East Coast XMAS and New Years...little behind:)

I know this is waaay overdue:) What can I say....life has been very busy. You all know how it goes:) So onto the million photos below. This Christmas and New Years we spent on the East Coast with my family in Maryland. Parker and I stayed for almost 3 weeks while Kevin had to head back after a 5 day vacation. Our trip was packed full of adventures.

My mom does a wonderful job decorating the house!

Xmas Morning...I think she knew something fun was about to happen!

Xmas dress:)

Beautiful winter sunny days called for many walks and playtime in the yard with Auntie Jibb:)

On one of our many walks. She LOVES being outside and "exploring."

Our favorite place to eat out and visit, Annapolis. It was a winter wonderland!

Parker's first trip to the National Aquarium

This pic says it all, so fun....but tired out our little pumpkin.

She LOVED the Dolphins. I'm not kidding, she was screaming at them:)

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One of the most exciting parts of our trip was our surprise Xmas present from my sister. She scalped tickets to the biggest hockey game in the country while we were there. The Capitols against the Pittsburgh Penguins. It was one if the most exciting sporting events I have ever been to. Who knew NHL hockey could be so much fun!? The game went into overtime...then a shootout, where they both went 8 players deep until the Penguins scored. BOO! People around us had season tickets and said it was the best hockey game they'd ever been too. My sis did good:)

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Can I just tell you how much I am in love with our Capitol?? Washington DC is amazing. I love everything about it. The history, the buildings, restaurants, parks, and patriotism. GO USA

Evening walks with Kevin and my sis

The evening hustle and bustle of DC's Chinatown

And of course....Barack's house:)

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Lastly, my Xmas present to my sis was a girls night out in DC on New Years. So we rented a room at the W (a block from Barack's) and got tickets to their rooftop New Year's Party. The night was CRAZY FUN. There were 4 different party rooms. The main room overlooked the Washington Monument and the whole Capitol. We danced the night away, met some hilarious people and witnessed some even more unforgettable performances. 80's rap artist Doug E. Fresh headlined the evening and we ran into his "entourage" in the elevator. That's just how our night went. Ridiculous.

The W in Washington DC

Our view for New Year's from the party

Sisters getting ready to go out

1 of 4 dj rooms

After a couple libations:)

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Overall...It was a very fun trip. Thank you to my parents for everything, my sister and my Grandpa who also came out. Flying home by myself was a little challenging, as she is a party girl and never likes to sleep. I was EXHAUSTED when we got home. We were so excited to see Kevin. Parker loved seeing her bedroom and playroom with all her toys. It was so cute, she was dancing.

Hope you all had a wonderful and safe holiday.

xxoo

It's a Family Affair...

About a month ago now we had some family photos taken by Robin Damore. She did a wonderful job:) I would have loved my good friend Coffey to have taken them, but she is a little booked these days and busy growing a "coffee bean" of her own:)

Merry Christmas to all! We are heading to the East Coast to visit my parents and looking forward to a White Christmas.

xxoo

The Johnsons

Santa and Parker..not really friends yet....

Good times with Grandpa this weekend....

Played with my purse and put on more jewelry and asked mommy to put this ribbon in my hair

Made some friends, including some local fireman...

And HATED the man in the beard.

Oh well....I told her she wouldn't have to see him for one WHOLE year:)

Baking, Football and Fun OH MY

This past weekend was busy busy busy! First crafting and baking at Teresa's with the girls and all our kiddos, and then we ended the weekend with our first NFL game. One word to sum up everything....FUN!

Stadium lights on our way to catch the Amtrak home. Beautiful!

One of my besties:) Thanks again Lisa for awesome seats!

Loving this...

In heaven. Boys are so cute at sporting events.

GO! SEAHAWKS!

GO COUGS! Parker with Rothie's twin girls, and future besties Emma and Avery!

Another bestie...Addy! What a helper!

