Johnson Family Dish

Let’s Talk Like Men

Today I got such a kick out of watching my boy play with his friends. They were using Mesquite switches (small branches) as swords and sword fighting. It was funny to watch because each time that one of them made contact with another they made a “chink” sound. That just made me laugh. Then Scott was saying “Fight like a man!”, and they were all laughing and playing and deciding thier strategy for thier game, and Scott says “let’s talk like men”, and then adds in as manly a voice as he can manage “this town isn’t big enough for the 3 of us!” The boy has never seen a Clint Eastwood movie, doesn’t even know who he is but somewhere in his TV watching through the years he has picked this up. I was literally laughing my butt off at this point!!

Man Training

This is how Randon motivated Scott to finish mowing the lawn training with him on Saturday, he told him it was “man training”. Our lawn is HUGE so it is easy to understand how a 9 year old boy would get discouraged but, with a pep talk and help from Dad he made it through.

On Fathers Day Scott and I shared some “man training” together too. Randon was off fulfilling his duty to speak in another congregation and at his meetings on the High Council of our Stake, and Scott needed his tie tied. I was taking the kids to church and Randon was going to meet us there. I have never tied a tie in my life and did not know what to tell my son. That is when I remembered Randon telling me about Scott’s “man training” and thought we should both have some together. We searched on the internet for instructions and before long, Scott had a beautiful windsor knot at his neck. So, we got another tie, one of daddy’s, and Scott began learning to tie a tie on his mother. This was good training for us both, now we just have to practice. We decided this would be a good Sunday activity for us.

So Incredibly Overwhelmed!

Just trying to keep up these days. Those laid back summer days lasted about a week and then it became hectic here. Summer has been challenging to keep up with all of the different activities that we are all involved in, and our friends time too. I am really gonna have to learn to say no to some things because I think I might go crazy if I don’t! I am not going to my beloved book group tonight because I just NEED a night at home with all of us together.

I feel streched to the limit and am trying to arrange a balance that we can all be happy with, I cannot keep this pace up any longer.

Learning to Crochet

My girls and I went to my friend Carole’s house today to learn to crochet a dish cloth. They all had a great time learning and are still working hard to perfect the stich she taught them, me too. My mother did teach me to crochet, I just never really liked it all that much. My girls are loving it and talking about the things that they are going to crochet.

Summer Time

Means a welcomed laid back schedule at the Johnson home. The kids have been sleeping in until 8:30 – 9:00 am (really unusual, they don’t even do that on Sat.). And we have just been getting together with friends and taking care of some things we have been neglecting for some time due to the busy school time schedule. It’s just great!

We went to the pool today to play. Saddly there was a strong wind all day long and it made swimming very cold. That only stopped me and Charis from swimming. Charis and I did get in but we got too cold quickly and wound up sunbathing most of the time. Our resident scavenger Scott drug the bottom of the pool, as he does every time we goto the pool, for lost change. He took his findings and bought some candy for he and his sisters at the refreshment stand. I sware that boy is so much like his father, Randon is a natural born scavenger too, always making good use of someone else’s junk.

I’m it! 5 childhood memories

Okay so my friend Vicki tagged me on her family blog http://2winsmom.blogspot.com/ . So, here I go trying to think of five happy childhood memories.

1. This was the first one I thought of: Christmas at my Grandma and Grandpa Gatti’s house. We spent 3 of them there, that I can remember. I loved baking sugar cookies with Aunt Christina, and I just remember feeling so loved when I was there. My Grandpa would sit me on his lap and tell me to eat at least an apple a day to keep my rosey cheeks rosey, and telling me that I better save him some kisses when I was away and not to give them all to my other grandma.

2. My dad driving way too fast on McDonald Rd. in Paradise Valley, on the way to Grandma’s house. This road was really hilly and so going fast on the up’s and down’s made your gutts go up and down too.

3. I remember talking with my brother Jason and my sister Lisa all of the time about what sort of parents we wanted to be someday, and lots of other things. I loved those talks. Jason, Lisa and I talked and comforted eachother a lot.

4. I loved when my parents would take the 6 of us to the park, packing a picnic with red cream soda and squirt, and we would just play. I loved that. I appriciate that now too because I don’t ever have the patience to do that with my kids.

5. I faintly remember my Mom and Dad singing the song “Michelle my Belle” to me when I was very young.

Not sure who to tag but, if you want to add yours in the comments section that would be great.

22 miles

We went to our fireside last night where we saw all but two of our kids, we missed you Jessica and Tony, and we learned that our trek was 22 miles long! One more mile than we thought! We learned that our steady pace of 3 mph kept the trail boss and his coherts on thier toes trying to prepare the next suprise along the trail. We must have some of the strongest most determined youth in our stake! The four other stakes that use this trail for thier Trek usually go around 1.5 mph!! WOW guys.

It was so good to see our kids, I have been missing them so much this week. It was wonderful to meet some of thier parents and congratulate them on raising such fine sons and daughters. Scott was also so happy to see his pioneer family. I saw him cutting up with some of his pioneer brothers, so cute.

All along the trail we had proffesional photographers and video guys taking pictures of us on the trek. Last night we got to see the video that they made from all of the film they shot. It was so emotional, I was going from tears to laughter in minutes (my favorite emotion). It made me so grateful that I had been blessed to be a part of this experience. It was really Randon who wanted to go and motivated me to go, and I will be forever grateful because the experience and friendships made will be something I will look back on with fondness. Every participant will be given a copy of that on DVD, YEAH!!

Oh and I looked like I had been shrink wrapped last night because when I washed my dress (3 times to get all of the gunk out), it shrunk, LOL! I had lost a few pounds on this trek and so I was really wondering what was up that my dress was so tight. I thought perhaps I had gained tons of muscle, he, he. That is when it occured to me that I was in such a hurry to get it made I did not pre wash the fabric, as I usually do, duh! Good thing I am going steadily down the scale, it will fit perfectly again soon.