Correction

There was a mistake on the previous blog post. 

The title read "32 Years Old" and should not have, because he forgot and is actually older than that.

The blogger would like to personally apologize and promises that it might possibly happen again.  Like next year.

Enjoy!

32 Years Old

1 year, 24 weeks.

Can I say something?  I really need to get this off my chest.  And after 14 years of working for the retail industry, I feel that I can have my say about this matter.

Okay, I get it.  No, really, I get it.  But the question still needs to be asked:  Why right now?  It's not like people aren't going to shop.  It's not like people are going to forget.  It's not that children are going to stop asking for presents.  And it's not like retailers aren't going to make any money.  My question is "Why right now?"  Why am I seeing Christmas trees popping up all over the place, including home improvement stores?  Why am I seeing holiday decorations in the windows of home furnishing stores?  Why am I already receiving emails regarding upcoming holiday apparel from major clothing brands?  And in Florida, no less, where we wear shorts year round?  Why?  What happened to the rest of the holidays between now and Christmas?  What about Halloween and Thanksgiving?  And Columbus Day and Veteran's Day?  Are they seriously going to skip White Cane Safety Day?  (Yup, that's a holiday, on Oct. 15)  For Pete Yorn's sake, IT'S STILL SEPTEMBER!  Can you guys just push it back a bit?!?!

Oh...My...Word.

Last Friday I woke up feeling another year older.  And boy, I could it feel it.  It's amazing how many areas start feeling sore and painful once you enter your thirties.  Braelyn and Tangie had just left for the day, giving me a wonderful birthday card and rendition of "Happy Birthday" after I had snuck up and scared them while they were singing to a clump of covered pillows on our bed that were supposed to resemble a sleeping me.  Hey, you're only 32 years old once, right?  Plus, it was a fun way to start the morning of your birthday:  Scare the living daylights out of your wife and 4 year old while they were trying to do something nice for you.  They were good sports about it, and laughed afterwards, but you should've seen them jump! 

The twins were still asleep as I poured my morning cup of joe and perused the Calendar section of the Orlando Sentinal.  Hmmm.  What to do this weekend.  What to do...what to do...wait.  Better not make any plans.  Tangie might have something up her sleeve for your birthday.  Okay then, that's that.  I went back upstairs to check emails and Facebook updates.  32 new posts?!?  Well, thanks everyone for your birthday wishes!  I sighed as I quietly reflected on another year quickly passed.  I thought about God's grace and goodness to our family.  For the love and support of my beautiful wife.  For the experiences of fatherhood and parenting our three scrumptious children.  God is good.  So good.

My thoughts ended there as a faint cry came from the baby monitor.  Time to go to work.

Friday evening Tangie had a small surprise get together for dinner at our home with our friends, the Bergherms and Johnsons.  The Grodacks were away for the weekend at their beach condo so unfortunately couldn't attend.  So we ordered and picked up some smoky barbeque goodness from our local haunt Harry & Larry's in Winter Garden.  Along with a fruit and cheese platter, baked goodies from Sweet Expectations Bakery, and an ice cream cake, we had quite the spread!  The adults had a good time catching up and swapping stories while the children tore through the house and played.  For my birthday gift Kent had brought over a bird of paradise plant complete with a ceramic pot.  It was just nice to have them over as we hadn't hung out since our last visit to their home when we brought over dinner 2 weeks after Erik was born.  Coincidentally, Kelli has joined us bloggers and created her own blog, aptly named the Johnson Journal.  You can check the link here:  http://web.me.com/johnske/Johnson_Journal or on the friends' blogs section to the right.



A delicious assortment of really cool looking golf cookies!

And the wonderful lady that made them for me!

Yup, I think the kids were hungry.

Braelyn chooses which cookie she wants to devour.

And shows off her blue teeth!

A costume Tangie got for Brae, can you guess what she's going as for Halloween?

Blowing the candle with a frog on my lap.

What a perfectly wrapped birthday gift!

Braelyn shows Aunt Kelli how to wear the Maya wrap correctly.

