To Mothers of Daughters

March 23, 2016 By

Mothers of daughters: this is a must-read and captures the depth of the joys and sorrows of mothering our gorgeous girls. Grab the tissues!

“She will do amazing things while you are worrying away the time. She will grow milk teeth and then grown-up ones. She will love the things that you hate and hate the things that you love, and you will drive each other mad–all before she learns to drive.

You will do amazing things, too. You will learn to need less: less sleep, less care, less time. You will give more. You will not say things that you would almost always have said, just to keep the peace. What hard strength there is, in the measurement of unsaid words. You will be in a hurry, to get to the better times, when the times are worn and exhausting. Then you will hold your breath and wish it would all just stop spinning, when you realize how quickly 5 years old became 10 and then 10 years old became 15.

You will cut your own teeth, sharply, on the mothering of this first child. You will do the worst job, this first time. But it will be the purest experience, the one that lives forever in your gut. The one that makes you homesick, always, for the time when she did not know anything but you and it was all so very new and unfiltered.

It will be wonderful and terrible, heartbreaking and tumultuous. You will hate it sometimes and you will love it. You will stand nearby and watch her figure out the balance of things, with the eye of someone so simultaneously invested and so incredibly powerless. It will hurt you more than she can know.

Do not tell her how much it hurts.

One day you will be counting her fingers and her toes, and the next you will see her looking off into some foggy distance and she will be smiling.

And that will be the first time that you realize that she is counting the days until she leaves you, for her first adventure, all alone.”

-Nicole Jankoski, The First Last Time

Filed Under: Foodie

Why we’re totally nailing this parenting thing

March 22, 2016 By

Parenting is tough. And it would be even rougher if Jamie and I were not on the same page most of the time.

Bode is obsessed with those little announcing bouncy balls and is constantly lodging them off our walls. That would be just swell if we didn’t find them everywhere around the house.

The other day, I had enough as I nearly tripped on yet another one.

Me: “I swear, if I step on one more of these little bouncy balls, it’s going straight in the trash.”

Bode: “Dad *just* said the exact same thing.”

Great Minds Threaten Alike.

Filed Under: Bode, Humor

The Classics

March 16, 2016 By

We’ve had quite an awesome week, which kicked off when we were invited to our friends the Phillips’ house for a Pi(e) Party on Monday night. There were waaaay more than 3.14159 pies and we had a blast socializing with friends. I didn’t take any pictures, mostly because we were too busy eating pie.

Hadley is moderately obsessed with the Divergent series since her class started reading it a couple of months ago. We watched the first two movies last week and when we were invited to a pre-screening of “Allegiant” (the third movie), Jamie and I thought it would be fun to keep it a secret. I hinted that is was the new movie “Miracles in Heaven,” which I also want to see so she suspected nothing, even when we sat down in our seats and a screenshot of “Allegiant” was on the screen.

Bode figured it out right away. When we did a pre-screening of “Cinderella,” they’d had a similar ad for the movie. “Keep it a secret,” I whispered. I wanted to see her face when she figured it out.

It took her a while. Even after the movie started, she thought it was a trailer but her reaction was the absolute best when she realized what was happening.

Even more memorable was when we were driving to the theater. It was rush hour drive-time on the radio so there was a lot of talk but very little music. The kids begged us for some tunes so Jamie played a soundtrack he’d recently downloaded: The Carpenters.

“Ohhhhh no, make it stop!!!” They whined.

“We are here to educate you on one of the most famous singers in the world–Karen Carpenter,” and we joined Karen’s melodic voice as we crooned “We’ve only just begun.”

Bode had enough and queried with disdain. “What, is this from like the 1990s!?!?”

That one hurt just a little.

Filed Under: Bode, Hadley, Humor

Our new (not-so exciting) addition

March 14, 2016 By

Our big news last week was we got new carpet.

This was a loooooong overdue purchase. We built our home 12 years ago (as of April 15) and almost from the get-go we regretted the carpet choice we made. Even though we’d done an upgrade, it wasn’t nearly high enough quality…but we delayed replacing it due to finances and children. You know, those rugrats who stain and track the neighborhood all over it.

