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! :)

Movin' on up

Out with the old......




AND...in with the NEW! :)



to put it mildly, we're excited! :)

It's Playtime!

There's a great place for kids in town called "It's Playtime." Our first time there was last Valentine's Day, (awww, romantic, huh? Complete with a fish fry for dinner! LOL) Ella was only 1 1/2 yrs at the time, and she did enjoy it, but man, she LOVES it now! We always save things like this for the winter when we're not able to hit all the parks around us. There's tons of things to do for the kids, ranging from slides to ride-on toys. Also, it helps enhance their imagination with tons of dress-up clothes and a small stage, as well as a kitchen. There's even a rock-climbing wall.
Here's Ella climbing up to the slide



Heading down as fast as she can; just to run up and do it all over again!



She has a hard time deciding what to play with first. Runs from one thing to the next! If you want a good nap for your kid(s), bring 'em here!



These dogs are her absolute favorite. She never seems too happy when another child is playing with one of them, even when she's perfectly content with something else. We are working on the art of sharing...



Every time we have went, the employees have been great at walking around sanitizing toys and putting them back in their place for the next child to grab. We did go last Saturday with a friend, and it was the busiest we have seen the place. But, even at full capacity, it did not feel too crowded for the kids. Just have to look a little harder to keep track of your little one, though they wear bracelets and there's only one exit, so it does feel pretty safe. :)

Hmmm...I should get a cut of the profit for promoting this one! LOL

Happy Birthday, Grandpa!

Last Saturday was my grandpa's 81st birthday, and we dropped by to visit and celebrate with him. Grandparents are so important to me, I don't know what I'd ever do without them. They all are so much a part of my upbringing and memories I have; it sometimes pains me to think about Ella not having my mom around as she's growing up. I know her other grandparents make up for it, as well as the rest of our family. We are very lucky.

Here is grandpa with his Birthday treats. Anyone who knows him knows how obsessed he is with sweets! He can put anyone to shame when it comes to a plateful of cookies, pie, and cake.

(If you look carefully, in the bottom, left-hand corner of the chocolate cake, there is a piece missing. Who would've done such a thing? Surely not my sweet, innocent grandmother....just want to see if you're reading this, Grandma!! :) She thought no one would notice!



My cousin and Aunt from Michigan came down to spend the weekend. We wished Grandpa a Happy Birthday, and got ready to dig in. Notice how Ella's got her eyes on the prize!!



Hope you have a fantastic year of good luck and good health, Gramps!! We love you soooo much!!

*SMOOCH*

Daddy, pleeeaaasseeee......

No words needed. She's going to get better at this the older she gets....