Lolo and Lala joined us for church Sabbath morning.  Tangie had requested they come up to look after the kids Saturday night while we stole away for a couple's date for my birthday.  But I'm sure they would've come up to visit even if there weren't any plans to go out.  They were already missing the kids since our last visit down to Avon Park when Mike and Gen were here.  They treated us to afternoon naps and watched the kids while Tangie and I caught up on some much needed sleep.  I want to say that we slept a good 3 hours!  We took a quick visit with the children to Chapin Station Park down the street to release some energy before getting dressed and heading out.

Maddy enjoys her snacks at Sabbath school.

Twinkle, twinkle, little star...

Ready, set...

Lala keeps a close eye on Maddy.

Braelyn always enjoys playing in the park.  Who wouldn't?

Not to be outdone, Mommy and Kohl take their turn.

But before we had dinner we made a quick stop to the consignment event we were participating in over the weekend at the Maitland Civic Center.  Tangie had wanted to take advantage of the 50% off sale they were having the final 2 hours of the day, and take advantage she did.  At first I was a little overwhelmed.  I had never been to anything like this before.  It was like going to something that was a cross between a mall and a flea market.  At least it was sorted and organized.  There were TONS of stuff for children, all being sold by parents, who were, at the same time, shopping for deals themselves.  Just like us.  The shoes were a big hit as the kids' feet seem to grow faster than the rest of their bodies.  And why is that?  I think we scored at least 10 different pairs.  Lots of dressier and church clothes for Kohl.  Dresses for Brae.  Boots for Maddy.  We made out with plenty and only paid $86.  Sweet!  And we didn't do too bad selling stuff either, although that money just went right back to the consignment company for our purchases.  Oh well.  We'll do it again in March for sure.

This whole room was only half of the event.

Kohl made out real nice tonight.

Tangie had made reservations to a small, intimate restaurant in the new eating district of Winter Park.  Voted "Best French Restaurant Orlando" in 2009, Chez Vincent specializes in the finest French cuisine with an emphasis on quality.  And they didn't disappoint.  As most, if not all, know of my adventurous side when it comes to eating out, I made sure to indulge on the exciting menu options.  This whole take on trying new foods, at least once, has been fueled by 2 of my favorite TV shows on the Travel Channel:  Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern and Anthony Bourdain No Reservations.  And what better way to experience a country, or culture, than with it's food?  Sure, I can say that a rabbit tastes like chicken, but can I truly say that if I didn't try it?  Oh, but it does.  And it's delicious!

So, of course, I order the Feuillete d'Escargots for my appetizer.  Yes, that's right.  Escargot.  Sautéed snails baked in a puff pastry with a Port wine sauce.  Divine.  Earthy.  Foresty.  Tastes like organic garden soil with a hint of sweetness.  I was completely blown away.  I've had escargot before on a cruise but not like this.  And these suckers were huge!  Each one at least the size of a quarter.  I joked with the waiter that they must've been hormone injected.  He laughed and agreed.  The main course was Poissons Au Poivre ~ sautéed Sea Bass blackened with a peppercorn cognac sauce and vegetable medley.  Absolute heaven.  And with a kick!  But surprisingly the steamed creamed cabbage came away as a flavor to remember.  I had never wanted to keep eating cabbage like that before!  And to end for dessert the Bavarois, a chocolate and raspberry mousse with a mango sauce.  It was such a fun date night.  It was showering outside, but I was surrounded by great food, great company, and great conversation.  It was a perfect night in Paris...er...Winter Park.

A quick snapshot of dinner with my date. 
Sorry for the blurriness:  There was very little lighting and I was trying to be somewhat discreet.

Feuillete d'Escargots.  A simple yet classic French dish. 

Early Sunday morning I decided to celebrate the last bit of my birthday weekend and take a few hours and spend some time on the green.  So I went out and got the lawn mower and mowed our yard.  Yes, Sunday morning ritual.  It was deathly hot, and steamy.  But it was a good excuse to get a little bit of exercise.  After the kids' naps we ventured out to Target and Planet Smoothie, and then took them to another local park so they would be tired for bed in the evening.  A very low key kind of a day.  We need those, once in a while.

Maddy trying to work the cart seatbelt.  No such luck.

Mommy, Brae, and Kohl waiting for their smoothies.

