Chloe's Birthday Costume Party

Chloe turned 6 the week of Halloween and so we threw a Costume Party for the kids! There were several princesses, a fireman, a couple of cowboys, a skunk and a Harry Potter classmate. The kids had a great time wearing their costumes!

Hard to believe this kiddo is 6 already. She is a busy girl, learning at an amazingly fast pace, and keeping us all hopping. Besides learning to read and write this year, she is also a Spark in AWANA and taking ballet lessons. She wants to do Irish Dancing, and I'm about ready to agree to put her in to give her an opportunity to hop around for an hour somewhere other than in my living room!

We're blessed by this amazing mixture of energy and snuggliness. She is a unique combination of extreme movement and extreme warm hugs. I like that about her. Especially the warm hugs part.

Happy Thanksgiving

Here's a short Johnson Family Quiz:

1) How many kids do we have? Answer: Duh. 5johnsonkids.
2) How long have Mike and Dena been married? Answer: 16 1/2 years.
3) What is Dena's favorite holiday? Answer: Thanksgiving!
4) What does she have to be thankful for? Answer: All of you, my old and new friends. :)

Have a Happy and Blessed Thanksgiving!

Lily is 9!

This beautiful little girl turn 9 this week. I can hardly believe it, but I have the grey hair and extra wrinkles to prove that she's been around for the past nine years. Not to say she caused those! Lily is an easy going kid who is really a lot of fun to be with. She is mello, which I am not. She is patient, which I am not. She is slower than molasses. . . which I am not. We make a good pair. :)

Lily has developped some amazing new interests this year. She quit ballet, after 5 years of dancing because she finally decided it just wasn't for her. So she is "dabbling" this year in an attempt to figure out which direction she wants to pursue for arts and recreation. She has taken up fencing, which she really loves. It involves enough "dance" moves that she's really got an edge on the other kids. She also has started horseback riding this year! In her mind, our life looks like this from here on out: buy a farm, get horses, spend every single spare moment caring for and riding horses. And eating, occasionally. If the horses have already been fed.

It is so much fun to see her grow in her personality and interests in ways that are so foreign to me and so clearly unique to her. Watching my children find themselves is a part of parenting I never knew I would enjoy so much. They motivate me to take risks and explore new experiences in my own life.