March 2022

March had a little of everything for the Johnsons. It feels like a lot happened and nothing much happened. The weather improved and so did our moods. Spring was on its way in and winter was on its way out and that felt great! Flowers were starting to come up and the sun was shining! The mask mandate for WA State finally ended and it felt great to rip that thing off of our faces.

St. Patrick's Day came and went and we celebrated! We ate my mom's corned beef and her beer bread, my grandma's green punch, Ailey's mint brownies, and all the sides. It was fabulous and we need to eat this meal more often than once a year. We also sent a St. Patrick's Day care package to Kameron.

Reilly and Hunter sadly missed out. Hunter's family was celebrating several family birthdays on the day that we celebrated. The girls (and Tyler) requested green lunches and...shamrock shakes were consumed. It was delightful!

Kameron had transfers this month but stayed in New Prague. He was really happy about that and he also got a new companion. His new comp is a kid from Pocatello. He and Kameron get along really well. Kameron's still a district leader. They've had a fun and productive month while still managing to squeeze in some P-Day fun.

One of the members of their branch has a cotton candy business. She had the elders come over and create some new flavors. They had a blast!

Kameron created a new flavor he called "Battery Acid" and she sent them home with a bunch of cotton candy.

They played a lot of basketball on those snowy Minnesota P-Days.

Bryn enjoyed critiquing his "form." LOL.

Kameron was happy that his mission president finally lifted all of the COVID restrictions. They can street contact now. That is a new experience for him. We finally got to take our masks off at church too. It's the first time we haven't had to wear masks in the State of WA since last June! Kameron also hit his "last hundred days" of his mission. We are super excited for him to come home in July. This last stretch has been really dragging for us (me). Also this month, Jackson, one of Kam's cousins on Tyler's side got his mission call to the Minneapolis Minnesota Mission!! It was so exciting! Unfortunately these two cousins will miss each other by two weeks but Kameron will be a good resource for him. Go Minnesota! Apparently the Lord needs the Kofford cousins to do His work in Minnesota right now. One leaves and another arrives to take his place.

Ailey spent most of the month prepping for her Orlando trip. There was a mandatory parent night about all of the travel details. She also had a lot of choir practices, shopping for warm weather clothes, and working extra shifts at work.

Ailey had her Spring Choir Concert. This was her last *choir only* concert. She will have one more big music department concert in May and then...that's it. She did a great job and it was fun to watch her!

Ailey and her best friend Maren.

The high school dance team went to the middle school one day during lunch to talk to the incoming freshman about trying out for the dance team.  Ailey got to see Brynnie.

Ailey said that some of the middle school boys were taking pictures of the dance team and asking for their snap chats. There are several boys from our ward who are in middle school and know Ailey. A kid from our ward's friends bet him $20 to go ask one of the dance team to take a picture with him and ask for her snap chat. This kid boldly went up to Ailey, to his friends amazement, and hilariously won the $20!! 

Ailey also got asked to Prom by her friend James. Not that many promproposals around here unless you are LDS or extremely *extra.* Utah must be SO exhausting with everything having to be such a big deal. Ailey's prom date was like, "Wanna go to Prom?" and Ailey said, "Sure." End of story. Not even a picture was taken. LOL. 

At the end of the month Ailey headed to Florida and had the time of her life!!

Bryn had a more low-key month. She is in between sports seasons which was kind of nice for all of us. She stayed busy enough with piano, orchestra, field trips, friends, and YW. Bryn had her spring orchestra concert. I was the only one able to go and I was sitting in a horrible location so I don't have any good videos or even a decent picture. #momfail. She got the 80s treatment. I don't think my mom ever took one picture of me performing at anything! Ha ha!

Tyler and I had some fun date night/days this month. We found a new hiking trail that we are super excited about and can't wait to drag the kids along. Most of our children don't *love* hiking so this one is pretty nonthreatening, It will be a good trail to start them on.

Tyler did more hiking with the YM and went on a camp out with them in the Washington scab lands. He had a great time!

He is very excited to take the whole family out here to hike to a series of little water falls.

We also dusted off our bikes and hit the trail! It felt so good to be back on our bikes!

We did 16 miles along the Lake CDA shore. The weather was gorgeous and I do feel like the Peloton kept me in better bike riding shape over the winter. We also bought another kayak so that we can get on the water earlier this year. I prefer paddle boarding but I can get on the water several months earlier with the kayak so I'm excited about that!

We didn't see a whole lot of Reilly this month. A few days here and there. March is a big month for Hunter's family with a lot of events. She house sat and watched Beverly for us when we headed out of town at the end of the month and she came over and did Ailey's eyelashes before she left for Orlando. Reilly started an online marketing company as a side gig and she is having a lot of fun getting that off the ground. She is our little entrepreneur!

We had a lot of appointments and some sickies. Bryn got sick and missed a few days of school. Thank goodness it wasn't COVID. Ailey had a dental appointment and got two fillings. She also got a referral to the oral surgeon to get her wisdom teeth removed. We still need to schedule it. It's hard navigating tooth removal around things like senior trips and prom etc.  Bryn had her dental appointment and got a referral to the orthodontist. Ailey has the same weird knee issues that Kameron had. Weak muscles that hold their knee caps in place. She went to the orthopedic surgeon and PT was recommended. Tyler had an appointment with his endocrinologist and his A1C was the best it has ever been so that was really exciting! I battled migraines this month. They were truly awful. I think they are hormone related. Thanks perimenopause. I think I need to up my migraine prescription. My regular dose wasn't working. I spent way too much time in a darkened bedroom with a heating pad on my head. Ugh. I have an appointment next month to get my hormone levels checked. I also got my yearly mammogram. This year I had some anxiety around this, which I usually never do, but two of my friends (who are my age) are currently battling breast cancer. They are troopers. I was relieved that my results were normal. Even Beverly had her vet check up. The little fatty is now two pounds over weight (she is still the smallest pug I see around town) but now we are on a strict after dinner walk regimen with her. She's not a fan! She is like a lazy cat.

