Multiple blessings...

For christmas Brandon bought me the book multiple blessings by Kate Gosselin and her friend Beth. I've been anticipating this book for long time and was so excited to finally get in my cozy jammies and read it. I can not explain to you how much this book touched me. I feel guilty for ever complaining about having twins and having to take care of them alone during the day. I've been struggling for quite a while now with coming to terms that I'm a mother. I guess I've always had a go get em attitude and expected to be doing somthing different at this point in my life. Finishing school has been always on my mind- feeling like a failure for not being done already- and sadly watching as my friends were graduating and getting jobs- don't get me wrong I wouldnt trade moving to canada for anything but sometimes I just wanted to scream- hey I'm smart and educated and I want to finish- they just won't let me. On top of this I still don't know what to do with my life. I'm now a permanent resident of canada and the boys are almost one- making it easier for me to start school again. I'm finishing my degree just to have a degree-( which alone feels like I'm failing again doing it online- but it just makes more sense this way- I just hate taking the easy road) I see how immature that sounds but its truly how I feel. I believe its important but I cant decide the emphasis -unfortunatley you can only pick from 4 majors when you finish online and nothing seems to suit me. I guess I just need to pick something and go with it. I know that what I do will probablly require additional training-man school lasts forever- but it is very important to me to feel sucessful. Like I did it -and I'm good at my talents. Having my boys was a hard adjustment with control- I love being in control of every little thing. I feel a lot like kate in that it wasnt quite what I was planning on happening to me. Like other people are first and what I want is always on the back burner. After reading this book it became apparent to me that it's god's timing. That I'm doing something sucessful. But that I need to do what he wants before I can do what I want. That he loves me and will make sure my prayers are answered-that I need to give and realize god will always give more back to me. In so many ways this book has answered my prayers and helped with my jumbled brain of confusion and heartache. Teaching me to appreciate the little moments and that the answers to life will come . To not worry about my career right now-he'll show me what I need to do- he'll fill my well strengthen me on the hard days and bring me unexplainble joy through my boys. Just work on my school and he'll fill in the gaps. I just need to trust him and relinquish control. I'm greatful for her insight and open honsty. My life will have answers but I need to listen to what he wants and when.

My crazy crazy boys...and some new pictures

Help mom I'm stuck...again


Brandon makes them this tower 20 times a day they rush over each other to try and get to it firts to knock it down.

what did I do mom? stare into my bright blue eyes just like dads and everything will be great!

This is my new I breathe through my nose face

It starts.....

escalades..........

and pow....down to the ground!

This is for everyone who wants to see the trouble these little guys get into and how they are always tackling each other. They were just in a playful mood- and I thought they were being so funny.Every times Harrisons head would come up Greyson would push it down. Somehow I feel this is not going to be the last of the mischief I see. In fact my friend that has twins had her boys get into her flour and make snow angels in it. They egg each other on and help them clim places ect ect. I think I have my work cut out for me. ( 9 days until the dominican- it's minus 30 in calgary today. brrrrrrrrr) and after that I start school again. Finally. I really am going to write a letter to the minister of Immigration and tell him its ridiculous that someone applying for a permanent resident spot should be able to go to school for longer than 3 months. But that's a story for another day-a good entry on goverment crazyness.

It's POPPY DAY. {Remembrance Day in Canada}

So I'd like to talk today a little bit about remembrance day. I think it's awesome. everyone in Canada wears red poppies to remember the men and women who served our country to defend its freedoms. I think it's so cool because in the states they don't really make it that big of a deal. I know people care but it's cool that people get so into it here. The first time I learned about remembrance day I was walking around campus in rexburg and saw people wearing poppies. The canadian club gives them out to people- little did I know I'd be a canadian one day. This is the poem everyone reads on remembrance day. It's beautiful... I'm thankful to have freedom. we are very blessed to live in a place free of supression. THANK YOU VETERANS!

In Flanders Fields
John McCrae...

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders Fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders Fields.

Remembrance Day
Remembrance Day occurs in Canada each November 11. It is a day of national commemoration for the more than 100,000 Canadians who have died in military service. The costs for Canada, with its relatively small population, have been substantial, remember the poppies.

C is for

Canadian Thanksgiving!
It was canadian thanksgiving to day and we went out to brandons grandparents house in olds Alberta. Had an amazing dinner. and then da da da....... the new annual rook tournament of champions. Now being a johnson means you have to play cards it just goes along with being in the family. At Thanksgiving it`s our tradition now to have a rook tournament. We have a trophy and everything. It was lots of fun despite the boys being pretty cranky(they are getting more teeth). I`m greatful for family friends and a Canada. I love living here and am greatful for the oppertunity...and who dosnt love two thanksgivings!

