Christmas Moments

Lucy Cat




The kids got to open a Christmas Eve present after going to Candlelight services at John Knox Presbyterian Church. Chloe's birthmom, Jennifer, sent presents to all 5 kids, and so we chose to open her gifts tonight.

Let me just say, I only wish I could choose presents as well as she does! All 3 girls were in raptures over their "glass dollies" and the boys are still playing with the Lightning McQueen Cars.

We are a blessed family. To be able to worship together, to be able to celebrate this holiday as a family, and to be able to celebrate the special and precious women who have made our family a reality; these are gifts for which I can never say enough thank you's.

Jennifer Joy, we love you and forever count you a special part of our family and our lives. Thank you for a special evening and a special girl.

okay folks, check this out! Merry Christmas!

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1210449060

Snow Day and Shepherds

Someone emailed me and hoped that I was enjoying watching the beautiful snow falling from a cozy, quite spot. I had to laugh a little: Quite? Nope. Cozy? Nope. Watching snow fall? Nope.

More like this: dig through the snow clothes box burried at the bottom of the coat closet, frantically search for matching gloves, hope beyond hope there are boots that fit this year, and get all the kids geared up before the snow actually stops and melts!

But it was worth it! They boys especially loved the snow and played and played. They came back in cold, wet, and hollering for hot cocoa. The girls created sledding paths and had a snowball fight with the neighbors.

For the 5 minutes they were all outside together I had a quiet moment watching snow fall. It was indeed lovely.

As for the sheperds: At Awana the kids are invited to come dressed up as Bible characters around Halloween. We cut up tables cloths and sheets to come up with costumes this year. At the time I was a little annoyed. . . come on, just let them wear their Halloween costumes for pete's sake. . . but now I'm glad to have this photo to add to my Christmas pictures.

My angel, shepherds, (and elephant: okay, animals are in the Bible so it worked!) do indeed help me remember what this time of year is about. More than snow, more than shopping: God's incarnational act in being born in flesh amongst lowly shepherds, smelly animals, and the glory of angelic hosts. That sounds a lot like my life: lowly moments at times, smelly situations, and occasional glimpses of truly holy meetings.

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.

Fall:a.k.a. Season of the Disappearing Mama

This is a crazy time of the year for our family. Kids go back to school so we get back in the hang of getting up early, getting ready and out the door to catch he school bus on time, followed by 6 or 7 blissful hours of silence in the house while all 5 of my school age children are getting a fine education in the public institution.

Wait a minute! I homeschool!

That explains why the kids don't give me 6 to 7 hours of peace each day. . . it also explains why this season is a little overwhelming at times. Back to class time, back to dance lessons, back to Awana, I'm back in class two evenings a week, and Mike is working one evening each week to make up for a half day while he's taking classes towards his MDiv.

Did I mention this is a crazy time of year for our family?

I don't know how the rest of you do it, but we are trying to figure this out: How do you connect with your spouse, how do your kids connect with their father, how do you get enough of each other with the 8 to 5 schedule?

We've always had unusual schedules because of ministry jobs. Mike has always put in 40 hours or more, but many of those have been in our home, with our family, or in settings where we are all together anyway.

So now he does what the rest of the world does and we're really struggling to feel connected. He misses the kids and feels like he is failing them by seeing so little of them. He misses me and gets lonely and I just get plain grumpy when I don't get to be with him. I have to admit to being spoiled by his flexible schedule up to now and I'm going a little bit bonkers by the days without his occasional relief. Without a pinch hitter I'm not nearly as gracious and gentle with my children as I otherwise would be. . . (ok, so gracious and gentle may not be the adjectives that leap to your minds when you think of me, but work with me here).

So really, how do you do it?

Hiking Mt. Rainier

Mike and Chad do an annual hiking trip to Mt. Rainier. This year the two of them set out on a hike they'd never done before. 36 miles in 3 days. Sounds awful to me.



They, however, insist that they enjoy it.



These are some of the photos Mike took this year- I left out the ones that are PG-13. What is it with guys in the wilderness! (uh-oh, that doesn't quiet sound right, but you know what I mean!)



I love the fact that these two guys enjoy each other so much and make this yearly trek together. It's amazing to me that my husband and brother-in-law are best friends, and that my brother-in-law is one of the greatest people on the planet. I am a lucky girl to love the guy my sister married.