Exhibit A! 

She loves to just lay in the sun. Me too Bevs! Me too. She also had her birthday and turned three. She's the best!

We had an ant invasion (in Bryn's room) and Tyler nearly ripped the house apart in his rage to find the source of the "little bastards" which to his credit... he did... but it was after being a contortionist and shimming up into our attic and then also crawling on his stomach army style in our crawl space under the house all while delighting us with his moods. Thankfully the source was found and the ants departed.

He also informed me that up in our attic there is an old mattress and sleeping bag and some other stuff that looks like someone used to hang out up there. Did I freak? Yes. After he calmed me down that it didn't look *recent* he told me that the stuff looks like it's from the Vietnam War era (army stuff). Don't care. (Our house was built in 1952.) The attic is extremely difficult to get into...you have to remove a panel in Tyler's closet...shimmy into a VERY TIGHT SPACE (in the wall) heave yourself up into the attic and then army crawl to the other side of the house. I asked him how long he has known about the *stuff in the attic* and he said "since we moved in" and when I asked why he didn't tell me this before he replied with, "Because I didn't want to freak you out". Too late sir. I feel this is a story that never needed to be told. Does that closet door randomly bang shut for no reason? Of course it does.

Also after the great ant hunt we did a huge spring de-junking of the house/garage/storage units. It was awesome! I also paid Bryn to organize my closet. Best money ever spent. I finally found a shoe shelving system that SPARKS such joy! I literally open my closet multiple times a day just to gaze at the beautiful organization. We also bought a new bed for Kameron. Ailey took his bed when he left for his mission and doesn't plan to give it back. Since he will be home in a few short months we needed to find him a bed.

This was the last month of ward conferences and it was a doozy.  Every Sunday I was in one, two, or even three different wards and that included the Swahili branch. On some of the long Sundays a lunch was provided for stake leaders and it was definitely appreciated! I enjoyed visiting all of the wards and primaries. It was fun to see so many friends and I enjoyed the camaraderie of the stake leaders. The Swahili branch was especially interesting to visit. The service is completely in Swahili with English translations projected onto the wall for talks but not for anything else. It was so cool! I loved the music! It was actually loud, joyful, uplifting, and inspiring music with drumming. Not the usual funeral dirges we hear/sing in church on Sunday. We need a music upgrade! Ailey's friend's parents are over the Swahili branch and Ailey and Maren attended a dinner that the Swahili branch had. Ailey said that it was really fun and was super proud of herself (a vegetarian) for eating goat. Not just any old goat. A goat that had been slaughtered the day before and then prepared especially for the celebration!

Our ward had a talent show. Tyler performed a funny act with the bishopric and Bryn performed a lip sync with the YW. It was pretty hilarious!

My Stake Primary Presidency put on a huge Stake Primary Missionary Activity. It was A LOT of work but it was also a lot of fun and turned out really well!! We do two big activities a year. One down and one to go!

It was so fun to get all of the missionaries serving in our stake involved with the primary kids and get them all hyped to serve a mission. The missionaries were so cute and helped with all of the activities, stations, and crowd control. LOL. Tyler was off with the YM and Ailey was working so Bryn came and volunteered at the activity and did an awesome job!

That same weekend Bryn and I got to have some fun Mother/Daughter time. We shopped, ate out several times, got froyo and petit fours, and watched an 80s double feature of Dirty Dancing and Say Anything. She was a fan! Bryn is fun to hang out with and she is so easy going which is appreciated and not a word that describes any of our other children. LOL.

In some sad news...my BFF from college, Tiffany, lost her dad this month. Parents are dropping like flies these days. Her dad was only 73 and it was quite unexpected. I love her family and this was HARD. Her dad was a single dad at the same time that my mom was a single mom and we were always trying to get them together Brady Bunch style. LOL. 

Speaking of fathers...my father did all of his estate planning this month. He wanted me to be a co-executor of his estate along with his stepson, Doug. I said... NO WAY!!! I NEVER want to have to deal with my sisters in this capacity EVER again. Eventually he went with Doug as the primary and Doug's wife as the secondary which I was thrilled about. There is no way that I ever want to have to deal with my sisters in another situation like the one we continue to be in with my mom's estate!!

Speaking of that...it's tax season and it ain't pretty. Capital Gains. There were too many sibling emails in my inbox this month. One sister in particular needs to give it a REST and move on with her life.  She spends ALOT of time and energy contacting Kirk and I to tell us how much she can't wait to have no contact with us. It's actually so ridiculous that it's hilarious. Kirk and I have had zero contact with any of them. We only speak directly to our trust accountant. 

Then in the midst of all of this... another sister contacts all of our daughters to invite them (and Hunter) to dinner at the Olive Garden to celebrate her daughter's birthday! I can't make this stuff up! My kids were like "What do we do?" It's insanity. I love my nieces and nephews and said that they should probably go and support their cousin. They sent me this picture from the parking lot. LOL.

They said that dinner went okay. This particular sister stayed away from sensitive topics (good) and I was glad that our niece was able to celebrate her birthday with her cousins. Although an escape plan was in place should the dinner have gone south. 

I also got my final payout from my grandparents trust. Hallelujah. No more contact needed from that uncle either. So the great news is that both family trusts closed out this month! Buh-bye! Maybe we can finally get some peace and quiet.

In some *happy* family news...occasionally it does happen...ha ha. My cousin Wendy, her husband Ben, and their kids came to town. We met up with them and got all of the kids together including my cousin Justin's kids. It was good to visit with Wendy and Ben!! Ailey and their daughter are going to be roomies next fall! I was too busy chatting and took zero pictures.