Johnsons are back!

I seriously can not see myself ever leaving Calgary. I would miss Johnsons so bad. They are gone for a week and I have withdrawls. I couldnt wait to hear stories- they always have stories when they get back from places- and we always look forward to stories- i guess its a johnson thing. They went to hawaii and even brought us back prizes. Debbie got me a new purse which im in love with - Ive wanted one for a long time. I was so excited about it. Brandon got new swimming shorts- they are hot i have to say bright green and black- totally loved them and the boys got some cute shirts. ok so I'm going to write about johnson and there obsession with mcdonalds. Once you become part of there family its only a matter of time until you have the mcdonalds experience. When we went to Victoria we went every day to mcdonalds! Johnsons love their breakfast there- and their diet coke. which is so funny cause i cant stand mcdonalds and then brandon introduced me to chicken sanwiches. Their burgers make me sick- not sure why. Anyways they take their picture outside of them when they go places they have a picture of the one in france and in england- and now hawaii- its like they love to see somthing so good and familiar and how they are different in different parts of the world- no seriousley people this truly intrigues me. Oh how I love my family! Never a dull moment.

an ode to mick

We are cool because we understand how things are supposed to be said even though our crazy family tells us were wrong- this will be my ongoing post of canadian vs idaho /utah words that we say different and get in trouble for- Ive wanted to do this for a while cause it makes me laugh how close we are but how things can bne different. I love you my american comrad!

canadian/american
creek/crick
grade 2/ second grade
niche/nitch- this is more mick ;)
crayon/cran- this has caused much controversy in our family :)
mazda/mozda
pro gress/ progress
dra as in pan ma/ drawma
anyways the saga will continue

Married life in the burg/graduation/moving to canada

So after we got married Brandon and I both needed one more semester to finish our degrees his bachelors and my associates - we had decided to move to canada afetr he finished school because of the great oppertunity for jobs in what he wanted to do...trading for an oil company. I was excited about a new adventure in life and was totally up for it. I remember that being one of the hardest semesters for me. id gone non stop to school with no break since i graduated from highschool and was burned out. And all we wanted to do was be with each other. We lived in a small one bedroom apt in a plce called university courtyard-the plus was it was close to camand having a general authority speak at graduation is really cool. We were there right before pus- usually married housing is farther away so it was nice we could still walk to class- i sold my car that semester-because it wouldve been a hastle to try and get it into canada. So that left us with brandons toyots tacoma- in the middle of winter - it was a stick and even though i tried i couldnt get the hang of it in the snow there-so when we went up for our second reception in calgary we traded cars with brandons brother barrett and got the xterra. I still miss that car gotta love the remote starter. Finally after a long semester and all the adjustments of being newly weds it was graduation time- i remember feeling sad i was leaving but excited for the new adventure. we got to sit next to each other at graduation that was really cool. We were there right before david bednar was called as an apostle- he was the pres of byu-i at the time- i heard him every tuesday at devotional. It felt so good to graduate like i was halfway towards my goal-even though i hadnt picked a solid major yet id changed 2 times from theatre education to interior design- i was so confused on what i wanted to do. The move to canada was crazy-we started working on immigration papers-and for anyone whos done it they know its not fun and it takes forever. I had to get medical checks be fingerprinted get fbi reports and basiclly tell my life story on paper and submit it to lawyers with pictures of my whole life to prove i wasnt lying just to live in canada- it was crazy i feel bad for people going the other way into the states- ive heard its harder-we had eventful times whenever we crossed the border and we waited for my work permit for a year- the worst part is they wont let you go to school or work until you are a landed immigrant i was so bored and antsy that year-it was really tough on me-because i wanted to get school done. Im so glad we had a lawyer to help us figure the whole process out he helped a lot. I finally got my alberta health card and work permit and things started looking up- UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE IS AMAZING! your sick you go to the doctor they pay for everthing- i love it the states needs it so bad so peole arnt afraid to go to the doctor- what a freedom. I started working for Pier 1 imports as a manager when i got my work permit and started up school again. I decided to take some event planning classes and see how i liked them- i knew immediatley it was something i wanted to do- but i also wanted a degree on top of it so i tried thinking of what would work well with event planning and business seemed like a good option with an emphasis in either hospitaility and tourism or entrapreneurship-sorry i know i spelled that wrong. afetr about a year i got my permanent redident card amd officially welcome in canada. I have another 3 years before i can apply for citizenship- how exciting-thnk heavens to the johnsons for helping me through that crazy time and helping me get into canada smoothly i owe them big and love them big for it.