Lips

I finally got a video of Johanna saying "lips." It's so cute.

Christmas Tree

Last weekend we went to Spilker Tree Farm and got our Christmas tree. We met Jeff, Natalie, Morgan, Joel & Kelli there. It was cold but not too bad. We all found our perfect tree fairly quick. Jonathan picked out our tree this year- a 7 ft. big, fat tree.

We got to warm up inside with hot cider, hot chocolate, and popcorn. Mmm, yummy. Jonathan took mom for a ride on the tractor before we left.

Jgirl's vocabulary list

Johanna has recently started to use many more words. She doesn't talk a lot but when she does it's fun to see what new words she can use. Here's the rundown on words she's using:
dadda
momma
ball
art
purple
hat
pop
blue
more (in sign language)
milk (in sign language)
what's that?
uh-oh
that
I did it
apple
turtle
socks
mooo (for a cow sound)
baaa (for a sheep sound)
be-boo (for belly button)
up
and lips.
There are a few more words that she uses but they are open to interpretation at this point. I have been trying to get video of her saying "lips" because it is so cute. I crack up every time she says it. I will keep trying and hopefully get it posted. Thankfully she hasn't learned to use "no" yet. She just laughs at us every time we tell her no. I'm not sure which is worse.

This is So Cool!

Jonathan has recently started reading. It is so awesome to listen to him sound out words and read an entire book to us. I finally got some video footage of his newest milestone.

Thanksgiving in Kansas

We had a great time in Kansas with family for Thanksgiving. Our first stop was in Atchison, Kansas at cousin Chad and Meridith's house. They have a beautiful turn of the century home that was big enough to host about 20 family members. Oddly enough we didn't take many photos while we were home for Thanksgiving, but we do have this picture of Pops and Johanna sitting together after enjoying the Thanksgiving feast. Thursday evening we headed to Papa and Grandma Wally's house. We had Thanksgiving with them on Friday. Everything was quite yummy. We'll see everyone in about a month for Christmas.

Halloween, Pumpkins, & Boo at the Zoo-Oh My!

Jonathan and Johanna had a great time trick or treating this year. Jonathan did a great job of ringing doorbells and saying "thank you." Johanna had a good time running from house to house and carrying her trick or treat bag. The video is a bit dark, hopefully you can see the kids as they trick or treat through our neighborhood. Jonathan was a Storm Trooper (Star Wars) and Johanna was a leopard. Johanna likes to growl but of course we couldn't get her to do it at any point when she had her costume on.

We had a great time at the Mohr/Hall annual pumpkin carving party. Mah and Pops Johanning also got to join in the fun this year. Jonathan got to be the judge for the pumpkin carving contest. To our great surprise-he gave his pumpkin the prize of scariest pumpkin. Mah did a great job of carving a cat pumpkin for us. We also painted pumpkins at home one night.

We went to Boo at the Zoo with an even bigger crew this year. Amber, Jeremy, Ernie, Jeff, Natalie and Morgan all joined us for the festivities. It's a safe and fun way for little kiddos to trick or treat at the Lincoln Children's zoo. The kids made a pretty cute group.

Pumpkin Patch Kids

We took the kids to Rocca Berry Farm a few weeks ago. The weather was perfect and we had so much fun. There are tons of things for the kids to run around and do, not to mention a ride on a wagon to the pumpkin patch. Jonathan and Johanna both rode ponies this year. The first thing Jonathan wanted to do was climb on the giant hay bales. Johanna had fun checking out the hay bales too.


There are plenty of animals to check out at Rocca Berry-goats, pigs, rabbits, ponies, chickens, and llamas. Johanna probably enjoyed the animals more than Jonathan.

We got two large pumpkins at the pumpkin patch, which we took to Amber & Jeremy's pumpkin carving party last weekend. Pictures will be posted soon. I think Rocca Berry will continue to be an annual fall outing for us.

Scary Moment

We recently had a very scary night with miss Johanna. She went to bed just fine last Thursday night. I went upstairs around 9:30 and she was sitting up in bed with a bad barking cough and having trouble breathing. I decided to let her sleep on me for a few hours so that she'd stay elevated. By midnight she was still having trouble breathing and was becoming more lethargic. Dusty and I decided that she needed to go to the emergency room before she stopped breathing completely. I took her to the ER and they determined after giving her two respiratory treatments and a steriod for swelling that she has the croop. She had her check-up on Monday and got the all clear from her doctor. She is doing much better. But she sure had us scared. We hope she doesn't have any more trips to the ER anytime soon.

