Shame Shame on Me......

We had a very busy... difficult... challenging.... heartbreaking...blessed few months... Shame on me for not documenting it all.... I promise to start touching base on some of the things that have shaped our lives these last few weeks....

In due time.... patience.... we'll get there.... I've forgotten how much fun this is....

Cooking video with the Grams...

Last week Grammy visited from New York. Here Lovie cooks with Grandma Kate (Cake) a "chocolate pudding cake".... Lovie multi tasks by eating pizza pie at the same time.  Don't ask how the pudding cake turned out... the kids and I are sworn to secrecy... but let's just say that Grams redeemed herself by the end of the vacation with a kick butt double layer chocolate cake which fully disappeared in 24 hours...  Oh, please come back soon Grams...

Happy Easter.... A special picture for you!

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

Baby G receives gift of love....

On Saturday March 20th..... We we had a wonderful get together with our neighbors... long overdue.  Here are some pictures and video of the visit.  As they arrived with broad smiles and armfuls of goodies.... Todd and I did wonder a bit why we were the recipients of such good fortune.  The Froscheiser family had a wonderful evening planned... (that they brought directly to our abode no less)... Bottles of wine, flower decorated cupcakes, Chinese lettuce chicken wraps, and an overflowing fruit bowl were a few of the treats that arrived on our doorstep.

We later discovered the purpose of the visit was to present Ms. Genevieve Meadow with a beautiful hand-stitched quilt made by Angie herself... This beautiful quilt took Ang over 8 months to make.  Words can't ever express how special a gift like this is to receive for one's child.  I'm not sure what we did to deserve such kindness but we certainly feel so blessed!

The evening was filled with good drinks, great food, and lots of laughs.   What a wonderfully loving gift for Baby G to treasure... What a great night to connect with friends.  Here's to many more!

Happy Birthday Grandma Johnson!

Happy Birthday Grandma Johnson.... Today is March 17... St. Patrick's Day.... Emily Johanna Johnson was quite a character... Born in Norway, she ultimately settled in a picturesque New England village in Connecticut.  I believe this picture was taken right before her 93rd birthday.

She was a feisty gal with quite a sense of humor.  Very generous with a strong love for God.  Every morning, I can remember her loving a cup of scorching hot Joe with a slice of pumpernickel bread layered with butter and cheddar cheese.  An equally strong memory: every day at noon when the local fire station sounded their mid-day siren.... she would proclaim with her thick Norwegian accent...."12 o'clock and all is well..."

I hope she is keeping Dad company... oh' how she loved her Johnny Boy. How I miss them both....

No room for my Costco groceries.....Maya's Cooking Creations!

My pint-size cooking obsessed 3 year old demonstrates here in this picture her favorite creation, "Birthday Cake Surprise".....  As many of you know, Lovie spends most of her down time making pretend cakes & cookies, cutting pretend veggies and cooking pretend meals! She is constantly in and out of the fridge placing her carefully created concoctions amidst mom's marinating chicken.


No cartoons here..... It's all Paula Dean, Rachel Ray, Giada, and the Barefoot Contessa.... My TV's are permanently tuned in to the Food Network.  I suppose it cold be worse... but all day long I hear... "Mom, I missed her chopping garlic.... rewind the DVR, quick....."


I can't make a bowl of cereal without having full participation of my little gal.  Sometimes it's a bit of a burden when she insists sitting atop the countertops to watch me prepare a simple sandwich.... but honestly, what a darling.


On a recent trip home from Costco, I opened the refrigerator to find this display.... not a stitch of shelf space for anything..... but oh, how sweet....!

My favorite Lovie... chasse chasse chasse.... and turn!

I know this may be Ballet overload for many of you... but I just found this clip that I never included and it's just delightful. I think maybe my favorite of the recital... You can hear the instructor telling Maya to "Chasse, chasse, chasse....." and reminding her to "turn"...

It's just darling....

Lovie's First Ballet/Tap Recital Footage

"...Your love for yourself is only shown when you are dancing freely..."

For those of you who have a few lifetimes to kill.... I have posted Lovie's first Ballet/Tap Dance Recital here on my blog.  I wanted to be able to keep this all in one place and so I posted links to Youtube via my blog which show various parts of the recital.  Some videos are longer than others.

Todd and I had a hoot of a time. It was so much fun and she really seems to enjoy every second. Certainly some clips are more entertaining then others... Maya insists on being in full drag and so sometimes finds her pettiskirt more of a hindrance than a help.

My personal favorites are videos 2,3,4,6,8,11 (check out the cranky classmate), and last but not least, "The Finale!"  Alright... maybe I just like them all.  That's a mother's prerogative, right?

She's ready for Series 2 and will be starting next week.  Yippee!

Mitchell's Happy Birthday Sing-a-long....

For those of you who are interested in what a typical Seymour/Johnson "Birthday Song" sounds like (not sure I can recommend this).... listen to the video!  I'll be the first to admit that this comes from the heart and doesn't sound pretty.  A true harmonic disaster no doubt... but oh' so much fun! 

Mitchell turned 11 on Feb. 22... and had a great birthday celebration.  He had a boy's sleepover night the week before with five of his little friends... What fun we had! 

Mitchell had a goal to raise money for The Smile Train so he could help to give a needy child a new "smile".  He asked friends and family to support him in this endeavor and he was able to raise $265.  Woo Hoo!  He was able to provide one lucky child a "new smile" and even had a few dollars to spare.  We are so proud of him.

http://www.smiletrain.org/

"That's what she said..."

