God is Good to the Johnsons

How long does it take? Til a house feels like a home? I’ve forgotten since the last time. How long does it take? To adjust to the steps? You know, to the point where you can navigate the house in the dark, and fetch your baby a bottle and rock him to sleep without turning any lights on. How long does it take? To stop calling the other place home? Because right now, I still feel like a stranger (a happy stranger, but foreign at that) And I miss Provo. Day #302

I didn't expect tears, and I didn't expect him to put his hands in front of mine to stop the tape. At first he thought it was a game, as I took books off the shelf, so did he He giggled as he did it, making his floor a library instead of the shelf. It was cute. But now, now he dives into the boxes, pulling out the things I've placed inside and gazing at me through tearstained eyes, confused. It didn't hit me til today, after days and days of this placing and packaging that I'm placing his whole world into boxes. These little walls, these four rooms. It's here we gave him a tour after he came home from the hospital, showing him each and every corner of our little home. Daddy and me weeping and laughing because we'd never lived our life with three before, and the joy spilled over. We walked and talked through every room, We were introducing him to life in a duplex, life in our home, our sanctuary. For his 15 months, this has been his place and I...

Baby, last night you found two white circles on our friends’ floor Two itty bitty fat and flat cylinders And how was I to know they were Altoids? You’da been fine. But baby, I didn’t know til that moment How fast I could scoop you up, How my fingers could pry open your stubborn little lips to pry out that pill, How the adrenaline kicked me to high-gear in a fraction of a moment Because Baby, last night I learned that I’m a momma bear And I’ll do what it takes To protect you Always. Day #300

I never liked the games they'd play those boys, who'd wile the hours away in lines for lunch, or rides, or class And all that time they'd gruesomely ask "Would you rather" that or this from hearing a roar or a rattlesnake's hiss to death by rabbits or death by goats Allergy to water, or inability to float But midst the nasty situations splayed in this yucky game that boys would play when faced with sleep loss or hunger's pains I knew from which I would refrain For while it's not pleasant to hear stomach rumbles Without sleep, I know, I'd endlessly grumble. But would I tell those boys? Why no, Interest in their talk I'd never show But if I had to pose my own quest, a dementor or an orc, would you rather best? Day #299

Today I was lunching with an old friend (I've known her since we were wee toddlers) who is expecting her first baby, due in just a few short weeks. She confided in me how difficult it has been for her to hear acquaintances discuss in terribly negative tones how taxing and trying motherhood has seemed to be for them. She continued to tell me in strength and optimism that she believes that since God has commanded us to multiply and replenish the earth, that it should bring joy to us. I heartily agreed. Now, I fully recognize that motherhood brings unique trials (exhaustion, postpartum/antepartum depression and anxiety, wayward children, etc. to name a few), but I believe it's important to give just as much time--nay, MORE time--to discussing the positives. With that, I also want to extend a heartfelt hug across time and space to mothers of every kind, those who have given birth and those who haven't, mothers who are married and those who are single, those mothers of every...

Mijo, Mijo Estoy aquí mientras sonríes y lloras Juntos, Juntos Estás allí mientras sonrío y lloro Yo, Yo Day #297

Who:  Martin Luther King, Jr. was a Baptist minister, and leader of the Civil Rights movement from the Mid 1950s until his death in 1968. He led thousands in peaceful, non-violent protest; and, as a result of his and others' noble efforts, the Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964 and the Voting Rights Act was passed in 1965. He is a champion of equality for all people. How I Learned About Him:  I have studied Martin's life for as long as I can remember, mostly at school, but during some leisure reading as well. Many children's books have given me the general and minute details of his life, including titles like Martin's Big Words by Doreen Rappaport and My Brother Martin by Christine King Farris (who also happens to be Martin's sister). Why He Has Blessed My Life:   I am grateful to Martin Luther King Jr. because his efforts have made my friendships and acquaintanceships with dozens of people of various ethnicities possible--because I met them in school and ...

Who:  Jane Manning James was one of the early members of the restored church of Jesus Christ . She hungered to find God's true church, and when she was a teenager she heard the missionaries teach in her Connecticut home, felt the veracity of the truths they taught, and was baptized a member of Christ's church the following Sunday. During her long life as a member of the church (her membership spanned over 70+ years), she traveled from Connecticut to Nauvoo, Illinois; from Illinois to Winter Quarters, Nebraska; and from Nebraska to Salt Lake City, Utah. She suffered many racial persecutions along her journey (including from other members of the church), endured cracked and bleeding feet along her long journeys on foot, and survived the crop failures that resulted from a cricket infestation in 1848; among many, many other trials. She married Isaac James in 1844 and raised 10 children. How I Learned About Her:  I first learned about Jane during a worldwide broadcast in ...

