The Johnson Fam

May 2009

2010-08-31T21:31:00.000-07:00

Lovin' our frogs! Gotta love this - helpin' us cook in panties!

Our babysitting group.

Zoo with the Tibbitts!

Macey's boyfriend...Hyrum.

We love her, we love her, we love her!

2010-08-31T21:05:00.000-07:00

April 2009

Easter 2009

2010-08-31T20:55:00.000-07:00

I LOVE spring! Ok, and fall too. Gotta love the ferns...makes me feel like I have a real "southern" home.

Easter dress from Grandma & Grandpa Johnson

I remember wearing a hat and gloves when I was a little girl...and I LOVED it! Luckily, I have quite the girly-girl who thinks it is just as cool as I did. :-)

Ward activity. Poor G - the red smock just wasn't quite long enough...one of my first sewing projects! But the cape turned out cool!

Gotta love those white legs!

Went to a beautiful park and made an easter egg hunt for the kids in a really pretty "grove" of trees. This was right after, "ready, set, go!"

The loot is the best part, right?!

Buggy...I just love this girl!

Sunday - Easter morning finding the eggs!

After-church family pic.

Happy Birthday Daddy!

2009-11-24T14:41:00.001-08:00

4.17.09
Yes, it's November, and I'm finally catching-up on our blog! So...family...bear with me ;-)

Daddy's birthday was fun! Macey was so excited to give our daddy-sweet her gifts. She made a BUNCH of really cute pictures (if you know her, you'll know that she LOVES to give pictures!) and individually wrapped them in tissue paper. It was too cute!

I don't think the pictures were his favorite gift though! Check these out!!! She has really learned to lay one on ya! (kind of scary, but hey, we love them!!)
Mommy got him a work table that has MANY uses! It can be used as scaffolding (or to change a light bulb)....or a fort...or Macey thought it would be best-used as a bed!Mommy rallied the families together and asked for some dough to buy daddy a REAL BBQ! The poor guy has been using a camping one that sat on the ground and maybe fit 2 hamburgers :-)! He was quite excited!

We love our Greg!! He truly is the best husband and father we could ask for!!!

No spanks or time outs!

2009-04-15T21:04:00.000-07:00

(pics of the PRINCESS with her sleep mask she's been wearing every night for the last few months or so :-) )

Tonight as I was laying Macey down to bed and we were talking to Daddy on the phone, we had family prayer and then our scripture story. The story was about Lehi's family reaching the promised land. We were talking about how after Lehi passed away, Laman and Lemuel began to disobey the commandments...again. Macey said to me, "But Mom, (with a pouty look on her face) sometimes I do noddy things in the day." I told her that Mom and Dad do too, and that it's okay as long as we are TRYING to choose the right and obey the commandments - that we can repent each night and tell Heavenly Father we're sorry.

She then told me, "But remember next time that you don't spank me or have time outs."

I then asked, "Well, what should we do when you do something that's noddy?"

Her reply: "Just SNUGGLE ME."

And I think that's probably what I should do!!!

One of the cutest things she's told us yet.....okay, there are like a million, but this was pretty darn cute!

My man's got some SKILLS!!

2009-04-15T00:24:00.000-07:00

So, a couple of weeks ago, our water heater decided it was DONE! And, please somebody tell me who the genius was who thought it was a good idea to put them in the attic? I was beginning to feel pioneer-ish after a week and a half of heating water on the stove to bathe Macey, do dishes, and getting my butt to the gym JUST so I could take a hot shower afterward. Boy, did I gain an appreciation for instant hot water! Aren't we just spoiled these days!? It took me three rounds of 4 pans full of boiling water to fill just a small amount of a bath for Macey.

Greg decided he would try his handyman skills at installing a GAS water heater! You heard, me, gas! I was worried he was going to A: Blow up our house, or B: Put a hole through my wall getting the old water heater down from the attic! I really and truly had nightmares the few nights before he put it in. He did manage to get two SWEET missionaries soaking wet with sweat (and water, hee hee), but he did it!! My man saved us a whoppin' $300 for installation!! I love you darlin' - you rock! Oh yeah, and you're really HOT! (especially when you're savin' us money! ;-) )

Just like Mom...

