Christmas 2005

Dearest friends, family and acquaintances,
In 2005 we did NOT do any major home projects or add any additional children, pets or rooms to our home. We did NOT go on any exotic vacations or missionary endeavors to foreign countries. So, I guess I have nothing to write about.

I could tell you about the many academic and athletic awards my children have received and about when our dog saved a child’s life -- but none of that happened this year either.

SO WHAT DID THE JOHNSON’S DO IN 2005?

Kids
We still have six – didn’t lose any this year; at least if we did we found them again. We’ve noticed that Raelea thinks she’s a dog. How do we know this you ask. Well, it could be that she licks instead of kisses or maybe it’s the way she pants when she gets excited. Of course this isn’t surprising because our dog thinks she’s a baby. She pushes the buttons on Raelea’s toys to watch them light up and make noise. So, anyway you count it we still have six “kids.” I’m sure they’ll both figure it out eventually. Okay, maybe only Raelea will figure it out.

Kids, they are endearing and oh so honest…
Nina - “Mom, you shouldn’t wear a two piece swimsuit.”
Mom – “You’re right, dear, I shouldn’t!”
Nina – “Well, maybe if no one was on the beach. (long pause) And it was dark out.”
Next day…
Emily – “Mom, is Snickers your daughter?”
Mom – “No, Snickers is a dog.”
Emily – Taking a long look at Snickers turns to Mom and says “You kind of look like her.”
And just today…
Aidan – “Mom, if you don’t stop singing I’m going to have a nightmare!”
Honesty. I love it!

This was our first year of doing the baseball thing. Aidan and Nina both played for the YMCA and Chris coached Nina’s team. The rest of our time is filled with dance classes, piano lessons and swimming lessons. This means that Molly is learning to play the piano underwater and Nina can pirouette all the way around the bases.

Our best parenting resource of the year...Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. “Mumbling. I can’t understand you when you mumble.”

School
School goes on and on here. Evan is now in seventh grade, which means that his science experiments carry warnings with them like “DO NOT let the oxygen out too quickly. If you do the experiment could become dangerous.” To our neighbors, don’t worry he’s usually well supervised.

House
Last Christmas letter we told you that we were making the kids sleep outside and you thought we were kidding. Well, come take a look in our backyard now. In June, Chris and the kids built a spacious tree house in the yard. Let me tell you, it’s a beaut! And it went up without a single trip to the emergency room.

Church
In January we left our church of 19 years and began attending Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis. Although it was a difficult transition we now feel at home there and we get to enjoy finding parking during every home Vikings game. Molly has revealed a penchant for singing and has joined the children’s choir at church. Her debut performance will be on Christmas Eve.

Family
This year was a difficult one for Barb’s family as her dad was diagnosed with lung cancer in the spring. Thankfully, it was caught very early and after two surgeries (one on each lung) we believe he is cancer-free. He is golfing again and doing well. Thank you to all of you who prayed for him. You have no idea how much those prayers meant to us!

So this Christmas season we are thankful for friends and family and mostly for Jesus Christ. Not only is He the reason for the season He is the reason for everything.


We’ve had each of the kids sign this letter so that when they are famous you can say that you knew them when…and then you can sell their signature on Ebay for hundreds of dollars!