Why I’m hiding the knives

December 13, 2013 By

Thursday is our crazy day when I juggle carpool, volleyball, piano and Activity Days at the church. Yesterday was particularly crazy because Bode had literacy night at his school and I had my Relief Society Christmas dinner, all at the same time as Hadley’s volleyball.

That whole cloning thing would have been especially useful.

As we were racing around, Bode I were chatting and he announced, “No pressure, Mom.”

I perked up, figuring he had something he wanted to add to his Christmas wish list but it was so much better/worse.

“No pressure, Mom, but when you die are you going to leave Hadley and me money?”

Jamie joked when I told him later: “I was wondering why he was asking about my life insurance policy the other day.”

Filed Under: Bode, Humor, Jamie

KEEN on Bode’s Killer New Winter Boots

December 11, 2013 By

I haven’t complained even once about the Arctic freeze that has fallen over the country for one simple reason: remember our blistering summers? No way I can ever forget. So I’ve kept my mouth shut, grateful it’s not hot but not fully embracing the single-digit temps with biting wind chill.

Yesterday was our first day above freezing in over a week. The moment the kids walked in the door from school I announced, “We’re going on an adventure!” which usually results in knowing groans but within moments, all reluctance is forgotten as they’re unleashed in the great outdoors

We were on a mission to test out Bode’s new KEEN Loveland Boots WP ($70). I’ve been a long-time advocate of their great footwear–everything from sandals to Mary Janes to trail runners but we’ve never tried out their boots so I jumped at the chance when KEEN offered to send Bode a pair to review. Never mind I’d just bought a used no-name brand from the local thrift store. These are, after all, KEENS!

As soon as Bode slipped them on (easy to do with their bungee lace system), he squealed, “They’re so light!” which is certainly a paradigm shift from his usual heavy, clunky winter wear.  Prospect Park was the perfect testing ground as it combined outdoor play on the trails with versatility on the playground.

Because doesn’t every kid do the monkey bars in the snow?

And scale treacherous climbing walls? No problem with the dual-climate outsole for great traction on slippery surfaces.
Of course, you have to do the snow test in winter boots and the warm insulation kept his feet warm while the waterproof, breathable membrane kept him dry.

Bode wasn’t the only one having an adventure that day and both kids pressured me to join in the fun. I doubtfully looked at the slippery jungle gym. “You really don’t want me to try this and die, do you? I’m the only one who knows where the Christmas presents are hidden.”

They took their chances and I rose to the challenge by climbing the very slick climbing wall in my very non-KEEN boots.

It was touch-and-go for a bit but I lived to tell the tale. Sometimes it’s the little [in your face] victories that mean the most.

But next time, I hope I’ll be sporting some cool KEEN winter boots like Bode.

Filed Under: Bode, outdoors

A Fun Tropical Vacation with the Mario Party Island Tour!

December 10, 2013 By

My kids don’t know how good they have it. A few years back, I was contacted by Nintendo about being an “Influencer” or “Ambassador” for the brand. What does that entail? Playing video games! I love the organic feel of this unpaid campaign and the kids love it even more. Sure, we occasionally get sent new games (Hadley is gonna freak when she gets Animal Crossing for Christmas!) but it’s all about grassroots marketing and authentic experiences, which is easy to do because Bode looks forward to his bi-weekly WiiU times.

Side note: he’s been workin’ it with his grandmas on getting new games (thanks to Jamie’s mom for getting him Super Mario 3D Land). My parents almost bought him the same thing but I steered them in the direction of getting the kids much-needed carry-ons. I wonder what they’ll be more excited about. :)

Last weekend, our Nintendo peeps descended upon our snowy, single-digit landscape to invite us to a Mario Party Island Tour! When we arrived at the venue, a beautiful historic mansion, it had been transformed into a plastic tropical paradise with beach balls, bean bags, palm trees and leis. Each person signed out a DS unit for us to play this new game and it was the most anti-social, social event around.

I don’t claim to be a Mario expert but what I thought was cool was you can connect up to four players if you have wireless so we battled it out on the 7 new game boards and 80 new minigames as we wrangled goombas (huh?!) and blasted out of cannons.