The carpet took two days to install. It was bad enough for me to unpack our china cabinet and move everything out of the way but those poor workers. If we hadn’t spent a fortunate buying it, I would have given them a big, fat tip because that is one thankless job. Jamie, Fat Kitty and I lived and worked from the basement for those two days, prisoners in our own home. Fat Kitty can’t stand change and I thought he was going to have a heart attack from all the noise. He was particularly hilarious the first time he walked on it…slowly picking up his feet like they were glued. Live it up, Fat Kitty. This is what carpet is supposed to feel like!

The plus side: the kids watched the life-altering Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure for the first time during our basement exile.

The downside: we spent the equivalent of a trip to Hawaii on the carpet and this is all we get for views.

Filed Under: Family

Awesome comes in many forms

March 9, 2016 By

My brother Pat married up, big time. My sister-in-law Jane is one of the kindest, coolest and most generous humans on the planet. They are celebrating their 27th wedding anniversary and theirs is a marriage of best friends I’ve always admired. They started their family when they were still really young and now that they’re empty nesters in their 40s, they both have successful careers and travel the world.

Jane sends out a weekly family email to her clan and ours and we were reminiscing about their wedding in Ephrata, WA. Never heard of it?  You’re not alone. It is located in what I call the armpit of Washington and is the venue of the Suicidal Cow incident from a two summers ago.

I have many favorite Pat and Jane wedding memories. In addition to the sheer (fun!) chaos of being thrown into a large family (9+ kids), I still remember when her brother Glen brought his football buddies to the house. Keep in mind I was around 16, VERY boy-crazy and there were some cute guys in the mix.

Until they opened their mouths.

They had just come from some game or practice and were totally stoked (testosterone was majorly in play here).

 One of them kept shouting, “That was AWESOME.”
He should have stopped there but he didn’t and went on to spell it out. “That was AWESOME. O-S-U-M, OSUM!”