I sometimes get dissatisfied with my life, grumpy about where I live, selfish about being on a budget, self-obsessed with my wants and downright greedy about just wanting more.



Then I remember my great fortune of living 5 blocks from my sweet sister and Chad, their lovely 5 kids, and all the chances our kids get to grow up together, just being kids. Not many folks get that kind of goodness in life.

Toothless Wonder!

Chloe lost her two front teeth! I have to admit this is one my favorite times of my kids lives so far, when they have both their two front teeth gone. I love the quintessential "chilhood-ness" of it.

Do you remember loosing your two front teeth? I can't recall anything about losing my teeth except the feel of the empty place where the tooth used to be. Yucky!

The tooth fairy is a regular visitor at our house. Sadly, we've been assigned a somewhat air-headed tooth fairy: She often forgets to come the first day a tooth is placed under the pillow. Lucky for us, however, she makes up for it by being generous with the pocket change.

Mike's New Job

Hello all! Just to keep you up to date, I'd thought I'd fill you in on what's new in the world of gainful employment. Mike has accepted a position at the Seattle Union Gospel Mission as the Director of the Men's Shelter.

This is a full-time position, but our plan is that we will continue working toward our new church plant at the same time. The two ministries will complement each other well, I think.

September will be a crazy month! I go back to work at Mars Hill Grad School as a Teaching Assistant, Mike starts classes towards his MDiv at Mars Hill, starts a new job at UGM, and homeschool starts back up for the kids and me. Keep us in your prayers!

Before all that, however, we get a week of family vacation in Eastern Washington at Sun Lakes Resort. (read resort as: 1972 single wide mobiles on a lake) I can't wait for the time away in the sun before our summer comes to an end!

God is good, he continues to provide for our crazy family, and this time of transition occurred without even missing a pay check.

Did I mention we are in the process of adopting #6?!

Birthday Boy is Turning 5!

Isaac is turning 5 this month! It is hard to believe this little guy is getting so big.

He came home to us right around his 1st Birthday. We had a little party in the backyard for him and I remember thinking how big he seemed at the time. Now looking back, he was such a baby! He didn't even walk yet and couldn't swing at the pinata we got!

Boy does he swing now! At everything! With everything! Bats, balls, sisters. . . you name it, he swings at it!

We're having a party for Isaac on Sunday, August 19th at our place around 5pm. You are all invited for dinner and birthday cake. See you then!

Hair

We have 3 girls and 2 boys. The 2 boys get a buzz cut about once every 2 months and we call it good. The girls, on the other hand, require a more delicate and intentional touch.

Each of our girls has her own unique hair texture. Add to that, each one also has her own sense of style. Add to that, I am white. They are black. Do I really need to say more?

There are websites, books, discussion forums, therapists, support groups, and magazine articles dedicated to African American hair care issues. I, being only one woman, have not read them all. I think I may have missed one or two.

With that said, today I undertook a new challenge: Extensions. Sasha, who is 10 (and a half!), decided that "baby hairstyles" are no longer acceptable. What this means for her is that for the past 6 months or so she has worn her hair in a sloppy ponytail which she considers "cool". What this means for Mama is that she has felt like a failure every time we are in public and people give me that "Oh, these poor African American girls are adopted by a dumb white lady who can't braid" look. Trust me, such a thing does exist.

As I am inbetween semesters and Mike is about to be inbetween jobs, I have a little extra time and nervous energy on my hands. So! Today! We did extensions! It may seem strange to my white friends who don't have may AA girlfriends, but this is a fairly commonplace hair procedure for AA kids. What it entails is this: Taking synthetic hair and adding to my girls hair in what is hopefully a natural looking style. The goal of this is to add length to their hair, as well as to help their styles stay in place longer without getting "fuzzy".

I am pretty impressed with me! For my first time out I think it turned out looking awfully good. What do you think?

Weather Channel

I do not have cable, or even antennas for that matter, so I don't catch the weather channel all that much.

Actually, there is not much need to watch the weather channel in Seattle. It's either raining, about to rain, or going to rain any day now.

With that said, we've had a horrible week in late July of rain, rain, and more rain. This may surprise some of you: "What! Rain in Seattle!" But when you get over your sarcasm I'll point out that July is one of the driest months of the year 'round here.