I was reading The Huffington Post and came across this article..... Those of you who are fans of the office may get a giggle.  I have a feeling if this happened to one of our kids Dad might be proud.

"The joke's been done to death, but when it comes out of the mouth of a middle schooler and he gets detention for it, we can't help but applaud. Sure detention sucks, but it was totally worth it. Well done, Dalton, well done. "

Snowstorm 2010.... A Slideshow!

Here are a few pictures of the monster storm that hit us a few days ago.  We were slammed with a massive snowstorm which completely paralyzed the entire metro area.  The snow fell all day Friday and Saturday leaving us with around 32-34 inches of lovely white stuff.... Dulles Airport officially reported 32 inches shattering their all time record.

We've lost several trees.... had no power for about 30 hours resulting with our in-home temperature at 46 degrees.... The Federal Government has shut down today while DC digs out.  We are starting slowly to get things under control... The neighborhood is somewhat plowed... a one lane escape is available... What an experience.

The kids have missed quite a bit of school... and I don't think they will be going back anytime soon... Hopefully make up days won't keep them going until July 4th... hee hee...  Feet are on the ground... ready for more... the next storm is scheduled to hit in 2 days with another 12 inches possible.  We are on record to break the record for the snowiest winter ever recorded for the Metro area....

Maya is sad the "purple team" lost....

Here's a small clip of Lovie's reaction when I told her the "purple team" was losing (the NFC Championship game).  Later that evening after the Vikings lost the game.... Maya asked if the "purple team" won or lost the game.  I gently told her they lost.... sadness filled her face and she climbed up in my lap and started to cry.  I felt like crying with her...

In the clip you can hear Todd yelling to bench Adrian Peterson.... those fumbles were costly.  It was a hell of a game.... either way we had an amazing season....

Skol Favre and the Vikes!

Not much I can say except Brett Favre played his heart out.  My heart is broken... I need some time to lick my wounds and accept that the better team did not win the NFC Championship game...

Brett thanks for an awesome season.  I am so greatful for these last few months...  I think Favre's return to football singlehandly lifted my postpartum depression.... I can still remember the second I heard he was returning (and to the Vikings no less )... it was like I won the lottery.  What an absolutely awesome year!  I am truly thankful for all the fun our family and friends had watching him play... SKOL Brett Favre!

Vikings play your heart out!

It's the moment of truth.... and as I write this.... I am physically nauseated... I am so nervous my stomach is turning over itself.  The Vikings play the New Orleans Saints on Sunday at 6:30 pm for the NFC Championship. I worry because the Vikes have not played well in any Sunday evening game this season.... If I'm not mistaken, I believe 3 of their 4 losses were Sunday evening games. Harvin, Edwards, and Williams have all missed practices this week.

The Vikings will be playing the Saints at home in their Superdome... It will be loud, really really loud. The Saints have everything to play for... America's heart is with them and the franchise definitely is hoping for their first Superbowl win.

Keep in mind that the Superdome has always been kind to Favre and the Vikings.  Favre won his Superbowl with the Packers there.  Vikings played there last year and won.  This is the 40th NFC Championship... and guess who turned 40 this year?  For a few of those reasons... maybe the Vikings will actually be just fine...

I like the Saints... I want them to win a Superbowl... just not this year.  I hope that's how it goes. Now Vikings go play your heart out!

Let the Tap Dancing Begin....

Here are a couple very brief videos of Lovie Girl showing off her new moves.  For whatever reason pictures are not allowed during class (gimme a break)... but I was able to catch a short peek on video to satisfy my parental indulgence to see my little girl enjoy her first Tap/Ballet Class.  She had a fantastic time and came home and talked nonstop about doing a pirouette just like "Cinderella".  By the way, Lovie has the rockin' green/blue pettiskirt on.... there is no mistaking her.

Vikings slaughter the Cowboys... Scandinavian Brett does it again!

Complete domination... The Vikings crushed the Dallas Cowboys 34-3 in their Metrodome... 9-0 this Season at home.  Brett Favre threw 4 touchdowns (3 to Sidney Rice) and proves once again that he's playing the best football of his life.  On to the NFC Divisional Championship against New Orleans next week. 

"I'm kind of worn out right now," Favre said in an interview with Fox. "It was emotional before the game, just to be in this position after all the stuff that took place. It's a wonderful moment."

Haiti Crisis: Please consider helping....

Since I feel absolutely helpless during the wake of this most recent tragedy... I find myself posting a plea for help/donations for the urgent aid/needs in Haiti. Please consider donating monetarily to Haiti during this humanitarian crisis. Estimates of death tolls range anywhere from 100,000-500,000 people.  Avoid scammers by sticking to legit agencies like the Red Cross, World Vision, and our personal favorite charity The IRC: International Rescue Committee http://www.theirc.org/ (a top ten gold star charity).

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/34844561#34844561

Baby G playing "Peek a Boo"...

Little Baby Genevieve started crawling at a little over 5 months old. She is fully cruising now but here is a glimpse of her playing her favorite game of "Peek a Boo" a few weeks ago... what a sweetheart!

A Visit from Peter Christmas 2009

Here are a few pictures from Peter's visit home this Winter Break.  We were excited finally have Peter home again this Christmas 2009.  He brought along his very sweet girlfriend, Alex, from Arizona.  We had a wonderful two week visit and spent all kinds of family time together.  The kids and Dad spent hours playing Starcraft- 4 players- each on their own computer.  The fam also had all kinds of laughs with Mom playing Super Mario Bros on the Wii... It was so nice to reconnect, relax, enjoy family dinners, movies, poker games & snowball fights.  Lots of fun!  It was so sad saying Goodbye....