Thankful

Today was a good day.
Actually, it was a great day!

(I'll warn you, I'm definitely in a "Tonja" mood tonight. Some of you may want to skip this post if it's too positive and sunshiny for you to handle.)

It feels great to be back at work doing something I really love and have Anthony going to Nae's house, which he really loves too. Given the economy and everything that's happening, I feel very fortunate to have a job and enjoy that job. Work doesn't feel like work. I never watch the clock and watch the hours tick past like I used to when I worked other jobs. Quite simply, it feels like I'm doing what I'm meant to be doing.
I feel so inclined to tell all of you because I may need some reminders as the year progresses and challenges occur. Hopefully all of you can help me to be thankful in spite of what life may throw at me. Too many times it's just too easy to be negative and slip into a type of thinking that gets me nowhere. I try to avoid that mindset at all costs, but there was that one time I came home with smokes and a six pack. (Really, it was only that one time. I don't make a habit of freaking Mark out with streaked mascara, lots of tears/snot and a quiet night out on the deck all bundled up against the cold. Honestly!)
Optimism and a positive attitude is a good thing. More importantly it's just who I am.
Today my principal showed a clip of coach Don Meyer who won the Jimmy V Award at the 2009 Espys.
(I promise this segue into something else really is connected to the main premise of this post.)
Meyer's story was moving and his spirit was infectious. His attitude and philosophy of the three Fs - Faith, Family and Friends - was something to aspire to. It was also a good reminder for me to always be who I am, enjoy the life I have and be thankful for all of the blessings in my life regardless of what others may say or do.

The best part of my day, though, came much later at home. Anthony wanted to dance before going to bed. (Duh. Who doesn't want to dance before going to bed?!) We played some Billie Jean and had a great time entertaining Mark and Zoey with our awesome moves.

Like I said, there's always so much to be thankful for in life!

Birthday Highlights!

Auntie Manda once again did a fabulous job of making Anthony his birthday cake. He was very excited to finally see this masterpiece and we had to keep him from poking his fingers into it before his guests arrived. Thank you, as always, for your creativity and willingness to create such great and yummy birthday cakes, Manda!

The Yamaha four-wheeler sure got lots of use once again this year. CJ, now FIVE, had a good time going around the yard.

Manda and Cynthia bonding and chatting up a storm.

Ry, Cam and Anthony playing in the new sandbox.

SMILE! Nicholas is getting so big, 18 months old now, and is quite the smiler. He loved having some time in the jumper all by himself.

All the boys sitting down to eat. (No, the Leinenkugels is not Nicholas's, but he did love "drinking" out of it!)

What beautiful friends I have! (Try to disregard the awful garage background.) Thanks again for the beautiful flowers, Erik, Carol and Laura. That was very sweet of all of you!

Cynthia and Erik met for the first time and hit if off in a big way. By the end of the night they had their own inside jokes and lots of funny stories to share. I'm so glad they were finally able to meet and get to know each other.

Uncle Damon got a little bored so he needed to sharpen his chain. Shocking, huh?! :)

Present time! Anthony definitely did better with opening presents this year; however, he didn't want to put down his new cars long enough to keep opening other gifts. Luckily, he got some help from CJ, Ry and Cam. Thanks, boys!

A trying out his new Lightning McQueen bike and getting a little help from Grandma Kathy.

Last Saturday we had Anthony's third birthday party hosting 17 family and friends. This year was a big change from last year. He knew his birthday was coming up and was extremely excited. Even now, days after, he asking if he can have a birthday party again so he can play with his friends, open presents and eat more cake. It's great to see all of that excitement!
There were a lot of highlights from this year's party. Of course it wouldn't be a get together without something "interesting" happening. So I wasn't surprised to walk into the backyard seeing Luke hop around, grabbing the hose and trying to spray dog poo from his foot. Not to be outdone, Anthony got sick in the jumper and vomited as well as filling his pants. Geez! On a more serious note, though, it was awesome that so many people took time to celebrate with Anthony. It was great to have our family down for the weekend and have friends come over to our house. The biggest highlight was that Cynthia was able to come and spend the night with us this year! The four of us - Cynthia, Erik, Mark and myself - stayed up late chatting around the fire and getting to know each other even better. I'm so glad she was able to come and celebrate and spend time with us.

