. So many of our friends and family went above and beyond the call of service and it has been so humbling to be on the receiving end of service instead of the giving end. We have had our testimonies strengthened and I can stand and testify without a doubt in my mind that our Heavenly Father knows each one of us and has a plan specific and tailored to us.

I could go on and on but I know that there are those of you who are dying to see pictures. I'm going to try and do the whole extreme makeover thing and do the before and after pics in order...we'll see how it goes. Just let me give you a quick rundown of things in case you have forgotten what we did: We got possession of the house on the 17th (Monday) and started demo. Most of that was done by Wednesday and Thursday we started doing some drywall. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday the drywall was hung, taped, mudded, and sanded. The laminate floors went in as well...I have to thank Dad J and Jamie so much here - they worked so hard that weekend and if it wasn't for them we wouldn't have been able to finish! Monday am Kizzy and mom cleaned the house and started priming in the living room. Then mom took the kids back to Red Deer and Kizzy and I started the marathon paint job...We started at 1pm Monday and finished 8am Tuesday. Yes, we painted all night. We took a 2 hour break very very very early Tuesday am because we had to wait for the paint to dry but other than that we painted steadily. I never thought I would be able to move my hands properly again. I didn't realize how many muscles I had in my hands until then - and I'm a piano player! We had a few hiccoughs...like the first paint color I picked for our bedroom - pale avocado - not good at all. It looked like baby poop. Seriously. If you don't believe me ask Kizzy. Wednesday mom and I spent the day cleaning so we could move in and we moved our storage stuff into one of our sheds. Thursday I spent mostly trying to finish packing and cleaning in Red Deer and then Friday we started moving. Wow. Oh wait - you're wondering where the pictures are. I know you're thinking that I type too much and should just get on with it already...so here you go!

So these are some pictures of our living room before the big demo...

And here is a shot of some of the demo...

And almost done...I say almost because some of the trim is primed and some is not and the window isn't done being cased....but I love it anyway.

Onto the kitchen. I think I'm just going to put the pics in order...trying to get the typing and pics is taking too much time and I still have a big list to get done tonight.

We're really happy with how everything has turned out so far. We have a lot planned still...painting trim, staining transition pieces, tiling the bathroom, kitchen counter tops, painting trim outside, staining the deck, painting the fence...the list goes on and on. But we are happy with the decisions we have made and for the blessings our Father in Heaven has given us.

So what else have we been doing besides moving and stuff? Let's see...Cliff turned 29 the day after we moved and Mom J and Kristie had come up to help us unpack so they took us out to dinner and then I stunned everyone with my fine culinary skills by whipping out my debit card and buying an ice cream cake. Hey, a girl has to improvise when times call for it! Zane was disappointed that we didn't get to hang balloons and have a proper party but I told him we could do that at the next party because the paint was too new on the walls to handle tape.

Zane started preschool in the midst of all this chaos and is loving it. His teachers' name is Teacher Chandra and there are days that she is all I hear about. He goes Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9 - 11:15. He's so excited on those days and can't wait to get there. I don't even get a hug when I drop him off. It's all about getting his inside shoes on and then he's gone! So, I'm really glad that we made the decision to put him in preschool. It seems to really be helping his confidence level and hopefully will make kindergarten easier on him. Rhett is not so sure he likes just hanging with mom - because we're out of town now I usually seize the opportunity to get as many errands done as possible with only one kid in tow...and Rhett can get bored without Zane to entertain him. But I think he's slowly getting used to the idea of no Zane for short periods of time. Thursday mornings we go to my weight watchers meeting (sill on the band wagon and making life changes...down 45 lbs if anyone wants to know!)

Let's see...what else...we've gone to 2 birthday parties, watched General Conference, decorated for Halloween (as you may have noticed the big spider hanging from my kitchen ceiling in one of the pictures) and really I don't know where all the time has gone!

