32 weeks and still cooking...

I really can't believe I am still pregnant! But I am thrilled that I am :) When you start having contractions at 22 weeks, 32 weeks feels so far away, but here we are, taking it one day at a time and not taking anything for granted. When I started having trouble months ago I pleaded with my Heavenly Father to just make it to 28 weeks so my baby could have a chance. Today I feel so blessed that I have been given so much more than that, what a lucky girl I am!
I have to send a shout out to all my amazing friends that have made the last few weeks of "partial" bedrest so incredibly easy. The "Presidency" (you know who you are :) have made sure that we have dinner every other night, and man it has been good eatin' at our house! This is the 4th week they have done this, can you believe it? Then there was the fabulous shower my friends threw on Saturday- seriously, thank you guys so much. It meant so much to me that you would take the time to do that for me, and to everyone that came I had a blast!!
There have been so many others that have offered to watch my girls or have had them over, I tear up just thinking about all the amazing women out there that are so willing to sacrifice to bless the lives of others.
I think sometimes in life our trial just don't seem to make sense, so I always try to find what I can learn from the situation, to find some good from it. I have learned ALOT from this pregnancy, but the thing that stands out the most is how important serving others is. Some of the things that have meant the most to me have been little phone calls, or people saying they have had us in there prayers. I have also been so blown away by people that don't even know us that well, that have been willing to do so much for us. That is having the pure love of Christ, and that is how I want to be. I can't wait until I am back to normal (as normal as I will be with 3 crazy kids!:) so I can repay just a little bit of what I feel has been given to me these last few weeks. I know that in our lives we have the opportunity to be angels to those around us, and I want to thank my angels that have made this burden a little easier to bear!!

What a weekend!

Well, I thought it was sort of inevitable, but this is just crazy!! Friday I checked into the hospital with lots of contractions, found out I am dialated to a 1 and 40 percent effaced. At 29 weeks!! This is so much earlier than I have encountered problems before, I was not prepared. Luckily the medication they gave me slowed the contractions down a ton and I was able to come home with strict instructions to "rest". Why are they so vague?? I finally got it out of them that basically we are talking bedrest. It begins!!
Normally I would be freaking out, but for some reason I have felt so calm this time around. Maybe because I am getting used to this kind of drama, but I think its a lot more a gift of peace from my Heavenly Father. After we had Kendall I had a really amazing experience in the hospital with her. She had been there for about two weeks and I was really discouraged. She had begun to have episodes where she would quit breathing and turn blue. They would have to give her oxygen and get her going again, it was so terrifying!! Anyway I was really struggling, and I remember having a great internal battle. I could feel my Savior and the Holy Ghost trying to comfort me, but I wouldn't accept it. I kept pointing out "what ifs" and wanting to KNOW that she would be okay, wanted that specifically said in a blessing. Long story short I was very humbled one night as I sat in the nursery around midnight feeding her. A very sick new baby was brought in and he didn't make it through the night. I remember going out to my car and sobbing to my Heavenly Father, asking him for forgiveness for not trusting him, and knowing he knows me better than I know myself. I promised him the next time I would be stronger, and that I would trust in him whatever the outcome. I think this may be my chance to do just that!!
And also can I just say, I have the best friends and family in the whole world!! By today I already have people lined up to help with my kids all next week and meals for my family. I don't know what I would do without you, and I know you will be blessed for they sacrifices you are making for my little family. I can't wait until I can return the favor, I much prefer being the helper to the helpee :)

Happy Valentines Day!!

We started off our day with our traditional Valentines day Breakfast, heart shaped strawberry muffins, pink scrambled eggs, strawberries and pink juice.




Then all of the girls were thrilled when Daddy surprised us all with beautiful flowers. It really made Skylar feel so special, and made me love Paul even more!



These are the beautiful flowers Paul brought me, what a guy :)



One of our favorite traditions is the Valentines Man, and he comes to the house and rings the doorbell, leaving little treats and presents behind. He came 3 times this year and the girls LOVED IT!! They would scream and run to the door every time they heard the bell! Here is one of Skylar's presents, a tutu that I made. If you ever think of buying one...DON'T!! The are so easy to make, and that one cost me about $4.


We ended the night with dinner at Zupas with the Browns. We joked that this was Skylar and Carters first Valentines together: what a cute couple! Seriously, I had the best Valentines Day. We are so incredibly blessed to be surrounded by so many wonderful friends and family members. I love my little family with all my heart, and I hope they felt that just a little bit this V-day!

Happy Valentines Week!!

And what a week it was!! Even though I have not been feeling too hot, we tried really hard to have a special week. At the beginning we made a wall called the Johnson Family Wall of Love and everytime someone did something nice we would write it on a heart and tape it to the wall. It was really fun to see the hearts go up, and it was amazing how much more aware Skylar was of being nice to others.




Then one day we bundled up and went outside to play in the snow. We filled water bottles up with colored water and "painted" the snow different colors. I tried to draw hearts, pretty pathetic, but still so fun.


And what would Valentines week be without treats!! We made these cute little sugar cookies to look like conversation hearts. It kept us busy for ours and Skylar loved taking them to her friends.


Finally the night before Valentines Day we had a fun family night. We got a heart-shaped pizza and watched the movie Madagascar 2. It was so fun to just hang out at home and spend time together, there is no one else I would rather be with than my little family!!

Super Bowl Sunday

Our fabulous friends Matt and Maryann had us over for Super Bowl Sunday, and it was a blast! Not only is the company the best, but everything Maryann makes is divine. She made the most delicious fruit salsa with homemade cinnamon tortilla chips to dip in it. YUMM!! During halftime we pulled out the WIIFit, and everyone loved it! I loved watching Skylar do the hula-hoop, and Kendall was just proud that she could stand up on the thing. Who knew Kendall would turn out to be such a party animal! (We are not horrible parents, it was an empty cream soday bottle, but the picture was to funny not to blog!)

Two Peas in a Pod...

We are getting ready to move Kendall to a big girl bed and into Skylar's room to get ready for Britton's arrival. At night the girls love to snuggle together in Skylar's bed while we read scriptures and say prayers. I love, love, love to see my girls enjoying each other so much. I always wanted a sister growing up, it really is such a special bond. What little cuties!!

Mommy and Me Date!

I am incredibly blessed to have a lot of amazing friends, and something we love to do is go to Chilis, grab a snack, and talk and laugh until they kick us out. The last few times I have gone Skylar has been so sad and has wanted to go with me. I promised her we would go to Chili's soon, and one night after Young Women's I made good on that promise! At about 9:00 we went to Chilis (irresponsible or fun? I'll go with fun :) just the two of us. We giggled and talked and ate Chocolate Cake, and had a fabulous time. I love my little girl so much and I'm grateful for the moments we have just the two of us. I can't wait for my next date with my Skylee-Boo!