is he talking about ME????

I have stated on my 'today I am thankful for' sidebar that playing basketball is like Christmas for me every week. I love it! I was sooooo excited to find out that there were women who play over at the church in my mom's neighborhood every week and I was welcome to come play with them. I love watching my boys play basketball but there is just something about playing myself that gets me giddy every Tues. and Thur. night. When I can't make it the next morning, it hurts. It's like missing Christmas...well kindove (you get the point).

These injuries are from the great sport. For some reason, my mind thinks I can run as fast as a 17 year old, but this old body isn't getting it done. I fall, I get jammed fingers, I have even come close to passing out. This jammed finger lasted FOREVER and I no longer can wear my ring on that finger. It was already twice the size of my left one anyway, so I was very irritated. When this happened my thumb had just barely healed from the same dang thing!

Jeremy loves basketball, he loves watching and playing. However, he refuses to play church ball. He is a very calm, low key fella who finds it very disturbing that grown men act the way they do over a church basketball game! We all know the crazy that goes on over there at the church when basketball is happening - it's just not for him.

It's for me.

This morning, I may have crossed over to the crazy. Am I the type that Jeremy avoids? Is he married to what he can't stand about all those respectively 'passionate' ballers? Is he talking about ME?

I am a fan of blocking shots. I feel something through my veins when I block a shot. The sound, the stolen points, the frustration given, the feeling of the ball smacking my hand...I can't get enough. It's the best part of basketball.

Well, it's not really in me to shy away from blocking a shot even if it is at the church, even if it's with women who probably thought they were coming just to have fun, even if it's to someone who hasn't really played ball, ever. But when I started playing with these ladies, I kindove held back because I didn't want anyone to think I was mean. Well they know me now, they know I am 'passionate'. We've played enough that we all just laugh when we block each other's shots, or when we steal the ball from each other. We laugh ALL the time. I may or may not have pee'd a time or two from laughing. It's an easy going, tough but not crazy game. Or is it?

This morning I was feeling it. I was blocking some shots. I was making my shots. My passing was on. I wasn't even tired. It was all too good! So when my friend Corrina was dribbling with her head down and I could see in her eyes that she was going to shoot it, of course I had to do it. I stepped up to her and with all my might lifted my arm and jumped. Now, Corrina is probably one of those girls who just comes to play for the fun of it. She is not competitive. Church ball is probably the extent of her basketball experience, and she may just go there to get some exercise.

Unfortunately, I smacked the ball right back in her face. Yes, it hit her in the face. Hard. In the mouth. It looked like it hurt. She didn't really bleed, I don't think. But she had to sit down, and for some reason that ended the game. I didn't do it on purpose! Everyone was making jokes, telling me it's just a game, maybe something about crossing the line, telling Corrina not to accept my apology etc. It was really actually very funny. However, on my way home, I had to wonder about my husbands opinion of church ball, and wonder it all those girls were in their cars saying can you believe she would do that!? Am I the reason people won't come to play?

I think Jer's problem is more with the complaining and crying and yelling from grown men and NOT the competitive crazy's. I don't yell, complain or cry. I am trying so hard to be just medium crazy, and only one slip up today won't stop my progress. I will continue on with church ball, and I will watch myself and my 'passion'. I will learn to control my 10 foot long arm and only become crazy when there is someone in a striped uniform in the middle of the court.

I will continue to work on NOT ruining Christmas.

This is what a huddle looks like at our pick up games. Children are always involved and quite often run on the court to help their mommy out! Only a few have been mildly injured when we run over them.

a new family...

Two days before Thanksgiving, I had a little meeting with our Bishop. Yes, Jer was invited as well so I knew something was up. So many things led up to this little meeting (personal enough for my real 'write in' journal) and I was quite anxious because I kindove knew what was going to happen...

My family got a little bigger!

I was called to be the new Primary President and received 3 new sisters as a bonus! It really is amazing that prayers are answered. As I prayed about who my counselors should be while up at the cabin, very loud answers were given. They all know how very special they are to me, and that each one of them were called with me so that I can learn from them. They are amazing women with very different talents and I am blessed to be able to spend so much time with them. They are probably crazy tired of me by now but I already love each one of them. Sunday was our first big meeting of the year as we put on the Baptism Preview. It turned out fabulous because of each of them. It was also fabulous because we had 11 children who are being baptized this year, teach us how to be great human beings. Those little children are an example to me each week. They know so much more than I did at that age. They truly are children of God.