While Daddy and Maddy stand in line.

He loves going up the slides just as much as he does going down.

Gotta keep a close watch on these two!

See what I mean?

Making some homemade dried mango slices.

Monday morning gave me a little scare.  No, a big one.  As I was giving Kohlden his milk and breakfast in the kitchen I heard a snarl from our Cocker Spaniel Zoe and then Maddy crying immediately.  Apparently she had stuck her hand through the gate to Zoe's area and had some food in her hand.  Now, we're always pretty good at keeping Zoe gated and away from the kids, since she is quite tempermental and possessive, especially when it comes to food.  That and having a history of having bitten Braelyn and Tangie's mother in the past, she has twice been put on quarantine.  Luckily it didn't break the skin and Maddy was all right, but that was way too close of a call.  That would've officially been her third offense.  So we're letting her go.  My aunt in Avon Park is going to take her for us to save her from the Orange County Animal Services Dept., and Zoe will be a good replacement for her late pet cat.   She's a good dog, and a great golf ball fetcher, but just too unpredictable around small children who don't understand.  At least we'll get to see her on visits.



Braelyn gives Zoe some water to drink.


On Tuesday Braelyn went on a field trip that required her first official bus ride.  Her class went to Build-A-Bear at the Altamonte mall, where they can choose colors and materials and create their very own custom teddy bears, complete with birth certificates.  There is a wedding video that has become one of Braelyn's favorites from the amazing film company 4120, that shot her Uncle Mike and Auntie Gen's wedding in California.  Anyway, in this particular video of an Indian wedding (http://4120weddings.com/films/, seventh video down)  they introduce the reception host whose name is Patik Sohnee.  Well, I guess that name stuck with her as she named her new teddy bear "Patik" although when the workers at the store were trying to figure out the name from a 4 year old, ended spelling it "Patique" so that's where it stands.  And we're still not quite sure if it's a he or she, or a he-she.  I never realized we'd have a trans-gender bear.  Anyway, after school she and Mommy went shopping for bicycles at several places, and we met up with them to go to Wal-Mart, which had the cheapest prices.  She test rode and decided on one, and with Mommy helping with some accessories, she was all set.  So now Braelyn is learning how to pedal and balance somewhat with the help of training wheels.

Coming home with "Patique".

Test driving her bike at Walmart.

The twins test ride as well.

Why isn't this thing working?

Braelyn shows her mean shark face while wearing a shark helmet.

Of course Kohlden saw these and got distracted.

Going out for a practice run.

Maddy and Kohl are everywhere!  And they are starting to really communicate and babble with us and with each other.  A lot.  It's hilarious, actually.  It's like they're really carrying on a conversation but with a bunch of short blips and blurps and noises.  I just wish I was faster with the camera to catch it on video.  They enjoy all the outings and trips for the daily errands we run, and are getting really comfortable, sometimes too comfortable, at the stores and decide they want to go wherever and explore.  Let's just say I'm constantly getting exercise trying to keep up with them!  But it's just as entertaining for us as, I'm sure, it is for them.

Twins doing twin things.

He got himself stuck in a little predicament.

Maddy gives a hand to her brother.

Braelyn teaching Kohlden how to work the laptop.

We love our waffles!

Maddy looking cute with her hair poof.

Joining Jared and Isabella at the library.  There were four dads there this week!

Waiting for storytime to begin.



Maddy was thoroughly exhausted!



On our morning walks with Zoe.

A sampling of dinners this week:

Tequila lime chicken wings with rice and avocado salsa.

Grilled salmon and chicken Thai spring rolls.

A steaming bowl of Vietnamese [what the] Pho.

Not too many notable conversations this week:

• On the drive home from school she asked if we could get a new pet for the house.

          Me:  "What kind of pet were you wanting?"
          Brae:  "Um...how about a hamster?"  (they have one at school)
          Me:  "Oh, I don't know if Mommy would like that."
          Brae:  "Why?"
          Me:  "What if the hamster gets lost in the house?  There's too many places for a
                   hamster to get lost."
          Brae:  "Well...maybe we can put flour powder on the floor at night, and in the morning
                     look for the tracks and follow the footprints so we can find where he's hiding."

