Pictures (not of the house though)

Talking on the phone already. So like her mom.
This is the face she pulls if you ask her where her eyes are. It's the cutest thing ever.
General Relief Society Meeting at the Conference Center with my mom and sister. What a great looking bunch.
The sisters!

I know these aren't of our apartment, and they are kind of old, but I thought I should post some pictures.
The house is slowly coming together and I plan on posting pics of the place later today.

Where in the World is the Johnson Family?

NEW JERSEY!
This has been a long time coming and the road was anything but straight.
Ever since Jason came home from Grenada in Dec we have been preparing for this move in one way or another. Jas spent several months studying for the USMLE and after that was done we started getting everything else done before we moved.
We had our preliminary placement and that gave us a good idea of where we would be going but SGU reserves the right to change your placement. So we were told to not make any decisions or move until we had received our final placement. So we prepared in other ways and got everything in order.
Our original plan was for my mom and dad to take the kids for us while Jason and I loaded a Penske truck with our stuff and drove out the NJ. We were going to tow our Sentra and stay with friends and family across the way. Then we would stay with some super awesome friends until we could secure an apartment. We would then move in and have my parents fly the kids out. We thought this was a great plan. It saved us money and we got a little mini vacation. (and with 3 kids we could use a small vacation. haha)
We ran into a few problems with our plan in March. Not all of the bumps we encountered were bad and in fact the first one is (in my opinion) a great one. In the beginning of April we found out that we are expecting our 4th baby. We are super excited about this but it did mean that we needed to sell our 5 seater Sentra and get a minivan. We looked and looked and after a month of car shopping (which in my opinion is the worst thing EVER) we found a great car for a great price. Problem 1 solved.
Problem 2 came when we found out that our new van was too heavy to to be towed. GRR. This was not great news because that meant we either had to each drive separate cars (jas in the truck and me in the van) spend money on gas for both vehicles and still fly the kids out, or we had to drive both cars out with the kids in the van.
We opted to save the money on airfare and drive the kids out. My parents are super gems and were willing to drive the truck so that I didn't have to drive the kids in the van by myself. I also started encountering my regularly scheduled morning sickness so I didn't know how much driving I could really do.
So we had a new plan for getting us across the country and everything was looking good. Jason got his scores from the test back and they were great. We got the rest of his paperwork in and we were ready to go.... except SGU.
After all our stuff was turned in we had to wait for nearly a month before we got our placement. We would have just moved but we knew if we did they would have changed our hospital and that would be one expensive reroute. So we waited, and waited and waited. We actually did finally decide that we were most likely going to NJ and that we had to get going or we would run out of time to get everything in order. We decided we were going to leave that Friday the 7th of May. Two days later we got our placement, and it was to the original hospital. SGU tends to make things harder than they need to be.
Anyway, we drove out, we stayed in hotels (I couldn't impose on our friends when the number of people jumped from 2 to 7. And there was a death in the family that caused the people we were going to stay with you be in UT instead of in their homes, so we didn't stay there either) and began our search for an apartment as soon as we got here.
We did just about everything we could think of to find a place besides sign with a realtor. We knew we couldn't afford the fees with having stayed in hotels the whole trip. So we signed up with a referral service (flat rate), looked on Craigslist, and even drove around calling on "For Rent" properties. We found some really awful ones that were not an option and some really awesome ones that weren't available until either June 1st or later. So those were not options either. We looked everywhere and we were coming up empty handed at every turn and we were running out of time.
We finally decided that it was in our best interest to sign with a realtor. We needed to get out of hotels asap and that was the only thing left we could think of. My dad had to leave for home on the 14th and that same day we had an appointment to see some places with a realtor. We saw one single family home that was cute, but on the river. With no fence to keep the kids away and Rori's lack of fear when it comes to water we knew we couldn't take it. (plus it is right on the flood plane) Then we saw one that was so horribly dirty I can't even describe it. Let's just say it was a big NO. And the third one we saw was the one we are in now. We were really happy to find out that the landlord was willing to pay half the realtor fee too! So that was a big plus.
It is a 3 bedroom with hardwood on the main floor, updated kitchen (the bathroom needs work though) the upstairs has carpet in both the bedrooms. The small bedroom will be used as the baby's room and all 3 kids are in the big room. It's really a cute space. It has lots of nooks and crannies for the kids to play. The house is older and has tons of charm. It's not new and modern but it has an old world feel to it and I find it very charming. The walls in the living room are an ugly brown and at some point I may ask if I can't repaint but it will work fine for now.
We are so happy to have found a place. It was a really stressful thing to do with the kids but we are really pleased with where we are.
We are still unpacking and have been waiting for our fridge so life has been a little crazy and disorganized. When I get it all together I will post pictures. Just be aware that almost all of our furniture was donated and so nothing matches. haha.
My impression of NJ has not been a good one and I'm hoping that during the summer it starts to feel more like home. Everyone I know loves it here and maybe I will too one day.
In the mean time if anyone who has or is having a baby here and has any recommendations on a good OB/GYN that info would be appreciated.