(our camera is still broke, so no pics-sorry)

Fall Already????

Just a quick post to let you know what we've been up to. The kids spent their last couple of weeks at home with dad doing as many fun things as possible. They go back to school (daycare) on Monday. The entire house is a little sad, but we'll deal with it. Last weekend we checked out the Applejack Fall Festival in Nebraska City. It was lots of fun. We got to walk through a really neat nature trail, go to the top of the "Canopy Tree House", and pick apples right in the orchard. Jonathan had his first caramel apple and loved it. The fall weather has been wonderful. So we continue to do as much outside as we can. This afternoon Jonathan helped me make little ghosts for our ghost tree in the front yard for Halloween. He also helped me rake leaves.
Since Halloween is a favorite holiday, we've already got the kid's costumes picked out. Johanna is going to be a leopard and Jonathan is going to be a Storm Trooper. Quite a combination!
Our digital camera is not working right now, so there aren't any recent pictures to post. We've been taking pictures the old fashioned way-with real film. (Gasp) Hopefully we'll have it fixed in time for Halloween. That's all for now.

Sooooo far behind!

Sorry we're so far behind on posting to the blog. Since our last post Dusty and I went to Chicago for a nice anniversary get away. The kids enjoyed spending time with all the grandparents in Kansas. A few weeks later we were back in Kansas for cousin Carrie's wedding. We took family pics while we were home with the Johannings. We managed to get nine other people to join us at the Royals game on Sunday, August 3rd. The next morning we were off to Oklahoma to visit the great granparents. We had lots of fun spending time with them. At the end of the week we headed back from Oklahoma to Kansas and met Dusty's family at Melvern lake for a weekend of camping. We managed to get one night of camping in before we were completely rained out. We came back on Sunday to spend a few hours out on Pa Pa's boat so that Daddy could ski and Jonathan could experience riding on the boat. After 9 days we made it back home to Nebraska. We've been home now for a couple of weeks and only have one more road trip planned for the summer. We're heading to Wyoming to see our friends Jack, Mandy, and Dani. Wow! We've had a busy, but fun summer. We are so happy we've had a chance to see so many of our family and friends. A few selected pictures follow.

This is a shot of "The Bean" as it's affectionately called in Chicago. It's a large bean shaped sculpture by Anish Kapoor that has a surface like a mirror. Dusty and I are near the middle of the picture. You can see me taking the photo with my orange bag. The Chicago sky line is in the background.

Cousin Carrie exchanging rings with her new hubby Matt. Congratulations!

Here's a shot of Jonathan, Cousin Amy, Dusty, and Jakob running the bases after the Royals game. It was fun but man was it hot!

Our visit with Great Grams & Ron was first in Pryor and then we were off to Mazie to see Great Grandma and Grandpa Walsh.

Jonathan and Johanna enjoyed swimming in the lake with Daddy. Johanna didn't mind her life jacket as long as she got to splash around with dad.

I Have Another Riddle for You.

Some sudden changes in J-girl's pigmentation had raised some paternity questions. After much hard work I have finally uncovered the true identity of J-girl's father.

Also, she can walk now.

Summer Fun

The kids have been having a blast this summer. The weather has been great so we've been trying to get outside as often as we can. Last weekend we got out the kiddie pool and cooled off. The water was a bit too cold for Johanna but she had a good time sitting in her new lawn chair. Jonathan just enjoyed getting wet and splashing around with sis.

We've also taken a few trips to the Lincoln children's zoo and caught an Omaha Royals baseball game a few weeks ago. (Don't worry that's not a real turtle)

We also wanted to report that the kids have recently had a few milestones. Johanna learned to say "ball", it comes out very soft as "ball, ball". And Jonathan recently learned how to snap his fingers. Fun stuff!

Swim Lessons

J-man has been taking swim lessons the last two weeks. This is the first time he's swam without a parent in the water with him. The first day we were a bit scared and refused to go anywhere near the water. That afternoon we went back to the pool to get used to the water. That must of helped because he's done great since. Here he is practicing his front stroke with teacher Tracy. (His backstroke is incredible but we failed to capture it on film.)

One of the students in his class is our new friend Grace. Grace has a little brother named Luke who is very close to J-girl's age. While J-man and Grace learn to swim, J-girl and Luke interact by stealing each other's toys, snacks and sippy cups. Meanwhile, Daddy gets to have a conversation with a grown-up (Grace's mommy). How cool it that?