          Hmm.  Never thought of that one.

• I was helping her with her homework and after she had written her name I wanted her to write the date.

          Me:  "Okay, I need you to write the date here."
          Brae:  "Date?"
          Me:  "Yes.  See this word?  Sound it out.  What does it say?"
          Brae:  (sounding the letters)  "Date?"
          Me:  "Yes.  Now write September 28, 2011."
          Brae:  "Is this like a date with you and Mommy?"

• I was heading out to Publix to get some things for dinner and was teasing with Tangie.

          Me:  "So, I'll be back in a few hours."
          Tangie:  "A few hours?!?  Where are you going?"
          Me:  "I'm going to the driving range." (Ya, I wish!)
          Brae:  "I want to go to the driving orange!"

          You and me both kid.  You and me.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Getting Into The Swing Of Things

1 year, 23 weeks.

It is currently one of the worst seasons of the year, and I'm not talking about weather.  I'm talking about when us Floridians suffer through a period of suffocating infestation of black insects.  They are everywhere, but where you see them mostly are on your windshield. 

Is anyone else offended by this?



Love bugs. 

Those tiny yet terrifically annoying insects that come out of hiding just to mate and reproduce, then dying immediately afterwards and littering patios and driveways.  You see them mostly in pairs, in the coital position, with the male trying to carry both his and her weight during flight.  It is in this disturbingly public display of reproduction that the male often makes a critical mistake:  flying in ecstasy with the girl bug of his dreams and fails to see the oncoming car barreling down the highway.  Suicidal love making.  C'est La Vie.



So what's going on with us.  Let's see.

Last Friday evening we were invited to attend dinner with the Clarke's to celebrate Marlissa's birthday.  The restaurant of choice was Maggiano's Little Italy, an establishment that pays homage to classic family style meals, without the obnoxious and sometimes overwhelming decor of Buca di Beppo.  Try the fried zucchini, always a hit!  As luck would have it, reservations were made for 6:30 pm, bordering the twins' bed time.  This was going to be interesting.  As expected, Maddy and Kohl started getting restless just as our order was being taken, and refused to sit in their high chairs, which resulted in Tangie and I having one each sit on our laps during the entire course of the meal.  It didn't help our conversations with the other adults, for sure.  But then again, it's probably because we rarely eat out at nice places such as this.  And for good reason.  Afterwards we changed them into bed gear before heading home, knowing they would surely fall asleep and it would save us the hassle then.  Good call.

Matching pair, Brae helps push the stroller out the parking garage at Pointe Orlando.

The calm before the storm.

Even Braelyn was a bit restless and fidgety.

Isabella behaved so well at dinnertime!

The 3 all zonked out.

Sabbath brought us to church for Sabbath school.  We were able to catch up with friends and swap stories from our week.  A quick lunch of leftovers at home was quickly followed by naps for Mommy and the children.  We wanted the twins to stay around the same time frame for naps as to not deviate from the rest of the week.  I, on the other hand, did some prep work in the kitchen, as we hosted (surprise!) the Grodacks over for dinner.  As we were in Avon Park the weekend prior we hadn't seen them in almost 2 weeks and were getting Grodack withdrawals!  Duncan and I had been talking in church that morning and the topic went from kids to food to sushi, so we decided to have them come over for "roll-your-own" sushi night.  Corey had never had sushi, as she had always thought sushi encompassed raw fish, which in its essence, yes.  But there's also vegetable and fruit rolls available, to her surprise and delight, which can be substituted for the raw stuff.  Looks like we have another sushi convert!  Duncan and I probably ate 4 or 5 rolls each.  And why not, when you can eat $100 worth for about $15.

Maddy and Kohl deciding if they should or shouldn't hop in the inflatable pool at Sabbath school.

Baby Brady.  So serious.

Mommy holds the twins during story time.

Everyone happy? 

He wanted to walk in Daddy's shoes.

Applesauce makes a great snack after naps!

Mommy becomes the indoor playground!

The Grodacks are here!  Let the fun begin!

I think my roll was bigger than his...hmmm....

The twins were infatuated by Brady, or was it the toys on his bouncer...

