Trip to Cincinnati

So, once again, a post that is very late. Pretty much the theme of my blog...;) Oh, well. As long as it gets done sometime I'm ok with it! :)

In May, Brad and I celebrated our 6th Anniversary. We decided to take a few days and go to Cincinnati. To the zoo. With Ella. Hmmmmm...we're all about romance here, aren't we??? ;) We had some great family time, and that's what counts!

We drove there on a Friday night while tornadoes were swirling all around us. Pretty uneventful, fortunately, and by the time we got to our hotel, the rain had stopped. It was pretty late, so while Ella and Brad relaxed and went to bed, I went in search of a local Wal-Mart to replace most of the toiletries I had forgotten...grrrrrr.

The next morning, we woke up ready to face the day and head to the ZOO! :) Funny story (now) to how the day started...we went down to the lobby to get breakfast and decided to bring the food back to our room, which was just around the corner. Ella wanted fruit loops, so I let her carry the bowl. She was walking ahead of us, eating them as she went. She was about to go too far past our room, so both Brad and I told her to come back. She immediately stopped and started screaming like she was hurt. We couldn't figure out what happened and got her into our room quickly to try and find out. Her right eye was bright red and tearing uncontrollably. What the heck happened?? After much crying and drama, we finally figured out she was telling us she poked herself in the eye with a fruit loop! Seriously?? She really did too! Gave herself a corneal abrasion. That poor girl dealt with light sensitivity and tearing all day, outside at the zoo on one of the brightest days of the year. Good thing she loves to wear her sunglasses!

This was a quick pic before we left. We got her to forget about her eye for a few minutes!



This was on the way to the zoo. An artsy family pic?? Hmmmmm....



Here's some pics at the zoo. Ella had a good time, but was really tame and quiet for a lot of it, which is unlike her. Is it wrong to say that it was kind of a nice anniversary present?? Minus the pain, of course! :(















So, this was my bright idea. I had read in the brochure that you could feed some birds nectar and they'd come up and drink it right out of your hand. Riiiigghhht. I so wasn't thinking that in order to do this, birds would be flying around everywhere and could poop wherever they pleased. ICK!!!! We got into the closed-in area and got our cup of nectar, which my very brave husband held. Immediately birds started swarming him, and this is when I started to realize this wasn't the place for me. The birds would try to take the whole cup out of his hand, and then one landed on his back pecking at his head and REFUSED to get off. Brad's trying to shake him off, I'm freaking out and covering my own head, and Ella..is.....CRACKING up laughing...for the first time that day. She was seriously almost on the ground in hysterics she thought it was so funny there was a bird on Brad's head, and still talks about it a month and a half later! As soon as he shook the bird off, we dropped the nectar and got the heck out of there! As entertaining as it was for Ella, it was that disgusting to me! Ewww.





It just so happened that the day we were there they had a special program with "Barney." Now, I know I'm all about romance, and since it was our actual anniversary, I suggested we try and see it because it would make Ella happy. :) I have to admit, it made me happy too, because by mid-afternoon, I was ready for a little break. We shared a dish of ice cream while we waited for the show to start, and when he came out, Ella was in heaven! 2nd time that day that she really showed some enthusiasm...LOL. Luckily it was only about a 20 minute show, enough to make her happy, and just enough not to drive the parents completely nuts.



After the zoo, we went back to the hotel for a little while to swim before heading to dinner.



After swimming, we got cleaned up and ready to go again!



We went to one of Brad and I's fav places for dinner...PF Chang's. YUM. Ella was so well-behaved for us, we wondered if we had the right child....Before dinner came, we kept her entertained with the chopsticks. (Oh, and if you're wondering, by the evening her eye was MUCH better. :)






Outside the restaurant, there was a fountain area where some local college kids were playing some original music. We wandered over to listen for a few minutes, and Ella stole the show with her dancing. Hard to believe, I know! The guys were cracking up laughing at her, and she really won them over when she walked some money over and put it in their hat. :) Too cute. Perfect end to a perfect day.