What to do on a spring day.

When I found out that the forecast for today was in the 50's and sunny I made plans to take the kids to the park with some friends after school and lunch. So when the boys got home and the kids were all fed we packed up and headed to the park near Dyson's school.

We me our friends and were having a wonderful time. Rori had a great time running around the sand and climbing on the toys. She even got a handful of sand/dirt in her mouth. I thought it had made her sick because she came walking towards me and then threw up all over the cement. GROSS! so I covered it up with some sand from the sand box so the other kids wouldn't play or step in it. Disaster avoided.

My attention went back to the kids playing and the conversation I was having with the other moms. After a little while I noticed that Ridge was missing. I was able to keep the panic at bay since we were the only ones there but I was relived when another mom started laughing and said he was peeing on the cement under the bowery. I about died of embarrassment! But what can you do when you spent so much time on an island where you could pee anywhere. I went over to Ridge and was going to help him get cleaned up when I realized that he didn't just pee, but he had pooped on the cement. Poor kid has diarrhea and was trying to take care of it himself. Still GROSS though.

So, I took care of Ridge and he went home commando, and we decided to call it good at the park. We got home and I sent both boys in to use the potty and I was getting things cleaned up. After I took care of Ridge I decided to put Rori down for her nap and when I went to pick her up I realized that she smelled really bad and was all wet. Upon further investigation I found where she had thrown up 3 times!! Poor baby girl. She obviously didn't get sick from the sand but she is fighting some kind of stomach bug.

I got her cleaned up and down for a nap and then began the task of cleaning the floor, her shoes and her clothes.

I know I have been craving the warmth and fun of spring weather but if this is the price for sunshine I think I'll take the rain!!

Hopefully tomorrow is a better day, I have friends from out of town stopping by!!

Get better soon kids.

Just some thoughts

I really wish my life were a little more exciting so I could write some really awesome posts. But seriously my life is about as normal as it can get.

We have all been fighting some kind of bug or another complete with 2 kids with ear infections and me with a sinus infection. Not to mention the perpetual teething that Rori is doing. We have been pretty miserable over the past few weeks.

I'm sitting here trying to think of something interesting to post and I'm starting wonder why I bothered even starting a new post! haha.

Jason is still studying....sigh. I can't wait for this test to be over!! Jason is a great husband and father and he spends as much time with us as he can but the stress is going to kill me. Plus once the test is over we can start packing and working on our big move back east!

I am so super excited to move! Don't get me wrong, I am so grateful for the generosity of family and all the love and support they have given us over the past few years, but I am ready to move on. I am ready to be a grown up so to speak. I will be sad to leave family but I love an adventure and I've always wanted to live on the east coast.

Ridge has entered his "absolutes" stage. Everything he says is all or nothing. He will ask if I will let him play with his friends and if I say no his response is somewhere along the lines of "I will NEVER get to play with my friends again!!" or "You ALWAYS say no." If we can't go to Nana's house he'll say "I will NEVER see Nana again, never, ever." It is kind of funny trying to explain to him that just because we can't do something right now doesn't mean it won't ever happen. He listens but I can tell he doesn't get it.

