Mail time!

One of Ian's newest joys is watching "Blue's Clues" and here's our newest joys of him when he watches it. If you could see the TV, he doing some of the same actions.

Last week, Ian surprised me and made me breakfast.

Complete with coffee, fruit and even a tablecloth with napkins...too cute!

Pickles & butter

That's all that Ian decided he wanted to eat for most of his meals this past weekend at deacon classes. I think he likes to eat the butter because it's in those little single-serving cups and it's perfect for his little hands and fun to dip his finger into. Anytime the Sisters would set them out, he would grab a couple before we would even notice. He'd be sneaky and quiet that way. When he found out there were pickles, he had to have some of those. At one point, I noticed him spreading the butter on his pickle slices...mmmm!

What I've learned...

I've been asked many times now how many kids we have & when I say "five", I can usually expect the eyes-wide-open, jaw-dropping expression along with, "Wow! You must be busy!" I can't deny that I am, but there have definitely been some things along the way that I have learned I can and should do, and some things I didn't think I would have to do. Here's a few...

1. From the start, I have enjoyed embracing the "nap when your baby naps" philosophy. Especially if you are up every 2 hours at night. Otherwise it catches up with you in other ways.

2. If you can stand a little messiness every once in a while, your kids really won't notice. They do notice however when you're grumping at them every second to pick up their stuff. (I'm still learning this. I've allowed some messes, but I still don't want to raise lazy piggies.)

3. Here's a few things I've learned to do while holding an otherwise unconsolable baby...
-type one-handed on the computer...usually while swaying back and forth
-push a shopping cart - have you ever tried to do it with one hand? not so easy!
-go to the bathroom (sometimes you really have to go and the baby won't quit screaming)
-nursing while going to the bathroom (again screaming, but when you gotta go...)

4. Here's where the wonderful invention of the baby sling/carrier comes in. Took me a while to get used to it & find some I love to wear, but when you have a baby who loves it, it frees up your arms and saves your back (a little) more so you can do more stuff like...
-vacuum
-get ready in the morning
-do the dishes
-cook meals
-type with both hands on the computer...I'm still swaying though!
-push the shopping cart with 2 hands and chase after the toddler
-and yes, I think I even went to the bathroom. Hey, once you get them in there & they're content, no use on pulling them out and risk waking them just for a quick trip to the potty!

All in all, I would say that yes, I am busy, but I am also blessed to be able to be at home. I definitely admire those who work all day and get it all done after a long day! I have also learned to just sit back on some occasions and just take it in rather than worry, and that lesson has been more rewarding and energizing than finishing any of my daily chores. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a clean house as much as the next, but some days (like the weekends) it's a never-ending ride that you have to learn to enjoy being a part of...especially when everyone else in the house is.

The other side

We survived our trip to Fargo and baby Noah is a good traveler. We only had to stop (for him) once and we may have made it if we wouldn't have had other stops. Makes traveling a little less stressful & easier to look forward to...although we have lots of crap to haul along! But we have settled down from the long break & it's back to the "normal" way of life.

The Johnson cousins

We got some snow when we visited...perfect for a (small) snowman!

Newest Johnson cousin...baby Olivia. Just 3 weeks younger than Noah.

Vikings game day