Cabe's son and future boy FRIEND Easton! She won't be dating anytime soon:)

Another future boy FRIEND Griffin:)

Martha Stewart's Glitter Ball cookies Jamie and I made!

The crafting room with Jamie, Diggy and Ruthie. Some beautiful cards were made here!

Jamie sipping some vino by the tree. Classy. We did alot of this!

The first night! Diggy, Jamie, Spry (came up from So Cal for this!) holding baby Emma, Teresa (the amazing host aka Super Mom), Rothie (another Super Mom who travelled down with her twin girls!) and her other little daughter Avery in the bassinet. Due to arrive later, Ruthie, Cabe and her son Easton. It was a full house:)

SUCH a wonderful weekend with the girls, 6 kids, and a date day with my hubbs. Thank you to Teresa for hosting and for watching Parker and to Lisa for the tickets! It was such a fun weekend and I know we will all look forward to this every year!

The history of "ow" according to Parker...and 15 month stats

Thanksgiving morning "cheese" face. I.Love.Her.So.Much.

Well we had a wonderful Thanksgiving with my mother-in-law in town. Ate way too much and did lots of Christmas decorating at our house and the practice.

Big news though is that Parker had her 15 month check-up this past week. Before I get to her stats, I have to tell you a quick story...

So Parker, knock on wood, has never really been hurt. She has the occasional trips and tumbles like any other kid. However two weeks ago, turns out fear mixed with pain can leave a lasting impression on a child. So we went to see a photographer to get family photos and afterwards we went back to her amazing studio to preview the photos. Her studio, I would imagine is any photographers dream. 40 foot ceilings with paintings, photos and props everywhere.

It happened fast. Parker tripped, fell into an easel holding a 6 x 6 foot painting with a HUGE elaborate frame. I was at a desk too far away, and Kev was close enough to get to her right after the frame hit her in the head. I WAS HORRIFIED. She held her breath till her lips turned blue and than let out a scream like I'd NEVER heard. I immediately checked her head and was consoling her when all of a sudden she just stopped crying and kept patting her head and going "ow." We were shocked she recovered so fast, it was literally a minute. My photographer said she thinks the painting floated on it's way down and more scared her than hurt her. She said if it had hit her right on, she would have been seriously injured.

So anyways, anytime she falls now or something hurts, she pats her head and says "ow" as she associates pain with that moment. Crazy, huh? This includes getting her shots. Right after her shots I picked her up, she cried for maybe 30 seconds than patted her head and said "ow."

Children are amazing. Just had to share this little story:)

Sooooo, onto her stats. Drum roll please!!

Parker has consistently been in the 5-10 percentile across the board since she was born.

But this visit, she has jumped to 50 % in height and 20% in weight!

Hey, every little bit counts right?? Wahoo!

Off to pack for a fun crafting weekend in Longview at Teresa's with the girls and then Sunday, we will be attending my FIRST Seahawks game! Well really, my first ever NFL game. Thanks to Lisa:)

Have a great weekend everyone.

my little "grown-up" girl

our typical mornings....

Life.

One year ago, my days were spent holding this precious little pumpkin.

Afternoon snoozing and midnight feedings. All of it, (even the pumping for 6 months), I

have cherished. It has been the most amazing thing I have ever done. Harder than my "corporate" days and more rewarding than anything I have ever known, this is who I am now...Parker's Mom.

My days now are spent chasing a little opinionated girl, whose personality brings me to tears

on a weekly basis. In a good way of course. I cannot believe the things she does and says.

The child's mind is fascinating and I enjoy nothing more than watching her observe the world

and connect the dots of life.

I LOVE being a MOM...I love being Parker's Mom.

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PS: This was really hard to do. After MANY hours of sorting through a years worth of Parker's clothes (and one tissue box), I consigned all of these clothes. What doesn't sell goes to Haiti. This was an incredibly emotional project. SO many memories of my once upon a time, baby girl. We still have many clothes left over and I know these clothes will go to someone who needs them more than we do.