potty training on the go, otherwise known as "I have to go on the go!"

As you can see, we are once again riding that lovely train that we call the "potty train". We tried it a few months ago, but he wasn't quite ready so it wasn't wonderful all around. And this time we are DETERMINED to see it through.

The only thing is, Will doesn't like to go anywhere without his potty, for fear he may not make it in the event of an emergency, I suppose. I am including a few pictures of what I mean. He takes it outside with him so he won't miss out on the fun. We are also in the "naked" phase where he only gets to wear a shirt and no undies until he gets the hang of it.

Thank goodness for Traffic cones...

Today I have been doing a lot of reflecting and reading of Becky's journals and everything as I write the life story for Logan's funeral on Wednesday. And I have been crying, a lot, both on the inside and through my crazy tear ducts as well.

And then I was driving down the street to drop my kids off at Destiny's house so I could get a little more work done with everything going on and this lovely picture is what I saw. And let me just tell you that I laughed soooooo hard. It was sooooooooooooooooooooo what I needed and I just have to thank whatever teenager had the gall to go do this to our beloved Bagdad miners statue. I salute you!!! Thanks for the needed laugh!!!

The Plan of Salvation

o.k. everyone, this is going to be the hardest blog entry that I have ever written and I have debated not writting about it at all, but death is a part of life and the plan of salvation is sooo beautiful. This week, I have recieved a greater testimony of the gospel and my Heavenly Father's love for each of us.

On Wedensday at 4pm, my best friend's little boy, Logan (2 years old) was run over and killed out in front of his house. It was one of those things that you just can never see coming and it is everyone's worst fear. His daddy was leaving and he ran out to try to go with him. We really aren't and never will be sure of all the specifics, but he was swept under the tire and there was nothing the father could do. He died instantly and felt no pain. His brother, Canyon, spent the night at our house that night so Becky and Golden could be at the hospital with Logan and we had a lot of heart felt talks and Morgan was so wonderful with relating everything to scriptures.

Let me just tell you a few things I have learned in the last few days.....

1. kids have an amazing grasp on the plan of salvation and they are soooo great about knowing that Logan is with his Father in Heaven and that we will see him soon when he is resurrected.

2. I have learned soooo much about the comforting power of prayer

3. I have learned more about the Holy Ghost and his comforting power

4. I have learned so much about friendship and I love Becky sooooooooooooo much!

5. I have learned so much about the power of blessings and the power of the priesthood

6. I have learned what really matters in life--------FAMILY!

7. I have learned how awesome Bagdad really is because of the outpouring of love that was instant after the tragedy.

8. i have learned to drink lots of water when you are crying this much

9. I have learned soooooooo much about LOVE!

I have learned a whole lot more, but these are the things that come to my mind as most important.

The Bagdad community has been so amazing and they all want to help in so many ways. We have made the drop off spot for food, etc. across the street from the Brimhall's at our Primary President's home. Their garage is full of all the stuff and the Primary President brings over meals each day. It is just so amazing, the amount of love that is everywhere right now. The whole community is grieving together.

The funeral is this Wednesday at 10am at our ward building and the Bagdad schools have even cancelled school on Wednesday so the community can attend. Can you believe that? What an amazing community!

I am also really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, scared and and also honored at the same time because Becky and Golden have asked me to speak at the funeral and give his life story! I am praying a whole, whole, whole lot!

I love you all!!!!

Cassidy's Birthday, which was actually February 11th

Well, this post is a little belated because Cassidy actually celbrated her brithday last week. But, that is life in the Johnson home...

All she wanted for her birthday this year was money to buy her own presents and to go on a date with mom and dad and nobody else to see Inkheart, a book that she loves and we both read. So, to celebrate her love of books, she had a "book cake" created by her dad. Way to go Morgan! It turned out amazing!

Then, last Thursday, she took the day off of school and Morgan, Cassidy and I went to town to go on an all day date with Cassidy. We went to the movies, shopped at the mall, ate at any restuarant she wanted (Subway), and had loads of fun. She bought her own outfit from head to toe at The Children's Place and loved picking it all out on her own and using her own money to buy it. I just had to hold my tongue as she paid FULL PRICE for it all!!!! She bought other things at the mall and had a generally great time!!!

A cute memory that I will always remember took place at a store in the mall where she purchased two shirts. They put her stuff in a nice store bag and wrapped it in fancy tissue paper and she said, "Oh you wrapped it up because you knew it was my birthday!!!!" The cashier was great about it and just smiled and said, "Yup!"

Cassidy wanted to wear a tiara to school on her birthday. I figured, "why not, it's her birthday, what other time can you get away with wearing a tiara??"

Cassidy and her girlfriends at school. She enjoyed bringing cupcakes to her classmates.

Mommy Make-up

So, Wednesday, the day after the Blue and Gold Banquet I spent the whole day playing "Mommy Make-up". I cancelled all of my stuff for that day and played with Sarah and Will pretty much the whole day, (along with intermittent laundry). We played "Littlest Pet Shop" and "Hotwheels" and I was the crocodile on the trampoline. We even ate Drumstick ice cream cones and when Will stared eating from the bottom, I didn't even complain! The kids said things like "You are the greatest mom in the whole world!" and other such goodies. Not exactly the same sentiments that they had a couple of days prior as I prepared for the Blue and Gold Banquet. So, now my heart feels a little bit better!!! At least until Pinewood Derby next month.....

Oh, and the other terrific thing is that we got to stay in our jammies all day long!!! That was an added bonus for sure!

