No Friends

I saw Julie's post about at least some of the million Johnsons being on Facebook.  So I signed up for Facebook, but I have no friends.  And I can't FIND any Johnsons I know on Facebook.  And even if I could find you, I don't know how to Friend you.  So, Julie - or anyone else who knows - help me out here!

It was worth a try

OK, you see I was trying to post pictures of Gwen and that is what I got. Oh well, at least I got a good laugh out of it.

Kate

the 4th

Hello Family,

It's been awhile since I've checked in so I thought I would send an update. Liz and I went to Kentucky for Thanksgiving. It was a pretty quick trip and we were a surprise to everyone there. Nate and Kendall and Gwen went to Kendall's parents and Jillie went to Bryan's mom's house, so we were on our own.

Jillie is doing fine down in South Bend. She is working for Press-Ganey (a medical satisfaction survey company or something like that) in the marketing department and has her own apartment in Mishawaka. Since she's only a few hours from home we see her every other weekend or so. So far. She hasn't made a lot of friends there yet and when Bryan is busy studying on the weekend it's nice for her that she can get home.

Nate and Kendall are doing well. Kendall is back to work part time and her mom comes to babysit for a few hours after Nate leaves for work. Problem is, Gwen only wants her mom or dad so Kendall doesn't get much sleep when she gets home from the night shift. Hopefully, it won't be long and Gwen will let someone else take care of her for a few hours so Kendall can get some rest without listening to Gwen cry.
Gwen is five months olds now and she's doing great! She's tall, already wearing 12 month size clothes. I will try to add some pictures at the end of this post.

Finally, have a buyer for Mom's house in Lost Lake. He's a golf pro, so his offer included 25 free golf lessons. We are going to maintain our membership there, but the house has been sold. I'm still negotiating with a company from Florida who wants to buy my practice. I would continue to work for them for three years after the sale. If we can come to terms, it may happen before the end of the year. Which will be nice for tax purposes.

Looking forward to seeing as many of you as possible at Christmas at our house. I was thinking about having a ham and a turkey and just doing something easy like sandwich fixings and stuff to accompany. I'll put out an email when it gets closer.

Love to all,


Katie

Thanksgiving

Hi family! I hope all is well for everyone!

It is nice to see everyone (or a lot of you) on Facebook. I think it will be a fun, easy way to communicate that isnt quite as formal as the blog.

My Thanksgiving holiday started in a wonderful way. Kids can sometimes warm your heart in the most loving ways. I have a student in my class who is not the lovey-dovey, teacher's pet, affectionate type. He is very bright and responsible, but cool to all the other kids at the same time. On Tuesday, before he left schoool for the day, he came up to me and said "Ms. Johnson, I hope you have a nice Thanksgiving with your family, and I want you to know that I am thankful for you as my teacher." then he opened his arms and gave me a hug (maybe the second hug of the school year). I started to tear up, and I thanked him and let him know I am thankful for him as well. Children really can be quite amazing at times.

My parents and brothers came to NC to visit me for Thanksgiving this year. It was nice having them here. We took a winery tour, ate a lot of food, mom and I went shopping, Dad and the boys went to the planetarium, all in all, a good time. They got to meet Lily and loved her (of course, everyone does) and she loved all the attention. My roommate and I hosted a Thanksgiving not only for my family but for our friends as well. We had six of our friends come over for the holiday and I was proud to show off my friends to my family and my family to my friends. We had a nice big meal and Megan and I are still eating leftovers! Oye.

I am sure that my dad will blog with some pictures, but I am excited that I got to blog first! haha!

Other than that, there isnt really much new here. I am excited to come home for Christmas and I cant wait to see most everyone on the 27th!

I love you all!
Julie

Halloween and Laura Kate's Birthday

For Halloween we had a kitty cat (4th year running), a Darth Vader, and a Jengo Fett (don't ask me what that is ---- it's some Star Wars creature). We went back to our old neighborhood to trick or treat there. Everyone had a great time this year, especially me since I was sitting on my neighbor's couch drinking a glass of wine.






