My kids are absolutely stir crazy: as nutty as they get. Cabin fever has set in with a vengeance and their Mama is about to loose it. And, although I am a generally even tempered, patient, long suffering kinda gal (ok, stand back for lightning bolts) this is too much!

So, this morning the sun came out! The clouds have passed, the mugginess is burning off, and the birds are going crazy in my pine trees.

And then we had concrete poured and had to keep the kids inside all day in order to avoid ruining the new patio. Agh!!!!

So this is basically me, venting about Murphy and his odd sense of law and humor.

p.s. Pray for us: we're going camping next Tues. for three days with the kids and Grandma and Grandpa who are coming up from So. Cal. Without rain would be my preference!

The New Church NW

Hello blog-friends!

I've attached a letter I am working on to explain what's new in the lives of the Johnson Family. I'd love your feedback and questions! It's a long letter and I've tried to shorten it, but can't come up with a way to say less and still say what I want to ! I'm not usually too long on words, but I can't seem to edit this down. Your ideas would be appreciated.

Here goes!


Dear Friends and Family,


Mike and I are writing to let you know about our upcoming life plans. After 10 years in full-time church ministry, we are responding to what has been an ongoing sense of God’s calling on our lives to begin a new church.

Most of you know that in 1995 we both graduated with our Bachelor’s degrees in Missions, with the intent of doing international church planting. Master’s Degrees, five children and twelve years later, we are essentially back to where we started. The difference now is that we have a decade of church work experience and hopefully ten more years of spiritual and personal maturity behind us!

The other significant difference is that instead of international church planting we are focusing on domestic church planting. We live in the Seattle area, and records for the past 25 years running indicate that this region is one of the most unchurched areas in the US. Sadly, mainstream churches in this area are on the decline. On the other hand, new church starts are doing well in this area and are tapping into an unchurched population that is responding well to alternative approaches to church. By this we do not mean an alternative gospel message, but rather, in the words of Billy Graham, an eternal message in contemporary means.

We believe we are uniquely poised for such an opportunity for several reasons. The first is our family. As you all know, the greatest thing about Mike and Dena Johnson happens to be our children! What I mean by this is that our unique family has opened so many doors to us that might not have otherwise been opened. We believe we have an opportunity to minister in a culturally diverse area because of our multi-ethnic family. In addition to the ethnicity of our family, that fact that we have a large family is also a reason we feel uniquely positioned to do church work in our area. Families are in great need of support and in greater need of role models and teaching. We feel very humbled and honored to be able to offer young families the support and lifestyle modeling many are desperate for.

The second reason we feel well positioned is because of Mike’s experience in this community. As you know, he is a social and outgoing guy! He has established many relationships in the community over our past several years of living here and is well connected with civic and religious leaders. These relationships are key to any successful church plant, as we do not believe we are called to do church work in isolation or opposition but rather in relationship and in community. Additionally, my work and my community relationships are an important aspect of why a church plant in this area seems wise.

A third reason I believe we are called to this new path is something less easily defined but equally as important: We are passionate about outreach, about people, about incarnational relationships, and about the Pacific Northwest. These passions make us ideal for church planting, while at times less than ideal for established church ministries.

(Side Note: By incarnational relationships I mean the kind of relationships that acknowledge that the redemptive work of Jesus began by his choosing to live amongst us. Rather than living beyond us, or above us, he dwelt among us. He lived and sweat and bled and worked and worshipped in our midst as one who was fully man, and fully God. The stance of this theology (unique to Christianity alone in the world) is that our God does not disdain nor manipulate his creation- he does not rain down fire bolts from a distant heaven or randomly bless those who ingratiate themselves to him. He breathed his own image into his creation and chose to walk among them in fellowship and humility. Imagine what a church looks like that seeks to live out that same profound respect and intimacy with humanity!)

While in no way intending to be disrespectful or discourteous, the reality we have experienced is that established institutions must spend energy and resources maintaining themselves. A new church plant does not have the challenge of slowly reorienting a large and slowly moving vessel. While I am thrilled and humbled that some people are clearly called to such tasks, those of you who have known Mike and me for any amount of time know that this is obviously not our unique temperament or calling.

