Where has the time gone?!

So I'm woefully behind on blogging. Again. I know. Big Surprise to everyone. Don't have much time tonight to make this a fantastic pic filled entry but I promise good pics are coming. To give you a quick sneak preview of what the Johnson household has been doing since my blogging hiatus:

1. Jeremy and I declared a truce for the annual Cadbury Egg War. I secretly think he feels bad stealing candy from a pregnant girl. Or he's scared. OR I finally found good hiding places! Ha!
2. Had a small scare that sent me running to the OB office in a panic. Severe back pain+ abdominal cramps+ bleeding= panic attack. Luckily our prayers were answered and Seeley is fine. Me-I got to experience my very first (and hopefully only) set of kidney stones. Yeah.
3. Painted Emma's toenails for the very first time. Super cute pics of that one will be coming soon. Jeremy is still mourning the loss of his baby girl.
4. Transformed Emma's room into a "big girl" room. No more toddler bed. Full blown full- size big girl bed. She is super excited and has only jumped/bounced/rolled off it once while dancing on top of her bed. We're super parents I know. Jeremy and I are still shocked that we managed to sleep on a full size bed for the first 7 YEARS of our marriage. And yes, I still owe everyone pics of our new and redecorated bedroom. Pics of both new rooms are coming.
5. Had a birthday- the big 28. Cried when my brother and his family left me a voicemail singing me Happy Birthday. Emma also now says "Happy to You" all the time in hopes that it will get her more birthday cake. Gotta love her trying to work the system.
6. FINALLY got a Wii and Wii Fit Plus. I know we are probably the only house in America that still did not own a Wii but in my defense Jeremy has been extremely stubborn about getting one. UNITL he got hooked on it at Jennifer and David's house! So, guess who got one for her bday? And guess who has spent the most time on it . . .
7. Jeremy's Wii fit age is 43! Mine was only 25! Ha! I still don't know how that happened. I was really worried about this because they don't exactly have a pregnancy option on there-so according to the Wii I may be 25 but I'm overweight (BMI of 29) and my Wii character looks like there are pillows stuffed down around the thighs. Sigh. I wonder how the Wii knows where all my weight goes!? I'm also waiting for the Wii to cuss me out when I keep gaining weight despites its best efforts. Or groan when I step on the board. Something.

Finishing up our little mini-vacation in Memphis tomorrow so I'll be back soon with more details and pics. I've been reprimanded for not posting any pregnancy pics so I guess those are coming as well. Remember-you asked for it.

What's in a name?

Ok, since I've posted our little man's name, both on this blog and facebook, I've been bombarded with questions about how we came up with it. (And I'm super pleased that so few people have actually heard of it-success!)

As I've mentioned before, Jeremy and I did not have a single boy name picked out we were so confident baby #2 was another girl. And if you know me, you know I'm super anal about these things and it was a life or death situation to me that we had nothing picked out. (Emma's name was decided on a month before the gender reveal ultrasound.) So THE DAY of the ultrasound I went back to work following the doc appointment and made a long list of names I liked; probably 10 or 15. Jeremy and I met for lunch and narrowed the list down. His one and only contribution to the list was Seeley. And subsequently I think its awesome that's the name he went with.

Only ONE person has recognized the name Seeley- props to my little sis Kerry! Seeley is the name of a television character on Bones; FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth. Hilarious right? I've never heard the name Seeley used before or since. What can I say, inspiration comes from the strangest places.

And I can't help but include a shameless plug for the tv show- if you don't watch it you SHOULD. It's fabulous. It doesn't hurt that the actor that plays Seeley is sexy. I've admired him from afar since his days on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Back then he was a brooding and gorgeous vampire. Aaah. My little heart just goes pitter pat!

And yes, I realize I have a very eclectic taste in television.

And yes, Jennifer, I broke the news to Jeremy last night about Disney on Ice and he was super thrilled (insert extreme sarcasm). I'll be sure and take pics!

Spring Fever - Part Deux

My cheery and optimistic outlook on life tells me that the lovely Spring weather I'm craving will be here in time for us to take a mini-vacation during Spring Break. (Please, please, please be right!) Sooo, I'm taking a few days off later this month and the Johnson's are heading to Memphis. Woot!