2009-04-14T23:39:00.000-07:00

Lately, Macey has been wanting to do EVERYTHING like Mom. Scary, huh! I won't tell you ALL of what this entails, because that would just be too embarassing. (I'm guessing she'll eventually give me away when she does/says something she learned from me!) Well, for now, I'll just blog about one of the more innocent things she's learning from me :-)
This morning we were getting ready for school and Macey told me that her hair wouldn't dry right and was getting her back "all wet".

She said she needed her towel "like mommy's" so it could dry better.

I just thought she looked super-funny! Guess I do too!

Too quiet for too long...

2009-04-14T23:28:00.000-07:00

I'm sure this one will probably be the LEAST harmful of the "too quiet" moments!
Isn't she lovely?
She was just SO excited that I left the sparkles out :-)

My New Baby....

2009-03-18T09:01:00.000-07:00

I wish I was talking about the kind that coo, babble, spit up, and smile at you....ok, so this does SOME of that :-)

My dad and Greg got me THIS for Christmas...

She is so pretty, and works so well for me that she most definately deserves a NAME! What are your votes???

My first project was an apron for Macey of which she picked out the material. That was so fun. Here she's bakin' cookies w/Daddy.

Then made one for me, of course, and learned how to read a pattern. It took a good eight hours...I'll get quicker!It was so pretty, I was afraid to even use it for a while!...ok, I still have a hard time using it :-)

Anyway, this is what took me away from blogging for a while....and it was SO worth it!

Series of Unfortunate Events: Part 3

2009-02-03T10:51:00.000-08:00

Greg "broke in" the New Year!!
He was upstairs getting boxes down for me to put Christmas stuff away, and.......Anyone recall him bragging about his impeccable BALANCE??
OOPS!!!!

Series of Unfortunate Events: Part 2

2009-02-03T10:48:00.000-08:00

The second part of the series was that: Macey never fully recovered! A week and a half after the horrible shot/stitches experience, Greg went out of town, and Macey carried a fever of 104 degrees for about 4 days. I took her back to her doctor, and guess what?...Oral antibiotic!!! All of that for NOTHING!!! She had to go on the antibiotic anyway. Grrr....

Series of Unfortunate Events: Part 1

2009-01-29T21:54:00.000-08:00

The weekend after Christmas, Macey had the signs of Strep, so I took her to her doctor. It was pretty advanced by the time I took her in (I didn't know, until I saw the spots!), so the doctor suggested we give her the shot that would clear it up within 24 hours (versus the 10-day antibiotic). We were a little hesitant, but after she insisted, we agreed. The nurse then came in with a 20 guage needle. My eyes popped wide open, realizing that this was the same FAT, 1-1/2 inch needle that I do my butt injections with during an In Vetro cycle!! I mean, this is the same needle that I am deathly afraid of and have NEVER FELT, because I put a topical ointment on my skin and ice the area for 40 minutes!!! The nurse decided to do the injection in her booty, because she thought there would be less movement than in the leg, so she got her on her stomach and Greg was helping to hold her down. Unfortunately, wow - can I underline, bold, and stress that word enough? - UNFORTUNATELY, one of her arms got loose just as the nurse was starting to press the needle into her skin, and Macey grabbed the needle out of instinct and it SLICED her skin! Now we faced still another poke into the OTHER booty cheeck to get the medicine in her, and then back to the wound for some numbing injections and STITCHES!! What a nightmare. After the wound was made and the doctor said she'd need to stitch it up, I hopped up onto the table to hold her on top of me and comfort her, and hold her down better. I have never felt like a worse mom. Holding your child down against their will while someone is hurting them felt so animalisitc! It was aweful! I wanted to yell and bawl as much as she was!

Here are some pictures. She was so good and let me take the stitches out. I let her choose a treat as an incentive to be brave, and she chose to make purplicious cupcakes for her and her friends we were babysitting the next day! We had fun making them!

Note to self: Next time, we're goin' with the antibiotic!!!!! Duh!

Holiday Happenings - Part 2...

2009-01-15T07:26:00.000-08:00

December started out with a fun package arriving at our door from Grandma and Grandpa Johnson. They sent this o-so-christmasy polka dot dress for Macey to wear for the Holidays - Thanks Grandma & Grandpa!