With all of that said, I am writing to invite you to join us in this endeavor. What we are asking for is your prayers, your input, and essentially your sense of what you know of us and if this decision seems to gel with what you know. We will definitely need guidance and spiritual discernment in this whole process and do not want to step into something that is not supported and blessed in prayer and wisdom. We obviously will need financial support and “seed money” to begin a new church. The cost of incorporating, buying sound systems, renting facilities, etc. will be offset eventually by a growing body, but in the initial phase we will do some fundraising to provide for these essential needs.

For those of you who live nearby, we do ask that you consider being a part of this new effort. We are not asking you to leave your church for ours! We are asking, however, that you consider if God has been preparing you for such a ministry and for such a time. A new church requires a solid base of established Christians to provide care and spiritual leadership for new believers. We do not for a minute believe that the two of us have what it takes to minister to growing body on our own. Indeed, we have been a part of a rapidly growing church that did not have a secure base in place to provide spiritual care for its new members. The eventual burnout and disappointment inherent in such a system is a great tragedy.

Jesus told believers to go to the unbelievers and to make disciples. This implies an investment of time and of one’s life- not merely a new program geared at outreach. If you want to consider joining us in a lifestyle of ministry and incarnational relationships, we’d love to spend time with you praying about this.

Some of the specifics are in place, others are not. For now we are primarily gathering to pray and seek leadership of the Holy Spirit. Our hope is that Mike will be able to find part-time work elsewhere to help support our family during this transition. Until those details are clarified, we won’t be able to commit to time frames or agenda. What we are feeling sure of is the area around South Center (South of Seattle by about 12 miles, for those of you outside the Northwest). The pastoral association Mike belongs to is supportive of our efforts and is willing to walk with us in relationship. Additionally, a local church has offered us the use of their building. Our current church, The Church by the Side of the Road in Tukwila is prayerfully considering how they might support this new church and what, if any, oversight they might offer. This blessing and support means a lot to us, and is something that seems to reflect the guidance of the Lord. Other than the idea of being located in Tukwila, we are still in the very early stages of planning.

Once again, we are primarily asking for you prayers and for your input. We are open to what you have to say and will really consider your words as an important part of this process. I think that if we are to do something new, it has to start in a position and attitude of humility and genuine willingness to hear from God and His people. You are all a vital part of that for us!

Please respond however you prefer. You can call us at: 206.244.0708 home
253.670.0777 Dena cell

Or you can email us at: onpilgrimage@yahoo.com Dena
j.michaeljohnson@yahoo.com Mike

Thanks for your friendship and for the ways you have invested in our lives over the years.

In Christ,

Dena and Mike Johnson

5 Johnson Kids Ballet Performances

This year 4 of the 5 kids danced in the final production of Prokofiev's The Stone Flower. Sasha was in 3 or 4 different numbers and Lily was in 3 as well. The little kids, Chloe and Isaac, stole the show, as they seem to do each year! The big kids work so hard, and then the cute little guys come along, goof around, walk in circles, wave to the audience, and get all the giggles and applause.

It was a special treat to have Chloe's birthmother at the show this year. Her mother and father came, too. They are a lovely bunch of people who have blessed us beyond words. Their respectfulness, kindness, and steafast loyalty to our family and to Chloe have been a living reminder of God's grace to us.

Sasha will be dancing all summer for the first time. As a beginning pointe dancer, she cannot take the luxury of a summer off anymore. The girls lose too much strength and skills over a summer off, and when a dancer is dancing on pointe, to lose strength is a danger to developing muscles.

Lily decided this is her last year of dance. She has gone back and forth about this, but as much as she enjoys the performances, she's ready to try something new. These days she thinks fencing is the next mountain to climb! After a week at horse camp, what she'd really like to do is buy a horse for the front yard! I have a feeling this girl is going to keep me on my toes.

Isaac did such a good job this year in class! He especially enjoyed the tap portion of his class: it was noisy!

Cruise in Review

Dancing!















I love shots of Mike with his folks! We had a great time with Richard and Betty, who are the best travel partners in the world! Well, this may be true. So far they are the only people we have travled with and we think they are the best. They gave us just enough alone time and were so flexible and laid back the whole trip. Truth be told, Betty spent the majority of the cruise in a lounge chair by the pool with a book. This, I have discovered, is her absolute favorite place to be. Retirement is really rough on these two! Richard enjoyed the sun, too. He also fit in a round of golf with Mike and a trip to the USS Midway in San Diego. He served on the Midway for two years in the 50's and gave Mike his own version of the tour. Pretty amazing.