There’s a reason I never dated football players.
Filed Under: Humor

Relief Society Spotlight

March 8, 2016 By
I’m in the throes of launching a summer camp directory for Mile High Mamas and will be appearing on 9News this week to talk about everything. Translation: I have zero time to blog!
Something I appreciated about our Leap Day Time Capsules we opened last week was reading the questionnaires we filled out–we’ve certainly come a long way! A member of our ward’s Relief Society Presidency recently interviewed me for the monthly spotlight so I thought I’d post….and compare my answers 50 years from now. Something tells me that I lot will have changed.
======
1. What is your full name? Amber DeEtte Johnson. I was told my middle name was French until I served in France and no one had ever heard of it.
Nickname. Not many nicknames now but growing up, I was known as “Animal” from The Muppets. A real stretch, I know.
2. Where were you born?  I was born and raised in Calgary, Canada.
3. What is your birth date? February, 1857.
4. How many brothers and sisters do you have and where do you fit in youngest to oldest? I have an older brother who is four years older than me and a brother five years my junior. I learned the survival of the fittest from an early age.
5. A memory of a favorite birthday or what is your idea of a great birthday? I have a lot of great birthdays because it usually falls over President’s Day weekend. My favorite birthday was on our honeymoon in Costa Rica but a close second was my 40th birthday where a bunch of families came to skate Evergreen Lake with me.
6. If you have children, how many?  What are their ages? I have two kids: Hadley (age 11), Bode (age 9) and a very fat cat.
7. What are some of the different places you have lived?  Your favorite places?  Why (or have visited
 My parents still live in my childhood home in Calgary so it’s wonderfully nostalgic. In addition to Canada, I’ve lived in Idaho, Utah, a mission in Switzerland and France, a study abroad in the Middle East and I’ve traveled all over. My favorite place on earth is Waterton Lakes National Park–right near the Canadian border across from Glacier National Park. It’s pure magic.
8.  Favorite Food? (or restaurant or type of food) Country Road Cafe in Kittredge, just outside of Evergreen, Colo. Trust me: it’s the best breakfast in Colorado and we take all of our friends.
9.  A favorite family activity. Our family loves to travel and be outdoors with skiing, hiking and biking as especial favorites.
10.  When I was young, I use to imagine myself as…a world traveler. I haven’t done too much of that since having kids but once they become teenagers, we hope to travel more abroad. And then serve a mission later with Jamie.
11. What is an accomplishment you are proud of? I was Microsoft’s accredited blogger for the 2010 Vancouver Games. I’m so grateful to the many people who voted me there!
12. What extra-curricular activities have you been involved in?  Younger years and/or currently.
Sports were always a huge part of my life. Growing up, that meant team sports and I was really competitive in volleyball and soccer. My dad raised us to love the outdoors and that has always been a huge part of my life.
13. If you had the opportunity to travel anywhere, where would you go? Why?
Nepal. I’m green with envy at the Rolfsons for their frequent trips! I don’t have any Everest aspirations (though base camp would be cool) but it’s been a dream to do a multi-day trip backpacking to the Buddhist Monasteries while learning the Tibetan Tradition. I find the whole region fascinating…but getting there is so expensive!
14. If you could have one wish, what would it be?  A genie with more wishes? My dreams are usually for health and a happy, Christ-centered home.
16. Where do you work? Or where have you worked? How long? I’ve worked in pretty much every form of media you can imagine. For years, I was a travel writer and publicist in Salt Lake City. Since moving to Colorado, I’ve done everything from write a column for the Denver Post to local news appearance. My longest-standing is running MileHighMamas, a great resource for Colorado moms. I’m grateful to be able to work from home.
17.  What are your hobbies/interests (hobbies, crafts, reading, sewing, cooking, singing, etc.),
Most of my hobbies center around the outdoors with my biggest passion as hiking. I love to read (but don’t do it nearly enough since having kids), play the piano and write.
18.  Something you must do in your lifetime?
Move to the mountains!
19. Share something about you that no one would know.
When I was in high school, I was a movie extra for a Japanese blockbuster that was filmed in the Canadian Rockies. It was likely my first–and last–role as a Samurai Warrior.
20.  Who is your favorite Latter-day Prophet and why? I love President Benson. I read his book The Book of Mormon–The Keystone of Our Religion when I was in high school and that was the beginning of my testimony of this great book.
21.  What three words best describe you anything else? Outgoing, Fun-loving. Not quiet.
Filed Under: Humor

Our Time Capsule’s Slice of Life

March 1, 2016 By

I realized something this week: my blog is like a time capsule unto itself that captures so many wonderful memories through the years. What was I doing 9 years ago? I just clicked on my blog’s archives and found this gem when I was already lamenting the kids were growing up too fast during one of our most memorable hikes ever. If I was worried about their fleeting childhood then, how much worse is it now? And four years from now?

On Leap Day 2012, we pulled together a Time Capsule to be opened Leap Day 2016. And then I stashed it away and promptly forgot about it.  Thank goodness I purged our entire house in January and stumbled upon it. The kids have been waiting with great anticipation to see what was worthy of being stashed away for four years, practically a lifetime for them! It’s sobering to think when we open our next time capsule, Hadley will be turning 16 and almost driving and dating while Bode will be a cute pimply-faced 13-year-old. 

Our Time Capsule did not disappoint. It was a mix of mementos, fond memories, a glimpse of how much had changed (the kids) and what had barely changed at all (the parents).

A few gems:

Hadley was turning 7 while Bode was 5. There were beautiful drawings by Hadley and not-so beautiful scribbles by Bode:

There are a shot of our wonderful home.

Bode was a cute kindergartner (featured with his long-term sub Mrs. Cannon) and Hadley was soon turning 8 and had been invited to her first event for the Activity Day Girls at church. Attached in a scroll was this Princess Manifesto I’d been commissioned to write for the occasion.

We had just learned Hadley had been admitted to our Waldorf school the following year and we were filled with excitement. Too bad it didn’t last!

 

Our questionnaires were the most revealing.

Hadley loved Timbits, friends were Alex (current bestie) and Jaida, her favorite subject was art, she loved to swim, she had no idea what she wanted to be when she grew up and she was most looking forward to getting baptized. It was particularly fun to read her response to what she thought she’d be doing in four years. She wrote “getting ready to be in Young Women’s,” which is exactly what is happening! (When kids turn 12 in our church, it’s a big rite-of-passage as they leave the children’s organization and move to our awesome youth program).