One weekend Tyler and I went to a vintage show in Idaho, as customers not vendors, and it felt great! It was fun to see friends and I found some great things for my house. Midtown Market's sales continue to be steady. This month was a little slower but we have our big Spring Open House coming up next month that I've been busy prepping for. Inflation, gas prices, the war in Ukraine, and the continuing effects of COVID have taken such a toll on small businesses. I'm grateful for steady sales and grateful to be able to support my friends too.

That's really about it this month. We filled our house with tulips all month to combat the gray outside. I was kicking myself for not planting crocuses. I need EARLY color. My flowers are just starting to come up. We saw friends...ate sushi...tried to be outside as much as possible...found a new gelato place...watched a couple of movies...continued to be heartsick over Ukraine...and I joined WW again hopefully that combined with intermittent fasting will do some good! 

Then on the 30th Tyler dropped Ailey off at the airport at 3:30 am to fly to Orlando and the next day we left for Seattle for our Spring Break! 

Email from Elder Johnson: #33

3-14-22

 

My Greatest Possession❤

Good Mornin to my favorite peoples, 

It has again...been a minute and I apologize but I want all of you to know how much I love you and how excited I am to return to all of you in a few short months. I promise I am still very much here haha soaking up the time I have left and embracing every new experience that comes my way but as my mission leader instructed oh so wisely, "Keep an eye on the future but both feet planted in the present." I am firm in where I am at but eye do be looking down the line, if yall catch my drift ;)

But with this email I wanted to take a few minutes of your time and talk to all of you about the thing that is my most precious possession, that is my testimony or MY personal witness. I love the ability to connect with people. A member shared with our congregation a few weeks ago that, "Connection requires vulnerability." So I'm going to get a lil bit vulnerable with all of you for the hope that you and I can connect a little bit more. Last night I felt very strongly about this email and the Spirit touched my heart letting me know that there was someone who needed to hear what I have to say so here I am following that prompting.

My testimony is first and foremost mine and mine alone. It didn't just come. It wasn't a sudden oh hey my testimony has arrived! It has been a process and honestly that's an understatement. It has required a lot of work, grueling trials, and tribulations. Everything from numbness to fear, depression to heartache, and this process is continuing to occur. There will never be moment in my life that I will ever confidently say I'm done working on my testimony. There is always something the Lord is trying to help me understand or wanting to help me become. It is ongoing and I can't think of a greater blessing then continuing in knowledge and personal revelation. It has been this process that the initial flame ignited by my parents spark has now grown into my own fire burning within. Steady, constant, and growing. But much like a fire, it needs fuel. With a bonfire we begin with small pieces of wood (and a wee bit of lighter fluid) and as it grows bigger, pieces of wood are placed in the fire, allowing the fire to surpass its initial potential and grow in size, warmth, light, and steadiness. My testimony continues to grow because of the logs or trials set before me that allow me to grow past my initial potential and burn bigger, brighter, and stronger then I ever previously could. It has been these experiences that allow me to continue to progress towards my divine potential. This has been my experience. Everyone's is a bit different. The Lord knows you, who you are, and who you can become. He has prepared a way for you. Now He is preparing YOU for this path.

My testimony is simple. I know that God is real. I cannot and will not deny that. I know that He is there. His guiding hand is so woven into the very fabric of my being that for me denying His existence would be denying the fact that I am sitting in my apartment right now writing this. I just can't. Now it wasn't always this way. I unknowingly struggled for years being unsure if God was even there. Satan's grasp was so tight around me that it blinded me for so long that I was missing everything happening around me. Everything I thought I had experienced suddenly was filling with doubt and uncertainty which led me to disregard it as something else and not God. I wanted to believe but I was so unsure that it ended up taking me away from all that I knew for about a year. I told myself I was trying to "find myself" and part of me was but the other part just wanted what I felt like would be something easier, less rules, no standards, less worries or expectations and what I thought was true "freedom." Suddenly a personal health crisis, a sudden death of a family member, and a cloud of depression hit, and I found myself at rock bottom. This stand still was then followed by a much needed abrupt awakening that allowed me to finally be humbled enough to know that this wasn't the life for me. I still didn't know what I wanted or where I should go or what was the path for me but I knew that it wasn't where I was headed. So I began to search for fulfillment and was slowly reminded of the feelings I once had when I was more consistently involved with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Along this process there was a constant thought of a mission planted in my brain and a conversation my wonderful parents had with me about the blessings that come from missionary service. 

At this point my mission papers were delayed because of the said health crisis and so I was at a fork in the road. On the one hand, I could forget about the mission and continue in the life I was living which I knew wasn't fulfilling but it was still fun or I could trust in my parents advice and go on this mission. I figured the mission would give me time to figure things out and it would give me some good life experience if nothing else. Ultimately this small decision set off a chain reaction that now 2 years later has made all the difference. 

A very wise friend of mine told me that it isn't the mission that changes you but it's the Atonement of Jesus Christ that changes you. (The Savior’s Atonement included His suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane and His suffering and death on the cross, and it ended with His Resurrection.) This triumph of Jesus Christ over spiritual death by His suffering and overcoming physical death by His Resurrection is called the Atonement of Jesus Christ. The word Atonement itself means at-one-with. It was the time when Christ became one with each of us allowing Him to best know how to help us in our afflictions. I am only beginning to realize the profound impact that idea that she said has. It is my act of submission to His will, allowing my will to be swallowed up in His, and my full reliance on His grace and mercy that has changed me into who I am today. This mission was only the format that allowed me to choose for myself who I want to become and that it is through the Atonement that I can get there and then go further to who He needs me to become.