We really enjoyed just hanging out together as a family, getting lots of Macey snuggles, and getting odd-ball projects done. Greg & I decided to build a dollhouse for Macey for Christmas, so I got to work printing off pictures of ones I liked online, drew one up (with dimensions, of course) for Greg, and put him to work! This really seems to be the magical year for the little one, where she's just really excited for things, so we were in turn so excited for the big day! We spent all of our date nights in December getting supplies, putting it together, painting, putting flooring in, etc. (OK - so GREG built it - but I'm the mastermind behind it :-) ) Side note: one date night while he was building, I cleaned out my flower beds taking out old plants, removed all of the old mulch (really crappy job), and planted some bulbs (I know, a bit late), and to my dismay, my bulbs are coming through the ground already!! AAA! Didn't plant them deep enough? Anyway, here's a picture of the dollhouse finished...Didn't he do a great job? (Notice the cut-out picture window w/bar between what will be the kitchen/dining room - yeah, no furniture yet)We spent the month doing all of the usual things...listening to great music, watching chrismas movies, looking at all the house lights and nativities, shopping, eating great food, watching our amarylis grow (Macey kissed and coaxed it daily) and on and on. We really quite enjoyed spending time with just the 3 of us! Our Ward Christmas Party consisted of caroling to inactives, then back to the church for some hot chocolate and goodies, singing with our old bishop, and Santa! Notice - Macey's still not too sure about sitting on Santa's lap. I was surprised she even sat on his lap, because at the mall, she ran away from him! So weird - because she is normally TOO friendly to strangers.Three days before Christmas, the pilot light went out on our water heater, and Macey and I took a shower - SCREAMING - as we went, and then got warm by the fire...I just had to post pics of her toasting her buns!!

On Christmas Eve-Eve, I actually got my tri-pod out (my Dad gave me his old one a LONG time ago, and I hadn't tried it out) and we snapped some shots together. Macey had a blast pushing the button for the timer, running to get in the photo, and then running back to try to "beat" me and view the picture. She just laughed, and laughed, thinking it was so funny! This one is of her saying, "Wait, wait" to tell us something...These are my favorite ones of the family...(please note that I didn't actually DO my hair for these, we just decided to take them on a whim)One she actually took of G&I...Macey and Me...And my favorites of Greg & Macey...

And this one's my favorite - the "this is MY Daddy" look that we see so often...Chrismas Eve was a party at the Johnsons! Woohoo! We had yummy soup, lots of casserole-type dishes, finger foods, and Greg's home-made bread and pies. Yup - Greg bakes like crazy! It was a little awkward though, one night the week prior when I went to a friend's birthday gathering alone, and when everyone asked, "Where's Greg?", I replied..."Baking a Pie!" He was practicing, and yeah, they all thought he was a little gay I'm sure, but they didn't complain when they came over to eat it! Oh man, was it ever tasty! Back to Chrismas Eve: we ate, had the missionaries read stories and sing songs, decorated gingerbread houses (ok, they were graham cracker ones), and then had the kids do the nativity. It was short, sweet, and fun! Of course, here are some pics...
A bubbling-through-the seams berry pie, a scrumptuous pumpkin cheesecake, and Grandma Lila's Swiss Bread...hungry? (no making fun of my purple countertops :-))

Our sweet missionaries...Making gingerbread houses and Macey's finished product...And Macey's first debut as Mary... She has been practicing since she was one year old and saw her first picture of Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus out in the foyer of our church...After everyone left, we cleaned the house (all the way) and put out the cookies, milk, and carrot (for the reindeer - guess they'll have to share?) Yes, Macey did check out our fireplace and ask how he was going to come down the chimney when there wasn't a hole? Our fireplace is totally enclosed. I panicked for a moment, but then calmly used the answer my parents always gave me, "Santa's magic!" It'll work for just about any of those questions, right?Then we opened the Christmas Eve jammies...I found a whole get-up on after-Thanksgiving Day clearance!

Christmas morning WAS magical, just as we suspected it would be. Greg and I got Macey some "longer dresses", some barbies for her dollhouse, and Grandpa sent a Radio Flyer horse! His name is Oreo, in case you were wondering...
Then just like every other family, the After-Christmas CRASH!!Lots of events still to post from this last week: stitches, G "breaking" in the New Year...stay tuned... (this is why I haven't posted in forever!)

It's My Choice!