And yes, Bode beat us in practically every game.

We had a blast playing with old friends and meeting new ones.

Blogging queens Gretchen, moi, Melissa, Justine and Aimee (taken with her phone)

Dangerous palm trees

You know you’ve been to a killer party when you not only play a fun game like Mario Party Island Tour but the decorations become weapons and the furniture (beanbags) = party favors! Thanks to Nintendo for the warm blast of fun!

 

 

 

Filed Under: Humor

“Easy-Bake” Oven My Butt: A Cooking Guide to Every Mother’s Worst Nightmare

December 9, 2013 By

It is important for me to teach my daughter Hadley how to cook. My mom was a top-notch chef and ran a popular restaurant for many years. Growing up, I wasn’t what you would call a gourmand. Case in point: the infamous fiasco when I misread the gingerbread recipe and added 1 cup of ginger instead of 1 tablespoon.

A minor oversight.

My interest in cooking was not ignited until after college and now I love it. These days, my attempts to tap into my mother’s fountain of knowledge are met with frustration as she tries to recall her from-scratch recipes, none of which are written down nor have actual measurements.

Because evidently good cooks do not use measuring cups.

When I was at a store the other day, Christmas toys littered the entrance. Hot wheels. Dolls. And, much to my abhorrence, Easy-Bake-Ovens. A few years ago, I bought Hadley an Easy-Bake Oven for Christmas. She has always enjoyed cooking with me and I figured this would be one more notch on our mother-daughter bonding belt.

How wrong I was.

Click to read on

Filed Under: Hadley, Humor

Johnson Family Newsletter 2013

December 4, 2013 By

In typical bipolar fashion, I decided to do a holiday newsletter, then opted out and then upon receiving newsy holiday  newsletters from friends,  decided it should be back on. After all, the world must know what the Johnsons did in 2013!

Overall, we had a great time full of family and friends, travel and minimal hospital visits (our gauge for a good year). We took plenty of fantastic ski vacations all over Colorado and a week at our favorite, Park City Mountain Resort in Utah. Last summer, the kids and I spent almost a month in Canada on a 3,000-mile trip that covered two countries and six states (Colorado, Montana, Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Utah). Jamie was only able to join us for a week of our trip, citing  “someone has to work to support your playtime.” Wise man; I couldn’t agree more.

Here’s a quick glimpse at our happenings. Click on the links for more details!

Atop 14,265-foot Mount Evans

Hadley

Hadley (9 going on 19) is in fourth grade at her Waldorf charter school and continues to love their arts-based academic education. Our free-spirited, fun-loving girl has been on several camping trips with her class and keeps busy with piano and volleyball. She’s also a stellar skier and for my birthday, we had a girl’s weekend of mogul-busting, snowshoeing, lake-skating and sledding. Hadley is a huge fan of horses and was delighted to spend a week at overnight Camp Chief Ouray last summer. She loves Fat Kitty, swimming, hiking, crafting, gardening, cooking and she was the top-performing girl in her grade at her school’s Fun Run. I should know. I ran beside her the entire way until our fifth mile when she blazed past me and I walked with a limp for a week. Her love for Scooby Doo has been replaced by mind-numbing shows on the Disney Channel like “Jessie” and “Dog with a Blog.” It looks like we have a tween, folks.

Hadley’s first scary leap into the Rooster Tail at the lake house in Vernon, B.C.

Skating at Copper Mountain

Summer hiking group at Mount Falcon

Bode

Our resident geek, Bode (age 7) loves all things space, educational and ensuring everyone is following the rules all the time. He is moderately obsessed with being the best-behaved kid in his second grade class (yet somehow is also among the most well-liked), thrives in academics, is a great little soccer player, skier, hiker, cook, master pumpkin grower and lives for his bi-weekly WiiU and technology sessions. For the second year in a row, he and Hadley were my child models at the 9News Back-to-School fashion show and he put Zoolander to shame. He and his sister went to Avid4Advenventure’s Survival Camp last summer and I now feel confident they can survive exactly two hours solo in the great outdoors. He never shuts up on the piano loves to play the piano, enjoys to read Calvin and Hobbes, bike down to our neighborhood skate park and play with LEGOS. His current obsession is constructing dream mansions for us out of giant wooden blocks and creating intricate maps of his designs. We strongly encourage this as a future profession.