I am not the same person I was when I left. I have changed because I know now that this is where I am supposed to be. The mission has been far from a walk in the park: it's hard. I have experienced things that I never thought I would both good and bad. There have been some incredible highs and some low lows. But it is this discomfort which pushed me to rely on my Savior to get me through and that has allowed me to get to this point where I can stand before you and bear my personal witness to each of you that again I know that God lives and that Heavenly Father and His son Jesus Christ love me. That they want me to be the very best version of me and are doing all that they can to help me get there. That, hand in hand, with the Bible and the Book of Mormon have changed everything for me. They have given me and continue to give me guidance, comfort, answers, and peace when I have needed it the most. I know that Joseph Smith was indeed called of God as a prophet in these latter-days and that through him they restored the fullness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That we have a modern day prophet who receives modern revelation for us here on the earth today  and who leads and guides this church under the direction of He whose church it is, and whose name I have the privilege of wearing on my chest everyday, Jesus Christ. 

I know that there is a a great plan at work, that God is in the details of the details of the details of our lives. I know that prayer is powerful and that if we ask we will receive because in one way or another everything I have prayed for has been given to me. All this I know to be true because I have experienced it first hand. In the simplest words I can muster, and recognize the deep emotions behind this, when I say, God Loves You. 

Lastly I want to share a scripture that has meant a lot to me. It is from the Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 1:15, 

"But behold the Lord hath redeemed my soul from hell, I have beheld His glory, and I am encircled about eternally in the arms of His love." 

This scripture is my testimony, He has redeemed my soul, I have beheld His glory and mercy, and I know that His loving arms are forever wrapped around me. That is the atonement of Jesus Christ, "To be redeemed—to be atoned—is to be received in the close embrace of our Redeemer. What a privilege! In His embrace we can receive His forgiveness. We can really be one with Him." 

Thank you for supporting me in every step of my journey. I love each one of you and I look forward to seeing yall again. Until then, hope on and journey on. God is with you forever and ever. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Love y'all❤

-This picture has become everything to me tbh

Winter Book Reviews 2022: Part 2

1.) The Woman They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore

This was a book club pick and it was intense. It was difficult and heartbreaking to read. This is the true story of Elizabeth Packard, a mother of six children, who in 1860, was unjustly committed to an insane asylum by her husband because she questioned her husband's religious beliefs and spoke her mind. He feared his wife's intelligence. This book chronicles her fight for her freedom and for justice.

“As Elizabeth put it, “I have neglected no duties, have injured no one, have always tried to do unto others as I would wish to be done by; and yet, here in America, I am imprisoned because I could not say I believed what I did not believe.”

From Goodreads:

1860: As the clash between the states rolls slowly to a boil, Elizabeth Packard, housewife and mother of six, is facing her own battle. The enemy sits across the table and sleeps in the next room. Her husband of twenty-one years is plotting against her because he feels increasingly threatened - by Elizabeth's intellect, independence, and unwillingness to stifle her own thoughts. So Theophilus makes a plan to put his wife back in her place. One summer morning, he has her committed to an insane asylum.

The horrific conditions inside the Illinois State Hospital in Jacksonville, Illinois, are overseen by Dr. Andrew McFarland, a man who will prove to be even more dangerous to Elizabeth than her traitorous husband. But most disturbing is that Elizabeth is not the only sane woman confined to the institution. There are many rational women on her ward who tell the same story: they've been committed not because they need medical treatment, but to keep them in line - conveniently labeled "crazy" so their voices are ignored. No one is willing to fight for their freedom and, disenfranchised both by gender and the stigma of their supposed madness, they cannot possibly fight for themselves. But Elizabeth is about to discover that the merit of losing everything is that you then have nothing to lose.

This is an absolutely horrific story. To be physically removed from her home, ripped away from her children, and committed to an insane asylum for years is abhorrent. Her story is only one of many. The list of what and how minor of things that could get a woman committed for years are mind-boggling. Basically a woman's father or husband could have their daughter or wife committed for anything and often for nothing.

“Elizabeth’s mind spun from what he told her. Under the laws of the United States at that time, a man’s wife was his property: Theophilus could do as he wished. She later wrote in bleak despair, “I…have married away all the freedom I ever had in America.”

This book tells an important story about the fight for women's rights in Civil War era America. While held against her will; Elizabeth recorded her experiences in a secret journal that became a book about her time in the Jacksonville asylum. After her eventual release, her book was published and she worked tirelessly campaigning to secure rights for women and for asylum reform. She wrote other books, published articles, met with legislators, and became a crusader for the rights of women and the mentally ill. Through her landmark case and her tireless life's work, her accomplishments were herculean. The incredible obstacles and circumstances of her time that she had to overcome were inspiring. Her endless perseverance and determination were remarkable.

The author did a phenomenal job of researching Elizabeth Packard and her history. Everything in the book is taken from journals, letters, and court documents. All dialogue comes from historical documents. This is a book that will enrage you, frustrate you, and break your heart. You will also see how far we, as women, have yet to go but you will also cheer Elizabeth on in her fight for justice. She was a force to be reckoned with and I will not forget her. 

“So in the end, this is a book about power. Who wields it. Who owns it. And the methods they use. And above all, it’s about fighting back.”

My Rating: Unforgettable. A must read.

2.) A Walk in My Shoes by Ben Schilaty

This was my book club's pick for January 2022. I think it is a must read for everyone especially members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

From Goodreads:

A Walk in My Shoes: Questions I’m Often Asked as a Gay Latter-day Saint invites readers to act upon that counsel by following the journey of Ben Schilaty, a licensed therapist and BYU Honor Code administrator, as he works to reconcile his faith with his sexual orientation. Each chapter in the book focuses on a question that the author is often asked which he answers using stories from his life and gospel principles. A Walk in My Shoes allows readers a glimpse into the life of a single, gay, active Latter-day Saint and provides examples of how they can support and minister to their LGBTQ loved ones. 

In this memoir the author discusses the conflicts between his sexual orientation and his faith. He beautifully and painfully articulates the deliberate journey that he has chosen which is staying in the church or as he says, "going forward in the church." 