The next morning we had breakfast drama-free, and headed out to finish up our time in Cincinnati. I selfishly wanted to go there not only for the zoo but for a first-time visit to IKEA!!!! :) I was pretty psyched about it, but didn't realize exactly how BIG this place was gonna be. Ella did pretty well, considering. We were there for 2 and 1/2 hrs and I could have easily stayed longer. Kinda had to rush through parts toward the end. I didn't find everything I was looking for, but we did have a successful trip and I can't wait to go back...without child(ren), preferrably! Thank God for Brad, he's such a trooper and keeps Ella occupied without complaint. Guess that's partly why we have such a good marriage. He knows to keep Momma happy! LOL

This was on our way out with our purchases. Ella's still shielding her eyes!



All in all, we had a great trip! These are such special times we are spending with Ella, and hope to get a few more getaways in before the next munchkin comes along! :)

Recent random pics

There's some more pictures over the past month or so I wanted to get posted on here, so this'll be a continuation of my catch-up from a couple of posts ago. It's funny how time flies so fast, some of these pics seem like they were so long ago!

"Aunt" Jen's son turned 11 recently and we celebrated together at Bandido's. Ella was quite happy to have a partner on the bull ride. I'm sure Bren will be thrilled I posted this pic...;)



And...we couldn't wait for the zoo to open this year! We have a season pass, and we love it. It's so nice to just go over and walk a part of it for an hour or so and then leave if we want. I don't feel like I need to get "my money's worth" every time we go and wear Ella out. Although, if it was up to her, we'd go at least once a week! She absolutely loves to go, and I enjoy it too.

I had to get the "usual" zoo pics. Funny how we have to do this every year.





This big lion is (or was) at the entrance of the zoo, and Ella looks so tiny next to it!



Our first visit, all of the kangaroos were gathered together in one area. Ella thought it was so cool. I, on the other hand, saw the size of their claws and there was nothing between us and them, and it freaked me out a little. Check out that guy on the very right...he was giving me the evil eye...I swear he was gonna charge at us any minute. Yes, I lived to tell about it, and NO, I'm not dramatic. :)



Ella finally went on her first pony ride and was nervously excited. By the end of the ride she loved it and can't wait to go back with Daddy and show him how she can ride. :)



Next up for us was celebrating Mother's Day. Here she is all dressed up and ready to go to a banquet with Grandma Johnson.



The end of Ella's first pre-school year brought one more program. This one went much better than the Christmas program for her. She was excited about it, and couldn't wait to get up there and do her thing. Brad had finally just got called back to work so he wasn't able to make it, but I made sure to take a few videos for him. :)

She's walking up to the stage:



And here's a video of her doing one of the songs. You can't hear them sing very well, but she was into the motions! I like how the boy beside her is looking at her like she's crazy! ha



I think that's enough updating for tonight. My eyes are getting very heavy.... I'll be back again soon!

Typical.

This is definitely a typical day in our house. Ella is constantly talking about, looking at, and pretending to be a princess. She always wants to wear her princess dresses and do what princesses do...dance in them, of course! Her taste in music varies widely...she's a sucker for 80's though. :)

Our Spring in a Nutshell

We have stayed quite busy the last couple of months....here's a quick catch-up:

Ella and I had a "girls day out" at Jefferson Pointe



Of course, we had to hit Barnes and Noble



We've had a few playdates....



One of the highlights of the last few months for Ella is getting to see Yo Gabba Gabba!



First offical Easter Egg hunt. Our subdivision does one every year for the kids.



Showing off all her loot. :)



Coloring Easter eggs...



Ella loves her cousins! Hanging out for Easter at Gma's house.



The Easter Bunny came!!!






Off to breakfast at church. Posing with Emma. :)



In our anticipation of the zoo opening, we spent an afternoon at Franke Park feeding the ducks and checking out the playground, of course! :)





Ella and I spent a day at Shipshewanna with my bff Jen. We hit a bunch of little shops and had a good day.

There was some music to listen to at one of the stores, Ella was movin' and groovin'!




There were quite a few shops that were kid-friendly, and Ella had to check it all out!






And, of course we had to hit the Merry-Go-Round! I was still pretty nauseous at that stage in my pregnancy, so "Aunt Jen" happily rode with Ella for me!