First solo flight to see Grandma in Utah!

A snowy hike in Evergreen=joy

First fish fly fishing at The Ranch at Emerald Valley

Jamie

The Pumpkin Man had a great year. He grew his biggest pumpkin ever, 1,220-pound Stanley, and we landed a picture of him in The Denver Post. A professional carver drove down every day from Fort Collins for a week to chisel a marvelously creepy face into the giant gourd. And then Stanley and Jamie went on tour visiting both of the kids’ schools and harvest festivals, thereby cementing his status as a local celebrity. In other news (though really, is there any other news?), Jamie’s web development business Pixo Web Design and Strategy continues to grow, he has a few employees and is always busy. We marked our 10-year wedding anniversary last February and he surprised me by recreating the magical night we got engaged that included a limo ride to the swanky Briarwood Inn. He was recently released from the Bishopric at church and not even five days later, he was called as a stake clerk over technology, a real stretch.

Atop McConkey’s lift for the first time as a family at Park City Mountain Resort

Stanley the Pumpkin

Stanley’s scary carving

Amber

I’ve had a busy year working for the newspaper and various freelance opps in the travel industry. Our favorite gig is writing for AAA Five Diamond The Broadmoor’s magazine because they pay their writers in trade, which amounts to an opulent, indulgent vacation like no other in Colorado Springs.  I love hiking every week, skiing, boot camp, volunteering at school and in the community. I received an award in recognition of journalistic excellence as a community blogger from Digital First Media, The Denver Post’s parent company. But my real prize was when I was at a media luncheon hosted by the Maui Convention and Visitor’s Bureau and my name was drawn as the winner of a trip to Maui (we’re going in February). At church, I was sad to be released from the Young Women (favorite calling ever) and now serve in the stake’s Public Affairs where I work with community leaders and media.  I’m also the volleyball coach and our ward’s Primary pianist and have mastered The Look from across the room, which quickly corrects the behavior of any misbehaving kids. We all have our talents.

Solo hike to Maxwell Falls in Evergreen, Colo.

9News fashion show

Girl’s only birthday ski trip

Fat Kitty

He’s still fat, snuggly, sleepy, sweet and lives for his backyard adventures of stalking mice and eating grass ’til he pukes. We often walk in on him licking himself in Cirque du Soleil-esque positions but it was this shot I took of him on my bed that convinced us all that he’ll be America’s Next Top Model. Look for him on a Kitty Litter advertisement coming your way soon.

America’s Top (Cat) Model

We feel infinitely blessed this holiday season for wonderful family, good friends and the gospel in our lives.

Merry Christmas!

XO

The Johnsons

Filed Under: Bode, Family, Family travel, Hadley, holidays, Humor, Jamie, LDS, Marriage, outdoors, pumpkins, skiing, travel, Utah

My Husband: The Giver

December 1, 2013 By

It’s Jamie’s birthday next week so Hadley and I set out to find the perfect gift in downtown Denver yesterday. I discovered something about myself: though I usually don’t like shopping unless it’s at Target or Costco, I genuinely enjoy browsing unique boutiques and outdoor markets. Malls are pretty much my worst nightmare.

Something else I learned: Hadley is really picky with everything–from clothes to food.  I already knew that. But the epiphany I had was that, though it’s nearly impossible and frustrating to find anything she likes, having a tween who is picky with clothes is not a bad thing. I offered to buy her something yesterday but she couldn’t find even one thing she liked. Savings success!

She takes after her father who is tough to buy for but unlike her, he  only likes big-ticket items. This is a problem when you do not have a big-ticket budget. Hadley and I were wandering around T.J. Maxx looking for his gift when I found these shoes I HAD to buy.

My justification? He’d have wanted me to have them for his birthday because he’s a giver like that.

Filed Under: Hadley, Humor, Jamie

Thanksgiving 2013: Turkey Trotting and Bursting with Flavor!