...and that is how I fell asleep in my Scout uniform

This is a picture taken of me before I was called to the Scouting program, see how pretty I am!!!! He!He!

this is the "after" picture of me in my kitchen at 1am after falling asleep in my scout uniform. Children, shield your eyes!!!! He!he!

And this is how kids get headaches! Actually Owen is recieving his "Bobcat" award and he is held upside down by his parents and someone puts the badge on his right side up and hence, the badge is then upside down. Do you see that we do things the long way in the Scouting program? He! Oh, and the people at the Scout store told me that "Boy Scouts of America are no longer liable for any and all head injuries sustained while doing this hideous practice!" Eat your heart out lawyers!


So, it is now 1am on the morning after having my first Blue and Gold Banquet for the Cub Scouts. Now, in a "regular ward" the Scouting book claims that there should be a committee for figuring out the food, a committee for setting up and taking down, a committee for decorating, a commitee for coming up with the skits, jokes, and speakers, a commitee for... oh, you get the picture by now! But we aren't a "regular" ward, we are the Bagdad Ward in the small town of Bagdad, Arizona. So we do with what we've got! And what we have is me, and a few poor ladies that I have enlisted along the way to help me out. Being that it was my first Blue and Gold banquet, I researched it heavily in the million books I have, on the internet, etc. I thought that I was doing pretty good with my plan until the representative from the Primary said, "Oh and the Primary President wants you to know that they have skits and such at a Blue and Gold Banquet" Crap! back to the drawing board......

For Family Night this week, our family, along with two other families that steped in to help us out, (I love you guys by the way!), set up the church for the banquet and got everything ready. They helped me paint stars on the butcher paper table cloths, cut out letters on my Cricut machine, track down the flag holder from a house here in Bagdad, you get the point.

And the day of the event, I pretty much ignored my biological children, and all other non-biological children and tried to finish getting ready for the big event. This will come into play later when you see how Will behaved during the said banquet.

So we get to the church, we get started, And I begin with the Opening Ceremonies..... tada, Will screams out from the audience, "I am poopy mom, change me!" And repeats it again and again. Morgan takes him out, but low and behold he is not poopy, he wants attention. (imagine that after the day he had with the alien mom). He had a few other special moments during the night too where he did things like, bang really loud on the drums that were a prop for the skit, (the drums consisted of food storage buckets and wooden dowels for the drumsticks)., and run up to the front where I was talking and hold or pull on my leg, shirt, etc. You get the picture, he was an ignored child that just wanted to pull his mommy away from this monster they call "Scouting". he!he!

And truthfully, it was a wonderful evening, full of laughs and good times, and jokes told by the boys, and dinner, and family and everything else that is wonderful about the Scouting program. And do I love my calling???? yes, I love my calling and I love "my" boys and all their antics and I actually even LOVE the Scouting program..... but that is how I fell asleep in my Scout uniform, in a messy house, with neglected children, and a very neglected and overworked husband beside me!!!!

P.S. I didn't get any pictures of my poor son, Lund, who was a Cub Scout at the banquet tonight. I didn't get any pictures of him laughing as they told their silly jokes, or him being presented his basketball award, or him hanging out with the other boys and really enjoying himself. I just had to take mental pictures and I hope this will suffice...I love you Lund!

Ten Dollars and a Three-year-old Also known as "Savin' it for Later!"

So, here's the scoop.. Will got a card from his Grandma and Grandpa Johnson today for his birthday and it had 10.00 in it. He is just starting to understand the concept of money and how it surely makes the world go round.

So what to do with this new found wonder?... First, he waved it around and showed EVERYONE!!! Me, being the smart wonderful mother that I am, told him that he would probably lose it and he should save it on the fridge until we could go to the store. This is what Will must have heard in his ears... "blah, blah, blah, Will, put the money IN the fridge so it will save for later! blah, blah, blah"

So he marched right over, opened up the fridge, and told me that he was "saving it for later"!! It was the cutest thing ever and if I hadn't watched it all myself, thinking what he must be thinking, it wouldn't have been so great. So, of course, I grabbed my camera.

Then a little while later, I told him it was time to go to the store and use his money. He said "Oh, it is ready??? O.K." and he ran and opened the fridge and grabbed his "ready" money!

This is how the store trip went:

Three-year-old enters store at 8:45pm wearing red dinosaur jammies and fanning face with new 10.00 bill. I steer him towards the recently viewed movies and he finds "Over the Hedge" for 6.95. Good buy son!! Then we head towards the back of the store where they keep the toys. On the way he says, "Wait, hot dogs!!!" and he hustles the other direction, towards the meat isle. I watch as he puts his movie and ten dollar bill on the ground and proceeds to lift the lid on the sample plate of Little Smokies! He proceeds to pick them up one by one and pop them in his mouth... what does he think? it's his birthday or something??!!! Then he gently puts the lid back down, picks up his movie, and his ten dollar bill and follows me again towards the back of the store.

Once in the back I show him some hot wheels and other such wastes of money and he steps on his tip toes and grabs a gun off a hook. " I want a gun!" well, I guess your three so you must be old enough to weild a gun!

He takes his purchases to the counter, pays with his own money and even gets two quarters back!!! He is excited about this- in fact if you caught him before he paid, you probably could have traded those two quarters for his ten dollar bill. Simple trade--everyone is happy! But as it stands, he leaves his purchases and takes his quarters to the gumball machine and proceeds to chew TWO huge gumballs, because he can! Of course he can, he is 3!!! and the first thing he said when he got home and showed his dad his new purchases was "Oh good, now I can shoot Colter!!!" (his best pal!)