Bode loved peanut butter, his friends were Nicky (current bestie), Sean, Tim and Andy. His favorite subject was computer lab and he loved to play soccer and Kirby on the Wii. He was most excited to go to Canada that summer, had no idea what he’d be doing in four years but one thing was for sure: he knew he wanted to be the ice cream man when he grew up. Jamie is still lamenting the shift in career ambitions.

Jamie and I basically haven’t changed at all in our interests and friends as Stacey, Jenn, Eva and Lisa remain my dearest today.For favorite foods I listed mangoes and avocados, both of which I had for lunch that day. The biggest shift was that I had just celebrated my 40th birthday at Evergreen Lake with oodles of friends and my first column had been printed in The Denver Post. Ahhhh, those were the glory years!

Jamie. Of course, pumpkins were a big theme even though he has not attained his goal of a state record. The good news: He predicted he’d be on life support in four years and we’re clearly not there. Though we’re a few weeks removed from his snowmobiling accident and he’s still limping around like he has one foot in the grave.

Some things never change. Bur I can’t wait to see what is revealed four years from now.

 

Filed Under: Bode, Family, Hadley, Humor

Your Happily Ever After: A Message for Young Women

March 1, 2016 By

Four years ago, my friend Wendy asked me to write a story to be distributed at a Happily Ever After-themed event for all the Activity Day girls (ages 8-11) in our stake. She wanted it to feature four princesses (Princess Hope, Princess Faith, Princess Grace and Princess Charity) whose father, the King, sends them on a journey through the land. The story was to be about what they encountered and learned on their journey back to him, a parallel of our journey from the pre-mortal life, to earth and then back to our Father in Heaven. (A bit more about the Plan of Salvation here if you’re not familiar).

Obviously, this isn’t like my regular blog posts but we rediscovered this gem when we opened our 2012 Leap Day Time Capsule and I thought it was long overdue to share, the perfect message for little girls and young women trying to navigate this crazy world of ours.

Your Happily Ever After: A Message for Young Women
by Amber Johnson

Chapter One: Once Upon a Time

By Amber Johnson

Once upon a time, there were four beautiful princesses: Princes Faith, Princess Grace, Princess Hope and Princess Charity.

They lived in a kingdom of light. There was laughter. There was happiness.  But even in this beautiful kingdom, they always felt like something was missing.

One day, their father, the King, assembled them together.

“Because I love you, I am going to send you on a journey far away. This kingdom will be much different than our own. You will have many amazing adventures but beware, you will encounter difficult times during your journey that will help you truly learn what it means to become a princess….

The princesses were overjoyed to go to a new land, to meet new creatures and have new adventures.

“But how will we find our way back to you, Father?” they asked the king.

He replied, “I will send each of you with a map. But this is not like any map. This magical map is a part of me. As you listen and follow its directions, it will lead you home where you will live with your sisters and me, forever.”

Chapter Two: The Journey to an Unknown Land

The four sisters tearfully yet joyfully said good-bye to those they loved in the kingdom and to each other.  They then went their separate ways.

At first, the map was the most important part in their journey but as time went on and they became more familiar with this strange land, some of the sisters looked at the map less and less.

And before they knew it, many of them did not know how to find each other or return home to their Father, the King.

After wandering for many years, Princess Faith grew more and more lonely. One day, she encountered a strange creature on the roadside. Its mouth breathed fire, its eyes shone like diamonds, and it stood as tall as two buildings.

“Are you lost, little girl?”

Not wanting to admit to the dragon she had indeed lost her way, she defiantly declared, “I am not” and tried to race past him.

“Where do you think you are going? You are NOTHING, Little Girl!” the dragon roared.

As Faith became more fearful than she had ever been, she remembered. She was not “a little girl.” She was not “nothing.” She was a princess, the daughter of the most powerful, loving King in the universe.

Her fear turned to faith. “I am a princess who is on a journey to return to my father, the King,” she shouted. And then, for the first time in a long time, she looked at the map.