I loved Ben Schilaty's authenticity and his willingness to address the difficult parts of his faith head on and then to go forward with love in his heart to help others learn to listen to and understand our LGBTQ brothers and sisters better. I appreciated him talking openly and honestly about ways that he has been hurt by his faith and his membership in the church. I also appreciated him talking about the things that have likewise strengthened him.

I loved his deep scriptural and doctrinal knowledge of the gospel. His knowledge added a rich perspective to his story. He made me think about particular scriptures in new insightful and enlightening ways. There were perspectives that I hadn't even considered. Ben helped me to understand the atonement of Jesus Christ on a deeper level.

I was surprised to discover that Ben Schilaty works in the Honor Code Office at BYU. What a bright light he must be. His life experience, vulnerability, and candor has to add a rich perspective at BYU. I know that I appreciated him sharing his journey with me and the rest of his readers. This book is a great reminder of the deep love that our Father in Heaven has for his LGBTQ children.

The author inspired me with his deep faith and trust in the Lord. He inspired me to do more to help my LGBTQ brothers and sisters feel loved, accepted, welcome, seen, and understood. This is a wonderful book about finding God, loving others, and accepting oneself.

My Rating: Wonderful.

3.) Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty

My brother recommended this book to me. He and his wife listened to it while on a road trip. I enjoy Liane Moriarty's writing so I was looking forward to reading her latest book. It didn't disappoint. It was just what I needed after reading some heavier nonfiction. This was a fun read!

From Goodreads:

If your mother was missing, would you tell the police? Even if the most obvious suspect was your father?
This is the dilemma facing the four grown Delaney siblings.

I loved this family drama and mystery novel. The family matriarch goes missing and things aren't looking good for the Delany siblings' father as more evidence into their mother's disappearance comes forth and their family secrets begin to be revealed.

I enjoyed this novel immensely. I loved the subject matter of empty nesters with adult children that each have problems of their own, different relationships with their parents, and different relationships with each other. The complicated parent/grown children dynamic is one that isn't explored all that often along with a deep dive into a long marriage with its ups and downs. Liane Moriarty does a fantastic job!

First, the dialogue is hilarious. I was constantly laughing throughout this mystery as the husband and wife related to each other and to their children. The sibling banter was also excellent!

Second, the character development was great. I thought that the Delaneys were well developed and fleshed out. I was rooting for all of them. There was one character that needed a bit more depth to understand their motivations. But, all in all, I loved the Delaney family and their foibles. I wouldn't mind if Liane Moriarty revisited them sometime down the road.

Lastly, the plot was interesting and propulsive. I happily kept turning the pages. I really wanted to know what happened to Joy Delaney. The mystery was quite enjoyable as I tried to put the pieces together. I thought the ending was satisfying too. This is a great addition to the Liane Moriarty cannon and one of the most enjoyable books I've read in awhile.

My Rating: I loved it!

4.) The Penderwicks in Spring by Jeanne Birdsall

This is the 4th installment in the Penderwick series. This one takes a significant time jump. Five years. The Penderwick girls are significantly older. That took a bit of getting used to. Rosalind is in college, Jane and Skye are in high school, and Batty is in 5th grade. There are new family members and life has progressed on Gardam Street.

From Goodreads:

Springtime is finally arriving on Gardam Street, and there are surprises in store for each member of the family. Some surprises are just wonderful, like neighbor Nick Geiger coming home from war. And some are ridiculous, like Batty's new dog-walking business. Batty is saving up her dog-walking money for an extra-special surprise for her family, which she plans to present on her upcoming birthday. But when some unwelcome surprises make themselves known, the best-laid plans fall apart.

This is my favorite...so far...in the series. As the Penderwick children have matured so have their stories. I was surprised by the depth of emotion and poignancy of this fourth novel. I silently sobbed while reading this book. It's been a long time since I have done that. I also stayed up late finishing it. This is middle grade! It is excellent! I started reading these for my daughter and ended up reading them for me.

This book in the series was particularly compelling and heartfelt. Jeanne Birdsall masterfully addresses hard topics like grief, childhood depression, guilt, and even war in a way that is authentic and age appropriate. Her writing is beautiful and moving. Her characters are beloved. Her novels are wonderful, engaging, and endearing. I want to buy this whole series in hardback so that the Penderwicks can live on forever on my bookshelves.

I love the Penderwicks and don't want to let go of them. (There is still one more book.) I particularly love that as the siblings age in the books so do their storylines but always in a gentle way. Even the side characters grow and mature and come and go throughout the novels. Some are highlighted in a novel or two and then others are highlighted but they all continue to weave in and out of all of the storylines and books in the Penderwick universe. In this particular novel my favorite was Nick. He is awesome. To see him grow from bossy sporty neighborhood boy into a loving big brother-type and a soldier no less was a beautiful character arc. It was so well done.

This is a wonderful endearing book/series about growing up, familial changes, sorrow and grief, finding joy, families, and friendship. I laughed and cried and loved every minute.

My Rating: Extraordinary.

5.) Going There by Katie Couric

I had high hopes for this memoir but it was a mixed bag for me. While highly readable and interesting; Katie Couric grated on my nerves. No one thinks more highly of Katie Couric than...well...Katie Couric.

From Goodreads:

Heartbreaking, hilarious, and brutally honest, Going There is the deeply personal life story of a girl next door turned household name.

I have always been fascinated by TV journalism. I grew up watching Katie Couric on The Today Show. The best parts of this book were all of the behind-the-scenes look at broadcast journalism...particularly The Today Show, CBS Evening News, and 60 Minutes. I loved all of that.

As for the rest of the book...meh. Yes, she spills the tea. Yes, she is gossipy. Yes, she is TMI. If that is what you are looking for, you will enjoy this memoir. Despite being highly annoyed by her personality, I was a captive audience, even while cringing as I read. The writing is fast-paced and I was along for the ride.