The three of us are huge zoo fans and let's face it, the Little Rock zoo sucks hard core. Hard. Core. On the other hand, 2.5 hours away is one of the most fantastic zoos in the world- so here we come! We'll also probably go to the Botanical Gardens and I'm sure I can squeeze in some shopping as well.



Since I'll be using most of my vacation time to supplement maternity leave I just couldn't stand the thought of not having even a small, tiny little get-away. What can I say? Spring fever makes you do unexpected things like plan trips on 3 weeks notice and purchase Disney on Ice tickets for your Mickey Mouse loving child. ( I have yet to tell Jeremy of our impending plans-he's sure to be super thrilled to spend a Saturday night with thousands of screaming kids and cartoon characters on ice skates). :)



Also, we FINALLY decided on a name for little man- Seeley Alan. You pronounce his name almost exactly as its spelled- See-Lee. Not sealy-there's no a in there-he's not an animal. We wanted something unique and I think this fits the bill perfectly. Alan comes from Jeremy's dad- John Alan.



Ahhh, I can cross "decide on baby name" off my to do list. One down, one million to go!

Spring Fever!

Dear Spring,

Please hurry up already. I know that I normally enjoy Winter far more than the average person, but I'm kind of over it now and would really like to see you make an appearance. So, please forgive me for cheating on you with Winter.

I'm a little desperate for some sunshine-can you tell? I think I've got the winter-is-almost-over-blahs. Either that or little man is still zapping all my strength . . .and brain power . . . memory . . .etc. (Still no name for little man-Jeremy is "working on it".) He obviously underestimated my lack of patience and nagging skills if he thinks that excuse is going to fly much longer! But I am seriously worn out-all the time. 2nd trimester is supposed to be awesome-exhaustion behind you and you're still not too fat and uncomfortable- so why am I still dragging butt all the time? I blame it on the weather. 100%. Give me some sunshine and vitamin D and I'll perk right up, I hope. Doc visit in a week or so and I think I'm going to talk to him and make sure I'm not anemic or something else that could be dragging me down energy wise.

So come on Spring! My favs that I always look forward to are:

1. Easter candy. Ahhh. Lucky for me all stores celebrate holidays like 3 months in advance so I've already indulged in some Cadbury Creme Eggs. Yum! And, in hopes of avoiding the yearly Cadbury Egg War with Jeremy I've hidden these bad boys in my office at work. Ha!


2. Girl Scout Cookies. Notice a theme here? I bought some from a friend's daughter and have also stashed those bad boys in my office. I really don't like to share my chocolately goodness.


3. Open toe shoes. I just bought the cutest pair of Jessica Simpson wedge shoes at Amazon for $29! Brand New! They retail for like $78. Perfect for pregnancy-slight addition of height but super comfortable. So far all of the JS shoes I've bought have been super comfy. These look much better in person. And props to me for not also purchasing a leopard print pair that I fell in love with also. Super power control.


4. Hobo Joe's. The most awesome shaved ice stand in the world. Emma and I will go there after I pick her up from daycare and eat our shaved ice at the park.


5. Bronzing/Tanning. I'm naturally darker complected but nothing says spring/summer to me like a good tan. Back in the day I used to go to tanning salons all the time (managed one forever so I'm like an expert). But as I get closer to the big 3-0 I've decided it's time to take better care of my skin, so no more tanning. Sigh. I'll stick to the fake bake and spray tans (when I can afford them). So girls- I need recommendations on a good fake tan product please! No pasty white skin for this girl!


6. Pedicures. Nothing says lovin' like have some chick scrubbing, polishing, and painting up your tootsies.


7. Hello Skin! No more sweaters! And Jeremy's 2 most hated articles of clothing in the world can be sprung from the depths of my closet once again- capris and bermuda shorts.


8. Sunshine and Outdoor Time. Emma loves to play outside so this gives me plenty of time to fiddle in the yard. I like to garden when the mood strikes. Shocking right?


9. My Birthday! This really should have been #1. My big day falls right on the first day of spring, convenient right? This year I only have one gift in mind- a dishwasher. Terribly sad that I'm asking for a dishwasher for my birthday, but much much sadder to continue washing dishes by hand! Our home renovations are just not making it to the kitchen fast enough and I've been more than patient so bring on the appliances!

