Our Little Vampire

So, Jacy has two new teeth....just in time for Halloween! That's right, she's growing fangs. It looks so funny when she gives one of her great, big smiles! I tried to get the best picture I could, but it certainly doesn't do it justice! I've never known another baby to get their teeth in like this, but then another couple in our ward told me that their baby grew fangs too.

The Photo Shoot Experience

Well, we finally got some family pictures taken. I've been talking about it for a LONG time, and yesterday I think Ben got sick of hearing me bring it up, because we just called a place and went in on the spur of the moment. I think they turned out okay. I'm happy with a few of them, and fine with the rest of them. Cheesy, studio portrait pictures have their place I suppose. Man, it takes a lot out of you! We were there for just a little over two hours, and afterwards, Ben and I were ready to collapse on the couch! It takes a lot to get the kids to cooperate, and you really can't get mad at them or demand too much from them, or else they have a meltdown, and then you're not getting ANY good pictures! So, essentially, Ben and I were jumping up and down, singing stupid songs, making crazy faces....you get the idea. Jacy is one tough cookie! She doesn't smile unless she thinks something is REALLY funny, and apparently, Mom and Dad just aren't quite that funny, ya know? She FINALLY started showing some cute smiles towards the end of the shoot when I started singing "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" as fast and as loud as I possibly could (hand actions and all). I bet that portrait studio was SO GLAD when we finally left. Well, I'm sure they are used to crazy parents acting like idiots to get their kids to smile. I would love to know what's going on in the kids' heads as they watch their parents. I can only imagine that diologue!

Family Photos!

An Evening at the Beach

We ventured out to New Smyrna Beach last night for a few hours of fun. It was Jacy's first experience at the beach, and let me assure you, she consumed AT LEAST a fourth-cup of sand. She really enjoyed the whole experience, which is yet another difference between her and her older brother. On Daxton's first trip to the beach, he liked the water until it hit him in the face and got in his eyes and mouth, and he liked the sand until it got into his mouth and he realized he couldn't shake it off his hands, and then it was over. He was done. Jacy, on the other hand, loved the water and took a hit or two in the face....didn't phase her. She LOVED the sand and got it EVERYWHERE and didn't seem to mind in the least. It blows me away how different two kids from the same parents can be. Anyway, we had a great time at the beach!

It's too hot!

I was looking at the forecast for Sandy, UT today, and it made me totally jealous. Sunny, 74 degrees......perfect! It's too hot here. I sent the kids outside in the backyard to play with water for awhile. I stayed out for a few minutes, but it's so hot and humid, I didn't last long. This is the worst time of year in Florida (similar to the months of February, March, and April in Utah) where the hot weather just drags on and on, and I'd give anything for a cooler day. Makes me feel sorry for Ben flying the little planes around with no air conditioning in the heat. Yuck! Sorry honey. Daxton has said to me three different times today, "I want to go get on the big airplane and go out to Utah." I told him that we might be able to go sometime soon and then he said, "We just have to get the big school bus to come and take us to the airport, okay Mom?" Kids are so clever! I guess he's sick of the heat too!

Okay, I'll play the tagged game...

In the past, I've complained about never being "tagged" by anyone before, and I was reprimanded by several friends who really had tagged me, and I just didn't know it. Anyway, now I figure that I better play the game if I'm going to be complaining about never being tagged.....so here are six random facts about me and one ugly picture of me when I was pregnant!

RANDOM FACTS ABOUT JENNIFER JOHNSON:
1. I am an avid cartoon collector. I have very few happy childhood memories, for a number of different reasons, but the best memories that I do have all are centered around my favorite cartoons. So, I have spent way too much money and time trying to find the ones that I loved best. Many of them are the Disney classics, and some strawberry shortcake, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Charlie Brown, Garfield, Dr. Seuss, Don Bluth, etc. Our library continues to grow, much to Ben's chagrin.

2. I love to decorate cakes. Big surprise. I'm sure everyone already knows that about me. I have decided that before I die, I will learn how to make wedding cakes on a professional level. I hope to be instructed by the woman who has make my sisters-in-law's cakes, which were the best cakes I have had in my life to this point.

3. I have a horrific fear of the ocean. It's really serious. I start shaking uncontrollably the minute I step into the water. Really, I watched "Jaws" when I was too young, and I used to be deathly terrified of the deep end at the swimming pool because everytime I closed my eyes and went underwater, I was just sure that a big shark would be there to chomp one of my legs off. Right now we have Sea World annual passes, and I have to admit, I'm almost scared to go there. The shark exhibit makes me want to cry. Ben doesn't want me to pass this fear onto our kids, so I have to be brave when I'm around them. When we go to the beach, I stay on the sand.