Braelyn is one of the few 4 year olds I know with such a sophisticated palate! 

Has anyone seen my toy?

Grodacks change kids into their pj's. 

Originally we had planned to go to Green Meadows Petting Farm in Kissimmee early Sunday morning with the Grodacks, Bergherms, and part of the Zbarschuks for a picnic and family play, but that idea was fumbled late Saturday night.  Instead I went over to help Karis paint the garage floor of his mother-in-law's new house and then came back home to mow our lawn.  Tangie had the morning to re-bond with the kids as they had been with me all week last week, and had taken them shopping to Target and Babies R Us.  I had barely finished mowing the lawn when a huge deluge of rain came on top of us, forcing me to finish trimming and edging utterly soaked.  But we needed it.  We always need rain.  It rained for the better part of the afternoon, subsiding around a little after 4, just in time for the kids to become restless indoors.  So we took a quick trip to Lowe's to look for a replacement vine for the pergola.

Kohl and Braelyn test out some new driving mowers for Daddy.  Please?

As I was mowing the lawn around the pergola I noticed one of the wisteria vines I had purchased when the twins were born had died.  I was bummed.  My plan was to have the plants grow up and over the pergola and shade it with their leaves and hanging flowers.  And I had purchased 2, to commemorate the twins arrival, fittingly naming them Madelyn and Kohlden.  So it was such a loss to lose one of the "twin" wisteria's this week, as I had been tending to them for over a year and a half now.  So on our visit to Lowe's they told me about the Confederate Jasmine, which is a really fast growing vine with tiny white and wonderfully fragrant flowers.  They didn't have any in stock at the time but referred me to a plant nursery down the road, which I visited with the twins on Tuesday and ended up buying a beautiful one with vines already reaching about 8 feet tall.  It was planted later that evening and manipulated to climb up the pergola post, so we'll have to see.  I also added a Muscadine grape vine to another post where a small Bougainvillea had died.  It'll be cool if that goes up as well and produces some fruit! 

Brotherly love.  I looked down and had to take this picture at the Home Depot.

Same thing the following day at Lowe's.  I hope they continue to be close siblings!

"Please Daddy, make up your mind and just pick a plant!  It's getting way too hot out here!"



Remember this billboard?...



Apparently someone got offended and called to have the verbage changed!



After our trip to Lowe's we swung by our local playground near the West Orange Trail for the kids to release some energy.  It was so muggy after the rain and the humidity just saturated our clothing, but that didn't deter the smiles and shrieks of laughter coming from the three.  Nor did they want to leave in the end, especially the twins.  They were still in the mood to run around and explore!  Later that evening, and into this week, Tangie and I worked on putting together the kids' old and outgrown clothes for a consignment shopping event coming up this weekend.  Seriously, it was like working for BabyGAP or Gymboree with all the little clothes and tags and bar codes!  It was a nice walk down memory lane remembering the outfits and how old when or where the children wore them. 

They loved the double slide.

All 3 were constantly on the move.

Enjoying the swings.

Kohlden flying high.

Mommy keeps a close eye on a very adventurous Madelyn.

"What do you mean, this isn't the way up?"

Braelyn enjoyed doting on her siblings.

Evening Skype session with the grandparents in Denver.

Hi Papa!  We can see you!

Girls bonding and putting on nail polish.



Braelyn getting pampered.

Tangie at work reorganizing baby stuff we've accummulated over the years.

We can open our own store!

Products ready to be sold.

On Wednesday I picked Jared and his daughter Isabella for our weekly trip to story time at the Winter Garden Library.  I had enlisted him as support for the lack of fatherly presence there, as noted last week.  We were surprised to see another dad there, and I'm sure he was relieved to see us as well.  It also helps that you be early and claim your space on the floor before the program begins, rather than in the middle and have all the moms stare at you.  But that never bothered me.  So we'll try and make this a weekly tradition as well, if not to just hang out with a friend and fellow parent.  Later that evening I took Braelyn to her first Adventurer's meeting which was part meet & greet, part orientation.  She got a little tired in the end, after a long day at school, and just wanted to sit in my lap.  Hopefully she'll get into the projects and honors we'll be having as the year progresses.  And yes, we're very excited planning an upcoming weekend camping trip next month where we will share lodgings with friends and their families. 