Laura Kate's 3rd birthday is today. As usual, it seems hard to believe how quickly the years go by. We had the good fortune of being able to celebrate with both sets of grandparents last weekend, and to continue the celebration through today. She has truly enjoyed being the birthday girl for a full week. In fact, when we met some of our new neighbors today and they asked her what her name is, she jumped up and hollered: "Birthday Girl!"

Last weekend was our big move. We are getting settled bit by bit. Mom and Dad were here and were a huge help; I don't know how it all would've happened without them. Dave's parents and his brother and sister-in-law also came to help, along with several of our friends; we were grateful for all the helping hands. Mom did all the clean up at the old house, too, so I didn't have to do any sad goodbyes - just left in time to meet the cable guy here at the new house and never looked back. I am not sure where we kept all this stuff in our old house - but I am glad to have a little more space in the new place. Finally, all my wedding crystal has seen the light of day after 10 years in a box! And, I can already tell that this house is easier on my cranky old joints. Ben met some neighborhood kids today, which eased some of anxieties (his and mine). So far, I think we are all settling in quite well. As Laura Kate puts it, "I not need my nother house no more."

Love to all of you. Come visit us in West Saint Paul. Love,

Molly & fam

Spencer Trip to NH

The two of us on some hike we took somewhere while we were gone.
Bob and I just returned from a week long color tour to New Hampshire (and all the places you have to drive through to get there). We spent the week in the White Mountains with our friends and color tour pals for over 20 years, John and Kathy Borgert. One of the highlights of our trip was a ride on the cog railroad to the top of Mt. Washington, the highest peak in the range and notable for having the worst weather in the United States. The day we went it was beautiful, though there was snow on the ground. This train creeps both up and down the mountain at 3-5 miles per hour. On our descent, the train jumped the track. Quite frightening. We spent about an hour and a half standing on the side of the mountain waiting for the crew to get us back on track. At one point there were five trains within 200 yards of each other: two coming down, two going up, and one stuck!! After they got our train on track, we had to back up far enough for the two up-going Zaks to move to the siding, then successfully completed our descent. Also saw some beautiful scenery, took some hikes and ate good food. Now we are back home blowing leaves and enjoying the last few days of fall weather in northern Michigan. Bob is winding up his term as supervisor. Six more weeks!! We are both looking forward to having more flexibility in our schedule. Molly and family are moving on Oct. 25. Bob and I are going to help-or at least to play with the kids while the younger crowd manages the move. If all goes well, I am going to attach some pictures from our trip. Ok. I couldn't figure out how to get the pictures where I wanted them. I give up!!

Cars for Jacob

Katie, Will, and I went to a car show last weekend. There were some nice old cars. Here are some pictures. Also included is one of Will and me in downtown Redwood City and Will's new "Evil Eye" look that you get when you're not living up to his expectations.

Andy














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Stars Win Gold

The Plymouth Canton Stars won the gold medal at the 2008 Soccer State Games.  TJ was instrumental in both wins by scoring one goal and contributing 3 assists.  

(TJ gets congrats from ref after scoring a goal)

This was the first gold medal won by the Star Warriors (this years team name) since the club began participating in soccer 5 years ago.  

The high-light of the weekend however was not on the soccer field, but at the dance.  TJ and the rest of the team did not leave the dance floor.  I was amazed when the DJ played the Hustle and TJ stayed on the floor and by watching the other dancers, learned to do  the Hustle.  I could not stop smiling.

As is usual, the Stars stayed for the last dance, the only team left in the building.  The last number was a slow dance and TJ finished out the night slow dancing with a cute redhead named Jessica.   

What a weekend.  Great weather, great sports and great memories. 

Hello all, This is my first attempt at posting pictures on this thing so we'll see what happens!! Joe and I took a trip to Memphis and Nashville for our 33rd anniversary. I wasn't quite sure why Joe chose those destinations, but I must admit we had a great time. We toured the Gibson factory and were amazed to see each guitar being made by hand. We even went to the Grand Ole Opry!! Taking another trip next month to Vegas and looking forward to that. Wynn, we'd love to hook up with you and your bride if you're available. Joe has meetings to attend so I'm just going along for the ride. Enjoying the grandchildren and will be thrilled when Ethan outgrows his colic as will his parents. Going to E. Lansing next weekend to hang out with Ryan. Love to all, Pat