To see more pictures including Anthony's interesting "chainsaw face" be sure to check out Erin's blog - The Lefebvre Party of 4! She did a great job capturing the day with her AWESOME camera.

Awkward Family Photos

In the world of blogging I came across this site that is "spreading the awkwardness", which has me constantly laughing and sucking up even more time spent on the Internet. Enjoy!

Here's are some of my favorites:

(WARNING: Only click on these sites if you really want to be rolling on the floor!)

Saturday Night Special: Watchman - Seriously? What was this guy thinking? WHY would you want a photo of yourself looking like that? (Manda - I know you'll love this one, but you could potentially pee your pants. View carefully!)

Meet the Starks - This one should be called Meet the Johnsons. I swear the girl looks like me growing up - big glass, big bangs/awful hair and wearing peach. (I remember Erin and I talking about wanting peach bridesmaid dresses. Ugh. Thankfully we didn't get married in that decade!)

Saturday Night Special: Girls Night Out - Whew! I thought my mom might be in this photo.

LOL Cats - FYI: Your pet cat is NOT a piece of clothing! SERIOUSLY!

Henhouse - Where in the world does something like this actually happen?

Saturday Night Special: Dressing Down - Creepy!

Elbow Room - Thanks to "Smiles" we actually have a wedding photo like this. Yay...

Awkward Solo Photo: Roman Shade - Why? (Manda - Please never try this on any of your clients! However, if you did pose Damon in this manner it might make for an interesting Christmas card! Actually, I take that back. The Saturday Night Special: Watchman would be the ultimate pose for your 2009 Christmas card!)

Family Tree - What a bad idea...

Bon Family - Wow, that's a lot of hair. Too Funny!

Three?

The Lilypie doesn't lie.
Happy birthday, Bubsa Beetle!

I still can't believe that A turned three today. Somehow life is going faster now that we are parents and everyday we watch our little guy get bigger and do things he couldn't do the day before.
This morning he was very tired, but was all smiles as I sang Happy Birthday to wake him up. The first thing he asked was if he could have his cupcake and go eat at McDonald's. He was bummed and started to whine until he realize he got to go play at Nae's house today and then we would celebrate. We ended up doing just that as well as swimming at a local pool, which turned out to be a lot of fun.
Tomorrow will officially be 18 months to the day that we brought our little 18 month old home. Again, time seems to be going by so fast. Without a doubt, this is a good reminder to enjoy each and every day regardless of what may be going on. Especially since teaching another year of school, the big stress maker, is just around the corner for this momma.

Stay tuned! Birthday party photos will be posted soon.

Can't live without...

my new red goggles. Aren't they awesome?! Even though they are not technically for the bathtub they sure do make bath time so much more fun.

Adele Rufaro

The beautiful momma-to-be, Gretchen!
Check out that baby bump.

Tracy, the host for the day, with cutie pie Emerson and Picasso.

As usual, we're completely engrossed in conversation.

On Sunday the 16th Tracy hosted a shower for Gretchen and Baby Adele. Really it was no surprise that it ended up being a great afternoon of chatting, eating wonderful food, spending some quality time together and watching Gretchen open up her gifts with lots of questions and laughs too. She has five weeks to go now and we're all anxious to meet their little cutie patootie.

Hodgepodge Happenings

As of last week Anthony can officially ride his trike, which is great news because he got his first bike for his birthday! Everyday he likes to go to the park and is always all about safety wearing his bug helmet. On this particular day he insisted on being a fireman and also insisted on wearing his fireman rain boots that were 2 1/2 sizes too small for him. Oh well. It's so much fun to see him growing and changing and becoming such a big boy!

On Friday the "Sand Man" finally made an appearance at our house dropping off a yard of sand for Anthony's new sandbox in the backyard. Anthony was anxiously awaiting the big truck being that the delivery kept getting pushed back due to the rainy weather. The yard of sand was dumped in our driveway and then we spent the rest of the afternoon hauling it to the backyard using the wheel barrow and A's wagon, which, coincidentally he needed to ride in and "help".
Last week A and I put on his serious finger painting gear and had some fun at the kitchen table. He was very into creating master piece after master piece and being careful to keep the paint on his plate and canvas. I'm still amazed how well he does with a project --- Play Doh, coloring, playing with cars, etc. --- and how it can keep his interest for a fair amount of time.