Dyson is making leaps and bounds in the reading department. He loves to find words while we are out and about that he read. He writes stories all the time and writes me little notes. He does a really good job spelling phonetically and we are just working on leaving a space between each word so it will be easier to read. He has such an imagination too. The child never ceases to amaze me with his stories and games he thinks up. He is such a great big brother too. He takes such good care of his sister and gets really upset if she is sad. What a tender heart he has and I love it.

Rori is crazy. There really isn't a better way to describer her. She can be a girly as can be one minute and sitting on her brother's head growling the next. She has found that she LOVES her baby and baby much be wrapped up in a blanket so she can unwrap her and ask me to wrap her back up. It's quite the task keeping baby bundled. I try to wrap her so Rori can't get her undone and Rori thinks it's the best game ever.

She is talking more and more. She can actually say "more" too haha. She tries really hard to mimic most sounds and does a pretty good job. This just started within the last couple of weeks, before that she didn't really try to say too many words so I'm excited to hear all that she has to say. Jason may not like it too much though because usually when she is talking to him it doesn't sound too nice. She really lays into him sometimes. It really makes me laugh.

I only wish she would be happy with me more. She is my baby girl and she is a daddy's girl through and through. If dad is home there is nobody else. I realized yesterday that she is growing up so fast and I am missing all her special moments. There is always laundry to do or dishes to wash or a meal to make so I hand her off way too often. I am making an effort to hold her more and savor those precious moments that are slipping away all too soon.

Some days I love being a mom and some days it's the hardest job ever, but I think that's how it's supposed to be. It takes character, motivation, dedication, perseverance, love, compassion, support and desire (among many other qualities) to be a good mom. The things that are the hardest are the most worth while. Today was one of those days that went relatively well. The kids were as well behaved as a 5, 3, sick 1yr old can be. The loves I have received today have lifted me. I love the sweet angels that I have in my home. They are everything to me. I took extra time to snuggle my kids today and the laundry didn't get washed yet but it was the best time of the day.

Jason's 30!!!

(the pictures are all messed up and blogger won't let me fix it. sorry.)
This is us at the top of the mountain on our last run of the day. It was such a beautiful day for skiing!
Here is the man of the hour at the top. I made him take this pic. haha

Here is me mastering the bunny hill with my mad skills!!

Jason turned 30 this month and with us being on a budget we were prepared for a very low key celebration but we were able to do some pretty fun stuff.

We went skiing at Wolf Creek Ski Resort and we had a blast. We hadn't seen fresh snow in nearly a month and on Thursday morning we woke up to a glorious sight....SNOW! Jason's favorite time to ski is when it's snowing and the weather gods were smiling down on us that day. We packed up, left the kids with my mom and headed to the mountains.

I was a little worried that I would spend the whole day in the snow but surprisingly I didn't let gravity get the best of me. I only enjoyed 1 snow facial. haha.

We had a great time just the 2 of us and we now both have the skiing bug. This is not a good time to get it though, considering we are nearing the end of the ski season, we can't afford to support this hobby and we are moving in a few months! Oh well. It was fun while it lasted.

All in all I think we had a wonderful day and we were only a little sore at the end of it. We spent most of the day on the bunny hill that was called "Oh my heck hill" I'm pretty sure they call it that for beginners. It looked like a huge hill to me until we went up to the easy run that started at the very top of the mountain.

We went down that run 4 times and it was super fun. I'm glad I got to spend the day with the most important person in my life. I hope he had a happy birthday.

Pictures!!!

Here are some pics of the fam. I know it's been a long time coming so here they are in all their glory!Here is our adorable little girl, being, well.... adorable.

She is super sweet and we love having her in our family.