November 29, 2013 By

It’s been a busy few weeks and this blog of mine has suffered. I literally have a month’s worth of updates and with the holidays upon us, it’s likely I won’t ever get caught up. I have some career changes I’m trying to navigate that, right now, are causing an uproar but in the end I’m hoping they’ll be good things. When a door closes a window always opens, right? At this point, I’m hoping for a skylight with a heavenly messenger telling me what the heck I’m supposed to be doing.

We’ve had a great Thanksgiving week. We skied Copper Mountain (details forthcoming), played a lot and ate even more. Jamie’s wonderful mom Linda is in town to help his sister after back surgery so we’ve been busy juggling everything.

I’ve stated before that Thanksgiving is probably my least favorite holiday because of all the gluttony and football but it’s  growing on me. We started out with our 7th Annual Turkey Trot Hike. It was a gorgeous day and I can’t believe how much my kids have grown since the first year we did it.

Please disregard the finger of the dude who took our picture in the top corner. He didn’t appreciate being asked to do it so I’m hoping it wasn’t his middle one.

The hike was as steep as always but these kids of mine are becoming intrepid hikers.

Plus, I gave the pitch as an excuse for Bode to hold my hand to give me balance on the way down. Gotta soak up these moments while you can!

Even in late-November, the views at the top were gorgeous.

We couldn’t fit our fat heads in this selfie but we had to try

Hadley has to free climb every rock wall or boulder she sees

Hiking Turkey Trot is always a great lead-in to our meal. We each had food assignments. Jamie’s brother Chris smoked the turkey (thankfully he gave in to my pleading NOT to do a deep-fried one), we did the sides (garlic-mashed potatoes, jalapeno sausage stuffing, pomegranate-pear salad, green bean casserole and cranberry salsa), while Linda made her famous rolls and was in charge of desserts.

Complication: The day before Thanksgiving she called to say poor Lisa was in the ER in pain so could we please pick-up the cheesecakes from Cheesecake Therapy and run to Costco for some apple pie? The cheesecakes weren’t a problem and Jamie grabbed egg nog, gingerbread, pumpkin and white chocolate raspberry from this darling bake shop.

The apple pie was a problem. I hate crowds and finish most of my shopping before Thanksgiving in an effort to avoid them (and yep, I don’t like shopping, either). So come hell or high water, there was NO WAY I was going to go to Costco the day before Thanksgiving and stand in line for an hour for just one item. Another complication: Jamie loves Costco’s apple pie but I came up with a solution to bake our own. I just added it to our list of items I was already making that also included several dozen cream cheese cutout cookies. Basically, my kitchen looked like a bomb went off. But Hadley was an excellent helper.

Jamie was incredulous. “So, you’d rather spend all this time making a pie just to avoid going to Costco?” Yup.

I retorted. “So you’re actually whining that your wife is making you a homemade apple pie instead of a store-bought one?” Touché, my friends.

In the end, everyone was happy. We had an amazing spread of food, Linda’s rolls were better than ever and Chris smoked some unbelievably delicious gouda cheese in the smoker.

Rolls, pomegranate pear salad and our appetizer spread

Chris smoked his best turkey ever: moist and bursting with flavor

The kids did a wonderful job setting the table with my mom’s china and grandmother’s beautiful utensils. My heart was full of love for this wonderful family of mine, the life we’ve created and the miracles that surround us.

I’m sure Jamie feels the same way regardless of the fact that every picture I took of him that night he looked like was going to burst.

Just chalk it up to an overabundance of culinary blessings.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Filed Under: Bode, Family, Foodie, Hadley, holidays, Humor, Jamie

When you can’t win in marriage

November 26, 2013 By

Jamie and I had a bad night’s sleep and I really, really, really didn’t want to go to a party that night but knew we should.

“Jamie, I don’t want to go. But tell me I need to go.”

“Go.”

“Has anyone ever told you how bossy you are?”

Filed Under: Humor, Jamie, Uncategorized

Perfect for After Thanksgiving: Chicken (or turkey) vol-au-vents!

November 26, 2013 By

My mom has been making Chicken Vol-au-Vents for as long as I can remember. Sounds fancy? When you’re from Canada, you don’t think twice about incorporating French dishes into your cooking repertoire. I’m not quite sure what vol-au-vent means but following the enthusiastic response this tasty recipe received from my picky kids, I’d translate it as “miracle food.”