Who: Jackie Robinson was the first black major league baseball player. He joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, won the MLB 1947 Rookie-of-the-Year Award, and only two years later was awarded the National League Most Valuable Player Award. He played with the Dodgers in six World Series. He was a champion of baseball, and he was a "Champion of Civil Rights" (History Channel). Not only was he the pivotal start to the integration of races in Major League Baseball, but he also spoke out against southern Jim Crow laws and pushed for integration in other fields of employment. He married Rachel Robinson in 1946, and they became the parents of three children. Jackie was a devoted husband and father. How I learned about him:  I have known who Jackie Robinson was since elementary school, I distinctly remember seeing one of his MLB photos in a school textbook. I knew he was a key part of the civil rights movement and was a talented ball player. However, I don't feel I knew much of...

This post (or rather, series of posts) has been on my mind for months. I have hesitated and ruminated and bit my lip and held back my typing, for many reasons. Some of them include: I'm a white girl from Utah.  I have no black relatives or ancestors.  I'm under-qualified to write about a topic like Black History. I'm afraid of offending someone because of my inexperience writing about this subject, and because of the above statements. Despite my reservations, I'm writing about this topic because: I have friends, teachers, and previous students that are black. I am inspired by dozens--nay, probably hundreds--of people of African descent. This topic is important. This topic is important to me. I pray that you'll be patient with me and my imperfections as I write this week, and I hope that you'll see and feel of the vision, faith, spunk, courage, and grit of these amazing people of African heritage that I admire and revere so much. To start, ...

Sometimes I go back through my photo library, I find writing inspiration in my memories. I'm often brought to poetry, recipes, and anecdotes from these photo jaunts. Today I simply want to tell the story behind this picture, because the people that staged it make me laugh and I love them. My twin brothers Jordan and Tyler are a dynamic film duo, and have been from the age of two when they commandeered my mom's camera and took shots and footage of everything from the kitchen pantry to the bathroom toilet. So, interestingly, their birthday gifts over the years have often included bizarre props, stage makeup, and other odd doo-dads. None could be quite as gruesome as the gallon of fake blood they received, but these pair of plastic skeletons come pretty close. What's funny about these skele-bones, though, is that they were utilized by said brotherly duo to prank the rest of the family. I pulled out of the driveway on my way to work to find a skele-buddy in my passenger s...

Today, son, you grabbed this book off the shelf and I couldn't have been happier. Today, son, you started to show me your hunger for the word of God and is it wrong for me to wish you to always be hungry for that? As long as you will feast each time you read. Today son, I want you to know that I know the Book of Mormon is true I KNOW it to be the word of God, for as I've read of Christ and as I've striven to live by the principles he's taught, I've felt peace and joy amidst storms I've felt light and hope amidst pain I've felt God's love for me, and for you. Today son, and for always,  read and live this book. Day #291

hay unos dulces corazoncitos Parecen en el kiosco cada año, en el mes febrero y aunque sé que son totalmente azúcar Los compro igual Y los como igual (la caja entera...) Y estos corazoncitos saben de amor, mi niñez, y una visita al dentista 🦷 Y me encantan  💙💕❤️💛💞💚💜💓

I ain’t never liked laundry Or dishes Or weedin’ But baby with you... there ain’t nothin’ bout it That’s doldrums or humdrum like before. I’d never thought to wrap our little boy in things to fold  like they was sand on a beach Or turn washin’ dishes into a favorite you-tube video showing session with suds a flyin’  Or make yard work play Because you pause for piggy back rides and kisses In between all the mud In fact, while covered with mud. So the grunt work, the hard work With you babe, it passes right by And is it doldrums or humdrum anymore?  Nah, not with you Not when you’re there too. 

Here we are, little boy Wrapped in blankets, me feeding you a bottle At three AM While thunder cracks and lightning whips and rain pelts from the outside world. That storm, It would fain have us drenched and frightened and shocked to our cores, But here we are, safe, safe and sheltered with Daddy in our little home, protected by the roof and walls Holding onto each other while we cozy up in the night Away from the wiles of the storm Safe together. Here, here we are little boy Wrapped up in breakfast, me feeding you applesauce and stories of Jesus At seven AM while sin cracks hearts and the winds of life whip and pain pelts in the outside world (and sometimes, our inside world) That storm in life, it fain would have us fall and feel hopeless and rocked to our cores, But here we are, safe and sheltered with Daddy in our little home, protected by our faith and the grace of God Holding on to each other while we traverse through life’s storm Saved from the wiles through Chr...

UN DEUX TROIS QUATRE " There is no combination of words I could put on the back of a postcard No song that I could sing, but I can try for your heart Our dreams, and they are made out of real things Like a, shoe box of photographs With sepia-toned loving I'll tell you one thing, it's always better when we're together."  -Jack Johnson “Here ends another day, during which I have had eyes, ears, hands and the great world around me. Tomorrow begins another day. Why am I allowed two?” -G. K. Chesterton