Last, but not least, is an update on the whole sleeping in a big boy bed and potty training efforts. It, surprisingly, is going so smoothly. Anthony has had zero problems transitioning to his toddler bed and is definitely more than ready to be rid of the crib. I'm also pleasantly surprised with his transition to going potty on the potty chair. I am now a firm believer in readiness for children. I think it was good we got a potty chair early on for him and showed him how to use it; however, with future kids I will never push it on him or her. Anthony truly has demonstrated that he gets it and does a really good job of letting us know when he has to go. Since switching over he's only had three accidents, which is pretty darn good. Today was his first week back to day care and I anticipated that he might forget to go potty and have an accident. I was super proud to find out he did just fine and always let Nae know when he had to go. I know there will definitely be ups and downs in this process, but I'm just so excited to see him getting it!

Hopefully it's okay and politically correct for little boys to go pee outside when we live in town. I think that might be his favorite place to pee.

The Girls of Summer

The "A" team comes over for a visit with A.

Sometimes living and teaching in the same town can be a bit tricky. I don't mind going for walks and seeing kids or running into them at the local Jubilee. However, there have been many times I wish they did not know my address. A recent favorite (of students mind you - not us) in the past few months has been the random door bell ringing at all hours of the day. The sad part is that I ALWAYS fall for it. The door bell ringing, unfortunately, isn't the worst thing that has ever happened. I don't think anything could ever top the "used" condom left on our front door that Mark, thankfully, found. I think that will always trump anything students could think up in my remaining years of teaching.
There has been a very nice silver lining in the midst of all of this chaos, though. This summer Anthony has completely fallen in love with "my girls". Allison and Ali (occasionally Abby too) have come over several nights to see if Anthony could go outside and play with them. (You seriously have to love kindhearted, well intentioned, and good-to-the-core middle schoolers!) Every time they end up taking him to the park and/or around the block for a walk for a good hour or so and he absolutely loves it. When they return they play in the backyard and enjoy a much deserved popsicle. Whenever I try to engage in a conversation with them or play too, Anthony tells me to go into the house so he can play with "my girls". It's pretty sassy, but cute how much he loves spending time with them.
Even though I'm feeling a bit trepidatious about starting another school year and getting thrown back into the stress, I am looking forward to meeting more students like these three girls. They are the ones who truly make teaching youngsters beyond worth it.

We're EXPECTING!

No, not Mark and I, but collectively the Johnson family is excited about Manda and Damon's pregnancy. I love that our family is growing, that Anthony will have a little cousin to play with when we get together and that I get to become an auntie now too! (It's also great to live vicariously through my sister's pregnancy! This whole process is just so amazing and such a miracle.) Anthony is extremely excited and has lifted up auntie's shirt many times to "look" at the baby or give him/her a kiss. So far he hasn't decided whether it will be a boy or a girl (he keeps changing his mind), but he has come up with several clever names --- Stickers, Suckers, Sister and AJ. I guess we'll have to wait until January 13th to met Baby Tuttle and see if one of his names gets chosen. Be sure to check out Manda's beautiful growing baby bump here!

The Joy

This afternoon Anthony helped me to prepare a dessert for us to enjoy after supper. I wanted to make our meal special being that seven years ago Mark had proposed to me in a hot air balloon overlooking Lake Tahoe. Anthony devoured the meal and then ended up licking his dessert plate clean too. On this night seven years ago I could never imagine my life being filled with all of this --- it's more than I could have ever hoped for. I have been blessed with a wonderful life-mate and a beautiful boy who stole my heart the moment Cynthia asked us to be his parents.