2009-01-14T20:46:00.000-08:00

Monday night we topped off our Family Home Evening with a trip to the mall to ride the carousel. We were sitting down to eat an ice cream cone, and Macey started going to town on a good ol' boogie. I said, "Macey, you know, it's just NOT GOOD MANNERS to pick your boogers." Then Greg and I were conversing on what we should do/say about this yummy habit, and Macey turns to me and very matter-of-factly says, "It's my choice. I can pick my boogers if I want to." Greg and I looked at each other, with a, "well?" look and were at a loss for words... What do you say to that?Someone at work gave these delicious treats to Greg for Christmas. Are you surprised that Macey ate them with Daddy?

OK - I'm back...

2008-12-18T16:02:00.000-08:00

I know - it's been a while since I've posted, but we've just been doing miscellaneous "stuff". I haven't known quite what to blog about, so here's just some pics about what we've been up to!

Today was Macey's first program at school! What fun it was to see a glimpse of what they've been learning at school :-) I was very much a proud mom! We love Miss Tami. My favorite part was seeing all of their cute songs they've learned and listening to them recite six of the Articles of Faith. They'll learn their ABC's, how to read, blah blah blah, but learning the gospel is the important stuff, right?!

Macey's Liahona Pre-School Class

Hyrum, Macey, Aleece, Hailey, Lexi, Miss Tami, Kelsie, Maggie, and Boo's head

Hammin' it up for some pics after school!

Eat your heart out, Grandpa!!

have to run....will post more later...

Who'da Thunk?

2008-11-27T09:39:00.000-08:00

I sewed! Can you believe it? And I liked it! My sweet friend Emily showed me how to make these darling pumpkins - just before Thanksgiving, and loaned me her sewing machine. Wow - I never thought I would actually enjoy the sweet hummmmmm of the stitching, but it's quite therapeutic! And - I think I could actually be good at it! So, if any of ya'll have an extra machine lying around that you think you can part with, I will make excellent use of it ;-) If you want to join in the pumpkin-making fun, instructions can be found at Holly's blog:

http://bloggingwithholly.blogspot.com/2008/08/passionate-about-pumpkins.html

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-27T09:14:00.001-08:00

Couldn't help it - they look like they're havin' some good ol' CLOGGIN' fun!! And what better way to celebrate a day when we're stuffin' ourselves??!

Halloween Happenings...

2008-11-04T14:01:00.000-08:00

I think 3 yrs. old is the magic year when these cute little ones really start to dig the Holidays! Our Halloween was so much fun! First - the pumpkin carving. On family night, we went to pick out our pumpkins. Macey thought that was pretty darn cool. Then on Wednesday night (right before Halloween - so they wouldn't wilt?) - the carving took place! She thought it was pretty cool to dig out the "guts". Out of all the cute patterns (kittys, bats, ghosties, etc.), she just wanted a "smiley face", so here's Macey's pumpkin!Then, being the domestic diva that I am (that's a joke - I hate cooking), I baked the pumpkin seeds, and they were so yummy! Yup - they're gone already! Hey - I've been trying to snack on them instead of all this scrumptuous candy! (Rinse, soak in saltwater bath, bake at 250 degrees for 1 hour).

Thursday consisted of a party at preschool and then a party at a friend's house. She wanted to be a kitty cat (by the way, she can now say a "c" sound at the beginning of those words, so it is no longer "titty tat" - sorry family, no more messing with that one!) and a tinkerbell. So on Thursday, she was a kitty and Friday for Halloween, a Tinkerbell. Can't be a kitty without a tail!For the party at our friend's house, I made these candy corn ice cream treats! (Vanilla, orange sherbet, pineapple sherbet - let each melt most of the way, tint orange and yellow a little darker, freeze in layers)

We were each in charge of a 5-minute station for the kids to do a game or craft. We made tootsie-pop ghosties at my station (thanks for the idea, Starla!).

This is Macey, Maggie, and Hailey (these 3 are 1 mo. apart in age)

Friday we went to a cute Pumpkin Patch! $5 Included a hay ride out to the patch, a pumpkin, a train ride, and a scarecrow. They also had a really cute play area with tire swings and everything!

Just her size - don't you think?

Painting it...

Friday as Tinkerbell...

Happy Halloween!!

2008-10-30T14:11:00.001-07:00

Awesome MySpace Comments & Myspace Layouts

Maceyisms...

2008-10-11T06:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday: Daddy came home from work early, and we were getting ready to take bug to the park. She had changed into jammie pants for her nap earlier, so I asked her to change back into her jeans before we left. Having a will of her own, she came back in jean capris (not the ones she had on earlier).

I looked at Daddy and said with a smerk on my face, "She's so like her mommy!"