It was interesting to reflect on the historical moments and news stories of the past and read her first hand account. Couric also gives readers an in depth look at newsroom politics and the sexism and misogyny she encountered along with other professional challenges. She is/was a cutthroat player in her highly competitive career... as women needed to be. She admits to many of her mistakes and failures. She was often none too kind to many of her female colleagues. I was disappointed by her lack of mentorship to other women coming up in her field.

I also think that Couric was unfiltered in this book to her detriment. There were too many inappropriate disclosures. Disclose the men and their inappropriate conduct. I have no qualms with that. Shout it from the roof tops. But I hated that she consistently insulted her colleagues and others in her sphere with digs at their physical appearances and other physical aspects. Was that necessary? Who cares who had bad breath or whose hair looked like a squirrel's tail. Couric came across as shallow and mean. There were too many moments of self-absorption and privilege. Her image has dwindled in my eyes. America's sweetheart she is not. She admits that herself. Katie Couric has burned a lot of bridges with this memoir. I hope it was worth it. While I found her rise to fame and career interesting; I found Katie Couric to be pretentious and unlikeable.

My Rating: Okay.

6.) Wintering by Katherine May

This book wasn't what I thought it was going to be. I thought it was going to a hygge type book. A how to feel cozy and cheery in the winter. Literally and figuratively. It turned out to be quite different. What the book actually addresses is more of the inevitable winters of the soul. This is book of essays. It's a short and interesting read. You could sit down and read it straight through but I would recommend reading an essay (chapter) a day.

From Goodreads:

A personal narrative shot through with lessons from literature, mythology, and the natural world, Katherine May’s story offers instruction on the transformative power of rest and retreat.

In the book the author discusses how life is made up of seasons. Winters are inevitable. She says that we need to learn to see the beauty in the slow down of life. We need to stop fighting our winters and accept and embrace them. Learn what they are asking of us: to retreat, slow down, heal, grieve, seek comfort, transform, and change.

Quite a few of her essays talk about how nature embraces winter as a season of transformation. May talks about her own health and mental health struggles. She questions how others cope with their own wintering, seasonal and personal. Katherine May's writing is beautiful and lyrical while still asking the reader to be engaged and thoughtful. 

Her definition of winter is a disruption to everyday life. She says that, "We must learn to invite the winter in. We may never choose winter, but we can choose how."

Everyone winters at one time or another; some winter over and over again. Wintering is a season in the cold. It is a fallow period in life when you're cut off from the world, feeling rejected, sidelined, blocked from progress, or cast into the role of an outsider.

There are gaps in the mesh of the everyday world, and sometimes they open up and you fall through them into somewhere else. Somewhere else runs at a different pace to the here and now, where everyone else carries on.

Having spent the last couple of years in my own personal winter I found her words soothing. An exhalation. Wintering CAN be a time of healing and renewal. 

May says:

In our relentlessly busy contemporary world, we are forever trying to defer the onset of winter...An occasional sharp wintering would do us good...We must stop trying to ignore them or dispose of them. They are real and are asking something of us.

Many of her essays can be read both about how to "winter" personally and also how to appreciate the winter season of the year.

Once we stop wishing it were summer, winter can be a glorious season in which the world takes on a sparse beauty and even the pavements sparkle. It's a time for reflection and recuperation, for slow replenishment, for putting your house in order. Doing those deeply unfashionable things--slowing down, letting your spare time expand, getting enough sleep, resting--is a radical act now, but it is essential.

Some of her essays resonated with me more than others but I did get a fresh perspective on wintering... seasonal and personal...and I am grateful.

My Rating: Good.

7.) The Penderwicks at Last by Jeanne Birdsall

This is the last book in the Penderwick family series. The Penderwick saga has been such a delightful series. I am sad to see them go. It is fantastic middle grade literature.

From Goodreads:

Nine years, five older siblings, a few beloved dogs, and an endless array of adventures--these are the things that have shaped Lydia's journey since readers first met her in The Penderwicks in Spring. Now it's summertime, and eleven-year-old Lydia is dancing at the bus stop, waiting for big sister Batty to get home from college. This is a very important dance and a very important wait because the two youngest sisters are about to arrive home to find out that the Penderwicks will all be returning to Arundel this summer, the place where it all began. And better still is the occasion: a good old-fashioned, homemade-by-Penderwicks wedding.

This time the narrator is the youngest Penderwick, Lydia. The author always keeps the narrator the age of a typical middle grade reader. The other characters age and play a part in each book but the narrator is always the 11-12 year old Penderwick. I enjoyed viewing the family from Lydia's perspective and while this was not the best or strongest book in the series; I still enjoyed it. 

The family storyline wrapped up in a satisfying way. Were there a few plotlines that I wished ended differently? Sure. Did a lot of what I was waiting for happen off the page? Yes, and that was frustrating. This book is a fairly controversial finale to the series. Many readers were left unhappy and frustrated. I definitely see their point but, all in all, I was okay with the ending. I still loved the series and the characters. A weak final book didn't ruin the series for me. The charm, beloved characters, and nostalgia were still there. We also come full circle as the setting for the final book ends as the series began at Arendel which seemed fitting. This series holds a special place in my heart along with the entire Penderwick family, friends, pets, and neighbors.

My Rating: Good.

8.) The Mountains Sing by Nguyen Phan Que Mai

This was my book club's pick for January 2022. This is definitely a book that I would not have picked up on my own. It sounded HEAVY and it was. It is a historical fiction multi-generational family saga. The setting is Vietnam. The timeline alternates between the Vietnam war and the Communist government's rise to power in the North in the 1940s. The Tran family's story is told through the dual narratives of a young girl and her grandmother. Each timeline was devastating to read.