Big Boy

Mark and I decided that it was time to do away with the crib and turn it into a toddler bed. Anthony had started to crawl into his crib quite easily, but had trouble getting back out. While the two of us were gone over the weekend up north Mark took off the side railing while I talked up Daddy's big surprise for him when we got home. Sunday night was the trial run, which left me feeling a bit anxious and nervous. So much so that I slept upstairs in case he fell out or got scared throughout the night. All of that was needless, though. Hopefully I don't jinx this transition by saying it has gone so smoothly. The only thing that upsets him is when a beloved animal friend should fall out. (Yes, I realize his bed looks like a forest full of animals and blankets. He, for whatever reason, needs all of them with him.) He's continuing to sleep through the night still and through nap times too. He goes to bed willingly wanting to show us how he's a big boy now and even waits for me to come get him in the morning instead of getting out by himself. (I'm not quite sure about that one and wonder how long it will actually last. It's cute, though, hearing him say, "Mommy, Daddy, Zoey" over and over again letting us or rather me know he's up and ready to go. It's not until I go into his room and give him a morning kiss that he gets out of his bed. Interesting. I definitely wasn't expecting that from our little go-getter.) It is amazing to see all of this work out so well especially when I've been thinking - okay, worrying - about it for so long. (It seems like you should be out of a crib by the time you are three if not sooner. Right?)

Along with that we've also been experience some other "big boy" habits this week. (Once again I hope I'm not jinxing anything by mention this because it feels too good to be true.) This week, on his own accord, he's been going to the bathroom on the potty chair. He's gone once everyday and it was always his decision to do so. Tonight after taking a bath he wanted to be naked so we reminded him he would need to let us know when he needed to go potty. He ended up peeing multiple times and pooping twice! (I realize this is more information than most people need to know; I'm just in such a shocked and excited mommy state right now!) I have many potty posts on this blog and I'm hoping this time it's the start of him really getting and understanding what it's all about. I'm hopeful, but also a bit cautious too.

All of this is making me feel super excited as well as a bit sad. Anthony clearly is growing up and is no longer the baby we brought home just a year and a half ago. I wonder what it will feel like when he rides his bike with no training wheels for the first time or starts kindergarten or becomes a teenager. Do you ever lose that mommy tug that makes you so proud and happy, but a bit sad and nostalgic too?

Too Many Bubbles?

Perhaps I got a little carried away with the bubbles? Manda said I just needed a little bit and I thought that was what I did. However, when the bubbles started to flow out of the bathtub I realized I may have put in a teensy bit too much. Oops! At least A had a good time, as the pictures definitely show, and the suds eventually went down.

A thought for today...

Watch your thoughts, they become words.
Watch your words, they become actions.
Watch your actions, they become habits.
Watch your habits, they become character.
Watch your character, it becomes your destiny.

I read this a couple of days ago and it still is resonating deeply. Therefore I thought I would pass it on.

Fun at Como

Today A and I headed to St. Paul to visit the animals at Como Zoo and an old friend from Red Wing, Siri, too. WOW! What a beautiful area and wonderful FREE attraction. I would highly recommend going if you've never been there. It doesn't disappoint. (I still cannot believe it has taken us so long to visit...)
Anthony was hoping for some bears to pet (that's what he kept saying on the drive to the zoo), but loved looking at all the other animals and getting in a couple of rides on cars and a horsie too. The favorite today would have to be the giraffes. A wasn't really into them so much --- he was more interested in eating his goldfish. However, Siri and I enjoyed them immensely. They are such amazing creatures with great personality. (The only downside is that I wish they had more room to roam. Their area just seems so confining, but I guess that's the whole point of a zoo, huh?!)
After the zoo we found a KFC and enjoyed some lunch and more conversation. Anthony had been quite subdued the whole morning, but he definitely warmed up and Siri got to see the true side of a toddler! It was great fun to watch her non-momma reactions to his dancing, goofy looks and ants-in-the-pants, can't-sit-down behavior. I think next time she'll be ready to change a diaper!

Mr. Personality!

The giraffe was playing peek-a-boo with us.

Thanks for getting together today, Siri, and coming up with the zoo idea! It really was great to see you. Now let's not wait another two years or longer to do it again. Seriously!