Macey replies, with a scowl on her face as if she's sick of hearing words like these, "I'm not like any of you! I'm like ME!"

Isn't she too young to be talking like this?

This Morning: We were all in the living room watching Mary Poppins and waking up. Macey decided she needed snuggles from Daddy, so she crawls under his blanket on the couch and lays her head next to his.

Then she tells him, "Dad, you smell stinky!"

Dad: "Sorry, bug."

Macey: "You need to go potty. You pooped in your pants!"

Is that another way of telling someone, "Your breath smells like %$@# ?

So Touched...

2008-09-30T20:07:00.000-07:00

Thank you!!! to Macey's sweet pre-school teacher, Tami Valgardson. Macey, at random, spouted off in the car today with "and not for Adam's trans-gressions!" Greg and I were putting her to bed tonight, and I remembered to tell him about it in front of her. Then I got the bright idea to start off the first Article of Faith, "We Believe in God", to see if she knew it, and SHE SAID IT WORD-FOR-WORD!!! I could not even believe it! Talk about a tear-jerker, try that one on for size! And she just barely turned 3 this month!!

Maybe it seems so silly to be so amazed that she could memorize 2, yes 2, Articles of Faith at this age. I guess they can memorize songs and books, so why not this? I guess it just hit me funny.

What an amazing preschool teacher, eh? Let's hear it for Tami!!! GO TAMI!!!

If any of you aren't familiar with what these are, see below. More information can be found at our official church website: www.lds.org. These are basic declarations of Mormon theology (our basic beliefs).

THE ARTICLES OF FAITHOF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
History of the Church, Vol. 4, pp. 535—541

1 We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.

2 We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam’s transgression.

3 We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.

4 We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost.

5 We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof.

6 We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth.

7 We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, and so forth.

8 We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.

9 We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.

10 We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of the Ten Tribes; that Zion (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon the American continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory.

11 We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may.

12 We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.

13 We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.
Joseph Smith

SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET!

2008-09-26T08:49:00.000-07:00

I know, it's a crazy thing to get SO excited over, but check this out! Greg brings home little treats for Macey and I every so often, and last week, he brought home a little snack-size bag of peanut m&ms. I am one of those crazy people who, when eating any bag/handful of anything with different colors (runts, m&ms, skittles, you name it!), I have to do the following:

1. Separate them into different colors

2. See which ones have more of their color than the others

3. Eat the colors that have more first

4. Eat one of each color, keeping the numbers even in each color

5. Absolutely relish that last set where there's 1 of each color

On with the story: I opened this little snack-sized bag of peanut m&m's and found this!!! Exactly ONE OF EACH COLOR!!!

Can I tell you how happy I was? SOOOO Happy!!! I know, crazy, but hey, I enjoy the small things in life! :-) (And the completely in order things!)

1st Day of School

2008-09-26T08:08:00.000-07:00

Ok - I know I'm a little behind on this one...almost a month, I guess, but it's better late than never right?! Macey has been loving preschool. She goes Tues-Thurs. from 9-12. Her teacher is a lady in my ward and seems to do a WONDERFUL job with them. They learn a letter and a number a day, sing songs, read books together, have a snack, and the most important...recess! She is tracing letters like a pro! The first time she brought home her letter A paper, I thought her teacher had traced the letters...quite impressive for a 3 year old! Go Macey! (Of course, I'm her #1 fan :-) ) She tells me little tidbits of what she does each day and we review what letter and number they learned that morning throughout the rest of the day. On letter B day, I was taking her and a little friend home from school and had asked them what sound it made and then what words began with that letter. They responded with things like ball, baby, etc. Macey pipes in with "bicycle"...then a few more from her older friend...no more from Macey, so I ask, "What other word begins with the letter B, Macey?" With the Greg twinkle in her eye and a HUGE smile on her face, she replies, "BOOGER!" What a wit. Gotta love her!

September 2nd, Macey's special day...

2008-09-20T22:42:00.000-07:00

Macey's actual birthday was on a Tuesday. Daddy went in to work late so he could wake up with her, make her some breakfast, and spend time with her.

We gave her 3 gifts throughout the day (one in the morning, one at lunch, and then one at night). I learned that from Alicia, and Macey seemed to dig it!