And Princess Faith remembered her Father’s words: “You alone have special talents, Faith. You are able to hope and have faith in things others cannot see.”

And her faith returned that if she stayed close to the map, she would return to live with her Father, the King.

***

Princess Hope had always relied on her sisters for everything she needed in the Kingdom. Now that she was on her own, she didn’t think she could survive in a strange land. She consulted the map regularly. Some days, she felt it gave her the guidance she needed, other days she felt discouraged and didn’t want to look at it at all.

Was she really worthy of the map’s guidance? Surely, her older, stronger, more righteous sisters were doing so much better than she was.

Everywhere Hope looked around her in this strange land, she found promises of happiness.  Television commercials promised total bliss if she would only buy certain clothing. When she watched movies, girls looked like they were the best of friends, even though they were saying mean things about each other behind their backs.

In a world where evil is portrayed as good and good as evil, Hope thought it was difficult to know the truth.

Despite her confusion and discouragement, a little voice inside of her told her to never give up on that map. Her persistence paid off for one day, the map gave her this answer: “Your beloved King seeks for your good and your happiness. But you will not find lasting happiness in the things of this new world.”

Then her Father’s words pierced her heart, “Princess Hope. Your name has a very special meaning. ‘Hope’ means longing…and wanting and never giving up on the promised blessings of eternal life through your faith in Jesus Christ.”

And Princess Hope never, ever forgot it.

***

When Princess Grace arrived at this strange land, she was very popular and made many friends immediately. There was always a party and always fun on the horizon. She consulted the map from time-and-time and felt like she was living a good life.

Until some of her friends noticed.

“Do you really think that is a magical map?” they teased. “Don’t you know there’s no such thing?”

And with time, Princess Grace believed them until one day, a strange, small woman—so unlike the beautiful people Grace had grown to know—arrived in her village.

“I hear you have a magical map,” she inquired of Princess Grace.

“I have a map,” Grace replied. “But it is not magical.”

“Then what is your price?” asked the old woman.

Reluctant to part with the map, Grace replied, “It’s not for sale.”

And as she said that, Grace remembered her Father’s words. Grace is the help or strength we are given through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Through His grace, the Lord also enables those who live His gospel to repent and be forgiven.

Grace burst into tears as she realized she had thrown this gift, this map, without price to the wolves. She repented and from that moment on, she only stayed with friends who believed in the map’s magic as she did.

****

Princess Charity traveled a much different path than her sisters. She never went even one day without looking at her map. And even though she became lost, made mistakes, encountered creatures in the woods and at times, wondered if she would ever find her way home, she never forgot her Father’s parting words to her.

“My dear Charity. Your name means the pure love of Christ. This is the love that your brother has and is the highest, noblest and strongest kind of love.”

And she lived every day, striving to become one step closer to her Father.

Chapter 3: Happily Ever After

After many years, the princesses were summoned to return home by their Father, the King.

The reunion was joyous. They were hugs and many tears as these dear sisters celebrated being together once again.

And then their father stood to speak.

“My dear daughters,” this father—their Heavenly Father said. “Many years ago, I sent you on a journey. Though it was difficult for me to see you go, I knew this journey to the strange land was the only way you could grow to become the true princesses I’ve always known you could become.”

As the sisters looked at each other, they noticed for the first time how each had changed. Their eyes were wiser, their confidence stronger and most importantly, they no longer felt like something was missing from their lives.

Their Father continued. “But I did not send you on this journey alone. This map was a representation of the Holy Ghost, prayer, the scriptures and your Elder Brother, Jesus Christ. It was a guide for you in this new world. Some of you relied on it every day. Others of you did not.”

And then their Father paused, finding the words.

“But my dear daughters, I am overjoyed that though your journeys and challengers were so different, that each of you remembered the special gifts that only you possess.  And it was those talents, along with the map, that helped you return to live eternally with me. You are now true princesses.”

Like Princess Faith, Princess Grace, Princess Hope and Princess Charity, you are the daughter of a King. And this Father has given each of you special talents and a map to help guide you home.