Grandma got some balloons for her birthday and the kids played with them for weeks. Seriously. They played with them at least 2 weeks.
Here is Uncle showing the boys how to play a game on Dyson's DS. The boys LOVE living with Uncle.
I think this is one of the sweetest pictures ever!!
What a handsome boy! He is the best big brother.
The other "sweetest pictures" Both the boys love their sister and take such good care of here. Of course sometimes that means sitting on her to keep her out of things, but I guess we each have our own styles of care giving right?
Dyson was a Vampire for his school Halloween party
Rory LOVES to wear her coat. If she sees it at any point during the day she cries until we put it on her. We were not going anywhere when this picture was taken. She just wanted to wear her coat. Silly girl.
If this face doesn't say "Mischief" then I don't know what would. I only wish it were in focus!
This is from when we picked out pumpkins for Halloween. (I know I'm behind) This is pretty much the face I get now when I ask Dyson to smile for a picture. He is so his Dad's son.
Here we are on the hayride to get our pumpkins! Daddy was in Grenada still.
Who me?
Kisses?
I love this kid! I love all my kids. They are the best and the sometimes the worst kids ever and I love being their mom. They make me laugh everyday and the teach me so many wonderful things.

Things have been moving right along here in the Johnson house. Jas is of course studying like a lunatic, but we all knew he was crazy. Dyson and Ridge are doing awesome in school and love learning new things. Rori is saying new words everyday and if you ask her where her eyes are she closes her eyes really tight. It is one of the cutest things ever. Dyson and Ridge take good care of their sister and for the most part get along really well.

I am starting to get really stressed out about the test Jason is taking and the big move.

We are all doing well and I am going to try to take more pictures and post more often. I realized my blog was seriously boring because of the lack of pictures and posts. So I am going to try to do better. (wish me luck)

What's new?... Nothing

I feel like a terrible blogger! I have neglected this blog ever since we left Grenada. It seems that being back with family and now having Jason home has put blogging on the back burner. It doesn't help that there really isn't anything super facinating happening to us right now. Our lives seem to be filled with the ordinary, mundane things that make life so wonderful.
Jason is full swing into studying for the USMLE and is planning on taking it in March, just before our 7 year anniversary. We have been going through all the things we own and don't own so we know what we need to aquire before we move to NJ to start the next chapter.
Dyson is continuing in his schooling and is absolutely loving it. Ever since his dad came home his attitude at home and school has improved and it confirms my suspisions that dads are so important to the balance and well being of a family (especially ours)
I am assuming that Ridge is doing well in Preschool but I really don't know since all he will tell me is that he likes the snacks that they get each day. Every letter makes the K sound and he has no idea what comes after the number 6. All in good time though. He is only 3 and still has a year and a half before kindergarten. We got some flash cards for him for Christmas and hopefully that will help.
Rori seemed to grow up over night. I put her to bed last night and she was just my sweet little baby girl and this morning when she woke up she seemed to be so much older! She finally has some top teeth, they came in the last 3 weeks, and she looks so much older now. She is talking more and more and is seriously the most hillarious child. She makes me laugh every single day!
I have been working hard to keep the family moving in a smooth, HA, routine. Christmas was a great 2 week break but it was nice to get back to normalcy and routine. The kids do SO much better when schedules are kept.
I have been spending a lot of time on KSL Classifides and Craig's List to find furniture for us when we move. When we first moved for Jas to start school we sold all the big items that we owned in order to fund our way and now that we are back in the states we realized that we own NOTHING. We kept our bed and the little things but we sold our couch, table and chairs, dressers, TV, Car (we have one now) etc. And we just sold our Cal King mattress in order to down grade to something more likely to fit in an apartment in NJ.
It has been a wonderful month with Jason home and our family feels complete again.
We are planning on moving at the end of April and hope to see some of our friends who are planning to move out of the area soon after that.
I know I haven't posted pics in a while but we really haven't done anything fun to see and kids rarely hold still for a photo shoot.

I should probably let you all know that I am going to put the blog private again. When I first started the blog it was private and then I changed it so people could see it easily. Nobody knew I had a blog so it wasn't a big deal but the blog has been up for a while and I'm not sure who (if any) might have found it without my knowing. So there you have it. If you want me add you just let me know either in comment or email.
Hope to see you all on the other side!