Jared and Isabella.

Getting ready for story time.

A chance to walk around and stretch those legs!

Braelyn stands in line with the Little Lambs in the Adventurer's Club.

The moms wait while the older kids attend the program.

She was ready to go, can you tell?

The twins and I are getting used to the daily routine.  I am starting to become seemingly comfortable managing both, and then all 3 when we pick Braelyn up, both at home and in public.  I'm still limiting myself to just an hour, maybe 2, at a time out of the house, but then again, most trips are local and convenient anyways.  I am constantly laughing at how these two interact with me and with each other, and am eating up every moment.  I'm also trying to let them figure out their issues and quarrels with each other, only interceding when they can't seem to resolve who had what first, or when one starts hitting the other.  There was this one incident in the kitchen when Maddy and Kohl started fighting for the same book, which Kohlden had first.  So I took the book from both and handed it back to Kohl, explaining to Maddy that he had had it first.  Of course that drew a fit from the princess, so I extended her some puff snacks as a peace offering.  Well she took the snack, found Kohl, who had wandered into the living room, and waved the snack in his face like she was saying "Look what I got!"  Kohl immediately got up and went to the kitchen so he too could get a puff snack, leaving the book to a very smug and triumphant Madelyn.  Smart girl.

Getting his morning exercise on the ladder.

These two are fearless.

Maddy ready to slide.

Breakfast on the patio.

What is it about Daddy's shoes....

The twins get too loud for Braelyn on the ride home from school.

A classic "Maddy gets frustrated by Kohlden's foot on her chair" moment.

And of course the innocent, "What?  What did I do?" pose.

Maddy has some popcorn for her afternoon snack.  The twins loved the popcorn.

Gotta have her accessories!

Nice peaceful dock to enjoy the lake breeze.

Lil' Miss Fashionista.

"So...what is this I'm supposed to be looking at?"

Who knew a box could be so much fun?

The only time the house is quiet is when all 3 have food in their mouths.

A couple of the dishes prepared for dinners this week:

Teriyaki chicken meatballs on basmati rice with mango cucumber salsa.

Pan fried butter salmon on fish infused risotto.

Mac 'n cheese.

This week's conversations:

• Braelyn was doing her business in the potty, and I was checking up on her to make sure she wiped and completely cleaned herself, when she asked me something that caught me completely off guard:

          Brae:  "Daddy, why do mommies and daddies have hair on their bottoms?"

          Quick!  Think fast!  Come up with a good enough answer!

          Me:  "Um...why don't you ask Mommy when she gets home."  [Whew!]  Crisis averted!

          And she did ask later on that evening...at the restaurant.  I could tell this by the look on
          Tangie's face when she nearly choked on her food.

• Again, on our ride home from school, we take turns listening to our favorite songs so as to not hog all the music choices.  When it was my turn, I switched it to the Spa channel on the satellite radio to kind of calm things down a little and listen to some soft, quiet music.  I was hoping for a moment of reflection, if but for a few minutes.

          Brae:  "Daddy, I don't like this song!"
          Me:  "I like it!  And isn't it my turn to choose the music?"
          Brae:  "But I don't like this music.  It's too sad."
          Me:  (laughing)  "Too sad?  How is it too sad?"
          Brae:  (whiny)  "It's too slow.  [pause]  And it doesn't have any words."

          Figures.

• We were getting ready to go outside to see the new plants I had just put in pots by the front door.  It was almost time for bed and it was dark outside, so we got out some flashlights for good measure.  Almost immediately she turned hers on and shined the light on my face.  I flinched.

          Me:  "Braelyn, please don't do that!  It's not nice to shine the flashlight on people's
                   faces."
          Brae:  "Why?"  (You were expecting this, right?)
          Me:  "Because it hurts my eyes when you shine it on my face." 

          To prove my point I quickly pass my flashlight over her face.

          Brae:  "It doesn't hurt my eyes.  I have beautiful eyes, and beautiful eyes don't hurt."

          Such a diva.

Some day we'll find it:  The rainbow connection.  The lovers, the dreamers, and me...

Have a great weekend!