Always remember that if you stay true and close to your Father in Heaven that someday you will live your Happily Ever After with Him.

====

Wendy’s official invitation for the event. I was the “Special Presentation” at the end when I read this story.

Filed Under: LDS

Finally, a weekend breather

February 29, 2016 By

With three back-to-back weekends of travel and Jamie’s family visiting for a week during it all, I was ready for our crazed February schedule to calm down. I had some pretty daunting deadlines and the big ones were met: namely cranking out my article for The Broadmoor Magazine (details on my amazing birthday trip forthcoming).

It felt so wonderful to be in Denver last weekend and to actually have some semblance of a normal life (though the kids would somewhat disagree because some of that normalcy was dedicated unto cleaning the garage). I also attended an uplifting stake women’s conference at church, Jamie helped someone move, the boys went out to eat and watched BYU basketball while Hadley and I had a girl’s night to see Les Miserables performed at the local high school. Several kids from church were a part of it including Hadley’s bestie Alex and my hiking friend Dawn’s son was mind-blowingly good as Javert. In fact, the singing was so unbelievable I had to keep reminding myself it wasn’t a professional production. Go, high schoolers!

Both of the kids had sleepovers on Friday–Hadley’s friend Kasey came to us while Bode was at his buddy Nicky’s house–but they ended up at our elementary school’s annual 6th graders vs. teachers basketball game. I had no idea this was the social event of the season with not only basketball but a flash mob of “The Whip.” The girls made Go Students/Anti-Teacher signs to distribute at the game and I loved watching my kids ditch me (image that) to bond with their friends.

(Bode with his besties Kyler, Vinnie, Nicky, Mathias, Jacob, Andy, Angelo, Brody. Hadley and Kasey left to sit with their sixth grade friends after handing out the signs).

I seriously get teary-eyed when I think of the wonderful group of friends they have and how much they adore each other. For the first time, I deeply appreciated how blessed we are to have such an amazing community at our elementary school. Sometimes I get sad about them growing up too fast but I sure caught a glimpse of fun things to come as teens.

Filed Under: Bode, Hadley

Sew Wrong

February 23, 2016 By

Hadley has taken an interest in sewing and asked to bring my sewing machine out of the catacombs. I warned her “that’s fine but you’re on your own,” which is a subtle way of saying I don’t even remember how to thread that thing.

Fortunately, there is a glorious thing called YouTube for tutorials. And her friend Alex who stayed with us a couple of nights while her parents were in Mexico and the girls cranked out this cute skirt our of an old bed skirt.

It’s not that my mom and grandma didn’t try to develop my domestic prowess. When most kids are getting sent to their rooms for bad behavior, this tomboy was sent to the kitchen. Suffice it to say, I spent most of my childhood there. Sewing is out of the question. A wave of nausea still comes over me whenever I get within 20 feet of a fabric store.

The last time I had that sewing machine out was when Hadley was a baby and my friend Sue came for a visit. I knew I had to solicit her help. She has been sewing for more than 20 years and actually enjoys it. Imagine that! One of the few things that helped Haddie jump from 2 hours to a whopping 4-hour stretch of sleep was this little miracle blanket called a sleep sack. A friend gave it to me when Haddie was six months old and it did wonders. The only problem is no one sells this little fleece sleeping bag and Haddie already established there waw NO WAY she is giving up her blankie for some new kid who’s going to draw Grandma’s attentions away from her.

Enter, Sue. I innocently brought up the subject shortly after her arrival and she looked at me suspiciously, “You don’t want me to sew it, do you?” “Ohhhhh no!” I generously told her I just needed “guidance.” Yeah, right.

And so I brought the sewing machine out of the catacombs and plugged it in. And then she warily watched me as I searched for the power button. When I finally located it after about five minutes, I did a victory dance. It was then that she knew just how bad off we were. And how long the process would inevitably take with my pedal to the metal so she reluctantly volunteered. Victory!

But then came regret. That’s all it took? Displaying my utter and complete incompetence upfront?

If only I’d figured out this strategy years ago; it would’ve saved me countless hours of futile Domestic-Diva-in-Training sessions.

 

Filed Under: Humor
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