Recent Happenings

To fill in more details since our last post, our new little nephew was named Peter Andrew, and weighed 10 lbs. at birth! I guess big babies are the norm in the Johnson family! He is absolutely adorable, and has dimples just like his cousins. :)

This last weekend we had the privilege of hosting a family of ten overnight at our house, plus two friends. Our little 2 bedroom/1 bathroom house was bursting at the seams with 16 people! Everyone was an excellent sport, though, and put up with the less-than-perfect accommodations. It was the first time we had hosted any overnight guests besides family members, and we really enjoyed it! They made it easy for us by cooking the delicious breakfast and cleaning up after it, too! It was a lot of fun!

We only have five and a half weeks left till little Bean is due…not that I’m counting or anything! ;) This last stretch of pregnancy is always one of the hardest for me, but Tom so sweetly understands, and goes out of the way to make sure that I rest while he does my chores for me. Right now he is cooking dinner...aren’t I spoiled?!

Last week we bought a new car seat for Bethany, hoping that it would be smaller than her present one, and allow a little extra space for the baby car seat. There hadn’t been enough room for all three before. We decided to try and see if the new one would make everything fit better. After Tom put them all back there, I practically held my breath as he began to close the car door to see if it would shut. I waited to hear the slam of the door, but it never came--the seats did not fit! I felt a wave of discouragement. If this wouldn’t work, what would? It was so close, too--the seats just used up about 1 or 2 inches too much. They could not be squashed any tighter together. Tom examined the car door. It had a small built-in armrest...could it be taken off? With some creativity, he was able to remove it. Would it shut now? "Slam!" Hooray! We fit--just barely. :) The Lord provided just what we needed, just like He always does. Now we’re all ready to take a road trip when our new baby comes!

Posted by Katie on 6/25/2007 | 5 comments

We are excited to announce that we are an uncle and an aunt for the first time! Our little nephew was born today (on our anniversary!). Congratulations to the happy new parents!

Posted by Tom and Katie on 6/5/2007 | 4 comments

Three happy years ago, we were pronounced Mr. and Mrs., and practically ran back up the aisle. What bliss to finally be married! Though our lives have gotten busier and busier, the joys have not decreased in the least. Tom and I have only struggled with one argument in that time period, and we still haven’t settled it. It is about who got the better deal in the marriage. I say that I got the best deal because I got to marry him. However, he stubbornly refuses to agree with me, and insists that he is the most blessed. I don’t see us reaching a conclusion any time soon. :) We do both agree, though, that the last three years have been the best and happiest years of our lives.

Tonight we are planning on going on a date to a new restaurant that we’ve never tried before. On other special anniversaries, I have worn a casual white dress that I got for our honeymoon, but I’m afraid this year I’m too largely pregnant to fit. I’m grateful for my sweet hubby who still insists that I’m pretty to him, even when my waist is 2-3 times bigger than it used to be, and I waddle when I walk. :)

Thank you, Lord, for these three wonderful years!!

On other news, it looks like we may get our first niece/nephew today! Our sister-in-law is in labor. Please keep them in prayer!

Posted by Katie on 6/5/2007 | 2 comments

Tomorrow marks the 30th week of my pregnancy! I’m 3/4s of the way there! I’ve already been starting to experience some of the classic results of being hugely pregnant. To celebrate the fact that I’m nearly 30 weeks along, I made up a list of some of the things that I normally experience in these last couple of months (some of them I have already started to experience!).

You know you’re in the last part of pregnancy when...
~Bending down to pick something up becomes a highly exhausting exercise
~You ask your Hubby to clip your toenails for you, because you can’t reach them very well!
~It is nigh to impossible to walk in high heels without falling flat on your face (and for us uncoordinated folk, it is difficult enough even without being pregnant!)
~You develop an interesting duck-like waddle when you walk.
~You start dreaming of those chairs for elderly people that help push you out when you want to get up.
~Turning over in bed becomes a complicated process. And then, once you’ve turned over, you’re still not comfortable, so you want to turn back on your other side again.
~You can’t sleep because the baby’s hiccups are keeping you awake
~You have to turn yourself slightly sideways when washing the dishes, because you can’t reach the sink very well otherwise.
~You start contemplating using a wheelchair to go shopping, because you just can’t walk anymore.
~Restaurant booths start getting uncomfortably tight
~Your belly button takes on a unique appearance
~You outgrow some of your maternity clothes
~You gain several pounds in one week
~You start feeling like you are going to be pregnant for the rest of your life!

Despite the inconveniences, I love being pregnant and having a little life inside me. Children are a blessing from the Lord!

My sister-in-law is expecting their first baby any day now...I’m sure she has probably been feeling some of these! I’m looking forward to being an aunt very soon!

I’ve been starting to plan the final preparations for getting ready for the baby. Even though the due date is still about 10 weeks away, I want to have as much as possible ready before the last month of pregnancy comes, because I’m usually so huge by then that I can barely move or get anything done! :) One of the things we still have to do is stock our freezer for after the baby comes. Before Bethany was born, my sisters came over and helped me make a huge number of casseroles to freeze (we have a big freezer especially for that). That gave me a nice long break after Bethany arrived! I want to do the same thing with this baby. The other day I made a long list of a bunch of casseroles that are freezable, and had Tom rate them 1-5, with 1 being his least favorites, and 5 being his favorites. I ended up being quite surprised! He is so sweet about my cooking that sometimes it is hard to tell if a dish is his favorite or if he’s just being nice. :) I was especially surprised when he gave a high rating to a vegetarian eggplant dish...not all guys are the "meat and potatoes" type, that is for sure! Some of the ratings I had accurately guessed, though--Lasagna, Enchiladas, and homemade Macaroni and Cheese still all get 5’s from him--just like they always have. :)

This is Tom’s last week at his old job, and he has been keeping very busy trying to close everything off! His new job starts on Tuesday. The weekend looks like it might be pretty crazy because he doubts he can finish everything by Friday. He will probably have to work some of the weekend. Once Tuesday comes, things should be a little smoother. Tom’s hours are 8-5 (with a one hour lunch break), and he shouldn’t have to work overtime. It will be weird and delightful having him come home shortly after 5:00! Now I won’t have any excuse to serve dinner late. :)

Bethany has been really enjoying her new walking ability. Just the other day I saw her trying to walk backwards--it is so funny to watch! She is big for her age, but has very small feet--I don’t know how she is able to balance!

Today I was reading the gospel of Luke, and several verses stood out to me that I don’t remember ever noticing before. It is amazing to me how full of truth God’s Word is. No matter how well you think you know it, there is always SO much more treasure there for those who desire it.
"Your testimonies I have taken as a heritage forever, for they are the rejoicing of my heart." ~Psalm 119:111

Posted by Katie on 5/23/2007 | 6 comments