4. I'm a sugar addict. I love hard candy, soft candy, and any other kind of candy that has ever been made (with the exception of black licorice). I have a cupboard dedicated to candy in my house. I personally blame this addiction on my mother (sorry mom) because we had a serious lack of sugar in our home when I was growing up. I'm hoping that reverse psychology will work in the case of my children, and that they will grow up wanting to avoid sugar/candy because of the abundance in our home. Because of my passion for candy, you could probably conclude, and you would be right in doing so, that Halloween is by far my favorite holiday of the year! The minute I start seeing black and orange in the supermarket, I get as giddy as a schoolgirl! I have already decorated my house for Halloween this year, again, much to Ben's chagrin.

5. I have a pretty obsessive compulsive personality, and I live and die by routine and organization. Unfortunately, I don't do too well when the routine gets thrown off, and this is especially magnified with the addition of children to my life. I'm trying to be more flexible, because let's be honest.....trying to have control over life is futile. "Go with the flow" has never been my motto.

6. I've always wanted to be a mother, and I have never felt so fulfilled in anything I've ever done than I have in being a mother. In fact, I distinctly remember praying to Heavenly Father that I could have a baby when I was seven years old (I thought, at that time, that praying was how you GOT a baby). It's the hardest, most exhausting, relentless thing I've ever done, and yet it is the most rewarding.

Now for the picture......

Quick Trip to Utah...

Before I tell about our weekend in Utah, I want to first offer a sincere thank you to everyone who commented with sympathies and suggestions on my last post. Seriously, thank you! It was a bit traumatic for a little while there, but fortunately, I think things are more or less back to normal. Ben ended up giving Daxton a blessing, which helped I think, and then I took him to the grocery store and we bought one of those glow worm toys where his head lights up and he plays a little lullabye. Pretty cheesy toy, but we told Dax that it would keep him safe, and so far, he believes us. So, thanks again for the ideas, and maybe next time we'll try the monster spray, because I think that one sounds awesome!
This past weekend, Ben headed off to Boston for an interview with a small regional airline called Cape Air. The kids and I weren't too keen on staying here by ourselves, so we decided to fly to Utah just for the weekend. Thus far, I haven't attempted to fly alone with the two kids, but I figured it was time to try with the threat of losing our benefits hanging over our heads (Delta Connection is in the process of being sold off sometime in the next few months). So, we left on Thursday evening and got back late last night. We had a great time in Utah visiting everyone! It has long been a Clark tradition to go up to Oktoberfest at Snowbird every year for the brats and saurkraut, and I was SO looking forward to it. We went up the canyon on Friday, and much to my dismay, it was not open until SATURDAY! So sad :( It was fun to be up in the mountains though, and the kids loved it all the same. My parents had a time share condo in Park City that we stayed at, and we swam in the pool and ate at cool places in Park City. We got in a visit to Nana and Grandpa Kent, and Nana gave Jacy the awesome shirt (thanks Nana!)! We did so much I feel like we were out there for three weeks! Anyway, thanks to everyone for the fun time!

Calling all Mothering Experts...

Ok Moms, I really need some advice.....here's the scoop....
Three nights ago, Daxton must have had some sort of terrifying nightmare, because he woke up and came into bed with Ben and I really early. We didn't think too much of it until we realized the next night that he was terrified to go to sleep in his own bed. He keeps saying something about alligators trying to eat him.....sad, I know. He doesn't even want to take naps anymore, and for those of you who are well acquainted with Daxton, he LOVES his naps! So far, nothing will console him, not binkies, blankies, or anything. Last night, when we told him it was time to get ready for bed, he got so upset he threw up. Even when we tried to tell him that he could sleep in bed with Ben and I, he told us, "I just have to stay awake." It's maybe the saddest thing I've ever seen. Well, one of them anyway. So, what do we do now? Last night, he finally went to sleep on a foam pad next to my side of the bed, but he woke up a few times during the night really upset. Do any of you have experience with these kinds of things? Advice would be much appreciated as we are kind of at a loss. We tried letting him take a flashlight with him to bed, but that didn't seem to help. Okay, well, thanks in advance for the tips.

Fun with Dootie

Well, we had a wonderfully unexpected, spontaneous visit from my sister Becca last week! On a whim, since we will probably be losing our flight benefits soon, she decided to fly out on a buddy pass because the routes going to and from Salt Lake to Orlando were WIDE open last week. Anyway, she came out on Tuesday and stayed until Sunday, and she got FIRST CLASS seats both ways!!!! It's amazing when buddy passes work out like that, and believe me, it doesn't happen often! So we had a great time visiting, and on Saturday, inspiried by the many Jensen posts of the girls all having fun together, Ben offered to tend the kids while my sister and I spent the day shopping, eating, and talking. It was so much fun! Thanks Jensens for the inspiration! Becca, aka "Dootie," we miss you around here!