Chicken Vol-au-Vents are essentially a light puff pastry shell filled with a ragout of meat, veggies or fish. They’re super easy to make and delicious. The first time I introduced them my husband when we were first married, he didn’t get it.

Me: Voila, dinner tonight is Chicken Vol-au-vents with Parmesan couscous and fresh broccoli from the garden.
Husband: Errr..why do these them thar biscuits have holes in them?
Me: They’re not biscuits, you Southern Redneck. They’re puffed pastries with le fowl francais in them.
Jamie: Errr…where’s the gravy go?

Note for the uninitiated: asking where the gravy goes on the “biscuits” is equal unto putting ketchup on a gourmet steak.

Chicken (or turkey) Vol-au-Vent Recipe

Ingredients

Cooking the white sauce

Cooking the white sauce

2 boxes of puffed pastry shells, 12 shells total (I buy Pepperidge Farm, found in the freezer section)
1/2 cup of butter
3/4 to 1 cup of flour
1 small can of evaporated milk (5 ounces)
1-1.5 cups of milk
1 cup cooked, chopped chicken or turkey
1 tsp garlic
1/2 onion
1/2 tsp salt and pepper
1 Tbsp chicken bouillon (or 4 small cubes)
1/4 cup white wine (optional)
Veggies of your choosing. My family likes carrots and onions. Other options could include peas, cauliflower or mushrooms.

Directions

Depending upon what vegetables you have chosen, cook them. I always saute garlic and about 1/2 an onion in 2 tsps of olive oil and then add the carrots.

Melt the butter in a separate medium-sized sauce pan over medium heat. Add 3/4 cup of flour and whisk with the two milks. You want the white sauce to be fairly thick so be sure to slowly add the milk. Add the white wine if you are using it and stir constantly for about 5 minutes. Add the bouillon, garlic, salt and pepper. Turn the heat down and add the meat and vegetables. Simmer, stirring occasionally.

Cook the puff pastries according to the package instructions. When they are lightly browned, remove and carve out the center of the pastry, spoon the chicken mixture into the middle and serve. Enjoy!

Filed Under: Foodie

Recipe: Fresh pear and curry pasta

November 21, 2013 By

Now, I’m not about to get all partridge in a pear tree on you but ’tis the season for pears.

I call this time of the year the dark and dreary world of fruit eating (anyone else miss their mangoes, peaches and strawberries?) but I love cooking with pears. And a flavor combination I enjoy is pears and curry.

Years ago, my mom gave me a fabulous Canadian cookbook The Best of Bridge. This dish is from their Best of the Best with all their top recipes so you know it’s gotta be good.  It’s meatless but if you want you can serve it with chicken or pork. I generally double it because the recipe only serves two and I add garbanzo beans for flavor and protein. Enjoy…your house will smell wonderful for days after you’ve tried it.

Fresh pear and curry pasta

(serves 2; I generally double this recipe)

1/2 small onion, chopped
2 Tbsp oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp medium curry paste (or I just use 2-3 tsp of curry)
1 tsp tomato paste
2 Tbsp honey (I prefer more to make it sweeter)
1 can garbanzo beans
2 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1 unpeeled ripe pear, peeled and sliced in thin wedges
2 tomatoes, chopped
2 Tbsp cream (optional; I leave out when I’m trying to eat healthier)
3 Tbsp chopped cilantro
Pasta for 2: rotini, bow ties or shells

Instructions
In a frying pan over medium heat, saute onion in oil until soft. Add garlic and curry and stir 2-3 minutes. Add tomato paste and honey and stir another 2 minutes. Add broth and beans, increase heat to medium high and boil gently, reducing liquid to less than 1 cup. (This takes about 15 minutes). If you like it less thick and more soupy, don’t cook as long (I love to do this and also use it as soup).

Not cooked as long, used as soup

Delicious with cream

Add pear slices and cook for 1 minute. Add tomatoes and cream and stir another 2 minutes. Stir in the chopped cilantro. Pour over pasta and toss gently. Enjoy!

Filed Under: Foodie Tagged With:
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