If you get jewelry, you have to try it on with your favorite dress and shoes, right? This was the last gift...it was really late at night, but she was having so much fun...Mommy and Macey got ready, spent time playing with the new mermaid barbie in the bathtub, played together, and then napped so we were ready for the rest of our day with Daddy.

Greg took the 2nd half of the day off to spend together with bug. She has been BEGGING to go see the butterflies at the zoo (she thinks they're going to land on her finger, like they do in the movies). Tuesday afternoons are free at the Memphis Zoo, so we finally took her!

Macey was just cracking me up in the butterfly exhibit, because she kept holding her little finger out, waiting for a butterfly to land on it! She was so disappointed that it wasn't working, so the interest in the butterflies was quite brief for all the begging she had done to go see them :-)

How old are you, Macey?

On to the "stinky giraffes" - as she calls them...

Aaaaah...

Check out their profiles and eyes...twinners, huh!

After the zoo...we went out to dinner and then to Chucky Cheese. We really enjoyed our day together, and I think we sang the happy birthday song, over a period of at least 4 days, probably a total of 15 times. She just absolutely loves the attention. She has been waiting a whole YEAR to turn "three my old", you know!

She really wanted to talk to Chucky. Finally realizing he wasn't conversing with her, she resorted to just groovin' with him!

Happy Birthday Macey!!!

2008-09-20T22:19:00.000-07:00

Macey turned 3! I think I was actually more sad on her birthday that she is growing up so much than on her first day of preschool! She is just such a joy, and such a Big Girl now!!!

The Saturday before her special day (it was the 2nd of September - and yeah, I'm a little late on the posting) we had a Tinkerbell party (at her request) with some of her friends here in Memphis. First, the kids decorated their "princess fairy crowns" or "prince crowns" for the boys. Then they headed out back to swim and play. We set a couple of kiddie pools and put bubbles out for play too. Then they came back inside for some good ol' party-staple pizza and soda. Then we put on some music, got dressed up with wings and wands, and danced! (ok - the boys did not wear wings - they had cool swords and shields). Some decided to grab crazy glasses and shades from the toy room... Then we had cake...aaah, the cake. I was so proud of myself!!! I really want to be a cool mommy in some way, so I did my best to make a cool cake. Yeah - it took forever, but worth it. I only have 1 kid right now, so I can do these sorts of things, right? Thank you to all of her sweet friends and parents who made this so special for her.

Twilight (the Movie) Released EARLIER!!!

2008-08-24T22:36:00.001-07:00

(Copied from StephenieMeyer.com)

August 15, 2008
Movie News Flash!
So, many of you have heard that the release of the sixth Harry Potter movie, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, has been moved from this Thanksgiving to next summer. First and foremost, please know that this schedule change has absolutely nothing to do with Twilight, me, or Summit Films (so enough with the imdb death wishes, okay?). This is Warner Bros. decision, and it was not motivated by anything Twilight-related.
Now for the good news! Though we're all sad to have to wait for Harry Potter, this open spot at the theater creates a cool opportunity. The good people at Summit were thrilled to let me know that now Twilight fans are going to get their movie three weeks earlier than scheduled. That's right—Twilight will be released in theaters November 21st! Let the merry-making commence!
--Stephenie

Little Angel...

2008-08-20T19:38:00.000-07:00

Just couldn't help taking pictures of this scene tonight. We were getting ready for bed: jammies, potty, brushing teeth, then brushing hair. Macey, of course, had to have her own brush, and was brushing, and tilting the head, and singing, as if in her teenage years...so like her mommy :-)

Confession...

2008-08-20T19:26:00.000-07:00

So, I really need to finish this dang book so I can get anything else done. It's so stinking good. I borrowed the first 3 of the series, and not wanting to purchase the fourth one, I had asked one of my young women to bring it to me. She forgot it on Sunday, and I was so desperate, that I went over to her house to get it. (I know - weird - Angel doesn't normally READ! But these books are just so dang good!)

Anyhow, this is pretty much what poor little Macey did all afternoon yesterday...lots of PBS Kids :-)

She did get to go to a friend's house and play earlier that morning, and hey, at least I did her hair, right?

OK - So maybe Monday was worse...this is where it gets really pathetic! Greg came home from work with Mommy on the couch in her jammies and Macey still in jammies - Mommy peering over her book to say, "Hey!" :-) Daddy just smiled, gave me the understanding head nod and said, "What up!"

Tastes Like Chicken!