Through the last two months I have been strengthened in so many ways, and know that someone else has a hand in all we do. No matter what faith, religion, or background each of us have there is someone bigger than us all who is leading us to eachother at just the right time. These ladies and all of the children I get to serve are all proof of that.

Jenny, Julie and Missy - you are the best!

So this is the new Oquirrh Hills Temple that will be done later this year, it's pretty much in our neighborhood and beautiful! It was one of the coldest, windy days in December - but it was worth it to stand with my new sisters and my family! The big red warning sign was for the 'unauthorized' - we were authorized. Little Tristan cried because she thought we were breaking the law, her mom quickly told her we were allowed! Hopefully we were.

New Year's - cabin style...

Happy New Year's!!! Our New Year's Eve started with a little bit of sledding through mountain trees. I know they say this is dangerous, but we have it under control. Alec and I set little traps before any tree we may have hit head first and die. You just can't see our helmets under our hats! We were completely safe!

I am in total control in this picture. In fact his face may have ended up right in that fresh snow you see here!

And he still loves me.

After sledding we introduced Jer's fam to our new little addiction my family has. Monopoly. At any time, one or more of us has that dang thing on the table ready to play. Is it wrong that we have started a game with Alec and Carter at 11:00 at night? We all know how long those games last! Tracy was surprised at the bartering of my 12 and 9 year old. He did question the things we are teaching them. Hey, I say these skills will be very helpful in the real world! Carter has ALMOST won so many times. He just can't stand to put houses and hotels and spend all his money. He'll have hundreds of dollars and count it often, but it hurts him not to have it all right in front of him. Alec on the other hand, will spend every last dollar to buy a house because he knows you will land on his property and have to pay him! He usually has to sell them right back to pay one of us! Complete opposites. Jeremy thinks he's so the best. He is not. I am so the best. Just because at the moment he has won more than times than me, doesn't prove anything!

This is me making a deal with Jer. One of those, I'll give you this property if I NEVER have to pay you on it...it always works! He got out WAY before me in this one!

Alec has yet to learn he is suppose to let his Papa win!

Savvy was so thrilled about stayin up until midnight! She was doing so good, keeping herself busy. Here she is at about 10:00 with Luke. She was actually awake here hiding behind her doll. She was disappointed that Luke would fall asleep so early!This was at 11:00. She was so close!

Midnight!

Luke had a hard time agreeing to go outside to play in the snow. He would just say it was too cold and wanted to stay in and play with the babies. I finally talked him into it and he loved every minute of it. Except for falling off the sled with Savvy. The snowman, 'Candy' was his favorite. They were so sad to leave him at the cabin. Except for Carter, he wanted to destroy him. What a boy.
Savvy LOVED it!
Meet 'Candy"!

He's creepy, or she...???

I wonder where he learned this?

We seriously could not get Alec off that mountain. He stayed out one day for 5 hours, going down the same hill on that snowboard. He has actually never been snowboarding (bad us) and has discovered he loves it! He made a jump and then kept making me video record him going down and wiping out! He was getting pretty dang good. Living in Utah, I know I should take my kids skiing, so that is one my goals this year. I think I have only been once since Jer and I have been married. It's something I am not very proud of.

Snowmobiling, sledding, relaxing, monopoly, good food, and family. Perfect way to spend the first day of 2009. When we were sharing our highs and lows of the trip, all the kids said that sledding and snowboarding were their highs. Their low was being so cold on the trip down to our cars. Then little Lukie was asked what his high was and he told us, "Playing with Addy." Then I asked him what his low was, and he replied, "Playing with Emmy." It was pretty funny, but we know that he is still trying to get the 'low' concept. He always tell us 2 highs! He has been saying the funniest things lately. His personality is so different from the other kids, and I love it! I just don't love that my baby is a sunbeam! He's just too little to be so big! I am really needing to hold a new baby and I can't wait for Kim and Dan's baby to get here! I'm excited for this year, I have a feeling it will be one of learning...much to be learned.

the jolly man made it!

Christmas morning was a bit different this year. For the last 12 years I have been the one to wake up my children. It started when Alec wasn't even one, and every single year since, I have gone into their room or upstairs to wake them up with the video camera in their face at about 5:00 or 5:30 a.m. (maybe earlier once!) This year I decided (or Alec may have decided) that I was robbing something from his childhood. The waking up sneaking to the tree, or waking us up and us yelling at them to go back to bed, or the parents making a trap with pots and pans or string to catch the kids sneaking a peak (it never worked for my dad), or their first vision of presents from Santa with clear eyes, instead of light in the eyes from my video camera. OK. Whatever. I left them in charge.