In a couple of weeks, J-man will be starting the next level of difficulty. Daddy and J-girl will be taking the infant swim class at the same time. J-girl really digs the water and Daddy really needs to get rid of his farmer tan (not pictured).

Here is a picture of J-girl seated in a giant chair:

Trail Trek bike ride

Last Sunday we participated in the 6th annual Lincoln Trail Trek bike ride. We rode two years ago with Jonathan and decided it would be fun to do again. We weren't sure how the kids would do. On recent bike rides Johanna hasn't been a big fan of her helmet and Jonathan has commented on how long it takes to get to places on the bike. However, the kids did great on the Trail Trek ride. We took off from Antelope Park at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday for an 11 mile bike ride. Dusty pulled the kids in the bike trailer. We were told that in total 550 riders participated. There was also a one mile, 24 mile, and a 35 mile route. The organizers planned two very nice rest stops along our route. We're pretty sure Jonathan had about 8 granola bars by the end of the ride. (He just kept telling us "I'm hungry.") We got to chat with other riders, listen to some music, and enjoy a nice BBQ lunch after the ride was complete. It was so much fun and we can't wait to do it again next year! A picture of the kids just before we started our ride.
The several hundred bikers who participated. This year's shirts were florescent yellow.
The kids enjoying their snacks at one of the rest stops.
A nice family photo to remember the fun event!

Play time

Jonathan and Johanna have been making the most out of having dad home this summer. So far they've gone to the children's zoo, the children's museum, Pioneers Park, had a play date with Ernie, gone to the library and much, much more. Here's a few pictures of the fun they've been having lately. Play date with Ernie.
Jonathan as red Power Ranger.
Johanna enjoying her spaghetti.

Fun at the Lincoln Children's Museum.

Daddy is super organized with the kids during the week. He created a board that shows what they'll be doing during the day. Each week Jonathan gets to help pick what they'll be doing for the week. It helps everyone have a fun week!

Aunt Sarah's Wedding

In late May, Jman got to be the ringbearer in Aunt Sarah and Uncle Matt's wedding. He got to hang out with his new cousin Amy, who was the flower girl.

Daddy had to dress up too. Jman had fun at the reception. Here he is showing everyone his moves on the dance floor. This movie is very dark. Jman is the short quick white and black blur.

Congratulations to Aunt Sarah and Uncle Matt. If you'd like to see more pictures from the wedding (perhaps some that actually contain the bride and groom), click here.

1st year stats

Johanna just went to her 12 month checkup. She's still in the 25-50% on height and weight. She is now 28 1/2" tall and weighs 19 lbs. 15 oz. She finally has one tooth and is working on getting a few more.

Johanna's Birthday Party

Johanna had a wonderful 1st birthday. Thank you to all our family and friends who were able to come. Thanks to Uncle Matt, Johanna's birthday was capturend on camera. Johanna did a nice job of diving into her birthday cake and the boys seemed to enjoy it too. I decided to make her a lady bug cake. It turned out pretty good. We ended up having to give her a quick rinse in the tub after she got done with the cake. She was covered in black and red frosting.

Here's a shot of Johanna opening one of her birthday presents. We had her all dolled up in her party dress. The lovely sun hat is from Aunt Sarah. We'll be able to make good use of that at the pool this summer. She also got a snazzy new bike helmet. We'll be riding in Lincoln's 6th annual Trail Trek bike ride in a few weeks so she needed a helmet. Mom wasn't excited about it being so girly and pink but it was the only one that fit (oh well).

The weather was warm enough that Dusty and the boys were able to play outside in the water. They had a blast!

Happy 1st Birthday, Johanna!

Birthdays, Birthdays, and more Birthdays

I thought I'd post a picture of the lovely birthday cake that Dusty and Jonathan made me for my 30th birthday. I had a nice birthday. I took the day off and spoiled myself (massage and shopping). Then I was treated to ice cream and cake in the evening.

Johanna's birthday is next weekend, June 8th. Family and friends should have received invitations in the mail, but just in case the details are as follows: Sat., June 7th, at our house from 1:30-3:30 p.m.

Dusty's birthday is June 13th. This year it's on Friday the 13th (ooooahhhhh). We're having a party. It will be on Sat., June 14th. We're thinking around 6:30 p.m. (It's also flag day. Even more reason to celebrate). So bring your booze, a tasty treat to eat, and your favorite flag. We'll also have some goodies to eat as well.