I love my new laundry set! The only thing that is driving me nuts is that Rhett loves all the buttons as much as I do and the child lock locks all the keys except the turn on/off button...one day it took me over 3 hours to get one load of wash done because he kept turning it off and it would restart the whole cycle when I turned it back on. Frustration...thy name is toddler hood! And he is a toddler to a tee. He loves to climb on everything...especially my kitchen table. Only problem is that he can't get down. I got out of the shower the other day and he was screaming for me. I quickly threw a robe on and went running out to find him sitting in the middle of the table - stranded. And you would think that he would have learned his lesson...nope...he still climbs up there every chance he gets. He's so mischievous and yet he can make me laugh with just a look!

I also am loving my new fridge. It has a bottom freezer...something I was sure that I would hate when Cliff first pitched the idea (long before we knew we were buying this house) but it is fabulous to go to the fridge, open it up, and have everything that I want at standing height instead of constantly reaching or crouching down. It's an added bonus as well that Rhett can't open the door!

Oh, and my glass top stove. I actually don't mind when Cliff cooks bacon now...the mess is so much easier to clean up - and yes we have already tested it out.

Oh, we had Thanksgiving here. For most people that wouldn't be a big deal but this is the first Thanksgiving that we haven't gone home....yep, actually the first major holiday that we haven't been with our families since we've been married. A little weird...didn't really feel like Thanksgiving for awhile...but our wonderful friends the Robison's came over and spent the day with us. The guys built something, watched football and hockey on our massive TV, the kids mostly played well together, and I got to try out the convection cook option on my oven for the ham I bought. Everything was yummy yummy yummy and after the kids were all settled into bed (Robison kids slept in the playroom) we got to play Rook together. Something that we enjoy doing and haven't been able to do for a very long time.

This is probably where I should list a really long list of things that I am thankful for...but I've been at this for almost 2 hours now and am starting to get fidgety.

We do have to say thank you, thank you, thank you, to Kinsey. And congratulations as well. Kinsey has graduated in Dental Assisting and has been very blessed to obtain a fantastic job in Lethbridge with a great dentist! We're so proud and excited for her. As part of this new job (did I mention the part about making great money?) she has purchased a new to her jeep liberty and has decided to gift us with her little dodge neon so that we will now have a second vehicle for Cliff to run back and forth to work. Much better on gas and much easier on our family for the days that I need the van. Really there are no words to express how grateful we are for this new blessing. Thanks Kin!

Gee, as I type it all down it sure doesn't seem like we have been doing much but I promise you that my mornings are very early and my nights are very late. I always seem to have something to do or somewhere to go, but I wouldn't trade it. I am loving my life, learning to change my bad habits and addictions with food, and learning to relax and live my life. I am happy.

(sorry...can't figure out how to get rid of the big ugly white spot here...too much moving around of pictures and too late at night for me!)

Worth a Thousand Words

They say a picture is worth a thousand words....this post is going to be worth several thousand. I'm going to post as many as I can and let you scroll your way through the past couple of weeks of our life...at least the moments I remembered to grab the camera! If you have any questions....use your imagination! Just kidding...I think most are self-explanatory. Enjoy!

Temper Tantrums, Jogs, and Prayers

I know...it's only been a couple of days and here I am writing again. Now that you've closed your open jaws I can go on with my story.

This morning while out jogging I had this fabulous blog all composed in my head and of course because it was so fabulous I had oodles of comments on it. It's now been over 14 hours since I composed that draft in my head...we'll see how much of it comes back to me.

For those of you who talk to me on a regular basis you know that my youngest son Rhett is 16 months old and does not sleep through the night. Most nights he's up an average of 3 times...bad nights it's 5 + times. Last night was a bad night. And then he decided that 5:30 am was a the time that he should be wide awake ready to start his day. I start my day at 6:20 and am out the door on the pavement by 6:35...I do not appreciate the 5:30 wake up call because usually I'm up for 15-20 minutes at this time of the morning trying to convince him to go back to sleep. And to those of you who would tell me to just leave him to cry...I would if he couldn't get out of his bed! Then he's wondering around the house, finding things and turning on stuff. This morning it was a no-go for getting him to go back to sleep. By the time I was supposed to be leaving I was stomping around the house, getting him a bottle and telling him loudly(not yelling because Zane was still sleeping) that he was too little to be up by himself. However, because I am selfish about my hour in the morning I left him with cartoons and a daddy pretending to be asleep and headed out. In case you're wondering....this is where the tantrum came in, and no it was not on Rhett's part. It was all me. Yes, I, Kelly Johnson, 26 years old, mom of 2, still throw tantrums.