From Goodreads:

The Mountains Sing tells an enveloping, multigenerational tale of the Tran family, set against the backdrop of the Viet Nam War. Tran Dieu Lan, who was born in 1920, was forced to flee her family farm with her six children during the Land Reform as the Communist government rose in the North. Years later in Hà Noi, her young granddaughter, Hương, comes of age as her parents and uncles head off down the Ho Chí Minh Trail to fight in a conflict that will tear not just her beloved country but her family apart.

The writing is lovely and lyrical despite the heartbreaking subject matter. This is a brutal story of the survival and history of the Vietnamese people. We follow a family through the harrowing ravages of war and famine in two different turbulent time periods and its ripple effect on the Tran family.

The Mountains Sing is a poignant tale of perseverance and especially the resilience of women. This novel reminds us of the importance of telling our stories; particularly the stories of women. Readers are given an interesting glimpse into the history of Vietnam. I haven't ever read any historical fiction about the Vietnam War from any other viewpoint than that of the Americans. This glimpse was eye-opening. I came away with a new appreciation for the courage and strength of the Vietnamese people and a renewed appreciation for humanity in general. The ability of the human spirit to overcome incredible suffering, adversity, and hardship leaves me in awe.

My Rating: Memorable.

9.) Will by Will Smith

Sometimes I really enjoy a celebrity memoir. I like Will Smith so I was excited to read his book. It has gotten a lot of buzz for various reasons so I was particularly curious about all of that and I wanted to hear more about his unconventional relationship with Jada. I've recently read a lot of heavy books with depressing subject matter so I was really looking forward to having a good laugh and I did!

From Goodreads:

One of the most dynamic and globally recognized entertainment forces of our time opens up fully about his life, in a brave and inspiring book that traces his learning curve to a place where outer success, inner happiness, and human connection are aligned. Along the way, Will tells the story in full of one of the most amazing rides through the worlds of music and film that anyone has ever had.

I listened to this on audiobook and it was perfection. Will Smith narrates it and he is a fantastic storyteller! He included songs, raps, music samples, and audio clips from TV shows and movies, which were interspersed throughout his stories. It was great! His celebrity (and family and friends) impressions were extra enjoyable. He kept me laughing. It was a fun listening experience.

The downside to celebrity memoirs is that usually by the end of the book I can't stand the celebrity I am reading about. Their humble (and not so humble) brags, name dropping, and all of the million and one ways that they think they are so fabulous. It gets old fast. Is Will Smith braggy and self-aggrandizing? Yep, but he acknowledges it and somehow he does it in a way that didn't make me hate him. Roll my eyes a few times...yes. But I think the fact that he laughs at himself, makes fun of himself, and doesn't take himself too seriously (at least not all of the time) helped.

I was pulled right into his story of growing up in West Philly. His family and early life were surprisingly interesting. As was his whole launch into the world of rap and hip hop. I thought this would be a part of the book that I would skim over but it actually turned out to be one of the most interesting parts of his story. Who knew?!

Will Smith is a larger than life *character*. Sometimes it was hard to tell the difference between Will Smith the character and Will Smith the *real* person. There were times that I thought he was a bit too performative. But he is funny and charismatic and he can also be quite vulnerable and contemplative. It was an interesting mix. I appreciated him sharing his struggles to be a better person, husband, father, and friend and to learn from his mistakes.

The book is long but propulsive. I enjoyed it immensely and have already recommended it to my husband who is reading and enjoying it as well. Celebrity memoirs are either a hit or miss for me and this one was definitely a hit.

My Rating: Thoroughly Enjoyable.

**EDIT TO ADD**: Will Smith's violence at the Oscars...Repugnant. I have ZER0 respect for                                                     someone who responds with violence. That was sickening.

10.) The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson

This was my book club's pick for March 2022. YA Fantasy is not my genre so I knew that this selection would be iffy for me and I was right. I didn't hate it but it wasn't the book for me. Despite being YA this book reads more like middle grade. It is a whodunit mystery set in a kind of steam punk alternate universe/history where there is a unique magical system. People called Rithmatists use chalk circles, lines, and drawings to keep out dangerous beings called chalklings. The Rithmatists fight evil by using chalk to create magic wards and creatures that can be used for battles and dueling. 

From Goodreads:

More than anything, Joel wants to be a Rithmatist. Rithmatists have the power to infuse life into two-dimensional figures known as Chalklings. Rithmatists are humanity’s only defense against the Wild Chalklings. Having nearly overrun the territory of Nebrask, the Wild Chalklings now threaten all of the American Isles. As the son of a lowly chalkmaker at Armedius Academy, Joel can only watch as Rithmatist students learn the magical art that he would do anything to practice. Then students start disappearing—kidnapped from their rooms at night, leaving trails of blood. Assigned to help the professor who is investigating the crimes, Joel and his friend Melody find themselves on the trail of an unexpected discovery—one that will change Rithmatics—and their world—forever. 

The main character is sixteen year old Joel who isn't a Rithmatist but has a lot of Rithmatist knowledge and would like to be one. Unfortunately he wasn't selected when he was eight years old and has missed his chance. Joel uses his knowledge to help solve crimes that are happening in this world. 

I liked the world and the magic system. It's no Harry Potter but it was still an interesting world with both magical and non-magical people that coexist. Rithmatists are an elite group who are magically chosen and then trained to protect the world. I would have liked the author to tell us more about the world and its history and about the Rithmatist selection process. The writing is fairly simplistic and it could have used a bit more complexity. The prose is sparse and so is the character development. The author spent more time describing the chalk circles, lines, and defenses rather than developing the characters. Joel acts a bit younger than what I feel a 16 year old would act like and so the plausibility of him helping to solve crimes... and even being asked to help solve crimes... didn't feel believable.

This is my first Brandon Sanderson novel. I've heard such great things about his books so I was somewhat disappointed. Again, I am not the intended audience but I think that my 12 year old would like it.

My Rating: Okay.