2008-08-20T19:23:00.000-07:00

Daddy, Mommy, and Macey are playing in Macey's room just before bed tonight.

Macey: "Who wants to play monsters, say, "Me!"
Mommy: "Daddy wants to play!"
Macey: "Raaar. (licks chops twice, then says) Mmmmm....tastes like chicken!"

No idea where she got that from, but it made us laugh.

The Big 30!

2008-08-05T10:19:00.000-07:00

Yup - it happened...mommy turned 30! I've really been quite good about Birthdays, never being bothered, just welcoming my maturity :-) ha ha, until this year! Aaaaaah! 30! I don't know why, but it just seems way too old for how I feel, but I guess that's all that matters, right? I always just knew that I would be done having children by now, but life never goes as planned...grrr.... Guess I'll just have to be ok with being a "mature" mom. That's the word I've decided to use for OLD! I know, I'm being a big huge baby, but hey - it's my Birthday, and I'll whine if I want to :-)

On a sweeter note(yeah - quite the Johnson play on words, but what can I say? I am one!): Greg, after having stood on his feet all day teaching, made me a home-made chocolate cake! He's such a sweetie :-)

Missed My Friends...

2008-08-05T10:07:00.000-07:00

Macey was so stinkin' excited when she saw her friends "SkyenLanie" (Skye and Delanie) come to the door. They hadn't seen each other for 2 months, which is a LONG time to hear "I wanna see SkyenLanie" over and over. Anyhow, they were so cute. I don't think Macey stopped giggling and smiling the whole time they played. We missed you, girls!

Frogs, Snails, and Puppy Dog Tails...

2008-08-05T10:02:00.000-07:00

...that's what little GIRLS? are made of? We're back home in Tennessee and loving it! It's miserably hot and sticky, but you have to have humidity to have FROGS in your yard all the time! Daddy finally taught Macey how to hold one correctly so they can't leap away :-)

More About Idaho...

2008-08-05T09:28:00.000-07:00

It was so good to see family and friends. Some of our happenings included: staying overnight in the San Francisco airport, seeing our new cousin Lili get blessed, playing with Auntie Aaron's new yorkie (ok, maybe it was more like "torturing" the puppy), Macey getting her first fat lip (I think the pictures are hillarious!), waking up Grandpa Mike every morning, swimming and playing with the cousins, family dinners, wrestling with Grandpa, hanging out with Grandpa, and running around in Grandpa's sprinklers nakie! Man, am I missing Idaho evenings about now - where it actually COOLS OFF!

More About Camping...

2008-08-05T09:10:00.000-07:00

OK - so camping in Idaho was more than just fishing. There was four-wheeling with aunties and uncles, hiking (learning new tricks like how to pee in the bush), and playing in the dirt...aaaah....dirt....

Little Swimmer...

2008-07-23T01:55:00.001-07:00

So - we were so lucky as to have Macey in 2 weeks of swimming lessons. She did so good! Her teacher, in fact, had to hold her on her hip for part of the lesson one day as she would not stay out of the water and was freaking the teacher out. This is a pic of her jumping in and swimming to me (I got to help with the second session of lessons - so fun!). More recently, we were swimming at a pool and she dove in head-first! She even did a little front flip after diving in and kept on diving in and repeating the flip over and over until I finally realized she was doing it on purpose! What a character :-)

The First Catch!

2008-07-15T22:49:00.000-07:00

Macey and I went to Seattle and Boise to visit family for the whole month of July, and Macey caught her first fish! Auntie Aaron bought her a princess fishing pole that I didn't really think could catch an actual fish, but it did! She was so cute holding that thing up after reeling it in and Grandpa was down the riverbank a ways, so she waited for him to come back and excitedly yelled, "Grandpa, look at my fish!"

So Sleepy...Can't Stay Awake...

2008-06-24T07:56:00.000-07:00

Need I say more? Ok - I will...this made me laugh so hard. After a long day of playing with friends (and no nap), I had just ran into her bedroom to get her some pj's and came back to this...so sweet.

OK - So we'll try this blogging thing!

2008-05-25T19:35:00.000-07:00

Here's a recent pic of our sweetie. We just love her to pieces! She is so excited for her next birthday and can tell you the date and how old she'll be..."three my old," she says.

Greg & I are doing well, but missing family like crazy! Greg loves his job, and we love our ward. Macey has some cute buddies her age she plays with at least a couple of times a week.