Name:Johanna Country:United States State:Minnesota Metro:St. Paul Gender:Female
Interests:My husband, Kyle; cooking/baking, staying in touch with my far-flung friends, photography, scrapbooking and most of all - loving and serving Jesus...making Him known in every way Expertise:Preparing delicious food, being honest, laughing Occupation:homemaker, chiropractic assist Industry:Ministry, Chiropractic
1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before? gave birth
2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I accomplished about half of my 2009 goals: got through pregnancy and birth with grace and panache, I'm working on being an awesome mom, I've found new jobs that allow me to be home and yet contribute to our income, my hair is it's BORING natural color right now and I read 25 books.
What I didn't reach: time with God every day :(, adding 2 people to my Silpada network, going on a cruise, finishing our wedding album (!), being consistent wearing Whitestrips, and reaching my pre-pregnancy weight by December.
And yes, I'm making goals for 2010.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? yep - about 10 friends in addition to myself.
4. Did anyone close to you die? both of my Grandmas, one month apart. That was really hard.
5. What countries did you visit? no countries - just a couple states.
6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009? drive/determination to accomplish things before I waste time.
7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Jack's birthday - July 17. The day I became a mother. 8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? giving birth without drugs to a healthy baby boy
9. What was your biggest failure? not spending daily time with my dear Lord Jesus
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?only very basic colds/sore throats and sleep deprivation.
11. What was the best thing you bought? my Ergo baby carrier or tickets for Lindsey to go to WA with us...it's a close tie.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration? my husband. He has been INCREDIBLE supporting me through pregnancy, birth and parenting together. He truly is my hero.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? the media.
14. Where did most of your money go? maternity clothes, Jack's birth
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Jackson arriving, going to Washington for vacation
16. What song will always remind you of 2009? "Fireflies" by Owl City.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you: happier or sadder? happier. I am so unbelievably blessed.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of? reading, writing and praying.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of? whining, frivolity, and worrying.
20. How will you spend Christmas? Christmas Eve with both our familes, Christmas morning with Kyle's family, Christmas dinner with my family hosted at our house.
21. How will you spend New Years? I am not sure...probably at home, since the baby is a little too young to drag to the midnight service at church. :) It would be fun to throw an epic party, but I'm not sure who would come.
22. What was your favorite TV program? can I have more than one? Southland (got canceled - foo.), The Office, Glee and Monk.
23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year? nope.
24. What was the best book you read? Ina May's Guide to Childbirth - it helped prepare me for labor.
25. What was your greatest musical discovery? Ingrid Michaelson
26. What did you want and got? a medication free, peaceful and joyful birth experience.
27. What was your favorite film of this year? another tie: Away We Go (SO FUNNY.) and Gran Torino (I think it came out last year, but I saw it this year.)
28. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? turned 27 - Kyle surprised me with a deluxe pedicure, a viewing of "Away We Go" at the Uptown Theatre, dinner at Brits Pub and a full house of friends and family when we got home for cake and ice cream.
29. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? seeing God bless some dear friends with conception.
30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009? ugh. Maternity clothes are frustrating unless you have heaps of money to spend on them. I think the word of the year is: camouflage. Not the print, the action.
31. What kept you sane? my husband and talks with my girlfriends
32. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? The Pioneer Woman - Ree Drummond (not an official "celebrity" but I want to be her when I grow up.)
33. What political issue stirred you the most?idiot spending by the most ridiculous collection of yayhoos in Congress in recent history.
34. Who did you miss?my Grandma Alice.
35. Who was the best new person you met? Jackson! He's a wonderful little boy.
36. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009: Parenthood is both satisfying and terrifying all at once. You don't need as much sleep as you think you do. A svelte body is overrated. Spandex is evil. God is continually good.
these are SERIOUSLY amazing. A new addition to the traditional cookie plates we share with friends and neighbors on Christmas Eve. Who knew that chocolate and gingersnapish-ness were so fabulous together? Make these. You will be very glad. And so will anyone with whom you share them. They might even give you a hug. Or a kiss if they're related to you. Really!
I'll post more photos of our decorated house, December events and cookie recipes soon. Happy Christmas-time!
it's been an amazing year since our last Thanksgiving Day.
last year I was flying home from Georgia on Thanksgiving, after being there for Nate's graduation from Army boot camp. That morning I nearly passed out from nausea in the bathroom before leaving for the airport - I was only about a month into my pregnancy and Jack was making his presence KNOWN. funny what you remember.