There are still more photos to come, since Mike and I got suckered into posing for every photo on board and bought a bunch of them because they were too great to pass up. When was the last time you had prom pictures taken?! We both got snazzied up for formal night and sure thought we were hot stuff. Well, I thought Mike was hot stuff and he seemed to think I was too!

It's great to be back, messy house, imperfect kids and all. They did really well while we were away (at least that's what the people who kept them say) and now they are in the "let's see how far we can push Mama and Papa now that we're all back together and once again establish just who's in charge here" mode. So far I'm winning. Pray for me!

We met some great people on the cruise. Everywhere we turned God brought believers into our path: A lovely couple from Phoenix brightened our day in Ensenada; the comic on board is a Christian who made me laugh harder than I have in a long time and spent an hour after his show sharing his life and thoughts with us; the folks we had breakfast with one morning who were celebrating their 60th Anniversary, and still more we met in passing. It's a great world, full of amazing people who are trying to figure out how to live lives pleasing to God and in meaningful relationship with others. Pretty amazing.

More Phoebe Jane!

My Cousin Stacie takes the most amazing pictures (wilkinstribe.blogspot.com).
As does Corbin Gross (onegrossfamily.blogspot.com).
I am fortunate to be surrounded by such talented friends and family, people who make amazingly beautiful art so full of love and their unique passions.

I had to add some of Stacie's pictures of Phoebe Jane to regale you with her perfect, pink, splendour. (Phoebe Jane's, not Stacie's).

I'd suggest you all check out their blogs and book your sittings soon! Now that I've posted their info, there is bound to be a rush to their sites!

Mexico Cruise minus 5 Johnson Kids

These are some initial shots of our cruise to Mexico!

You are all dying to know, and so yes, the kids have survived! My eternal thanks to Katie, Donna, Stacie, and Amanda. We didn't worry once about the kids, but did spend some time worrying about our friends keeping the kids...Yes they also survived. Now we get to return the favor! Anytime, guys, we're rested up and ready to keep yours!

We did the typical cruise stuff: ate, slept, ate some more and laid in the sun. Us Northwesterners both got sunburned the first day and looked the tourist part.

I'll add more pics later and share more of our time.

We talked to Gabriel last night and he wanted to know if we were off of our Space Ship yet. The answer is yes, now we're back on earth! But we had a lovely trip on the Space Ship.

16th Anniversary

Mike and I are getting ready to leave town to celebrate our 16th Wedding Anniversary. Someone kindly asked me the other day if we were 12 when we married. . . The same day I was called blonde. Now that's funny!

We are headed down to LA and then we're taking a 4 day cruise to Mexico. I was about to say, "Just the two of us!" but the truth is we will be joined by Mike's folks. Okay, now it may sound odd to say that we are celebrating our wedding anniversary with our in-laws (I'm a therapist- I know how it sounds) but the truth is we do enjoy traveling with others and they offered to join us. I made sure we had separate rooms and we pledged to give each other lots of space. I figure Betty and I can go shopping if Mike and his Dad decide they need to do something manly. Like shop for golf supplies. Or shop for shoes. Or shop. (Mike's dad is a biiiigggg shopper!)

Many friends and family members have come together to make this possible for us. Finding someone to keep 5 kids for a week can be quite a challenge. I even bought trip insurance just in case. . . I am so grateful to Katie, Donna, Stacie, Amanda, and my emergency back-up Randi! If ever I heard a good reason for small families it's this: Getting out of town if tough with more than 2.5 kids.

16 years, I must say, is something to be proud of. I am proud to say we have fought long and hard to develop a strong marriage- one with it's ups and downs, with it's strengths and weaknesses, with it's dignity and depravity. Celebrating at this point feels well earned, after a year of lots of transitions and hard questions. I don't suppose we're celebrating the fact that now we'll never have hard moments again as much as we are celebrating the fact that all meaningful relationships are made up of hard moments and of a willingness to enter into hard moments rather than flee or deny the difficulties.

With that said, I plan on fleeing for at least 4 days on a cruise ship bound to Mexico!