Valentine's Day 2022

 

This should surprise no one but we made Valentine's Day last a whole week. This year we sent off three Valentine care packages. One to Kameron, one to Tyler's mom (her first Valentine's Day without Joel), and one to my father. All three of them were excited to get them in the mail and were very appreciative.

Red lunches made a return appearance for all of the Johnsons still living at home. 

It was very weird not to be at the elementary school helping with Valentine's Day parties. Every year I was always running back and forth between classrooms like a crazy person. I have to admit that I got a little teary thinking that those days are over. I guess Tyler and I need to start going to lunch or something on Valentine's Day since we do our romantic celebration the week before on his birthday. 

Kameron called us and also sent us his "love notes" for our family dinner that was that weekend. They were so incredibly sweet and thoughtful. Reading them literally made my day! Tyler and I exchanged boxes of Mrs. Sees Chocolates, cards, and I got flowers, and he requested this:

An electronic card shuffler. 

Literally no gift has EVER made this man happier! He has shuffled every deck of cards in the house and then some. Apparently our shuffling skills on family game nights are "painful to watch." LOL. He was over the darn moon with this $20 gift. He even enthusiastically demonstrated its magic to Kameron multiple times via video chat. Too funny! It really is the simple pleasures in life!!

Bryn's not-so-secret admirer paid her another visit and left her all kinds of Valentine surprises on our doorstep including gifts for Ailey. Ha ha! I guess if you want to win the heart of a girl you had better get her big sister on board!! This kid is so sweet and so cute but he is quite a bit older than our Brynnie so not sure how dating would ever work out; but he sure is thoughtful! Yes, Bryn is that much taller than Ailey now!! Kameron is going to freak when he sees Bryn.

Later that weekend we had our family Valentine Dinner. Hunter wasn't able to come so we got to celebrate with our three girls. We made our traditional homemade pizzas and shared our "love notes."

The love notes were so sweet and had us all bawling! The ones from Kamers were ESPECIALLY good this year! We miss our Elder Johnson!!!

I ate steak and kale because...you know... pizza.

Then it was play time! Ha ha!

We are all (Reilly, Ailey, Bryn, and me) fans of the Instagram and TikTok ASMR Playroom account. Don't ask me why but watching someone play with various toys that have ASMR properties is so soothing to all of us...except for Tyler. He is one of those people who has no reaction to any kind of ASMR. It doesn't affect him at all and so he doesn't get it. Anyway...Reilly bought one of the toys featured on ASMR playroom, the cauldron, and brought it over. The girls were hilarious *playing* with it and mixing up their bubbling potions and slime! Bryn ultimately was gifted with the cauldron at the end of the night.

We did a Johnson Tries with a bunch of crazy flavored pickles that Reilly ordered online. They were totally gruesome. The flavors were: Blue Raspberry, Bubble Gum, Sour Cherry, Peach, and Cotton Candy. 

Apparently some people love these pickles. We, however, are NOT those people. We agreed that sour cherry and blue raspberry were the best...and by the best...that means we didn't immediately spit them out or gag. Peach was an immediate spit out. Bubble gum and cotton candy were immediate spit outs followed by some serious gagging. In the game of Johnson Tries you win some and you lose some! I get the shivers just thinking about those pickles! 

This made me LAUGH! Especially that blue back rub heart! I don't think I've had a true back rub since Tyler and I were dating. His claim to fame was once giving me a back rub for two hours while we watched a movie! I'm pretty sure that was what convinced me to marry him! Sadly, I think that was the last *real* back rub I ever got!! ;) 

Ha ha!! 

Happy Valentine's Day!! 

XOXOXOXO

Tyler's Birthday

Tyler's return to the office earlier than expected put the kibosh on some of his birthday plans. Tyler and I were going to go away for a few days and that didn't happen due to work and deadlines and things like that but I guess that is okay. He is so much happier being back at work.

The day of his birthday, Reilly surprised him with balloons and a box of French treats from Mi Flavor. He loved it! She got him some fun birthday gifts while she and Hunter were in Montana too. The girls and I had a mini birthday cake and some surprises for him also.

Tyler's birthday was on a Thursday so it was vendor night and one that I, unfortunately, needed to be at. Ailey had to work so Bryn came with us to Coeur d' Alene. I did my booth refresh and then we all video chatted with Kameron in the parking lot. It's always fun to get extra time with Kameron on birthdays and holidays. Tyler also wanted Arby's for dinner. Okaayy... so that's what we ate. It was Bryn's first time eating at Arby's. LOL. We got beef and cheddars and curly fries like we were back in college. We also got Jamocha shakes. What happened to those? They used to be good and now...they aren't. They were super bland. We ended up throwing them away...even Bryn. Tyler had a great day of phone calls, texts, and birthday surprises. He was a happy man!

That weekend Tyler and I went out for a fancy birthday dinner. He picked Churchills and we had a snazzy night on the town. Churchills is probably Spokane's nicest restaurant. Dinner was out of this world! We ate escargot...melt in your mouth steaks...asparagus with hollandaise sauce...and crème brule and butterscotch bread pudding for dessert. It was an unforgettable night!!

The next day we went out to celebrate with the kids. Tyler wanted Italian this time so we went to Italian Kitchen. It was really good and we had a fun night with the kids! We have memories of eating there with my Uncle Mike and his family and also with my mom. That made it extra special! We haven't been there in years.

After dinner we walked around downtown and over to Riverfront Park. It was fun to see all of the updates. The night was super cold but also incredibly beautiful! We went to the Pavilion to look at the lights and then over to the Davenport Grand for a bit.

After that it was back home for cake and presents. Tyler requested a Tuxedo cake with raspberry filling from one of our favorite bakeries. It was delicious. He also requested that Ailey don the chicken suit! She had just gotten the costume the day before. His wish was granted and "Chuck" made an appearance. LOL.

Happy 51st Tyler!! We love you like crazy!!