Ch-Ch-Changes

A lot has been going on around the Johnson household lately; I'm not quite ready to discuss all of the possible changes headed our way so sorry for being cryptic. And, before imaginations go into overdrive . . . 1)Jeremy and I are not getting a divorce-still in love thankyouverymuch, 2)Emma is well, and 3)as-yet-unnamed-baby is still healthy and busy kicking the crap out of me. The possible changes coming our way are all good things.

But I didn't write this post just to tease you about something I'm not ready to talk about yet; I would like to pass on a little advice that I received and has really kick started all of these possible changes for us. A man that I admire greatly asked me a very pointed question the other day when I was struggling with some touch decisions.

"Why are you afraid of change?"

Hmmm, when you put it like that it's kind of tough to justify all of my concerns. I suppose I'm afraid of change/the unknown because I absolutely positively hate to fail at anything. And changing what you're used to (especially if its working for you) opens you up to possible failure. Yikes!

But as I thought through his question I realized that the only way I'll know if something new is good for our family is to give it a shot. The worse that can happen is we hate the change and just go back to the way things were before (sort of). So, I've made a (very late) New Year's Resolution- be brave and embrace change. We're going to try something new and see if it works out. Hopefully a kind friend will bring the fire extinguisher if we crash and burn!

And, since you may have noticed at the beginning of this post- still no name for baby boy. I've left the decision up to Jeremy once we narrowed our list of possibles down to a couple with the tried and true veto method. As usual my absolute lack of patience has me banging my head against the wall since we STILL don't have a name. But, I do have a diaper bag! We started a tradition of purchasing one baby item following the ultrasound where we find out the gender. So, I bought this little beauty. Plastic on the outside for quick cleanup-mommy heaven.

And, I'm using the following as inspiration for his nursery. Since we're reusing Emma's white furniture I'm even contemplating painting color blocks on the furniture as well. Remember-change is good! I'm still having problems finding bedding I like though. I remember having this dilemma with Emma's room as well!

So, to all my friends out there- don't take as long as I did to realize that change is a good thing. God has a plan for all of us and sometimes that includes pushing us out of our comfort zone. Don't fight Him-you won't win!!

Breaking Baby News

Johnson Baby #2 will be wearing . . .

(drumroll please)

BLUE!!!!

I'm still in shock. Total and complete shock! Jeremy and I were sure we would have another girl on our hands. Absolutely certain. Boy oh Boy were we wrong!

I asked the lady doing our ultrasound three times if she was certain. Yup, definitely boy parts. I'm still not sure why I'm in such a state of shock; the Johnsons are famous for their tertosterone offspring. Emma is actually the deviation from the norm.

I have nothing picked out for a boy. No name, no nursery ideas, zip.

I've got a lot of work to do in the next 5 months! Starting with finding a name Jeremy and I can agree on!!

Pink or Blue?

That seems to be the only thing on peoples' minds these days- are we having a boy or a girl? I'm 18 1/2 weeks pregnant now, and I've got to tell you time really seems to have flown right by. I can remember with Emma it seemed like it took FOREVER to actually make it to the gender reveal ultrasound . . .

Justin and Brittany find out the sex of their baby (for sure) today. If you'll recall B has an aunt who has been sneaking ultrasounds on her so we're pretty sure of the sex, but she's holding on making a formal announcement until the doc confirms today. Mollie- get ready for some more embroidery orders cause I have some awesome ideas for PRJ! (tentative name for the baby-I've taken to calling the baby by its initials so I don't mess up and reveal the sex before Justin and B are ready!) Why oh why do they give me secrets to keep!!

In other news, I'm still working on finishing up our bedroom with its brand new furniture. I refuse to post pics until I have a finished product so you'll just have to wait a little longer. I'm also getting ready to focus on Emma's room. We've decided to move the baby furniture from her room to the new nursery and give her a big girl bed, which she is super excited about. We are going to use some beautiful furniture that my mom-in-law gave us; it was her's when she was younger and it gorgeous white with flower details. I'll need to spiff up the paint some but it will be wonderful and so cute I could just die. I'm also going to stick with the same decor Emma has now because I found her exact crib bedding made for a full size bed. Score! So, I'm going to order the quilt and reposition and repurpose some stuff, but it will be awesome! To me this room is too matchy matchy, so just the quilt please. And I could throw up over the cotton candy pink walls. ugh! But that's just me.

Lots of stuff to do!

We'll find out the sex of baby #2 tomorrow so stay tuned!