Family Time

Some of my favorite memories are from nights when we all sit down to dinner.  Chris always likes to ask the kids and I about our high and low.  We share our favorite time and worst time of the day.  Lots of family discussion comes from our time at the dinner table. 
Last night as we sat down to eat, Parker was sharing about his days events.  He was so talkative we had to stop him in order to pray. 

He was telling us about seeds from the watermelon, and how things grow and he told us that the class was hatching eggs.  He told us that the class checked each egg carefully.  The used a light to shine in the back of the eggs.  He said that some of them were green and some red.  What the significance of color is I am not sure.  Then he said that each of the eggs was place in the hydrator.  We all know that is not the name.  Chris and I just laughed.  The real name of the contraption is an incubator.  He just kept explaining how the hydrator turns the eggs so that they stay warm on all sides.  He was so excited about all of this and was so cute. 

I wish I had started blogging a long time ago to record all of the events of our life.  This was such a cute story I just had to share. 

Terrific Tuesday!

Just because it's not Monday.  I really do hate to see time pass so quickly.  It seems that I am always so relieved to see Friday come around but then just as it arrives it seems that it's Monday again.  I live for the weekend and most of my free time lately has been spent at the soccer fields.  Both of the kids playing makes it hard to actually get things done on the weekend, but I do my best to manage.  The last few Saturday's I have spent lots of time in my flower beds.  I love flowers.  I don't have the greenest thumb though.  I try really hard, and sometimes I do have some luck.

The rain we have received thus far has several of my flowers coming up.  I can't wait to see all of them bloom.  Here are a few of the first ones to bloom so far.  The yellow one is called Indian Summer.  It is very similar to the Black-Eyed Susan, just larger.  The purple is a Columbine.  I just love it.  When I picked it out it was because of the interesting flower, but now every time I look at it I stop and think of the innocent people killed in Colorado. 

 

What is this plant?

While we were at Honor Heights Park in Muskogee, we took lots of pictures. This one is so unique but I can't remember the name. I think it was a large bush but I'm not sure. If anyone can help me to identify it, I would appreciate it so much. Hope you enjoy the photo!

Azalea Festival

This week we decided to make a quick trip to the Azalea Festival in Muskogee.  Chris and I lived there for a short time when Chris first graduated from Pharmacy school.  This is where Madison was born.  It has been nine years since we were there.  The park was still as beautiful as I remember.

  

While we were there we wanted to take the kids and Nanny to see Ft. Gibson.  The historic site and dam were always a few of our favorite places to go when we lived in Muskogee. 

Oklahoma Science Museum

The last month has been a fun month for our family.  The kids were out of school two different Fridays.  Two weeks ago, we all went to OKC to the Oklahoma Science Museum.  I thought it was called the Omniplex.  I guess everything must be updated.  The new and improved society we live in doesn't overlook anything.  Even the museums must change to adapt. 

We had a wonderful time. I went a year ago and was afraid that it would all be the same, but just as the change of name, lots of things inside had changed.  There were lots of new things to see and tinker with.  The weather center has a new feature,  a tube that encloses and allows you to experience 78mph winds.  I think most of us feel that living in western OK, we experience this on a regular basis.  We also toured the Pirates and Treasures area.  It was really interesting to see all of the artifacts that had been recovered from shipwrecks.  I think the kids favorite part remains the same, the indoor tree house with the spiral slide.    I must confess, it's mine too!  It brings out the kid in all of us. 

 

To do List; Accomplished!

This weekend was a very successful weekend for the Johnson family. I had several things last week that I was wanting to get done and we did.
1. Plant seeds and plants.
2. Weed the back yard flower beds.
3. Transplant my geranium into a larger pot.
4. Replant the caladium bulbs.
I can't wait to see it all come up and bloom. I planted Dahlia plants this year for the first time. I am anxiously awaiting.
We also went to church last night for the viewing of Fireproof. It really leaves you thinking and evaluating your life. Not only your marriage but how you treat others. I recommend this movie to everyone. It even made an impression on my kids about how they treat parents and friends. I loved it. It never hurts to work on your marriage no matter the condition.

Bathroom Project

We finally finished all the last details of the bathroom remodel. I am so pleased with how it turned out. When we were painting, I was having second thoughts about the color. But once we finished all the details and hanging the pics I love it so much. It is so calming and soothing. And I love that the starfish and shells Chris found scuba diving in Jamaica are out where I can see them and remember what a wonderful time we had there. I love the beach look. It takes me back everyday as I get ready for the day. These are a few of the pictures.

Rum Cake

 

Chris and I love this recipe that Cindy gave us for Rum Cake.  Chris is usually the cake maker in the family though.   We teamed together last week and made this one for Sheryl, when she came to visit.   We used a new pan that Jerry Hawkins had given to me.  I think the pan is really supposed to be for Christmas but we wanted to try it out.  It turned out really pretty and definitely tasty no matter how it looks.  Just thought I'd post this recipe so Sheryl can try it herself. 

Rum Cake

1 yellow cake mix

1 instant vanilla pudding

1/2 c. pecans chopped

1/2 c. rum

1/2 c. water

1/2 c. oil

4 eggs

Preheat oven to 325.  Spray pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Place nuts in bottom of pan.  Mix cake and pudding in large mixing bowl.  Add rum, water, oil, and eggs.  Mix for 2 min.  Put batter into pan and bake for 50-60 min.  Remove cake from oven and immediately poke holes in cake with fork or toothpick and pour hot glaze over cake.  Glaze will cause cake to settle.  Cool cake in pan for 30 min. and remove to serving plate. 

Hot Glaze

1 c. sugar

1 stick real butter

1/4 c. rum

1/4 c. water

Place in saucepan and boil for 2-3 minutes. 

Spring Break

Chris and I were lucky enough to go on a short little vacation with the kids over spring break. I'm thinking now that we may have be cursed! Someone must of put a voodoo spell on us. The first day on our way to Colorado we ran into snow. Amarillo and west was slow going. We all were so excited to see the big snow flakes. I would love to show a picture but I can't. I went to take a picture and my camera was broken. I don't know exactly what happened but no pics from the first two days of our little trip. Once we made it to Sante Fe, I was on a mission. Finding a camera. Of course there are so many to choose from but since I have started blogging, I have been watching one blog in paticular, Back Porch Musings http://backporchmusings.blogspot.com/. She takes beautiful pictures. She truly has a talent for photography. Check out some of her pitures if you get a chance. I had looked into the camera she uses. I found it to be costly but very effecient and easy to use. I decided to spend a little extra to get a really good digital camera. I am really happy with my new Canon. It shoots really quick and great for soccer photos. After we found a new camera we headed to Pagosa Springs. The first day of skiing the kids went to ski school. They both picked up on it pretty quick. Chris and I skiied that day with my sister, Cara, and her husband, Brynn. All of us had a really good day. Beautiful ski weather. Lots of snow.

As we were paking everything up, Chris was the one doing all the loading. He was carrying several bags at once and one slipped off of his shoulder. The one that fell on the driveway was the one that had my laptop in it. So that is why I have been so slow to blog lately. I was temporarily out of commision. I'm so happy it is back home now. Just a quick trip back to Dell and just like new. All in all, we had a wonderful spring break. Just a few minor mishaps. The most important part is that we had a wonderful time skiing.