Ok, so I've realized I have a LOT more pictures than I realized, so I'm going to stop here and do the rest in another post. Sorry for the length, but that's what happens when you disappear for almost 3 months!!! :)

Waaaayyy behind.....

Gee, can you tell I was a procrastinator all through school??? I really thought having this blog would help me keep up-to-date on the happenings on our lives, but that hasn't really proven to be true. So, for those of you that actually check this blog, I apologize for the delay. I really have good intentions of keeping this caught up! :)
I'll start with the biggest news of the last few months in the Johnson house.

Let's see...what could be new???? Ummm, maybe a BABY??!!! Yes, that's right, we are expecting baby #2! I am 20 weeks along now, almost HALFWAY! So hard to believe. Oh, and by the way...it's another GIRL! :) :) I was NOT going to find out what we are having, I didn't with Ella and I loved the surprise. But, for some reason, a week or two before our ultrasound this week, I decided I just HAD to know. I tried to shake it, but the feeling was just there. I talked to Brad about it and he said he would like to know too, but would do whatever I wanted. Another reason we decided to do it is because Ella was very insistent that the baby was a girl and if anyone mentioned a boy or brother, she would get really upset. I decided we needed to know to prepare her if, in fact, it was a boy. Anything to make the transition a little smoother.... So, that's how that came about. And, as my sister said...it's like opening your Christmas present early..Oops! But, I'm glad we did it because now I can shop 'til I drop at garage sales this Summer! Ha

Well, I have many more blogs to post to get caught up, so I'll get to work! I'll leave you for now with a recent pic of Ella in typical Ella fashion:

Day Trip

This past Saturday we took a trip to the Children's Museum....in Muncie?? Did any of you know that even existed? I didn't until a good friend approached me about going with her family. On the 3rd Saturday of the month, they offer free admission for everyone. So, of course, me being curious as well as cheap, this seemed like a perfect idea. :) We had been stuck inside most of the previous week due to a double ear infection for Ella, so we were all ready for a little get-away.
It's been so fun to see Ella develop her imagination and really start appreciating things like this. She had a blast!
The first stop was a dinosaur exhibit. Kinda fitting for us because recently Ella has been asking us for a dinosaur...she has now decided if she says "pleeaasse" really nicely, the Easter Bunny may bring her one. ;)



This is the only pic I got with her playmate, "Baby Ben", as she likes to call him. He's just a year younger than El and they definitely didn't want to stay together, which wasn't surprising. He sure kept his mom and dad on their feet chasing him around though! :)



Another hit for her was the puppet show area. They had every puppet under the sun, and she had a great time both watching and participating. Here she is with her puppet of choice, a sheep.



Ella and I taking a break in the "book nook."



Going down one of the slides, which are always a hotspot for her.



Trying to make her way through the ant colony.




There was a "barn" area with some farm animals and some information about being a veterinarian. In the upstairs "loft" of the barn there was some equipment to play doctor to some stuffed kitties. Ella sure knew what to do with the stethoscope!



One of my favorite parts of the museum was a "mock town" that was set up. I'm such a kid I wanted to jump right in and participate! LOL One of the many joys of being a parent to young children, you can pretty much jump right in with them and it's ok! :)
There was a "street" that you went down, and on either side were different places to visit. Things such as a post office, grocery store, school, pet store, etc. And at all the places there were dress-up clothes to actually play the part of mailman, check-out person, etc. if you chose to.

Here's Ella checking out the snake in the pet store.



Playing a student at school. Which, by the way, I am NOT ready to see her sitting behind a desk like this yet!!!



And then she takes her turn at teaching. Lovin' the chalkboard!



Taking a break for "recess." I lost count of how many times she went up and down this slide!



Then we came to the grocery store, which I thought was pretty cool. Ella's trying to decide which produce looks the freshest....



paying for her items...



And then taking her goods next door to the kitchen to put them away. The workers are constantly moving the food from the kitchen back to the store, it's pretty funny to watch.



There were several other things to do there, it took about 1 1/2-2 hrs for us to get through it all with a toddler, but believe me, she was more than willing to stay longer. If you're interested in checking it out, the website is www.munciechildrensmuseum.com

We'll definitely go back! :)