I flew home and we had Thanksgiving dinner with Kyle's family and our friend Cory at our house. It was our first "holiday" to share in our new home. I think I took a long nap on the couch that afternoon - I was wiped out from traveling and making a feast.
this year Jack is with us - his beautiful, chubby self in all his happy glory. We're hosting again, but this year my family (missing Nate) will join us too. Thirteen people around the table. Thirteen reasons I'm so glad we live in Minnesota and can readily celebrate with our loved ones.
it seems cliche' to do a "thankful" post on Thanksgiving....but that's what this day is for, right? To remind us of the infinite number of blessings we have, even if money is tight and life is "hard"? So today I'm giving thanks to the Creator and my Savior Lord Jesus.
for salvation from my sin and eternal anguish and pain
for the future grace of Heaven...eternity with my All-Sufficient Savior
for this beautiful life with it's trials, suffering, joys and triumphs
for my family ~ my amazing husband, Kyle and our precious son, Jackson
for my parents and brothers, my in-laws and extended family
for dear friends that point me to Jesus and love me through my unlovely moments
for a lovely home that provides shelter and comfort and the opportunity to be hospitable
for our hot tub.
for two working vehicles
for delicious food and fabulous coffee
for sunshine and rain, snow and blue skies
this list is almost embarrassingly opulent when I think of how some of these basic needs are not common in the majority of the world. but nevertheless, I AM truly grateful for them and realize that they are ALL gifts from God that could be taken away in a moment.
Every blessing You pour out I'll turn back to praise. When the darkness closes in, Lord, still I will say: Blessed be the name of the Lord! Blessed be Your name, Jesus!
We are His portion and He is our prize, Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes, If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking. So Heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss, And my heart turns violently inside of my chest, I don’t have time to maintain these regrets, When I think about, the way He loves us, Whoa! how He loves us, Whoa! how He loves us. He loves us.
Happy Thanksgiving! May the joy of the Lord be yours in abundance today.
last night I finally got around to watching the movie "Up". Just as I figured; I loved it.
For those that might not know, or merely for my own recap - it's a story about Carl Fredrickson, a quiet old man whose soul mate and love, Ellie, passed away before he could take her on the adventure they had planned for a lifetime - a trip to Paradise Falls in South America. Ellie's dream was to put their house next to the falls and live out their adventure to the end of their days.
Through a series of fanciful events, he makes good on his promise to Ellie and gets to Paradise Falls. Albeit with a tagalong, little Wilderness Explorer Russell. Russell draws out the old man and shares his own hurts with Carl. They develop a friendship as they make the trek.
They are faced with some challenges and though Carl successfully gets the house on the ground overlooking Paradise Falls per Ellie's wish, he has lost Russell's trust. Ellie made a scrapbook that Carl rediscovers in the closet as he tries to decide what to do. The last time he saw it was years ago, when the pages following the page on which she wrote "Stuff I Will Do When I Get There" (i.e: Paradise Falls) were blank.
He turns the page and finds that Ellie had filled the pages with pictures of their life together. Her "Paradise Falls" was living life with Carl. Her adventurous streak was clearly satisfied in their daily adventures together. At the end of the book, she wrote Carl a note that said, "Thanks for the adventure! Now go have one of your own." This inspires him to carry on, rescue Russell and his favorite bird from the evil villain, and to live life to the fullest from that point onward.
It made me think of the phrase "the journey IS the reward". Everyday life can be full and beautiful as we live it out with intention and joy. Lately I've been a little frustrated at how it's a little more difficult to plan things and be spontaneous now that Mr. Jackson is part of our lives. But the message of "Up" reminded me that this life - the seeming mundane tasks of cooking, cleaning and caring for my family's needs, the moments we have together, the laughter and the tears, the joy and the sorrow...THIS LIFE is the great adventure God has for me now.
And by golly, I will live it.
I will make dinner a candlelight affair. I will make breakfast a sumptuous feast, even if its oatmeal and orange juice. I will plan and be intentional about things that are important - dates with my husband, time to relax, catching up with friends, playing with my little boy. I will buy good coffee and make delicious scones. I will not stress about the scale not showing me the numbers I want to see. I will hug my baby and kiss my husband. Life is hard, but life is good.