I headed out into the cold morning just fuming...trying to concentrate on my music and raging in my head at my Father in Heaven for not answering all my prayers pleading for sleep to come to my son and myself. To give you a feel for how long this foul, black mood followed me, let me explain how my morning exercise routine works. As soon as I hit the hallway my ipod is on and I'm getting shoes on, coat on, stretching etc. By the end of the first song I'm in the parking lot headed for the sidewalk. I walk for 1 1/2 to 2 songs...I start jogging at a specific house and jog to a certain spot...usually 2 or 2 and a bit songs. I walk for 2 songs or so and then I start the jog up the hill. When I first started I could only make it up the hill. Now this part of my jog is pushing 20 minutes long. Then I walk for a song, jog another small stretch and walk about 2 blocks home for cool down and stretches. Are you tired yet? I promise I have a point...as I started out this morning I wasn't able to get past my sour mood until I was almost through my long run. But here's what I learned. As I jogged and prayed, and jogged and prayed, and told my Father in Heaven how unfair it was that my toddler still does not sleep through the night - I realized that I have been praying for the wrong thing. I have been praying for my sweet toddler to be changed and I need to be praying for me to be changed. So, I will now be praying that my body will be able to do what it needs to do on much less sleep - that I will be able to be the happy mommy on 5 hours of sleep that I am on much more sleep.

I returned a much happier mommy...hopefully my new strategy will work.
And sorry, no pics yet. I've been busy packing and keeping Rhett from climbing and pushing every button he can reach!

Time Out

Well this title has a few meanings for me lately....
I know it's been quite a while since I posted...I've kinda been on a blog time out while I've been packing, cleaning, and generally trying to contain the chaos that our lives have been over the past couple of weeks. Sorry for those who have missed me. I ahve missed being here and have thought about you often...sometimes I compose wonderful blog posts in my mind while I am running...and then by the time I get to the computer late at night all my good thoughts have slowly leaked out of my head until the only thing I can think about is how tired I really am.

The best meaning of time out for me was this past weekend. Leslie and I went to Calgary for the 5th anniversary of Time Out for Women. For those of you who don't know what that is - it's a women's conference put on by Desert Books. They bring in wonderful speakers and musicians whose whole purpose is to renew, refresh and rejuvanate your soul and mind. It was such a wonderful time and experience...I got to listen to some of my favorite people as well as finding new favorites and came home refreshed in spirit. I'd like to say that we got lots of sleep too...but we stayed up until midnight talking and laughing and just being girls. Katie slept so much that it really was like being there without any kids and it was so great to have entire conversations without pausing to answer little people questions, discipline, or calm the screams of our children. Did I mention that we stayed in the Marriot hotel as well? It was well worth the money since we were connected to the convention center and they treated us awesomely. Valet parking is one of my new favorite things! If you have never been to one I would strongly recommend going the next time they come. And of course we did some shopping at the bookstore there and came home with some great music I'm itching to get at on my new piano...

We take possession of our house a week from today. Every hour it is getting closer and closer and feels more and more real. The control freak in me is starting to panic a little bit but i think I'm doing a pretty good job of keeping her tamped down and under control. I'm pretty much packed as much as I can until we get a little closer to actually moving...so I'm going to start spot washing walls and stuff to make cleaning easier when we move out. We are counting sleeps for many things....Grammie S coming to help us, taking possession of the house, Zane starting preschool, carpets getting cleaned, new appliances (yeah!!!) being delivered, and actually moving. Phew. September is busy busy busy.

And I have been taking some pictures...I promise...they just aren't on my computer yet. I'll try to get some up soon. In the meantime just picture me spending the majority of my day cleaning up after destructo...aka...Rhett. Sigh. If that child survies to see his 2nd birthday...I'm just kidding, I love him to bits - just tired of the current phase!