Stuart Little 2

The movie theater in Monticello has been offering free second run movies throughout the summer. I have been meaning to take Anthony to a Wednesday movie, but I was either in class or we weren't around to make that happen. FINALLY today we were able to go and he experienced his first big screen moment watching Stuart Little 2. As he was chopping down on popcorn and the theater began to fill up he was constantly asking about when he could see the mouse. The amazing part for me is how well he did throughout the movie. All together we ended up sitting for around 90 minutes and he did exceptionally well. Of course he was doing the usual toddler behaviors of walking down the aisle instead of sitting, asking several (LOUD) why questions and laying on the floor for parts of it, but I was pleasantly surprise it went so smoothly. The best thing is that the place was full of toddlers talking too loud, spilling popcorn and laughing way after the funny parts. Anthony blended in well!
Unfortunately, there is only one more Wednesday movie - Charlotte's Web - and I already picked up our free passes to go again next week. If anyone would like to join us and be a part of the fun, let us know!

Another One Joins the Club

Charlie and Arnold

On Friday night we headed up to Gilman to celebrate Charlie's 30th birthday with great food and even better conversation! (I still can't believe Laura likes dolphins so much!) Charlie and April have a great house for entertaining and lots of space for everyone. Plus, as always, Anthony loves playing with Mason's toys, hanging out with all of his friends and getting to eat popcorn as a late night snack.
It should come as no surprise that I was much too busy having fun and did a poor job of capturing the night. At least I was able to sneak in a few shots. Thanks again, Zimmer family, for another great get together!

Laura, Gretchen with Baby Changas (due in September!) and Joni

Wow! The Zimmers have been busy lately!
Not only did Charlie finish up his master's degree and they added onto their family with Baby Gracie they've also built an addition to their house, poured a creative patio in back, and made a massive sand box with a "road" around it. I've decided I'm no longer calling it their house, but rather the Zimmer Resort. It's beautiful!

Welcome Adulthood and New Furniture

The new living room furniture is here and I officially feel like an adult now. Sure there have been hints of adulthood along the way --- getting married, adopting Anthony, getting a master's degree, opening up a Roth IRA account, etc. --- but THIS makes it official somehow. To think that we're moving beyond college furniture into the next phase of life is pretty exciting. (Yes, you naysayers, we could have done this eons ago, but anyone who knows me would know that I'm all about saving and working my way up to certain things. Goofy? Probably. But definitely me!) On top of all of that, I know that I'm truly a full-fledged adult now because I was delighted to get the carpets clean before the new furniture came! Yikes! Kind of crazy, huh?
Yes, adulthood may come with some headaches and lots of bills, but this venture into a comfortable and grown-up living space has been wonderful.

The Cutest Little Baseball Player

Anthony still is in love with all things baseball - from watching the Minnesota Twins on tv to playing ball outside with his new tee. Is it possible for someone to love sports this much and then grow up having nothing to do with them? I think our future summers could be extremely busy going to practices and games.

Feierabend Cabin

Our extended visit up north was capped off with a wonderful, adults-only weekend at the Feierabend cabin. Anthony was delighted to spend a few nights in Deer River while we trekked further up to Sand Lake for some quality time with some great friends --- the Feierabends, Hares, Sellheims, Zimmers, and Joni. This is the second time we've time time up there and even though the weather was dreadful for a mid-July weekend, we had an absolute wonderful time. There was, as always, great food to be consumed, conversations to be had, games to play and time spent around a blazing campfire. On Saturday we took the pontoon boat out - all eleven of us on board - and toured the lake. You know you are getting old when you occasionally stop to check out and take pictures of eagles, loons, and heron as well as getting a rousing sing-a-long started to Garth Brooks. Whether it sounds fuddy-duddy or not, I completely enjoyed being out of the water with a great group of friends.
There were many highlights and laughs from the weekend even if no swimsuits were needed for the chilly weather. Loaded Questions turned out to be a super fun game in which I learned a great deal from the other six players. Sequence, though, was a lot of fun too and almost resulted in me not preparing the meal for Saturday night. (Thanks again Tracy and Joni for picking up my slack. I seriously can't stop when I start playing! I love that game!) April was a great partner --- we'll definitely have to team up again! Charlie's orange fashion show and Joni's deep intense fear of moths both caused a lot of laughs (and shock) and brought a lot of fun into our time spent together. Some of the best times, however, happened outside around the campfire and underneath a cover of stars. Our conversations varied from silly to spooky to serious --- all of them left me feeling grateful. How did we get so lucky to have such great friends?
The only bad part is that I failed to take pictures throughout the weekend and capture our time spend together. Instead, before leaving on Sunday, I took a few shots of the beloved, peaceful cabin and the beautiful view of Sand Lake. If you're interested check out Jenn and Luke's blog! I love their picture of Laura and her gigantic monster of a fish she caught on Sunday as well as Luke's description of the weekend!
Thank again, Super Luke and Jenn, for a wonderful weekend up north! We love getting a taste of the Feierabend cabin life every once in awhile.