And when my heart is weighed down by the things of this hard world, I will look UP and have my spirit buoyed by a thousand hundred promises of God's grace and an eternity with Him, like so many colorful balloons. I will look forward to seeing my Savior's face and thanking Him for the life He gave me. I want to be able to say I didn't waste it and that I lived bravely.
I look forward to Heaven - the REAL Paradise Falls.
{my latest contribution to the world of journalism}
Someone once said you don’t realize what you have until it’s gone. Never has that been truer than for 20 year old Private First Class Nate Henderson and his family, formerly of Cambridge. Until a year ago, being home for Thanksgiving and enjoying family, food, and football was something he took for granted.
On the day before Thanksgiving last year, Henderson graduated from Army Basic Training at Fort Benning in Georgia. His parents, Keith and Meredith Henderson of Golden Valley, along with his sister Jo and brother Josh, proudly celebrated his accomplishment. After twelve weeks of MRE’s and Army food, Henderson devoured a homemade apple pie Jo brought with her from Minnesota. Though not at home, Thanksgiving 2008 was still about family, food and yes, football.
Twelve months later, Henderson is 6,500 miles away this Thanksgiving; thinking about his family, his fiancée Karla Gotzman of Maplewood, and that homemade apple pie. He is deployed with the 82nd Airborne 504th Parachute Regiment of the U.S. Army to Ramadi, Iraq; where his battalion patrols and protects an Iraqi government facility. Specializing as a .240 machine gunner, Henderson has been in Iraq with his platoon since mid-August.
PFC Henderson won’t be home again until his mid-deployment leave, which is expected to come in late December. It can’t come soon enough, though technology like Skype (a free on-line video phone service), email, and Facebook have made it possible to stay in close contact.
“I can’t imagine how difficult it would be to only write letters and not be able to see Nate,” said his father, Keith. Henderson’s mother Meredith said, “It has made all the difference in the world to be able to see him (on Skype) and know that he’s okay. Hearing what he’s doing and what it’s like over there has helped a lot.”
While local residents dig into their Thanksgiving feasts, Henderson will dig his heels into the sand of the Iraqi desert and dream about hot turkey and colder temperatures. The heat of Iraq has been harsh and surprising for a Minnesota boy.
“I miss the chilly fall air of Minnesota and seeing green hills and rivers – here it’s just tan flatness as far as you can see,” said Henderson, speaking via Skype from Iraq.
124,000 American troops are currently deployed to the “tan flatness” that is Iraq, according to the Brookings Institution’s Iraq Index. Many soldiers have been deployed more than once, missing countless holidays and family events. Henderson counts himself blessed with a reasonably short deployment of 12 months and is grateful for the chance to come home for a break near Christmas.
“When I’m home for R&R, I just want to spend time with my family and fiancée. I want to go downhill skiing, hit a Timberwolves game and a Minnesota Wild game, take Karla on a romantic dinner date and play some serious Xbox with my brother, Josh,” Henderson said.
Meredith is looking forward to celebrating Christmas with the whole family, even if Nate doesn’t make it home until several days afterward. “I plan to feed him whatever he wants.”
Many friends, family members, and even total strangers have sent Henderson boxes. Little slices of home, whether from photos, familiar flavors of a favorite cookie or a caring note go a long way toward making the separation bearable for a soldier.
“Missing my family and Karla has been the hardest thing to deal with during my deployment, but the care packages of candy, cookies and items from home have really helped,” Henderson said.
The family has dealt with the reality that Henderson is in a potentially dangerous place, though they are thankful that less is happening in Iraq now. “It’s been hard for me since there is the possibility he could not come home. We are really close and I miss hanging out and playing basketball,” said his brother Josh.
Reflecting on the past year and the challenges of deployment, Henderson sees how he took the comforts of home for granted. “Be grateful you live in America,” Henderson said. “It’s been eye opening for me to see more of the world.”
Henderson’s parents trust that he is well taken care of by a force larger than their love. “Our biggest comfort comes from knowing that Nate is in God’s hands. God is as mighty and powerful on that side of the world as He is here. We miss Nate, but we know he’s in better hands than ours: God’s.”
This Thanksgiving, the Henderson family realizes how much they have in each other. And they won’t take that for granted ever again.
{constructive criticism from my writer friends would be much appreciated - I submitted this without my "pre-editor" reviewing it...}