They all sleep upstairs together which I love, and they all came down at 5:30 am. We did the 'go back to sleep for an hour' thing and with no argument they went right back upstairs for one hour. What. No complaining. No whining. No PLEEEAAASSSE can we open right now???? Amazing. I was almost disappointed, until I slept. Then one hour later, they came back in and I jumped up!

Magic had happened....

Santa managed a three year old's wish to get Hungry, Hungry Hippos! Unbelievable!
Savvy got her Nintendo DS with the Build a Bear game. Unbelievable.

Because of the love he promised to give, Carter got the long sleeved, Manchester United, Christiano Ranoldo Jersey. He wants to frame it for his room. Silly boy. Still... Unbelievable.

Alec was surprised with an iPod classic. I guess I am suppose to say it was 160 GB because that makes it cooler. I have no idea about gigga bites (see I can't even spell it), all I know is that the picture on that thing is better than my TV! Unbelievable!

They had so much fun for that 30 minutes it takes to open all the presents!

In years past, we immediately head up to Mimi and Papa's house at around 6:00 in the morning. We decided this year to actually let them play with their presents and stay home until it was time for breakfast burritos at my mom and dad's house. Good thing because you all saw how CRAZY that snow storm was. We were lucky to make it our of our neighborhood!! We spent a lot of time at my mom's digging cars out of the snow, and shoveling their driveway. So thankful for Four Wheel Drive. Some of the houses out here were so covered in snow you couldn't tell what color the brick on their house was. I wish I would have gotten a picture of the front of our house when we left. But I did get this one of the backyard with the snow all the way up the fence. What a white Christmas! This was Jer and I after the major dig out!

Two Twins - Talkin' Sports!

After my mom's we made the trek up to Sandy. So surprising that it was nothing like it was out here. You could still see the bushes outside and it had hardly snowed. Until we left of course! Lukie was in heaven when he got to open his 'Spirit' horse. He really did have a great day!

We had dinner and played 'words in a bowl' (girls won - thanks Savvy) until it was time to make the trek home again. Just in time for the snow to fall on us once again and make Christmas even better.

I am in love with Christmas and everything that goes with it....except for...

sooooo annoying!!!!! I can't even BELIEVE how many of these stupid wires we took off of the most ridiculous toys!! Can't anyone think of something better?

Hope yours was as magical as ours!

christmas eve stockings...

A Johnson Family Party!

Christmas Eve in the Johnson Family has become my favorite! A tradition I hope my kids will remember when they are old! A feeling I hope they remember when they are away on missions, or school, or with their own families. I am so thankful for Tracy and Valerie and the special feeling they work so hard to make each one of us have when we are there. Valerie makes sure we all have matching jammies. We all love getting to their house on Christmas Eve, changing our clothes, eating fabulous food, exchanging gifts from the person we drew (in October) and getting 'Christmas Eve' stockings! These stockings Mimi puts together and we all get giddy when we look through all her special surprise treasures she finds for us. We get watches, tools, perfume, lip gloss, polish, movies, socks, candy and much, much more. Thank you Mimi!!!

This year we decided to 'make' our gifts for each other. I have really never sewn anything. I made a blanket once for Jer and sewed the whole thing by hand so that doesn't really count. I did sew my boys blankets once too, they may have been a little crooked, and that's about it. I always do the painting or some other craft that I know how to do. So this year I decided to do something that was totally out of my comfort zone. I sewed. Yes, I really sewed this apron. All of it. I was so excited to make my first strap. I sewed straps! And a ruffle and a whole bunch of other things I can't even remember the names of. My basketball friend Emily, helped me and made me realize how much I want a sewing machine. Sissa looked dang cute in her new apron!

Jeremy had Dan this year. He got him a whole bunch of maps of the mountains and trails in Utah and Yellowstone. Dan is camper/fisherman and loves the great outdoors. So he took these maps and had them laminated. Then made containers for them and labeled them. It really was such a cool gift. We discovered how much WE also love maps. We may be making ourselves some of these maps!

Valerie made me the coolest cook book. It is huge with family recipes from Jeremy's grandmothers and herself. There are handwritten recipes from all of them plus a lot of other favorites. Matt tied Jeremy some flies for their fishing trips this year. It was another amazing Christmas Eve!

And they were ready for bed!