Mini-Vacation to Duluth

The view from Canal Park has always been a favorite!

This summer Mark and I decided it would be fun to get away for a few days and take a vacation together as a family. We threw out lots of ideas, but ultimately decided to stay in Minnesota and go to Duluth for a few days. Mark took a whole week off, which left us with ten glorious days up north and three days by Lake Superior.
We stayed at the Edgewater, which turned out, surprisingly, to be a lot of fun. We were a bit worried because earlier this summer Anthony refused to go to swimming lessons and wanted nothing to do with the water. Turns out, though, he is quite the water bug and even got brave enough to go do the kids' water slides by himself as well as jump into the pool for me to catch him. He loved the lazy river, as did I, and we both giggled as daddy "drove" like he was stuck in rush hour traffic on 94.
All of this, however, almost didn't happen. When I was checking in there was no reservation for the Hanson Hat Trick at all. (Darn Internet!) Luckily, I had printed off my confirmation number with reservations dates, room and (great!) rate information. Somehow everything got screwed up when I made the reservation online and they didn't have a room available for us at that rate and for those dates. Joe, the great college kid, helped me out and we actually did get a room; however, I would highly recommend staying in their newly built facility. The old part was a bit moldy, falling a part and "interesting"... Lucky for them we're pretty easy to please.
I had my heart set on taking a long walk along Lake Superior and ending up in Canal Park. While we were in Duluth temperatures never went past 55 and it rained most of the time, which made that idea impossible. I'm thankful the weather cleared up enough that were were able to drive down to Canal Park so that Anthony could see all those white birds, watch the bridge lift up, see sail boats and throw some rocks into the lake. He had a great time and the hours flew past as we spent time exploring and having some cheap family fun.
The absolutely highlight for Anthony, though, came later when we took a train ride up to the Lester River on the North Shore Scenic Railroad. We decided to take the shortest train ride because we weren't sure how well he would do, but it's clear that we could have continued up the North Shore to Two Harbors and he would have been fine. He LOVED everything about the train and was completely enthralled with the entire experience. I enjoyed it as well and loved the history that was shared regarding the trains and Duluth area, but nothing could top watching Anthony's joy. He still talks about that train ride and can tell anyone who is willing to listen what color the train was, etc. etc. etc. I highly recommend doing this with your family if you're ever in the Duluth area. On the ride up we saw lots of wildlife while on the ride back we were able to stare out at Lake Superior. It was quite the experience.
Overall, we had such a great time. I am so thankful we are able to do things like this and spend time together as a family.

Cheese! I still get a kick out of his new smile that he's developed this summer.
He really liked these two characters, but not as much as being in the water. On our last night there he went down the yellow slide 17 times in a row. Lots of times he was getting splashed with water, but nothing was deterring him from having fun. He would wipe his eyes, look at me for reassurance and then take off again.

The bridge was a lot of fun to watch go up and down. We were bummed, though, that a big ship didn't come through. He would have really loved to see that!

Throwing rocks was as fun as always especially when daddy plays with you too!

"What are we doing here?"

"I get to go on that?! YAY!"
Anthony definitely had a permanent smile on his face when he realized that was the train we were going to get on.

He was very serious at first...

But he ended up having a great time!
The funniest moment for Mark and I was when we smelled something "interesting" radiating from our little guy. The train had stopped so I brought him to the bathroom to change his diaper. To my surprise, though, there was nothing. Within moments of walking back and having a seat the smell persisted. We were a bit baffled until Anthony declared that he wasn't pooping, but rather he had gas. I believe his exact words, very simple and serious, was, "I have gas, Daddy". This sent us into a fit of laughter. What a goofy little boy we've been blessed with!